Heart Of Fire; Veins Of Ice | Kimetsu No Yaiba Fanfic (Kyojurou's POV)

74

Kyojuro finds himself back on the surface of the frozen lake.

This time, he's dressed in the clothes Masahiko had first gifted him with, and the first thing which strikes him in the cold was that he was utterly defenceless, without a weapon of sort. Especially against what he knows would be an encounter with the snow demon.

Yet, the broken hilt of his nichirin blade hung at his waist, and with it, was a heavy yet strangely light reassurance and responsibility that came with it. It seemed to speak to him that he was not entirely powerless, and it was a reminder. The silver words glowed amongst the crimson orange metal reinforced wood, as he ran his fingers along of its smooth, lacquered surface.

Frost coats his fingers, but the ice melts away as he walks.

"What is it now?" He shouts into the roaring wind, as he catches a silhouette, a mere shadow amongst the deep blue surface of the ice.

I cannot deny the truth in his words. 

Her voice seems to be a soft whisper in his left ear, as he stiffened and immediately brought a hand up over his left ear. The ice beneath his feet thickens, as he traverses its unnaturally smooth surface. He glances back at the broken handle, attached by what seemed to be a length of thin, fine gold chain links, so fine it could be seen as string, to his belt.

Frost refuses to touch the handle.

He takes a deep breath, as he calms himself.

"And what would you deny?" He throws it into the blizzard, knowing that trying to track her down in this heavy snow, in what seemed to be the dead of night, without a single source of light, was nothing but, sheer, blind madness.

My fate. Your fate. Our fate. Kyojurou instinctively tightens his grip around the handle.

But to deny what will come, you must learn.

"Learn what? All you've done is hampered your own progress by harming me and my companions! You've acted like nothing but a demon, wrecking senseless destruction and thriving off of the pain you caused!" He growls, as the ice beneath his feet seems to crack and thin, melting beneath the heat.

Be careful, child. You are standing on thin ice. He could hear the smugness in her voice.

Senseless destruction and pain? Everything I do is for a reason. What shallow thoughts you have. He can feel her standing next to him, as if the snow itself masked and covered her presence and trace completely, and the cold numbed his sense of touch, while the snow clouded his sense of sight, and she was silent traversing the ice.

I'm weeding out those who you can trust, She whispers, voice logical, calm and strangely patient with him.

"By breaking my bonds with them? No thanks." He returns.

You are a demon slayer, are you not? Then you should know that by breaking bones, they heal stronger and better. I'm doing this for you, since you will not, and never will. 

Kyojuro turns and glances at her. Her crimson mask is the only feature of her which stands out from the snow. He catches a glimpse of her smile, as she raises a hand and touched the mask, before it seemingly ripples and the colour shifts from blood to silver.

Her grey eyes flicker the words 'Upper Moon Three' for the barest of moments.

Kyojuro stares at her, as he thinks.

He needed to try and understand her. That was the only way he could fight back against her.

Fight? You demon slayers never do understand. But since you are a Hashira, I have to give you some credit. The loyalty you have for your mission is commendable. But you should understand that things change. All things do, and nothing lasts forever.