Revamped: 7/7/23


Locked away in the box, Ume sat upright in the box in the silent darkness, trying not to think of her brother.

Despite her bizarre situation, she was still the powerful demon that still hailed the position of the Upper Moon Six; her heart had to be ruthless to break.

Going through pain and heartache once was good enough, she need not be reminded of it.

However, her mutinous mind still retreated to locked-out memories of her brother—back to the time he was something more than evaporating ash. Little bits of memories here and there, like his presence, were still lingering about. How she and Gyutaro as humans, both huddled together inside in the little rotten hut they call home, riding out the long days and nights off of fear and unease. How she always felt strong when she stood behind her scythe-wielding brother as they tread down these crime-riddled streets. How he would always give her a pretty kimono or two whenever he managed to save enough money, how he would tell her stories and tales to lull her to sleep.

It was always her and Gyutaro against the cruel world in their old lives.

Even when they entered their new life of immorality, their bond was no different, they were still a force to be reckoned with.

But even to this day, no matter how much stronger she had gotten, it was always Gyutaro whom Ume looked up to for strength.

Human and demon alike, Gyutaro was always so strong, so irrevocably perfect in her eyes. Gyutaro was no doubt the superior Upper Six, and Ume couldn't deny that she would always rank below him. But unlike in the past, Ume knew that there was no way she could ever surpass him. She was naïve, cocky, and arrogant back then to even dream of it. After everything she had been through, she had grown to understand she never could—He was unlike her.

His strength... His unyielding determination even in the face of the direst circumstances... His commitment to her... his cruelty... his fantastic ability with his blood manipulation, his physical capabilities with weaponry, and his fine intellect—putting aside his unsettling personality and looks, she honestly could not see any flaws in him.

She admired him and secretly wanted to be him—if he only saw her now.

Ume stopped midway through her endless thoughts to glare at the four encompassing wooden walls imprisoning her. Staring onward into the darkness, she reached out a hand to touch the wooden texture; feeling the vibrant warmth of the sun caressing the box through her fingertips. Leaves rustling distantly, the gentle breezes rushing through the trees, the distant birds' crow overhead, shoes scraping on a rock-strewn ground, the soft sounds of heartbeats and breathing followed by the sounds of indistinct voices that seemed to blend in the background.

A far cry from the bustling, urban city that Ume grew up in for her long 126 years.

For a moment, Ume could hear her brother's chastising voice in her head, the stern lecture she would've received if he knew she was being reckless or just plain stupid, which was more frequent than Ume liked to admit.

If only he saw her stuck in this random body, helping the enemy; providing him medical aid, and even going as far as transporting him to his allies. And to further rub salt into the wound, now she was inside of a dank, cramped box carried by the enemy to their base in broad daylight, all because she had a moment of weakness. His head would be spinning right now.

Suddenly her mind switched to Tanjiro.

Even though she could not see outside her little space, Ume could sense that the boy was being carried next to her. With her fine-tuned senses, she could easily feel the warmth of his body; the warmth of blood coursing through his veins, swaddling his body like a thick blanket. The soft sounds of slow breaths and heartbeats hummed through the cramped space.

"I should have just killed him when I had the chance. Regardless of his kindness. What the hell was I even thinking?" The words broke through her lips in a rushed rasp.

Ume hated kind people. Kind people had a way of working their way inside her and rooting there. A kind Tanjiro is far more dangerous than an unkind one.

From the day she died as Ume, she had sworn to herself: never would she ever get close to a human only to have them hurt her mercilessly.

What's the point of saving him anyway? What was the point of saving the boy who casually murdered her only family?

Ume tilted her head up to the dark ceiling of the box and tried to imagine the cold, lifeless corpse of the Demon Slayer. But she only drew a blank.

No, A sudden thought breached her mind. No, you couldn't. You know you couldn't. Ume tried to shove that single doubt away but even with her earnest efforts to push that disturbing thought out of her mind, Ume couldn't help but grit her teeth in unfathomable frustration.

I should…have just..left him to die…and…

But that thought came up short as another thought assaulted her mind.

Was there even a point in fleeing?

Where would she even go?

Who could she even run to in this world?

What other purpose did she serve at this point?

Ume squinted in the darkness, seeing her small—almost child-like hands, at her flame-kissed stiletto nails still stained with the Demon Slayer's dried blood, and clenched her fist tightly, knuckles paling.

By all means, she was a traitor. A traitor to the Upper Moon hierarchy, a traitor to the Master, a traitor to her own race, a traitor to herself, old and current. And worst of all, a traitor to her own brother.

Perhaps she should have just given herself to the sun. She was almost on the verge of doing so not long ago. Letting her body shrivel away into ash in the damning light of the sun. Her demise would be a meaningful act at least. Killing two birds with one stone. She would not only end her own wretched existence but this pesky Accidental Demon as well. And most importantly she would be reunited with her brother as well.

Ume let out a shaky sigh as she vividly recalled the moment that Gyutaro entered Hell on his own accord. The unbridled flames swallowed him up whole. Ume couldn't bear to imagine what horrific agony Gyutaro felt upon entering; the eternal world of hellfire that roared with great intensity. The suffocating heat made Ume feel as if she was roasting alive. The piercing cacophony of anguished screams of the damned drowned out all sounds. Gyutaro didn't even resist his fate, he just walked over without showing a hint of emotion, not even a mere glance over his shoulder, willingly meeting his agonizing demise.

