Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

Hurts.

   Can't move, weak.

Tired. No swarm

No one

Swarm?

..Passenger?

Tried to reach out, tried to react, nothing.

"なぜ彼女をここに連れてきたのですか 五条さん?"

A voice! Enemy. 

No, what?

Fight

Can't see, can't open eyes. Too heavy.

Too weak

"どういう意味ですか。明らかに、私はあなたに彼女を癒してほしい。" 

Another voice, a different voice, another enemy. 

Fight

"私は死を癒すことはできません、ばか。頭に2発の銃声?彼女は行ってしまいました。その上、彼女は魔術師ではありません。"

FIGHT

Finally, movement! A wild jerk of limbs, lashing out to where the voices were. The enemies. All enemies.

"ハ!翔子、彼女は強くて、戦うことができると言った。そして、あなたがそれを感じることができなくても、彼女は呪われたエネルギーを持っています、私は言うことができます。"

A sigh. 

"いい。何ができるか見ていきます。"

 Warmth. A touch. ENEMY

A soothing pulse. Seemed almost familiar.

Tired

Slipping back under the darkness. A smothering blanket.

fight

Where..

Who..

What? My eyelids finally found the strength to pull up, grungy and sticky, but open. I found myself staring up at a fluorescent light, bright, sending pain stabbing through my eyes and back into my temples. I couldn't keep the low groan of pain in as I turned my head from the light, slowly, trying not to exacerbate the pain in my head and the stiffness in my neck. 

As my vision cleared from the blinding light, I got a better look at my surroundings. A few beds, thin and plain. Stools, metal and low to the ground. Sinks, stone and metal.

A hospital room? How did I get here?

My mind and memories were jumbled, cracked open and bleeding details. Had to think. Had to make sense of it. The last thing I remembered was 

Gold light

Jailbroken power

Control

SCION

"This was it. Finally, everyone was working together."

I couldn't stop the heaving of my gut, revulsion drawing what seemed like pure acid up my throat. Bile and burning flowed up and out my mouth and nose, my body too weak to turn over.

No no no no, this isn't right!

It was supposed to be over. Contessa was supposed to have finished this. Choking on my own self-hate and stomach acid, I found I couldn't flip myself. Too weak, down an arm that could feel the sheets of my apparent hospital bed dragging at the melted stump, but couldn't leverage any movement..

No more! No more! I chose to die! Damn you, Contessa, it was supposed to be over! 

As my vision faded with the lack of oxygen, unable to clear my airway, I heard a voice, female, shouting. This was a fine way to go. Ignominious, like I deserved.

No more. Please. Brian, Aster, Lisa, please, no more.

fight

Oh no.

Waking up was easier this time. Less pain, less confusion. It didn't mean I was happy about it though.

I once again opened my eyes to fluorescent lights in the ceiling of the hospital I seemed to be recovering in, but this time the light was significantly more bearable. That was about the only thing that was more bearable though. Why had Contessa left me alive, where had she dumped me, who had saved me? All questions I would need answered. Answers I wouldn't get laying here.

With a deep-throated groan of effort and no small amount of pain, I hauled my body up into a semblance of a sitting position with my remaining arm.

"Hurghk!"

Ah, ow.

From my new posture I started to take a better look around, until I spotted a woman in a white coat not ten feet away and froze like the proverbial deer in headlights. 

Shit, how did I not notice her?! Oh.

The realization was a bit late, but now I knew, now it was clear.. I couldn't sense any bugs. My power, my passenger, was gone. My power and parasite. It felt like realizing I'd lost my arm, again. My thoughts were cut short when the woman stood from where she had been leaning against another bed. She seemed like fairly short woman, though based on her East Asian features that was likely mostly an observation I had only due to my own height. She had dark hair and eyes, and she looked like she needed a good night's sleep.

"私が言うことを分かりますか？" At my blank stare, What is that, Japanese? her face turned to a slightly put-out expression. Growing up in Brockton Bay had lent itself to some sort of understanding of various Asian languages, mostly as a survival mechanism, but hardly enough to be a fluent speaker of any of them.

"ああ、私の英語はひどいです、ちょっと待ってください." At more words I didn't get, and with an impatient huff, the woman reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a cell phone.

Shit, what am I supposed to do if she calls for backup, or someone more hostile? I was way too weak to put up a fight, and had no power, not even my equipment. No knife or baton, what was I supposed to do?

fight

She put the phone up to her ear as whoever was on the other side clearly picked up and spoke, "五条、彼女は目を覚ましている" then immediately hung up.

Huh?

Without my swarm to shunt my excess reactions into, I couldn't keep my confusion off my face. In response, she held up one finger in a seemingly nigh-universal 'wait' signal. 

Alright, so be it. The more time I got to sit and recover, the better. Hopefully it would be a while before whatever, whoever, she called worsened my situation. I wasn't to be that lucky however, as hardly a minute, maybe two, passed that another arrived.

"Hellooooo theere!" Cried out a voice in stereo with the door leading out of the room crashing inwards with a clang of metal on stone, making me jump half out of my skin. The speaker, and apparently kicker, was a man in dark clothes with a mane of fluffy white hair that seemed to stick straight up from his head, and wearing a black blindfold. He was very tall, spoke in a loud voice, and walked in such a way that screamed arrogance as he sauntered across the room towards me and the other woman.

"How ya doin' sleeping beaut.." he cut himself off with a light chuckle "..sleepy head?"  Well screw you too. I may have long since gotten over my self-image problems, but that didn't mean he had to be an asshole.

"I'd be doing a lot better with some answers." My voice was as creaky and cracking as the rest of me, unfortunately. "and some water." 

My answer was met with a smug grin and a light head tilt. 

"No problem" he said breezily, "Shoko'll take care of it." He turned his head to the woman in the doctor's coat, 'Shoko' evidently, and spun out a quick burst of what I was increasingly sure was Japanese. She gave him a look that screamed 'unamused' and turned to walk across the room, to a sink. It seemed this guy was rude to everyone.

"My name is Gojo Satoru." he said, turning back to me. "As I am the one who found you and got you to help, as well as the most fluent speaker of English available, I'll be handling things from here on." He said his name like I was supposed to recognize it, in the same way one might announce a celebrity, or world-wide known cape. At least he seemed to be correct about his multilingualism. I could barely catch a hint of an accent in his speech.

As Shoko returned with a small paper cup of water Gojo spoke again. "In order to keep this short and sweet as can be, I'll summarize what happened and where we are now, then you and I will talk about anything you're unclear on, and cover what comes next. Fair?" His voice was light and unbothered, but the way he asked, well, it didn't seem like there was much alternative.

As I finished up my cup of water, I responded, "Fine. Fair. Go ahead." My tone was still a little short, and my voice was still a little rough, but I didn't want to ask Gojo to ask Shoko for more water. She probably dealt with him too much as it was.

"First things first," Gojo drawled as he reached back with one long leg to drag the nearest stool to him. "Name?"

"Taylor Hebert"

"Well, Taylor, about a month ago, as I went about my merry way, I saw a spike of energy I didn't recognize." He made this sound significant as he plopped onto the stool.

Saw? Maybe he's got tinker-tech in that blindfold or something. Also, a month!? I've been in a coma for a month. This realization was not terribly pleasant, but it could be worse. It could've been longer, I'd been shot in the head after all, not to mention whatever effects Amy jailbreaking my passenger had had. I'd woken with no restraints on, as well, and no one was attacking me. Yet.

"When I went to investigate," he continued, "I saw a brief flash of light, and heard a pair of gunshots, then suddenly a young lady with dark hair fell to the ground in front of me. I went to check on her, and got a brief look into what seemed a very far away place as the..'door' in open air closed on a woman in a hat." Contessa "She looked surprised to see me."

I couldn't keep the displeasure off my face at this. I rotated on the hospital bed to face him more fully, and let my legs dangle off the side. I was in what looked like a hospital gown, but that didn't matter right now.

It's your fault then. My thoughts turned a little more erratic. As they did, my anger rose, and threatened to curdle into hate as I glowered at the man, Gojo, who had stolen the death I chose. He either didn't notice my feelings, or more likely didn't care, and continued his story.

"Well, then I went to help the girl, and realized she.." At this I lost patience and cut in.

"You can stop pretending it wasn't me." I hissed at him. He was already on my shit list, and his storytelling style was getting old fast.

He pouted, actually pouted at me, "Fine. You had been shot in the head." I know that part. "I basically wrote you off then and there, not much to be done about that, but then I caught a look at your eyes." 

My eyes?

"I saw the fight you had in you. Down a limb, bleeding out of your head, I saw your will to fight." fight Shows what he knows. I had wanted nothing more in that moment than to die.

"That was when I knew you were strong. So I brought you to Shoko here, and she healed you. It was rough going as I understand it. Still, here you are, recovered and coherent. With more Cursed Energy than I was expecting, as a bonus."

"And where is 'here'? " I asked.

"I was getting to that," he said, sounding and looking lightly offended. "We are currently in the recovery facility of Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School, where we train up-and-coming Jujutsu Sorcerers." 

..What?

My confusion must have been readily visible, because Gojo smirked and said "I know you don't know what any of that is, but we'll get there. First we have to establish who we all are, and what we want."

"Okay," I responded, my voice smoothing with use, "You first. Who are you? What do you want?"

The smugness in his expression didn't shift as he proclaimed, "I am Gojo Satoru, I am the strongest, and I want you to join Jujutsu High, learn how to use your Cursed Energy, what your Innate Technique may be if you have one, and help me change the world."

"You want me, a girl you don't know anything about, to help you change the world?" My voice was incredulous. I was deliberately ignoring all the 'sorcery' and 'cursed whatever' crap he was spewing, plenty of people had weird ideas for where powers came from. Myrddin, a prominent member of the Protectorate, had touted long and loud that powers were magic once upon a time.

For the first time since our conversation started, Gojo's face dropped into a somewhat more serious mien. "I do. You're strong, I know it."

I actually didn't have a rebuttal for that. I was a lot of things, strong..might be on the list. I didn't feel strong though.

Before I could think of something to say, his face picked back up and he said "Your turn."

"I am Taylor Hebert and.." I trailed off. 

Who am I?

Taylor, Skitter, Weaver, whatever I had become at the end. Victim, Villain, Hero, monster. I didn't know. My powers, my passenger was gone, that I knew. There had been not one twinge of anything about any bugs that may be nearby. If there was one thing my power had taught me, it was that bugs were everywhere, even hospitals.

What do I want? 

I had wanted to die not so long ago. Did I still? I still felt sick with guilt, with fear, with regret. But did I want to die?

I don't know.

"That's just fine," Gojo said, and I realized I'd said that last part out loud. "Lots of people, Sorcerers included, have to find out who they are, and what they want." His face was not as serious as I'd seen it a few moments ago, but he also didn't sound overly flippant.

"Did you?"

At this, his face dropped a little more. I couldn't see his eyes, but I got the sense they were contemplative. "Yes. Yes I did." He shook it off quickly and said "So, what do you say, mystery girl? Taylor? Ms. Hebert? We can give it some time, you can learn Japanese, some Jujutsu, and I'll prove I'm right about you."

As he made this offer the man named Gojo Satoru, self-proclaimed strongest stood to his full height and held out a hand to me.

As I stared at his long-fingered hand, I felt something rise in my chest. I ignored his hand and slid off the hospital bed, my month long coma weakened legs could barely hold me up, but though they wobbled, I stood up straight and looked Gojo in where his eyes would be through his blindfold. 

A rising something in my chest. A feeling. A feeling I could name.

Resolve.

I have to try, don't I? Maybe find out what happened after Gold Morning, where Contessa went, maybe find out about Earth Bet and.. and my dad. I have to try. I can always die another day if I really need to.

As I stood there meeting his hidden gaze, Gojo's face grew even more pleased. I think he knew my answer.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

My training started with an armful of books and a sparse, but decently sized, private room.

After I had stated my agreement to the plans put forward by the insufferable Gojo Satoru, he put his hands in his pockets and continued. "Before we can actually get you started with Jujutsu, we'll need to get you back into fighting shape, and have you learn Japanese. Not many here speak English, or if they do, not very well." His tone said that was their fault. It seemed no matter what he said, Gojo couldn't help but sound like he was putting someone down. 

"In the morning I'll bring you some street clothes, and set you up in a room. After that it's PT and studying for you!" He actually sounded excited.

After I again voiced my agreement I laid back down and listened as Shoko went about her business. I'd likely have to come back here at some point, to make sure my health wouldn't backslide, but I could deal with that. As I listened to my doctor go to set the door to rights, I took a deep breath that rattled uncomfortably in my lungs and settled in to wait till morning. Trying not to think, to remember. Trying to think forward, only forward.

It shouldn't be any worse than the Wards. And it can't be any worse than Winslow.

Time passed with surprising smoothness. I only saw Gojo very occasionally after he gave me some language learning starter books and some clothes then showed me to my temporary room. Apparently, many jujutsu sorcerers still used the school as a base of operations after they graduated, and needed places to stay that wouldn't make them mingle with and potentially distract the students. The clothes he got me were surprisingly nice. Subdued shades, easy to move in, no skirts, shoes good for running. He also got glasses that fit my prescription, somehow, that he refused to explain. After he finished setting me up and went on his way, all I had was time to spend on myself. I had no work, no family or teammates to distract me, and as I wasn't an actual student yet all I had to do was exercise, learn Japanese, sleep and repeat.

Jujutsu Tech was only sparsely populated, and it was easy enough to avoid what people there were before I learned how to communicate with them and figure out who I'd be better off avoiding altogether. The school also had truly great running routes, even ignoring the actual track. It was on the very outskirts of Tokyo, in the mountains with good views and forest tracks that were better for PT, in my opinion. Day by day, I felt myself getting stronger. Recovering. Improving. Running longer, aching less. Working out the rest of me was a little tricky being down a limb, but I made do.

My mind was in only a slightly worse place, to my surprise. Once I had a chance to be by myself and ponder, I found myself thinking about what had become of me after Amy had done her work. About how I had lost the ability to read, write, speak and recognize anyone and anything. I wondered about the abrupt shift back to personhood.  I remembered that my initial awakening had been deeply disjointed. Shoko had told me, once we could talk a bit, that I had woken up no less than seven times. It was simply that my brain had been too damaged to retain the memories of most of them. I counted myself lucky that I hadn't had to experience the reclamation of my abilities to read, speak, and understand. Losing myself to my passenger, to the power, had been one of the worst parts of that entire sequence of terrible events. I was thankful beyond belief that I had these abilities back. Reading good books with my mom were some of my best memories, and it had been a way to feel connected to her once she was gone. Being able to talk, and recognize people as anything other that mortal enemies was also..nice.

It was a perk of living, it seemed, to be able to feel better about what had come before. To recover what had been lost.

As I got a firmer grasp of Japanese, I started doing research on my own to help learn the nuances of the language, and the culture I was now a part of. It might also help me get a leg up when I actually started classes. I had never liked the feeling I was being left behind, or of potentially dragging anyone else down, and I was determined to get as far ahead of any expectations as possible. I was glad to find Jujutsu High actually had a huge, expansive library. I'm not sure why that surprised me, but it did. It was a pleasant discovery though, and the librarian had spoken enough English to help me in the early days.

As I read and researched my new way of life further I found confirmation of something that I had been fairly sure of already. 

This Earth is fucking weird.

I started with what I had heard Gojo mention in the hospital. 呪力. Juryoku. Cursed Energy.

Cursed Energy is a force of human mind and spirit, born of negative emotions like hate, fear, and anger. It is a purely negative force, capable only of being neutral, in that it can not actively be causing harm, and destructive. Though perhaps corrosive would be a better word. As humans experience these feelings Cursed Energy builds up, and leaks out into the world around them. 

This phenomenon leads to the creation of Cursed Spirits, or just Curses. As the Cursed Energy spreads and grows, it collects in some locations like sediment in a river. I still hadn't seen any, or used the Cursed Energy Gojo said I had, so I could only grasp them as abstracts. Pseudo-tulpas that existed as manifestations of everything that was wrong with humanity.

They were invisible to normal people, and a certain level of Cursed Energy was required to interact with them. This was not the case on their side, however. This meant that they could hurt people, and they did. Unfortunately, because of this a lot of the people they hurt, the people they killed, went unreported or were dismissed as an accident, or a deliberate disappearance. That, or just written off as a complete mystery. A ghost story.

Curses tend to manifest in places with crowds, a lot of daily experiences and memories. Hospitals, prisons, cemeteries. Schools.

It made me think, made me wonder, if Bet had Curses. It would make a lot of sense. Between the Trigger Events, villains, and half a dozen or so genocidal monsters, all capped off by a murderous golden god, my old world was a shitshow. There's no doubt it's bursting at the seams with negative feelings, hate and shame and all the others. It might simply be that no humans could use Cursed Energy to identify them.

I wonder if they're in Winslow. Monsters that went unnoticed, unseen. A Curse left over in my locker, let me out. Simurgh Containment Zones would be rife with them, if they existed over there. Thinking about it all also made wonder which Earth was worse. Superpowered or Supernatural. Villains or Curses.

Food for thought.

This routine continued for some time, nearly three months of recovery and learning. Then, one day Gojo came to me at the end of my daily PT session with a box that looked a bit like a suitcase. It was maybe three feet long, a foot and a half wide.

Crap. Need to remember to use Metric, I'm in Japan. Maybe a meter long, 45 or so centimeters wide.

I need to work on that.

"Hey, Taylor!" he said brightly, offering me a wave. He was still speaking English, but I needed practice if I wanted to master this.

"五条さん、こんにちは." I answered in my no doubt terrible accent, with significantly less cheer.

"Oh, you're getting pretty good." he offered in the same language.

First actual compliment I've ever heard him offer, to anyone.

"Well," he continued, still in Japanese. "Today I'm going to shake up your routine a bit. We're gonna see if you can pull out your Cursed Energy, then if you can do it, I'll give you this." He held up the box he was carrying with him, and shook it like it was a Christmas present.

"What is it?"

"You'll see, if you can draw up your Cursed Energy." Holding a mysterious package hostage to encourage me. An odd man, this Gojo.

With a wave of his hand, and a jovial "C'mere!" he bid me to follow him to the nearest open training field. He set the box down a few paces away then came to stand directly in front of me, his posture relaxed.

"Alright! Hit me." he said, putting his hand up, palm towards me.

Okay.

I had learned how to fight pretty well, first with Brian, then later more regimented training with the Wards. It'd be a little awkward with just my left arm, but I could do it.

Adjust for this being my left. Make a fist, thumb outside my fingers. Plant my feet slightly off center of my target, torque my hips, swing with my shoulder not just my arm, and strike.

I aimed for a spot a foot behind his hand, and swung. My knuckles smacked into his palm with gratifying force, but it felt odd. His hand didn't budge, not an inch. A centimeter, I mean. I couldn't quite put my finger on what happened, what felt so strange about the impact, before he spoke again.

"Not bad, not bad. I'm going to do you a favor and assume the sloppy form is because you're right-handed." He ignored the quietly annoyed huff I couldn't help but let out as I returned to a more neutral posture and he put his hand down. "You've got training, that's convenient, less we have to hold your hand going forward." I felt a little vindicated at that. Not useless, no need to coddle me. "No Cursed Energy though. Here, I'll draw up my own, and you'll see if you can get a sense for it." There was no shifting of feet or clenching of fists to show he was doing anything. There was something though. A tingle in my skin on the side of my body facing him. His energy?

"Do you feel it? I can see your Cursed Energy, I'll tell you if you're doing something right. Often we can pull a call-and-response type of thing to get students to draw out their own for the first time. Don't over-think it. Just feel. It's there, in your gut, in your heart. A Curse." His voice was mostly serious, and for the first time since I'd met him, I almost believed he was an actual teacher like he'd claimed as he coached me through.

Just feel it. What does a Curse feel like? Anger, bitter hate, shame. Those I had a surplus of. Draw them up, bring them to the forefront. Feel them flow. Feel for his.

There. A pressure, a force, filling up the outline of the man across from me. Now that I could feel the outer edges of it, I couldn't help but wonder how I'd missed it. It was massive. It filled my senses as I got a better grasp of it. Gojo Satoru was bursting at the seams with power, a maelstrom beneath his skin that sent my heart racing and caused a cold sweat to break out across my body. Fear locked my legs and snapped my spine straight and it seemed the world around me was falling away as the power of the strongest drowned out everything around in Cursed Energy.

"Oi." I was snapped back to reality as Gojo waved a hand back and forth in front of my face. "Don't get lost in it. Feel it out in yourself as well." As he returned his hand to his side I shook myself out. Pushed the fear back into a corner of my head and started reaching inward. 

Focus. Where are you?

Deeper. I closed my eyes. I tried to feel Gojo's power as it reached out, rebounding like a sonic wave. Call-and-response, he said.

My Curses. Where are you?

Deeper.

Here.

There it was. An almost core of raw feeling, a roiling pustule that carried my Curses vibrating deep inside. Right in the center of my body, it seemed to sit behind my navel, in my gut. I called it up, reached to grasp it, and felt it flow out, catching against my nerves and scraping against my thoughts as it poured out into the rest of my being like a broken dam, or a ruptured cyst. My power made me feel sick as I opened my eyes again to see Gojo grinning at me like an idiot.

"Nice."

I had a hard time seeing what was nice about any of this.

"You have a decent amount of Cursed Energy. You'll easily be a Grade 2 sorcerer with training, maybe even Grade 1 if you've got a good Innate Technique." His voice was proud, mostly in himself for picking me I was sure, but that was still good to hear from someone like him. I'd be worth the investment he put into me. I may not particularly like him, but he'd put a lot into this, and I'll make sure he doesn't regret it.

"Thanks." My voice was soft, and a little hesitant, I was still reeling slightly from drawing out my new power like this.

"Now, concentrate that energy in your fist, and give me another shot." He was being breezy again as he put his hand back up for a target.

I was able to strengthen my voice again as I gave my assent "Alright."

Adjust for being a lefty. Make a fist, thumb outside. Plant my feet slightly off center, twist my hips, swing with my shoulder and arm, push my Cursed Energy out to my fist and strike.

Once again, I aimed for a spot behind his palm, and let loose. As I swung, I felt my Cursed Energy follow the movement and as the hit landed I could feel the energy lend itself to the impact, like it was eager for a chance to do harm.

"Much better, very good." His affirmation was welcome, but I couldn't help a shiver of revulsion as I felt my Cursed Energy sliding around inside my body, leaving a coat of cold oil on my bones as it passed around, rattling me all over again as I stood down from a striking position.

"Hmmm," Gojo's voice turned contemplative as he stared at his hand.

"What? Is something wrong?" I couldn't keep the nerves out of my voice as I leaned closer, wondering what he was seeing.

"Eh?" He asked as he looked up, "Oh, no. Nothing's wrong." He put one finger of his other hand on his chin, in a thinking pose, before he went back to looking at his hand.

"Your Cursed Energy is interesting. It's rough, almost like Hikari's, though not as pronounced, but it's also..hmm.. sticky?" He sounded confused by his own wording. 

What?

I voiced my own confusion. And irritation. "What are you talking about? Who's Hikari? How is it 'rough' or 'sticky'? Are you just making stuff up?" I knew I was being impatient, maybe a little rude, but he's supposed to be a teacher.

He put on an offended look as he replied, "No, I'm not. Hikari is a third year here at Jujutsu High, and his Cursed Energy is 'sharp'. No matter how hard or soft he hits, the strike will cause a lot of pain. Yours is fairly similar, though maybe more grating than sharp, but it also clings to the impact zone, leaving that effect to last for a little bit." That was better.

"So.. rough and sticky."

"That's right. Rough and sticky. This'll be a good for you, another weapon you can use going forward."

I couldn't help a sigh. More ways to hurt, leaving me feeling conflicted, and this was all going in strange directions.

"Now that that's out of the way, it's time for my surprise!" His voiced climbed into a jovial near-shout as he bustled over to the box he'd hauled out here.

I forgot about that.

"So, guess what I've got in here." he said brightly as he crouched next to it, laying a hand on the lid.

"What?" I asked, not wanting to humor him. 

He can't be serious.

His voice went higher-pitched, almost whining, "Aww, come on, guess."

He is serious.

A sigh tore it's way out of my chest. This guy is so childish.

"I don't know Gojo-san. More books?"

"Nope. Guess again."

"More clothes? A uniform?"

"Both wrong. Another guess." As my impatience grew with every back-and-forth, so did his amusement, both feelings bleeding into our voices.

"Stuff for my room?"

"Nope."

"Class materials?"

"No. Wrong again."

"Stuff for a prank you want to pull on someone?"

"Nope."

"Just tell me."

"No way. Jeez, you suck at this game."

At that I snapped a little.

"Just tell me, you brat!" I yelled.

My bark was met with laughter as he threw his head back and his voice echoed around the training field. I saw a few people walking nearby turn to look at the sound, but as soon as they saw Gojo, they both just shook their heads and kept walking.

Wish I could just walk away.

"Alright, alright, miss bossy-pants." He was still smiling and laughter filled his voice as he turned the box so I couldn't see in as he opened the lid. If he cared about the little growl I let out he didn't show it. If one thing could be said about him, he could rile me up.

"Here. Take a look at this." He said as he threw something to me over the lid of the box. As I caught it I couldn't help but go still with shock at the realization of what it was.

My nano-thorn dagger.

"Whatever was supposed to happen when you turned it on doesn't seem to be working anymore, but that was the only thing you had on you that was in any way salvageable. If you want, I'll show you how to imbue it with curses."

"Thank you." I said in a small voice, my anger at his antics left behind as I held in my hand a tangible connection to Bet, to my old world. A reminder that I would never willingly leave behind now that I had it. The times I'd had in Bet may not have been good, but I couldn't, wouldn't, forget. That would be one crime I couldn't ever commit.

"You're welcome. Now, one more thing. Here." 

I looked up from the knife and couldn't stop a full body jerk at what he was holding out to me.

"Is that a human arm?!" I half-shouted as I leaned away. He chuckled again as he held it out towards me.

"Not exactly. How much do you know about Cursed Corpses?"

"A little." I replied as I regained control of myself. I was still somewhat used to having my swarm to shunt these reactions into, anger and surprise, even if I had started to consider that a bad habit. So it was a bit of a struggle to rein it all in.

"This is made along similar principles, along with some ideas from a few cursed tools I've seen. We'll just call it a Cursed Prosthetic." He was smirking as he said this, he probably thought he was being clever.

"You and I'll take it to Shoko tomorrow morning and she'll help us attach it. How's that sound?"

He sounded immensely pleased with himself, but I found that this time I couldn't begrudge him that as I responded in a subdued tone.

"Sounds good, Gojo-san. Sounds good."

Later, as I was resting in my room, holding my returned dagger in my hand, I was feeling deeply conflicted.

I should be happy.

If that arm worked as advertised, Shoko would connect it to my body, and I'd manipulate it with my Cursed Energy. It'd be almost like being whole again, but I was still struggling to feel pleased about it.

Do I even deserve this?

I wasn't a good person. This I knew for a fact, but according to my research, and Shoko, most jujutsu sorcerers weren't good people either.

Maybe 'deserve' isn't relevant. If I use this chance, these gifts, to exorcise Curses, that should be a net positive for everyone, right?

I still felt a little off, but better about that issue as I laid down to try to sleep. Once I was down, on a whim, I once again reached inside for the core of my Cursed Energy. I could feel it without drawing on it. As before, it felt awful. 

Cold like a corpse, hot like a fever, sick, corrosive.

Then as I slowly fell asleep contemplating my new power, I couldn't help but wonder.

By coming here, by agreeing to live and fight, did I just trade one curse for another?

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

Once again I found myself staring up at a fluorescent light in the ceiling, trying not to get a headache. I wasn't in a hospital gown this time, thankfully, just waiting with my right sleeve pulled up past my shoulder for Shoko to finish her preparations.

"Okay Taylor," came Shoko's calm, professional voice "Are you ready?"

I picked my head up off the thin hospital pillow and turned my gaze over to Shoko. She looked like she needed a couple extra nights' sleep, but she was still alert, focused. In her hands was the reason I was back in here. An arm, looking almost completely normal, limp in her hands. 

I was getting my prosthetic attached today.

Taking a moment to ensure my voice was steady, I answered as confidently as I could.

"I'm ready Ieiri-san."

She gave me a searching look before nodding and laying the arm on the tray next to my bed as she sat in a nearby stool.

"I'm going to go over the whole procedure before we get started, so if you have any questions, feel free to ask." She was speaking in what I took to be her 'doctor' tone. Cool and reassuring.

At my nod, she continued.

"We need to attach this to healthy, living tissue, so we're going to amputate the end here." She used her finger to draw a line on my arm, at the point where the ugly pinkish-silver burn scars ended, and my normal pale skin tone started. I gave another, slightly more shaky, nod to show I was listening.

"That's where it gets tricky." At that she picked the arm back up, and turned it to show me the cut-off point opposite the hand. There was no differentiation between skin and muscle on the prosthetic, it was the same pale tone all the way through to the center. In the middle there was a dark purple, almost black circle visible, matching the cross-section location of bone.

"If you know anything about Cursed Corpses, you know they have a core, where their Cursed Energy stems from." I made an acknowledging noise as she continued. 

"This section here," she pointed to the dark circle, "is the core of this Cursed Prosthetic. It forms a structure that mimics the bones in a human arm and hand. This point specifically is where your Cursed Energy will enter the prosthetic, then spread throughout it's structure. The reason I said tricky, is because you need to be running your Cursed Energy at the moment I bring the core in contact with your humerus. Otherwise, best-case scenario, it just won't function."

"Best case?" I blurted, "What would be worst case?"

Shoko showed no reaction to the interruption before answering.

"I don't know."

At my somewhat uncomfortable look she elaborated.

"I'll be totally honest Taylor, this Cursed Prosthetic is a new thing. We have several items and objects that serve a similar purpose, but this was made by a master at creating Cursed Corpses, and he's using techniques for that, and for this, that haven't been seen before. It was crafted with plenty of input from Gojo and I, so we're confident beyond all reasonable doubt that it'll work, but there are nuances that we have to acknowledge."

I nodded, and tried to take deep breaths.

Calm down. Gojo's a lot of things, but he's at least competent. Plus Shoko is a master at what she does, and she's the reliable type. If she says the one who made it is good, I believe her. This'll be fine.

As I reasserted control over myself I turned to Shoko and said, "Okay, I'm ready to get back on track."

"Alright. Since you need to be concentrating on your Cursed Energy, I can't put you under, or even use an anesthetic worth the trouble." At this she put one hand on my shoulder and leaned over to give me a serious look, right in the eyes.

"This is going to hurt. The Cursed Prosthetic is going to fuse with your humerus, then the rest of the tissues at the site of the amputation as your Cursed Energy spreads. Your nerves aren't going to like that." 

"I can take pain. It'll be fine." I told her, maintaining the eye contact. It was true. I didn't like pain any more than the next girl, but as long as this attachment process didn't hurt worse than Lung's fiery amputation, I'd be fine. Or even the initial break of my arm when Sveta grabbed me. Or when Scion cut me in half. Or when Leviathan snapped my spine. Or Bakuda's pain bomb, while I was thinking about this. Oddly, thinking of my past experiences actually calmed me down more that the breathing exercises I'd been trying to use.

As she saw me relax back to normal, Shoko nodded and broke eye contact, leaning back on her stool to continue.

"As it fuses with you, I'll be running my Reverse Cursed Technique to help it along. As you're healing, the fusing process will occur simultaneously, making the connection much stronger, and it'll prevent any rejection on your part."

I turned from looking at Shoko, back to staring at the ceiling as she kept going.

"After it's connected, we'll keep you here for a few hours to monitor your condition. After that, you'll be good to go back to your life. We good to go?"

"No problem Ieiri-san, I'm ready."

"Alright. Lets get started."

At that she pulled the tray with the prosthetic on it right next to the bed, then strapped my arm down at mid-bicep sticking straight out to the side of my body, with the end on top of the clean metal tray. I turned my head away as Shoko got a good grip on my arm. I may be able to deal with pain, but that didn't mean I wanted to watch.

"You want something to bite down on?" I shook my head without saying anything.

"OK."

Then she set about her work.

I wasn't watching to find out what tool, or technique she was going to use to cut a chunk off the end of my arm, but whatever she was using started out as a pinching sensation. Then there was a sharp heat, then pain. 

There was a wet snap, a click as the end of the bone severed, then an audible spatter of blood on metal.

Ow.

I clenched my teeth tight enough that my jaw let out a creak. I couldn't stop a drawn out, subdued, whimpering scream that sounded in my throat as a few more slick, wet sounds reached my ears. Seething a breath into my lungs through my teeth, I heard Shoko's voice.

"Now, Taylor, start your Cursed Energy flowing."

Alright.

Reach inside, draw it out, push it into the pain. 

There was a rustle and then a cold tingle as my stump made contact with the prosthetic.

"Now I'm starting the Reverse Cursed Technique."

A soothing warmth spread into my arm, and I felt my whole body relax a bit, and a slightly less strained sigh passed my lips, as the pain lost it's teeth. It was still there, just lessened.

"Now it'll start fusing to your tissues. Keep your energy flowing Taylor." She still sounded just as calm and collected as when we started.

She's a good doctor.

I kept my Cursed Energy concentrated in my arm like she said, and waited for any changes, and it wasn't long before I felt it.

First there was a crackling tingle that spread up my bicep, then a stabbing pain that send a silvery bolt of lightning up my shoulder into the base of my skull. Another strained scream caught in my throat before my Cursed Energy started flowing out.

It felt odd. Slowly, almost creeping, my energy slid past where I knew my arm ended. Little by little, centimeter by centimeter, my energy spread down the prosthetic core. I could practically paint a picture in my head as I felt the energy branch into five separate tines. Fingers. As the energy spread, the pain grew, climbing up my shoulder, spreading out from the point of contact with my bone. Then the flow stopped. I pushed the energy a little harder, it seemed almost stuck at just filling the core. A little more energy, a little harder push, then success. The energy flowed out, like a pipe had burst, filling out every piece of the arm.

I relaxed as it did, a release of tension, and let out a another sighing breath as the pain faded with it. It reached what felt like an equilibrium and I heard Shoko make a pleased noise. I listened as Shoko finished healing me, the warmth fading as she deactivated her technique. Then she started cleaning up. A wet brush as she wiped down the surgery site, a quiet clatter of tools being put in a sink. 

"Alright Taylor, go ahead and take a look." She said, as she undid the strap on my bicep.

I opened my eyes, and sat up, working my jaw slightly. I might need a glass of water to sooth my throat before long. Then I turned my head and stared down. 

It was almost..dysphoric. Looking down and seeing a full arm. I stared hard, and saw the seam, almost looking like a time-faded scar where the prosthetic was attached. Down further, passed the elbow, down the arm. It looked good, aesthetically, for what it was. It matched my skin tone and it wasn't perfectly symmetrical or anything so blatant. It was only on the finest details that it actually looked like a fake. There were none of the fine hairs that humans have, nor were there really any pores, just slight divots. No speckles of discoloration, nor little blue veins. The nails were nice, and at a glance it all looked right.

I was what was wrong.

I focused hard, pulling on my Cursed Energy. Maybe if I could move it, I wouldn't feel like this. This unease.

Move.

Nothing, not a twitch.

"Give it a minute or two Taylor. Just relax, let your energy settle, and then start to push and pull it, like muscle strands." Shoko was putting more assurance into her voice. She sounded so certain, I had to believe her. Just wait.

Wait.

Wait.

Push and pull. Like muscle strands.

Push and pull.

There! A twitch in the fingers. A little more, then all at once the fingers curled, ever so slowly, into a fist. Then I lifted the arm up off the tray.

I couldn't help but let out a wet-sounding gasp as I held a fist, a right fist up in front of my face. I rolled the wrist around and flexed the fingers out and around, smoothing with every moment. It didn't really feel anything like a flesh and blood arm, but it was really something.

Shoko let out a small chuckle and had a little smile.

"Well done Taylor, and congratulations." she said, her voice brighter than I'd yet heard it.

I focused on keeping my breathing as close to even as possible as I stood up off the bed, then turned to face her. As I stood facing my doctor, I saw her slightly expectant expression, no doubt she was wondering what I was doing. I took a breath and gave her my best saikeirei bow, my hand holding onto the prosthetic's fingers at waist height, and spoke as seriously and meaningfully as I could.

"Thank you, Ieiri-hakase. Thank you very much. For everything." I wasn't one hundred percent certain of that honorific, but I was trying really hard to be respectful and thankful. My problems were my own after all, and this was a great gift. One of several she had given me.

As I straitened up out of my probably 60 degree bow, Shoko's smile grew, enough that I saw a small glimpse of her teeth. Practically a grin for the reserved woman.

"You're very welcome Taylor-chan." A suffix? That was a little surprising. Neither she nor Gojo, the two people I'd had any interactions that lasted more than a sentence or two with so far, had used one for me. I returned her smile as best I could. 

The '-chan' is the friendly one for girls younger than you right? I was pretty sure. Then she spoke again.

"You can call me Shoko, if you'd like." She offered, still smiling.

Wow.

"Alright, Shoko-san, if you're sure." I was supposed to leave her an out, for politeness, in this case.

"I'm sure." She returned to her more reserved mien, but I could still see the amusement, and happiness on her face. "We'll give it another hour or two, to keep an eye on that arm, then you can be on your way."

"Alright."

It was a few days later that I saw Gojo again. I'd been spending more time with Shoko since our moment in the hospital, and I was actually glad of it. I was more lonely than I'd thought, and while I wasn't as close to her as I'd been to Lisa, it was nice to have a friend.

The arm was damn near perfect, much to Shoko's total lack of surprise. It didn't get as much sensation as my flesh arm did, so it was a bit like using my right arm had been when it was half asleep, or partially numb. It was also a few degrees colder than the rest of my body. Still, it was stronger than my left arm, didn't feel pain or get strained or tired and having it around for daily tasks was a weight off my shoulders. Even if I still didn't like looking at it.

Then there was Gojo.

He once again wandered over while I was training, and interrupted me with what struck me as excessive cheer.

"Hey, Taylor! How's the arm?"

"It's fine." I said plainly. He pouted slightly at my tepid response, but rallied quickly.

"Well, you have a meeting today, so let's go!" 

"What?" I asked, "What meeting?"

"A meeting with Principal Yaga, to officially enroll at Jujutsu Tech. It's been scheduled for today for like, two weeks." He said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"And did you set this appointment?"

"Of course."

"And I suppose it didn't occur to you to tell me that, two weeks ago?" I seethed out between my teeth. 

The jerk just smiled and shrugged, unconcerned and unapologetic. I couldn't tell if he forgot, or deliberately didn't tell me.

"C'mon, let's go." He turned and started to walk away, knowing I had to follow. Begrudgingly, I did just that. No time to shower or change, I guess.

Gojo led me through Jujutsu Tech until we came to a building I'd never been in before, and never looked at twice. It was near the entrance to the eclectic collection of buildings that made up the school, and looked ever-so-slightly administrative. The room I was led to was sparsely lit by candlelight, and had a lot of rough wooden pillars. Inside, there was a large, lightly tanned man with a high-and-tight cut of dark hair with sunglasses on, waiting.

"Satoru." The man, Principal Yaga presumably, growled. He sounded deeply unamused. "This meeting was scheduled an hour and a half ago!" His tone rose up to half a shout.

What the hell man!? I'd better not get blamed for this. The white-haired idiot affected not to notice the angry side glance I threw his way.

Gojo opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by Yaga, "No. We'll talk about that later. Is this the girl? The American?"

"Yeah, this is she." Gojo drawled, seemingly unconcerned with his future lecture on punctuality. I decided to interject, before Gojo could screw up my introduction. 

I dipped into a light bow and said, "My name is Taylor Hebert. It's good to meet you, Principal Yaga."

"Why are you here?" 

Huh?

I couldn't help but think this was some kind of trick question. I straightened up and looked him in the face, my confusion plain.

"Why are you here at Jujutsu High? Why will you learn of Curses and Exorcism?"

Not exactly a trick question then, just a complicated one. I could think of a dozen potential answers, no matter if they were untrue. I wanted to be a hero once. I couldn't say that though, I'd never been a hero. Even as a Ward, I'd been far from a hero.

I could claim that I just wanted the money that I knew from my research that I would get paid. I could say I wanted to pay back Gojo and Shoko for their help. Maybe I wanted to get some kind of catharsis in the destruction of monstrous existences. Or that I want revenge for what had been done to me by Curses in the past. But thinking about it, there was only one answer I could give.

"I don't know."

Yaga's body went rigid and he gave a dark "Hmm?" in lieu of asking for clarification.

"There's a lot I can't remember from before the injury that brought me here," a lie, but one I felt was necessary, "but I know it was bad. Now that I'm here, I don't know what I want. I barely know who I am. Some days, it's all I can do to just keep breathing. So maybe that's my answer, Principal Yaga. I'm here to find out who I am, and maybe find a reason to live. At least here, doing this, I might be able to do some good while I get those answers." I had no idea what my voice sounded like in that moment, all I could hear was a ringing in my ears, shock at saying all that out loud numbing my thoughts.

"Hmmm." Yaga said again, though more contemplative than interrogative. His face drew into a frown that sharpened the lines of his face. I braced myself for the rejection. Maybe I can get Gojo to take me back to the States once I couldn't stay here. I knew from reading at the library that countries other than Japan had a dearth of Sorcerers. I could exorcise elsewhere, or not.

Or not.

I did resolve just to try. Maybe Shoko will help me finish it this time. Make it painless. If I can stomach to ask her.

"You pass." My whole body jerked a little in surprise. That easy?

"Welcome to Jujutsu High. Satoru, take her to the student dorms." At that brusque dismissal, he turned and started to walk away.

"Principal Yaga, wait!" I couldn't stop myself from crying out. He turned to look over his shoulder towards me. "Why?" I asked, a little helplessly.

