16th Birthday

[3rd POV]

(The Flower Mansion)

"I spy with my little eyes, something dirty and in the air." Seiji said to the little girl sitting between his legs.

A small smile tugged on his face as the little girl turned her head in search of what Seiji just described. It did not take long for the girl's moving head to stop in one direction and she pointed at something flying in the air.

It was a fly in the distance.

"That is correct." Seiji said and rewarded the little girl by patting her head. Kanao melted in his touch and praise, her eyes sparkled with joy even though she did not know how to smile.

They were sitting on the veranda of the Flower Mansion while gazing at the garden outside. The place had quickly become thier favourite place to hang out.

"Now, next one." Seiji hummed and then looked around at the garden.

"Oh, you need to do this one quickly. I spy with my little eye, something with six legs."

Kanao's purple eyes glazed over in focus before she quickly spotted something that fit the description. She pointed towards it again.

It was the ant on a falling leaf.

"Correct again. Amazing, you have such good eyes Kanao." he praised her and she bit her tongue in joy. She wanted to smile but years of being hit for smiling made her body incapable.

Kanae Kocho watched all of this from a distance. She did not even realise that she had been watching for nearly an hour now.

At first, it was the insane display of superior eyesight that attracted her attention. But it was the wholesome moment of bonding between Seiji and Kanao that made her stay.

They were so cute together.

It had been six months since Seiji had come to their doorstep and asked if they could take care of the little girl, explaining to them how he met her and how she needed help. He said he was not qualified to take care of her and that they would be better for the job of raising her.

But if what she was seeing was anything to go by, she'd say he was the perfect fit for the role. They looked like father and daughter, especially with thier similar eye colour and thier incredible eyesight.

'He'd make a great father.' Kanae thought to herself with a fond smile.

Seiji Shigan, he was just a child when she first met him. But in only two years, the boy had become a handsome young man, grown and reliable.

Was it so common for boys to change this much after going through puberty? He was only a few months older than her younger sister but he was already someone she could depend on. She frequently asked for his help whenever she was facing troubles in her mission.

Not only her but the other Hashrias as well. Seiji was the Hashria with the quickest mission succession rate. For some reason, he preferred roaming around Japan instead of staying in his territory, so he was the main ally the other Hashiras would call using thier Kusagai crows if they ever needed an extra hand in thier mission.

In just a few years that he had been in the Demon Slayer Corp, he had become the single most important factor in the organisation. Even more so than Gyomei, since it was not often that they needed such firepower.

It was his incredible efficiency that set him apart.

There was the Water Hashira, the Wind Hashira, the Stone Hashira, the Flame Hashira etc. But since Seiji had no singular breathing style, he was often simply referred to as Hashira no Hashira, or 'The Pillar of Pillars'

"Sis, you are staring again." A voice suddenly snapped Kanae out of her musing. She closed her eyes and her lips tugged a teasing smile before she turned back to look at Shinobu.

"Was I? I didn't realise. Seeing them both together is just too sweet." she said.

"That's the same excuse you used last time. You stare at him even when he is alone." Shinobu said.

"You know, you constantly tease me about how I am in love with Seiji but aren't you actually the one who's in love with him?" Shinobu said, quirking a grin.

"Ufufufu, trying to tease me? That won't work." Kanae said and flicked her little sister on the forehead.

"Why are you here Shinobu? Is the preparation finished?" she asked.

Shinbu rubbed her forehead and said, "Yes. We just need to do the finishing touches and you need to distract him for a bit before leading him to the hall."

"Won't be hard considering how he is naturally distracted by you." Shinobu pouted and looked at her chest which was still just a budding flower before looking at her sister's chest which had already blossomed.

Oh, Seiji had a preference alright. And he made it painfully obvious for everyone since his eyes were his everything.

"I'll do my best." Kanae said and they both walked towards Seiji.

"Okay Kanao, enough playing with big brother, it's time to study." Shinobu called out.

Kanao looked up to ask for confirmation and after Seiji gave a nod, she robotically stood up and ran to Shinobu. There was no whining or protest that you'd often find in a girl her age.

Her past made it so that she followed orders naturally.

Shinobu grabbed Kanoa by the hand and they both walked away from the veranda, leaving only Seiji and Kanae together.

She walked towards Seiji and she sat down beside him. She was a little too close, much to his fluster and her amusement.

"Ummm, what brings you here Lady Kanae."

