#talking to the moon || michikatsu

[moonslament]

The oiran procession moved at a slow pace. The centrepiece of the colourful spectacle was walking on high platform shoes, aware of the looks she was drawing to her.

She was on her way to an important client. Some of the looks conveyed envy and disapproval, disgust almost. Those only came from women, of course. If they only knew her visit was one of providing emotional support to a grieving man, maybe they would look at her more favourably.

Oh well, she didn't give this too much thought as she had her visit on her mind, running through scenarios of the important conversation.

When she turned her head to look in the direction of her favourite kimono store, she froze, and almost as guided by outside force, she raised her hand, indicating to her entourage to halt.

Out of the shop came out .... him. Michikatsu was not alone. A woman, definitely his wife, was accompanying him. Presumably, they went clothes shopping for her. A sting of sadness and jealousy pierced through her.

And then it happened. He spotted her, too. Their eyes met in a blend of longing and sudden fear. But neither turned away. Instead, they kept staring at each other.

That is when his wife noticed. Her face had an angry expression, and she yanked Michikatsu's sleeve in question.

He turned his gaze to his wife, and must have said something short and dismissive as the woman almost flinched and pursed her lips in an offended expression.

The couple were both looking now at the oiran. For a moment, she was about to choose to be discrete and resume walking, but then her desire for him took over.

Very obviously, she smiled and waved to Michikatsu. She did not care to see the reaction and gestured her entourage to resume the walk. But now she made sure the wife noticed her existence. And for now, this was enough.

The day had been totally and utterly wasted, though he had a duty to his wife- one he had not taken on by choice, but a duty nonetheless. A small part of the job, a promise he had made simply to keep his wife off his back was these occasional shopping trips together and they were agonizingly boring, filled with idle chit chat.

Now it was time or the most exciting part of this litte excursion.

Going home.

Michikatsu would carry the items purchased for his wife as they left the shop, walking out into the streets- he had noticed how others stood in his way, gawking like fools, though he couldn’t see the cause of all the fuss quite yet. Not until he finally turned his gaze towards the woman and those who surrounded her who were clad in luxuious garments. It was HER.

The woman who had managed to catch him in her web, the woman who he saw on his own level, the one person who managed to catch his genuine romantic affection. Aki. He stood, captivated by her, his lips parted ever so slighty as his eyes absolutely refused to break away from her, for the moment he did not care if his wife noticed or not- deep down she already knew what he had been up to, though she had never seen the other woman before. She would question him about who that woman was- her first time confronting her husband on the subject. He woud turn to look at her for only a second, demanding she stop pestering him before turning his gaze back to the oiran. That look he had given Aki just the day before was present once again as he stared her down, though no words were shared between them, the moment was intense. All he got was a smile and a simple wave, but he knew how much trouble such a small act would cause him. He would make sure she paid the price next time they met, though he knew that is what she hoped for.

[kibutsujidemon]

my partner ?!

Michibabe 🌙💕

[marenwithanm]

Frothing at the mouth thinking about the sibling dynamics in demon slayer and how they parallel and contrast each other

[trancylovecraft]

(KNY) YANDERE PLATONIC! KOKUSHIBO x SISTER READER: You, Shibou. I, Kokoro.

YSIK Masterlist // Next chapter

A Cherry Blossom is a pretty flower, Blooming in the spring and representing renewal and joy. However it is quick to die out in the winter, Shrivelling up with it's beautiful colour following with it. Leaving the memory of it gone yet never forgotten.

The moon shun bright in the obsidian black sky.

The light that came down illuminated a small, yet well kept gravestone.

It was old, Ancient probably, Cracks were illustrated boldly into the corners and wrapped around the granite like spider webs. it seemed it was about to fall apart at the seams, yet held strong.

Flowers of all colour bustled around the bottom, Fresh, Newly planted.

A man sat on his knees in front of the stone, the only motion he made was the light breeze running through his hair, making his ponytail sway in the wind.

This was no man but instead a demon.

All six of his eyes lay transfixed on the carving written dead-centre on the tombstone, Carved with great care and precision to get it just right.

'[F/N] Tsugikuni'

The mans face was stoic and unreadable, but his eyes were filled with great sorrow and regret.

Kokushibo's arm reached out to the stone, Clawed hands tracing over the lettering carved out.

He asked himself

'How did it come to this?'

☆♡☆

"Michi-Nii!"

A young girl in a blue dragon-patterned haori called out from a distance, She could of only been about four or five yet her little legs were fast and let her catch up to her older brother.

Michikatsu turned around, Mildly surprised at his sister's sudden appearance he stopped in his tracks letting her finally reach him.

"[F/N]. I thought I told you to stay at home and help mother today, You know she needs someone to help her out." Michikatsu said, A little white lie.

His mother, While she wasn't in the best condition, Didn't currently need any help and even if she did little [F/N] would not of been able to do much about it. After all, She was still very young.

[F/N] heaved trying to catch her breath from all that running.

"I know Michi-Nii! but I wanted to come watch you fight!" [F/N] said excitedly, A big expecting smile on her face.

Michikatsu looked into [F/N]'s big puppy dog eyes and sighed. He just couldn't resist.

"..Well alright.. But for the record it's not 'fighting' it's sword training, I'm not fighting anyone, Just preparing for the day when I do, When I become a samurai!" Michikatsu said triumphantly.

[F/N] squealed.

"That's so cool! When I'm a big kid I wanna fight with swords and become a sam-u-mai!" She exclaimed.

"Samurai" Michikatsu corrected.

"Samai!" She responded.

"Samurai" Michikatsu said, Extra slowly so [F/N] could pick up the syllables.

"Samrai!" She said with complete confidence.

Michikatsu snorted and ruffled the girls hair, Who laughed in return.

"Nevermind, Let's get a move on then."

☆♡☆

The sun was high in the sky naming afternoon.

[F/N] sat on the grassy hill next to her brother, Yorichii.

They sat together watching Michikatsu over yonder train his sword swings by hitting dummies out in the field. She watched in wonder at his determination and focus to his craft

Yorichii was the middle child of the family, Michikatsu the oldest and [F/N] the youngest.

Yorichii was a mute. Never spoke or made any motion to communicate, However that never stopped [F/N]'s undying attempts of trying to.

This mostly just consisted of [F/N] following him around, Sleeping in his futon when she had a nightmare or just simply talking her little heart out to him, To which he'd always respond with a little smile and a nod, Showing that he was listening.

He was usually a daydreamer, But today he seemed just as transfixed as she was at their older brother's training.

"Yor-Nii, Where are you going?" [F/N] asked as she watched Yorichii wander down the hill towards Michikatsu.

As usual she got no answer, So she got up and followed him down.

Michikatsu was so fixated on his sword swings that he never noticed Yorichii standing behind him.

So when the physics of one of his sword slashes brought him back stumbling into Yorichii that snapped him out of his training fever.

"Yorichii? What is it?" Michikatsu said surprised. His brother had never interfered while he was training

Yorichii stood still and took in a deep breath, He clenched his fists as if bracing for impact. He opened his mouth.

"...I want to be a samurai like you!" Yorichii stammered not only in his speech but also in his stance.

Michikatsu's sword dropped to the ground with a clang!

A shockwave went through both Michikatsu and [F/N], Their brothers first words to them leaving them speechless.

[F/N] however was the first to speak up.

"Yor-Nii! You can speak! Now we can really talk to each other!" She proclaimed excitedly, Making Yorichii wobble when she jumped to hug him.

Michikatsu stood there, It was hard to tell whether he was shocked at Yorichii's sudden speech or the proclamation of his goal which happened to coincide with both his and [F/N]'s.

"Yorichii.." Michikatsu said just above a whisper.

Yorichii looked back at him with a shaky determination, it shook and swayed but despite the odds it stood strong.

Michikatsu's form deflated, Going back to his calm and stoic demeanour.

"Yorichii. You know what will happen when you're ten, Right?" He said quietly, Only hinting at Yorichii's fate as [F/N] had no idea.

Yorichii nodded. Only taking a glance down at [F/N].

"I know. But I still want to be a samurai, I want to be like you." Yorichii said, Still not given up.

[F/N] perked up.

"Me too! I wanna be a.. samurai too! Like Michi-Nii!" She said, Making sure to pronounce 'Samurai' slowly to pronounce the syllables.

"Hey, You got it right" Michikatsu pointed out, Mildly proud.

Yorichii looked down at [F/N] who still was hugging his waist, He smiled.

"Really? All of us want to be swordsmen?" Yorichii asked now a bit more reserved. He scratched the back of his head.

"Swordgirl!" [F/N] said confidently.

"Swordswoman" Both Yorichii and Michikatsu corrected at the same time.

"Swordgirl?"

This will take a while.

☆♡☆

A good few years have passed since then.

The five-year old little girl [F/N] had grown into a blossoming young woman and is now a little younger than her big brothers were back then.

She still wore a resized version of her blue dragon-patterned haori, The only thing that really stayed the same and came with her through her walk of life.

"You know [F/N], I could convince your father to buy you a new haori" Akeno Tsugikuni, Her mother said to her while running a needle through her haori, resizing the fabric to fit [F/N]'s bigger self.

"This is about the fifth time I've had to refit this old thing. I'm sure your dad would prefer you to have a new one, You are coming up on marriage age after all" She softly spoke to [F/N], But her eyes were fixed on the fabric, Stitching with care.

[F/N] shook her head nonchalantly.

"No, Mom. This was a gift from you, It was homemade. You can't just buy that kind of thing from a tailor." She huffed.

[F/N] sat on the edge of her mothers sick-bed, Her mother laid propped up so she could

Akeno smiled.

"Besides, I don't even think I'd want to get married. I like how my life is right now and you know I still want to be an onna-musha, right?" [F/N] said.

True, Even after all these years [F/N] still held onto the goal of becoming a Female samurai, An onna-musha.

However it seemed like a pipe-dream. With her father's influence and strength she had never picked up a sword, No matter how hard or surreptitiously tried to steal or borrow one of her brothers swords she was always caught in the end and given a right punishment for it.

Still, This never changed her mind on the matter.

"I see... Still haven't given up on that dream, have you?" She hummed.

"Well anyways, If you're so invested into my own sowing then maybe-" Akeno broke out into a fit of coughs, She dropped the needle in favour of covering her mouth.

[F/N] quickly rushed over to her side.

"Mom? Mom, Are you alright" She said, Lightly patting her mothers back.

Akeno stopped sputtering out coughs but still softly wheezed during breaths.

"I'm.. Fine, Sweetheart" She spoke, However her hoarse throat said otherwise.

"No, You're not! You don't need to fix my haori, We can continue later but right now you should lay down." [F/N] worried.

Akeno shook her head.

"I said I'm alright but.. could you go fetch me.. Some water?" She breathed heavily as if all the air around her had thinned.

[F/N] quickly nodded and rushed out the room to complete the task.

She swiftly opened the shoji doors to her house and made her way over to the water-well sat upon the hill. She hoped to the gods above that the well hadn't dried up in the early summer heat.

She reached the small little well and peered inside, The water in the well was plentiful. [F/N] sighed in relief and proceeded to wheel the bucket on the rope down the stony passageway.

CLASH!

[F/N] jumped at the sound, Letting the rope slip from her grasp she watched the bucket fall from its steady pace and hit the water with a loud splash!

"No!" [F/N] yelled. The well was too far down for her to reach the bucket. She cried out in frustration and looked over at the source of noise that dominoed the bucket falling.

Over in the valley beyond the hill was Michikatsu, Still out training with his sword. It was fairly early in the morning and judging by the sweat-beads on his face and the mess of his clothes [F/N] could tell he's been up training since six at least.

That's right, Along with her, Michikatsu had changed as well.

From the strong yet stoic young man that [F/N] had grown up with he had festered into a more strength obsessed yet quiet young man than what he had been before.

[F/N] knew the catalyst well, He was her brother after all.

Yorichii from that day he proclaimed his want to be a samurai, Had demonstrated an inhuman talent for the skill. A man who was working with their father had humoured Yorichii and decided to teach him a basic stance.

However to everyone's surprise, Yorichii had landed four blows on the man and swiftly defeated him. Which is something that Michikatsu never could.

From then on Michikatsu grew a bit darker, Maybe not noticeably. Not noticeable from her father, mother or even Yorichii. But [F/N] could tell.

She barely saw him anymore, Well it was more of she never talked to him anymore. She still watched him train, at least from afar.

An idea clicked in her head.

The bucket in the well was too far down for her to reach, Yes. However it wasn't too far for Michikatsu who was a foot taller than her.

She walked down the hill, Calling out for him.

"Michi-Nii!" She called out to him.

Michikatsu stopped swinging his sword and turned around to look at his little sister with an annoyed scowl on his face.

"What? Can't you see I'm a bit busy at the moment" Michikatsu hissed.

[F/N] froze for a moment.

"I just need a little help, the bucket in the well fell into the water" She explained softly, Scared to entice her brothers wrath.

Michikatsu groaned.

"Alright." He said simply and quickly headed over to the well. [F/N] followed after, Smiling.

"Thank you, Michi-Nii!" She said thankfully.

[F/N] grabbed onto his hand to hold it, But she was shaken off by Michikatsu.

"I told you to stop calling me that, It's stupid and childish" He said, grimacing.

[F/N]'s smile was put out like a light, But she nodded. Trying to respect his wishes.

They got to the well and Michikatsu fished out the bucket with ease and handed it over to [F/N] who bowed down in thanks but with much less emotion put into it.

With that, Michikatsu walked away without a goodbye. Off to go and continue training for the rest of the day and coming back home in the dead of night, Just to go to sleep and repeat the process over and over again.

[F/N] frowned but took the bucket of water back to the house.

Sliding open the Shoji doors she entered the house, remarkably more downtrodden than before.

As she walked the halls towards her mothers room she heard two voices arguing in a hushed tone.

"She doesn't want to get married."

"Too bad. She's coming upon marriage age and if she doesn't want to disrespect this family she will do as she's told and marry the man we've picked out for her"

The two voices, Her mother and father.

She slipped quietly behind the half-open shoji door, Intently listening in on their conversation

"She want's to be an onna-musha, You know." Her mother admitted.

"An onna-musha. Really." Her father responded, A tone full of disgusted shock ran through his voice.

"That girl is too weak to even tend to the horses. Not to mention the girl's only worth will be to marry her off to a nobleman. Her being a samurai along with the men would just be wrong" He said.

There was a silence not just between [F/N]'s parents, But her too.

She's known her father hadn't particularly paid attention to her nor did he show any affection but to think he thought this lowly of her was a gut punch to the stomach.

"Don't say that, Akuhei. She could be listening" Her mother said in a whisper.

"I hope she is. She needs to learn the truth sooner or later or she'll grow up and be delusional to the real world."

[F/N] let tears flow from her cheeks, Dripping down onto the floor.

If she couldn't even get a bucket out from a well, Could she really be a swordswoman?

☆♡☆

Something wasn't right.

It had been a good few hours after [F/N] had eavesdropped on her parents conversation and it had fallen into night-time.

[F/N] had long gone to bed but she wasn't able to fallen asleep easy. It was strange, No matter the situation she had always had no issue with falling into unconciousness.

