Dancing in the Mist (Demon Slayer / Kimetsu no Yaiba: Tokito Muichiro x OC)

Chapter 2

Five years later...

Third person POV

"Kiyomi, why are we here?" Kasumi asked, staring questioning at the mass of wisteria flowers in front of the thirteen-year-old girl. "Isn't wisteria bad for you?"

"This s**t stinks to low Hell, but I can bear it as long as I don't touch it. The trash stuck in there, on the other hand?" Kiyomi scoffed, fanning her face with an expression of disgust. "They can't even come near this place without p**sing their filthy pants."

"Language, Kiyomi," Kasumi sighed, reminding her caretaker to watch her filthy mouth for the fortieth time that night, and the night had just begun!

"Language, shmamguage, you get my point," Kiyomi scoffed, flapping her hand towards her young ward. Even that uncouth gesture seemed elegant when done by her, showing her noble upbringing.

"Aunty Tamayo will get mad at you for being a bad influence again," Kasumi murmured, tilting her head.

"....Hmph," Kiyomi grumbled, turning away grumpily. Despite being weaker than the Upper Moon, Tamayo had an uncanny ability to inflict the rare moments of fear Kiyomi feels in her long, long life. Perhaps it was because the two of them have known each other for centuries, so Tamayo knows exactly which buttons to push.

"So... why are we here?" Kasumi asked again, gesturing towards the wisteria trees.

"The Final Selection for the Demon Slayer Corps," Kiyomi answered, walking forward. "Of course, I'm only going to lead you there so you don't get lost. Ashura knows just how directionally challenged you are."

"Oh... why do I need to take this?" Kasumi asked, confused. Why would she take an exam for an organization dedicated to killing Kiyomi's kind? As far as she knew, Kasumi's only purpose was getting strong enough to kill Kiyomi.

"There's only so much I can teach you, like my own fighting style, Total Concentration Breathing Constant, stamina training, and muscle building. You managed to make a breathing style out of the moves I taught you, but you need actual experience using those moves while fighting demons," Kiyomi explained, sighing. "Besides, I've been overprotective of you. You need to experience the outside world on your own, without my constant guidance.

Only so much...? Overprotective...? Kasumi deadpanned, vague flashes of almost dying (multiple times) from three years of demonic training appearing in her brain.

"Oh, I can see the clearing from here. I suppose it's time for me to take my leave," Kiyomi grumbled.

"...Do I really need to do this? What if... I forget about you?" Kasumi said with a fearful glint in her eyes. Ever since she "woke up" five years ago, she'd always had trouble remembering things unless they were repeated a good number of times. As a result, she had no trouble remembering Tamayo, who was like a second mother to her, and Kiyomi, who was like a mother to her. Even so, Kasumi still harbored an innate fear that she would forget the both of them if she spent too long away, like how she forgot her birth mother.

Kiyomi chuckled, then squatted to look up at Kasumi. She pulled out her signature black paper fan, one that Kasumi could remember because of just how much she'd seen Kiyomi with it.

"Take this," she ordered, pressing the fan into Kasumi's hands. "Whenever you think you might forget me, take it out and remember your purpose. You're going to kill me, aren't you?"

"Yes. I'll fulfill my promise, no matter what," Kasumi answered with a determined nod. She stared almost reverently at the fan in her hands, then gingerly tucked it away into her sash.

"Go give 'em hell for me, okay?" Kiyomi grinned, roughly ruffling Kasumi's hair affectionately.

"I will," Kasumi nodded, reluctantly turning away.