A bright star in the dark night

by orphan_account

Summary:

What if Nezuko went out to sell coal instead of Tanjiro?

What if all the Hashira were instead upper moons? And the upper moons were Hashira?

//discontinued srry//

Notes:

This was my first time writing a demon slayer fan fic so their probably occ, but I'm just going to blame it on the fact its a swap au.

Chapter 1: Cruelty

Nezuko hummed to herself as she put the basket of coals onto her back, stopping momentarily to grunt as the weight settled onto her shoulders.

 

“Nezuko dear, you know you don’t have to do this. The weather is looking rather bad today.” Nezuko’s mother said as she stepped out of the house, bringing the edge of her kappogi up to Nezuko’s face to wipe the soot off her face.

 

“It’s fine mom! Tanjiro can’t do it and I’m happy to help the family!” Normally Nezuko’s older brother was the one that brought coal down to the village at the base of the mountain, but unfortunately, he had hurt his leg a few days ago and wouldn’t be able to make the trip down the mountain at the moment.

 

And, as the second oldest in her family, the responsibility of selling coal fell down to Nezuko.

 

“Onee-san! Onee-san! Can you take us with you? please!” Nezuko’s little sister, Hanako, said as she rounded the corner of the house, two of her brothers, Takeo and Shingeru following close behind.

 

“Hanako, you know Nezuko can’t take the cart like Tanjiro can.” Their mother told her daughter in her kind, motherly voice. Hanako puffed up her cheeks.

 

“We can walk! Please can we go!!” Takeo said, swinging the axe he was holding over his shoulder as if looking tougher would make their mom believe that he could walk down the entire mountain.

 

“Takeo, you might be able to get down the mountain, but what about Hanako and Shingeru? Don’t you want to go with them?” Their mother asked, doing that thing moms do where they turn your own argument against you.

 

“I guess… fine. But promise that we can all go down when Tanjiro’s leg heals!” Tekeo said reluctantly.

 

“Hey Tekeo, promise you’ll chop lots of wood while I’m gone?” Nezuko asked, stepping over and placing one of her hands on her little brother’s face.

 

“Like I wasn’t already going to…” Tekeo said, an embarrassed blush growing on his cheeks as he looked away from Nezuko.

 

Nezuko placed her other hand on Hanako’s face. “And when I get back, we can practice sewing together!” she said, watching Hanako’s little face light up with excitement.

 

Hanako recently decided that she wanted to learn to sew, and seeing as mom was often too busy to take time to teach her Nezuko had taken it apron herself to mentor her little sister. She was learning so quickly, she’d make a great seamstress when she’s older!

 

Now that her siblings were happy, Nezuko hugged her mom and began walking down the path that led down the mountain. It was a little hard to see today because of all the snow that covered the ground, but Nezuko had the path completely memorized.

 

It wasn’t long before she could hear the sound of feat crunching on the snow behind her, Nezuko turned to see her older brother Tanjiro.

 

“Onii-chan!” Nezuko said happily, watching as her older brother used his cane to limp over to her. Now that he was closer, Nezuko could see their youngest brother, Rokuta sleeping on his back.

 

Rokuta had gotten very attached to Tanjiro after their father died, he’d gotten so happy when he heard that he’d be able to spend everyday with Tanjiro after he hurt his leg. He’s only 3, he didn’t yet understand that his big brother was in pain.

 

“Thank you for taking coal to town for me Nezuko, it means a lot.” Tanjiro said, giving his little sister a warm smile.

 

“Its nothing, I haven’t been down the mountain in a while anyways. But what are you doing out of bed! The doctor told you to rest!” A week ago Tanjiro had twisted his ankle playing tag with Shigeru and Hanako, it took a little under a day for Nezuko to make her way down the mountain to fetch a doctor from town.

 

Said doctor told him to stay in bed for then next week or two and gave him a cane incase he needed to walk somewhere.

 

In Nezuko’s definition, walking around outside the house was not something he needed to do, and on such a snowy day no less!

 

“I’ll be fine Nezuko. Rokuta wanted to go on a small walk and fell asleep, I was just heading back to the house when I smelled you walking past us.” Nezuko sighed and looked her older brother in the face. He had a habit of putting others above himself, even if it hurt him.

 

Nezuko wasn’t dumb, she could see the pained strain in his smile and the way he held his injured leg slightly off the ground.

 

“Well then you should get back home and lay down, I don’t want you to hurt your leg anymore just because you wanted to do something nice.” Nezuko said, giving Tanjiro a hug before the two parted ways.

 

The walk down the mountain turned out to be mostly uneventful, just Nezuko, the heavy bag of coals on her back, and the soft crunch of freshly lane snow.

 

Everything was so peaceful, Nezuko wished she could have stayed in that moment forever.

 

But everything good comes to an end at some point.

 

Nezuko took a good look around as she stepped into town, it had been a while since she’d last had a proper visit with her older brother and father 5 years ago.