"It was honest." He turned back around to face me fully, perhaps deciding that his own answer fell a little short. His voice was still a serious growl, full of gravitas. "Jujutsu Sorcerers are always an arm's length from death. Their own, or someone else's. It's not a job for the faint of heart." Something about how he said that made it clear he didn't think I was faint of heart. "You have to be greedy, and a little crazy. Everything you said made me think you fit those criteria. It's not a job anyone can do." That all made some kind of sense.

"Besides," he continued, his face pulling up into an ever so slight smile, "I am an educator, and education includes helping students find themselves, find the future that makes them their best selves."

I found myself smiling back, just as slight. "Thank you, Principal Yaga."

I knew this school couldn't be as bad as Winslow.

The next day, I was again interrupted in my routine by Gojo Satoru. This time I was reading, sitting cross legged on my bed in my new room, in the student dorms.

"Yo, Taylor. What you readin'?" His voice was just as bright as I was dreading it would be.

" 'A Treatise on the Disposition and Disposal of Imaginary Vengeful Cursed Spirits' " I responded.

"Ugh." Gojo blurted, an exaggerated expression of disgust painted across his face. "That sounds hideously boring."

"Not really." I answered. I was even telling the truth. the writing style was rough and dry, but the subject matter was actually fairly fascinating. "Did you know that there was a Special Grade Imaginary Vengeful Cursed Spirit in Persia almost three thousand years ago? They named it 'Aŋra Mainiiu', after the evil god of Zoroastrianism. According to this, we should count ourselves lucky it hasn't surfaced again since. It killed enough people, and did enough damage that we still remember it."

I looked up from the book to see Gojo had spaced out completely. I couldn't see his eyes, but his head was lolling on his shoulders.

"Really?!" I sniped at him. A few sentences, and he tunes out.

His head whipped back around to face me, and he threw out, "Yeah, that's super interesting Taylor, but come on, put the book down. We've got a lot of stuff to do today."

"Huh? What kind of stuff?"

"Jujutsu stuff. C'mon." As seemed to be his normal, he turned around and with a beckoning motion, bid me to follow him. I let out a gusty sigh, as I put in a bookmark and got up to go with him. He actually let out a little laugh at my put-out noises.

He once again led me across campus, towards where I knew mail and deliveries came to the school. Once we arrived, he grabbed a good-sized duffle bag and handed it to me.

"Here, your school uniform. You can change over there." He pointed off to the side, where there did indeed seem to be changing rooms. They were probably for this specific purpose even.

"Alright fine." I went to do as bid. He was a teacher after all, but more importantly according to both my own experiences, and Shoko, the easiest way to get rid of him was to bore him. I usually accomplished that by being as obedient and unresponsive as I could manage.

I took the duffle with my uniform into the changing room and locked the door behind me. I pulled it out, and started to put it on. If I avoided looking in the mirror until I was done, or the prosthetic at all, no one was there to comment. 

Don't think about it, don't dwell on it.

As I buttoned the last button, I turned to the full length mirror and took a look. Long dark hair that fell in thick, open curls down passed my shoulders. Overly large dark eyes behind thin, but tough framed glasses, too wide mouth. My uniform top consisted of a dark blue center button-up jacket with a down-turned collar, and a white under shirt that came up over my throat, similar to a turtleneck. The sleeves ended just short of my wrists. My bottoms were dark blue as well. Pants, thankfully, even though they were a little tighter than I might have liked, and there was a shin-length asymmetrical half-skirt over them. On my feet were running shoes in a subdued shade of red. I was surprised to find I actually kind of liked it.

I left the changing room after putting my old clothes into the duffel and returned it to Gojo, who nonchalantly threw it back into the delivery retrieval area. Whoever finds my old clothes in there is going to be annoyed.

"Alright!" he said, "How do you like it?"

"It's fine." I said in a deliberately bland tone.

"Hmm." He responded, clearly a little let down by my bland responses. He was probably hoping I'd ask who designed it, but that would only encourage him.

"Ok!" he chirped, rallying. "Here, your student ID." In his hand was a little card, laminated like a drivers license. On it was a little picture of me and it said I was a Grade 3 sorcerer. "Next you'll meet the other first year who's here at Jujutsu Tech."

"The 'other'? There's only the two of us?" I asked, a little dismayed, slipping my ID into my pants' pocket. So few students meant more attention, when I preferred to blend in.

"I have another lined up, but yeah. He's the only one who's here right now." Gojo sounded as unconcerned as ever.

"Alright. Where is he?"

"This way!" and we were off once again. I couldn't help but wonder if he was deliberately acting excessively cheery to annoy me, or if he was really just like this. Shoko had just shrugged when I asked.

On the whole other side of campus, he led me onto an open training field where there was a young man with dark hair running the track.

"Oi, Megumi!" Gojo yelled. The boy, Megumi, turned at the sound of his name, then turned right back and kept running. I chuckled lightly at the put-upon sigh Gojo let out at being ignored. Then Gojo led the way onto the track itself, so on his next pass he could either run us over or stop. Luckily for probably all of us, he stopped.

"What is it Gojo-sensei?" Megumi sounded annoyed at the interruption, but I was on his side. 

"This is your new classmate, from America. She's a few years older, but not so much it's any kind of issue."

I turned to meet Megumi's gaze as he introduced himself. "Fushiguro Megumi." Just a name? Alright, I could work with that.

"Hebert, Taylor." I responded, just as bland as him.

"You're both so boring!" Gojo complained loudly. Fushiguro and I both turned to look at him, and just stared.

"Alright, alright, fine! I'll see about getting a mission lined up for just you two so you can get acquainted, but for now just, come on Taylor, we've got another stop to make." I turned away and followed Gojo as Fushiguro went back to his run.

Gojo was blessedly quiet as we made our way to our next stop. He was pouting, the child. We entered the non-student dorm area and met up with an older man I didn't recognize just outside the entrance.

"This is Nanami! He just returned a few days ago to Jujutsu-ing after trying his hand at being a salaryman." Nanami was a large man, broad shouldered and a few inches taller than me, with dirty blonde hair, and he was wearing a suit and tie, along with strange round glasses that hid his eyes.

He let out a deeply annoyed sigh as he turned towards Gojo, "Gojo-san, 'Jujutsu-ing' is not a word. Comport yourself as a teacher please." Then he turned to me, effectively ignoring the offended squawk Gojo let out. He gave me a respectful head dip and said, "My name is Nanami Kento, I'm a professional Jujutsu Sorcerer. It's good to meet you."

I gave him a slightly deeper bow than his, and responded, "My name is Hebert, Taylor. First-year at Jujutsu Tech. It's good to meet you too." 

He seemed ever so slightly pleased at my manners. Maybe he was expecting the American girl to be more rude.

"Alright, you two gloomy lumps. That's enough, you're bringing me down." Gojo interrupted. "C'mon. We have more stuff to do Taylor."

I turned to him, and asked, "Like what?"

"I'm gonna take you to the Cursed Warehouse, and we'll see if any of the Cursed Tools fit you. Then, we have a mission."

"Okay, Gojo-san. Let's go." He nodded and started to turn to walk away, but his phone abruptly started to ring. His ringtone was as annoying as his personality. He pulled it out and answered it with a "Yo! Gojo Satoru here." He stood for a moment listening, but his face abruptly twisted into an annoyed grimace. He then hung up with a disgruntled rumble.

"Damn rude geezers." He muttered. Then looked at the two of us. "That was the Jujutsu Society elders, I have to go. Nanami, do all the stuff I just said. Talk to Ijichi and get the details of the mission I was gonna take her on. Go with her, get a good report."

Before either of us could answer, Gojo linked his fingers, then clapped his hands together and disappeared.

He can teleport?! So that makes Brute and Mover. Wonder what else he can do.

As I turned to face Nanami, I saw a vein bulging near his temple.

"I really just can't respect him."

I couldn't help but agree.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

This was the first I had seen or heard of the Cursed Warehouse, though I'd read mentions of it in the library. After Gojo flitted off on whatever mission he had been assigned, I was left in the care of Nanami Kento, a professional Jujutsu Sorcerer with a spotted tie. He was clearly pissed off, but luckily not at me.

He led me through Jujutsu Tech at a brisk pace. First into a large round building, then down a few flights of stairs. Eventually we reached a large, dark paneled pair of doors, but when he opened them all I saw were.. trees?

"Through here." He walked me down into the forest. It was deep and dark, and the trees were tall and gnarled. It was pretty creepy, but eventually we made it to the Cursed Warehouse. It was exactly as advertised, practically identical to one of any of dozens of industrial warehouses I'd seen in Brockton and Chicago. Nanami briskly paced up to the rolling door, and pulled it open. Inside there were long rows of racks, and the walls were covered in corkboard with hanging pins. Along with weapons. There had to be at least a couple dozen, maybe even low hundreds. Staffs, staves, swords, bows, even shields and what looked like mixed up bits of armor. In the back there was a partitioned section, where presumably there were the Cursed Objects, rather than the Cursed Tools that filled this section.

"In this warehouse are all the Cursed Tools held by Jujutsu Tech. Some were recovered on missions, some were made here, and many were lent to the school by the Big Three Families. Pick one or two that fit you, and I'll show you how to sign them out." His voice was tired and low, and his tone was short, but he didn't sound impatient. That seems to just be how he talks.

"Alright." I gave my assent and started searching.

As I walked down the rows, I was searching for two things in particular. I had spent practically my entire career using two primary melee weapons, a large knife, nano-thorn or otherwise, and a baton. If I could find a couple of Cursed Tools that matched those weapons I'd be golden.

Down further I started to look closer and saw that for each tool there was a label, almost like a placard that corresponded with each one. They carried a name and some had a short description. I noticed that the label for Special Grade Tools could flip open. I started to skim them as I walked the warehouse floor.

One of the first I saw was meter and a half-ish staff with gleaming rings on a 'T' shaped metal cap with short arms at the head. It's label read 'Special Grade, Loyal Cloud Branch; lighting generation/manipulation'. I flipped up the label to read the description. 'When this staff is struck upon the ground, the rings will chime, and lightning will flow out at the chosen targets until the wielder raises the weapon again, or runs out of Cursed Energy.' Not bad. Not a lot of nuance in the description, but they probably wanted people to learn how to use them in a more practical fashion. I dropped the label, and kept searching.

A full two meter yumi bow, covered with strands of fur that looked like they were plastered under lacquer on the wood of the handle, 'Grade 3, Phantomsong Echo'.

A roughly one and three quarter meter odachi with a wheel-shaped tsuba, 'Grade 1, Glass Thorn'.

Further in, more and more. After a few minutes I found the first half of what I was looking for. A roughly sixty five centimeter kodachi. 'Grade 1, Promised Silence'.

There we are.

I reached out and picked up the sheathed blade. The handle was well wrapped in dark grey, and the tsuba was very small, but extravagantly engraved. The sheath was smooth blue-gray lacquered wood. I took the handle in my prosthetic, the sheath in my left hand and drew the blade. I couldn't help but give a little start, the blade was white. The spine was a darker shade and it lightened towards the edge, and the wickedly sharp tanto tip. It was a completely straight blade, which I liked. I pushed a surge of my Cursed Energy out my prosthetic into the weapon, and felt as it drank up the energy like water poured on dry sand. The tides and ebbs of my energy in the prosthetic and the blade synchronized with a swiftness that caught me by surprise, and settled into a comfortable equilibrium.

Perfect.

"Good choice. It suits you." Nanami's voice startled me half out of my skin, and I whipped around to look at him. I hadn't realized he was following me. It was moments like this I missed my swarm-sense. "Here," he continued, holding out what looked like a clipboard. "Sign your name, Grade, and the listed information of the Tool. Signing creates a low level Binding Vow, it makes stealing them far more difficult." I took the clipboard, and glanced over it.

"Who is 'Zen'in Maki'? I asked. Most of the signatures and weapons taken out were under that name.

"She is a second-year here at Jujutsu Tech. She's very proficient with Cursed Tools, and they're her primary weapons against Curses." Nanami lectured.

"I see."

Maybe I'll run into her one of these days.

After I filled out the little form on the clipboard, I handed it back to Nanami. "I would like another. I'm primarily a dual-wielder." He simply nodded his assent, and I returned to searching.

'Grade 2, Ivory Anvil'  Odd name for an axe, especially since it was so dark as to be nearly black.

A yari spear, 'Grade 1, Frenzied Maple Reach'.

A collection of shuriken, 'Grade 4, Far Flung Whistle'. I couldn't help but wonder who came up with some of these names.

After another ten or so minutes of looking, I hit the jackpot. There was what looked like a fifty or fifty five centimeter rod, maybe two inches around. It was made of a silvery metal with a wood and leather handle at one end and a sharp point at the other. It was resting next to a leather tube that was evidently it's version of a sheath. 'Special Grade, Vindictive Iron Cry, Cursed Energy vibrational resonance generation'. I reached out for the label, and started reading. 'When a person or object with Cursed Energy is struck, this tool starts a destructive wave interference phenomena with it's own, increasing damage and Cursed Energy disruption with every successful blow, for up to seven strikes.' Very nice, I'd gotten a lucky break it seems.

I took the metal rod in my prosthetic hand and drew my Cursed Energy into my left hand and reached up to flick the metal. The first tap started the Tool ringing like a tuning fork, but I didn't feel much on my end. 

Let's see if this works.

I reached with my hand, and flicked the metal again.

With a pained hiss of breath, my finger snapped back towards my palm with a surprising amount of force, and a pop came out of my knuckle. I looked and saw a small crack in my fingernail. That works. That works very well.

I got the clipboard back from Nanami and completed the sign out for Vindictive Iron Cry, right next to Promised Silence. 

I've got to come up with some kind of nickname for these.

I looked to Nanami as we were leaving and said, "Thank you Nanami-san."

"You're welcome." He offered in return, as he pointed out where to return the clipboard. It had a spot just inside the rolling door, on the wall. We then stepped outside and he closed it behind us. Then he turned and led me back out of the forest, up into Jujutsu Tech proper. As we went, I attached the two weapons to my belt. They sat stacked horizontally on the small of my back, the grip of the blade on my right, the baton on my left.

I turned to him and offered him an out, "You don't have to take me on the mission, Nanami-san. I'm sure it can wait until Gojo-san gets back." He turned to look at me, though similar to Gojo, I couldn't see his eyes.

"No," he uttered, turning down the offered way back to his own business. "Missions are not always time-sensitive, but neither should they be left on their own. Just because Gojo-san acts irresponsibly, that doesn't mean we can follow his example. We'll go, and complete the mission. Come along, we'll go see the assistant for the details." I just nodded in response to his little lecture. He probably needed to try to prevent others from being like Gojo, if only for his own sanity.

"Alright Nanami-san. After you." With that, we continued on.

On the other side of campus, Nanami and I met up with a fairly tall, nervous looking man with glasses, wearing a dark suit. He didn't look happy to see us, and when he looked at Nanami, I could see him swallow nervously and start to fidget with a file holder he had in his hands even from ten feet away.

"Good afternoon, Ijichi-kun." Nanami intoned once we got close. The assistant jumped a little, and gave a wobbly response, "Ah, hello, Nanami-san. How are you?"

"I'm fine." He took a breath to continue, but I'd gotten used to making my own introductions.

"Hello, Ijichi-san, my name is Hebert Taylor. I'm a first year here. It's nice to meet you." I said with a small bow.

He gave me a small smile and responded, "Hello, Hebert-chan, I'm Kiyotaka Ijichi. I work as an assistant for Jujutsu High. It's good to meet you too." his voice was somewhat more even talking to me. He might just be nervous around Nanami. It's easy to imagine how the large blond man could be intimidating.

"Ijichi-kun, give me the information about the mission Gojo-san was supposed to go on today." Nanami ordered. "He asked me to complete it with Hebert-chan today." As Ijichi once again jumped and started scrambling in his file holder, I dwelled a bit on how little I liked 'Hebert-chan'. There wasn't much I could do about it though. I'd have to keep thinking about it going forward. Maybe I could get more people than just Gojo to call me just 'Taylor'.

"Come with us, Hebert-chan. Ijichi-kun is going to take us to the location of the mission." At his brusque order, the three of us turned towards the campus' parking lot.

Time to start my first mission.

As we drove out of Tokyo, I listened as Ijichi verbally passed on the details of the mission. His voice smoothed into professionalism as he talked, clearly more in his comfort zone.

"Two of our Windows reported the presence of a Curse between the town of Hokuta and Kayaga Peak. Outside of city limits, there is a Christian denominational church that was abandoned more than fifteen years ago. Questions asked of the locals, and examination of police records claim that a criminal used the location to cover up his.. misdeeds. He posed as a priest and, if the records are accurate, killed no fewer than seventeen people. More than half of whom were younger than twelve. This understandably gave the church an unsavory reputation, and the focus of many local scary stories after it was totally abandoned. Demolition efforts were never successful, and the church was left to rot. It seems that as time passed and the town grew, more people started trying to revive the church, and fell victim to the Curse, bringing it to our attention. Initial examination has the Curse at Semi-Grade 2. This was intended as a test for you, Hebert-chan, to see if your current Grade is too low. If the Curse is too strong, Nanami-san will be nearby to assist."

"I understand." I responded confidently. I felt better than I had in a long time. Finally moving, finally working.

There was quiet as the drive continued. I was calm. Focused. This was good. This was right. Back in the field, against enemies that I had no need to hesitate before I hurt them, no need to feel a twinge of pity after they were destroyed. For one of the small handful of times since my awakening, I felt the fist around my heart loosen it's grip. What did that say about me?

It was almost an hour and forty five minutes until we reached our destination. We pulled off the side of the road at the base of a small hill outside of Hokuta. There was a rough cobbled path up, and faintly visible at the top of the hill was a steeple. My family, the Hebert's, had never been religious outside of basic lip service as far as I knew. If we had ever attended church on Sunday, it had been when I was too young to remember. Still, a church with a Curse. Did that count as irony? Maybe only if Curses counted as demons.

"Hebert-chan." Came Nanami's voice, drawing my attention. I turned to him as he continued. "You and I are going to go up the path. Once we do, Ijichi-kun is going to put up a curtain, and the operation to exorcise the Curse will begin. Are you ready?" I gave myself a once-over. Shoes tied tight, uniform buttoned, prosthetic fully functional. Then, weapons check. I gave them a pat, and a tug. 

"I'm ready, Nanami-san." I answered firmly, looking square into his mostly opaque glasses. He nodded in response, he seemed pleased. Was it that I had made a check before I just blurted out an answer?

"Let's go then. Ijichi-kun?"

"I'm ready when you are Nanami-san."

Then Nanami turned to me. "After you, Hebert-chan." I gave a nod, then started up the path. As I left I heard Ijichi's voice, "Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure." He sounded different as he cast the curtain. I couldn't help but look up and watch as it fell, spilling over in a dome that looked like an oil slick. I felt it once it reached the ground, all along the perimeter of the base of the hill. It drew in close, a pressure across my skin. 

As I reached the top of the hill, I started drawing on my Cursed Energy. Cursed Energy Reinforcement was one of my favorite aspects of my new powers. I'd always, even at the height of my power, been vulnerable on a physical level. It was nice to have a Brute rating. Strength, durability.

I felt it as my energy flowed through me, filling in the gaps between cells, strengthening molecular bonds, reinforcing my body from top to bottom. I pulled off my glasses and put them in a tough carrying case, as even my visual acuity was increased. It was too much to keep up constantly, but for combat situations it was just part of the package, to see clearly.

Still, maybe I should take Shoko up on her offer to try to fix my eyes. Not needing glasses would be nice.

As we pulled up closer to the doors to the church, I took in the looks of it. It was beyond creepy. It had held up fairly well, all things considered, but that just made it worse. Empty windows, like open eye sockets, wind passing through like groans of the damned. Moldering walls and ominous creaking. The church wasn't very big. There was no way I'd get in there without the curse knowing. So, going in loud.

I drew Silence in my prosthetic and Cry in my left hand and drew in a deep breath along with my right foot coming up to kick in the door. Then I hesitated. "Mission start, Nanami-san?"

"Mission start, Hebert-chan."

Then a kick that blew the right hand door off it's hinges. I took a step to go inside, but a tingle up my spine and a waft of foul air sweeping across my face sent me into a jump straight back, half a dozen meters. I was just in time as a limb swiped through the space where my throat had been a moment before, grasping empty air like a hand in the throes of rigor mortis.

My heart thundered in my ears as the curse gripped the other door in one gnarled hand and tore it off it's hinges like it was cardboard and threw it behind itself into the church. In that moment I got my first look at a full-fledged Curse. One thought started rattling through my mind.

Wrong.

It was tall, tall enough that it couldn't pass through the easily two and a half meter tall doors of the church without stooping.

Wrong.

I couldn't help but take a step back as it came one long stride closer on legs that had at least three joints each, feet that sank into the ground like a rhino's, and spread it's arms out in a hideous parody of a welcome. It's sickly purple-gray skin glistened in the washed out light that passed through Ijichi's curtain.

Wrong.

One thought spinning around in my head as four lidless eyes arranged around each other like the points of a diamond turned independent of each other taking in the world around it, then one at a time, rotated to lock on me. Then it opened it's mouth. A wide, four-jawed, jagged, reeking mouth that dripped slime on it's way open and out came a voice. A warbling, wet, sepulchral voice that filled the air.

"Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name."

Wrong.

"Our kingdom come, thy will be done."

Wrong.

fight

My feet moved without any input from me. I sped around to it's left with all my Cursed Reinforcement lent speed, and swung Iron Cry hard enough at one of the leg joints that I felt my shoulder pop. It struck with enough force that my weapon rang like a bell, and the Curse let out a screech. The fight was on.

Everything devolved into a blur, all I could hear was my heartbeat and the Curse talking.

"Our Father who art in Heaven." A second hit of Cry, ringing harder in my hand, tearing open the Curse's flesh and spilling out sick-smelling brackish fluid. Duck a swing of it's blunt clawed hand.

"Hallowed be thy name." Blocking a swinging fist with Cry, I discovered that that counted for the technique in the Tool, and I heard it's fingers snap loudly. That made three hits. It screeched and drew back so I happily took advantage of the opening and swung Silence low and fast and took off one of the thing's legs at a knee.

It tipped and hit the ground, but before I could close it swung a heavy fist around in a backhand. I couldn't get Cry in place to block, so I dropped flat to avoid the hit. As I scrambled back to position, the thing kept coming, moving to crawl towards me, it's voice spitting out apparently the only thing it could say.

"Our kingdom come." 

I scrambled to think of what to do. How to proceed. 

Take off it's limbs. Go for it's head, center of the eyes.

I inched closer, trying to draw in a strike.

"Thy will be done."

I watched as it's too long arm lashed out, and I swung with Cry, intercepting the hit. This time it's arm snapped completely, every hit with Cry landing harder, doing more damage. It warbled a scream, at least two of it's eyes watching as it's arm swung loosely, hanging on by a few strands and spluttering out more of whatever passed for blood among it's kind. I moved in with Silence pulled back low, lined up with my hip, ready to stab deep. 

I screwed up.

I got too eager, tried to end the fight without finishing disabling it's limbs. The Curse lashed out, stabbing it's fingers toward me. Too close to change my momentum or dodge. Cry is too far out of position. Everything seemed to slip into slow motion as it's hand drew closer to my face. I didn't know what to do.

fight 

A sharp heat bloomed in my head and I felt it's arm.. hesitate. 

I ignored the heat, ducked under it's static arm and put my full weight and all my momentum behind the tip of Silence. A heavy jolt vibrated through the whole prosthetic and up my shoulder as Silence stabbed into the center of the Curse's head, digging deep right in the center of it's cluster of eyes, all the way up to the tsuba. It's filthy blood analogue splattered over the prosthetic hand, and with a twist I ripped Silence back out, and skittered back.

No sense in staying too close.

It seemed my caution was unnecessary however, as the Curse flopped limply to the ground and started to dissolve. Once I was a safe distance away, I took a deep breath, an inch away from a gasp. The adrenaline hit me all at once, and I started shaking. I was practically vibrating as the thing slowly started to dissolve into nothing, and the heat in my head grew, becoming painful.

"Our Father who art in Heaven."

The heat grew, it felt like something was growing in my skull, trying to spread outside my head.

"Hallowed be thy name." The dissolution had continued, all that was left of it was it's torso, less of it remaining by the second.

Pain. Heat. 

fight

"Our kingdom come, thy will be done." All it had left was it's mouth and two eyes.

fight 

All at once, like a dam breaking, what felt like an aspect of my Cursed Energy exploded out past my skull. It spread all around, filling the area, all the way to the curtain. I could feel the Curse, still slowly disappearing, several small somethings still inside the church, and one more thing. I turned to look and saw Nanami. Less than fifteen feet away.

Oh no.

"On Earth, as it is in...Heaven." The curse faded from my senses.

No no no no, not AGAIN!

I could feel Nanami, I could feel the power, waiting to reach inside and take control.

No! My passenger is gone, I will not be that again!

"Hebert-chan, are you okay?" He said, sounding concerned. No. I was struggling not to panic. Struggling not to scream.

I will not be a Curse again! 

"No, Nanami-san, I'm not okay. I think I just activated my Innate Technique."

Control.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

"Your Innate Technique?" Nanami asked. I nodded shakily.

Don't panic, don't freak out, don't scream.

"So this is you then?" His sounded inquisitive as he looked around, "I think I can sense it. This field does match your Cursed Energy signature. Can you tell me what it does?"

I nodded shakily and in a weak voice said, "A bit."

I had to stop.

I have to think.

My name is Taylor Hebert. Next to me is the man named Nanami Kento. I am in Hokuta, Japan. I am not falling to the power, my passenger has not returned.

My name is Taylor Hebert, my mother's name was Annette Rose Hebert, my father's name is Daniel Hebert. I am standing beside Nanami Kento. Lisa, Brian, Rachel, Aster, Gojo Satoru, and Ieiri Shoko. My passenger is gone, I am not being consumed by my shard.

I'm fine.

Breath.

Nanami was looking at me with a question written across his face. "I think it gives me some kind of control of the things in my field." I looked around and zeroed in on the faintest signature nearby, there on the ground, some kind of beetle. I reached through the power, feeling through my Technique as my Cursed Energy filled the insect, taking control over it. I directed it to fly up in front of our faces and start doing figure-eights. It was.. harder than I remembered.

"That's fascinating Hebert-chan."  Nanami offered. He even sounded like he meant it. "Well done unlocking it. We'll need to do more testing back at Jujutsu High."

As Nanami turned to start walking back down the path towards Ijichi, I called out to him out of sheer reflex.

"Wait, Nanami-san, what about the other curses?"

He turned back towards me and asked "Other curses?"

"Yeah. There are four left in the church."

"You can sense them?" He sounded like he wanted to believe me but couldn't be sure.

"Yes, I can." I was striving to inject more confidence into my voice, I felt like this was important. "There are four. One's in the steeple, another two are in the basement, and the fourth is in what I think is a confessional."

Nanami's eyebrows rose up towards his hairline and he asked "I believe you can sense them, but the question is, can you control them? Like the beetle?"

I nodded, and using my Control I drew them outside to line up neatly on the grass out in front of the church. They were all nasty little things. They either had too many limbs or too few, bulging eyes or no eyes. It was nowhere near as smooth as controlling things had been through my shard, but it wasn't too bad.

"That's quite impressive Hebert-chan. You could sense these sub-Grade 4 Curses, even through the Semi-Grade 2's residuals. Not only that, they're completely under your control." Nanami said. He sounded truly impressed, and I struggled not to fall back into my terrified spiral, and enjoy the praise. I hadn't quite managed it before he continued with a brusque, "Kill them, and let's go. We'll go over your Technique further back at Jujutsu Tech."

Four quick slashes with Silence later and Nanami and I were walking back down toward Ijichi.

As we went I couldn't help but try to feel out the new expression of my power. I wasn't completely comfortable leaving it as it was for the whole drive back. The Control field stopped at the edge of ijichi's curtain, but inside I could feel nearly everything. Bugs, though not very many. Maybe even insects don't like Curses. Two birds trying to escape the far side of the curtain, and Nanami. 

As we drew closer Ijichi saw us and, with commendable alacrity, took down the curtain. The moment it fell, my Control spread like a bucket of water dumped on a Teflon sheet. I'd have to measure it later, but my range felt like it was at least two blocks in every direction. I could sense a great many bugs, more birds, and a few squirrels, Nanami and Ijichi as well as a few people that were going about their business outside the town limits of Hokuta. 

I hated it.

I started to grasp at the power with mental fingers and tried tried to draw it back inside. Tried to restrain it. At first nothing seemed to be happening but as I drew closer to the car I felt something shift. With a rush the field I was outputting reeled back in with a mental click. I clamped down to prevent it spilling back out as it spun restlessly in the confines of my skull.

Once it was restrained, I couldn't help but let out a gasp of desperate relief as the humans in my range once again fell outside of my Control. Even more, that I had proof that I had control over the power and it didn't control me.

Nanami's head swung back and he looked at me with some surprise. "You deactivated your Technique?"

"Yes, Nanami-san." I responded, though I didn't attempt to elaborate.

He accepted that, thankfully. Once the three of us climbed back into the vehicle Ijichi turned to look at Nanami in the passenger seat. He asked "What do you mean Nanami-san? Did something happen?"

"Hebert-chan activated her Innate Technique. It seems to expand a field, inside of which she can take control of organisms and curses. She then deactivated it upon our return."

"That's pretty impressive Hebert-chan." Ijichi said. "With a Technique like that you'll make Grade 1 in no time." I could tell he was trying to be supportive, but I could only nod shakily. I was still reeling from the seeming renewal of my power. My original power.

I stayed silent and sweating in the backseat as we drove back to Jujutsu High. All the while I struggled to regain, and maintain, control of myself.

I hated every second of it.

I'm fine.

Breathe.

By the time we made it back to Jujitsu Tech I was maybe halfway back to normal. Being able to decide whether or not to expand the field of my Control Technique or not was a burden off my conscience. There was no passenger here to take my power from me, nor a shard to gut my brain and make me forget.

There was no, ah what did Glaistig Uaine call it, no Queen Administrator to core my mind like an apple, leaving only a husk behind.

We stepped out of the car, and then Nanami turned to me and said, "Standard practice for post-mission debrief is for the assistant that accompanied the Jujutsu Sorcerers to make out a full report, and then the Sorcerers themselves add their experiences and observations, rather than write their own. It cuts down on paperwork and heads off many potential misunderstandings. On a simple mission like this, that is all that is required. Under more complicated situations, you may be required to write your own report alongside the assistant's."

"Alright Nanami-san, I can do that whenever it might be necessary." I had written quite a few reports in my years in the Wards.

Nanami looked at me with clear approval, probably for my willingness to do scutwork, and noticed that I still wasn't completely at level. His face softened slightly. "Why don't you go back to your room and try to relax. Maybe read a book and then go to sleep. Gojo-san won't be back until tomorrow morning at the earliest."

I started to speak, but hesitated. Did I really want to ask for this?

He noticed that too. "What is it Hebert-chan?"

"Will you meet with me tomorrow morning and help me train? With or without Gojo-san. I need to go over my Technique. I know Gojo-san is powerful and competent, but he's also a lot of other things. With you there I'm sure we'll be able to keep on track, if he even shows up." I needed to get a better grip on this.

He put on a contemplative look, and then reached into his inside suit jacket pocket and pulled out a little black notebook.

Is that a day planner?

He checked for a moment then nodded and said, "It would be my pleasure, Hebert-chan. I'm available until noon."

I offered him my thanks and then turned to Ijichi and offered him the same. "Thank you for today Ijichi-san. I look forward to working with you on the report." Japanese manners.

He looked mildly surprised and said "It was no trouble Hebert-chan. I'll come find you when it's ready." Then with a goodbye to Nanami and I, he turned and left to go about his business.

Then Nanami and I exchanged our own goodbyes and went our separate ways after agreeing to meet at seven the next morning. I then returned to my room. I thought about trying to read but I knew I probably couldn't focus on it. So instead I fell back and laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling.

Unfortunately, my inactivity seemed to give my fears time to catch up with me, and I felt myself beginning to spiral. 

I could feel the power broiling. Waiting. Holding it in felt like keeping my hand closed in a fist. Not inherently difficult, but carrying the knowledge that if you relax, your hand will open and you'll let go. And I couldn't let go. I couldn't. I wouldn't.

By the the time the sun went down a few hours later I was a hairs' breadth from full blown panic.

My breath was short, I was sweating, my vision was blurry and I couldn't tell if it was because had taken my glasses off or not. The seam of the prosthetic was itching like fire, and it's nails were tingling sharply, though I knew they couldn't be.

I need to see Shoko.

On numb feet I made my way through the darkened Jujitsu Tech campus and found my way to her medical facility. I counted myself lucky that she was still awake inside, writing on a clipboard.

"Shoko." I said, my voice cracking.

Her head came up and I saw a brief flit of concern cross her face, before her professional mask settled on.

"Hello, Taylor-chan. What brings you here tonight. Need a checkup?" She spoke as level and professional as ever.

I felt myself nod and made my way over to the bed nearest her and laid down stiffly.

"I feel hot. The prosthetic itches. I'm confused. I.. wanted to see you. I think my brain might be backsliding. I feel.. cracked open. I also wanted to take you up on your offer to fix my vision." I was only partially in control of my own voice, saying things I didn't mean to let out. I felt disjointed.

Her professional doctor mask didn't slip an inch as she said, "Okay. I'll run my Reverse Cursed Technique through your brain, get a feel for anything going on, then we'll get to work on your eyes."

I could only nod as she slipped off my glasses, so I had still been wearing them, and set them to the side before her hands were wreathed in an barely visible white sheen. She laid her palms on my temples and I felt as the positive energy started bouncing back and forth between her hands.

I almost instantly felt much better. Nowhere near one hundred percent, but better.

I was startled when she started to speak, "So, what's going on Taylor-chan? Something go wrong on the mission?"

I swallowed once to clear my throat before I answered, "No, the mission itself went fine. I activated my Innate Technique while we were out there."

Shoko sounded surprised when she responded. "Is that a bad thing? I thought you'd been trying to activate your Technique for some time."

"I was, but it scares me."

Shoko let out a hum as she deactivated her Reverse Cursed Technique and then took her hands from my head. I opened my eyes to look at her upside down and she met my gaze. That was fast. "Well, your brain is fine." she said "No physiological problems." She then came around to the side of the bed and laid a hand over my eyes. It was cool.

"This is going to sting some. I have to damage the structure of your eyes before I can restore them to full, proper functionality."

"Alright. Go ahead."

The pain wasn't bad. It seemed only about as painful as looking into a too bright light, first thing in the morning, but it still made me hiss through my teeth.

As she worked she asked me, "Why does your Technique scare you?"

"It's wrong." I said. "It spreads out a field of Cursed Energy that lets me take over the bodies of people, and things that have cursed energy. Even bugs."

As the pain in my eyes began to fade, I heard Shoko make a small noise of surprise. "That's interesting." she said "If a Fly Head could be said to have one 'unit' of Cursed Energy, the average bug would have so little you'd need four or five zeros after the decimal before you could get an accurate measurement. The fact that that's enough for your Technique is fascinating."

I let out a broken noise and said, "I don't care about the bugs, they aren't the problem. It's the people. I didn't try to, but I know that I can take over humans too. I'm afraid of losing myself. In the power, in the curses."

Shoko made a small noise that I couldn't quite identify. Then she told me, in a tone of utmost confidence, "I don't think you have a problem Taylor-chan." I couldn't stop a twitch of surprise, of denial, from going through me.

"Power, no matter its form, can be abused. Great or small, terrifying or seemingly benevolent. All power. The fact that you are here now, agonizing over this tells me that there's no need to fear. As long as you remember, as long as you know, that there are those who will help you and those who will stop you, you have no need to be afraid. I know what it looks like when someone is about to jump off the slippery slope." Her voice was firm, even and cool.

It was nothing I didn't already know, but hearing her say it and the feeling the warmth of her Reverse Curse Technique made the words sink in better.

I couldn't help but ask in my cracking voice "Are you sure? I could take you over right now. Enslave you."

"Try it."

"What?"

"I said try me. You said your Cursed Energy flows into the mind of your target and takes control, right?" I made an affirmative noise. "Give me your best shot Taylor."

I swallowed and as I relaxed my grip on the power I asked one more time. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

I felt the weight of my power come down on Shoko's mind and.. disappear?

I couldn't stop the shocked noise I made in my throat as my Cursed Technique tried to reach into Shoko's mind and just seemed to vanish.

"What's going on? How are you doing that?" I asked desperately.

She answered my question with a question "Do you know where in the body Jujitsu Techniques originate?" I shook my head under her hand lightly.

"Cursed Energy flows from the center of the body behind the navel. It travels into the brain and through the right prefrontal cortex where Techniques are engraved. The Reverse Curse Technique however, stems from the brain itself from the moment it's generated. When Cursed Energy meets Reverse Curse Technique's positive energy, the positive energy will almost invariably win. It can even destroy cursed spirits like the deadliest acid. All I have to do is sheath my brain in positive energy and I'm beyond your reach."

I couldn't help it, I tried harder. Leaning on the power to push in. To take over.

"I can feel that you know. I told you Taylor-chan, there are those who will help you," she said, clearly meaning herself, "and there will be those who can and will stop you if it becomes necessary."

With a rattling gasp I reeled my Technique back in and took a few very deep breaths. My throat felt tight.

"Thank you, Shoko."

"You're welcome Taylor."

"..Are my eyes about finished?"

She huffed an almost laugh and then removed her hand and I opened my eyes to turn to look at her. 

"Everything is still blurry, Shoko, did it work?"

I could see enough to know she was still smiling as she reached to the side and plucked something to hand to me.

It was a tissue. I looked at her a little confused, only for her voice to grow even more amused. "You're crying, Taylor-chan."

What?

With the piece of tissue in my right hand, I raised my left up to feel my face. I finally noticed the warm water on my cheeks.

I really was crying. I couldn't tell if it was out of relief or maybe fear, maybe both or neither, but I was crying. When had I last cried? I couldn't remember.

"It's okay Taylor-chan." Shoko said. I heard her voice as if she was far away. "As your doctor, I'm telling you, it's okay to cry."

I tried to take a deep breath to steady myself even a little bit and I found myself, for just a split second, wishing I had my old passenger back so that I could shunt all these embarrassing feelings into it.

But I didn't have that now, so much the better, and so all I could do was ask, "Can I stay here tonight?"

"Sure, Taylor-chan." Shoko said. "I could use some company."

After another few hours have passed and my weeping fit had ended, I was resting on one of the hospital beds listening to Shoko go about her work and I realized I hadn't been using any honorifics.

Well, if she's okay with it, I am too.

After I woke up the next morning in Shoko's clinic we talked for a few more minutes. I was deeply thankful that she hadn't been very touchy feely with me. She hadn't touched me even once outside of her examinations. Not a pat on the back or anything. Her voice had hardly even warmed outside of faint amusement. That just made her better though, in my opinion, more of rock to hold onto in a storm than a shoulder to cry on. She was very much the serious reliable type, I thought.

Then she told me that I was welcome to go drinking with her whenever I wanted. I said I was underage but she just shrugged.

After leaving, I went to go meet up with Nanami in one of the training fields and had had just started warming up when Nanami arrived, right on time. I was leery of training my Technique, but I knew it was necessary.

Nanami spoke first "I made a call to Gojo-san ten minutes ago. He should be arriving shortly."

I asked him, "Do you want to see if he shows up, wait for him?" 

"Yes, his Six Eyes will be very helpful in training your Technique." I nodded, and started to sit down when he spoke again.

"You seem better, Hebert-chan. Sleep well?"

"I am better," I said, not really answering him. "I spent some time with a friend last night. She helped me a lot."

"Good." Nanami droned. "Friends are good for children to have."

At that, I slanted him a look.

A child, am I?

He noticed my look and said, with a distinct lack of defensiveness, "Being a child isn't a crime Hebert-chan. No need to look at me like that."

I didn't dignify that with a response, and settled into a meditative posture. 

As I waited for Gojo, I thought about something that Shoko said last night that stuck with me. She said that Innate Techniques were engraved in the brain, in the right prefrontal cortex. As I followed this train of thought, I couldn't help but wonder about the fact that my Innate Technique was so similar to the power granted by my passenger. It was too big a coincidence. Maybe, just maybe, having my shard jailbroken effectively engraved this Curse Technique onto my brain. A loose copy of the powers of the Queen Administrator, as Glaistig Uaine had called it once upon a time.

Is my passenger still influencing me?

I was mercifully interrupted in my pondering as with a quiet rush, Gojo abruptly appeared in midair. And stayed there.

He can fly?

"Yo, Taylor, Nanami. How's it going, How was the mission? Why'd you ask me to meet you here Nanami?"

Neither Nanami or I answered most of Gojo's queries, but Nanami did say while I stood up, "Did you not speak to Ijichi-kun about the mission Gojo-san?"

Gojo just shrugged as he floated down slowly till he stood on the grass. "I just got here. Besides, why would I ask Ijichi when I can ask you two?"

Nanami tried valiantly to suppress a sigh, and responded, "The mission went well. Hebert-chan is a good fighter. The curse didn't land one hit, and she dispatched it in less than ten moves. She also-" He was cut off as Gojo turned to me and crowed exuberantly, "I knew you'd be good, Taylor! I knew it! High-five." He said, hand up.

"-She also" Nanami continued in a strained tone, prompting Gojo to turn back to him. "activated her Innate Technique. Which is why we asked you here today. Your Six Eyes will help us pick out a lot of details, things she and I might both miss."

"Alright!" Gojo shouted. "I love power testing!"

Then he turned to me, "So, what is it?"

In lieu of a verbal answer, I released my power, and felt it unspool. Gojo, Nanami, a half a dozen other people, and a great many smaller creatures suddenly sprang into my awareness. I grabbed a few flying insects, and had them start doing my normal routine, figure-eights at eye height.

"Ooooh." He exclaimed. "Can you just do bugs?"

Nanami answered for me. "No. I saw her take complete control over four Cursed Spirits at the church."

"Nice." Gojo said with a grin. "What grade were they?"

"Sub-Grade 4."

"Hmmm." Gojo turned contemplative as he adopted a thinking pose. "Taylor, do you think you can do humans?"