She rolled and scuffled around on her futon uncomfortably. Could it of been the conversation earlier? No. Couldn't be that, It was something else.

[F/N] rubbed her eyes and got up from her futon. She shuffled on her sandals and quickly draped her newly-sized blue dragon haori around her figure for warmth.

She decided to go for a walk to clear her head.

[F/N] walked softly in the darkened hallways of her home, The soft moonlight illuminated her pathway through the house. She was lost in her own thoughts from the events of the day.

Her father's words, Michikatsu's attitude, Her mother's illness. It all swirled in her mind like a hurricane.

"..I like my life how it is right now"

The words she had told her mother. A lie.

She hated how everything was right now. Her dad saw her as an object to be bid on. Michikatsu acted like she was nothing but a burden to him and Yorichii was nowhere to be found.

Besides, Even if Yorichii and Michikatsu weren't talking either they were obviously the more important in the family.

They were the Sun and the Moon, Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi.

[F/N] wasn't a celestial deity or a celestial body, She was just the terrestrial afterthought. Yorichii and Michikatsu were both skilled and talented in their own rights, They were fawned over by the girls and even some of the boys in the village. They were praised and respected.

[F/N] wasn't even allowed to leave the house.

Now that she thought about it, There was only was her and her mother.

Her mother.

While walking she had stopped in her tracks. Light shone in through the hallway from an open door.

Her mother's door.

[F/N]'s brow quirked. Was her mother up this late as well? She should be asleep, She was very ill after all.

[F/N] peeked through the doorway, Her eyes widened.

Yorichii stood over the bed, Her mother layed motionlessly on the bed.

"Yor-Nii?" [F/N] asked.

Yorichii turned around, A strained look in his eyes. His jaw stood locked tight as if there was something painful he had to say.

"Mother has passed on" Yorichii whispered.

What?

No, No. No no no no no. That couldn't be right, No. It couldn't be right.

[F/N] stumbled over to her mother, Shoving Yorichii out of the way to whom backed off.

"Mum, Mum. Wake up, Hey. Hey, Do you hear me?" [F/N] cried, She grasped onto her mother's limp hand, She shook it in futile attempt to wake her.

"Mum you can't, Mum please." Tears started rolling down her cheeks now, Her breathing laboured.

"Yorichii, Please did you try-"

She turned around, Yorichii was nowhere to be seen.

He had left.

He had left and hadn't even bothered to try and comfort her.

She stared in shock, Not believing her situation

She was brought back by a hand squeezing her own.

She snapped her head back down to her mother, Whose eyes lain weakly on [F/N]'s. A soft yet painful smile appeared on her face.

"Mum!" [F/N] choked.

"[F/N]..." Akeno whispered. "Come closer.."

[F/N] Nodded and leant down closer to her mother, Kneeling down now to listen closely. Her eyes never leaving her mothers

"I never wanted to be married... My father had sold me off at a young age as well." Akeno started.

"I had a chance.. Once.. To leave this place, To get out of my marriage but do you know what happened?" She asked, Looking mournfully into the eyes of her youngest, Who was now choking on her sobs and tears rushing out from her eyes.

Akeno didn't wait for an answer

"I didn't take it.. I was too afraid." A sad smile came upon her.

"My life had ended right there since I never took that chance.. And the only good thing to ever happen after that... were you three."

"[F/N].. Yorichii.. Michikatsu. My beautiful children" Akeno let tears roll down her face now, Reminiscing on her life that was flashing before her now.

"Please.. You now have a chance. Get away while you still can.." Her other hand wiped the tears off of [F/N]'s face weakly, However her hand started to fall.

"Run.. and I promise I will see you again, The kami will reunite us... I love you, [F/N]" She whispered, Her hand falling to her side and the others grip becoming limp. The light in her eyes fading.

"Mum... Mum! No! no no!" [F/N] sobbed, Shaking her mothers now lifeless corpse she collapsed to the floor and cried out for her mum to come back, to speak to her.

"Run, You still have your chance"

Her mothers voice rang in her head, It echoed throughout her entire being.

And with love and tears, She kissed her mother on the forehead and closed her dead eyes. Akeno's face displayed rest, peace.

She said her final goodbye's to her mother and left the room to go back to her own.

And with a heavy heart and a rucksack full of essentials, She climbed out her rooms window and left in the dead of night.

☆♡☆

[F/N] trudged through the woodlands.

It was now daybreak, The sun rose upon the distance and shown through cracks in the tree's.

Through all that time [F/N] never stopped walking, Never took a break. The only thing on her mind was escape to a better place.

It was only once she appeared upon a clearing did she stop walking.

In front of her was a rundown Shinto shrine placed upon the mountainy and rocky terrain of the woods.

It had obvious that people hadn't been here in decades by the dust, cobwebs and poor conditions of all the archways and cracked stone lanterns lining the pathway up to the shrine entrance.

Back in it's heyday it would of been grand. A massive shrine that could of held a good few hundred people, As there was a large amount of corridors and a second floor.

Not to mention the vast courtyard [F/N] now found herself standing in.

She breathed in the highland forest air, Took in the birds chirping and the warm light of the sun on her skin.

She looked upon the sign hanging from the archway.

"Inari Ōkami"

The kami of Foxes, Agriculture, Fertility, Tea, Sake and Swordsmiths.

[F/N] frowned at the state of the shrine, Thinking of it as a great disrespect to Inari.

Another thought ran through her mind.

Home. A rundown one for sure, But nothing she couldn't fix.

And that's what she did.

For the next ten years that's what [F/N] did. She fixed the Archways, Refilled the stone lamps, Rebuilt the structuring, Cleaned up the cobwebs and dust all until it looked newly built.

Everyday since she came across it she would give offerings to Inari Ōkami. Ranging from nuts and fruit she would pick up while scavenging to Flowers and pieces of jewellery.

She'd light candles in their honour, Pray to them not for good fortune but for the reformation of the shrine.

She'd grown attached to the shrine, So much so that she had completely forgotten her goal of becoming a swordswoman in favour of being the sole shrine-maiden.

And in that time she had finally bloomed into a beautiful young woman and if anyone should come across her they would describe her as such.

Not that anyone came along though, The shrine was in the middle of nowhere and [F/N] had seen no one in the past decade.

As [F/N] got up for another day to tend to the shrine she wondered what her brothers were doing now.

☆♡☆

[F/N] carried her basket full of fruits, Satisfied from a successful scavenge.

She headed back up towards the large archway that was there to greet people into the temple. It use to be covered in splintered wood but thanks to the efforts of [F/N] the archway was restored with a fresh coat of paint and smoothing of the wood.

When she got up there she stopped, Her eyes widened.

The massive wooden doors to the thick stone wall gate were left wide open.

She was sure she had closed them when she had left.

Her body stiffened and her palms became sweaty.

Who could be in her shrine? Nobody came up the mountains and the nearest village was a good few dozen kilometres away on the far other side of the forest. No one who was just wandering could come across the temple.

[F/N] slowly put the basket of fruit onto the ground, Making sure not to make a sound.

She unsheated her Kaiken from her obi and slowly made her way inside to the courtyard, Which seemed empty.

But she looked upon the main building and just like the gate doors the shoji to the main building were left wide open.

[F/N] confirmed her suspicions. Someone was definetly here.

She made her way inside, Checking the main hallways she found no one around however that never made [F/N] let down her guard.

THUMP!

[F/N] flinched. The sound of an object knocking over came from just down the hall she was facing. Gripping her Kaiken tighter she moved forward towards the sounds

As she got closer, She heard a duo of voices arguing.

"Stop moving, Brother."

"Argh, If you'd let me do it by myself this would go much faster."

"No. You're injured, let me do it."

Wait..

"I'm told you I'm fine. It's just a cut."

Those voices..

[F/N] lowered her Kaiken. She stood, legs shaking. Heart pounding as she slowly called out.

"Michi-Nii? Yori-Nii?"

A sudden shuffling was heard in the room across from her.

The semi-shut shoji doors slammed open and out first came Michikatsu, Who had a semi-wrapped bandage around his arm with Yorichii following close after.

They were in their twenties now and were much older and their faces had changed a lot. But no matter how much they had physically changed [F/N] recognised her brothers, Who both now had surprised yet unrecognisable expressions in their face.

[F/N]'s mouth was open, Her eyes wide and sparkling with recognition.

"[F/N]..." Yorichii said.

"Yori-Nii! Michi-Ni-" She was cut off by the sudden arms pulling her into a tight hug. Michikatsu had moved so fast that she didn't see him move.

"[F/N].." He stuttered, Swaying back and forth while hugging her.

"Nii-san.." [F/N] cried, Gripping the back of his purple hexagonal hakama tightly as she buried her head into the side of his neck.

"You've grown so much.. And look at that" [F/N] grazed the hilt of of his sword, taking in the craftsmenship.

"You've both become swordsmen. I'm so proud, I wish I could've been there to see your ceremony" She whispered.

Michikatsu never responded to her words, instead going into a speech of his own.

"[F/N].. I lost you. You disappeared out of nowhere.. I searched for you for years.." Michikatsu was lost for words. If [F/N] didn't know better she could of sworn he was crying.

"I'm sorry, Michi-Nii. I'm sorry I didn't tell you where I went" [F/N] whispered.

The bear hug grip on her got tighter.

"Never. And I mean never leave me again. You have no idea what you put me through... You better promise" He scolded. [F/N] nodded vigorously.

"I promise."

☆♡☆

"So this is where you've been living for the past ten years?" Michikatsu asked, Looking around the haiden.

The place was a massive hall dedicated to worship of Inari. at the very end was the main worship shrine, Which was bustling with hand-woven straw baskets filled with offerings and lit candles in Inari's honour.

"Yeah.. When I ran away ten years I came across this place and made it my home. Been like that ever since." [F/N] smiled, Proud of the hall.

It was indeed very pretty, The new refurbished decorations of flowers, candles and banner-work created a grandiose appearance. The wooden pillars supported the tall height of the room and had beams at the top connecting them all with baskets filled with flowers hanging from them.

The entire room looked like it was built and cared for by an entire team of shrine maidens, Not a single dust spot to be seen.

Yorichii and Michikatsu stared in awe at the work.

"And you maintained this place all by yourself?" Yorichii asked, Genuinely in wonder at the décor.

"Well.. Apart from the occasional seller I meet when I'm scavenging for food nearest the road.. They sell me candles, Banners and other things needed for maintenance.. It's all done by me." [F/N] explained.

"It's.. Impressive. To think how you learned all this.." Michikatsu said.

"I get all my information from the shrine's library, From then on you figure it out on the way." [F/N] responded, Completely humble to the praise she received.

She turned around to her brothers with a smile.

"What about you two? Tell me what's been happening, And how'd you get that cut?" She asked innocently, Pointing to Michikatsu's bandaged arms

The two twins looked at each other, Having a silent conversation with each other. Contemplating what they should tell. Both of them very apprehensive, they shared a knowing look between them.

[F/N] frowned.

"..Is it not something you want to tell me?" She asked.

"Well.. It's hard to believe but-" Yorichii started.

"It’s just a mistake from sword training. Don't you worry about it." Michikatsu finished.

Yorichii looked over at him, Surprised at his sudden interruption.

[F/N]'s eyes narrowed. She felt curious but decided to drop the subject.

"Well anyways.. I need to go retrieve my fruit basket from outside and do my morning rounds around the shrine. Feel free to have a look around, Just please don't touch anything " [F/N] said, bowing her head low and heading towards the exit.

"Hold on, I'll come with you" Michikatsu said, He went to follow after his sister but was stopped when a hand pulled him back.

"Go on ahead, [F/N]. Michikatsu-Nii will catch up." Yorichii said. [F/N] nodded.

She said goodbye in the form of a hug, Michikatsu then Yorichii.

Michikatsu shot Yorichii a scorning look.

"What do you want?" Michikatsu hissed, The usual irritation of his brother turned up a notch.

"We need to tell her, Nii-san. So we can help her set up wisteria around the place." Yorichii argued.

Michikatsu gritted his teeth.

"Wisteria would be a good idea. But we don't need to tell her about demons, I mean look at her! She's still young" Michikatsu said, exasperated.

"She's eighteen, Nii-san. More than old enough to know about demons, about how to protect herself." Yorichii countered.

"She won't need to learn how to protect herself If I'm there to do it for her" Michikatsu hissed.

Yorichii's face scrunched up. He took a step forward towards Michikatsu and stood steady.

"Nii-san, I know you and [F/N] were attached by the hip when she was young but you can't always be there for her, She's strong enough to survive on her own but not strong enough to survive a possible demon attack, So we need to inform her. She won't let us plant wisteria around the shrine without a very good reason " Yorichii argued, His point stood stronger than he did.

Michikatsu's teeth gritted and his face was a visage of concealed anger like they were standing in the eye of the storm waiting for the inevitable onslaught.

"You always need to know better, Don't you Yorichii?" Michikatsu spat in a low tone.

Yorichii was surprised at Michikatsu's sudden animosity towards him, He was confused. This had never happened before.

"What do you mean to imply by that, Nii-san?" Yorichii asked, Slight worry coming over him for his brother who seemed restless.

Michikatsu suddenly became aware of his sudden outburst, His shoulders dropped from their previously stiff position. He sighed.

"Nothing... I shouldn't of spoke out like that." Michikatsu said, Quickly bowing his head to Yorichii he began to leave the shrine hall.

"Where are you going?" Yorichii called after him.

"To go find [F/N]. And make sure she's alright" He responded, Leaving the hall in search of his little sister.

☆♡☆

Michikatsu looked around the shrine for [F/N].

He walked the halls, checked the empty rooms, searched the courtyard, looked around the perimeter of the shrine and scoured through the shrine's impressively large and overflowing gardens but turned up empty.

He was frustrated. Where could she be? The forest surrounding the temple was fairly thick and shading and who knows? A demon might of been able to cover itself in the foliage and maybe she had left the shrine to pick up her basket only to come face to face with the monster and-

Michikatsu couldn't think anymore about it.

Sweat beads started forming on his head, What if she ran away? She couldn't, she sworn to him that she'd never leave him again. She couldn't of done that to him! What if she wasn't happy to see him and took the chance to leave while he was being lectured by Yorichii?

Yorichii.

Did she favour him over Michikatsu? When you were hugging him to say goodbye he could of sworn you had hugged Yorichii just a little bit tighter than him, Smiled a little bigger, Looked a little happier.

As he searched the halls for a second time he felt another burst of envy rise up in him, Something that had been occurring more and more lately.

His thoughts stopped when he stepped on an uneven dip in the ground. He felt around with his foot and outlined a frame of sorts.

He looked down to see he was standing on a rug. He then looked up realising that he was at the end of the hallway.

He reached down and pulled away the rug revealing a trapdoor, Assumedly leading down to the basement of the shrine.

A basement? Shrines don't usually have basements, He thought to himself.

He noticed the padlock on the handle was unlocked It was also spotless without a trace of dust, Indicating that it was used often.

He opened the door with a small creak of the wood. It revealed a short stone staircase which lead down to a low-ceiling hallway.

Michikatsu raised an eyebrow. He looked left and right before going down the stairs slowly. One step at a time.

He got down to the bottom of the stairs. The ceiling was certainly low as it grazed the top of Michikatsu's head making him feel uncomfortable in the small passageway.