"Nothing in particular, just wanted to enjoy the view in your company. Also, I told you not to call me Lady." she said, "I feel like it creates an invisible wall between us. We are close enough to drop the formality, are we not? Or was that just on my part." she slightly pushed her small shoulder on his bigger frame.

"Of course Kanae. I feel close to you as well." he said, his face stone cold. He must believe that his face didn't give away anything.

But after two years of knowing him, Kanae could read him well. Although his face was stoic, his ears hidden between strands of purple hair were turning red at the tip when he spoke.

That's his way of blushing.

She'd never told him about it because it was adorable when he thought he didn't give away his true emotions.

"Anyways, what do you think about the new flowers I planted in the garden?"

"The camellias? They are beautiful."

"Ohh, you know about them?"

"A little, the camellia blooms in early spring and winter. They are said to be a symbol of elegance and love." Seiji said the few things he knew, maybe hoping it would impress the onee-san.

Which he did.

"Wow, I didn't expect that. Usually, boys are absolutely clueless when it comes to flowers."

"Well, I am a self-proclaimed admirer of beauty so I know a lot about beautiful things, which most flowers are."

"Really? Then do you know about those?" Kanae asked and pointed towards a flowerbed beside the pond.

"Poeeny."

'Peony' she corrected him in her mind.

Another thing she found absolutely adorable was how he was unable to pronounce certain things. Most of which were words that rely on the tone to convey the meaning.

Even with his eyes, his deafness still made him disabled in some ways.

"You know them! They are very rare and I was lucky enough to get them from this one village during my mission last year."

The two of them sat together and chatted about the flowers in the garden for a few minutes. Kanae was glad to find someone knowledgeable about flowers. Although Shinobu liked flowers, she was more interested in butterflies.

"Oh, I nearly forgot. I have something to show you." Kanae said, her main objective nearly slipped her mind during the conversation.

Seiji stood up first and offered his hand. She stared for a bit before she took it, her smaller hand perfectly fit in his bigger hand.

Then with ease, he pulled her entire weight off the floor. She was caught off guard and stumbled forward to his chest.

Once a smaller boy, now he stood at 6 feet, easily towering over her.

She quickly turned around, "Follow me." she said, hiding the red in her cheeks.

They both walked together to the hall and they paused when they reached the front door. Seiji tilted his head, wondering why they suddenly stopped.

And then the door was slammed open.

"Happy Birthday!!!" 

The hall was decorated with flowers and balloons. There was a giant cake in the middle and the people inside sang happy birthday in unison.

All of the Hashiras had gathered today along with all of the friends Seiji had made so far, including Rengoku. The people working in the Mansions were also there along with people Seiji had saved in the past.

It was not in Japanese culture to celebrate birthdays. But it was Seiji, affected by his past life culture, who started the trend of celebrating birthdays by wishing and giving gifts to his fellow Hashiras when it was thier birthday.

And today, everyone decided to celebrate his birthday to return the favour. He just turned 16, which was the age of adulthood in samurai culture.

"What a beautiful day this is." Gyomei said with tears falling from his white eyes and a big birthday cone on his head.

"Happy Birthday Seiji." Giyu said with a smile.

"Don't misunderstand, Giyu forced me." was Sanemi's excuse even though he was the one who blew all the balloons used to decorate the hall.

"Let's set our hearts ablaze in celebration!!" Rengoku said, standing beside his father who came because he was promised free wine.

"Happy Birthday!!!" naturally, Tengen was the loudest of them all. Pretty sure he used his breathing style to make his voice even louder.

Seiji stood there, frozen for a moment before a bright smile stretched across his face. He pushed away his desire to say, 'You guys were so fucking obvious. I saw it coming from a mile away'.

Instead, he gave them the appropriate reaction of surprise for thier effort.

But the joy he felt in his heart could not have been truer.

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[Pretty Image of Kanae]

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Author : I think I've cultivated really cute readers this time around, and I'm not saying that just because you guys didn't 1 star spam thisbook like what happened to my last two books.

I genuinely enjoy your comments. My favorite time is now reading the chapter and seeing your paragraph comments. You guys are funny.

It might not seem like much but it's a great motivation for me. I really enjoy them. I enjoy the funny comments, the pictures, the questions, and the arguments you have.

Thanks for reading and please, keep up the comments. The interaction is why webovel is still today, my favourite literature community.

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