"I'm pretty sure I can at least interact with anything that has any level of Cursed Energy." I responded.

"That tracks. What are you calling it?"

"'Control.'"

"Dull and simplistic, yet strangely evocative. Okay Taylor, try and use Control on me."

I was significantly less reluctant to use it on Gojo than I had been on Shoko, but I still felt the need to ask. "Are you sure?"

"'Coarse I'm sure." He sounded a little put out that I'd even felt the need to ask.

With no further warning I pressed my Control down on his mind and immediately ran into a steel wall.

"Hurghk!" A noise grated out of my chest at the total rejection. I kept the pressure up, but unlike Shoko's positive energy that had just dissolved it, Gojo's Cursed Energy was blocking my Control like iron stops a light breeze. It was a barrier of thrumming power that I knew I'd never break.

"I can feel that. It's pressing in on my mind, but I can meet it with my Cursed Energy." With that I stopped pushing, and relaxed. Gojo wasn't done though, "Now use it on Nanami. I need to see it in someone else."

"Are you okay with that Nanami-san?"

"I am Hebert-chan."

With the confidence in his answer, once again I bore down with Control. This time it felt like trying to shove my hands into packed sand. There was some give, but I couldn't get all the way in.

Nanami stiffened with a hiss, and I reflexively pulled back, but Gojo interjected, "Keep going Taylor. I need to see it." At that he pulled up his blindfold over one eye. He looked all around him as I pressured Nanami and grasped several insects. I was trying to multitask, to give him more information, but whatever aspect of my powers had held super-multitasking had been left behind. He even looked straight up in the air, then at me. He had me grab a few small animals, squirrels and birds, once I'd let go of Nanami. He also told me to grab as much, as many as I could at once.

After an hour or so of testing with various creatures at various ranges, including Fly Heads he'd gotten from somewhere, he looked me straight in the face.

Huh. He has very blue eyes.

"So," He started. "With all the information thus far, I'll say this for the preliminary examination; Taylor, your Innate Technique: 'Control' injects a psychic variation of your Cursed Energy into a target. The target must also have some level of Cursed Energy, disqualifying plants and inanimate objects. Once injected, if your Cursed Energy exceeds the target's in quantity or quality, you gain complete control over it. If the target's Cursed Energy more closely matches yours, there's a fight for dominance, and if the target's Cursed Energy exceeds yours in quality and quantity, Control doesn't have any power over them. The range looks to be roughly one hundred seventy meters in every direction but down. The closer the target is to you Taylor, the stronger and more efficient your Control. It looks to me like if Nanami and I were more than say, four point seven, or four point eight meters away," 'sixteen feet' my traitorous brain whispered. "you wouldn't be able to use Control on us without an extreme and deleterious drop in energy efficiency. After that, it would be small-ish animals and mid-level Cursed Spirits until about one hundred twenty meters, then another drop, and after that it'd just be bugs and Fly Heads."

After he finished I tried not to stare at him. His tone was still light, but he spoke with confidence and it was such a detailed analysis. Any kind of instinctive grasp of my power I had agreed with him.

So I guess that makes another power for the list. Brute, Mover, and Thinker.

So, my power was layers of control set up in concentric circles that went one way. From one hundred seventy meters out all the way in to my skin, I could control small, simple creatures. On the other end, I lost control of larger, more powerful and complex targets the farther away they got.

I can work with this.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

Nearly four weeks after I unlocked my Innate Technique, I was in the clinic with Shoko, sitting next to her on a stool enjoying her company. I had been spending more time with her, in between training, polishing my Japanese, completing assigned missions, and more training. I was about to respond to her last witticism, but I was interrupted by a loud and far too familiar voice.

"Taayyloor!" 

I couldn't keep in a sigh when I heard Gojo's voice slowly get louder as he got closer. I looked at Shoko and drily tried to quip, "If I hide in here long enough for him to get bored, do you think he would just leave?"

Shoko smirked, and simply said, "No. Especially since I'd tell him where you were to get rid of him."

I grumbled a little at that. Gojo really wasn't a bad guy, he was just... a lot.

Once again slamming it open with unnecessary force, the strongest sorcerer alive burst through the door. "Shoko! Is Taylor in here?" Turning his blindfolded face towards me, his shoulders lifted and he perked up visibly.

"There you are. Come with me, I got a mission!"

I started to get up off the stool Shoko had lent me and asked, "I got assigned another mission?"

"No, it's my mission. I just want you to come."

"...Why?"

He just smiled. 

With a sigh I got up, retrieved my equipment from a tray next to me, and walked over to him. Shoko followed us up as Gojo led me outside into the sunlight while I strapped on my weapons' belt. She started to say goodbye to me, but was interrupted by the noise that came bursting out of my throat when Gojo seized me by the back of my uniform top and hoisted me off the ground, like a kitten by the scruff, and we disappeared. The last view I had of Shoko, she had her eyebrows quirked, and looked deeply amused.

Teleportation was a disorienting thing, it always had been. All the way back to when I had been snatched out of a flooding warehouse by Strider, and any and every occasion since. One second I was looking at Shoko, the next I was staring at a small series of dilapidated buildings. We were a few hundred meters away from what looked like a tiny abandoned town of maybe two dozen small buildings on both sides of a half-destroyed road.

I started thrashing around in Gojo's hold, and noisily demanded that he let me go. He just laughed and rotated his wrist so that I was facing him more directly.

"What if I don't let you go? Whatcha gonna do about it?"

I glowered at him with from my position almost fifteen centimeters off the ground, my face a bit above his eyeline, my feet dangling pitifully. I wasn't sure why my uniform collar wasn't choking me, but it didn't really matter. I knew Control wouldn't help me here, but well, there was only one thing I could do in a situation like this, being manhandled by an older guy.

With a surge of Cursed Energy, I swung my fist right into his nose.

I tried to, at least, but my fist stopped five or so centimeters away from his smug face. He let out a loud, arrogant laugh at my stunned expression. "Straight for the face, wow! Don't feel too bad, Taylor." He set me down, thankfully, before he continued. "That's just my Infinity. No one can hit me."

"Infinity?" I asked, as I righted myself and straightened my uniform. "What is that? I thought your Innate Technique was the Limitless." I'd read plenty about the Gojo family during my days researching, including the man in front of me. I'd seen it mentioned in several places that he was the first person in centuries to inherit both the Six Eyes and the Limitless, though there wasn't a lot in the public records about what exactly those were.

He smirked at me and, to my surprise, started to explain. "Infinity is the neutral expression of the Limitless Technique. The power to stop. Well, not stop exactly. Here, I'll show you. Put your hand out."

He held his hand out, palm towards me. I was a little skeptical, but despite being annoying, he'd never led me wrong before. I put my hand out the same as he did and reached closer. Just before our hands touched, my hand seemed to hit a barrier. Like there was an invisible, impossibly smooth pane of glass between us. Honestly, it felt like the pressure that appeared when I'd tried to push two magnets together as a kid.

"See?" He asked unnecessarily. "You're not exactly stopped, but the closer you get to me the slower you go, until from the perspective of the rest of the universe you're not moving at all. It's like virtual space, a paradox. You know, like from 'Achilles and the Tortoise'."

I stared in rapt attention. I did know that story actually, Zeno's Paradox, 'Any moving object must reach halfway on a course before it reaches the end; and because there are an infinite number of halfway points, a moving object never reaches the end in a finite time'.

I'd seen some pretty incredible powers in my life, but this one was in the top five. There was no physical barrier, it was a manipulation of space-time that no amount of physical strength or even something less straightforward like heat or electricity would overcome, and I was hard pressed to imagine a counter. Scion's golden light would probably work. Eidolon might have been able to find a power to bypass it. Foil's power too, maybe Grey Boy's. I would be interested to see if Scrub's power did anything. 

That makes four ratings for Gojo. Brute, Mover, Thinker, and now Shaker.

"Well, I suppose that explains your attitude." I said. He tilted his head at me in a clear question as we put our hands down.

"There's literally an Infinity between you and everyone else." My voice came out more somber than I'd really meant it to. That sounded lonely, even to me.

He was smirking when he responded, "Now you're getting it."

"So," I started, shaking off the moment's solemnity. "That's 'stop'. You said that's the neutral expression. That means there's a positive and a negative expression, right? What are they, 'push' and 'pull'?" I was imagining Gojo as the point of origin for a force that would knock someone away, or drag them closer.

His smirk grew wider, turning into a full grin, showing off his obnoxiously white teeth before he spoke again, his voice full of pride, "You're a sharp one Taylor. I knew I was right to pick you."

I didn't think it was very impressive, it seemed like a fairly logical progression to me. If an ability is divided into thirds, and the neutral third is 'stop', it just made sense that positive and negative would be 'push' and 'pull'. Assuming he wasn't just being condescending at me, or that he was messing with me and didn't actually have three powers in one.

I was about to ask more, but he waved me off, "There'll be time for that later. We're on a mission, remember?" I nodded, a little disappointed.

"I got a call. There's a couple of Grade 2 Sorcerers here, looking for a Grade 1 Curse. They sent out an SOS when instead of a Curse, they found nearly a dozen Curse Users. The Curse Users managed to sever the communication before we could get any more details." Gojo told me as he turned and started walking down the ancient, cracked street towards the tiny collection of abandoned buildings. I looked around, there were quite a few places to hide.

I said as much, and he nodded before answering the unspoken question. "I could easily find them, but I want you to do it. It's good practice for you."

"And once I find them? Capture them?"

He snorted. "There's not really a Jujutsu prison system. Capturing them is just making sure they die a little later, and likely a lot slower." He turned to me, and let his arrogance slip a little towards seriousness, "Trust me Taylor, no one is more willing than me to give people a chance to prove they're worth keeping around. These guys however, are not that. They're bad guys, they chose to be that way, and they'll never change."

I nodded. I knew of people like that already. The Slaughterhouse Nine were the first to come to mind.

"So, kill them."

I can do that.

"While you do that," he continued, "I'll find our sorcerers, and the Curse Users' victims, if there're any here." I nodded my acceptance of his plan, and he vanished in another teleport.

After he was gone, I moved into the little town, and peeled off to the side of the street and tucked myself out of sight. Once I was appropriately hidden, I let Control unspool. My range covered practically the entire town, and within it, I could sense nine signatures. They weren't within range for me to seize them immediately, but I knew exactly where they were. They were all holed up in a building near the far end, on my left. I felt them start to scramble as they sensed my power in turn, and they split up. Three groups of three.

Seems they're not dumb.

That was too bad. Dumb enemies are half a blessing.

I knew from training with Gojo and Nanami that even though my targets could feel Control, they couldn't sense me within it. As far as they were concerned, I could be anywhere within one hundred seventy meters, right up until the moment they made visual contact. As their three teams split up, I tracked them. One started down the street, another crossed to the buildings on the other side, and the third stayed in place, presumably to provide some kind of overwatch.

I was moving before they made it out of their hole.

I looped around the back side of the row of buildings on my left and started toward the stationary team. I knew stealth, it was all that had kept me alive sometimes, and it served me well in the here and now. As I got closer, I drew Silence and Cry from their sheaths. By now their grips were long familiar in my hands, even the prosthetic.

I came up on the second to last building on the left, and heard voices, subdued but audible, through an open window on the back wall.

"Are you being serious right now?" one voice, panic clear "there's a special grade out there, hunting us! We can't fight that!"

They can sense Gojo?

"That's not a special grade," a second voice, older, more firm. "It's just a technique, probably a sensory ability."

Oh. They mean me.

"He's right," a third voice, female, "I'm not afraid of these shitty sorcerers!"

Before they could continue arguing, I decided to interrupt. I activated my Cursed Reinforcement and vaulted through the open window. One distinct advantage of having a limb that functions, but doesn't feel pain, is that I could use it to jump the window sill without risk of incurring damage or losing momentum to the tiny shards of broken glass I heard more than felt grinding into the heel of my hand.

With that, they were in range. I was three long strides away when I brought Control down on them with all my might. Two of them folded immediately, completely suborned, but the third resisted. He froze in place as he fought me for mastery of his body, and he had what felt like a real chance of winning our tug-of-war, but I wasn't going to wait. I sprinted up to him and with Reinforcement-lent strength, I stabbed him in the back with Silence. Right through his heart.

He never even saw who killed him.

With a sigh and a gurgle he fell to the ground, and I pulled Silence from his body with a squelch.

With no small amount of trepidation I then turned my attention to my two new, ugh, thralls. They were dressed simply, basic pants and t-shirts. Each had a long knife, maybe as long as their forearms.  As I began to plan my next move, I realized that I could feel their minds trying to take back their bodies. It was an eerie sensation, a mental version of catching a tadpole in your hand, a squirming resistance. I shuddered at the notion that they could feel, and think, as I strung them like puppets.

I am not that.

My name is Taylor Hebert. I am not losing myself.

I am me.

I swallowed heavily and moved on towards the team that had crossed to the other side of the street. They were waiting in place, no doubt trying to think of their own next move. I took my two thralls, and moved to follow them. It took only moments for the three of us to catch up with them, and once we did I tucked myself between two of the dilapidated buildings, out of sight. I moved my two thralls, and bid one of them to whistle quietly. The three Curse Users came out of hiding, and paced slowly to meet with them.

A little closer.

The three free Curse Users came slowly, clearly suspecting a trap. "Where is Gogyou?" One asked in a harsh whisper. "Whoever's technique this is must be nearby, we can't dawdle."

Not quite nearby enough.

I attempted to speak through one of my thralls, the male, but his voice came out in a thick, cracking, croak. "He's still keeping watch." 

"What's wrong with your voice?" My Control wasn't good enough, they were getting too suspicious. I decided to throw caution to the wind, and rushed them.

This time, one fell instantly, but two resisted. Of the two, one froze like before, but the other could still move some. I leaned on him harder as I came within arms reach, and he slowed like he was caught in molasses. Far too slow to block my swing with Cry that ended with a ringing blow to his head, just above his ear.

He staggered heavily, and his resistance shattered like glass. I turned my full attention to the last one, but his efforts to fight fell apart, crumpling like tinfoil before I had to do much extra.

That makes five. The three were also armed, one had a sledgehammer and a knife on his belt, one had a ninja-to lookalike, and the third had a hatchet.

I took a deep breath, and started to take stock of the situation. The three Curse Users who had traveled down the street had since reached the end, and turned back. They were coming slowly, carefully. I had run into a problem though.

Controlling five humans is hard.

The wriggling of one or two tadpoles is easily managed, but the more I added, the worse it got. I could ease the burden by synchronizing them, making all their movements match, but that would be an immediate red flag to their allies. I couldn't effectively fight with thralls, and my own body.

Maybe if I do it like this...

A moment's organization later, and five Curse Users walked into the open. Four of them stopped by the side of the road, standing calmly, the other stepped onto it. I doubted anyone would notice if they were breathing in perfect time with each other, and four of them were a little too still. Not until it was too late, at least. I had the woman raise her hand and call out, "It's alright, we caught the sorcerer!" Perhaps because her vocal cords are more similar to mine, she sounded less like she had a mouth full of gravel, and more that she had just strained her voice yelling.

Ever so slowly, the other three stepped into the open. "What happened?" One called in response.

I spoke through his ally's mouth, "The idiot's sensor field didn't help her in direct combat." I directed her to swing her hand lightly back, "She's back with Gogyou." 

There was a relieved smile and a light chuckle but the third guy perked up. "'She'? Is she hot?" Gross.

I was saved having to puppeteer an answer to that as they came closer, within a meter of my innermost range boundary.

All six of 'me' rushed them at once. Even in synch, I couldn't make them do anything excessively complicated like joint locks, or coordinated grappling, but a dog pile is pretty simple. A few moments scuffling, and one judicious swing of Cry, later and I had eight thralls. I lined them up neatly by the road all in synch with one another, down to their blinking eyes and settled in to wait for Gojo.

While I waited, I started thinking about how I was supposed to kill them, and I was considering how best to do so. Before I could decide, I felt Gojo reappear in my range and heard him start clapping. 

"That was so, very, cool!" He was being over exuberant again, but I had to admit the praise was nice.

Eventually, he stopped congratulating me and I asked how his side of the mission had gone. He no longer looked amused, but didn't seem despondent as he answered. "They killed the two Jujutsu Sorcerers. Looks like they were tortured first. The rest of their victims were in a little cabin a kilometer or so North."

"The rest?" I asked. I didn't actually really want to know the answer, but I felt it best to ask.

"They kidnapped and murdered nearly thirty people. Teenagers, mostly. Lots of torture, they were probably trying to harvest Curses."

I see.

I went back to trying to decide how I wanted to kill them. I thought of and discarded a few ideas before I finally settled on one. I turned to Gojo and asked "How much Cursed Energy is needed to make sure they won't come back as a Curse?" I just needed to be sure none of them would come back if I killed them like I had planned.

He responded "As long as whatever kills them has pretty much any Cursed Energy, they'll not come back."

"Good." I responded then turned and flexed my Control and all at once, the Curse Users grabbed whatever bladed weapons they had and slit their own throats. They bled and died in complete silence, still in my complete Control. I felt the struggling of their minds redouble in panic, but it wasn't enough, not even close, not now that my Control was established. I was a little disturbed at how easy it was, energy and morality wise, but I figured they deserved it, it wasn't like I was torturing them to death or anything.

I turned to see that Gojo was eyeing me a little sideways. "You're a scary girl Taylor." Then he grinned wide and said, "I like that about you."

Then he pulled his phone out of his pocket to call the assistant for reports and cleanup, and once again grabbed me by the scruff of my uniform and we disappeared.

After our return to Jujitsu High, I shook Gojo off and returned to my room to clean my weapons and shower. Then I went to go find some food. As I went, I started deliberating, and eventually decided to grab some extra to take to Shoko.

Once I returned to her clinic I opened the doors and stepped inside and held out the armful of food to her "Hey, Shoko, do you want some food?"

She turned to look at me and immediately burst into a sort of giggling laughter. My jaw dropped in shock, I didn't think she could, much less ever would, make those kinds of sounds. I managed not to feel hurt by her laughing at me, even smiled slightly as she continued. "What's funny?" I asked.

She regained enough control of her voice to speak, "That squeal you made when Gojo snatched you, was one of the funniest things I've heard in a long time."

I couldn't help but voice my objections, "I did not squeal!" I might've squeaked, but not squealed. 

Shoko just kept laughing, over my continued protests.

"You're right, Taylor." Came a voice from behind me. I whipped my head around, and realized I had been too preoccupied to notice Gojo as he walked up to us. "It was more of a yowl, or a squawk."  He continued, smiling wide at the eye-roll I directed at him. He was dressed down, for once. This was the first time I'd seen him wearing something so casual, rather than his Jujutsu uniform. A dark shirt with a wide enough neck that I could see his collarbones, and grey slacks with white shoes. He wasn't wearing his blindfold either, just a pair of very dark sunglasses. 

He looked different with his hair down. Younger, maybe.

I turned to go into the clinic, and he followed me, inviting himself to join our impromptu lunch and sitting down with us. He did so largely by stealing bits of the food I'd brought for Shoko and I, and letting our retaliatory swipes bounce off his Infinity.

More than an hour passed that way, with banter and sniping, and it was weirdly nice. Shoko was as dry and level as ever, but if Gojo was more even-keeled like this more often then it would be a lot easier for me to stand him.

Eventually, Gojo stood up with a sigh, and said "I actually came to find you for a reason, Taylor." 

"Oh?" I asked "Another mission lined up already, or am I finally gonna start classes? Start having to call you 'Gojo-sensei'?"

"First of all, you need a hobby. It's not all missions all the time." I struggled not to interject that I had a hobby, it's called reading. "Second, yes. I'm gonna send you on a mission with Megumi the day after tomorrow so you can get to know each other, then you'll start joining him for classes along with the other one. Third, as I am a teacher, that would be fine, but as I am also great, powerful, and beautiful , '-sama' would also be acceptable."

A snort tore out of my throat at that. 

"Sounds good." I said. "What's the mission with Fushiguro-san?"

"You'll be going to a high school in Sendai to retrieve a Special Grade Cursed Object. More specifically, the finger of one Ryomen Sukuna."

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

"A thermometer shed?!" Fushiguro's voice was incredulous, annoyed, as he spoke into his cell phone. We were standing together in front of a slat-sided shed about a meter and a half off the ground, in the cool of the pre-dawn light. At least our Jujutsu High uniforms were warm. As Fushiguro kept talking on the phone, presumably with Gojo, I moved to open it. I had a bad feeling, in that I couldn't sense any Cursed Energy, at least not enough to constitute a Special Grade Cursed Object. I moved over and pulled open the doors.

I knew it.

I turned to Fushiguro and caught the end of his talk with Gojo. "-in a place like this?"

"It's empty." I said, more calmly than I felt. This was very bad.

Fushiguro's head whipped over to look at me, then he leaned over to see for himself. His face turned distinctly displeased as he spoke into his phone. "The shed is empty." I heard Gojo's voice, though not his words, as it sounded tinnily over the phone. I could catch enough to hear how jovial it sounded.

I saw a vein in Fushiguro's head bulge, and he growled out a response to whatever inappropriately happy idiocy Gojo was sending his way. "I'm gonna punch you." He promised. Another brief burst of Gojo's voice became audible over the phone before Fushiguro hung up, and slid the phone into his pocket.

"If he said something obnoxious, like 'Well, you can't leave until you find it.', I'll hold his arms while you hit him." I offered, only kind of joking. If only he wasn't so powerful.

Fushiguro shook his head in what looked like exasperation, "You got it in one. We have to find it."

"What are you thinking, someone from the high school took it?"

He agreed, "I do think that's the most likely explanation." I gusted a sigh. 

"Disguises?"

He just nodded. He didn't seem any happier about it than I was.

Not even two hours later, we were standing together on the Sugisawa High School rugby field, staring at a Grade 2 Curse.  He was wearing a white button up shirt tucked into dark pants, I was in a blue t-shirt and light grey slacks. The curse was vaguely reptilian, and deeply ugly, as they all were, but there were far too many people around to try to kill it.

"What, is there a body buried under the field or something?" His question sounded rhetorical, so I didn't respond. I was still trying to get a sense for where the Cursed Object might be. It's signature was everywhere, but faint and watery. Like it was right in front of us, but nowhere around.

As Fushiguro and I walked along, he voiced my thoughts out loud, grumbling half to himself. "Damnit, the presence is too big! At this rate, we might as well have not snuck in at all."

"Relax, Fushiguro-san. Stressing about it won't help. How about we split up? I'll hang a left, you go right. We'll cover the perimeter, then move through the school, one floor each until we find it, or prove it's not here. If one of us finds it, we'll flare our Cursed Energy as a signal." I offered. He put his hand on his chin, contemplative.

"That makes sense. Alright, we'll-" He was interrupted by shouts from around us.

"Over here!"

                   "Hurry up!"

I turned to Fushiguro, "We should check that out." He nodded and we followed the shouts, even though I was skeptical. It might be related, and it wouldn't cost us much, in time or effort. I distinctly heard at least one person say something about a shot-put competition though, which lowered the likelihood of this being helpful.

We arrived among the crowd just in time to see a pink-haired student in a hoodie and rolled-up jeans hurl a shot-put like it was a baseball. It flew almost completely horizontal until it slammed into a soccer goal hard enough to bend the metal frame and lodge itself there from maybe thirty meters away. I felt my eyebrows climb my forehead, and turned to Fushiguro who looked quietly impressed.

"What do you think that was about?" I asked. "How he did that with so little Cursed Energy."

Fushiguro hummed as he thought for a brief moment. "Heavenly Restriction, maybe? Like Zen'in-senpai?" I could only think he was talking about Zen'in Maki, but I'd never met her, and didn't know much about her. Heavenly Restriction though, that was a distinct possibility.

"That makes sense." I said. At that moment the pink haired guy finished talking to his two friends, and started to trot away from them, coming towards Fushiguro and I. As he did, I felt a burst of foulness come off of his body.

The Cursed Object!

He clipped Fushiguro as he passed, beginning to accelerate, but I snapped my prosthetic up to catch him. I was aiming for his shoulder, but he was fast enough I barely got a finger-tip in the hood of his jacket. The hood snapped taut, and I was yanked half off my feet by his momentum.

If that hadn't been my prosthetic, that probably would've hurt.

"Wait!" I snapped, "We have to talk to you!" He looked over his shoulder to shout back as he continued to speed away, "Sorry, my Grandpa is in the hospital, I have to go see him!" Then he turned his head back around and accelerated, then went faster still.

Well, shit.

"He apparently runs the fifty-meter dash in three seconds..." I heard one of the students around us say, sounding amazed.

"What is he, a car?" Another asked in response.

I sighed in exasperation, then turned to Fushiguro, who also looked annoyed as he rubbed the shoulder pink-hair had clipped.

"At least we have a lead now." I said, trying to find the bright side.

He just grunted.

It was a few hours later, at Sugisawa Hospital, that we caught back up to pink-hair. There were several hospitals and clinics in the area, and the sun was dipping towards the horizon by the time we found him again. At least we'd gotten a chance to change back into our Jujutsu uniforms.

Once we found him in the halls of the hospital, Fushiguro called out to him. "Itadori Yuji, correct?"

Wait, when did he learn the guy's name? Did he ask one of the other students before we left?

He turned to face us as Fushiguro continued, "We're from Jujutsu High School. I'm sorry, there's no time. The Cursed Object you have is extremely dangerous, hand it over right away."

Pink-hair, Itadori, turned to look at us. "Who are you? I'm in mourning. Also, Cursed Object?" His voice was a little scratchy. Putting together what he just said, plus earlier as he ran away, and his voice now, I could only assume his Grandpa had died. Megumi opened his phone, found the picture of the sealed finger, and turned to show it to Itadori. "This. You have it, right?"

"Oh yeah, I found it!" He put his hands in his pockets, and his voice cleared as he continued, "I don't really mind giving it back, but my fellow members of the Occult Research Club have taken a liking to it. I'd at least like an explanation." Fushiguro took a breath to begin to explain, but I stepped forward and cut him off. "While Fushiguro-san explains, please give me the object Itadori-san. I'd like to examine it. I promise I won't run off with it while you're talking." He shrugged and held out the little brown box.

"Nationally, the average number of unexplained deaths and missing persons exceeds 10,000 annually. The majority-" As Fushiguro continued, I reached out and took it from Itadori. I listened to them have a little back-and-forth as I fiddled with the sliding lid of the box. It took me a few embarrassingly long moments to get it open, and when I finally succeeded I sucked in a sharp breath.

Damn it!

"-is often found at such places as a talisman. The Object you-", I snapped out an interruption. "The thing inside the box, where is it?!" Both Fushiguro and Itadori jumped and turned to me at my shout. Itadori stared at me in confusion for a long moment, until I stepped forward and seized a handful of his hoodie. "Whoever has the Object is in life threatening danger! Itadori, tell me right now!"

He shrank back from me a bit, and blurted out in a rush, "The other members of the Occult Research Team have it. They said something about peeling it open at the school tonight." Fushiguro and I traded a dismayed look for a moment before we both turned and sprinted away. "Wait, their lives are in danger?!" Itadori's dismayed voice called out from behind us, and we heard the sound of his heavy footfalls as he followed us, impressively keeping up with us even after we activated our Cursed Energy Reinforcement.

It didn't take long to get back to the high school, thankfully. As we ran, I heard Fushiguro explaining to Itadori about the reasons behind using Cursed Objects as Talismans of protection. Using poison to fend off poison, though personally, I preferred the 'fighting fire with fire' analogy. He also briefly went over, that after so much time anyone could remove the seal on the Object, no Cursed Energy required.

I could tell that Itadori was skeptical, but that faded quickly as we got closer to the school. The Cursed Energy billowed off the school in waves, and I heard the pink haired teen suck in a sharp breath and freeze in place as he felt the pressure of it. Fushiguro turned to him and said, "Stay here. Where's the club room?"

Before Itadori could respond, I jumped in. "That's not necessary Fushiguro-san, I can find them." He looked a little skeptical, but he'd learn once he felt Control. "Itadori-san, stay out here and keep yourself safe. I have a few questions to ask you." Like why he started going through random thermometer sheds and collecting strange, eerie little boxes. "I'm going to go in and get the students, hopefully they're alive and still have the finger. Fushiguro-san, stay out here and throw up a curtain. Then, start clearing out all the Cursed Spirits that have congregated here." I gave out orders with the ease of long practice. Practice I'd gained in two years with the Chicago Wards.

Fushiguro looked like he might try to argue with me, but his better sense won out and he nodded. While he got set up to cast the curtain, and spoke more with Itadori, I turned and sprinted away with Reinforced speed. As I ran, I drew Silence and Cry and then let Control unspool. I immediately sensed the two students. It seemed they were separated, a few hallways apart on the fourth floor. There were also several dozen Cursed Spirits of various Grades all over the school. I decided not to take any of them yet, saving that for if I needed it later.

As I sped through the school, I felt Megumi's barrier when it cut off the spread of Control, and the frantic, frenzied response of the now trapped Cursed Spirits. After a few seconds, that felt like hours, I found the first of the two Occult Research students. It was a teenage boy in a black center button up overshirt, and he had a Curse on his head. He was grasping it with his hands, trying to pry it off. The Curse was a disgusting thing, at least eight eyes, and a mouth and body that seemed made up of doll hands. Or baby hands.

He was making quiet, desperate whimpering sounds as he struggled with the Curse as it attempted to fit his head in what passed for it's mouth, but a flex of Control made it let go of him and offer itself up for a strike of Silence. 

With the Curse exorcised, he starting gasping, deep desperate breaths as he looked wildly about in an almost animal panic. "Hey." I said shaking him lightly. It didn't help, and I had another student to help. "Hey!" I said louder, considering for one wild second just taking him. Controlling him.

Shaking off the impulse, I instead bopped him lightly on the top of his head with Cry. He yelped loudly, and finally his eyes locked on me. 

"What's-" I interrupted him without hesitation. "Stop. The other Occult Research student needs help. Stay close to me, and I'll get you both out of here." The notion of helping the other student seemed to firm his resolve, just a bit. He swallowed heavily, and said in a trembling tone, "Y-yes. Help her, help Sasaki-san. I'll stay out of your way." I nodded firmly, and tried to give him a reassuring look, and a spot of advice. I looked him square in the eyes and told him, "Just look at my back. Focus on my back, and only on my back. Ignore anything else you see, and if anything speaks to you that isn't me, don't answer it." He gave me another nod, a little firmer.

I stood and took off towards the other student. Sasaki. I considered us all lucky as we made it to her without incident, and I only had to Control one minor Curse to send it away from the girl. We found her sitting on the floor, as hidden as she could make herself. "Sasaki-san." I whispered. She jumped about a foot in the air, and let out a quiet squeal. She looked towards me, panic in her eyes, and let out a desperate gasp of relief as she saw that I seemed to be human. Then she spotted the other student and a watery smile broke across her face, "Iguchi-san! Thank god."

"Thank her, Sasaki-san. I was dead meat until she saved me." He shared his own wavering smile with Sasaki as he spoke.

"Alright you two, that's enough." They both turned to look at me, so I continued. "The finger, where is it?"

The girl stared at me with wide, teary eyes. "One of the monsters, the little ones, snatched it. Flew off." I muttered a expletive at that. The signature of the Cursed Object was everywhere, filling out Megumi's curtain just like Control did. It even filled said Control with what I could only describe as sensor ghosts. We had to find it before one of the Curses ate it. I took a breath, and focused harder on the sensory side of my technique. Maybe I could find a Curse that stood out, that seemed erratic.

I focused, felt Megumi, and what seemed like two shikigami, as he went around exorcising Curses as he came across them. Itadori seemed to still be where we left him, and there were sixteen Curses arrayed around the school. I seethed in a breath as I felt the situation change. One Curse, Grade 1, maybe Semi-Grade 1, abruptly attacked another and the little one vanished. It then immediately made a beeline for Itadori.

"Shit!" I yelled. "Come on!" I yelled to the two students as I cinched an arm around each of them, snatching them off the ground, and ran. I sensed as Megumi made it to them first, I assumed he followed the more powerful Curse as it moved. I felt their fight start, and Megumi's Cursed Energy flicker. Then it was attacking Itadori. I ground out an angry noise, and yelled to my passengers, "Hold on, don't bite your tongues!" I heard Sasaki start to make a questioning sound before I turned and jumped out one of the second story windows. I landed heavily on the turf outside the school, and heard the breath go whooshing out of the two Occult students at the impact. I dropped them as lightly as I could, then ran to join the fight, knowing I could watch over them easily enough.

I saw the Semi-Grade 1 Curse as it held Itadori bodily off the ground. I ran towards him, and everything seemed to pass in slow motion as I watched him strain to keep his right hand away from the Curse. His feet were planted on it's upper and lower jaw, and his left arm was pinned to his side by it's massive, knobby hands.

The Cursed Object!

It was there, in his right hand. he turned his head towards it, and opened his mouth.

"Itadori-san! DON'T!" I screamed.

It was no use, his right hand opened, and the finger dropped into his mouth. I was twenty feet away, but I still heard his jaw slam shut with a snap, and his throat rippled as he swallowed.

Oh no.

I felt it. All over my skin like a cold sweat, all through my bones like a bass rumble, in my heart like a terrified spike of adrenaline. It echoed through Control, and I felt my knees lock as my body skidded to a halt, and my teeth clamped shut. I knew what that sensation meant. It was possible that eating the finger would just kill him, but this was a one-in-a-million chance occurrence that I knew had already happened.

Incarnation.

Itadori's body went eerily limp in the Curse's hands, but only for a moment, then it exploded into motion. The Curse's hands shattered apart, dropping the young man, who landed deftly on his feet. Then the curse charged him, and the hand that now had purple claws swung up in a vicious strike that splattered the Curse like an overripe fruit that had been thrown off a building.

The shape of the being that had been Itadori Yuji held it's pose for just a moment then lifted it's head to catch the moonlight as it came out from behind a cloud. Four eyes gleamed red, one set below the others on his cheekbones, and across his face and forearms black lines appeared, rising to the surface of his skin like ink in water. The face smiled lightly, then all at once twisted into a grin that made the Cheshire Cat look timid, and it started laughing. Loud, cackling, deep-throated laughter.

"Ah! I knew it!" Crowed a voice that sounded nothing like Itadori's, "Light is best appreciated in the flesh!" Hands rose, and with eager motions, tore apart the shirt and hoodie, revealing the black lines and whorls that decorated the torso of the Incarnated Curse. 

"A Cursed Spirit's flesh is so dull!" The mad voice continued. I caught a look of Fushiguro, blood all over his face and head, just as frozen as me. "Where are the people, the women?!" It walked over to the railing that lined the road leading down the hill towards the main residential district of Sendai, and planted one foot on it, bending the metal. The face fell into a look of surprise, then lifted right back up into it's painful-looking, rictus, caricature of a grin. "There are women and children everywhere! It'll be a massacre! No, a festival!" 

Suddenly it's head tilted to the side like a dog hearing a new sound, then whipped around to look right at me, still grinning. "A festival of red delights, starting with you!" The rest of it's body turned and it took a step towards me, raising it's right hand. I sucked in a breath, bracing myself for what might be the last fight of my second life, before I froze in shock.

The right hand had snapped towards it's own face, seizing it's jaw. "What d'you think you're doing with my body? Give it back!"

That's Itadori's voice!

"Human, how are you able to move?"

"Uh, it is my body, you know" he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Don't move!" Fushiguro shouted. He had his hands braced in what looked like a sign to activate a Technique. "Fushiguro, wait!" I yelled. "That was Itadori's voice!"

Megumi scowled at me. "According to Jujutsu regulations, we must exorcise the Curse known as Itadori Yuji!"

I scowled right back. "Look at him Fushiguro-san! Look at him and tell me you really want to do this."

We both turned, and saw what I had been talking about. Itadori had put up his hands, like we had him at gunpoint. The thick, sharp black lines that had covered him were fading, burning off like fog in the sun, and the second set of eyes had closed leaving behind thin lines that almost looked like scar tissue. "Itadori's back in charge of his body."

He nodded eagerly in agreement with me and said, "Really, it's not a problem. More importantly, you and I got pretty beat up. We should get to a hospital."

Megumi looked uncertain, "We can't be sure it's you talking, and not the Curse putting on an act." That was a good point, except I was uniquely suited to tell who was in control of a body or not. I opened my mouth to explain to him, when a familiar power appeared in my Control-sense.

"What's the situation?" came Gojo's voice. Megumi's head turned to look at him, and the power he'd been gathering dissipated. "Gojo-sensei?!" He asked incredulously. "What are you doing here?"

"The higher-ups sent me after they heard about the Special Grade Cursed Object going missing. I agreed to come check it out, but only if I got to see the sights while I was out." That was when I noticed he had a paper bag in his left hand. It looked deeply incongruous with his dark Jujutsu uniform, and his blindfold. "But wooow," he continued. "You're messed up." Then he managed to one up his own history of flippancy by pulling out his phone and taking a number of pictures of Megumi, crowing about how he was going to show them to the second-years.

After he finished screwing around, he turned to me and asked, "So, did you find it?"

Itadori and I answered at the same time, "He/I ate it."

For the first time I could remember, Gojo looked completely stumped. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Fushiguro grumbled.

Gojo turned to Yuji, and leaned uncomfortably close to his face. "Wow, they're really combined. That's hilarious!"

"Not the word I would use." I injected. Gojo ignored me, and spoke to Yuji, "How's your body feel?" He patted himself down and flexed his shoulders a bit, and I was struck with a random thought. 

What's this guy's body fat percentage? Five, six percent? He's cut.

I shook off my moments inattention, and refocused as Gojo spoke again, "Can you switch with Sukuna?"

"Sukuna?"

"The Curse you ate."

"Yeah, I think so."

I couldn't help but speak up, "Gojo-sensei, are you sure about this?"

"Of course I'm sure. You, take back control after ten seconds." he said to both of us.

"I don't know about this.." Itadori sounded deeply skeptical, which I thought was fair.

"Don't worry." Gojo said, smirking. "I'm the strongest." At that, I rolled my eyes. No stopping it now. "Fushiguro-san, help me get Sasaki-san and Iguchi-san." I pointed towards the two, who were staring in deep confusion, both looking seconds away from blacking out sitting on the grass. It was only a moments work to gather them up and move behind Gojo. "As long as we're all in one place, Gojo-sensei will have an easier time keeping us all from harm."

Said man gave a light chuckle at that, "I knew I could count on your support Taylor. Here, hold this." he said, tossing me the paper bag.

Is that kikufuku mochi? Also, my 'support'?! That's what he thinks that was?

Megumi, Sasaki, and Iguchi all leaned away from me then. I'm not sure what expression was on my face, but apparently it conveyed my feelings well enough. Gojo pointed at me, and said, "That's for me to eat on the bullet train home, don't smush it."

Fushiguro tried to call out a warning as a horrible blur with four red eyes barreled down on Gojo's open back. I was less concerned for Gojo than I was for the rest of us. There was a loud crash, and pulverized dirt filled the air as a heavy impact knocked me to one knee, Megumi on his butt, and the other two passed out from the overpressure, or perhaps the shock was the proverbial last straw. I looked up, and choked on empty air as I found myself staring into the eyes of the Incarnated Special Grade Cursed Spirit Ryomen Sukuna. He was down on one knee like I was, the big difference being, he had a white-haired Sorcerer sitting on his back. 

"I've got a few students watching, so I hope you don't mind if I show off." At that taunt from Gojo, Sukuna swung back into the fight. I couldn't even see or sense what was happening. Sukuna was too fast, and Gojo was teleporting in-between hits that shivered the air.

"No matter the Era, you Jujutsu Sorcerers are always a pain." Then Sukuna again whipped his right hand through the air, and there was another explosion of pulverized earth. As the air cleared again, Sukuna's voice sounded. "But that doesn't matter to me."

Maybe it should've, because Gojo was standing in front of our little group of bystanders with several large chunks of ground in front of him, caught in his Infinity, and he was counting. 

"Seven...eight...nine...should be about time."

Once again the tattoos faded, the extra eyes closed, and Sukuna went limp.

Was that really ten seconds?

Then Itadori perked back up. "Was everything okay?" he asked simply. Gojo's voice was surprised, "You really can control it!" He also sounded excited.

"Yeah, but he's kind of annoying. I can hear his voice." Itadori sounded vaguely annoyed as he tapped his knuckles on his head, which I couldn't help but feel was a major underreaction. Gojo said something similar, "It's a miracle that's the only side effect."

Then he walked over and tapped Itadori on the forehead, and his eyes rolled up in his head and he collapsed. "Did you knock him out?" I sounded incredulous, I knew.

"Yeah." he said, completely unapologetic. "If he wakes up as himself, and Sukuna can't take control, it'll mean he's got good potential as a vessel."

Then Gojo turned to us and asked, "So, what do you two think we should do with him?"

"I think we should save him." I said quickly, ignoring my first thought. "He can be of use. He's crazy strong, we think he might have a Heavenly Restriction." Gojo made an intrigued noise at that, then turned to Megumi.

"According to Jujutsu regulations, even if he is a vessel, he must be executed." Fushiguro said, looking at the ground. But then he took in a breath and swung his head up to look at Gojo. "But I don't want to let him die!"

"Well, if it's both of you, a pair of precious students' requests, I'll do what I can. Leave it to me!"

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

After Gojo slung the unconscious Itadori over his shoulder, he bid Fushiguro and and I goodbye. He told us that he had to be sure that when Itadori woke up, he'd be contained. Just in case. To that end, he'd be warping himself and Itadori back to Jujutsu High and taking him straight to an Isolation Chamber, to keep him secure while Gojo spoke to the elders about Yuji. Any questions I might have asked, or objections I might have raised were left unsaid as Gojo vanished.

Staring at the spot Gojo had just teleported from, I heaved a sigh. Then I looked to Fushiguro, still sitting on the ground. He had blood on his face, and it was matted in his hair. Even if it wasn't bad enough to be life-threatening, Gojo should at least have taken Megumi to Shoko. Even if that meant I'd take the train back by myself. I channeled Nanami and in a flat, angry tone I ground out, "I really just can't respect him."

