His nimble feet flew past the hard ground, not daring to slow down even a pace. The sounds of the irate villagers trailed after him, spewing toxic words, cursing his pathetic existence.

The fires of hatred ignited within Kaigaku. Why would the villagers treat an orphan like him with such contempt? Had they no compassion?

Kaigaku had no memory of his parents. His life was void of a parental figure; it was a miracle he managed to stay alive after all these years. He did all he could to eke by.

He had chanced upon a pile of rejected food, dumped behind a restaurant. His stomach screamed in delight, for he had not even consumed a single morsel of food for days. Kaigaku slumped near the food, stuffing his face full of them, revelling in the rich flavour.

"Hey! What are you doing, you disgusting thief? How dare you steal my food," yelled a voice from within the restaurant. The owner of the voice appeared, brandishing a kitchen knife. Staring down at the dirty child, he offered no sympathy.

Kaigaku stared at the restaurant owner, confused. Were the food scraps not considered as trash to an average villager? Why not let him nourish himself, instead of letting good food go to waste? He knew better than to challenge the restaurant owner in a battle of wits, so he bolted from the area.

He attracted the attention of the passers-by by doing so. They, in turn, joined forces with the restaurant owner in pursuing Kaigaku.

"Isn't that the cutpurse?"

"Wasn't he the one who has stolen your clothes before?"

"I don't care what he did. We'll capture and punish the little brat,"

Kaigaku tried his best to suppress his fear. If he were to cower now, he might not be able to make it out alive.

He ran and ran. When he began to take notice of his surroundings, he was utterly befuddled. The orange sunset has already dyed the sky purple, gradually bleeding into black. Lush greenery surrounded him. Willing himself to stay calm before looking for a way out, Kaigaku sat on a tree root, collecting his thoughts. It was truly an unfortunate day for him. Suddenly, he caught a whiff of a strange scent. It was probably a type of flower. He sought after the scent, wishing for the best. The pleasant aroma calmed his nerves, and he began to feel optimistic. Soon, stumbled upon an abandoned temple.

"Himejima-san, I see a child somewhere out there,"

Kaigaku froze. 'There were people living out here in the woods?' he thought, immediately taking cover. Looking around, he tried to find the origin of the voice. It seemingly permeated from the temple.

"Where did you see the child?" asked an older person. Kaigaku watched the pair as the former lit a lantern and reached out for the child's hand. Despite the lanterns dim glow, Kaigaku noticed that the man's eyes were milky, akin to the full moon. He loosened only slightly. A blind man should be easy to confront, should the situation turn ugly. He sidled away from his hiding spot, revealing himself. The child is almost the same age as he, he guessed.

"There he is! Quickly, Himejima-san," the boy tugged the blind man along, stopping before Kaigaku.

"Isshiki, would you mind describing the child to me?" asked the blind man.

Isshiki assessed Kaigaku for a moment before saying, "He looks rather dirty and beaten up; his clothes are also all torn up,"

"Did you get lost in this forest, boy? I can take you back to the village in the morning," offered Himejima sympathetically. "It's rather late now, and the demons run rampant,"

The mention of the accursed village made Kaigaku's skin crawl. He was not going to be sent back to the tiger's jaw just as he succeeded in freeing himself.

"My parents died a long time ago, and I have nowhere to go," said Kaigaku. "The villagers all hate me, so I ran away,"

"Is that so? Then, would you like to come along with us?" replied the blind man.

"We can give you some food and clothes," added Isshiki. "Maybe you can also join our family,"

Family? The notion was alien to Kaigaku. How can a person like him deserve to be a member of their family? Then again, they were offering him free food.

"I'll go with you," he answered.

-

His body cleansed and freshly clothed, Kaigaku felt free of all impurities. The abandoned temple's interior was surprisingly well kept. Eight other children watched him from a distance, curious as cats. The room was not too spacious, yet not too narrow for nine people to live comfortably. Kaigaku would soon learn that the wafts of flowers belonged to the wisteria incense that Himejima would burn every night, in order to ward off the demons prowling at night. Isshiki then offered him a small bowl of rice and some vegetables. "I'm sorry, but we don't have much for now," he apologised.

Seeing this amount of food, all meant for him, Kaigaku was immensely overjoyed as he scarfed everything, leaving nothing behind.

"You can have some more, if you want," offered Himejima.

Kaigaku nodded. Isshiki refilled his empty bowl with rice.

"I don't think I've caught your name," commented Himejima as Kaigaku inhaled seconds of his meal. "Where are my manners? My name is Himejima Gyomei, and I take care of the orphaned children here. I'm glad we found you before you're caught in danger,"

"Kaigaku," the boy managed to say between gulps of food. He was still ravenously hungry. Despite the meal being less flavourful than the scraps he procured from the restaurants, he thought it was infinitely more filling.

"Can I really stay here?" he asked, finishing the final mouthfuls of rice.

"Are you going to let him live with us, Himejima-san?" asked one of the children.

"We'll have one more person to play with, if he's staying,"

Kaigaku was taken aback. Nobody stood up for him for as long as he lived. 'Staying with them wouldn't be so bad, after all,' he thought.

"Since you have nowhere else to go, and the children are so excited to have you here, you're welcome to stay with us," replied Himejima with a slight smile. "Children, please treat Kaigaku well,"

The children surrounded their new family member, introducing themselves and asking him questions. The youngest girl, however, remained by Himejima's side, tugging at his shirt.

"What's wrong, Sayo?" he asked, giving her head a pat.

"Scared," she uttered, burying her head against his clothing.

"I'm sure Kaigaku is a good child, so please try to get along with him," reassured Himejima, letting the four year old sit in his lap.

Ever since I read both Himejima and Kaigaku's backstory, I've always wanted to add on to their stories. I really like how the Demon Slayers' lives intertwine. I hope you enjoyed this, and stay tuned for the next chapter!