Chapter One | A Coward's Weapon

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Winter had plunged its long fangs deep into the slumbering landscape, stripping the trees down to the bare bark, blanketing the hillside in a thick layer of snow. The icy wind was whipping the earth like a farmer driving a poor exhausted bull in the last hour of sunlight.

Giyu watched detachedly as his warm breath swirled and dissolved in the stinging cold of the mountain air. He was getting weaker. It would be days before anyone could reach him in this desolate place, even longer if the weather conditions developed into a blizzard. He hoped his body would give him enough time for his forgetful crow to take his message back to the Ubuyashiki Manor.

Swiping his tongue over his teeth, he sucked the bloodied saliva from the cracks and crevices of his mouth. He spat the mixture in the dirt, wincing when pain coursed suddenly in his injured limbs. The young swordsman grimaced as he dropped his cloak from his shoulder, the fabric like sandpaper on his open wound. He studied the damage; the gashes were alarmingly deep. Fresh blood seeped from his torn flesh; however, the most concerning issue was the puss beginning to gather in the lacerations and the ripe smell it emitted. Damn poison. He had no medicine, and he was several dozens of miles from any town. It had been a little over a day since he had suffered the injury, and he knew if he didn't do something soon infection would set in, if it hadn't already.

His leg was broken too. Right above his ankle.

Limping, he gathered what kindling he could find in the little cavern he had fortunately discovered in the cliffside. He lit a small fire and heated a knife in the glinting flames, until the blade glowed orange. He gave the weapon a determined glare and grit his teeth, bringing the knife to his torn skin. Without hesitation he pressed it against the wound.

Spots immediately materialized in his vision. He choked back any sounds of pain leaping into his throat and denied the instinctive urge to jump away from the searing pain. He was in a deteriorating state, Giyu couldn't afford to draw any unwanted attention from predators hiding in the woods. He pressed the knife harder into his arm, allowing himself to hiss violently at the agony to release some small part of the pressure building inside him. He continued this torturous process for what seemed like ages, until he was satisfied his wound had been moderately cauterized.

Beads of dirty sweat rolled down his face and neck, and his chest heaved fiercely. He surveyed his work, musing to himself that he was certainly no doctor, and that he should probably brush up on his medical skills when he returned to civilization. His skin was burnt black, and the stench was much worse than before, almost putrid. He poured water from his flask over the injury, the cold bite of the liquid burning almost as much as the heat of the fire. He propped his back against the rock wall, letting his head rest on the cool stone. The reflection of gentle flames danced in his eyes, before he cast his glance towards the entrance of the cave. The wind gusted fat snowflakes into his shelter, much to his aggravation. At least he had some cover for his fire….

He felt like death.

His memory drifted back to yesterday's intense battle. As much as he hated to admit any sliver of defeat, the upper demon moon hadn't gone down as easily as he would've preferred. He had been surprisingly fast and powerful, unusually so, even for a demon moon. He felt that somehow, they were getting stronger, an unsettling concept. He hadn't expected to find a high-ranking demon moon lurking in such a remote area. It only validated any suspicions that an even more unusual creature was living on the mountainside. It was obvious to him that they hadn't crossed paths by mere coincidence.

He had been sent here to investigate an outrageous claim; allegedly a demon capable of walking in daylight was inhabiting the mountain. The first few reports had been laughably dismissed. The pillars were sure that the locals were mistaken, until a wet behind the ears demon slayer confirmed their stories. The boy had confronted the demon in suspect while he was hunting, abashedly admitting he had approached it willingly, mistaking it for a pretty human woman. He had been so shocked by his accidental discovery he fled immediately. Giyu suspected that was a wise decision, albeit embarrassingly weak. The curious part was that the demon hadn't attacked or followed him. There were too many factors to conclude exactly why the demon let her prey flee so easily, but Giyu doubted it was out of the kindness of her heart.

Thus, his current predicament was birthed. On the side of a mountain, bleeding and exhausted, fighting to find this female demon before anyone else did. He rolled his eyes at the thought of Shinobi's smug comments and masked judgment. She would be overjoyed to tease him for allowing a demon moon to rough him up so badly. Especially since she had forewarned the mission might be better suited for two pillars.

Giyu took a moment to embrace the quiet and allow his aching body to relax. A veil of weariness had just begun to drape over him when he detected company. His half-lidded eyes sprung open, his senses alert, though he didn't allow his body to betray his awareness to his hidden audience.

He was being watched.

By a demon.

Another moon? Whoever they were, they weren't coming any closer. What were they waiting for? A multitude of questions flooded his mind as he examined his situation. They must have been drawn by the scent of his blood. The ludicrous thought then occurred to him, the sun hadn't begun to set over the hills. Rays of light still streamed through the naked tree limbs, though some of it was absorbed in the snow filled wind, there was too much light for a demon to survive in.

It was her.

