The story of Gyutaro and Ume Kamado

by bmidd111

In one world, Gyutaro and Ume were orphans, delt the worst that the world had to offer. In that world, the two became Demon's. This is not that world. Read and see just how a little kindness can change the world. Big AU, Kamado Siblings survive.

2. A new Brother

(I'm de-aging them, Gyutaro is 10 at the start of this story and Ume is 6)

Over the next few days, Tanjuro showed to be a good Father in his interactions with Gyutaro and Ume. Kie couldn't do much due to being about to give birth, but she never skipped a hug, gentle touch or kind word to the two children they'd pretty much adopted. Ume was happy enough with all of it and always had a big, beaming grin on her face. Her Older Brother, on the other hand, could never seem to trust the two adults fully. Tanjuro supposed that he couldn't blame the boy. After all, even though they hadn't talked about it, he could tell from Gyutaro's guarded nature that he'd either been hurt a lot by adults in the past or he'd been abandoned. Possibly both. The adult wondered if the 10-year-old was waiting to be abandoned by them as well, be told that they weren't coming with them when they went home and then left in the Entertainment District like they had been by their own parents.

Well, he'd just have to prove the truth through his actions. And maybe one day, Gyutaro would accept that they really did care about him and his Sister. One day, while Tanjuro was out working (and he'd had to convince Gyutaro that, no, he didn't have to work too, not at 10-years-old, and, yes, staying home with your Sister is perfectly fine, please stay home with Ume to help take care of my Wife while I'm gone) they heard Kie let out a grunt of pain. "Mrs Kamado?!" the little girl called, worried. Ume stood up from where she was sitting in front of the fire and ran to see what was wrong. Kie was kneeling on the floor, clutching her tummy. She groaned in pain again, "th-the baby! The baby's coming!" she cried. Ume shrieked. What did she do now?! She had no idea! "I-I, um, I'll get big Brother!" she cried, running off while calling out for Gyutaro.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

The two children did whatever they could to help the Kamado woman give Birth. Getting water, cloths, holding her hands. But they couldn't do much. "Big Brother, we need to go get Mr Kamado. She needs him now!" Ume cried, scared, as the woman screamed. Gyutaro nodded, "alright, I'll go get him! Stay here with her Ume!" he ordered. Then the green-haired boy ran out of the house to find Tanjuro. Ume was left in the building with the agonized woman.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

Gyutaro ran through the snow, his panting breaths leaving white clouds in the air. 'Where is he? I have to find him, quickly!' he thought desperately. It took several minutes before he caught sight of the distinctive long, red hair of Tanjuro. "Hey!" Gyutaro called, running up to the man. Tanjuro turned from where he was carrying a box of supplies. His look of surprise turned to worry and confusion at seeing the child out here in the cold, "Gyutaro? What are you doing out here?" the man asked with a frown.

"The baby's coming!" the green-haired boy cried instead of answering the previous question. Tanjuro froze, before hurrying to put the box down, "let's go then!" he cried, running after the boy.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

The two of them made it back before a storm could start, hearing Kie screaming from labour from outside. Upon entering the house, Ume looked up from where she was crying in the corner, "big Brother! Mr Kamado!" she cried, running into her Brother's arms. Gyutaro hugged his little Sister back, "is she going to be okay?" she asked tearfully. "Don't worry. Women like her are very strong. Kie and the baby will be fine" Tanjuro promised, entering the room to help his Wife.

The two children were left outside the room, waiting to find out what was happening.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

Hours later, Gyutaro and Ume were falling asleep. They were still waiting for news of Mrs Kamado, while her Husband tended to her. They couldn't help but flinch with every scream. Finally, the woman's cry stopped. Then a new cry filled the air. The Siblings looked up as the wailing of a newborn baby was heard. They waited in tense anticipation, until Tanjuro came out to see them. He looked tired, but happy, "Gyutaro, Ume. Come in" he said gently. The two held hands and entered the kitchen. Kie was now laying on a blanket, sweaty and tired, but smiling.