He walked along the tunnel, each of his footsteps producing a faint echo as he went along. The tunnel was comparably cold to the early summer heat from up top.

At the end of the passageway was a wooden door, It looked old and rigid. Looking at the rest of the shrine this was a surprise for Michikatsu as the rest of it was pristine and in perfect shape compared to the derelict looking door.

He reached the door which he now realised was opened just a slight amount.

He pressed his ear to the door, Listening intently.

The sound of cloth on metal sounded on the other side. It was a sound he recognised well, It was polishing of a sword.

He pushed the door open to find [F/N] sitting on her knees with a strange looking sword in hand, a dry cloth in the other.

"Michi-Nii!" [F/N] jumped in surprise and dropped the cloth.

She sat in a much wider room than the hallway. The stone walls were filled with holding frames and shelves, The majority of them empty but still a good few holding rather precious looking trinkets.

At the end of the room which was facing the door and [F/N] held a sort of table harbouring a headpiece stand, Which was obviously suppose to hold the sword in her hands. It was also home to a kitsune mask hanging above it with eyes that looked like it was staring right through him.

"How'd you find the room?" [F/N] said rather surprised.

"Never mind how I found it. Why are you here?" He asked sternly, As if he was scorning a misbehaving child.

"Why am I in a room inside my own shrine?" [F/N] scoffed lightly.

"More of why didn't you tell me where you were, I was worried and I couldn't find you anywhere." He asked more forceful in tone.

[F/N] seemed confused at his reasoning but chalked it up to him still being a little shaken by their reunion.

"...I'm sorry... Coming in here to tend to the artefacts here is apart of my weekly rounds." She explained. A meek look appearing on her face.

Michikatsu sighed.

"Alright then. But please, Tell me next time you wander off into some hidden basement." He said in a softer voice leading to [F/N] calming down.

"What is this room anyways?" Michikatsu asked, Examining the room.

[F/N] peaked up, A sparkle of excitement in her eyes.

"Oh! Well according to the blueprints and builders logs I've found in the library this room was specially built to hold the shrine's treasures. Oh! Wait, hold on!" [F/N] exclaimed.

She reached over to the table in front of her and pulled out a fairly tiny roll of parchment paper, Unfolding it she displayed it to Michikatsu who looked down reading it.

"Apparently one of the noble-clanswoman paying for the building of the shrine here had a really steamy affair with some hot-shot samurai who use to gift her a TON of gifts" [F/N] explained with a passion, Her eyes held a glint of story.

"So to hide them away from her husband she built this little hidey-hole so he wouldn't discover them" She finished.

"What happened to her?" Michikatsu asked, Entertaining her passion.

She only shrugged though.

"No clue, The rest of the parchment was torn and I haven't found the other half..." She said, Disappointment filling her voice.

Michikatsu nodded and looked towards the sword in [F/N]'s lap.

"I can understand the other little objects around here but a sword?" Michikatsu said dumfounded.

[F/N] shook her head.

"No! No. The only two items in the room that weren't a gift was this sword and the kitsune mask hanging over there" She said, Pointing towards the kitsune mask hung by rope.

"Then what are they doing here?"

"They're the shintai that were suppose to be worshipped here at the shrine." [F/N] stretched over and tugged the hanging mask off the rope and presented both it and the sword to Michikatsu, Signalling him to take it.

As he did she told him to be careful while holding them.

The sword was nothing similar to any Katana he's wielded, Nor was it like anything he'd seen in the country. Instead it was built like a very large medieval English sword with the only hint of Japanese influence being the blue hilt which resembled the typical katana.

One side of the sharpened blade was covered in a sort of second sharper metal which glimmered azure in the dim light of the room.

The mask however was oddly designed compared to the usual festival mask. It was made of porcelain and its eyes were carved in a sort of wide eyed stare, The whites of it being a dark black and the pupils sapphire.

Thick cerulean marks adorned the mask, Swirling around the mask and centring at the bullseye of the mask. Except for the ears which were deeply patterned with swirls and flower-esque designs culminating at the covered tips.

The two items radiated a sort of energy from both which Michikatsu couldn't place.

"They're twin artefacts. It's said in the shrines folklore that they belonged to Inari Okami themselves gifted to them by their father, Izanagi. And from the heavens above they dropped them on accident and both the sword and the mask fell to here, The mortal realm" She explained with low wonder.

"The sword is named very bluntly as "The Soul Sword". It's called that because it's said by the previous shrine maidens that when a person is killed by the blade the soul of the person is absorbed into it and prevented from passing onto the afterlife. An eternity in the blade." She told as if it was rehearsed, It probably was.

She pointed to the Mask

"The mask however isn't named but it's said to warp the body of the user to their desire, Disguising themselves completely." She said.

"And does it work?" Michikatsu asked, Studying the mask.

"Haven't tried. It's a sacred artefact of the shrine. It would be a disrespect to Inari if I did." She stated.

Michikatsu examined both of the artefacts as [F/N] rambled away on the tale of the two, They were very well kept.

"You really know a lot about this stuff. Don't you?" He said more of to himself.

[F/N] nodded.

"Yeah. I guess it's just something I'm passionate about" She muttered.

Suddenly, Their conversation was interrupted by a voice upstairs calling out.

"Nii-San! [F/N]!" Yorichii called out from up above them, Voice faint and muffled from the thick stone walls.

Michikatsu groaned being mildly annoyed at being interrupted by Yorichii. [F/N] perked up however.

"That's Yorichii. Better go see what he needs!" She said. [F/N] grabbed both the sword and the mask from Michikatsu's grasp and settling them back with care onto their designed positions, As well as rolling up the parchment paper and putting it under the table

She dusted off her beryl coloured haori and got up from the tatami mat she was sitting on.

"Come on, Better not keep him waiting!" [F/N] said making her way out without waiting for Michikatsu, Who quickly followed after.

They made their way back up the stairs to find Yorichii a few metre's down the hall. He was standing there watching them come up with an arm stretched out, A crow perched neatly on it with a small roll of parchment paper tied to its neck by a string.

"What is it, Yorichii?" Michikatsu asked eyeing the crow.

"Oyataka-sama has summoned us to the headquarters, Urgent meeting." Yorichii said, a tint of unhappiness in his voice.

Michikatsu's face scrunched up in resentment, Obviously not excited by the news.

[F/N] frowned.

"..You've got to leave?" She asked looking up at Michikatsu who looked back with her with an expression saying that he didn't want to. But Yorichii's voice maintained importance.

"..I suppose so.." He said reluctantly. Not wanting to leave his sister alone. His eyes expanded with an idea formed in his head.

"Why don't you come with us, [F/N]?" Michikatsu asked going to stand next to Yorichii. The crow once perched on his arm squawked once. And with a flap of its wings it took off out an ajar window.

[F/N]'s palms suddenly got sweaty at the thought. Her shoulders felt heavy and slumped down with her face portraying one of heavy adversion

She shook her head, Michikatsu's face fell.

"It's not a long trip if that's what you're worried about, If you get tired we can get a horse or I could carry you-" Michikatsu was cut off by [F/N]'s hum of disapproval.

"It's not the trip. It's just I really don't want to leave the shrine unattended y'know?" She asserted. Evidently after spending an entire decade in it's walls she had grown dependant and attached so much to the point she couldn't journey far out of it.

"You can leave the shrine for a few days. Just please come with us, It'll be fine." Michikatsu reasoned, a small ounce of anxiety rising up into his chest at the thought of her being left.

[F/N] shook her head again.

"No, I'm sorry. But it's not forever, You can still come visit!" She spouted in an asking tone, Waiting for him to confirm.

Michikatsu shared a look with Yorichii. Yorichii's look told him he agreed with their sister while Michikatsu's only told of aversion.

However feeling outnumbered in the situation he reluctantly sighed and agreed to [F/N]'s proposal.

With a heavy heart and bag of food [F/N] prepared for their journey, Michikatsu spared one last look to see her before heading out into the forest.

☆♡☆

In the five months that passed from that day forward were probably the happiest days of [F/N]'s life.

Every few days her brothers would come and visit her at the shrine after a mission and they'd stay for around two days before the crow came along and the process started all over again.

She'd even arranged them their own little rooms and the crow would come in advance to announce their arrival so she could prepare them food.

It was nice to be reunited with her family after a decade of solitude. The routine they got into was nice and became sort of domestic.

Though, Over the months [F/N] couldn't help but notice a sort of tension between Michikatsu and Yorichii however it was one-sided. Only Michikatsu initiated it while Yorichii was none the wiser.

It seemed more aggressive as the months went on. Michikatsu focused more on his training similar to what he did when they were younger. He'd have more hostility towards Yorichii and weirdest of all he seemed much more clingy and possessive towards her.

However [F/N] didn't like to think of it. While she knew it was there and she knew they'd have to talk about it at some point, She decided that it'd be better to wait for the right time to bring it up.

Everyday [F/N] would get up at around seven in the morning to do her rounds, Collect food and pray to Inari for an hour or two before going out to the main wooden shrine steps to sit and wait for her brothers to return.

When they did they would eat together, They'd tell stories of their mission no matter how surface level and vague they described it. They'd train outside in the courtyard while [F/N] watched from the steps in awe at their skill.

She recalled back to her childhood and her dream of becoming a samurai like her brothers, While it was true she now favoured the shrine over that old fairy-tale it didn't mean that she still didn't ponder over it often, Daydream while she brushed the floors, Envision the swing of a sword when she spun the brush around.

However of course, It was just a pipe dream. Just a silly pipe dream. But often she asked herself: Why not both?

[F/N] watched Michikatsu from the steps as he practiced sword swings in the shrine courtyard, Taking occasional glances at his sister to make sure she was watching him. The thought ran throughout her head. While she hadn't picked up a sword before other than The Soul Sword (Which at times, She lightly swung it around before setting it down. Then right after feeling ashamed for using a sacred artefact she proceeded to pray for forgiveness at the altar)

She was sure she could try.

While Michikatsu was swinging his sword she had got up from the step with a stumble. She wobbled a little and grabbed the handle bars to steady herself.

She took a deep breath and slowly walked down the stairs which suddenly seemed like a herculean task.

She set her sandal-covered feet onto the courtyard with an unnecessary effort and started walking towards Michikatsu who was only a few metre's ahead of her.

With every step she took her body seemed to get heavier. It felt like weights were being tied to her ankles every time she lifted her foot.

The distance seemed to widen between her and her brother. Her eyelids seemed to get heavier too.

And with another single undignified step her knees collapsed on her. She fell down to the floor with a thump! as her body relaxed and crumpled over on the ground.

Her eyes got blurry as she saw Michikatsu rush over to her tired body and listened to him shout out something she couldn't hear

She closed her eyes and untensed her body. Falling into the pitch black void of unconciousness.

☆♡☆

[F/N] lay motionless in her bed.

A wet cloth lay over her forehead and a light blanket was lain on top of her.

It was two months since that day she collapsed. She was carried by Michikatsu and was rushed to the nearest village where she was seen by a doctor who gave her the diagnosis.

It was her mothers illness, Turning out to be hereditary and passed down onto [F/N]. However this seemed to be more severe and had developed into later stages quickly.

The doctor had said that she should be put in bedrest but despite Michikatsu's yelling and paranoid yelling there was no cure.

The first few days consisted of Michikatsu being hunched over her bed refusing to leave her side. Over the two months he had grown even worse than he did before.

He was angry before. Competitive, Hostile, Aggressive you name it. But now?

Now he was paranoid, Jumpy, Clingy piled on with all of those traits before.

Yorichii couldn't get through to him, He didn't hide his ire towards Yorichii now and hissed insults at him whenever he tried to speak to Michikatsu.

The first month was Michikatsu searching for a cure. He'd travel from village to village trying to find a doctor who could cure [F/N]. He scoured the Shrine's libraries and had gone mad trying.

Four days ago he had told [F/N] that he was going out again and that she was not to leave her bed unless she was going to get food or do her prayers, Which [F/N] had begged to be allowed.

He had stocked up enough food and water in the pantry for his trip when he left.

He told her that he would be back in two days, It was four now. Yorichii had been with her the first month but after he was called out on a very important mission he never came back.

When she asked Michikatsu what happened to him, He wouldn't tell her.

To say [F/N] was worried was an understatement. Michikatsu was never late, He'd always sent his crow to let her know even if he was.

Suddenly she was aware of a loud creaking. The main shrine gates.

Michikatsu must be back, [F/N] thought. A rush of excitement ran through her and overpowered the cold sweat of her sickness.

She'd gotten up from her futon and wrapped herself in her blanket to prevent the cold winter air from bothering her too much.

It was snowing outside. A blizzard had grown strong while she had slept earlier. Before when she was well in the health department she had prepared well for the winter and could survive during it, Making the inside of the shrine warm all throughout the season.

Now however that she depended on her brothers who were nowhere to be found the cold permeated the hallways and stung the tips of her fingers and nose.

She shivered and slid open the shoji doors to hobble through the hallways towards the courtyard, Ready to greet Michikatsu.

However when she quietly opened the door she wasn't greeted by Michikatsu. But instead two strange men with swords standing in the snowstorm. who hadn't seem to notice her yet

"This is it? Seems rundown." One of the men said

"According to his crow this is where he has been staying for the past few months. He must be here, Someone must pay for what he did and hiding here won't prevent what's coming to him." The other growled, Anger etched onto his features.

[F/N], A little insulted at her shrine being called run down, Made herself known by letting out a loud cough.

"Who are you? And what are you doing at my shrine?" The girl asked

The two looked up at the source. Their hands jumped to their sheathed swords as they looked up at her in antagonism.

They slowly approached her, So much so that they were now standing under the wooden porch roof.

[F/N] stumbled back in a way of getting distance between her and the men.

The one that called her shrine rundown stepped forward. He bowed down in respect to her.

"Greetings there. We're sorry to trouble you but we're looking for a man. His name is Yorichii Tsugikuni. He wears hanafuda earing's and his hair in a ponytail. Have you seen him anywhere?" He said.

Swords. Right. These must be Yorichii's colleagues. [F/N] relaxed slightly.

"Oh, You two must be his co-workers!" She exclaimed, Relief flooding her system.

She curtsied in respect.

"My name is [F/N] Tsugikuni. I am his younger sister, Unfortunately I haven't seen him for a month or two and I don't know where he's been. Apologies." I sighed.

The two men looked at each other.

"Sister? You're his sister?" The angrier one said, A hint of hostility in his voice.

Suddenly a chill ran up her spine, Something was wrong.

"Uhm.. Yes." [F/N] said with caution. Though she was tempted to lie, It just wasn't in her nature.

The angrier man now referred to as Man A gripped the hilt of his sheathed sword tighter.

"Well. I don't know if you know this but two months ago your brother... Messed up, Per se. Causing a great loss towards the demon corps..." He said. His words implied something unknown to [F/N]. The corners of her lips twitched. Demon corps? Messed up? The meaning eluding her.

"A lot of people got hurt. Including our father." Man A sneered. His face the exact visage of vengeance.

Man B behind him wasn't as such but still held a face of stone.

The realisation of what was happening hit [F/N] like a freight train. Her hands grew sweaty as they quickly rushed the shoji doors.