 

Back before his illness got so bad he wasn’t able to leave his bed.

 

“Nezuko! Is that you? it’s been so long! What are you doing down here?” Mrs. Shi, a towns woman that had been close with the Kamado family said, stepping into Nezuko’s line of sight.

 

“Tanjiro hurt his leg last week, so I offered to take sell coal in his place! Would you like to buy some Shi-san?” Nezuko asked.

 

“I’d love to.”

 

-

 

It was just before sunset when Nezuko ran out of coal.

 

She hummed to herself as she began making her way back up to her home, she didn’t need to see the path through the dark of the steadily setting in night, she had already memorized all the small changes on her way down.

 

“Nezuko!” The dark-haired girl turned at the sound of her own name. In front of her was one of the only other people living on the mountain, Mr. Saburo.

 

“Hello Saburo-san, did you need something? I ran out of coal already, so if that’s what you need you’ll have to wait until the next time Tanjiro comes to town.” Nezuko said, already antsy to get home.

 

She had a bad feeling. Something bad was going to happen. She needed to get home.

 

“No, no, I wanted to tell you that it’s dangerous to be out at night. It’s when the demons rome.” He spoke.

 

Demons?

 

“I’d love to Saburo-san, but I really must be getting home now.” Nezuko replied.

 

“Please Nezuko, I made extra miso soup for dinner, and I can set out a futon for you to sleep on.” Saburo told her. Well, maybe it was just Nezuko’s nerves telling her something bad would happen. She hadn’t been away from her family since her dad died after all.

 

“Ok, thank you for letting me stay Saburo-san.” Nezuko said, stepping into her neighbor’s house.

-

 

Her night at Saburo’s had been very peaceful, but she just couldn’t shake the feeling of dread that loomed over her.

 

So, at the first rays of daylight Nezuko set back out towards home, giving Saburo and wave and thanking him for letting her spend the night.

 

She walked home as quickly as she could.

 

When her house finally came into view, something felt wrong. Deeply wrong.

 

It was quiet.

 

It was never that quiet in a home with so many kids.

 

Rounding the corner, something horrifying came into view.

 

“Tanjiro! Rokuta!” Nezuko yelled, dropping her basket as she ran towards her brothers.

 

Blood pooled around their bodies. Tanjiro’s arm was swung over Rokuta as if he was trying to protect him from… whatever attacked them.

 

Nezuko placed a hand on both of her brothers’ backs. Rokuta’s little body was cold. So, so, cold.

 

He hadn’t been alive for hours.

 

His corpse had been sitting here in the snow for hours.

 

Hours that Nezuko spent enjoying miso soup and getting a good nights rest.

 

Tanjiro was still warm.

 

Not fully warm, he’d been out in the snow for hours (just like Rokuta), but alive warm.

 

Tanjiro was alive.

 

Nezuko turned to her front door, if she could get Tanjiro to a doctor-

 

Blood.

 

More blood.

 

Every inch of the walls were covered in blood. Mom, Tekeo, Hanako, Shigeru’s mangled corpses all covered it in.

 

The home that Nezuko had grown up in was covered in blood.

 

The blood of her mom, of her little brothers, of her little sister.

 

Nezuko could feel their empty eyes staring into her soul, blaming her for not being there, they-

 

No.

 

No, Tanjiro was still alive, she needed to take him to a doctor.

 

She still had her big brother, she couldn’t lose him too.

 

“Please Onii-chan, please stay with me for just a little while longer. I’ll get you to a doctor soon, please just don’t leave me.” She begged, her voice breaking and her tears falling against her big brother’s back.

 

Nezuko pushed herself to her feat and hooked her arms under Tanjiro’s, dragging him back down the path down the mountain.

 

At some point snow began falling. Nezuko’s tears were freezing on her face, but she couldn’t care.

 

The only thing running though her head was that she needed to get Tanjiro to a doctor.

 

Then his head moved.

 

Tanjiro’s head moved and Nezuko missed her step.

 

She fell.

 

And she dragged Tanjiro down with her.

 

Thankfully the snow broke her fall. Weird, the snow was what made her fall in the first place.

 

Nezuko laid there for a moment. Catching her breath and grabbing a thick stick that was laying next to her to ground herself.

 

No. She didn’t have time to rest now.

 

She needed to get her brother to a doctor.

 

Nezuko rolled over and pushed herself to her feat. Looking around, wait. Where was Tanjiro?

 

Finally, she spotted her older brother, standing in front of her looking down at the snow, the blanket Nezuko had hastily thrown over him when she began moving sliding off his shoulder.

 

“Onii-chan! You shouldn’t stand! Your legs still hurt! Let me carry you!” She cried, stumbling over her own legs in her hast to get to her brother. Then Tanjiro looked her in the eyes.

