Victorian Era
Tanjiro POV
"Guards! Stand in line!" The commander shouted, fidgeting with his badges.
Everyone stood in a perfect line, rows of soldiers stood saluting.
"Today the Prince will be deciding which one of you will be his personal guard. You will risk your pathetic lives for our prince, no matter what!" He shouted, his hands flat against his sides and his posture straight as a pencil.
"Yes sir!" We all shouted.
Fanfares played as a red carpet rolled on the pebbled path. A gorgeous carriage with beautiful white and brown horses strolled in front of us. A young boy, about the same age as me, stepped out gracefully. He wore a beautifully decorated suit, complimenting his bright yellow hair.
"Make way, for prince Zenitsu of the Agatsuma Dynasty!" A man said reading, of a long white scroll.
We locked eyes. His were such a lovely shade of golden brown. I can feel my face burn up, it's probably this armor in the middle of summer. I watched him walk towards me, making the soldiers clear a path for him. He stopped in front of me and smiled.
"Tanjiro Kamado, son of the prestigious family up North, yes?" He asked.
"Y-yes Prince! I work in the soldier department for this kingdom. I will protect it with my life!" I declared, a little embarrassed at what I had just said. I could feel sweat dripping down my face, I was very nervous.
"Perfect. I will have one strong personal guard of the Kamado dynasty, and perhaps the duchess Nezuko, as my Queen." He smiled, putting his finger to his chin.
"Prince! Is Kamado your choice?" The commander asked.
"Yes, here is my payment. Thank you for this opportunity." He handed the commander a bag filled with gold and riches. The commander almost had his eyes pop out of his head from surprise.
"W-well then, Kamado, escort Prince Zenitsu back to his carriage!"
"Yes sir!" I marched beside him, not excessively like in stories but a more exaggerated walk.
We got to the carriage, and I took of my helmet when he practically melted into the seat.
"Ughhhhh! I'm so sorry you had to see me like that. Those big men are really scary!" he slumped down in his seat, crinkling his fancy clothes.
"Prince? Are you alright?" I asked, incredibly confused with this interaction.
"Can we pretend you didn't see me back there?" He sat back up and fixed his bangs.
"U-um, Okay?" I agreed, tilting my head a little to the right.
"Thank you. Off topic but, I need your help." The prince began, looking at me with his perfect brown eyes.
"Yes Prince?" I said sitting up straight, focused on his words.
"My plan is to marry your eldest sister, Nezuko." My heart sank a bit, probably because of Nezuko growing up too fast, but then rose back up again for the future of Nezuko and how happy she will be.
"We will be the rulers after we get married, you will be my personal bodyguard. This is only if everything goes according to plan, there are many other women on my list and your sister will have a lot of princes and dukes lined at her door as well. I need you to put in a good word so we can get married." He explained, getting up from his seat.
"Oh, Okay, but Prince?" I looked at him as he got closer.
"Yes?" He reached up above my head and opened a cabinet.
"What are you doing?" My face felt hot, and my heart was racing. My body tensed. I closed my eyes tight, peeking at him walking back.
"This is your reward if you participate." He opened a sack filled with a lot of gold and riches even I have never seen before.
I thought about how happy Nezuko would be when she found out a prince would marry her just like in her favorite stories. I nodded my head in agreement. The carriage halted to a stop in front of a giant castle. At the gates entrance was the Agatsuma flag, a sunflower with decorations around it. I stepped out the carriage first and stood by the door waiting for the prince to come out as well. He stepped out and I escorted him to his tower as he silently gave me directions.
We arrived at the tower; it was just us. The room was gigantic. It was very spacious, even the closet which had rows and rows of clothes of every category. The bed had many layers of frilly blankets and pillows galore, a small brown teddy bear sat against his pillows with a cardboard crown.
"Oh, that's Sir Flufferston. He's been with me through everything." He walked over to the bear and picked it up. He turned the bear around and unzipped the back. Inside was wads of cash.
"He's also my secret stash of cash in case I need to leave this sh- poop hole." He glanced at me before zipping it back up and flopped onto the bed.
