~*~
"It's gotta be her," Masachika gestures towards the Demon.
The Demon grins with a icy glare, "Well, well.....who knew that old mirror has some power in it after all?"
For a moment Masachika soon realised what kind of demon we were up against, which was one of the lower moon directly from Muzan Kibutsuji. However I saw no fear in his expression, despite how gruesome and sick this bitch is. Right now, after hearing the story behind what this old man I keep hearing about told Masachika. I saw rage within his eyes.
This demon long before even giving up her human life, killed her daughter. Even more so, that woman was a monster underneath human skin.
"It certainly didn't do anything to stop my husband from beating me," The Demon continues, with annoyance lacing in her venomous tongue. "I always thought the family stories about it being a talisman were bunk."
"Sae helped us," Masachika spoke up, mostly to himself. Had Sae's spirit cursed her mother, or was she trying to save her from adding to her sins?
The demon sighs in irritation, "So the girl betrayed me again, did she?"
A gasp inhales sharply when Masachika explodes in rage, "That's a lie! You betrayed her! You killed her by inches! Every time she started to get better, you hurt her again! You poisoned her! Crushed her throat! Slapped her head, broke her legs!!! How could you do that to a child you gave birth to?!" his face headed with red, eyes lit with a burning fury.
The demon betrays no emotion, as if she was bored already by the conversation of old accusations.
Masachika's expression soon to a deep sorrow, "I won't let you get away with this, Yae,"
The woman flinches at the sound of the name that melted off his tongue, her own human name she betrayed many years ago. Her face darkens with a shadow casting over, her voice dripping harshly with venom, "I abandoned that name long ago," she steadily spoke. "MY name is Ubume. A gem of a name bestowed upon me by my lord when he gave me this wonderful new form. I was named by the only one who's ever understood me." her breath caught in her throat, feeling ecstatic. "All I ever wanted was happiness..."
"This woman....." I mutter beneath my breath.
The Demon began to describe her tragic background like any other, how she endured her husband's violence, hoping someday they could be a happy family. Despite her patience, he ruined her, robbed her and finally threatened to run off with some woman he met in a gambling den. She admitted she killed her husband and made it look like an accident, and no one questioned her.
Even though her abuser was gone, her heart remained empty. Wondering why, no matter how hard she worked, she couldn't be happy. Then when he daughter fell ill, Yae discovered that nursing the sick girl filled her with a peace she'd never imagined. As she cared for Sae, she felt the desire to live that way forever.
"But she tried to run away," Ubume's face disappears, to disappointment. "She crawled across the floor, bent on leaving. I was so kind. I did everything for her. And that was how she repaid me."
My jaw clenched tightly, "So you killed your own daughter? Is that what you're saying?" with a steady voice.
"Yes. I did," Ubume smiles contently. The look within her eyes were completely different when she gazes at me, compared how she is with Masachika. It was too comforting to be soft, in regards of speaking to me like I was her child. "But, I regretted it immediately. Once she was dead, I was no longer the brave wife devoted to an abusive husband or the patient mother caring for her sickly daughter. I was nothing. That was when he appeared before me."
The demon king himself shared his blood, and understood her feelings. He told her she would make a powerful demon. To that end, he informed her, she must devour as many humans as she could.
Her blood red eyes flicker softly, "What do you think my first meal was?" She asks, rhetorically with a wide sadistic grin. "Sae's corpse."
Feeling my stomach churn in response, I tried to hold back my disgust.
"Since then, I've snatched up so many, so very many children. I eat them, return them to the womb, make them my own. At last I've given this house a happy family," She turns to Masachika. "You see, it's easy to find a way into the hearts of children who have been hurt. If their parents won't love them, they'll turn to anyone who will. More than one of my little ones has clung to me, thanking me, right up to the moment I swallowed them. Truly a blessing. I've been so happy....." She pauses for a moment, glaring towards Masachika.
"......But I have no place for a child who holds his head high and meets a parents eyes without dear. I prefer someone like your friend here....." Ubume glances back at me with a blood-red smile endless warmth, "You're hurting, my child. Not just your body, but your heart as well. I can always tell when a child comes from cruel parents. I want to comfort you. I want to love you."
Masachika seemed to not utter a word, but instinctively launches an attack with every ounce of his strength. "Wind Breathing: Third Form! Clear Storm Wind tree!!!!"
For a moment Ubume tried to deflect his sudden attack, but the power of the attack he had launch overwhelmed the demon. Hearing the tearing of the flesh of her arm, tumbled along the tatami floor. Her cold ice gaze glanced back nonchalantly towards her arm, before returning back to Masachika.
