Hello, I'm back with a new chapter for you! I decided to change the name of this chapter because it had gotten way too long for just a single chapter. I had to cut it into three parts to make it a lot shorter.

I really underestimated how long this chapter will be. On the bright side, you guys get three chapters in one day since I already finished the entirety of what was supposed to be chapter 2.

I'll just post the first part of it as chapter 2, another part as chapter 3, and the rest will be chapter 4. Three chapters for the price of one!

However,

Anyway, since I'm getting more reviews. It's only fair that I start a Q .

Q

Iorhob09: You asked if I plan on making Ruby go through a tragedy like Tanjiro. That's actually a really good question that I realize I should think more about, so thanks for bringing that to my attention.

My immediate answer is that Ruby will experience the "cruelty of reality" eventually, but not now. In the original RWBY, I believe Ruby realizes that fairytales and reality are two different things during the Fall of Beacon.

There are two possibilities for Ruby in this story, she will either experience tragedy during the attack on Beacon, or before that in some other way.

Perhaps she will learn it when facing a demon or hear about it from Tanjiro. I'm not sure yet, you'll just have to wait and see.

SaberFan117: You asked about pairings. I have been thinking about this but I'm still not sure. I think I might do Zenitsu x Nezuko, Blake x Sun (Yes, I support BlackSun. I'm sorry, but Bumblebee was way too forced in my opinion. Maybe I'll change my mind one day but that's very unlikely), Jaune x Pyrrha, and Ren x Nora. I'm still thinking whether or not I should do Tanjiro x Kanao and Ruby x Weiss (I really don't care enough for Ruby x Oscar) or if I should mix it up and do something like Tanjiro x Ruby (or "Burning Rose" as I have decided for a nickname. Another idea would be "TanRuby" or "RubyTan").

I might also do Inosuke x Aoi (I just recently learned that that's a canon thing) and Giyu x Shinobu just for kicks. Also, I'm not a big fan of romance so sorry if I don't put a lot of attention on that. There might be a small chance I just completely throw romance out the window.

Alright, that's it for QnA. Sorry if I didn't answer some other questions, I'll make sure to answer them in the next chapter. With that out of the way, let's move on.

*I do not own RWBY or Demon Slayer. Both shows/manga and all their characters belong to their respective owners.

"Tanjiro" = Talking

"Tanjiro" = Thinking

Tanjiro = Middle Alignment = POV

"Tanjiro" = Flashback

Crash! - Left Alignment = Sound effect


Chapter 2 - The Calm Before the Storm

Tanjiro Kamado

Tanjiro finally reached the town at the end of the mountain, he spent the whole day selling charcoal to the townspeople. He also helped solve other problems that they were having.

He helped fix people's doors, carried groceries for them, walked a few dogs, even helped out a boy being accused of breaking someone's plates but it turned out to be a cat.

Tanjiro could tell because the plates had the smell of a cat. Tanjiro has always had an advanced sense of smell ever since he was little. Some people might've thought that the boy was a Faunus, not that they would've had a problem with that.


Faunus were treated a lot better in Japan than in the other four kingdoms. This is because Japan itself is also neglected by everyone else, especially those who were jealous of its limitless peace.

As far as Tanjiro knew, Japan never had as much trouble with Grimm as the other kingdoms. The only Grimm that ever attacked the Japanese were Nevermores, and they were usually pretty weak.

Japan had taken a neutral stance in the Great War between the other four kingdoms, refusing to send out even one of their people to fight a pointless war for power.

After that, the residents of Japan were labeled as cowards by the rest of Remnant and treated badly in the other kingdoms. This caused the Faunus to sympathize with the Japanese and vice-versa.

For some reason, people weren't allowed to move to Japan after the war ended.

Tanjiro never understood why, since there is more than enough room for at least a million more people. But anyone who sailed there was turned away or gunned down if they didn't comply, whether they were human or Faunus.

This caused many protests from both sides of the conflict, the Japanese and the refugees trying to get to safety. Some of the Huntsmen who defended the borders guaranteed the people that it was for the refugees' "safety."

Maybe they were afraid more people would attract more Grimm? Tanjiro wasn't sure.


Everyone thanked Tanjiro for his help and even offered him some extra lien for his troubles, but Tanjiro always politely refused.

He would always say that he didn't want to be a burden to them. Money was tight for the whole town, not just the Kamados.

That was just how Tanjiro was. He helped anyone he could and asked for nothing in return. The kid was just too nice for his own good sometimes. Some of the kids saw Tanjiro as an angelic guardian, looking after the village from time to time.

As the sun began its descent, Tanjiro just finished selling the last of his charcoal. He earned a lot of lien, at least by his standards. Content with his earnings, Tanjiro planned to buy some food next time he came.

Before he left, Tanjiro made sure to buy the goodies he promised his siblings with the lien he had saved. He made a visit to just about every local store.

He bought books for Hanako, souvenirs and snacks for Takeo and Shigeru, toys for Rokuta, and even bought some beautiful roses for his mother and Nezuko. Why? Because it's freaking Tanjiro. He put all his gifts into his basket before he began heading for home.