 

But he wasn’t the same as he used to be. His eyes were slits and what once was a deep dark red was now bright as blood. His sharp teeth lunged at Nezuko, who was barely able to shove her stick into his mouth to keep him from biting her.

 

He’s a demon? No… Tanjiro’s human! He always has been!

 

He didn’t attack their family! The way he was laying made it clear he was trying to protect Rokuta, and his hands and mouth are completely free of blood!

 

He pushed against her for a moment, trying to bite into his little sister’s flesh.

 

“Onii-chan! Hang on please! don’t give in!” Nezuko grunted, doing her best to hold off her much stronger older brother. Surprisingly, Tanjiro stopped. His eyes darted to somewhere behind him before grabbing Nezuko’s waist and jumping away, pulling her with him.

 

Just as two swords struck the ground they had just been standing on.

 

As the snow cleared Nezuko was able to see again.

 

Tanjiro was standing protectively over her, shielding her from the man that had just arrived.

 

Where she and Tanjiro had just been stood a man, a sword in each hand and shoulder length brown hair tied back into a ponytail.

 

“Dumb girl… he’s a demon you know? He’ll eat you the moment he can.” The man grumbled, turning to look at the siblings over his shoulder.

 

“No! He’s my big brother! He won’t do anything to hurt me or anyone else!” Nezuko called, moving to stand behind Tanjiro.

 

Tanjiro and the man lunged at the same time, Nezuko’s brother grew to the same height as the man that he was attacking, trying to swipe at him with his new claws.

 

The two became locked in combat, swiping and moving back, swinging and moving back, just to dive right back into each other.

 

No. Nezuko can’t let this man kill her brother! He was the only family she had left! He’d never even kill anyone! There was now way her Tanjiro would hurt a person, much less his own family!

 

He was always so kind. Helping the towns people with his amazing sense of smell, playing with his siblings, offering to sell extra coal so Nezuko could get a new kimono even when she told him she didn’t need one!

 

He was a man-eating demon and was still trying to protect her!

 

If their places were swapped, Tanjiro would do anything to get Nezuko back to normal!

 

But their places weren’t swapped. That’s why Nezuko needed to save Tanjiro! She would do anything to save him! Just as he would for her!

 

The man knocked Tanjiro away, sending him flying back into the snow.

 

Nezuko needed to act fast.

 

There was no way she could knock the man out with strength alone… but…

 

Quickly grabbed two rocks and threw them at the mystery man, who easily dodged the first, his attention off Tanjiro for just a moment.

 

Then Nezuko ran at him, only to be swiftly knocked out.

-

 

Huh, what an odd run in.

 

There was no way that girl would’ve been able to knock Gyutaro with brute strength alone.

 

Wait.

 

Taking a swift step to the side Gyutaro was able to dodge the second, notably larger rock, that had been hurdling at his head.

 

So, she thought she could distract him with the first rock, then lunge at him to keep him distracted while the second rock came at him.

 

She reminded him of his sister, Ume. Lot of spunk in her.

 

And the boy.

 

He was likely very hungry, using so much energy turning.

 

But here he was, a hungry man-eating demon fighting tooth and nail to protect his little sister.

 

Maybe he was more human than he first assumed.

 

When the boy lunged at him again Gyutaro used the same move he had used on his sister to knock him out.

 

The two lay there, they had tried to protect each other with everything they had despite all odds.

 

They reminded him so much of himself and Ume, just like when they were still on the streets of the entertainment district before they’d met the man that was now their father.

 

Gyutaro tore off a long strip of his uniform (something Ume would undoubtedly yell at him for when he returned to the paradise mansion) and grabbed a piece of bamboo from a nearby tree.

 

Using the both he was able to swiftly create a makeshift muzzle that he put into the boy’s mouth.

 

Just in case.

 

Leaning against a nearby tree he began to wait. They were safely covered by the thick layer of trees and Gyutaro didn’t spot any nearby homes on his way here.

-

 

Opening her eyes Nezuko found herself staring at her brother, he was happily asleep and now had a bamboo muzzle in his mouth.

 

He was still alive.

 

She was still alive.

 

She reached out and placed a hand on her brother’s face.

 

Sitting up, she could see that the man had attacked her and Tanjiro was leaning against a tree.

 

A jolt of panic ran through her and she moved her hand to protect Tanjiro.

 

“Calm down kid. I’m not gonna hurt you or your man-eating brother.” He said looking down at Nezuko with a calm, somewhat bored expression. “The names Gyutaro, I’m a demon slayer.” He told her.

 

“I’m Nezuko, and this is my older brother Tanjiro.” Nezuko said, sending her best icy glare at Gyutaro.

 

Which, granted, wasn’t very good.

 

Nezuko wasn’t exactly the best at being mean.

 

“Listen here kid. There might be a way to save your brother here, but to find out how you’ll need to become a demon slayer.” The slayer said, cocking his head as he looked down at the siblings.

