BRO I CAN SEE THE LIGHT. THESE PIZZA ROLLS I'M EATING ARE SO FUCKING GOOD.
ta-da! another chapter!
Warning : Swearing , Blood , Violence , Slight Angst
(edited as of 5/20/23)
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With not much time to process, you found yourself sinking into the swampy abyss at a swift rate. You could hear your heart beat through your ears as you panicked, 'My sword.. they kicked my sword out of my hand!'
The air was lethally thin, but for once, luck was on your side considering Mt Sagiri's air was much thinner.
You spun your head around as the figures of the three demons circled you. You furrowed your brows, preparing for the worst.
'They're.. gonna kill me..!'
As two of them lunged towards you, you barely dodged out of the way in time. However, once you started to swim upwards, one slashed your side with his claws, causing you to let out a yell.
Blood instantly oozed out of your wound, staining the swamp a deep, dark red. You clutched your side in pain as tears pricked your eyes, 'It hurts! It hurts, so much!'
Before you knew it, you felt a long, gangly hand grasp your ankle, quickly yanking you down deeper into the swamp. You bit your lip as you forcibly jabbed your fingers right into both of its eyes.
It screeched in pure agony, loosening its grip on you and causing you to continue swimming upwards. You inched closer to the top with each second, but as your hand was about to graze the surface, you felt yourself getting pulled down once more.
The sudden force caused your side to throb, causing you to wince with even more pain. Just as you were about to lose all hope, a jet black blade came into view, which stabbed the demon directly in its face.
The demon in question screamed, before swimming deeper into the swamp — clutching its face. You felt familiar calloused hands grip your blood-stained ones, which then pulled you out of the goop.
You crawled out as fast as you could, temporarily ignoring the pain in your side. You clutched both your sides and your chest, desperately gasping for air.
Tanjirou immediately took notice of your injury, causing him to crouch by your side, "(Y/N), are you okay?! I'm so sorry! This is all my fault!" Upon regaining your breath, you looked back to him, "No, it isn't. It's okay, I'm fine - really."
You winced once more, before putting a hand to your mouth and coughing. Although, once you pulled it away, all you could see was crimson liquid — blood.
You mentally cringed, before turning to a concerned Tanjirou, "Do you.. have my sword?" He nodded, handing you the sword in question — the dull blade of yours that hadn't changed color.
You hastily grabbed it, forcing yourself to rise back to your feet. You panted as you took a defensive position - scanning your surroundings as well. You also had to take into account that they'd most likely target you, seeming how you were injured.
Not giving you much time to recover, the three emerged once more, lunging for you and Tanjirou. You furrowed your brows, 'Water Breathing, Fourth Form, Striking Tide!'
You gracefully twisted both your sword and body, sending multiple consecutive slashes in the demon's direction - biting back tears from the pain. Of course, after all that, you each were still unable to decapitate the demons. You clutched your side once more, trying to maintain a steady breath rate.
From your peripheral vision, you noticed yet another demon lunging towards you - which you wouldn't be able to react in time. With Tanjirou occupied with the other demon, you soon came to terms with this: you were going to die.
You closed your eyes tightly, preparing for the final blow. However, it never came. You cracked your eyes open, seeing the head of the demon receive a heavy kick to it - which made it rotate in a full circle.
You averted your gaze to a certain ravenette with bright pink eyes - Nezuko. Veins were bulging out of her head as her pupils turned into slits. Additionally, drool dropped down her chin from behind her muzzle.
You let a small smile grace your face as you slightly relaxed, "..Nezuko!" Kazumi paled in the background, while Tanjirou gaped at his sister.
The moment was quickly ruined once the demon butted in, "Why are mere humans like you.. being accompanied by a demon?"
Nezuko jumped out of her box, before wiping the drool off of her chin. Her features then softened once she took sight of both Kazumi, and the unconscious girl he cradled within his arms.
She made her way over to the two, caressing their cheeks - her eyes softening. Then, she turned over to you, her softened features turning slightly tense upon noticing your injuries.
You couldn't help but feel guilty for bleeding in front of the girl. Deep down, you knew it was the main cause of her drooling.
She quickly made her way over to you, cupping your cheeks within her hands as she furrowed her brows. You frowned, tears pricking your eyes, "I'm sorry, Nezuko.."
The girl reached down to your side, trying to examine your injury. However, upon making contact with your blood, she hissed and recoiled in pain. Your eyes quickly widened as you stared at her in shock, 'Wait.. what?'