All because of me.

Then Ume turned her attention back onto her current predicament. She was still trapped in this strange demon's body without a true sense of direction of what exactly to do. Initially, Ume believed that this was her atonement for her sins; yet at the same time, this felt more like the divine was playing a cruel joke on her rather than trying to teach her a lesson. The divine was mocking her, toying with her like a helpless puppet on strings.

Perhaps karma had finally caught up to her, even after death. It was her turn to suffer now, to feel the grief and agony of all those families that had lost their loved ones because of her selfish driven actions.

This was her punishment.

All the things she had done as Daki, as Yatamahime, as Warabihime. Her high-ranking position as an renowned Oiran, her esteemed position as an Upper Moon Six and all the things she endured, it was all for nothing. All for absolutely nothing.

Those cynical thoughts left her on the brink of cracking. Ume just wanted to burst out of the box and burn, but she found herself stopping mid-action instead.

No. Don't think like that. You have to be strong. She shook her head stubbornly, adamant about dislodging the despondent thoughts.

Ume sunk deep into her seat; feeling the heaviness weighing down on her even harder than before. She fought to stay alert and preoccupied her mind. Her fluttering eyes stared stubbornly in Tanjiro's direction. She listened to his breathing, his heartbeat, and his blood circulation. Oddly, it all sounded so soothing to her that she was compelled to press her ear up against the wall and just waited.

o o o —(O)— o o o

Ume felt a staggering wave of dizziness wash over her. Something seemed to have suddenly sucked the energy out of her, leaving her with a pounding headache. It felt painfully overwhelming to her entire body, mildly messing with her head.

What the hell is wrong with this demon's body? Ume thought as she clawed her long nails into the thick wood over and over to keep herself wide awake.

She didn't understand why she was so tired all of a sudden.

No, that's not the right word. Being tired was an understatement. Ume was completely, painfully, and utterly enervated. Just a few minutes ago, she'd been fine in a physical sense, no different from a typical demon feels, but now her body felt as if it was carved out of the thick wood that surrounded her, not even managing a shiver as a gust of icy wind blew through the wooden walls she was kept in. Ume couldn't tell how long she had been sitting there, she was neither hungry nor thirsty. In fact, she felt absolutely nothing—no sadness, no anger, just a persistent kind of numbness.

How strange. Ume could vaguely remember feeling something akin to this before during her short human years. The time where she caught a terrible case of flu from one of her clients that left her bedridden with a high fever and lethargy for two long weeks. Aside from the high fever, the persistent exhaustion weighing down on her right now felt frighteningly reminiscent in his body.

It made no sense. Demons can't feel fatigued, not even half-baked ones like this girl. Ume thought tiredly.

Even when she attempted to steel herself to stay calm, knowing that it was dumb to panic, Ume found herself mindlessly clawing at the wood because it was against every survival instinct in her body to sit there and do nothing.

Her fingers were steaming and she could hardly feel the rough texture on her fingertips, but Ume continued to scratch, it was keeping her occupied for the time being.

It wasn't until she smelt the sudden scent of bitter wisteria manifesting outside the box which made her fell into a harsh coughing fit.

"There it is, the wisteria house!" The shrill female voice of the person carrying the box suddenly jolted to a stop. Her voice was like nails on glass. "We can stay there to prepare for the rest of the trip!"

The foul stench of wisteria seemed to be growing thicker and thicker with each passing second until all Ume could smell was the smothering stench surrounding her box and the increasing smell of human after human. Hurried footsteps creaking on wooden floors and resonant voices young and old hummed in the air. Ume paid little attention though.

Then there were the sharp sounds of descending footsteps creaking on the wooden floor.

"Put them into one of the rooms." Ume heard one of the assistants order the female to carry her.

"Understood."

After a short walk up a flight of stairs, Ume felt the box being lowered and settled to the floor. She would have burst out of the cramped space at the first chance if it wasn't for the foreboding sense of the sunlight engulfing the room.

"Don't come out. I know you're anxious, but the sun is still out, and there are no windowless rooms. We will leave in the morning." Ume heard the voice of the high-pitched female carrier filtering through the walls of her prison alongside the creaking sounds of a door. "Don't worry, Tanjiro-san is here with you. I promise."

Before Ume could shoot out a nasty string of curses at the female, the resounding sound of a closing door beat her to it.

She was alone, even with Tanjiro in the same room.

Ume ceased her scratching. There was a staggering silence in the room that managed to snap her benumbed self back to reality slightly. Numbly Ume stared at her hands with trauma misting her eyes. Steam continued to wisp out of her fingers, sealing away the cuts caused by wooden splinters.

Her blood—the Accidental Demon's blood— decorated the walls red before fizzling away, but even after they were gone, Ume could still smell it all around her. The acrid smell of blood burned her nostrils, stinging her eyes, the locked-away memories of the past oozed through the forming cracks of the fortress of her mind.

The pain. The blood. The helplessness.

The Accidental Demon's bloodsoaked foot spearing deep into her splintered spine, her own haunting scream echoing through the empty alleyway.