 

“W-what?” Become a slayer? Kill demons? If… if that’s what she needed to do to save her brother, then that’s what she’d do. “How.”

 

“Heh, guess I shouldn’t have thought that would scare you off. Ok, I’ve got a friend that knows someone that’ll be able to train you. Oh, and while you’re traveling, keep your brother out of any kind of sunlight.” Gyutaro told the girl before giving her an address to another mountain not that far from where they were now.

 

Then the two parted ways, leaving Nezuko and Tanjiro to head back to their home.

 

“Stay here Onii-chan.” Nezuko told him, leaving him in the shadows of the trees while she made her way to their home.

 

She spent the last of the daylight digging graves for her family. Rokuta’s was so, so small.

 

They all were.

 

Once the sun set Tanjiro came to stand next to her. The two prayed for their family before heading off.

 

Everything was different now.

 

But Nezuko knew one thing.

 

Nezuko would do anything to save her big brother.

 

Even if she needed to kill every last demon on earth.

 

Because he’d do the same for her.

Chapter 2: A demon in sunlight

Summary:

Nezuko finds a way to keep traveling in the day with Tanjiro & stumbles upon her first demon (that shes not related to,) along with a very old man!

Notes:

AHHH I finished this chapter so much faster then I expected!!! I haven't been going through and writing this one-one with the anime, so most of what I've written is just paraphrasing from my memory

The siblings spent all night walking, only stopping just before sunrise in a cave to keep Tanjiro out of the sun like Gyutaro said.

 

“Just wait here, ok? I’ll be back as soon as I find something to keep the sun off you.” The girl told her older brother, earning her an “Hmh!” in response.

 

Nezuko left the cave behind, trying not to think of what might happen to her brother while she was away.

 

Right now, she should focus on finding something that could shield Tanjiro from the light so that she could still move during the day.

 

If she was remembering correctly, there was a farm not too far back, so she might be able to get something from there.

 

“Hello Sir, is it ok if I borrow that basket, and some straw and bamboo?” Nezuko asked as she approached a man working at the edge of the field, pointing at a discarded basket sitting next to the farmhouse.

 

“Uh, well I can’t see what you’d do with it, but knock yourself out.” The farmer replied, looking up from his work for only a moment before returning to his crops.

 

“Thank you very much! I can pay you for it if you need me to!” The girl said, giving the farmer a thankful bow.

 

“No, you don’t have to do that, it’s full of holes anyway.” He told her, waving his hand.

 

“No, no! I insist, really!” Even if the basket had holes in it, it still didn’t feel right to just take it without paying!

 

“No it’s fine, same goes for the other stuff you wanted.” The farmer told her as he shook his head.

 

“Please, just let me pay its no trouble!” Nezuko told him, reaching to get some yen from the small bag she had taken with her when she left to sell coal.

 

“I said it’s fine!” The farmer insisted. “So just take it you stupid kid!”

 

Unfortunately for him, Nezuko wasn’t going to listen to that. She took a couple coins from the bag and shoved them into his hands. “Take these for your kindness and letting me take these from you!” She told him, before taking the items she bought and walking back off to where she had left Tanjiro.

 

-

 

When she returned, the cave was empty.

 

“Onii-chan!” Nezuko cried. Thankfully Tanjiro quickly popped his head out of a newly-dug hole in the ground at the sound of his little sisters panicked cry.

 

“Hmh?”

 

“Is the sun affecting you that much?” The black-haired girl asked, her expression turning to a mixture of curiosity and worry. “Wait just a moment Onii-chan.” Nezuko said, using the basket, straw and bamboo to make a safe basket for her to carry Tanjiro in.

 

Nezuko turned the basket into it’s side for Tanjiro to crawl into.

 

“Can you get in her Onii-chan?” She asked. Tanjiro moved forward, pushing his muzzle into the basket. “Hm, I guess your too big for that…” Nezuko thought back to Tanjiro and Gyutaro’s fight yesterday. Tanjiro had been slightly bigger than the slayer, despite the fact that he was 13 and Gyutaro was definitely an adult.

 

“Can you change your size?” The girl asked. Watching as her big brother nodded before shrinking into the size of a toddler, clearly already knowing what Nezuko was letting onto.

 

Now that Tanjiro was safely secured in the basket his little sister was able to once again begin traveling, despite her exhaustion from having not slept since Gyutaro knocked her out the previous day.

-

 

Nezuko walked until sundown when Tanjiro started moving a lot in his basket.

 

“Huh, Onii-chan? Do you want to walk?” The girl hummed as she pushed the cloth that held the basket off her back. When the basket was safely on the ground clawed hands moved the white cloth from the top, allowing Tanjiro to grow back to his normal height and step from the basket.

 

After picking the basket back up the two Kamados continued on their way to the mountain.

 

After hours of walking Tanjiro dropped Nezuko’s hand, his eyes narrowing and drool dripping down past his muzzle as he walked towards a nearby home.

