Sorry for being gone, I was on break
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Narrator POV:
Morning came rather quickly. The sun began to shine on the Wisteria house where most of the Kamaboko squad lay asleep- with their new friend of course.
A box sat in the far corner of the room where the young teens lay. The box supports a small child who lays sound asleep, snoring away in their dreamless sleep. It slowly opened to reveal Nezuko. She rubs her tired eyes and slowly grows in height.
After regaining the height of an average teenager, she looks over at the child, or (Name), sound-asleep next to her. Nezuko bends down and rubs their head and cheek, earning a small smile from (Name). She smiles back subconsciously and gets up on her feet.
"Nezuko-chan!"
She looked over to her right to see who was calling her. "Nezuko-chan~!" Zenistu was swaying back and forth with flowers dancing around him, obviously in wonderland. She stares at him in confusion.
He gets very close to Nezuko, scaring her, and making her back away from him but he followed. She tried to move away from him but Zenistu followed, causing a chase. "Nezuko-chan! Nezuko-chan!" She stopped near the closet and stared at Zenitsu approaching her suspiciously. He was cut short when Tanjiro cut in front of him with his cheeks puffed and his eyebrows tilted down.
"Tan-ji-ro." Zenitsu grabs Tanjiro's hands lovingly, making Tanjiro pull his hands away in disgust and fear. Once again, they're running around the room, this time with Tanjiro in between them. "Zenitsu! Don't keep chasing us! I beg you!" "Oh don't be like that, Tanjiro!" The door to outside opened abruptly and Inosuke came in screaming causing the two boys to stop. Out of nowhere, he headbuts Tanjiro's back. Inosuke screams again and starts chasing Tanjiro with Zenistu behind him trying to stop him.
Nezuko remains standing by her box, flabbergasted at the scene happening in front of her. She was taken out of her trance when she felt something pull at the ends of her kimono. Looking down, Nezuko was met with the small, tired face of (Name). She bends down and once again rubs her cheek, earning a smile from the young child.
"HmmHmm!" Nezuko humed what seemed to be a greeting. "Morning, mama." (Name) said sleepily. This caught Nezuko by surprise. ''Mama?' She thinks of me as a motherly figure??' She stared at the child with wide eyes for a few seconds before smiling under her mussel and patted the child's head. Nezuko giggled and nodded her head.
Time Skip
The five were running outside miles away from their original location as they made their way towards their next destination.
Tanjiro heads to his next location to a mountain northwest and he brings Inosuke, Zenitsu, and (Name) with him. Mount Natagumo stands high in the distance surrounded by a dangerously ominous and killer aura. The almost black mountain calls the Demon Slayers toward it like a mother to their child or an Angler fish to their next meal.
They shiver in the tense air, almost like a ghost engulfed each of them in their dead, cold arms. Tanjiro looked down at the child holding his hand tightly. They were horribly shaking despite being hand in hand with such a kind protector. The boy squatted down in front of the child; taking his hand away from (Name)'s and instead gently placing it on their shoulder. "Don't worry, (Name). I will be here by your side and we won't let anything happen to you!"
"What do you mean 'we'? I'm not going up that death trap."
"Shut up Zackery."
"WHO THE HELL IS ZACHERY!?"
Tanjiro flashes a bright, sympathetic smile, ignoring the two idiots behind him. The smile calms the kid down. Shuffling could be heard behind him. The box on his back creaked open as a small hand tiredly peaked out, slightly waving for attention. Zenitsu squeaked at the hand lovingly, earning a glare from Tanjiro.
Tanjiro glanced at the hand, then let out a small "Ah!" in realization and he slightly turned to where the box was facing (Name). Nezuko's hand swatted around a bit until it landed on the child's head, and she began to pet (Name)'s head gently and lovingly. "Mmh Mmh!" The demon hummed with determination. The generosity made (Name) smile, "Thank you, mama."
Tanjiro giggled at the nickname while Nezuko hummed and retreated back into the box. 'How sweet!' he thought. "Mama!? Can I be the da-!" Zenitsu was interrupted by a scream that cut through the air. The group looked over at the mountain in shock and worry { More shock, less worry }.