Ume clenched her eyes shut, dispelling the images.

This sucks, this sucks, this sucks! She thought, frustrated. I'm trapped here. I can't even step out of this damned thing.

She wanted to cry, but couldn't.

She wanted to scream, but couldn't.

She wanted to summon her brother, but couldn't.

She was too busy drowning in her misery; no matter how much Ume tried to plot and scheme her next best strategy to escape her odd circumstances, her mind was not obeying her. Silently, Ume had hoped that the divine forces that placed her in this god-forsaken body would make her disappear somewhere where she could nurse her own self-pity in peace. She was so tired. She was too tired to even think, too worn out to cry, and too broken to even feel anything.

It was hard to believe that hours before, she had been Daki, the beautiful, powerful, and ruthless Upper Moon, eagerly waiting for the Hashira to fall into her little trap. It seemed like the perfect plan too. Lure in the prey with the bait, isolate him in the deepest, darkest depths of Yoshiwara, and slaughter him in an epic bloodbath. There was no doubt in Daki's mind that she would have had her eighth Hashira kill, she would have been one more number closer to her brother's high numbers. Master would have been so pleased. And she embarked on this adventure cockily.

But now, sequestered alone in this cramped little prison, far away from home, trapped in a strange body that was not her own and alone with a bunch of strangers, Ume came to regret even concocting the plan in the first place. She wished that she looked the other way when she first suspected Hinatsuru of being a spy. She wished that she just pretended that she knew nothing about the Hashira sending those three women to survey Yoshiwara for her. She wished she just stuck to her lifelong position of an Oiran and went on with her eternal life.

Because the price of failure was simply too much. Her brother, her career, her home, her body. Everything was long gone now, and it was all her fault.

Heavy eyelids fluttered shut to suppress the painful thoughts, Ume just sat there, unwilling to move, not even bothering to open her eyelids as she listened to the continuous flurry outside the room. This building was full of buzzing humans, young and old. She clung to the small snippets of conversations that seep through the thin walls of the buildings. The three assistants that brought her and Tanjiro here were discussing how to get back to the Demon Slayer Corps safely with Tanjiro's severe injuries. They spoke of heading up the nearby city to reach a place called Butterfly Mansion by taking a day-and-a-half train ride up north.

North. So the Demon Slayer Corps must be located in the Tōhoku region. Most likely the Ubuyashiki clan resides there somewhere as well. Ume summed out. She frowned ruefully. It was crucial information, but not for her. Her dear Master would have been delighted to hear this. But she couldn't even communicate with him through mental means. This body is so detached from his control.

If only I was stronger, I would have taken care of that stupid Hashira and those brats with ease.

"Aw, dear sister, don't fret about numbers. You are consuming the right amount of humans, more than any other weak demons, but your appearance needs attention too. Your beauty is your strongest strength, so maintain it." Gyutaro's raspy voice echoed in her head.

Ume touched her cheeks, holding back the burning tears that were brimming in her hooded eyes.

The memory assaulted her but kept her eyes closed. She could remember those days like it was yesterday, the days that she would truly smile ever since she came to the Twelve Kizuki, the first time she had actually felt warmth and completion, the centuries she actually felt like she belonged somewhere and had a purpose in her miserable life.

Strength and beauty, the words despondently echoed in her mind. I don't even have either of those anymore. In fact, everything was stripped away from her. Her accomplishments, her dreams, her purpose, her brother and even herself.

Her heart started to get heavier as she remembered the final moments with her brother when they were dying. No wonder Gyutaro didn't want to go to hell with me…No wonder, he called me a deadbeat. He probably hates me for getting him killed.

She bit her bottom lip, letting the past memory suffocate her. She closed her eyes again, embracing the agonizing pain that stung her empty grieving heart.

How could she ever look him in the eyes after what she had done?

Her destructive train of thought suddenly stopped when another staggering wave of dizziness swept over her. Warily, Ume raised a hand to feel the sweat cascading down the sides of her forehead. She tried to calm her respiration but there was no way her heart was going to go down after such a memory.

Pressing a hand against her heart, she tried to coax it to steady. But the damage had been done. The memory of Gyutaro's enraged face hollering at her was the sole reason his heart was beating the way it was—far beyond a physical reason.

It was a reaction, a heart-wrenching reaction.

A small whimper escaped her cracked lips when she became consciously aware of the stinging burning in her chest, but she was slowly starting to like it. The physical pain in her body subdued the emotional pain. She pried her eyes open a little, falling back into the memory that she was playing in her mind.

With hot tears welling up in her eyes, Ume shook her head as if to push away the terrible thoughts from her mind. Too many thoughts were rushing through her mind, too many emotions fighting for dominance. So before the guilt could overwhelm her, Ume forcibly shut off any thoughts and emotions and focused on the matter before her.

I need to think about how to escape. This time, I can't afford to waste my chance.

But Ume was at a complete loss. There were so many setbacks. For one, she royally botched her first chance by aiding Tanjiro, then there's this foreign, persistent exhaustion that continues to plague her new body, leaving her chances of running away up in the air, then there's the fact that she couldn't return to her ruined home of Yoshiwara because she would certainly starve from the extreme lack of humans there. Given the magnitude of destruction she and her brother brought, most likely no one, human or demon will be there for a long time until it is fully rebuilt. And finally, she was still trapped in this strange body for reasons she still couldn't fully understand with no Gyutaro or fellow Upper Moon in her corner.

