#hatengu

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Fear is an incredibly powerful emotion.

It’s very much needed for survival, that is a fact, as it helps you keeping yourself safe and away from all dangers life can bring your way.

But when it comes to love and those sort of complicated feelings, fear can become your worst enemy.

While the rest of the clones had their fair share of excitement with this flower girl, Hantengu hasn’t stopped shaking since the moment you escaped.

Were you safe?

Were you able to escape from this awful series of unfortunate events?

Were you sad and alone waiting for someone to come and get you from a hidden cave in the woods?

Just why he kept thinking about all this was entirely a mystery for him. But he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t even drink blood anymore. He was in physical pain from all this irrational fear to a point where Muzan told him to take a break, sort of…

“Get out of my sight, you useless creature…if I see you once more shivering in a corner today I swear I’ll crush your skull…”

His harsh words only made the grunting and shaking worse, if this wasn’t enough on it’s own he managed to anger his lordship. Why did his clones get him in this mess? Is not like he did willingly, he just absorbed them back, this never happened before, never their emotions were so high they would end up rubbing on him, this was a first and he didn’t know how to fix this.

“I need this to go away before Muzan-sama ends up eating us all…” quivering behind a rock he summoned them four, while all he could feel was fear, annoyance was as clear as water in his eyes.

“Fix this now!”

Sekido as usual was the first one to talk, “This is all your fault to begin with! YOU sent us her way, you agreed on taking this mission! And now you want US to fix it?” scoffing he just paced around said rock, “So easy of you to say…you never take on the dirty work…”

Karaku on the other hand was delighted with the news, “Do we know where she is? I can’t wait to see that gorgeous body of hers again…ahhhhh….my love….I hope she’s dying to meet me just the same way I am…” loud scoffs was all that could be heard in the background, presumably coming from Sekido.

“I just hope she’s still alive…poor girl…she didn’t do anything wrong and she’s so nice…so kind…” Aizetsu kept sighing from his place underneath a tall tree.

“She’s fine, I’m sure. I’ve never seen a stronger woman before. She even likes Sekido!” Urogi was circling them all from above, happily flying with excitement.

“I don’t know where the woman is, just go find her. Don’t come back until you get rid of her!”

“WHAT?” the four of them said in unison, dumbfounded by their counterpart’s instructions.

“I can’t keep living like this, you need to make sure this stops right now. I need her out of our life!”

“I don’t think getting rid of her would fix this problem…if any…my own emotions will drown you further…” Aizetsu rarely has any valuable input in a problem, being driven by sadness isn’t the solution to any problem, but this sounded about right.

“Sekido will consume you from the inside too…” 

“Ugh…We won’t kill her…but I’ll think of a way of fixing the problem.” without acknowledging  their higher self, they followed their self imposed leader, at least he didn’t want you dead.

“Aizetsu, can you track her scent?”

Pulling a little piece of cloth from his pocket, he sniffs it like a pup. “You had a piece of her kimono with you all this time? You disgust me…”

“Don’t listen to him, he’s just jealous because he doesn’t have one himself.”

“She’s in that direction…” he pointed south, the familiar scent he’s been craving so much filling his lungs causing a few tears to roll down his face.

“Urogi…”

“Yes sir!” flying as fast as he could through the vast forest, an immense amount of excitement filled his chest. While he’s the most calm of the bunch, just thinking of being able to see you once more was enough to make him forget about how hungry he was.

The night was dark, the moon kept hidden by pesky water filled clouds. Of course nothing that would stop Urogi from finding his prize, yet a bit troublesome to say the least. Storm winds kept pushing him on the opposite direction, washing away the soft floral scent he got to love so much.

“(Y/N)!! (Y/N) baby can you hear me? It’s Urogi! (Y/N)??? C’mon love stop hiding!” he screamed at the top of his lungs while flying low. He knew you were there somewhere, he could literally feel it, yet you were nowhere to be seen.

A little branch cracking caught his attention, his eyes glowing brightly in the darkness as the figure he’s been dying to see again finally reveals in front of him.

“Urogi-san? Is it really you?” unlike him, you couldn’t see in the dark, yet the powerful sound of his wings was a memory you treasured dearly and would recognize anywhere.

