The Demon Queen

The Sunrise Test (Part 3)

Although I was completely unscathed, I was immediately met with a 'shower', courtesy of Gyokko. I didn't care at all that he drenched me with water. I only laughed and continued to smile at Douma.

"Douma!" I called his name and ran over to him. I threw my arms around him and embraced him tightly. "Douma, you were right, I --" I squeezed him and let my head fall to his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around me. "I can ... after all this time ..." I started to sob.

"Sakura-chan ..." he said in a gentle tone as he held me against his body.

"I wish Muzan could see it, too."

Douma was silent for a moment. I could sense that it was difficult for him to hear that.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"It's fine," Douma said. He rubbed my back. "I understand. I'm not angry."

"I wish you could see it, too. You, Gyokko, Gyuutarou, Daki, Kokushibou, Akaza, Hantengu ... all of us ..."

Gyokko started to cry. "Sakura-sama! You're so generous!" He dumped a pot of water over me and Douma.

"Maybe someday we will," Douma said. "I'm not losing hope."

I rose my head from his shoulder and looked at him.

Douma smiled softly. "I've never seen you so happy," he said. "How can you cry, but still smile so big that I can see all of your teeth?"

I laughed.

I ended up deciding to sit back outside and see how much sunlight I could tolerate. I was able to last about an hour before I started getting a headache and feeling very tired. I went back inside and took a bath before going to sleep through the day.

When I woke up, Douma was sleeping beside me, fully clothed in his sleepwear. I knew that I would have to get back to the Castle soon, once the sun set. I shook Douma awake.

"Hey. I'm leaving now," I said.

He sleepily looked up at me. "Huh? Already?" He yawned.

"Yeah. I need to get back to the Castle so Muzan doesn't get suspicious."

"Oh. Muzan ..." Douma said. His eyes then popped open wide as he snapped into being alert. "Wait, wait, wait, don't tell him what happened this morning!"

"Of course I won't," I said.

"It's our secret. Yours, mine, and Gyokko's," Douma said. 'I'm serious. We need to keep it like that."

"I know."

"No telling Gyuutarou-kun."

"I can't tell him. He'd tell his sister who would tell Muzan."

"Yeah! Exactly!"

"Don't worry," I said and got up from the futon. "I promise, I won't tell anyone. Muzan can't know right now. I told you when we first started talking about this, I'm kind of scared he'd devour me or something if he finds out."

Douma looked at me with concerned eyes.

"It'll be fine ... don't worry," I said. I gave him a pat on the head. "I've got to go now. Bye."

The sun had just set, so I took off back to the Castle. I slipped into my private room in my wing to find that nothing was disturbed. I breathed a sigh of relief and massaged my forehead.

I began to start my day as if it was any other. I changed my clothes and brushed my hair, staring at myself in the mirror and trying to push my secret into the back of my mind. But no matter how much I tried, I couldn't keep myself from reminiscing on the feeling of the warm sunlight on my body.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Muzan! I thought.

"Sakura, are you awake?" came Muzan's voice.

At least he doesn't sound angry.

"Yeah. Come in," I answered him. I put down my brush and turned to face the door.

Muzan slid open the door. He stepped inside, fully dressed and groomed for the night. Standing outside the threshold, but not entering my room, was an exhausted-looking Kokushibou.

I smiled. "Muzan, how are you?"

His eyes scanned over my body. "You look rested," he said. "... and happy ..." he begrudgingly added after.

"You look a bit lonely," I said.

"I fell asleep without you by my side and woke up without cuddling you as you slept," he said and walked over to me.

"Oh. I'm sorry."

I really didn't know how to respond to him.

"And you look happy," he said with a scowl on his face.

I snickered. "Well, there was no snoring to wake me up."

Even though Douma did snore a little ...

"Oh, ha ha. Very funny." Muzan extended his arms towards me. "Hug me."

I gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "I really am sorry you felt lonely."

Muzan stuck his nose in the air. "Well ... I'm not lonely anymore," he said. He held me under his arm. "Stay by my side." He turned so we both faced towards the door, where Kokushibou still stood outside. "Kokushibou sat outside our bedroom all day and listened in case I would snore," he said to me. He then brought his attention to Kokushibou. "Kokushibou, did I snore?"

"No, Muzan-sama. You did not."

Muzan looked at me. "See?"

Of course he'd say no ... I thought

"There's no concern that I'll be snoring, so will you sleep with me as usual from now on?" he asked. He paused. "Or if I snore, just give me a shove and wake me up, but don't go away from me."

"That's fair," I said. I put my arm around his waist.

"Why didn't you just wake me up before, anyway?"

"I don't know. I didn't want to disturb your sleep. I wanted you to stay comfortable."

Muzan's face softened. He blushed a little. "Are you saying that you stayed uncomfortable and tired all day so I could sleep?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

Muzan sighed. "Don't ever think that my comfort matters more than yours," he said. "I'll stay awake and not sleep at all if it means you'll be rested."

I noticed Kokushibou slip out of sight and disappear down the corridor.

Good, I thought. He looks exhausted. He shouldn't be hanging around here.

"So, please don't leave me again," Muzan said. He nuzzled his nose in my hair. "You'll spend the night with me, won't you?" he asked. "We'll go out into the city."

"Yeah. I'd like that."

Muzan smiled.

The warmth of Muzan's body was different from that of the sun. I could be distracted enough to forget about it temporarily, at least until bedtime, when I would be tempted to sneak outside and feel the sun's rays once more.