Her only idea was to wait for the Demon Slayers to transport her from this wisteria-infested area, and then brave her exhaustion and flee into the wilderness. She thought of locating Lord Doma either in a temple where he led his Paradise Faith Cult or any random city that could be harbouring beautiful women for him to feast on.

It was a big gamble for her with her odd circumstances, but Doma, out of all of the other Moons, was the one that she treasured as much as her master. He was the very person that recruited them that fateful night, the only individual in this world that was willing to show them a glimmer of kindness when no human would. And that, Ume would forever be indebted to him. So she hoped that if she were to run into him and tell him her predicament, he would be more willing to lend a hand to her and help her in her time of need, just as he did for her and her brother all those centuries ago.

Still, there was some enormous setbacks to that solution: For one, Ume had never stepped one foot outside of Yoshiwara, so she would not know an inkling where to look and secondly, Ume herself knew that there was a strong chance her outlandish story will even be considered to be true.

But that's all she had in terms of planning. She could only cling onto hope.

After that, for a long time, Ume remained in the claustrophobic box until she caught the strange wet sound of a sniffle outside the box. It took a moment for her tired mind to realize that it was no longer daytime. Soon enough, she crawled out sluggishly into a small bedroom.

Taking a deep, lucid breath, Ume turned her head to the side and saw him.

This was not the Tanjiro she remembered.

He was lying on his back in a futon, bandaged and patched, his unconscious features deathly pallor and teeming in agony. The flesh had almost all gone from him. His skin stretched tight over bones like sticks. Under the blanket, his legs bent in ways that made Ume sick. The battle seemed to have shrunken him somehow. He looked half a leaf as if the first strong wind would carry him off to his grave. Yet under the frail cage of those shattered ribs, his chest rose and fell with each shallow breath.

But it was his closed eyes that caught Ume's full attention. Underneath his closed eyelids were gleams of fresh tears that soaked his lower lashes. He had been shredding tears in his slumber.

The sight of it brought a phantom sting in her heart, but Ume dismissed it.

Saving him was foolish, his kindness doesn't change the fact that this is all his fault that I'm here in the first place..Ume thought, her hollow eyes taking in the new foreign confinement that she was now trapped in, and then back to him. Bitterness and resentment filled the air and Ume hobbled to the window, finding it redundant to even look at him.

Through the tempered glass window, she could see the starlit night sky looming above the endless foliage of trees. The full silver moon stood out in stark contrast, casting a soft glow over everything below. The property seemed to be nestled deep within a mountainous forest, nowhere near the bustling metropolitan city of Yoshiwara. Slowly she closed the dark, thick curtains as if to shun the foreign world from her eyes.

A soft wet noise from the side caught her attention and her gaze fell on Tanjiro, beginning to stir in his futon.

For a moment, Ume waited for the moment when Tanjiro would finally open his eyes.

He didn't.

But Ume was surprised to see a faint layer of red mist manifesting over his entire body that was never there before. It was there only for a moment, the next time Ume blinked; it was gone.

"That mist. It feels oddly familiar," Ume murmured in a quiet voice, her wide eyes never leaving his sleeping form.

Then, another memory struck her as though it was the Accidental Demon kicking in her skull at full speed. It was the moment before Tanjiro collapsed into her arms. She saw something that she had never seen before from a human. She wasn't sure why, but he seemed bright, so bright to her that she almost felt as if she could see light manifesting off of him. She had been able to see the sake on the raw air he exuded as well as the thin layer of scarlet mist that seemed to radiate off of it. It was a passing occurrence, a blink of an eye happening that passed by so quickly that she wasn't sure if she had even seen it in the first place. Unless her new eyes were playing a trick on her, Ume swore that she was able to see Tanjiro's rage in that split second.

"Mmh.."

Suddenly, Tanjiro turned on the futon, breaking Ume out of her thoughts. He had rolled on his side, on the side of his bandaged shoulder wound. His features scrunched up in a show of sheer pain and a light layer of sweat gleamed on her forehead.

He'll burst his stitches if he keeps moving like this. He's going to bleed out…

However, no sooner did that gnawing concerns appear, Ume dismissed those thoughts in haste.

Enough already. He's none of my concern.

Yet even with this determination so profoundly embedded in her mind, Ume found herself staring down at his pale face teeming with agony. She could almost feel his physical pain transferring over as her entire body started to pulse and throb. As if it was a natural instinct, she couldn't ignore it.

You still owe him that debt, remember?

She did remember and the pressure from simply remembering was finally evoking a reaction within her and Ume exhaled a maddening breath. She approached his crumpled form, her skin prickled, and she was overcome with a familiar sensation of guilt.

An obi curled around him, a spark of heat emitting from his entire body transferred to her flesh fabric when she touched him. Warm. Tanjiro was warm as his blood, unlike the coldness of her fabric. It was almost comforting to feel.

