Chapter Text
How do you save two demons who have gleefully taken lives for the past century? That's the question you asked Yoriichi. But even the GOAT is stunned by the question.
“Tell me, Yoriichi, how do I save Daki and Gyutaro?” You asked.
For the first time in his life, Yoriichi looked stumped by your question. Well that's impossible for him to look stumped because he could do no wrong. The wind blows gently against both your hairs. “I don't know. I usually don't pay attention to how the other saviors save the demons in their universe.” Yoriichi admits.
“It's okay. I didn't expect you to give me the answer to everything.” You sighed. “After all, life would be easy if I had all the answers.”
Yoriichi placed his hand on you while giving you a small smile. “You've been doing great so far, (Y/N) chan. Whatever plan you'll come up with, I'm sure you'll succeed.” Your body begins to glow into a white light. “It seems that you're waking up. Best of luck, Savoir (Y/N).” Yoriichi waved.
With your eyes still closed, you felt your body wrapped in someone warm. Then your eyes flutter open to see a fuchsia color fabric. You're wrapped in Daki's obi. Daki must've saved you from landing too harshly on the ground after you lost consciousness. She doesn't seem to notice you have woken up since she's sitting on the ledge of the roof. Gyutaro is nowhere to be seen. Most likely is searching for Tanjiro to torment him.
You very slowly lifted your upper body up, careful not to show Daki that you're awake. The time to convince Daki to change is here. Except how the fuck are you going to do that? Daki might, just might listen to you and change her ways. The real problem is Gyutaro. There's no way in hell he'll change his ways. You remember in the anime when he died, he admitted he will always choose to be a demon in every lifetime. But then again he loves his sister more than being a demon. So that fact might be in your favor, right?
But there's another dilemma. Even if you do convince the siblings to change, how are you going to get away with sparing two demons, much less an Upper Moon?! Because if the Demon Slayer Corps manage to kick out Yoriichi, who was the strongest Slayer mind you, for sparing our Queen Tamayo, then what chance do you have in not getting kicked out? You highly doubt your savior status will be enough to not be executed since Daki and Gyutaro have eaten plenty of humans and Hashiras.
Anyway, you'll cross that bridge later. Right now you gotta focus on redeeming the Shabana, you think that's their surname, siblings first. Starting with Daki first since the two of you already have a bond. This should be somewhat easy.
You start to very slowly wiggle yourself out of her fabric to free yourself. So far she doesn't notice since she's still sitting on the ledge, looking ahead. You took a deep breath and managed to make yourself skinnier to slip past the fabric off of you. Then you ever so slightly rolled yourself off the roof and landed on your feet. It's a miracle you didn't make a single sound when you landed.
“Where do you think you're going, Pretty Slayer?” Gyutaro asked.
Crap, damn it, never mind!
The moon’s light reveals to you that Gyutaro is right next to you with both his sickles out. The light cast a shadow over him, making him look extremely menacing. Daki’s ears perked up when she heard her brother's voice. She looked shocked that you weren’t wrapped around her obi.
“(Nickname) chan…don’t go.” She said in a small voice. Then her orbs slide over to the left where your discarded sword is at. Your eyes followed hers along and your breath took a hitch upon realizing you have no weapon to protect yourself from Gyutaro. “Please stay.” Daki pleaded.
“Don’t worry, sis. She’s coming with us.” Gyutaro grins, looking at you. “Our master told us… if we ever find you, we can’t kill you. But…” His grin became wider. “Break you if we have to. So…which arm do you want me to crush?”
Oh god! I’m going to be in a world of pain! Tanjiro…Zenistu…please wake up! You weakly crawled away from them, making Gyutaro laugh at how pathetic you must look. He didn’t need to stop you. Your body just went…bleh!
Gyutaro raised his sickle to attack you, but then Daki got in front of him with her arms raised. “No.” Daki spoke. One word, but it was enough to hear her tone. It got so quiet when Gyutaro glanced at Daki that you couldn't hear the fire anymore.