"Wow. It's gotten pretty late," Tanjiro thought as he began to go back up the mountain, "I better hurry back before the others worry about me."

"Oh! I should probably send them a message." Tanjiro thought as he took out his scroll. His family barely managed to scrounge up enough lien to buy an older model.

Then one of the townspeople was kind enough to give them another one, so the family could keep contact with Tanjiro during his trips.

Before he could let his family know he was on his way. A voice called out to him. "Hey, Tanjiro!" Tanjiro turned around to see Old Man Saburo peeking his head out the window.

"You're not going up the mountain now, are you? It's much too dangerous." Warned the elderly man with a look of concern.

"You don't have to worry, Mr. Saburo," Assured Tanjiro with the usual smile, "I have a great sense of smell, so I should be able to avoid the wildlife even in the dark."

"You can stay with me for the night," Saburo offered, not taking no for an answer, "Come on, get back here."

"But-" Tanjiro started before Mr. Saburo interrupted him.

"Do not argue with me, just get in here," Saburo said with an impatient tone before concern and fear returned to his face, "Before the demons show up." He added nervously.

Not wanting to upset him, Tanjiro decided to humor Saburo and stay at his house for the night.


He ate the meal made for him and put his hands together.

"Thank you for the meal." Tanjiro said before putting his chopsticks down to drink his tea. Once he finished, his scroll began ringing.

Tanjiro took it out, knowing it was Nezuko calling since she was the one with their second scroll. It seemed that she was using a video call, Tanjiro answered.

"Tanjiro? Where are you? It's almost 10:00 PM." Said Nezuko after seeing her brother's face. Tanjiro could see a worried Shigeru, Hanako, and Rokuta next to the eldest daughter.

"Sorry, I was just about to send a message," Tanjiro explained while Saburo was rolling out their futons, "I was going to go back up the mountain before Mr. Saburo offered me a place to sleep tonight."

"Sorry to worry you. I'll head back first thing in the morning, okay?" Tanjiro said. Before Nezuko could respond, however, the little ones voiced their complaints.

"Big Bro! Why did you leave without saying goodbye!?" Yelled Rokuta, clearly not happy that he was left in the dark on Tanjiro's departure.

"Can you at least show us what goodies you got!?" Asked Shigeru.

"Now, now. You don't want to spoil the surprise, do you?" Tanjiro teased, earning a pout from Shigeru.

"I guess not…hmph." Shigeru whined.

Hanako then jumped in. "Can you at least read us one of those books you said you'd buy? Please!?" Asked Tanjiro's youngest sister, giving him the puppy dog eyes once again.

This time, however, Tanjiro was swayed. "Alright," He sighed, "Only one, though. Got it? Then it's off to bed with you."

His youngest siblings all nodded their heads with large grins. Nezuko was also smiling widely. She then looked to her left like she was looking for something.

"Hey, Takeo," Nezuko called out, " Tanjiro's going to read a bedtime story. Come here."

"And, why should I care? I'm way too old for that." Argued a voice that Tanjiro recognized as Takeo.

Nezuko started laughing at this statement. "Too old? You're only ten, Take," Nezuko shot back as Takeo made his way on Tanjiro's screen, "I'm twelve and you don't hear me complaining."

The Kamado siblings leaned against a wall before Nezuko left her scroll leaning on something to stand up. They are soon joined by Takeo...

"Yeah, yeah." Takeo muttered as he too leaned against the wall.

As this was going on, Tanjiro went into his basket to grab the books he bought and made his way back to the table where his scroll was leaning against a cup.

Despite Tanjiro's words, he read through all four of the books he bought. Starting with "The Tale of the Two Brothers," "The Shallow Sea," "The Girl in the Tower," and "The Story of the Seasons."

By the time he was done, the Kamado children were fast asleep. Even Nezuko couldn't keep herself awake. Then his mother came in and put a large blanket around them, not wanting to wake up her children.

"Your voice must be quite soothing if it could bring all your siblings to sleep." Kie whispered to her eldest son as she knelt in front of Tanjiro's screen.

"Nah. I probably just made it sound really boring," Tanjiro said, scratching the back of his head, "But I'm glad they'll be able to sleep soundly tonight."

"Oh Tanjiro," Kie sighed while shaking her head, "I love how humble you are but you need to learn to give yourself some credit."

"Ok, mom. I'll try my best. Well, I'll see you in the morning. Good night, mom! I love you guys!" Tanjiro said with a large grin.

Kie returned the smile, "We love you too, sweetheart. Good night." She said as Tanjiro ended the call. At least he tried to.

He was still getting used to the more advanced technology and had trouble finding the "end call" button.

Kie, noticing this,helped him out. "The red button, dear." She informed, still smiling at her clueless son.

"Right, sorry," said Tanjiro with slightly red cheeks, "Bye!" He said as he ended the call, not seeing the smile on Mr. Saburo's face before it went back to its neutral state.