"I... I am so sorry to hear that. B-But unfortunately my brother isn't here right now... I've got to go tend to the haiden. Please, Come back later." Her voice trembled and shook despite how much she tried to keep her tone steady and confident.

As her hands tried to quickly shut the shoji doors the metal of a sword stopped the doors from opening fully.

[F/N] yelped and stumbled back from the door. The two men forced their way into the shrine hallway. [F/N] felt her back hit the wall.

"I'm sorry about what is to happen. But Yorichii Tsugikuni needs to pay for what he did and the death of his sister will bring about our revenge. Please forgive us." Man B said finally unsheathing his sword.

Run.

[F/N]'s feet grew light as she took off down the shrine hall, The two men hot on her tail as she careened round the corners and throughout the shrine.

She felt her heart pound heavy in her chest. Both from the almost paralysing fear and the illness coursing throughout her system.

Her legs felt weak but carried on. Her pace just a little bit faster than the men behind her despite all odds, She unconsciously thanked the hours she spent out in the woods running around for resources.

Tears burst like a dam from her eyes and flew from her eyes as she sprinted. Choked sobs periodically interrupted the heavy breaths she took from running.

The faster she ran, The more corners she turned the more thoughts ran rampant throughout her head.

Exits? Only the main gate which she was currently running away from and were closed on the way in, It takes too much time to open those doors and the men would catch up to her in no time. Convince them to stop? Impossible. The men seemed determined in their goal and no amount of talking would change anything. The hidden room? On the other side of the shrine and she didn't have the key on her

[F/N] had gained a bit of distance from the men at this point, Having shook them off her trail for a very short amount of time.

She ran to where her heart took her, To the place she felt safest.

The offering hall which use to look bright and full of flowers, baskets of food and was spotless now was empty and cold. The candles went long unlit and a bit of dust built up and went into the air when she slammed open the doors, Making her cough.

[F/N] ran to the altar with her legs trembling. She fell to her knees in front of it crying her eyes out. Her body positioned into its usual prayer formation as she choked out her sobs.

"Please! Inari. I-I'm going to die... I haven't asked for anything from the day I've got here... Please spare my life.. L-Let me live! I don't want to die, Inari. Please.. Please.." [F/N] broke down in front of the altar as she chanted please over and over again like a sacred sutra.

She wailed quietly in front of the shrine letting all her emotions out from her eyes.

She never noticed the men standing behind her as she prayed. Their expressions serious and unaffected by the girl's unheard prayers.

Man A raised his katana. Holding it in his grasp he raised it high above his head.

And with a yell he swiftly brought it down.

Blood splattered the offerings room. Drenching the two men and the girl below, The blade going straight through her back.

☆♡☆

Cold.

It was so cold.

The men had left her there bleeding, How long ago she didn't know.

She had made her way out of the shrine. Past the main doors, Past the entrance gate and the pathway and out into the main part of the forest.

The blade had went right through her chest out the other side, She gripped it tightly while the blood stained her dragon-patterned haori colouring it crimson.

It was a miracle she had got this far out into the blizzard. The tip of her nose had frozen and her jaw chattered letting out cold air.

She weakly turtled into her haori for warmth however it proved futile.

The white snow behind her left a red trail as she walked.

Soon enough it was too much.

Soon enough, She collapsed.

☆♡☆

Quickly throughout the forest, Kokushibo ran quickly up the mountain through the unrelenting blizzard, Which never stung him in the slightest.

It had only been a few hours since he woke up from consuming that man's blood. His appearance now changed from the transformation which took three days to complete.

He carried a vial of that mans blood in one of his hands. He remembered the deal vividly in his mind.

Strength for him, A way to become stronger. Stronger than his brother. A way to avoid the eventual fate of all those who bore the demon slayer mark.

And a vial of that man's blood to save his dying sister.

He ran like hell. Snow crunching from the rapid footsteps behind him.

He stopped however, When the faintest scent of blood invaded his senses.

All three sets of his eyes widened.

He picked up his pace again. Now heading toward the smell.

His heartrate picked up. It couldn't be. It can't. [F/N] was alright. She was okay. Even now after becoming a demon, He still felt possessiveness affection towards his sister.

He came to a halt.

His heart dropped to his stomach as he tried to comprehend the sight in front of him. His eyes widened and his jaw slack open.

There in the snow, Lay a body curled up in a fetal position.

Snow had built up on it. It lay motionless buried in the snow.

He recognised it as [F/N].

"[F/N]!!" He yelled, running over to the body.

He fell to his knees in front of her and shoved off all the built up snow.

He pulled her body so her head was laying down on his lap. He shook her gently.

"...[F/N].. Wake up. Come on." He whispered. His shaking now growing more frantic to her lack of response.

He looked at the vial in his right hand.

Opening her mouth he popped open the seal and poured the red liquid into her mouth.

He watched it pour onto her tongue and down her throat. He waited for the reaction.

However, Nothing came.

He waited and waited. Nothing.

He felt his eyes water and flow out from them as the dawning realisation hit him.

He was holding his little sister's corpse in his arms.

He couldn't protect her. She had died and he wasn't there to protect her.

He yelled, Screamed and cried. In anger, Frustration, Sorrow, Guilt and mourning for his loss. He couldn't do anything.

However when he finally noticed the stab wound he realised this was murder. He could do something.

He carried his sister's body in his arms and pulled her close to his chest as he quietly grieved for her.

He brought her body back to her beloved shrine and set her down at the head of the shrine where she loved the most.

He'd deal with her body later. But for now he had to get revenge for the death of his little sister.

Using his blood demon art to make a sword he gripped it tight.

He set off into the blizzard already with a scent on the targets.

He looked back once at the shrine. The last remaining parts of his humanity dying in there with his sister

And with that he left. Never to look back again.

☆♡☆

It was five hundred years ago.

Kokushibo began reminiscing when he sat in front of her gravestone. What he did that night.

He had gotten his revenge, The two slayers slowly tortured and then eaten by him. Their screams and their pleads for mercy when they showed [F/N] none.

He had started with the fingers and toes, Then he moved up to the lower limbs, Slowly he ate them alive. He made one of them watch him while he ate, All before he moved onto them.

He made them confess who killed her to which after a little persuasion they admitted easily.

They got the worst of it, He didn't even eat him after the torture. Just left him pinned to a tree bleeding out. He had put him up high only giving him the options of freezing to death, bleeding out or dying from the fall.

The memories rewound in his head like a film. Flashing memories of when she was born and he got to cradle her in his arms. All the way up until he only held her lifeless corpse, Killed too soon.

He had mourned for a long time after that, Never really getting over her death, Not even now as he set down the new flowers on her grave built near the house they grew up in.

He couldn't bring himself to consume her body, He could never. It was too much.

He got up and dusted himself off, Just like she use to do.

He turned away and walked into the night, Melding into the shadows as he went off to find his next meal.

☆♡☆

The morning rays shun down on the Ubuyashiki Estate. Flowers in full bloom with wisteria ripe in the air.

Birds chirped and grasshoppers hummed in the bushes. The neatly trimmed and well kept garden a fit home for them

The Hashira had gathered and stood in front of the porch awaiting the arrival of their master. They talked amongst themselves in the meantime.

Mitsuri, The Love Hashira tugged on the hand of another. A soft smile gracing her face.

"Fujimori-san! You should really come out with me sometime, It's been ages since we've done something together!" Mitsuri teased lightly.

Fujimori laughed lightly from behind the kitsune mask with cerulean markings he (he?) wore. The medival english looking sword positioned in front of him pointing downward, His two hands gripping the katana-like hilt.

He was tall and muscular but had more of an athletic build. He had tattoo's from his neck to his lower arms describing pictures typically seen in shrine art.

His blue dragon-patterned haori that was draped around his lower arms lightly wove in the wind along with his [H/C] locks tied into a ponytail.

"What do you mean? We went on a mission together last week!" He chuckled.

Mitsuri huffed and lightly gripped his hand

"When I mean spend time together I mean like we should go to a hot spring or go out to eat together or-" Mitsuri continued rambling on as she listed off possible activities they could do together.

Fujimori, [F/N] listened intently onto her as she talked.

She (She? She.) however was only thinking of his visions: A sick woman, A woman with fox markings and a man in a purple hakama.

She'd need to figure it out later.

Next chapter

[its-freaking-jordan]

Hello there :) I hope you’re having a fantastic day :) would it be okay if I could request headcanons of the upper moons + muzan finding out their lover has been reincarnated with no previous memories of meeting them 💙💙

Yess I cannn.

Also, Ima do Hantengu and his clones as well, including Zohakuten, but platonic, same with Daki and her brother.

Upper moons + Muzan finding out their lover has been reincarnated with no previous memories of meeting them.

Modern day AU

Muzan

Considering him and Kagaya are somewhat related, he works at the Kimetsu Academy, as Vice principal. I know Nakime is vice and Kagaya wife is principal but just role with me here.

Once he heard that there is going to be a new staff member, he didn’t care at all..until he heard your name.

He was completely skeptical about it actually being you at first, until he saw you.

Istg he was in denial upon hearing your name.

When you came in, his jaw dropped completely. He wanted to approach you, but he still had work to do until he was on break that’s when he was going to speak with you.

Once his break came, best believe he was running through them halls trying to find you. When he did, he found you alone in the library just reading a book.

You heard the library open, looking up to be faced with Muzan. You swore that he looked familiar but you couldn’t put your finger on it.”Umm..May I help you sir?.” Muzan looked dumbfounded that you didn’t recognize him but he sucked it up, to just have a small conversation with you. Once his break was over he excused himself and walked off. He was pissed honestly that you didn’t recognize him in the slightest but you remembered everyone else.

Kokushibo

One word..hate.

He blames himself every time he sees you.

He knows it’s not you fault, that you can’t remember him but he still takes the blame.

He never knew how to approach you, he had to take advice from Doma and Akaza..because he’s socially awkward..

How yall met was actually because of Muzan, he found you and, drove where ever you was staying at, back to Japan to meet up with the “Demons.”

But back on board.. He takes you out as a date, but you just don’t know it’s a date.

You both were sitting on a bench by a lake, watching a sunset. Kokushibo(Michikatsu) noticed the you kept on staring at him. He didn’t know if you felt uncomfortable around him or what. “Is there a reason why you are looking at me?…” “Sorry, Michikatsu..You kinda remind me of someone, you know that right?” Upon him hearing that, he had a little hope that you remembered him, but then again he has a twin brother that you can possibly be talking about which made his heart sink. But that doesn’t stop him from taking you on those dates.

Douma

He thinks your playing with him.

He still keeps that fake ass smile on his face, but on the inside he’s fuming.

Still makes efforts to talk with you, which he succeeded in.

Once he figures out that you actually don’t remember who he is, he literally stops when he was doing, stopped smiling and just stares at you.

“Ah you always know how to make me laugh Y/N…(he’s heartbroken.) How about I take you out to eat tomorrow?” “Sure! There’s a new place that opened up actually, I didn’t know who else to take, so why not you?” You both waved off goodbye, and he just felt like tearing up a little but he refused to let that happen. But you both grew into a new relationship in your new life and he wasn’t happier than before.

Akaza

He has a wife…Idk if I should do it poly or he broke up with her honestly… Poly

When he heard that Koyuki found a new friend who was new to Japan, he didn’t think much of it, but he was happy that his wife made a new friend.

One day Koyuki invited you over to her house, to introduce you to Akaza(Hakuji).

Once he saw you, he wanted to walk out right then and there, he was too stunned to speak. He tried to speak with you, but you didn’t know who he was, so you only did small talk.

It made his entire body itch.

You would often hang out with them whenever they go out.

You ended joining their relationship after a whole year of knowing them better.

Hantengu

He wanted to cry, when he saw you.

He had no hope that he would actually see you in a new life, until he was proven wrong.

I think he like too much of a coward to actually approach and talk with you, so I think he had his sons (The clones) to go in and ask for you. (He sent Karaku and Aizetsu)..

I think he would like to take you on small walks and buy you gifts here and there.

Yes he still shriek when he’s scared, so you would often comfort him at those times..

Sekido+Karaku+Aizetsu*Urogi

(poly-ish and Zohakuten sees you as a sibling)

They all were visibly upset, but Sekido was fuming.

Believe it or not but Zohakuten found you. He was leaving school, walking to his brother house and you offered to drop him off home..

Sekido is furious, he thinks your joking with him honestly.

Aizetsu is depressed. He would try not to break down in front of you, or the others.

Urogi is devastated. He puts on a fake smile around you, but when your not at their house he’s just frowning..

Karaku is flat out heartbroken. He’s wondering if he or his ‘brothers’ done something that you forgotten about them all.

Zohakuten is just mad at himself because his ‘sibling’ doesn’t remember him at all.

They will still make efforts to try to revive their relationships with you, without them showing any signs of sadness.

Aizetsu would just want to cry when he first approached you, and you didn’t remember him.

Gyokko

I kid you not this mf is a comedian and a artist. But you heard him say a few jokes to a crowd and then he saw you.

He was unsure if that was actually you until you introduced yourself to him.

He was shocked that you forgotten about him..

But he brushes it off thinking that you had a-lot of stuff to do so you probably forgot about a-lot of stuff, which he understands.

But it broke him honestly.

He still take you out whenever he does his art of goes out all his way just to make you laugh.

Like I said..Mf is heartbroken, whenever you leave from y’all little “dates” he cries almost all the time.

But yall slowly build your relationship, but he still feels sad that you forgotten about him and, feels as if something was still missing.

Daki and Gyutaro

They both were confused about the whole thing at first… Daki was happy honestly, she approached you all happy and bubbly but you just had a confused look on your face and, shoved her off not hard.

Gyutaro then apologized to you saying “I’m sorry man.. My sister thought you were somebody else.. But what’s your name? I never seen you around here?”

He lied obviously, he knew it was you, but he needed a lie to not embarrass his sister as much as she did already.

You actually believed him and then the three of you started to hangout at school normally.

Daki felt a certain way that you don’t remember either of them, she would just cross her arms over her chest and huff.

Gyutaro actually kept a his feelings hidden quite well around you.. Back when you were Demon/Human, you would always compliment him, because he was insecure about himself and it would boost his ego, along with his sisters as well.

Daki is terrible at hiding her current feelings, once you said that you didn’t know who either of them were, she was shocked.. and then cried, saying that you’re a liar and you were just playing games with them.

But now it’s almost the same as how it was in y’all previous lives, you still close to them but they still feel a certain way that you don’t remember a thing about them. But they are also happy that you don’t remember anything about being in a terrible world back then.

[moonslament]

//my gf 💕

michi

[knyswapau]

🩷~KNY SWAP AU INFO PAGE~💚

🩷🩸☀️💚🌸���🫐💙🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙

“Huff huff… This is taking forever! How does Tanjiro do this so fast?” Nezuo thinks to herself, leaving trails of her footprints in the snow. The wind blows through the woods, her hair threatening to come undone from the next tug. She fiddles with the strap so the basket won’t fall off, continuing to think about how much of a pain this journey is. She starts to feel pity on her older brother who walks up this hill almost every day to sell coal. “Wow Tanjiro… The patience you have is insane..”

