Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A fundamental part of being a sorcerer was getting used to being uncomfortable. Being able to act despite being scared shitless was unfortunately a non-negotiable area of the career. Fear and discomfort tagged along with even the most accomplished sorcerers, and as miniscule as it was to him, Satoru Gojo was no exception to this.

His fight with Sukuna had been exhilarating-- he hadn't had time to be frightened. No, that was a battle of stamina and attrition. While Satoru never truly felt fear for any of his opponents, unease was an element he had gotten rather accustomed to. But the slight doubt he had when facing the King of Curses paled in comparison to the sheer alien feeling right now.

Sometime after? Before? Or was it during the fight with Sukuna, Satoru had been… killed? It was all really quite blurry, but to his credit Malevolent Shrine was a bitch to combat, especially when paired with Mahoraga. But that wasn't what bothered him. What bothered him was instead of dying from being effectively turned into a Kit-Kat, he had awoken in the middle of a field.

The field was full of wildflowers of all different shades, and strange squirrel like creatures ran amok within the dense grass. If he hadn’t known any better, Satoru would have thought this heaven. But it lacked any “heavenly” flair one would expect, and he could only assume he wouldn’t have a scar across his torso from Sukuna’s attack, but it was there, a quick lift of his shirt confirmed as much. But the world felt awfully quiet, and that was when Satoru realized the source of his uncertainty.

His technique.

The Six Eyes couldn’t sense any cursed energy, and that was what truly made Satoru uncomfortable. It wasn’t as if the technique had been disabled, no, it was that there was simply nothing for it to see. The strange feeling of not being on the verge of sensory overload was quite possibly the most jarring thing he’d ever felt, and maybe a tiny bit pleasant.

As far as he knew, Six Eyes couldn’t be turned off. There was still the faint pulse in his temples, but there was no information coming through aside from his own limitless. At this point, Satoru would have been happy to even sense Sukuna’s energy. He studied his surroundings once more, and gazed up.

The sun, known for producing light and being very painful to look at, just so happened to be right where he decided to look. And boy did the Six Eyes not appreciate the feeling of being burnt.

“Motherfucker!” he cursed, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms.

Yep, definitely not heaven. There was no way that kind of hellish pain would be there.

So, where was he?

On a second attempt of a surveillance of his surroundings, careful to avoid the sun, Satoru realized that the field was surrounded by forest.

Great.

Slowly standing now, careful not to set off Six Eyes again, Satoru stretched and tested his infinity. It flickered to life and he repressed the urge to sigh in relief. If he couldn’t have his blindfold or sunglasses, he might as well be allowed to have infinity. He silently thanked the universe for not being that cruel.

The field of flowers wasn't the biggest, but the forest that surrounded it looked so terribly dense. Satoru didn't want to teleport anywhere before he could figure out exactly where the hell he was, so fast travel was off the table. He cringed inwardly at the thought of trekking through a strange forest in possibly the worst choice of footwear for such an activity.

The traditional Japanese slippers allowed lots of movement, sure, but they also were not suited for any form of wilderness exploration. What a drag.

It was while he walked to the perimeter of the forest when he sensed it.

The smallest flicker of cursed energy.

Satoru immediately straightened and began to focus on it. It was so faint, even Six Eyes had trouble keeping it within sight. No… it wasn’t that it was faint, it was that it wasn’t really cursed energy. It was something else entirely, and it was getting closer.

Satoru didn't bother to meet the energy part way, and instead chose to wait for it to come to him, Limitless flickering like an old bulb around him. While a fight wasn’t necessarily expected, he was still very on guard.

Especially after his tussle with Sukuna.

“I told you, Natsu! This is not the way back to the guild. How many times do we have to walk through here before you get it right?”

Hm. Voices, irritated at that.

“Oh, lay off, Lucy, I’m just off balance from the stupid train. Gimme a second and I’ll have us back to the guild in no time!”

The voices sounded young, younger than Satoru at least. Maybe a bit older than his students?

“I’m just glad we had enough yummy fishies to make it through the trip!”

That voice did not belong to a teenager. That was possibly the most irritating voice he had ever had the misfortune of being subjected to.

And just when Satoru thought this day couldn’t get any fucking stranger, a flying blue cat soared through the treeline. Not a curse, an actual cat, because why the hell not.

This whole thing felt like a very odd dream. Like when he made the mistake of trying to prove he wasn’t a lightweight and passed out after three sips of whiskey.

But Satoru knew better and focused on the cat currently flying towards the sky. Then the fucker spoke in that high pitched voice from earlier.

“Look, look! It's this way to the guild!”

“Nice one, happy! See, I knew we’d be alright, Luce.”

“No thanks to your dire navigation skills.”

In the next few moments, several things happened.

The not-cursed-cursed energy entered the flower field Satoru was currently stood in the middle of, and two teenagers/young adults walked out of the forest, the flying blue cat who could somehow talk flew down, and Satoru realized just how much of a fucking weirdo he looked like.

Standing still as death with glowing blue eyes.

Yeah, definitely not as strange as a talking cat.

He shifted his gaze towards the source of the energy and voices and studied them closely.

A blonde girl, and a salmon haired boy. If Satoru hadn’t had the Six Eyes, he might’ve thought the latter was Yuji with longer hair.

Before he could so much as blink, the pink-boy launched himself at Satoru, and collided with infinity.

“Get back, Lucy! This guy doesn't have a magic signature, it's curses instead!” The boy shouted, straining against the space of infinity. Satoru sighed heavily.

Just his luck, getting bisected by an ancient curse, and now being attacked by a very tenacious teenage boy.

“Natsu, don't just go attacking random people! I swear--” The girl, supposedly “Lucy” froze in place, fear taking over her features. Satoru furrowed his brows together. The boy, “Natsu”, had evolved from merely pushing against infinity to trying to tear into it. Under any other circumstances, Satoru might’ve laughed.

“This guy has the same energy as those guys from Tartaros, Natsu!” That fucking cat was really getting on Satoru’s nerves.

“Uh-- I’m terribly sorry but would you mind backing up a bit, kid? This doesn’t seem to be very productive, hmm?” Satoru said with a patient smile. Natsu didn’t seem to want to listen.

“Are you also one of Zeref's book demons?!” He shouted.

What the hell was a Zeref, and why did it have book demons?

Satoru sighed and took the risk of teleporting a few steps away, chuckling slightly when Natsu face planted into the ground now that Infinity wasn't there to stop him. He was back on his feet quickly, and the kid was already back to trying to breach Infinity.

Satoru shook his head. How pointless. He was hoping he might be able to get any sliver of information from these people, but it seemed to be beyond them. As he prepared to “deal” with the angry one, he felt something off.

Infinity. It was burning.

Alarm bells went off and Satoru wasted no time launching the kid away with Red. He hit a tree trunk behind him and the blonde rushed to his side.

“Natsu! Are you alright?” She crouched next to him, and began helping him up. It was almost cute, Satoru thought back to how his students would help each other in team training sessions.

“Yeah, fuck me, that hits like crazy! Feel like I just took a blow from 20 Erzas at once.” He rubbed the back of his head and stood, rolling his shoulders and cracking his knuckles. “Alright, I'm all fired up now, you white haired freak!”

Satoru raised an eyebrow at that, but fell into a fighting stance anyways. He couldn’t let that Natsu kid touch him again. That burning sensation of Infinity set him off like hell and he’d be damned if he let Natsu get the chance to try again.

If his cursed-- no, his “magic” energy was more detectable with Six Eyes, he might have figured out how the kid set his fists on fire. An interesting technique, that’s for sure.

“Natsu, are you okay to deal with this guy?” The girl Lucy asked worriedly, but she gave off no sense of fear.

Natsu nodded. “Yeah, this guy will be easy for me, you check and see if he’s got any allies hidden around. Happy, go with Lucy!”

Both parties nodded and raced off back into the forest. Not that Satoru minded, the less people the more freely he could use his technique.

“So, before I embarrass you horrifically in front of your friends, do you wanna tell me why you decided to attack me out of the blue?”

The kid looked genuinely perplexed for a minute, before practically snarling. “I know that kind of power you have, and I can't let you just do what you want here.” Natsu’s face pulled into a sharp grin, and Satoru’s own mouth did as well. “I already know how to beat you guys anyways, This’ll be a piece of cake!” He hit his fists together and the fire enveloping his hands grew.

“Well then,” Satoru started, “Let's get into it then?”

Lucy had a strange feeling about the white haired man Natsu was up against. Not only was his power akin to that of a member of Tartaros, but the sheer amount of curse power he had was simply terrifying. She raced back the way they came through the forest. They had split up with Gray, Wendy, and Erza a couple miles back, the notion seeming pointless now.

“Lucy, do you think Natsu will be okay?” Happy asked, genuine concern lacing his usually upbeat voice.

Lucy nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure. Natsu’s fought plenty of powerful opponents before. Right now we just have to believe in him.” Happy let out a “hmph!” of agreement.

She thought back to what had happened. Everything had felt normal until they reached that clearing of flowers. The amount of curse power that filled the area was staggering, and to think it all came from one person despite their origin been somewhat average... it was an anomaly. There wasn't any time to think too hard; she could figure it out once she reunited with the others. She took a hard right, Happy following close behind and skidded to a stop.

There were more traces of curse power.

While the white haired man’s had been seemingly endless, this one was smaller, compact even. But it was incredibly potent. Whoever had that curse could do some serious damage.

But the curse power… it shifted? It was then she realized, there was more than one person with the ability to use curses. “Happy, change of plan!” Lucy opened Gemini’s gate, just in case she found herself outmatched. Happy flew down next to Lucy, and hovered near her shoulder. “We’re gonna follow the traces of the curses. It might lead us to a stronghold of some kind where some Etherious might still be hiding.”

Happy did not look thrilled. “But Lucy, we can't take on a stronghold by ourselves! Even if you do have lots of spirits, there's no guarantee they’ll be able to help, especially after coming back from the mission earlier!”

Lucy scowled. That was true, the job from earlier had needed both Loke and Virgo, Lucy’s two most magic-draining spirits. Happy raised a good point, storming a potential stronghold was basically just asking for trouble. She chewed on her lip, deep in thought, when a voice rang out.

“Hey! Hello!”

She whipped her head around to the source of the voice and nearly choked at the sight of a boy with pink hair running towards him, arms waving above his head as if to draw attention to himself. For a moment she thought Natsu had cut his hair before remembering, no, he was currently preoccupied with a fight.

The boy skidded to a stop a few feet from Lucy and waved, a sheepish smile on his face. “I’m sorry, ma’m, but can I ask you for directions? I’m sorta lost here and my friend is injured…” The boy itched the back of his neck, embarrassed.

He didn’t look threatening, but the curse power within him put Lucy on edge. It was only now that he was close to Lucy did she realize that his curse power only felt small because he was a fair distance away. “I-”

“Woah, is that a flying cat?” The boy reached out to pet Happy, but he dodged his eager hand. The boy pouted.

“Lucy help! The Etherious tried to grab me!” Happy shrieked, and flew behind Lucy. She placed a protective hand on his paw. The boy tilted his head, clearly confused.

“What's an… ether-eeneth-retho… huh?” Odd. He didn't seem aware. He shook his head. “Nevermind that, can you answer my question?” He said with a sigh.

Lucy eyed Gemini, they were still close. Good. If things went sideways they would be able to help her. “I’m sorry, we’re currently in the forest south of the city Magnolia. You can find help for your friend there.” She said the words coldly. Lucy didn't want this kid picking up on the unease she felt.

“Oh, alright...” He paused again, “Uh, where's that?”

Lucy resisted the urge to face palm. Maybe this kid was too stupid to be a threat after all. She silently closed Gemini's gate when Happy spoke up. “As if we’d tell you, we won't lead you to our guild hall!”

The boy groaned in frustration. “Just my luck- I'm lost and the first person I run into is a roleplaying freak with a cat Shikigami.” He mumbled, looking put out. “Listen, i really need your help here- i dont know why you’re so distrustful of me but i promise i have no ulterior motives.”

If you asked Lucy what made her start to trust the boy, you might be surprised at the reason. It was simply his sincerity. He had started to remind her of Natsu in more than one way as he spoke, and she lowered her guard.

“How injured is your friend?” She asked.

“I don't know for sure, but he's knocked out cold and his Shikigami is freaking out right now, and that's no good for anyone.”

Lucy had absolutely no idea what the hell a “shee-kee-gami” was, but the urgency the boy spoke with told her it could be nothing but dangerous if out of control. While she’d dealt with out of control monsters before, her magic energy was low and didnt trust herself to be able to defeat any monsters solo.

“Alright, lead the way to him. I'll see what I can do.” She said, as she walked forward.

“Luuccyyy! You can’t just trust this guy so easily! What about the curse power we sensed!?” Happy whined, not moving from where he hovered. Lucy turned back around.

“You don't have to trust him, Happy, but you can absolutely trust me, right?” She smiled. “I won't let anything happen, I promise.” She added, holding her arms out for Happy to fly into. The boy smiled at the interaction.

“Your cat is super cute! It was Happy, right?” He tilted his head and Happy nodded shyly. “Awe, that's a good name for a cat!” He began to pet Happy’s head as they walked through the forest. “Your name is Lucy right?”

Lucy nodded. “Yeah, Lucy Heartfilia. And yours?”

“Yuji, Yuji Idatori. It's nice to meet you, thank you for helping me.”

Lucy grinned fondly. He really was like Natsu, albeit much calmer. But there was one question burning in her mind.

“So, Yuji…” He turned his head at the sound of his name. “Why do you… have curse power?” Lucy chewed the inside of her cheek and absentmindedly hugged happy closer.

Yuji looked so incredibly perplexed it was almost funny. “Do you mean my cursed energy? I admit, it's a bit low since...” He looked at the ground, sadness with a flash of anger overtaking his features. Lucy decided not to push the issue, and instead focused on the first part of his sentence.

“Yeah, that. As far as i know, only Demons of the Books of Zeref can use curses, and to me you don’t seem like one.”

Yuji looked rather thoughtful before shrugging. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about, but tons of people I know can use cursed energy.” He began to smile again. “I was taught by the strongest, he has more cursed energy than almost anyone.” He scrunched his face up, and muttered something under his breath along the lines of “I guess Okkotsu technically has a larger reserve though…”

Lucy hummed, taking in the information. “So from my understanding, you’re not an Etherious, correct?” Yuji nodded.

“I don't even know what that is.”

Lucy chewed her lip. “Where are you from by the way?”

Yuji perked up at the question. “I grew up in Sendai, but I live in Tokyo where I go to school.” He stopped walking when Lucy wasn't able to mask her confusion. “You don't know where that is, do you?” She shook her head sadly, she really wanted to help this boy. He looked so defeated all of a sudden. “Are we even in Japan anymore?”

Lucy sighed. “We’re in Fiore, Ishgar, I really wish I knew how to help more.”

Yuji just smiled again. “It's alright, I'll figure it out.”

The walk through the forest was silent for the remainder of the trip. Happy had dozed off in Lucy's arms, snoring softly. The southern forest was bathed in a golden light as the sun set and Lucy found herself appreciating her decision to forgo the high heels for this job. The path they walked on eventually turned into a small hill, and turned down back to the forest floor where a river winded through. Lucy noticed another boy laying on fallen leaves while a grotesque long armed beast loomed over him.

“That's him,” Yuji stated. “My friend, I mean.” When Lucy didn't immediately respond, he quickly added, “The human, not the shikigami!” He really was like Natsu.

“So that's a shikigami!” Happy shouted. “It looks so yummy!”

Lucy pulled on his tail. “Not food, you dumb cat, remember what Yuji said? If it goes out of control it will be dangerous. No eating!” When happy ducked his head in shame, Yuji reached out to ruffle his ears.

“Don't be sad, Happy, and don't worry, Miss Lucy, my friends Shikigami wouldn’t hurt anyone unless he was in danger.” He smiled wide, a sense of pride emanating off of him in waves.

“That reminds me of a good friend of mine. He’s kind of an idiot, but if his friends are in trouble, he’ll do anything to protect them.” Happy perked up.

“Yeah, Natsu is the best!”

Yuji beckoned them to follow down the path. Lucy noticed the Shikigami looked like it was crying, despite it having no eyes. Yuji waved at it. “Rika!” He called. The Shikigami, “Rika” Turned to him in acknowledgement, ugly sobs wracking its body.

“Yuta… he wont wake up…” Lucy almost felt bad for the abomination. Not bad enough to get any closer, but her heart strings twinged at its broken voice. Yuji looked back up at her.

“Dont worry Miss Lucy, she's only scared. Just don't do anything too drastic.”

Before Lucy could take another step forward, Rika moved in the blink of an eye towards her. “You… stay away… he's mine…” The genuine malice that came from the creature chilled Lucy to the bone, and Happy dashed away to hide behind Yuji. Lucy steeled her nerves. This was nothing, she’d faced worse in her time with Fairy Tail. Yuji needed help, and that was what wizards did. They helped others, no matter how scary the task, difficult the journey. She was going to help Yuji and his friend.

“Rika, that's you right?” Lucy lifted a hand in a shy wave, trembling slightly. “I just want to help, if i can, is that okay?” Rika growled slowly. “I promise, I wont do anything to hurt your friend.” Yuji cringed.

“Actually, they’re uh… lovers…”

Lucy openly gaped. Rika snarled, and she immediately scrambled for words.

“I mean- you’re uh, boyfriend?” Yuji bunched his shoulders and clutched Happy.

Lucy gaped even wider. “Your husband?” That seemed to pacify Rika and she backed up slightly.

“He's mine.” She went back over to the passed out boy and crouched next to him. Rika looked so distressed. Lucy slowly walked towards them.

She knelt beside the boy, and Yuji sat next to her. The passed out boy looked to be around her age, maybe a bit younger? She lifted a hand, but stopped to wordlessly ask for permission from Rika. She bristled, but stayed still. Lucy checked his pulse.

“Well he's alive at least, that's for sure.” Her brow furrowed. There were no visible injuries. His magic- curse- level was much lower than its origin, which was astonishing in size. Even bigger than the white haired man Natsu was fighting. She began to worry why it was taking him so long to beat him but she quickly shoved the thought away.

“I think his curse reserves are low.” She said hesitantly, hoping Yuji knew what she was talking about.

Thankfully, he nodded in understanding. “That would add up.” He turned to Rika. “Rika, you need to go for now.” He said gently. “He needs to rest his cursed energy, is that okay? I promise he’ll be alright.”

Rika absolutely hated that, she began to wail and thrash. “No! I need to protect him, Yutaaa…” Yuji visibly repressed a sigh.

“I promise me and Miss Lucy will protect him until he’s better, but you need to go for that to happen.” He smiled at her. Lucy returned the smile.

“If it makes you feel better, Rika,” She began, “My friend can help him get better faster.” Rika stopped her frantic movement and sucked in air, making a choked noise as she did.

“R-really?” Lucy nodded.

And like that, Rika disappeared from view. Lucy exhaled shakily and stood. While Rika wasn’t the most formidable monster she’d faced, Lucy still found herself slightly shaken. She had to constantly remind herself that Yuji and his friends' curse power wasn’t the same as Tartaros’.

“Well, that was scary.” She giggled nervously. “If we can find my friend, Wendy, she can help your friend.” Yuji beamed and stood as well. “I just have to ask, do you have a communications lacrima on you?” Yujis smile was wiped right off his face and he looked dumbfounded.

“Like, a phone?” He dug in his pocket. “You can try, but I don't think I have any service in this forest. He tapped it a few times and gently tossed it to lucy. “Knock yourself out.

As she looked at the object, she froze.

On the screen was the time, not unlike a communications lacrima. But behind that was an image that shook her. It was a picture of Yuji with three other people. A dark haired boy, a girl with a short bob and one more. Lucy sucked in a breath. The white haired man Natsu was currently fighting. She turned back to Yuji. “Uhm, kind of a weird question but, how do you know this guy?”

Yuji blinked. “He's my teacher… Gojo Sensei.” He said quietly, sadness deep in his eyes. “Why do you ask?” Lucy felt a rush of nausea. She shouldn’t have let her guard down. This was bad.

But- Yuji wasn't an Etherious, there was a very strong likelihood his teacher wasn't either. Which means Natsu could be fighting a completely innocent person.

“No reason, let's focus on your friend here. Now-” She looked back at the phone, Yuji called it, and realized despite being similar to a communications lacrima, she had no idea how to use it. Groaning in defeat, she passed it back to him. “I don't know if this will work at all for what I need it for.” Yuji frowned, but took the phone back, stuffing it in his pocket.

“Lucy, if you want I can fly around and look for Wendy!” Happy dashed around towards Lucy. “She can’t be that far! Just leave it to me!” Lucy nodded affirmatively.

“Okay, but come back if there's any monsters, the sun is setting. Be safe, Happy!”

“Aye sir!” He shouted, and zoomed off into the treetops.

Yuji looked back at Lucy, he looked like he wanted to ask a question but didn't quite know the words. “Is something wrong, Yuji?” He bit his lip nervously.

“Why did you look so scared when you saw Gojo Sensei?”

She released a breath. How was she supposed to tell Yuji? Yeah, he has the same energy signature as a bunch of evil demons that nearly killed all my friends, so Natsu jumped him!

No way that would go over well. Thankfully, she didn't have to answer, because Happy came back, Charle flew behind him with Wendy in her arms.

“Lucy! What happened?” Wendy shouted.

Lucy waved enthusiastically, a smile breaking out on her face. “I just need you to check something for me!” She called back. Happy flew down close, and Lucy tried not to be offended at how he chose to hover next to Yuji instead of her. Dumb cat.

“Honestly, you only need her for healing? She has her own priorities too!” Charle scoffed as she put Wendy down. “Erza and Gray decided to continue heading back to the Guild.” She said, crossing her arms. Wendy smiled awkwardly.

“You make them sound so heartless, they offered to come with me- I just decided to come on my own.” Charle huffed. “What can I do though, Lucy? Happy said someone needed healing-” Her eyes flicked over to Yuji and she paled.

Lucy realized what happened. “No Wendy, we can trust them! He's not an etherious.” Yuji bowed.

“Im Yuji Idatori, it's good to meet you!” Wendy relaxed a bit, but did not come any closer. Yuji straightened up. “Are you really able to help my friend?” He asked softly.

“Wendy, he's really nice!” Happy added. Wendy glanced nervously around, before nodding and stepping towards the passed out figure and crouching.

“Hmm… im not entirely sure what hurt him so badly but…” She furrowed her brow. “I can try my best to heal him, but without knowing what exactly is wrong I don't know if it will be effective.”

“His cursed energy is low,” Yuji began, also crouching now. “I don't know if there's a way to manually replenish it, but please try…” Lucy could hear the desperation in his voice, and she knew Wendy did as well when she squared her shoulders and nodded firmly.

Tying her hair into a ponytail, she set to work on healing.

A few minutes passed before the boy's eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up.

“Okkotsu!” Yuji beamed.

The boy slowly sat up, and Wendy flailed her arms. “Please try not to move yet! I’m not done healing you.” The boy slowly looked towards Wendy before smiling softly.

“I won't move anymore, I promise.” He turned back to Yuji. “Itadori… where are we?”

Happy answer for him. “We’re in the forest south of Magnolia, but Yuji doesn't know where that is so we’re helping him!” The boy looked absolutely flabbergasted at the sight of Happy and Lucy groaned.

“Happy, tone it down a thousand, will you? He just woke up.” Happy sheepishly apologized. “Sorry about that…” The boy waved his hands in surrender.

“No no, it's okay really! I'm not upset at all.” He looked around again. “Uh, if you don't mind me asking, who… who are you guys?”

Lucy put a hand on his shoulder in comfort. “I’m Lucy Heartfillia, and the girl who healed you is Wendy Marvel. The blue cat is Happy, and the white cat is Charle.” The latter cat huffed in irritation. Lucy ignored her. “Yuji found us and asked us to help you.”

Yuji smiled again at the boy, which he returned in earnest. “Thank you, Itadori.” He turned back to Wendy. “Thank you for healing me, Wendy.” She flushed a violent shade of red.

“Honestly, it was nothing, I wasn't able to fully fix the problem, so please try not to do anything strenuous.”

The boy nodded. “Understood.” He suddenly jerked his head up and began feeling around the forest floor. “Uh- Itadori, do you know where my katana is?”

It took Yuji a minute to understand what he meant. “Oh, Rika has it right now. She stored it away for you.” The boy heaved a sigh of relief. He moved to stand, pausing for Wendy's approval.

She nodded, and he straightened out.

“Thank you all so much for helping.” He bowed- What was with these kids and bowing? -and gasped suddenly. “I never introduced myself!” Bowing even lower now, he spoke, “I’m Yuta Okkotsu, it's very nice to meet you all!”

Lucy chuckled. “It's nice to meet you too, Yuta. I’m glad you’re awake!”

Charle sighed and crossed her arms. “He's almost as bad as you, Wendy. He got so flustered for no reason!” Wendy pouted.

“Charle don't be mean…”

Yuta laughed nervously and Lucy noticed him fiddling with the ring on his hand. Ah, that's right. He’s married to an eldritch horror. How lovely. She cleared her throat. “We should probably head back to the city now, we’ll be more able to help you two at the guildhall where there's better resources than out in the forest.”

Everyone nodded at her words, and Lucy was struck with the strangest realization.

Was she the leader here?

She awkwardly coughed into her fist and turned back towards the path and away from the nearby river. “Happy, you said the city was in this direction, right?” She said, and pointed back the way they came. Happy flew up and nodded excitedly.

“Yep! Just back in the field Natsu was fighting that weird guy!”

Shit.

“Huh? Weird guy?” Yuji tilted his head in confusion.

“Yeah! Some weirdo with white hair and glowy blue eyes. Super creepy…” Lucy stilled. Yuji turned towards her, and Yuta sucked in a breath.

“White hair and blue eyes.” The latter began. “Itadori, thats-"

“Gojo Sensei.” Yuji finished.

Lucy was speechless. She was going to tell Yuji eventually, but she didn't expect to have to explain so soon and on the spot.

“So that's why you looked so freaked out after looking at my phone, your friend attacked my sensei!?” Yuta wheeled around.

“Your friend did what?” They both froze and looked at each other again. “Wait does that mean-” Yuji, despite himself, began to smile.

“Gojo sensei is still alive!”

Chapter Text

The last time Natsu had felt so out of his depth was when he had faced off against Gildarts during the doomed S-Class exam 9 years ago. Even so, that hadn’t felt quite so terrible, despite his having been beaten. He’d known that Gildarts wouldn’t have hurt him, and he’d felt stronger afterward. He’d gotten so much stronger since then, but he still wasn't quite able to defeat Gildarts, but he’d gotten close. Gildarts was always challenging, his strength was truly remarkable.

This, though? This felt completely different, and his opponent this time wasn't a friend-- no, he was deranged . He laughed whenever Natsu failed to land a blow, and grinned wide when he got hurt. Natsu remembered hitting him with a Fire Dragon’s Roar, but his triumph was quickly smothered when all traces of the attack were healed, and his opponent just quirked his head to the side like nothing had happened. 

“What, not expecting that?”

Natsu gritted his teeth in anger at the memory. He’d switched to Lightning-Fire Dragon mode by this point, and the surrounding area had all but been burnt to a crisp. He vaguely registered that gramps would be grumpy with all the paperwork the Council would no doubt send him following the destruction of wilderness, and grimaced in sympathy.

Sorry, Gramps.

He zoned back in on the fight as a bright blue ball of energy whizzed by his head, and he dropped to a crouch before rolling away. 

“You’re annoying, honestly,” the white haired man began, “but I only say that ‘cause I'm so incredibly bored.” He made a show of yawning, and Natsu scowled. “You haven't tried to burn Infinity again.” He grinned menacingly. “Which means you haven't given me a real reason to go all out and have some fun with this.”

