It was nighttime and snowing. Tanjuro Kamado was walking through the Entertainment District. He and his wife, who was heavily pregnant with their first child had been visiting relatives, to tell them of her pregnancy. Afterwards, they started heading to Tanjuro's hometown to have and raise their child. But on the way it had begun snowing so much that it wasn't safe for a pregnant woman to travel. So they'd been forced to rent a place on the outskirts of the District for the Winter. Now his Wife, Kie, was to give birth any day, and Tanjuro was sure that she and their bay would be fine. so then, what was this intense feeling of fear and unease that had driven him from their lodging and out into the freezing night? "NO! HELP ME! PLEASE, BIG BROTHER!" A young voice screamed, making the man stop in his tracks.

Instantly his feet were moving towards the sound. It was faint, so he must have been pretty far away. "LET ME GO! STOP IT!" The girl screamed again, a high sound of terror, followed by a cry of pain and more wailing. A horrible feeling filled him, and Tanjuro began to use his Hinokami Kagura breathing to speed up. "Shut up you stupid brat! You should know what happens when you mess with a Samurai, you damn bitch!" a man's voice snapped. "NOOOOOO! BIG BROTHER, SAVE MEEEEEEEE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Tanjuro rounded a corner, right before the man was about set the child aflame with a burning torch. He also noticed that she was tied up, weakly struggling however she could to escape. Tanjuro paused, struggling to keep his breathing under control. He had never felt such fury before. It burned through him just like his blood did when he danced his family's traditional Kagura. "What the hell do you think you're doing to that child?!" he demanded. With the flames so close, her skin was turning red and the endless streams of tears pouring down her face clearly visible, a young white-haired girl stared up at him. She must have only been around six-years-old.

Tanjuro felt his fury intensify, but held himself back. That torch was still too close to the little girl's face, so he had to be careful. "I asked you a question. What do you think you're doing to that girl?" he demanded, icy calm. A woman who had been standing nearby ran out of the shadows, "she stabbed this man's eye, and her brother is an ugly, violent piece of shit! They're plagues on this District, both of them! And I'm getting rid of them tonight!" She cried. Tanjuro stared at the two with pure hatred in his gaze and took a deep breath. the little girl watching him couldn't see what happened next, but one minute, the flames were right up in her face and the next the man with the torch was gone. For just a moment, she thought she saw the red-haired man dancing. The Manager of the House she worked at screamed, before the sound was cut off. There was an explosion of snow that caused her to blink, then the man was kneeling right in front of her. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked gently, untying or cutting away the ropes.

Despite his gentle eyes and voice, or how he'd saved her, she knew that she shouldn't trust this man completely. He lifted her up to her feet and brushed off the snow. Then he looked at her face, "your face is a bit red. I'm sorry about what those monsters tried to do to you" he said, looking at her sadly. The girl tilted her head, confused, "why?" she asked. "Hm? Why what dear?" Tanjuro asked kindly. The little girl pouted, "why did you save me? Why are you being nice to me?" she asked, "what do you want? I don't have any money and I don't know how to do all the stuff most of the Courtesan's do yet. But you have to want something from me. No one does anything for free in this District, my Big Brother taught me that" she explained. Tanjuro frowned, the Courtesans'? Did this girl- work here in the Entertainment District? He felt his protective instincts flare up again.

She was a child. In fact, this girl couldn't be more than 6-years-old, how long had this been going on for? The Kamado took a deep breath and knelt down to the girl's level, "I don't want anything. I was just wandering, and I heard a child screaming. So I stopped to help. That's all there is to it, okay?" he explained. Then he frowned, "more importantly, you were almost burned just now. Are you alright?" Tanjuro asked gently. the girl gasped, as if just realizing this for the first time. Well she was young, and that had been very traumatic. Tanjuro wouldn't be surprised if she had immediately blocked it out of her mind. "Th-they really did. They actually tried to-" she paused, tears welling in her eyes from terror again. Then she burst into tears, wailing and trembling. The Kamado immediately wrapped his arms around hr, rubbing her back soothingly while she sobbed. Despite this being a strange man, the little girl couldn't help but feel like he really had wanted to help her out of kindness. So she gripped onto his Haori, trembling and sobbing. Tanjuro continued comforting her until her sobs tapered down into sniffles.

"Shhhh, it's okay now. You're safe, you're safe" he promised. When her legs gave out he caught her, wrapping his arms around her small body and picking her up. The little girl would have cried out that he didn't have to hold her like she was a baby or anything, but she realized that she enjoyed being carried like this. The only one who had ever carried her before was her big brother. At that she gasped and squirmed in Tanjuro's arms. He looked down at her, "is something wrong?" he asked with a frown. "Moy big brother! H-he doesn't know what happened! he was out working tonight, a-and he won't know where I am-!" she began, before Tanjuro calmed her, "it's alright. I'll go find your brother a bit later. Right now, you are my first priority. Okay?" he asked. Suddenly he realized something, "I never told you my name, did I?" he asked with a smile. "My name is Tanjuro Kamado, and I'm staying here with my Wife, who's pregnant. Once the baby is born, we'll be heading to my family's home, but it's too dangerous right now with her due date being so close and their being so much snow." Tanjuro explained. "I-I'm Ume," she said, then looked up at him, "your Wife is having a baby?" she asked.

