My Brightest Flame (Rengoku X Reader)

Chapter 41 - Kyokai

A/N: This chapter might be the shortest, sorry! I'm just trying to tie up any loose ends before we reach the end of the book c:

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Y/N hummed to herself within her cell, trying to keep her mind busy. She had been sleeping a lot, knowing that it helped her. But sometimes she just didn't feel like sleeping, so there she was, her back facing the ceiling as she thought of random things. That was the benefit of being stuck here, she could think of things and reflect on her decisions. There wasn't really anything else to do other than stare at the flaming torch anyway, so she hoped she had enough to keep her mind busy.

It didn't matter what she thought about, as she always ended up thinking back about Kyojuro. She wondered if he was okay and how he was handling his missions. Y/N smiled at herself. Of course he was fine. He was only on missions with demons that weren't too difficult until he got back on his feet, so there would be nothing to worry about. It had been quiet lately, no one was visiting. Too many missions she guessed. And too little demon slayers.

She was so distracted by her thoughts that she almost didn't hear when three people approached with one dog. The door unlocked and as soon as it did, the dog she had rescued so long ago came jumping towards her happily. She responded by getting off her bed and onto her knees to pet him, hugging him as she realised how much she missed the animal. Of course she noticed that something was wrong, as the dog didn't move as easily as he used to, hobbling and looking a little poorly.

"We thought you'd appreciate seeing Kyokai again." Senjuro grinned, petting the dog as well. "He's not really doing well, so letting him see you was something that we thought would cheer him up."

"Well it definitely did!" Y/N let out a small laugh, patting the dog's head as he painted, wagging his tail.

"I also wanted to talk to you." The demon looked at Shinjuro, she was no longer tense around him. He had been so much nicer to his sons, and y/n trusted their words. Not only that, but he genuinely did look better overall. Y/N stayed silent as he spoke. "I wanted to thank you. You were a big part of helping me get over my issues, it helped me realise how much I was damaging the family I had left." Admitted the old man, smiling through the serious conversation. He truly was happier now. It was nice to see.

"Seeing Kyojuro sick and so miserable after you went missing, it really opened my eyes. I didn't want him to suffer losing you the way I lost my wife and I dreaded him copying me. I never taught either of my sons how to properly grieve." He let out a small chuckle of sadness as well as pride. "But Kyojuro was always strong, he has a better resolve than me and I'm proud of him for not giving in."

"Well, thank you." Y/N spoke, still passively patting Kyokai as she looked up to the old hashira. "But I was only part of an influence. Change starts with you, and only you can save yourself in the end." She shocked herself with the wise words, not expecting them to be something she would say. Had she really gone through that much now to consider herself wise? Shinjuro smiled at her with an approving nod, agreeing with her.

"We wanted to leave Kyokai with you for the day if that's alright? It would keep you company and I don't think he wants to leave your side." The dog let out a small woof of confirmation, as if he could tell what they were saying. Together they let out a laugh before talking a little more, playing with Kyokai as much as they could handle before the humans needed to leave.

Once they were gone, y/n had spent the entirety of the time after playing with the sickly Akita. His breed had been becoming increasingly popular in Japan, as she had seen more and more of them as time went by. Truly, she also loved this kind of dog. But she hoped that people knew what they were doing when they got a dog like this. As sweet as Kyokai was, as most of them were, they would always be somewhat likely to snap. Not that it bothered her though, she could let her guard down around him, as she could just regenerate if he hurt her.

It was a fun day, doing tricks and playing with him. A corps member appeared with food and water for him later in the day, explaining that there was medicine in the food. Y/N attempted to show excitement about the food, persuading the weakened animal to eat it. He had no interest in the food at all, sniffing it multiple times before just walking off. The demon gave up when the dog lay down and looked around with sleepy, sad eyes. She would have to try again later. While the dog napped y/n decided to sleep too, smiling as she thought of the future. It would be nice to be human again.

Y/N woke up to her hand being nudged, slightly wet from the dog's licks. In response her eyes opened and she smiled at him. "What is it, boy?" At her question, he stepped back and rolled around before lying on his side. She didn't know what he meant, so instead she chose to listen closer. "Oh..." She spoke sadly, noticing the dog's slowing heartbeat. Her eyes closed as she realised what Kyokai was trying to say. He was dying.

With a sigh she got off the bed and sat next to him, offering soothing words along with small tears as she gently stroked him. It stayed like that for a few moments, y/n listening to his heartbeat until finally it stopped. "Goodbye Kyokai, you were a great dog." She spoke, even though she knew that he wasn't able to hear her anymore. "I'm glad you were here with me for this journey." As badly as she tried to hold it back, she couldn't stop the tears. Maybe her time spent with the dog was small as she was constantly on missions and then disappeared as a demon, but she still loved him as the person who brought him home. She would never forget how he helped her on her mission way back when.

The Rengoku family would be destroyed, y/n realised. Her heart ached to tell them. They'd come back today and see his body there. She knew it would hurt Shinjuro the most. Despite his extreme dislike of animals, this dog has managed to find his way to the old man's heart and become his best friend. Y/N truly believed that Kyokai was a fuzzy therapist for him. They would all miss him. She just hoped that wherever the dog's little soul was now, he was happy...