He flung another blue energy ball at Natsu, which he blocked with his flames. He wasn't going all out? Natsu’s scowl deepened. Not only was his opponent strong on the offensive, but his defense was solid as well-- he’d not let Natsu close enough to do anything. It was truly vexing. 

“You might not be going all out, but I’d be a disgrace to the Fairy Tail name if I didn’t!” With that, Natsu lunged forward, lightning and fire crackling around his limbs. 

The white haired man moved out of Natsu's way, but Natsu flipped back around and tried to grab onto him. Something stopped him part way, and he vaguely remembered the sensation from earlier. ‘Infinity,’ the man had called it. 

“Burn to ashes!” Natsu shouted, and engulfed nearly the entire field in flames. 

“There it is.” The man turned around and struck Nastu back, sending him sprawling. Before he could fall back, his scarf was grabbed onto and he was thrown, flying through the air. He righted himself and roared fire back. The two stood several feet apart now, just catching their breath. “Nobodys ever been able to burn Infinity. Disable it, sure, but actively destroy it?” He laughed, and Natsu shivered at the lack of mirth. “You’re a bit of an exception, huh? Seems I might need to change tactics a bit.”

Natsu shifted back on his feet, his opponent clearly preparing something. “Finally, you startin’ to take me seriously?” Natsu chuckled. “Guess I can change tactics too then, huh?” He felt his fire and forced it hotter, and hotter, until it practically melted the surrounding area. The white haired man's face shifted in slight shock before he laughed-- no-- cackled. 

“You son of a bitch, you’ve actually managed to burn away Infinity! No matter how I reinforce or strengthen my technique, it burns away again!” Natsu flashed a demonic smile.

“These are the flames of Igneel, the King of Fire Dragons.” He punched his fist into his palm and gave a devilish grin. “And these are the flames that are gonna kick your ass to the curb.” The man looked slightly amused, and Natsu was more than ready to wipe his irritating smirk off his face. 

Before he could do anything else, the white haired man held up his hand and crossed his fingers. He began to speak, calmly, quietly-- but Natsu's dragon ears could pick up the words.

“Cursed Technique Amplification: Blue.” The blue sphere Natsu had been dodging for the past half hour appeared next to the man. What's he planning? Nevermind, I’ll just block it this time. It was too big to dodge, Natsu could tell that much. The grass of the surrounding area was pulled up and around the sphere, plant life and rocks orbiting. 

“Cursed Technique Reversal: Red.” A red sphere appeared on the other side- the same one that sent Natsu flying into a tree- and both began to shift into one another. “Typically, I try to refrain from using this all willy-nilly, but you’ll have to forgive me-- I don't like when people interfere with my Infinity.” He moved his hand into position-- like he was about to flick a rubber band.

Natsu also prepared his spell, Imagining Igneels strength and using it for himself. “Fire Dragon King’s--”

“Imaginary Technique--”

They both cast their ultimate moves at the same time.

“--Destruction First!”

“--Hollow Purple.”

The destruction that followed was harrowing. Trees were sent flying, and the ground shook as a mass of space moved towards Natsu and Igneels flames spread across the ground. Birds scattered out of the trees and smaller animals fled the scene, desperate to not be caught in the crossfire. Natsu made a shield out of a wall of fire, hoping to negate the worst of the attack coming his way. 

The dust cleared, and Natsu couldn't believe his eyes. The white haired man stood, unfazed, blinking slowly,  eyes pulsing a vibrant shade of icy blue.  

Igneel’s fire had managed to protect Natsu, and the ‘Hollow Purple’ had managed to protect the white haired man, but the forest was absolutely decimated. Natsu glanced over his shoulder-- there was a crater . The man's attack carved a hole straight through the earth. He looked over at said man, and smirked. Seems Igneel’s fire had managed to be equally as devastating. 

“So, now you gonna go all out or what?” He cracked his knuckles. “Now you’ll know not to underestimate a Fairy Tail wizard again.” He couldn’t use Fire Dragon King spells for a little bit-- his magic needed replenishing-- but the white haired man didn’t know that. 

“That depends on you, naturally. Are you going to give me a proper reason to, or are we just gonna stand here all day like statues?” He held his hand up and beckoned Natsu closer. “C’mon, bring it. Are you scared?” He teased, practically purring the last syllables. Before he could do anything else, Natsu bounded towards him.

Natsu threw his fist directly at him, but he caught it and dodged out of the way. Natsu sprang back, and then it was just a messy clash of fists and kicks. Natsu flipped around, jumping to either side, dodging and parrying. He took blows here and there, and landed less than he got. One particularly nasty hit from the white haired man's open palm had his head whipping backwards, only to have his hair grabbed and his face being brought towards his knee. Natsu was thankfully able to weasel out of his opponent's grip and toss him away. Both recovered quickly, and leaped back into the fray.

Both of them were fast-- to any outsider it must have looked like a blur of colour. Whenever one landed a hit, the other took one in turn. It had essentially devolved into a stalemate, but Natsu refused to give up. He’d been up against far tougher opponents before-- hell, he’d defeated both Zeref and Acnologia. This guy was nothing.

But even in the inelegant brawl, his face was composed. Natsu couldn’t get a read on what emotions he was feeling, or even what he was thinking. He left little room for any sort of opening-- he was just too fast. He swung left, and Natsu went down instead of to the right. There! 

Right when he was about to use Fire Dragon: Iron Fist, a shout rang out, and he was tackled to the ground.

“Gah!” He shouted as he collided with the earth. “H-Happy!? What-”

“Natsu! You can't fight that guy!” The blue cat pleaded, eyes wide.

“He's not an etherious!” Natsu sat up slightly, it was Lucy who’d spoken- she was running towards him at full tilt, Wendy, Charle and two others in tow. “He isn’t a threat!”

After finding out that Gojo-sensei was still alive, and currently fighting Lucy's friend, Yuji wasted no time in sprinting through the forest. Lucy led them back to where Gojo-sensei was, and the sight they were met with was shocking.

What had most likely been a small forest clearing was now a gaping hole of charred earth. Gojo-sensei’s residuals were everywhere-- and the hole carved through the trees were evidence of an-- albeit rather small - Hollow Purple. Just what the hell was he fighting here? His eyes moved to the center of the destroyed field, where he dimly registered Satoru Gojo, his sensei, the strongest sorcerer, bested only by the king of curses, brawling with another person. 

“We’ve got to stop them!” Happy shouted before dashing off towards them.

“Happy, no! Wait--” Lucy reached out to grab him, but he slipped away. She chased after him, and in an unspoken agreement the rest followed. 

The fight before them was brutal . Every swing was audible, and Yuji could practically feel every blow. Gojo-sensei had done more damage overall, but his opponent was still keeping up with him. His face was bloodied, one eye swollen, but he was taunting Yuji's sensei like he was winning. Gojo-sensei didn’t respond, which was very unlike him. 

He was serious about this fight.

Yuji focused more on Lucy's friend. He also had pink hair, which Yuji had honestly never seen before-- aside from old family photos and on Sukuna-- which gave him a sense of genuine intrigue.

Then the fucker lit his fist on fire , and went right for Gojo-sensei’s ribs, right under the sternum. Mercifully, it was right before his fist and Gojos chest could collide, Happy barreled right into him, knocking him to the ground. And as Lucy, Wendy and Charle ran over to check on their friend, Yuji and Yuta headed to their sensei, who was standing very still watching his now downed opponent.

“Gojo-sensei!” Yuji shouted while waving his hands. 

He snapped his head over to his students and his expression softened. A wide smile-- genuine, no sense of teasing nor malice-- settled on his mouth.

“Yuji, Yuta, come to rescue your favourite sensei-- Oof!” 

While Yuji had given Gojo large bear hugs before, he’d never managed to make him stumble. Even with his entire body weight practically thrown at the man he’d never even made him shift his feet. 

So when Gojo basically crumpled like a sack of potatoes, Yuji was more than a little concerned. 

“Gojo-sensei, Itadori, are you okay!?” Yuta skidded to a stop next to the two of them, Yuji practically crushing Gojo beneath him. 

“Sensei-- I’m so sorry-- are you--”

Before Yuji could finish his sentence, Gojo let out a hearty laugh, full of humour. “Man, I missed you kid!” He grabbed Yuta’s sleeve, and before the poor boy could register what was happening-- he was also now sprawled across the scorched ground with them. He let out a surprised yelp, then also started to giggle. 

“I can't believe you’re alive,” He whispered. “I'm so glad i didn't have to--” Yuji saw how Yuta’s face fell, and tears welled in his eyes slightly. Gojo-sensei just ruffled his hair and gave a reassuring smile. 

“Yep, that's me! Alive and kicking, your good-looking Gojo-sensei. Among the land of the living.” He gave both boys a tight hug before shifting to sit up more, Yuta and Yuji following suit. Gojo patted Yuji on the head. “What are you two doing here though? How did you manage to find me?” 

Yuji sat criss-cross applesauce, and opened his mouth to speak-- 

“They didn’t. I lead them back here.” 

It was Lucy who had spoken. Gojo-sensei looked rather unimpressed at her interruption, and Lucy gave him a soft smile. “They really wanted to see you, and I knew where you were-- fighting Natsu, albeit-- so I helped them.” Gojo-sensei's expression changed and he glanced at his students. “They told me about the type of magic you use-- it's like curses but not evil. Natsu only attacked you because where we come from, they are evil. They’re bad.”

“Awe, my adorable students, you wanted to see me? I mean I am pretty great.” He looked over at Lucy's friend-- Natsu, Yuji remembered-- and frowned. “That kid’s insane… hey, he's your boyfriend, right, blondie?” 

Lucy flushed red. “Wha-- No! He's just--”

“He loves her~!” Happy teased. 

Yuji snorted while Yuta smiled awkwardly. Apparently it was the funniest thing in the world to Gojo-sensei though, as he cackled wickedly. “Just teasing!” He coughed into his fist. “Kid really knows how to fight though-- what's his technique?” Yuji was curious about that too. He had set parts of himself on fire while fighting Gojo, it must be strong.

Lucy, now recovered from her earlier embarrassment, put her hands on her hips, confusion taking over her features. “‘Technique?’ What do you mean?”

“Like, how does he do all the things he does?”

“Natsu doesn't have much of a technique beyond “I’m going to punch this guy until he gives up, or I tire myself out”, but I'm not sure that's what you meant?” 

Natsu sat up so fast it made Yuta jump slightly. 

“Hey-- I’ve got plenty of technique!” He stood up and stomped over beside Lucy. “I'm not that brutish-- if I were then I wouldn’t have won half of the fights I’ve been in.” Lucy simply rolled her eyes.

Lucy scoffed and Yuji noticed out of the corner of his eye Gojo-sensei smiling knowingly. “Yeah, sure .”

Natsu turned to the Jujutsu sorcerers and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck and gave an awkward lopsided grin. “Man, sorry for attacking you out of nowhere, my bad!” He squatted down to be eye level with Gojo-sensei, and held his hand out for a shake. “I’m Natsu Dragneel, let's start over on better terms?"

Gojo didn't hesitate before shaking his hand. “Satoru Gojo. Apparently, my cursed energy set you off, I promise I'm not entirely evil.”

Natsu's smile widened, and his attention turned to Yuji. He leaned in closer, and Yuji shifted uncomfortably. “Say, you and I really look alike!” That was true-- even aside from the pink hair, both boys had slightly tanned complexions, and hazel-brown, sharp eyes. Natsu's head tilted and his brows furrowed. “We secretly related or somethin’?”

It was a genuine question, and at this point Yuji wouldn’t be surprised if they were. From Choso, to Kenjaku, to fucking Sukuna, his family tree could afford to get a bit stranger. He coughed awkwardly. “I mean, maybe?” Natsu stared at him intensely for a long time. He leaned back when he was seemingly satisfied with his study of Yujis face. 

“Man, I’ve gotta stop finding random, long-lost family members, shit’s gettin’ way too weird, even for me.” 

“Tell me about it,” Yuji muttered. 

After a little bit of chatting and clarifying that, no, we are not evil book demons, yes, we have no idea where we are, and a few introductions, the ragtag group of wizards and sorcerers set off towards the Fairy Tail guild. Happy seemed to really like sitting on Gojo-sensei's shoulders-- not that he would mind-- the cat enjoying the extra height without needing to fly. 

Yuta had used his reversed cursed technique to heal Natsu, which Wendy had protested at first, ultimately giving in when reminded to conserve the remainder of her magic by Charle. Natsu had been incredibly enthused about the technique and practically overwhelmed Yuta with questions and praise. The poor boy had no idea how to react and Natsu only calmed down when Lucy pulled his ear.

Yuji quite liked the wizards. He had fallen into step beside Natsu and the two had begun to chat about their respective lives.

“Yeah, Gray's great in a fight, super reliable, but I just wish that asshole would stop trying to sacrifice himself all the time-- I mean, what's the point in a victory if you’re not all there to celebrate?” He sighed and shook his head. “For me, even one comrade or friend lost is a failure.” 

Yuji cocked his head. “I’ve never really thought about it that way. In Jujutsu sorcery, it's more so an ‘every man for himself’ type of job.” Natsu wrinkled his nose. “I mean-- if you can, you absolutely should try to save your comrades-- but the mission always has to come first.” It's what almost all of his mentors had driven into his head. As long as the curse is gone, and at least one sorcerer is left standing, it's a successful job. He wished things were different, but he’d learned the hard way why things were the way they were on his first proper assignment. 

He’d learned that lesson after he’d died due to his own hesitation.

Natsu shook his head. “That… I hate that for you. I can’t imagine losing anyone. Even if evil is defeated, even if I know that technically I won…” He stuck his tongue out in disgust. “I couldn’t live with myself if I put completing a job above a friend. Especially if I could have saved them.” Natsu turned to Yuji. “But from my understanding, where you come from, that isn't often a choice, huh?” Yuji nodded. 

There wasn't often a choice. There never really was. He glanced towards his sensei, head thrown back in laughter as Lucy scrambled to defend herself against his teasing. Satoru Gojo possibly knew there was no choice better than anyone. The only choice was to leave and potentially endanger everyone-- which Yuji couldn’t possibly think about doing- or stay, and be used. Both Gojo and Yuta were victims to the ways of Jujutsu society. 

Natsu sighed and stretched his arms over his head, linking his fingers behind his neck. “Man, I guess if we also came from there Gray might’ve actually succeeded.” 

Yuji smiled a bit. “Your friend Gray reminds me of a friend of mine actually.” Natsu raised an eyebrow, a silent invitation for Yuji to continue. “Out of all of us, he's always the first to put himself in danger to give the rest an opening to either win, or get away.” He shook his head at the memory of the baseball game they’d played after the exchange event disaster. “He…” Yuji swallowed thickly. “I don't think he realizes how much he means to us.” 

Natsu put a reassuring hand on Yuji's shoulder. “Then you just have to keep showing up for him. That's what I do for Gray, I show up.” Yuji looked over at him, his expression unreadable. “Your friend… try to put him before the mission. Save him before he even gets the chance to try to sacrifice himself. It sounds hard, but if there's someone you care about deeply, you’d move mountains to make sure they're okay.” Yuji noticed he looked towards Lucy as he spoke his words, something deep reflected in his eyes.

Yuji nodded and blinked back the tears that formed in his eyes. “But… I wasn't fast enough and he got…” He breathed out, willing himself not to cry. “He got put in a really bad situation and I don't know if I can still help him anymore.” 

It wasn’t Yuji's fault, really, that that bastard Sukuna had taken advantage of Yuji's shock to take over Megumi's body, but Yuji didn’t think he would ever stop blaming himself. Megumi, wherever he was, might be beyond help at this point, his soul could be completely erased. Yuji hated the thought. He hated the thought of his friend's body being used to kill his sister, and the man who raised him. If anything had been stopping Sukuna from a full take over of Megumi, he effectively squashed it with the murder of his family. Yuji tried not to think about the way Gojo-sensei's arm had gone flying after dismantle was used on him-- Gojo-sensei is alive, he's right in front of you.

“There's always a way, Yuji, even if it seems impossible-- like the odds are stacked and shit keeps going wrong-- you’ll be able to fix things.” Natsu smiled wide, and Yuji noticed that he had fangs. “You’ll be able to fix it, because the Fairy Tail guild never turns its back on friends, and no client is ever left unsatisfied.”

Megumi dimly registered something cold on his back. Cold, and wet. It was the kind of cold that seeped deep into your bones, forcing you to shiver. He also felt something soft poking at his cheek. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking rapidly to adjust to the sudden influx of colour. He realized he was lying in a shallow creek- explaining the wet feeling- and that the markings of Sukuna were gone. In fact- all traces of the curse were gone.

That couldn't be a good sign. The last thing he remembered was Sukuna being on the backfoot, Gojo had nearly pushed him to the edge when--

He suppressed the urge to vomit. Sukuna had killed the man who’d raised him, the man who’d stepped up when his biological father had stepped out on him and Tsumiki, whom Sukuna had also mercilessly killed with Megumi's body. Everything had gone wrong, so, so wrong. Megumi wanted to scream and cry.

He didn’t think he was still stuck in the depths of his soul, which raised the question:

Where the hell am I?

If he wasn't still stuck inside Sukunas mind, then where could he be? Did he also end up dying? Did the King of Curses manage to kick him out of his own body, effectively killing Megumi in the process? No, he felt the ache in his bones from his earlier battles-- which he didn't even feel while within Sukuna. He must’ve managed to separate from the curse.

Maybe that was the trade off. His sensei had to die for Megumi to be saved. Wasn’t that exactly what he always told Megumi not to do? Fuckin hypocrite .

He wanted to cry, he wanted to cry so bad but he refused to let himself do such a thing. It was his fault this even happened-- he was too weak to combat Sukunas overwhelming power-- and almost everyone he cared about had died because of it. 

The poking sensation on his cheek intensified, and Megumi fully opened his eyes, the pressure shaking him from his thoughts. 

Megumi sat up, rubbing his temples. “Lector! Look! Fro woke up the sleeping person!” What.  

“Nicely done, Frosch! We should bring him back to the guild!”

“Fro thinks so too!” 

Megumi looked towards the direction of the voices, but saw nothing. He looked down and- oh.

A… pink frog? No… a green frog? A cat? A green cat in a pink frog onesie? He looked slightly in the other direction. Another cat, red, with a denim vest. 

“What the fuck?”

Chapter Text

Snow had started to fall, bathing the earth in an almost ethereal glow. While it was a bit chilly, the cold wasn't terribly unpleasant just yet. The sun was setting, turning the sky vibrant orange and casting angled shadows across the world. The town was full of bustling people, drinking, laughing, and overall just celebrating and having a good time. Christmas Eve, December 24th.

Yes, the cold wasn’t terribly unpleasant- but that was only if you hadn’t woken up in a shallow stream twenty minutes ago.

Megumi was absolutely freezing. His clothes were practically soaked through, and he was miserable.  

After being woken up by two talking cats, Megumi ignorantly thought that things could hardly get stranger. He was then bitch slapped in the face by life because the cats could fly. With wings. Flying fucking cats that could talk. They’d introduced themselves as Lector and Frosch, and the latter was especially snuggly- Megumi had absentmindedly been holding her close the entire time. Her tiny body was like a portable space heater. She’d also taken to referring to him as ‘Gumi’, and he hadn’t bothered correcting her.

He shivered and hugged the cat closer.

“Our guild hall is just up ahead, yes! My best friend, our master, should be able to help you figure out what you need.” Lector, the red cat, was far more chatty than Frosch, who only occasionally piped up. Megumi nodded. 

He still wasn't entirely trustful of the cats, but he'd be lying if the now sleeping Frosch and steady stream of conversation from Lector didn't bring him some form of comfort. The company was appreciated after being stuck inside Sukuna’s soul for so long. Megumi shivered again. “How much farther?” He glanced around with his eyes- the architecture was distinctly different from that in Tokyo-- hell, different from anywhere in Japan. He was most certainly not in Shinjuku anymore.

Lector pointed up, Megumi looking to where his paw pointed. “It's right there, yes. The Sabertooth guild!” 

On a large hill stood a massive building. A statue of a saber tooth tiger mid pounce loomed over the facade, in a more protective stance than anything else. It vaguely resembled a coliseum- with its cylindrical shape- and boy did it give a sense of foreboding. 

Megumi swallowed. “That's it then?” Lector nodded enthusiastically.

If the exterior of the Sabertooth guild hall was daunting and immense, then surely one would expect the inside to reflect that. Megumi mentally prepared for a dungeon-esque interior- serious and dark- as he walked through the outerwall. 

What one would not expect is a pleasant garden of hedgerows, white snow blanketing the shrubbery. Little winter birds fluttered around, and Lector raced ahead to the main entrance. He turned around and gestured broadly to the heavy doors. “This is our guild, yes! Welcome to Sabertooth!” Frosch stirred in Megumi's arms and rubbed her little eyes. 

“Oh, we’re home already?” She yawned quietly and wiggled-- a silent request to be put down. Megumi obliged and set the cat on the snow covered path. She held onto his pant leg and guided him towards the building. “Fro is excited to tell Rogue about the sleeping froggies we saw in the river.” 

Lector, despite his small size, pushed open the doors to the guild.

Warm air flowed out and Megumi felt his shoulders relax, Finally, no more shitty cold. 

The inside was laid out almost like a restaurant-- tables and chairs neatly arranged on the floor with a bar behind. There were stairs leading upwards as well, and banners hung from the ceiling. Idle chatter filled the air, and people moved every which way with purpose. It was an organized chaos.

Lector strode in confidently, Frosch skipping after him. “Sting! We’re back~!” 

A shout rang out from somewhere above. “Oh Lector! Gimme a second--” A few moments later footsteps thundered down the stairs. A young man appeared, messy blond hair sticking out from beneath a santa hat, and knelt down. Lector hopped up onto his shoulder. “What did you guys end up doing?” He turned toward Frosch before gazing up.

His shoulders tensed immediately upon seeing Megumi. 

“We found this guy passed out in a stream while looking for frogs, yes.” Lector pointed to Megumi. 

“Did you now…” Megumi shifted defensively. The blond man didn't seem that much older than him, maybe a few years, four at most. He noticed how his piercing blue eyes had slitted pupils, like that of a reptile. Despite the fuzzy santa hat on his head, this man was intimidating. “I don't like to make things tense, especially not on Christmas eve, but I’ve got some questions for you.” 

He stepped closer. Megumi huffed in a breath. 

“Firstly,” He practically snarled. “Why the hell do you reek of curses?”

Now that was a curveball. “The hell do you mean by that?” Megumi was not in the mood to be interrogated. The wet fabric of his jacket shifted and he repressed a shudder. “How can you smell cursed energy?” He shot back, eyes narrowing.

Just then, another entered the room. “Sting? What's going on here?” Megumi risked a glance away to study the owner of the new voice. A dark fringe obscured one eye, and the rest barely brushed his shoulders. He also had the same serpentine slit eyes, only in red. He stopped in his tracks, stiffening. He glared at Megumi. 

“Rogue~!” Frosch hopped over to the dark haired man and jumped into his arms. “Fro found lots of froggies, and the knocked out guy!” She pointed back to Megumi. “He carried Fro back home when Fro got tired, he was very nice. His name is Gumi!” 

The blond spoke again. “Yeah I bet he was nice.” He jabbed a finger into Megumi's chest. “Damn Tartaros bastards disbanded, the fuck are you still doing here, huh?” 

Literally what the fuck.

Megumi couldn’t stay here, things were getting dicey.

“Whaddya mean, Sting? Tartaros are gone, yes?” Lector looked frantically between the two.

“Seems one slimy jackass made it out unscathed.” Megumi felt a surge of cursed energy from the man. No, not cursed energy, it was too… bright. Cursed energy felt muddy, this was like a ray of sun filtering through a window. It was like the opposite of cursed energy. 

Frankly, regardless of what the hell it was, Megumi didn’t want to stick around and find out what it could do. He quickly sank into a nearby shadow and booked it out of there. 

That was when he felt himself being pulled back, dragged through the shadows. 

Okay, that's not horrifying. 

He was ripped back into the light, a strong grip on the collar of his jacket. It was the dark haired man. “Sorry, you and I seem to be a bad match-up.” He hauled Megumi back to where the blond man was. A small crowd had gathered now. “Explain yourself.”

Shit.

They ended up taking Megumi up the staircase from earlier and into a sort of throne room type area. There was a firm hand grabbing his upper arm, he dimly registered that a bruise would certainly form from the iron grip on his bicep. They hadn’t bound him or anything, but had instead made it very clear he wasn’t free to leave. 

“Right, let's figure this out,” The blond, Sting, said as he carelessly flopped onto a plush chair at the back of the room. He flung off the santa hat that’d been on his head, and ran a gloved hand through his hair, Lector still sat on his shoulder. “As I said before I don't like for things to be tense, not at all my style.” He sighed and crossed his arms. A pout sneaked on his face. “I hate when I have to act like I have a stick up my ass.” The dark haired man, Rogue, scowled and tightened his grip on Megumi's arm.

“Sting, try to take this at least somewhat seriously.” He was the more soft spoken of the two-- clearly the voice of reason-- his voice had an edge of fondness to it despite the scolding tone. “This guy could be a potential threat to all of Fiore. We need to send word to all the Guilds, Fairy Tail especially.” 

Sting groaned and draped himself across his chair in a way that could rival a Victorian woman who had scarlet fever. “Ugh paperwork…” His ice blue eyes snapped to Megumi and he shifted uncomfortably under the serpentine gaze. Both Sting and Rogue had those eyes-- cold, reptilian-- they looked at Megumi like a field mouse trapped. “You better tell us exactly what the hell you’re doing here.” He pointed to Frosch, who hid herself behind Rogue. “And you better explain what you were doing with our cats.”

Megumi swallowed. How was he supposed to explain himself? Oh, I was just trapped inside the soul of a 1000 year old curse who killed everyone I gave a shit about and then I woke up here, no biggie.” 

Yeah there's no way they’d believe that, hell, he wouldn’t believe that himself.

“I can’t explain myself in a way that makes sense.” Megumi said, tilting his head up defiantly

“Try me.” Sting shot back.

Megumi practically snarled in frustration. “I don’t know what I’m doing here, your stupid cats found me and brought me here, if it was up to me I’d be gone, so let me--” He tore his arm from Rogues grasp, “--the fuck go.” He made the hand symbol for the frog: Gama, and readied himself to flee. Both Sting and Rogue dropped to fighting stances and something very unexpected happened.

Frosch leaped (no pun intended,) onto Gama. “Fro found a froggie!” 

Rogue looked mortified and reached for the green cat. “Frosch-- no, don’t!”

But it was too late. Frosch was already hugging the frog-like shikigami tightly, nuzzling her nose into its wet skin. “Froggie!” Everyone froze, unsure of what to do. Megumi wanted to take this chance to flee, but his position with the exit was precarious. Nobody made an effort to move, all focused on Frosch and the shikigami, and ready for a fight.

It was Rogue who spoke first; “Frosch, get away from that thing.” He was quiet-- careful not to set off the monster. It blinked lazily, one eye after the other, and looked around the room, almost boredly.

It was waiting for an instruction.

“But Fro loves froggies…” She clutched it closer and sniffled like she was about to cry. 

Megumi saw how Rogue visibly repressed a groan and smirked slightly at the others' irritation. “Yes, Frosch, I’m aware--” He stopped for a moment and narrowed his eyes at the frog. He looked as if he was studying it, his head tilted and pupils dilated. “It's a shadow.”

How the hell did he figure that out?  

“What?” Sting asked, puzzled.      

“It's a shadow,” Rogue repeated. When Sting's confused expression did not shift, Rogue pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “I mean, it's made up of the same material as shadows-- it's literally a three-dimensional shadow.” Sting made an ‘o’ with his mouth in understanding, and grinned. 

