Reminders

"Dokusatsu shite iki rareru yō ni 毒殺して生きられるように"

Muse's eyes fluttered closed; his body started to fall forwards. Raya quickly caught him in her arms. With amazement, his limbs were returning to normal. His skin slowly regains color.

Nezuko fell to her knees, falling unconscious. Zenitsu ran up to Inosuke, offering to help him up. With a grunt, Inosuke pushed him away. He got up himself holding his bleeding side.

Zenitsu could barely see past the fog. But it was slowly fading away.

"Where is Angel face and Kantaro?" He grunted, now walking towards where he had last seen them. Zenitsu let out a scream, now remembering Nezuko. Ditching Inosuke, he walked over to her and pulled the girl into his arms.

Inosuke walked over to them and Tanjirou, lying limp in the street. His form was sprawled all over them. (y/n)'s eyes had gone white with foam leaking from their mouth. Inosuke knelt, now tapping Tanjirou's cheek with his sword.

"Oi, wake up." At the touch, Tanjirou's form flinched. "I thought I said, wake up." He tapped his cheek again.

Slowly, their eyes fluttered shut. A voice rang out in their darkness.

Dear (y/n)... Wake up.

They didn't want to move. Slowly, they felt something wrap around their body, holding them close. A fire was spreading across their skin. A familiar heartbeat pounded against their chest. Their arms instinctively wrapped around him.

They sat up, taking whoever it was on them with them. With Tanjirou in their arms, his marking slowly spread across his skin and onto theirs. It burned like hot ash smearing across tender skin. They pressed their forehead against Tanjirou's. The objects constricting their movements pulled them against his chest.

Inosuke took a step back when he saw them slowly it up. "Get back!" Inosuke yelled, now joining Zenitsu's side. With horror, Zenitsu and Inosuke watched as Tanjirou grew another arm, wholly healed. Several large vine-like structures jutted from his back as a loud growl ripped from his throat.

Another voice echoed in the darkness. Kill the demon slayers for me.

Tanjirou stood, holding their body against him with the vines. Almost as if he was protecting them. His eyes opened, revealing that his eyes were red, his fire markings now more extensive than ever. They crawled down his arms and onto their skin.

Wincing, they bit back a cry of pain. A familiar heartbeat pounded against their chest.

"(Y/n)! Get away from him!" A male yelled, then the sound of someone slamming into a building. The heart rate pounded against their chest as the heat cooled while theirs warmed.

The fire spread across their skin, burning skin.

My little one... It would be best if you got him.

Could you do that? Are they capable of pulling him from this?

"... I'm sorry." The vines constricting them grew tighter. "I can't... I can't hit him." Someone else cried. They held on more intimate, not sure of what was happening. They opened their eyes to see Tanjirou jumping around, several vine-like things making them stick to him.

"Tanji-Kun..." They whispered, barely enough strength to last. The sun peeked through the city, washing everything in a golden light. Tanjirou landed growling like a demonic beast. "Forgive me."

(y/n) wiggled their hands out of the vine's grasp and clamped them onto the side of his face. His skin was cold in comparison. His eyes were ablaze with red. For a moment, his eyes flashed to normal before Inosuke and Zenitsu grabbed ahold of his arms.

"Nezuko! Use this!" For a moment, they heard her calling out for her brother. He let out a loud laugh of insanity. They were so close to him, almost as if they were becoming one with his body. Tanjirou let out a loud cry of pain as he knocked the others away.

There, their leftover fangs dug into his neck. A deep sea of hatred rested on their tongue. "I'm sorry... This is all I can do." The poison slowly filled their own body—more sounds of screaming echoed in their chest. Fire ripped throughout every vein and artery.

Every wave of desperation that a demon clung to. Each teardrop fell for just wanting to be recognized, the agony of losing someone they loved. The negative feelings filled them to the brim until they all cracked and overflowed.

Still, they kept going. They wouldn't let Tanjirou become a demon, even if it meant ingesting their father's blood. It was already in them, so what did it matter. With each gulp, they separated Tanjirou's from the putrid taste of their father. Some of them were glad he was dead... but would still live on in them.

Demon child! Think! You could be the most powerful creature alive!

There was another sound of glass cracking. "It's in him! What now!?" They tasted their blood mixed in with the others. Their body felt strange.

No... why? I want to live everyday life. Tanjirou's voice echoed somberly from the darkness. Everyday lives were one thing they could never have

Tanjirou jumped up.

As you wish, Tanji-Kun.

They pulled the rest of the blood from his own.

Demon child! How dare you!

He kept spilling nasty words to make Tanjirou stay. (y/n) wasn't going to allow it.

Wait... (y/n)?

They reached into the darkness and pulled him from it. It clung to his limbs, begging him to stay within the unknown. Even with the two's mental image, they pulled him into their embrace, safe from anything.

A hand latched onto the back of their uniform, pulling them away from him. The last of the blood dripped down their lips, filling their mouth. Without the strength to move, (y/n)'s body thudded dully to the ground. Nezuko ran up to him and caught Tanjirou in her arms. Now completely normal, tears began to fill her eyes.

"Tanjirou... (Y/n)..." She muttered.

A small smile traced their tired lips. This blood coursing through their veins raged like wildfire. White-hot pain surged through every nerve at the slightest movement. They didn't blame anyone here. They were trying to help.

"I'll take it... I'll take it all even if it means... I forget my own."