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When the battle ended and the dust had settled, there were still many questions left unanswered. The facts of that long night was not something Tanjiro ever cared to remember, but there was one question that kept his stomach turning: Where would he and Nezuko go? He had spent so much time fighting for their freedom that he never managed to make plans for what he would do when it actually happened.
Tanjiro had wormed his way into the hearts of many Hashira. Obanai and Mitsuri were happy to take them in until she fell pregnant, so that plan got put on hold. Tengen and his wives were more than happy to, but Tanjiro would feel like too much of a burden. They had their own lives. Soon enough, Rengoku and Giyuu offered.
Tanjiro pretended to think about it, to save the feelings of Tengen and his wives, but the answer was very clear. He did what his heart told him to do and moved in. Rengoku and Giyuu both felt like mentors to him, and when he found out they were together he was ecstatic. Living with them would feel like living with a cool older brother - and for the most part, it did.
If someone had told him that the man who almost killed his sister all those years ago would take them both in, he would not believe it. Giyuu was protective of Nezuko from the beginning, and sometimes Tanjiro could smell the mourning radiating off Giyuu when he looked at Nezuko. She was the younger sister he never had and before she was human again, Giyuu would always check up on her. Wherever Tanjiro went, so did Nezuko. The three open rooms in the Water Estate made it perfect for them to move in with both of them having their own space and freedom. With Nezuko no longer having to hide in a box and Tanjiro no longer worrying about the sun, they felt freedom.
When Giyuu first suggested they take the siblings, Rengoku was sure it was the best idea. As much as they all loved Tengen, he wasn’t exactly caretaker material. After a brief discussion, they agreed it was best. Besides, who could forget the way that Tanjiro damn near broke down crying when Rengoku and Giyuu told him about their relationship? He was so happy for them, so living under their roof was never a struggle.
Despite all of their different ailments, their homelife was copacetic. Tanjiro helped around the house, still young and able to do things that perhaps Giyuu and Rengoku claimed they couldn’t do. Rengoku was responsible for the meals, and Nezuko maintained household affairs.
From the outside, things looked perfect as the cold chill of Christmas took over the Water Estate. Tanjiro was excited for this holiday. It would be their first as a family. In the mountains, the Kamado clan had their own traditions during the winter season, but none of that involved what Rengoku called “Christmas.” Rengoku insisted on making special moments with the siblings. He had seen their growth first hand as well and did not want their life to be marred in trauma. Perhaps it was too late for that, but not everything had to be terrible, Rengoku reasoned with himself. This holiday was certainly going to be a special one. Rengoku had set up stockings which the kids checked semi-regularly. Inside Nezuko’s were bows for her hair, thread and needles and delicacies that could last in the warmth of her stocking. She had been on a mission since turning back to try everything, and Rengoku was more than happy to help her with this. Inside Tanjiro’s was a short book about grief and traveling, fancy cooking gear, and a letter opener for all the ones he sent to his friends and (new) family. Both were grateful and while some could argue Rengoku was spoiling them, he would argue of all people, they deserved it.
Soon enough, the wait was getting to poor Tanjiro. While he was still a boy, he had seen a lot beyond his years, and Christmas gave him the rare chance to feel like a kid again. He thought it was cute the way there was holly all over the house and found it endearing (though he always looked away when Rengoku and Giyuu were under some mistletoe). Of all the holidays so far, Christmas was shaping up to be his favorite. Tanjiro lay restless the night of wondering what this “Santa” would bring. He had already gotten so much and anything else felt greedy, but it seemed Santa was certainly a well off man.
Tanjiro wondered how Santa had come into his fortunes, but decided it was most likely best not to know. When Tanjiro had sleepless nights (of which there were many), he could often count on Rengoku and Giyuu still being up. Sometimes he would stay up late with them and find himself back in bed. Other nights he would go to Nezuko’s room and comb his hands through her hair to soothe himself. All of them got restless at night, but tonight was a different kind. Instead of the anxiety that typically pooled at his gut when it was time for them to all go to bed, it was excitement. They had all said good night to what felt like hours ago. He did not want to disturb his guardians that night so he chose Nezuko.
With her door cracked open, Tanjiro knocked lightly so as not to startle her. Nezuko was taking out her braids for the night and doing some writing. She was still a night owl. All those years living only under the moonlight had changed her circadian rhythm.
