Author's Note: I do not own Kimetsu no Yaiba nor the characters. I do own the OCs here.

Bluebells represent gratitude.

This is where she was going to die. Alone. In the dead of night. Never thanking her uncle. Or that old man with the red tengu mask who helped her carry her things back home earlier that morning.

Her trembling knees threatened to buckle underneath her. Her entire body shook as she was gripped with fear. Bile raised to her throat. The stench of blood made her stomach churn. Her eyes drawn to red.

Red eyes, red blood spilling from its hands and mouth. A bloodied mouth stretched into a grin. She pressed herself further into the trunk of the tree. Tears welled up her eyes. Fear gripped her from running but it made her shake.

"A little girl," it drawled. Its scratchy voice made her hairs stand pin-straight. He took a deep inhale. "Your scent is rather distracting. But, so young… the freshness of youth must be delicious." The creature licked its lips. The unnaturally long tongue smeared blood around its lips. It flashed her sharp teeth as his face twisted into a sinister grin.

Her legs gave way. She dropped to the ground. Her breaths became quicker and shorter. The monster cackled.

Please, please God, she begged as the monster stepped toward her. Please, I will no longer be a burden. I will help others… I will help the burdened to the best of my abilities if you let me live-

The monster's howl pierced through the air. The hungry gaze locked on to her as he rushed to her with an impossible speed. His arms outstretched to grasp her in his clutches. She curled herself into a ball, shutting her eyes. Waiting for the pain of sharp nails and teeth ripping through her and for the sound of her own flesh ripping but there was a whoosh through the air.

The monster howled. She flinched, muscle tensing but she didn't feel any pain or death. She was still alive! Her trembling hands gripped her still intact body. The monster wailed. In pain, She threw her eyes open.

White was the first thing she saw. A white haori swayed in front of her. A katana blade shone in the moonlight. A pale hand gripped its hilt tightly. Shakily, she sat up to study the figure in front of her better.

Peach coloured hair covered the tops of the shoulders of the white haori. They rose and fell steadily, unafraid of the monster that was going to eat devour her to an unrecognisable lump of flesh like it was chewing up minutes ago. Her saviour was standing bravely between her and this monster.

The monster hunched over. His arms cut off above the elbow swung in front of him. Blood gushing down, painting the ground bright crimson. The red eyes narrowed menacingly at the figure in front of her. Her breath hitched when smoke erupted from the monster's freshly cut arms. It smelled of burning flesh. Her stomach churned. Its arms were growing back, she concluded. Bile rose to her throat again. This wasn't a monster… it was a demon from hell.

"Run," her saviour said. She blinked in surprise.

"W-What?" She stuttered. Her fear even made her teeth chatter.

"Run," he said again. His gaze never straying from the demon. The bloodthirsty gaze of the monster intensified causing her to flinch. Her saviour remained in front of her unwavering. "Run while I'm distracting him."

"B-But, I can't just leave yo-" She stumbled again. The demon cursed her saviour, who remained unflinching.

The monster launched itself to their direction. Suddenly, the figure in front of her vanished. He appeared in her vision again, right in front of the demon. He swung his katana and leapt into the air. The demon wailed in pain from his arms being severed off again but this time a slash cut through one shoulder to its hip.

Her saviour skidded to a halt for a second before vanishing again. He reappeared behind the demon, sword held high to deliver strike to the neck, but the demon launched himself to the air. The sword cut the demon's leg deeply but with a spin, the demon's other leg slammed into her saviour, flinging him to her right. He crashed to the ground. She gasped from the loud thud.

She watched as he bowed over the ground heaving. His shoulders wracked, trying to gather the wind that was knocked out of him. The attack was bound to have broken ribs. Maybe even give him a concussion. He struggled to get up. Bloodshot eyes preyed at the recovering boy. The demon was going to attack her weakened hero. Time slowed as her vision narrowed on the boy.

Help, help, a small voice echoed into her mind. Help, help, help him! It crescendoed, getting louder by the second. She willed her body to move but it remained still.