It’s been a day since she went off down to the village to sell coal. She planned to be home by midnight but thanks to her dear neighbor, Enmu had let her rest and stay the night. Still eternally grateful for what he’s done, she mentally thanks him once again continuing up the mountain. She looks back up, out of breath like she’s ready to collapse and she notices the roof of her house just some trees away.

Finally, she reaches her stop.

Nezuko practically runs the rest of the way up to her home, smiling happily. Finally, she can rest again, finally she can talk to her family, finally she can hug them all in a tight hug, finally she can check up on their well being, finally she can do her old tasks.

She freezes, staring at the open door. It’d be fine to leave the door open, they tend to leave it open all the time it’s just… Why was it so quiet? It was… Too quiet.

“Takeo? Hanako? Tanjiro? Shigeru? Rokuta? Mom…?” Nezuko called out for their names, wandering around the outside of their house thinking all of this was just a silly game. “Perhaps they're still asleep? But Takeo doesn’t sleep late… Maybe they were worried about me? Haha, how cute!” the girl chuckles at the thought, they’ve all had those moments worrying night about each other- especially their big brother Tanjiro. 

I mean, nothing bad can go wrong right?

She goes back to the door, still open letting the cold air in. Nezuko felt uneasy, her mind kept screaming at her to run and not look back. Like what was inside her beloved house was now a nightmare. However, Nezuko doesn’t step back. She pushes her doubtful feelings away- there could be nothing awful in the house and if she's the big sister, she’ll take care of it! 

.

.

.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!”

🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙

Hello! My OOC account is @kanaokanzaki-op but my main blog is @official-butterfly-sisters (don’t ask). This is a blog related to the well known KNY Swap AUs, but I’ve decided to do my own. Other than that, I want to thank you for taking time to read all this! I’ll try to update daily with some wips, headcanons and other things per request- I take a lot of those, don't be shy!

My only rules are no sexual content, hate or anything not related to the AU. I have my OOC account for a reason! I love getting to know people and I hope you guys like this AU! I am not good at promoting aha…

You can ask questions, give dares and much more, I’ll even hold events for such! Genuinely just wanna have fun with this AU and I hope you guys end up enjoying it! Thank you for your time!!

🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙

Character Masterlist:

Kamaboko Squad:

🩷🩸Nezuko Kamado🩷🩸 ☀️💚Tanjiro Kamado☀️💚 🌸💜Kanao Tsuyuri🌸💜 🫐💙Aoi Kanzaki🫐💙 ⚡💛Zenitsu Agatsuma⚡💛 💙🪨Inosuke Hashibira💙🪨 🍉💜Genya Shinazugawa🍉💜

Upper Hashira:

🌑👁Michikatsu Tsugikuni🌑👁 ❄🪭Douma❄🪭 👊🩵Hakuji Soyama👊🩵 🪕👁‍🗨Nakime🪕👁‍🗨 💔😭Hantengu💔😭 🌊🐟Gyokko🌊🐟 ⚡💙Kaigaku⚡💙 💚🪓Gyutaro Shabana💚🪓 🥰🩷Ume Shabana🥰🩷

9 Moons:

🪨🪵Gyomei Himejima🪨🪵 🍃💚Sanemi Shinazugawa🍃💚 🌊❤Giyuu Tomioka🌊❤ 🧡🔥Kyojuro Rengoku🧡🔥 🖤🩵Muichiro/Yuichiro🤍🩵 🎶🩶Tengen Uzui🎶🩶 🤍🐍Obanai Iguro🤍🐍 🍡🩷Mitsuri Kanroji🍡🩷 🦋💜Shinobu Kocho🦋💜

Extra:

🌊👺Sakonji Urokodaki🌊👺 🪻👁Kagaya Ubuyashiki🪻👁 💜🪻Amane Ubuyashiki💜🪻 🪻🖤Kiriya Ubuyashiki🪻🖤 🩸❤Muzan Kibutsuji🩸❤ 💉💜 Lady Tamayo 💉💜 📜🩵 Yushiro 📜🩵 💕💤 Enmu 💕💤 🕸🤍 Rui 🕸🤍 ❤🌊Sabito❤🌊 🌸🌊Makomo🌸🌊 🦋💕Butterfly Triplets🦋💕 💧🩶Murata💧🩶 🦋🩷Kanae Kocho🦋🩷 🌸🩵Koyuki🌸🩵 ⚡🪨Jigoro Kuwajima⚡🪨

[More to be added]

🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙🩷🩸☀️💚🌸💜🫐💙

[arachnidamoon]

Reunion (Kokushibo x F!Reader)

(Warning: Kokushibo’s backstory spoilers.)

Silence. A melody Kokushibo had long grown used to. In fact, he enjoyed it, even if at times it made him think of the past. Of his brother Yoriichi, of his jealousy, of his wife, and of his descendants. Memories of his long-lost humanity. Worthless memories. The Upper Moon One grunted as he looked up at the clear night sky. It was useless to remember those things now. The past wasn’t going to return. Not that he wanted it to do so.

“Michikatsu?”

(Name)’s voice rang in his brain. The voice of his wife, a voice he didn’t expect to hear again. His mood turned sour; he shouldn’t be thinking of old thoughts and feelings. He got up, ready to leave. To his surprise, someone grabbed the sleeve of his kimono. Kokushibo turned to see who dared touch him. A pair of (e/c) eyes met his, Kokushibo’s six eyes narrowing in annoyance. She was a demon like him but of lower rank. He didn’t have time to waste, even less with weaklings.

“I apologize.” She muttered, her eyes showing a hint of disappointment at the demon’s coldness. A disappointment that seemed baseless to the demon. That’s when he noticed. That voice was familiar.

“(Name)?” Kokushibo asked, his face slightly softening. No, he must be mistaken. It was impossible. It had been almost four hundred years; his wife couldn’t be alive. The Upper Moon One removed her hand from his sleeve, putting his feelings aside. He should leave now; he was wasting time. As the Upper Moon started walking again, her voice echoed in the forest.

“Please wait, Michikatsu!” Her voice pleaded.

That name. A name he had long dismissed was being used to refer to him once again. The wind breeze moved their hair, making (Name)’s features visible in the moonlight. As much as Kokushibo didn’t want to believe it was possible, there was no mistake. His wife was there.

“You are wasting your time.”

His voice rang back as he disappeared in the darkness. Kokushibo had missed her, yes, but she was also a reminder of his human life. A reminder of his weakness and the life that he had left behind.

(Name) looked at where he stood a few seconds ago. Even after Kokushibo left her and their kids, she had been searching for him. She even turned into a demon four hundred years ago after hearing about a demon that matched Michikatsu’s appearance. Her life after his departure had been fully focused on one thing: finding him.

“I just want to talk…” (Name) mumbled to herself, still looking at the place where Kokushibo was.

——————————————————————————

As much as the strongest Upper Moon wanted to stop thinking about the encounter with his wife, he couldn’t. The memories of their time spent together kept coming back, much to his annoyance. Those useless feelings filling his mind.

“(Name)…” He whispered as he kept walking around the forest. The demon kept walking, trying to find comfort in nature. Only the forest and the loneliness could soothe his soul at times like that. He rested his hand on the hilt of his katana as he gazed at the night sky. The memory of (Name)’s was now engraved in his mind, as much as he wanted it to disappear.

The peace didn’t last long. A fight could be heard in the distance, the clash of metal resonating in the air. Kokushibo got closer, a mixture of curiosity and hope of finding a strong opponent to distract himself filling him. His steps were quiet, not wanting the other party to notice his presence. That’s when he saw it. (Name) was fighting with a Hashira.

(Name)’s movements were sloppy. Weak. Inexperienced. The way she held her katana and her posture were wrong. It was a surprise how she remained alive for so long with such a lack of basic fighting knowledge.

Kokushibo felt his chest burn as he heard her pained screams. He shouldn’t care about an inferior being. So why did his chest ache as he watched the pain on her features? Why did seeing her wounds and the blood dripping on the ground make his eyes narrow in anger? Why did he care? It was only a matter of time before she was defeated. And then he could go back to his usual life. No more memories of her. Of them. Of the past.

(Name) could feel the blade of the Hashira’s katana in her neck. It was over. She wasn’t able to talk to Michikatsu at the end. To understand why he left her and their kids. “If only I was stronger.” She thought, closing her eyes. Ready to met her end.

Then, a loud thud. (Name) opened her eyes, just to find the Hashira laying on the ground. A puddle of blood underneath him. It was not until she saw Kokushibo next to her that she understood what had happened.

“…”

Kokushibo wasn’t a man of words, so he said nothing. His six eyes were soon fixed on her, watching her wounds. If Kokushibo still had something in him of the man she used to know, she could swear his gaze was softer. Loving, even.

“Kokushibo.” He leaned closer, his thumb caressing the wound on her cheek. It took a few seconds before it regenerated, with his touch still lingering until it fully healed. “My demon name.”

His strong arms wrapped around her, bringing her closer to his body. (Name) was a reminder of his humanity. A lovely reminder, even if he didn’t want to admit so. Kokushibo buried his face in her hair, enjoying her warmth. As he breathed in her scent, his muscles relaxed.

(Name) was a weakness. The only weakness he was willing to allow back into his life.

[moonslament]

“Hmm,” a slight nod as he hummed in confirmation, his gaze flicking away from the demon momentarily before focusing on his face once more.

“I suppose it is weighing on my shoulders, I have not been able to sleep nor eat in days. I am exhausted.”

His usual poised posture was somewhat slumped over and his eyes dark from exhaustion.

Deep violet eyes bore into the demons as Michikatsu stood before him, arms crossed tightly over his chest, a scoff spilling past his lips.

“So you're supposed to be me?”

- moonslament

*Kokushibo's eyes widen some. He doesn't understand how the human version of himself suddenly appeared before him*

Mm ... yes ... how did you ... arrive ... here ...?

[moonslament]

12- threatening or 63 - competitive for the starter meme!!

From here || 12. for a threatening starter

He was second only to his younger twin brother, his strength had earned him respect, even fear in some, but it wasn't enough, not even with these marks that proved he had pushed himself beyond the threshold of normal human abilities. Michikatsu had to push himself harder, he had to keep training and fighting until he surpassed Yoriichi. He had to be on top.

That was no easy task, especially with all of these children and weak slayers begging for scraps, begging to be trained by him and his brother. He had no time for such things, he would not share the strength he worked so hard to obtain.

He was now sitting alone, his eyes closed as he simply enjoyed the silence- that was until he heard approaching footsteps then a voice.

Of course, that boar child had to be the one to bother him in his time of peace, his loud voice ringing through the moon user’s ears.

“Did I not tell you to let me be, child?”

His voice was low as he stood, turning to face Inosuke, his eyes burning into the boy, though his expression changed very little.

“Will I have to teach you to respect the wishes of your superiors?”

[vraisetzen]

Hi lovely V! I just wanted to ask — what are your 5-10 top favourite things about Michikatsu/Kokushibo?

Hi lovely Anon! This is a really good question

I actually went through various oshis/favourites in KnY, with Rengoku being my first, and then Uzui; over time, however, Kokushibo won over me, and he has been my very favourite since.

His appearance: Let's get this out of the way first — I was instantly intrigued by Kokushibo the very moment I saw him. Gotouge has a splendid eye for memorable character design, and there was something about Kokushibo's six eyes, his turtleshell patterned kimono, and his sword, that made him very compelling unforgettable. And then, when I saw his human face (and how it was such a sharp contrast to Yoriichi), I thought he was so, so handsome.

His strength: I have always been drawn to very strong characters, and Kokushibo was no exception. The way he so easily sliced off Muichiro's arm, how he had hone his Breathing techniques and created so many variations, his certainty and confidence ("You only tore my kimono..."); the fact that he survived having his head sliced off, and was so close to resurrecting had it not been a moment of sentiment as he recalled his brother. He did not achieve all this easily, of course — he had honed his skills through centuries, and even as a swordsman he had worked so hard to match up to his twin brother; which brings me to my next point...

His weakness: This might be a strange thing to say, but another part I love about Kokushbo is something that perhaps many other fans might find despicable: his insecurities and desire for power. In many ways, I relate to his envy for his younger twin's abilities, such that he became blind to the many other things he was given (a title, an estate, a family). Being insecure was one thing, but allowing that jealousy to take root in one's psyche, such that it drove him into becoming a demon — I saw someone who simply wanted to emerge from the shadow cast by the sun, as he pushed the stone of Sisyphus towards an unattainable peak.

His complexity: That is not to say, however, that I absolve or excuse him of all his misdeeds. When I talk about Kokushibo, it is always in the context of him as a demon, as Upper Moon One; very rarely do I refer to him as Tsugikuni Michikatsu, because I think Kokushibo himself willingly let go of that identity the very moment he accepted Muzan's Faustian promise. But still, if the moments before his death were an indication, I think he was always so, so close to being redeemed had he only met the right person who could steer him onto the right path. Kokushibo realised that, and that is why in a moment of weakness he succumbed to death instead of holding on to his desire for power and immortality. It is this near-miss, this possibility of redemption, that makes him such a complex character in my eyes, and one that I love so much.

His personality: The fandom loves making jokes about Kokushibo's speech patterns, and I totally get it — he's just an old guy who needs to get his thoughts in order before voicing them. At the same time, I think it's such a great fit for his serious, dignified persona. We may never know what sort of person Michikatsu was when he was happily married with two children, or when he took a break from being envious of Yoriichi's talents, but I would like to think that he was as equally uptight and formal. As a samurai in the warring states period, he was most definitely raised with the class' code of conduct and behaved appropriately; I especially find his seiza to be very cute:

And if I'm allowed to dive into Kimetsu Academy here, I think Kokushibo is so, so adorable as Muzan's secretary. He's most likely underpaid and overworked, but his devotion to his employer's cause is admirable (and personally, I've always headcanon-ed Muzan's evil politics in KimeGaku as him being a progressive politican in a National Diet filled with LDP politicians, but I digress). I love that moment where Tanjiro's innocence evidently moves him, and we get a tiny glimpse of his eyes beyond the sunglasses:

Because at the end of the day, Kokushibo is just a very Old Guy™ who is just trying his best to serve his master and fulfil his own goals of being the strongest.

Thanks for the wonderful question, Anon! I hope this answers it well — frankly, there are just so many things about Kokushibo that I love, and I find so difficult to quantify them in a list. And to be honest, there are times where I do get mired in fandom's portrayal of him and his canon depiction — that when I read his chapters in the manga all over again!

xoxo, V ♥️

[moonslament]

He knew this boy had to be a Hashira- only a Hashira or a very lucky fool could survive an attack like the one Yuichiro had survived. He could tell it had been quite the battle just by how much damge had been done to the surrounding area.

It was true that Michikatsu didn’t have a crow of his own- nor did his brother, it wasn’t really something they really thought about either, so far he had been doing just fine without one. It was simply easier for him to deliever his messages himself if they were urgent, if not, they could wait or he could simply send a letter.

“It sounds like you fought a good battle, it’s impressive that you are still alive…”

It was good that the boy was talking, even if he could barely make out the words he spoke.

He noticed Yui was becoming less and less responsive as time went on, he just needed the boy to hold on for a few more minutes. They were so close, he could already hear the busting of the villagers starting their morning.

