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Chapter Text

Tengen huffed in annoyance as he traveled through the forest, his nimble feet avoiding making any sound as he avoided all the natural debris of the towering trees that had drifted to the forest floor.

The sun was begging to set behind him as the last dregs of its light warmed his back and the slanted speckled shadows of the trees danced across the ground.

The master had sent him on this mission due to his skills which gave him a warm flash of pride.

Multiple slayers had reported sightings of a demonic presence in the forest, but none of them had been able to track it down or find the beast’s hiding spot. The only clues that had been provided to him were quick flashes of something human shaped in the trees and large scattered yellow feathers.

Magenta eyes narrowed as he scanned the tree line, seeking out any possible signs of where the demon could be nesting, much to his annoyance he was having surprising trouble tracking the creature down.

He had already traveled through a large amount of the forest and still the demon remained elusive.

He briefly thought about returning to the village to rest for a moment before the slightest anomaly caught his sights.

He stopped in his tracks, his attention abruptly refocusing on an old hunched tree. Up in the top of the branches was what looked like a poorly made bird's nest but it was much too large to be natural.

It was a mix of branches, reflective golden yellow feathers and assorted fabrics. It spanned several large branches, large enough to hide someone about Obani’s height from the sunlight.

He smirked in triumph as he approached the foot of the tree, his hands gripping the hilt of his blades in anticipation.

He could hear the faint rustle of something heavy shifting in the nest, but to his disdain the creature remained hidden away up in its mess of hiding spot.

Tengen may be brash but he was smart enough to not even consider scaling the tree to get to the demon, that action would be a death sentence. The beast had most likely prayed upon other slayers by waiting for them to enter its nest and ambushing them or by pushing them off the tree to plummet to the ground below (even if he saw no signs of blood at the foot of the tree).

He thought for a moment, eyes narrowed as he glanced up at the tangle of branches and back to the base of the tree, he clicked his tongue in annoyance at the creature's habits. It was quite annoying that it hadn't even tried to attack him nor emerge from its nest.

He huffed as he considered his options, the weight of his blades was a comforting pressure in his hands as he spun his weapons, an idea sparking to life. If the demon wouldn't come to him, he could bring the demon to himself and force the cowardly thing to emerge from hiding. He stepped closer to the aged tree, keeping his senses keen so that he could avoid being possibly ambushed by any other demon in the area.

He shifted his grip on his blades, angling the sharp edges towards the bark of the tree. He swung his swords with a proud grin, his smile widening as the old oak groaned under the sound of his blades biting into wood. There was the sound of a frightened squawk from up above, a flash of movement as yellow eyes caught the light. He had already taken quite the chunk out of the tree's trunk and one more hefty swing was all it took to bring the thing to a teter. He smiled smugly as he kicked the base, seeding it careening towards the forest floor. Only then did the demon finally reveal itself in a flash of feathers.

It bolted out of the nest and barreled away from the falling tree before landing on a lower tree as it looked at him with wide panicked eyes. It's not quite as unsightly as some of the demons he's faced,it remains rather humanoid in form. It has choppy bright golden yellow hair and large folded wings by its side, hands peeking out of the fluffy matching feathers as it clutches at its triangle patterned haori. Its legs are like that of a bird, adorned with feathers and large talons that gleamed wickedly in the light. A patch of slanted feathers twitch atop its head like the ears of a cat. “J-J-Jerk!” It screeches at him, its wings fluttering about as it sways on its perch, Its large electric eyes are brimming with tears as it squawks at him again.

“You destroyed my nest you brute! Where am I going to stay when the sun rises!” it wails in complaint.

The beast itself was rather flashy if he did say so himself but the way its voice grates on his ears is enough to make him rescind his earlier opinion.

“Not my problem feathers.” He laughed back at the demon, he could tell that it was rather weak and in the back of his mind he noted that there wasn't the faint coppery smell of blood that followed most demons but a faint hint of ozone and petrichor.

His blades glinted in his hands as his heart began to drum in anticipation of any easy slaying.

To his surprise and delight when he had jumped up to slash at the demon it had sped away from him. Its wings barely made a whisper of sound that was hard for even his advanced hearing to pick up.