"Alright, that's enough of that," He announced while preparing for sleep, "Put away those books and go to bed. You can head home in the morning."

"Right!" Tanjiro said as he picked up his books went to put them back in the basket, certain that his siblings would want to hear any parts they missed.

Before he did, however, he noticed a fifth book that he forgot he had bought. The cover was of a samurai with fire coming out of his sword, surrounded by shadow-like silhouettes.

It was titled "The Slayer of Demons." The title reminded Tanjiro of what Mr. Saburo said when he invited him inside.

"Mr. Saburo, about these "demons" you mentioned," Tanjiro said while putting the books back and getting into his futon, "What are demons anyway?"

"They're monsters," Said Saburo in a serious tone, "Man-eating humanoid creatures that have lurked around Japan at night for centuries, they were said to have been the second beings besides the Grimm that almost brought Remnant to its knees."

"So, they're like the Grimm?" Tanjiro asked, curious, yet nervous at the thought of another horrible beast existing.

"They have their similarities, yes," Mr. Saburo said, "But a demon is a whole other abomination. They were said to be nearly immortal. Could only be killed in certain ways. And unlike the Grimm who kill for game, demons devour humans and Faunus to gain power. Fortunately, they aren't attracted to negative emotions. If you run into one, you're just unlucky.

"Are you sure that demons are real sir? Sorry, but I just can't believe it." Tanjiro said, showing his doubt.

"I don't blame you, kid. Almost no one does anymore. Those who do are either considered crazy…or are already dead." The elderly man said, sitting on his futon.

Tanjiro gulped before gaining the courage to ask another question. "These demons, they can't come into people's houses, right?" Tanjiro asked, slightly concerned for his family and everyone in town.

"Yes, they can." Saburo said in a monotone voice.

"Then how come they haven't eaten everybody? Oh wait! It's because of the Huntsmen, they protect us. Don't they?" Tanjiro asked with a little hope.

"Afraid not, none of the Huntsmen believe in demons either. Even if they did, they can't be killed as easily as Grimm. Many had died finding out the hard way." Mr Saburo said.

"Then how-" Tanjiro couldn't finish before Saburo continued.

"The Demon Slayers," He said, "They have protected humanity from the demons for centuries."

"You mean like that "Slayer of Demons" in the books?" Tanjiro asked, his interest peaked.

Saburo nodded, "Yes, he was the first Demon Slayer and the most powerful. Said to have been worth at least fifty high class Huntsmen and was even said to be on or at least near the same level as the four Maidens themselves." He continued.

"The Demon Slayers are a group of warriors like the Huntsmen. But instead of Grimm, they are trained to kill demons. It was because of them that the humans managed to push back the demons to Japan in a war lost in time, where the Slayers keep a watchful eye on them to this day." Mr. Saburo finished before getting up to turn off the lights.

"That's enough for now. Lights out, go to sleep." He said

Tanjiro, under the blanket of his futon, then looked at the ceiling and started to close his eyes as he thought to himself.

"Poor Mr. Saburo. Ever since his family died, he's been all alone." Tanjiro thought, feeling bad for the man.

"I'll bring my brothers and sisters next time, so he won't be so lonely." Tanjiro fell deeper and deeper into sleep.

"You don't have to worry, Mr. Saburo. There are no demons. You're safe, it's nothing but a fairytale." Tanjiro thought as he started dreaming about having a snowball fight with his family. Not knowing that he would soon eat his words.

"But come to think of it," Tanjiro thought as he pulled out an old memory from his brain, "Grandma used to say the same thing when she was alive."


Nezuko Kamado

It was morning. Nezuko was the first of her siblings to wake up, trying to remember why they were all leaning against the wall.

"Oh, that's right. Tanjiro was reading bedtime stories, we must've all fallen asleep." Nezuko realized while looking down at her younger siblings sleeping peacefully.

She couldn't help but smile, before deciding to wake them up so she could get up. "Morning, sleepyheads." She said while shaking everyone awake.

Once everyone was up, including Kie, they all went about their day.

"Hey, Rokuta," Nezuko called out to her little brother, "Want to go outside and wait for Tanjiro."

Rokuta got excited and nodded immediately. The two went outside the house to see a tall, unknown figure coming up the mountain path.

Nezuko smiled and called out, "About time you got here, Big Brother!"

Rokuta started jumping up and down as the figure got closer. "Big Bro! You're back!" He shouted. The figure became close enough for Nezuko to get another look at "Tanjiro," noticing a major detail.

"That's odd," She thought, "Tanjiro seems taller, and I think I'd remember him wearing a white fedora."


And that's it for this chapter. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Ruby. She and Yang will be in the next part.

I hope you guys liked the video call part I added to make the story more original. I thought it would show more of Tanjiro's relationship with his family to make their deaths more impactful.

And yes, they will still die. That will not be changed. Sorry to tell you that. But, as always, I hope you guys enjoyed.

Next time: Chapter 3 - When Happiness is Destroyed