 

“Onii-chan, is something wrong?” Nezuko said, panicking as she heard her brothers’ growls. He wasn’t about to eat someone. Right? Following him to the front of the building, she realized what had actually caused the demon to freak out.

 

It was so grossly reminiscent of when Nezuko came home. Blood covered the walls as a green skinned demon feasted on the flesh of the people that likely used to live in the house.

 

Is that what she could’ve come home to? Her beloved older brother eating their little siblings that he had cared so much for?

 

No. Even if Nezuko had taken 8 years to come home Tanjiro still wouldn’t have touched the corpses of his family.

 

“Huh? Oh great, another demon. Back off kid, I killed these people myself!” The demon said, staring directly at Tanjiro. “And you brought another human right too me!” The demon licked its lips as its attention shifted to Nezuko.

 

The elder sibling took a step to the side, blocking the demon’s view of his little sister.

 

Oh Nezuko was so screwed! Why didn’t she bring something to defend herself with when she was leaving home?! If the demon tried to kill her, she would be guaranteed to die!

 

No, she needed to think, what would she be able to dive for if a fight broke out?

 

An axe was wedged into a tree stump at the side of the building. Perfect!

 

Just then, the green-skinned demon lunged, pushing right past her brother, and moving right toward Nezuko.

 

Acting on instinct, Nezuko brought one of her legs up and kicked the demon right in his chin, forcing it to fall back as its head almost completely detached from its neck.

 

“What a strong kick you have little girl.” The demon hissed, its eyes watching the girl as she quickly ran over and grabbed the axe she had noticed earlier.

 

Healed from the young girl’s powerful kick, the demon lunged again, this time stopped by the handle of the axe that Nezuko now held.

 

While the two struggled, Tanjiro stood staring at the bodies of the demon’s hunt. His brain was screaming at him to close the distance, to let the delicious taste of their blood fill his mouth as he regained the energy that had been lost since he had been turned into a demon.

 

No.

 

No. He couldn’t.

 

Snaping his head away he turned to where his little sister struggled against the towering strength of the green demon that was trying to kill her.

 

Protect.

Protect.

Protect.

 

Nezuko wished she had her brother’s strength right now, she was just barely able to hold the demon off as it tried to eat her alive.

 

Until a force shoved into its head, sending it flying above Nezuko’s head and far away from the body. Looking at what had caused the demon’s head to go flying, she came face to face with Tanjiro, who seemed to have used his already powerful forehead to send the creature’s head away.

 

Its body was still moving though.

 

The body turned to Nezuko’s brother, claws coming up to scratch him before Tanjiro turned and ran the other way, causing the demon’s body to follow suit.

 

He was leading it away from her.

 

Nezuko’s eyes widened as she realized that if the demons’ body was still active, its head must be too. She turned swiftly, axe ready as she looked down at the creature’s head as it lay on the rough, grassy ground in a small pool of its own blood.

 

“Damn it! How is that boy’s head so damn strong!” The demon hissed out, before growing a pair of literal arms out of the side of its head. “No matter! I’ll kill you both!” It used its new neck-arms to jump at Nezuko, using said arms to grab onto the handle of her axe.

 

Again panicked Nezuko dropped the axe, but before it could hit the ground, she kicked the creature that was holding it straight in the face. It was again sent flying, the axe coming to wedge itself into a tree, trapping the demon behind it.

 

‘Wh-what?! I can’t get out!” The demon screamed, trying to push the axe that was holding it to the tree off of itself. Nezuko just stared at it.

 

She had to kill it.

 

It had hurt people, it had killed people. But it looked so human, well, aside from the fact that it was a moving head with arms growing out of it.

 

Still, watching it struggle made her feel something.

 

Pity, she felt pity for it.

 

She brought a hand up to her ear, letting her fingers graze the Hanafuda earrings Tanjiro gave her after she said she’d take over his chores while his leg was healing.

-

 

“Nezuko! You really don’t have to! I’ll be better in no time!” Tanjiro had said, his normal warm tone edging with nervousness. Tanjiro had always panicked when someone tried doing his jobs, it only got worse after dad died a year ago, pretty much everything their father had done before now fell onto his shoulders as the eldest child.

 

“No! No! You need to heal Onii-chan! I’ll do your chores until your better!” Nezuko had promised. She used to spend a lot of time helping around the house, spending most of her time raising her little siblings. But if Tanjiro couldn’t go to town, then it would be Nezuko’s job to take over and help!

 

The two ended up arguing for quite a while, both having a very stubborn personality that tended to collide for often then not, but in the end Nezuko’s insistence and Tanjiro’s lack of mobility won out.

 

Tanjiro sighed, “Well if I can’t convince you to let me do it…” He brought a hand up and took off one of the earrings their father had given him before he passed. “Then take this.” He gave Nezuko a kind smile.

 

She missed that smile.

