Purple Flowers Chapter 5: Discussions and moving forward, a demon slayer: kimetsu no yaiba fanfic

Kie knelt over her Son as he lay in his futon, "how do you feel Tanjiro?" she asked, checking his temperature. Still pretty hot, but not burning up, "you're still too hot dear, you should get some more rest. I have some medicine here for your fever. You should take it now before you go back to sleep" Kie said. The older Kamado sibling nodded and helped her Son sit up. She gave him his medicine and water. The teen took it without complaint, not grimacing at the taste. Tanjiro drunk the water and lay back down, closing his eyes. His Mother frowned, wondering if he would talk to her later about his desire to train with the Flame Hashira. For now, she just needed to care for him. Glancing to her side, she saw her daughter still asleep. "Nezuko. He really needs you right now. We both could. Your brother is so stressed. He's working himself to exhaustion, until he's sick. He wants to become stronger for you. We both do. Nezuko, dear, I know you're trying to recover right now, but he just needs something. Just a sign that you are going to come back to us.

Nezuko said nothing, continuing to sleep. Kie closed her eyes, afraid that she'd lose both of her children. She'd tried so hard to be strong for them, but Tanjiro had been so determined to protect his family himself that he'd put himself in danger. Of course the Mother knew that their wasn't a mean bone in her Son's body, not when it came to family. No, for them, he would do anything, and that was what worried her. Before all that meant was taking on the responsibility of selling charcoal at the Village every day and going up and down a mountain. But now that only the two of them were left, Tanjiro's desire to help them had crossed into dangerous territory. Becoming a Demon Slayer was not what she wanted for her Son. If Kie had it her way, both of her children would live safe, comfortable lives and let her protect them. But she knew her oldest too well to think that he would ever do that. Not while his sister was a Demon and the killer of their family was still on the loose. He was too hard-headed, literally. Kie sighed, it seemed that there was only one thing that she could do at this point.

After a couple of days Tanjiro's fever had fully broken, and he was able to eat by himself. Kie gave him the food she had made for them and the two sat eating quietly. Soon the teen finished his meal, "thank you for the food Mom, it was delicious as always" Tanjiro said with a smile. His Mother smiled gently at her Son, "I'm glad that you liked it Son," she began, before sitting back and gaining a serious look on her face, "now that you've recovered, I think we need to have a serious and truthful discussion about this Tanjiro" Kie began, and Tanjiro frowned and looked down. "I understand Mom. Alright" he agreed. Kie nodded, "how long have you been training behind my back?" she asked seriously. Tanjiro winced at the wording, but knew that was exactly what he had done- he'd disobeyed his Mother, and done the exact opposite of what she had asked of him. Tanjiro had always been a respectful, obedient child, always doing his best to help his family.

So the fact that he had gone against what she told him to do, weighed on his heart like a stone. He looked down, "I only just started my training with Rengoku the other day. But I asked him to train me that day I went for a walk" he replied guiltily. Kie frowned in worry, "why did you do that even when you know I didn't want you to train?" she asked in concern. Her Son bit his lip and looked away. His Mother gently cupped his face and turned him to look back at her, "it's okay. I promise that I won't be angry with you dear. I just want to know why you would do this?" she asked. Tanjiro felt tears well up in his eyes, "because I was afraid of my own helplessness! That day, I hadn't been able to do anything for our family, despite being the eldest, and despite promising Father that I would take care of everyone! *sniff* I was terrified of that happening again, this time to you and Nezuko. And that if I did listen to you, I'd be powerless to do anything but watch you both die! *sob* and I- I never want to go through that again!" he cried through his tears, too ashamed to look at his Mother, "I know you said that it's your job as our Mother to protect us *sob* but I couldn't *sniff* stand being so useless. I wanted to be able to protect you and Nezuko just as much as you wanted to protect us! I have to! I have to do something, or I feel like I'll explode!" Tanjiro then burst into fresh tears all over again.

