к𝕠𝐘 ₍ₒc ₓ ₖₙy₎

𝓘𝓷𝓼𝓾𝓹𝓹𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓳𝓫𝓵𝓮 𝓘𝓷𝓴𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰

I ran towards Rui, my sword barely missing his neck as he ducked, running to be next to Tanjiro.

"What are you doing here? I thought you and Inosuke were going to fight the string demon." I ask, readjusting my stance so I was beside him, almost shoulder to shoulder.

He shook his head, a small pink tinting his ears, perhaps from the cold. 

"Yes, we killed her, but when we went looking for you, we ran into the demon that was a part of the Twelve Kizuki. Inosuke's fighting him now, and I was as well before he hit me with a tree trunk, which is how I got here."

I was frozen for a moment, my eyes slightly widened, my mouth open.

"Tanjiro... You know-"

"I'm only going to ask you once, what are you looking at?" Rui asked again, eyes narrowing at Tanjiro, sending me a glare as well, but no real bite was there. "This isn't a play."

"What am I looking at?" Tanjiro asked, fuming as he yelled at the smaller demon, who was still holding the web dripping with the blood of his sister. "Aren't you her friend?!"

"Friend? Please. We are family. Our binds are tied by blood, not worthless words or actions."

Tanjiro gasps, unbelieving the words coming out of the demon's mouth. "Then even more so! Why are you harming your family? I can always smell strong relations of trust that emit from family members, but the only thing I smell between you two is fear and hatred!" 

"Shut up! This is between me and my older sister, so leave or I'll carve you up. What would you know anyway?"

"I-" 

"Well, aren't I lucky! Even I can kill a little demon like this!"

Tanjiro starts but is quickly interrupted by another slayer. He was quite ugly, short hair that curled into his face with bangs hanging low on his forehead and the back being longer as well. Tanjiro looks alarmed as I glared at both the demons in front of me, and the new slayer.

"You two. Stay back. These two are mine. If I can kill two demons all on my own and say that they were the ones to kill the rest of my squad, then I'll get a huge raise."

The slayer runs toward the demon, Tanjiro running to cut the threads. He didn't making it two feet before being sliced into multiple pieces by Rui's web, Tanjiro's sword breaking in two along with it.

Tanjiro's mouth shoots open at the gruesome sight, eyes widened as he glances toward his destroyed sword . 

'Deserved. I'm surprised to see that Tanjiro is holding it in...'

"You... What... What did you say?" Rui asks, shaking the both of us from our thoughts.

"I'll say it now... and I'll say it over and over. Your family is fake!"

"Quit speaking. You're quite insufferable." I say, readying my blade for another strike.

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"Don't die!"

'That's what he said before this big piece of fat threw him.'

"Please, live with high pride..."

'That old hag... she was so nice and didn't know us...'

Suddenly, an image of Yami popped into my head. She was smiling. Not her usual sly smirk or slight grin, but smiling. And at me.

'She, and everyone else... that warm feeling... I can't give up!'

"I... am Inosuke Hashibira... of the Demon Slayer Corps! Come and get me you scum!"

The demon rushed towards me, hitting my side and knocking me into multiple trees. As I was falling, I held my swords in front of me-

"Beast Breathing, Fang Three: Devour!"

As soon as the blades came in contact with its neck, they snapped in half, allowing the demon to throw me again. It came stomping over to me, grabbing me by my throat tightly.

"You stay away... from my family!" It said in a gravly voice, squeezing tighter with each second.

"Beast Breathing, First Fang: Pierce!"

While I was able to stab through it, the sword was stuck in the demon's neck, causing it to squeeze tighter.

'It's tighter! Or maybe looser? Did it let go, thinking it killed me? Why is it so cold?'

Thousands of thoughts raced through my head. Images of a strange woman crying over me, apologizing, my friends, even small instances of what seemed like pure bliss compared to now, flashed through my head, when suddenly,

I could breathe.

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ᴛᴀɪꜱʜŌ ᴇʀᴀ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛꜱ
•Wishey is so happy we're almost at 1k reads and was wondering what you all wanted for the special.
•Inosuke is having a revelation
•Yami is sad she couldn't talk to Rui, but is planning on doing it later.
•Zenitsu misses Nezuko and Yami