“No?” He repeated, tilting his head at her. Daki narrowed her eyes even more and stood firm. “You can't be serious, sis. She's just a human.”
“She's my human! (Nickname chan) is mine! I found her first! I decide what happens to her! And I decided she stays with me forever!”
“Are you really choosing a human over our master!? You're really choosing a human slayer over ME! After what I've done to provide for us!”
“You'll like her, big brother! (Y/N) chan is not like other humans! She's nice, she gets us! I'm sure the two of you will be the bestest friends, but I will be her soulmate.”
Gyutaro stared at her in disbelief. “Oh my God…you really have lost your mind!”
Why am I being fought over like a stray cat? Well, more like a doll since that's what Daki refers to me as such…But still!
The two siblings continue to argue over you while you have a derpy face on. You still couldn't believe how over the span of 100 years, Daki has finally argued and contradicted Gyutaro. And yet this isn't what you wanted. Sure you want them to argue the logic of being loyal to Muzan. But not at the expense of their relationship!
“Um…if I may,” You spoke up. Gyutaro raised his sickle at you in a threatening manner. That shut you up.
“You messed her up.” Gyutaro growls. “You're turning her against me! That's what you pretty people do! Always getting things your way!”
“I think I emotionally improved Daki. I mean you said it yourself, she was a child when she became a demon and therefore her brain didn't fully mature and-”
“SHUT UP!” Gyutaro roars, interrupting you.
Survival mode is activated after feeling his bloodlust. You made a run for it towards your discarded sword. It was like time slowed down for you when you slid over and picked up your sword to successfully block out a few of Gyutaro’s flying sickles.
Everything’s gone to shit! You can't talk your way out, you can't kill them because you're trying to save them, and most importantly you DEFINITELY can't get captured! Why the hell did you think you could pull this off?! Yoriichi’s face suddenly pops into your mind. That's right. You are the mother fucking Savior! You can do this!
“Dance Breathing, Second Form: Breakdance!"
But you didn't use this move to attack. You used it to defend and invade all of Gyutaro's attacks. The red slashes destroyed more of the buildings that survived the explosion. All the debris and smoke made you start coughing, which is bad since a Demon Slayer needs their lungs to breathe.
While in your coughing fit, Gyutaro appears behind you with both his sickles. Your (e/c) widened in pure fear that you won't be able to dodge away in time. That's when Daki used her obi to wrap around you and fling you away. This would have been a heroic moment coming from Daki…if it wasn't for the fact she wasn't trying to absorb you! Luckily you still have your katana in your hand and use it to free yourself.
Not far from where you landed, the two demons are fighting each other. You had to rub your eyes in disbelief. Yep, Daki and Gyutaro are fighting each other. Well more like Gyutaro is simply trying to push Daki away.
Daki uses her sharp nails to claw at Gyutaro’s face. Three lines slashed at his cheek and eye. “Hey! What the hell was that for!?” He screamed.
“You were aiming at her face!” Daki screeched back.
“Master said he wanted her alive, not unharmed!”
“I said you're not hurting my doll!”
Gyutaro’s veins become blood red as he summons more blood sickles comes out from his arms. About a dozen of them are flying towards Daki at…average speed? Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. They're not going as fast as they were when he was aiming at Tengen. Daki snaps at Gyutaro and summons her own attack. Hundreds of obi burst from her back. You stared up in awe at how the entire district became pink ribbons. They whip through the air like living dragons before crashing against the bloody sickles.
Blood blades slice through obi. Obi wraps around sickles as if to avenge its fallen fabric. Sickles tear through the shattered buildings. Obi catches collapsing debris. The city is being shredded even more than ever.
Holy shit! I'm causing all of that. The Entertainment District is being destroyed at the point of no return because of my presence.
