#Zenitsu's slowly becoming one of my faves and I am here for it!

[giggly-squiggily]

Yes okay SO you know that episode in demon slayer where they all into the forest with the spider demon? Big brain idea here, the reader coaxes zenitsu into the forest and is like super nice about it and trying to help him stay distracted and not worry so much, but as they get deeper spiders start to crawl over the reader a bit and they freak out, caus like ooo eight legs scary, and zenitsu tries to calm them down through tickling but in like a “tickle spiders way??” Caus they were so nice to him and he wants to help I saw this concept somewhere recently, especially because of the tickle tober stuff that’s been going around and thought hey why not? Zenitsu is baby anyway so why not send in an x reader request with him?And can you please make the reader male if that’s alright? Thanks in advance and have a great day/night!

Ooo, I love this so much! The spider arc was so freaking good, and the chance to write for Zenitsu is too good to pass up! (Also lowkey this gives me a chance to participate in tickletober, so consider this my entry for numbers 8 and 12 :3) I've gotcha covered, anon!

A few things to note- I did motify the request just a little bit to make the flow better, and the reader character is gender neutral for the inclusivity! Also: Trigger warning for Spiders!

I hope you like it!

“Come on, Zen. I’m sure it's not too bad in there.” You tried to reassure the yellow haired Demon Slayer, gently patting his back as you looked on towards Natagumo Mountain. It was your first mission together as a group, and so far- Zenitsu was freaking out.

Again.

“Nonononononoonnooono! I don’t want to die! You’ve seen how scary those demons were before! They’ll eat us! We can’t- owowowoowowowowowow!” His ramblings were cut off as Chuntaro began to viciously peck at his skull, annoyed. “OW! Chuntaro stoooop!” He wailed.

You gently shooed the sparrow away from his head, gathering up the bird in your hands as Zentitsu moaned.”I know it’s scary, but; we have to be brave! Tanjiro and Inosuke had already gone ahead. They’re gonna need us in there, Zen.” Seeing your words weren’t working, you kneeled down beside him, taking his hand in yours. “Tell you what? I’ll go in ahead and look around. Not too far!” You quickly reassured him when he began to panic. “Just a few meters into the entrance. If there’s no danger, I’ll whistle.” You made a birdlike sound as a demonstration. “Would that make you feel better?”

Zenitsu looked nervous, but didn’t protest. “J-just be careful, okay?” He asked. Nodding, you smiled warmly before standing up, letting Chuntaro go as you did. “I’ll be back in five minutes. Sit tight.” You told him, bracing yourself as you walked into the forest, sword in hand.

Be brave, you thought to yourself as you marched in. For Zenitsu!

~~~

“What was I thinking! I shouldn’t have let (Y/N) walk in there alone! I’m a terrible Demon Slayer!” Zenitsu held his head in frustration as he paced. So far, he hadn’t heard back from you, nor did he hear the bird whistle. He didn’t want to think about it, but he was concerned something might be wrong.

As if to prove his point, he heard you scream.

“(Y/N)!” Zenitsu was on his feet in seconds, charging into the forest like a madman on a mission. Chuntaro was right beside him, soaring and dodging the webs as he went. Zenitsu’s hearing came into effect, and he listened carefully, looking for you. “(Y/N)? (Y/N)!” He cried, running as he went. Finally, he heard it, the sound of your screams.

Charging into the clearing, he readied his sword. “(Y/N)!”

You were on the ground, webbing thrown over your body. You flailed and screamed, and when Zenitsu looked closer, he almost fainted. Three large spiders had descended on you! “(Y/N)!” He cried, rushing up.

He nearly tripped when he realized you were laughing.

“Zehehehehehehehehehehehehhen! Hehehehehehehehehehelp meehhehehehehehehehe!” You pleaded, giggling even more when the spider’s leg poked at your neck and ears. “Thehehehehhehere tihihihihihihickling mehehehehehehehhe!” Another spider was on your stomach, doing what felt like the cha-cha slide as it walked. The final one had attacked itself onto your knee, hanging on as you squirmed.

Wasting no time, Zenitsu quickly cut away at the spiders with his sword. “Hang on, (Y/N)!” He cried, freaking out the entire time as he fought. Before long, he had knocked them all away, leaving you to collapse in a heap on the soft grass. “Aheaha...hehe...heh..t-thank you, Zen.” You got out, still not able to move much because of the webbing.

Zenitsu nodded, kneeling beside you to pull off the rest of the webbing. “I-I did it! I saved you!” He seemed pleased, making you smile. “You did...my god, that was scary!” You didn’t hate spiders, but having three massive ones the size of small dogs on you at once? That left your skin crawling. “I thought they’d eat me alive!”

“It's a good thing they only tickled you...wait-are you ticklish?” Zenitsu suddenly asked, eyes curious as he turned to face you. Figuring you really couldn’t hide it at this point, you nodded. “Yeah, a bit…” Immediately, you knew where this was going. “Zen…”

“Don’t move.” Zenitsu suddenly told you, eyes wide as he looked down at your torso. You could barely lift your head from the webbing, feeling your heart race. “What? Is there another one?” You asked.

“Yeah. It’s massive!” He raised on his knees so he was over you, face uncharacteristically calm, his hands reaching out to capture it. “I’ll get it.”

There was a beat of silence, then-

“Zehehhehehehehehehehehehen!” You squealed, laughing once more when Zenitsu’s hands grabbed your waist, wiggling and tickling. “Ah! It got away! Hang on, (Y/N)! I’ll get it!” He teased, his hands flying all over your trapped body as he scribbled.

“Gahhahahahahhahahhahahahaha! Zehehehehhehehen, yohohohoohooohohu jehehheheheherk!” You cackled, twisting and giggling when Zenitsu’s hands found your worst spots, earning loud shrieks and yelps. “(Y/N), hold still! This one’s too fast!” He laughed along with you, giving every spot within reach a good squeeze or poke.

Unbeknownst to Zenitsu, all the squirming along with his fighting from earlier weakened the webs, allowing you to get your arms free. With a burst of energy, you rolled away, quickly getting up and pouncing onto the boy before you.

“Ah! (Y/N)! Wahhahhhahahhahahhahait!” He cried as you tickled him back, tossing off the webbing with ease. “Zenitsu! The spiders got on you now! Hang on!” You teased back, digging into his armpit with one hand and squeezing his hip with the other.

You’d need to get back to catching up with the others soon, but for now, this was a bit more important.