Megumi, possible concussion notwithstanding, nodded sagely.

Getting Fushiguro back to Jujutsu High was easier than I'd been afraid it would be. Cleaning the blood off his face had been enough to avoid garnering undue attention, and his hair was dark enough that it just looked a little greasy until you got too close. As we got on the bullet train back to Tokyo, I was made more certain that he had a concussion. He got a little confused occasionally on the way, and required guiding. I was more afraid that he might have broken bones, or internal bleeding. I knew that having a head injury can affect the ability to feel pain or discomfort.

After getting back to Jujutsu High, with the hardest part being the stairs up to the school, I gave Megumi to Shoko. I was relieved when she told me that even though I had been right, he did have a concussion, it was a minor one. He also had no further injuries than some heavy bruising. After Shoko healed him, I led him back to his room, under the doctor's orders.

After leaving Megumi, I immediately went back to my room and and took a long shower. Under the beating water, I tried to order my thoughts. The power that Sukuna had shown disturbed me deeply. If Gojo had been anyone but who he was, that situation might have ended very differently. Also, that if Itadori had been less successful in suppressing the Curse, things would have gotten bad before help arrived. I had a few ideas about what Sukuna might have meant by 'A festival of red delights', but I really didn't want to dwell on that. 

I had told Gojo that I wanted to save Itadori, and that was true, but it hadn't been my first thought. My first impulse had been to get rid of him, before he became a problem. I had long needed to be proactive, my power had not been enough until the end to win most fights right out. I was trying to be a better person though. He could control Sukuna, and he could be a force for good. I knew that he could. We both could.

Neither of us are too far gone.

By the time I got out of the shower, having shaken off most of the worst spiraling thoughts, the fingers on my left hand were wrinkled and I was incredibly hungry. After a late dinner, I went to sleep.

The next morning, I was in what Jujutsu High called it's cafeteria, eating a early breakfast. It was an odd room, an eclectic mix of old Japanese wood paneling and aluminum tables and benches. It was quite a nice place though, all things considered. It really was many times better than Winslow's cafeteria, although that was a low bar to say the least. I was almost finished when Gojo showed up, followed closely by Itadori and Fushiguro. They were both dressed casually, Fushiguro in a long-sleeved black shirt and sweats, while Itadori was still in his hoodie and rolled-up jeans. I was in my uniform, though. I preferred it to most of my street clothes. I looked up and saw Gojo give me a wave, and moseyed his way over to me. 

"Hey Taylor, how ya doin'?"

"I'm fine, Gojo-sensei." I said shortly as I turned my head back to my food. After I answered, I heard Yuji make a quiet, questioning noise, and Gojo let out a huff. "She's always like that Yuji, don't worry about it."

Yuji just shrugged in acceptance. "Okay."

"Anyway," Gojo said, "tomorrow the four of us are going out. Yuji, your uniform should be ready by morning. You three will meet me in Harajuku Station. Alright?"

Yuji responded with a cheery, "Yes, sensei!", while Megumi just grunted, and I remained quiet. I heard Megumi speak to Itadori as Gojo wandered off, "Let's get some food." before they walked over towards the kitchen. Before he made it out the door, and before the boys made it out of earshot, Gojo whirled back towards me. "By the way, Taylor, what did you do with my kikufuku?"

"I smushed it." 

I heard Itadori laugh at the offended squawk Gojo let out, and had to fight not to smile myself.

The next morning we were all in the station, waiting for Gojo. I stood slightly off to the side, trying to keep an eye out, and heard Megumi explaining to Yuji that there were only four first years because there were very few Jujutsu Sorcerers overall. I was grateful that Megumi was willing to tell him, I was in a poor mood. I had dreamed of Sukuna, to my dismay. The Curse had gotten to me more than I'd realized that night, but I was sure I could get passed it.

"Thanks for waiting!" I jumped at Gojo's shout, and gave myself a mental smack for my inattention. "How's the uniform Yuji?"

"It's a perfect fit!" He responded brightly, "It's a little different from Fushiguro's though. It's got a hoodie, for one."

"That's because they can be customized to a certain degree upon request." Gojo told him. 

I was right, he did design mine.

"Oh." Itadori looked at himself consideringly, "I never put in a request though?" His tone made it a question.

"I sent in the request." Gojo told him simply.

Itadori blinked at him a couple times as he thought that through, then shrugged it off with a "Whatever, I like it."

"Be careful," Megumi said, before I could. "Gojo-sensei does stuff like that a lot."

Before anyone could derail us further, I stepped closer to Gojo and asked, "So why are we in Harajaku?"

"She asked to meet us here." 

Who's 'she'? The other student?

"I want some popcorn!" Yuji randomly shouted before I could ask out loud. I let it go, and went quietly as the three of us followed Gojo through the crowd, towards the arrival station. I considered us lucky that he was easy to follow, with his height and white hair that caught the sunlight. Yuji too, was easy to keep track of. Pink hair was a standout, and he was loud as he wandered around picking up souvenirs. Eventually, though it wasn't all that far away, we made it to our destination.

The girl we were here to meet was also easy to spot. She was already in a Jujutsu High uniform, and was aggressively arguing with a short, sleazy looking man in a truly ugly suit. Green with a spotted purple tie? Even my own poor fashion sense could tell that was a poor choice. 

"How embarrassing." Yuji said at the display, hypocritically wearing large novelty sunglasses with food in both hands. Megumi apparently agreed with me and as he sniped at Yuji, Gojo cried out, "Hey. We're over here!"

The girl turned to us at Gojo's shout, and we all moved over to the four hundred yen lockers together. She put some of her stuff in one, then looked at us while putting her hands on her hips. She was short, one hundred sixty centimeters tops, with light brown eyes. Her hair was a similar shade, though a bit more orange-ish, cut into a bob. Her uniform was a long skirt with leggings and a center button-up jacket, all in dark blue. She was wearing a brown tool belt of all things, too. At Gojo's prompting, we started introducing ourselves.

"Kugisaki Nobara." She said simply, then looked at me. "Two girls? You boys are twice as lucky."

She stared at us as we returned her introduction, one at a time.

"I'm Itadori Yuji. I'm from Sendai!" Yuji practically chirped, actually pointing at himself.

"Fushiguro Megumi." His voice was taut, short, the same as he had introduced himself to me on the Jujutsu High track once upon a time.

"My name is Hebert Taylor. Nice to meet you." I tried to lighten my tone. No need to get off on the wrong foot.

She looked at the boys for a short time, before gusting a put-upon sigh. I felt my eyebrows twitch before she turned to me and her expression brightened. "Nice to meet you too." I was surprised, and tried to smile lightly.

Any further conversation was put on hold when Megumi turned to Gojo and asked, "Where are we going from here?"

He chuckled lightly before responding. "Well, we do have all four of you here, and three of you are new to Tokyo." Then his face hardened into a false seriousness. "Let's do it. A tour of Tokyo!"

At that Megumi and I let out displeased grunts, but Kugisaki and Yuji both clapped their hands together and struck a pose with happy squeals. I tuned them out as much as I could as they both started shouting suggestions and requests. Yuji actually threw his arms around Gojo in a brief hug at one point. I turned away entirely when they struck melodramatic bows before Gojo told them he was taking them to Roppongi. Gojo was clearly overjoyed to finally have students that matched his own wavelength, and he soaked up their joy and attention like a desert soaked up rain. As the two teens squealed in excitement, I turned to meet Megumi's eyes and drawled, "I'll bet you five thousand yen he's screwing with them."

He shook his head in response, "No bet. Even if we go to Roppongi, it won't be what they're hoping for."

It was lucky he didn't take the bet, even if I had been mostly joking. We were both getting paid a stipend by Jujutsu society, but money was money, and I hated wasting it.

The five of us stood together in front of an abandoned building, three or four stories tall. As I tried not to listen to Itadori and Nobara lament their torment at Gojo's hands, I looked at it closely.

"There's definitely a Curse in there." Megumi said simply.

"At least one." I added, to a nod from the dark-haired teen. He continued, "There's both an abandoned building and a large cemetery here. The combination caused a lot of negative feelings to pool here, bringing out perhaps even several Curses." At Itadori's seeming confusion, Megumi kept up the explanation.

As the other three students kept talking, I turned to Gojo as he beckoned me lightly. "I don't feel like casting a curtain, so use Control to keep an eye out for any runners. Let it out after we've started." I threw a sideways look at him before nodding my assent. I figured he was going to send Yuji and Nobara inside, to get a sense of their capabilities. I took a deep breath, and prepped to let Control unspool as Kugisaki started loudly exclaiming her disgust at the fact that Yuji ate a Special Grade Cursed Object. I couldn't say I disagreed, though. Even after they'd told me that Megumi said to him that consuming the finger could give him power, the fact that he ate a centuries-old finger was hard to stomach.

Gojo looked to them as he spoke, "I want to see what you're capable of. Think of it as a field test. Nobara. Yuji. You two go in there, and exorcise any Curses you find."

I tuned them out once again as Gojo explained to Yuji that he was half a Curse already, so he had Cursed Energy and could use Cursed Tools, even before he got any actual training. The Cursed Tool he gave Yuji though..

Slaughter Demon? Who names these Cursed Tools? Why not 'Demon Slaughterer'? Or 'Slaughter Demons'? Maybe it's a nuance of Japanese I missed.

As Kugisaki and Itadori started to go inside, Gojo caught Yuji's attention and told him in a more serious tone, "One more thing. Don't let Sukuna out. If you do, you'll get rid of any Curses no problem, but no one else nearby would get out unscathed."

I tried to fight a shudder as it crawled up my spine at that thought. Sukuna loose in a metropolis.

"Ok," Yuji said brightly, with a thumbs up. "I won't let him out." 

With that, they went inside. "Ok Taylor." Gojo said, "Take a look."

I nodded, and released Control. As it unspooled, I stopped the field short of it's full one hundred seventy meters, at about one hundred twenty meters. In the power, I felt six signatures. Two full Curses that spasmed lightly as they felt Control fall over them, another that felt almost like the Cursed Corpses I'd sensed once or twice on the Jujutsu High grounds, Yuji, Nobara, and one..

I sucked in a sharp breath, and whipped my head to Gojo. "There's a person in there! A human."

He hummed lightly. "Keep a close eye. We'll intervene if we have to." I seethed a bit, even as I accepted it. I had to give Yuji and Nobara a chance. I lamented that at this distance I couldn't take full control of a Curse of even this low level. I could attack it, affect it's actions and capabilities, but not take it over. There had to be something I could do to change that. I made a note to myself to remember to ask Nanami about it. I consoled myself that even if there was little I could do if things went south, Gojo could get in there effectively instantly.

Megumi tilted his head lightly, and asked me, "Is this your Cursed Technique?" I nodded, distracted by the presence of the bystander.

I felt it out carefully as Nobara and Yuji split up. Nobara went up, towards where the person was, while Yuji stayed at ground level. Yuji quickly exorcised one that attempted to ambush him, to much commentary from Gojo, and Nobara made it to the top floor with the other two. I felt the kind-of Cursed Corpse die as Nobara struck it with two bursts of Cursed Energy from across the room. Gojo was still talking to Megumi as I felt the third Curse stray very close to, then seize the human.

I growled out another sharp breath, "Gojo-sensei, we have to-" He cut me off, "Wait. Give them a chance."

I hissed at that. The only reason I stopped myself from putting a hand in, was that I sensed Yuji making his way up to them. He went in from a different angle before he stopped, then all at once, strikes and flailing, and then the Curse was fleeing.

It jumped through the window, and I saw it clearly. Fur, eyes on stalks, and down an arm. I braced to take action, and heard Megumi say, "I'm gonna exorcise it."

Gojo stopped us with another, "Just wait."

I felt what he meant a moment later, as Nobara's Cursed Energy surged, both in the building and in the Curse simultaneously. Suddenly, massive spikes exploded from inside the Curse, and with a scream it dissolved, so quickly it didn't even have time to hit the ground. With that, I reeled in Control.

"Yeah, she's plenty crazy." Gojo's voice was filled with approval.

A few minutes later, we were standing around as Gojo and Megumi returned from taking the kid to the cops, "We sent the kid home, safe and sound. Now, it's time for some food."

"Steak!" Yuji cried.

"Sushi!" Nobara shouted.

I let out a breath, and tried not to dwell on how close that kid came to dying. Megumi didn't say anything either, just fiddled with his phone.

"What's wrong with these two?" Yuji asked.

"Megumi's sore he didn't get to join, and Taylor's pouting cause she wanted to help that kid all by herself." Gojo told him. I rolled my eyes at him, and Gojo chuckled.

"So what was that field I felt go up once we were inside?" Nobara asked.

We started to walk as a group, presumably to find a place that served sushi and steak, and I endeavored to answer her. 

"That was my Innate Technique. I call it 'Control'." Nobara looked at me askance, and Yuji asked the big question, "What does it do?"

"It does quite a few things. The main one is that it expands a field, out to a maximum of one hundred seventy meters, inside which I get a good sense of anything with Cursed Energy. There are nuances to it, but I can also take control of things within the field that have Cursed Energy." At that, Nobara looked uncertain for a moment, but quickly shook it off with seemingly no problem. No doubt it was confidence in herself, but I was glad that neither she, Megumi, nor Yuji seemed worried.

I couldn't stop my thoughts from drifting back to the kid as we wandered on our way. If that Curse had tried harder to kill him, there would have been practically nothing I could have done. I could have moved on from his death, I knew I could, but that didn't mean I would be happy about it. I tried to stop dwelling on my weakness as Nobara and Yuji started sniping at each other. She'd tried to demand that he go back to the train station to get her stuff, and was now accusing him of 'being strong from eating weird shit'.

I need to improve my Technique.

I have to be better.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

It didn't take long for the four of us to be assigned our next mission.

After our return to Jujutsu High from a sushi place that didn't sell steak, much to Yuji's dismay, I spent an hour with Shoko then went to bed. The next morning I made a note to myself to talk to Nanami about possible refinements to Control. It would have to wait as he had been consistently unavailable. So, in lieu of helpful training, I did research. Most of it was on Binding Vows, the kind you make with yourself, but I also read a great deal about Ryomen Sukuna. A thousand year old sorcerer that found a way to become a set of twenty Cursed Objects to travel the ages after death. A problem, to keep it short.

After I read some in the morning, I went to the cafeteria. My plans to do some more research later were set aside when, after breakfast, Ijichi came and collected all four of us first-year students and took us on a surprise mission. After a relatively short drive we stepped out of the black vehicle and into the rain. I looked up at the heavily overcast sky and listened as Ijichi started our mission briefing.

"Our Windows confirmed a Curse Womb at this location three hours ago. When the evacuation was ninety percent complete, the decision was made to seal off the facility." With a raised hand he beckoned us closer, up to the wrought iron fence and continued. "Detainee Center, Building 2. Five detainees are currently trapped inside with the Curse Womb." I looked through the fence, towards the squat, ugly cement building. I could feel the energy wafting off the center like stink off a city dump. This mission was going to be rough, no question, but I was still in a better place than I had been last time. No nightmares about Sukuna to drag me down.

He continued in a lecturing tone. "If this Curse Womb continues to metamorphosize, we predict that it will become a Special Grade Cursed Spirit." I sucked in a breath at that. Both Megumi and Nobara also stiffened, but Yuji just looked confused. He stepped closer to Ijichi and asked, "So, uh..I still don't get this 'special grade' thing." Megumi grimaced slightly, and Nobara rolled her eyes at his apparent ignorance.

I decided to throw in my own answer to the seemingly open question. "It's a measurement of power, and of an individual's threat level." Yuji's head swung towards me to listen with surprisingly rapt attention. "The same terminology is used for Curses, Sorcerers, and Cursed Objects. There are 4 Grades, with 4 being the weakest, and Grade 1 being the strongest. The term 'Special Grade' refers to those that don't fit comfortably on the scale. So you could call the Cursed Spirit in there an S-Class threat, if it turns out to be a Special Grade after all."

Itadori nodded in understanding, but I'd frozen up trying to keep myself from flinching too visibly. I'd just used terminology from Bet out loud for the first time I could remember since showing up here. Now that I'd made the comparison however, I couldn't help but hope that it wasn't truly an S-Class threat. There were a few ways for someone or something to be labelled S-Class, usually it required a level of physical threat that practical armies were needed to fight, or a threat that could or did operate on an exponential basis.

If that was a Special Grade in there, and if Special Grade equaled S-Class, we were probably all going to die today.

Even as Yuji was nodding, Megumi turned to me and asked, "What was that term? 'S-Class'?" I floundered slightly, but was saved from having to make something up when Yuji jumped in with, "Lots of anime and manga and stuff use that term, Fushiguro."

Fushiguro and Nobara both looked at me with eyebrows raised at the implications, but after a brief moment of mental scrambling, I managed to save some of my dignity. "I came across the term in a book. I thought it'd help him visualize the power scale." At that everyone nodded, including Ijichi and Yuji.

"Normally," Ijichi said, returning from the tangent we'd wandered off on. "In the case of a suspected Special Grade, a Sorcerer of equal grade would be assigned. However, Gojo-san is already on a mission far away, and this is a matter of great urgency. We have here a Grade 2, and two Grade 3 Sorcerers, along with Itadori-kun and his apparent great strength. All that being considered, along with the uncertainty of the Curse's actual Grade, it was decided that you four would be enough. Our line of work is always short-handed, and being overwhelmed by missions is commonplace."

At that, Ijichi turned to us with a grave expression, and said in a deadly serious tone, "With that being said, if this Curse Womb produces a Special Grade, do not engage." He adjusted his glasses, and continued with more gravitas than I'd ever heard from him. "When confronted by a Special Grade, the options are to flee, or die. Listen to your fear. Remember, your assigned mission is to find and evacuate any survivors."

Anything else he might have added was cut off when a middle-aged woman with dark hair and eyes shouted to us from behind the police cordon. "Hey, excuse me!" We all turned to her, and she continued, "Is my son Tadashi okay? Is he okay in there?" I looked away from her, both unable and unwilling to answer. Once I had, I caught a glimpse of the stricken expression that had spread across Yuji's face.

Anything he might have said to the woman was cut off by Ijichi and another assistant as they fed her the cover story they'd cooked up. Something about poison in the facility.

As the four of us started towards the facility, Itadori's face hardened and he took a deep breath. "Hebert. Fushiguro. Kugisaki. We're gonna save them!"

"Of course we are." Nobara responded without hesitation.

Fushiguro just grunted, but I said the only thing I could. "We'll do everything we can." I'd done Search And Rescue plenty of times before, I was sure I remembered the basics.

With that, we continued towards the door, and I heard Ijichi speak again. "I'm going to lower a curtain. Be careful, and good luck."

"Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure."

As the curtain fell, Yuji looked up in amazed confusion, "It's turning into night!"

"It's the curtain." Megumi informed him coolly. "It's there to hide us from civilians, and maybe protect civilians from us."

Yuji didn't seem to have anything to say to that, and fell silent as Megumi put his hands together in a sign and intoned "Divine Dog." and summoned a shikigami that looked like a large, pure white wolf with a triangular sign on it's forehead.

Wait. Did he use a shadow puppet as a hand sign?

"If the Curse gets close, it'll let us know." Megumi told us as an explanation. Yuji pet the thing as he passed it with a quiet, "Good doggy." I thought about explaining that as a shikigami, it wasn't anything anywhere near a living creature that could appreciate affection. Any activity it displayed that made it seem that it did was a result of bleed-through from Megumi's mind to the Divine Dog's. It might occasionally display behaviors that made it seem like more than it was, but only because Megumi thought that's how dogs acted.

"I'll keep my own eye out to help." I added as I let Control unspool and drew Silence and Cry. I let my technique flow out all the way to Ijichi's curtain, and I twitched in shock. The inside of the Detainee Center felt odd. As Control fell over it, it fuzzed. 

"Wait." I barked. The other three stopped and turned to me with questions painted across their faces. "There's something wrong with the interior. It's interfering with Control, I can't sense anything inside." 

My three fellow Sorcerers traded looks, then Yuji and Nobara drew their weapons, Slaughter Demon and a hammer with a little heart on it respectively, and all of us but Yuji activated our Cursed Energy Reinforcement.

One deep breath each, and we all moved in. No other choice.

Oh. That's why Control went fuzzy.

The first thing I noticed was the ceiling, in that I couldn't see it. The walls went up, and up, into darkness. Walls which were in turn, twisted. Disjointed. They were covered in pipes that led from nowhere to nowhere, blank windows, and AC units of all things. It reminded me uncomfortably of Vista when she was pissed, or Labyrinth at her worst. Then a thought sent a chill down my spine.

"What's going on here!? This-" I interrupted Yuji's panicked inquiries when I whipped around to look behind us and shouted, "The door is gone!"

I knew it.

The other three turned to look, and saw what I did; a wall of twisted, confused pipes, and hopefully empty shadows. I felt Control spread to it's full radius inside, but I still couldn't sense anything. Nothing specific, at least. It was all interference, white noise, sensor ghosts. There was only one explanation I could think of for the anomalous space inside the Center, and the practically uniform nature of the interference with my technique. I needed some form of confirmation, however, so I turned to Megumi and met his eyes.

He looked about as afraid as I felt, and that was enough for me. We were trapped in an Innate Domain. It was a big one too, though so far it didn't seem to be infused with a technique. Thankfully.

As Nobara and Yuji had a not-so lowkey freak out, complete with a little dance, Megumi crouched down next to his shikigami and whispered in it's ear. After seemingly getting his answer, he stood with a gesture towards his dog and said "We're good. We can track the scent of the entrance." Yuji and Nobara again started yelling about giving the thing some jerky and I ran out of patience, and interrupted any further shenanigans or conversation.

"We need to get moving. There's no telling when that Curse will hunt us down. Let's find any survivors, then we'll follow Fushiguro's shikigami to the entrance."

All three of them nodded their agreement, and we continued through the Domain.

It was only minutes later that we found our first SAR target. What was left of him, at least. There might have been two of the others as well, it was hard to tell. 

There was one recognizable body, and several spherical lumps of what might have been meat. I took a deep breath through my mouth and tried not to dwell on the failure of my first SAR mission on this Earth. As I did, Yuji made his way to the partial human body leaning against the wall. I started to follow, but I stopped short. He was dead, no reason for me to see him closer. I let my mind drift slightly, wondering if he died in fear, or if it was fast enough he barely noticed.

I snapped out of it when Fushiguro seized a handful of Yuji's uniform and growled out, "We have to confirm the other two are dead. Leave him."

Yuji looked dismayed, "Every time we look back, the path is different. How are we going to find him again?" I was about to step forward and intervene but I felt a..twitch in Control. I turned inward, started to lean into my technique, and in order to maximize what I could get out of it, I reeled it in to it's sixteen foot power radius. Even as the boys kept arguing, I started to get a better feel for the alteration, the nearby distortion. It went..down.

I was snatched out of my power introspection when I heard Yuji shout "Then why did you save me!?"

"Itadori." I interjected. Fushiguro looked pissed, and we didn't need to be fighting each other right now. I walked over to him and continued as Megumi let go of him and stepped back, content to let me intervene. Something was poking at Control, testing it's edge but.. "This is a search and rescue mission. We can't rescue him now, and there are two others we might be able to actually help." I had never been the warm and comforting type, and Yuji needed a push forwards, not a hug. He looked a little better, and I had one more idea to get him moving.

I stepped past him, and carefully removed the name tag the body was wearing after sheathing Silence. 

Tadashi Okazaki. 'Tadashi'. This is that woman's son.

I took the name tag and stepped back around Yuji. "We'll take this out with us. Proof of death." Itadori still looked upset, but he was getting himself back towards level and he nodded in agreement with my compromise.

I turned as Kugisaki stepped closer to us. "That'll do it. We need to-" I blanked out on anything else she might have said, as I felt a yank through my Control, and my feet were moving before I realized what had happened. I was launching myself with all my Reinforced speed and barely caught Nobara's hand with my prosthetic before she disappeared through a shadow portal on the floor. I held on, and was slowly dragged through, when I felt my Control shift all over again. I turned my head towards the boys, who had moved to help me, and called out. "Leave me! I'll help Kugisaki, there's something else here! Be careful!" As my face passed through the portal and my feet and flesh hand scraped across the ground, I tried to continue.

"I think it's the Special Gr-!" I was cut off as I was pulled through the portal, and fell with Kugisaki down through the dark.

We landed after what felt like minutes. As we shook ourselves off, we each sensed it practically simultaneously. We were surrounded by Curses of various Grades. There were floating Curses that looked like opera masks, some that looked like centipedes, and others that looked like animated mushrooms, and one frog-like thing that was particularly unpleasant. We went back to back and I re-drew Silence, and she gripped her hammer and pulled out several nails.

"Are you ready?" I asked her.

"Who do you think you're talking to?" She responded, full of confidence.

The next few minutes dissolved into a frantic melee. I practically never landed two successive strikes with Cry, but Silence and Control filled any gaps. Kugisaki, for her part, did devastating damage by launching nails laced with her Cursed Energy at her targets hard enough that many of them just popped right out. Those that didn't were destroyed when she snapped her fingers, and detonated her energy in their bodies through the nails.

It didn't take long to exorcise them, all things considered. After the last one finished dissolving, I turned to Kugisaki. "So what is your Cursed Technique? If you don't mind me asking." She looked at me consideringly for a moment, then shrugged.

"I won't tell you everything, not yet, but I'll give you a teaser." I quirked an eyebrow at her, but she just plowed on. "I call it 'Straw Doll Technique". I use a little effigy to link one object with Cursed Energy to another with the same signature, and deal significant damage by striking the effigy."

I blinked once, and then smiled lightly. The fact that she had chosen to reveal that particular part of her power was a not-so-subtle warning. If her technique worked as advertised, she could use it to attack me through anything I was using Control on. Including, presumably, herself. If I couldn't take her completely, using Control on her might backfire spectacularly. I liked her gumption.

All I said was, "Message received." and she returned my smile with a small one of her own, and a firm nod. 

It seemed she was going to say something else, but before she could Megumi burst around a corner trailing a large black wolf shikigami, twin to his other one. "There you are! Come on, I've got a path to the entrance!" 

Nobara and I traded a look, then followed after him at a run. As we went I asked, "Where's Itadori?"

"You were right; we were attacked by the Special Grade. He stayed behind to distract it, and once we're outside I'll give him a signal and he'll switch with Sukuna."

I growled out an exasperated noise at that. I resisted the urge to tell him that that's a terrible plan. Sukuna is a Curse, and he'll do anything and everything he can to make sure we all regret relying on his power. I didn't say anything about it though. What's done is done, and arguing with Megumi about it won't help.

The three of us made it to the entrance and back outside with no trouble. We belted out into the rain and almost ran over Ijichi.

"What's going on? What happened to Itadori-kun?" He asked, full of concern after taking a glance over us.

"We got separated. Itadori and Fushiguro were forced to confront the Special Grade and Itadori stayed behind to buy-" I was cut off by Fushiguro's shikigami letting out an incredibly loud howl into the still open door into the Detention Center. "To buy us time to get out." We all turned to race back down the concrete path towards the gate, gaining distance as Fushiguro picked up the thread of the brief report.

"That howl was to signal to Itadori that we made it outside. Now that we are, he'll switch with Sukuna." That we hoped that Sukuna would then destroy the Cursed Spirit went unsaid.

Moments later we had made it to the end of the concrete path, and Ijichi made a dismayed sound, even as he dropped the curtain. I was surprised at how much he seemed to care about Yuji.

"Please go get the car ready Ijichi-san." I said. "We may need to get back to Jujutsu High in a hurry."

He eagerly nodded and said "Right away. I'll be ready for your call." Megumi stopped him halfway into the car and added his own set of instructions.

"While you're there, make some calls and extend the evacuation radius at least ten kilometers. If something goes wrong, it's my responsibility to stop him." I decided not to argue with the 'I' he put in there. For her part, Nobara just made a huffing sound. I figured she was prepping to yell at Itadori when he showed up, and was saving her words for him and Megumi once they were together. I stood next to Megumi and Nobara was a few steps behind us, closer to the road.

I unspooled Control out to it's full limits, enough to cover the doors and a few meters into the Center from where we were. With this coverage, I could sense when something left the building, or when there was a change in the Domain's interference.  We only had to wait for a few minutes.

"Heads up." I warned, though I was fairly sure they'd both felt it as well with how their heads had swung towards the Center. The Domain had fallen, which meant the Curse was exorcised.

A long moment passed in silence. Then I felt it as it arrived at the door. A power signature I recognized.

Sukuna.

The presence hesitated at the door to the Center, and I took a breath to shout a warning. I was cut off when Sukuna's power moved and blazed from behind the three of us with a suddenness that defied reason. If I hadn't had the vague sense of motion that Control had fed me, I'd have sworn he teleported. My entire body tried to seize up with fear, and I couldn't help the tremors that spread up my spine.

Turn around.

I had to turn, or he'd kill me before I could even see it coming.

Turn around, turn around. Turn damn you!

Slowly, far too slowly, I forced my head to turn. The first thing I saw was Kugisaki, fear turning her face pale and drawn, the rain on her face looking like tears.

With unsettling casualness, Sukuna stood right beside Nobara and laid an arm across her shoulders. One of his extra eyes turned to look at her, another at me, and his main eyes locked on Megumi.

"Sorry, he's not coming back." Sukuna's voice was as deep as I remembered. A basso rumble that filled the air, an echo of the power that rolled through my Control-sense in buffeting waves driven by malefic wind.

He slid his arm off of Nobara and strolled indolently to the other side of us, his back to the Detention Center before he continued. "There's no need to look so scared. I'm in a great mood, so let's chat for a bit." He continued, clearly not caring for any of us to voice our agreement, or lack thereof. "This is what he gets for trying to use me without any kind of pact. It feels like he's having some trouble switching back." He let out an almost rueful huff, clearly having been referring to Yuji. "If you grasp for power beyond your means, you'll earn retribution."

I dragged in a few deep breaths.

Get a hold of yourself!

I was not the scared fifteen year old out for the first time and being confronted by a dragon, nor was Sukuna the first or worst monster I'd faced. Behemoth in New Delhi was the first place my mind went at that thought.

If Sukuna saw or cared that I was slowly crouching into a ready position, my hands on my weapons, he made no sign. He just kept talking, completely nonchalant.

"Still, it's most likely just a matter of time," While he spoke, his hands came up to grasp Yuji's uniform top, and with deceptive ease tore it all off, once again revealing the whole of his strange black tattoos. "So I've been considering my next move." His right hand rose up to his naked chest and swiftly jammed inside, right through his sternum, with a hideous snapping of bone and a thick gout of blood.

"Wha-?" Megumi hissed.

"Why're you-?" Nobara gasped at the same time. I just ground my teeth in frustration. Sukuna just killed Yuji. Sukuna just smiled with Yuji's mouth as blood flowed between his teeth, before with one savage motion, he ripped the heart from his chest.

"I'm taking this brat hostage." 

With that, he threw Yuji's heart a few meters away into the grass.

"I can live without that thing, but he can't. Switching with me now, means death." While Sukuna monologued, I was working on the beginnings of a plan.

You're going to wish you hadn't done that.

I reached out with Control, and nudged Nobara. I didn't want to overtake her, just make her eyes turn in the direction I wanted. She fought it at first, but with a twitch she seemed to realize it was me. I pointed her eyes to her hammer, then to Yuji's heart. Back and forth, twice, thrice, and then I let go. I just had to hope she got the message.

"Also," Sukuna continued, lifting something to his mouth. A finger, seemingly identical to the first one we'd encountered. Counting the one I'd heard that Gojo gave Yuji, that made three. "Just for good measure." He ate the finger like it was a delicious treat he'd gone too long without.

"With that, I'm free as can be!" He raised up a hand, and flexed it with a crack and a lengthening of claws. "You can be afraid now. I'll kill you, and worse! For no particular reason." 

I heard Megumi mutter something quietly, then took a breath and set himself into a fighting stance. Nobara then followed suit. "Itadori will return. Even if it means he dies." Megumi told Sukuna. "That's just the kind of guy he is."

"That sounds about right." I added in support. He'd followed us to face the Curses at his school for no reason other than he might be able to help his friends in the Occult Research Club, for starters.

"You give him too much credit." The Curse retorted. "This one's just a little tougher and duller than other humans. Just minutes ago, he was blubbering to himself, whining about his misfortunes and regrets. He's terrified of death, he doesn't have the guts to bring himself down to meet his own. I'm sure of it." 

With that final word, Sukuna put his hands in his pockets, and with a smile waited for us to make the first move. It was discomfiting to see the blood slowly leak out of the hole in Yuji's chest. Without pressure, it just dribbled slowly out, and down over his abs to soak into his pants. I imagined I could hear what blood didn't leak out, drip as it slowly filled up his body cavity.

Megumi looked contemplative as he made another shadow puppet, and I drew Cry, but left Silence in it's sheath. Nobara took two steps back, and braced her grip on her hammer.

Megumi snapped out "Nue!" and like it was a starter signal I surged forward alongside the creepy masked bird and Megumi himself as we charged Sukuna. "Ah!" he sighed, carding his hands through his hair. "Let's have some fun, and use the open space." Then, all three of us were fighting, swinging, attacking the Curse with all we had.

None of it even came close.

He left one hand in his pocket, blocking the occasional hit with his other, and dodged all the rest. He ducked, weaving and leaning aside with immense skill. I'd have sworn Cry brushed Yuji's pink hair once or twice, but nothing landed.

"Interesting." He said to Megumi. "You use shikigami, but you'll still attack me yourself." The fight continued. I was waiting. Waiting for just the right moment.. "More." He told Megumi. He was almost completely ignoring me, but that fit perfectly in the plan I had. "More." With that, he caught Megumi's fist, and swung him in an arc that forced me to disengage. "Put more Curse in it when you strike me!" He called out, even as he struck Megumi across the face with a vicious backhand. Blood spattered through the air, and caught the light from Sukuna's eyes like shards of ruby glass.

Any time Nobara.

Like she'd heard me, I felt her Cursed Energy detonate from almost a dozen meters behind us. At the same moment, Sukuna's body jerked, and a black spike erupted from the open hole in his chest. He looked truly surprised, and all four of his eyes tracked to Nobara. I looked as well, and saw a little straw man nailed to Yuji's heart where it rested on the ground. She was sprinting to join us, and I was eager to make use of the opening she'd made for us.

Megumi seemed to have a similar sentiment, as he made another hand sign and chanted "Great Serpent!". A massive black and white snake erupted from the shadows at Megumi's feet and wrapped around Sukuna, pinning his arms to his sides, and widening the gap Nobara made. Fushiguro sprinted forward and landed a solid kick right to Sukuna's nose. I joined in, striking Sukuna across the back of his head with both hands gripping Cry. We each struck him, one after the other. Blood coated Yuji's hair, and oozed slowly out of his nose. A crack, as something in his chest broke under Cry's sixth successive hit. 

A split second before Nobara could add her attack to our assault, Sukuna's voice sounded once again. "That's more like it!" And with a small swing of two fingers, the serpent broke, and everything went black.

I came to probably only seconds later. I was almost thirty feet away from Sukuna, laying on the ground, and he was standing calmly, completely uncaring of his injuries that made the rain running off his body get dyed red. My vision was slightly unfocused, and I felt something warm and wet in my hair. I could see Kugisaki some distance away, frighteningly still, her blood spreading in the still falling rain.

What did he do?

I couldn't figure out what had happened. Fushiguro's snake shikigami was nowhere to be seen, but his bird was visibly injured and half-broken a dozen feet from Megumi for a few moments until it slipped back into shadow. Megumi was still standing, facing Sukuna. He looked like he was deep in thought. He looked at me, then Nobara, and took a deep, fortifying breath. He braced himself, then put his hands up in a sign that didn't resemble a shadow puppet I'd ever seen before.

Sukuna once again went stiff, but he shook it off with a wide grin. "Good! That's it! So this is when you start burning through your life!" His horrible grin widened, and he started pacing ever-so-slowly towards Fushiguro. I tried to move, but my limbs weren't responding. Even my Cursed Energy was.. wobbly.

"Now then, show me! Show me, Fushiguro Megumi!" Sukuna's voice rose towards a deranged shout as he spoke.

"With this treasure, I summon-" Even as his Cursed Energy surged up, his face fell into surprise, and his energy fell in response.

Why did you stop, Megumi? Itadori's gone, do everything you can.

"I.." Megumi's voice was contemplative. "I didn't save you because it was the logical thing to do."

Why are you talking to Sukuna? Even if he's stopped moving, he's still dangerous.

"I didn't want to see a good person, no matter how potentially dangerous, die. I did have to think about it, but in the end it was a selfish, emotional decision."

You're the one who told me Sukuna could pretend to be his host. Why aren't you fighting.

"But that's okay." Megumi was by now standing calmly, his arms slowly falling to his sides. I'd have to take him down now too, Megumi is a Curse. An enemy. "I'm not a hero. I'm a Jujutsu Sorcerer. That's why I've never regretted saving you. Not even for a moment. I'm sure Hebert feels the same."

"I see!" Sukuna responded brightly. He was hiding his tattoos and extra eyes, but I wasn't fooled. The pain radiating out from the back of my head was immaterial compared to what was in front of me. Once I got back on my feet, I'd land my seventh hit with Cry, and the fight would be on.

"You're pretty smart Fushiguro." The Curse continued, rubbing the back of his head. "You've put more thought into this than I have. You and Hebert both, it seems. I think your convictions are proper, but I don't think mine's wrong either."

A thick splatter of blood, loosened by the rain, fell to the ground. "Oh, it looks like I'm out of time. Guess I don't have to worry about you, or anybody else." His eyes rolled up in his head, and he fell, ever so slow.

"Live a long life.." and with a thud, he hit the ground at Fushiguro's feet. The blood slowly spread as it was diluted by the rain.

The rain. The rain was all I could hear, roaring in my ears as the darkness rose up over my eyes.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

I once again awoke to find myself staring at the fluorescent lights in the ceiling of Shoko's medical facility. I heaved an annoyed sigh, and sat up off of the hospital bed.

This is a trend that has to stop.

I looked around, I was alone in the clinic. I slid off the bed and moved across the room, to the bench where I had seen my Jujutsu High uniform was folded up waiting for me, including my weapons. I grabbed them, and moved into the bathroom to change. After I was dressed, I stepped out and almost ran right into Shoko.

"Ah, there you are Shoko. What happened? How are Fushiguro and Kugisaki?" I asked.

"After the fight at the Detention Center ended, Fushiguro called Ijichi, and you were all brought back here to the school in haste. You were all pretty banged up." She answered, as level as ever. "They're both fine though, I finished healing them quickly enough. Kugisaki had some pretty severe lacerations, and five broken ribs along with a cracked sternum. Fushiguro got off pretty light, all things considered. Two cracked ribs, another concussion and a little internal bleeding. You were the worst injured, with severe skull fractures and bleeding into your brain, with additional damage to your brain stem and spine. You've been unconscious for a while. According to Fushiguro, Sukuna destroyed his snake shikigami with some kind of slashing attack, then grabbed you by the face and slammed your head into the ground before attacking Kugisaki."

"That sounds about right. Sukuna was too powerful. Too fast." My voice was low, defeated. "He killed Yuji. There was nothing we could do."

Shoko gave me a sympathetic look, "I know. I was just about to go see to his body, if you want to come." I looked at her in surprise.

I thought for a few moments, then nodded. I felt I should see him, look at him as 'Itadori Yuji' one more time, especially given how my thoughts had been colored there at the end. I remembered thinking of him as 'Sukuna', and brain damage was not an excuse to think of him as an enemy even as he killed himself for all our sakes.

The two of us went out, and moved a few doors over, then down a flight of stairs. It makes sense that a morgue would be below ground level. As Shoko opened the sliding door, I heard Gojo's voice. "Maybe I should just kill all the higher-ups." I stiffened. I'd never heard him sound like that. Harsh, angry.

"You're being more emotional than usual." Shoko deadpanned. She walked slowly past Ijichi, and started playing with her hair as she continued. "Looks like you've taken quite a liking to this one."

Gojo, sitting nearby, just raised one finger and in a semi-lecturing tone responded. "I've always been a nice guy who cares for my students. Tell her, Taylor." I just shook my head at him. "Don't torment Ijichi too much," Shoko continued, her voice warming slightly. "He's stuck between us and the higher-ups after all."

I looked at Ijichi and saw a slight blush, and a look on his face that told me he wanted to hear more of that from Shoko. I pressed my lips together to keep from smiling, and went to stand near the bench Gojo was sitting on as he spoke dismissively about the assistant. "I don't care about his hardships."

I couldn't help but think that was a bit harsh. As Shoko stepped over to the blanket-covered body with a quiet, "That so?" She reached out and pulled the blanket off, revealing Yuji's body. It had been cleaned, but that might have made the hole in his chest look worse in some ways, ragged and gaping. "So this is Sukuna's vessel." It wasn't a question, but I couldn't help but interject.

"He was more than that."

All three of them turned to look at me, and Gojo nodded his agreement with a small smile. "We know Taylor." I believed him, and Shoko gave a small dip of her chin in her own show of acceptance to my words.

"Still," She continued. "I can dissect him as I please, right?"

"Make sure you get as much use out of him as possible." Gojo's voice had lowered, he sounded almost sad.

"Of course I will. Who do you think I am?" Shoko didn't sound annoyed, more like she was trying to be reassuring. I took in a deep breath.

I'm sorry, Yuji. Your life shouldn't have ended that way.

It didn't take long for Shoko to prep, but as she started, Gojo started talking, mostly to Ijichi and I. "You know, I have a lousy personality."

"I know." Ijichi said, a split second before I could.

"Ijichi, prepare for a hard forehead flick later!" Gojo said firmly. Ijichi stiffened, and stammered out, "A f-forehead flick!?" He sounded worried, but I could understand that. Even a threat so seemingly innocuous coming from a high-level Brute like Gojo was something to be concerned about.

Gojo continued, pretending that he hadn't been interrupted. "Being a teacher isn't my style. Do you know why I decided to teach at this school?"

I decided to answer, Gojo didn't normally ask rhetorical questions. "The same reason you saved and recruited me, isn't it? Something about changing the world."