Normally, as the eldest Son, he wouldn't break down so easily. He would do everything he could to stay strong for his family. But with his Mother here, and after everything that had happened, he couldn't help but be honest with her about his true feelings. He couldn't just sit here quietly while his Mother risked her life for him and his sister. He was the oldest, so he had to make up for his failing the rest of their family. He had to do everything he could to protect his Mom and make Nezuko human again. He could not fail to be their again. Kie stared at her Son with a solemn gaze, thinking over everything that Tanjiro had said to her. She could understand how this all must have been driving him crazy. She was denying him the chance to protect his family, as her husband had entrusted him to do. Kie reached out and cupped Tanjiro's face, wiping his tears and running her hands through his hair. The 13-year-old sighed at the comforting feeling, wrapping his arms around the woman, feeling safe and warm, "I'm sorry Mom. Really" he muttered softly into her sleeping Yukata. "I know. I suppose this was inevitable.

With everything that happened, how could I expect you not to want to become stronger." She sighed, "alright. I'll let you continue to train with Rengoku, on the condition that if you are unwell again, you will take the day off and take care of yourself or let me care for you until you are fully recovered. If you can do that, you may continue. But please don't push yourself too hard Tanjiro, okay? I don't want to see you as sick as you were a few days ago again" his Mother asked in concern. The teen smiled sadly and nodded, "I won't. I promise you Mom" he swore. "Okay," she replied softly, giving her Son a kiss on the cheek. She wanted to protect her Son, but he wasn't a child anymore. Not completely. The part of him that was truly a child died on the same day they had found their family dead. Tanjiro had discarded it in order to protect his family. He would not have a chance to be a child until Muzan Kibutsuji was dead. And neither would Nezuko. She had to trust her children to be able to look after themselves. She had to give Tanjiro the chance to avenge their family as well. Otherwise he would never be able to let this go.

The next day the Kamados received a visitor. Kyojuro Rengoku. "Oh. It's you Mr Rengoku. Are you here to see Tanjiro?" Kie asked politely. "Yes Ma'am! I wanted to see how he was doing!" the fiery-haired young man replied energetically. Kie remembered that this man hadn't harmed her daughter, so it should be alright to let him inside. "You can come inside, but please try to keep your voice down, Tanjiro is still recovering" the woman explained, sending the Flame Hashira a stern look. "yes Ma'am! I will do my utmost to be quiet!" Rengoku exclaimed. The Mother twitched in slight annoyance, but was assured of her Son's judgment. She was sure that Tanjiro thought that Rengoku was a good man. With his sense of smell, she knew he could read a person's character. So she would trust the man with her Son. "Mr Rengoku, I am willing to allow you to continue training Tanjiro. IF and only if, you can keep his health and safety in mind. I understand that being a Demon Slayer is dangerous work, but Tanjiro has always pushed himself too far when it comes to family. Training extensively when he is sick is only one of those things. I don't ever want him training that much when he has any kind of fever again. If you notice any signs of illness, you send Tanjiro straight home, understand?" Kie asked.

"Yes Ma'am! I do understand. I will ensure to keep an eye on young Kamado's health!" Rengoku exclaimed with a smile. The Mother smiled, "good. I hope that everything goes well from now on" she replied.

After 2 days, Tanjiro was well enough to start training again. However, Kie was going to take him to the Rengoku Estate today before going to her own training. As they travelled, Tanjiro noticed the dark clouds gathering in the sky. 'their might be a storm coming' he thought. Then he turned his attention back to his Mother, who'd started speaking. "So, as long as you keep your promise to not push yourself too far Tanjiro. Come home safe, okay? I will as well" she said. Tanjiro nodded with a smile, "you too Mom. Take care of yourself" he replied. They met up with Kyojuro outside the mannor, "Ah! Kamado-San, young Kamado! Welcome! Are you feeling any better?" he asked, looking at Tanjiro. The 13-year-old nodded, "yes Sir, I'm fine. I apologise for worrying you before and would like to continue training under you if you would allow me to" Tanjiro apologised with a bow. "No! It is fine, everyone get's sick at times, and it is best not to overdo things if you want to be successful in a battle, especially in a fight against Demons. They will take any advantage they can get in order to kill you, understand young Kamado?" Kyojuro asked.