-

 

Sakonji watched as the girl Gyutaro had told him about stared off into space while the demon in front of her screeched-out curses.

 

If this is how she would act whenever she had to kill a demon, she’d be dead in seconds. Not that his other students lasted much longer…

 

12 hours ago Sakonji got a letter from Gyutaro, the poison Hashira. While he had never been on of his own students, Sakonji was fairly close with the young mans adoptive father.

 

Douma was a new pillar when Sakonji was nearing retirement, and the two had kept in relative contact throughout the years. He’d written about finding the young poison Hashira and his sister, meeting a ‘wonderful’ woman and her baby son, his engagement to said woman, and her eventual untimely death.

 

This was the first time Gyutaro had written to Sakonji himself though, telling him about a determined young girl and her newly-turned demon brother.

 

Though she showed some promise, she was far too soft and would never be able to kill without some serious training.

 

While the old man had been thinking, the girl managed to pull herself away from her own thoughts long enough to grab a second axe to try and kill the demon with.

 

It wouldn’t work though, these creatures had amazing regeneration abilities and could only be killed by a nichiren blade or the sunlight. Among other things that were far too hard to work with to be viable for most slayers.

 

Sakonji tried talking to the girl, but she was far off into her own world, so he moved on to begin burying the people the demon had been feasting on. The sun would rise soon, and it was clear that the demon wouldn’t be able to free itself before then.

 

Entering the building he found himself face to face with the girl’s demon brother, who seemed to have realized the sun would be coming and found a place to hide.

 

He had no blood on him, despite the way his mouth was drooling due to the fresh bodies around him. He had been in the building for some amount of time and still hadn’t given into his demonic urges? Maybe he was as different as Gyutaro had made him out to be.

 

-

 

The sun was rising. Nezuko had been standing in front of the demon for so long that the sun was coming up, and she still couldn’t find the courage to finish it off.

 

At some point an aged man wearing a tengu mask had tried to speak with her, saying something about just killing the demon, but all Nezuko could think of was the thought of taking a life, even if it was the life of something that had just murdered an entire group of people.

 

But she didn’t have to kill it, because the moment the sunlight hit the demon it began disintegrating in seconds. Is that why Gyutaro didn’t want Tanjiro to touch the sunlight?

 

Wait.

 

Where was Tanjiro?

 

The last the girl had seen of her brother, he was leading the body of the demon away from her.

 

Nezuko looked around wildly, desperately trying to spot her demon brother, but she spotted something else instead. The old man that tried to talk to her earlier had taken it upon himself to bury the bodies of the people the demon had been eating before the siblings stumbled upon him.

 

Running into the building Nezuko found her brother curled up in a dark corner of the room, back in the small child-like form he had been in when they were travelling the other day.

 

“You’re safe…”

 

Taking a calming breath Nezuko took the basket back off and allowed Tanjiro to climb back in so that he would be protected from the sun and wouldn’t disintegrate like the other demon.

 

Once she knew her brother was safe, she when back outside to find the old man with the tengu mask.

 

“Excuse me,” Nezuko said, taking a step closer to the man, who stood up from where he had been praying.

 

“My name is Sakonji Urokodaki, you’re the one Gyutaro sent my way, correct?” He said, not even turning around to face her.

 

How had Gyutaro gotten ahead of her? And in with enough time for the old man to make his own way here?

 

“Uh, I am!” Was this the guy Gyutaro said would help train her? But he was so old?

 

“Then you have a lot of work to do young miss, you’re far too soft to become a slayer if you can’t even kill a trapped demon!” He chastised. Even though his face was covered by a mask, Nezuko could feel the unapproving frown and glaring eyes.

 

Oddly enough, it almost reminded her of when her grandmother used to yell at her before she passed.

 

“I know. But that’s why I’m here. I want to save my brother, even if that means killing even the most powerful demon.” Nezuko told him, a determined look shining in her deep pink eyes.

 

“And you know what would happen if he ate someone? You would have to kill him, and then slit your own belly and die. Is that a risk you are willing to take for him?” Urokodaki’s voice became cold and serious.

 

Could she do that? Was there a world where she’d be able to kill her big brother? Even if he was a bloodthirsty, man-eating monster? No.

 

Because there wasn’t a world where Tanjiro, even if he was a demon, would harm another living person.

 

Even if they were a demon, he would still show them kindness.

 

”YOU’RE TAKING TOO LONG! YOU’RE NEVER GOING TO GET ANYWHERE IF YOU KEEP SPENDING SO MUCH TIME IN YOUR OWN HEAD!” The older man shouted.

 

”Y-YES!” Nezuko shouted back.

 

The old man looked her in the eyes, as if he was deep in thought, before turning around and running off at a speed Nezuko never would have expected from someone his age.

 

“Wh- Hey!” Nezuko yelled, before racing off after him.