The fury in his eyes sent a shiver down my spine, "Sanemi's no pitiful child! Not even close. His mom loved him. She loved her sons from the bottom of her heart," his voice surfacing with warmth and a wave of emotion.
"Masachika....." I utter my breath.
"You don't even know the first thing about him, you wretched demon!!!!" He continues on, trembling with burning rage. "Don't drag your filth over his memories!"
"Masachika! It's okay!" placing my hand upon his shoulder with assurance, with an unusual gentleness in my touch to melt away his anger.
"Sanemi...."
With a light scoff, "What's with that look?" Giving him a crooked smile, raising a brow. "I swear, you come from a different world. I can't count how many times you have jabbered on with their pet theories about me like they had some amazing insight. That includes my own dad. You can't take it seriously," my voice softens for a moment. "I've never thought I was pitiful."
Masachika slowly comes in to consideration, that he didn't have to assume so much.
"Anyway......" raising my Nichirin blade, I turn back and aimed the tip pointing at the one-armed Demon. "Sorry to disappoint you, but you had me wrong from the start. I don't need an angel of mercy, and I can see the stinking demon you really are."
She smiles, "I suppose this means you won't play nicely," with a subtle sigh. "It really is too bad. I think we'd make a lovely mother and son."
"Shut up!" Masachika spat.
"It's over," I told her, angling my blade in her direction. "With your illusions gone, I can hack you into bits."
"Perhaps you can," Ubume says, before swiftly grabbing her up from the floor. She pressed it lightly against the stump from where Masachika slice off. Yet within the blink an eye the flesh surged from the seam and fused the limb into place. Her regeneration was fast, to prove how much she has consumed over the days, no, years of children. Faster than any demon I've encountered.
"But what does that matter?" She muses bitterly. "I can always put myself back together. I'm a demon. What about you mortals?" with a condescending tone, as her fangs gleam with a sinister red grin.
"We'll just have to slice you up faster than you can regenerate," my lips curl into a cold steel smile, before taking my chance. Using my first, second, third, fourth, fifth form repeatedly, i repeatedly fought against the bitch over and over, using every technique that would grant me the upper hand. My knuckles turn white with how hard i fought, my lungs burning coldly from the many breathing attacks I've launched. However she kept on deflecting my attacks, one after the other without much effort than a sharp elegant finger.
"Masachika!" my eyes whipped towards him, gesturing my gaze towards the remaining children that laid awake painfully. For a moment Masachika was confused before understanding my intention, before I resume back to Ubume. With Masachika grabbing the children instantly away from the battle, I manage to deflect an attack from her. My attacks were becoming weaker the further I kept trying, but my guard was high. For a moment I take a leap back to gain some little strength, when my eyes subtly widen in response to Masachika's whole demeanour.
He was enraged, face lit ablaze with a glowing crimson.
This was unlike the Masachika I knew, the one who was always cheerful, flirtatious with the girls, simple as a summer breeze. Feeling the heat of his fury was enough to know he wasn't joking, and I couldn't blame him. Something must've triggered him earlier, to make him this way in a matter of minutes. Though it wasn't a blinded fury, his mind wasn't foggy or clouded. Though, my concern grew for him, seeing him using all the anger within his swings.
If anything, his attacks grew sharper than ever.
Gradually as he joined in the battle with me, he picked up on my subtle movements anticipating my next attack, before responding in kind. We were both finally in sync with our movements, with our swings and breathing were in par, steady like the implacable wind.
'I guess......even at our worst, we're still brothers.....' A smile curls upon my lips at the slightest, feeling warmth in the depths of my heart.
"Sanemi!!!!!!" Masachika cries out. "The head! Drive at her head!!!"
"I'll take it clean off her shoulders," I strongly promise. "Monster!!!!"
"Gracious!" the demon struggles for a moment dodging our coordinated attack, causing her to growl with a grimace rumbling in her voice. "You really are stubborn children." before suddenly her leg shot, causing me to leap back.
Trying to avade her sudden attack, blood spray feeling her sharp nails on her feet grazes across my throat where my adams apple is. Fuck! Flinching for a moment, the next blow felt all too sudden when my body felt flying as the wind knocked out of my lungs. Slamming hard into the floor floor with a tumble, I gasp out desperately for air.
"SanemI!!!!!" Masachika cries out, before seeing him lashing towards Ubume with his sword. My hand grips my throat as my vision grows white for a moment, white blotches covering my sight for only a moment. "Wind breathing: Third form! Clear Storm Wind tree!!!!"