“Seems like you’re shit outta luck then!” In a split second, his hand lit up with bright light, and the shikigami dispersed. Frosch bumped into the ground with a small ‘oof’ and looked around bewildered. “Lets try this again, you hedgehog-lookin’ jackass.”

He stalked over to Megumi and grabbed his collar. Despite being roughly the same height, Sting still managed to look down his nose at Megumi. His glare was suffocating in the same way a bright summer day could be: practically impossible to look at. “What are you doing here?”

Megumi growled. “I don't know, I said that already! Are you deaf, or thick in the head? I told you, the dumb cats found me in a stream. That's all I can tell you while still making any sense.” Sting didn't like his answer and gripped his collar tighter. Megumi sighed defeatedly, hanging his head.

“If i tell you you’ll have to believe me.” Sting just narrowed his eyes. Megumi braced himself and heaved in a breath. At least if they didn’t believe him, the worst that could happen is that they’d kill him. 

“I was trapped inside the soul of an evil demon and… I woke up here. I don't know where I am, I just know that I wasn't here before and I need to get back to where I was before so I can help everyone that's fighting to save me, okay?”

Sting blinked, and looked towards Rogue, then back at Megumi. He let go of his jacket and smiled wide, placing his hands on his hips. “Shit kid, why didn’t you just say so? Had us thinking you were some kinda evil demon yourself- with all that curse power radiating off of you.” He placed a hand on Megumi's shoulder and grinned at Rogue. “If there's anyone that knows about souls, it's us and the rest of the Dragon Slayers. We could have helped you, man!”

Rogue nodded, crossing his arms. “Yes, that checks out.” He coughed awkwardly and looked away. “Sorry about this…” 

Lector hopped up onto stings shoulder again. “You’ll have to forgive us, yes. Ya see, we had a pretty intense battle with some demons a couple years back, yes. They use curses instead of magic-- they tried to take our lady away-- and they wanted to erase magic over the continent so only those who used curses would survive.” He said it so matter of factly, like they hadn’t just been threatening Megumi for the past 10 minutes. He glanced around the room awkwardly, unsure of what to do next, or even of what to say. They all seemed so quick to move on. It was too strange, suspicious even. 

“Don't mention it, i guess…” Megumi couldn’t help but wonder just how bad the battle they spoke of was if his own cursed energy was enough to set them off so badly. In a strange way he could understand. If he sensed Sukuna’s energy, he’d probably want to do worse than interrogate whomever had it on them. 

Sting clapped his hands. “Well then, it seems we might have a trip over to Fairy Tail in our near future, Natsu knows about soul stuff way more than Rogue or I do.” He smiled at Megumi. “And seriously, sorry for all that, next time just tell the truth.” Rogue smacked the back of his head. 

“He just told us he thought we wouldn’t believe him, don't be such an ass.” 

Sting gripped his scalp in pain and whirled around, clutching the back of his head. “You-- why’d ya hit me, jerk!?”  

The two began bickering. Megumi stared bewilderedly, like that time he caught Gojo dipping the meringue cookies he bought into maple syrup partially mixed into pineapple juice, then topped with strawberry syrup, at 3am. “What? Why are you looking at me like that? Why are you awake? Go back to bed you- you have school in the morning!” That was the first of many times he’d stumble upon Gojo’s weird late night cravings. Sometimes he would eat things that were actually edible and even invite Megumi to try.

Megumi smiled slightly at the memories, but his expression fell just as fast. He's dead. He's never going to eat meringues again. It's your fault, too.

He made a slightly choked sound, and everyone in the room looked toward him. He felt tears prick his eyes and his throat close. 

Don't cry, don't cry, you’re a jujutsu sorcerer, don't cry, these are a bunch of strangers, don't cry, don't cry-

But the tears that threatened to spill had begun to tumble over. He bit his fist, willing himself to calm down. Don't cry. Gojo died after a good fight, he would be happy. Don't cry. He died because of you.

He felt a slight tug at his pant leg. He looked down. Frosch was the culprit.

“Gumi, don't cry, Fro will go looking for frogs with you to cheer you up.” He stared at the little cat, speechless. 

“I… I wasn't crying, I'm fine.” He crossed his arms and pointedly looked away. Everyone's eyes were still on him. He wished the floor would open and swallow him whole. He just almost broke in front of a group of people he’d only known for barely an hour. Get it together, Fushiguro.

“How old is this kid anyways?” He heard Sting ask, and Megumi glowered at him, unimpressed with his borderline-belittling tone.

“I’m fifteen-” No, wait, he wasn't. His birthday had passed unnoticed, thanks to Sukuna’s “little” stunt that involved the massacre of everyone he’d ever cared about. “Sixteen. I’m sixteen. Not a kid. Don’t patronize me.” Sting smirked at that. 

“You’re younger than me, which means, yeah, you’re a kid.” He smiled more genuinely. “But don't worry-- we’ll figure out how to help you.” He held out his fist- “Call me Sting, the White Dragon slayer and Master of Sabertooth.” Megumi slowly bumped his fist back. Sting elbowed Rogue. “And this grumpy asshole is Rogue-- the Shadow Dragon slayer of Sabertooth.”

The latter smiled softly and nodded at Megumi. “Again, sorry about earlier, not just for the questioning but for dragging you out of your shadow- I speak from experience when I say I know how unpleasant it is.” 

That's right, Rogue had managed to follow Megumi into the shadows-- he moved differently, though. While Megumi had to follow already existing ones, Rogue seemed to be able to move freely, as if he were a shadow.

He suspected the name “Shadow Dragon” wasn't a cheap title. It would also explain how he knew Megumi's shikigami came from shadows. He made a mental note to ask him more later.

Megumi rubbed the back of his neck. “Eh, it's fine… it's already done with, I'm not bitter or anything.” He looked down where Frosch was still holding onto his pant leg. “I dunno if these two already told you my name but it's Fushiguro. Megumi Fushiguro. You can call me that.” 

Sting threw an arm over his shoulders and Megumi tried not to flinch away. “Alright then, Megumi, we’re gonna get you some help!” 

The city of Magnolia was stunning. In the snowfall, it looked like it came straight out of a damn Christmas card, all lit up with lights and twinkling merrily. Satoru considered absently how walkable it must be, how close all the shops were to each other, and how convenient it all was, and immediately cringed when he realised how old he sounded. He’d always liked to think he acted younger, but at heart, he was just another near 30 year old. 

Happy had long since fallen asleep on his shoulders, snoring slightly and occasionally mumbling something about fish. Satoru was always more of a dog person, but the blue cat was certainly cute when sleeping.

The winter weather was crisp, and the snow fell undisturbed by wind. It was truly picturesque. “I love the snow!” Yuji said, eyes looking up at the sky. He looked at Satoru and concern danced across his face. “Gojo-sensei, aren’t you cold?”

Satoru didn't understand what he meant at first, but he looked down and realized-- Ah, I'm in a t-shirt during December. He shrugged and chuckled slightly. “Nah, hardly feel a thing.” The truth was, he did feel a little chilly, despite Infinity shielding most of the cold. He wished his haori and scarf hadn’t been thoroughly destroyed earlier.

Oh well, the things one does to try and save the world.

“H-how aren’t you c-cold? It's gotta be like… -10 out right n-now!” Lucy shivered. Natsu had given her his coat when she complained about the weather earlier. He still had his scarf, but was now without a shirt. He also was not bothered much by the snow-- Satoru noticed how it straight-up melted before it could touch him. “I-I can understand this guy not being cold,” She pointed with her thumb at Natsu, who had wrapped an arm around her, “B-but anyone else?” She shivered.

“Cmon Luce, not everyone is wearing a miniskirt and tights in December .” Lucy pouted. “You’re cold cause you dress like a dummy.” 

“Take your arm off me then.”

“No.” 

Then the two fell to bickering, and Satoru smiled. Yeah those two definitely had something going on. 

Yuta and Wendy walked on ahead. They’d bonded over healing abilities, and clicked pretty well, which made Satoru infinitely happy to see. Yuta had been so awkward and shy just a year ago, so to see him making new friends was good.  

“This is pretty nice, eh Yuji?” He elbowed the boy slightly. He looked at Satoru with wide happy eyes. 

“If the snow gets thicker we should have a snowball fight, sensei!” 

Satoru grinned wickedly. “Are you sure? I’m pretty much the best at a snowball fight, nobody’s ever been able to land a hit on me--”

“No techniques allowed.”

Satorus smile faltered. His eyes narrowed at Yuji. “Alright then, kid, it's decided.” He held his hand out to shake Yuji’s. “We duel at dawn.” 

The two fell to giggles, and Satoru pulled Yuji in for a one armed hug. “Seriously Yuji, I'm so glad I get to see you guys again.” The snow that had piled over Infinity fell over the two but neither seemed to notice. Yujis brow furrowed and his face fell.

Six-Eyes picked up the shift in emotion. 

“Do you think… Fushiguro also made it here?” He looked up at his sensei, eyes full of unshed tears. His lip wobbled and Satoru remembered just how young Yuji really was. It felt like a punch to the gut to hear about Megumi. “I wanna save him, I have to save him but--” He hiccuped. “Gojo-sensei, what if it's too late?” 

Satoru had been avoiding that thought. He didn't want to entertain the possibility. 

“Sukuna really hurt him, like, beyond. He-” Satoru knew Sukuna had killed him. He knew despite Megumi's cold attitude towards him, that he truly cared. He knew Sukuna hurt Satoru Gojo. But he didn't know anyone else had been. 

“He killed Fushiguro’s sister.” Yuji whispered. 

Satoru didn't freeze, but his shoulders tensed. Tsumiki. He gritted his teeth. Tsumiki had fallen into a curse induced coma a little more than a year ago. He’d gone to visit her with Megumi countless times since. 

He remembered sitting next to her hospital bed-- chatting with her, hoping she could hear-- and comforting Megumi. He remembered the hospital bills. He remembered the flower vase being emptied and refilled on each visit. He remembered how peaceful she looked despite the mark on her forehead. He remembered the idle beeping from the heart rate monitor and the headaches it caused. He remembered desperately trying to undo the curse with Six-Eyes, only for them to fail him. 

He remembered when he’d gotten the call that she’d been hurt, the fear in Megumi's voice. He remembered staying up all night with Megumi, sitting on the couch together when sleep found neither of them. 

He remembered when she was just a little girl-- putting clips and ties in Satorus hair when she insisted on playing with him. He remembered helping her with her math homework for hours on end. He remembered all the birthdays, school events, playdates, everything. He remembered how welcoming she was to Satoru when he entered the siblings' lives. Tsumiki Fushiguro wasn’t a sorcerer, but Satoru was so very glad he’d gotten to raise her, too.

And Sukuna killed her. With Megumi's body. 

Satoru wasn’t just sad.

He was enraged .

Careful not to let that show in his voice, he turned to Yuji. “We’ll save him. I promise.” Yuji opened his mouth to protest, but shut it quickly when he saw the steely determination in Satoru’s aquamarine eyes. Yuji clenched his fist.

“I’m gonna beat the shit out of Sukuna for what he did.” 

Satoru laughed, genuinely at that. It was such a Yuji response, he couldn’t help but be endeared by it. He ruffled his hair. “Oh yeah? Get in line, kiddo. We’ll beat the snot out of him together.”

He was going to save Megumi, and he wasn’t going to die trying this time. 

“What the fuck is this shit?” 

Yuji whipped his head around while Satoru just focused Six-Eyes behind him. It was Natsu, crouched on the ground, inspecting something in the snow. 

“It's all pink and mushy, what the hell?” Something felt off, and Satoru turned around. Natsu brought his fire over it. The pink mushy substance melted away, and revealed- teeth?

It was then that Satoru realized exactly what he was looking at, and his breath stuttered to a stop as things began to fall into place. 

The brain that had been placed in Suguru’s body had teeth. 

The cursed energy signature he was picking up from that pink squishy shit was the exact same as that toothed-brain. 

The pink substance was fucking brain matter, and Natsu had just fucking set it on fire.  

He’d set the ancient fucking curse user Kenjaku on fire. The man behind the Death Paintings, Yuji’s fucking mother, and evil bastard who’d used the face of his one and only to seal Satoru in a box. 

There was no mistaking it; Six-Eyes wasn’t wrong. What the fuck?

“Eugh, Natsu, stop poking it, you freak!” Lucy cuffed him on the back of the head. “Just leave it alone! God!” He stood up and glared at Lucy.

“Don't hit me, I was just curious!”

Satoru released the breath that had caught in his chest. Well, that was certainly something. Yuji looked vaguely horrified. He probably recognized the cursed energy signature as well. What had once been the subject of most sorcerers' nightmares, was now a slightly charred red stain on the street. Satoru looked towards the night sky.

Good. Now he can rest. 

He hadn’t been able to dispose of Suguru’s body, and it had ended up causing more harm in the long run. It had allowed Kenjaku to steal his body. But the thought of watching his best friend burn… Satoru just couldn’t bear it, then or now. He also couldn’t bear to make Shoko do the autopsy. He thought it would be better, neither of them would have to deface their good friend's corpse. 

It was honestly ironic how that had ended up happening anyway, despite Satoru’s best efforts.  

“Hey! Guys!” Wendy called from ahead and waved her arms wide, shadking Satoru from his thoughts. “We’re here!” 

They approached a tall building, the words Fairy Tail painted across the facade. Banners hung from above, and loud conversation flowed out of every window and open doors. It looked inviting and homey. People came and went out the doors, laughter filling the air. It was nice

Natsu cracked his knuckles and grinned wildy. “Alright, time to get to work!” Natsu's energy was almost contagious, and Satoru found himself quickening in pace, anxious for answers.

First, he was going to figure out where the hell he and his students were. Then, he was going to save Megumi.

Chapter Text

The familiar warmth of the Fairy Tail guild hall sent a pleasant shiver down Lucy's spine. No matter how many times she entered the building, it would never feel any less awe-inspiring. She tugged off Natsu's coat, and handed it back to him. “Thanks, Natsu.” He took it with a grin.

“Well, we couldn't have you freezing to death, we'd lose our best member!” He shrugged his coat back on, adjusting his scarf over the collar. “Next time, just dress for the weather. Seriously.” 

Lucy raised a teasing brow. “Are you saying you don't like me in a miniskirt?”

Natsu flushed bright red, and Lucy laughed heartily. “We should find Master and tell him about the situation,” she said, and turned to the rest of the group. “If we can figure this out, hopefully you guys will be able to go back to your home.” The sorcerers perked up at that. Only Gojo seemed to be unphased by the mention of “home”.

They walked further into the guild. Natsu led the way, deftly avoiding the rowdy (more than likely intoxicated) members of Fairy Tail. Over the years, Lucy had grown used to the ways of her fellow guild members-- but a glance back at the others, namely Yuta, revealed that despite how familiar it was to her not everyone was a fan of this type of scene. He jumped at every loud crash and shout, hunching his shoulders. Lucy felt a pang of remorse and shot him a sympathetic smile. 

“You guys wait here, I'll just be a second.”

Lucy finally reached the bar where Mirajane had been serving holiday drinks and keeping the most obnoxious members in line. She perked up as soon as she saw Lucy and waved her over. “Lucy, welcome back! Here: have a seat.” She motioned to the bar stools. “You, Natsu, and Wendy took a while longer to get back. Had me worried when Gray and Erza showed up without you!”

Lucy sighed heavily. “We're all good here, Mira.” She chewed her lip. “Is Master in? We've got a bit of a predicament.”

“We found a group of lost weirdos in the forest, we wanted to ask Gramps if he knew anything.” Natsu piped up, casual as ever as he slid into the seat next to Lucy's. “They use curses but ain't Etherious, weird as shit.” Lucy glanced back at the sorcerers and Wendy. 

They seemed to get along well, actually-- Yuji was enthralled with Wendy's sky magic. He bounced in one spot as she begrudgingly enchanted him. He kept shouting, “Look how fast I can go now!” and running in small circles. 

Yeah, he just might be related to Natsu.

“Master retired early to bed, but it's interesting you mention curses.” Mirajane said as she wiped a glass. Lucy tilted her head, curious. “We just got a letter from Sting at Sabertooth, they've also run into a strange person who has curse power.” 

“What?” Lucy shouted, a bit louder than intended. Natsu chuckled at her and she cleared her throat awkwardly. “When was this?”

Mirajane shrugged. “Just earlier today, around 6.” Lucy sucked in a breath and turned to Natsu.

“That's a little bit after we found Gojo.” Natsu nodded, his eyes serious. “Thanks Mira, we'll try again to ask Gramps tomorrow.”

Mirajane nodded, smiling warmly and waved as Natsu went to rejoin the group. “Mira, what was in the letter?” 

After Lucy read the letter from Sabertooth, she made her way back to everyone else. Yuji was now trying-- and failing rather spectacularly-- to convince Gojo to fight him. “I'm faster now, I bet I could keep up with you Sensei!” He made large puppy dog eyes. “Please, Sensei?” 

Gojo chuckled and flicked him on the forehead. “Maybe, and I mean maybe I'll spar with you later.” He crossed his arms and smirked playfully while Yuji whined and rubbed his forehead. “I seriously doubt you could keep up, even with little miss’ enhancement.”

Wendy giggled nervously and rubbed the back of her neck. “I wouldn’t be so sure, Wendy’s gotten really good at enchanting.” Natsu appeared behind her, making her jump slightly. He ruffled her hair and smiled fondly. “She kicks serious ass too, don't underestimate our little Dragon Slayer!” 

Yujis head whipped around. “Dragon Slayer? That's so cool!” He leaned closer to Wendy. “You’re amazing, Wendy!” She flushed at the praise. 

“Really, it's nothing that special!” Yuji shook his head violently.

“No, it's awesome! You can make your allies stronger, faster, and you can slay dragons?” He beamed at the smaller girl, and she smiled shyly. 

“I’m not the strongest, Natsu and Gajeel are far better Dragon Slaying wizards than I am.” Yuji turned to Natsu so fast he was little more than a blur. 

“You’re a Dragon Slayer?”

Before Natsu could respond-- or have his ego inflated-- Lucy rejoined the group.

“Well, the Master isn't here right now, so unfortunately that means you guys are stuck with us for a little bit.” Yujis shoulders slumped slightly, whereas Yuta and Gojo nodded in understanding. “Also, we got a letter earlier today-- Sabertooth, another guild, also found a mysterious person with curse power. They were able to create a frog from shadows. They apparently-”

“Fushiguro! Sensei, that could be Fushiguro!” Yuji blurted and whirled around, looking at Gojo with a desperate look in his eyes. Gojo sucked in a breath. Yutas eyes widened. Yuji turned back to Lucy. “Was there anything else? Did they say what he looked like? Was he hurt? Was-” 

“Itadori, let her finish.” Yuta said, placing a hand on Yujis shoulder. He gave a sympathetic smile as Yuji pouted in forgiveness. 

Lucy nodded and continued speaking. “He claimed that he had been stuck within the soul of an evil wizard whom he called ‘Sukuna.’ He doesn't know anything else though.” She turned to Natsu. “Sting said he thought it could be amnesia, apparently Frosch and Lector found him.” 

Yuji looked as though he was about to burst with questions, bouncing anxiously in one spot. Gojo just patted him on the head and gave him a reassuring look. The younger boy didn't seem to calm down much, but he did stop moving. It reminded Lucy a bit of Happy when he wanted fish.

“They’re planning on coming tomorrow-- they’re gonna bring the person they found with them.” She smiled at Yuji. “I hope its your friend, Yuji. If it is, we’ll help him too.”

The rest of the evening was a blur of introducing everyone and finding suitable winter clothing for everyone that was not Natsu Dragneel or Gray Fullbuster. 

They’d managed to find giant christmas sweaters for the sorcerers, of which were Gojo and Yuji enthralled . Yuta awkwardly hid his face in the collar and muttered his thanks. 

Yuji, on the other hand, really seemed to click with Natsu, the teen following him everywhere. Not that Natsu minded-- Yuji made great company

“Oi, Yuji! This is my friend Gray I was telling you about!” He beckoned Yuji over to where Gray had been leaning over the bar, lit cigarette in between his fingers. He raised a brow at Natsu, smiling easily. “Gray, this is my new brother, Yuji.” Yuji waved and grinned widely.

“Nice to meet you!” 

“Good to meet you too, kid.”

For once, Gray was fully clothed, also in a Christmas sweater. Natsu dimly remembered Juvia had made it for him. It was a pewter blue colour, with a navy collar. 

He turned to Natsu. “What the hell took ya so long to get back? It's been like, 3 hours.” He cocked his head, genuine curiosity on his face. “Mira says you found a bunch of curse wizards.” He laughed and shook his head. “We leave you alone for 20 minutes and you’ve found a whole new category of wizard.” He smiled at Yuji. “You’re lucky it was Lucy you found and not this guy. Hes fuckin’ nuts.” 

Natsu grit his teeth. “Yeah, like you're any better, jackass.” Yuji laughed now.

“So what can you do? Lucy said she has keys that can summon, Wendys got super cool enchanting and Natsu has fire.” His eyes shined as he spoke. Gray was taken aback at the excitement in his voice for a moment. 

“Ice. I’ve got ice magic.” Yujis mouth fell open. He wheeled around to Natsu. 

“Is that why Lucy said you guys bicker all the time?” Gray choked on his cigarette.

“That's hilarious, she asked me the same thing when we first met.” Natsu chuckled. “But nah, it's more like how siblings always have a special way of unlocking a secret level of anger you didn’t know you had.” He grinned at Yuji. “When you grow up with someone like Natsu, everyone else looks saintly in comparison with their respective vices.” 

Natsu made an offended noise and gritted his teeth. “Says you, you’re just as bad!” Gray stuck his tongue out playfully at Natsu, Yeah, secret level of anger for sure. If it wasn't for Yuji’s being here, Natsu was sure by now that he would have leaped across the bar and not-so-gracefully socked Gray in the jaw.

Yuji didn’t seem to mind the banter, though. If anything, he seemed entertained . “Man, I always wish I had a sibling.” He looked thoughtful for a moment. “I did have a classmate, we’d always bicker too. She was like an annoying sister at times, but she was honestly really cool.” Natsu noticed how his voice tapered off at the end of his sentence. He decided not to press.

“Ah, boy don't I know about an annoying sister.” Gray said, looking to the ceiling. Natsu couldn’t tell if he meant Erza, or Ultear, but could tell exactly how they could be defined as “annoying”. The latter did try to kill both on occasion. 

Actually, so did Erza. 

The conversation between the three stayed mostly on the topic of asking each other about their respective lives and abilities. Yuji thought Gray's Devil Slayer magic was one of the coolest things he’d ever heard of. Natsu was thoroughly entertained by the way Gray stilled under the weight of Yuji's praise, never one to do well with compliments.  

It was nice, and Natsu found it hard to believe just mere hours ago he was so distrustful of the sorcerers. Yuji was a sweet kid. It was weird, but even beyond the pink hair, he reminded Natsu of himself, albeit much less wild. He was remarkably easy to talk to, and rather charming. He was able to make Gray laugh, that had to count for something.

Other members of the guild had come and gone to the bar, and Yuji said hello to everyone. Needless to say, he fit in pretty well. Natsu glanced over his shoulder to the other sorcerers. Yuta seemed practically glued to Gojo. He was the most reserved, but Natsu didn't think he was shy per se, just less outgoing. Gojo, on the other hand, was much more like Yuji. He was currently playing with little Asuka, who giggled loudly. Lucy was also with them, and she had a lovely smile on her face. She’d redone her hair, it was in a high ponytail now with a red bow to hold her hair back. 

Natsu realized he was staring, and moved to turn away, when Lucy locked eyes with him. She blushed, and smiled back, waving slightly. Natsu waved and quickly looked away-- but he still watched from the corner of his eye. Lucy’s ears were tipped with red. Gojo said something to her with a teasing smile that made her face match her ears. She slapped him on the arm and he laughed wildly. Natsu tried to ignore the ugly feeling that stirred in his gut at the interaction. 

As the night went on, the younger members left for bed and things gradually winded down. They’d pick up again the later it got-- but for now at least, a pleasant constant stream of conversation filled the guild hall. Natsu was sitting with Happy now, arms crossed as he watched Lucy-- a habit he’d picked up by accident. He started to look for her in crowds more and more after the incident with Phantom Lord all those years ago. She often caught him but after the first few times, she didn’t find it so strange.

“-atsu? Natsu!”

He was shaken from his reverie by Happy waving his paws in his face. The cat tilted his head. “You okay Natsu? You’ve been staring at Lucy for longer than usual.” Natsu narrowed his eyes and huffed a breath. 

“I dunno what you mean, Happy.” Happy rolled his eyes.

“Oh it's like that then, okay.” He snuggled into Natsu, and he hugged his arms around Happy. “You guys are both so dumb.”

“Hah?” Natsu raised an eyebrow. Happy just giggled and cuddled closer. Natsu let his eyes find Lucy again. His chest tightened when he heard her laugh. He searched for who had been the cause for the sound, expecting Gray or someone else. He felt something raw when he landed on Gojo.

What's so funny about that guy? 

Without thinking, he set Happy down, walked over to where they were sitting, and not so subtly sat next to Lucy. He threw an arm around her and leaned in. “What’s goin’ on over here?”

Lucy was still giggling when she spoke. “Gojos just been telling me about his students, some of these stories are just-” She broke off into laughter again. 

Natsu looked back over at Gojo, glaring slightly. He seemed to notice and smiled back. It pissed Natsu off. 

“Yeah, my students mean the world to me. I’d be lying if I said they weren’t a great source of entertainment though.” He went off into another story, Lucy listening intently and leaning closer. Gross. Levy came by and dragged Lucy off some time later, leaving Gojo and Natsu alone.

Before Natsu could say anything, Gojo gently placed a hand on his arm. “She likes you back, kid. Stop leaving her hangin’.” He stood up and stuck his hands in his pockets, scanning the guild hall, presumably for Yuji or Yuta. ”Also-- don't worry, no need to be jealous. I've got no interest in people that are practically the same age as my students, I'm nearly 30.” He made a grossed out face and stuck out his tongue in disgust, then smiled at Natsu and turned away without another word, leaving Natsu by himself again.

What? How did he know he liked Lucy? How did he know he was Jealous? How? What the fuck? 

“Close your mouth, dipshit, you’re gonna catch flies.” 

“Gray, I'm going to shove my foot so far up your ass, the fuckin’ dentist will be taking my toes out from inbetween your teeth.”

The sun filtered through the window, hitting Yuji directly in the face. He blinked awake, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He yawned and stretched. He panicked for a second when he didn’t recognize his surroundings, only to relax when he remembered: You, Okkotsu, and Gojo-sensei are in a different universe, and Fushiguro might be here too. He sighed in relief, and looked around the room he was in.

Mirajane-- a very pretty wizard with bright blue eyes and snow-white hair-- had set them up in some rooms above the guild hall. Gojo-sensei insisted he wouldn’t need a room for sleeping, so Yuji and Yuta had been sharing one room. He looked over to where Yuta was currently sleeping, curled tightly into a ball. If Yuji couldn’t see his chest moving he’d think his upperclassman was dead-- his breathing was silent.

Yuji quietly pulled the blankets back and stood. Well, tried to. His foot got caught in the blankets, and he spent a good 30 seconds hopping awkwardly to try and free himself, only to slam his other foot so hard into the bed frame he swore he saw his Grandpa. He silently screamed, crumpling to the floor in sheer agony . This is it, this is the end, oh fuck oh god oh shit- He clutched his poor foot close and rubbed it gently before he eventually felt better, and stood finally. Thankfully, Yuta hadn’t woken up at Yuji's theatrics. He might actually have to forge a new identity if his senpai saw him make an absolute fool of himself to such an extent.  He glanced around the room again, more thorough. 