She held a bundle in her arms. Ume walked forwards, looking in awe at the baby the woman was holding. "Gyutaro, Ume, this is Tanjiro. My Husband and I have been talking. And we wondered if you would like to be his Older Siblings" Kie said. The green-haired boy blinked, "wait, are you saying- that you want to adopt us?!" he cried, shocked. Tanjuro looked at them warmly, "yes" was all he said. Gyutaro looked down in thought. He was distracted what his Sister grabbed onto his arm, "please big brother? This is probably the only chance we'll get to have a real family!" she begged.

Gyutaro looked from his little Sister's pleading face to Tanjuro and Kie's ernest ones and finally down to the little newborn baby in the woman's arms. Tanjiro stared up at him with big red eyes, blinking them sleepily. Finally he sighed and closed his eyes in defeat. Then he opened them and took little Tanjiro's hand, "looks like you have some Older Siblings kid" he said with a smile. Ume cheered, but unfortunately all that did was make the bay cry.

The girl eeped, "ah! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make him cry!" she whimpered. Kie didn't scold her, just smiled gently down at her newborn Son, "~hush, hush, hushaby, baby bunny on the hill. Tell me why your ears are so long. Because, when my Mother was expecting me, she ate long leaves from a tree, and that's why my ears are so long. Hush, hush, hushabye, baby bunny on the hill. Tell me why your eyes are so red. Because, when my Mother was expecting me, she ate red berries from a tree, and that's why my eyes are so red~" she sang.

By the time she'd finished the lullaby, Tanjiro was asleep, and the two older children had wide eyes, "woah! What was that?!" Ume asked in awe. Kie blinked at them in confusion, "it was a lullaby. Your birth Mother never sang you one before?" she asked, looking from one to the other. Gyutaro looked away, "our Mother tried to kill me multipule times before and after I was born, and I barely managed to save Ume from being smothered by her when she was a baby. Here in the Entertainment District, children are a burden most people can't afford" he replied, glaring at the wall.

Both adults were shocked and horrified by what they'd heard. 'It just get's worse and worse for these two. How bad of a life did they have before I found them?! And would they really have been killed if I hadn't taken them in when I did? I can't wait until it's safe for us to leave this place and go back home. And we're definitely taking these two with us when we go' he thought, furious at how these innocent children had been treated all their lives. "Well, that's not going to be the case for us. You are our children now" Tanjuro brought both into a hug with his Wife and Newborn Son. Ume teared up, while her Older Brother stiffened in his grasp, but he kept smiling, despite how his heart twisted at the sight.

"You are Gyutaro and Ume Kamado, and we love you both as much as we love Tanjiro" Tanjuro said. Ume started to cry as she hugged her new Mother and gently stroked her new baby Brother's hand. "Yes, we are all a family now" Kie added. 'A family,' the green-haired boy thought, 'is this what having a family feels like?' he wondered.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

Having a Newborn baby in the house wasn't easy, and they didn't get much sleep over the next few weeks. But, finally, a month later, Kie had recovered enough to travel, and Tanjiro was strong enough to weather the cold as long as he was bundled up and held securely. So they all packed up their things and began their journey to the Kamado family home. It was a long way. Many times they had to stop for days at Inns along the way.

And Tanjiro had to be fed several times during the night and day. Kie was getting exhausted, and both her Husband and Ume were worried about her. At least the baby wasn't a fussy child and rarely cried. The only times when he did were when he was cold, hungry or had to be changed. Other than that, he seemed fascinated by the world, and he would stare, enraptured at whatever caught his attention.

It took two Months for the small family to reach the Village at the foot of the mountain where Tanjuro grew up. An older woman was sweeping snow away from her front door. When she saw the Kamado family, she lit up, "Tanjuro, Kie! Well now, you've certainly been gone for a while!" she said cheerfully. Tanjuro looked sheepish, "yes, well, we ended up getting stuck because of the snow. It would have been fine, but my Wife was pregnant. I was worried that it would have been too dangerous to travel until the baby was born and Kie had recovered.

So we waited. Turns out it was a blessing in disguise, because it allowed us to meet our two new children" he held his hand out with a smile. Ume gripped her Older Brother's hand nervously, but Gyutaro walked forwards slightly. After spending 2 months with his new Parents, he knew how he was expected to act. So he swallowed down his other responses and bowed, "it's nice to meet you Ma'am. My name is Gyutaro and this is my little Sister Ume. I hope to get to know you better" he said before standing straight again. The woman gasped in delight, "oh what a well-mannered child! You're very lucky to have met these two, Dears. They'll take good care of you" she said with a smile.