"Hope you don't mind if I take these itchy clothes off." He said, before unbuttoning his jacket.
"Of course." I looked away, focusing on the decorations and pictures on the wall. There were pictures of scribbled out women. Each photo looked like the setting of a different date.
"I'm done." I turned around to see him changed into more comfortable pants and his frilly shirt open, exposing a little bit of his chest. I looked away for a bit to hide my face.
"Come sit with me, we need to start scheduling plans for courting." He pulled another chair up to his desk and sat down. I followed him sitting down as well.
"Tomorrow and all the way to June 13, on the 14 I have a scheduled tea party with you. It's required for every personal bodyguard." He said, scribbling his events on his calendar.
"She is free all the way to July, I will update you if she has plans. Other than that, I think tomorrow will be a good day for that." I added, pointing to the first day of July. He wrote some more on the calendar and the closed it.
He looked at me and smiled. "Thank you for helping me, my other personal bodyguards didn't even talk to me." He got up and turned off the lamp light at his desk.
"It's almost time for dinner, you will eat with the others in the dining room. I will be eating at the grand table with my family. Pretty big for only four people." He said, going to the bathroom to wash his hands.
"Okay, would you like me to meet you back here when we're finished?" I asked.
"Yeah, I can help you get your room ready, or you can sleep in here with me. We can make a fort!" He smiled while drying his hands.
I blushed at the thought but didn't respond in fear of him seeing my flustered face. I fixed myself and smiled back.
"I'll see you after dinner." He walked out of the room still smiling, and shut the door quietly behind him.
I washed my hands and went downstairs. Navigating the castle was like trying to go through a maze blind folded. The towers were all separated from the castle itself. Once I entered it, the ceiling was incredibly tall and there were guards lined at the entrance. I walked down the hall and followed the scent of food. I entered the kitchen and asked the chef where the dining room was. I followed his directions and sat down and ate my dinner at the table with the other staff.
Tonight's dinner was roasted ham with mashed potatoes, a side of salad and fruit, and a glass of wine. We ate in silence, the only sound we could hear was the clinking of silverware and chewing. Once I finished, I excused myself and cleaned the dishes for the servants. It was the least I could do. I went back outside and back up the tower to meet with the prince.
He wasn't there yet so I explored the room. I walked over to his other desk, it had bottles of flowery perfume tucked away in boxes. More photos of scribbled out women littered the surrounding frame of his mirror. I took one off trying to make out the face of the woman, but the black ink was caked on thoroughly. I stuck the picture back on and wandered to the closet.
I examined the bright and rich clothing, he seemed to have two sides: one comfy and one formal.
"You can take a pair of pajamas if you'd like." I turned around and saw the prince. He was standing at the closet door. He walked over next to me and picked out a pair of comfy clothes.
"These ones should suit you well." He held up a green and black checkered long shirt with short sleeves, next to it was some black soft shorts.
"Thank you, Prince!" I smiled and took the clothes.
"Call me Zenitsu. It's my name." He smiled and stepped out of the closet after lighting a candle.
"Get changed into some more comfortable clothes." He shut the closet door and I changed. I stepped back out, pleased with the comfortable clothes rather than that heavy armor suit.
"I think you should stay in here for tonight, just in case I feel unsafe. I can make a fort or..." He fluffed out his pillows pausing to look at me with a sly smile.
"A-A fort would do just fine." I put my armor on a stand and got some pillows from his closet. I made a temporary mattress out of them and added some blankets. Instead of the natural daylight filling the room, the dim light of the lit candles illuminated the dark room.
I went to bed, pulling the covers over me and clinging to a pillow. Tomorrow will surely be busy. I better get as much rest as I can, after all its ten at night.
I woke up at five.
The prince was still asleep. I didn't mean to wake up, but it's a habit now since in training we had to wake up bright and early. I didn't feel tired enough to go back to sleep. I quietly got up and checked on the prince. He was sleeping so calmly, I wanted to watch him forever. Wait what? Well, I mean, he is a prince, and princes are charming. Though, it is courting season, he's looking for a wife. Not me. His eyes fluttered open, and he smiled at me.