Help him! You placed him in this situation to begin with. You were supposed to stay out of trouble! Her subconscious screamed at her. That's why uncle left- An idea flashed in her mind. Her hand twitched when she saw the demon stagger to the boy, who was still trying to get up.

"Run!" Her saviour's strangled voice reached her ears.

Move, move, she willed herself again. Plan in mind, her body moved to action. A twitch in her foot, then a step. After a second which felt like an eternity, she was running to the boy. She fumbled with her pouch. She unlatched the bag slung across her body. She fished out a small clay pot. She skidded into a halt in front of the boy. The boy's shout for her to run drowning out from the rush of blood in her ears.

The bloodshot eyes struck her very core. The demon inched closer and closer. She opened the pot and took its contents into her palm. She tightened her fist filled with powder and scrambled to place back her pot into her bag, contents spilling inside it. She paid it no heed since the demon was a foot before her. The wounds slowly stopping its bleeding. The demon walked faster to them. With a shuddering breath, she took a deep inhale. The demon quickly moves into her range. She moved her hand to her mouth. The grey-black powder in the palm of her hand. She blew with all her might, expelling the powder everywhere.

The demon sputtered inside the powder cloud. Coughing and wheezing, it halted, curling its shoulder forward. Immediately, she stooped over her hero and raised him up. She slung his arm over her shoulder. Bearing weight to her side, she quickly walked them away from the demon.

"I told you to run," he said to her as she quickened their pace down the dirt road. "I would've been fine-"

"I can't just leave you," she said through her gritted teeth. She tried to hold back all her trembles, focusing on helping him down the road.

"You damn brats, I'll kill you both," the demon shrieked from behind them. It coughed and wheezed but slowly gained pace behind them. She felt her hairs raise again. The bloodlust was creeping up on them. Darkness was starting to cloud her vision yet again.

She felt the front of her shoe hit a rock then she met the ground with a thud, bringing down the boy with her. She groaned quietly at the stinging pain coming from her scraped knees. The boy beside her got up quickly but staggered a bit.

He stood tall, raising his katana with both hands. The demon grew closer. Wounds closing up completely. The boy took a deep breath, in and out. Breathing deeply, he kept his sword steady as the demon launched forward to them. She recoiled back again. She closed her eyes. She was all out of ideas.

Thud.

She opened her eyes just as the head of the demon rolled to the side, slowly deteriorating. The boy. Did he save her again? Her eyes shifted to her saviour. He remained in the same spot. The body of the demon crumpled to the ground, disintegrating to black flecks then nothing. A figure stood tall behind it. Katana dripping with blood.

It was over. She slumped over the ground. Her hands dug into the dirt. She was made it miraculously. To live another day. Her bones grew heavier. The black spots in her vision darkened.

"Hey, are you okay?" The boy with the white haori appeared beside her.

"Y-Yeah…" slipped from her lips. She glanced up at him. Grey piercing eyes met her own. The firm, unwavering gaze made the knot in her chest loosen. She took in his face for a brief moment. Strong features, cool eyes, and… a scar stretched across his right cheek. The dirtied white haori hung over yellow and green geometrical patterned rising sun behind him made his unusual coloured-and-cut hair glisten.

So this was her saviour… "Peach H—," she whisperedbefore she felt herself tilt to the side. Gravity pulled at her heavy bones. Blackness consumed her.

—

Vibrations from mumbled words met her ears. Light streamed over her closed eyes. She turned her head away from the light, pressing the side of face against the soft futon below her. She sighed at the softness, nuzzling deeper into the bed. The murmurs quieted for a moment then started all over again. Disturbing her sleep, she furrowed her brows.

Daisuke oji-san must have come back early from his two month assignment… which he left for four days ago. Her breath hitched. Eyes snapping open, her heart almost stopped beating in her chest. She wasn't in her house. She was in an unknown place and the muffled voices suggested that she was with people, unknown people.

Never NEVER go with strangers to a secondary location, her uncle's voice stressed in her sub-conscience. She groaned lightly. This was the situation she was in.