Tanjiro nodded, from now he would step back if he was sick, so as not to overwork himself. Kie smiled, glad that the Hashira could help her Son understand that. "Well Tanjiro, I'm going to go now. I have training with Kanae-Sensei" Kie said with a bow, "please take care of my Son". "Right! Have no fear, I will train and look after him well!" the Flame Hashira replied confidently. "You take care too Mom. Of yourself and Nezuko!" Tanjiro called. The Kamado Matriarch smiled, "of course". Then she turned around and left to head back to the Butterfly Mansion for her own training. She also wanted to check up on Nezuko. She was sure her daughter was alright, but she wanted to check for any changes in her condition. Once she returned to the Butterfly Mansion, Kie headed to their room. "Oh, Kie, you're back" Kanae called when she saw the woman. Kie turned to look at the Hashira, "Master, I apologise, but I haven't started my training yet. I just took Tanjiro to the Flame Hashira's Estate. I wanted to check on Nezuko before beginning my own training" she replied.

The Flower Hashira smiled and nodded, "alright. Be out in the Training Ground in a few minutes" she said, before turning and leaving. The Mother went to her family's room, opening the door to find Nezuko asleep, just like every time recently. She tried to keep in mind that the young Demon may be using this as a method to recover instead of eating human flesh, but it was hard seeing her little girl so still. Even her breathing was quiet and unnoticeable, giving the impression that Nezuko was- "no! don't think about that. Nezuko is fine. She just needs to heal." Kei stroked her daughter's hair tenderly, "this is much harder than I thought Nezuko. But I won't ever give up. And neither will your brother. We are going to make you human again. Then we'll find a new house and live their together. And once you're human again, I'll make as much of your favourite food as possible. I'm sure you'll be hungry after all that time. And I'll even get you a new kimono, since we'll be starting over. And Tanjiro will be able to be as much of a child as possible. We'll all be happy again Nezuko. So, until that happens, we won't ever give up," her Mother smiled sadly, "I promise, your brother and I will both be here for you when you wake up" Kie said.

Then she stood up and moved to the door, "sweet dreams dear" she added as she left.

Kei swung a wooden Katana as many times as she could, panting and with sweat dripping down the sides of her face from the muggy air, "201! 202! 203! *pant pant* 204! 205! *gasp* 206! 207! 208!" she counted as she swung, continuing to practice. She had just finished her previous lot of exercises a little while ago. Then Kanae handed her a wooden sword and told her to swing the sword 100 times. She did and then her arms felt like they were going to fall off. The woman was then allowed a break of 30 minutes, before having to continue, "228! Ah!" she gasped, arms aching and trembling with fatigue. She longed to drop the sword and rest her arms, but refused. She was doing this for her children! She couldn't afford to slack off! "250! *pant, pant* 251! 252! 253! 254! *grunt* 2-5-5- urgh!" Kei yelped and dropped the bokken, her hands and arms feeling too numb and weak to even hold the wooden sword anymore. She collapsed to her hands and knees, gasping for air.

Her arms trembled as she struggled to stay upright. "Kie, I thought I told you to do your next hundred sword swings" Kanae said as she walked up behind her. "I-I know Sensei. I'm t-trying, but my arms *pant* and legs have l-lost practically *pant, pant* all feeling in them, I couldn't keep going! *pant*" she gasped out. Kanae looked over her student. Kie was trembling, her arms seeming hardly able to support her weight. Her breathing was uneven and she was highly dehydrated from sweating so much. "hm. Part of the reason might be dehydration. Here, have some water" the Flower Hashira offered, holding out a bamboo water canaster. Kie took it and drank greedily, gasping for breath afterwards, but at least not feeling so shaky. "You know, the Demons won't let you rest. You have to improve your stamina Kie" Kanae ordered, but not un-kindly. "Ah! Yes Ma'am!" the Kamado woman replied, getting back into position.