Gyutaro flushed slightly. Despite the time he'd spent with his new family, getting compliments were still something that he wasn't used to. He was still surprised by how much of a difference being polite made in someone's opinion of him. Ume smiled at the compliment to his Older Brother, "thank you!" she said cheerfully. Tanjuro smiled and stroked the little girl's hair gently. The woman then noticed Tanjiro being held by his Mother, "oh! You had the baby! He's so adorable" she said, cooing at the little baby. "Yes, this is Tanjiro. We're sure that Gyutaro and Ume will be good older Siblings for him" their Mother replied. She then noticed the other children beginning to tremble, "well, we should probably get home before it gets too cold" Kie said.

The group said goodbye to the woman and began their treck up the mountain. By the time they had reached their new house, everyone but Tanjuro was shivering and the baby was wailing from the cold. "Everyone inside now, and I'll get the fire going" he said as he picked up some of the logs on the floor. He soon had a fire going and everyone huddled around it to warm up.

"I should have bought some food from the Village while we were there" Kie bemoaned as she got ready to feed Tanjiro. "I'll go back down and get some. Can you two stay here with you Mother and Brother? Make sure to get warmed up. I'll also buy some warmer clothes for you two while I'm in town" their Father said. Gyutaro nodded, "w-we'll take care of them" he replied, while shivering. Soon the Kamado Patriarch was gone. "Damn! Why is it so much c-colder here than in the Ent-tertainm-ment District? It snowed th-there too!" Gyutaro wondered, shifting closer to the fire. "It's b-because we're on a m-mount-tain. We're h-higher, and so, more s-snow and c-cold air hits us. I think" Kie explained. She held her baby closer to her body to keep him as warm as possible. "W-well, at l-least we h-have a f-f-fire to keep us w-warm this time Brother" Ume added.

It took an hour for Tanjuro to return with the food and clothes. He brought in some ingredients and quickly cooked up a stew. "Wow! That was so fast! What is it?" Ume asked in awe, as a bowl of food was handed to her. "This is a family recipe. It's a stew that can be cooked quickly and warm you up in a few minutes. My Mother taught me how to make it because I loved it so much" the man explained. While they were eating, Tanjuro handed Gyutaro and Ume the warm clothes he'd gotten for them. They gasped at the softness and warmth of the clothes, quickly slipping them on. "Wow! So these are warm clothes, huh? So soft!" the green-haired boy couldn't help but gush. Normally he'd never be so open with his feelings, but these were the first Winter clothes he'd ever owned! Being warm had always seemed like a privilege others got, but not them. Before they'd been saved by their Father, the only way they could stay warm was by huddling together under a woven straw cover. And even then the cold air just blew right through it. But not now. "Hey Big Brother! If these are meant to keep us warm when it's cold, then that means that we can actually do things outside without having to worry about the snow!" Ume cheered.

"Do you two want to go play once you've finished eating?" Tanjuro asked kindly. "What could we play in the snow?" the green-haired goy asked, confused. Snow was bad. It was the thing that made them shiver so badly before. It made them cough and sneeze and burn up with fever. Snow was always bad, that's what Gyutaro knew. How could they possibly play in it? Their Father smiled warmly, "well if you like, I'll show you how to play in the snow once you've gotten dressed in the new clothes I brought for you" he replied. Ume cheered again, but her Older Brother looked concerned.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

After getting dressed, Ume squealed, "I love these!" she cried happily. The little girl was now dressed in a thick, but soft purple Kimono with pink butterflies on it. Her new Haori was a lighter purple, and very warm. Gyutaro wore an olive-green Winter Kimono top over two white Kimono tops and black Hakama pants. His Haori was dark green. "You didn't have to go to so much effort just for us" he said, looking down at his new outfit. Gyutaro wasn't sure why he was trying to deny a gift as priceless as proper warm clothing, but the words just tumbled out. Kie watched them from the door of the house as she held the carefully wrapped form of Tanjiro. The shop selling clothing hadn't had anything in the baby's size but had offered to custom-make something for an order of Charcoal. Tanjuro planned to get started on the order as soon as possible, but first he wanted to show his new children how to have fun in the snow.