The room was small, but furnished with two beds and bedside tables, wardrobe, and vanity. The wallpaper could do with upgrading, but Yuji thought it was cute. Everything in Magnolia was very western in its style-- like an old European city-- and was vaguely alien to Yuji. He was given new clothes, just a pair of dark grey sweatpants and plain black t-shirt with a sweater to go over top. His uniform jacket was being tailored. Okkotsu’s jacket wasn't nearly as battered as Yujis, so he’d be alright with that. Yuji quickly dressed, and headed out of the room and down the stairs to the main hall.

It was still early in the morning, so he wasn’t surprised that there were only a few people down there. The smell of strong coffee wafted through the air, and the slight stench of cigarettes. It was so different from anything Yuji had ever experienced-- it was so much more lively than anywhere else he’d been to-- and he loved it . Everyone was so casual with each other like they were an actual family. Natsu and Gray had basically called themselves brothers, so he supposed it was a theme amongst the guild. 

“Ah, you must be the young Yuji, hm?” 

Yuji whipped around to look for the source of the voice, but was shocked to see no one was there. His brows furrowed in confusion, when he heard a slight cough. 

“Down here.”

A little old man held his hand out in greeting. He sat in a wheelchair, but had a kind closed-mouth smile on his face. Yujis face twitched into a tiny grin. “Uh-- hello, sir! Yes, that's me! Yuji Itadori, nice to meet you!” The old man hummed fondly.

“You really do look like Natsu, I thought the kids were just exaggerating…” He leaned closer, like he was inspecting. Yuji shifted and laughed nervously. “I hear you and your friends aren't from around here, eh?” Yuji nodded and the man leaned back in his chair. “I'm not sure exactly how to help, but I'm glad one of my kiddos was able to find you. We’ll take good care of you while we look for answers.” He pat Yujis hand kindly, and wheeled his chair past. He turned his head back. “If you’ve got any questions, ask away.”

The old man-- whom Yuji learned was Fairy Tail's guild master, Makarov-- was a slightly obnoxious, yet kind man. Yuji made good on his offer, and asked several questions, all answered in earnest. They sat at the bar together. It reminded Yuji of when he was much younger, when he and his grandpa would sit at the table for their meals together. Makarov, while not nearly as jaded and pessimistic, reminded Yuji of him. 

“I was able to meet with your Sensei, Yuji.” Makarov started. “Very interesting man, he spoke rather highly of you.” Yuji blushed slightly. Praise from Gojo-sensei wasn’t necessarily rare, but it still made Yuji's chest swell with pride. “He also told me about where you came from and to be quite frank,” he sighed, “I’ve got no fuckin’ clue where that is.” Yuji was caught so off guard by Makarov swearing that he choked out a laugh, covering it up with a cough. “A weird one, that Sensei of yours. Refused a room, but insisted on a blindfold or sunglasses.” He shook his head.

Yuji chuckled. “Yeah, that sounds like Gojo-sensei alright.”

“What sounds like me?” 

Yuji nearly fell out of his chair-- scratch that-- he did fall out of his chair, flailing wildly. Gojo-sensei caught him before he could hit the ground, laughing as he did. He slid into the chair next to Yuji. Yuji noticed he had changed his clothes. Instead of the black t-shirt and loose white trousers, he was now wearing black pants and a beige sweater-- the collar of a white dress shirt poking out from underneath. He also had a pair of sunglasses on. 

He looked more like Gojo-sensei than he had in a long time.

He ruffled Yujis hair and rested his chin in his hand. “Did ya sleep well, kid?” Yuji nodded. 

“Yeah, Okkotsu is a great roomie-- he doesn’t make any noise-- thought he was dead for a second.” Gojo snorted a laugh. “How about you, sensei? Did you sleep well?”

Gojo stretched and shuddered a yawn. “Eh, not bad, but y’know, never been one for sleep anyways.” He leaned over the bar slightly, elbows resting on the wooden countertop. “You’ve met the Master already, huh?” Yuji nodded. 

Makarov crossed his fingers and set his hands in his lap. “Yuji’s a very optimistic boy, that's for sure.” He smiled at both the sorcerers. “You’ve done a good job teaching him, Satoru.” Yuji blushed at the praise. Gojo chuckled slightly.

“Nah, his good personality? Had nothing to do with that- was all him.” He ruffled Yujis hair and grinned. “Your guild is pretty great, too. Everyone has been very welcoming to my students.” Makarov nodded.

“My kids can be obnoxious and eccentric,” He began, a fond look in his eye. “But they’ve all got good hearts. They’re all like my children. I’m sure you understand what I mean, Satoru. Even you and your students- I feel the same way- anyone that walks into this guild is under my protection.” Makarov looked towards Yuji and Gojo. “That means you two are my children now, too.”

Yuji beamed and looked at Gojo-sensei. He had an odd expression on his face. His mouth slightly open in surprise, a slight pink colour on his cheek. Was sensei embarrassed? He looked away, laughing slightly. 

“Eh, I'm too old to be considered a child…”

Makarov laughed heartily and his arm extended behind Yuji to playfully slap Gojo-sensei on the back. “Trust me, however old you think you are, I’m older. Now let me act my age and dote on those younger than I.”

Gojo chuckled slightly and looked back at Makarov, smiling now. “Yeah, alright.”

After talking with Makarov for a bit, Yuji reminded Gojo-sensei about the snowball fight he promised the day before. It was still early morning, maybe around 7? They had some time to kill before the day officially began. Yuji managed to find a pair of gloves that fit his hands, and a scarf. It was white and red striped like a candy cane, and super warm. 

The snowball fight started when Gojo-sensei launched the first ball at Yujis back. It hit with such force- not enough to hurt- it exploded all over Yuji. Snow managed to fly over his shoulders, and trickle down the boys front. Gojo-sensei snickered slightly, but his victory was ended shortly when Yuji got him back- hitting him right in the face. Yuji cackled as his sensei wiped the snow from his face.

“Well I guess there really is a first time for everything…”

It was possibly the most terrified Yuji had ever been during a snowball fight, but also  the most fun he’d ever had. Gojo-sensei was relentless, even without his technique he was fast. His snowballs hit hard. At one point, Yuji took cover behind a bush. Gojo-sensei was looking around for his student, when he stilled. Slowly, he turned his head and his eyes locked with Yuji.

Yuji was pretty sure he could’ve pissed himself in the moment. Gojo was fucking scary.

It was all light hearted, though, and when the two returned to the guild, both had smiles up to their ears. 

When they got back, a few more people were there. Yuta had woken up, it seemed, and he sat with Wendy and Charle. They all were drinking tea? Maybe coffee? Yuta was absently petting the white cat's fur with one hand, and leaning his head in the other. They were so similar in temperament- both quiet and reserved. But if Wendy Marvell was anything like Yuta Okkotsu, then Yuji suspected that when she got serious, bodies would hit the floor.  

He looked up and waved. Yuji waved back, and he went over to the table- Gojo following. He slid into the bench across from Wendy. “Good morning, Okkotsu! Did you sleep well?” Yuta nodded, smiling. 

“Don’t lie to him, you were just complaining to us that his snoring kept you up!” Charle said, taking a sip of her drink. Yuta looked mildly mortified.

“I-Itadori, I-” He was cut off by a sharp bark of laughter from Gojo.

Yuji blushed and fiddled with his scarf. “Sorry, Okkotsu, I didn't mean to keep you up…” Yuta waved his hands in dismissal.

“No really! It’s okay, it didn’t bother me too much, I promise…”  Wendy placed a hand on his shoulder, an awkward smile on her face. Yuta pouted in defeat. 

“Ah, Yuji! You’re here!” Yuji whipped his head around at the sound of his name. It was Mirajane. “I picked up your jacket from the tailor for you!” She held his uniform jacket, folded neatly over her arm. Yuji took it from her, and bowed.

“Thank you so much!” He noticed that the material used to patch his jacket was… different. It wasn’t the wrong consistency, nor the wrong colour, but it had an air of strength to it. “Huh, did they do something to it?” He cocked his head to the side.

Mirajane nodded. “Yes, they use enchanted fabric at this tailor, most of the Fairy Tail wizards go there for their tailoring needs.” Yujis jaw dropped slightly. 

“That's the coolest thing ever…” He smiled up at Mirajane. “Thank you again!” She giggled and smiled back. 

Her eyes landed on Gojo. “It seems there's another blue-eyed, white-haired mage in the building.” Gojo grinned at her words. “You must be Yuji and Yutas mentor, Gojo.” She smiled warmly. “I hear you’re very strong, you went up against Natsu, right?”

Gojo-sensei nodded, still grinning. “Yep, kids crazy tough. He can really take a beating.” He threw an arm over Yuji's shoulder. “Reminds me of this one, in more than one way.” Mirajane laughed at that, and that's when Yuji noticed a tray in her hand.

“Well, I suppose Natsu will want to spar with you eventually, Yuji. He’s just like that. It’ll be a battle of pink hair.” Yuji chuckled at that. Mirajane’s eyes flicked back to Gojo. “I don't fight much myself, but in Fairy Tail sparring is just something we do- a strange way of showing we care- we test our strength.” Something flickered in her eyes and her smile went from kind, to vaguely menacing. “It’d be interesting to see who’s stronger between wizards and sorcerers.”

Sensing the meaning behind her words, Gojo-sensei's grin widened. “Yes, very interesting indeed.” 

And just like that, Mirajane returned to her cheerful demeanor, and set the tray she held down on the table. “I brought over some hot-chocolate. It's a customary Fairy Tail drink.” She set out everyone's mugs, whipped cream was piled high, marshmallows and caramel sauce drizzled on top. “If you want any booze, just ask!” And with that, she turned away and headed back over to the bar.

“Eugh, who would want to ruin a good hot chocolate with booze?” Gojo said, sipping from his drink. He seemed- albeit rather in character- very unphased by Mirajanes sparring challenge. 

Before Yuji could comment, Yuta spoke up: “Are you really going to fight her, Gojo?” He nervously sipped his drink. “She was far too casual about that…” Wendy placed a reassuring hand on the older boy's arm.

“Mira is super strong, but she's also super nice. I wouldn’t fret. Like she said, we spar all the time in Fairy Tail.” Yuta turned to Gojo, a pleading look in his eyes. The latter merely raised an eyebrow and continued drinking his hot chocolate. Yuji noticed how despite only having it for about a minute, it was nearly gone.

Yuta sighed, slumping slightly. “It's not that I doubt Miss Mirajanes abilities, it's just…” He looked up at Gojo. “Are you even well enough to spar? I sensed her energy, it was almost as much as mine. Even if it is just a friendly spar-” 

“Yuta, first of all, don't patronize me. Secondly,” He reached for Yutas hand across the table. “I’m alright, okay? Despite popular belief I'm very aware of my limits as a sorcerer.” Yuta looked down at his lap. “Besides, it's not like I agreed to fight Sukuna again- it's just a friendly spar. It’ll be fine. ” Yuta looked back up at his sensei, holding his gaze for a moment. “Besides, it will most likely not take place for a while now.” Gojo added. Yuta nodded finally, and drank his hot chocolate.

It was some of the nicest hot chocolate Yuji had ever had. It was thick and chocolatey- but not too rich- and the whipped cream and marshmallows melted into it. The caramel sauce was a bit unneeded in his opinion, but all in all, a solid drink. The small group ended up talking about the holidays. Wendy, rather sweetly, panicked slightly when she realized she had no gifts to give to the sorcerers. With much convincing, they assured her it was alright. 

Something interesting was that instead of opening presents all together in the morning, in Fairy Tail, it was more of an afternoon/evening activity. The only thing that seemed to be the same was the copious amounts of Alcohol, which Yuji noticed Gojo-sensei scrunched his nose at. As the morning progressed, more and more guild members filed in.

When Natsu and Lucy finally arrived- Happy flying not far behind- Yuji was practically bouncing in his seat with anticipation. “Hey guys!” Lucy waved. She held a small bag in one hand. She had a slightly lopsided santa hat balanced on her head, and wore a bright red sweater. Very festive. “I brought you all something!” Yuji noticed Natsu also had a Santa hat on. He smiled widely. Lucy approached the table, and dumped out the contents of her bag. “There's one for each of you!”

They were Santa hats, enough for Yuji, Yuta, Gojo, and Wendy. 

“Thank you so much, Lucy!” Yuji put his hat on, and beamed. “It's actually pretty comfy, not at all like the ones you can buy in the store…"

The festive energy was a welcome change from the weeks after Shibuya. The culling games had been awful, stress and fear inducing. The Fairy Tail guild was a harsh contrast to what Yuji was enduring in his world. He looked around where he was, and felt more at home than he had in a long time. 

The doors opened, and a shout of “Natsu!” rang out. Yujis heart stopped for a moment when he looked over at the commotion.

There were two men standing in the doorway, one with blond hair and blue eyes, the other with dark hair and red eyes. They had two cats on either side of them. But it was who stood in between, just behind them slightly, that made Yuji freeze.

“Fushiguro!”

Chapter Text

The train ride from Sabertooth to Fairy Tail wasn't particularly long, but Megumi's traveling partners seemed absolutely bereft at the idea of taking it. He learned from Lector that all dragon slayers have terrible motion sickness, and that was how they had ended up walking for 2 hours from point A to B.

Megumi wasn't one to complain- outwardly at least- so he took the news in stride.

But god dammit were his feet sore.

The terrain of Fiore, which he learned was the name of the country he was presently in, was hilly and uneven as fuck. Not that Japan was flat, but it at least had paved roads. On what seemed like the 87th time Megumi nearly tripped on a rock, he had half a mind to summon Nue to carry him the rest of the way. 

He walked behind Sting and Rogue, the two conversing about their jobs in easy conversation. It was more like Sting telling Rogue about random shit, and Rogue nodding occasionally, to be honest. They were oddly… domestic. Their cats walked in between them and it looked like a weird, nuclear family. 

“Motherfuck-” Megumi cursed as he stumbled over a tree root this time, and just barely righted himself before he face planted. He groaned in frustration. As he looked up, the sight he was met with made his jaw drop. 

It was a clearing in a forest, but it was charred to fuck, and silent as death. 

“Huh, that's weird…” Sting said, crouching. “This used to be a small field, the hell happened here?” Lector stepped beside him.

“This looks like Natsu's doing, yes!”

Natsu. There was that name again. Megumi glanced around, carefully stepping over the burnt debris. As he drew closer to the centre of the field he sensed it. 

Very faint, practically faded, cursed energy. Not just any kind, Limitless. Gojo.

He sucked in a breath and turned back to the dragon slayers. “Hey uh, so, this friend of yours… if he encountered someone with the same kind of power as I, how might he react?”

Sting leaned back on his heels and puffed out a breath. He looked thoughtful for a moment before replying. “Most likely he’d punch first and ask questions later, depending if he was alone or not.” That answer did nothing to calm Megumi's racing heart. “Why do you ask?”

“I think he might have fought my sensei here…”

After that revelation, the group had a collective moment of “oh shit” and practically sprinted through the forest. Ironically enough, Megumi didn't trip once while running across the uneven forest floor. If this Natsu-character had fought Gojo-sensei, then he might not be alive at this point ; or, worsely, he might’ve actually beaten Gojo-sensei. It wasn’t impossible to think, especially after all that Sukuna had done… but on the other hand, if Megumi had been able to separate from Sukuna and wake up here, more or less whole and hale, then perhaps Gojo-sensei might’ve been able to survive the King of Curse’s Dismantle Technique in turn and do the same. 

He just hoped nothing bad had happened to him, or so help him God, Mahoraga was coming out.

Only once they had finally made it into the city, Magnolia, did they slow down. If Megumi weren’t so anxious about the potential of seeing Gojo-sensei again, he might’ve appreciated the town's architecture more. The vaguely old European style wasn’t very familiar to Megumi, but it was rather picturesque, cobblestone roads and houses that seemed to lean onto one another with flower boxes in nearly every window. Whilst maintaining a steady pace, the walk through the city was a nice reprieve from the dirt roads they’d been forced to take for the majority of the trip. Snow layered thick on the roofs of buildings, and the various canals had frosted over slightly.

As they approached the Fairy Tail guildhall, Megumi felt his pulse quicken. “Here it is. Hopefully, somebody here can get you the help you need,” Rogue said, a kind smile in his eyes. Megumi swallowed thickly and nodded, watching blankly as the doors swung open.

“Natsu!” Sting called out, and Megumi peaked curiously into the building. 

Similar to the Sabertooth guildhall, Fairy Tail had various tables and benches set up, much akin to a restaurant. In contrast, though, Fairy Tail resembled more of a tavern , and the loud energy reflected that. Megumi scanned over the building with wide eyes, noting the layout.

His breath caught in his throat when he saw a distinct mop of white hair. His family.  

Sitting next to him was Yuji, and across from them sat Yuta. 

“Fushiguro!” Yuji shouted and Megumi felt the burn of tears in his eyes.  

Things seemed to move in slow motion. Yuji slowly looked over, and their eyes met. Greenish blue met hazel brown, and Megumi swore his heart stopped. The pink haired boy practically fell out of his chair, toppling over the bench he sat on and ran over. Like he was on autopilot, Megumi moved as well, his feet doing the thinking for him. Yuji practically jumped into his arms, and without thinking Megumi wrapped them around his shoulders. Burying his face in Yuji’s neck, he inhaled deeply and allowed himself to just cry. 

“I thought I'd never see you again,” Yuji whispered. Pulling back slightly, Megumi wiped his eyes. Not trusting his voice not to break, he nodded, and clutched Yuji closer. In truth, he almost gave up a long time ago. He was going to stop trying to fight against Sukuna and just let the curse take over. But every time he almost gave in, he’d think about Yuji. He’d think about how Yuji wouldn’t give up, and how he was certainly fighting his hardest to save Megumi. 

Megumi didn’t give up because if Yuji could fight for him, then he could fight for himself, too. It was funny to think that just half a year ago, Yujis selflessness had bothered Megumi, only for it to now become something he treasured. 

He looked up from Yuji's shoulder and noticed Gojo walking closer, Yuta not far behind. If Gojo weren’t wearing sunglasses, Megumi would have seen the shine of tears in his eyes. “Hey, Gumi…” he croaked, and Megumi felt his lower lip begin to wobble. Before he could start crying again, Gojo wrapped his arms around him and Yuji. “You’re alright now.”

“I’m so sorry, sensei…” Megumi wheezed. Gojo just shushed him and leaned back slightly.

“Sorry for what?” He was smiling sadly, shaking his head. “ Nothing that happened was your fault, Megumi. Everything is okay. Please don't cry.” Megumi nodded weakly, and rubbed harshly at his eyes. Gojo turned around and motioned for Yuta to come over. “C’mon, sorcerer group hug! My favourite students and I.” 

Megumi normally wasn’t really one for hugs, but he hadn’t felt so at peace in such a long time that he allowed himself to just… melt into the feeling. The weight of everyone's arms was grounding in a way that set him at ease for the first time in what felt like years. It felt like an antidote , a cure, something that could heal the pain of the past month and a half. Megumi wanted to stay like this forever.

Someone coughed behind him, reminding him that they were standing in the middle of a guild hall, surrounded by god knows how many people, hugging like a bunch of losers, and the impromptu, far-too-public group hug shuffled apart. Gojo still kept an arm on Megumi's shoulder, though. 

“It looks like you were able to find your friend after all, Yuji.” A blonde woman came up to stand beside them, and smiled at Megumi. 

“Hey hey, Sting and Rogue are here!” The man who spoke next had Megumi doing a double take. He had pink hair, just like Yuji. Why is everything here so fucking weird?? He walked up to Sting and Rogue. Megumi couldn’t make out much of what the trio was saying, but it seemed to be somewhat somber in tone. Megumi's brows furrowed. What are they talking about?

He was shaken from his thoughts when he felt a hand sliding into his own. He looked down to his right. Yuji had intertwined their fingers. Megumi's eyes flickered up to find Yuji smiling at him, small, yet sincere. His eyes reflected the early winter light, turning the hazel-brown into molten honey. Megumi felt his face flush and looked away, gently giving Yujis hand a small squeeze. 

The blonde next to him leaned over slightly and looked to Megumi. “It's Megumi Fushiguro, right?” She asked. Megumi nodded slowly. “It's good to meet you finally, Yuji talked about you quite a bit. My name’s Lucy Heartfillia.” She held out her hand to shake, which Megumi accepted. 

Things were going to be alright now, they had to be.

Sting and Rogue didn’t stay long. Rogue reminded Sting of his duties as master- of which the latter was terribly unenthused; something about the notion of paperwork- and they set off with their cats. Natsu had discussed the inner workings of souls with the two, yet came to no concrete solutions. The suggestion then had been to “ask Levy about it, or Gramps,” which Megumi accepted with all the grace he could muster. Lucy had then introduced him to some of the guild members, and all the while, Yuji held onto his hand. 

(Gojo teased him about it-- both of them, actually. Megumi did his level best to ignore it, but feared his face had gone red either way.) 

After a while of answering questions from the Guild's Master, Makarov, Megumi was now sitting on an incredibly plush sofa, Yuji right next to him. Megumi was absently listening to him ramble, whilst simultaneously wondering exactly how much the piece of furniture was worth, when Gojo appeared before them. Megumi's breath hitched. He still couldn’t look Gojo in the eye. He was so ashamed and angry . He allowed himself to be weak, he was the reason Gojo and Tsumiki had been killed. Everytime he looked at Gojo, it made his stomach churn with guilt, a cruel reminder of his failure.  

“Hey sensei, what's up?” Yuji asked, smiling widely. 

Gojo mirrored his expression before speaking, “Would you mind if I talked to Megumi for a moment?” Yuji looked puzzled. Gojo visibly repressed a sigh. “Alone?” 

Yuji, taking the hint, made himself scarce rather quickly, but not before giving Megumi's hand a squeeze and sending him a reassuring smile. Gojo flopped onto the sofa where Yuji had previously been sitting, and huffed out a breath. “Nice people here, aren’t they?” he asked. Megumi nodded slightly. “They wanna help us. They’re gonna try and figure out how you and Sukuna separated.” Megumi did not respond. Gojo sighed outwardly now and turned slightly to face Megumi. “Look at me, Megs.”

Slowly, Megumi turned his head. His teacher had taken his sunglasses off, now hanging loosely from his collar. His bright blue eyes were full of concern and sadness, and Megumi felt his heart break slightly at the expression. Ever since he’d been little, seeing Gojo sad was just so… wrong. He looked down at his hands in his lap. “I’m sorry, sensei-”

“Fuck, stop apologizing, Megumi.” 

Megumi snapped his head back up at the borderline irritated tone from Gojo. The older man ran a hand through his hair and looked at the ceiling. “It wasn’t your fault, okay? Nobody, and I mean nobody, blames you for what happened, Alright?” His piercing blue eyes landed back on Megumi, and the boy shifted slightly under his gaze. “I don’t know why you think…” Gojo cut himself off with another sigh. “I want to know how you’re doing.” 

Megumi breathed out. He couldn’t burden Gojo with the inner turmoil in his head. He’d just do what he did when he was a kid, hide behind a cold attitude and hope Gojo would eventually drop the issue. “I’m fine.” 

Once again Gojo sighed, but before he could speak, Megumi stopped him. “You don’t get to do this, you know? You don't get to ask if I'm okay, check up on me, dote on me, when you-” He heaved a breath. “You have no right to ask if I'm okay when you’re the one who died, okay?” He was shaking slightly. “Right in front of my eyes, you were fucking bisected, and you ask if I’m okay?” He barked a laugh, no mirth behind the gesture or humour in his eyes. “You’re so unbelievable sometimes.”

“Megs-” Megumi shook his head.

“You died in front of me, I-” His sentence got stuck in his throat. He swallowed thickly. “I thought I was alone.” Gojos eyes widened slightly before pulling Megumi into a tight hug. “Y-you and Tsumiki, I-” He grit his teeth. “You both died because of me.” He looked up at Gojo. “Why can’t you just be mad at me?” 

Gojo smiled sadly. “Because you didn’t kill me and Tsumi, that bastard Sukuna did.” He hugged Megumi closer. “And you should know by now, I basically can't be mad at you. Not ten years ago, not ten years from now, and certainly not because of another's actions.” Megumi's lower lip wobbled and he buried his head further into Gojos shoulder. 

“Tsumiki is dead though…” Gojo shook his head.

“I know what happened, and I doubt it will make it better , but from my understanding, she died the day she was cursed.” He gripped Megumi tighter, and he felt Gojos cursed energy spike slightly. “Sukuna didn't just want to use your body for your technique. He thought… He thought that I might've hesitated if he wore your face.” He laughed, devoid of humour. “He made me use Hollow Purple on one of my fucking kids.” He pulled back, his hand still on Megumi's arms. “You’re not the only one reeling, so please,” The strongest sorcerer's voice cracked , “stop pushing me away.”

Megumi pulled Gojo closer and hugged him again, clutching the man so tightly he thought the fabric of his sweater might tear. “You don't have to keep suffering alone,” Gojo muttered into his hair.  “We’re all in this together for now.” Megumi nodded, sniffling slightly. He didn’t think he’d hugged Gojo like this since he was a child, after a bad dream or if he did well in school. Hugs were just something Megumi had come to expect from Gojo, but rarely if ever did he hug back . 

When he’d seen Gojo die, it had actually been the first thing to come to mind: I wish I could have hugged him back, just once more.  

“Are you okay, sensei?” he asked quietly. He didn't miss the way Gojos breath hitched at the question. He leaned back and rested his arm on the armrest of the sofa, placing his head in his hand. 

“Yeah, I'm okay.” he smiled at Megumi, but it was genuine, and his eyes had a rare softness to them. “We’ll figure this out, okay?”      

After sitting with Megumi for a while, Satoru had managed to hopefully quell some of his worries about being blamed for the disaster that was Shinjuku. If Satoru were a better man, he would’ve told Megumi that he understood the guilt all too well, especially when it felt that everything was all your fault. If Satoru were a better man he would’ve told Megumi about all of his failures, and the sense of emptiness which they brought, to perhaps make him feel less isolated and alone.

But Satoru wasn’t a better man, so he simply kept reminding Megumi that he had people who cared for him. He told him that nobody blamed him for anything Sukuna had decided to do with his body. All of it was true, but Satoru couldn’t help but feel that it wasn't enough to fully reassure Megumi. He wanted to tell him that if anyone should feel guilty about what happened, it was himself, not Megumi. Satoru was the reason Shibuya had gone so badly. He allowed himself to be caught off guard. Even for just one minute, but one minute was all it had taken for the sorcerers’ fates to be sealed.

Once you take the King off the chess board, the game is over. 

His blunder in Shibuya was, essentially, just that. A game over that had caused a chain reaction of absolute shit , and he wasn't sure that he could ever forgive himself for it. Seeing his dead best friend suddenly alive and walking had shaken him so horrifically that he swore his heartbeat outright stopped in that one minute before the Prison Realm opened. 

He shook his head, sighing. Megumi had opted to go to bed- which Satoru couldn’t blame him for- and had headed upstairs half an hour ago. Yuji had gone with him. He had desperately missed his best friend, so Satoru could understand the clinginess, much to Megumi's dismay. He had no idea where the hell Yuta was, but figured that he’d be alright regardless. 

In the end, it was Lucy who ended up sitting next to Satoru. He was internally relieved. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy the company of the other guild members, but at this time of night, the alcohol was practically tangible in the air. Satoru had never much enjoyed being around drunk people, for that matter. 

“Hey, Gojo, where’d the rest go?” Lucy asked quizzically.

Satoru just shrugged. “Off to bed for two of them, and I’ve genuinely got no idea for the third.” Lucy poked her tongue in her cheek, looking slightly conflicted. Satoru raised an eyebrow at her expression. “Something wrong, blondie?”