"HAHAHAHA! Finally, some action!" Inosuke shouted before picking up the child, throwing them over his shoulder, and bolting off into the dark abyss of a mountain. "Inosuke! W-Wait!" Tanjiro tried to run after them, but Zenitsu clung to his leg while shaking furiously. "S-SURRIOUSLY!? We can't g-go in there! We'll D-D-DIE!" "Zenitsu! Let go!" Tanjiro exclaimed.
He finally shook the yellow, timid boy off of his leg and then he too ran up the mountain, leaving Zenitsu to quake in place.
Up Mount Natagumo
Coming to a stop, Tanjiro and his new companion, Murata, found the child held up by a string tied to their right foot while Inosuke kept jumping to reach them. "Inosuke? (Name)?" The ones in question stopped and looked over at the boy in the green and black haori and simultaneously tilted their heads. Tanjiro puffed his cheeks to stop himself from awing at the two while Murata stared in confusion.
Tanjiro let out a sigh of relief and took out his sword. Gracefully, he cut the string holding the child before bringing her to the ground gently. "Are you okay? Any bruises?" Tanjiro asked quickly, checking (Name) for any injuries. (Name) gave him a closed-eye smile and shook their head. The boy let out another sigh, stood up, and turned towards Inosuke who stood next to the new Demon Slayer.
"I'm okay too if you're wondering," he said sarcastically. Tanjiro glared at him.
(Name) and Murata shared a shy wave.
A shuffling sound was heard behind them. The four turned to see Demon Slayers like them, except these Demon Slayers were banged and bruised. Some even seem dead. "It's those damn puppets again," Inosuke says while taking out his swords. Tanjiro turned towards him. "So you've encountered them too?" "Yup. Damn things tried to ambush us, but I took care of 'em!" Tanjiro looked distraught.
"What do you mean 'took care of them'? They're still alive, Inosuke."
Inosuke continued to stare forward.
"Inusuke, did you kill them!?"
He didn't answer.
"It doesn't matter!" Murata interrupted. "I'll take care of them, you two go find the demon!" Inosuke and Tanjiro looked at the senior officer. The boar began to spit insults at the black haired boy until someone appeared from above. It was a small male who was purely white. His spider-like figure was brightened by the moonlight almost perfectly and his white hair briefly swung in the air. The sclera of his eyes are red, while his irises are pale blue.
'A kid?' Tanjiro kept his eye on the boy intensely. 'He gives off the smell of a demon.' The newcomer opens his mouth to talk, but abruptly closes it when his eyes land on a pair of (Eye Color) ones. His eyes widen as his stare becomes toxic. "You. . ." The child shivered under his gaze and tears formed in (Name)'s eyes.
Quickly, (Name) sprinted in a random direction, away from the group. "(Name)-!" Tanjiro was cut short when Nezuko jumped out of her box and ran after the child. "Nezuko-!" "Hey! Get back here!" Inosuke's shouts caused Tanjiro to turn around just before the boar ran off after the spider-like demon. "Inosuke!"
He felt so overwhelmed. Everything happened so fast, but he made his decision: Nezuko can take care of herself and (Name) while Inosuke is irresponsible and jumps into things without thinking. So it was evident, he needed to chase after Inosuke. Mustering up his courage, Tanjiro wished Murata well and ran after his friend. 'Please be okay, you two.'
His body ached. His mind raced. He could barely look forward, and yet his hand reached out and he placed it kindly on the back of the demon, Rui, just before he withered away. A kind smile graced his face as he looked down at the poor boy. The battle with Rui brought out his family's breathing style, but it also tired Tanjiro immensely.
Nezuko laid under him, also tired from the fight. She came back just in time to block her brother from a fatal blow, but worry and guilt still devoured her. When searching for (Name), she had to stop and turn back to save Tanjiro, causing her to never find the child cares so much about.
The clothing underneath Tanjiro's hand disappeared.
Pat, pat, pat, pat. . .