Notes:

I hope you thought the temple demon fight was cool! I really tried to change it too fit with Nezuko's strong legs, rather then Tanjiro's op a$$ forehead :)

Chapter 3: It’s all for you, big brother.

Summary:

Nezuko trains under Urokodaki & Tanjiro takes a 2 year long nap

The sun was setting by the time Nezuko and Urokodaki reached the mountain. And the girl was only allowed a few moments to put down her brothers basket down inside Urokodaki’s house before he began to lead her even further up the mountain.

 

Finally Nezuko was allowed to stop. Her legs felt numb, her lungs were burning, and her head felt light and numb.

 

“Now your goal is to get back down the mountain. And this time I won’t give you till dawn.” Urokodaki said calmly before disappearing into the mist, leaving Nezuko on her own.

 

“Just… get down the mountain?” Nezuko mumbled to herself. “That sounds too easy.”

 

The young girl began down the path, but the mist was making it hard to keep perfectly on the path she’d taken on the way up.

 

Then suddenly, out of no where, something came flying at her from the side, knocking Nezuko back into a tree.

 

There’s traps! That’s why getting down the mountain is a challenge! The girl realized.

 

She pushed herself back onto her numb feet, continuing on the path a lot more cautiously then before. I wish I’d paid more attention to where Urokodaki was stepping before!

 

It was close to sunrise when Nezuko finally got down the mountain, sweaty, tired, bruised and numb from head to toe, but she’d made it.

 

Urokodaki gave her a pleased hum, but didn’t try to stop her as she when and found the room Tanjiro had been placed in and passed out on an empty futon next to her brother.

 

-

 

Nezuko blinked the sleep out of her eyes before sitting up. The girl turned to her demon brother, who was still fast asleep.

 

I promise I’ll save you. She thought, brushing a few dark red hairs from his face.

 

“Congratulations Nezuko. I’ll train you.” Urokodaki told her as she walked out of the room. Nezuko’s heart sored. Urokodaki is going to train me that means, I’ll be able to save Tanjiro!

 

“But before you get your hopes up, it takes a lot to be a slayer! Demons have the ability regenerate limbs, slayers don’t. Not to mention their increased stamina and durability. If you want to cure your brother you’ll need to become strong enough to kill these things.” Nezuko nodded, her head filled all the information Urokodaki has just told her.

 

“I’ll do it! I don’t care how hard it is, or how long I need to train, I’ll do anything to save Tanjiro!” The girl said with determination.

 

“Hm. We’ll see if you keep saying that after today’s training.”

 

-

 

Dear Tanjiro, I’ve decided to start a journal for you to read once you’re back to normal.

 

Its been about two weeks since Urokodaki-sensei agreed to train me, I can’t say its been easy.

 

Normally we start the day with breathing training. Urokodaki-sensei says that the way a demon slayer breaths can be the difference between life and death.

 

And after lunch he sends me up the mountain and makes me climb back down, its covered in many different traps and the air up there is much thinner then it is where we grew up so its hard to think.

 

But I’ve been able to memorize a lot of the traps, and I’ve also gotten better at dodging any that I missed. Urokodaki-sense always talks about how important adaptation is to water breathing.

 

-

 

Dear Tanjiro. Its now been almost 4 months since I started training.

 

Urokodaki-sensei has finally given me a wooden sword to train with, he tells me to attack him with it. I’ve been trying my best, but I still haven’t managed to get a single hit on him!

 

He's also made me start higher on the mountain, where the air is even thinner and I don’t recognize anything. On the bright side, being unfamiliar with the traps means I’ve gotten even better at anticipating and dodging different attacks!

 

I’ve even begun doing yoga on my own before bed and in the mornings, Urokodaki-sensei says flexibility is super important when it comes to water breathing, so I’m hoping that if I become more flexible, I’ll be an even better water breather!

 

-

 

Dear Tanjiro, it’s now been 7 months since I began my training. You’re still asleep, I don’t think you’ve woken up since we arrived at Urokodaki-sensei’s home. I’m starting to get really worried, but Urokodaki-sensei says that you’re regaining your strength through sleeping rather than consuming humans.

 

I know it’s better than you eating humans, but please wake up soon!

 

Anyways, I think I’ve finally mastered the first two water breathing forms! It was really hard, but I’ve still got nine more forms to learn, at least knowing a few forms means the others should be easier to get the hang of!

 

I’ve also managed to knock Urokodaki-sensei off his feet while training, but I felt really bad about it and started apologizing. Then Urokodaki-sensei knocked me down and lectured me on being too soft.

 

-

 

Its been almost a year since we came to Urokodaki-sensei. Last night we shared a large meal in honor of our mom, brothers and sister. I know you wouldn’t have been able to eat anything, but I still wish you’d been there with us.

 

Urokodaki-sensei says I’ve finished my training now, but he also said that I had to cut through this huge boulder before he’d send me off to final selection.