"What? Going to give me a kiss? I'm not exactly sleeping beauty right now. I haven't even done my makeup, have you seen the bags under my eyes?" He laughed and got up.
I blushed hard and rushed away to go put on my armor.
"Not even a good morning?" He stretched out his arms above his head.
"Good morning!" I took my armor suit and shut the closet door trying to avoid eye contact since my face was still a flustered mess.
By the time I got back out he was already changed in a very fancy suit, with of course, frilly sleeves and chest. A cute black cravat was tied around his neck, popping off of the bright yellow color.
"Let me get into character." He took a deep inhale in and breathed out slowly.
"Well, on we go." He tucked in a handkerchief square into his jacket pocket on his chest and opened the door.
We boarded the carriage and sat in awkward silence for most of the ride until he brought up a question I dreaded to hear.
"Why were you staring at me while I was sleeping?" He asked, he put his hand on his chin while his elbow rested on his knee. He leaned in and smirked.
I looked away and answered, "I was just curious, that's all."
"Curious of what?" he continued his question for longer than I was comfortable with.
"Of what you would look like while you were asleep." I muttered, blushing a bit at the sound of my own words.
"That's kinda creepy-" He stopped smirking and sat up straight.
"...But it was nice to wake up to your face." He said smiling.
I looked at him and blushed a little, smiling back.
The carriage halted to a stop. I slipped to the floor of the carriage. I looked up to Zenitsu and saw him blushing.
"You should get up. Don't want to be late for tea." He looked away as he said that.
I blushed and got up, opening the carriage door and standing next to the entrance. He got out and I escorted him to the gates of our estate.
Nezuko ran out in a frilly pink dress and a leather brown corset. "Tanjiro!!! I missed you so much!" She hugged me tightly and smiled.
"Since when did you become a personal guard for Prince Zenitsu?" She asked, still smiling.
"Oh! Excuse my improper manners, I am Duchess Nezuko Kamado, of the Kamado Estate, It is nice to meet you." She dipped into a curtsy.
"Hello." He nodded his head and she returned to standing.
"Let's go in, shall we?" Nezuko led the way into the estate. There was a lot of men lined up by the tea room door.
"Since you are royalty, I will allow you to go first if you would like too." She smiled as she entered the room. The men stared and blushed at her. She is known as the kingdom beauty.
Zenitsu followed in shortly and as did I. They sat down at the small white tea table with many sweets and delicious teas to choose from. I stood by the door blocking the entrance from the inpatient men. I locked the door inside and stood still just in case they were to try and come in.
"So, I suppose we should get to the proposal." He took a sip of his tea and clattered it against the saucer.
"Yes, if we do plan on getting married it will be a grand wedding, as well as the union of the village and the kingdom." She said, grabbing a macron.
"When and where should the wedding take place, I am open to any suggestions." Zenitsu said smiling and setting the saucer and teacup back onto the table.
"How about on the new bridge the guards built to connect the kingdom and the village? It will be the perfect symbol for union ship." Nezuko smiled and took a bite out of the cookie.
"Maybe a few months should be enough to plan and prepare the wedding. I'm sure the village and kingdom will lend a hand." He suggested while grabbing a finger sandwich.
"That should be enough time." She agreed, she put a napkin to her mouth, wiping off the crumbs.
"I better head off now, you have many more opportunities lined at your door." He got up after wiping the crumbs off his cheek, and smiled goodbye.
"Alright then! Thank you for coming over." She curtsied again and waved goodbye as he walked towards me.
The entire time they were talking about getting married I stood there watching them, feeling my heart cripple more and more every word they spoke. We walked out of the tearoom, and I turned around to look at an eager man entering the room. There will be many options for Nezuko, but she sounded so certain about their plans, not to mention the fact he is royalty.
"Thank you for coming with me today." He smiled at me.
"Well, it is my job." I looked away trying to hide my blushing face.
We got into the carriage. I held extra tight to my seat in case I fell again. He looked out the window watching the scenery pass by. He looked so dreamy, his eyes so bright and his smile so soft.