He nodded firmly, and his voice was still clear of his normal flippancy and arrogance when he responded. "The Jujutsu world, yes. It's my dream." 

"It's obvious here, like with Yuji, the top of the Jujutsu world is a den of vice. Conservative fools. Traditional fools. Arrogant fools. Just plain fools." I wanted to ask what he meant about Yuji, but he was on a roll and I didn't want to interrupt, not now at least. He sounded really passionate as he spoke. "I want to reset this crappy Jujutsu world! Murdering everyone at the top would be a simple task. However, that wouldn't make a big change, they'd just get replaced. It wouldn't bring a revolution. And if I did that, no one would follow me."

At that, I couldn't keep from speaking given this opening, "That depends." He turned his blindfolded face to me in apparent confusion. "What did you mean by that? About the higher-ups and Yuji?"

He let out a low hum before he answered, "That's right, you didn't hear me talking to Ijichi. The higher-ups orchestrated what happened to Yuji. The enemy was suspected Special Grade, and there were five unconfirmed rescue targets. I'd never send first-years into that. I had to throw my weight around to get a stay-of-execution for Yuji. Those crusty bastards at the top used the Special Grade to get rid of him in my absence."

I seethed in a breath, and I clenched my teeth so hard I felt my jaw pop. Though the situations were very different, my mind went straight to Tagg and his bullshit, and Alexandria as she made me believe she killed my friends. I let my breath out slow, and spoke. "I see. That being the case, I'd follow you Gojo-sensei. Even if I were the only one." I'd killed both Alexandria and Tagg, and their contemporaries still made me Weaver after all, it'd be hypocritical of me to accept that for myself but not stand behind Gojo for something that felt so similar, even if it wasn't.

He looked surprised for a few long seconds, before smiling lightly as he continued, "That means a lot Taylor, thank you. But the better choice is education, so that's what I'm doing. I need strong and intelligent allies. I need to foster them. To that end, I'll give them my missions sometimes. It's a form of tough love."

Ijichi looked skeptical, but I responded again, "Like that time with the Curse Users?"

He nodded, "Exactly like that. The third-year Hikari, and second-year Okkotsu, they'll be as good as me someday, and I have high hopes for you too, Taylor." Then his voice dropped into an angry half-growl, and his fists clenched hard as he continued. "Yuji should have been one as well." 

I hissed in matching anger. This was a dream I could get behind.

"Hey you three." Shoko called out, her prep seemingly finished as she pulled on her gloves and a mask on her face as she turned to us. "I'm about to get started. You gonna watch?"

None of us answered, as all three of our jaws had dropped, and we stared passed her with shock painting our faces. She made a confused noise and turned to see what we were looking at and her eyes widened, practically a shout of surprise for the reserved doctor.

"Oh! I'm totally naked!" Yuji blurted in surprise, having sat up on his slab seconds before.

"G-g-g-go-gojo-san! H-h-h-he's alive!" Ijichi was stammering in a half-scream, even as Gojo chuckled lightly and said, "Ijichi, be quiet."

Shoko looked at Yuji, and in a tone that someone who didn't know her might take seriously said, "I'm kinda disappointed." He just stared at her for a moment before he asked, "I'm a little embarrassed to ask, but who are you?"

Gojo and I both moved closer, and I answered, "She's the doctor here at Jujutsu High." He looked at me, then jumped lightly and crossed his legs firmly. Shoko turned and walked off as he said, a little nervously. "Ah, hello Hebert."

I had a great many concerns and questions, but I had tentatively started to think of Yuji as a friend since we'd met, and how often did a friend return from the dead? "Hello Itadori." I responded, my voice firm, but warmer than I'd thought it might be.

"Yuji!" Gojo interrupted whatever else we might have said. "Welcome back!" He chirped brightly, holding up one hand.

"Yeah. Good to be back!" Yuji responded, matching Gojo's energy. Shoko came back with clothes for Yuji, just as Yuji and Gojo's high-five echoed loudly in the morgue.

I walked out along with Shoko, on her left while Gojo was on her right, and l listened as they spoke. "Ugh, I'll have to revise the reports now." Shoko pretended to complain. I knew she didn't really mind, she was pleased that Yuji was alive. 

"No," Gojo said, "Leave them as is. I want Yuji to gain at least the minimum of training required before he gets targeted again." He was smiling again, his arrogance and lightness returned. "Sorry Shoko, but would you leave him listed as deceased in the official reports?"

Shoko looked at him a little sideways, "You want to keep him completely hidden away?" 

"No, I'll have him make his comeback in time for the Exchange Event."

"What's the Exchange Event?" I asked, before I could re-think interrupting, a split second after Shoko asked, "Why?"

Gojo looked at me confused for a second before he recovered, "I'll explain it to you later, Taylor. To answer you, Shoko, I refuse to keep this kid from living out the best years of his life. Not just him, but everyone.

After that statement, Shoko stated her agreement to the plan and bid us goodbye, then returned to her clinic. Gojo beckoned me to follow him while speaking, "Taylor, I'm gonna show you where I'm gonna take Yuji for training, and to keep him out of sight. I want you to help me train him a bit, and keep an eye on him. Don't tell anybody about the spot, or Yuji." At my agreeing nod, he took me to a hidden room across campus. There was a T.V., a couch, and a smaller side room with a little bed.

Once I'd seen it, and memorized it's location, I went to the training fields to get some exercise, but that plan fell apart a little when I found five of my fellow students there. Fushiguro and Kugisaki were both there, though Nobara was looking like she was prepping to leave. The other three, I didn't recognize.

Is that a panda?

I walked down the stairs near Fushiguro, and heard him greet me. "Hello, Hebert-san."

"Hello to you too, Fushiguro-san." We both sounded very bland and short, but it was a comfortable wavelength for us both.

"So this is the American?" A female voice asked. I turned to the speaker and saw she was a handful of centimeters shorter than me, with black hair that had a slight greenish tinge, and hazel eyes behind a pair of glasses.

"I am American. My name is Hebert Taylor. You are?" I kept the same tone I used with Fushiguro, but she didn't seem to mind when she responded. "Call me Maki."

"Maki?" I asked. "Zen'in Maki?" I recognized the name from my visit to the Cursed Warehouse. She looked displeased at my question and curtly told me, "Don't call me by my last name."

"I can do that. Can I ask why?"

"Because my family is made up of dirtbag men, and kowtowing women." She sounded angry and dismissive.

"I see." Was all I said.

"Hey, Hebert. How're you doing?" Kugisaki asked.

"I'm fine, Kugisaki. All healed up." She nodded at my words, then continued before I could say anything. "Well, I'm going shopping. Bye!" The last word was thrown over her shoulder as she walked off, and Maki went to sit beneath a tree. I turned to the two unfamiliar students, and started with the pale-haired boy sitting a short distance from Fushiguro on the steps into the training field. "Can I ask who you are?" He looked at me with interesting purple-ish eyes and said "Bonito flakes."

I raised an eyebrow at his nonsense, and was about to ask when Fushiguro jumped in. "That's Inumaki Toge-senpai. He's a second-year here, and he's a Cursed Speech user."

"Oh. So that's why the.." Both boys nodded at my vague gesture, correctly divining that I meant his seeming non-sequitur. Then I turned to the panda, and asked the big question. "So she's Maki-senpai the Cursed Tool user, and he's Inumaki-senpai the Cursed Speech user, so you are?"

The panda chuckled slightly before he answered, "I am Panda."

I narrowed my eyes at him, unamused. He just smiled a sharp-toothed grin.

"So, we are all going to train together for the Exchange Event," Maki started, "Are you going to join us?"

"Probably." I responded. "As soon as someone tells me what that is." Maki let out a huff before she spoke again. "Of course that blindfolded idiot wouldn't tell all of his students about it." I made an amused noise at that.

"The Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event, or the Exchange Event, is a joint annual competition to promote goodwill between the sister schools. The competition takes place on the campus of the previous year's winner. The principals of both schools decide on two competitions for the students centered around Jujutsu battles. They're pretty much invariably a team competition the first day, and an individual competition the second." Maki explained, almost sounding like she was reading a manual.

"I get it." I answered. "In that case, yes, definitely. I will participate, and train with you all." I was actually looking forward to it, and thought I sounded like it. "I'll see you all tomorrow morning then."

At that, there was a round of agreements and one ingredient and I left them to their discussion. It sounded like they were talking about how to store Cursed Tools easily for use during the Event. 

After leaving my fellow students, I went to get dinner and take a shower, since I'd lost my motivation to work out. By the time I finished and was in a clean uniform, the sun was mostly down. With that, I decided to fulfill part of Gojo's request, and go see Itadori.

I made my way down into the hidden room, and found Itadori watching a movie with a plushie in his hands. I stepped fully into the room, and stood watching for a moment.

Is that 'The Lord of the Rings'?

"Can I join you?" I asked. He jumped lightly, but turned to me and looked a little nervous and uncomfortable even as he scooted over on the couch. "Ah, Hebert. Sure, no problem."

He was acting unusual, a little pink in the face and I wondered what was wrong, if he had some kind of problem with me, but I decided to leave it alone. If it got worse, I'd do something about it, but until then I could deal with it. I sat on the far end of the couch from him, and settled in to watch. I'd seen both the Bet and Aleph versions of these movies, and read both versions of the books. I was truly curious to find out if these would be different.

Bet, Aleph, now this Earth. Cursed Earth? There were six letters in 'Cursed', so maybe I could call it Earth Vav. That was 'six' in the Hebrew numbers used to label Earths, and I couldn't remember if that was already assigned.

I got to watch the Vav Lord of the Rings for maybe twenty minutes before we were interrupted. I heard the footsteps come down the stairs just as Frodo and Sam were talking in the boat. I figured that I knew who it was, but I couldn't help but be annoyed when Gojo spoke.

"Yuji." Yuji whirled around at his name and yelled "Gojo-sensei?! What's up?"  

Gojo, for his part, just stared at him for several long moments, assumedly thinking, as Yuji's face got more and more confused. Then his habitual smirk grew, and he said, "Let's get out of here Yuji. You too Taylor, since you're here. We're going on a field trip, and I'll teach you two about the pinnacle of Jujutsu battles; Domain Expansion."

Moments later, we appeared on a small lake in the middle of a forest. Gojo had snatched Yuji up by the scruff of his uniform, and after I strenuously objected to being handled in the same way, he said that he had me covered before scooping me up under his arm like a football. Then, we were gone.

After we appeared on the lake, Gojo set me down before I could demand it. Although I would have liked to ask why I wasn't sinking, I got distracted by the Cursed Spirit standing maybe a dozen meters from us. It wasn't as ugly, as distorted, as most of the other Cursed Spirits I'd seen. It looked almost human, but with one cyclops eye, and a head-"Mt. Fuji! His head is Mt. Fuji!"-yes, Yuji, thank you. His head looked a lot like a volcano.

Gojo set Yuji down, and the Curse had a contemplative look on it's face. "Wasn't I at the school, like, ten seconds ago?" Itadori asked. "We warped here." Gojo responded, and Yuji looked a little put-out at the weak answer.

"Gojo-sensei can teleport both himself and others both long and short distances." I told him quickly. He let out an "Oh." before turning his confusion to the fact that we weren't sinking into the water.

"What's with the children?" I jumped slightly at the Curse's voice. It sounded almost indistinguishable from a normal human voice, just a slight tonal dissonance that made it sound.. off. "Gonna use them for a shield?"

"A shield?" Gojo asked, his voice dismissive. "No, I'm just here to teach them a little lesson. I'm in the middle of teaching them lots of different stuff, so you just do your thing."

The Cursed Spirit, looking more than a little beat up now that I was looking, widened it's eye before it continued. "They're going to be a liability here. You fool." It sounded annoyed, almost offended.

Gojo laughed obnoxiously, he honestly seemed to be playing up his usual arrogant dismissiveness with a little hand wave as he said, "Oh, it'll be fine. After all.. you're weak."

At that, the Curse stared. It honestly seemed stunned. It only lasted a moment, however, before it exploded. Lava and fire burst from the top of it's volcano head, and out two pseudo-ears on the sides of it's head. It also started screaming, shouting at Gojo. "DON"T UNDERESTIMATE ME, YOU DAMN BRAT!!" It shrieked, mortally offended. "I'm going to enjoy destroying you and your smug face!" 

At that, in tandem with the sheer heat coming from it's head, it's Cursed Energy surged high, throwing the lake we were standing on into frothing chaos.

Gojo just stood calmly, hands in his pockets, as the waves broke around us.

I drew Silence and Cry mostly out of reflex. I hadn't unspooled Control, no real need to with Gojo here, but from what I could sense this Cursed Spirit was more powerful than any other I'd met. Special Grade, definitely. I would swear to anything that it was less dangerous than Sukuna, but it felt like it had more Cursed Energy than the current King of Curses.

Before I could do anything else, I felt Gojo's hand fall on my shoulder, and I looked over to see that his other hand was on Itadori's head. "Don't worry you two. Just stay close to me." He said reassuringly.

I turned back to the Curse, and saw that even as the magma coming out of it's head slowed to a stop, it's hands came together to form a sign.

"Domain Expansion!"

The world fell away around us, the Cursed Energy seemed to flow, and corral us, then everything shifted. The lake disappeared into stone, our view of the trees and the sky vanished into darkness and heat. Then, the magma. The stone that made up the new state of the world around us cracked open, and lava flowed and gasses spewed. The heat grew, until it was just inside the far threshold for bearable.

I could see the Curse, still with it's hand in the seal it used to cast it's Domain. "Wh-what is this?!" Yuji cried out.

"Coffin of the Iron Mountain!" The Curse proclaimed, as if in answer.

"This is Domain Expansion." Gojo began. "You use Cursed Energy to construct an Innate Domain imbued with a Cursed Technique over your surroundings. What you all experienced at the Juvenile Detention Center was an incomplete Domain that hadn't been imbued with any Techniques. If it had been a complete Domain, you would likely all have died. Isn't that right Taylor?" I nodded my assent at the question, the explanation was practically entirely for Yuji's sake anyway. I'd done enough research on the subject, so I was getting more out of watching and feeling it than anything Gojo was saying.

"Spreading out a Domain consumes a ton of energy," He continued. "but it's merits are worth the cost. One such benefit is the upgrade in stats due to the environment. Like buffs in a video game. Another is-" At that moment, his arm came up to give a deceptively light-seeming tap to a massive, steaming hot boulder that seemed to appear out of nowhere. It shattered and fell apart, disappearing almost as suddenly as it appeared. I felt a jolt up my spine at the steam that was visibly rising from his arm, where he made the hit.

His Infinity doesn't function properly in a Domain!

My reading had suggested as such, but this was actual proof. "-that the Techniques imbued in the Domain, are guaranteed to hit in that Domain."

"Guaranteed?" Yuji asked, seemingly dismayed. The Curse just looked more annoyed, for it's part.

"Guaranteed!" Gojo confirmed confidently. "But don't worry too much. There are a few ways to deal with it. You can meet it, take the hit using energy or a Cursed Technique of your own, like I just did, or you could try to escape the Domain. I wouldn't really recommend that one, it's usually impossible, for a couple of reasons. Then there's-" Gojo got cut off, finally, by the Curse.

"Your Infinity! My Domain can neutralize it, my attacks will reach you now, correct?" It sounded fairly desperate but fighting someone like Gojo, I could understand, though not empathize.

"Yeah, they'll hit." Gojo said, dripping confidence.

"Huh? Infinity?" Yuji blurted in confusion. "Later." I told him firmly.

"The most effective way to counter a Domain, is to lay out your own." As he spoke, Gojo's arm came up slowly, and started pulling his blindfold down. "When two Domains are laid out at the same time, the more polished and refined one will dominate the space. Though sometimes, compatibility and Cursed Energy can be factors."

"There won't even be ashes left of you, Gojo Satoru!" The Curse cried out as it swung up a hand into a simple sign, two fingers pointed up. With the activation, the ground erupted into a stream of lava that came up and exploded towards us like water driven by powerful winds. As the attack, the massive lava flow, came within three or four meters it stopped, like it had hit a wall. I turned to look, and saw that Gojo had pulled his blindfold all the way down, and opened his startlingly bright blue eyes.

"Domain Expansion." He intoned calmly, his voice even and cool. His right hand came up and he indolently crossed his pointer and middle finger. "Infinite Void."

What happened after that was hard to fathom. The stone, steam, and lava disappeared under an assault of Gojo's Cursed Energy, it flowed right over and through the Curse's Domain almost like it wasn't even there. Before anything proceeded, I felt Gojo's hand seize my upper arm. I turned to look, and saw Itadori tucked under his arm like I had been earlier, like he was a football. We were both held close by his left arm, then everything shifted again. This time, it expanded.

Everything disappeared in a blur of stars. Everything flowed out, and out, and in and in. Then it stopped. Everything. There was what looked like a black hole, stars scattered between lines and what could have been tears of abstract white. It was deeply bizarre.

I looked, and saw that we were standing behind the Curse. Like we had moved, simply by being there. The thing looked like it had frozen in place, paralyzed by it's surroundings.

Gojo reached his hand out, and gripped the top of the Curse's head. "This is the inner world of the Limitless." He said.

In the strange, origin-less, not-light of Infinite Void, Gojo looked different. His eyes looked like they were glowing, and even as I turned my head to look between him and the Curse, it seemed Gojo was always the center. The focal point of all within the Domain, like he was the only thing with gravity and mass.

"Perception. Communication. Every action involved in living is forcibly carried out an infinite number of times." Under Gojo's arm, speechless, Yuji looked as stunned as I felt.

"It's ironic, isn't it?" Gojo had an almost gentle smile as he continued. "When granted everything, you can't do anything.. but die slowly."

His grip tightened on the Curse's head. "But I have questions I want to ask you, so I'll let you off the hook with this.." With that, his grip tightened further as he pulled up until with a single, continuous movement, he ripped the Cursed Spirit's head from it's neck. Then, all at once, the Domain disappeared. The return to the real world was jarring, and I barely noticed being moved over onto solid ground or when he let go of Yuji and I.

I was.. disturbed.

I was so disturbed I released Control and let it center me. I could sense Gojo, what little was left of the Volcano Curse, and Yuji. A small multitude of bugs, and a few small woodland creatures. I took a few long, slow breaths as I shook off the way Infinite Void had left me feeling. I tuned back in when Gojo tossed the Curse's head onto the ground, then planted his foot on it.

"Now, who told you to come after me?" He asked, rolling the head back and forth beneath his foot. He had put his blindfold most of the way back on, keeping one eye uncovered.

He really hadn't been lying, back then. The strongest indeed.

"You don't seem like the type to follow orders. Was something good supposed to happen if you killed me?" He continued the interrogation, slowly increasing the pressure of his foot with each unanswered question. "Regardless, I want to know. Who was it? Come on, just tell me already."

"Like I'd ever tell you, brat!" The bodiless Curse hissed.

"You sure you should be saying that?" Gojo asked, finally releasing his blindfold, leaving it to completely cover his eyes once again. I wanted to hear the interrogation, but I felt a twitch through Control. There was.. something. My hands tightened on my Tools, and I looked around. There was something coming from.. above!

"Move!" I barked. Gojo took a step back practically before I spoke, as a spike of what looked like wood cut through the air where he had been standing, stabbing into the ground. Then, a field of flowers spread out from the point of impact so fast it could almost have been instantaneous. I felt the effect of the field of flowers scrape against Control, trying to influence me. I looked at Gojo and Yuji, they were both stunned, smiling happily.

Master power!

"Wake up!" I snapped at them, and Gojo twitched, then slapped himself lightly across the face. Abruptly, Yuji was yanked off his feet, and a massive, new Cursed Spirit appeared from seemingly nowhere, snatching the head up off the ground and running.

I froze for a moment, trying to decide. My logic, and past experience told me to attack the Cursed Spirit, stop it before it could get away. But Yuji was being dragged through the air, now down towards a tree stump with a massive jagged mouth.

I need to be better.

"I'll get Yuji!" I snapped, and then I was moving. I made it to the biting stump almost at the same moment as Yuji, but I swung Silence and severed the branch-tentacle before the thing could get him into it's mouth. Another two strikes destroyed it.

Even as I was attacking, I reached out with Control and tried to stop the second Cursed Spirit, but Control couldn't get a grip on it, sliding right through and passed it like water through a sieve. I felt enough however, to notice when Gojo hit it hard enough that it went flying sideways through several trees.

Also, that it dropped the head.

I helped Yuji to his feet, and he said, "Thank you Hebert." I smiled slightly and responded simply. "You're welcome Yuji." He looked up at me, right in the eye. He was only four or five centimeters shorter than me, but he still turned a little red and turned away fast. I couldn't help but be a little annoyed. I'd not thought he was shallow enough to care if a girl was taller than him.

I turned back to look at Gojo as he approached us, the head of the Volcano Curse in his right hand, and he was smirking wide. "Well done Taylor. That thing might have gotten away with this. It's good at hiding it's presence."

I looked at him, and still annoyed, asked, "What now? Finish it off?"

He nodded as he answered me. "Yeah. It's not gonna tell us anything." I could hear it's black teeth grinding in what I would guess is irritation. To be so close to rescue, only to have it snatched away. Or be snatched away from rescue, rather. I considered trying to use Control, but seeing as minds were left free and I didn't get mental feedback, I truly didn't think it would work.

Gojo suddenly grinned, like an idea had come to him. "Hey, Yuji. Catch!" Itadori's head jerked slightly at his name, then his whole body jerked when he caught the Curse's severed head. He made a grossed-out noise, and held the head far away from him. "What the heck, Gojo-sensei?!" He cried incredulously.

"Pull!" Gojo called, holding his right hand in a finger-gun.

"What?" Itadori asked, confused.

"C'mon Yuji! Pull!" Gojo yelled again, shaking his finger-gun to get Yuji's attention. Yuji made a noise of realization, then grinned wide. He cocked his arm back, head in hand, and hurled it as hard as he could. The angle he threw it at was steep, almost straight up in the air.

Gojo pointed his hand at it, and a red sheen seemed to appear, concentrated on a dot at the tip of his fingers, smaller than a pin-head. "Cursed Technique Reversal: Red" He intoned aloud.

The red light grew, then vanished all at once with a crack of sound like thunder and an explosion of air. I felt through Control, more than saw, the raw force of Gojo's technique shatter the head in midair, reducing it to practically nothing. The Cursed Spirit had been successfully exorcised.

As Yuji loudly exclaimed his amazement at Gojo's power, I was preoccupied with my thoughts. Two unregistered Special Grades, apparently working together. Whatever that second Spirit had been, it had almost slipped beneath Control entirely, almost like how plants just didn't register. Gojo himself. I was still getting a sense of him.

Brute, Mover, Thinker, Shaker, and now Blaster.

Triumvirate tier. S-Class.

Special Grade. 

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

After Gojo returned Itadori and I to the Jujutsu High campus, my first order of business was a shower. After that, and a short dinner, I went to the library in search of research materials. There, I found plenty of writings on Binding Vows, along with more information on Cursed Spirits. I was looking to refine Control before the Goodwill Event, and I wanted to find out if there was precedent for multiple Special Grade Curses working together.

I didn't have much luck on the latter. Cooperation among Cursed Spirits was rare, and most documented cases were clear-cut subservience, one more powerful Curse exploiting another. I couldn't find anything that explained one Curse putting itself at risk trying to save another. This meant that, as far as I knew, we were in uncharted territory in at least one regard. I couldn't help but worry about that. In my experience, enemies who worked together were a special problem. The Slaughterhouse Nine taught me that better than anyone.

My research on the former was more successful. It turned out that there was a very simple version of a Binding Vow, made between oneself and your opponent. It was known as a "Technique Reveal" or in more modern terms "Showing Your Hand". Verbally revealing details of your technique to an opponent increases Cursed Energy and the effectiveness of the technique itself. That.. struck me as very odd, but good to know. More specifically what I was looking for though, was that Binding Vows could be made with yourself to alter or modify your Technique. Gojo had said something at one point about Nanami, that he had made a Vow with himself. When I saw him again, I'd have to ask him about it.

Until then though, I was to train with Megumi, Nobara, and the second-years. I met them at seven the next morning, on the main outdoor training field. I was the only one in uniform though. Maki, Fushiguro, Kugisaki, and Inumaki were all wearing tracksuits of various colors and designs, and the panda was of course naked except for an arm band. It was good training though, all things considered. Maki was strong, fast, and extremely skilled with the training staff she was using. Inumaki was pretty good at hand-to-hand as well, and the panda was full of advice.

It was almost exclusively sparring as I didn't want to use Control on any of them, and I had decided to use two escrima sticks to simulate Silence and Cry. I'd paired off to spar with Maki, while Megumi and Inumaki were training their hand-to-hand a few meters away, and Nobara and Panda were doing.. something on the track. I'd heard Nobara say something about how the panda would have to work for it before he could throw her around like yesterday, so now they were running back and forth shouting at one another.

My fight with Maki was going poorly. As it turns out, two short-range weapons were not an effective counter to a polearm. She was battering me with short, sharp strikes that I had trouble blocking consecutively, from a distance that I struggled to close. I had to change how this was going if I wanted to win, so I decided to use one of my trump cards. On her next swing, instead of blocking with my right-hand weapon, I dropped it and caught her staff with my prosthetic. It snapped into my palm with a crack that would have been concerning if it had come from another person's hand.

Maki's face turned surprised, and I took the moment to strike at her hand gripping the staff nearest me. My training stick cracked down on the fingers of her left hand, forcing her to let go with a hiss. I yanked on her weapon, while stepping closer to swing again, this time at her head. I had a brief moment to see her surprised, and slightly pained, face before she jerked her head back to let my swing pass harmlessly through empty air. Then, she swung her right leg up to hook over the staff and yank down. I had time to be surprised but not to let go or block before, with a light hop, she swung her left foot up and kicked me in the face.

She followed the momentum of her kick around in a pirouette, and re-gripped her staff with a twirl, ending the motion facing me in a ready position. For my part, I hit the ground on my back with a whuff of breath.

Ow.

I laid there for a few moments, trying to feel out if my nose was broken. My vision abruptly changed from blue skies, to Maki's face as she leaned over me. She was smirking, but seemed slightly concerned.

"That was a good move." She told me. "You almost got me. Is your hand okay?" 

I took a slightly pained breath through my nose, it didn't seem broken, and instead of answering I put my right hand up in a wordless ask for help standing. She looked slightly confused, but took my hand and hauled me up like I weighed nothing. Once I was vertical, I squeezed her hand in my prosthetic to turn her attention to it, and she turned it in her grip to get a good look. I pulled up my uniform sleeve to mid-forearm help her see.

"It's a prosthetic?" She asked, surprised. I shouldn't have been surprised that she immediately figured it out. She was holding it, the first person since Shoko to do so, and I had no idea how it felt to the touch for someone else beyond not feeling like skin and bone. 

Before I could answer, I heard another voice off to the side. "You have a prosthetic?" I turned to see that all four of our fellow students had turned to look at us, even Nobara and Panda, probably drawn by the crack her staff had made with my hand. I looked at Megumi, who had been the one to ask, and answered.

"Yeah. Gojo-san, Shoko, and a master of making Cursed Corpses who's name I never found out made it for me." As I spoke, I went to take off the jacket of my uniform, but stopped short when I realized that Maki was still holding my prosthetic hand. I couldn't feel much with it, just a bit of heat from her skin, and slight pressure from her grip. In lieu of pulling the jacket off, I just rolled it further up my arm along with my white undershirt, to just above the seam. I was uncomfortable showing my fellow students this, but it was good for them to know. So as Maki turned my hand over in her grip and she set her staff to rest against her shoulder so she could use both hands to inspect it, I swallowed my discomfort and let them look.

"How does it work?" Nobara asked as she too reached out to touch the prosthetic's forearm.

"I'm not completely sure." I answered truthfully. Examining the workings of it had not been among my priorities up to now. "Shoko told me that it was made along similar principles as a Cursed Corpse, with a core that mimics the structure of human bones."

"You said it was made by a 'master of making Cursed Corpses?" It was the panda that asked this time, and I nodded as I answered and Kugisaki stepped back.

"That's what she told me. She said that the guy who made it was using techniques for that, and this, that had never been seen before." At that, the panda got a deeply contemplative look on his face. At least, I was pretty sure it was contemplative. His face was extremely expressive, but it was still a panda's face.

"You manipulate it with your Cursed Energy?" Megumi asked, pulling me from wondering what had drawn so much consideration from Panda. 

"Yeah. My energy flows out of my body and follows the core, then out to fill the rest of it. We're calling it a Cursed Prosthetic." I used my other hand to demonstrate as I spoke, running my hand from the seam down towards my wrist. With that, all the students nodded their understanding, and went back to their own sessions, leaving me with Maki.

Maki looked at me for a moment, and I decided now was as good a time as any to ask. "Is it true that you have a Heavenly Restriction?" I was a little worried that I'd offend her, but we'd just discussed my prosthetic in detail so I figured turnabout was fair play.

She met my eyes and nodded slightly as she answered. "Yeah. I have no Innate Technique, and my Cursed Energy is so low I can't even see Curses without these glasses. In exchange, I got increased physical abilities." She didn't sound at all offended, to my relief.

"Is that why your family dislikes you so much, and you them? The Zen'in?" I knew from my reading that Sorcerer families had a strong tendency to look down on, even hate, those that had little Cursed Energy or no Technique. I also remembered Maki's stated dislike for her family.

She scoffed harshly, and her face screwed up in dislike as she answered. "Yeah, that's one reason. Another is they told me that even if I don't have energy or a technique, I could still be of use as breeding stock for the clan. The men and women both said crap like that, looking down on me all the time."

I felt my face twist to mirror her distaste at that. Then a thought struck me.

"That's why you came to the Tokyo Jujutsu school, isn't it. To prove them wrong?"

She gave a vicious smirk and made a vaguely amused noise before she answered. "Yup, that's right. I'm gonna become a big-shot Sorcerer just to see the looks on their faces."

I hummed in understanding, giving her an answering smile. "If I can help at all, let me know." I told her.

She nodded her acceptance of my offer, but we were snapped out of our little moment when a whistle sounded across the field. We both turned to look, and saw that Inumaki was waving a hand to get our attention on behalf of Kugisaki before he and Panda walked away.

"We still have class stuff to do today, we'll have to stop here." Nobara said, mostly to me, once we were looking. 

"Alright, we'll meet back up tomorrow." Maki said agreeably. 

"We'll need to meet later in the morning. We have a few errands we need to do, and tomorrow's the only day we have." I reminded Nobara and Megumi, who was standing nearby. They each gave their assent as they turned to leave, and I looked back at Maki with a raised eyebrow as I noticed something.

"Can I have my hand back?" I asked her. I tried hard not to sound even a little annoyed or impatient, I hadn't realized she was still holding my prosthetic hand until a moment ago myself.

She jumped slightly, then dropped my hand like it burned her, and turned away quickly. "See you tomorrow." She said, almost dismissively, over her shoulder. I tried not to smile at her embarrassment as I offered her the same.

"See you tomorrow."

"We need more vending machines." Nobara said in an faintly annoyed tone. The three of us had pretty much finished our errands today, now we just needed to meet back up with the second-years. Nobara insisted we stop by the machines on our way to them though.

"Not gonna happen." Megumi refuted calmly. "The school is strict about who we do business with, so there's only so many workers who can come in here."

I kept quiet, as I didn't even use the vending machines much. Any further conversation was cut off though, when we each noticed two people standing nearby. One was a man, maybe one hundred ninety centimeters and heavily built, with his hair up in a bun and a scar over one eye. The other was a woman who looked almost exactly like Maki. It was hard to be sure how similar they really were, this girl had her hair in a jaw-length bob and she was wearing a sleeveless blue dress and makeup in sharp contrast to Maki, but if I had to guess I'd say they were twins.

"Why are you here, Zen'in-senpai?" Megumi asked coolly.

"Oh, she's one too?" Kugisaki asked, sounding surprised. "They do seem similar. Are they sisters?" She looked a little pleased, strangely. 

"They're twins." He responded. So I was right.

"Oh, Fushiguro-kun." The woman started in a simpering tone. "Isn't that what you call Maki? Call me Mai."

"So, these are the stand-ins for Okkotsu and the third year?" The big guy huffed dismissively.

"We came here with our principal because we were worried about you." Mai told us. Her voice was light, still simpering. Honestly, she made me think of Emma. False warmth and pseudo-friendliness, masking contempt. It was an impression that only strengthened as she continued with a smile. "Your classmate died, right? Was that rough? Or did you think nothing of it?"

All three of us stiffened, and Fushiguro's voice was harder when he asked, "What are you trying to say?"

"It's okay. Some things are hard to say out loud." She told us, her voice dripping with poisoned honey. "So I'll say it for you. 'Vessel' makes it sound nice, but all it means is that he was a half-curse monster." She put a finger on her lips, and her cheeks actually pinked slightly as she continued.

"Having such a tainted, inhuman being beside you-" "Shut up." I interrupted her harshly. I'd taken talk like that from Emma and her stooges for far too long. I would not listen to it any more, especially not against a friend. "Don't talk about him like that. You didn't know him." My voice was tight and angry. None of them knew that Itadori was still alive, but thinking you were speaking ill of the dead was no better. Megumi and Nobara looked just as angry as I felt.

Mai turned her head and gave me annoyed look. She opened her mouth, presumably to turn her vitriol on me, but was cut off by the big guy. "Mai, leave it alone. I didn't come here to listen to you squabble with them." Mai huffed at him, but didn't object.

He started to step closer to us. "I'm only here to see if these guys are fit to take Okkotsu's place. That's all I care about." He said as he came to a stop maybe three meters away.

He locked his eyes on Megumi and asked, "Fushiguro, was it?" He took a deep breath, and leaned a little closer. "What kind of woman is your type?!" He practically shouted.

All he got in response was three blank stares and an eye-roll from Mai.

"Depending on your answer, I'll beat you half to death right here," his voice rose dramatically as he spoke, and his mouth pulled into a wide, toothy grin, "and I'll drag Okkotsu, or at least the third-years, out to the Exchange Event." As he spoke, he tore at his purple shirt with his hands, shredding it. His grin grew wider, and he looked more than a little deranged. "By the way, my type is a tall woman, with a big ass!" he finished at a full yell, settling into a ready stance.

What a strange person.

"Why do I have to talk about my taste in women with a guy I just met?" Megumi asked, sounding confused.

"He's got a point." Nobara interjected, pointing at Fushiguro. "That's a tall hurdle for an anti-social guy." 

"You, shut up." Megumi told her, mostly joking I thought, though he didn't look like it with a vein in his forehead bulging. "This is confusing enough, you'll just make it worse."

"Kyoto third-year, Todo Aoi. Introduction over. Now we're friends. Hurry up and answer. If you prefer men, that's fine too." As Todo spoke, a bead of sweat slid down Megumi's face, and he looked deep in thought.

"That's enough." I interrupted again.

Todo looked at me for a moment before dismissing me completely. "Your answer will tell me everything about you. People with boring taste in women are boring themselves, and I hate boring men!" He was still speaking unnecessarily loudly as he continued. "The Goodwill Event gives me a rush! If my last one ends up being boring, who knows what I might do. This is me being nice, tell me, and I'll leave you only half-dead! Answer me Fushiguro! What type of woman do you like?!" He belted out.

As Nobara started quietly saying something about how she liked Mai's dress, Fushiguro looked contemplative. He thought for several long moments, then decided to answer Todo's question.

"I don't have a particular preference. A long as she has compassion and an unshakeable character, I won't ask for more."  Megumi said in a low tone. He sounded like he was thinking about someone specific. I couldn't help but let out an approving hum at that. Nobara too, gave him a verbal "Not a bad answer.", and even Mai looked distinctly, and honestly, pleased. If Fushiguro cared that all three women present liked his answer he gave no sign and Todo, for his part, looked.. sad?

"I knew it." He said quietly, even as tears started to fall down his face. "You're boring, Fushiguro."

At that, Todo launched himself at truly extreme speeds to clothesline Fushiguro, throwing him most of ten meters away to crash painfully into the gravel. As he followed Megumi at a walk, both Kugisaki and I shouted "Fushiguro!" I started to follow the boys, but I stopped short when Mai threw her arms around Nobara in an odd parody of a hug.

"Poor Fushiguro-kun." Mai simpered. "Even as a talented Grade 2 Sorcerer, to the Grade 1 Todo-senpai, he's nothing more than a first-year. I'll have to make sure I comfort him later."

I drew Cry in my left hand as Mai drew Kugisaki close. I was having a hard time deciding whether to go help Megumi, or stay with Nobara. It really depended on what Mai did next. I prepped to let go of Control, and waited another moment as Todo got closer to Megumi, saying something about how he'd been trying not to judge him on his appearance. 

I looked back to Nobara just as she was speaking to Mai, "-but I was wrong. Maki-san is a hundred times prettier. Are you getting enough sleep? You've got open pores." With that insult, Mai's face hardened and she hissed out her response. "I'll teach you a lesson on how to speak to others." As she spoke, she pressed the barrel of a revolver against Nobara's side.

That's that.

As soon as I saw the gun, I let Control out to twenty meters, and brought it down on Mai as hard as I could. She froze, seizing up as Control tore through her fairly limited Cursed Energy. I took her over completely, and directed her to let go of Nobara and stand back. Nobara turned to look at Mai, now standing calmly and utterly still, and looked a little concerned.

"Kugisaki." I said, dragging her attention over to me. "I've got her with Control. You're unarmed, do you think you can help me with Todo?" I needed to help Megumi, but Kugisaki's hand-to-hand skills were iffy. They were in fact, first on the list of things we were going to train her up on before the Exchange Event. She gave another slightly uncomfortable look at Mai, then spoke to me. 

"No, I'm gonna see if I can find help. Maybe Gojo-san or Maki-san." I nodded my agreement.

"Go, I'll help Fushiguro." She returned my nod and we broke, running in opposite directions. I caught up to Todo a split second before he sped to a position behind Megumi, knocking his frog shikigami flying, and grabbing him in a suplex before smashing him headfirst into the ground. I only caught the end of whatever he was saying to Megumi as he did so, "Flimsy and shallow. Both your body and your taste in women!" I made it within range just as Megumi broke his hold and dodged Todo's follow up attack. 

I brought Control down on Todo before he could land his next hit on Megumi, and his motion ground to a halt. He grunted heavily, a sound that hitched sharply when I jumped into the air, and with Reinforced strength, slammed Cry down on the top of his head with a loud ping as I landed. Megumi recovered with alacrity, joining in as I struck with Cry and my prosthetic fist, one after the other. Another advantage of a painless, more durable limb, is that I could hit hard enough that I would otherwise hurt myself.

Megumi and I rained blows down on Todo, as the summoned toad shikigami rejoined the fight, trapping his limbs along with Control still restricting his movements. I was on hit number five with Cry when Todo turned the tables on us. His Cursed Energy spiked, throwing most of the effect Control had off, and gave Megumi a straight kick to his sternum that knocked the air out his lungs, and him on his ass. Then he whipped around to strike at me with a backhand, completely ignoring Megumi's toads. I jumped back to avoid the hit, and took stock of the situation.

Todo had a small line of blood running out of his hair down across his face, but that seemed to be the extent of the damage we did.

What is this guy made of?!

"This Technique of yours. It's interesting, show me more!" He roared, then he charged me. I left Control on him, a blanket over his Energy that hindered his movements, even if only slightly, and gave me a solid sense of the location of his limbs. I then went purely on instinct as he attacked. I'd been trying this with Maki, but maybe because of her low Cursed Energy, it didn't really work on her. For this guy though, it worked great. Todo was fast, way too fast to try and track with my eyes, so I let Control do it for me. It was even more effective than when I used to tag arms and legs with my bugs. I ducked, blocked with my prosthetic, and tried to find an opening.

I saw the moment when Megumi caught his breath, and rose to his feet, ready to rejoin the fight. 

Now.

As Megumi ran to join us, a gunshot rang out. The bullet I directed Mai to fire struck Todo in the shin, in the leg he was using to hold his body weight up to kick at me. At the same moment, I focused Control on Todo's right arm, letting me get Cry through his guard when his arm hesitated. Just as Megumi grabbed Todo by the shoulders to drive his knee into his kidney.

All three attacks connected almost simultaneously, and Megumi used his grip on Todo to follow the momentum of my strike with Cry to throw him to the ground, and he hit hard. Megumi and I repositioned, and I directed Mai to join us as Todo rose to his feet with a laugh.

"Good!" He cried, joyous. "That's good! This year's Goodwill Event might not be so bad after all!" Todo was having the time of his life, not even seeming to notice Mai, or maybe he just didn't care. His Cursed Reinforcement was too good, we were barely scratching him. I lamented that I hadn't had a chance to refine Control yet as Todo once again set himself to attack us. I took a deep breath, and braced to try something else.

If I can focus Control on his lungs, keep him from breathing, I might make some headway.

If that worked, and Megumi could have a chance to summon something better than his frogs, and I could make Mai land a better shot, we might be able to take this gorilla down. All four of us were balanced on a razor's edge, about to resume the fight, when a voice echoed out around us.

"Don't move!!"

Todo froze, even more than when I'd first gotten him with Control. I turned to the source of the voice and saw Inumaki with his mouth uncovered for the first time I'd ever seen.

So that's Cursed Speech.

Then Panda and Maki joined Megumi and I in squaring off against Todo, along with Kugisaki rejoining us. He looked to each of us, and his grin grew even wider.

"What are you doing Todo!?" Panda roared. "Why can't you wait until the Goodwill Event?"

"Just go home." Maki interrupted. "You too Mai." She said, turning to look at her twin. Her face dropped in confusion when Mai just stood, unresponsive.

"You don't have to tell me to go home." Todo lied. He looked around for a moment after dropping out of his fighting stance.  "Where's my jacket?" He asked, looking around. Then he leveled a look at us and said, "One of you tell Okkotsu to attend." None of us seemed willing to respond to that.

"Mai? What are you-" Maki began to ask, before she was interrupted by Todo.

