SUN ☼ BREATHING //

“Yeah! Lloyd’s my best friend! He’s also…well, he can have a little bit of a temper sometimes. Don’t take it personally or anything, okay?” Well, it was always possible it was Zelos who had said that, but…

“Also, um, no offense or anything, but…they did just get stolen from, so it kinda makes sense they wouldn’t want a total stranger trying to help directly, you know? Maybe you can ask people on the street or something if you want to help… Right, what was your name again?”

“Oh no, I wont! It’s like I said. To lose everything like that... it must have been really stressful. I can’t blame anyone for lashing out at a time like that. He probably wasn’t feeling like himself.”

“If you think it would only frustrate them further, then maybe there’s some way I can help you instead? I guess asking people on the street would work. Anything else?

“Zelos. Oh, so there’s little need for concern then.” She was kidding. Mostly. …Mostly. “Perhaps it would be best to leave investigating to those closer to the owners. That red-haired man you saw is not one to so easily trust a stranger with that much merchandise at stake. It may only agitate him to get involved. I’m grateful for your cooperation. It helps us build a timeline at the very least.”

“Tanjiro. You seem to have a strong sense of justice about you to go out of your way. My name is Raine. I’m a friend of the owners.”

If this woman really was a friend of the owners, then he should listen to all that she had to say. He really didn’t want to get onto the bad side of the owners, he had just felt bad about what had happened to them. It was hard to just sit idly by when people were suffering like this, especially knowing he could help. 

“Sure.”  

At the very least, he had helped, even if it was even the littlest bit. That still mattered, didn’t it? If only he could do more. But further agitation in a moment like this wouldn’t be good for them. 

“Huh? --You think so?

Raine winced. There weren’t any telling signs in his movements or tone that he was lying or hiding anything, so she would assume he was just taking a walk around Cotes.  “Oh dear…and that owner had brown hair or red hair?” 

“This must have happened during the night then. Thank you for staying nearby in order to help. Might you give me your name? We should go speak with the two of them to see who else had paid a visit recently. “

“It was red,” Tanjiro informs, all the while appearing quite curious why such a question was deemed important. She must have been fairly familiar with them, at the very least. “he didn’t seem to want my help, but I couldn’t just go. He still needs help, whether he wants it or not, right?”

“Huh? Screaming? Well, did you go to investigate the source of that then, or go into a little more detail about what you saw?” There were two options. Either someone was scared and injured or the loudmouth couldn’t contain himself when he walked into work for the day.

“Oh. It was one of the owners, actually.”

“He was really shocked when he came in to nothing. 

I wish I could tell you something, but I really didn’t see anything.

“Yeah! Lloyd’s an amazingly talented craftsman. He’s got natural skill and years of hard work to back it up! Of course, that’s all the more reason he needs his wares back… I wouldn’t want one of his masterpieces getting sold under someone else’s name.”

“It sounds like you really like him. 

You must be good friends.” 

“I wouldn’t like that either.

“Someone has been reading a few too many detective novels. Would it not make sense to make a list of people that have recently visited the forge to see if they have noticed anything suspicious?”

“I was actually passing by when I heard screaming.”

“I can understand why someone would want Lloyd’s handiwork since he’s amazing, but I feel like Zelos’s involvement ruins the resale value… I sure don’t see the appeal.”

“You mean it was all made by one person?”

“I want to help, even if it’s not wanted of me.

“…I don’t need a hound dog.”  That was kind of weird.  “I have this situation under control.”  Not really, but, he’d keep saying that.

“Thanks, but no thanks.”

“... Hound dog?” 

All in all, the way that the other was behaving was rather harsh. He couldn’t blame him though, he was going through so much shock. It was only natural that someone might lash out at a time like this. There’s a soft hum from the brunet. 

“Well, okay. If you say so.”

“No, no.  It’s fine.  I think I have some leads already, actually.”  It was Kay.  He was sure of it.

“Don’t tell anyone about this.  I don’t want to die.”

“Are you sure? That actually sounds pretty serious.”

The place appeared... rather empty, and Zelos going on about how he would be killed didn’t ease Tanjiro’s concern. This was a stranger, but something like this could effect his livelihood, right? He couldn’t help feeling for him.

“I have a keen sense of smell... I could find them for you.”

And fast. 

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

Returning for the evening was clearly a mistake, but, he’d forgotten his phone in the forge.  Though, upon flicking the light on, he would see the forge was wiped clean of any weapons, decoration or commissions the like.  It was rather.  Barren.  Even to boot, some silver was snatched up, as there was some worth to be had there as well.

And, as luck would have it, Zelos was the last person to also leave the forge.

“WHO STOLE OUR SHIT!?!?”

“Huh? You mean you were stolen from?

 I’m sorry, I just got here, and no one has run by with anything.” 

This place was different. It was no longer home— Tanjiro quickly notes —  it smelled completely different. The land stretched out before his eyes was foreign, new, and how he had arrived here was unknown to him. He did recall hearing a voice before arriving here, and he has to wonder, was this the work of a demon?— was he seeing some kind of illusion? An intense feeling of anxiety wells up within himself, and for some reason, he brings himself to thinking the worst. 

“Nezuko!”

 Was Nezuko here, too? He quickly moves to a place with enough shade, where the sun’s bright light couldn’t reach, and opens the box that he had been carrying over his back like a sort of backpack. His heart drops. Nezuko was gone. No longer with him. Whatever had yanked him from his own reality left him alone. She couldn’t protect her. What if the sunlight burnt her to a crisp? He had no way of knowing where she was and how she was doing. But he had to believe she was alive! He couldn’t have anything else. She was all he had left of his family, and he loved her very much. 

His body trembles some, but he picks himself up. He couldn’t do a thing. He couldn’t sulk, for Nezuko’s sake. If she was somewhere out there, he had to find her. She had to be scared. There were few places she could hide away from the light. He hoped that someone found her and was caring for her. 

Right. Nezuko was fine. She was alive and well. Tanjiro draws a deep breath and slowly exhales. He had to move on from here. She wouldn’t be found by just sitting around. So he continues on, and comes across a small girl behind a booth. His gaze raises to the sign. 

Chibivice. A booth for advice? Ah— that didn’t matter, maybe she saw Nezuko?

“Excuse me! 

Have you seen a small girl come through here? Her name’s Nezuko. She has dark hair, pink eyes…” He thinks further on how to describe her. “She wears a pink ribbon and kimono, and uh … she has bamboo strapped at her mouth! That part’s... a long story.”  He rubs at the back of his neck.