“Hold on.” It sounded more like a command, he wouldn’t allow the boy to die, he wasn’t permitted to die.

It baffled Michikatsu that they would let the boy fight battles like this, even with his strength, he was still very young, he himself didn’t even start down the path of the samurai that young. If they had trained this boy until he matured a little more he would be practically unstoppable, the moon user was sure of it.

He shook away any other though for the moment as they finally entered the small village, but he didn’t slow down or stop until they were actually in the infirmary.

@moonslament

His chest heaves heavy with each gulp for air, stopped only long enough for the boy to break into a hard heaving coughing fit. Blurry shapes and colors phase in and out of his vision, what little strength he had left, as a clump of his blood fell from his form. Ghostly pale skin, as if it was made from mere paper made a his lips dig farther downward.

Cold... So... Cold.

Limbs heavy as lead, one step stumble forward with the tip of his blade dragged along behind him. Skin marred by new cloud like markings mirror on each side snake up the childs neck. The most predominate teal markings reach down the boys jaw line to stop a few inches from the corner of his lips. One step, another, he had to keep walking. Keep moving, keep pushing himself just that much farther. The boy had just finished off a lower moon who mastered in hallucinations, and had shown him the truth, made him fight his own twin to the death based fully on how Yuichiro saw his younger brother. Someone untouchable.

A warrior who, outclassed and outshined him in every sense of the word, and surrounded in a sea of blood and mist, Yuichiro knew that this would be his final battle. He knew he'd fall. and he knew that he would deserve it. And yet.

Yet.

Yuichiro refused such fate.

A voice that felt like it was not his own, produced by his own voice, claw pass his own throat.

"I REFUSE TO BE CONTROLLED!"

What followed was a blur of frantic action. His own blade stabbed through his right palm to gouge out the seed the demon had rooted into his palm and its source of its path to his mind. A foolish, reckless move and yet it gave the elder Mist Hashira just a second, a single glint of clarity.

A single second was all the child needed to take the demoness's head. And now, as rays of sunlight kiss across his small frame the childs body sways on his feet. Rivulets of raven locks dance along the soft whisper of wind as his strength is finally sapped from him. Frozen still for a moment, etherical pools of cerulean grow dark just as he finally collapses.

[ryukenzz]

Kokushibo / Michikatsu Tsugikuni - SFW & NSFW Headcanons

[Note: Relationship Headcanons of Kokushibo/Michikatsu Tsugikuni from Demon Slayer. In this scenario, Reader will be described as a Demon Slayer with the rank "Kinoe." Will contain NSFW and manga spoilers so minors/anime-onlys, please do not interact.]

SFW:

You first encountered the Upper Rank demon on a mission in a semi-isolated village. Perfect. Just great. Your first mission as a newly ranked Kinoe has branded you with the luck of encountering an Upper Kizuki. Upper Moon One, to be exact. Despite feeling the immense pressure from his aura, you unsheathed your [color of choice] sword and muttered the first form of your breathing style. While you were preparing to attack, Kokushibo took the time to study you (more like check out). With those six eyes holding the ability to "see through," he analyzes the muscles and bones within your body, determining your skill level. A clashing of blades rang into the air, indicating the beginning of the battle.

After several hours of endless fighting, you found yourself on one knee, clutching your bloodied arm. Sweat and crimson decorated your skin, while the Upper Rank was devoid of any wounds. Kokushibo's three sets of eyes stared down at your figure, taking in your appearance. Your expertise with the sword was highly impressive.

“Your abilities are quite... exceptional. It's a shame that your humanity... holds you back. Become a demon... increase your power.”

You looked at the demon like he had two heads. Become a demon? What the hell was he talking about?? Picking up your sword, you go to attack him, but Kokushibo knocked you out and vanished. Normally, he would've killed you, but there was something about you that... intrigued him. He hadn't felt that rushing excitement of battle in quite a long time. Not since Upper Moon 3's attempt to snatch his rank.

The days that followed were full of restlessness and heckling thoughts of one another. Neither of you could focus on your missions or training. Ever since you both clashed, Kokushibo has been wanting to fight you once again, which is a rarity for the 6'3" creature. And what better way than to seek you out and crash one of your missions?

To say you were bamboozled would be an understatement. You never thought you would see him again. Your swords meet each other a few seconds later, Kokushibo staring down at your figure. He begins speaking, telling you that, “Our battle has been... on my mind for some time... now. I wish to know... more about you...”

Since then, you and your new companion would meet in the same spot and train with one another. Kokushibo gave you tips on how to improve your swordsmanship while you taught him about humanity some. A friendship eventually blossomed, and your training sessions soon became friendly outings. A mututal respect between demon and slayer was slowly brewing up to be something more.

Over time, Kokushibo had taken a great liking to you. Your skills and heart made him feel.... good. You felt the same for him. Even with his peculiar features, the demon was very attractive. He made you stronger, better.... wanted. Both of you craved the other, but your occupations made it nearly impossible. But who's to say fate can decide that?

You wrote Kokushibo a letter, asking him to meet you at an abandoned cabin. When he arrived, you both stood there, facing each other in silence. You finally swallowed your nervousness and spilled your heart out to him. After your confession, the Upper Moon continued to stay quiet until his deep voice spoke up. “Despite working for... the enemy... you have made my cold heart... beat again. Even with your humanity... you are special... to me.”

At the start of the relationship, physical touch was mainly initiated by you. Kokushibo didn't really think much of it, but his way of showing you his love was through quality time. Whether it be watching over you in the shadows or napping with you during the day, he was happy to be in your prescence.

Ultimately, he told you about his past with Yoriichi. How it shaped him to become a demon. That night was the first time he initiated physical affection and gave you the sweetest first kiss known to man (and of course, you returned the favor by pecking every space on his marks).

NSFW:

Kokushibo does have experience when it comes to sex. Even though he had a wife and kids as a human, it'd been years since he's been intimate with anyone. So the first time ya'll get down, he takes things slowly before getting into his groove.

Laid upon the soft futon in your bedroom, the Upper Rank's large hands roamed your body while his lips softly explored your neck. He sensually removes your kimono and delivers open-mouthed kisses on your chest. You lean your head back to allow him full access to your neck, a delicate moan leaving your lips. Taking it as a sign to further his actions, Kokushibo kisses a trail down your stomach, the top row of his eyes watching your reaction.

You appreciated how gentle your six-eyed boyfriend was with you, but your impatience was starting to show. Sensing this, the Upper Moon leaned away from your covered cunt and gave you a tender kiss. “I suppose you shall receive... your award for your... patience.” As soon as he says this, he makes his way back to your pussy, removing your underwear and goes to town. You had never felt such pleasure in your life (you damn near passed out).

Afterward, he licked your essence from his lips and chin and stood on his knees, removing his clothing. What you saw made you and your pussy nervous. Kokushibo was a good eight inches flaccid, but a full nine when hard. There was even a prominent vein on the left side of his cock.

Relishing in your reaction, he picked up your thighs and reassured you softly, and slid in. He may have ate your cunt like a pro, but he pounded your cervix like a full-blown champ. You were amazed that his cock could reach your womb before even started moving.

I see Kokushibo as a firm type of lover. He'll whisper sweet and loving words at you while bullying your G-spot like it did something to him. He also took notice of how you'd clench around him whenever his deep voice dropped an octave (he took advantage of this fact every single time). Kokushibo may have been a gentleman, but he showcased just how much of a demon he was in the bedroom.

“You can give me... one more, can't you...? Don't hide yourself from me... let me take care of her needs...”

[These took me way too long to finish💀. I hope I didn't make his character OOC or anything of the sort. ^^']

[thebottomfromhell]

I read your courtship headcanon and thought it was awesome. So much so that I kept thinking about other... possibilities. As; what would happen when the upper moons were reborn as humans and found their "husbands" but they didn't remember them? Would they be sad, upset, furious?! Not to be too depressing I thought of the reader still in love with them even though they don't remember their previous lives.

Would the upper moons be happy to know that the reader loves them even without remembrance or not? And we can't forget that Hakuji dates Koyuki in the KNY Academy series. Would she be in the equation or not? If so, how would it end up on Akaza's part?!

If it gets too big, you can divide it into two parts, but I'd like to see these two possibilities.

Ok, I loved this concept a bit too much, thank you for this ask. I am going to make two versions, one with human reader who was reborn with memories and one with demon reader (I will explain how it was possible in those ones), I will be also dividing both versions in two since it's a bit long. Sorry it took me so long and only for part one 🥲

Reincarnation after courtship. Human male reader, part one [here]

Reincarnation after courtship. Human male reader, part two [here]

Reincarnation after courtship. Demon male reader, part one [In progress]

Reincarnation after courtship. Demon male reader, part two [In progress]

Warnings: Manga spoilers, Polyamory (Hakuji, Koyuki and you), Mentioned cannibalism and torture (just you remembering your past life), Mentioned pregnancy, Implied child explotation, Implied child abuse, Allusion to sexual content, Douma and Gyokko are their own warnings, Mentioned assault, Mentioned use of fure weapon, Reader getting rejected by Nakime, Kokushibou's canonical insecurity. I'M BUILDING THE REINCARNATED WORLD MYSELF.

Kokushibou:

"Kokushibou-san?" You ask when you see him in a public space, a kendo club where he will do a demostration since his family is one with a traditional legacy, except now it's more a stage thing than anything else, but still a strict background. He is still as regal as ever, but he feels younger, not in looks, but those pair eyes are not as experienced as the six bloody gold ones you remember. Again, you also look different from back then, when you were courting him, but it's clear that you remember, he doesn't. "Excuse me, who are you talking to?" You manage to correct that, and he introduces himself as Michikatsu. Here you don't have a Kibutsuji-sama (even know just thinking his name is scary) to force him to tolerate you, but Kokushibou Michikatsu does have a brother who pushes him into making friends, and it seems you are one of the few who actually tried to reach out for him, even in this life.

It's weird. You know nothing and everything about him at the same time, and Kokushi Michikatsu notices. He notices how you already know his interests and how is easy for you to guess his favorite foods (traditional food, what else?), how you can tell when he is sad or needs to be comforted, even the fact that you already know how to comfort him or make your company pleasant for him. "How do you know all these things about me? What are you, a stalker or something?"

It's something even more weird to explain, since you both didn't get to marry, so you avoid to answer as much as you can, even though you know you are only driving Kokushi Michikatsu mad. Still, you are glad he is not avoiding you. You just miss Kokushibou so much, the life you had together. "Michikatsu-san, do you believe in reincarnation?" You are not surprised that he does, still traditional in his religious beliefs. He is curious of why you asked, and you refuse to answer since he is not ready to listen to it. He might never be ready. One day he gets so angry he points you with the katana, the real one, "Stop evading to give me answers! What is going on?! Why?! How?! What is going on?! That is wrong with you that you are like this?!" and you know that if he hurts by accident or in an outburst it will break things irreversibly (and you will not regenerate).

He is the one who starts to evade you after you explain you met him in your past life, that you were courting him (you didn't say anything about being a demon, that part you didn't want to risk him not believing you). You were expecting something like that, it was hard to notice since he was the strongest, but Kokushibou was always the one to run away. If he disliked something, felt uncomfortable, pain or fear (flashes of someone from his human life, he would say) he would scape. Physically, mentally or emotionally didn't matter, he would run away.

To your surprise, he reaches out for you after some weeks, but doesn't speak of the topic. He just keeps being in friendly terms with you, but you notice that at times he just glares at you and spaces out. You don't mind, he used to get lost inside his mind a lot in your past life, so hou keep treating him good. Your main problem is that sometimes you fall off to your old habits, making him gifts specially. Your handicraft is a lot better in this life, you actually can take clases and watch tutorials, and most if the time you end just leaving those works in Michikatsu's place. This just seems to frustrate him more, but thankfully he has not thrown anything nor given it back. Sometimes you lie to yourself, that this is still your Kokushibou, and that one day you will wake up to the three pair of eyes.

"Become my boyfriend." He looks offended when he tells you this, just like when Kibutsuji-sama told him to accept your courtship. "You like me, don't you? And you say we were... courting. You still give me gifts and all that." This situation is akward, you don't want to reject him, but you can tell something else is going on. You stay in silence, trying to figure out what will be better for both of you, what will hurt less, before Koku.... Michikatsu storms out angry, but the look in his eyes tell you he wants you to stop him.

Kokushibou would hate if you went against him in any way, even the times he deeply wanted you to, the hierarchy was too important to him. But this is not Kokushibou, you are coming in terms with that. "Michikatsu." You chase after and grab his arm to pull him so he turns to face you. "I love you. I want to be your boyfriend, if I could I would be your husband, but your well being is more important. What is going on?" He freezes through your speech and also keeps quiet a long time after it, spacing out, but as always, you wait for him. It takes a while, and you don't release his arm, just sqeeze tighter for him to not forget that you are there. You have experience with this.

"You are the only one who actually loves and does like me over Yoriichi." He is honest, and you know that it's hard for him. Even as demons it was always hard for Kokushibou to open up, so you let Michikatsu talk, you don't interrupt nor force him to anything, not even to look at you as he frowns at the floor. "Everyone else prefers Yoriichi, it's always Yoriichi. Amd then not only you go against everything I'm used to." he pauses again, biting his lips as he looks at you, angry and swollen eyes. "And you know everything about me! And I can't remember no matter how hard I try! The ONLY person that will put me over Yorrichi and I don't deserve to remember them?! To remember the happiness you clearly gave me?! How is that fair?!" He's angry, crying out of his rage, you don't comfort him beyond putting you free gand in his shoulder. Both Michikatsu and Kokushibou would hate anything further.

"You actually want me. And I don't even know if I like you. I want to like you, but I don't even know who you were to me...." His breathing is heavy, not with the powerful moon he used to carry in it, but a human trying to keep his emotions at check. "But you can know who I am now. But don't force yourself, I think we can figure it out. You are no longer Kokushibou, and I am no longer the same man I was back then. I was always patient for you, so be patient with yourself." Having to tolerate his mood changes and the fact that you remember all that experience makes you feel wise, specially when you say things like this. But that is not the point! "Let's start again. I made you fall in love with me once, I think I can do it again." You both do.

You become friends, start doing things together. Michikatsu, unlike Kokushibou, actually likes to do things outside. Kokushibou preferred to meditate and practice, but now... it's more normal. Maybe it's just because you are humans, but you can feel the change in the dynamic. Things are more fun. You never forget your marriage, and never give up on those feelings for him. But you can sense it, he is forming feelings as well.

It takes you a year, but you do become boyfriends (his father's rejection makes Michikatsu distance himself from his family and stay with you), you keep that for a few years. Things do get easier, even if Michikatsu never makes up with his family and never gets over his resentment for Yoriichi. Later on, after 5 years of being boyfriends, you both even marry in this life! It was a more or less traditional Shinto Wedding with only close friends, definetely not what Kokushibou would have wanted, but you both are grateful for what you've got.

After you marry is that you tell him about the demon thing, he was chill with it. Maybe too chill for it to be healthy... well, there is nothing that can be done about it.

