Balance

1| The Day Everything Changed

"Tanjiro, am I going to sell charcoal today or are you?" I ask, putting charcoal in the basket.

"I'll sell it today," Tanjiro says, putting the basket on his back.

"Alright. Stay safe," I say as he starts to head down the mountain.

As I head back inside, I see Nezuko.

"Are you putting Rokuta down for a nap?" I ask.

"Yeah," Nezuko responds.

•••

It starts to get dark and Tanjiro hasn't returned yet. As I'm helping my mom with dinner, I ask, "Shouldn't Tanjiro be home by now?"

"He's fine. If needed, there are people in town that will let him stay the night," Mom says.

"Alright."

Nezuko and I then help set the table. As we're setting the table, we hear a knock at the door. Mom goes to open the door.

She opens the door and I see a pale man with black hair and red eyes. He is nicely dressed and pretty handsome. I notice that the usual birds we can hear at night are unnaturally quiet and something seems off about the guy.

"Come in. You must be freezing," Mom says to the stranger. "Tsukiko, please get another plate for our guest."

"Yes, mom."

After I get the plate, I head back to the table. I stop in the door frame, dropping the plate, and hearing it shatter. I find my family scattered on the floor. My family is in a puddle of blood. My mom, Takeo, Hanako, and Shigeru lay on the floor around each other.

Looking towards the door, I see Nezuko on top of Rokuta as if she was protecting him. Looking around I find the stranger. He's leaning over my mother.

I turn around and walk into the kitchen grabbing a knife. The man appears behind me and I run out the side door into the snow. I run to the front of the house, the man right behind me.

I stop. I turn around, swinging my arm at him. As he dodges it, I stab him with the knife. I pull it out. The blood gushes out and I feel the warmth of the blood on me.

The man reaches out to punch me. I'm sent flying back as his fist hits me. My momentum is stopped by a tree, and my head hits it hard as I fall to the ground. I feel blood trickling down my face and I smell the metallic tang of it. I feel blood on the side of my most and I wipe it away with the back of my hand. I pick up the knife next to me. I laugh. Not one of happiness or joy, but one of anger and insanity.

I get back up, leaning against the tree. Everything is spinning and my head hurts. I run at the man again. He reaches out to attack and I feel the displacement in the air. I slide underneath him, dodging his punch, and I get back up, slashing his back and then I go for his throat.

He turns around and punches me again. The momentum sends me flying into a tree again. I hit the tree and the ribbon holding my hair in a bun breaks, my hair falling around me.

The man walks over to me and steps on my leg breaking it. The pain is agonizing. I don't scream. I just look at him with anger in my eyes.

"I never expected a human to be able to get an attack on me. Let alone multiple."

"Well, maybe you should be on guard when you kill someone's family," I say, my voice cold.

"That is true," the man says. Everything around me starts to fade to black. "You have great potential," is the last thing I hear before I pass out.