"Mai! Let's go. I still have important business here in Tokyo. Oh, there's my jacket. What's wrong?" He looked at Mai a little sideways, and everyone else then noticed her unresponsive state.

"That's me." I threw out, once I'd gotten a good chance. "I have her in Control, my technique." Everyone stared at me. This was the first time any of them had seen me Control a human being, and I was even more uncomfortable than when they'd all been staring at my prosthetic.

"Well," Maki said slowly, "Will you let her go? They need to leave."

"Yeah!" Todo jumped in. "I need to make it to my personal handshake with Takada-chan!" He shouted, pulling tickets out of his pants pocket.

We all stared at him as I released Mai and reeled in Control. She jerked into motion with a harsh gasp, and whipped her head to look at me.

"You bitch!" She shrieked. I braced myself for her to attack, but Todo grabbed her arm and started to walk away after stooping to pick up his jacket. "I'll kill you for that! Don't let me catch you doing it again, I'll be ready for it, and I'll stop you!" She continued to rant and spit as Todo dragged her away, hypocritically telling her to wait for the Exchange Event.

I turned to look at everyone else, and met several discomfited gazes, and a few apathetic ones. "So.." Maki started. "That's your Technique?"

I nodded. "Control. It's just what it sounds like, but it doesn't work on things that don't have any Cursed Energy, or those with better or more Cursed Energy than me. Like Todo."

She nodded, and everyone shook off any lingering discomfort they felt. "Let's go back to training. Fushiguro, you should go see Shoko." I said. He shook his head and told us he was fine, he just had to clean the blood off his head. Again.

Everyone else voiced their agreement, and we all made our way towards the training field to pick up where we left off yesterday.

It took a few more days, but I finally got the timing right for Nanami to meet with me. The large blond man met me on one of the training fields first thing in the morning, on a day when I wasn't scheduled to train with the other students yet, and we greeted one another with our usual aplomb.

"Good morning Nanami-san. Thank you for agreeing to train with me."

"Good morning Hebert-chan. You're welcome."

After our social expectations were met, we got down to brass tacks. 

"So Hebert-chan, you said you wanted to learn how to make a Binding Vow with yourself. What specifically were you hoping to achieve?" He asked me simply.

"The past several missions I've been on, I've been able to sense something with Control, but not been able to do anything about it. On both the missions that I met Kugisaki and Itadori, there were times I needed to be able to effect a powerful enemy from more than four point eight meters away. Beyond that, too many opponents have been able to simply push past or ignore Control completely." I said with no small amount of frustration.

"Well, you could start with Showing Your Hand." He told me, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. I tilted my head in a question. That sounded familiar, but the details were slipping past me.

" 'Showing Your Hand', known to some as a Technique Reveal, is a simple Binding Vow made with an opponent. By revealing your Cursed Technique and details about it to an enemy, you gain effectiveness, greater energy, and efficiency." He lectured calmly. I nodded finally, I knew that sounded familiar. I'd come across that in my reading quite recently, but it was a good reminder to hear about it in person, from an experienced senior. That probably would have been helpful against Todo.

"Can we try that now, Nanami-san? Before we move on?" I asked. It was better to learn these things one at a time, as far as I was concerned. He nodded his agreement, and we squared off. I threw a few simple jabs, and blocked one swing from him, just enough to define him as my opponent. I unspooled Control out to six meters, and started talking.

"My technique is 'Control'." As I spoke, I leaned on Nanami with my power. I ducked a hook from him, causing a short hitch in my speech as I ran through my reveal. "I expand a field of Cursed Energy, and inside it I can take over the body of an enemy." I kept it short, talking while fighting had never been a strength of mine. Plus, nothing said I had to reveal everything. It worked, to my pleasure though not surprise.

Normally, using Control on Nanami was like pushing my hands into packed sand. Some give, but not enough to get anywhere. This time though, instead of using my palms to push against the sand, it was like I stiffened my fingers to stab deep. Nanami's breath hitched, and he missed a step as I attacked, so I got through his guard and landed a clean hit on his solar plexus. My prosthetic fist bounced off his stomach with a jolt I felt up to my shoulder, and his Cursed Energy surged to push back Control within a second, but the difference pre- and post-reveal was clear.

He's even tougher than Todo.

We both stood down from our ready positions and I spoke again. "That seemed to work well. The difference was noticeable."

"Yes, it was." He agreed, rolling his shoulders lightly.

"Now," he said, "To move on. Making a Binding Vow with yourself is simple in principle, but it can be difficult in execution. It all depends on the individual." He had taken on a firm lecturing tone, and I took a deep breath and focused hard. This is important.

"I said 'simple', but it is not so simple as to say to yourself 'I promise.' You must believe that it is binding, or it won't work." I nodded firmly to show I was listening as he went on. "Hold your Cursed Energy close, and have both firm knowledge of, and a willingness to be held to, the terms of the Vow. Said terms can be either a set of criteria that must be met, or a sacrifice of one thing in order to gain another."

"How will I know if either the sacrifice or criteria are enough for the Vow?" I asked.

"That depends largely on you. If you think that you've passed over a high enough bar, or given up enough for what you wish to gain, it'll happen." He leveled me a stern look through his peculiar glasses as he continued. "The inverse is also true; if you lack a willingness to be bound, body and mind, or try to gain too much for too little, at best the Vow won't function. Worst case, you'll suffer for it." 

At that, my mind flashed back to something Sukuna had said to us, outside the Detention Center. "This is what he gets for trying to use me without any sort of pact...If you grasp for power beyond your means, you'll earn retribution."

"I understand." I said firmly. "Don't let my reach exceed my grasp." I wasn't sure if I translated that saying well into Japanese, but Nanami nodded, so I thought I did it right. 

"That's correct." He said, verbalizing his agreement. Then he continued in his lecturing tone. " My own Binding Vow is 'Overtime'. It limits the amount of Cursed Energy I can utilize when I'm officially on the clock for Jujutsu High to about eighty percent. Once my shift ends, and overtime hours begin, my Cursed Energy swells to about one hundred twenty percent, and grants me a boost in fighting power. I can also break the Vow and use one hundred percent of my Energy at any given time, but using 'Overtime' in that case would only result in a one percent increase. This works because my hours matter to me, and I believe it to be binding. When you set the terms of the Vow, you should have a sense of when you get to a good place. A sweet spot, if you will. Do you understand?"

"I do." I told him.

"Try it for yourself now."

I took a deep breath, and closed my eyes to concentrate. I let Control unspool fully, and looked inward to the core of my Cursed Energy. To help get my mind in the right space, I imagined dark ropes tying me to my energy, and to my technique.

I, Taylor Anne Hebert, hereby make this Vow. I give up seventy meters of my range, and the 'surrounding area' aspect of Control, to gain full grasp of more powerful targets.

I waited, and felt closely at my energy and technique. Nothing. Too broad, too vague maybe. Okay, let's try again. 

I, Taylor Anne Hebert, hereby make this Vow. I sacrifice ninety meters of range and the full surrounding aspect of Control, along with any power over anything less than Grade 2. In exchange, I get full use of Control on one target of Grade 2 or higher out to eighty meters.

There.

I hissed out a breath when I felt my imagined ropes bound me tight, solidifying my Vow. Individual Control.

"I think I got it Nanami-san." I said quietly.

"Very well, Hebert-chan, let's try it out."

I nodded, and moved maybe fifty meters away before settling back into a ready stance while Nanami did the same where he was. I breathed deep, and took my Vow.

Individual Control.

I felt Control shift from a dome centered on me, filled with various bugs and a bird or two, into a straight corridor with only Nanami registering inside. He charged me, probably not at his full speed, but fast enough. This time though, when I brought Control down on him, rather than trying to stuff my hands or fingers into the densely packed sand, I had steel trowels.

Nanami let out a choked grunt and slid to a stop almost twenty full meters away from me. He strained against my power, and succeeded in keeping my Control from being total, but he slowed like the air had turned thick as quicksand. I closed the distance, and once again landed a firm hit, this time low on his ribs. He huffed a breath of effort as he swung his own fist to counter, but it was still slowed by the continuing pressure of Control. I disengaged after easily blocking his hit, and released my Vow. Control slid back into a full dome and Nanami let out a small grunt of relief before speaking. "Well done, Hebert-chan. What are the specifics of your Vow, if you don't mind saying."

"I don't mind Nanami-san." I answered. "I trade more than half my range, my full surrounding sensory abilities, and the ability to take anything below Grade 2. In return, I focus all my power on one target of Grade 2 or higher, even up to eighty full meters away."

He nodded, seeming impressed. "That will be useful, going forward. What are you calling it?"

"Individual Control." I told him. My research had told me that naming the Vow made it easier to take, so I had.

"Nice and simple." Nanami said approvingly. "Now, for training, focus on taking your Vow, and breaking it as needed. Other than that, only practice will help with your efficiency."

"Thank you for your help, Nanami-san." I said brightly. Finally, I'd taken a step forward with Control.

"You're welcome, Hebert-chan." he answered as we set up to continue.

This routine continued for a month. Training with the other Tokyo students, including Yuji on occasion, and working on Control with Nanami.

I was working with Nanami a little less than a week before the Exchange Event, when at the end of our session he started another conversation, before we said goodbye.

"Hebert-chan, I wanted to tell you something."

"Yes, Nanami-san?" I asked.

"I'm not going to be available for training for some time. I've been asked by Gojo-san to take a certain young man of your acquaintance on a few missions." Yuji. "There were several murders reported in Kawasaki City, in a cinema. He and I will be investigating."

"I see." I said. It wasn't too surprising, or even disappointing. The training I'd gotten would be invaluable going forward, and I felt prepared for the Goodwill Event. Plus, I knew they'd both be fine. "Thank you for telling me. Try not to let his exuberance weigh you down" I said lightly, only sort of joking.

He just grunted at me, before we finished and said our goodbyes.

A few live missions with Nanami. This'll be good for Yuji, I'll make sure to see him when he gets back.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

The next time I saw Yuji, we were back in the Jujutsu High morgue.

Almost a week had passed since Nanami had told me that he and Yuji were going to investigate a few murders in a cinema, now I had heard that they both had been injured. I came down here to see Yuji, who had been hurt significantly worse than Nanami, only for Shoko to tell me he was in the morgue. I had frozen for a long moment before she hastily clarified that he was there to see a few bodies, not that he'd died again.

Now there's a weird thought. 'Died again'.

I had asked him how he'd come back to life once, while we were training, but all he'd said is he'd had a conversation with Sukuna but he couldn't remember the details. That was deeply concerning for a number of reasons, but there wasn't much to be done about it. Until a breakthrough of some kind was made, all I could do was hope that whatever Sukuna had done to erase Yuji's memory, and for what reason he'd healed Yuji, was something that we could deal with when the time came.

I passed Nanami just as he was leaving the morgue, and we traded acknowledging looks but nothing else. Once I stepped inside, I saw Yuji. He was looking down over the railing to the lower level at four closed body bags. The shape of them was off, not quite human. If what Shoko said was accurate about the cause of death, these had been people that were killed by a Curse with a particularly ugly Striker power. I drew up side by side with him, and looked at his face to see that he looked a hairs' breadth from shedding a few tears, and I found myself at a loss for anything to say.

I had never been the supportive type, and my social skills were near-nonexistent. They'd never been very polished to begin with, but then they'd been torpedoed by the Trio, then all my interactions with the Undersiders had seemed to raise them up at first, only for them to plummet once again when I joined the Wards. I had never tried to revive them after that, and then Gold Morning and Khep-. I choked off that line of thought before it could coalesce. I'd only heard the name for what I had become at the end once, from Contessa, and I'd been avoiding even thinking it, subconsciously or consciously, like the plague.

Not coming up with anything to say to Yuji, I decided not to say anything at all. I moved to stand right next to him, close enough that our shoulders touched, just a brush. I wasn't totally comfortable with that, but silent support was all I had at the moment, and bumping shoulders with him was all I could deal with.

"Hebert." Yuji said, not turning to look at me beyond a glance out of the corner of his eye. His voice was tremulous, scratchy. He was trying hard not to cry.

"Itadori." I responded, trying to keep my tone on the warmer side.

I was a little surprised when one of his hands came up to point at one of the body bags, in a separate row of slabs to the other three. "His name was Junpei. Yoshino Junpei." I made a quiet noise of acknowledgment, and he put his hand back down, bumping slightly against mine where we stood next to each other.

"He was killed by a Curse with a patchwork face, I couldn't stop it. He didn't deserve that. None of the rest of it either." I turned back to look at him. He wasn't making a lot of sense, but I felt I was better off just listening rather than ask how Yuji knew him or any other clarifications. "He was bullied pretty bad at school, and his mom died." Yuji still sounded a little distracted, he was just letting his thoughts out as they came, and he didn't notice that I had gone rigid and clenched my fists and jaw.

"Patchface somehow convinced Junpei that he wasn't so bad, and gave him a shikigami somehow. Then he got Junpei to take some kind of revenge for the bullying and for his mom. He attacked his old school, almost killed a few people." It wasn't like I couldn't sympathize. I had almost gone full Carrie on Winslow too many times for comfort, but there was no telling what I might have done if I had believed that they had gotten my dad killed somehow.

"Junpei trusted him, he tried to tell me that Patchface 'wasn't a bad person'. Right before he killed Junpei." Yuji still looked tearful, but now he was getting angry. "I'm gonna kill him!" His voice turned toward a growl.

I was starting to piece this together, and was now operating on the assumption that while on the mission with Nanami, Yuji had met and befriended this 'Junpei', then spent some time with him before the Cursed Spirit 'Patchface' managed to also befriend Junpei before drawing up his worst impulses and then killing him. I didn't need to ask why, it is a Curse, the why was obvious. I still couldn't think of something to say to Yuji, so instead I made myself put my left hand on his shoulder in a further show of support. He took in a deep breath and got a better hold of himself, before he turned to face me fully, my hand still on his shoulder.

"Until I can kill that thing, and find out what it means to die well, I won't lose to anything!" His voice was firmed, full of resolve, and he looked like he'd passed through anger and grief to find a new determination.

I felt my mouth pull into a smile as I dropped my hand. I liked that.

The day of the Goodwill Event had finally come, and I was standing outside with Fushiguro and the second-years while we waited for Kugisaki.

"Why are you all empty handed?!" She cried out as she finally ran up to us. She had a tote bag, and was dragging a wheeled suitcase.

"Why do you have luggage?" Panda retorted.

"'Why?' We're going to Kyoto, right?" She was breathing a little hard as she responded. At the blank stares she received, she continued helplessly, "A Goodwill Event in Kyoto..?"

"A Goodwill Event with Kyoto..in Tokyo." Panda said calmly.

I tuned her out as was becoming my habit when she started going off on Panda, and settled to wait for our Kyoto counterparts. It didn't take very long, and Maki cut off any more conversation about Okkotsu Yuta and someone named 'Rika' before I could.

"Hey." Maki said. "They're here."

I was already sizing them up. There was Todo and Mai. With them were four other students. In front was a girl with long, light blue hair in asymmetric bangs with a katana, behind her was another girl with a witch broomstick and blond hair up in a pair of thick, completely straight pigtails. In the middle there was a tall guy with black hair and a bow and arrow, and a.. robot? I once again completely, and deliberately, ignored any and all by-play between them and us as there was sniping and mild trash-talk while I waited for our teachers and principles. With that being so, I was the first to notice the woman who approached us wearing a full shrine maiden outfit, with dark hair and a scar across her face.

"Hey there," She started in a calming, but firm, tone, "no fighting."

She crested the stairs she had been on, and came closer before she continued. "What will I do with you kids?" Then, she looked around for a long moment before she asked, exasperatedly, "So, where's that idiot?"

"Satoru's late." Panda answered blandly.

"No way that idiot's ever on time." Maki sniffed dismissively.

"She didn't even say his name." Megumi said, almost in defense of Gojo.

"Here I am!" Gojo's voice came from behind us, right before he almost ran over Kugisaki, Inumaki, and Panda with a push cart loaded down with a large box.

He didn't. He wouldn't.

I knew he and Yuji had made up some kind of hairbrained plan to reveal that Yuji was alive in an 'upbeat' fashion, Yuji had told me a little bit about it earlier today, but I couldn't help but hold out hope that it wasn't like this. I watched as Gojo set up his joke by first handing out tribal charms he'd gotten from 'overseas' to the students from Kyoto, notably refusing to give one to the Kyoto teacher, 'Utahime' he said. Then he turned to us with his usual excessive cheer, and cried out with a dramatic flourish, "And for the Tokyo kids, it's the dearly departed Itadori Yuji!!"

Simultaneously with Gojo's shout, Yuji burst out of the box with a cheer, "Hey! 'O! P! P!'" and struck a pose.

I gusted a sigh out of deep in my chest when he saw the expressions on Fushiguro and Nobara's faces and froze. They looked disturbed and annoyed, and Yuji's face grew progressively stiffer and paler as he realized that no one was reacting with anything close to the joy he was probably expecting. I walked over to him and patted him on the shoulder and said, "Just relax, Itadori." He nodded and slipped out of his pose, his disappointment clear. 

I turned from him and dropped my hand from his shoulder just in time to see Gojo walk over to two new arrivals, the principals of each school. He walked over to the surprised, and dismayed, principal Gakuganji, a man who looked to be at least eighty years old with no hair and enormously long eyebrows to match his goatee. Gojo walked right up to him, and bent his one hundred ninety centimeter frame over almost double so he could meet Gakuganji's eyes. I could barely hear him as he spoke to the old man.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay after such a revelation. I was afraid the shock might have killed you." He drawled insincerely.

"You damn brat!" Gakuganji ground out in response.

Any further eavesdropping was interrupted when Nobara and Megumi walked over to Yuji and I, and she kicked the box that Yuji was still standing in.

"Hey," She practically hissed at him. "You got something to say?" I was honestly surprised at her. Megumi looked a little annoyed, but Nobara actually had tears in her eyes.

"I.. I'm sorry?" Yuji started slowly. "Sorry about keeping quiet about being alive." He sounded uncertain, but I didn't blame him, I was a little confused myself at how emotional she seemed. She'd only known him for a week or two.

"You knew he was alive?" Megumi asked me, a little sharply. I looked at him, surprised that he'd caught me that fast. I nodded and Nobara turned her watery eyes to include me in her glare.

"I knew. It's kind of a long story though." I said. Neither of them looked happy with that explanation, so I continued. "Short version is; Sukuna healed him while Shoko, Gojo-san, Ijichji-san, and I were in the morgue for Itadori's autopsy. We're not sure why Sukuna healed him, but we kept his resurrection a secret so no one would target him until he got some training. I'll tell you the rest la-" I cut myself off at the sound of a scuffle erupting from the group of teachers.

I turned to look and saw Principal Yaga seize Gojo in a harsh grip and pull him into a arm hold. I felt my eyebrows climb my forehead.

Can Yaga bypass Gojo's Infinity? Or did Gojo just turn it off?

Then Yaga called out to all the students to gather round and so we did. I ignored Mai's poisonous glare as we all drew close to the four teachers, lined up opposite each other by school, and Yaga began speaking.

"The Tokyo-Kyoto Sister School Exchange Event will be held over two days. The first day is a group battle.. The 'Wacky Cursed Spirit Exorcism Race'!" I snorted quietly at the ridiculous name, earning a look from Yuji and Megumi as Yaga tightened his grip on Gojo enough that I thought I heard Gojo's shoulder pop. I noticed Utahime let out a vindictive-sounding titter at Gojo's suffering as Yaga continued. "The first team to exorcise the Second-Grade Cursed Spirit released in the designated area wins. Several Third-Grade and lower Spirits will be in the area as well. If a winner is not decided by sundown, the team that exorcises the most Spirits will win. There are no other rules. Of course, you're welcome to sabotage the others, but remember, you're all on the same side against the Curses. This Event will allow you to learn about yourselves and your comrades through competition. be certain not to kill other competitors or injure them beyond recovery."

I couldn't help but think that that sounded like more rules than the win condition, but whatever.

"You're all dismissed until the Event commences at noon!" Yaga concluded with a shout, and roughly released Gojo as we all broke to go to our team meetings.

This didn't sound too bad in all honesty, roughly seven hours to find and exorcise a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit before an enemy team could. We had all gone together to a small building near the group battle site and into a room I could only call a foyer, where we all started to go over our plans for the Event.

We can do this.

I kept quiet and listened as Yuji met all the other Tokyo students. I saw no reason to interject as he spoke to Panda for the first time, learned about Cursed Speech, and offered up a perfectly valid excuse, in my opinion, as to what happened to Slaughter Demon and why he couldn't return it to Maki.

I stepped closer and joined the conversation once Maki began speaking to all of us, "So, what's the plan? The group battle format is what we expected, but we have another member of the team now. Do we change strategies? There's not much time."

"Bonito flakes." Inumaki said, a moment before Panda spoke up himself.

"That depends on Yuji." He said before turning to Yuji and asking him directly. "What can you do?"

"Punch and kick." Yuji said, patting himself on the bicep.

I rolled my eyes and took another step closer to add a bit of detail. "Itadori is incredibly strong and fast and extremely durable." I saw several faces turn contemplative before Megumi's voice jumped in.

"I don't know what he's been doing lately, but if everyone from Tokyo and Kyoto fought him at once, without Cursed Energy, Itadori would win." He said with a significant glance. I nodded firmly to back up his words. It was the truth. Having fought and trained with them all, Itadori's sheer toughness set him apart more than anything in my opinion. It would let him outlast the rest of us if nothing else. I'd sparred with him numerous times since he'd been put into hiding, and I'd learned fast that if I wanted to hurt him I'd better use a weapon or my prosthetic, otherwise I'd have had a lot more cracked knuckles to take to Shoko.

Maki smirked lightly, then spoke, "Todo will absolutely be out to crush us right away. Mai might follow him to come after me as well. Todo's a monster. The worst possible outcome would be that we all face him and get wiped out." She turned to look at Itadori as she continued. "So we planned to leave one person, either Panda or Megumi, behind to occupy him. With what Taylor and Megumi said however, we'll leave him to you instead, Itadori."

Yuji looked surprised, and pointed to himself like he didn't believe she was talking to him.

"We'd rather not lose anyone who can scout out our enemies." She brightened slightly, and threw him a smile before adding, "Don't worry, you don't have to beat him. Just hold him off, buy us time."

"But, you can be daring against him!" Panda interjected, "To be blunt, we weren't counting on your abilities anyway, so it won't affect the plan much if we lose you."

"I wouldn't worry about that Panda-senpai." I said before Yuji could respond, bright but firm. "If Todo fights Yuji, Todo's going down." I said that with more confidence than I truly felt, but I knew how much something as simple as a vote of confidence can do for someone, and I wanted to do that for Yuji. I felt validated in that decision when I turned from the surprise on Maki and Panda's faces to look at Yuji. He looked more surprised than anyone else, but when our gazes met I saw his face harden and his eyes brighten before he turned to the others and spoke.

"Yeah, she's right. If I'm gonna do this, then I'm gonna win."

After that declaration, and some ironing out of the rest of the plan, we left the building we had set up in and moved towards the arch that led to the area designated for the team battles. Once we were there I stood next to Maki and Nobara while Fushiguro had a quiet conversation with Itadori a short distance behind. Whatever they talked about, it didn't last long before Megumi stepped past him and we caught the last thing he said.

"I don't really want to lose, either." He said in a low tone.

Nobara, never willing to miss a chance to pick at Fushiguro said, "What do you mean 'really'? You already got rolled around once!" Not giving Fushiguro a chance to retort, she continued in a half-shout as we all once again started moving towards the arch, "Let's go! Overwhelm them, let's thoroughly trounce them! For Maki-san's sake too!" She finished with a flourish of her left hand, held in a fist.

"Don't say stuff like that." Maki said dryly.

"Pollack roe." Inumaki said, in seeming agreement, though with Maki or Nobara I didn't know.

"Yeah! For Maki-san's sake too!" Panda said, more clearly mocking Maki.

"Don't say stuff like that!" Maki said again, louder. I turned to look back at Yuji, who was still standing several meters behind us as we walked, and saw when he smiled and ran to catch up with us.

"Well then," He began as he ran a step ahead of everyone else and then struck a dramatic pose down in a half-crouch. "Let's win this!" 

Any drama or extra motivation he'd been trying to cultivate was punctured immediately when Maki kicked him with her booted heel, knocking him on his front.

"What are you doing, taking the lead?!"

Later, we were in the forest waiting for the Event to begin in earnest. After a short while, the speakers that were on a tree nearby crackled to life and we heard Gojo's voice. "We're starting in one minute. Now then, let's hear a few well-appreciated words of encouragement from Iori Utahime-sensei."

"Huh? Uh-.." We heard her stumbling, trying to think of something to say. "Uh, some degree of injury is unavoidable, so..um.. let's help each other out and-" "Time's up" Gojo cut her off.

"Hey, Gojo, you little..!" She started to yell before he cut her off once again. "It's time for the Goodwill Exchange Event to.. START!!"

At that signal, we all broke into a run, and I activated my Cursed Reinforcement and drew Silence and Cry. I also started thinking hard about some way to get back at Gojo for tormenting this poor woman. I didn't know much about her, but Gojo was trying even harder than he normally does to tear her down, and it was starting to piss me off.

"Respect your seniors!" Was the last we heard from Utahime before the speakers cut and we were out of earshot. As we ran, Itadori asked, "Where do we think the boss Curse is located?"

"Probably somewhere near the center." Panda answered. "I doubt it'll stick around there though."

"At the agreed time, we'll split into our teams like we discussed. After that we'll be counting on you, Yuji." Maki said, getting him back on track. The plan was for Megumi and I to find the Curse and exorcise it along with Maki, while Panda, Inumaki, and Nobara ran interference on as many members of the other team as they could.

Before anyone could say anything else, I let Control unspool, and sensed a Grade 3 Curse out in front of us. Moments later, one of Megumi's wolf shikigami, the black one, noticed it too and started barking.  "There's a low-Grade Curse right up ahead." I told everyone, moments before it came into visual range. It looked almost like a cartoonists' idea of a spider, with eight human-ish eyes and a line of web attaching it to a tree limb, though it only had six legs. Or arms rather, as they ended in hands. It looked like it was going to say something, but only had time to let out a warble before I seized it with Control, freezing it in place. I was going to let Maki exorcise it, as she was bracing to do with her blunted naginata mid-run, but I felt a burst of motion in Control and shouted, "Incoming!"

Everyone put on the brakes before Todo came tearing out of the woods to our collective right and knocked the frozen Curse flying, along with several broken tree branches. He turned to us, his face in a rictus of glee, and shouted, "Great! You're all here! Come at me all together!"

Individual Control

I reached out just ahead of Yuji as he ran to Todo, and I came down on Todo with my Technique. It didn't matter that I had to release the spider-like Curse in the process. He froze, barely keeping me from taking him completely with my altered parameters, and Yuji grabbed his head and smashed his knee into Todo's face with a crack.

"Scatter!" Maki barked, and we all split into our pre-assigned teams and ran. I was confident I could have suborned Todo completely if I stayed with Yuji, but all the second-years ganged up against me in each of our planning sessions to veto that idea, and though I still didn't really agree with their arguments I wasn't willing to break rank over it. I still held on to him as long as possible though, out to the full eighty meters, letting Yuji land several more unobstructed hits. Another knee, and two punches with his Divergent Fist, if I had to guess, then I was out of range of Individual Control.

I ran with Maki and Fushiguro for a time, and heard Megumi state the obvious, "Todo was alone."

"We were right to switch Yuji into that role." Maki said.

I grunted in agreement and released my Vow, Control shifting back to it's standard form. I felt another two low-Grade Curses, but didn't bother to mention them, I just took Control of them and started searching.

We had been running the forest for a short while before any of us spoke again. "I think the Kyoto students are going to go after Itadori. Maybe even try to kill him." Megumi said, seemingly out of nowhere. Maki and I turned to look at him, and Maki looked pensive. I couldn't help but think it might be true, especially if Gakuganji was one of the higher-ups who orchestrated Yuji's death the first time.

"You may be right." Maki said finally, agreeing with my thoughts. "Taylor, stick to the original plan, we'll go back for Itadori." She told me.

I wanted to argue, I felt I should go to help Yuji if he needed it. I could see the wisdom of this idea though. We had all agreed I would be our primary search unit, I could get a good sense of a full three hundred and forty meter diameter dome after all. I let out a sigh, and nodded reluctantly. I traded short farewells with the two of them, then continued deeper into the forest as they went back the way we'd come to face the Kyoto students.

Yuji had better be okay.

It took some time to search the forest, and as I did I decided that the trio of Grade 3 Curses I'd collected along the way weren't worth keeping around, so I exorcised them with Silence as I went. I heard numerous crashes, explosions, gunshots, and what sounded suspiciously like Todo screaming 'Wrong!!' loud enough that it echoed all over the forest. This all reassured me that we'd made the right call with this plan, while they all fought, I'd get us the win. I wasn't sure how long I'd been searching, though it felt like quite a while, before I caught a break. 

I sensed a suspiciously powerful Curse at the edge of Control, and made my way towards it with caution. I saw it before it saw me. It was a particularly ugly Curse, with an almost eel-like body covered with spots like mold and a few vestigial limbs, huge bulging eyes, and a lower jaw that was several times longer than it's top jaw, though still shorter than it's slimy purple tongue. It turned to look around and caught sight of me, and almost instantly charged.

Individual Control.

I seized it at forty meters, and it froze up trying to resist. For my part, my jaw clenched sharply.

Someone is playing games.

There was no way this was a Grade 2 Curse, it had to be Semi-Grade 1, maybe just Grade 1. I shook off any hesitation, I could find out why it was more powerful than it should be later, and closed the distance between us it as it struggled to fight Individual Control.

It took a number of strikes with Silence and Cry, but the more I hurt it, the more it's Cursed Energy fell and the less it could fight Individual Control, which made holding it still with my Technique that much easier for follow-up hits. It made for a vicious cycle that was perfect for wearing down most opponents. Less than a minute later, the Curse was gone and I breathed deep, my gut full of satisfaction. By trying to kill Itadori, if Megumi was right and that's where all the Kyoto students were, and fighting my team, they had freed me up to win the day. I looked around for a moment, waiting for some kind of announcement of Tokyo's victory as I released my Vow. Control rolled back out into a dome, and I went still as I sensed a.. twitch.

A somehow familiar twitch.

I turned to look towards where the disturbance seemed to be centered, and felt my whole body clench at what I saw.

I watched in no small amount of horror at the Curse coming around a tree a short distance away. It was huge, two, maybe two and a half meters tall. It was almost completely humanoid, with skin that was almost completely white, reminding me of a white birch tree, and black lines scored around it's body like tattoos. It's head looked almost like a helmet, and it had a lipless mouth full of teeth and tree branches growing out of it's head in place of eyes. It's left arm was bound and covered to it's side in what looked like a sack.

It's head swung towards me, and I heard a voice echo out of it's still closed mouth. 

?flesrouy yb llA .read ,hO

I put a hand to my head and hissed out a pained breath at the sound of it's voice. At first I thought hadn't grasped what it said, but after a moment I realized I could kind of understand it. Oh, dear. All by yourself?

It took a few steps closer, and I was struck with the realization that I knew this creature. It was the Curse that had attempted to rescue the Volcano Curse that night out with Gojo and Yuji. It stared at me for a moment before it's eyeless head tilted sideways and I heard it's teeth grind together as it's hand clenched into a fist with a creak before it spoke again.

.taht rof reffus uoy ekam lliw I .ogoJ llik urotaS ojoG depleh uoY .uoy wonk I

I know you. You helped Gojo Satoru kill Jogo. I will make you suffer for that. Oh good. It recognized me, too.

I took a slow breath as it started slowly walking towards me, and I brought down Control on it as hard as I could.

Nothing.

Just like in the forest that night, Control slid right through it like water through a sieve. It came within striking distance, and I opened with a strike of Cry towards it's head. It blocked the strike with relative ease, and I whipped my head back to avoid it's retaliatory punch. It's fist swung through the air with a burst of wind, but it overextended, so I moved in and struck it's left side ribs with Silence. I felt a jolt of surprise as Silence bounced off it's side with a ping, barely scratching it. It's tough. I barely ducked it's backhand, and leaped backwards to gain some distance. 

Individual Control.

I used my altered Technique, and tried to at least slow it down. 

Less than nothing.

Like I had increased the water pressure, it just passed through the metaphorical sieve faster.

Shit.

I dodged another punch, and lashed out with Cry at it's knee. I had a few ideas left, and one of them required that this Curse not realize what Cry could do, so I only tapped it with Cry on our next exchange. The damage still increases per hit, but it would be less noticeable if the hit itself was mild.

.dlihc hsiloof ,taht naht retteb od ot evah ll'uoY

You'll have to do better than that, foolish child. I didn't respond verbally, still thinking furiously. Gojo had said that this Curse had less total Cursed Energy than the Volcano had, but that it's still undoubtably an unregistered Special Grade. I released my Vow, it was doing more harm than good, and decided to try to use Control use it as a sensor for it's movements instead. I left Control over it like a blanket, and let my eyes unfocus slightly so that I could react to the Cursed Energy in it's movements. I moved closer, and made several swipes with Silence, trying to goad it into motion for an opening to strike with Cry. It let my probing strikes bounce off it's tough skin, and drew back it's fist for a strike.

Any plan I had to deal with the strike was left behind when something seized my ankles, and yanked my legs together. I looked down and saw my mistake.

Roots. It's a plant.

Plants don't make Cursed Energy, and this Cursed Spirit seemed to at least follow a plant theme, so it followed that it barely registered to my power at all. Was this what people meant by a 'natural enemy'?

I looked back up just in time to catch it's right hook across my face. It's fist was big enough to cover me from jaw to hairline, and it was as strong as it was tough. My head snapped to the side and I felt my neck pop, along with a crack from my jaw, cheekbone, and eye socket.  The strike knocked me back hard enough to yank my feet free from it's root's grip, and I hit the ground on my back three or four meters from the Curse.

Something in my inner ear gave a belated pop, and my mouth tasted like blood as I had to struggle not to pass out. I looked up, tried to focus my freshly blurry vision, and watched the Tree Curse walk slowly over to me.

.enolA .ogoJ ekil eiD .namuh ,won eiD

Die now, human. Die like Jogo. Alone.

This thing holds a grudge.

It pulled it's foot up to stomp me into the dirt, and I struck out at it's supporting ankle with Cry. This was hit number four, and it's foot was knocked out from beneath it. It hit the ground on it's own back, and I struggled up to my feet, backing away quickly.

It made an angry noise as it used a few of it's Constructed plants to lift itself back to it's feet, and I closed my eyes. 

Okay, time to go back to basics.

I reached out with Control, and drew in as many bugs as possible, and I tagged the Plant Curse with as many as I reasonably could. Head, neck, shoulders, hips, elbows, wrists, knees, and ankles. It either didn't notice the bugs, or didn't care, but I reopened my eyes and though I still couldn't see much more than a watery blur out of my left one, I now had a near-perfect sense of it's body and movements.

I spread the rest of the bugs I could hold all around me in a dome-like perimeter, and along the ground. This would hopefully work to give me advanced warning if it tried to attack me with plants remotely again. I breathed deep and braced myself for the fight to come.

Time to see if I can survive a fighting retreat.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

As I ran for my life through a Curse riddled forest I couldn't help but think back to my first night out in Brockton Bay. The surrounding circumstances were nothing alike, but I still felt the comparison. An enemy I couldn't fight, my power effectively useless, time running out. More than that though, I wondered at just how I got from there to here. At least this time I didn't need a surprise rescue, I could find my own way to my allies. To that end, I was running for the small-ish collection of buildings that made up one of the possible arenas for the Wacky Cursed Spirit Race. It made as good a spot as any to run into any of my classmates. Or, so I hoped.

At least there's no fire.

With my Reinforced speed I was almost too fast for my bugs to keep up, but I made sure to keep them close and in formation as I felt through them for when and how the Plant Curse struck at me. Grasping branches, constricting roots snapping like snakes, all trying to slow me down and bring me back within reach of its black fingered hand. I couldn't see out of my left eye, it had swollen shut I assumed, but the rough dome formation I made out of the bugs was enough for me to navigate the forest and get a feel for the Plant Curse's strikes. I was panting heavily, the pain radiating from the broken bones in my face shortening my breath.

I wasn't searching the forest for a Curse, so on my way through it to the compound I made much better time. It still seemed too long as I felt another strike lance past a small collection of flies on my left, the root cracking like a whip. I deflected the strike with a blind snap of Cry. I felt the ringing of the Tool ratchet up a level as I did, hit number five. I hadn't realized earlier that I could sense the Cursed Energy of the plants that were being used to attack me, mostly through Control. Too vaguely to be useful, but noticeable. The problem was, plants don't make Cursed Energy so the only explanation I could think of was that the plants were made from a Cursed Technique. Creation of some variety. So, objects Created from one's Cursed Energy count for the Technique in Cry.

Good to know.

At last, there, through the trees was the compound. I could sense four people inside, two I recognized immediately as Maki and Megumi. I ran up to the nearest wall and jumped. I cleared the second floor, and was ready to grab the wall and start climbing when the ground beneath me erupted with a huge collection of pseudo-tree branches. They crashed into me in mid-air and sent me flying the rest of the way over the tiled roofs and into the courtyard beyond. I hit the ground hard and rolled, letting out a pained yelp as the impact jolted my broken face.

"Taylor!" Several voices cried out in surprise, and some dismay. I looked around and saw Maki, Megumi, Inumaki, and, what did Maki say his name was?, Noritoshi Kamo. Kamo looked pretty well scuffed up. Evidently, he had been about to get ganged up on by three of my classmates. Maki was wielding a seemingly random katana, Megumi had a interesting pitch-black sword in his hands, and Kamo and Inumaki were bare-handed. 

I surged to my feet as there was a hideously loud snapping crash as the Created roots and branches curved over the buildings into the courtyard, smashing into the ground like a wave and kicking up masses of dust and shattered stone. The roots twisted, turned, and roiled until they settled into shape with a long, wide, ramp leading up to a raised platform where the Plant Curse stood. My four fellow students made various angry, confused sounds at it's appearance even as we lined up side-by-side against it, but it seemed content to just stand there for now.

I had a team now, and so I had a plan.

I turned to Maki and Megumi on my right, and opened my mouth to speak, but all that came out was a pained noise somewhere between a hiss and a gurgle as my broken jaw grated sharply at the motion. I clamped down mentally on the urge to scream as I closed my mouth, and concluded that I had only one option to communicate with my fellows. I'd never used my Technique on Maki before, with her extremely limited Cursed Energy it felt far too cruel in how easy it was, but in the moment I was short on options. I took partial Control of her, specifically reaching out for her mouth and throat.

"I'm really sorry about this Maki, but my jaw is broken and I have to speak to you all." I spoke with Maki's mouth. Her body jerked heavily, and she gave me a wild-eyed look. The others also turned to look at us, glancing between Maki and I.

"I encountered that thing in the forest a short time ago. It's an unregistered Special Grade that attacked Gojo-sensei before. It uses some form of Creation Technique to make those plants you see and manipulates them for attacks. It's strong, but the biggest problem is that it's extremely durable." As I spoke, I looked at each of them in turn, glancing often the Curse as it waited.

"I have a plan, we-" I was interrupted by the abrupt appearance of a curtain, the sky darkening as it spilled over us in a dome. It seemed the curtain was what the Curse was waiting for, as when it reached the ground the Plant Curse wrapped one arm around it's body to grasp it's opposite shoulder, and started to speak.

".tenalp siht tcetorp ot si tnaw I llA"

All I want is to protect this planet.

"It's a Curse spouting nonsense! Don't listen to it!" Kamo shouted. All four of them were in varying stages of hissing in discomfort, shaking their heads and turning pale as the Curse spoke in it's awful way.

"It's not just some random low-grade Curse though." Megumi refuted. For my part, I just watched it. I didn't know if Maki had anything to say on the matter before the Curse continued it's speech.

".snamuh htiw tsixeoc ot elbissop regnol on s'tI .ti dnats regnol on nac I taht yltnemehev os peew lla yks eht dna ,snaeco eht ,stserof ehT"

The forests, the oceans, and the sky all weep so vehemently that I can no longer stand it. It's no longer possible to coexist with humans. It slowly swung it's arm back the other way, holding it out as if to welcome an embrace. As it continued to speak, understanding it became not really easier, but smoother.

"They know there are humans who care for the planet, but how useful is mere compassion? All they desire is time. This planet can shine blue once again, given a bit of time.

With a sharp cracking sound, the platform beneath it writhed and twisted, and the Spirit's voice became more impassioned.

Time without huma ns. So please.. die, and become sages.

I ground my teeth lightly, ignoring the pain the motion caused, and again spoke through Maki. "I have a plan." They each turned to me, and Maki made a little rolling motion with her hand and wrist, no doubt willing me to hurry it up and finish with our sock-puppet routine. "Inumaki-senpai, I need you to use everything you've got and keep it from fighting. The rest of us are going on the attack. It's incredibly tough, so no holding back anyone. Fushiguro first, then you Kamo-san, then I'll hit it. Maki, you're the last strike, you'll be in the most danger. Use your favorite Cloud." She had mentioned during training that she had a Special Grade Cursed Tool called Playful Cloud. I was trying not to give too much away to the Spirit, although it still seemed uncomfortably content to stand there and wait for us. I looked around with my functioning eye, and saw that everyone was giving me the nod that they understood, even Kamo.

"Now!" I/Maki barked, and Inumaki pulled his mouth covering down with both hands, took a deep breath, and Spoke.

"Don't move!!"

Inumaki's shout echoed in the air, and flecks of blood stained his lips and teeth at the power he put behind that one command. For it's part, the Plant Curse froze completely, like someone had hit pause on a T.V. The rest of us took off before the last echoes of his command faded from the courtyard, and staggered our line slightly as we mounted the Plant Curse's platform. I released Maki on our way up, and reaffirmed my grasp of the bugs I'd left on the Spirit.

"Nue!" Megumi barked, and his creepy bird shikigami came down on the Curse's head with a loud crackling of electricity, inconveniently killing more than a few of my bugs. As he passed the Curse, he lashed out with his black sword and I heard him let out an irritated hiss as the blade bounced off the Curse with a ping.