He made another quick motion to go after the creature's head, angling his attack to corner it against the tree trunk.

Its talons lashed out but instead of aiming to attack like he had expected it to, its claws caught on his blade as it used to surface to launch itself away from him.

Its wings flaring in the air and catching the moonlight in a pretty display, maybe when he was done with the demon he would bring some of its feathers back for his wives, they were rather reflective and the golden hue was very flashy.

However he didn't get the chance to swing again as the creature launched itself further up into the air with surprising speed, leaving him to blink in surprise.

If the demon could move that fast why hadn't it attacked him? It was possible that the beast knew he was stronger than it, but most demons attacked recklessly, aiming to kill whatever got in their way.

He felt another pang of annoyance when the demon turned and burst up through the canopy, its wings beating silently as it darted across the night sky.

He cursed quietly as he took off after it, trying his best to follow its flight path from beneath the looming branches of the trees. To his utter frustration the demon was fast, too fast for him to keep up with its speed, quickly losing sight of its reflective feathers.

He slowed down, coming to a stop as irritation boiled in his chest.

He wouldn't be able to track it by sound or be able to follow the demon as it moved too fast for him to keep up with and there would be no physical tracks for him to use to hunt it down.

He huffed quietly as he hilted his swords, it was disappointing to have to return from the mission unsuccessful but he could at last provide the master and the other slayers with more useful information. He turned back towards the way he had come, finding his way to the path he had used to get there from the village.

He could at least buy his wives something nice before he returned.

Chapter Text

Shinobu could feel a muscle in her jaw tick as she struggled to keep her expression calm.

This mission was proving to be rather unpleasant and it continued to strain her already waning patience.

The demon nest she was assigned to was filled with many strength based demons with nothing but cobwebs in their hollow heads, they were arrogant and often charged her with no tact. They were easy to slay, their brash actions and assumption of her being an easy meal making it a smooth ordeal for her to inject them with her blade.

She straightened up, taking a deep breath to calm herself, bringing her sister's words to the forefront of her thoughts to help calm herself down.

She felt the muscles in her jaw clench as her smile tightened.

There was a new demonic presence behind her, its infuriating voice babbling something about fresh meat. She spun around, her movements swift as she pierced its flesh with the elegance of an arrow.

The demon wailed as the poison took hold, making it scratch at its own skin with desperation to find a way to escape the poison in its veins.

Her annoyance twisted her smile into something more feral as another demon made its way out of the underbrush.

However to her annoyance and mild surprise the demon was tackled by a younger man who barreled into the creature with an unhinged gleeful cackle.

She jumped back, her attention sharpening, the boy in front of her was rather strange, his torso open to the night air and wearing a boar head mask. He tussled with the demon as if it wasn't a flesh eating monster laughing like it was the best day of his life.

Her attention sharpened into something more deadly as she realized the young man had claws, his forearms completely black with the color spreading to the shoulders in the shape of tree branches.

She immediately moved to dispatch the demon, something in her instincts telling her that this one would be much more problematic than the others.

The boar demon evaded her, its attention refocusing on her, seeing her blade it practically vibrated with excitement.

The demon pulled out its own pair of swords as it charged her, yelling gleefully “Fight! Fight! Fight!”.

She parried its attack, quickly redirecting its blade with her own.

The action seemed to only spur it on, its posture dropping to be closer to the ground as it fought with her.

In the back of her mind as she blocked its swords from hooking around her feet to pull her off balance, she realized that it didn't really feel like a fight to the death and more like a spar.

The demon that the boar mask one had knocked down had recovered, trying to sneak up behind her, its attempt was quite pathetic.

She whirled around to strike it, but jumped back, her smile vanishing briefly in surprise as the boar demon tackled it.

“This is my fight! Back off!” its tone is offended.

It wrestled with the other demon, pulling it into a head lock before kicking it away, sending it slamming into a tree.

She felt a bit of vengeful glee, a kick like that had to have broken a few bones.

It was a smooth affair for her to finish it off, her attention swiveling back to the boar demon as the first demon faded into dust.