Lucy shook her head. “No, it's nothing,” She held a folded piece of paper. An envelope. It had a blue wax seal, with a winged horse insignia on it. “We just got a report of yet another person with curse power in Fiore.” She handed the letter to Satoru, which he studied carefully. “It's from the guild Blue Pegasus, an ally of Fairy Tail.” Satoru nodded absently, eyes roving over the letter. The wording of the letter was cordial until the last paragraph;

“We would, as always, love to smell the “parfum” of Miss Lucy or the lovely Erza, do come sooner rather than later for a visit.”

Satoru couldn’t help the way his face distorted in sheer repulsion at the creepy fucking words. What the fuck?  

Lucy, sensing his distaste, chuckled slightly. “Don't worry, it's just Ichiya- his magic is all about what he calls “parfum”, he's creepy and annoying but harmless. The worst he does is sniff your hair.” When Satoru’s face didn't shift, she smiled slightly. “He’s a very reliable wizard, he cares deeply for all of us at Fairy Tail.”

The reasonable part of Satoru wanted to believe Lucy, and trust in her words. The Sensei-coded part of Satoru that referred to his students as his kids wanted to find this guy and hold him by his feet off a water tower until he wet himself. Why in the goddamn fucking fuck is he going around sniffing young girls’ hair? 

Unfortunately, it was an issue that demanded to be dealt with at a later time , as these freaks had found a sorcerer, and that factoid required a not-insignificant amount of Gojo’s focus.  

“So, what's the play here? We go and pick them up?” he asked, and Lucy nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll go tomorrow- or the day after- and bring them back here. I-”

“You’re gonna go alone? ” The words were out before Satoru could stop them.

Lucy's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “Yeah… is that a problem?”

Satoru shook his head. “Nope, not at all, of course not, it's just…” His face twisted in the way it always did when he was grossed out. “Are you sure you want to go alone to “Mr. Sniff Sniff’s” house?” Lucy laughed slightly.

“Please, I’ve dealt with those guys on my own countless times, I’ll be okay.” 

Satoru didn’t doubt Lucy was strong, not at all. In fact, he suspected she was far stronger than she let on. He didn’t want to patronize her, or give the impression he underestimated her, but something about her going alone to a place where a guy sniffed her hair regularly and without consent, really, really rubbed him the wrong way. Part of him feared he was overreacting, but man, it did not sit right with him. 

If one of his female students had had to deal with anything remotely like that, he would have killed the perpetrator yesterday.  

Alas, Lucy was not one of his students; she was a powerful young adult who was more than capable of dealing with a creepy old man. Still, though, he’d be lying if he said he was 100% okay with it. Carefully picking his words so as to not offend her, he said: “Why don't I go with you? I probably know who the sorcerer is, I could recognize them. Y’know, save us some trouble.” 

Lucy no doubt saw through his blatant lie, but she sighed and agreed to let him come. “You have a point there, I guess, Happy is coming with us too.” Satoru nodded, slightly relieved Lucy was willing to let him tag along- he made a mental note to make sure that Infinity covered her as well. “We’ll head out in 2 days then, is that alright?” 

“Yep, works for me.” He titled his head in thought. Who could the sorcerer be? Was it one of the revived ones from the Heian era, or one of Satoru’s colleagues? It could be a student as well. He just hoped it wouldn’t be an enemy.

Chapter Text

There was a sinister feeling in the air, and Yuta picked up on it before anyone else. Not even Gojo had noticed the malevolent cursed energy, so he didn’t bother to alert him. At first, he was more than content to just ignore it. So, that was what he did for a while. Then Wendy mentioned it too- and if a non-sorcerer could sense malignant cursed energy, that could mean nothing good- so Yuta quietly slipped outside the guild to get a better sense for where the energy was coming from. 

Wendy had insisted on coming with him, citing her support magic could help them cover more ground, and Yuta couldn’t find the energy to argue. He quite liked Wendy- she was incredibly kind and a quick thinker- but he was also very conscious of how young she was. He guessed she was around 14, maybe younger, and the cursed energy he felt was genuinely off putting. He didn’t want to subject her to that.

Then again, apparently she’d already been through horrific endeavors. So maybe she would be fine.

Still, though, Yuta would not like to be the one to accidentally traumatize her further.

“Can you sense the energy any clearer out here? It hasn't changed much for me…” Wendy chewed on her lip, glancing around nervously. 

Yuta shook his head. “Yeah, it's getting stronger the further we go… It's faint, still, but hopefully it leads to something .” Wendy nodded. 

She hadn’t brought Charle with her, which Yuta was grateful for. The white cat could be terribly mean, and despite her intentions ostensibly being ‘good,’ seeing Wendy shut down after her criticism brought Yuta very unpleasant memories of himself in school, and though he genuinely very rarely disliked people, he hated the way Charle would talk to Wendy. He had come to view her as a little sibling in the short time they knew each other, despite not having any siblings of his own and incidentally, he also started feeling protective of her. 

Yet here she was, trailing beside him as he set off to find the source of the evil cursed energy. 

It trailed back into the forest Yuta had woken up in, and he furrowed his brows in confusion. Surely he would have sensed the energy then? He briefly considered the possibility of it being one of their residuals, but quickly shut down the idea. Nobody he was with had this kind of energy. They reached the edge of town-- right at the forest entrance-- and stopped.

“I think it's back in the forest but… I dont think it's a good idea to go in while it's dark-- too easy to get lost.” Yuta would be fine going in by himself, but he didn't want to drag Wendy with him-

“We can check it out, I'm not worried about being lost.” 

Eh?

A surge of magic swelled around Wendy, and her hair went from navy blue to pink, and feathers poked out from behind her sleeves, circling her wrists. “My dragon force enhances my senses-- Dragon Slayers have naturally better eyesight-- so I essentially have night vision in this state.” She gave a small, determined smile.

Yuta blinked, and realized his jaw was hanging open. He shook his head, reoriented himself, and nodded. “If you really want to come with me, I won't stop you.” He adjusted the strap of the cloth that held his katana, bringing it closer to his shoulder. “I don’t think we should engage in a fight if we can avoid it, but just in case we do--”

Wendy squared her shoulders. “Don't worry, we’ll be careful.” She stepped forward slightly, and glanced back over her shoulder. “I won't let either of us get hurt-- I'd bring down the Fairy Tail name if I did, and that's something I simply refuse.” She smiled brightly, her confidence contagious. 

Yuta mirrored her expression. “I trust you, Wendy.”

They set up a system of sorts, Wendy would walk a few paces ahead, and Yuta would guide her to where the energy was coming from. He couldn’t see jackshit, and after walking into a tree for the umpteenth time that night, Wendy had started to hold onto his sleeve to keep him from hurting himself. 

“Gosh, you’re almost as clumsy as me…” She sounded so genuinely surprised, Yuta couldn’t help but laugh. Realizing what she said, her face shifted to pure mortification. “Wait-- no, I didn't mean it like that-- I’m so sorry!”

Yuta waved her off. “No, no, it's fine, I'm not offended, you just… you caught me off guard, is all.” Wendy looked away sheepishly.  

They continued on through the forest, and the energy signature grew more and more. They were getting closer, and Yuta tensed slightly. This cursed energy was strong. He tried to shake off the feeling that something was wrong. He was a special grade . There wasn’t much that could best him, and Wendy was with him too, she was strong too. 

But something was nagging at him, something was telling him to turn around and hightail it. He sucked in a breath, and turned to Wendy. “I think the energy is at its zenith here,” He spoke quietly. If the source was nearby, he wanted to avoid it hearing him and Wendy. “We should take a look and then head back.” 

Wendy nodded and stepped away slightly to glance around.

It was a second too late for Yuta to put the pieces together. The cursed energy wasn’t evil, but it had residuals laced within it. The cursed energy itself wasn’t the malevolent part, but what surrounded it was. 

What he realized too late was that what he sensed-- what he had been feeling, what had caused such a primal sense of dread within him-- were the residuals of Ryomen Sukuna.  

He snapped his head over to Wendy and grabbed her arm back and simultaneously unsheathed his katana. She glanced over, confusion dancing in her eyes. “Wendy, we need to leave, now. ” He whispered, slowly drawing her back. 

“I saw someone though…” She pointed over to somewhere in the distance. Yuta followed where her finger pointed with his eyes. Standing there, in the path, was someone . They had monk robes, and a short haircut. One of Sukuna’s allies.

Yutas breath hitched. He gently shook Wendy. “That is not someone we should fight right now, not without a proper plan.” Wendy, sensing the urgency, nodded and backed away before turning around to exit the forest. Yuta risked a glance back, and saw that there was no longer anyone there, just the faint pulse of cursed energy.

By the time they returned from the forest, it was late. Yuta had walked Wendy to the girls dormitory where she stayed, before heading back to the guild. She didn't ask many questions about Yuta’s reaction to the figure in the forest, she only asked if he was alright. He said he was to reassure her, but in truth, he was terrified. He never directly encountered Uraume himself, but he knew that they had showed up in Shibuya. The only reason the other sorcerers there managed to survive their attacks was because Yuki Tsukumo had stopped them. They were a powerful foe. Yuta willed himself to stop thinking about it too much, and continued walking back to Fairy Tail.

He quietly entered the guild hall. There were still a few people left awake, but none seemed too interested in whatever Yuta was up to. He crept through near silently, planning on just going upstairs to sleep, when someone loudly cleared their throat behind him. 

“So, wanna tell me where the hell you went off to without saying anything?” 

It was Gojo, looking rather irritated with his arms crossed, and what looked to be a rolled up newspaper in one hand. Yuta nervously rubbed the back of his head. “Well you see, sensei, I was just uh…”  He gulped. Gojo wasn’t one to get upset easily, and normally he wouldn’t care so much about Yuta going out, but they were in a completely different world with completely different systems-- Yuta couldn’t blame him for being on edge.

He raised his eyebrows, a silent invitation for Yuta to continue. “I was… out?”

“Out doing what?”

Shit. Play dumb. “Y’know, just uh… some stuff.” Dumb, not outright stupid!

“Some ‘stuff’?” Gojo repeated. Yuta nodded.

THWACK!

Not liking his answer, Gojo hit Yuta on the top of his head with the rolled newspaper. Not enough to actually hurt, but enough to sting. Yuta clapped both hands over the crown of his head, and reeled back with a yelp. “Ow, sensei, what the hell?”

TWACK!

“Wanna try again, Okkotsu?” Gojo sunglasses slid down his nose, revealing brilliant glowing blue eyes. He stared down at Yuta, absently tapping the newspaper against his open palm. Yuta gulped. “You disappear for nigh hours on end, and come back with Sukuna’s residuals all over you, and all that you have to say for yourself is that you were ‘doing stuff?’” 

Yuta sighed, and ran a hand through his hair, his shoulders slumping. “I felt something, and I went to investigate it. You didn’t mention anything so I assumed your Six Eyes didn’t notice it but,” He turned to face Gojo. “It was the white haired monk, Uraume, I think. They’re one of Sukunas allies.” Gojos eyes didn’t widen, per say, but something flashed in them. He didn't say anything for a while, and Yuta thought that he might be off the hook-

THWACK!

“We’ll talk about this more in the morning, you need to get some sleep. It's almost dawn.” Yuta nodded slightly, still rubbing at the crown of his skull. Gojo exhaled, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I know you’re more than capable, Yuta, but don't go off on your own, not until we figure out what the hell is going on here, okay?” Yuta opened his mouth to protest, but Gojo held up a hand to silence him. “Before you start- I know you’re a special grade but you’re also only seventeen, and you’re under my watch. I just don't want you, or Yuji, or Megumi, getting hurt.” He brought Yuta in for a one armed hug. “Just tell me where you are next time, okay?”

Yuta, pouting slightly, sighed out an agreement. “Alright, sensei…”

Gojo, now satisfied with Yutas answer, let him go. “Now go to bed, just because I use RCT to keep myself functioning doesn't mean you should.” With one more smack to the head with the newspaper to really drive the point in, Gojo left Yuta to head upstairs to his bed.

As he lay under the covers, Yuji's snoring adding to the ambiance of the early morning, he couldn’t help but wonder just what Uraume was doing in the forest, and why he couldn't sense them or their cursed energy earlier. What bothered him more, though, was that Sukuna’s residuals were all over them-- did that mean Sukuna was also somehow here with them? What exactly did that mean for the Jujutsu sorcerers?

He felt scared. But somewhere else within, he felt determined, and even a little bit hopeful, that they’d be able to overcome the King of Curses this time.

He glanced over to Yuji's bed, where he and Megumi were currently sleeping (Yuji had insisted on Megumi staying with him). Yuiji was splayed out like a starfish and Megumi was curled into a ball next to him. Yuta was glad to have Fushiguro back. He would have made all the difference in their first tussle with Sukuna, maybe changing the odds enough to even beat the ancient curse. It had been a massive loss when his body had been taken over. 

They would win, they had to.

 Wendy was absolutely mortified when she realized she had slept in until noon, the sun already high up in the sky, casting shadows across her room. She and Yuta had gotten back horribly late in the day, which Charle would have reprimanded her for endlessly had the cat not been asleep upon her return. Wendy quickly got dressed, ran a brush through her hair, and nearly sprinted to the guild hall, ignoring Charle’s critical words. 

“Honestly Wendy, you get home at who-knows-what time, sleep until midday, and now you're running in the snow ?” She scoffed, flying low beside Wendy. “Honestly, have a little more respect for yourself.” Wendy just laughed. Charle’s harsh tone never bothered her much- she knew it was out of a place of love. 

“Honestly, Charle, I'm fine. I was just with Yuta. We were checking something out in the forest.” Charle made a choked off noise. 

“You were in the forest in the middle of the night? Why on earth wouldn’t you bring me with you?” Wendy suppressed the urge to roll her eyes.

“You were already sleeping, I didn't wanna bother you. Besides, I was the one who asked Yuta to let me come along-- I couldn't drag you along with me.” 

Charle looked towards the ground. “I’ll never mind you ‘dragging’ me with you, you’re my best friend, Wendy. I just want to make sure you’re safe.” 

Wendy reached out and scratched Charle’s ears. “I know you do, Charle, but I can take care of myself. You deserve to be able to rest, too.”  

Thankfully, when they reached the guild, everyone was still there. Wendy slid into the seat next to Lucy at the bar and rested her head in her folded arms. “Good morning Wendy, sleep okay?” Wendy groaned tiredly in response. Lucy giggled slightly. 

Charle scoffed, and yanked on Wendy's hair gently, making the girl whine. “This one thought it would be a good idea to sneak off in the middle of the night to go into the forest. ” 

“Charle! I already told you that I was okay…” 

Lucy shook her head, a fond smile on her face. “Don’t worry Wendy, I already know, Gojo’s been lecturing Yuta for the better part of this morning.” She leaned over and whispered. “Erza knows too, so try not to draw too much attention to yourself lest you face the wrath of Titania.” 

Wendy shuddered slightly. “Is she mad?” Wendy had never been scolded by Erza-- she’d never really done anything worth getting worked up over. But she had seen her many outbursts directed at primarily Natsu and Gray, so she was more than a little terrified of what she might say.

Thankfully, Lucy shook her head. “No, she's not upset, just worried is all. If anything she's upset you didn't get her to come with. I don't think Erza could ever really be mad at you, Wendy.” 

Wendy released a breath. Good.

“Gojo however-- he looked like he was about to have a stroke when he found out you went with Yuta.” Lucy laughed, but Wendy paled. “Seriously, that guy has a complex about keeping the youngin’s safe. It's kinda annoying. He kept hitting Yuta with his slipper- I almost felt bad for him.”

Wendy risked a glance over towards the sorcerers. They all looked alright enough, and Yuta didn't seem like he was traumatised or anything-- so Wendy allowed herself to relax fully. She didn’t like being in trouble. Being yelled at by Charle was one thing, but anyone else? She might cry. 

“Is uh-- is Gojo mad at me?” 

“No, I just think he was worried about you, same as Erza. It's almost frightening how similar they reacted…” Lucy shivered. “Still though, I wouldn't worry too much, Erza's out on a job with Gray right now, they’ll be back in around an hour.”    

An hour. Wendy had an hour before she would most certainly be getting the lecture of a lifetime from Erza. She knew going out so late was silly, especially into the forest, but she couldn’t say she regretted doing so. Wendy was able to help Yuta, and that's why she did it. She didn’t do it for any selfish reasons, Wendy simply sensed a strong energy filled with malice, and offered to go with Yuta to investigate. That hardly seemed dangerous to her.

While it wasnt dangerous at first, Wendy recalled the way Yutas entire demeanour changed when they found the strange person in the forest. When the sorcerers first arrived 2 days ago, Yuta was incredibly reserved and soft spoken, so to see him get so serious and so quickly was more than a little bit disconcerting. Wendy glanced back again. Her dragon ears managed to pick up what they were talking about.

“If we find Sukuna, should we even bother trying to fight him again?” It was Megumi talking.

“Yes, we have to do something, we can't just let that jackass go free.” Yuji responded. He sounded anxious but with a sense of urgency.

“What we need to do first is actually find Sukuna. If Uraume had his residuals, there's a strong possibility he’s already here,” Yuta was chewing on the inside of his cheek, “and we need to make sure that we know what he plans to do.”

There was a loud sigh, it came from Gojo. “There's also the possibility that the residuals on Uraume are from before, but it's too much of a risk to entertain that possibility. Even if Sukuna isn’t here, Uraume is already a threat on their own.” He flicked Yuta gently on the forehead. “Thanks to this guy's little late night adventure, they might know we’re here too.” Yuta looked rather distressed for a moment, but Gojo just smiled at him. “Don’t worry, that's a good thing. We’re at an impasse- they wont do anything by themselves- they might’ve sensed cursed energy from you, but shit,” He chuckled. “Your energy pool is a wonderful deterrent, and you were with the little one, who also got some freakish energy reserves."

His eyes flicked to Wendy. She flushed and tried to look away, embarrassed at being caught staring at the small group, but he merely winked at her and went back to talking with his students. 

Wendy's stomach flipped uncomfortably. The person she and Yuta found was apparently incredibly strong, and they were working with the evil being, Sukuna, that had taken over Megumi's body. Yuta’s reaction made a hell of a lot more sense. He’d stolen Megumi's magic-- cursed technique -- and used it against the other sorcerers. Levy was able to figure out why Megumi and Sukuna were separated.

“It's a great taboo of magic, taking someone's body. The consequences are dire. This Sukuna most likely realized this and willingly separated.” Levy had a stack of books almost as tall as herself scattered across 4 different tables, flipping through their pages as she spoke. “It's like what happened with Capricorn, but I imagine on a worse scale. You wouldn’t just be stuck in that body and lose your own in the process-- which I can only hypothesize was because Capricorn is a spirit and not a human-- but you’d also lose your mind. It would effectively cause you to go insane, and to such an extent you and the host would go catatonic.”

Levy’s explanation was confusing to Wendy, but she overall understood. The separation happened due to the rules of Earthland. If they hadn’t ended up here, Megumi could still very well be stuck. Wendy was glad that was not the case. She already considered the sorcerers her friends, and the thought of them being in danger made her grit her teeth and clench her fists.

Lucy, noticing the way Wendy's jaw ticked, placed a hand on her back. “You alright there, Wendy?” Shaken from her reverie, Wendy nodded quickly. Lucy giggled. “If you’re still nervous about Erza-”

“No, it's not that, I'm okay. Really.” Lucy's eyes widened slightly with surprise before giving a nod of affirmation. 

“If you say so.”

Lucy was correct in her prediction, and Erza and Gray returned about an hour later, 

“I heard about what you did, Wendy.” Erza stood in front of Wendy now, her hands on her hips, glaring slightly. Behind her, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy all looked on with sympathetic looks on their faces. Wendy gulped. Erza sighed, and brought a hand to her temple. “You are an incredibly talented and powerful wizard, but going out into the forest so late to chase a malevolent energy is incredibly reckless, Wendy.” 

Wendy stared at her feet, and nodded. “I understand, Erza… I’ll be more cautious next time.” 

“I wouldn’t normally be so strict about this, I’m aware it's strange of me, however that evil energy was cursed. Next, time, get me to go with you. For my peace of mind.” 

It turned out to be a rather tame scolding, much to Natsu and Grays shock (they shouted at Erza about how it wasn’t fair for at least fifteen minutes before she silenced them with a pointed glare). Erza was more worried about her going into a potential battle underprepared-- despite Yuta also being there-- rather than the fact she snuck out. She didn’t get much of a scolding from Gojo, aside from a gentle thwap! from his slipper and a light chastising consisting of “You’re how old? 10-- You’re 14? Regardless, you're a child, don’t. Be. So. Reckless.”

(Each syllable of that last part was punctuated with a smack from the slipper.)   

He was sure to clarify that he was not underestimating her, no, but instead his ire came from the fact that the owner of said evil energy, had not only managed to kill him before, but level an entire fifteen square kilometers. Wendy didn’t know about that part, but even if she had, she still would’ve gone with Yuta. He looked genuinely distressed about the energy. She’d just wanted to help. 

She was at the job board with Charle, mulling over her options, when a burst of excitement sounded from behind her. 

“It's time! It's happening- wizards vs sorcerers! Mirajane’s gonna spar with one of ‘em!”

Chapter Text

To say Natsu was more than a little pissed that Mirajane would spar with a newcomer instead of him, was an understatement. He’d been begging to spar with Mira since he was a kid. “This is so fuckin’ stupid…”

Next to him, Gray sighed, but it came out more like an irritated groan. “Quit pouting, Mira would wipe the floor with you anyway.”

Natsu narrowed his eyes. “Oh yeah? Even though I defeated Zeref? By myself?”

Gray just rolled his eyes. He held a cigarette towards Natsu, the other wordlessly lighting it for him. “You take everything too personally. It is, quite literally, not that deep .” Gray took a drag from his cigarette, blowing the smoke away before continuing, “Mira likely wouldn’t spar with you anyway. You’re still like a kid to her, and you certainly act like one.” 

Natsu's jaw ticked with irritation. But he relented, and settled into the crowd that had started in the Fairy Tail courtyard. The group formed a large circle, where both Mirajane and Gojo were. Natsu noticed the latter was dressed differently now- a blindfold instead of sunglasses, and he was back in the t-shirt and trousers he was in when they first found him. Natsu could admit, Gojo was stronger than him. In truth, he wasn’t upset that Mirajane wanted to spar with him, but rather he was upset that he couldn't fight Gojo again. If there was one thing Natsu hated more than losing, it was being interrupted in the middle of a fantastic battle. 

He desperately wanted to pick up where they left off, but that most likely wouldn’t be happening for a while, if ever. 

“I really didn’t expect this to draw such a large crowd, even the townsfolk are here to see it.” Mirajane giggled slightly, a hand to her mouth. “I guess everyones curious about the outcome.” 

Gojo chuckled in agreement. “A bit of a shame it's such a small arena though, no?” He stretched his arms out behind his back, the joints cracking slightly. Natsu winced; his dragon ears did not like that sound “‘Means we can't go all out, bummer.” 

Mirajanes' brow quirked. “Perhaps another time we’ll do this again somewhere else, then.” Gojo smirked at that.

And then, with a cheer and shout, they were off. Natsu could hardly keep up, his eyes darting back and forth. Mirajane was in her Sitri Satan Soul, making her faster and giving her the ability to use both darkness and fire magic. Gojo on the other hand, was just fast. He was keeping up with Mirajane, Natsu swore he teleported.

Turns out, he did. He confirmed as much himself when a shocked onlooker shouted; “Did you just fuckin’ teleport!?” He laughed heartily, dodging one of Mirajane's attacks with said ability. 

“Sure fuckin’ did!” 

Natsu, obviously, was rooting for Mirajane. The wizard dashed around effortlessly, attacking with such force it was audible as it deflected off Gojos infinity. They both leaped back, now standing on opposite sides of the makeshift arena. Mirajane grinned wide and slightly unhinged. “That ‘infinity’ of yours is incredible.”

Gojo bowed playfully. “I’m honoured! Your whole ‘take over’ shit is pretty incredible too. It's very rare I find someone as fast as me.”  

The crowd roared with excitement, and Natsu felt a rush of adrenaline- like he was also in the fight. “GO MIRAAAA!!” He screamed, and the crowd cheered again, and the two combatants began their fight again.

Mirajane threw a ball of fire towards Gojo, which he absorbed with what he called “blue”, Natsu learned recently, and flung it back at Mirajane. His eyebrows shot into his hairline under the blindfold when she caught it. His mouth pulled into a wicked smile, and practically bounded closer to fight again. 

He hit Mirajane with a series of lightning fast jabs and strikes, then twisting in the air to land one particularly nasty kick to her stomach. She recovered quickly, and sent wave, after wave, of magic towards Gojo. He launched into the air- and fired off blue again. Mirajane jumped back at the last second, the ball of energy just barely missing her as it took a chunk out of the street below. Natsu hadn’t seen Mirajane be this into a fight since before Lisanna “died”. It was good to see that that part of her was still in there.

Mirajane kicked off the ground, hand raised to claw at Gojo- when he blinked out of sight and reappeared behind her. He elbowed her in between her shoulders, jabbing the soft flesh with great force. Mirajane twisted back, throwing fire directly into his face.

Natsu had no idea how long it had been, but neither opponent seemed apt to stop anytime soon. The crowd only grew, and people had started placing bets. At some point, Gojo had agreed to let down infinity, and that was when the real fight began. 

Natsu had learned from Yuji that sorcerers could use their cursed energy to enhance their body, and in some cases, regenerate it. “Gojo-sensei and Okkotsu can both use reversed cursed technique, it lets them heal themselves. Okkotsu, unlike Gojo-sensei, can heal others too.” He had also told Natsu about how his sensei grew back his arm after it had been sliced off. The enhancement was what Natsu suspected allowed him to last so long against Sitri.

That reversed cursed technique seemed to be coming in a clutch here, as Mirajane clawed four neat lines down his face, shredding the blindfold in the process. Natsu winced at the gashes. “Fuck me, that looks painful.” He muttered to Gray, the latter nodding along. Gojo gave as good as he got through, and he grabbed Mirajanes collar and tossed her in the air, following with a kick to her side. She righted herself before she could fall, and fired off a pulse of darkness magic which grazed Gojos abdomen, practically vaporizing the material of his shirt as he twisted to the side to avoid it. 

Natsu noticed 2 scars, one that cut in a diagonal slash up and across-- probably to his chest-- and one that went horizontally through his waist. Mirajane’s attack hadn’t managed to do much other than destroy Gojo’s shirt, but she followed up by grabbing the remaining material and whipping him to the ground. She followed him down, but he rolled to the side and shot her with blue before she could attack again. 

Natsu glanced over to the sorcerers. Yuji was cheering with great enthusiasm. He was jumping up, his fists clenched. He shouted things like, “Go sensei! Gojo? More like GOAT-jo!” (Megumi punched him in the arm for that last one) grinning widely the whole time. Yuta on the other hand, looked like an old lady about to faint. He was chewing on his lip, his arms crossed. He looked worried. Megumi had no such emotions on his face, and looked almost bored, if not for the occasional shout of encouragement. 

He, Gray, Erza, and Lucy were complete opposite of the latter two sorcerers. Lucy was jumping up and down, launching herself off of Gray's shoulders. Erza was jostling other guild members around in her excitement. It was the most fun Natsu had had watching a fight since the Grand Magic Games, it was genuinely thrilling. 

A flash of red light brought Natsu back into the fight, and Mirajane was sent sprawling backwards. She righted herself, and skidded across the cobbles. Gojo was still laughing. “I knew it! I knew you could take a hit from red, you’re insane!” Mirajane smiled.

“I could say the same of you, nobody has lasted this long in a spar against me. I'm impressed.” Then they were back to the fight, Gojo now using both red and blue, and Mirajane wasn’t pulling her punches anymore.