"Yes. They'll be our first child. I hope we can be good parents." As he talked, the white-haired girl felt her eyes closing. She was only six-years-old and had nearly been killed. It was only natural that she would be close to passing out. And his voice was very soothing. Soon Ume was asleep, dreams of she and her brother sitting together with this man and laughing enveloping her.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

Tanjuro gently carried the little girl in his arms, who had now fallen asleep. He smiled, wondering if this was what it would be like when his child was born. Finally, he reached the small house they had rented for the Winter. Thankfully they had enough money from his savings and when he performed odd jobs to live here. He slid the door open and entered the house. "Kie? I'm home Dear" he called quietly after reaching the Living-room. His Wife was sitting in a chair in front of a roaring fireplace, with pillows for her back, she was also knitting a blue scarf. Kie looked up and smiled, but the look turned to confusion at the sight of the small girl in his arms, "welcome back. Who's this?" she asked with a frown. "Her name is Ume. I'll tell you the whole story after I put her to bed. The poor thing is utterly exhausted." Tanjuro replied.

After he had done so, he returned to the Living-room and sat down on a chair. Then he began to tell his Wife the situation that he had found the child in. as expected, Kie was shocked, horrified and furious. In fact, if she hadn't been heavily pregnant, he was sure that she would have gone out there herself and headbutted those monsters straight into Hell. "How could anyone be that monstrous?! Trying to burn a young child like that?! What is wrong with the people living here?!" Kie demanded, trying to calm herself before something happened to her baby. Her husband placed a hand on her arm, "breathe Dear. I'm furious too, but if you get to upset, you could hurt the baby" Tanjuro soothed. Kie sighed, "I know, I'm sorry. It just hurts, knowing that there are children like her being treated so horribly" she replied, tears filling her eyes. "I feel the same. I have to go out and find Ume's brother. Can you keep an eye on her while I'm gone?" Tanjuro asked.

His Wife nodded fiercely, "of course. You just find Ume's brother" she replied. He smiled and kissed her, "you be careful Kie. Don't overdo it".

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

A few hours later Ume woke up with a growling stomach. She groaned, "hungry" she muttered, still half-asleep. She had never slept that well before. The 6-year-old got up and followed her nose that could smell something delicious. She wondered if she was having the food dream again, where she would think that she had a lot of yummy food to eat, but it would all be gone when she woke up. she must be, since she didn't recognize this house. Peeking into the room where the smell was coming from, Ume saw a black-haired woman sitting at a table with bowls of food. Her stomach growled again and she gasped, hiding behind the wall. This couldn't be a dream! None of her dreams ever had any adults there to keep her from eating the food before.

Where was she?! Where was big brother?! Had she been kidnapped?! Ume was so busy panicking that she didn't notice that the woman had seen her. "Hello. I'm glad you're awake dear. Are you hungry? I have food here for you if you are" she called. "Wh-who are you?! Where am I?!" She demanded from behind the wall. "My name is Kie Kamado. It's very nice to meet you and I'm glad you're alright now. Do you remember what happened to you? My husband said he saved you" Kie explained gently. "S-saved me?" she asked, "from what?" Ume was confused. What happened to her? And where was big brother? Kie frowned, 'has she got amnesia or something? Or just blocked it out?' she wondered. She smiled reassuringly down at the little girl, "it's okay. Don't worry about it. anyway, this is where my husband and I live for the moment. Your dinner is ready, and then a nice warm bath is waiting for you too. Do you want to come out and eat?" the woman asked her.

Ume looked at the food with a frown, before looking back at the woman- Kie, "but where is big Brother?" she asked. "My husband, the one who saved you, is going to go find him soon. He's just bringing a bit more firewood in" the Kamado woman replied. Just then, Tanjuro entered the house with chopped wood under one arm, "oh, Ume. Glad to see you're awake" he said with a smile. He put the wood down and knelt in front of her, "I know you're worried about your Brother, but I promise, that I will find him and bring him here. Can you tell me what he looks like please?" the man asked gently. Ume looked down. She knew that big brother didn't like his face, but she needed to find him. "His name is Gyutaro and he has short green hair. He also has marks on his face" she explained. "Marks? Like a Birthmark?" the man asked. When the little girl only stared at him in confusion, he pointed at the mark on his forehead, "like this one. This is a Birthmark" Tanjuro explained. Ume tilted her head to the side as she stared at it, before she nodded, "yes, like that, but big Brother has two on his face and they look like black seaweed" she replied.

"I see. Thank you Ume, I'm going to bring your Brother to you as soon as possible. Until then, I have a special job for you" Tanjuro began. The white-haired girl's eyes lit up, "what job?" she asked. He pointed at Kie, who was sitting next to her at the table, "I need you to look after my Wife for me while I'm gone. She's going to have a baby soon, so she needs to be looked after. Can you do that for me Ume? And I'll be back with your brother soon" Tanjuro asked seriously. Ume gained a look of determination on her face, "yes, I can do that!" she said seriously. Tanjuro rubbed her head, "thank you, you're a very good girl" he replied with a warm smile.