One blood sickle gets through and it's going for her neck. Daki doesn't dodge fast enough, but it shouldn't really be a problem since she won't die by decapitation or by the poison. Despite the fact demons can't be killed from Demon Blood Arts, Gyutaro slightly panics and changes the rotation of the sickle. So instead of Daki being nearly beheaded, a random corpse is sliced in half.
He protected her. Even when he's still angry at Daki, he still acts like her older brother.
“S-Stop!” You called out.
“Stay…” Gyutaro raises his arm up. “OUT OF THIS!”
A single bloody red sickle is coming towards you at a rapid pace. Everything went in slow motion for the demons as you stood there, helplessly watched with wide eyes. This time the attack wasn't going to slash or sever your limbs off. No, it was going to slice you vertically in half.
“NO!” Daki cries out before throwing herself in front of you without hesitation.
The sickles slammed into her back with a sickening crunch. One blade tore through her shoulder, the other ripped across her spine. Even though demons couldn’t kill each other, the force was brutal. Daki gasped sharply, blood spraying from her mouth as her body jerked forward from the impact.
She staggered but stayed on her feet, shielding you with her own body. You gently held her in place so that she wouldn't fall. “You saved my life again.” You stated. “Thank you.” She squeezes your hand in reassurance.
Gyutaro’s sickles trembled in the air. His face twisted in rage, confusion, and gut-wrenching pain all at once. “You… you’re protecting a human? Over me? After everything I did for you?!” He shouted.
Daki’s legs buckled. She dropped to one knee, still positioned between you and her brother. Blood poured from the deep wounds he had given her, but she refused to move. Daki begins to regenerate quickly and goes back to normal.
“You were going to kill her! All because she got underneath your skin!”
Gyutaro looked rather embarrassed at being called out like that. But then he regained his composure and looked rather serious. “Daki,” Gyutaro spoke in a tone not to be taken lightly. “You know we have strict orders to bring the human to him. Are you really going to risk our lives for her? Humans come and go. You'll probably forget about her after she dies.” Daki lightly gasped at this. “You and I come so far from where we started. Don't let this human come between us.” He reasoned.
To your utter shock, Daki slowly takes a couple of steps away from you. Her obi raises like she's preparing to attack. But before either demon could attack, you all heard movements coming from the burning building.
Oh shit! It's the scene where Tanjiro regains consciousness and Gyutaro torments him! It looks like Tanjiro is talking in his sleep. Gyutaro turns to Tanjiro’s direction. “No!” You shouted. You needed to stall. So you swing your sword at him. “Stay away from him!”
But Gyutaro hooks his sickles around the hilt of your sword guard and flings it away. Your sword flies over to an unknown direction. Now you're weaponless with an Upper Moon determined to bring you to Muzan.
“Time to cut your arms off!” He roars.
Daki moved faster than thought. She slammed into you, arms wrapping around your waist as she spun, taking the full force of the strike across her back. The blade bit deep, making her whimper in pain and her blood sprayed.
At that exact moment, something broke.
Whether it was the raw emotion, the clash of Blood Demon Art against another demon, or the universe itself bending under the weight of two broken souls refusing to let go, like reality tore open. Or perhaps of your Savoir status. Though most likely the power of anime bullshit.
A swirling vortex of darkness exploded outward from where Daki’s blood met your transparent blade. It swallowed sound, light, and everything else in an instant.
Gyutaro’s furious shout cut off mid-roar.
The world vanished…And so did your consciousness.
You open your eyes and you're surprised to not feel any pain. The first thing you see is darkness or maybe even nothing since you can still see your arms, clothes, and legs perfectly fine. You were floating. There was no ground. No sky. Just an endless, quiet void of deep indigo and black, like the space between heartbeats. And drifting all around you glowing softly, were hundreds of thousands of sakura petals, pink and delicate, suspended in the air as if time itself had paused.
Cherry blossoms in the void. It was beautiful. The darkness really made the cherry blossom pop. But those flowers weren't the only thing floating around this void.