“(Y/N)!!!” a loud thud could be heard as your body hit the ground, a very heavy mass of muscle and wings crushing you and smothering you with kisses. 

“Urogi-san! I thought I’d never see you again! Why are you here?”

“We were a bit restless thinking of what became of you. Are you hurt? Have you been eating?” 

Giving him that lovely smile of yours,  you just shook your head. “I’m not hurt, all thanks to you all. Aizetsu-san made sure I got to escape safely. Are you four ok?”

“We’re fine just worried about cha. Let’s go find the others, shall we?” he didn’t really gave you time to answer, scooping you in his strong arms and giving you forehead a soft loving kiss while he crossed the forest once more, with you in his arms the storm winds were nothing to him, pure joy elated his heart and that was more he could ever wish for.

Once he managed to get back to others, he put you down puffing his chest proudly, “Found her~”

“Sekido-san!!!” you tackled the demon, wrapping him in a warm embrace, while the others knew you were quite fond of him, they never expected to see such a thing.

“Are you ok? You’re such a dumb woman, I’m sure you’re hurt everywhere, aren’t you? Show me your injuries, you idiotic pest!” 

His angry outburst made you giggle, even if he was angry he was worried about you, that much was clear. “I’m fine. Don’t worry, I’m tough, remember?”

Scoffing he stopped resisting your snuggling, “Yeah right, like a useless human could do anything on their own…”

“I wasn’t on my own though…Aizetsu-san helped me get out of there unscratched.” reaching a hand over to Aizetsu, you pulled him into the warm mess of tangled limbs you called hug. 

“I missed you…” the sadness in his voice was palpable, while the other three missed you as well, they were incapable of showing it the way he could.

“I missed you too. Did you manage to escape alright too?” you cupped his cheek, tenderly caressing it with your thumb, while he couldn’t smile, his eyes watered with intensity from your soft loving touch, nobody had ever shown such tenderness to him, he was a demon, undeserving of such delicacy.

“Yeah…we are all fine. Better now that you’re here…”

Karaku was enjoying the show from up a tree branch, drinking some sake while admiring your beauty from afar, “We need to get you back to safety, sweetheart. Otherwise our emotions won’t be at peace. Though, I still want to strip you naked and drink from your-“

“Shut your mouth if you ever want to use it again.”

Sekido’s outburst made you giggle once more and snuggle further onto him. “Are we going back to the cottage? Or is it still not safe?”

“The cottage should be fine, right boss?”

“Yeah the demon corps left the area a while back, even if they did a human living there on her own wouldn’t be suspicious.”

“As long as we aren’t there, that is. We would only bring her troubles…” Aizetsu sighed heavily, sinking further into your embrace as if trying to engrave this moment in his memory for eternity. The warmth of your body, your little squeezes, the soft touch of your loving kisses…in all honesty he wished he could enjoy those all his life. 

But there was no way he could.

“Let’s go, gorgeous. I’ll carry you in my arms so you don’t have to walk.” flying with Urogi was quite thrilling, though it was also pretty fast to arrive to wherever the aim was and that was something you didn’t want right now. “As much as I enjoy that, I think I would like to walk with all of you, if you don’t mind.”

They were all as surprised as the other by your response. It almost sounded like you wanted to spend time with them. But that couldn’t be true, they were your captors, they literally kidnapped you and forbid you to return to your home town, not even to retrieve the corpses of your departed family.

Aizetsu held one of your hands in his, gently caressing your knuckles with his thumb, “Let’s go.” 

Taking the lead was never reserved for Aizetsu, he lacked assertiveness, but even sadness can be useful when it comes to real love.

He had the most intense feelings out of the rest, while some might think Sekido was the obvious answer, sadness is more powerful than anger, it tears you apart from within, it makes you take stupid decisions, clouds your view of every possible positive outcome. But it also clings to the beautiful feeling of love, craves it like no other as it soothes their lonely heart.

Aizetsu was the one who triggered such anxiety in Hantengu, he was the sole reason for his constant breakdowns.