Douma:

You were just going to your home, it was already dark since it's winter, snowing, when you bunoed with each other. He had a black medical mask and a hoddie, but it's impossible to not recognize him. You would be able to do so even without the rainbow eyes and silver hair. Douma looks exactly as he did back then, unfazed by life itself, so of it wasn't for the fact he has not thrown himself over you, you wouldn't know he doesn't remember. No matter how much your appereance may have changed, he would still be able to recognize you. "You have been staring me a lot, is there something you would like to tell me?" He is atill as sharp as always.

"Can I take you out? Spend time doing something fun?" You knew how to catch his attention. He always wants to do something fun and barely can work without being the center of attention. You take him on that same moment to do make a snow fight and then lead him to your home to warm up, since it was closer. Just as in your past life he is very trusting, not believing anything can happen to him due the mixture of a sheltered yet isolated life and the inmortality of demons. Right now it should be only one, but Douma has always being above being hurt. "That was fun, I was never hit in my life! Much less by a snowball. I could feel my heart beat a lot and my body heat up in the cold!" He seems excited over something so basic. You give him hot chocolate, and he actually hesitates before taking a sip, only to drink everything at once after that. "It tastes so good, not as bitter nor sweet as I would expect from chocolate."

You speak a little, turns out he was a child model, but stopped once his parents died just before his teens. His foster family, on the other hand, was too religious to the point it eppressing, so now that he is an adult he is still trying to figure out himself and live many things he didn't before. That explains why he hasn't changed, and to be honest, you are glad he is still the same. That does make you feel a bit guilty, the fact that he you prefer him emotionally stunted, but you like being able to understand him still, that he can be read the same way he was read before. You still go out as friends, fill him with the attention he always adored and at times get him gifts (no knives or poison this time, it's not like you can get them as eqsily as back then).

Douma is not his real name, but the one he was given for modeling, he tells you he prefers it over his real name, that he misses those times. He is trying to go back into modeling, since it's what he knows, but since he is an adult it's been harder than back then. Still, he is starting to appear in magazines, so he covers his face when he goes out. You support and help him in everything you can. "It's weird. You always know how to treat me. If I believed in gods I would argue they sent you to me."

That is another thing, he is still an atheist (probably one who has religious trauma), so you know that if you tell him you were demon husbands in your past life where he was the symbol and leader of a cult... he will only believe the part of the cult. You know he wouldn't mind, that he would even pretend to start remembering, but you don't want to be a crazy dude Douma just tolerates because their are nice and happy with him being compliant. You want him to have a stable place to learn happiness with you.

He treats you as always, so at times it's hard to remember he doesn't remember, besides the fact he doesn't mention his followers, the rest is af if you both just became humans. "Is my princess hungry for attention?" You still hug him, take each others' hand, flirt, share food (not humans anymore), talk. "Stay with me for the night, Y/N." But now you also have dates, both at day and night, now you both sleep together, now you present him to your friends and family. It's really an upgrade, and the fact is that Douma enjoys it too. But still, is clear he notices it's weird how it's easier to be with you than anybody else, how you already know him, his needs and his desires.

He is back into modeling when you decide to tell him, mostly to get it off your chest, but also because from now on he might need you less. He is going back to the spotlight his existence has always been, where he was living good without you. So now he must decide if he wants you there or not, just like you both chose back then. "I was your husband in our past life." You keep everything else out because you know this is already too much for him to take. You know that because he stopped smiling and his face is empty of emotion. "That.... that makes.... it makes sense." After that day he takes a modeling tour outside the city, evading you for two weeks, not texting, calling or answering your attempts. And yet he is the one going straight to your home once he comes back. "It does make sense." He is being honest here, because it does make sense. With all I know about him, it does. "I don't like it. I'm feeling..." He clearly doesn't know, and that frustrastes him.

"Does that mean gods are real?" He asks when you are both in bed, hugging each other so Douma can collect himself. Of course that is what matters to him, because in his both lives he was exposed to religious delusion, forced into being participant without reward. Douma was always told he was special because of his hair and eyes, so if he was special why didn't he recieve anything from gods for his input? It must be easier to accept that there is nobody to reward you than the fact that nobody will ever no matter how special you are.

"I don't know. I don't remember my time dead." You answer honestly. At that he just burries his face at your neck. "Be my husband again. If you remember there must be a reason behind it. I want you and you love me.... that can work, right?" It worked your past life, so yes. You answer yes. You marry two years later after you saved enough money and Douma enough fame for a big event. So he can still be the center of attention.

But things do get better. For starters, he takes part to plan his own wedding, not having followers in charge of him to do it for him and not wanting to leave everything to you. And things keep getting better after you become husbands.

Unlike when you were demons Douma is growing slowly, he is starting to understand his feelings better, to actually feel them. Maybe you will tell him the rest later on, when he is ready to hear it. "Y/N! Come here, I will have a tour to China and I have a plus one ticket. Lets go together!" But in this life he is becoming someone who is actually happy for himself. "You know I love to travel around, and we will eat a lot of good food. Hopefully we will find something new to try."

He loves to travel, to try new things, to explore. He loves to eat, to taste new flavors and textures, it makes him happy. He still eats a lot and, of course, with his magical biology, doesn't get fat. He likes attention but dislikes having to interact with others since he can't read other people, so it's hard both when they can't read him but even more irritating when they can, it makes him angry when anyone who isn't you can see through his fake smile. He likes skipping social rules, to just relax in a comfortable space and it makes him sad he can't do it all the time. But he can feel. He can actually feel and understand himself.

"I love you Douma." you would always tell your husband in both lives, and for the first time you feel Douma is not just answering because it's correct. "I think I love you too, Y/N."

Akaza:

Akaza is so different, not only in looks, but he also seems a lot happier, more relaxed. He still seems to be protective over his beloved ones, but now he is not as desperate to keep them close and alive as you remember. Your husband was terrified of you dying, but he doesn't seem to hold the same fear with the young woman he is with. You found them in Starbucks when they were having a date.

Akaza Hakuji, that is his name now, was so much better you were going to leave him as things were... until he started a fight with a group of teens that believed themselves a Yakuza gang or something (it's not so weird to have teenagers on the Yakuza's gangs, the weird thing is that the groups are never of just teens and they can't go arround messing with public spaces public spaces so far from the more criminalized districts at midday.) You noticed one was going for his date as they realized they would not be able to beat your husband from your past life, you invernened to defend her. "Are you ok? They didn't hurt you, did they?" (This reminded you of the hatred Akaza had for the weaklings, the ramblings he would have...) "Thank you for protecting Koyuki. What is your name? I want to remember." in the end you did become a friend to them.

Koyuki, his girlfriend, is adorable. Soft-spoken, kind, curious, patient, understanding and just so cute. She's been sick most of her life but is always giving her best. And her loyal komainu is always near to take care of her. It reminds you to your relationship with Akaza a bit, except you both were not as nice as this two (go the others, between yourselves you were nothing but lovey dovey) and you can't deny you miss it, and at times you fall into the old habits like calling him "Haku", but you manage to cover it up by starting to call her "Yuki". You also end buying things for Akaza Hakuji pink or snowflake-themed items, but you never give them to him unless there is an occasion, and you also end giving Koyuki some, since it's clear they both love the same things. "We are going to have a demostration of martial arts this Sunday. Both me and Koyuki would like you to be there." You start going out with them a lot, and it doesn't even feel as you are a third wheel in their relationship. That is a bit worrisome.

Because again, Koyuki is lovely, just as much as Hakuji, they deserve each other and you are honestly afraid of getting in between. Besides it's not a story easy to believe and there is a chance they just think you became crazy and want to steal Hakuji with the worst attempt possible, explaining a fantasy. So no, you were never planning to say anything at all, you wanted to keep things as they are.

After all, unlike Akaza, Hakuji liked hou around for the start. At first you were worried what Koyuki would think, but it seems she also liked you from the moment you helped them. With her arpund is easier to not forget that this is not your husband, but at the same time you just can't grow out for your feelings for the person you loven in your past life. This is not Akaza, this is not the demon who hates weaklings, is strict with who should be killed and who shouldn't, gets hyped around Hashira and dislikes being around demons that are not his husband. (One of the things he would be happier about in this life is that there is no Douma, wouldn't it?) This Komainu is calmer, more patient, prefers to nurse over fighting, but still gets hyped when you practice martial arts with him (you still remember some movements he taught you in your past life, that is how you were able to help back then.) Everything is just fine.

Then Hakuji got shot.

The punks he faced when you met have been messing with Koyuki's father dojo, so he went to face them at their own territory. It seems at least one if them is part of the Yakuza, since how else would they have obteined a gun in Japan? [None of them was, but one had a family member of one and that is were he started to have such a confidence] As stubborn as he is, Hakuji still won and survived, but he got himself at the hospital. For the first time you understood the paranoia of having your husband die Akaza always felt around you. "Yuki... Haku and I were husbands in our past life..." You explain everything at her while you both wait for a doctor or a nurse to tell you he can recieve visits. Everything, about Kibutsuji-sama, about the demons, about your courting, about your marriage, about Akaza being so scared, of how you are scared right now. Your husband, your Komainu almost died.

You are surprised she doen't speak nor judge you as you ramble, and even lets you visit him with her when you are allowed. You don't tell Hakuji anything, just fight the urge to take him in your arms. It seems Koyuki did believe what you were saying, because the first thing he does the next time to visit is ask you about it. "Were you planning to tell me?" You answer honestly, and explain yourself. "They used to call me demon child when I was a kid. To think I actually was a demon before... one that ate human flesh at that." He doesn't seem angry nor disgusted, not even upset, just lost (and a bit sad). "I wish I could remember you." It's a lot, and now that he is stuck at a hospital he has too much time to think about it. You don't understand how come both him and Koyuki believed you in the first place. "You wouldn't lie, besides... it does explain a lot. You were not as subtle as you think you were."

You also keep talking with Koyuki and him, but you never see them together again, trying to evade.... everything. "It's still sad. I knew you were special the second you protected Koyuki and now... I just know you were a great husband, that you were great for me and would also have been good to Koyuki. I would like to have some memories about of it, at least one." You comfort him, verbally make him know that you are fine with him not remembering, that he being near and happy is good enough. "I think I love you both..." "Yeah... me too."

It's akward when Hakuji just gets out of the hospital, but the three of you decide to talk everything. In the end you all agree to try a polyamory relationship. It seems that Akaza has also being eyeing you from the start but kept talking with his girlfriend, who was ok with it and with time she also started liking you. It's difficult at first, but communication is the key. You start to take care of both, since Koyuki still need help in some things due her illness and Hakuji is still healing (the regeneration is what you miss the most of being a demon, it came handy). In the end is not so different of what you were doing before the incident. "It was clear from the moment I saw you, there is something off, but in a good way. It seems we were just meant to be together again, Y/N. Just just needed to have Koyuki with us."

After a few years you all start refering to each other as if you were already marriaged, living in the same house and sharing the chores and paying the bills. Keizo is chill with the relationship his doughter has with two men, even though he clearly finds it a bit weird. He has accepted you and all of you would like to think Hakuji's father would have also liked you as he did, but unfortunately he died from an illness before you even met your komainu in this life. You are there when he needs to let everything out of his chest, unlike with Koyuki, he isn't afraid to take his pain out sparing with you, and all of you always make sure to speak, plan and understand what is going on with the relationship, that includes sharing problems with the mental health that are unrelated. "Haku, Yuki and I are here for you. And Yuki, if you need a break please just tell us." She always puts a lot of effort into the relationship, but you must remember her health problems, so you must be patient if she needs to stop due stress or feels tired.

Because of the legality of the issue none of you have bringed up marriage (which has saddened Keizo, he is clearly one of those fathers who wants to see their doughter with a pretty dress at the altar), but you would not mind if Koyuki and Hakuji took their turn since you married him in your past life (still a complicated topic to bring up).

Then the news arrive, Koyuki is pregnant (you have no idea how you knew from the start its Hakuji's, but you did. The blood exams where clear and now Keizo owes you 700 yen [around 5 dollars, it wasn't about the money, but about who is right]) and she wants to keep it. You are unsure at first, but you see that Hakuji also wants to keep the child, so you start helping too. You know these two will be great parents. Of course the child will know nothing about your pasts life, but beside that you better study how to parent a child with the other two. You might not be able to have a legal marriage and having a ceremony would be difficult (this time you can't kidnap, force and kill a priest), you you can still have a family, a life, with them.

That is good enough. Life is good and you would not change your Haku and Yuki for nothing.

Nakime:

Nakime's music still has the same effect in you, the second you hear just one note on that biwa you feel the world spin. For a blink you feel back on the interdimentional fortress, only to open your eyes to the video in YouTube of her playing. She is covering her face with a hoddie as she plays, dressed in black, singing covers. She has a Channel you subscribe and give likes and comments to everything. In the end she also notices that you clearly exist and are interested in her, specially since she isn't as well know. (You don't know if it's because she just started uploading videos or people just have bad taste. None of those would surprise you.)

You don't want to stalk her, but at times you find yourself looking for her at her social media. She just have Facebook, Twitter and Youtube but that is enough for you to try to contact her. In her mind you are probaly just an eager fan of her covers and a lover of the biwa (you love music and you have been studying more of it in this second life, specially the biwa to keep that link with your wife. Still you haven't made your mind to buy one to yourself).

Then she deleites her accounts.

You become worried, was it you? Was it someone else? She had not got that many followers, but Nakime was never the type to abandon everything when becoming frustrated. She is the one to evade people when things become too much to her. There is a lot that could be going on and you are scared that someone might have hurt her. Still, there is nothing you can do.

Thankfully you do find her later on, but not in a situation you expected. Because you were missing her you finally decided to buy a biwa, so you searched on the internet (it's not the type of instrument you can buy on any music store) to find the one of her videos. You lied on the text saying you lived close so you could pick it up yourself (you don't live that far, but it's not a fast nor comfortable travel, you had to take a train there, thank any god above that may exist you didn't get lost). And you did found her, as beautiful as ever, you met in a starbucks, she is being careful as always. "Hey. Nakime, right? You are the one selling the Biwa?" You start at first but she just watches you in silence, already not liking you. This gives you a sense of déjà vu, you are just relieved that this time she can not send you into a 12,000 feet fall, trap you into an endless corridor and smash you against a room.

"You are the woman of the YouTube channel, right? The "Biwa-Onna" one. Isn't this the biwa you used for your covers?" You try to start a conversation, but you don't seat with her. She is still quiet. You don't mind it, she was always quiet unless her music was the one sounding. You are mostly happy to see her again, to see she is doing good. And it seems she still hates men in general and for a few seconds you remember how Kibutsuji-sama had to order her to stand having you around. But... you know her. "Thank you for accepting meeting me here. I'm really thirsty right now, so I'm going to buy some drink first, do you want anything. I invite." You smile and wait for her to answer. She takes her time but you are patient with her. "A shekelato fred would be nice, if you insist."

Once you come back with both drinks you let her over the table on her side and it's not until she takes it that you seat up in front of her. "I really liked your covers. Is there a reason you stopped?" You ask the obvious, but you know that showing interest and pretending to know not understand fully certain topics works the best. Because you know something bad, but very bad, must have happened if Nakime is selling her beloved biwa. She doesn't answer, but you let it sink that you are genuinely interested, so you take a sip of your drink. You are half-way your cup when she speaks to you. "I just can't do it anymore." She doesn't seem to want to explain, but it's not like she needs to.