I had no real idea of what Noritoshi was capable of, so I was surprised when for his strike, he stopped a few meters down the slope then snapped out, "Piercing Blood!" as he brought his hands together in a shape almost like he was trying to shape a water spout, arms straight out in front of his body. Once his hands were in position, a thin red line fired from between his fingers with a loud sound, like a whip crack. It struck the Plant Curse right between it's tree-branch eyes, rocking it's head back and breaking off several pieces of white flesh.

Right there.

I zeroed in on the faint crack that had appeared in the Curse's head as I closed in to attack. I crouched low when I reached it's feet and reversed my grip on Cry, rapping it on the Created plants at our feet. The Tool rang as hit number six set it to vibrating with almost uncomfortable strength in my hand.

I jumped straight up into the air from my crouch at the Plant's feet, and as I passed it's head I swiped Silence parallel to it's head. It seemed the little trees on its face were more vulnerable than the rest of it, and Silence effortlessly cut them off near their base. As gravity asserted itself and I began to fall, I brought the reverse-gripped Cry down with all my strength and body weight, the sharp tip of the Tool angling straight into the Curse's eye socket, aided by my clearing strike with Silence and the thin cracks left by Kamo's attack.

The seventh and strongest possible hit with Cry sank right into the Curse's soft spot, stabbing deep into it's skull with a ringing, almost triumphant peal from Cry and a cracking squelch from whatever this Curse had inside its skull. The Tool passed through the Spirit's head and pierced right out the back side with a thick splatter of foul-smelling purple slime.

With a loud hissing gasp, almost a pained scream, the Curse broke Inumaki's hold and exploded into motion. It yanked it's head away from me, and with a sound like canvas ripping, struck out with its previously sealed left arm. It's seemingly much darker limb slammed into my ribs in a straight punch before my feet hit the ground, and I felt several of them snap under the blow. I was again sent flying, Cry getting torn from my grasp where it was lodged in the Plant's head. I caught brief glimpse as I went of Maki pulling her three-section staff out of a shadow Megumi had seemingly opened for her.

I hit the ground and felt my freshly broken ribs grind against each other and I reflexively bit down on a scream, only adding to the pain as my broken jaw made it's displeasure known.

Maki was on the Curse before it regained it's composure, whirling Playful Cloud in a complex pattern around her. She swung it by one end, letting the other end smash into the Curse's side, sending it flying backwards, straight through the building making up that side of the courtyard, back out into the forest. I pushed my pain to the back of my mind, and started to slowly rise.

"Taylor!" Maki cried in her own voice. I was most of the way vertical when I turned my good eye to look at her. She held up one hand in a 'stop' position towards me. "You need to go get help. Try to escape the curtain, send help to us, see Shoko-san." She told me firmly. I shook my head just as firmly, I needed to finish this fight. I started to walk towards where the Plant had been sent hurtling, but a hand gripped my shoulder lightly before I could take more than two steps.

"Salmon." Inumaki said to me, not unkindly when I spun my head to look. His voice was rough, and his face was pale and he had a small bottle of throat medication in his other hand.

"Inumaki-senpai and Maki-san are right." Megumi said, less kindly. "None of us should fight that Cursed Spirit, it is a Special Grade after all, but it's not going to just let us go. In the condition you're in, joining us against it would make you a liability."

I scowled at him heavily, but relented. I knew they were right, I was hurt pretty badly.

I once again reached out to Maki and spoke through her, "All right, fine. You win. I'll make my way to the edge of the curtain see if I can escape. If not, I'll wait for backup."

All four of them turned to go and before I released Maki, I said in a softer tone "Come back alive. All of you." Then I released her.

"We will, Taylor. Keep yourself safe." Maki said confidently, to nods from Inumaki and Megumi.

At that, they turned and took off after the Curse, and despite my instincts screaming at me to do the same, I went the opposite direction.

I heard numerous crashes and impacts from the forest as I left, which struck me as just rubbing it in. As I drew nearer to the curtain's edge I sensed four others nearby, two very close to the edge, and the other two spread further out inside. I didn't recognize them, so I started cautiously in the direction of the nearest signature. I spotted him before he saw me, a weird blonde guy wearing what looked almost like a toga that left most of his torso bare, and his long hair in a side-ponytail. He turned swiftly and looked right at me, and immediately a sickly-soft looking smile spread across his face.

"A girl? And already injured, today must be my lucky day." He simpered. Then he reached up to his shoulder, where a purple hand gripped him. I took as deep a breath as I dared as he pulled at it, and it pulled at him right back. He drew it out, and I saw that it was a single-edged sword that had a seemingly animate hand for a handle. The hand-handled sword gripped the wielder's hand tightly, and he brought it down in front of his face in a faux-coy pose. Focusing in, I saw he had three dark purple tic-marks under each of his eyes.

"Let's have some fun together. Do you like my sword? Juzo made it for me." He was obviously a Curse User, probably working alongside the Plant Curse I'd been dealing with. I wouldn't have answered even if I could've and simply reached out before he could blather anything else.

Individual Control

My power came down on him, and he froze. I walked as quickly as feasible over to him and swung Silence in a humming arc aimed for his throat. A split second before it struck, Individual Control.. slipped. It slid right off him like water off a duck, and he yanked his head back just fast enough that Silence only scored a thin pink line across his throat.

"Eeek!" He squealed. "That was too close!" 

I hissed out a breath and braced to try again, but before I could, he drew back and hurled his hand-sword at me. I knocked it straight down to clang against the ground and moved to close the distance with him. I gripped Silence hard and stepped into range. He attacked me first, lashing out with a quick snapping punch that I blocked with my left forearm. I seized at him again with Individual Control and he froze up again, but before I could capitalize, I felt something score a line of fire across my back. My blood splattered hot, and I felt the attack scrape as it passed over one of my vertebrae.

I gasped as new pain flared, and I risked looking away from the Curse User as he was still fighting Individual Control. His stupid hand-sword was moving all on it's lonesome. I whipped my head back to face the ponytailed man and stabbed Silence at his heart before his blade could strike me again, but Control once again lost him, his body slipping out of my grip like an oiled marble. He scrambled sideways out of the way of my stab, only getting another scratch on his way. For me, I had to abandon my strikes on him, angling my prosthetic between his blade and my vitals as it struck at me again. 

It scored a shallow cut near my hip as I slapped it away, before ponytail himself stepped in and landed a kick on my opposite thigh. I let out a pained grunt, and tried to draw back, get some distance but before I could, the hand-sword once again struck at me, cutting deep across my left shoulder.

I hissed out another pained noise. This was going poorly. I could only see out of one eye, I couldn't take a deep breath without my broken ribs grating, and now I was bleeding profusely. This guy had unusual precision. I couldn't stop a scream as ponytail landed a solid punch to my already broken ribs, and his sword punched me in my right knee. I hit the ground on my hands and knees, what was left of my vision fuzzing. I was rapidly running out of time. I had to think of something. Whatever was interfering with Control only seemed to activate when I was about to strike a solid blow. It didn't keep him from getting hurt, evidenced by the damage I'd done, just keeping him alive.

So. Let's try this.

Ponytail giggled lightly and his blade returned to his hand, and he skipped over to my still grounded form, off to one side.

"You're a little too lively for me, so I'm just gonna kill you now. Okay?" His voice was still annoying high and almost squeaky as he spoke, but I was ready. He raised his Cursed Tool over his head, presumably to cut my head off, but while it was still raised and firmly in his grip I lashed out with Individual Control one more time. He once again froze in place, and I released Silence to rest on the ground. I rose up onto my knees, rotating to face him as I clenched my prosthetic into a fist.

A fist I swung as hard as I could in a vicious uppercut that terminated right at the apex of his thighs.

My prosthetic met his groin with a wet noise, almost a squelch that I tried not to think too hard about, and a painful jolt to my ribs. He audibly choked on a scream and his face went completely white. He slowly fell to his knees beside me as air escaped him in a quiet, high-pitched squeal, shortly before tipping forwards and vomiting on the ground next to me. He stayed there, halfway to the ground, and his Cursed Tool was completely still as I pressed harder with my Technique.

Not quite there.

I couldn't suborn him completely just yet so I rose to my feet, even as he fell to the ground completely after dropping his Cursed Tool, fully in the fetal position. It seemed I'd been right, whatever was pulling him out from under Control only activated if I was trying to kill him. That being the case, I drew back my foot and started kicking him. I avoided his head, and his lower back so I wouldn't threaten his kidneys, but everything else was fair game. It didn't take long before he lost his grip on his Cursed Energy and his resistance came to an end.

Taking full Control over him, I forced him to stand up, getting back a firm grip on his Cursed Tool. Once I'd bent down and retrieved Silence, I continued with my thrall over to where I'd sensed the two other signatures where they'd seemed to be battling right next to the curtain's edge.

Once I'd made it close enough, I was more than a little surprised to hear what sounded like an electric guitar.

I moved a little closer, and saw Principal Gakuganji facing of against a large, bald, dark-skinned man wielding a hatchet and wearing an apron. The presumed Curse User attacked the old man, swinging his hatchet, but Gakuganji played a sharp riff on his guitar and sent a crackling shockwave of Cursed Energy to intercept, stopping the charge. I quickly decided on a plan of action, and moved closer through the foliage on the side of the path. I stepped onto the path where they were fighting, coming to a stop on Gakuganji's left, so I could see him with my good eye.

"Oi, oi, oi, what's this?!" The Curse User yelled. "You, the girl!"

I tilted my head at him in a clear question as I quietly positioned my thrall.

"You'll make for a wonderful coat rack!" He shouted, a deranged grin spreading over his features. "I was worried all I'd get is to make a wallet out of the old man, but you! You might make this trip worth it!"

I peeled my lips back off my teeth in an angry snarl, careful not to clench my jaw too tight. I'd never been very talkative, but being temporarily entirely non-verbal limited my responses to displays like that.

"Young lady." Came a crusty voice from beside me. I looked down at Gakuganji from the corner of my eye as he continued. "You are badly hurt. Stand back, I can deal with him."

I didn't try to respond, and decided that now was a good time to execute my plan. Behind the large hatchet man, another much smaller guy with a blond ponytail and a hand-handled sword came skipping down the path.

"Hey. What're you doing here? They're mine!" Hatchet barked threateningly at Ponytail.

"I only found one little blue-haired girl in that direction." As I spoke with him, I had him hold up his sword, liberally splattered with my blood to make his statement seem to ring true. "So I came this way, hoping for another toy. And look, she's just right for me. Already bloody and limping." Ponytail simpered, as I had him point at me with his open hand. I'd improved by quite a bit in speaking through others. I was surprised to see Gakuganji stiffen, and an angry growl sounded in his throat. "Miwa-chan." He said quietly. I didn't think he cared.

Hatchet let out an angry noise of his own as he turned back to Gakuganji and I. 

"Fine, but don't do anything to her spine or hips. I want my coat rack." He grumbled as he stepped towards us. I had Ponytail nod happily in answer.

"Young lady." I once again looked at Gakuganji out of the corner of my eye as he spoke again. "I hate to ask this of you, but if you can hold them off for a few moments, I can set up a much heavier strike." He told me, patting his guitar.

I nodded firmly, and gripped Silence as I waited for just the right moment.

Now.

As Hatchet was taking another long step our way, Ponytail stepped forward and stabbed his sword straight through Hatchet's calf down into the path, practically nailing him to the ground. He let out a short scream, and fell down onto his other knee, and I was already running. I took Silence in both hands as I sprinted over to them and drew back to swing - "Don't kill him!" Gakuganji barked.

I skidded to a stop, and altered the trajectory of my swing, so that instead of taking Hatchet's head off, I cut the hand that held his hatchet off at the wrist. He screamed again as his weapon and weapon hand went spinning off into the foliage at the edge of the path. I hesitated for a moment, then decided I could risk it.

I released my Vow, and since both men were badly hurt, distracted, and within sixteen feet, I was able to seize them both under Control. I let out the breath I had unconsciously held at that risky move. I directed ponytail to remove his sword, and set him about keeping Hatchet from bleeding to death. As he worked, I looked at Gakuganji and used them both to speak.

"I apologize for not speaking to you Principal Gakuganji. My jaw is broken." Their voices didn't mesh at all, but the faintly disturbed look on Gakuganji's face was worth both the effort and having to hear it myself. "My name is Hebert Taylor, I'm a first-year at Tokyo and I have both these men in my Technique: Control."

He nodded slowly, obviously uncomfortable and said, "That's alright, Hebert-chan. Injuries can be inconvenient."

I opened their mouths to speak, to tell him that Miwa was fine as far as I knew, and about the Special Grade, but before I could the curtain that had been lowered was abruptly broken open. We both looked up simultaneously, and I could faintly see a figure, floating in the air.

Gojo.

I stared for a moment, listening to the rustle of Ponytail cutting up Hatchet's apron to staunch his bleeding, before the figure vanished and a familiar presence appeared in my Control-sense, mere meters away. I swung my head to look, again in time with Gakuganji as Gojo stood indolently, hands in his pockets. He wasn't wearing his blindfold, and he started stalking towards Gakuganji even as he spoke.

"Wow, Taylor. You got them both? That's impressive." He threw a smile my way as he passed me with that comment, but dropped it down to a sardonic twist of his lips as he faced the Principal of the Kyoto school.

"Isn't that impressive, gramps? Isn't it." His voice hardened somewhat and he was no longer asking. "She won this little race practically by herself, then took down two Curse Users, not to mention that unregistered Special Grade that's running around."  This time he didn't lean down to Gakuganji's level, he loomed over the old man, a threat in every deceptively relaxed line of his body. I wasn't sure what spawned this animosity, but I was fully prepared to just stand and watch. I still wasn't sure that Gakuganji wasn't one of the ones behind the attempts on Yuji's life.

"Isn't that impressive."  Gojo practically seethed.

"Yes." Gakuganji ground out, clearly reluctant. "Quite impressive."

Gojo stared at him for a long moment. Then the invisible tension went out of him in a rush and he spoke again in a light tone. "I'm surprised to hear you say that. Especially after how much whining and complaining you did about an American in a school you're not even in charge of."

I knew a lot of the Jujutsu elders wouldn't like having me around, so I wasn't surprised to hear that. I still didn't like it though, so I had my two thralls join me in giving Gakuganji a heavy-lidded, unhappy stare. He shifted uncomfortably, frowning heavily.

"Anyway." Gojo began brightly. "With those two out of the way, let's see what I can do to keep tree-face from escaping twice. C'mon Taylor, watch this. I'll show you how impressive your Sensei is, and get a little rough." 

With that, he turned to face a seemingly random direction and brought his hands together in a sign.  His right hand gripped his left, the fingers interlaced with the left remaining extended.

"Cursed Technique Amplification: Blue."

"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red."

With each intonation, a sheen of light appeared in the air in front of Gojo. A faint, almost silvery blue and a brief, angry red. The two ripples of color roiled tightly, and the wind began to blow in strange directions. He released his hands and held his right out in front of himself, pointed towards the woods and held his middle finger with his thumb, like he was going to flick something.

"Imaginary Technique:" 

The two forces seemed to merge, to collide in the space in front of Gojo and a sphere of purple something formed in the distortion, something that caused cold tingles to break out across my skin. It seemed to empty out the space it formed in, gouged a chunk out of the world and filled the hole with eerie, crackling violet light. 

"Hollow Purple."

He then flicked out his finger, and the moment the motion was completed the sphere swelled out until it was wider than Gojo was tall before it rushed forward, terrifyingly fast, leaving only emptiness in it's wake. The sphere disappeared swiftly into the forest with a roar as the air rushed in to fill the vacuum left behind. I stared for a few long moments at the aftermath of Gojo's attack. The glass-smooth edges left behind in the stone and wood, the purity of the devastation, the apparent ease with which Gojo could use it.. it all sent shivers up my spine.

Reminders of Scion and his annihilating golden light.

"Okay!" Gojo chirped brightly, pulling his blindfold back on and breaking out a thumbs-up. "That takes care of everything!"

I rolled my eyes reflexively, and choked on a sharp gasp at the lance of pain that the motion sent through my face. He turned his head to me and said, "Woah, you got beat up. Who got you?"

"The Special Grade out there." I spoke with Ponytail alone, but made a little gesture with my own hand.

He smiled slightly wider before he spoke again. "Alright well, I'll take those two of your hands. You're," He continued, pointing at me with his wrist bent. "You're going to see Shoko."

I briefly considered arguing about it, before I mentally catalogued my injuries. Probably broken eye socket, cheekbone, jawbone, and what felt like at least two ribs and three or four lacerations on top of them. This not even mentioning some exhaustion and heavy contusions.

I didn't bother to use one of my thralls to answer, I just let my eye slide closed and gave a slow nod. It seemed this day had finally ended, and on a positive note at that.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

After Gojo took the two Curse Users off my hands, I made my slow, painful way to Shoko's clinic. It took some real effort to get there without re-opening the lacerations dealt by Ponytail and his stupid, ridiculous, absurdist hand-sword. I was no longer really worried about my fellow students, now that Gojo was there they should all be fine.

Once there, Shoko was quick to get me out of my ruined uniform and into something not covered in blood and full of holes before she sat me down on one of the beds. She cleaned the cuts with a stinging antiseptic, explaining that the Reverse Cursed Technique didn't do much for a lot of infections, then started healing. She laid her slightly glowing hands on me, starting with my jaw and eye socket. After a short while, she huffed lightly before asking me. "So, what happened? I know that the Cursed Spirit Race somewhat fell apart, but who knocked you around?"

She moved her hand down to my ribs as I blinked my eyes, readjusting to being able to see out of my left. I also worked my jaw slightly, just in case, before I answered. "I got ambushed in the forest by a Special Grade Cursed Spirit." Shoko jerked slightly in surprise and turned her gaze from my ribs to my eyes, worry painted across her face.

"A Special Grade? How did it get onto the school grounds? There are barriers in place."

I shrugged in response, even though I was pretty sure that was a rhetorical question. Shoko pursed her lips slightly before shaking it off. I decided to elaborate further as she returned her focus to healing me. "I had just exorcised the main target of the Cursed Spirit Race," I hesitated slightly on whether I should mention my suspicions that that Curse had been somewhat more powerful than it was supposed to be, but decided against it, "and it just appeared in my Control-sense. It's some kind of Plant Curse, it used a Creation Technique to generate plants and roots to attack. It also seemed to step out from behind, or maybe from inside, a tree when it appeared."

Shoko finished healing my ribs and moved on to the cuts left by Ponytail, nodding to show she was listening as I continued talking. "That makes me think it can hide inside plants or use them for transportation as it even escaped from Gojo the first time we encountered it."

She made a quiet hum as she took her hands from me and stood straight. "Did you finish it off?" She asked me. A reasonable assumption, as I had made it here after all.

"No, I had to retreat from it with how bad I was hurt. Fushiguro, Maki, Inumaki, and Kamo took it on while I left."  I struggled to keep an even tone to my voice at the admission. "So, at least some of them are likely going to show up here behind me."

She nodded lightly, and asked, "So were those Created plants what cut you?"

"No, after I left the fight against the Special Grade, I ran into a Curse User. He had this stupid sword with a hand for a handle." I knew I sounded annoyed as I answered. I wasn't sure why that thing aggravated me so badly.

"So if the lacerations were caused by the Curse User, that means you fought him with broken bones and one eye swollen shut?" Shoko quirked up an eyebrow at me as she asked. I shifted slightly as I gave an affirmative nod. Was she mad at me?

"So it didn't occur to you to avoid further combat, even though you showed you were sensible enough to fall back from a Special Grade Curse?" She folded her arms and gave me a look that screamed 'unimpressed'.

She's definitely mad.

"I was sure I could take him." I said, meeting her eyes. I decided not to mention how close it had really been. "And I did, plus the other one."

"The other one?" I winced lightly at her tone in that question.

"There was a second Curse User fighting Principal Gakuganji, but he didn't even get a chance to attack me before I took him down." I said quickly. While I disliked that Shoko was angry, I could tell it was coming from a place of friendship. It felt like it had been a while since I'd had someone be concerned about me, who cared enough to get upset when I was hurt. 

She let out a light sigh before she relaxed and spoke again. "Alright Taylor. Stay here for an hour or so, then I'll check you again." I nodded quickly, relieved that she wasn't staying angry. She handed me a box of wet wipes to clean up any remaining blood as she moved her antiseptic and my damaged uniform out of the way. I tried to think of something to say to her, some kind of reassurance that I wasn't looking to get hurt, nor allow myself to get killed, but I drew a blank.

She turned back to me and looked ready to say something else, but was cut off by the doors of the clinic being yanked open, and almost a dozen people rushing in. I stayed on my assigned bed and out of the way as the four students I'd left behind were brought in by assistants and one of the second-years' teachers. I ground my teeth and clenched my fists at the state they were in. Kamo looked like he's taken a serious hit to his head, Inumaki was unconscious and had blood leaking out of his mouth, and Megumi had what looked like a plant growing out of his stomach. I couldn't get a good look at Maki before Shoko beckoned me over to her. She leaned close to speak in my ear while each of the four were being placed on beds and the others started moving out of the room.

"I'll take care of them, you go back to your room and rest. If anything twinges tomorrow, come back and see me." She said to me in a low tone. I nodded and turned to leave, grabbing my weapons belt and bloody uniform, but before I made it three steps Maki called out to me.

"Taylor!"

I turned right back and walked over to her bedside. She'd lost her glasses at some point, and had what looked like a stab wound in her left shoulder. It was deep, but was bleeding very slowly. The big problem was that her collarbone had been visibly broken above the wound, cracked and out of place. I winced in sympathy, broken collarbones were one of the most debilitating wounds one could receive that weren't outright amputations or cerebrospinal.

"What is it Maki?" I asked quickly. Whatever this was about, I needed to be out of Shoko's way so she could heal them.

"I just wanted to return this." She said, her voice tight with pain. She reached with her right hand, and pulled something from her side. It was Cry. When I'd lost my grip on it and left it lodged in the Plant Curse's head, I'd been worried that I'd never see it again. I took it slowly, careful not to jolt Maki.

"Vindictive Iron Cry, huh?" She asked, pained. "What's the other one?"

I considered not answering, maybe trying to get her to rest, but Shoko was busy with Kamo at the moment so I figured the worst I might do was distract her from the pain. I pulled my weapons belt off my shoulder and rotated it to show the sheathed Silence to Maki. I reached over and drew the blade a out a few centimeters to bare the white blade to her as well.

"Promised Silence. Very nice." She said simply. I'd known that she was something of an expert on Cursed Tools, but I was still surprised she recognized both by sight. She went still for a moment, then grinned and let out a slight, pained chuckle.

"So you make them Cry with your left and Silence them with your right?" She said, visibly trying not to laugh. I froze in realization, then let out my own quiet laugh.

"I hadn't even noticed that." I told her truthfully. I'd never really been much for wordplay. I slipped Cry back into it's sheath on my belt and slung it back over my shoulder, then laid a hand on her leg and said, "I'm glad you're all all right."

She nodded to me and responded, "You too Taylor." I gave her leg a pat, then left the room. I'd find out what exactly happened after I'd left when everyone was back on their feet.

Exhaustion began dragging at my limbs as I made my way through campus. First I returned to my room, took a shower, and put on a clean spare uniform. Then I went to get an early dinner. As I ate, I found myself thinking about Amy. Being healed by the Reverse Cursed Technique was highly effective, but didn't seem quite as good as Panacea had been. I could be wrong, but I didn't think that the RCT could heal me like Amy did if I had been cut in half like Scion had done to me once upon a time, for example. I wasn't entirely clear on the mechanism by which the RCT functioned, Shoko couldn't really explain it, but it wasn't biokinesis. My guess was that the energy fueled the bodies' natural healing process, and accelerated it. Whatever it was though, it often left me tired and hungry.

I shook off my contemplation, thinking about Bet didn't help anyone, and finished eating. I hauled myself out of the cafeteria and started on my way to my room but halfway there I heard someone yelling. I looked up and around and saw.. Yuji? He was running around on the rooftops being chased by Todo. I sucked in a sharp breath as adrenaline surged again and sent my heartrate soaring. I drew my weapons and activated my Cursed Reinforcement, bracing to chase after them and back up Yuji. I was almost surprised they'd try to kill him in such an open and obvious fashion, but all my interactions with Todo made it easy to believe he'd be willing to carry out an assassination in broad daylight.

I crouched, ready to jump and was about to let Control unspool when I caught what they were saying.

"What're you saying?!" Todo yelled, sounding dismayed. "We've been so close since middle school, Brother!"

"I didn't go to your middle school!" Yuji refuted desperately.

I released my Reinforcement and sheathed my weapons, nonplussed. I watched their cartoon chase for a few more moments, just in case, before I returned on my path to my room.

Maybe I should go drinking with Shoko one of these days after all.

The next morning I made my way to the cafeteria for breakfast. There, I ran into my fellow Tokyo students, all eating together. I waffled for a moment on whether I should join them, but shook off my hesitation quickly. I moved over to the table where they all sat and offered a greeting as I sat down in the open space between Megumi and Yuji, with Nobara on Megumi's other side and the second-years across the table from us.

"Good morning everyone."

There was a chorus of greetings, and an ingredient, returned.

"I'm glad to see everyone's okay. What were you all talking about?" I asked as I readied my utensils.

"We were wondering whether the Exchange Event will continue, after everything that happened yesterday." Maki answered.

"I don't see why it wouldn't." Panda said. "But we'll have to see what the Principals think."

"True enough." I responded briefly, personally I would be surprised if they decided to cancel it. "In any case, what happened with the Plant Curse after I left? You were pretty messed up when I saw you in Shoko's clinic." I asked, mostly to Maki, Megumi, and Inumaki.

"To keep it short," Maki began, "We kept after it, hammering it all together. We thought we had it on the ropes, but it made a move with that black left arm that spread out a field of flowers, and it basically killed our will to fight." I winced internally, I knew it had an ability like that, I'd seen it in use that night with Gojo and Yuji. I should have found a chance to mention it.

"Once we were immobilized, it targeted Kamo-san first, knocked him out with a right hook." Megumi jumped in while Maki took a bite of her breakfast, "Then it hit me with a Cursed Bud while I couldn't dodge, the roots drained my Cursed Energy in order to grow. I ran out quickly, losing my shikigami." I made a sympathetic noise around my own mouthful of breakfast. So that was the strange plant I'd seen growing out of him last night. 

He and Maki switched again, Fushiguro taking a bite while Maki spoke. "After it took those two out, Inumaki managed to say a few words. 'Release us.' Once freed, he and I tried to tag-team it, but that command took a lot out of him, and he blacked out after one more 'Don't move'." Inumaki seemed a little dismayed from where he sat when Maki said that.

"Pollack roe. Caviar." He said, sounding apologetic.

"Don't feel down," I said without thinking. "Without the three commands you got off, that battle would have gone to shit for us, and fast." Every student who'd been in that fight and was at the table gave nods or affirmations at that, cheering him up slightly. I glanced sideways at Nobara, who was pouting visibly. She's been weirdly quiet this whole time, I figured it was because she hadn't gotten to participate in the fight against the Plant Curse. I looked back to Maki as she continued.

"Taylor's right, it was only because of that last one I landed a hit on it across the face with Playful Cloud." She looked from Inumaki to me as she continued, "That's how I got Vindictive Iron Cry back, that strike tore it out the side of the Curse's head. Unfortunately, that's when it tried to hit me with a few of the Buds it got Megumi with. None of them landed, but one of them knocked my glasses off." Her voice tightened with anger at that. "I couldn't see it without those damn glasses, and it stabbed me in the shoulder with some of those Created plants it used."

I tried to think of something to say, but I knew that nothing I could say would lessen the sting of losing a fight because you lost your glasses.

"That's when Itadori and Todo showed up." She said, looking at Yuji who was practically vibrating in his seat with anticipation. He eagerly jumped in to tell that part of the story, his whole body alight with excitement.

"Yeah, Todo and I got the jump on that plant. We got Maki-san off of the root that was stabbing her, then Todo set me up to get a Black Flash." Yuji wasn't very good at telling stories, he got too excited, but I didn't mind. I jumped slightly in my seat as the last thing he said fully registered.

"Black Flash?" I asked. I couldn't help but sound impressed as I spoke, turning to face him fully. "You got off a Black Flash?" I knew about that from my research, Cursed Energy flaring black due to a distortion in space that occurs when it is applied within 0.000001 seconds of a physical strike. When someone manages to pull that off, the destructive power of their strike is equal to a normal hit to the power of 2.5. It was something that my reading claimed no one can do at will, and requires huge amounts of skill and precision. I was surprised, Yuji's been a Sorcerer for only a few months and he managed something like that.

"I, uh, hm." He stammered slightly. I tilted my head at him, confused. Shyness is not something he can normally be accused of. "I actually did a Black Flash rush. Four times in a row." My eyebrows climbed towards my hairline. I smiled slightly, so that was why he got nervous so suddenly, he didn't want us to think he was bragging. "After that the Curse kept trying to run away, but Todo wouldn't let it. He kept swapping it out with his Technique until he couldn't, once Gojo-sensei launched his attack. We couldn't really tell if it got exorcised or not." 

Several voices around the table expressed their admiration at his accomplishment, and I added mine to the chorus.

"You managed to match the record for consecutive Black Flashes. That's really impressive Yuji, well done." I said as warmly as I could manage, giving his shoulder a tap with the back of my hand. He didn't seem to hear the others, or at least he didn't visibly react to them, and he stared at me wide-eyed for a long moment before he swiftly ducked his head down towards his tray. I let out a slow breath through my nose, trying not to let the flare of irritation and embarrassment I felt show on my face.

So he doesn't want compliments from me. Fine.

I turned back to look back at everyone else and saw Megumi, Nobara, and Maki all staring at Yuji with strange looks on their faces. Before I could wonder at it for long, Panda cleared his throat, he didn't have a tray of food I noticed belatedly, and he asked me, "So what's your half of this story Taylor?" I looked at him, taking a bite and chewing slowly. I organized my thoughts and calmed myself down before I swallowed my food and answered.

"I ran into the Plant Curse out in the forest after I exorcised the main target of the Cursed Spirit Race." I received several knowing nods at that, it's not surprising they knew that our team won the Race already. No doubt Gojo was irrepressibly verbal about it. "After I fought it for a bit, and learned how outclassed I was, I did the only thing I could think of and led it towards the nearest group of people I could find. Once you all made me abandon the fight," I resolved to deny it if any of them accused me of being bitter about that, "I made my way towards the edge of the curtain. I ran across two Curse Users on the way, but they were no great threat. I got them with Control and handed them over to Gojo once he broke the curtain."

Everyone voiced how impressed they were, though I suspected several of them were overstating it out of ingrained manners. Maki in particular said, "You bagged two Curse Users after being injured so badly by that Curse. That's amazing Taylor."

I nodded as deferentially as I knew how and thanked them, I was far from being used to praise but it was appreciated just the same. Before we could continue, Ijichi's voice sounded from the doorway.

"Excuse me, students." We all turned to him and waited for him to continue. He swallowed visibly under our collective attention but didn't hesitate to continue. "We're ready to meet and discuss the continuation of the Exchange Event. If you'll all follow me?"

We all made affirmative noises and after returning our cafeteria supplies we followed Ijichi to a room a few buildings away, where Gojo waited for us, and we were joined by the Kyoto students in short order. Once there, he waited until everyone settled in various places around the room before he spoke.

"So, a lot happened and some people died, but how about it? Want to continue the Exchange Event?" He asked in his normal flippant tone, cutting straight to the point. There were several considering noises from a few people until a familiar voice broke through.

"Obviously," Todo began, and we all turned to look at him. He was sitting in a corner with his feet up on a bench with his arms folded, transparently trying to be dramatic. "We're continuing it, of course."

"Your reasons?" Gojo asked.

"First off, mourning should be reserved for those close to the deceased. It's none of our concern. Second, if there were fatalities that's all the more reason for us to get stronger. Acquired strength is dictated by the accumulation of results. To suffer defeat or taste victory are both what drive us to grow. Results are important because they exist as results." For all that he was batshit crazy, Todo had his moments. I found myself largely agreeing with his points as he listed them out on his fingers. "Third, when a student feels like they weren't able to bring out their best, it hangs over them for their whole life."

"I'm fine with that." Megumi said.

"We'll win anyway." Nobara said, which I felt was not really a good answer to the question at hand.

"He sounds ridiculous, but he has a point." Kamo said. I stared for a short moment, wondering why his head was still swathed in bandages. Maybe Shoko ran out of energy before she could heal him all the way.

"Why don't you rest, Kamo-kun?" His little blond friend asked. I couldn't remember if anyone had told me her name, or I just couldn't remember it.

"No objections here." Panda drawled nonchalantly.

"Salmon." Inumaki said agreeably.

"I vote we continue the Event." I added my voice to the mix.

"Will we draw lots for the individual battle pairs?" Maki said, making her agreement to continue implicit.

"Huh?" Gojo asked, but he continued before anyone could try to get clarification. "There are no individual battles this year." He said, like we should have known that.

The question on everyone's mind went unspoken. I for one, distinctly remembered being told that it was always group battles day one and individual battles on day two. Gojo just grinned, and tossed a little box to Yuji, who was standing the closest to him. "I don't like things being too routine." He said. "Every year, we put the competition methods in this box and open it the day of."

Yuji dug his hand into the box and pulled out a slip of paper. I was tempted to walk over there and read it over his shoulder since he just stared at it making confused noises, but I was preempted by Principals Gakuganji and Yaga doing just that. Yuji jumped half out of his skin when he noticed the two men appearing at his sides.

"Baseball?!" Yaga growled in a surprised tone.

"What's the meaning of this, Yaga?" Gakuganji asked angrily. I watched as Gojo nonchalantly walked out the door without either man noticing, and I couldn't keep in a deep sigh, bracing for the moment the Principals realized what had happened

"No, I know I put in individual battles-" Yaga cut himself off as anger crawled across his face, along with realization. "Get back here, Satoru!!"

I wasn't sure why neither of the Principals overruled Gojo's choice for day two of the Exchange Event, but an hour or so later we were all on a baseball diamond nearby the school. We had been handed alternate uniforms by the assistants and told we were required to change. The Tokyo uniform was a normal baseball uniform, as far as I knew, and was white over a blue undersuit. The Kyoto students were in blue-over-blue. The helmets had a single kanji on the front, meaning 'Curse'. I was a little confused, I didn't know if Gojo had these uniforms made or bought just for today, or if they were a normal thing.

Thinking about it, I couldn't remember the last time I played a game of baseball. I didn't count games of catch, or the time in grade school where we all just took turns batting, but an actual game of baseball. Sports had never been something that interested me, and at Winslow they'd never been an option even if they had been of interest. When I was in Chicago my teammates on the Wards had tried numerous times to get me to go to a game, but I was always too preoccupied with the impending end of the world to want to go. I knew the rules though, largely by osmosis from my time in Chicago, where baseball is practically a religion to many of it's citizens. 

Kyoto was up to bat first, but before we began in earnest I walked over to Utahime, who was acting as coach for the Kyoto team, and asked, "Are there any special rules for this game?" We didn't have all that many players, and we all had powers, so I figured I'd ask.

She put a finger to her chin in a thinking pose, and asked, "Gojo-san didn't tell- no, never mind, of course he didn't." She said in a tone thick with irritation. "Cursed Energy Reinforcement is to be kept at an absolute minimum, and one outfielder will be allowed to use their Cursed Technique. Other than that, no special rules." 

"Thank you Utahime-sensei." I said with a shallow bow, as respectfully as I could. She deserved it with how Gojo treated her. I wasn't totally sure I was supposed to call her 'sensei' if she's not my teacher, but I figured it wouldn't matter all that much if I did. While I was down I caught a quick glance into the Kyoto team's dugout, and spotted something interesting, and made a mental note of it.

She looked surprised, but pleased, as she responded. "You're welcome Hebert-chan. Good luck out there."

I nodded to her and offered her the same before trotting back over to my team. Yuji was in full catcher's gear and was on his way over to Gojo, who was waiting by the catcher's mound to be umpire. He was wearing a pale blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up and dark sunglasses, which I couldn't help but feel went against the spirit of making us all wear baseball uniforms. Itadori stopped and turned to me when I gave a sharp whistle and beckoned him firmly towards the rest of us as we all gathered together near our dugout. He hesitated for a moment before quickly making his way to join our huddle.

"What's up Taylor?" Maki asked once we were all together.

"I spoke with Utahime-san. There are a few special rules for this game, and I wanted to strategize for a moment." As I spoke I pulled my hair into a ponytail and fed it through the hole in the back of the snapback baseball cap I'd been told I had to wear. It was either that or a helmet, and I felt like the cap was the lesser of two evils.

There was a round of nods and agreements throughout my team, so I cut to the chase. "So, first, we are required to keep our Cursed Energy Reinforcement to a minimum. So Maki, you're our pitcher like we agreed, and our batting order is going to be Kugisaki, Panda, Inumaki, Maki, Fushiguro, Me, then Itadori. I think that gives us the best chance to load the bases, then get a home run. Any questions, objections?" After a full round of negatives I continued. "Second rule is, one outfielder is going to be allowed to use their Cursed Technique. The only one on their team with a Cursed Technique that will be helpful in a baseball game is the blond on the broomstick."

"Her name is Nishimiya Momo." Megumi interjected.

I nodded an acknowledgment and kept on. "So, that means keep the ball low and fast, as much as possible since she'll be flying for a high ball. While we're on the topic, when I was talking to Utahime-san I saw into their dugout. They're using a pitching machine since Mechamaru is out of commission."

"What?" Nobara hissed. "That's so cheap!" 

"No, Kugisaki," I refuted, "This is a good thing." She, and several of the others, looked confused at that statement, so I moved straight into the explanation. "It's just a pitching machine, that means it can't catch or get any bunts that are made passed it." Several noises of realization greeted that, and Nobara grinned viciously.

"So, hit low and fast, right past the pitchers mound." I reiterated. 

"Who's going to be the outfielder on our team to use their technique?" Megumi asked.

I looked at him for a moment before I turned to Inumaki. "That depends, does Cursed Speech work on inanimate objects? Could you call the ball to you Inumaki-senpai?" I asked. He looked contemplative, then confused. Finally he just shrugged.

"In that case, it'll be you, Megumi. Preferably summon Nue, but if not, those frogs. Don't summon right away though, let it be a surprise for them, if we even need it." He nodded as both Maki and Nobara grinned toothily this time. "Everyone on the same page?" I asked looking around, and received another full compliment of nods and assent.

"You're very intense, you know that?" Panda asked me suddenly before we broke our huddle.

"Huh?" I asked, even though I was pretty sure I knew what he was talking about. I had been accused of being 'intense' several times in my life, but I wondered what made him mention it now. Was planning out how to win a baseball game really that unusual?

My vague inquiry caused several of my contemporaries to chuckle lightly, or smile ruefully. "What he means is, you never do things by half-measures." Maki said.

"It's an admirable quality, I think." Yuji blurted before I could respond. We all stared at him for a long moment before I cleared my throat and said, "Thank you, Itadori." For whatever reason he looked faintly disappointed as we broke our huddle and took up our spots around the diamond.

"Play ball!" Gojo shouted, full of exuberance.

Momo was their first batter, and she made it to first base without much trouble. Miwa was their second batter, and she got a fly ball.

"Nishimiya, don't run yet!" Utahime cried out. Inumaki easily caught the fly ball, and threw it straight to Panda on first. Two outs, just like that. I faintly heard Utahime arguing with Nishimiya across the field, but stayed focused as Kamo came up to bat. My caution went unrewarded however, as he simply stood there, talking to Itadori as Maki threw three strikes straight down the middle.

"Strike three, you're out!" Gojo yelled, "Switch over!"

"Kamo, you won't get a hit if you don't swing!" Utahime yelled, frustrated. After we switched places, Kugisaki took up her position with the bat and said, "They call me the Mah-kun of Tohoku."

It sounded like gibberish to me, but Megumi seemed to get it as he responded with, "No, Mah-kun is the Mah-kun of Tohoku."

Itadori got it too as he yelled, "Mah-kun's a pitcher, you know?" "Bonito flakes." Inumaki added. Nobara visibly ground her teeth but didn't deign to respond. 

When Kyoto rolled out their pitching machine, Nobara huffed but didn't object, and hit the ball just like we said, low and fast right passed it and she made it to first base without incident. Panda made a low roll, and just barely made it to first with a slide before the ball made it back to Mai. For his turn, Inumaki hit the ball off the opposite side that Nobara had, and with that, the bases were loaded.

Maki took up her position, and hit the ball with a ringing crack that echoed loudly around the diamond. It flew almost perfectly horizontal, straight through, and Momo had to fly hard just above the ground after it. Not a perfect home run, but Nobara and Panda both made it home before they got the ball back.

The bases were still loaded and the first mistake was unfortunately Megumi. He made a slow bunt that Todo was right on top of, and Mai caught his throw easily. Inumaki made it home, but we had our first out.

"Up by three, one out." Gojo said. He was giving Megumi an odd look as he ran back to our dugout, but I was up to bat. I took a slow breath and swung hard. This was honestly the first time since grade school that I could remember actually using a bat, but I did what I could. I did the same as Panda, a low rolling hit, but Miwa was right on top of it and threw it straight to Todo on home base. Our runners stalled, and I made it to first, but Todo touched home plate, then hurled the ball a bare centimeter past Maki's face on it's way to second.

"That's three, change over!" Gojo yelled. A few of our players, most noisily Nobara, objected but we switched over regardless. " Tokyo's up by three, top of the second inning!" 

Todo was first up to bat for Kyoto this inning, but he seemed to follow in Kamo's footsteps as he stood there, talking to Itadori. Maki seemed to take umbrage with that, or maybe she wanted to pay him back for almost hitting her with the ball earlier, but either way she hurled the ball straight into the side of his face.

He slid to the ground and Yuji caught him, holding him while dramatically calling his name. "Todo?! Are you alright, speak to me!"