Annoyed, he silently cursed to himself as he flexed the hand that lay at his hip, ready to grasp his sword at a moment's notice. He had been so close. Apparently. If he hadn't crossed paths with the demon moon his mission might have been complete today. He steadied his breathing and his heart rate quickly. He thought he had been prepared to meet a demon in daylight, but truly, he was so familiar with confronting them in the cover of night. She had… surprised him. A feat not easily accomplished by anyone.

After several tense minutes of waiting, he offered the frozen outside world a challenging glare. He scanned the tree line for movement, but the raging elements prevented him from pinpointing the demon's exact location. Still, he could feel the presence watching him. He debated between gathering all his strength and getting this over with, or staying put, waiting to see what move she would make… then the decision was made for him. Her presence vanished. She had left, all traces of her melting into the dense woods. He considered following her. He didn't like not knowing what he was up against, and as sure as he was of his own abilities, he had to admit he was far too drained to fight another demon who could possibly be as strong as the last one he encountered. He had lost a lot of blood, and he was concerned about the dizzy attacks that seemed to be plaguing him more frequently. Not to mention his broken leg.

Why did she leave? She knew he was wounded, at his most vulnerable. This would be the second time she had abandoned what most demons would be foolish enough to consider an 'easy' meal. He couldn't help but wonder what her objective was. All questions aside, he was irritated that she was behaving so unusually. Demons had always been simple. Some were powerful, some were weak, but they all fed on humans. Without fail. And they weren't active in the day. Half of what protected humanity from annihilation was that demons couldn't survive sunlight. The thought of them evolving was unsettling. Then again, this wouldn't be the first time he had encountered an atypical demon, one uninterested in feeding on humans.

He thought back to his short-lived battle with Tanjiro and his demon sister. The only other demon he had known to refuse to devour a person. His brow furrowed as he considered yet another possibility. Could this one be similar to Nezuko? Was she holding onto some thin shred of morality left inside her? Was there a human somewhere on this mountain, grounding her to humanity?

Even still, he would rather eliminate it than worry about trusting anymore 'friendly' demons. He had already been mocked as a traitor to his own race for supporting the sibling pair. He had taken responsibility for them, for her. He couldn't afford to do it again. The chances there was another demon like Nezuko were practically nonexistent. It was wisest to anticipate the worst, the demon must be waiting for him to fall ill or become too physically weak to protect himself. She was probably just being cautious. He planned on his visitor dropping by again in the thick of the night, possibly in the morning when it expected him to be sleeping.

He exhaled heavily and laid his head back against wall, staring at the low ceiling. He had enough strength left to last him another fight, but with each passing hour he would become weaker. His total concentration breathing would slow down the infection, but it couldn't cure him. He had estimated it would take another demon slayer at least a week to reach him, and that was if his crow delivered his message accurately and swiftly. Infection would surely set in by then. He resisted the urge to drop his head low under the weight of frustration.

He was tired. Desperately so.

Giyu drew his sword across his lap.

Sweat continued to stream down his face and back, despite the winter chill.

Hours into the night, as the bacteria blossomed in his wound, he allowed himself to close his eyes and slip into the inviting embrace of sleep.

Brown strands of hair thrashed across her face as she sampled the cold breeze, snowflakes and the aroma of human blood filling her nostrils. Her nerves surged viciously at the scent and her pupils dilated excitedly in response. Her natural, physical reaction was typical of a demon, but her intentions were entirely human.

She had ventured into the woods to fend off the latest threat. There had been another demon stalking her territory and she had been keeping an eye on it for a couple of days now. It had become far too curious about her home, slowly moving closer as the nights passed. She knew it must have caught the scent of humans. Armed with her grandfather's sword, she left her house just before the rising sun. It was the best time to hunt demons, which liked to hide in the caves on the mountainside. She had the advantage in the light.

She sprinted through the maze of towering trees surrounding her remote home, searching sprawling miles of woodland for the scent of a demon. After nearly an hour or so of tracking, she finally found some evidence of her target, although, not quite the evidence she had hoped to discover.

The lingering perfume of a demon and a human.

The concept made her gut twist.

She followed the trail of their scent until she was led to an area of the forest utterly saturated with the stench of a fight. She examined the scene before her, her brows shooting up at the sight. Entire trees had been halved, and the ground was littered with craters of various sizes. She stepped further into the man-made clearing, inspecting the large splatters of blood melting into the snowbanks. Lots of human blood, enough to kill someone. She inhaled deeply, the odor of human flesh settled heavy in her lungs, and scanned the forest floor for signs of a person, or pieces of a person. Flashes of torn limbs and leafs of skin littered her mind… she shook the distracting visions from her head. It had been a long time since she had seen the remainder of a person who had been slaughtered by a demon. She wasn't sure how prepared she was for what she might find, but she was determined to figure out what happened here.