Tanjiro looked up, knowing that the smell and sound of pitter patter coming towards him belonged to the child both of the siblings were worried about.
"(Name)." Tanjiro says happily, but tiredly due to the battle that just took place. "Are you oka-" "Thank you." The subtleness of their voice caught Tanjiro off guard, but he smiled anyway. "Of course. We care for you!" His tone of voice caused him to cough, making (Name) shake their head.
"You freed me."
". . . What?"
"60 years ago, my mother and father left to become traveling merchants, leaving me with my aunt. My aunt hated my father's very being, and I always resembled my father so naturally she hated me. She would do unspeakable things to me during the duration of my mother and father's trip. Eventually, I ran away.
I climbed this very mountain 60 years ago in search of a place to stay. It was raining in the middle of the night and I didn't want to catch a cold, but imagine my surprise when I'm approached by a motherly demon. 'Mother' was about to take me to her abode, but she stopped, saying I was 'too young' or 'too innocent'.
Mother told me the directions to a nearby village where they take in unfortunate kids like me. I was deeply confused but nevertheless I listened to her.
Something dropped from the sky, however, and I came to a stop in front of the newcomer. Mother tried to come grab me, but someone grabbed my arm causing her to stop.
The figure, I later found out to be Rui, accused the older woman of trying to let a future family figure go while Mother politely declined said accusations. He didn't believe her and for her punishment, he was going to kill me. She begged him not to, but in the end, I was brutally massacred.
For some reason, I came back as a ghost, or spirit, about ten years later. Mother was the first to find out about my appearance. She was so enlightened but our reunion was brief because she knew I had to leave. I roamed around for 30 years before deciding to intitle myself a medic in the final selection.
It wasn't until I found you, Tanjiro, that I felt as if I'd finally found a way to be set free. I followed you, met your friends, found someone who's like a motherly figure to me, and I will never ask for anything better."
Shock was an understatement.
Tanjiro could grasp anything he was just informed of, which is why it took him a minute to reply. "So, you're going to heaven soon?" (Name) nodded their head. At that moment, the 'child' began to slowly fade away. "Wait- Now!?" "Yeah sorry bud, I don't control that." (Name) giggled. Slowly a hand reaches towards the fading figure causing the two to focus their attention to it.
Nezuko reached out, tears clinging to her eyes as she quietly whimpered. (Name) sadly smiled, squatted down, and put the demon's hand on her cheek.
"Sorry mama, I can't stay." Tears peaked out of (Name)'s eyes.
"B-But, I'll-I'll watch over you o-okay?" Their voice became shaky and sad.
"D-Don't you d-dare d-die on me!" Tanjiro's eyes begin to swell up in tears as he watches the two.
"Pro-Protect y-your br-brother o-o-okay!?" Nezuko began to cry and weep louder.
"St-Stop crying!" Tanjiro covered his eyes with his sleeves as he began to hiccup and sob.
"S-Stop! STOP IT!" (Name)'s eyes were filled with tears. They couldn't stop the hot water from spilling out. Tanjiro leapt forward and hugged the fading child he cared for. "We'll stay a-alive! We'll keep fighting! I promise!" His tears soaked (Name)'s large shirt before fading with the bottom half of them.
(Name) knew they did not have much time left, so they grabbed one of Tanjiro's hands and one of Nezuko's hands. Softly, the child smiled.
"The journey has only begun, and I will be there for the rest of it. I promise! You two will become strong! I know it."
They smiled sadly at (Name)'s small but sweet speech.
Click.
Tanjiro turned towards the sound and widened his eyes.
Besides him was Nezuko, but she had just removed her muzzle.
"I-I- '' She tried to form words, "-I lo-o- '' (Name) and Tanjiro stared with wide eyes, full of anticipation. "-v-ve y-you."
"I-I lov-ve y-you."
(Name) stared in astonishment. They then showed a sad smile, "I love you too."
They faded entirely. The sound of the (Favorite Color), Clover necklace hitting the floor echoed through the air.
"Now, wake up."
Tanjiro jolted awake at the sound of someone stepping on fabric.
Hi.
Ah ha ha ha.