She wasn't able to escape his brutal attack, taking the hit at full force before taking her chance to kick out at Masachika's head.
Everything was a blur while I'm gripping my throat, the air slowly and gradually returning to me. Though Masachika dodged the attack in time, the skin on his temple split and drips blood. Staggering he felt concussed by the looks, as my worry seeps through the dry gasps of air. The demon made her move stabbing a hand at his exposed torso, but his fast reflexes kicks in, avoiding her direct strike. However her claws managed to graze his side, and dug into his flesh.
His screams rings in my ears, while I breath heavily.
"Masa--"
Ubume grins licking the blood greedily from her hand, clearly relishing the metallic taste. "I"ve eaten so many tasty children," She purrs, deeply. "Some of them even had a rare blood. Each meal makes me stronger."
Groaning, Masachika collapses to his knees upon the tatami floor, trying to use his breath control to stop himself from bleeding out. The demon began reaching towards his throat, but I step back up with force and leapt towards her. "Masachika!!!!" swinging my sword sharply. "Wind breathing: Fourth--"
Suddenly the wound in my throat opens up, as blood spurts forth feeling it gushing. My eyes widen in horror doubling over, coughing and gagging as the pain lingers. Shit! Guess I've been injured worse than I assumed. Gobbets of blood splashed on the tatami mats, staining the floor in crimson red.
A deep gasp follows from the demon, while I grasp at my throat trying to steady myself. She quivers from head to toe hearing her sniff in her senses, "What is this?" She murmurs. Her gaze wanders for a moment, before her eyes fall upon the pool of red below me. Her eyes gleam with greed and bloodlust.
"Why.......you have rare blood, child," Her cheeks flush her pale complexion, her eyes lulled to a dreamy look. "Quite rare, at that. Worth the blood of a hundred ordinary mortals....No, more! Much more!!!"
She soon began gliding towards me with a brisk pace, red eyes glowing with hunger and passion for my blood.
"Ah......Sanemi," She laps at my blood on the floor, her kind smile spreads across her red lips and flushed cheeks. "We truly meant to be. Sweet child, I love you. I adore you. Sanemi, I'll never hurt you again. Come, be with--"
A smirk curls upon my lips when she paused, gripping her head while shuddering in response. She almost crumples to the ground.
"What?...Why?.....I can't...."
'Ha!' In my mind all i could do was speak, as the pain in my throat was unbearable to utter another word. Smearing the blood from my mouth with the back of my hand, my eyes held some confidence towards her. 'Seems she can't handle the flavour of my blood, can she? From the experience, I've learned that the stronger the demon, the more powerful the effect of my marechi. It ought to be very potent to a demon of Lower Rank One.
"Blood....so strong...but how?" Ubume pants heavily, still holding her head in her hands.
Taking my chance before letting it slip. I grind my teeth together against the pain of my injuries, and charged head on towards the demon. The attack lands upon her with full force. Knife-like gusts of wind swiftly slices towards the demon with power of sandstorms. Screeching, Ubume pitches forward at an extreme angle, narrowly evading the attack.
Seeing at a glimpse, masachika had maanged to stop the bleeding, readying his sword again, "This ends here," he snarls, dripping with venom. "Go apologise to Sae and all the other kids you've killed!!!!!!!"
Watching Masachika from a distance, his blade carved a flawless arc in the air.
"Wind breathing: Third Form! Clear Storm Wind--" Masachika yells, judging by the distance he was sure to take the demon's head off. While I prepared to help him in the aftermath, with a victory.
However a blood-curdling scream fills the air, "Stop!!!
There stood a little girl that was one of the victims Ubume took, stood in front of the demon. Her arms trembling, protecting the demon from Masachika. Her eyes fills with tears, making them glassy and filled with desperation. "Don't hurt my mommy," She begs, with a tiny voice.
"What--?!" Within seconds I saw Masachika deflect his attack away from the girl. The blades of wind missed her by a hair.
My eyes trail towards masachika as he was knocked off balance, before noticing the bitch of a demon taking full advantage of this brief slip to attack. She tosses the small girl aside like a doll, as if she was only a bluff or shield to protect herself. How shallow can she go? Yet Masachika being Masachika, went and focuses don saving the girl, dropping his own damn defences. A gasp slips hoarsely from my throat, seeing the demon's hand plunge her sharp claws into his torso.
My eyes fill with anger as I lift my blade once again charging from behind, quietly assessing the situation as i bled out.
"You should have cut the child down," The demon bitterly says. Masachika grunts while hunching over coughing up fresh blood, staining the floor. The sound of his blade clattering against the ground with a sick thud, making my heart sick. The cold eyes of the demon follows him fall, her attention focused solely on him.