She re-adjusted him in the bed slowly. His body felt small, fragile, and delicate. She felt as if he could crumble into dust at any moment. Tanjiro sank into the soft feather bed, still stirring restlessly in his sleep, but his movement was restricted. The only free movement was the twitching muscles in his face and the muscles of his jaw working together when he occasionally ground his teeth. Glistening beads of sweat dripped off his forehead.

In dull silence, Ume stood next to him, watching him restlessly sleep. He was clearly having some bad nightmare. For a moment, she suddenly wanted the ability to dive into his mind, she wanted to know what he was dreaming about that was making him turn and toss so much. His face was indescribable, but with her obi over his chest, she could feel that his heartbeat had escalated with each passing seconds. Whether it's from fear or anger, she didn't know.

"Stop..." a voice murmured in the air, and Ume blinked.

An odd sensation, akin to a hot spark, rushed through her and accompanied the voice. The voice was no more than a faint whisper, yet somehow, Ume felt that someone was standing behind her in the room. She wanted to turn around, but she knew that there was no one.

Was she so overwhelmed by everything that she was hearing things now?

"I won't let you get away with this," The voice whispered again, hoarse and strained. Ume blinked, holding on her head, discombobulated by the presence of the voice that came from nowhere. She finally looked around to see where the voice was coming from, but instead, she found herself looking at Tanjiro. The voice belonged to him, pitch for pitch. Yet he was still lying down, fast asleep beside her.

How strange.

Ume snapped out of her reverie, smacking the side of her temple out of frustration. Get a grip, you moron! This is the final time I'm going to help him. I am not this fool's caretaker. I paid my debt by now. She severed the obi, letting it wrap around Tanjiro like a snake, and tried her best to steady her breathing.

It did not help. Her fingers started shuddering and she clenched them together. Eventually, the bitter thoughts suddenly began to deluge into her mind like a bursting dam. She still did not understand why she was here. What is her purpose here? Why did she come to be in this body of all things? What was she supposed to do now?

"Big Brother…what is my purpose here?" She questioned hoarsely, the first coherent words popping into her mind.

Ume knew for sure that he would know, Gyutaro was never confused or lost—he wouldn't be as pathetic as she was now. But as she stood there lifelessly in the centre of the small room with the still form of the Demon Slayer that caused her to be here, Ume remembered Gyutaro wasn't there beside her anymore. No one was. She was alone, facing this bizarre dilemma alone and he was no longer here to help her.

"No, I just need to focus on getting out of here...that's all that—"

Suddenly her eyesight blurred, but not because of the cold beads of sweat that were dripping down her forehead. Ume felt the entire room threatening to tip in a deadly axis, but she forcibly composed herself.

"What…?" Ume mumbled, suddenly feeling discombobulated. She shook her head and blinked until her vision cleared.

Why was everything so blurry? Why do I feel so weak all of a sudden?

As if to answer her unspoken question, the heavy feeling on her eyelids intensified. A foreign ringing pierced her eardrums to the point where she couldn't even hear her own heartbeat.

Everything became fuzzy. She felt each of her senses shut down one by one. Her consciousness was now floating through an empty space filled with thick static. Her head was spinning round like a withered leaf blown from the tree. It was getting worse with every second. She could hear her erratic heartbeat pounding in her ears mingled with her heavy pants.

As her vision dimmed to black holes, Ume felt her body give way. It was almost as if something had sapped her strength in an instant. The sharp, constant twinge in her head was agonizing.

Instinctively she shut her eyes against the pain and felt herself sinking deep into an inky space, she could still feel her blood-stained hands that had supported Tanjiro's bloodied body. She could still feel the remnants of his warmth.

Her hand trembled, and she curled it shut as she continued to sink into the blackness.

.

.

.

A flash of hot pink splashed her dark vision and reverberated against hard metal. Ume barely had any time to register anything when she felt something sharp and hard cut into her side with a burst of white-hot pain for which there was no sound.

The agonizing wail of a man behind her pierced the air before a booming impact reverberated over the silence as efficiently as an agitating thunderclap. Through the excruciating haze of pain, her stunned eyes darted around her surroundings. The long street that was dancing in the wind was now plagued with cruel imagery; the decimated neighborhood was shrouded by plumes of smoke, blood-curdling screams and pleas for help, and the resonating smell of blood. Unrecognizable corpses of men and women littered inside the demolished buildings. Dismembered arms, legs, entrails, and even severed heads. Alongside the fallen was the living endlessly screaming and pleading to the fallen to arouse them from their permanent slumber.

Overwhelmed, Ume tried to register the hectic and chaotic wreck in front of her, but she remained paralyzed in shock. The smell of iron-filled blood was wafting in the air, so pungent and strong that she felt as if all the oxygen in her trembling body had been sucked away only to be replaced only by the toxic aroma of blood.

Then, it dawned on her.

A lump of emotion lodged in her throat.

Everything was just as she remembered it.

The houses. The street. The neighborhood.

The neighborhood where the Entertainment District's High-Class Brothels provided her and her brother temporary housing one-hundred twenty-six years ago. This Upper district's street was once full of life and affluence, a far cry away from the dirty and grim Rashomongasi she grew up in.

This is the neighborhood she annihilated with one single attack. The horrible incident that robbed all those lives that will never return. The horrible incident that happened because of her and her selfishness.