Not far from you is a pale girl floating away. She has long white hair and pale skin. Her kimono is of a light violet with pale yellow squares decorated all over. She also has thick luscious eyelashes that are shown in her closed eyes. The girl looks to be sleeping or unconscious. Either way, you know the girl must be Ume, aka Daki’s human self.
“Ume!” You called out.
Daki- no, Ume opens her eyes which are no longer the two colored ones. Instead they show to be deep blue, like the ocean. She also doesn't have Gyutaro's eye on her forehead. “(Nickname) chan..?” She then looks at her hands, noticing they aren't paper white, before looking at the kimono she's wearing. “I'm…I…I'm human…” Then she gasped as she finally realized the mystery void with the dancing sakura petals around. “Where are we?” Daki Ume asked.
The voice was small and shaky, no longer the arrogant oiran. No longer the confident, yet confused demon. Ume sounded scared, sounded human. You flew, or swam, whatever, you moved to where Ume is and gently grabbed her.
“I…I don't know.” You admitted. A pink petal is making its way towards you, so you reach out your hand for the petal to land. However the petal dissolves the moment it lands on your palm. “But you're not alone. I'm not going anywhere. I swear.” You stated, while hugging her.
Ume hugs you back and it feels peaceful with just the two of you. Ume’s fingers curled into the back of your torn uniform. “Don’t leave me here,” she whispered. “Even if it’s just the two of us in the dark… don’t leave me.”
“I'm right here.”
But then she remembers Gyutaro isn't here and she loves him more than you. She suddenly pushes you off.
“No! Everything is going well in my life! I was the top oiran, everyone feared me, Master Muzan praised me! Then you had to come alone and ruin everything! You must have bewitched me or something!”
“Bewitched? Ume, I don't have that kind of power. I didn't put a spell on you or anything. I was just being myself and I think you were also being your true self. After 100 years, you actually had fun.”
Ume lets out a dry laugh and glares at you. “You think a few days of playing dress-up and laughing at your stupid jokes erases all of that? That I can just… stop being what I am?”.
You shrugged your shoulders. “I don't know. You still want to do that when you went up against Gyutaro a couple of minutes ago.”
Ume’s blue eyes widened at the mention of her brother. Her orbs glisten with tears that she's desperately trying to hold back while her body trembles. “Do you really think I can just betray my master by choosing you over him? Over Gyutaro?! My brother's right! We've been through so much together! I can't choose you over them!” Ume asked.
“You already did by not eating and killing humans these past few days. You also prevented your own brother from maiming me.” You reminded her.
Ume curled her hands into fists before pointing at you. “You don't know what you're asking from me, (nickname) chan! Lord Muzan has mine and my brother's life in the palm of his hands! He can kill any demon he wishes, including Upper Moons!” Then she shifts back into Daki, the demon. She's now staring at her own paper white hands. “There's no light waiting for me at the end of the dark tunnel in my life. I'm over a hundred years old. I've killed and eaten hundreds of your kind. My hands are forever stained in blood. No matter how much I claim to stop eating humans, my hands will always be red.”
“But you stopped! Even though it's been a few days, you still have control over your bloodlust and hunger-”
“I ENJOYED it!” Daki screamed. Her sharp fangs are visibly shown. “I slaughtered hundreds, (Y/N). Maybe thousands. I ate them. I toyed with them. I laughed while they screamed. I killed many Hashiras. I destroyed families. I—” Her voice broke. “I enjoyed it for centuries. How the hell can someone like me be redeemed? By a human? By the families of the people I ate? By God? It’s a fucking joke. I’m a monster. I’ve always been a monster.”