Her investigation concluded two things. The demon was gone. The human walked away.

How? She silently inquired. The only human I've ever known to walk away from a fight with a demon was my grandpa…. a demon slayer.

A wave of alarm overcame her as the voice of her grandfather filled her head, his warnings of how dangerous they were, how she must never draw enough attention to herself to attract one. A demon slayer was on the mountain? But why? She had done nothing wrong, she assured herself; she had learned to control her urges. She never went near the towns. She didn't hurt people. She had even done humanity the kindness of exterminating demons who posed a threat to the surrounding villages. Her chest heaved as her mind raced with questions and panic. Where was he? Was he alive? Would he try to kill her too? Would this be the first human she would have to kill since… the last time? What if they found out? But how did they find out? They didn't understand… it was an accident!

She wove her fingers into her hair and pressed her palms hard against her ears, trying to deafen the roar of her thoughts. She needed to clear her head. The thick aroma of blood wasn't doing her any favors. Her mind was cluttered with sensory overload.

Think! He doesn't even know you exist! Probably… He was fighting another demon.

But could it really be a coincidence, that a couple weeks after her run in with the young hunter, this demon slayer shows up? She ground her teeth in concentration, it's too risky to assume. She had been too careless, to curious.

Perhaps he was dead already? She looked around again, reassuring herself he had lost a lot of blood. Too much. She hoped….

But really, there was only one way to find out. He had walked out of this clearing alive. She had to find him, or his body, to be certain.

The scent of his blood was like a bread crumb trail, she could smell details as delicate as where he placed his hand to support himself against a tree. His trajectory led towards the mountain, where he could find a place to escape the weather and mend his wounds. As she followed the trail, the enchanting notes of flesh and blood began to diminish. The snow was thicker now, like a curtain, erasing her clues to his location, she had to hurry. What would she do if she found him alive? She urged herself to decide before she was forced to make a poor, rash choice. If she let him go, he would undoubtedly come back for her, or send others… What would happen to her grandmother? Would she be punished for sheltering a demon? She gnawed at her lip anxiously as she continued to track the human.

Kill him? Or let him live? The questions played like a broken record in the back of her mind as she weighed all possible options.

Suddenly, she inhaled the fragrance of blood, burnt flesh, and smoke.

She wove deftly through the hibernating trees, inching closer towards the source, until she was in line of sight of a small cave entrance. She stopped abruptly and squatted down on all fours behind an oak, hanging several feet back behind the tree line, a couple dozen yards from the human. Carefully, she peeked around the side of the massive trunk, and sampled the air. She scowled at the overpowering stench of burning wood, wrinkling her nose. She sniffed again, studying the scent. He was definitely alive. She dared to inch closer, weaving through the trees, trying to conceal herself in the snow drenched underbrush.

She could smell hints of infection. Fever. Dying cells.

She craned her neck, focusing her vision through the veil of snow she caught her first glimpse of him. He sat cross-legged, his back against the rocks. His attention seemed to be captured by the small fire in front of him. She studied him for several moments. He was injured badly, but his posture suggesting otherwise. He looked completely relaxed. She froze when he whipped his head around, his gaze landing on her almost instantly. She didn't dare move or breathe. He knows I'm here? Can he see me? If she was going to kill him, now was her best shot. If he was anything like her grandfather, she didn't stand a chance against him at full strength. Judging by the mess he had left in the forest it was likely he was stronger than her.

The scent of infected flesh wafted over her again, a little stronger this time.

He will be very sick within a couple days... and this weather will accelerate the process.

He knew she was there yet made no effort to attack her. Why wouldn't he unless he was weakened and ill? It seemed her problem would most likely take care of itself. All she had to do was stay away and wait for nature to take its course.

Quietly, she slipped off in the direction of home, darting through the trees as gracefully as a doe. The woods were silent, save for the relentless lullaby of the wind, all creatures tucked away in the safety of the trees, ground, and mountain as the snow continued to bury the earth.

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Author's Note:

Hey there! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I'll try not to litter this story with too many author's notes, but I think this one is kind of important! So basically, I've only watched the anime- so please NO SPOILERS. I haven't read the manga and I'm not super knowledgeable about the extents/specifics of the characters powers. I know the basics, like total concentration breathing, blood demon arts, and some aspects of the different breathing techniques. All that to say- I'm writing this story for the fun of it! This idea just kind of popped into my head. Also, I am a shameless romantic and Giyu fangirl (that being said, I will try to pace/write this story in the most believable way possible and do my research beforehand to write everything as accurately as possible). My writing skills are also very rusty, I haven't written in years! So please forgive any stiff dialogue or overly descriptive writing.

I hope you like my OC. I'm not usually big on OC characters, but like I said, this idea just kind of stuck with me. Hopefully she's not too annoying! And don't worry, she will loosen up over time, I promise!

Well, that's it for now! Thanks for reading!