"Foolish child,"
With the raise of my blade I slice my blade with unnatural force, soundlessly through her neck. Her head soon falls tumbling to the floor, drenching in a sickly crimson red. My throat was in pain beyond incomprehension, but the sounds of a beast came through my crushed throat. Drowning in pure rage and anger, my teeth bared with a sneer. It was beyond anger with no outlet, an emptiness that made my stomach churn.
The last expression upon the demons face before disintegrating, was it's false smile as she vanishes.
~*~
Everything felt like a blur to me, taking so much effort to come back to my senses. The kakushi arrived not much longer after the defeat, but my anger hasn't worn thin just yet. My eyes kept tracing back to Masachika's body, with a few Kakushi surrounding him with urgency. Feeling soft tender hands dressing my wounds and injuries, my main concern was Masachika. The children were safe with the Kakushi's aid, whisking them somewhere safe and away from the building.
Masachika was lifted to a comfortable position beside me, while I seethe through my teeth realising his wounds were beyond saving. They tried. Yet....
One of the Kakushi tentatively spoke up, "Lord Shinazugawa. You've lost a significant amount of blood--"
"It's nothing," cutting him off. "Leave us alone."
"I'm afraid I can't do that," The kakushi replies firmly. "You also have some broken ribs, and the damage to you throat is beyond what we can take care of here. i strongly recommend treatment at Butterfly Mansion right away. Otherwise, in the worse case, both you could--"
"Shut up!" glaring heavily towards the Kakushi, as if daring him to go on.
For a moment the Kakushi sighs in defeat, "Are you certain you're all right?" another Kakushi asks, stepping in. It was a young man, with droopy lulled eyes. "Can you state that definitively?"
I nod shortly.
They both give in defeat, "That's that, then," The Kakushi says, urging the rest to leave. "We withdraw."
"But, Goto--"
"These are the people who risk their lives to fight demons for us. At the very least, we can respect their feelings," The kakushi ushers everyone out, including the persistent one. Once they were out of the house, my eyes tiredly gaze down to Masachika. The scent that lingers within the house, was no more than an incense that dispels the stench of blood.
"Sanemi....." Masachika's voice struggles to remain conscious. His complexion pale as can be, like a sheet. "The kids.......what about the kids?"
"They're both safe," Grimacing I help him sit up more comfortably in my arms, cradling him carefully. The touch of his skin was so cold like ice, knowing the flame of his own life was dying out slowly. My jaw clenches tightly, biting the urge to scream. "The kakushi took them back to Butterfly Mansion. Relax."
Relief washes over his pale face, "That's good. What......about you?"
"Tch...Me?" I reply with a force cheer. "You know me. Of course I'm fine."
Despite being on death's door, Masachika still had room even in his heart to worry about the children and myself. All I could do was clench my teeth tightly together until they hurt, whilst the base of my throat ached with tears welling in my eyes. Recalling back the little boy that was a victim wept with joy at the sight of the Kakushi, but the little girl had remained in a stupor, not reacting in anyway when the kakushi spoke to her.
For a moment call I could think bleakly was of Uraga, who slit his own throat rather than betray his own false mother, only moments after begging for a chance to be reunited with his girlfriend. This girl seemed similarly entrance by Ubume, unable to escape her poisonous promise of love. The thought that made me shudder was what her future would look like, what would be laid for her.
"She'll.......be okay," Masachika whispers, bringing me back to reality. "Terrorised for so long....hard to escape the demon's control. It'll......take time. But she'll....recover."
His voice was hoarse with a mixture of assurance, making my eyes sting with tears. Clearing my throat I steady my voice as I push past the tears, "What're you worrying about other people for? I swear, I've got such an idiot for a brother."
Masachika's eyes narrow as if blinded by brilliance. "Hey......Sanemi....?"
"Yeah?"
"Even....when I'm.....gone...." Masachika's voice a little more than an exhalation. "Eat.....Sleep. Try....to get along with people......make sure to live.....your life....."
My jaw clenches more tightly holding the strain building my throat, swallowing my sobs.
"......also please take care of.....Hayami? She........needs someone too...." He spoke her of her name, the way his voice sounded mellow when it rolls of his tongue. ".....you both need each.....other... and......take her.....out for sweets and tea as promised...."