After completing her swings, the woman worked on the Flower breathing forms. Since she already had pretty good control of her breathing, she did that last. Kie wanted to stop, but she refused, 'I need to do this for my children. I have to, I will not allow anything to happen to Tanjiro or Nezuko. Even if Tanjiro also becomes a Demon Slayer, I will still protect them! It's my job as their Mother' she thought. She refused to allow any failure this time. Next, Kie did her exercises, push-ups, sit-ups, exercises to increase flexibility and agility. The Kamado eventually collapsed to the ground again, gasping for breath. She wiped her forehead before practicing her Flower-Breathing Forms. Kie tried to focus on her training, but her mind kept drifting back to Nezuko. 'She will wake up when she is ready. She needs to rest, and I need to train' she thought to herself as she trained.

The Kamado Matriarch continued to train herself until it started getting dark from the growing rain clouds showed that the earlier mugginess was a prelude to a storm. Kie frowned. She wondered if she should continue even with the rain. After all, she knew that Demon Slayers fought Demons in all kinds of weather, from snow, to storms, or hail. She would have to fight through it. In her determination, Kie completely forgot what she had made Tanjiro promise. By the time she went to pick up Tanjiro, it had been raining hard for 2 hours. The woman stumbled back to the Flame Estate, shivering in the rain. She reached her destination and almost collapsed. She was so hot and her head was spinning, but she managed to knock on the door. Exhaustedly, multiple times. When the gate doors opened Senjuro was there holing an umbrella. He took a glance out to see the woman standing there. "Oh! Kamado-San. Are you alright? Please come in!" the youngest Rengoku cried worriedly.

He brought the soaking woman inside the house, down hallways, around corners. Kei couldn't remember which ways they went though. Eventually they got to a room that had both Tanjiro and Rengoku in it, sitting and drinking tea. "Tanjiro" Kie called, making her Son look up at her. He gasped, "Mom! Are you alright?! You're soaked!" Tanjiro cried, moving over to her. Kie smiled, "I'm fine, just a bit cold, wet and tired. It's time to go home now Son" she replied. "But it's storming outside. Please, you and Tanjiro should stay here for the night, otherwise you'll be the one who gets sick next" Senjuro insisted. "Oh no, we couldn't. Sensei is expecting us, and I couldn't leave Nezuko all alone at home" the Kamado woman replied, shaking her head. Then she sneezed. "Mom, please, after what happened last time with me, do you really want to risk getting seriously ill yourself? You need to warm up and get some rest. Everyone at the Butterfly Estate knew that you were coming to get me. With the weather, and us not coming back, they'll all correctly assume that we're staying here for the night because of the storm. I trust them all to take care of Nezuko, none of the scents I picked up from any of the girl there made me think that they would hurt her.

So please. Let's stay here for the night. We can go back in the morning, okay Mom?" Tanjiro asked worriedly. The woman began to speak, but fell into a coughing fit. Senjuro poured some of the tea that the other two had been drinking and handed it to the woman. Tanjiro rubbed his Mother's back while she sipped the drink. "I'm sorry that you had to come get me when you were sick Mom. We seem to be getting sick a lot lately" Tanjiro said. "I'm fine dear, just a little Head-Cold. And maybe we're getting sick so often because we're getting used to the weather and temperature changes." Kie replied, closing her eyes and feeling dizzy. "Mom, get some sleep before you get sicker. Please?" His Mother sighed and settled down in the futon, "at this rate, we- won't become Demon Slayers for- years" she muttered forlornly. Tanjiro grimaced. That was right. The longer their training took, the longer before they could even begin to look for a cure for Nezuko. They had to become Demon Slayers as soon as possible so they could begin searching for a way to make her human again. He clenched his fists. 'Nezuko, we will make you human again. Please just hold on, Mom and I will do it! No matter what' Tanjiro promised.

A few months later, after Kie had recovered and it was a perfect day, not too cold or hot. Both Kamado's went to their separate training. After a few hours, they returned to Kanae's house, both tired and sweaty, but not sick this time. "How was your day dear?" Kie asked her Son, as they walked to the Bathroom so that she could run a bath for him. "It was good. I feel like I'm finally getting used to the training!" Tanjiro said cheerfully. His Mother nodded, "I'm still having a little bit of trouble, but Kanae-Sensai says that I'm catching up well enough. Hopefully we won't get sick anymore for a while and miss more training days" she replied. Tanjiro nodded, "I'm sure we can both make it Mom! Something Rengoku-San told me in order to help me push past my limits is to: "set my heart ablaze!" I'm trying to do that. For you and my sister. I have to do everything I can." He agreed with a smile.