"Will you buy another biwa after this? You always seemed fond of your music. In your videos..." She again doesn't answer, just looks at the case with the instrument under the table. You let the silence go on a second more "How about I get you one and in one week we meet here again, same hour?" It's something weird to propose, but it's what would make her the most comfortable. Then she realeses the bomb.

"I'm a lesbian." You look at her surprised, maybe you should have expected that. In your last life the concept of heterosexual marriage due obligation was more present, and while she was heppy to be married to you, loved you and saw you as a husband, Nakime always prefered women over men. At the time you were understanding with her preference, same preference that made the courting take a lot of time, because you are a man and you were one back then. "Well, good for you. That doesn't mean we can't go out as friends."

Because you still love her, and she looks like she really needs a friend right now. You don't mind being that friend. It's very different to your marriage, that was a traditional one, but at the same time is very similar. You still help her with everything you can and get her things she will love. She never tells you why she wanted to sell her biwa, but you always bring it with you when you visit her, and after some months she started playing again. It took her longer, but she also started to compose.

You helped with that (cheating because you memorized the hand movements and accords of the songs she made as a demon. Years of work and practice handled back to her in weeks). You still fo most of the talking but also at times just spend time together in silence. "We were husband and wife in our past life." You just told her casually a night you were stargazing, both lying on the floor over your backs in a park. She hummed at it.

"Bruh... I can imagine it." She says simply, half-taking you seriously but also taking it as just a fun random comment. "We were also demons who ate human flesh and burned at the sun." She snorted at that. "Nice." You just laugh at that answer. "You ate all the drunktards and controled an interdimentional fortress with a biwa. You became for a while the fifth more powerful demon." She laughs at that "I manipulated dimesions but I still was the fifth? And what were you, the first?" "Nah, I wasn't even in the top 12." Then she asks you why twelve and you tell her all the story.

You both take it more as something funny, she believes it and at the same time she doesn't. It doesn't affect her, even when you start to live together as friends. She starts playing in YouTube again, now with her own songs besides the covers. She gets a lot more popular this time, now that you help her to make the videos more attractive. (Also the fact that she started to use the demon theme and all the goth fans and the emo-lovers are falling for it. Also the horror fans were building a fandom since the songs everyone liked the most were those she used to control the castle back then.)

It's weird, you both act like a couple and do love each other, you don't feel as if you are husband and wife like back then. It's hard to tell if it's because how different marriages worked back then, but it works. You are fine, even when Nakime starts bringing a girlfriend to the house and explaining your relationship to her. "He was when I was having a hard time. He is my best friend, a brother to me."

.... You don't know how to feel about that, not because you feel hurt or embarrassed, but.... you DID marry her.... and now you are a brother..... damn..... That would be the only bad thing of all this situation.

Still, you and Nakime are good, your relationship works more than Nakime's girlfriend's, and you both seem fine with it. You obviously never date, much less marry, but you stay together for the rest of your lives.

Gyokko:

It should have been way harder to recognize Gyokko, to find him. You just went to an art exposition with that same artistic name, it was too much of a coincidense so you were there just for the nostalgia, but the second you saw the pots and adventured at the less liked pieces, scultures that represented tortured and remade human bodies, you knew it was him. You would recognize Gyokko's art anywhere, you remember him teaching you how to do said art but with real human bodies. You look around and find him complaining about parents bringing their children "So what if part of my exposition it's not for children? Art is not for children, they should be kept our of the museums just like the pets are." You just have to find a way into his life once again, because he is there and you want to be the sharing husband you were before, the one Gyokko actually cared about.

It was way too easy for you to step in, he eats compliments as if they were treats, but you gain interest talking about doing formal descriptions of his pieces. Color, technique, ilumination, style used, meaning behind it, you can tell all of those and more. He is enamored by your interest and your good taste "You are my new favorite person." Says Managi, his real name. The fact that you got it on day one says a lot. He still likes it more when you call him Gyokko, so you can do both.

You start inmdiately taking him out to dates and buying him gifts, same as in your past life. Materials for his art (this time not human material, not living people to have their limbs twisted and bones broken, squeezed together so they still protect the main organs so the victim will only ever die from starvation, bloodlost if you don't cover correctly the fissures or when the artist decides it's time to die... yeah, that is too much on your head. Is that trauma?) and some cheap art. (Why is in this era stealing things so hard? As a demon it was just matter of not letting the demon slayers find you.) "Hey Gyokko, should we eat outside tonight? Maybe some traditional sea food?" Managi was fascinated that you guessed what food he liked, and this time no children must die!

And so, it was easy. Don't misunderstand, Gyokko is as demanding as ever, but you already know him. Managi and Gyokko are basically the same person, literally the only difference you can find besides the appereance (in which he keeps the symetrical and balanced features, long hair and the colors since he uses make up an dies his hair. He is also naturally build, so besides having human limbs it's the same body type) is the fact that Gyokko had a high body count, and not of lovers. Even still, Managi also likes gore a lot.

"My favorite piece of art is L'Estasi di Santa Teresa" That is very Gyokko, to like an sculture about a woman having a face of orgasm while about to being stabbed... you missed him a lot, but now that you are a human you can't help but find some of his tastes questionable. But at the same time... it's normal. It's Gyokko being Gyokko. When you were a demon you saw humans die all the time, working with bodies came as natural as eating them. You grew ot of the craving for pain and death, Managi did not.

But he has not shown interest in hurting you, and gods above you know the weird fetish only he can come up to. Managi is religious, Shinto, but even if he does believe in demons, ghosts, spirits and other beings you don't know if he will believe anything you say. You don't even know if it safe. What if the desire to break bodies comes up again? Now, as someone who was a demon once, your main worry is that Gyokko might do something stupid out of passion. He might get caught, he might hurt himself, he might even traumatize himself if that's possible. "Darling, Y/N. I need help with this part. Will you come or what?"

"Good morning Managi, what would you like to do today?" The funny part is that you both just fell into an easy dynamic to the point Managi just started presenting you to others as his boyfriend a month and a half after you've met, without asking or confirming first. "I want you. And you clearly want me, not that I blame you. Still, Y/N, what is there to ask? We both want to ne together, don't we? Well, you treat me good, so I will let you stand by my side." It's weird, he does realize that you are too good reading him, but doesn't seem to care. He thinks you are, again, observant and have a good taste, so of course you know what he likes and are able to satisfy him!

Yeah.... maybe we should let Managi think whatever he wants for a while, specially since he likes your help in his gire art. "Did you study medicine or something? Because I swear you know a lot about the human body." And you try to look for any answer, honest or a complete lie, you don't care, that avoids telling him that in your past life you both used to rip bodies open... while keeping them alive. It was his art, you loved him for loving his art, and as a result you came to love his art too.

Being boyfriends is easy, this is exactly your relationships as demons, but as humans. It's like you both were just turned back instead of having gone through all the reincarnation process. Managi and you are boyfriends for two years before Gyokko is the one that asks for your hand but tells you to wait for the right moment. "I have the perfect wedding in mind, love. Just wait, I will tell you when it can become a reality." And you accept to wait for him.

He tells you when he thinks you both are ready for marriage, and it's the second you both have for something expensive. Just like in your past life he makes the wedding the way he wants it, a big event with the seats filled (you have not seen even ⅓ of the people in your life, and you already know all of Managi's friend and that he is an orphan, you only invited family and some of your close friends. Gyokko invited admirers even). "To be honest, I don't know why I'm even surprised. Let's just hope your fans don't ruin the event." But you know how to deal with it.

You just started living together after you got married, so by then Managi didn't find it strange the fact that you knew him well. That you knew how he liked to organize his place and things (you visited several times), what he likes to eat (you did have to learn this one, after all), to wear, to do. It's in the fifth year of marriage you decide to tell him. "Gyokko, we were husbands in our past life." He is not surprised, again, he is religious. "Also we were demons who ate and tortured humans as art."

Managi has been urging you to take classes and make scultures of him as he was as a demon, his art, and also draw all of your memories about it. He really likes the concept and fantasizes about it, he obviously believed so fast because he wants to believe it. He is even more passionate with his gore art, but at least he hasn't tried to kill anyone. Not even children (he still hates children, really, he laughs when dead or missing children appear on the news), so you are good.

[2demon2slayer]

Who are the other Hashira in your Demonswap AU?

the hashira!!!!! i've been putting off answering this ask for forever because i was stuck on some stuff, but it's finally time to talk about the hashira!!!!!

so without further ado, here we go!!

Moon Hashira - Kokushibou (Tsugikuni Michikatsu)

there's something a little bit strange about this guy. he's not that old, and yet he's been around the longest out of all of the hashira. there's something a bit unnerving about him. something about the eyes, maybe...

Ice Hashira - Douma

grew up in a cult, nearly got eaten by a demon, got saved by the demon slayers, and decided to join them on a whim. he's pretty damn good at what he does despite his utter lack of care or motivation. recently, he stumbled across a girl whose family had been killed by demons, and so he decided to take her in and train her. and maybe he's kinda feeling feelings about it...

Martial Hashira - Hakuji

for a guy who doesn't use breathing techniques or a sword, this dude's kind of a badass. he just beats the shit out of demons with his bare fucking hands (or, actually with brass knuckles of some kind, but whatever) and he's still the third strongest of the hashira. crazy, yo.

Emotion Hashira - Hantengu

an absolute weirdo. a total coward. how the hell did this guy become a hashira? maybe it has something to do with his weird split-personality thing he's got going on. either way, this guy's kind of freaky

Sound Hashira - Nakime

this lady sure can play the biwa, so i heard. she works very closely with muzan-sama. word is that she's kind of his personal bodyguard of sorts. not to imply that muzan-sama would ever need a bodyguard. nakime's very... reserved, but she seems to be pretty good at what she does. her swords look kind of comical in comparison to her, but i hear she's absolutely terrifying with them in hand

Water Hashira - Managi

if he wasn't such a weirdo obsessed with ugly art pieces and "violence as an artform", maybe he'd be cooler. as is, he's pretty lame for a hashira. i've heard he makes mad bank off of these pots he makes, though. like, we're talking funding a huge part of the demon slayer corps through pots

Insect Hashira - Gyuutarou

once upon a time, this dude got saved from certain death by douma. muzan wasn't super happy when douma brought him and his sister home, but gyuutarou more than made up for it with his talent in the demon slayer corps. he's got an... interesting style of combat, relying kind of heavily on poisons and the like, but he's certainly no slouch. a bit skinny, though, if you ask me

Flower Hashira - Ume

the insect hashira's brother! she's pretty strong herself, but a lot of people think that muzan only gave her the rank of hashira because of her brother. eh, but that's probably just hearsay. she's tough! she's killed a good few demons in her time with the corps! she's a bit rude, sometimes, but she gets along fine with douma and gyuutarou, so maybe she's just... shy?

Thunder Hashira - Kaigaku

hey, look, we've got a newbie over here! this guy's only been with the corps for a very short time, and yet he's already a hashira! some people think he's a little undeserving, but he's kind of scary strong. also... a little unsettling. sort of in the same way kokushibou is. maybe it's the eyes?

[trancylovecraft]

Can I request a yandere Kokushibo piece where his s/o is a Hashira that has somehow mastered Moon breathing. Sorry if it’s too vague but I loved your other Kokushibo pieces. Feel free to ignore this if it doesn’t interest you tho and I love all your work.

(KNY) YANDERE KOKUSHIBO x MOON HASHIRA! READER: Headcannons

• Interesting prompt! I like it. (Tysm too btw :> cant ignore such nice words lol. Sorry it took so long)

• Kokushibo in general I headcannon to be very possessive, Protective and obsessive.

• These traits only skyrocket once he finds you.

• You, The Moon Hashira take a lot of pride of pride in your style, One that you assumed you invented yourself.

• Its only once you come face to face with Kokushibo when hunting for demons is when you realise that’s false.

• Kokushibo on first sight think’s you’re a rather attractive person. He doesn’t say anything but he does gain an interest though it is mostly about your appearance as a good meal to absorb.

• Said interest becomes an obsession however once you finally show off Moon Breathing. He’s stunned, Yet in absolute exhiliration too.

• As a human, Michikatsu wanted a way to preserve his breathing technique, He had no sucessors. Yorichii tried to tell him it didn’t matter but of course Michikatsu didn’t agree much.

• But seeing you here is like seeing his legacy come to fruition. He’s frozen in admiration and joy as you come running at him with one of your attacks ready to behead him.

• You’re strong of mind too, You were able to charge at him instead of freeze in fear at the mere sight of him.

• Suddenly inside his cold dead heart he could feel it grow three times bigger that day. Something about you was just amazing, And he had to have it.

• So as you charge at him, Yelling out your next move you can see him running towards you as well.

• And in a split second everything goes blank, You fall to the ground unconscious and your sword skitters away from your grasp.

• Kokushibo stands over you, All six of his eyes watching your figure with great interest. He can’t kill you yet, You are his legacy and his mark in history. You’ve gained his attention.

• Your kasugai crow, Who was sitting in the tree nearby tried to fly off for help. But was instantly struck down by one of Kokushibo’s swords.

• Can’t let any more pests intervene with with his work

• You wake up in some house deep inside the japanese wilderness. Away from any society or village with your only company being the animals and your new captor

• Your sword is gone. Your legs are chained to your bed and the door in the room is locked.

• Kokushibo is already there to tell you how this is going to go. You are now nothing more than a possession, You cannot leave the house and he says it in such a brash way that it almost makes you cry harder.

• If you try to attack him he will not take it. He will slap you to the side and you’ll be too out of it afterwards to continue.

• You’re usually not let out and your weapon is nowhere in sight, However Kokushibo tends to take you out once a month or so to train with him.

• Of course, You have ankle weights and your sword is made of bamboo so you cant do anything other than bonk him on the head with it. So killing him is off the table.

• You can still use your breathing techniques though, And he wants you to show them off to him.

• He also tries to converse with you about the breathing style, As anti-social as he is he does want someone to talk to about moon breathing since you two are the only ones in history to wield it

• He asks you how you were able to master it. Did you learn it from someone or come up with it on your own? How long have you used it? How many forms have you been able to use?

• He gets really irritated when you just ignore him in favour of spitting insults, He doesn’t tolerate that kind of disrespect and tosses you back into your shared bedroom.

• Oh right, You two also share a bed. You are his wife so it is only right <3

• If this was a platonic scenario then he might’ve considered you his apprentice or his Tsuguko. However since this is romantic he considers you to be his wife and refers to you as such.

• Anyone you might’ve known in your time as a Hashira gets hunted down by him. Any co-workers you mention? Dead in a ditch somewhere. Anyone you’re particularly friendly with? Gone!

• God forbid you have a husband, Kokushibo will not hesitate.

• If you ever have kids, May it be from stockholm syndrome or something much more vile. Kokushibo will be teaching them moon breathing and will expect you to help out.

• If you do fall into stockholm then he will soften up and use moon themed petnames to match your breathing

• Little moon, My crescent.

• Its cheesy.

• Either way this man loves that you know moon breathing, He adores you for it.

• A little too much, But I’m sure its nothing to worry about