Hesitating for a moment my voice breaks, "Yeah," if he said anything more, I would begin to allow the waterworks to burst open. No, I would scream. Seeing masachika smile up towards me, with no ounce of fear. To me, it was the finest sight in the world. Why did I find it so damn annoying, when really I found it comforting to see. I've only gotten this far because of him, because he was by my side all the way since becoming a slayer. He was the first to see me, thanks to him, I was able to live as a human being again.
Thanks to him, he brought Hayami to me.......
Why did someone so good have to die? Because he'd refused to harm a little girl? It was too absurd to accept. Dammit! I want to scream and shout to the heavens: If there are any gods up there, help him. Masachika was so much kind than he was. So much stronger. This was a man who go on to save so many lives. He could bring the world happiness.
"It's.......up to.....you now.....Sanemi....Don't die..."
"Masachika,"
"Be.....happy...." slowly the light fades from his eyes, the dread sinking in.
"Masachika!!!!" Clutching onto his body, everything came crashing down upon me as I began to cry and wept ragged sobs from my throat. I didn't care about the pain in my throat, all my anger increased as I cry out for him.
~*~
A FEW DAYS LATER
Laying within the Butterfly mansion, my thoughts were becoming faded. The breeze drifts by, feeling the slight sting from my fresh injuries. Wrapped in gauze, my breathing uneven from my broken ribs, I drew short puffs of air. The ceiling was a blur in my line of sight, as the sound of distance chatter fills the hallways outside.
Can't they shut up? Whatever, I can't be bothered shutting them up....
The smell of disinfectant fills the room, which was more pleasant than death and rotting corpses. Though I tried to deny many times, that it wasn't true, I needed to accept it. This was who I was. I've seen many deaths, but the more I grew attached to others, the further the pain aches in my chest.
The door slides open slowly, assuming it's Kocho to come in and console me, I roll my eyes in response.
"Lady Mizutsuki, get back here," Another voice hisses, quietly. A Kakushi of the butterfly house. "You're injured, and Lord Shinazugawa cannot speak properly....so--"
"I need to see him," Her voice fills the room, with gravity in her tone.
The sound of feet hurrying to my side with urgency, as my dull eyes met with heartbreaking dry tears down her cheeks. What alarmed me was the way she looked, from head to toe. Hair disheveled and caked in blood, her face blemished with bruises and scratches and her breath heavy and laboured.
"K-Kumeno....?"
My jaw clenches tightly averting her gaze, "I'm sorry........"
"So it's true........it's really..." her breath was uneven, despite her current state, Kumeno was her main concern. However calloused fingers drift across my throat, feeling how tentatively she was with assessing my wounds. "Are........you okay?"
Those three words left me fighting back those tears again, the stinging sensation lingering.
"Mmph....."
The mattress sinks beside me feeling her hand take mine, lifting it to her chest and gently rubs her thumb over my knuckle. I couldn't be bothered brushing her off, let alone say anything that will rupture what we have. Not now. Not when Kumeno's last remaining words, involved me staying with her. Though I wanted to push everything away, alive or breathing, she was all I had left that I wanted to cling onto.
"I tried........"
The warmth of her provided me a sense of comfort, I though I couldn't feel anymore.
"I know," Her voice came out steady, with her breath regained and her mind clear. "Guess I should've declined my mission, and aided you both instead..."
"No, don't do that--"
"Then what did you want me to do, huh?" She raises her voice a bit, but not enough to ring in my ears. It was like a mother scolding a child. She takes a moment before her frustrations dies, which was different coming from her. "My mission only had cattle and farms ransacked, with low levelled demons.....I could've..."
Taking her smaller hand in mine this time, I held it more securely earning a small sigh.
"....it was only a small slip up, nothing could've changed...." I tried to assure her, cursing to myself in my head over and over. Silence soon creeps between us, while her hand remains in my large one. Afraid to lose her next, not wanting her to go.....not now.
"His last words?" Her voice barely came out as whisper, my eyes drift back to see her face cleared up but with foggy eyes. The devastation took a toll on her, far more than I've realised it would. I've surprised myself and regretted every moment I was with him, being hostile and aggressive to his patience. I took it for granted.
"He....told me to eat well, and get along with the others," scoffing at the thought, my eyes averting from her own. Slowly I glance towards her again, "He also........wished......." should I tell her? Now isn't the time, it doesn't feel right......
"Wished.....?" her voice hung in the air.
"He.......wished, for you to stay well," I somewhat lied, even though that was partially the truth.
"Right," her head hung, her bangs covering her eyes and expression. My hand gently squeezes hers with assurance, before glancing back towards her. "Just......get better please? I can't lose someone else, not you........"
This made my eyes slightly widen in surprise, though her gaze remains unchanged.
"I'll try......."
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