While the other three contributed to this, Aizetsu kept flooding his mind with insanity.

The moment you smiled at him and held his hand back, his heart just couldn’t take it anymore, sobbing, he kept on walking north, he needed to bring you back to safety, back to a place he could always find you at.

“Oi Sekido…If we bring her to the cottage…does that mean we can just visit her whenever we want?”

“Ugh…I guess…but try to suppress your joy or he will notice…”

Urogi danced in the gloomy night sky, even if Aizetsu had the best interaction with you this time around, there was always a chance to see you again, he could come and smother you with kisses whenever he wanted, he could just stop feeling like he was drowning. Being happy all the time can be as exhausting as being sad or angry, it makes you question your own choices, your own words, your own truthfulness, yet with you around he never had to question anything, he could utterly enjoy his joyful self, making you giggle, causing you to smile, being a source of happiness to you was more than enough for him.

Sekido on the other hand, had his mind filled with uncertainty.

While he knew you being safe would bring order to his messy thoughts, he also knew it was very unlike him to enjoy your company, your touch, your smile. He was in rage with his own self, he wanted to kick himself real bad, rip his own head off, he couldn’t fathom anger itself could bring something like love to bloom.

What angered him most was the fact that you didn’t mind any of this. You were surrounded by demons, demons that could eat you alive at any point in time, you were facing Karaku who could ravish you to pieces, and all you did was giggle like a fair maiden, blush at their words, cuddle them like they were a bunch of puppies. You’d end up dead at this rate…if you accepted them just fine, you could accept any other demon, they would not think twice and dismember you like a chicken for supper, drink your delicious blood like nectar from the gods.

“Woman. You can’t let anyone enter the cottage but us, you hear me?”

“What do you mean?”

“You…your scent…calls creatures like us…they won’t be as generous…”

“Ah….yes…anyone would party in that beautiful body of yours, my muse…I would if Sekido wasn’t as noisy…” the scowl in Sekido’s face was almost comical, yet he was absolutely right and that was a terrifyingly infuriating thought.

“Got it. Will you guys bring food to me then? If I can’t go out?”

“You can go out, dumbass. Just not at night.”

“Oh…that makes things easier, yes. But you will come and visit me, right?” the pleading look in your eyes made him feel somewhat light headed, an unusual sensation at that.

“Yeah yeah…”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The cottage was still the same way you left it, remains of the rope that held you captive, charred coal from Karaku’s bonfire…Urogi’s scratches on the floor, it held so many dear memories, even if they were fleeting, they were all very much treasured memories of yours.

They were hard at work reinforcing the door and windows, setting traps around the cottage, making sure no demon would dare to touch their prey. 

Aizetsu though, couldn’t bare being away from you and was currently laying his head on your lap while you caressed his long fluffy hair. 

While he was still sad about leaving you here on your own, he knew there was noting he could do, he couldn’t stay here to protect you, though he could come at any time, see your face, have your soft soothing touch all to himself.

“Aizetsu-san…I wanted to thank you…” your voice was nothing but a whisper, yet he could hear all of it and it made his stomach drop with anticipation.

“You were always so kind to me, from the start. Gave me a sense of safety I never felt before…” your words turned to silence yet your loving touch said more than your words, he could feel how much you cared for him, for the others, how you accepted them even knowing what they truly were, a sense of belonging bloomed in his chest the same way it did on the others.

“I’ll come visit when I can…will you…will you caress my hair like this when I do?”

“Of course, sweet stuff. As much as you want…”

Unbeknownst to you both, the other three were watching the entire interaction. 

They were connected after all, they were one.

That sense of belonging bloomed in all of them at once, and not an ounce of jealousy could be felt within any of them, not even Sekido.

This is where they belonged. 

Not by Muzan’s side, not fighting demon hunters, but in your arms.

A realization that was not only worrying but wholesome, as much as troubling.

Demons can’t fall in love, can they?