“Can’t sleep?” he asked knowingly. Nezuko had dealt with her brother's sleepless nights, though they seemed to be less and less frequent recently (even if for the first 7 months post battle it was almost nightly; this was still a noted improvement). Nezuko watched as her brother awkwardly scooted into her room.
“Aren’t you excited?” he asked. That shocked Nezuko. She was expecting the usual shaky voice and the promise that this wasn’t a dream and that he would not wake to find Rengoku dead, her still a demon, and Giyuu distant as ever.
“For what?” She said still caught off guard from the sudden change in her brother's demeanor. Tanjiro lifted a brow.
“Santa is coming tonight! He is going to bring us our gifts. I wonder if Giyuu or Rengoku are getting anything.” The siblings had banded together to get them both gifts. Giyuu got something to block the noise (Rengoku’s loud snoring that shook the house) and Rengoku got a nice blanket.
It would be nice if Santa could get them something too, Tanjiro thought. This shocked Nezuko too. Certainly her brother was wise to the fact that Santa was just Rengoku dressing up and putting their gifts under the tree. However, In the same way that Tanjiro had protected Nezuko for years, it was only fair she returned the favor. She remembered all too well the nights when Tanjiro seemed to have lost all the light in his eyes and seeing it back gave her hope.
“Duh. But shouldn’t you get to sleep? I think it’s bad luck to run into him. Set up your futon here.”
It will be like when we were kids… is what Nezuko left out.
That seemed to make him smile even more. God, he was so predictable sometimes. Thus, Tanjiro left to get his futon. However, he just had to do one thing before he could go to bed. He just wanted to see if the milk and cookies were gone. Has Santa already come?
Earlier that evening when everyone was going to bed, Rengoku and Giyuu stayed up a little later, cleaning the place and letting the kids rest. Giyuu sat and watched Rengoku do the dishes, occasionally helping him dry. He played the one handed card whenever he did not want to do something. Rengoku was more than aware that his partner was yanking his chain and that he could in fact help him. Yet, he didn’t, and so Rengoku cleaned as Giyuu kept him company.
“You really don’t need that costume do you?” Giyuu asked. Rengoku had recently purchased a Santa costume. It was tight in some places and baggy in others.
“No. It is something I must wear. What if the kids see me? Don’t you think that will spoil the surprise?” Rengoku said. Though he really just wanted to get his money’s worth. It was clear to both men that Nezuko was under no illusion of who Santa really was. For her brother's sake though, she played along, and so did they.
“I don’t think the kids will come downstairs. You have made sure of that.” Rengoku made a story go on perhaps longer than it needed to about what happened to kids who saw Santa: they would not get their presents according to him and they would never get gifts from the North Pole again. How Tanjiro seemed so ready to believe his tall tales was beyond him. But the boy was honest and believed everyone else to be.
Giyuu leaned in for a kiss as Rengoku did the dishes, leaped off the counter and went to their room to finish wrapping all the gifts. When he came back out, he could not help but scoff at the uniform his partner had on. The costume looked cheap and the beard looked scraggly. He had managed to hide those beautiful locks and Giyuu stopped in the doorway looking ever so fondly at his mate.
“You look ridiculous,” he said with no hint of animosity in his voice.
Rengoku jumped. Though he was always aware of what was around him, recently his guard had been dropping. With how quiet Giyuu was, that was perhaps not the best idea. Rengoku turned to him and laughed.
“Ho Ho Ho—”
“You don’t need to keep up the act when it’s just me,” Giyuu said, walking towards him. In return, Rengoku raised a brow.
“What are you talking about, Mrs. Claus?” he said, pulling Giyuu into his arms. Their noses barely brushed and Giyuu fell into the kiss. His arms wrapped around Rengoku as he got lost in his touch. Rengoku’s hands snaked down Giyuu’s back as they moved further down with every second longer the kiss lasted. Giyuu soon pulled away and spit some of the white hair out.
“Can you take this thing off?” He laughed and tugged the beard down.
By then, Tanjiro was gone and he had seen enough. His heart was broken. How could Giyuu do that? How could Giyuu hurt Rengoku? Why would he cheat with Santa Claus? When he went back to Nezuko’s room, she could see his demeanor shift.
“I hate Santa,” Tanjiro said on the verge of tears. Nezuko’s brows furrowed. What could have happened in the last ten minutes to cause such rage?
“Did you get coal?” she said almost jokingly. She would say anything just to ease the tension. In response, Tanjiro shook his head.
“No…. Giyuu-san was kissing him.”
… He would have a lot of explaining to do tomorrow morning.