“If this keeps up, Mira’s gonna run out of magic energy.” Gray mused. 

Erza tilted her head. “Sitri isn’t as draining as Hallphas. She's got time left.”

Lucy hummed in agreement. “Gojo might run out of cursed energy before she runs out of magic too, we can't rule that out just yet.” 

Natsu shook his head. “Yeah, actually, we can. Gojo can replenish his cursed energy with this thing they call ‘Reversed Curse Technique’, if he uses it on his brain then he's constantly got a whole new load of it to use.” Natsu focused back onto the arena. “Mira just has to outpace the technique, then she's won.”

“She just has to do that before her own reserves go dry and while fighting back.” Erza stated. 

Gray shook his head, laughing slightly in disbelief. “This Gojo guy’s incredible, I've genuinely never been unsure of Mira winning until now.”

Natsu chewed his lip. At first he thought there’d be no way she’d lose, but now? Gojo was without his infinity and he was still keeping pace. His clothes were a bit more tattered- Mira had managed to completely burn away the rest of his shirt with a particularly nasty hit from her fire, and his white hair streaked with blood from wounds he’d healed, but he was still going. His attack speed only seemed to increase, relentless in his endeavor. 

Mira was slowing down. He could feel it. He grit his teeth, and threw his hand up in the Fairy Tail hand sign, the one that meant, “no matter where in the world I am, I’ll always be looking in your direction.”

“YOU’VE GOT THIS! MIRAJANE! ” 

Mirajane looked up, her eyes falling on where Natsu and the rest were, all of them doing the guild salute. Her face shifted slightly, a small smile forming on her face. 

That's when he felt it, her magic energy grew, and her form shifted into her Alegria form. Once again, the lake behind the Guild evaporated from the sheer power. Mirajane’s smile changed into something more sinister. “You’ve managed to peak my interest, so I'll treat you to my strongest Satan Soul.” 

Gojo whistled low. “That's an intimidating power you got there- you’re not human, are you?” 

Mirajane chuckled. “No, not really.”

“Fascinating, if it wasn’t such a colossally stupid idea, I'd love to see how you’d fare in my Infinite Void. I’d hate for things to go wrong and leave you braindead, so perhaps another day.”

Mirajane laughed at that. The fight continued on, even more destructive than before. Mira was relentless, striking the sorcerer with such force Natsu was sure without his cursed energy, his bones would shatter. While Mirajane certainly didn’t give him much room for an opening, Gojo certainly wasn’t backed into a corner, Instead using Mirajanes force against her as he feigned right, leaving her to punch through the cobble streets. Her arm was trapped in the stones for only a moment, but it was enough time for Gojo to fire another red at her. 

She didn’t get flung back quite as far as before, but she hit a nearby building. Mirajane was soon after launching from the surface off her feet, practically snarling as she did. She grabbed Gojo by the head, and drove his face through the floor. Soon after, he gripped her hand, twisting it and using her pained moment of hesitation to kick her off. He was laughing- blood dripped down from his hairline, his nose, and from the corner of his mouth. But he was cackling. He was only just able to heal himself before Mirajane was back on him, driving her knee into his sternum, Gojo barely stabilizing himself before he was sent sprawling, breathing heavily. 

Mirajane jumped back, still engaged. Her magic came off in thick tendril-like waves.

Pride swelled in Natsu's chest. She could win this. 

Glancing over at the sorcerer, Natsu felt his confidence fumble slightly. He was summoning both red and blue, slowly merging them. Hollow Purple. Natsu was only saved from it with Igneel's fire. He whipped his head towards Gojos students, who were all slack jawed, Megumi shaking his head. 

“Despite my domain being a bit too risky, I think since you can handle red, being thrown twenty meters, and my cursed energy, we can try this out.” The smile which he spoke with was borderline maniacal, but Mirajane didn’t seem worried at all, bracing herself with an equally disturbing smirk. Gojo shouted for the people behind her to move out of the way.

Once they were gone, he fired. The cobblestones ripped out of the ground, people shouted and all hell broke loose. 

Once the dust cleared, there Mirajane stood, still smirking, but now she looked more beat up. Blood dripped from her temple, and there was a gash in her bicep. Her chest heaved as she breathed deeply. Gojos eyes widened, not in shock, but delight. 

It was decided, then, for the safety of the residents of Magnolia, that the spar should end there, in a draw.  Despite Natsu’s general dislike of draws, he found himself whooping and hollering along with everyone else in the crowd. Mirajane de-transformed and giggled. Gojo reached out to shake her hand, which she accepted in earnest, both smiling. 

He was then practically tackled by his students, and Mirajane was hoisted up on Elfman's shoulder, everyone cheering. Natsu looked back over to Gojo, and took in the funniest sight. His face flushed with embarrassment and shock as his students lifted him, tossing him in the air and catching him. This happened several times, and Gojo looked like a ferret, shoulders tensed and his long legs flailed awkwardly. Natsu pointed and laughed, which was met with a bright smile.

While there was no definite answer to the question of “ Who is stronger between sorcerers and wizards”, nobody seemed terribly bothered by it.

The Blue Pegasus guild members prided themselves on being one of the most luxurious guilds in the country, practically oozing with class from every corner. It was the epitome of what one would find elegant.

So, the man currently sitting in one of the lounge chairs, dressed rather informally, who had only asked for tea, stood out more than a sore thumb. The only part of him that seemed to match with Blue Pegasus’ aesthetic was his face. He was an attractive specimen, aside from the gnarled scar across his forehead and the perpetual look of confusion mixed with disdain and furrowed brows.

Any attempts at conversation were met with a polite smile, and rather vague answers. His questions were strange, and borderline worrying in subject matter. What was most worrying was the curse power that came off of him in waves, curling like smoke.   

A letter was quickly drafted and sent to Fairy Tail-- they’d been the ones to ask the other guilds to send in any reports if they found a human with curse power. Despite their claims of these people being good, the man sat in the Blue Pegasus guild hall felt bad. His ‘parfum’ was one of malice and vengeance. It stirred beneath his skin, completely contrasting to his calm demeanor. 

He sat with a kind of confidence- no, arrogance- that screamed “im better than all of you”, and when he glanced at any passerby, it was always down the bridge of his nose, the faintest ghost of a sneer on his sharp features. However, in spite of this, he was always kind in conversation. Truthfully, unsettling, as if he was putting on a mask. But the mask had cracks around the edges- it slipped off a moment before it was supposed to, and the man underneath would return.  

“Is everything to your liking, sir?”

The man looked up at the waitress who had spoken. His eyes were filled with borderline disgust. He quickly schooled his features into a tight lipped smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Everything is fine, thank you.”

The waitress nodded, wringing her fingers together. “Uhm… Master Bob has uh… He’s requested to know your name, sir.” It was hard to look the man in the eyes. His face was calm in the same way a wave crest looks slow moving at its zenith, only for it to crash into the beach with great force. It was unnerving. “He would like to um… to hopefully figure out where you might be from…”

The man didn’t make any sudden movement, but his eye twitched slightly. Carefully setting his teacup down, he turned to fully face the waitress, placing his hands neatly in his lap. 

“I see, my name you said?”

The waitress gulped, and nodded. “Yes, your name.”

“Suguru Geto.”

Chapter Text

The fated day of “Mirajane Vs. Gojo” had come to a close, and a new day hence began. Lucy sat up, stretching her arms over her head as she yawned. The celebrations from yesterday had run well into the evening, through the night, and ended early in the morning. Lucy was tired, but alas, she had work to do. Blue Pegasus had found a potential sorcerer, it couldn’t wait any longer. 

With a soft grunt, she untucked herself from her covers and got ready for the day.

She dressed warmer that day-- a thicker pair of tights, knee high boots and a large scarf-- weather-conscious for once with regard to the journey ahead of her. She was to meet with Gojo at the guild hall, borrow Happy from Natsu, and catch the train to Blue Peagasus. Lucy was a bit nervous about the whole ordeal. She wasn’t sure what kind of sorcerer awaited for them at the other guild, but having Gojo with her brought her some peace of mind.

“You’re awfully quiet today, blondie.” He said, leaning on the window ledge of the train, one long leg loosely crossed over the other. “Something bothering you?” Gojo was ready to go as soon as Lucy arrived at Fairy Tail, dressed warmly in a black winter jacket and a pale blue tartan scarf. Lucy sighed and looked at her lap where Happy was presently curled up. 

“I don’t know, I just… She gazed out the window, watching the scenery of Fiore roll by. “I have a weird feeling.” She shrugged and shook her head. “It's probably nothing, don’t worry about it.” She gave what was meant to be a reassuring smile, but Gojo just crossed his arms and fixed her with a Look.

“If you have any doubts, you should tell me. I wont judge,” he said, one brow raised high on his forehead.. 

Lucy worried her lip between her teeth. “I just can't shake the feeling something bad might happen,” she confessed. “I don’t know why, but everytime I think about the sorcerer whom Blue Pegasus found,” she gritted her teeth, “I get this chill up my spine.” 

Gojo hummed in thought, and studied her from behind his glasses for a moment. “It's important to listen to your gut feeling. I can't blame you for being apprehensive-- hell,” he chuckled slightly. “ I’m a bit nervous too, and I probably know who we’re going to meet.” Lucy felt the tension in her shoulders dissipate, just a small bit. Gojo smiled at her warmly. “But don't worry; it’ll be alright.” 

The rest of the train ride was spent conversing about mundane things, like rent, food, seasons, how Lucy and the rest of the wizards were in stasis for seven years, window shopping, and their respective jobs. Gojo casually mentioned that he killed the higher ups of Jujutsu society, and that Yuta killed the people in charge of Gojo’s clan. It gave Lucy whiplash, to think that the quiet and reserved Yuta killed several people. And the way Gojo spoke about the ordeal, with such pride , it was… just the smallest bit unsettling. From what Gojo had told Lucy, though, the leaders of Jujutsu had been deplorable people, who treated sorcerers as disposable somethings instead of people. It filled her with anger to think about.

Soon enough, they arrived in the city where the Blue Pegasus guild made their home, “Alright, let's get this done and over with,” Lucy sighed, and wrapped her scarf more securely around her neck as they stepped off the train. 

“We haven’t seen Blue Pegasus in a while, Lucy! Do you think Ichiya is still weird?” Happy asked, flying between Lucy and Gojo.

Lucy had to laugh at that one. “No doubt about that one.”

Next to her, Gojo grimaced. “I can’t understand how relaxed you sound when talking about a creep who sniffs your hair. ” He gestured wildly with his hands as he spoke. “It’s-- that’s--” He cut himself off with a shudder and an euch! then stuffed his hands in his pockets. “If you want, I can extend my Infinity over you so he can't get close?”

Lucy smiled at that. “I suspect that would be more for your peace of mind than mine, Gojo, but sure-- and thank you.” The man grinned in response.

“Don’t mention it.”

Upon arrival to Blue Pegasus, much to Lucy's eternal irritation, Ichiya’s goons-- Hibiki, Ren and Eve-- immediately crowded around her, compliments and affections spilling from their lips. When they tried to reach for her, however, she was pleased to find their advances halted by Gojo’s Infinity. Lucy looked towards him, and he shot her a playful wink. 

“Sorry boys, no time for flirting-- we need to speak with Master Bob.” 

Hibiki, the most sensible of the three (which is a bit like being the smartest kindergartener), nodded and began leading the two of them through the guild hall. “It's a bit of a shame really, that you’re here now.” He sighed. “Ichiya isn’t here at the moment, he was looking forward to your visit.” 

Lucy inwardly celebrated, and she noticed Gojo’s posture relaxed slightly. 

She also noticed how the 3 other wizards not so subtly side eyed the sorcerer, to which he just smiled widely back. Always one to push things to their limits, he placed an arm around Lucy's shoulder just, she suspected, to watch the others glare more. It took considerable amounts of effort for her to not burst out laughing then and there, if only they knew that to Gojo, Lucy was basically another student. Anytime anything else was insinuated, he looked like he was about to either jump out of the window, projectile vomit, or both. 

Lucy suspected that he “played for the other team,” anyway.

“The curse wizard is currently being held in the main hall, so once you talk with Master, he’ll lead you back through the guild.”

Lucy nodded along, and Happy let out an “Aye sir!” from his perch across Gojo’s shoulders. The cat had really taken to the sorcerer, it seemed. The sooner they conferred with Master Bob, the sooner they could leave and get back to figuring out how to get Gojo and his students back to their world-- or at the very least-- defeat the evil they had been facing.

Something was very wrong. Something was very, very, wrong.

The cursed energy which Satoru had felt disappear from the world a year ago, along with the life of its owner-- it was back.

Suguru was here.

He was alive.

Satoru felt like he couldn’t breathe. Whatever Lucy had been talking about had lost meaning, the words flowing through his brain like sand through open fingers. With just one-- fucking one-- test of Six Eyes, and he was back in that alleyway. Suguru bleeding, leaning against the wall, with that same horrible bittersweet smile on his mouth, that same heartrending teasing in his tone: 

“At least curse me a little bit at the end…”

At least love me a little bit at the end.

Bile rose in Satoru’s throat. Lucy had stopped talking, and was waving a hand in his face, concern clear on her features, but Satoru couldn’t hear what she was saying-- his heartbeat was just too loud in his ears. 

He wasn’t ready to see him again. 

Snapping himself from the inner turmoil of his mind, he turned to Lucy. Happy looked mildly horrified, Satoru couldn’t blame him. He’d been standing still having flashbacks for probably too long. “Sorry… sorry about that, I…” 

Lucy shook her head. “It's okay,” she offered-- kindly, more kindly than Satoru realistically deserved. “If you’re not ready, I can go on ahead and you can meet up with me. Happy will stay with you if you need. Don’t worry.” She placed a hand on his shoulder reassuringly. “I know that look-- someone from your past you’re not ready to face.”

Satoru opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of it. Instead, he opted for a simple warning: “Lucy… you need to know that sorcerer-- he’s… he’s strong,” he managed. “Be careful, please, he's not exactly known for being reasonable, either.” 

Lucy didn't seem shaken by Satoru’s words, simply nodding her head as she furrowed her brows in thought. 

“Alright, take a breather and I'll see you in a bit.” And with that, she turned and left Happy and Satoru alone in the corridor.

Suguru Geto, that was the name which Master Bob had given to Lucy. Gojo had waited outside while she talked with the Master of Blue Pegasus, but now she wished he hadn’t-- if only to save him the shock of figuring it out on his own. His warning rang in her ears.

She huffed out a breath as she entered the lounge of the Blue Pegasus guild hall. All things considered, this sorcerer stood out in more than one way. Dressed completely different from the rest of the patrons who chose to don suits or evening wear, wasn’t even close to the most jarring difference-- no, the most jarring difference was the scar.  

It was an ugly, gnarled, barbed wire-like strip of flesh that marred his otherwise attractive face. His hair was pulled into a messy bun, bangs falling out of the hair tie. 

Lucy narrowed her eyes and straightened her posture and approached the man. “Excuse me, sir?” His eyes flicked up at the sound of her voice. Geto’s gaze was heavy, and Lucy felt like she was being studied. “My name is Lucy Heartfillia, I'm with the guild Fairy Tail. I’m here to take you back there with me.” She breathed in. “We’re helping any sorcerers that may have ended up here in Fiore.” 

The man snorted a laugh. “How trite. What makes you think I want help, hm?” He sipped from his teacup, eyes still on Lucy. “Well, Miss Heartfilia, I appreciate your concern, but I assure you-- I don't need help.”  

Lucy resisted the urge to sigh in annoyance, opting to cross her arms instead. “We’ve found other sorcerers, they all--”

“--will most likely try to kill me on sight.” He chuckled. “I’ve been given another chance of life, I’m not so eager to throw it away just yet.” Something flashed in his purple eyes, something filled with malice. “Though I am curious--” Geto leaned back in his chair, resting his head in his hand. “Is Okkotsu amongst your merry band of misfit sorcerers?” 

Yuta.

“Yes, Yuta is currently at the Fairy Tail guild.” She said tentatively.

Getos face shifted into what Lucy had only ever seen on one person before, that person being Mard Geer Tartaros. The pure glee on Getos face was one of the most unsettling expressions anyone could ever make. “How fortuitous.” He stood up, towering over Lucy. He moved his hand, and a spiral of energy formed behind him. “Apologies, but it seems I’m going to have to cut this short--” 

Out of the spiral spewed several centipede-like creatures, sending the Guild Hall into a panic. They lunged outwards, snapping their mandibles at anything that moved. Lucy had to act, and fast. One of the centipedes tore a chunk out of her arm, and she hissed in pain. She quickly changed into her Cancer Star-Dress, and sliced them up, purple blood splashing across the floor. Geto merely smiled wider and summoned more.

“Something you ought to know,” He said, rolling up his sleeves. “Only curses can kill curses.” Geto then spun around and kicked the sword out of Lucy's hand. He then followed up with even more curses, and Lucy grit her teeth. She needed to move the fight outside, or find a way to alert Gojo. 

She flipped out of the way of another attack from the centipedes, slicing more with her remaining sword. Anger flashed at the lack of remorse from Geto. “Your summons are being destroyed before your very eyes, and all you can do is smile ?” She grit her teeth, cutting wildly at the air. “The role between a summon and master should be equal- They aren't tools!” Lucy twisted around and went to kick at his abdomen.

Geto laughed wildly as he dodged her attack. “They’re nothing more than servants, why should I care if a few out of over a thousand get cut up?” He kicked up Lucy's sword into his hand, throwing it with deadly precision. It was going to hit her right in the chest, between her ribs right into her heart. 

Before the sharp blade could pierce her flesh, she was quickly moved and carried out of the way.

“That was a close one, huh? Why do you always get up to this sort of shit when I’m not around?” 

“Loke!” she exclaimed. The celestial spirit smirked and set her down on her feet. He pushed his glasses up his nose, then turned to size up Geto, eyes narrowing. 

“Loke, I need to do something for me-” Another curse-- fly-like and grotesque-- whizzed by. Loke incinerated it with the power of Regulus before it could attack. 

“Anything, doll, what can I do you for?” 

“Find Happy for me! There’s someone with him-- white hair and sunglasses, you can’t miss him--” 

Loke raised an eyebrow as she babbled out a description of Gojo, effortlessly destroying more curses as they came.

“I already told you,” Geto drawled in a sing-song voice, “You can only destroy curses, with other curses.”  He lunged forward, hitting Lucy's spirit with a series of jabs and kicks. Loke grit his teeth and hit back, which Geto easily blocked. He was far more experienced than Lucy would have guessed. Loke didn’t give in though, and fought back. Loke was one of her strongest spirits- the leader of the 12 Zodiac- yet Geto was able to match his fighting pace. 

“On second thought, Luce--” He unleashed Regulus’ power, and a blinding light filled the room, sending his opponent sliding back across the floor. “Might be better for you to get Happy.” 

Loke was, for lack of better term, locked the fuck in, so Lucy simply nodded quickly, then turned on her heel and began sprinting back the way she’d come. A few of Geto’s curses pursued her, which she quickly dealt with. This was not going the way she’d hoped, but she felt slightly vindicated that her gut feeling was correct.

She rounded the corner and took off down the hall. The rest of the guild hadn’t noticed what was happening yet. Good. The less people panicked, the better. She needed to find Gojo, now.

“Happy! Gojo!” Lucy threw open the doors to one of the side lounges. Gojo was sitting in one of the plush armchairs, knees drawn to his chest and his head leaning on his shoulder. Happy was lounging across the arm of the chair. The cat looked up at the sound of her shouting. Gojo didn’t move. 

“Lucy? What's wrong? Why are you in a Star-Dress?”

“We’ve got a situation--” She gasped, hands flying to her chest as a sudden jolt made her stumble. Loke had closed his gate. She shook her head. “We need to hurry, something’s gone wrong!” Gojos eyes flicked over to her. 

He unfurled himself from the chair and stood. He was moving slowly, lethargic almost. He stretched and sighed. “Never thought I’d have to kill my best friend a second time … man, I must have done something really fucked up in a previous life to get stuck with this again.” He rolled his shoulders. “Where is he? I’ll handle it.” 

“Down the hall, I'll lead the way--” Gojo held up a hand to quiet her.

“No. I'll go myself.” Lucy grit her teeth in frustration. 

“I can’t let you do that. This is a job for the Fairy Tail guild and--”

“And I really don't care!” Gojo said, exasperated as he threw his hands in the air. Lucy noticed that they were shaking, slightly. “Here's the thing with Suguru Geto-- you can’t help him. He doesn’t want help, he won't accept it. The only way to stop him--” He paused, swallowing thickly. “Is to kill him.”

Lucy couldn’t help the way her jaw dropped. Gojo was already leaving through the doorway. Kill him? Best friend? Too many thoughts were swimming through her head. She shoved them away and focused. “You’re really going to kill him?” she demanded, jogging to keep pace with him.

Gojo heaved a sigh. He glanced down at her. “I shouldn’t have let you go on your own-- there's no way you could have beaten him.” His words cut through Lucy, and it was almost enough to make her stop dead in the guildhall. He was calling her weak.  “I should’ve known he’d be--” He cut himself off with a frustrated noise. “Stay here,” he said again. “I’ll deal with him.”

Lucy felt anger bubbling inside her. “No. I’m not letting you go by yourself! This is a job for Fairy Tail, and we’re doing this together.” Gojo narrowed his eyes. Before he could speak, Lucy changed into her Aquarius dress. “You think you’re stronger than me-- which you might be right-- but let me give you a piece of friendly advice: don't ever underestimate a Fairy Tail wizard.”

Gojo looked surprised for a moment, then his mouth pulled into a sharp grin. “Wouldn’t dream of it, blondie.” He cracked his neck. “You stall his curses, I'll hit him with Purple and--” Lucy noticed his voice falter. “And then that’ll be it.” 

She nodded, turning to Happy, “Happy, you’ll need to be fast with the sealstone cuffs.” 

“Aye sir!” He said, pulling them out of his bag. 

Gojo cocked a brow. “What’re those for?”

“They’ll block his curse power, so--”

“No.” Gojo interrupted.

Lucy's brows furrowed. “What do you mean ‘no’?”

“I mean, we have to kill him. He's too dangerous alive. It's the only way.” 

Lucy’s stomach dropped. She knew Gojo probably knew better than her, but killing someone…

“If I manage to render him unable to fight, will you give me a chance to save him?”

Gojo’s jaw ticked slightly. “Fine. If you think you can. But I will not hesitate to kill him if you can't.” 

With that, they pushed open the doors to the lounge and were immediately stopped dead in their tracks. The furthermost wall was gone, the brick wall destroyed. There were mages scattered across the floor, all unconscious. Sitting at the bar, still drinking tea, was Geto. 

“Ah, Miss. Heartfilia, back for-”

He paused as his eyes landed on Gojo. A million words were spoken between them, and yet nothing was said. Something flashed across Getos face and in his violet eyes-- something full of pain and regret-- before he schooled his features into a mocking smile.

“Satoru, I should have expected you would show up at some point.” 

“I’m giving you a chance to come peacefully, Suguru.” 

Geto laughed heartily. “Are you now?” He stood up from his seat and casually shoved his hands in his pockets. “My, that's a rather different approach to the one you used last year. What, gone soft on me, Sa-to-ru?” The man practically purred, and Lucy clenched her fist.

“All lost sorcerers are the responsibility of the Fairy Tail guild. You can either come on your own terms, or on ours.” Lucy summoned her magic whip. “I can’t guarantee you’ll like our terms very much, though.” 

Geto laughed again. “I find it very difficult to be intimidated by a girl in a swimsuit and pigtails, especially when she wasn’t smart enough to kill me when she had the chance. Your little lion boy put up a decent fight though, I'll give you that.” His face stretched into a wide smile, filled with malice. “I can see it though- you care too much for things that are nothing more than a means to an end.” He turned to Gojo. “That's why you’re going to lose, Satoru. You’ve allowed a child to cloud your judgement--”

Lucy didn't let him finish. She kicked him right in the sternum, and followed it up with a punch to his temple. Nobody talked about her spirits like that, she’d rather die than allow it. Geto snarled animalistcally, and grabbed one of her pigtails and threw her into the ground. She gasped as the pain radiated through her back, but rolled away just before another curse could hit her. There was a flash of red light, and Lucy vaguely registered Gojo now fighting with Geto. 

Slowly getting back on her feet, she rolled her shoulders. Her back was killing her-- and there was a gash across her face. She gritted her teeth. Things were going wrong. Killing Geto wasn’t what she had wanted to do, but Gojo seemed to think it was the only way. 

The two sorcerers were fighting tooth and nail, now, and it was destructive, more destructive than Lucy could have imagined. Neither looked to be enjoying the fight, either. Gojo’s hands were shaking as he casted his attacks, Lucy noticed, and neither said anything.

She had to do something. Happy was still waiting on the sideline with the sealstone. If he could somehow get even just one of the cuffs on Geto, it would save everyone a whole lot of heartache. She nodded towards the cat, and he nodded back, then set off to make an attempt at placing the cuff. To Lucy's shock and horror, Geto noticed the cat. He grinned, and grabbed Happy by the tail-- whipping him into the adjacent wall-- and focusing back on Gojo. Without thinking, she sprinted to Happy.

“Happy! Are you okay?” Cradling him in her arms, Happy let out a weak whimper. “Don’t worry, I’ll fix this…” Lucy set him down behind the bar. She was angry . Rage settled cooly in her limbs, and she felt her magic energy expand.

She focused her magic into a singular point and imagined it expanding outwards linking at each center point like a web, closing her eyes as she did. Quietly, she began to speak;

“Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens...  

All the stars, far and wide…

Show me thy appearance...
With such shine.
Oh Tetrabiblos...
I am the ruler of the stars...
Aspects become complete...
Open thy malevolent gate.
Oh 88 Stars of the heavens...
Shine!”

Her eyes flew open, stars reflected within her pupils. She felt the power of all the constellations within her fingertips, and aimed her spell. 

“Urano Metria!”

Chapter Text

The train ride back to Magnolia was charged with a strange energy, to say the least. There’d been a surprising lack of questions when Satoru and Lucy had boarded the train with a man in handcuffs between them. Nobody really spoke the whole way back, Happy was more than happy (no pun intended) to glare at Suguru, and Lucy pointedly looked out the window. 

Satoru thought back to earlier. Lucy had hit Suguru with the power of the fucking stars, and put him in the sealstone cuffs so fast he’d barely had time to register what had happened. Looking at Suguru now, Lucy's spell probably could’ve done a lot more damage if not for his cursed energy. Lucy was a far kinder person than Satoru, she’d even bandaged Suguru’s wounds for him-- chastising him as she did. Suguru said nothing. Every time his eyes met Satoru’s, he’d look away. It stung.

The Blue Pegasus members were, rather warranted, horrified when they saw the damage caused. Master Bob was relatively unbothered, citing how it was ‘expected when Fairy Tail was involved’ and not to worry too much. They didn’t use yen in Fiore, but if they had Satoru would’ve paid for the damage. This was his fault, anyway. 

He froze up, again, and it nearly cost them dearly, again. If Satoru had an Achilles heel, it would be Suguru Geto. Everything that concerned him was a blindspot, a weakness. And now he was back. No traces of Kenjaku aside from the scar on his otherwise perfect face. His Suguru was here, right beside him. Yet he couldn’t bear to look at him directly, instead choosing to stare at the reflection in the train window. 

The slope of his nose wasn't different, nor was the sharpness in his jaw. His eyes still had the remnants of bags beneath them, and his cheekbones still had the same prominence as before. It was like he’d never been dead in the first place. Looking at him still made Satoru’s heart flutter and twinge with pain, the past flashing through his mind like a bone that hadn’t healed right-- it still hurt no matter how much time passed.