Tanjirou made his way to his sister's side in a panic, "Nezuko! Are you okay?!" The girl in question held out her hand, countless, burning holes littering it.
You instantly felt déjà vu - it was exactly like the time you were first transported to this world. He did agonizingly scream once licking your blood. However, the only difference was - Nezuko didn't consume a single drop of yours.
'This.. is my fault!'
More guilt welled up inside of you, "Nezuko, I'm so sorry! This is all my fault! Are you okay?!" Nezuko feigned ignorance to her brother's concern, placing a reassuring hand on your head as she gave you a smile beneath her muzzle.
She averted her focus towards the demon, veins bulging from her head once more as her eyes turned back into slits. She lunged for it, raising her foot as high as she could before bringing it downwards - aiming for the head.
The demon dodged at the last second, before retreating into the swamp once more. As Nezuko was about to pursue it, Tanjirou called for her, "Nezuko! Don't follow it! Come back to where we are!"
Nezuko nodded, turning towards the two of you, before she began to trot over. However, as she hummed happily over to the both of you, a demon lunged for her from behind.
Yours and Tanjirou's faces contorted into ones of panic. Despite your panic, Nezuko had already sensed the demon, merely backflipping over it. You cheered, relief washing over you, "Yeah, Nezuko! You show it what you're made of!"
Upon reaching the two of you, she smiled at your cheers - the ones only she could understand. Tanjirou pondered for a quick second, before stepping forward in front of goo that the demon left behind. He turned to face you, "Will you be okay, if I go under?"
'Oh, hell no, I won't.'
Despite this, you projected a brave face, "I'll be fine. I'll make sure to protect everyone here! Are you.. going under?"
The boy determinedly nodded, "Yeah. (Y/N), Nezuko.. keep them safe! I'm going under now!" You returned the gesture, "Tanjirou, stay safe! You got this!"
He then sank into the depths resting below, which left the two of you on the surface. You briefly turned back to Kazumi, "How are you holding up?" He shakily nodded, "We're.. okay.."
You smiled, fighting back the urge to wince, "Don't worry, this will all be over soon! Trust me, I've got your backs!"
One of the demons emerged, causing you to refocus your attention back to it. It smirked at the two of you, "What an opportunity of a lifetime! One weak demon woman, and one weak demon slayer!"
"I'll be able to devour you," he pointed to you, "in peace tonight! And you," he pointed to Nezuko, "I'll just simply kill you!"
You disgustingly spat at the demon, "Don't you.. have any shame?! Killing innocent civilians on the daily, you should be beyond ashamed for yourself! You're delusional if you think I'd let you lay a finger on any of these three!"
The demon growled, before dashing towards you once more. Your eyes hardened as you prepared to attack, 'Water Breathing, Second Form, Water Wheel!'
You hacked off the demons arm, allowing Nezuko to get the perfect opportunity to join the battle. She threw multiple punches and kicks at the demon. With this, the demon made the greatest mistake of all time — he underestimated her.
You quickly turned to Kazumi and the girl in his arms, making sure they were out of harms way. However, you got distracted by the sensation of pins and needles on your side. You peeked down at your injury, your eyes slightly widening.
Your wounds were.. slowly regenerating..?
At this point, everything was way to overwhelming for you to comprehend. If you were a human, then how the hell were your wounds regenerating with ease?
Your IQ was way too low for this.
You vigorously shook your head - this was most definitely not the time to think about it. You turned to face the brawl Nezuko and the demon were apart of.
However, a distant bell began to ring through your mind: the demon was just about to slash Nezuko, wasn't it?
You let out a short exhale, before beelining towards the girl, "Nezuko!" You shoved her out of the way of the demon's attack, getting hit in her stead.
You yelped, squeezing your eyes shut to ignore the burning sensation on your shoulder - that had just gotten hit. With this, more blood began to trickle out of your body.
You swung your sword with all your might, aiming for its arms. Upon successfully slicing them off, you raised your leg, kicking the demon into a wall. You smirked, "Finally..!"
You felt like absolutely sobbing on the spot from the immense amount of pain you endured, but you still had to deal with the demon first. Additionally, you were petty about how it attempted to kill both you and Nezuko.
You slowly made your way towards the demon, "Listen here, shit face. You're going to tell me everything you know about Muzan Kibutsuji. While you're at it, tell me how to turn a demon back into a human, as well."
You already knew he wasn't gonna give you an answer, but it wouldn't hurt to try, right?
The entire tone of the demon changed - it started shaking while tears welled up in his crimson eyes, "I CAN'T SAY..! I CAN'T SAY, I CAN'T SAY!"