She eyed it cautiously, her mind clicking away as she apprised it, trying to figure out its intentions.

She had to admit its action had her intrigued, she'd never seen a demon act this way.

It straightened up, hands on its hip as it puffed up its chest.

“Fight me again Butterfly Lady!” it exclaimed, swords in hand.

She shifted her stance to fight it, her intrigue making her want to poke and prod at the enigma in front of her.

She felt a jolt of surprise make her eyebrows raise as another demon swept down to pull the other away.

She hadn't heard it make a sound nor could she sense its presence until it was present.

Its gold yellow wings fluttered as it hauled the boar demon away.

“You idiot, it's almost sunrise!” it squawked, tone alarmed.

Her focus shifted, sharpening into something deadly as she recognized the winged one from Uzui’s report.

The boar demon turned its attention to the yellow one, its body language annoyed.

“Monitsu! I was fighting! Let me go!” It huffed angrily.

The winged demon hit him over the head with one of its gleaming wings, feathers puffed up.

“We're not supposed to use our human names, Yasei! The only reason no one knows is because you suck at names idiot!” It yelped in offense, its tone loud and grating on her ears, a stark contrast to how quiet it moved.

Her jaw tightened in annoyance, these two were rather peculiar as she couldn't sense how strong either was.

She made a move to attack the winged demon who scrambled back, its wings beating the air as it moved to a safe distance in tops of the trees.

“Kokuten wants us back!” It huffed at the boar demon, Yasei as the other had called it.

At the mention of the name from the other demon its attitude abruptly shifted and it darted off into the undergrowth, not waiting for the other demon who squawked in offense before flying off after it.

She momentarily considered giving chase, her eyes narrowed. However she could tell that she wouldn't be able to run them down, she also had a mission she needed to finish.

On that thought she turned back in the direction of the demon nest to finish her mission and she would return with interesting news for the others.

Chapter Text

Giyuu could only feel a dull sense of relief as he walked alongside Gyomei, the other was one of the only Hashira that didn't seem to feel contempt for his existence among their ranks .

Tomioka had to admit that it was somewhat pleasant to be on a mission with the stone pillar, it was enjoyable not to have to explain himself nor try to engage in conversation with the other.

Gyomei murdered as they walked, their destination a small village that had been having a strange influx in demonic presence.

“Gyomei-san, I believe we have reached the village.” Giyuu said quietly, his tone dull like always.

Gyomei hummed in acknowledgement, walking beside Giyuu and murmuring his thanks as he rubbed his prayer beads between his hands.

The village was smaller than most, one where everyone knew everyone, the house worn and smooshed together.

As they walked through the village the people eyed them with awe and interest, the public parting around Gyomei’s large frame.

Giyuu glanced around, his face impassive as he trailed alongside the other slayer.

He wasn't seeing any demonic signs nor damage and the people seemed curious instead of wary as most were after a demon attack.

Giyuu opened his mouth to ask Gyomei his opinion but was cut off by a small girl running up to Gyomei’s large frame with wide curious eyes, surprisingly unafraid of his towering broad form.

She was a little thing with round puppy-like eyes, a flower crown slumped over her messy hair. She smiled brightly at the two of them, a small gap between her teeth. “Are you two here to see the angel?” she chirped in a cheerful giggle.

Giyuu’s attention abruptly refocused, his eyes sharpening as he was on alert.

He could see Gyomei’s broad shoulders tense for a moment.

They both knew it was a rarity as the corps tried to prevent it to the best of their abilities but some village’s could end up under the indoctrination of a demon, often giving human sacrifices in the belief that demons were other worldly beings that would bring them to ascension.

Gyomei reached out a large hand gently patting the girl on the head. “Would you be okay with explaining?”

she giggled, smiling wider under the attention.

“You’ll have to come see him, mister!” she chirped as she grabbed Gyomei by his hand, her smaller one only managing to fit around two of his fingers.

Gyomei looked conflicted as he was tugged along by the small child, having to hunch over slightly so she wouldn't be pulled off the ground.

Giyuu shuffled to Gyomei’s side in an offer of silent assistance.