As soon as we got there the same halt followed. I clenched tightly on my seat, but my upper body went forward quickly. I stopped in front of his face. His face was inches from mine, I couldn't help but blush. He smirked and gave me a peck on my nose. I could feel my face burn up. I sat back, replaying everything that just happened. He giggled and opened the carriage door and left.
"I'll be in my room if you need me." He walked to gate and as it slowly opened.
Why would he do that? He is probably going to get married to Nezuko. Was he just toying with me or is he trying to tell me something? What if I get the wrong idea and make him upset, and we drift apart? I should ask for a friend to help me. Inosuke is probably not the best person to look for advice, but he is the only one available to me right now. I know exactly where he is too.
I quickly got out of the carriage to not keep the horseman waiting. As soon as I did, he left the castle to go to the stables. I walked towards the castle gates and entered. I assumed Zenitsu was already at the tower or in the castle. I headed for the training site where all the guards stay at. I ran towards my friend Inosuke who was training there as he always does. Whenever he isn't assigned protecting someone he is training at this site.
"Inosuke! I need your advice!"
I ran up to him. He was shirtless and had dirt on him, in his hands a wooden sword was battered and chipped.
"What? I'm kind of busy Monjiro." Even though we have been friends since training he still can't get my name right.
"I know...but this is really important!" I said, trying as hard as I could to stop focusing on the wooden dummy in front of him.
"Ugh, fine. Make it quick though I don't have all day." He dropped the sword and put his hand on his hip, facing me.
"So, um..." I wasn't sure if I should say it was the prince or if I should pretend it's someone else. I didn't even know where to start either.
"Just spit it out." He said annoyed, he kicked a pebble on the ground, watching it make dust.
"Me- I- uh, like someone." I fidgeted with my hands as I said it.
"Okay?-" He looked at me confused and annoyed. He was getting inpatient.
"But I don't think they like me back, or well, I'm confused. H- She kissed me on the nose, but she is looking to get married to another man." I was hesitant about telling Inosuke I liked men. I am not sure how he will react which scares me because he is my best friend.
"Well, if she kissed you then she probably likes you. Also, why the nose? She miss or something?" He picked up another pebble and threw it into the bushes, scaring some birds.
"By the way, I noticed you stuttered when you said she, is it not a she? I don't care what gender is." He asked, looking at me this time.
I looked at him for a while before answering. "Yeah...It's not a she." I looked away, afraid I would start crying.
"Hey, it's okay. Whoever you love is not up to me or anyone else, I will support you in every way possible, I'll be the best supporter ever! I can already see the trophies. I giggled, the tears and watery eyes went away.
"Anyways so who is it. Anyone I know?" He asked, picking up a dirty bird feather.
Oh, you know just the prince of this kingdom.
"No, no one you know." I responded quietly.
"Well, how long have you liked them?" He asked, putting the feather in his pocket after examining it.
"About a few days." He looked at me with wide eyes.
"A few days?! Wow this must be one heck of a guy." He said surprised.
"He is... Oh- I mean-" I caught myself before I said any more embarrassing things.
"You should go get him. Even if he turns you down at least you won't have this overwhelming stress and guilt hanging over your head." Surprisingly he said some things I wanted to hear without knowing.
"Yeah bu-" He put a finger up to my face.
"Ah ah ah ah. Go now, I need to get back to training anyways." He picked up the sword and struck the wooden dummy.
I started running towards the tower before I left, I told Inosuke goodbye. I ran all the way through the courts and past the castle before entering the tower. As soon as I did, I ran up the stairs which was really tiring. I slammed open the door to his room. He wasy laying on his bed with a book.
"Huh why did you-" He started to say.
"I need you!" I looked at him for a second to see his puzzled face before breathing heavily to catch my breath.
"What?" He asked, still confused about what was happening.
"Before you went through the gate, you said I'll be in my room if you need me. I need you Zenitsu." I looked at him, he was blushing. Is it a good sign? Was it from embarrassment or does he feel the same way?
"Zenitsu, I need you...Do you need me?" I asked, my eyes were getting watery.