“No,” You shook your head. You grab her shoulders while gently placing your forehead against hers. “Not always. Yes, you did horrible things. Terrible things. I’m not going to pretend they didn’t happen. But I also saw you these past few days. The girl who started saying ‘please’ to the maids. The girl who helped that crying child up instead of hurting her. The girl who stopped eating humans the moment we became friends.” Daki reverts back to Ume. Her tiny body stood still as she looked somewhat ashamed for being so weak. “You laughed with me. Real laughs. Not the cruel ones. You let me see the girl who was hurt so badly by the world that she became this… because no one ever showed her another way. I sympathize with you, Ume. I really do. You were a child who suffered. You sold your body and Gyutaro beat people as a job just so that you guys can live. You were turned into a weapon. Muzan doesn’t even let you keep the money you earned. But you’re choosing something different now. That’s what matters.”
Ume slowly floats away from you. “Wait…you seem to know a lot about us. You called me by my human name. Not even I remember what my name was. Then you talk about my past. Stuff that I never told you about. How is it possible you know exactly our thoughts and feelings about the past?” She questioned.
It looks like you need to tell Ume the truth about yourself since it looks like Muzan only gave orders to capture you, but not giving the reason why.
“Ume, did Muzan ever tell you why he wants me?”
“No. He only gave all demons the order to capture you alive. We're allowed to break a few bones as long as you can talk, Lord Muzan will be fine with that.”
If I did get captured with broken bones, I'll be too busy screaming in pain then to tell Muzan anything.
“Well, there's something Muzan is keeping from you all. The reason why he wants me is…I'm from the future.”
“Ume's eyes widened in disbelief. “Ehhh?! The future!? You can't be serious!?” She exclaimed. You simply nodded in response. “No way!”
“I know it seems far-fetched, but it's true. I am from the future. And in the future, there's ‘documentation’ about Muzan and demons. ‘Historians’ have managed to…um…have some details of demons’ past lives, including yours and Gyutaro's. Believe me when I say I cried hearing your backstories. I cried when you were burned alive simply for protecting your brother's honor.” You revealed. “So seeing the pain in your eyes when you talk about revenge to those who were cruel to you and your brother really resonated with me.”
Ume put her hand on her temple as she remembers her stabbing the samurai because he mocked Gyutaro. Then she remembers the fire. How she screamed for Gyutaro to save her. And…she remembers nothing further. Only when she woke up free from pain and learning she became a demon. Ume floats closer to you and lays her head on your lap.
“I believe you.” Ume whispered.
Now it's you who begins to tear up. “Thank you for believing me.” You smiled. However, Ume still looks unsure of herself. So you decided to tell her a secret. A secret that, in your opinion, is even bigger than you being from the future, as well as you being from another universe. “Ume, there's something I'm going to tell you that no one, not even my best friend Tanjiro knows.” You said.
“What can possibly be a bigger secret than the fact you're from the future?”
“Leo is not my only sibling. At least he's the only one that's still alive. I had a sister.” This takes Ume by surprise. “Her name was Bethany. She was only four years old when she died.” You swallowed hard, the memory burning like the fire that took her. “I was only 9 years old when it happened. We were in a house fire. I got out… but I left her behind. I was scared. I ran. I thought someone else would save her. She didn’t make it. She died in that fire because I didn’t go back for her. I’ve carried that guilt every single day since. And when Leo was born… I swore I’d never lose another sibling again. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I fight so hard.”
“You lost your sister to a fire just like I almost lost my own life.”
“That's right. I have a lot in common with you and Gyutaro. But the thing we have in common is the guilt we have in our hearts. Everyone says I was just a kid. But I still knew. And every time I think about it..." Your voice drops, "I wonder if she was scared.”
For a moment neither of you move. Because suddenly Ume isn't hearing a Demon Slayer. She isn't hearing a hero or her precious doll. She's hearing someone who failed to save a sibling. Someone who carries that failure every day. Someone who can't let go of the past. Just like Gyutaro refuses to let go.
Ume finally speaks.
“Why are you telling me this? You said nobody knows. Not even your friends or fellow Slayers. You didn't even tell the boy with the hanafuda earrings, and I can tell the two of you are close. So why me? Why tell me all of this?” Ume questioned.