They followed the little girl, becoming increasingly concerned as the village people gathered around them, Giyuu’s hand tightening around the hilt of his sword, the comforting weight of his Haori pressed to his skin.

They both expected to be led to a house, some place shadowed, becoming increasingly concerned for the well being of the village and their own as they were pulled deeper into the heart of the village.

Giyuu couldn't hide the sharp intake of breath that left him, his eyes widening.

The middle of the village was a large field, flowers of many different colors swaying in the breeze.

In the middle was a boy, his presence distinctly demonic, however he stood unharmed in the light, the setting sun casting a glow against his round face as it made his dark fiery hair seem to come alive in the glow of the sun, something that should be impossible.

He stood against the evening light and didn't burn, his face alight with a smile as he sat with a couple village children.

The demon had metallic horns that framed his face in the shape of sun rays, their surface catching the light making it seem as if he was a glittering star fallen to the earth, the reflected sun rays making it look as if a halo hovered around his face.

He turned to face them, and Giyuu couldn't suppress a gasp.

He recognized the boy, it had been years but he remembered.

The girl his mentor had taken in, she had been hunched over his fallen form and begged for the newly turned demon's life, to spare her brother.

He had protected her, allowing himself to be hit in her stead,`how the boy's eyes widened in horror as he heard what he was. The demon who had fled from him into the snowy forest, unable to be hunted down.

Gyomei stiffened next to him, his form straightening as the last dredges of the sunlight seemed to linger around the boy, curling around his form like embers of a dying fire.

The boy wore parts of what seemed to be ceremonial garb, his original foam Haori accompanied by the new garb.

The boy gently set the children aside, standing to face them.

Gyomei stepped up to Giyuu’s side, sensing his hesitance, something unusual for the water pillar.

The boy's hand moved to the hilt of something strapped to his side, a knowing smile on his face.

Gyomei was the first to move, using his large frame to move the villagers out of harm's way, eliciting many confused complaints.

Giyuu tensed, whipping out his katana as his posture changed.

The sun had long since set, but the boy seemed to still glow with its light as he pulled out an ornate wooden sword adorned with bells and tassels.

Giyuu darted forward and the boy evaded him, jumping to the side as he slid away from the attack.

The boy's eyes suddenly widened as he stared at Giyuu as he opened his mouth to say something, little fangs gleaming in his mouth.

No!

It was something behind him!

He wasn't quick enough to avoid being bowled over something vibrantly yellow and feathery.

Gyomei had finished removing the villagers from the vicinity of the fight, moving forward to assist Giyuu only to be met with a problem of his own in the form of a boar headed demon.

The demon on top of Giyuu shrieked like it was the last day of its life.

“No! You can't hurt Koukuten!” It sobbed in a shrill voice as its talons closed around the hilt of his sword and its wings beat at his head before it launched into the air.

Giyuu was only barely able to twist his sword out of the yellow demon's claws before it could alight with it.

Giyuu slid backwards to avoid the sudden charge of the Boar demon as it slashed at him with a pair of serrated swords that he blocked with his own.

Both of the demons put themselves between them and the first, the one that they had addressed as Koukuten. The yellow one looked like it was holding back tears while the boar headed one was practically radiating a murderous aura.

Both sides were tense, Gyomei’s presence surprisingly reassuring instead of smothering like the other Hashiras' presences were.

The Sun demon’s eyes widened in alarm and it pulled the other demons back by the back of their clothes.

“Sokudo! Yasei! Don't fight them, we need to leave!” It exclaimed.

The yellow one threw its arms around the sun demon's shoulders.

“I thought you were going to die!” It wailed, clinging to the other.

The boar demon stood between the slayers and the other two demons, its body language tense.

Gyomei moved swiftly to dispatch them, Giyuu following behind him.

The yellow one screeched in anger as the boar charged Gyomei, its form low to the ground darting between each attack, making use of its smaller form to best Gyomei’s larger one.

The yellow one's wings beat as it blasted past Giyuu, it tried to pull him off balance.

He quickly readjusted his target to avoid being pulled off balance.

He was forced to refocus from the sun demon to the loud yellow one.