He got off the bed and came up to me and smiled. "Tanjiro, from the minute I laid eyes on you, I knew you were the one I would truly love. Not your sister." He put his hand on my cheek and leaned in for a kiss.
"Wait, you don't want to marry my sister?" He stopped in his tracks and looked at me confused.
"Of course not. Unless it was arranged, even then I wouldn't want to marry her. It's only been a few days, but I know that I love you and I know I want to marry you." He said and he smiled. It made me blush even more. He continued to lean in and kissed me.
"Gonpachirooooo!" Inosuke ran all the way up the stairs and barged in.
"Your sister is here." He said while looking at us. Zenitsu's hand was holding my waist and his other on my cheek. We had separated in time but not enough to back away from each other.
"Monjiro? This was the 'someone' I don't know?" He crossed his arms over his chest.
"Ah- well, I didn't want you to make a big deal about it." Zenitsu kissed me on the forehead and I smiled.
"Anyways your sister is here and wants to speak with the prince." He uncrossed his arms.
I turned to Zenitsu and squished his face. "What do you mean Nezuko is coming over?"
"Relaf Tanjfo, I infited fer foo dicuff morf abouf fe proposaf. (Relax Tanjiro, I invited her to discuss more about the proposal.)" He said, mostly inaudibly.
"One problem, we just confessed each other's love for one another. You even said you wanted to marry me." I let go of his face and looked away.
"That was before you told me." He said, grabbing my hands.
"Well, what do we do now?" I asked.
"You should just tell her, if she's your sister I'm sure she'll understand." Inosuke said, he was sitting on the bed looking at the teddy bear.
"I forgot you were here." Zenitsu said.
"Inosuke get off the bed!" He ran down the stairs. I heard him stop suddenly and then keep going.
"Is Nezuko almost here?" I looked at the door, I heard light footsteps.
"Hello? Prince Zenitsu?" She knocked on the door a few times.
"Should I open it or you?" I whispered.
"I can." He walked over and opened the door.
"Hello!" She curtsied. She was wearing a pink dress a little lower than mid-length.
"I'm sorry to barge in but I didn't know where you wanted me to meet you." Zenitsu let her in and I was sitting on the bed. I didn't know where to go or what to do.
"Oh Tanjiro! Hello!" She waved at me and smiled.
I awkwardly waved back.
"So Nezuko, there has been a slight change in plans." He began.
"So your brother and I-"
"I love Zenitsu." I covered my mouth. I could feel my face turn a bright red. They both looked at me with a surprised expression, then Zenitsu's changed into a smirk.
"Basically." Zenitsu said turning to see Nezuko.
"Oh- I- I see." She was still a little shocked.
"Nezuko, I'm sorry. I never wanted to feel like this towards him, especially since you were going to marry him." I said.
"Ouch." Zenitsu flopped onto the bed. "That was mean."
"No Tanjiro it's not your fault, I wasn't attracted to him at all, I just wanted to upgrade the family more. Now I don't have to do that! Thank you, Tanjiro." She smiled and hugged me.
I hugged her back
"I should probably get going, I have many other men to meet with." She waved goodbye and left.
It soon became evening, and it was time for dinner. I wasn't that hungry I had too much on my mind. I decided to change into some more comfortable clothes. I took one of Zenitsu shirts and his shorts. They smelled just like him.
About an hour had passed, I was laying in his bed half asleep. He came into the room and got changed in his closet. He came back out in a long-sleeved puffy shirt and shorts. He walked over to me and kissed me on the forehead. He got under the covers and snuggled with me.
"Goodnight Tanjiro."
"Goodnight Zenitsu."
We both fell asleep in each other's embrace. I can't wait to see my future with him. I can already see happy memories and perhaps children running around the castle. I squeezed him tightly.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
A/N: Hello! Sorry this is incredibly late. I've kinda lost motivation so I may only do a few more stories before I finish this. I hope you enjoyed it though! Also sorry if the edning seemed rushed. I will be working on the next chapter soon. Until then hope this will be enough. Thank you for reading all the way through if you did! I hope you have a great day as always!
W/C: 4340