You slashed his leg off from frustration, before raising your sword to his neck, "Don't make me repeat myself!" At this point, Tanjirou had already defeated the other two demons and emerged from the swamp.
The demon shook his head, "I can't.. I CAN'T TELL YOU ANYTHING! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?!" You exhaled through your nose, pausing for a brief moment.
You then grunted, hacking off its other leg, making it yell in pain. You glared back at the demon, seething to it once more, "Tell me." The demon took sight of your sword, "Why would I ever dare to tell you anything.. if your sword didn't change its color—?!"
You clenched your fist, before decapitating it. As you watched the body of the demon disintegrate, you muttered under your breath while sheathing your sword, "Fine, have it your way, then."
Tanjirou watched your angered figure with concern flickering in his eyes. What made his concern even deeper was that the fact your scent was suffocating; full of frustration, stress, sadness and guilt.
Even so, he made his way towards you, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder. You flinched, letting out a small gasp, before realizing it was him, "Tanjirou.. you scared me..!"
Tanjirou sensed your anger slightly wavering away as he softly smiled, "I'm glad you're okay.. but, your shoulder.. isn't that a new injury..? What happened?"
You forcefully smiled at the boy, "It's okay, I'm fine. I can barely feel it, anyways..! As soon as we can wrap these up, I'll be good as new!"
You then walked past him and towards Nezuko, who was falling asleep against a nearby wall. You crouched down to her height, slightly wincing as you briefly pet her head, "I'm sorry, I wasn't much use. I promise I'll try even harder next time, Nezuko..!"
Tanjirou once again, observed you from a distance, a slight frown on his face. He knew something was up with you, but he didn't particularly know what.
You made your way over to Kazumi, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Are you injured?" He shook his head, "N-No.. we're uninjured.."
As you were about to reply, you felt a shockwave of pain course through your body. Your knees buckled, causing you to crumple to the ground.
You clutched your injuries as the worst pain you'd ever experienced in your life took over. Your muscles - especially around your injuries - felt as if they were on fire.
Tanjirou ran over to you, kneeling down next to you, worry apparent in his eyes, "(Y/N)—! What happened!? Are you okay?!" Tears trickled down your face as you sobbed, "Tanjirou, it hurts! It hurts, so much! It's like.. I'm on fire!"
Tanjirou's caretaker instincts activated immediately.
He scooped you up, treating you as if you were glass. He then set you down next to a sleeping Nezuko, laying you against her. Afterwards, he made his way over to a shaken Kazumi, taking Hoshi from him and placing Hoshi on your shoulder, allowing her to curl up on your neck.
Tanjirou removed his haori, before draping it over you as if it were a blanket. He tucked your stray hairs behind your ears, placing a gentle kiss on your forehead, "I'll wrap things up around here, so why don't you get some rest.."
As much as you didn't want to, your body was screaming for rest at the moment. Your eyes slowly drooped, and before you knew it, your consciousness had drifted away.
『✦』
As you came to, the feeling of calloused hands wrapped around you was the first thing you noticed. You slowly cracked your eyes open, only to shut them once the sun glared right into your eyes.
Tanjirou must've taken notice of this, as you heard him speak, "Hey, are you feeling better?" You opened your eyes, noticing him looking down at you and smiling.
Your face reddened as you answered, "I'm.. actually feeling much better. How are my injuries..?" Tanjirou briefly hesitated, "They.." He looked back up, "They're gone.."
Your eyes turned beady, "Wait, what—? Huh? Here, let me down please.." Tanjirou nodded, setting you down in front of him.
You pulled down your haori to reveal your wounds, "See, my shoulder is still injured— eh?" Your breath hitched upon seeing no signs of injury whatsoever.
You snapped your head towards Tanjirou, "Wait, how long was I out for?" Tanjirou hummed, "Almost eight hours now.. you really needed the rest."
Comical tears spilt from your eyes as you vigorously shook Tanjirou by the shoulders, "WHAAT?! AM I A DEMON, OR SOMETHING?! TANJIROU—!"
Tanjirou put his hands on your shoulders, causing you to abruptly stop. Once he caught his breath, he shook his head, "No, I don't smell any demonic scent on you.. Although, your blood did always smell peculiar to me.."
You perked up, "Huh? What do you mean?" He placed a finger to his chin, "I'm not sure how to explain it. It smells the same as normal blood, but there's something I can't put my finger on."
