Slow Burn - Kanao x Nezuko - GirlxGirl - KanaNezu - NezuKana

The Flowers

They exited the Butterfly Estate to the backyard where they had sat just last night, admiring the moon. The awning was protecting Nezuko quite well, and the bushes where Kanao wanted to pick flowers were shaded more than needed. The blooms came in all different colors, each tinged with their own shade, curved and bent uniquely. The artistry of the bushes was divine. 

"Hmm?" Nezuko tried to ask Kanao if she did this by pointing to the bushes and back to Kanao.

"I do, I tend these bushes quite often." Kanao confided. The purple shadows on her eyes danced as she caressed the blooms. 

Nezuko sat down on the grass beside Kanao, the wicker basket between them. Kanao offered Nezuko a pair of the green gloves she wore, but Nezuko shook her head. She admired the bushes with wide eyes, spotting hydrangeas, irises, roses, and peonies. 

"I would like to make some posies." Kanao spoke in her gentle, angelic voice while not taking her eyes off the flowers. "Small bunches of flowers. Lady Shinobu wants to have a nice dinner with some of the hashiras tomorrow, and I thought it might be a nice idea." 

Nezuko nodded. She watched Kanao's gentle hand movements and she gently picked only the most vibrant flowers. Nezuko looked back to her section and mimicked Kanao, only picking the ones she deemed prettiest. 

One flower was a light, baby-blue, and it reminded her of the blue on Lady Shinobu's butterfly clip. She picked it by the base very gently and put it in the wicker basket. Nezuko saw another beautiful flower, one rose that was so red it reminded her of her brother's hair. She placed it in the basket beside all the others. 

Then, she saw it; she couldn't tell the type of flower it was, but she didn't care. Its beauty was immeasurable. The small, rose-like bloom was purple, just as purple as Kanao's eyes, and it had a soft gradient identical to Kanao's. The flower's stem was the same green as that of Kanao's hairpin, and the little leaves curled delightfully. Nezuko carefully snipped it with her demon nails at the base, severing the smell the bloom gave off. She presented it to Kanao instead of putting it in the basket, and so she took it.

Kanao held it gently in her gloved fingertips for a moment, just staring down into the blossom. Nezuko watched her watch it. The air felt still. Kanao eventually blinked after quite some time and put the flower behind her ear. "Thank you, Nezuko. This one is beautiful." Kanao lifted her head and turned back to Nezuko with another one of those genuine smiles she recently met.

Fireworks went off in Nezuko's heart. She put a hand over her chest and felt like she was going to melt. Kanao was so sweet. Kanao was so pretty. 

Later on, Kanao and Nezuko arranged the flowers in little vases, and Aoi and the catterpillars helped them place them around the mansion. 

"Kanao! Nezuko! Hi!" Tanjiro came up behind them, seemingly all healed up. "I'm so glad you two got to hang out today. It looks amazing around here."

"MHM!" Nezuko cheered, one hand in the air. 

"Nezuko," Kanao said softly, "There's just a dash of dirt on your nose."

Nezuko nodded in thanks and brushed it off. Tanjiro admired the flowers in the room while Lady Shinobu came up from behind them with an expression of pure joy. 

"This looks amazing. Thank you so much, girls. I'm so excited for dinner tomorrow. Please, come to the table with me, I insist." Shinobu nodded to Tanjiro and Nezuko. 

"Oh, thank you Lady Kochou." Tanjiro smiled, "But it was all those two." 

"Still," Shinobu insisted, "Only a few Hashira will be attending dinner tomorrow night." 

"Really? Who?" Tanjiro wondered.

"Mr. Rengoku, Ms. Kanroji, and Mr. Tomioka." She smiled. 

"Wonderful! I'm excited. Especially because Mr. Rengoku and I are supposed to be going on a mission in the near future." Tanjiro nodded joyfully.

"I'm glad to hear that," Shinobu said, "Mr. Rengoku is such a kind person. I'm going back to my room for now, but thank you all." Shinobu almost walked away, but hesitated. "Thank you too, Nezuko."