The muffled voices silenced once more. Panicked, she remained perfectly still. If she was going to get out of here, she had to not draw attention to herself. At the time when they left, she was going to bolt up and out of the door.

The floorboards creaked under weight from the other side of the house. She screwed her eyes shut, pretending to sleep. Seconds went by but to her it felt like hours. The voices came back, whispering to each other before the door was slid open. The sound of the door closing made her flinch. Her heart rate went up, pumping adrenaline through her sleepy body. She tightened the hands beside her pillow.

The few minutes passed by again. The air stood still. The other inhabitants in the house seemed to have really left. Her tense shoulders loosened. This might be the perfect time to escape. Feeling that she was safe, she opened her eyes.

A red face creature stared down at her with black pupils with white surrounding it. "You're awake," a deep voice said. The mouth of the red face didn't move. It took her a split second to process whatever was in front of her. A tingle of fear ran down her spine before a shriek erupted from her throat.

"Aaahh!" She shouted, terrified. She sprung back, blankets tangled around her. She held her hands up, readying to defend herself. Her hands shook in the air. She fisted them to hide the trembling.

"Normally, people get frightened when they first met me. Not the second time," a deep voice said again. The red face's mouth didn't move. It was like the voice was coming from… underneath. A mask. She studied the figure again.

A tengu mask was tied to his face, covering any form of human features. Silvery white hair stood at the top of his head. A sliver of forehead peeked above the mask reaching the beginnings of a receding hairline. Underneath, lightly tanned flesh of the sides of his jaw and neck showed through. He donned a blue and white jinbei styled kimono. The blue sleeves pressed into his black pants as he rested his elbows on his thighs. Crouched down, he gazed at her at the same level. The red tengu mask is unmistakable.

"You're…" She trailed off. It was the old man who helped her carry sacks of rice to the front of her house. A loud bang made her jump out of her skin.

"Urokodaki-san, is everything alright?" A voice asked urgently at the other end of the small house. She shifted her gaze to the now opened door. The white haori fluttered behind him. Peach coloured hair laid on the white clad shoulders.

The memories of the night came flooding back. A demon that was eating a mangled person on the road. Red eyes and lips. A hungry grin as bloodied hands about to seize her, kill her. A peach haired boy between her and the demon. He fought the demon before being tossed to the ground. Standing in between him and the bloodthirsty demon. Blowing the concoction of powders given to her by her uncle in case of emergencies. Helping the peached hair boy down the road. Tripping over a rock. When looking back at the demon, its head was cut clean off. The peach coloured boy caught her attention again before black.

She was unable to hold herself back before blurting out, "You're…. The Momo Head."

—

"I'm Sasaki Hana," she introduced herself, bowing her head to those who housed her for the night. After the awkward event of her getting scared by Urokodaki-san then calling her other saviour "Momo Head," they sat around the boiling miso broth.

She received the bowl of broth Urokodaki-san handed her with a small thank you. With a collective "Itadakimasu," his apprentices, Sabito— "Momo Head" and Giyu— another boy her age with black hair and dark blue eyes, dug into their breakfast. They downed the broth with such vigour it made Hana's mouth water.

Silence hung over the four as they ate but Urokodaki-san made no move to eat himself. He folded his hands over his lap. Even if she couldn't see his actual eyes, Hana was sure that he was watching his two apprentices eat. After everyone began eating, Hana raised the wooden bowl to her lips. The broth was bland but the warmth of the soup satisfied her enough. In a matter of seconds, Hana finished her miso soup, full. She gave a light content sigh.

"What were you doing out there in the middle of the night?" Urokodaki said, bluntly. Hana shied her gaze to the floor. She placed the empty wooden bowl to her side.

"I… I went out looking for this herb at the foot of this mountain. I got carried away and finished when the sun was setting. When I was walking on the main road going back into town, I noticed blood. I followed it thinking that someone might have had a cut or something and needed help. Then, I found…" she trailed off. They knew that she found. A hungry demon and a mutilated, half eaten body, which they buried at the side of the road.