He then continued, pointing at the Sun, "Also.. if you were a demon.. you'd instantly die by the Sun.. so I think we can rule that out..!"
You blinked, "Oh.. you're right."
Hoshi suddenly pounced on you, making you yelp. Once you realized who it was, you nuzzled Hoshi against your cheek, "HOSHI! I MISSED YOU! I'M GLAD YOU'RE SAFE, TOO!"
You began walking alongside Tanjirou with Hoshi upon your head - considering you could move now. You hummed, "Wait, Tanjirou, I forgot to ask.." You turned to face him, "Where's our next mission?"
Tanjirou readjusted Nezuko's box straps as he answered, "Oh, yeah! Tennouji swung by and informed us our next mission is in Asakusa city."
You swallowed, 'It's this part now. Wait — Muzan's gonna show up, too! What do I even do?! Oh, shit!'
Minutes passed as you and Tanjirou engaged in small talk, along with sharing stories. However, at one point, Tanjirou halted in his footsteps, "(Y/N).. can I ask you something?"
You hummed in acknowledgment, turning around to face him as he went on, "I've been meaning to ask you this once you woke up. Your scent, it's bothering."
You pressed your lips into a thin line as he continued, "It has so many negative emotions mixed together, with guilt being the most of it."
You relaxed your body as you let out a sigh,"..I, uh.. figured this would come up at some point. I'll explain as we walk, is that okay?" Tanjirou nodded, jogging up to you.
You fiddled with your fingers as you attempted to explain, "I just, I don't know.. I can't help but feel useless, if that makes sense." You looked at the surrounding scenery, "You know, before I met Dad, I never really knew what I wanted to do with my life."
You continued, "So.. once I began to train as a Demon Slayer, I have it my all. I was so determined to actually make a difference — I was so sure of myself."
You then looked in front of you, "It's just.. at Final Selection, I was barely any help. I mean - yeah, I helped with that one hand demon and got a few smaller kills, but I still felt weak."
You began to swing your hands back and forth, "That didn't really matter, though. I was just so excited for my sword. My sword would be a sign that I hadn't wasted the last three years of my life. But.. throughout the whole time of receiving it, Haganezuka just wouldn't stop calling me average."
You paused, not knowing how to continue.
"You know, at first I convinced myself that it was just his personality — he didn't mean it personally. Even now, I'm still convinced he's wrong. It's not that I'm 'average' — I'm below it."
Tanjirou grew a slight frown as he gazed back at you, "I begged and pleaded for it to change color. I craved for the validation of it — that I could finally achieve one thing I was proud of. So, once it didn't change its color.. it crushed me."
Silence engulfed the atmosphere, so you continued, "Back in America, I always lived under my twin's shadow. I loved him to death, of course, but compared to him, I never seemed good enough for anyone. Everyone always favored him: my teachers, friends, and even my own dad."
You started to fidget with your fingers once more, "Imagine how it felt, to finally be achieving something meant for you - and only you, only to find out you're not even good enough for it."
You rubbed your arm, looking down at your sandals, "Not to mention how I barely did anything last mission, haha. Sorry."
After a few moments passed, Tanjirou pulled you into a hug, catching you off guard, "You say that.. but none of it is true. (Y/N), you need to give yourself credit where it's due — you protected not only Nezuko, but Kazumi and the girl we saved as well."
He pulled back, "You're the funniest, strongest, most caring girl I've ever met. Seriously, I could stand here and go on about how amazing you are for hours, and I'm positive Nezuko and Urokodaki-san would agree."
You looked away, "Even if what you're saying is true.. why didn't it change color?" He gently turned your head back to him, "That is, because.." He leaned in, kissing you on the cheek, "..it must've seen potential in you..!"
Your face erupted into a bright pink hue, "O-Oh.. wow." You robotically turned around, before speed walking away, attempting to hide your blushing face.
You pointed at a short, dull tree. "Oh wow.. look at that tree over there..!" Tanjirou picked up the pace, following after you. "I mean it, (Y/N)!"
You quickened your pace out of embarrassment - courtesy of you not being able to take compliments, "Woah, Hoshi, do you see that cloud?! It looks like an acorn!!"
Even though you were a flustered mess, you slightly smiled to yourself. You were determined to prove yourself, and to make your sword change color one day.
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Word Count : 3551
(edited a/n: nothing!)
WOOO ANOTHER CHAPTER DONE LETS GOOOO
got to get out of school early today since i had a half day 💪
i also may be able to post tomorrow, depends if i have a snow day or not 🙌
see ya in the next update !