Lucy sighed heavily, stopping Satoru’s train of thought. “We’re almost there-- don’t try anything,” she said, glaring slightly. The words were meant for Suguru, but Satoru felt the underlying threat like it was directed at him instead. Suguru just nodded, shifting in his seat to rest his head in his hand-- still connected to the other with the sealstone cuffs. He smiled slightly.

“You impressed me, back there. I hadn’t expected much from you.” Lucy's eyebrows shot up in surprise at Suguru. He sighed wistfully, “Seems I'm having a bit of a losing streak.”

Satoru snorted. “Yeah, maybe if you stopped trying to kill everyone all the time, things might work out better for you.” 

Suguru pursed his lips, still smiling. “I see you still think my goal is as simple-minded as ‘killing everyone.’ The strong will thrive, and the weak will do what they ought to--” His smile stretched into a grin that was so familiar it felt like a punch to the gut. “They’ll die off.” Satoru sucked in a breath. “The strong of society shouldn’t have to protect the weak. Why should those of us that are better be held back by those that are worse? They really are nothing more than useless monkeys.” He laughed. 

“The strong shouldn’t be the only people allowed to live, and how can you decide who's the ‘weak’ anyway?” Lucy's voice cut through Suguru’s tirade like a serrated blade. “Some of the strongest people I know aren't even wizards-- they’re the backbones of society.” Satoru smiled slightly, and nodded along encouragingly. “The bakers, the waitresses, hell, the conductors of this very train-- they’re probably what you consider weak, but without them, the strong have nothing.” She crossed her arms. “It's our duty to protect those that aren't able to protect themselves. That's how things should be. If you have the ability, you need to use it for good.” 

Satoru’s eyes widened. It was nearly word-for-word what Suguru had said to him almost 12 years ago. He looked at his friend now, whose face had fallen from its self-assured smile to an expression of shock. Lucy continued, “The Fairy Tail guild exists to help people, just like every other guild. I’ve never, ever resented a client for not being a wizard able to solve a problem, and I’ve certainly never blamed them when things in my life go wrong.” She shook her head. “I don't know what you’ve been through to make you think of those weaker than you as something wrong, and quite frankly, I don't care.” She jabbed a finger at him. “You’re in no position to play god.”  

Suguru’s eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything more. Satoru liked to interpret his lack of response as him realizing what a colossal idiot he’d been, but he knew words couldn’t change his mind. 

He’d already tried that.

“Like hell am I okay with this, Gojo!”

Yuta was seething. Of all the people that could’ve been found, of course it was the man who’d tried to kill him, and all of his friends. He clenched his fist, willing himself to calm down. Rika stirred beneath his skin every time his eyes landed on him.  

Suguru Geto. They found fucking Suguru Geto.

Gojo sighed, running a hand through his hair, and pushed his glasses up in the process. His eyes looked tired, emotionally drained, and sad. “You don't have to befriend him or anything, it's just that this is the best place for him right now.” Yuta only glared further at his teacher's words. Gojo and Lucy had returned not long ago. Mercifully, Yuji and Megumi had gone with Natsu on one of his jobs so they weren’t here to witness this. Gojo had almost immediately pulled Yuta to the side to talk to him. He’d accurately predicted his students outrage upon seeing Geto again.

“No, this is certainly not the best place for him, the best place would be six fucking feet under.” Yutas tone was cold, rageful. Gojos face flashed with hurt before narrowing his eyes.

“I understand how you feel, Yuta, but do you really think it's a good idea to let him out of our sight?” Yuta looked past Gojos shoulder to see that Geto was currently being not-so subtly threatened by Master Makarov not to cause any trouble. Yuta saw the tension in his frame, felt his cursed energy flare up every few seconds. “I’m sorry but this is what needs to be done. I’m not asking you to be happy, I just need you to realize and accept what's happening. Like it or not, Suguru’s here now.” Yuta was slightly taken aback by Gojos cold tone. 

He stared back at Gojo, mirroring his expression. He’d never seen his teacher like this, not when he’d left to kill the higher ups nor when he’d fought Sukuna. Yuta knew about the history between Gojo and Geto, he knew that the curse user was a soft spot for him. “Fine, he can stay. But if this is because you’re feeling sentimental, sensei, then--”

Gojo cut him off with a humourless laugh. “I’ve been mourning Suguru since I was seventeen , Yuta, there's nothing left for me to be sentimental over. The Suguru that was my best friend, he’s gone. ” Gojo turned to leave, but Yuta heard him mutter something under his breath:

“He’s been gone since August 2006.”

For everyone's safety, and for Satoru’s fragile (and rapidly deteriorating) sanity, Suguru was moved to Fairy Tails makeshift “jail” in a section of the guild hall’s basement. They kept the sealstone cuffs on him, only now they weren’t connected by a chain. He sat quietly in the corner of his cell, knees drawn up his chest with his elbows resting on them, head leaned back on the stone wall. 

He was wearing a simple black crew neck sweater and sweatpants, so alike to that of the day he left. He hadn't looked so much like Suguru in such a long, long time.

“I can see you staring, Satoru.” 

Satoru sucked in a breath. He’d almost forgotten to breathe. “Yeah, sorry…”

Suguru snorted a laugh. “Wow, you’ve really changed. Since when do you apologize?” He turned his head to face the other sorcerer, raising a brow. “Have you come to gloat your victory? Sorry, but I'm not in that sort of mood.”  

Satoru sighed. “I’m not here to gloat, Suguru.”

“Then why are you here, hmm?”

Satoru honestly didn't have an answer. Why? Why did he come here? Was it out of curiosity? To see how his friend was faring, out of kindness? He didn’t know. Maybe he’d just wanted to see Suguru.

Apparently, he said that last part out loud, because Suguru’s face dropped and his eyebrows shot up to his hairline. He chuckled lowly, and hung his head. “I’ve never been able to understand the way your brain works, you know that?” Satoru frowned. Suguru sighed. “Even back then, I struggled to keep up with you and your asinine ways… I suppose I was always destined to fall behind.”

Suddenly, Satoru teleported inside the cell, crouching in front of Suguru. He studied his old friend's face, taking note of all the changes. Aside from the obvious scar, he was the same. Same violet irises. Same crinkles around his eyes. For a moment, there was only the sound of their breathing. “I wish you’d told me you felt like that.” Satoru whispered, brushing Suguru’s hair from his face. “I wish you’d let me in, let me help you when you were struggling.”

Suguru scoffed and brushed away Satoru’s hand. “Yeah well, I didn't, did I? And what could you have done?” He looked away. “It was too late for me, from the moment Amanai…” He swallowed. “I made my choice. Nothing could’ve changed my mind.”

“But you didn't have to suffer alone for so long, I could’ve-- we could’ve--”

“Could have what, Satoru?” Suguru seethed. “Consoled me? As if you’d had the time. It wouldn’t have changed anything.”

Satoru ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “I always had-- have-- time for you, Suguru. I just… I didn't know you needed it. Every time I tried to help you, you’d shut me out.” Suguru laughed, a sad sound filled with regret.

“Well, my apologies that I wasn't well enough to open up to the strongest sorcerer with the busiest schedule. I’m sorry i was too fucking depressed to realize you gave a shit about me anymore.” 

Satoru grit his teeth. “That's not fair, Suguru--”

His eyes narrowed. “But it's true? Isn't it? If you really cared, you’d have done something other than those missions you prioritize over everything and anything else.”  

Satoru’s eyes widened. “Is that what you really thought?” He asked quietly. Suguru looked away. “You really think I…” Satoru swallowed, willing himself to speak. “You think I’d put my missions before you?”

Suguru looked away, chewing his lip. “It’s not like you had much choice in the matter, anyways.”

Satorus eyes softened, and he placed a hand on his friends shoulder. “Suguru, even if I had 100 missions, back to back, I'd still have made time for you.” He smiled sadly. “Nothing meant- nothing means more to me than you, Suguru.” 

Then they just stared at each other, cornflower blue gazing into thistle violet. Sugurus shoulders slumped, his guard lowering for the first time since arriving.

“I didn't want to worry you…” Suguru said finally. “I knew that you were being sent out on increasingly dangerous missions and--” His voice broke slightly. “I kept thinking that you’d be too distracted thinking about me and-- and get hurt.” Suguru’s voice was soft as he spoke, softer than normal. “After what happened with Haibara, I realised that we-- you and I-- we were just as likely to die. I couldn’t stand the thought.” He brought his knees closer to his chest.

Satoru was silent for a moment, processing Suguru’s words. “So that's… that’s why you left?” Suguru nodded. Satoru blew out a breath and leaned back on his heels. 

“It was part of the reason I left, but yeah.” He looked back at Satoru. “I was tired of watching ourselves- watching you give our lives away to such a thankless endeavour. And then…” He paused.

“And then what, Suguru?”

“And then there was the village.” 

Ah yes, Sugurus gateway to genocidal tendencies. Satoru had never figured out why Suguru snapped that day, whether or not it was a result of stress or something else entirely, he’d never known. “What happened that day… what made you-”

“What made me kill everyone?” Suguru laughed, completely devoid of any humour. “Well Satoru, I know we never spoke much about our childhoods considering how respectively shit they were, but let me tell you about that village. ” He spat. The words were so full of hatred, so unlike the Suguru Satoru knew. “I grew up there. I was a normal child until my technique manifested. Do you know how country folk treat those slightly different from them?” He didn’t wait for a reply. “We’re ostracised. My parents, my peers- everyone practically ignored me. I was the kid who saw ‘things’, i was a ‘bad omen.’”

Satoru knew that Suguru didn’t like to talk about his hometown, hell, he was the same way. Life in the Gojo clan had been sheltered and stuffy. Suguru was most likely treated like shit . Satoru gathered as much based on his reluctance to speak about his past. 

“So, the day I was sent to the village on a mission, I found other sorcerers.” He smiled slightly as he spoke, fondness in his voice. His face just as quickly turned rageful as he continued speaking. “Tell me, Satoru, what do you think happens to children marked as a bad omen? ” 

Satoru could guess. He could only imagine the terrible shit that could’ve happened.

“Two little girls. Twins. Beaten, bloody and bruised, in a fucking cage, Satoru. Blamed for the curse I had been sent to exorcise.” Satoru stayed quiet. “They were so scared, Satoru, they kept hugging each other, shivering, and I-” He blinked. “I snapped.” Suguru whispered. “I realized that all those monkeys would never see us as people, so there was no point in treating them like people. If they could get away with abusing us, putting us in cages and calling us monsters, treating us like something to be afraid of…” He breathed out heavily, shaking slightly. “Then there was really nothing left for me to do involving Jujutsu Society other than to dismantle it, and get rid of all those monkeys while at it.” Suguru smiled wishfully. “I just wanted a world in which we could be treated fairly without risking our lives.”

Sugurus smile stretched into a malicious grin. “So I sent my curses after everyone in the village, and killed them all. One. By. One.” He shifted so he was sitting cross legged, and leaned closer to Satoru. “I took the twins, and watched that shithole burn. I relished in the sounds of their screams. It was then I realised that I could change the world. ” He leaned back on the wall, face falling. “And then… the cult changed. It stopped being a means to an end, and more like a life draining ordeal. I thought if I could get Rika, I could stop the stupid cult shit and finally change things.”

He didn’t say anything more. He didn’t need to. Satoru knew how the rest of the story went. It ended with Suguru dead. They were both silent for a minute, before Suguru spoke up, “Where are Nanako and Mimiko anyway? Are they here too?”

Satorus heart broke and he sharply drew in a breath. Yuuji had told him what happened in Shibuya. The twins were dead. Sukuna murdered them. “They…” 

Sugurus eyes widened, seemingly understanding everything from Satorus reaction. He breathed deeply. “I see…” He glared at Satoru, chest heaving with poorly concealed anger. When he spoke his tone was ice cold. “You told me they managed to get away. You promised me- you said- you-” 

Satoru cut him off with a hug. Suguru tried to push him away. “I didn’t lie to you, I swear… They were alive the last i saw them, please believe me.”

Suguru choked on a sob. “Then what happened?” He gripped onto the front Satorus shirt tightly, stressing the buttons as the fabric was pulled. “Satoru what happened?” He looked up at the white haired man, unshed tears in his eyes. Satoru shook his head.

“I don’t know exactly… I'm so sorry, Suguru.”   

The younger man pulled Satoru closer, burying his face into the other shoulder. “It's all my fault, I-” 

Satoru could have lied to Suguru, if he was anyone else and Satoru was anyone else. He could have told him it wasn’t his fault, but he instead said nothing, because it was Sugurus fault, and Satoru would rather be silent than be dishonest with his one and only.

After a while of catching up (read: Suguru having a breakdown on the floor of a basement while Satoru tried desperately to calm him-) as old friends do, Satoru managed to convince Suguru to eat something. He’d only had tea in the past 36 hours. Upon learning this, Satoru nearly went into cardiac arrest. Suguru had to remind him that he’d just been revived from the dead , and wasn’t particularly hungry.

Satoru, of course, was having none of it.

Suguru insisted that if he was going to eat anything, he wanted soba noodles. And so that's what they got.

“Satoru, you don't have to hold my hand, we’re both pushing 30, this is ridiculous. ” Suguru whispered as Satoru led him around the guild hall. He gripped onto Sugurus wrist firmly, but not harshly. 

Sighing, Satoru turned to look at him. “You do realize literally nobody here trusts you, right?” Suguru scowled, but he knew Satoru was right. “I know you wouldn’t try anything, but they don’t. It's for your safety and theirs, and for my peace of mind.” 

Suguru huffed, but didn’t argue further. 

A familiar cursed energy entered the room which Suguru immediately identified as Yuta Okkotsus. The teenager glared holes into the back of Sugurus head, and he forced a smile back. He might not still want Rika anymore, but Okkotsus rageful feelings towards him were slightly humorous. Suguru couldn’t do anything. With the stupid cuffs and Satoru leading him around like a poodle, he may as well be a monkey.

Suguru had learned of Satorus other students, namely his new first years. Learning that an entire year had passed between his death and now was jarring, to say the least. Satoru had given a brief rundown on the “Shibuya Incident” and “Culling games”, and Suguru somehow found himself signed up for war with the fuckin’ King of Curses, of all things. “So, this boy, Itadori- you want me to teach him how to absorb curses more efficiently?” 

Satoru nodded, cheeks stuffed with noodles. Swallowing, he continued, “Yujis able to absorb cursed techniques by ingesting curses. He’s already got the hang of Blood Manipulation as well as Cleave & Dismantle.” Leaning back in his chair slightly, he grinned at Suguru. “It's a bit different from your technique, but the gist is the same. Think you can train him?”

Teaching. Suguru chewed on his lip, absentmindedly playing with his food. 

“You could also teach him proper hand to hand, he’s already quite prolific- you’d get a kick out of teaching him, Suguru.” 

Sighing, he placed his chopsticks down and crossed his arms. “Fine, I'll train him.” Satorus face broke out into a large smile. Suguru pointed his finger. “One condition; take these stupid cuffs off, I don't like not feeling my cursed energy.”

Satoru huffed a laugh and reached over to shake Sugurus hand. “Deal.”

Chapter Text

so uh.

hello...

it's been a while.

how have you been?

well I've been pretty shit to be honest!

lettuce start from where we left off, late February.

well I got really into evade on roblox which was cool. I also decided to start making my comic. 

then I got a job. as a waitress. not a great idea when you have depression and maybe an undiagnosed other illness that makes you cry all the time. I quit after 7 hours.

then I decided, "hey, I'll go to college!"

both the programs I wanted to get into are closed until September 2026. so that sucked.

I had to lower my antidepressants dosage cause JESUS CHRIST I was sleeping 16 hours a day, nap time not included. 

I forgot my social insurance number, and upon trying to retrieve it, I went to the wrong service building and had a really creepy guy stand too close the entire hour I was in line, only for my mum to come in and tell me I was essentially at the dmv. I cannot drive, so you see why this is an issue.

and I lost all confidence in my work! I'm okay now, but honestly the impromptu hiatus was partly caused by me doubting my narrative choices. I rewrote chapters 10, 11, and 12 like 4 times because I just wasnt happy with it.

I also almost just rewrote half the damn fic. 

but I didnt because I realized I didnt give a flying fuck if people didnt like where I took the story, I'm writing it cause I want the cast of jjk to be happy, and cause I wanna see my favourites interact. 

so from now on, just to be spiteful, if I see any comments complaining about a certain character, I'm just gonna add them in more frequently. 

probably not but I'd like to...

ANYWAY, thank you all SOOO much for sticking with this story, your comments literally make my entire day. I love this little fanbase I've cultivated, you guys are my little veggie garden!!

chapter 10 will be out soon, it's all written, half way beta-ed, I just gotta get back to a proper computer to post it!

seriously, thank you guys so much, and I'm glad to be back :)

-tiggy <3

Chapter Text

Natsu didn’t like Geto. Not one bit. He was unsettling. With a curled scar across his forehead, and kind eyes filled to the brim with hate, he just screamed ‘distrust’. So no, if you asked, Natsu did not like Geto. What he didn’t like even more was Yuji training with the man. He wasn’t harsh, snippy, or cruel, instead he was patient and detail oriented.

Outside the back of the guild hall, Natsu watched the two train-- both hand to hand combat and their cursed techniques. Gojo stood not far from them, keeping an eye on Geto. His training was efficient enough, and Yuji seemed to be enjoying himself-- still a bit wary of the man teaching him of course. Natsu's jaw ticked when Geto moved closer to the younger boy to correct his form, or when he summoned one of his monsters-- curses-- for Yuji to fight with. Geto stepped back, eyes narrowed-- not from contempt, but in concentration- and nodded as he watched Yuji's movements. 

Gojo clapped his hands suddenly, signifying the end of Yuji's training for the day.  “That should be good enough for today, well done, Yuji!” 

Yuji beamed, and from behind him, Geto sighed as he took his hair down and began re-tying it. “He’s certainly strong, Satoru. He’s good on the offense but he leaves himself open too much.” He crossed his arms, but smiled slightly. “But for a kid without any real training, you’re doing very well.”  

Yuji's smile only seemed to grow at the praise. 

Once Gojo and Geto had left, Yuji started shadow boxing, mumbling to himself. Every now and then, he’d pick up a stack of papers from the ground and scribble notes down, and then resume practising his punches.

Natsu frowned. Geto was right, he did leave himself open. Hopping down from where he was sitting on the back railing, Natsu headed over closer to Yuji, brows furrowed in concentration. “No, try more like this,” He copied Yuji's stance, only with one leg pivoted behind the other and shoulders straighter. Yuji wordlessly nodded, shifting so that he was standing the same as Natsu. “When you punch I notice you rely a lot on your shoulder, which is fine, but try incorporating more of your core strength as well.” Natsu stepped back, watching Yuji. 

Natsu had helped teach most of the younger guild members how to fight. Seeing Yuji do it as well made him unusually happy. After a few tries, Yuji had more force behind his movements, and while still not perfect, still better.

“Hey, Natsu, what's your technique-- I mean-- magic?” Yuji asked suddenly. He stood up straighter, rolling his shoulders. “I know it's ‘fire dragon slaying’, but what's it look like?” 

Natsu's grin sharpened. “Just you watch, Yuji!” He breathed in deeply, casting his magic circle at his mouth. “Fire Dragon--” He blew outwards, igniting the air with his flames, “--Roar!” 

The backyard of the guild hall was then engulfed in fire. Thankfully, there wasn't anything that could burn and set the entire guild on fire. When Natsu turned back around, Yuji's eyes were wide, mouth agape. “That was incredible! How long did it take you to figure out how to do that?” 

Natsu shrugged, scratching his head. “I dunno… a few years at least.” He smiled. “But I had a really good teacher, so…” 

Yuji chuckled. “Yeah- having a good teacher is important, i know what you mean.” Yuji's eyes turned sad, and he looked away. 

Natsu tilted his head, furrowing his brows. “You alright, Yuji?”  

Yuji sucked in a breath, before turning back to Natsu with an- obviously forced- smile on his face. “Yeah, I'm all good!” Natsu narrowed his eyes and furrowed his brows. Yuji’s face fell slightly, and he sighed. “Gosh, you’re too perceptive sometimes, you know that?” He mumbled. 

Natsu grinned. “Eh, just one of my many talents- so, really, what's up? Something obviously bothers you.” His grin shifted to a small smile of reassurance, and leaned his elbow on Yuji's shoulder. “You can tell me, I might be able to help.” 

Yuji looked away again- chewing on his bottom lip. He held up his hand, clenching his fist so tightly Nastu was able to hear the bones creak. “I don’t think i’ve told you what happened before we came here, did i?” Natsu shook his head. Yuji lowered his fist. “Well, it was bad . This group of really strong curses, they-” He closed his eyes and swallowed. “They devised a plan to seal Gojo-sensei in this thing called ‘The Prison Realm’.” Yuji looked behind him, to where Gojo had been stood not long ago.

 Natsu pursed his lips in thought. “So, they took away his power?”

Yuji shook his head. “Not quite, they put him in a box. It kinda breaks the rules of physics- it's small on the outside, but bigger on the inside. They put sensei in it so that he couldn’t stop them from…” Yuji's voice trailed off. Natsu frowned.

“From what?” 

Yuji's eyes darkened, a harrowed look painted on his features. “From a massacre. They killed… everyone. They forcibly awakened Sukuna and he-” Yuji's jaw ticked. “He destroyed the entirety of Shibuya and left me to look at the destruction he caused.” 

Natsu had not yet seen what Yuji looked like when truly angry, but he imagined what was on the younger boy's face was rather close to it. His eyes were wide, pupils constricted and teeth clenched. “I don't think I've ever been so enraged in my life than in the ten minutes after that.” He whispered.

They were still in the back courtyard, Natsu thought absentmindedly. “Wanna walk and talk about it?” He asked quietly. Maybe walking around Magnolia would help Yuji feel a bit better, or at the very least compartmentalize his thoughts better- that's what Lucy had always told him to do when he was stressed. 

Yuji nodded. “Yeah… yeah, that sounds like a good idea- thanks, Natsu.” 

On their walk, Yuji told Natsu about the most heartbreaking things. His mentor, ‘Nanamin’, killed right in front of Yuji, and not even 5 minutes later one of his best friends was murdered by the same curse- again, right in front of him. 

“Then the ‘leader’ of sorts for these curses… Kenajaku, absorbed Mahito and started the ‘Culling Games’. We were able to stop that from progressing into what he wanted, but-” Natsu knew that Sukuna bastard took over Megumi's body around this time, he also knew they managed to free Gojo.

Yuji looked at the ground. “Gojo-sensei decided he’d fight Sukuna by himself.” He said quietly. “He killed the higher ups by that point, nobody was making him but he still chose to weaponize himself to protect everyone else. He told me about his dreams, his goals, and how he wanted his students to surpass him.” Yuji wiped his eyes with his sleeve. Natsu placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I think he knew he was going to die against Sukuna.” The boy whispered. 

Natsu's eyes wideded. Yuji kept speaking.

“So. That's what happened. Gojo-sensei, he…” Yuji swallowed thickly. “Sukuna bisected him.” He glanced back at Natsu. “And then we all arrived here, in the blink of an eye.” He smiled slightly. “We’re all together again, except…” 

Natsu spun Yuji around on his shoulders and shook him a bit. “Hey, it's okay, you’re okay, right?” He smiled at him. “You can't change the past, right? So don't beat yourself up over it, you did your best, and I'm sure your friends knew it too, they’d want you to think of them happily, not with regret.” Natsu thought about Igneel, and the hole his death left in Natsu's heart- speaking of his memory was the only thing that got him through the grief, that and his friends. “Speak of the future, Yuji, it’ll give you strength.”

Yuji's eyes widened for a moment before he pulled Natsu into a hug. Natsu let out a startled oof before reciprocating the hug. “Thank you, Natsu… hearing that means a lot to me.” Yuji squeezed him tighter. “I'm not gonna let any of my friends get hurt anymore.” 

Natsu grinned. “That's the spirit, you gotta focus on what's right in front of you.” He pulled away, hands still on Yuji's shoulders. “You got this, Yuji.” Spinning around on his heel, Natsu began to walk towards one of the canals. “Cmon, Yuji! I'm fuckin starved, let's get somethin to eat.” 

Yuji's eyes brightened. “Yeah, alright! What did you have in mind? I'm down for anything so long as it's edible.”

“Right now I could really go for some fire… not from a match or anything, maybe like… lit up paper.” 

Yuji blinked at him. Natsu raised a brow.

“What? You sorcerers dont have anyone that can eat fire?” 

Yuji made a face that Natsu dimly registered as confusion and concern. “No? Natsu, why are you eating fire? Nobody does this? Hello?” Yuji sounded genuinely distressed. Natsu just shrugged.

“Eh, we'll grab something from the guild hall. You can try some fire there too!” 

Again, Yuji looked horrified. “Yeah, I think I'll pass on that, you enjoy it though…”

Natsu sighed. “Lame, I thought you said you were down for anything?”

Yuji made a choked noise, absolutely flabbergasted. “Down for anything that's actual food??”

Shaking his head, Natsu signed yet again. “Ah well, we can do more training afterwards.” His face broke into a grin, fangs glinting in the sunlight. “I'll show you more moves- and soon, we'll make that Sukuna regret ever being born.” Yuji nodded, also smiling wide. 

The two pink-spikey haired boys made their way back to the guildhall, their earlier conversation echoing. Natsu could feel the determination radiating off of Yuji. He had steel in his eyes- a look of revenge and anticipation. His fingers twitched and flexed. Natsu was immensely fond of Yuji's disposition, so similar yet so unlike his own. He could tell that once the boy set his mind to something, he saw it through without exception. 

Natsu felt his own determination stirring beneath his skin. Whatever the hell Sukuna decided he’d try and do, was gonna happen on the guilds terms, not his own. Nobody was going to die, not now, not ever.

He was sure of it.

“Again, less tense this time.”

Yuji had been kicking the same training dummy for at least half an hour now. The promise of food was the only thing on his mind as he ran the drills over, and over. Picturing a mountain of his favourite snacks, he kicked the dummy again, to which Geto called out corrections on. He’d never thought his martial prowess was bad, per say. Inelegant? Sure. Unrefined? Most certainly. But Geto-sensei had called him sloppy at one point. 

So here he was, in the backyard of the Fairy Tail guild, running flying kick drills. His shin ached, and his jaw ticked with irritation. He preferred his other lessons with Geto-sensei-- at least that way he was able to eat during them. Geto had given him a method for compartmentalizing the negative energy that comes with consuming curses. He showed him how to essentially “jail” said curses so the negativity wouldn’t affect him as much. Yuji itched to try it on Sukuna, when- if - he ever became his vessel again. 

“I’m sorry. Itadori, not all my advice will be applicable to your situation- we ultimately have different techniques at the end of the day.” 

Yuji had taken that bit of news with as much grace as he could, but it was frustrating. Gojo-sensei had thought Geto could teach him something useful-- which he had-- but he wanted to learn faster. The fact that Sukuna was also most likely here with the rest of the sorcerers was a constant point of stress for Yuji, and he couldn’t help but compare Geto-senseis teaching to Nanami’s- the latter had been less kind, for sure, but the lessons moved much faster. Yuji grit his teeth and might have kicked the training dummy a bit too hard, and sent it flying.

Geto-sensei's eyebrows shot up into his hairline, and blinked at Yuji. “Why don't we take a quick break for now?” Yuji couldn't agree fast enough.

A little while later, Yuji was sitting on the back steps of the guild hall, sipping water and looking through notes he’d taken during his lessons with Geto-sensei. He’d left the better part of an hour ago with Gojo-sensei to do God knows what, leaving Yuji to study his notes. He concentrated on the papers. However, after a while, all the words lost meaning and with a frustrated groan, Yuji shoved the papers off his lap and angrily chugged his water. 