"It was a good thing Sabito found you," Urokodaki declared. Gripping the pale purple fabric of her kimono skirt, she shivered. A chill radiated through her body. If he had found her moments after, she would've ended up like the unfortunate soul the demon was devouring. With a mangled face like that, it would be a miracle for someone to confirm her identity and tell her uncle. Hana shook her head to disperse the depressing thoughts.

"I always heard stories of demons that prey on people when night fell. But I didn't think they would be true," Hana said, quietly. But here she was now, alive. Will be able to greet her uncle once he gets back. She lifted her gaze to Sabito sitting across from her.

"Thank you so much, Sabito-san." She scooted back, getting enough space away from the fire place. She pressed her hands, palms down to the wooden floor. She bowed her upper body. Her forehead was inches away from the floor.

"And thank you, Urokodaki-san. Thank you both so much," she said. Tears of gratitude welled in her eyes. She kept them from rolling down her face.

"That's not necessary," Sabito stated, surprising Hana. She peeked up to Sabito, startled.

"B-But you saved-" Hana stammered at the peach haired boy. He sighed.

"You don't have to thank me. Urokodaki-san killed the demon," Sabito rubbed the back of his head. He didn't met her eyes. Hana gaped at him. She shifted her gaze to Urokodaki and Giyuu-san who remained impassive. She bowed her head again. Awkward seconds went by again. She fidgeted with her fingers before tucking them away from view.

"Come, I'll bring you back to town," Urokodaki announced to her. He stood quickly. She scrambled to follow. She moved to grab her bowl. "Leave it. Come." She hesitated but did was as instructed. Sabito and Giyu wordlessly followed Urokodaki-san out of the house. Hana trailed behind them. Sabito pressed a hand to his side gently. Giyu shot him a worried look from the corner of his eye. After being flung to the ground last night, he must have had some injuries. Sabito continued out the door, ignoring his friend's concern. They departed to the woods. Hana's eyes lingered at their backs for a moment before walking to Urokodaki.

—-

The journey going into town was quiet. Urokodaki-san was always ahead of Hana by a number of steps. She strolled behind him. It was only four days since her uncle left and she already got herself into a near-death experience. She spent hours in Urokodaki-san's house who even treated her to breakfast and was escorting her home. Obaa-san undoubtedly was worried. Hana imagined the old lady pacing the store at the late hours after feigning that she was labelling the jars of powders and plants while waiting for her to go home. Almost complete white hair messy from worried fingers. Fingers tapping on her cane as she watched the front of the store.

Hana winced. She worried one person… and managed to have another injured. The image of Sabito pressing a hand to his side flashed in her mind. Since he was able to walk, it wasn't broken ribs. Thank God, Hana sighed. They were most probably bruised but she wasn't certain. She quickened her pace to walk beside Urokodaki-san.

"Urokodaki-san, is Sabito-san alright? He seemed to have been in pain a while ago." Hana kept her pace in time with the older man's. She huffed an exhale. Keeping her pace with Urokodaki-san was rather difficult than she thought. She felt heat slowly make its way up her body from the exertion. The days she spent inside the store filing, reading, and measuring the herbs definitely didn't do her any favours for any normal physical activities.

Urokodaki focused ahead, not once turning it to her. If he actually heard her, Hana didn't know. She struggled to breath, catching her breath to ask was impossible for her in the moment. The silence enveloped over them again. Once they made it to the main road, Urokodaki slowed.

Hana gasped for air beside him.

"I was just hoping if I can do anything for him… Since he saved me after all. I want to help him," Hana said, trying to regulate her heavy breathing. Urokodaki displayed no emotion at all.

"Bruised ribs." Hana straightened from his blunt words. She was right. Bruised ribs required no complicated cures. They heal by themselves but strong pain would be radiating through his chest whenever he would inhale. She gritted her teeth, thinking of the discomfort he must be feeling. She can't do anything to heal his bruised ribs but she can do something for the pain.

"Urokodaki-san, may I visit again tomorrow? I think I can help with that." Hana flashed him a grin.