All because of me.

Raw guilt rippled in her chest when she saw a bloodstained woman screaming for help, shaking a bloodied corpse of a young male. Oddly enough, the sight of it reminded her of her brother. For the moment, she swore that she could feel her helpless fear and agony emitting through her, almost as if she was the one lying in the rubbles, bloodied and hysterical.

Ume tried to move. Move a limb, close her eyes, cover her ears, but couldn't. She wanted to remove herself from this area and never look back. but no matter how much she tried, she could not take her eyes off the grisly scene. The blood. The corpses. The civilians. The cries. The screams—They wouldn't stop—they only got louder, more agonizing. Her chest started to rise up and down rapidly as she watched the carnage around her.

It wasn't until Ume felt her hands suddenly squeeze something solid that she snapped out of her stupor. A new staggering distraction presented itself to her. She still couldn't move her eyes to see what she was holding, but her mind quickly realized that she was holding a sword.

Wait.

How am I holding a sword? Why am I standing here? I was not standing here.

And where's…Tanjiro?

Then Ume felt her lips fumble on their accord and a tensed voice that did not belong to her answered her question. "Stay calm. I can help you. Tie a tourniquet on your arm."

It was Tanjiro's voice coming from her lips speaking to the injured man behind him. The voice was composed and low, but Ume could easily hear the unbearable agony throbbing in it. Hot, slick blood flowed from the screaming wound and painted the ground below. A profuse layer of cold sweat coated his forehead. Agony ravaged his body with a cruel intensity, yet Ume felt his teeth clamped down on his tongue to restrain a scream.

I'm Tanjiro right now. Ume realized numbly in her discombobulated mind. I can feel the terrible pain inflicted by that slash, the warm blood flowing out of this wound..I can feel the simmering sensation in his chest..

Ume tried to desperately steady her nerves. The constant murderous cries that pierced the stilled air were beyond daunting. But what petrified her, even more, was the utter confusion as to how or why she came to be here. The last thing she remembered was falling to the floor and nothing more. She could tell that this was not one of those shards of imagery she saw when she first awoke in this world. This didn't seem to be a vision like the one she saw from Master Muzan's cells. She wasn't just watching this grisly incident unfold as an uninvolved observer, she was experiencing it from someone else's perspective. It felt utterly surreal, a dream, almost.

Am I dreaming..?

No. Her mind dismissed that foolish notion as soon as it came. That's stupid. Demons can't dream. Demons can't sleep. It is impossible. This must be some sort of hallucination or illusion.

Regardless of what it is, Ume did not want to be here.

But before she could do anything, Tanjiro finally looked up and her world came to a startling halt when the live image of her old self finally came to life before her.

Emerald green eyes embellished with the Upper Moon Six kanji, flowing hair the color of crisp snow and spring green, embroidered clothes made with rich fabric, and jewels that glittered in the moonlight. Smirking beautifully down from an untouched rooftop before casually sauntering away.

It's me..Ume thought disconcerted.

"Stop.." Tanjiro's voice rasped out, the bitter air hitting the back of his raw throat. Every word he uttered brought about an intense sheet of pain that threatened to cripple his entire body. It was a bloody miracle that he had not collapsed out of shock at this point. "I won't let you get away with this.."

"What?" Daki paused, barely sparing a glance with the boy down below or the bloodied landscape. Her voice was cold, so cold that Ume couldn't help but to feel her blood turn to slush into her veins.

"Are you still talking? That's enough out of you, you ugly thing. An ugly human's life has no value. You'll get along well with the other rotting corpses."

At her own words, Ume could feel her heart breathing sharply at her own words, as though daggers had suddenly transfixed themselves in her chest. She was taken aback by the chaotic emotions suddenly reeling inside of her.

Then Daki turned and began to walk away without another glance.

The world slowed with a stagnant silence. The only buffers of sounds in the bleak environment were the howling winds and the steady clanking of Daki's tall footwear clicking off the hard roof tiles resonating in the air. Even though Tanjiro stood in the centre of the fresh massacre, the desperate shouts and screams sounded far away all the sudden, fading further and further until nothing else was discernible to his ears.

Then Ume could feel something in Tanjiro snap. Like a rubber band pulled to its limits. His chest grew so tight that Ume was so sure it was going to explode at any moment. It was as if an explosion had occurred in the center of his chest, releasing all of the congested and locked-up emotions which he has been harboring for so long. His heart thumping in his eardrums like a wardrum, incessantly, painfully, and deafeningly.

Somewhere within the chorus of sharp incoherent heartbeats, Ume had begun to hear the sound of Tanjiro's voice humming in his own head. It sounded distant at first amongst the thunderous sounds of his heartbeat, yet Ume could hear the voice coming closer and closer, his words growing clearer and louder.

….There are times in life when you simply can't back down…

Then Ume saw red.

A visceral red haze colored his vision. He blinked and blinked, and yet all Ume could see was red.

Red was his anger, his guilt, and his wrath.

Red that flowed out from the gaping gash embedded in his shoulder.

Red that was the silent streets where those people lay, their bodies mutilated, organs and limbs strewn across the ground, hollow eyes that would never blink again.

The red that was the colour of that mist.