He then proceeded to choke on his water when Gojo-sensei flopped down to sit next to him. Gojo snickered at him as he coughed up what felt like buckets of water, offering only a few pats on the back for support. “You alright there Yuji?”

“Just peachy, sensei, just peachy…” Yuji croaked. He coughed a few more times, and sighed heavily. Absently chewing on his cheek, he picked his notes back up, and began to scribble down more. Gojo leaned over to study the boy's paper, one brow raised. Yuji furrowed his eyebrows in frustration again. He gripped his pencil so tight his knuckles were white. 

Without saying anything, Gojo plucked the pencil out of his student's hand. “Alright, what's wrong?” he asked, twirling the pencil in the air. “You’re stressed, I can see, you got a wrinkle--” he poked The spot above Yuji's nose. “--right there.” Yuji scrunched his nose up and swatted his teacher's hand away. 

“Nothings wrong, gimme my pencil-” 

Gojo simply levitated it higher. Yuji stood and leaned to grab it. Gojo placed infinity around it. “Sensei!” Yuji cried, irritated. “Give! Me! My! Pencil!” The boy was practically trying to climb Gojo to get to his beloved pencil, and the other man simply grinned in amusement. 

“You can get your pencil back once you tell me what's wrong,” he said in a sing-song voice. Yuji groaned defeatedly and sat back on the steps.

“Its just-” he blew out a breath. “I feel like my training with Geto-sensei isn't going anywhere. I’m learning new things, sure, but it's not happening fast enough.” He looked up towards Gojo. “What if Sukuna comes back and I'm not ready? What if I haven't gotten strong enough? What if he tries to-”

Gojo placed a hand on Yuji's shoulder. “Hey, hey, you’re gonna send yourself into a spiral. Calm down, we’ve got time.” He gave the boy a reassuring smile. “You were already strong before, this training is just to refine what you already have. Suguru-- err, Geto-sensei-- has been telling me of your improvement.” Yuji pouted slightly. 

“It doesn’t feel like it. All he seems to do is critique what I do, and when I get something right, he makes me do it again until it's what he considers perfect. ” Yuji sighed and leaned his elbows on his knees. “It's not like Geto-sensei is mean or anything, he's actually really nice, it's just…” 

“You’re anxious to do better,” Gojo supplied. 

Yuji snapped his fingers and turned to his sensei. “Yes! I wanna be as good as I can be, I feel like since everything that's happened, even with all the swap training I did, all the cursed techniques I learned, I'm still… behind.” He leaned back, eyes trailing towards the sky. “Nanamin said that I could ‘take it from here’ but I can't help but feel like I've let him down somehow. I know he’d probably say something that would somehow make me feel like shit and also somehow better for thinking like that, but… argh! It's all so… confusing.”

Gojo was silent for a moment. He was now also looking towards the sky. “You probably know by now, but when I was your age… well, a bit older, Nanami was my underclassman. I used to tease and bother him all the time.” He chuckled, “Hell, I still do, even now.” He looked at the ground. Yuji took notice of the way Gojo avoided using the past tense to describe his late friend. “He was always irritated with me, and I can't say I blamed him, I was annoying as a teenager. He didn’t like me very much.” 

Yuji didn't say anything. Fushiguro had told him that Gojo-sensei didn't talk much about his years as a Jujutsu high student. Okkotsu had said the same. Apparently, it was a touchy subject.

“But do you know who Nanami did like?” Gojo asked, lip curving upward slightly. Yuji shook his head. “Nanami respected Geto. Everyone did.” Gojo smiled sadly. “I think, if he was here right now, he would tell you to trust in Geto's teaching method. I know you’re… frustrated, let's say, with the slower progress, but I think taking a slower pace might be good for once.” He ruffled Yuji's hair, grinning. “We don't need to rush this time, Yuji. We don't have a deadline.”

Yuji nodded and looked away. “I guess I'm just… scared, sensei. I’m scared of what might happen. I'm scared the guild won't be enough to help us.” 

Gojo hummed and rubbed his chin in thought, “Well, I can't say I blame you for that one,” he chuckled. “But, try to have more faith in others-- I know, I know, coming from me it's ironic. But things are already looking more favorable, right? The master tells me that Natsu’s also been helping you with your physical training. You’re already doing better. Trust the process, Yuji.”

Yuji felt his eyes water slightly. He wrapped his arms around Gojo, pulling him into a bone-crushing hug to which the older man scoffed and laughed at and returned the gesture. “Thank you, Gojo-sensei.” When Yuji saw Gojo die, he’d never felt so helpless and defeated. He’d already lost Nanami, losing Gojo too was his breaking point. To have Gojo back had been nothing short of a miracle . Gojo was right, Yuji needed to let himself be, to just live in the moment more. They had time, they had more allies, things would work out.

Yuji smiled and snuggled closer to his sensei, Gojo always gave great hugs.

Gurgle…

Yuji's eyes snapped open.

Growl…

“Uhm… are ya hungry, Yuji?”

 “I might be…”

And that's how the day came to a close, everyone around one of the guilds dining tables- eating ungodly amounts of food, and laughter. Yuji talked about Kugisaki and Nanamin to the wizards, telling stories and anecdotes. It made his chest lighter, to keep their memory alive. Yuji noticed Gojo smiling fondly- adding his own stories to the mix. 

Natsu had told him to speak of the future, and those who wouldn't see it. He was right- talking about Kugisaki and Nanamin had brought Yuji strength. He doubted the grief would ever go away, but he would grow around it.

Yuji was going to get his future, and it was going to be one without any more death and destruction, instead one with life and joy.

It smelled like a forest. Like dead leaves and snow. Why did it smell like that? Just earlier it had smelled like sterile walls and antiseptic, what the hell happened?

“You’re finally awake then, good.”

An eye snapped open at the sound of an older woman's voice.

“Don’t sit up so quickly, foolish child, you were just passed out minutes ago.”

The woman was closer now, she had pink hair and her face was drawn into an irritated scowl.

“Stop gawking and drink this, it will help clear your mind.” 

The liquid was cool, and tasted vaguely salty, like nori. It wasn’t gross, but it wasn’t pleasant by any means. Once the vial was empty, the woman took it back. Sighing, she leaned closer and held up a small lantern.

“I tried my best to fix up that eye of yours, but whatever happened damaged the socket too badly for a prosthesis.” With a snort, she turned away and rummaged around a desk, papers scattered everywhere. “It's a miracle that wound didn’t kill you, girl. But-” She walked back over, a small mirror in her hand. “I was able to… clean it up a bit.”

The gouged side of a young girl's face reflected back from the shard like mirror, but instead of the scars being gnarled and raised bumps of flesh, they looked as though they had been old wounds, the scars a faint pink. While still grotesque in nature, they were far less painful.

“So, how does it feel?”

“...Oddly smooth…”

The woman took the mirror back after a moment. “I suppose I should explain what happened, you’re most likely confused to hell and back.” Confused was putting it lightly. “My name is Porlyusica. You were outside my door, knocked out. You’re lucky I was in a good mood and decided to help you. Now,”

She stepped closer, holding a broom tightly. “Before I tell you to leave, I’d like your name, please.” 

“So you’re telling me you just helped a random stranger that was knocked out right outside your house, just because?” 

THWACK!

“OW! Why’d you smack me with that broom?”

“I asked for your name, please.”

“Fine, fine! Sheesh, so grouchy… My name is Nobara Kugisaki, happy?”

The woman breathed in through her nose and nodded. “Alright, Nobara, you have approximately 10 seconds to leave before you and my broom become very well acquainted.”

“Wait what- OW! You- hey- STOP HITTING ME! I'm going, I'm going! Jesus Christ lady!” Stumbling out the door of the odd shack-like building, Nobara rubbed the spot on her arm where the broom had come down in a merciless arc. “God, what's your problem!?” 

Porlyusica sighed heavily. “I don’t like humans. You all care too much for violence, and you never think.” She tossed Nobara a piece of black fabric, which she caught before it hit the snowy forest floor. She raised an eyebrow at it. “An eyepatch, come by in a few weeks and I’ll have a prosthesis that will fit.” 

And with that, the door slammed shut, leaving Nobara by herself in the middle of the forest.

“What a bitch…” she muttered, carefully tying the blindfold around her head, making sure her hair wasn’t obscured by it. Sighing, she looked around for any landmarks, freezing when she felt a familiar cursed energy, one she hadn’t felt since October 31st. 

The cursed energy of her teacher, Satoru Gojo.

And it was coming from a small town in the distance.   

Chapter Text

HI IM A DIPSHIT AND FORGOT TO UPLOAD LAST MONTH EVEN THOUGH THE CHAPTERS LITERALLY DONE????

istg I kept feeling like I was forgetting something and it was so weird and then I check up on my fic and then I go "o fuck" so. oopsies.

just waiting on kjm126316 to beta chapter 11 and bada bing bada boom. 

I meant to have this out all the way back in early may but I got sick and I guess in my deluded sinus infection state hallucinated updating??? I'm so sorry??? I havent forgot about this fic I promise I love writing it I'm just actually so fucking stupid its ridiculous. 😭😭

ANYWAY ILY ALL SO MUCH TIG OUT!!!

Chapter Text

“Try not to think too hard, remember all our lessons. Place the restraint on yourself first, then move it to the influx of cursed energy.” 

“I know I complained a lot about the martial arts training, sensei, but I think I'd rather be doing that right now… This is all stuff I've already learned- why are you making me do it again?”

Suguru sighed heavily. “I understand your frustrations, Yuji, but slower, more thorough learning will do you good. Satoru told me of the month you spent training your technique- which quite frankly, isn’t enough time for anyone to master it, no matter how talented you already are.” Yuji pouted, and Suguru smiled at him. “But, being as talented as you are, with already insane ability in hand to hand, refining what's already there is all the teaching I really can do.”

Yuji groaned, and flopped backwards. They were inside the Guild’s library- sat on cushions on the floor. Suguru was making Yuji go through the basics of curse absorption once again. They’d gone through nearly everything, there was just one final test for Yuji to undergo before Suguru would consider his training done. “See, you say that I'm good and talented at combat, but then you make me run the basics-- over, and over, and over.” Yuji sat up, scowling slightly. “If I didn't know any better, Geto-sensei, I would have thought you thought I was bad.”

Suguru rolled his eyes, still smiling. “Not bad, just ameteur. Your offense capability was always near perfect, but your defense was lacking.” Yuji crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, brows furrowing. “Although now, it's far better. You’re a hard worker, Yuji.” 

Yuji looked towards the ground, absently toying with a frayed edge of the cushion he sat on. His frustration with his lessons was clear as day- but Suguru was intimately familiar with that kind of stress. The fear of falling behind. The fear of being too weak to catch up. All things Suguru had come to terms with himself, Satoru seemingly recognized in Yuji, and trained him before it could manifest into something bigger than slight insecurity. Suguru suspected training Yuji was also in part meant for himself , as well. Satoru was always smarter than he let on.

“I still don't get why you’re not training with the others as well, though… You’re pretty good at teaching, Geto-sensei.”

Suguru had to laugh at that. “I assume Satoru hasn’t told you about my relationship with your upperclassman, hm?” Yuji shook his head. “Well, to make a very complex and long story very simple and short; Okkotsu will try to kill me if left unsupervised. Can't say I blame him…” 

Yujis jaw hung open in shock, eyes wide. “Wait-- why would Okkotsu try to kill you?” 

Suguru sighed and leaned back on his hand, Yuuji shifting to lay on his stomach- resting his chin in his hands. “Simple, really,” Suguru felt a grin spread across his face. “I tried to kill him first. But, ultimately, I failed and ended up dying myself. Frustrating, isn't it? Being so close, but still falling short.”

Yuji swallowed thickly. “O-okay, so, that makes sense why Gojo-sensei doesn't want you and Okkotsu training, fair. But, why not Fushiguro?”

That name sent a feeling akin to being dumped with ice water down Sugurus back, eyes snapping to Yuji. “What?”

Shrugging, Yuji rolled onto his back. “You know, Fushiguro and I are both first years, it would make sense for you to be teaching us both.” 

Fushiguro, Fushiguro, Fushiguro, Fushiguro-

“You okay, Geto-sensei?” 

Yujis concerned voice cut through Sugurus' mind like a knife through butter. He snapped his head up, shaking himself from his thoughts. “Yeah, yeah I’m okay…” Clearing his throat, he moved to stand. “We'll take a break for now--” Yuji made a relieved noise which Suguru pointedly ignored, “and come back in an hour or so.” Yuji nodded and left the library.

What the hell was a Fushiguro doing here?

Finding Satoru wasn't hard- infact one might say it was hard not to find him, with the way he stood out even amongst the Fairy Tail wizards. He was currently sitting by the window, a small child who looked to be about 6 sitting next to him. Suguru briefly thought of Nanako and Mimiko before quickly shoving them away from his mind- not before he could feel his heart constrict and the burn of tears.

Satoru noticed him staring and waved him over. He stood and picked up the little girl. 

“Hey, Sugu!”

The little girl eyed Suguru warily, no doubt curious about the scar on his forehead. 

“This here is little Auska, isn't she sweet?” 

“She looks like she's about to start crying.” 

Suguru whipped around at the sound of another voice and felt his breath catch in his chest at the sight. 

Cruel smile. Incredible speed. Satoru stabbed through the chest. Riko and Kurois cold corpses. Toji Fushiguro.

Satoru didn't seem nearly as affected by the clone of Toji, merely clicking his tongue and pouting. “You're so mean to me, Megumi! Me and Auska are besties, isn't that right?” He nudged her slightly, prompting her to nod. 

Fushiguro 2-- or rather, Megumi-- sighed. “Whatever, why her parents trusted you to look after her is beyond me. You're a menace.” 

Satoru just laughed, ruffling Megumi's hair. “How wrong you are, Megumi!” Auska began to shift in Satorus arms, so he set her down. She immediately began to cling onto Megumi's pants, to which the boy sighed and begrudgingly picked her up. “Auska chose to hang out with me all by herself!” 

The little girl nodded again. “Mr. Gojo is very tall, like a tree!” The smile Satoru had on his face made Suguru weak in the knees. Satoru looked so fond, specifically when looking at his students. It made something twist in Sugurus' chest. It was something negative, oddly. Something he couldn't quite place, but to his shock and quite possibly even horror, he realized it was regret.

Regret for leaving Satoru behind, regret for not helping him cultivate the new generation. He really had fucked up, colossally.

“Whatever, sensei, I'm going to find Yuji,” Megumi turned to leave, but looked back over his shoulder, smirking, “and I'm taking your “best friend” with me.” And then the boy was gone, little Auska giggling all the way.

Satoru shook his head and chuckled. He moved to sit down, dragging Suguru with him. He fell to the couch with an oof, and found himself pressed into Satorus side with an arm across his shoulder. They hadn't sat like this since they were teenagers.

“I should have told you about Megumi before you saw him, I'm sorry.”

Suguru hummed in lieu of a response, absently playing with Satorus hand. 

“When I killed Toji,” he began, swallowing. “He told me about his son. He was going to be sold to the Zenin clan. Toji, he…” Suguru looked up at Satoru, his face twisted, like the words he wanted to say wouldn't quite come out. “He asked me to help his son. So I did, and that's why Megumi is here.”

Suguru leaned his head back, staring up at the ceiling. Satoru had looked after Toji Fushiguros son, the man had nearly killed the both of them, and Satoru looked after his offspring. Suguru swallowed thickly, willing himself to stop traversing the memories within his mind. “Why?” He asked quietly.

Satoru sighed, mimicking Suguru’s position, staring into nothing. “I think because… I was scared. I grew up in a clan, and while the Gojo clan were not nice, the Zen'in clan are downright cruel. Toji became… well, Toji, because of the Zen'ins. They fostered that darkness within him, I think.” Satoru chuckled slightly. “I think I was originally just going to leave it as is, leave the runt to his fate but…”

He said nothing more, just looked towards Suguru, and he was able to fill in the blanks. “But I left.”

Satoru nodded. “So, I looked for him, found him and his sister. And god, Suguru, if I couldn't save Megumi from the Zenins, I would have done anything to keep Tsumiki away. She was a non sorcerer on top of being a girl. They would have… ruined her.” 

Suguru was well aware of the Zen'ins treatment of non sorcerer's their treatment of the female race. Suguru hated non sorcerers, but he shuddered to think of what that clan would do to the girl Satoru spoke of. 

“Megumi chose not to go with that shithole clan. So they became my responsibility instead. I taught him all I could about the Ten Shadows, and I did all I could to teach Tsumiki about sorcery to keep her safe.” Satorus voice cracked at the end and Suguru instantly knew what had happened. 

They'd both lost their daughters.  

Suguru didn't comment, but he squeezed Satorus hand in a comforting gesture, as if to say I understand, I'm here. 

Satoru coughed and wiped his eyes. “So, yeah, that's why Tojis kid is here, I basically unofficially adopted him and his sister when I was 19.” 

Suguru huffed a laugh. “A single father at such a young age, what did the clan say?” He spoke with false shock. Satoru grinned wildly. 

“Obviously they hated it! But nobody was willing to challenge the six eyes.”

Suguru rolled his eyes playfully and Satoru pulled him close again. 

A second chance. He wasn't going to lose Satoru again. Not for anything or anyone.

It was once again, Lucy on the lookout for Sorcerers. Gray had come with her this time, who 20 minutes ago when they left the guild was dressed for the weather, and now was, naturally, shirtless. 

“I still don't fully understand what a sorcerer even is, honestly. How can humans control curses?” 

Lucy shook her head. “It's something to do with a part of the brain developing funny… at least that's what Gojo said.” 

Gray hummed in response and put his hands in his pockets. Apparently getting Gray to wear a shirt had been a holiday season exclusive, as he was now back in just his jacket. “And he said one of his students was on the outskirts of town?” Lucy nodded, “It really isn’t so dissimilar to magic, then, huh?” 

Earlier in the day Lucy had noticed the sorcerers behaving strangely, specifically Yuuji, whose eyes just wouldn't stop welling with tears. Gojo had sat quietly for the better part of an hour, concentration etched into his features. He’d then gone to Lucy and told her one of his students was here, but she had died, and not to mention her presence to Yuuji or Megumi. He’d been about to go retrieve her but Lucy stopped him. Gojo had seen enough grief in the short time he’d been here. 

Sorcerer bodies had to be destroyed lest they turn into curses themselves, so retrieving the body was all that Lucy could do. 

Gray huffed out a breath, and turned slightly to look at Lucy. “You don't do well with death, do you?” The question caught her off-guard, halting her steps through the thick snow.

It was true. Lucy had never quite gotten used to all the death in her life, looking at her future selves corpse had been the turning point for her. She’d disregarded her own fear to save the sorcerers more pain than necessary.  “No, I dont… I never used to be so adverse to it but-”

“But a lot happened,” Gray finished for her. Lucy nodded. 

“Thank you for coming with me, Gray.” 

He merely shrugged and ruffled Lucy's hair playfully. “Things like this shouldn’t be a one person job, there's no need to thank me.” Lucy smiled, although she felt bad for dragging Gray with her for such a gruesome task. It was kind of their thing, though, getting stuck together with the shittiest jobs in the world- the most notable being rewriting the book of E.N.D. 

“-shitty fucking snow, stupid loafers, fucking patchwork asshole destroying my eye -” 

Both Gray and Lucy’s heads snapped up at the sound of another voice- one of a girl, maybe two or three years younger than them, and it was irritated.  Lucy squinted at a figure in the distance. It was, in fact, a teenage girl, tripping and stumbling over the snow drifts. They both watched her struggle for a moment, before Gray shook his head.

“Alright, i can't watch this anymore- Ice make: floor!” 

The once knee high snow flattened into a sheet of ice, which Gray easily traversed across. Lucy carefully followed- willing herself not to fall. Curse ice wizards and their stupid ability to skate. Naturally, Gray made it across before Lucy did, and crouched next to the girl- now flat on her back as a result of the sudden ice. “Well that's interesting,” He began.

The girl glared up at him. “You dick, are you trying to get me to break my back? What kind of ass just spawns ice-” She moved to stand, slipping like a baby deer, and cursing at the Gray all the while. 

Lucy chuckled slightly, stopping next to them. “What's interesting, Gray?”

Brushing his hands off, Gray rose from his crouch. “She's got cursed energy like the rest of ‘em do.” Lucy turned to look at the girl, eyes narrowed slightly. She did have cursed energy. They should probably bring her back to the guild before she froze to death out here in the forest.

Lucy held out her hand to help the girl to her feet, which she brushed off indignantly. “I can stand myself, thank you very much-” Her sentence was cut off when she immediately fell again. Gray wordlessly hauled her up and over his shoulder. “Oi! Put me down! You freak!” Sighing, Gray began to walk back the way they came. Lucy chuckled behind her hand. “I am not a sack of potatoes, fucker! Put me down!” 

Gray looked over his shoulder at Lucy. “She's a bit like you when you first joined, huh?”

This bitch.

“Okay, first of all, not true, and second of all, it's not my fault everyone was just yoinking instead of letting me walk.” 

Gray playfully rolled his eyes. “Tell that to your clock spirit.” 

Lucy scoffed, “ Horologium, his name is Horologium.” 

“This is so fucking uncomfortable-  who even are you? Why is this my life?” The girl muttered. 

Lucy took some form of pity on her. “My name is Lucy, and that's Gray. We’re helping lost sorcerers. Don’t worry, you can trust us.” 

The girl scowled. “Right, yeah, sure- i’ll just trust two randos who grabbed me from the snow- which by the way, super uncalled for what you did with the ice.” Gray merely sighed, shaking his head. Crossing her arms, the girl blew out an irritated breath. “Whatever, I’m Nobara. Thanks for helping me out of the snow.” 

“Don’t mention it,” Gray sighed as he pulled out a cigarette with his free hand, popping it into his mouth and lighting it- which was immediately met with complaints of the smell. 

The rest of the walk back was filled with more curses from the sorcerer girl- Nobara- and Gray trying desperately to hold onto his fraying sanity. While Gray usually had the patience of a saint when it came to anybody but Natsu, Nobara was proving to be quite challenging to deal with for the ice wizard.  When he’d tried to put her down, she just started cursing again, citing the snow was up past her calves- which, like, fair enough- and resigned herself to the fireman's carry. Lucy was wildly entertained the entire way back, and found herself blushing when the girl called her pretty. 

“I’ve literally never seen someone with such gorgeous eyes, you’re literally a model.”     

When they returned to the town of Magnolia, Gojo was already waiting, expression blank. Erza stood next to him, looking equally as somber. As they got closer however, Gojos face shifted from sad to confused to hopeful. 

Then it went back to confusion- he’d most likely noticed the girl slung over Gray's shoulder like, in her own words, a sack of potatoes. With an oof , He placed her down. “Ugh, finally, what kind of freak carries a helpless girl over his shoulder for half an hour?”

“One who is too impatient to help you trudge through snow, maybe.” 

The girl scoffed, and turned to walk away, when she spotted Gojo. He was grinning like a madman at her. 

“Nobara, good to have you back!”

Nobara was confused, so, so confused. Suddenly having the ground beneath her being turned to ice and then having the two most attractive people she’d ever seen help her get back to civilization, was kind of a lot for a 16 year old girl freshly out of a coma to go through within the span of an hour. Seeing Gojo was another oddity. She was glad they’d been able to unseal him, she’d just wished she was able to help more. 

“Apologies you had such an abrupt introduction to our world, Nobara. We’re still unsure why you sorcerers have been sent to Fiore.” The pretty redhead, Erza, spoke. She was cool as shit. “The Fairy Tail guild is currently looking after all the lost sorcerers, so please, make yourself comfortable when we get there.” She said with a smile. Lucy had said as much earlier, but hearing it from someone else helped ease her anxiety a bit, as well as seeing Gojo-sensei. 

 Nobara wasn’t sure what to expect from a Guild- to be frank she’d honestly never given much thought to what a Guild even was, but the looming building with banners hanging from the windows was certainly not it. Her jaw dropped as they approached the entrance, and whipped around to her Sensei. 

“ This is where you’ve been? A castle? ”

Gojo smiled teasingly, and to Nobaras eternal irritation, ruffled her hair. “Your classmates are in there too, I bet they’ll be pretty excited to see you.”  

Slapping Gojos hand away, Nobara sucked in a breath. If not even Gojo realized she was alive, there was no hope in hell for the rest of the students. What would they even say? “They’d better be on their knees sobbing.” She replied, rolling her shoulders back. 

And with that, the doors were pushed open and Nobara took her first steps back to rejoin the living. The inside of the guild was noisy. People shouted and barked laughter, drinks were spilled and everyone seemed to be… familial? It was strange and daunting- but not unwelcoming. Lucy gave her a reassuring pat on the back and a smile, and Nobaras life flashed before her eyes at the thought of such a pretty girl being nice to her. Am I gay? Oh right, I just woke up from a coma-

“KUGISAKI!” 

The sound of her name being shouted shook her from her, albeit short lived, identity crisis. She had no time to react as she wall pulled into a bone crushing hug from none other than her favourite idiot, Yuji Itadori, who was making weird sniffling sounds.

Turns out those weird noises were because Yuji was crying, and Nobara absently realized it was because he’d seen her die. She hugged him back, chuckling slightly. “Hey there, Itadori. Miss me?”

Yuji hugged her closer, nodding. She giggled and patted him on the back. “Alright, alright,  if you got any snot on my clothes, I will kill you.” That made Yuji chuckle, and he stepped back, wiping his eyes. “So where's the other idiot? Still emo?” 

As if summoned by the question, Megumi walked in, eyes wide with shock. “Kugisaki, you’re alive…” She smiled wide, and Megumi grinned at her. Naturally, he didn't offer a hug, and she didn't move to give him one. Unlike a certain white haired idiot, she respected people's personal space. 

Said white haired idiot clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. “My precious first years are all reunited!” 

There was a lot of introductions to go through, the Fairy Tail people were apparently called wizards, which Nobara thought was kind of fucking stupid, but alas, they were very apologetic for the whole ice floor debacle. Gojo had given her the rundown of why the sorcerers were here in the first place, and somehow Nobara really wasn't surprised. He hadn’t spoken much about what happened in Shibuya, so she assumed nothing good had come of it. That was fine, it was a shitshow right from the get go.

Everyone was excited to see her back, and a sense of pride swelled in her chest- she really felt like she belonged for once. 

“So wait, you guys aren’t related?” 

“Not at all, isn't it so cool?”

“Cool isnt really the word i’d use, its more like super fucking creepy, but sure Itadori.” 

Yuji had dragged Nobara over to meet his new friend, Natsu, and Nobara was floored when she saw him. Same pink hair and dipshit energy. Natsu seemed a bit more chaotic, however, as he was currently standing atop a table, demanding people fight him. Nobara grimaced, and glanced back at itadori who was beaming. “No offense, Itadori, but you have a really odd taste in friends.”

The Six Eyes was down, nobody else stood a chance at defeating him now. Victory belonged to him, he had won. Ryomen Sukuna had beaten the strongest sorcerer of the modern era. It was a grueling battle, and Sukuna had to admit, he very nearly lost. 

But he didn't, he won. 

Or so he thought, because right after killing Gojo, he was sent sprawling, and kicked out of Fushiguros body. 

He’d expected to die, or go back to being just a cursed object- which would have been so fucking annoying- but instead he’d incarnated back to his true form. Which like, that's good, but also that sucks because he’d lost the Ten Shadows, and somehow found himself sprawled in the middle of a forest. 

Groaning, Sukuna sat up, rolling his shoulders. This wasn't meant to happen. There was virtually no cursed energy here. Realization hit him like one of those damned Hollow Purples- there was no cursed energy here. That meant no sorcerers to fight back. That meant he could wreak havoc once more, the golden age- it could happen again. 

And there was nobody to stop him.