He looked up at his Wife, who nodded to him, "alright, dinner and then bathtime. When Tanjuro and your Big Brother get back, they can eat and wash up too" Kie assured. Ume looked down in thought, "alright, I guess that's okay. As long as Big Brother gets food too!" she said, surprisingly forcefully. Kie nodded, "I've cooked plenty. There'll be enough" she promised. Tanjuro waved as he left, "alright, I'm leaving now. Be a good girl Ume" he said gently as he walked out into the snow.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

Gyutaro was utterly furious. He'd gotten back a little over 10 minutes ago and went to pick up his Sister from the Ogimoto house. Only to be told that Ume had left. He would have gone to look around, if he hadn't known that his little Sister was too afraid to try and go home by herself, what with her horrible sense of direction, so she would just stay at the house until her Big Brother came to pick her up. But no matter where he looked, she wasn't there. When he'd seen the look on the Supervisor's face, his fury had boiled over. "What did you do?" he growled, gripping his chained sickle tighter, "where is my little Sister?! What did you Bastards do to her?!" Gyutaro demanded, stalking towards the woman. The Supervisor scoffed, "she got lucky. If it hadn't been for that Bastard interfering, she would have gotten a lot worse" she replied. The green-haired boy looked about ready to commit murder, before a gentle hand being placed on his shoulder snapped him out of his rage, "easy now. Don't do something you'll regret later" a kind, gentle voice said from behind him.

The 10-year-old slowly looked back at the man, "who the hell are you?" he asked slowly, grip tightening around the handle of his weapon. The man smiled, "it's alright. I won't hurt you. Your name is Gyutaro, right?" he asked. the boy narrowed his eyes, "why do you want to know?" he asked warily. "It's okay, you don't have to be scared of me. I found your little Sister, Ume. She's with my Wife at the moment. She want's you" the man replied. Gyutaro gasped, "Ume! Is she alright?! The Bastard tried to do something to her, did he hurt her?!" he cried frantically. He couldn't get the thought of his precious baby Sister in pain and crying for him out of his mind. The man frowned, "not here. I'll explain later. But she's fine for the moment, I promise. I'll take you to her" he held out his hand, "my name is Tanjuro Kamado. Shall we go see her?" he asked kindly. Gyutaro was thinking furiously. He in no way trusted this random man, no matter what he said. But he apparently had Ume with him. The green-haired boy clenched his fists and took a breath, "alright. Let's go then" he huffed, refusing to take Tanjuro's hand.

This didn't seem to bother the man at all, as he simply led the young boy back to his house.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

When they reached the house, the 10-year-old couldn't stop himself from running through the door, "Ume!" he cried, sure that she was being hurt by these people. After all, no one had ever done any less to them. Only to stop in his tracks from shock as soon as he entered the small Sitting-room. His little Sister was kneeling at a table with a very pregnant woman. On the table was a fresh and steaming meal that made his stomach roar and his mouth water. His little Sister, who looked clean and was even smiling, looking up as soon as she heard his voice. "Big Brother!" she cried, getting up and throwing her arms around him. The green-haired boy hugged his little Sister back as tight as he could, "oh Ume! Thank God! I was so worried about you! I-I- *sniff* if anything had happened to you, I- *sob* I was so scared!" he wailed, clutching the white-haired girl as close as he could, sobbing with relief. Ume was crying too, the relief of finally feeling safe in her Big Brother's arms after everything she's gone through that evening was too much to bare.

"Ume. It's okay, it's okay now. Big Brother is here. I'm here now, you're safe" Gyutaro whispered, rubbing her back and stroking her hair and just holding her close. Ume snuggled close to the familiar warmth, the gentle voice that always lulled her to sleep at night when her tummy growled for food they didn't have. "I'm so sorry that I wasn't there when you were in danger. I'm just so glad that you're safe" he said in relief, all the strength nearly leaving his body at the full realization. He had to catch himself on the table next to him. "Big Brother!" the little girl yelped when he nearly fell. "I-" the green-haired boy sighed. He looked up Tanjuro, who was hovering anxiously at seeing his near collapse. Kie also seemed worried, but stayed seated, since she knew that she wouldn't be fast enough to catch the boy if her were to fall. "I'm sorry for my attitude earlier. It looks like I owe you my little Sister's life," he looked at the man with complete gratitude, tears of relief streaming down his face, "thank you so much Sir" he said with a bow. Which was difficult, because Ume was still clutched in his arms.

"It was no problem at all. What I did was what any decent person would do if they saw a little girl in danger. I'm just glad that both of you are alright" Tanjuro replied with a warm smile at the two children. Gyutaro noticed that it seemed to be his default expression. Kie looked happily down at the two children, "why don't you have something to eat while my Husband gets a bath ready for you Dear? You look like you're starving" she suggested, concern lacing her voice. Tanjuro took the hint and left to get some more snow and wood for the boy's bath. Meanwhile, Ume led her Older Brother over to the table. "Well, even if you only stay for a short while, welcome to the family you two" the Kamado Matriarch said cheerfully.

To Be Continued