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Demon Slayer Corps Members

Muzan Kibutsuji: Runs the corps like a tight ship. He's got the wit, the strategy, and the temper as the cannon. Of course, many people see this temperament negatively, but they can't help but respect him as a leader; he's able to come up with plans to prevent demons from spreading around. Despite his own shortcomings and the disease he has, his ability to run the corps effectively has earned him the loyalty of most of the slayers. He may not always be understanding but he's smart enough to know how to approach sensitive topics and deal with the consequences that come with having slayers and being the leader of the corps. The disease and the timeline are still the same btw.

I'm aware Muzan has a wife and a daughter, but for the sake of this AU there's no wife and he's infertile due to the disease. 

Michikatsu Tsugikuni: Michikatsu's own story proceeds the same without much change. His pride, his jealousy, his drive, all of it remains the same. That is until he meets Yoriichi face-to-face. And of course, he's jealous; not only did his brother best him again in skill, but was also able to ascend so freely. Yet due to that, He rejects Yoriichi's offer to join him in serving Kagaya, rather striving to work harder through sheer effort and arduous training to show who's stronger: Faustian bargains or humane hard work? The two went toe-to-toe after this; Michikatsu was defeated, but spared by Yoriichi, interested if the work effort he was putting into himself would actually surpass him in power. As the Moon Hashira, Michikatsu persists in killing his brother for the final fight. He uses a standard Nichirin sword.

I emphasize the weapons used for every hashira because not everyone is gonna have the same sword.

Douma Hashibira: Backstory is still the same in terms of context: Parents followed Gyomei's cult and believed Douma was their golden child, which they get to flaunt spread the good word of Gyomei and the eternal paradise cult. Soon, mother found out father was cheating and killed him, then killed herself and Douma's just like 🧍‍♂️. Upon wandering the world parentless and lackadaisical, he gets attacked by a demon and hides in a shrine until Urokodaki finds him and takes him in, despite being incredibly concerned about how a boy could be so indifferent to near-death experiences.  During his training, Douma has formed a personal breathing style derived from Water Breathing known as Ice breathing and uses a tessen embedded with Nichirin knives. Becomes the Ice Hashira.

Hakuji "Akaza" Kawakami: Not much changes a lot about Akaza's backstory except Koyuki and her father were slain by demons instead of poison. Soon, began hunting demons down on his own to seek revenge for their deaths. Ended up just coming across Urokodaki like how Douma was. Absolutely LOATHES Douma despite training alongside him for months. While Akaza is an incredibly skilled martial artist, he uses dual-wielding Nichirin swords. Develops Power Breathing and becomes the Power Hashira in the process. The most loyal to Master Muzan.

Yes, I am making up fake real names for the upper moons. So what? It feels more complete that way.

Zohakutan Hatengu: Due to the neglect of his father and being raised by a senile, criminal grandfather, Zohakutan was diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID). The clones/quadruplets are his multiple personalities: Sometimes he's Zohakutan, other times he can be the hot-headed Sekido or the emotional Aizetsu or the hedonic Karaku, or the jocular Urogi. He tends to dissociate himself from the other clones and can shift real quick depending on the circumstances. In other words, he's as delusional as his grandfather. Muzan takes him into his home in return for loyalty. He develops the Nature Breathing style, becomes the Nature Hashira, and uses a Nichirin cutlass.

Managai "Gyokko" Hamaguchi: Anonymous pottery artist turned local pickpocketer since his art was never sold. Gyokko never had a stable home to live in so he constantly moved towns in order to not get caught. Eventually got caught and was sentenced to death until Muzan stepped in to "take him as a slave" when really he was just more interested in his cunning. Used Water Breathing which evolved to Ocean Breathing. Eventually became the Ocean Hashira and used a Nichirin chakram.

Ume "Daki" Shabana: Becomes a hashira after Gyutaro. Backstory proceeds as cannon: the Ice Hashira comes across the siblings while on the hunt for a lower moon inhabiting the area. The two get adopted by Douma due to sheer pity and train underneath him. Daki was excited to become a slayer but Gyutaro's older brother protectiveness forces her to stay in the mansion, away from the gore and harm. Thankfully, Douma allows her to sneak off on other missions to get some experience in. Of course, that doesn't last very long when Gyutaro catches her in the same area he was one mission and carries her back to headquarters to then absolutely scorn Douma for throwing his little sister into harm when she's perfectly fine and is actually good at the job. She was given a whip sword exactly like Mitsuri's and creates Fabric Breathing, a derivative of Wind Breathing. Becomes the Fabric Hashira.