"It's fine, really. You are our children now. Did you really think that we would let you freeze in those rags instead of getting you real Winter clothing?" Tanjuro asked softly. The 10-year-old looked away. Why not? It's what everyone else had done. The adult sensed the boy closing himself off. Before he had a chance to try to pull him out of it, Ume ran over to them, "big Brother! Do you like my new clothes?!" she asked excitedly. Gyutaro blinked, snapping out of his dark thoughts and looked his little Sister over. Then he smiled gently, "I think you look beautiful and adorable" he replied, stroking her hair. Ume giggled and began pulling on her Brother's hand, "let's play together!" she cried happily. "Yeah" Gyutaro replied with a smile. Tanjuro smiled at this. He knew that the boy would open up eventually, but it would take time. He had been mistreated, abused and betrayed by every adult he'd ever met. Learning to trust his new 'Parents' would probably take much longer than a few Months. "Okay! Now, fun things to do in the snow. We could build a Snowman or have a snowball fight or make Snow Angels. There are lots of things to do" Tanjuro began.

(Timeskip)

Finally, the three decided to build a snowman. Ume giggled the whole time they were making it, and even Gyutaro had to smile at the happiness of his Sister and the ridiculous-looking creature they had made. The snow wasn't wet enough this time, so the whole thing ended up being a pile of snow with sticks poking out of it. "Wow. That's a Snowman? Somehow I don't think we did it right, and this is my first time making one!" Gyutaro said sarcastically with a smirk. "Hey, I think that's the first expression I've seen on your face other than a frown. I can't wait to see your smile too" Tanjuro said, looking proud of himself. The green-haired boy looked down in thought, 'that was the first time I've felt that something was funny in a long time'. Suddenly Kie poked her head out of the window, Tanjiro tied to her back with a blanket, "alright you three, it's getting late. Tanjuro, would you fix up their baths while I get started on dinner?!" she called.

"Sure!" Her Husband called back. So the two children were herded back inside and sat in front of the fire while their new Father left to get water from the nearby stream. "That was fun, wasn't it big Brother?!" Ume asked with a huge smile on her face. Her Brother looked down, "maybe" he muttered. Gyutaro didn't say anything else while they waited to have their baths.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

After washing up, the Siblings ate dinner with their new family. Then Tanjuro spoke up, "I have to make Charcoal and take it down to sell to the woman who made your clothes tomorrow. Do you two want to come with me so that you can see more of the town and how I'll be working from now on?" He asked the two children. Ume nodded excitedly, "okay! Big Brother never let me go to work with him when we lived in the Entertainment District" she replied. Her Older Brother frowned, "you don't want to stay here and look after Mom?" Gyutaro asked, worried about his Sister's safety if she came with them. "Well, now that we're home, I'm safer than before. Plus I know you'll be just down the mountain. I'll be fine if you go," Kie replied, looking over at her Husband, before she looked down at Tanjiro who she was feeding, "we'll be fine if you go" she emphasized. "Okay" the young boy decided. "Great. I'll show you how to make Charcoal first" Tanjuro said.

Ú*Ĝ·Ķ

The two children watched carefully as their Father burned the pieces of wood in the furnace. "How does that help keep people warm? Wouldn't it make more sense to sell them firewood instead?" Ume asked, confused. "The Charcoal holds in the heat, so it can be used to keep people warm even of all of their wood is gone" the adult explained. "Oh, well that would have been useful to have back when we were living in the streets" Gyutaro muttered. Tanjuro pretended not to hear him. He didn't want to accidentally get angry in front of them. Finally the Charcoal was ready, and he carefully packed it into one of their baskets. "Okay, are you two ready to head back into the town?" Tanjuro asked. "Sure, let's go" Gyutaro replied.

(Timeskip)

After they delivered the Charcoal, the people who'd sold the family the Siblings clothes cooed, "oh, you both look so adorable! I'm glad the clothes fit! You just come back when you need more, okay?" The head Seamstress asked. "We will! Thank you!" Tanjuro called as he waved. Then they all headed back home.

To Be Continued