"Hana-chan! Where were you?" Obaa-san shouted from behind the girl, who flinched. Looking over her shoulder, Hana tried to plaster a nonchalant smile but nervously sweats bullets when obaa-san gave her a glare. Hana turned to face Urokodaki-san again. She sighed when she saw no one there.

"Hana!" She slumped her shoulders. She was alone for this lecture.

—

"What is she doing here?" Sabito halted in his tracks to stare.

Sabito and Giyu returned to Urokodaki's house from their morning exercises to find Sasaki Hana by the front door, talking animatedly with Urokodaki-san. Strapped to her back was a basket. More like to Urokodaki-san. The old man just nodded to the things she said. Giyu shrugged. Normally no one hangs around the mountain since the air grow uncomfortably thin but here she was. Returned from yesterday. Hana noticed the two behind Urokodaki.

"Ohayo!" She beamed at the two. "I hope you're hungry!" They remained frozen as they watched Urokodaki step into the house with the girl following behind him.

"Hungry?" Sabito reiterated, questioningly. Stomach grumbling, Giyu walked toward the house. Sabito snapped out of his confusion to follow the black haired boy to the house.

"Thank you for the other day," Hana said, shyly. Sabito stared at the plates of onigiri splayed out in front of them. She unraveled five long leaves with four rice-balls in each. Sabito studied the girl at the corner of his eye. She had her gaze on the wooden floor. Her fingers twisting over each other as she waited for someone to eat one of the onigiri. Giyu reached out to grab one. Her eyes darted to Giyu expectantly.

"Itadakimasu," Giyu took a bite. His eyes widened slightly. Sabito watched his friend. Giyu bobbed his head slightly, chewing. A corner of Sabito's lips tugged upward. His friend was not one for words. Hana beamed at him then shifted her gaze to Sabito, who's smirk dropped. Sabito reached his hand to the onigiri closest to him. After taking a bite, the taste of umeboshi danced lightly on his tongue. From the corner of his eye, Hana stared at him, waiting for his reaction. Like a puppy wanting for a treat.

"Is it good?" Hana quietly asked. The wordless question plain on her face. Sabito gulped, not knowing what to do. He settled with a nod before taking another big bite. Hana smiled from across him.

"Thank goodness," Hana sighed. Giyu finished his last bite and took another from a new onigiri. His eyes shone as he chewed excitedly.

"Giyu-san, do you like sha-ke?" Hana giggled.

Giyu continued his chewing. With half-lidded eyes, he nodded his reply. Her grin stretched wider.

"Why don't you eat as well, Hana?" Urokodaki's deep voice hummed. The two boys' eyes shot to her. Hana shook her head.

"This is for you. Not m—" Hana's voice died down when the stares continued. She took a rice-ball from the leaf plate.

"Itadakimasu," Hana said softly before taking a bite. It was good, thought relieved. Sabito discreetly watched the girl eat. She chewed quietly. A smile played on her lips as she watched Giyu take another sha-ke onigiri. Sabito swallowed his final bite and got another rice-ball. She was an unusual one.

"Sabito-san, I have something for you," Hana said. The peach haired boy winced when he helped clean up. Hana opened her bag and fished out a pot.

"This is an ointment that can help ease the pain," she handed it to him. He hesitantly accepted it. Hana brightened when he opened it. "There's nothing that can cure bruised ribs. It needs to heal itself over time. Around three to six weeks. This ointment is topical. You can slather it on your chest when you feel pain."

Sabito looked up from the beige-white cream to Hana surprised that she knew. Hana smiled at him. Awkwardly, Sabito nodded his head.

"Please use it well, Sabito-san."

"Sabito." Hana tilted her head at his reply. Sabito locked eyes with her. "Sabito. You don't need to be formal." Hana was taken aback for a moment but grinned.

"Okay, Sabito." Sabito shifted his gaze away. It was a while since another person beside Urokodaki-san and Giyu called him "Sabito." It came so normally but it sounded foreign to his ears.

From then on, the sound of his name from her lips came naturally.