Gyutaro Shabana: Becomes a hashira before Daki. Backstory proceeds as cannon: the Ice Hashira comes across the siblings while on the hunt for a lower moon inhabiting the area. The two get adopted by Douma due to sheer pity and train underneath him. Having older brother responsibilities, Gyutaro forbid Daki from demon slaying, letting him do the dirty work while she stay safe at headquarters. Gyutaro formerly used Wind Breathing until a battle with a former Lower Moon One infected him with its blood demon art: a noxious mold that was spreading across that neighboring towns. However, instead of killing him, Gyutaro utilizes the demon art with his wind breathing to create Plague Breathing, which kills the Lower Moon. Expecting to return to headquarters soon, he encounters Daki in the infected field he was in and took her straight home. Scorned Douma for dispatching her on missions alone, even this was the same man who he's ever grateful for. Becomes the Plague Hashira. Uses dual-wielding Nichirin sickles. Soon studies anatomy, various viruses and cures to later become the head of the infirmary. Butts heads with Enmu a lot. 

Nakime Nakisakebu: A former biwa musician from the entertainment district struggling to live with her abusive, gambling addict husband. Contributing nothing for their living, Nakime threatens to leave her husband. The husband retaliates by slashing her right eye out with a knife and beats her to a pulp. Nakime successfully escapes from the district, but encounters a demon in the process. Michikatsu saves her and returns her to headquarters where her body can properly heal. Moved by her savior, she becomes a member of the corps, but due to her deformed body, she lacked the strength needed to cut a demon's neck. Thus, she uses a bow and wisteria poison dipped arrows. Soon, becomes the Music Hashira.

Rui Jorohime: Same backstory as cannon, however was cured of his aliment due to the help of Gyutaro and Enmu, who later decided to just take him back to headquarters. Favorited by Muzan himself, Rui strives for greatness to make his master proud. Creates Arachnid Breathing, a derivative of Insects Breathing and becomes the Arachnid Hashira, the youngest Hashira amongst the rest being only 14 years old. Uses a standard Nichirin sword and has a pet white tarantula named Shokki. 

Leaving the other upper moons in fear and pity as Muzan hasn’t called off the meeting, you can hear the faint wails of Hatengu shriveling up.

“You dare challenge my presence you” muzan voice booms as he narrows his eyes as he observes the upper rank 6

(Y/N) stands up to their full height, making direct eye contact with the lord in question

“No, I could never my lord” (Y/N) slightly bowing while maintaining eye contact

“But if we were to be honest this meeting if very much to my distaste”

Even Douma who would say something along those lines

Who as well believes he’s a equal to Muzan, looks at the rest of the upper moons while they all collectively make eye contact while returning to their heads into their low positions.

(Y/N) lips contort into a lopsided smirk resting how far muzan willing to go.

Muzan use his cells to inflict pain of submission to the demon, (Y/N) seemingly unfazed takes a step towards him, ignoring the weight of muzan intoxicating aura

As if on cue the echoing sounds of Nakimes Biwa, (Y/N) was teleported to what seems to be a clearing in the forest where the moon illuminated their demonic skin

“You wanna step up to me, kill the boy with the hanafuda earrings and bring me the girl who conquered the sun.. and I’ll consider forgiving your actions at todays meeting”

Muzans voice echoing through (Y/N) head, using his ability to talk to her telepathically via his cells

“Let’s say I fail to complete this task lord kibutsuji”

“You’ll receive a punishment worthy of someone like you…”

voice fading into the night (Y/N) starts they’re hunt for the prey.

———————————————————————

Extra:

“WOW THAT WAS PRETTY BALLSY” douma projects as he is crossed crossed on the floor almost in front of the biwa lady

“If that was me, it would’ve broke out into a all out fight! Wouldn’t that have been exciting Akaza-dono ^^”

Scoffing Akaza turns on his heel, not before amputating the demons right arm

“You would have survived to tell such tale”