All directed at Daki—her—perched tall on the edge of the roof, preparing to leap off in search of her desired Hashira. The fresh massacre below had vanished from even the furthermost reaches of her mind.

Ume could see it as much as she could feel it burning in her bones like acid. Rage. Pure rage. She could feel every drop of his blood simmer and then boil. The muscles in his hands moved, gripping the hilt of the Nicchirn sword harder. Adrenaline surged through his veins. His thoughts thundered in his eardrums, each words severe and cold.

Because there are monsters in this world. Monsters with no souls.

Monsters who take life without hesitation, remorse, or regret.

Their aggression..is something I can't forgive..

Gritting his teeth, Tanjiro was only a blur when his body give flight, the blurring world coloring with the pure, raw hatred glowed brighter and brighter scarlet that she had to blink—

.

.

.

CREAK!

A resounding force rattled Ume into awareness. Her forehead crashed into a solid wall, the sharp pain jolted throughout her entire body.

Huff, huff, huff…

Thick layers of cold sweat coated her forehead. Ume pressed her back to the wall behind her, heaving slow steady pants. Upon realizing she was back in the box, she took this opportunity to stabilize herself, but her mind only spun relentlessly, the aftershocks of fear pulsating her veins.

"You're okay…" she whispered in a daze. "You're okay…"

Slowly through the reeling pain, Ume began to acclimate to her reality.

Her entire world shook and bumped constantly with a harsh creak. The grating sound of boots scraping gritty road penetrated the cramped air of the wooden box, rolling over to her like nails to sandpaper. Three distinct voices talking loudly all around her.

"Hey, are you sure that this is the right way? It's almost midnight already, we may not be safe out here. Are you sure we took the right train?"

"Yes, we did take the right one. You were with us. Remember the owner told us we had to go this way after we got off the train? We won't reach the Mansion until noon, remember. We still have a long way to go."

"How is Tanjiro? Is he still breathing?"

"Yeah. His breathing is the same. Shallow."

"We need to move faster then."

Almost midnight?! Ume felt her heart drop when she zeroed in on that one word in her reeling mind. She blinked several times to clear the fog in her head. That means I must have been in that hallucination for the entire day. I may not have too much time. I need to move quickly.

Ume hurriedly straightened herself, her eyes trained on the door before her. She felt much different than she did earlier. She felt better, though not by much. But she no longer felt as tired as she did before. With this newfound energy, Ume forcibly reprioritized herself. The sun would rise soon and she would no longer be free to roam under the moonlight, there was no time to fuss over that bizarre hallucination.

Her heart was palpitating furiously now in her chest. If I just run out and don't stop, I'll be somewhere far away. I'll find a cave to hide out in. Ume told herself resolutely. Then at night, I'll try to find Doma, and I'll be fine.

With that thought embedded in her mind, she sucked in a deep breath and then let it out slowly, leaning her weight on the wooden door.

Move, Ume. Move now.

Then, she saw it.

A mist of black breached the darkness of the box. A black mist black as ink.

Startled, Ume's eyes bulged in the purest form of shock, jerking backward. The back of her head collided hard with the wood wall behind her with severe punitive agony. So hard that it shook the box itself, and made the carrier halt to a stop from the harsh commotion.

"Nezuko-chan? Are you alright?"

Ume couldn't answer as her entire body was overshadowed by the overpowering sense of dread washing over her spine. Her hands started trembling, her throat growing dry as a dessert barren, and her stomach recoiled as if she had a terrible meal. Even though Ume didn't understand why she suddenly felt so terrified, every fiber of her was telling her that she was in danger, telling her that mist belonged to someone..

It's like the red mist I saw on Tanjiro. Ume swallowed back a hard lump in her throat. But this mist…it was not human, I can sense it. The sight of it is unsightly…It's unsettling..nauseating..inhuman...familiar..

The mist held a profound sense of familiarity to it, but at first, she couldn't put her finger where she had seen it before. It was someone she'd met before…

Then it dawned on her that this mist belongs to a fellow Upper Moon..

"Gyokko!"

The resounding word ricocheted out of her mouth as her entire body plunged out of the box and she landed clumsily on her knees. The soil around her feet felt muddy, almost as if it had been raining. She turned around to look out into the far distance to see a narrow footpath before her. From where she was, all she could see were miles and miles of trees.

Ume couldn't help but take note of the skies. It was dark, darker than she had expected, even with the full moon high amongst the endless display of stars, there was hardly any shine to them. It was strange, the world seemed to be dimmed under an unseen cloak of ominous black.

It doesn't matter. Ume quickly dismissed her observations and forced herself to look out into the distance, her eyes moved like a hawk across the dense forest.

Nothing else matters, but finding help.

There was no sign of Gyokko to be seen, but Ume knew that he was not far. She could sense him wandering further down the vicinity where the assistants are all heading. Most likely he is seeking a village to indulge in.

Sucking in a hard breath, Ume braced herself to push herself off the ground and launch out into the trees, but oddly enough she couldn't. She felt dizzy, but it was not the palpable exhaustion she had felt earlier in the day. It was an odd sense of phantom fear. It was twisting and turning her guts around in unimaginable shapes and forms.

Why? Why am I struggling to move all of a sudden? Why is this happening?