You smiled sadly at her before placing your hand on her chest.
“Because you know what it's like. To love a sibling so much it hurts. Because you understand what it’s like to lose everything. Because you know what it’s like to carry guilt that eats you alive. Because even after everything you’ve done… I still see the girl who was hurt so badly by the world that she became cruel just to survive. Just like I became reckless with guilt. We’re both broken, Ume. But I’m choosing to believe we can still be more than that.”
“You're insane. I can still turn this around and capture you.” Ume teases. “I'm still a demon and we are incredibly selfish by nature.”
You stroked her hair gently, petals floating endlessly around you in the quiet darkness. “I’m telling you because I trust you with it. And because I want you to know you’re not alone in carrying heavy things.” You gently boop her nose, making her giggle. “We can carry them together…if you let me help you put some of yours down.”
Then Ume stopped smiling and once again looked scared. “What makes you think the rest of the world would accept me? No other Demon Slayer would let my brother and I live. And those Slayers are the least of my worries. The moment Master Muzan finds sounds we deserted him, he'll kill us himself. Or worse, he'll send Upper Moon One to hunt us down.”
“Don't worry about the Corps. Not all of them are triggered happy to kill a demon. I mean, just look at Nezuko. You know, the demon that kicked your ass?”
Ume playfully smacked your arm while pouting, “Hey! That demon blitz attacked me! Had I been prepared, I would've kicked her ass!”
“Anyway, Nezuko is on our side. In her two years of being a demon, she has never once tasted human blood. It's why Tanjiro became a Demon Slayer, to protect her. I'm sure you and Nezuko will be the bestest friends. It's because of Nezuko, I know you and Gyutaro are capable of change. I believe in you both.”
“Even if you and some others may pardon me, there's still Muzan we need to worry about. He’s probably going to kill me the moment I return.”
“He’s not going to kill you.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Because you would already be dead. Muzan can read all demons’ minds. The moment you had your first thought of betraying him, he would’ve killed you at the spot.”
“How do you know he’s not waiting for me to lower my guard down before striking me down?”
You smile and move you (e/c) orbs down to her chest Ume raises her eyebrows in confusion before her blue orbs look down to what you’re staring at. She gasped when she saw her chest glowing a beautiful golden color.
“Because you’re already free from Muzan’s control. You have been for the past few days. The only reason why Muzan didn’t know was because Gyutaro was still inside you so only Gyutaro’s loyalty was masking your freedom from Muzan.” You revealed.
Ume couldn't believe this. The warmness in her chest she's been ignoring for days had been her humanity leaking out. She lets out a laugh and cries happy tears.
“It's nearly impossible to escape from Lord Muzan’s control. I didn't even try to break free. Yet, I did.” Ume stated.
“You're free because you, Ume, are a badass girl. You endure so much, you deserve peace.” You said. You clasped your hands around hers. Ume gently squeezed it in response. “I'm confident you'll make the choice you want from your heart.”
Ume suddenly looks unsure of herself. “I…what will my brother say? I may be willing to change, but Gyutaro might not. He'll see me as a traitor.”
“No he won't. Gyutaro loves you more than he ever loved anyone, even himself. I promise you he'll choose you over Muzan in a heartbeat!”
Ume relaxed and snuggled closer to you. You can actually feel warmth radiating from her glowing chest. “And I love you just as I love Gyutaro. I love you, (Y/N) chan.” Ume confessed.
“You better not love me more than your own brother.” You smirked.
“And I'm also really sorry for hurting your friends. I was just angry.”
“Don't apologize to me. Apologize to them and I'm pretty sure they'll forgive you.”
“Don't worry, (nickname). I promise you I'll right my wrongs! I'll atone for my sins! I want a chance to be a good person!” Ume vows.
You nodded your head and gently kissed her forehead. Ume sweetly giggles and nuzzles closer to you. You, (Y/N) (L/N) have managed to save Daki's, no, Ume’s soul. You did it!
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