 

I’m really worried, the rock is even taller than I am and he somehow expects me to cut it in half! I’m not sure how I’ll do it, but I’m going to find a way.

 

For you, Tanjiro.

 

-

 

Nezuko panted heavily as she glared at the rock. Her face and clothes were covered in dirt and her sword had many chips in the blade.

 

She’d been trying to cut this stupid rock for 6 long months. Almost a year and a half of training with Urokodaki-sensei had made her tough as nails, her once feather soft hands were now hard and calloused.

 

“You’re never going to get it like that. It’s honestly pathetic.” Said an unfamiliar voice. Nezuko looked up and met the eyes of a woman sitting on the boulder.

 

Her face was hidden by a kitsune mask, and her shoulder length black hair was styled in a half up half down style. She was really pretty.

 

The girl jumped down in front of Nezuko, wooden sword in hand. “So, are you going to fight me or not?” She asked.

 

“M-miss I really couldn’t, I have a real sword and yours is only wooden I could end up seriously hurting you!” Nezuko stuttered out.

 

The woman tensed, then dove forward and slashed so quickly Nezuko barely even realize what had happened before she hit the floor.

 

Nezuko tried to stand back up, but she was still so tired from an entire day of trying to break that rock. Her eyes and head grew heavy until Nezuko just couldn’t keep herself awake any longer, passing out on the ground where she’d fallen.

 

-

 

“Hey. Get up.” Said a male voice. Nezuko steadily blinked open her eyes.

 

At first she thought the man above her was Tanjiro, finally awake from his year and a half long sleep.

 

The her vision cleared and she realized she’d been mistaken. The boy had light red, maybe pink hair and a large scar ran across his left cheek.

 

“You refused to fight, so Makomo took you down. Why did you do that?” The boy asked.

 

“It- it felt cruel to fight someone unfairly.” Nezuko explained. The boy tilted his head to the side.

 

“And yet she still beat you, with only a wooden sword. Take this as a lesson, just because someone seems weak doesn’t mean they can’t be dangerous.” He explained.

 

Nezuko thought about his words for a moment, he had a point. If she had assumed the girl, Makomo, was a fierce opponent from the start then she wouldn’t have let her guard down like she had.

 

The boy stepped forward and began to bandage her wounds.

 

“How about I help you practice.” He offered.

 

-

 

Dear Tanjiro. Its been almost two whole years since we came here.

 

Every day I fight Makomo, and she always beats me in a single strike.

 

After that, the boy I met, Sabito patches me up and explains to me what I did wrong and how to correct it.

 

I’ve been working hard every day, and I think I’ve gotten a lot better.

 

-

 

Nezuko stood strong, adjusting her grip on her sword to hold it just like Sabito had showed her.

 

“Hm, you seem more confident today. Do you really think you’ll get first strike?” Makomo teased. Nezuko sucked in a breath like Urokodaki had taught her.

 

Makomo got into the position to strike,

 

But Nezuko was faster.

 

She quickly shot forward and used her sword to cut through Makomo’s kitsune mask.

 

The two halves of her mask fell away, and Nezuko saw her face for the first time.

 

Makomo was smiling, in a bittersweet way. Her eyes were a soft cyan.

 

“Good job.” She said. Nezuko looked to the side at Sabito, who wore the same bittersweet smile.

 

He nodded at her before stepping back into the mist. Nezuko looked back at Makomo, only to find the girl gone.

 

Although, the weird thing was, in front of her was now the boulder.

 

And it was cut perfectly in half.

 

Huh? I could’ve sworn it was Makomo’s mask I cut, not the boulder… Nezuko thought, and from behind her came a slow, but proud clap.

 

“Well done Nezuko. I’ll be honest, I hadn’t expected you to actually be able to do this.” Urokodaki said as he emerged from the mist.

 

-

 

That night Nezuko and Urokodaki ate a large buffet for dinner, filled with the most delicious foods that Urokodaki had prepared.

 

“I wasn’t actually supposed to be able to cut the boulder, was I?” Nezuko said.

 

“Hmph, very observant. No. I never did have any plans on actually sending you off to final selection.” Urokodaki told her. Doubt suddenly filled Nezuko’s heart, after all that, am I still not going to be able to become a slayer? But then Urokodaki continued. “But you still did it. You cut the boulder, even though it should’ve been impossible.”

 

He looked her in the eyes, or as close as he could from behind his mask. “You have proven yourself. I will send you to final selection.” He assured.

 

The girls’ eyes widened, and she threw herself onto her trainer. “Thank you, Urokodaki-sensei! Thank you!” She yelled, hugging him.

 

“Yeah, yeah! Now get off!”

Notes:

Its been a while since I updated this! Sorry! Anyways feel free to leave a comment or two! I absolutely love them and will try to reply to them all!

Notes:

hope its not too bad, i did write most of this on a sunday night before school

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of silly lil swap au stories :3