Tanjiro then got into the hot bath, "aaahhhh! Thank you Mom. I'll let you know when I'm done so you can go in too" his Mother nodded, before leaving the bathroom.

Kie stared down at her daughter. She stroked her hair and took her hand, 'I hadn't even noticed how much time has passed, but it's nearly been three months since Nezuko went to sleep, and about three all up since that day. I can't help but be worried but she doesn't seem to be in any distress. She's still breathing, and is sleeping peacefully. I'm sure she'll be fine' she thought. "Okay I'm done" Tanjiro said as he walked into the room. His Mother turned to look as he entered the room, dressed but hair still dripping wet, with a towel around his neck, "Tanjiro, your hair is still dripping with water. You're going to get sick again!" Kie sighed and smiled, "come over here Dear" she said. Her Son smiled gratefully and sat down in front of her. She began rubbing Tanjiro's hair with the towel, the teen smiling at the gentle sensations. "I've heard that you're doing very well in training. Rengoku seems to believe that you're a natural in Flame-Breathing" his Mother added cheerfully.

"Thanks Mom. But I still want to learn the Hinokami Kagura too. It's something Father wanted me to learn" Tanjiro replied. He then paused for a moment, sniffing the air. "What is it Son?" his Mother asked curiously. "I smell Kanae, Tomioka and a third scent, a new one," he explained, "they're coming this way" Tanjiro said. Kie stood up and went over to the door. Kanae was indeed walking down the hall, having just turned the corner, along with, who she had explained was the Water Hashira, and a man wearing a blue, cloud-patterned Haori with a red Tengu mask hiding his face. When the woman noticed her watching them, she waved, "Kie, he's here! Tomioka's Master is here!" she said cheerfully. Both Kamado's looked at the masked man. "So, you're the ones Giyu told me about? The one whose daughter and younger sister got turned?" he asked gruffly. "Ah! Yes! My daughter, Nezuko is the one," Kie bowed with a smile, "thank you for agreeing to help her Sir" she said gratefully. They entered Nezuko's room, finding the young Demon sleeping in her futon. Kie watched nervously as the older man knelt down in front of her daughter.

"I need complete silence to do this, so if you want to stay please keep quiet" the man said. No one spoke as the masked man knelt down in front of the girl. He began murmuring so quietly he couldn't be heard. This went on for who knows how long. Kie had lost track of time, but it had to be at least an hour. Finally, the masked-man leant back, "it is done. The hypnotic spell I used was: "all humans are your family, protect them. If a Demon ever tries to harm a human in front of you, show no mercy". This will cause her to see other humans as her family members, other than you two. So she will want to protect them" the man explained. Kie frowned, "I'm not sure about this. That's pretty insulting to our family Sir" she replied. The man bowed his head, "well, she still protects you two because you are her family. So this spell isn't that bad. At least I wouldn't describe it as such. And she will have her own free will as well. it will just make her want to protect humans more" the man said. "Oh! I just realised that we don't know your name Sir?" Tanjiro said, wanting to keep his Mother from blowing up at the man that was helping his sister. "My name is Sakonji Urokodaki. I am the former Water Hashira, and now I am a Trainer of young Swordsman" the now known Urokodaki replied. "Thank you very much Mr Urokodaki" Tanjiro said gratefully.

After he was finished, Kanae and Giyu saw Urokodaki out. "Thank you again Sir. I hope you are well Master" the current Water Hashira asked. Urokodaki nodded, "I am currently training a new Student. Hopefully, she'll do well, and come home" he replied. Giyu looked down. He knew all too well what his former Master was talking about. "We'll just have to hope Sir" he said softly. Then the two went their separate ways, Giyu to the Water Estate that he owned, and Urokodaki back to Mount Sagiri.

To Be Continued