"Uh…Nezuko-chan, why did you pop out of the box? What's the matter?"

A sudden feminine voice from behind pulled her out of her stupor and slowly rose to her stiff feet. As she did so, Ume felt something soft and silky sleeve brushing past her shoulder. Ume turned her head to the side as a male assistant strode past her and the female assistant, and sure enough, her eyes fell on an unconscious Tanjiro perched on his back.

Blank burgundy eyes. Broken Nicchirn blade embedded into his mangled body. The bloodied uniform of the Demon Slayer Corporation draped on his corpse as a decoration. She tried to dispel those images, but another grisly image assaulted her in a flash: Gyokko eagerly gifting Master Muzan Tanjiro's severed bloodied head on top of one of his pretty pots like a plant, his warm kind eyes soulless and dull, the beautiful light behind them long gone.

Another one of Gyokko's "finest" artwork.

Ume felt her chest constrict unexpectedly.

She shook her head stubbornly, adamant about dislodging the grim thoughts. No. Enough. Just go find Gyokko and he'll take you to Doma. Doma will help you. He will talk to Master Muzan on your behalf and vouch for you. He will help you and things will get better.

Yet, as she repeatedly told herself, that phantom fear stubbornly remained steadfast. She tried not to acknowledge the fact that even she herself wasn't entirely convinced by her own statements.

Then as if to further ridicule her, the painful image of her own mangled body beside Tanjiro's pot as an additional gift hit her as though it was a bullet at full speed. Brought before Master Muzan's eyes as the Accidental Demon, just another imperfect demon that he expressed a desire to dispose of. Still alive, but set to be discarded like those Lower Moons. Regardless if her story was believed or not, what value did she have to offer?

Nothing. Without her captivating beauty that earned a grand fortune, she had no value.

It was then that the despondent questions she harboured within that box earlier this day struck her in full force.

Was there even a point in fleeing?

Where would she even go?

Who could she even run to in this world?

What other purpose did she serve at this point?

No. Nowhere. No one. Absolutely nothing. The realization slashed at all the remaining hope in her. That's why I feel so afraid. The moment I show my new face, death would shortly follow after.

"Um..Nezuko?" A shrill voice echoed behind her out of the blue, pulling her away from her depressing thoughts.

With a hard gulp, Ume slowly stood up and faced the female.

"There is a demon over there," Ume announced in a deadpan, pointing a stiff finger in that direction. "A strong one down on this path. We're heading towards it."

As soon as the words left her mouth, a stunned silence echoed through the forest, every member stood wide-eyed at the sudden news. No one dared to breathe or move, holding in their breaths in an anticipating silence as they tried to process everything. Ume gritted her teeth in annoyance.

Ignorant pests, She cursed.

But then again, how could she expect understanding from people like these?

"Hello?! Are you all deaf? Hurry up, take a different route. That demon is not far. Move it!" Ume snarled, this time in a voice severe and coarse.

Upon hearing that urgent warning, everyone immediately snapped out of their stupor, and the assistants, including the one carrying Tanjiro, swiftly pivoted their heels in the opposite direction with a reluctant Ume trailing behind the running forms of the assistants, purposefully putting a fair distance between them and her.

Don't look back. Don't.

Though Ume promised herself to not look back, she couldn't resist the urge to look back over her shoulder as she retreated further and further. Instantly, there was a cramping ache in her heart as she realized that Gyokko was getting further away from them, as far away as her old life was.

With her hard heart sinking heavily into her stomach, Ume raised her weary eyes upwards at the sky and realized that the world was not as dark as it was before. In fact, the night seemed to have returned to its typical appearance. It was still dark, but the vivid light of the moonlight bleed through the darkness, milking through the pale green leaves of the towering trees and onto the ground below. Even the crisp white stars twinkled brightly like thousands of lit candles. The faster she ran, the brighter the dense forest glimmered like a green aurora whirling in a trance around her.

It was as if the whole world was rewarding her with its vibrant beauty for making the right decision.

Even if Ume herself didn't feel that she made the right choice.

For the next following long hours, they trekked through the tall dense forest in mutual silence. With every step Ume took further, her heart sank. Deeper, deeper, and deeper until it finally reached rock bottom. And then as if to make matters worse, it wasn't long before she could feel that aching fatigue finally making a reappearance to her, alongside the throbbing pain in her heart.

"Nezuko-chan."

Ume stopped in her tracks when the female assistant suddenly called out to her. She stood before her, lowering the box to the ground, and opened the door. "We're almost home, but you need to get back in. It's getting very late."

Ume responded with dead silence, her eyes taking in the skies above. The assistant was right. The midnight sky was of a dark blue hue with the veil of crisp white stars slowly fading away, The sun would rise soon and she would no longer be protected underneath the moonlight.

At this point, perhaps I'll burn it into ash. she told herself. And that fact did not seem so terrible to her. If she ran off into the undergrowth and gave herself to the sunlight, she could put an end to her suffering. It would be an agonizing death, but it would be much preferable to die at the hands of her master.

She would finally be far away from that box, away from Tanjiro, away from those hallucinations, away from all this uncertainty, and to her brother. However Ume went so far as to turn slightly and move one foot forward ... but then her courage left her, and she crawled inside of the box without a single word.