Crafted by Fate (Muzan X Reader Insert: Kimetsu No Yaiba)

Chapter Five

Muzan watched as gravity dragged the girl down into the dark nothingness. He had been too slow. He had been too indecisive. Again.

He had sworn to himself now that he was strong, stronger than anyone, he would be able to protect her. He was different than he had been in the beginning. The first time, he was sick and weak. He could not do anything on his own. He could not even stay by the side of the one he loved so much. Pathetic.

Worse still, she had been right in front of her. He could still smell the sweet summer scent that seemed to follow the girl everywhere she went.

It will not be like the first time when he lost her. That was what he insisted to himself so fervently when he found her again and yet, she was not here in his arms. He had allowed her to slip between the grasp of his fingertips.

Anger permeated the air around him. It was his fault for delaying, really. Once he saves her, he would not hesitate in taking her away to a more suitable place.

~~~~~

(F/N) was falling. It could not have been more than a couple of seconds and yet, it felt like a maddening long eternity.

The earth showered down upon her, knocking against (F/N) cheeks. She clung on fiercely to the Daichi even as they tumbled into the dark. (F/N) gasped as her ribs slammed against a boulder. Her haori tore as she whipped down into the hole. It took a while before the pair finally rolled into a stop.

Groaning, she gently eased Daichi out of her grip. The ringing in her ears would not stop. Her head spun. She tried to move only to have a painful explosion blossom through her chest, effectively cutting off any efforts she made to get up. She suspected she had fractured more than a few ribs, perhaps even broken some. Something warm trickled down her forehead. When (F/N)'s eyes fluttered open, she found her vision obscured and blurry.

"Kamado-San! Kamado-San!" A voice called out frantically. It sounded like it was coming from a million miles away. "Are you alright- You're bleeding!" The voice choked out a sob.

She was? Her hands felt oddly detached from her body as she lifted it to touch her forehead. It came away sticky and warm. Ah. She was bleeding indeed.

(F/N) sat for a while, forcing her head to stop spinning and her vision to recalibrate. She sat up as quickly as her body would allow her, wincing as the pain spiked. On the bright side, it did not seem like she had broken anything major. She could probably still walk and hold her sword.

"I'm fine, Daichi-Kun," she smiled at the teary-eyed boy. "More importantly, are you okay?"

Daichi's tears began to drop as he clutched (F/N)'s arms. The young girl mused. Both siblings, Yori and Daichi, seemed to have a penchant for crying.

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! This is my fault!"

(F/N)'s shoulders relaxed as she laid her land on top of Diachi's head. Tanjirou would often do the same when she was worried or scared. If her brother was here, he would say-

"Everything will be fine. It's not your fault."

Daichi cried louder and buried his face into (F/N)'s shoulders. She wrapped her arms around him and embraced him in a hug.

After a few minutes, the boy stopped crying. He let (F/N) go and wiped his cheeks, red-faced. "I'm sorry. I got your haori dirty." Daichi lowered his head, embarrassed.

"I don't think it can get any dirtier at this point." (F/N) smiled comfortingly. It was already ripped, bloody, and covered in wet mud. "Now, we should see if we can find a way out of here."