It’s wings beat as it moved further into the sky, circling above Giyuu like a vulture before diving at him it’s form cracking as arcs of light swirled around its form.

Giyuu quickly darted to the side as the electricity from its body crackled into the air around him, making his hair stand on end and frizz.

He briefly noticed with a sinking feeling that the sun demon was nowhere in sight.

“Gyomei!” He shouted, tone urgent. “The first demon! Go after the first demon, don't kill it! We need to bring it to the master!” he shouted, tone uncharacteristically emotional.

Gyomei surprisingly didn't question him, managing to land a hit on the boar demon after adjusting to its low fighting style, sending the creature flying.

Gyomei darted off, going after the trail of the first demon, hunting through the village.

Giyuu fought the two demons, never allowing them to follow after Gyomei and get deeper into the village.

The two demons were stange, their fighting styles so different than the usual demon.

Giyuu was forced to avoid the boar demon's low attacks, finally managing to get a swipe on the yellow demon's wing, sending it crashing to the ground.

He stumbled as his body fizzled with pain, gritting his teeth as he blocked one of the boar-headed demons' attack, managing to land a hit to the back of its body.

He took a moment to breathe before restraining the two demons, having been able to knock them out.

He waited for a moment, watching the other two as he sat in anticipation of Gyomei’s return.

The large man took a minor 15 minutes to return back to the village center, carrying the unconscious sun demon by the back of its Haori like a misbehaving kitten.

“You owe me an explanation once we reach the masters.” he murmured calmly, turning to exit the village.

Giyuu followed behind, carrying the two other demons, a strange feeling in his gut.

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Chapter Text

Nezuko was tired.

Not the satisfying ache from a long day of training, nor the weary exhaustion of a successful battle.

This was bone deep, heavy claws made of lingering grief that clenched around her heart and made it hard to breathe sometimes.

It had been so long since she’d seen the last surviving member of her family. She refused to think that her brother, kind and caring Tanjirou, had become a monster.

He had always protected their family even in the moment he turned he refused to bite her, refused to harm his sister.

That day in the forest was still etched into her mind, like a stubborn wound that refused to close.

She had stayed the night safely down the mountain before returning to the horrifying scene, her family splayed and bloody like meat in a butcher's shop. Her brother had been curled up in the house's main room, his body laid over their little siblings in a desperate bid to protect them from the threat that had wrought such destruction. Despite her brother being the most damaged of them all (as if the perpetrator had been especially vicious with him) he was still breathing.

Carrying her brother down the mountain had been a blur of emotions and kicked up snow.

She hated her weakness at that moment. She was not weak for a woman in any shape or form, living in the mountains did not allow weak people to flourish and yet she struggled to carry her older brother who had spent his entire life carrying her on his shoulders to protect her from the harsh cold or when she had skinned her knee on warm summer day.

When she fell down the mountain he had refused to hurt her in any way, even in his moment of turning to a demon, his fangs had dug into his own flesh, his blood spilling from his mouth to keep himself from even having the chance to harm her.

That's when everything went awry, she could never have the heart to resent Giyuu-san for what he did but sometimes she wished things would have been different, that her brother hadn't looked so horrified at the sight of what he was and fled into the forest.

That was the last look she remembered on her brother's face, the last she had seen of him two years ago.

So when she heard her brother's voice her body went stiff, her blood roaring in her ears as she whirled around, desperately trying to find the source.

Her heart leapt into her throat as her eyes landed on a figure she thought she'd never see again.

He looked older somehow, his hair was longer loose around his shoulders, curved metallic golden horns curving from his hair like the rays of the sun.

He was crouched over two other figures, the flaps of his haori laid over their backs, his expression desperate.

“Please, you don't understand! They can't be in the sun like I can, it will burn them!” he pleaded to the figures in front of him, the Hashira.

The wind Hashira, Shingazawa-san growled his katana pointed at her brother.

Rage kicked in and she couldn't control herself, the sounds around her were muffled and drowned out as her vision narrowed down and she ran towards the threat to her brother, nailing the Hashira right in the crotch with a well aimed kick.