"Nice pitch!" Mai shouted. The sentiment spread around the field until everyone but Yuji, Todo himself, and I were the only ones not calling "Nice pitch!"

Then, after a short while, the only batter left was Itadori. He hit the ball higher than I might have liked, but it made it passed Momo's guard for a solid home run, and let him mosey comfortably around the bases.

"Tokyo wins, 4-0!" Gojo yelled, before he stuck his hands in his pockets and sauntered off the field past Gakuganji and Yaga, chuckling obnoxiously. I almost regretted our victory, just because it added to his smugness.

All the Tokyo students gathered together near home plate, and there was a great deal of back-patting and praise sharing. I stood for a long moment, surrounded by smiles and comrades, and I was struck by several realizations. I had been here, in Tokyo Jujutsu High, for longer than I'd been a member of the Undersiders. If I could call even half of my fellow students my friends, I had more than I'd ever had before. First there was Emma, then Lisa and Brian, and maybe Rachel. I wouldn't call Alec a friend, nor the members of the Wards I'd worked with, but even if I did Shoko, Nobara, Yuji, Megumi, and Maki made five.

It was an odd feeling that curled in my chest as I realized that Earth Vav had become as much a home to me as Bet. I just had to hold onto the hope that I could keep this one.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

A bit less than a week had passed since the baseball game, and I had returned to training. I was glad that I could, the Exchange Event had disrupted the schedule I'd set for myself. It had taken some real doing, but soon after the Event finished I'd managed to convince Maki and Panda to introduce me to the second-years' teacher, Kusakabe Atsuya, and I'd persuaded him to get me started on the next Technique I wanted to learn. I had researched it for several months, but I had needed more to get it right. He'd been reluctant at first, and adamant that I'd have to wait until I was a second-year to get the full course, but he'd eventually agreed to teach me the basics. I was very grateful, he was a master of it after all. He'd even made it to Grade 1 as a Sorcerer purely on it's merits.

New Shadow Style: Simple Domain.

Normal barriers were something I struggled with. I'd been trying, both for classes and for myself, to cast simple barriers and curtains with little success. I was still making progress with them but until I showed significant improvement, the major goal, Domain Expansion, was far beyond my reach. That meant that Simple Domain was the next best thing for me to focus on. The original purpose of the Simple Domain was the neutralization of enemy Cursed Techniques, normally for use as a defense against hostile Domain Expansions. There were more uses for it than that though. It was rough going, but every attempt drew me closer.

I was in my uniform, armed and outside in one of the more isolated training fields for this. I'd hoped to minimize distractions, and spend the day trying to master this as I didn't have classes until the day after tomorrow. As I shook out my limbs from my last attempt, I caught a flicker of motion out of the corner of my eye. I turned to look, but it was just a crow, or maybe a raven. It'd landed on the ground a few dozen meters from me and was staring. I met it's gaze for a moment and an odd feeling curled in my gut at it's sharp eye. I shook that off too, and returned to focusing on my training.

I closed my eyes, and took a deep, slow breath before I reopened them.

Focus.

First, assume the casting stance. A low crouch, left arm drawn back, right arm crossing over to left hip, right side facing 'forward' towards the opponent. It helped me to place my right palm against my left hand, which I held in a fist. According to Kusakabe-sensei, the stance itself was not necessary for the Simple Domain to function, but it was conducive to the proper execution of the Technique. Once down, generate a thin barrier focused on the implementation of Techniques, only allowing for my own. Filling the area within the barrier with my own Cursed Technique was possible, as well as modifications to the barrier itself by way of Binding Vows. That was for later, however.

New Shadow Style: Simple Domain.

The barrier flowed out from me in a rush. I'd decided to place it at the innermost range cutoff of Control, four point eight seven meters. A little on the big side, but no one said anything to me about a size limit. The barrier stopped and I let Control unspool to meet it, both effects overlapping. The sense of separation that even this limited barrier caused threw me off mentally, a little, the feel of it drawing tight across my skin. Once the barrier had extended to it's max, then came the hard part for me; maintaining it. I hissed out a sharp breath as the barrier struggled, wavered, flickered. I pushed my Cursed Energy out to it, fought my rebellious feelings, but it wasn't enough. I couldn't keep in a groan as it finally failed, collapsing.

I straightened up, shaking out my body. Trying to create barriers had always left me feeling.. off. The separation of my 'self' from the 'world' around me inherent in the actualization of barriers was something that disturbed me, for reasons that I struggled to understand. It didn't seem to make sense, and I found myself reflexively resisting the sensation. That being so, however, I'd had some practice in pushing what power I had to it's maximum, then a few steps further no matter how I felt about it.

I will continue, I will keep improving.

I sucked in a sharp breath, and assumed the position. I pushed out the barrier once again, out to meet Control.

New Shadow Style: Simple Domain.

Just as it was expanding I had a moment of crystallizing realization. I knew now what I had been doing wrong. Rather than push aside, or ignore the feeling of separation like I had been, I embraced it. I let the barrier do it's work, holding all of 'me' inside, and all else would be outside, just as it should be. It wasn't perfect, there was still a moment of hesitation, but it was enough. The barrier flickered just once before it solidified.

I let out a harsh breath as the Simple Domain settled, before taking stock. A quirk of Simple Domain was that the barrier and it's coverage were faintly visible to those with Cursed Energy, if they knew to look. I looked around, and let a feeling of satisfaction well up in my chest. My Simple Domain was holding strong, and I'd taken another leap forward. Another step up the slope. I stood from the casting position and took a few steps. They were slow, and it took noticeably more effort to move, but that was within expectations. Kusakabe-sensei had mentioned that Simple Domain would probably limit my motion somewhat, a consequence of the allocation of Cursed Energy to the barrier's upkeep.

I tilted my head in slight confusion as I got more used to the feeling of my Simple Domain. Control was.. different than I expected. I couldn't sense anything past the edge of the barrier. That was as expected, it kept Control inside, but rather than being limited Control felt concentrated. No doubt some experimentation was in order to be certain, but to my mind it felt like it was on the same level as Individual Control.

I was yanked out of my inspection by the sound of clapping, joined by a familiar voice. I turned to look, and saw Gojo walking towards me, along with Megumi, Nobara, Yuji, and a pale-haired woman I didn't recognize, all in their Jujutsu uniforms.

"Well done Taylor. Seriously, good job!" Gojo called to me as they all came closer, "I had no idea you were trying to learn Simple Domain."

"That was intentional." I responded wryly. I'd wanted to do this myself. Gojo, for his part, huffed a short laugh at my response.

"She's gotten ahead." I heard Nobara mutter, to a nod from Megumi.

Yuji stepped fearlessly right up to my barrier with his hand up for a high-five, smiling and saying, "Great work, Hebert!". As he passed the barrier, my breath caught. I'd trained with him many times, and we'd learned early on that Control had no power over Yuji. Trying had only revealed that using Control on him was like trying to grip an oiled bowling ball while wearing Teflon-coated gloves. We speculated that the same part of him that let him suppress Sukuna also protected him from Control. Inside my Simple Domain though.. maybe.

I raised my left hand and gave him back his high five. "Thank you, Itadori."

As everyone else drew closer, I released the barrier and my Simple Domain collapsed as I reeled in Control. I turned to Gojo, who held up one hand to present the pale-haired woman. She was fairly tall, one hundred seventy two or one hundred seventy three centimeters. Her nearly white hair was styled into two thick braids, one that fell down the back of her head and the other fell over her face. That struck me as something of a shame, as from what I could see of her face she was incredibly beautiful. Her Jujutsu uniform consisted of a dark purple bodysuit with a skirt attached. There were also pants underneath that covered her legs and tucked into boots that were light brown.

"This is Mei-san. She's a Grade 1 Sorcerer, and she wanted to meet you, Taylor." Gojo told me.

I felt my eyebrows climb towards my hairline and I heard myself blurt incredulously, "Mei-'san'?!"

He actually speaks about her with some respect?

Gojo scowled visibly through his blindfold and he pressed his lips together slightly at the surprise in my tone. He didn't look truly upset, just a little annoyed and embarrassed, and my fellow students joined me in expressing our surprise. Gojo might let Yaga put him in arm-locks, but I'd never heard him use an honorific out of anything resembling respect. In accordance with that, I turned to the woman and gave her a formal bow from the waist.

"My name is Hebert Taylor, it's nice to meet you, Mei-san." I said formally, before straightening up.

"It's nice to meet you too, Hebert-chan." Mei said, giving me a light dip of her head in return. Her voice was low and throaty, and she sounded faintly amused. "Before we get started, you and I, I was wondering why you three were looking for her?" She asked, turning to the other first-years.

Megumi answered her, as Yuji was looking at me, Nobara was stealing wide-eyed looks at Mei, and Gojo was pouting. "The auxiliary manager of Jujutsu High, Nitta Akari, told us that we've been assigned our next mission. We were coming to collect Hebert for it."

"I see." She said simply. 

"Yeah, she's not going." Gojo said, regaining his usual flippant bearing. We all looked at him for an explanation, but he turned his head to Mei.

"She's coming on a mission with me." She said, catching Gojo's cue.

"May I ask 'Why?'" I asked, still putting extra effort into being respectful. It wasn't difficult for me to show respect to anyone, besides Gojo, but if Gojo thought she was owed more, I'd try to do the same.

She looked at me from behind her braid for a long moment, before glancing over and including all of us students as she spoke. "Do any of you know the procedures for a Sorcerer to be promoted to Grade 1?" She asked.

I was fairly certain I knew, but Megumi answered first. "A prospective Sorcerer must receive recommendations from two Sorcerers of that rank. If they do, the nominee will accompany a Sorcerer of that level on a few missions. The one who accompanies the nominee can't be the same person who put in the recommendation, nor can it be the Sorcerer in charge of the nominee, like their teacher. If they perform well on these missions, the nominee will be granted a Semi-Grade 1 rank and be assigned a mission to exorcise a Grade 1 Curse alone. Based on the outcome of that, the decision to permit or deny Grade 1 status will be decided." Megumi said, like he was reading straight from a manual.

"That's right Fushiguro-kun." Mei said as a small smile graced her features. She turned to me and continued, "You, Hebert-chan, impressed quite a few people with your performance during the Exchange Event. Enough that you got three recommendations for promotion to Grade 1, including mine."

I felt my surprise color my expression. Before I could say anything, Gojo jumped in. "That's right. We finally got the higher-ups to unclench enough to allow for your promotion, and since you got an extra recommendation, it was between Nanami and Mei-san for your supervised missions."

I thought about asking who my third recommendation was from, but decided against it as Mei picked up the thread of conversation.

"I withdrew my recommendation for Nanami-san's, as I decided I wanted to accompany you on these missions. I feel we could have a lot in common." Mei said, turning her small smile towards me.

"I'm honored." I said simply. It was even the truth. She was the same Grade as Nanami, and I'd felt his power during our training. That, plus the anomalous respect Gojo showed her, made me both pleased and a little wary. Her smile grew slightly and she let out a small 'hmm' of acknowledgement.

"That's that!" Gojo chirped, turning to the trio. "You three go meet Nitta. Taylor, go with Mei-san, do what she says." With his unnecessary orders given, Gojo stuck his hands in his pockets and turned and wandered off. I looked to my fellow first-years and bade them farewell and good luck on their mission. They offered me the same, though Yuji, and to a lesser extent Nobara, looked disappointed. As they walked away, I turned back to Mei and waited for her to speak. She looked at me contemplatively for several long moments.

"Was that the first time you successfully cast Simple Domain?" Was the first thing she said.

"It was." I answered simply. She let out a considering hum before she turned and walked several meters away. 

"Do it again." She ordered me as she came to a stop and turned around. "Consider your evaluation for promotion to begin, now."

I didn't respond verbally, I just moved straight into the casting stance.

New Shadow Style: Simple Domain.

The barrier and my Control spread in lockstep, stopping at it's predetermined range and swiftly stabilizing. Even though Kusakabe-sensei had told me that the first time would be by far the hardest, I still felt relieved that it only took moderate effort and concentration this time. I made a mental note to myself to add casting and releasing my Simple Domain several times to my daily training schedule. I stood straight from the initial stance and waited as Mei slowly walked the perimeter of my barrier, observing it intensely. Eventually she completed her circuit and stopped in front of me.

"Your barrier looks good, and your Cursed Energy feels solid. Well done. This will improve your chances of making Grade 1." She told me, a smile still on her face and in her voice.

I executed another bow from the waist and said, "Thank you very much."

She nodded to me in acceptance of my thanks, then beckoned to me with one hand. I noticed that her fingernails were painted a dark shade of purple as she did.  "Come along Hebert-chan, let's get going."

"Lead the way, Mei-san."

To get to our mission location, we took the train for a time, then joined an assistant who was waiting with a rental car. The rental was a little different from the usual sleek black vehicle, it was a little more like a limo. The assistant was in the drivers seat, but the back was more spacious than a normal four door, and Mei sat there with me. Once we were seated the assistant began the briefing. "I'll be taking the two of you out to a large building outside of Fukui City, near Mt. Tenjinyama. The location was a government sponsored orphanage once. It was abandoned almost ten years ago when the headmistress poisoned the communal dinner on the anniversary of the death of her son. Thirty three orphaned boys and girls died that night, before the headmistress hung herself in the foyer. The reputation of the building led to Curses springing up in the area, which leads us to today." He told us. His briefing wasn't quite up to Ijichi's standards, I couldn't help but feel.

It would take about three hours to drive to the location. On the way, Mei turned to me and spoke. "So, Hebert-chan, tell me. What exactly is your Innate Technique?"

"I call it 'Control'." I began. No harm in telling her, my Technique wasn't exactly a secret. "I expand a field of my Cursed Energy out to a maximum of about one hundred seventy meters in a dome around me. Inside, I can take Control of anything that has some level of Cursed Energy including humans, with some conditions."

"I see." She began. She smiled a little wider before she continued. "Mine is 'Black Bird Manipulation'. I imbue crows with Cursed Energy, and control them."

I shifted slightly in my seat, and turned to face her more fully. "So, that's what you meant by us having something in common?"

"For a start." She said cryptically, letting out a light chuckle. "What can you make them do? How complete is your control?"

"Near total." I replied. "I can decide when they breath and blink. I've even made a group of Curse Users kill themselves." I was a little surprised with myself at how easily I was telling her these things. That wasn't exactly something I was proud of, though I didn't regret it either.

Her smile grew still wider, "So that's what Gojo-kun was talking about." She said quietly to herself, in the tone of someone who just got a joke. "Do you get any feedback from them, or can you use their senses?" She asked me.

"No. I wish." I said simply. I knew I sounded annoyed, if that ability had carried over from my shard my life would be easier.

She gave another breezy chuckle. "If the right moment comes, I'll show you something you might be able to use."

I quirked an eyebrow up at her vague statement, but she didn't elaborate.

I blinked as a thought occurred to me. "Can you use the black birds' senses? Was the crow on the training field you?" She gave a small nod, presumably to both questions.

Note to self, keep an eye out for crows and ravens.

For the rest of the drive, our conversation moved away from Techniques. I told her the usual story about how my memories were heavily jumbled after getting shot in the head, and she talked about her little brother and her love for money, which was intense. Eventually we arrived at our destination, and all three of us got out of the car. Mei opened the trunk and pulled a large axe, presumably a Cursed Tool, out of a carrying case. At the same time, a number of crows fluttered over to us, and more landed around the area. With that, the three of us started moving towards the former orphanage. It was a fairly large building, four stories tall and maybe fifteen bays wide. The facade was heavily crumbled and covered in plant life, with not a single unbroken window in sight.

"Once you're inside, I'll put up a curtain." The assistant said as he came to a stop several dozen meters from the building. I offered my thanks, then Mei and I moved towards the entrance.

As we came up to the boarded-up doors, Mei turned to me and spoke as she gripped the large two handed axe she'd had in the car, and several of her crows started to circle the building. "Use whatever methods and means you see fit to exorcise all Curses at this location. I'll be observing with my birds, but I'll only intervene if you become heavily wounded, or ask for help. Either occurrence will hurt your nomination for promotion."

"I understand." I told her, my voice firm. She turned and walked off, stopping near the assistant. I drew Silence and Cry  and activated my Reinforcement as the assistant's voice came, faintly audible. "Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure."  

As the curtain fell, I let Control unspool. My range covered the entire building, and I let out a slow breath at what I sensed inside. Thirty three Grade 4 Curses, and one Semi- maybe full Grade 1. I tried not to dwell on that number. I also sensed all of Mei's crows that were in the curtain with me, and had to fight the impulse to see if I could take them from her. I decided that entering the Curse-riddled building was not the best move, so I brought Control down hard on all thirty three of the lesser Curses I could sense. I suborned them with relative ease, then directed twenty five of them to start attacking each other while the remainder, those closest to the Grade 1, started attacking it. 

A cacophony erupted as the Curses began inflicting violence on each other, and themselves. Their numbers diminished rapidly, those under my Control exorcising each other, and the Grade 1 slaughtering those that attacked it. I heard one of Mei's crows let out a quiet noise that sounded almost like a laugh as it all happened. I took a deep breath and stepped away from the door as I sensed the Grade 1 start moving through the building once it finished off it's attackers. It barreled through the hallways, coming straight for me.

Wait for it.

Just as it impacted the boards that blocked the doorway, I jumped straight up, my Cursed Energy Reinforcement giving me a great vertical. I twisted in the air, swiping Silence at the vague blur that came hurtling out in a spray of shattered wood. I scored a hit and clumpy purple fluid splattered across the ground, accompanied by a foul smell and a warbling screech. It continued straight out the doorway, continuing almost to the curtain before it skidded to a stop. I landed facing it, and I got a good look.

The Orphanage Curse was only vaguely human shaped, it had four limbs and a nearly spherical head, though that was where the resemblance ended. It looked roughly two and a half meters tall, and as it turned back to face me I saw limbs that put me first in mind of a starfish, one of the long ones, as they were all roughly the same size and shape and lacked anything resembling hands or feet. It straightened it's back and turned it's bulbous head towards me. I didn't see any eyes, and I felt my lip curl in disgust as it's head slowly unfurled into five or six toothy sections, like some carnivorous plant.

"My kids." It's voice scraped against my ears, sharp and hollow as it filled the air from within it's open head. "No one will take them from me." 

So, the Curse either is the remains of, or based itself off of, the headmistress of the orphanage.

It let out a growl as the cut I inflicted closed with a squelch. It started to walk towards me and the ends of it's 'arms' split open, spilling out a clear, steaming fluid. Out of the breaches slid clusters of thin, wriggling feelers, almost like tentacles, if tentacles had claws on the ends. Just as it seemed about to attack, I checked the situation through Control one more time. Only one of the original thirty four Curses remained besides the one in front of me. That being the case, I made the first move.

Individual Control.

It froze as my power came down on it, and it's Cursed Energy started to spike and roil as it instinctually tried to fight it off. I quickly closed distance with it, and swung Silence in a harsh arc intended to cut off it's head. My blade swept through it's neck with hardly any resistance, sending it's head to hit the ground with a wet splat. I hesitated for a long moment, that felt way too easy. I took several long steps back and settled into a ready stance. The Orphanage Curse's head disappeared slowly, but it's body remained upright, shaking slightly as it tried to resist Control.

I knew that wasn't enough.

I stepped closer, intending to cut it into pieces, but was forced to leap backwards when a gout of murky black fluid gouted from the stump of it's neck. I had moved out of sheer reflex, and was glad that I had as the fluid continued to flow until it covered an area about three meters around the Curse's feet. I looked close at the reeking liquid, and felt certain deep down that it was poison. I couldn't easily get within arms reach due to the pool, but it was still trying to break the hold I had on it with Control. I ran through a few ideas of how to break this brief stalemate. I could throw my Tools in an attempt to hit something vital, or I could strike it by jumping passed it, over the poison. I could try Simple Domain, to see if that would disperse the poison, though I was reluctant to use something I had so little practice with in a combat scenario. I considered my next move for a few moments, before deciding to try something I'd only done once before.

"My Technique, the one holding you in place, is called Control. I inject my target with a variation of my Cursed Energy if they're within one hundred seventy meters, and if my Energy is higher in quantity or quality, I take over." Even as I Revealed My Hand, I could feel Control get stronger. It swelled, and it's weight on the Orphanage Curse grew beyond it's ability to resist. Even still, the Curse's resistance took a few long moments to fail, but fail it did. Once my Control was established, I made it walk out of it's poison puddle and over to me. A few precision strikes with Silence on it's unresisting body was enough, and it swiftly dissolved into nothing. Once it was gone, I released my Vow and felt Control once again fill the area of the curtain. It was only a moment's work to seize the one remaining lesser Curse and bring it outside to disappear under Silence's pale blade.

Once that was done, I reeled in Control and walked to the edge of the curtain, which fell as soon as I arrived at it. When it was down, I looked at Mei standing next to the assistant, who I abruptly realized I had never asked the name of, and saw that she was smiling fairly wide. She also had the assistant holding her axe, for some reason. She gently rapped her fingers against her opposite palm in a golf clap, that from a woman as refined-seeming as her didn't feel mocking or sarcastic in the slightest.

"Well done, Hebert-chan." She started, sounding pleased. "Not only did it not even come close to hurting you, you defeated upwards of twenty lesser Curses with speed, and efficiency. I think this will be the easiest evaluation I've ever had." I thanked her as she reclaimed her axe and we all returned to the car, the assistant climbing in behind the wheel, and Mei opening the trunk to return her axe to it's carrying case. After she closed the trunk, we reentered the car and she turned to me to continue speaking.

"Our driver has our itinerary, he knows where to take us next. With how smooth that went, there'll only be one, maybe two more missions for us." She told me. I hadn't been wondering about that, but it was good to know regardless.

"By the way, Hebert-chan," She began again, "There are many infestations of Curses that are comprised of numerous small, fast, or hard to reach Curses out there. You could make a lot of money clearing those out, once you become higher Grade, or even go independent."

I thought about that for a long moment, that sounded good, actually. As far as I knew, Earth Vav was in no immediate danger of ending like Bet had been, having plans for the future was probably wise. After a short time, I responded with a little smirk I couldn't quite suppress, "I don't have any contacts, nor do I know the right people to talk to for a proper contractual agreement. Would you be available for consult on such a matter? I'd pay you a fair commission, of course."

Her smile widened, and her throaty, melodious laugh filled the car.

I only ended up going on one more mission with Mei for my evaluation. The Windows had found a Curse User, and Mei and I went to get rid of him. He was even less of a threat than Ponytail had been, though it was against him that I learned Control did indeed work on shikigami. With him dead and his pet Curses exorcised, Mei and I went our separate ways. She did say she'd be keeping an eye on me, as well as telling me she and I ought to keep in contact even after she informed me of when my solo mission would be.

Maybe she'll go with us, if I decide to go drinking with Shoko one day.

After my return to Jujutsu High, I went to see if the others had returned from their mission, but I was told that they were still out with Nitta. I was a little disappointed, but this way I'd just tell them when I was officially informed that I was Semi-Grade 1, instead of just taking Mei's word that I'd made the cut. After my usual schedule of shower, change, and dinner with Shoko, I returned to my room. Tomorrow I'd see my fellow first-years, my friends, and ask how their mission had gone. 

I laid in bed for a long time, until I rolled onto my side and looked over, and saw my nano-thorn dagger. I'd put it on my nightstand those months ago when I'd first moved into the student dorms, and there it had stayed, where I'd always be able to see it. I had turned down Gojo's offer to imbue it with Cursed Energy. Maybe I'd wanted it to remain un-Cursed, or maybe I didn't want to use something from Bet here on Vav. Whatever the reason, beyond keeping it from literally getting dusty, I never touched it.

Maybe I should put it away somewhere. I swore to myself I'd never forget, but when does remembering become clinging to the past? Where does letting go become separate from forgetting?

Deciding my thoughts were too heavy for when I was trying to sleep, I rolled back over and tried to relax. Maybe I'd do something more 'friend' oriented with the others, rather than 'classmate' next chance I got. 

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

The four of us Jujutsu first-years were walking together down a busy Tokyo street after breezing through our last mission, a few days after they're returned from their mission battling Curse Wombs and Death Paintings. The morning after their return had been a busy one. They had been pleased to learn about my promotion, but the conversation had turned to fights, death and Curses quickly enough. Today went smoothly though, smooth enough that Yuji had complained, mostly joking, that hitting a Curse while it couldn't move due to my Control was cheating.

Fushiguro had his hands in his pockets like me as we walked, but Kugisaki and Yuji both had their cellphones out. Looking at them, I was reminded of conversations I'd had separately with Gojo, Shoko, and Mei.

"I think I'll go see a movie. What about you, Kugisaki?" Yuji asked.

"It's still early." Nobara replied, "I think I'll go shopping or something."

"You two are way too energetic." Megumi grumbled. "I'm going home." After his declaration, he pulled out his own cellphone and called Ijichi. It didn't take long for him to arrive, but once he did I asked him to pop the trunk before he went off with Megumi. Out of the trunk came a plain tote bag, into which went my Cursed Tools. Just because I needed to not draw too much attention did not mean I was willing to completely disarm.

"Take care." Yuji said, offering a wave to Megumi before the car's rear door closed. As the sleek black vehicle began to pull away, Nobara started walking, and I braced myself internally. I knew it'd be best if I got her help for this.

I have people to keep in contact with now.

"Hey, Kugisaki." I said, taking one long step after her. "Would you mind if I joined you?"

Kugisaki turned to face me, one foot on the steps leading up to the next level of the street. Her eyebrows rose up on her forehead as she responded, "You want to go shopping with me?"

"There's something I need. I thought it'd be more efficient to ask you to lead the way." I said simply.

She thought about it for a moment, pursing her lips. I thought for a moment she'd refuse, but finally her mouth drew into a smile. "Sure, why not." She said. I managed not to show my relief as I joined her on the stairs. She opened her mouth to speak as we both took a few more steps up, but was cut off by Yuji.

"I'm going to the movies. Either of you want to go?" He asked. We both turned to him, and Kugisaki managed to ask the big question before I could.

"What are you going to see?"

" 'Human Earthworm 4' " Yuji responded, closing his eyes with a wide grin, holding up four fingers. Kugisaki's face twisted up into a grimace, and she and I traded a look.

"Who'd want to go see a thing like that?" She said sharply, turning back to Yuji. "I haven't even seen the first three." I decided not to say anything as they continued.

"I think you'd be fine jumping in on 4." Yuji said placatingly. He fiddled with his phone for a moment, before holding it up sideways for Kugisaki and I to see. On screen played what looked like a trailer, while Yuji rattled off a synopsis of the earlier movies as it played. A man turned into a human earthworm by a mad scientist, managed to find a woman who likes worms, so on and so forth. He finished with an exuberant, "So, the actual theme is 'love'!" 

It looked awful. I couldn't be sure what expression was on my face, but at a guess it matched Kugisaki's, a moue of disdain.

"I don't want to see some wormo man, regardless of the theme." She told him, a little coldly. He opened his mouth to retort, but she cut him off. "Besides, Hebert and I are going shopping. There's a good mall a block that way." She finished, gesturing with one hand over her shoulder.

Yuji looked a little put down, so I decided to throw him a bone. "Itadori." I began, to get his attention and head off anything else Kugisaki might try to pile on. "I would be willing, happy even, to watch a movie with you." His face lit up, and I heard a confused noise come out of Kugisaki but I continued before either of them could interrupt. "That being the case, I don't like crowds, and I'm going with Kugisaki right now. How about tonight we watch one in that room Gojo kept you in? And we'll both agree on the movie." I finished firmly.

He nodded eagerly even as Kugisaki turned to look at me. "What room are you talking about?" She asked.

"When Yuji was laying low after we concealed his resurrection," I ignored the irritation that showed on her face at the reminder, she still hadn't totally let that go. "He primarily stayed in a small room hidden on the Jujutsu High campus. It's got a nice T.V., and it's very well stocked with movies." I told her.

"That sounds great!" Yuji said brightly as soon as I finished speaking to Kugisaki. He looked excited, and I was tempted to tell him to tone it down, he didn't need to lay it on that thick. "I'll see you later then." He said, turning around with a wave. I returned it, and he walked off. I turned back to Kugisaki to see that she was looking at me strangely.

"What is it?" I asked.

She looked at me for another long moment before, with elaborate casualness, she said, "So, Itadori, huh?"

It was my turn to eye her askance. "What about him?" I asked. I had watched a few movies with him down in that room before, though I'd forgotten to ask where he'd gotten that plushie and why he had it. There was nothing new or unusual about the plans I'd just made. She pursed her lips slightly, before shrugging off whatever she had been thinking about, turning to resume her way up the stairs. "It's nothing." She said unconvincingly as I followed her up. On my way up, I noticed a woman across the street acting strange.

I was about to ask Kugisaki more, but she changed the subject. "So, what were you looking to get?" She asked me. I waffled for a moment on whether or not to let the topic go, before deciding I didn't really care.

"I need to get a cellphone." I said, keeping it simple. 

She swung her head in my direction, surprise painting her expression. "You don't have a phone? Why not?"

"I just never got one." I said shortly. No real need to delve into the whole thing I had with phones. They had been essentially banned in the Hebert household after what happened with my mom, and even though I'd gotten one or two while I was with the Undersiders, they'd been left behind once I'd joined the Wards and I'd not gotten a new one. If I had needed to communicate with anyone, I'd used official channels and equipment.

She looked at me a little sideways, and pressed the issue. "There's got to be more to it than that; you look a little upset, and your jaw is clenching."

I once again felt a brief pang of longing for the ability to efficiently and effectively hide my emotional tells even as I looked at her, and began internally debating how much to tell her, and how honestly. I sighed deeply, I chose to have friends, time to live up to that. "My mom died in a car crash, because she was on her cell phone." Kugisaki looked dismayed as I said that, like she was regretting pushing me to talk. "Between that, and a lack of desire, I just never got one. Now though, there are a few people that I need to be able to contact, so here we are."

She hummed in acknowledgment, happy to let the sensitive subject drop, and then we were at the mall. She apparently had decided to do my shopping first as we made a bee-line for a nice looking phone store. 

"This is where I came after my phone screen.. got broken." She told me once we were through the doors. I considered asking what happened to her phone, but the dusting of pink on her cheeks and the hesitation in her tone told me it was probably something embarrassing, so I didn't ask. After a few moments of browsing, a store employee came over to us and asked if we needed help. She was the quintessential late teens Japanese girl, dark hair and dark eyes, dressed up for her job.

"I'm here to buy a phone. It doesn't need to be fancy, so mid-range prices would be best. I'll also need a good case for it." I told her. The store employee, her nametag read 'Himari' in Romaji, stared at me for a long moment, before narrowing her eyes slightly and beckoning me to follow her. She took us to a display case, and I started browsing.

As I did, I felt a peculiar sense of disconnect wash over me. The phones I'd had in the past were very utilitarian, and not very advanced. Looking at these, I couldn't help but feel they were excessively fancy. In truth, I felt a similar way as I had when I'd learned what year I'd found myself in, though less pronounced. To the best of my knowledge, Gold Morning had ended on the twenty-fourth of June in 2013, with my disappearance. Early in the months it took me to start to learn Japanese, I'd found out that I had ended up in February of 2018. A roughly five year time differential between Bet and Vav was honestly far from the strangest thing I'd had to adjust to, but it still made me feel funny, even now that it was nearing the end of September.

All told, it didn't take me that long to pick a phone, get a heavy-duty case for it, pay and leave. The only problem, using the word very lightly, was Himari. Her attitude never got to the point I felt the need to call her on it, but it was noticeable. All her passive aggressive remarks and slight snippiness slid off me like water off a duck, I'd had much worse from girls I cared about a lot more, but Kugisaki ended up a split second away from slapping her.

Once we left the phone store, Kugisaki still muttering, I pulled a little slip of paper out of the tote bag I'd put my Cursed Tools in. On it I'd written Shoko, Mei, Gojo, and Ijichi's phone numbers. We started walking, it was Kugisaki's turn to get some shopping in. As we went, I struggled to put the numbers I had been given in my contacts, enough that Kugisaki snapped out of her angry funk and asked, "What's wrong?"

"I'm not sure." I responded. "I thought it was more difficult to use this thing in the store than I'd been expecting, but it's gotten wors.." I cut myself off as a thought occurred to me. I switched the phone to my left hand, and my list of phone numbers to my right, and the struggle eased. "The touch-screen doesn't like my prosthetic." I said, the issue clear now.

"That's a little annoying." Kugisaki grumbled. I shrugged, I'd gotten more ambidextrous in the months before I'd been provided the prosthetic, this was no big deal. I was about to say as much, before she continued. "Still, not as annoying as that girl. What was her problem anyway?" 

I thought it might have been rhetorical, but I answered anyway as I slowly added phone numbers to my contacts. "Maybe she didn't like my Japanese." I was being sarcastic, but Kugisaki responded like I'd been serious.

"Nah, your Japanese is fine. It's something about her." She practically hissed.

"Just forget about her Kugisaki." I said, finally finishing adding Mei's number. As I debated with myself whether or not to add Gojo's number and give him another avenue to bother me, I decided to change the subject a little more directly. "Is my Japanese really 'fine'?" No one had ever said anything about it, but constructive criticism was welcome.

"Yeah." She began, "You sometimes mix up the subject and the verb, and the particles you use can be a bit off, but it's easy to understand you, and your mistakes are easy to make and few and far between. It's not like people who have been speaking it all their lives never mess up." She finished breezily. I looked up from my phone at her with some surprise, that was far more constructive than I'd honestly been expecting when I'd asked. Before I could speak, she reached out a grabby hand for my phone, "Let me put my number in there." 

I handed it over easily enough, I had no reason to suspect her of a prank or sabotage though the thought occurred to me, and as she started typing I asked, "How about my accent? It's hard for me to hear it in my own voice." 

She hummed lightly as she typed, then as she gave my phone back one number heavier, she said, "You barely even have an accent. Seriously, it's barely noticeable. It just makes you sound interesting." 

I nodded, saying, "Thank you, Kugisaki. It's nice to know the effort I put in didn't go to waste."

She smiled, and looked ever so slightly uncertain. "You're welcome, Heb..." She stopped mid-word, and I looked at her, rather than return to my new phone. She's not normally so hesitant. "..Taylor."

I returned her smile, then spoke, "Where to now, Nobara?"

Her smile grew, and a slight tension that had crept into her shoulders vanished as she and I both turned to continue through the mall. "I wanted a few things from L'Aigle noir, and Givenchy has a new product available."

I wasn't really clear on what either of those are, but all I said was, "Sounds like a plan."

"Are you for real Taylor!?" Nobara yelled.

"Yeah, I'm for real." I responded, far more calmly. "I never had much use for it. Or time, or inclination."

We'd finished shopping, for now, and I'd enjoyed myself far more than I'd expected. I'd bought a few things from L'Aigle noir, which turned out to be a music shop, though nothing from Givenchy, which was a beauty shop. We were on our way to Pitaoca, where they sold shakes and drinks. Nobara had been surprised, and dismayed, when I told her I didn't use makeup. Or more than the bare minimum of skin care products. As we passed through the doors into the shop, I noticed a woman down the sidewalk as she turned in our direction.

"So you just naturally look like that?" She asked, still incredulous.

" 'Like that' ?" I asked. She twitched as she realized how that might have sounded. 

"What I mean is," She said a little hastily, as we stopped in line in Pitaoca. "Your skin is clear and pale, like porcelain. And your eyes look so big and dark, I thought you wore eye shadow at least."

I gave her an incredulous look. "No need to oversell it Nobara." 

She turned to face me when we stopped in line for drinks, putting her hands on her hips and standing close enough to highlight our height difference. I was practically a full head taller than her. "I'm not." She told me firmly. "I'm honestly a little jealous. Your lips are even a nice shade of pink, and your hair is gorgeous."

I was willing to accept that last one, but I couldn't help but feel that she was buttering me up. For what though, was the question. "Thank you." I began. Just because I was feeling paranoid about unsolicited compliments was no reason to be rude. I took a breath to try to say something complimentary about her, but I was cut off by a subtle throat clearing, and a timid, "Next, please?" We both turned to see that the line had kept moving. 

"Sorry." I said to the guy behind the counter. I ordered a simple cup of tea, while Nobara ordered some kind of watermelon concoction, both to go. After we left the store, Nobara changed the subject, "What music did you get from L'Aigle noir?"

Accepting the new topic, I said, "Just some classical, a few orchestral pieces, and a pair of headphones. I sometimes like to listen to music when I read." I sipped my tea when I finished talking.

Nobara nodded in understanding, and took her own sip of her watermelon shake. As we picked a direction and started walking, I spoke in a low tone, "Someone is following us." Nobara stiffened, looking around slowly.

"Straight behind us, dark blond, tan long sleeved shirt, yellowish skirt." I ran down the description. "I've seen her a few times since we separated from Itadori." 

She nodded slowly, "What do you think? Working for a Curse User?"

"Maybe. We should ask her. She's coming up to us anyway." I responded.

We both turned to look at the strange woman, who had been approaching us slowly, nervously. "Why are you following us?" I ground out before she could speak. She jumped, and stammered as she responded.

"Were.. em.. were you two with Itadori-kun earlier? That was you, right?" She asked, blushing heavily.

"Huh?" Nobara answered, eloquently. 

"Why do you want to know?" I asked, a little harsher. 

If she is an enemy, Itadori is a good target. I'm surprised no Curse User has come after him for his status as a Vessel for Sukuna.

"Eh, well." She began. After a moment she cleared her throat and visibly gathered her courage. "Can we talk somewhere a little more private?" Nobara and I traded a look.

"Fine. Not too private though." I conceded. The girl looked confused at my requirement, but didn't ask.

"There's a little family restaurant a few buildings down this street. We can get a booth." Nobara offered. I agreed and we made our way there. It only took a few minutes, and once we were through the doors, greeted by a bright, "Welcome!" from the proprietress, we moved towards the fountain drink machine.

"My name is Ozawa Yuko." She said as she grabbed a glass.

"I'm Kugisaki Nobara." Nobara responded, as she threw away her almost empty Pitaoca drink and replaced it with a fountain drink of her own. I still had my tea and pretended to take a drink so Nobara, a little confused, added, "This is Hebert Taylor." I nodded with the straw of my drink still in my mouth. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't want to talk to this girl.

After blinking at me a little slowly, Yuko handed Nobara her phone. On it was a picture of a girl in what looked almost like a sailor costume, with chin length black hair, and a little overweight. "That was what I looked like at my middle school graduation ceremony." She said. I felt my eyebrows shoot up my forehead, and Nobara made a significantly less subtle "Huh?!"

Nobara held the phone close to her face, getting a better look. "Seriously?! that was only six months ago! What happened to you?" She asked, her tone thick with surprise. 

"Well, I had a growth spurt. I grew about fifteen centimeters." She rubbed the back of her head and spoke in a self-deprecating fashion. As the three of us sat in an open booth with Nobara and I on one side and Yuko in the other, she continued. "Between that and the stress of moving to Tokyo and changing environments.. I lost some weight."

"Wow." Nobara said simply. "You're a real Kuroko Sato." I had no idea who that was, but I didn't get much of a chance to wonder as Nobara set Yuko's phone on the table and unzoomed the photo on the screen. Next to her in the photo was.. "That's Itadori." Neither of them were smiling for the picture, and there was a good twelve centimeters between them making them look a little awkward, but it was a fairly nice picture overall.

"On graduation day, I worked up the courage to ask for a photo with him. I actually wanted to ask for his phone number, but it was already decided that we were moving to Tokyo.." As she spoke, the blush on her face grew, and she averted her eyes slightly. "So when I saw Itadori-kun earlier, I thought maybe, with how I look now.. I might.." She trailed off, more nervous than ever.

"Wait.. Yuko.. You mean.. " Nobara hesitated for a moment, before blurting, "It's like that, right?" With an odd expression on her face.

"Yes, it's like that." Yuko said firmly. I decided the best thing was to keep my mouth shut and listen, that way I could find out what they were talking about. I had my suspicions, but confirmation would be for the best.

Without saying anything else, Nobara picked up her phone and dialed. A few moments of ringing, then, "Hey, Ijichi-san, is Fushiguro still riding with you? I'll send you the URL for the restaurant Taylor and I are at, could you turn around and bring him here?"

A pause as Ijichi presumably agreed.

"Thanks, see ya soon!" She put her phone down, and spoke to Yuko, "Someone who knows Itadori pretty well is on his way. We'll talk to him first."

"Um.." Yuko began, glancing nervously between Nobara and I. "If either of you are interested in Itadori-kun too.." However she intended to finish that sentence went unspoken as Nobara interjected, her voice and expression hard and certain.

"No. Even if Hell froze over and danced the lambada with Purgatory, no." That seemed a little harsh to me, but she just wanted to be clear. "Though.." she said, a little less certainly, turning her head to look at me out of the corner of her eye. Then her hand slowly rose to her chest and she looked down at the table, seeming confused.

"Nobara?" I asked, a little concerned.

"Nothing." She said, her voice firming again, wrapping her hand around her drink. "Let's wait for Fushiguro."

Luckily, it didn't take long for him to arrive. "Hey, what's the big idea?" Was the first thing he said, his voice gravely with anger.

"Hey, Fushiguro." Nobara greeted him, along with a little wave. "Does Itadori have a girlfriend?"

Fushiguro glanced at me for a long moment, just like Nobara had earlier, but all he said was, "Huh?"

"This is Ozawa Yuko," She introduced, "she's actually interested in Itadori."

"So, it's like that?!"

"Yeah, It's like that!"

Megumi swiftly snatched a chair from an empty table, and parked himself next to the booth before he spoke again. "I doubt he has a girlfriend." He said confidently.

"Your basis for that?" Nobara asked him.

"When he suddenly had to transfer to Tokyo, he didn't seem all that upset about it. Also, he never said anything about it, and he's not exactly shy. That, plus he's got a pinup poster on the wall in his room." I felt my jaw twitch at that. "Anyone with a girlfriend wouldn't have something like that hanging up, right? She probably wouldn't like it."

"Probably." I heard myself say. I quietly pretended I hadn't spoken, sipping at my tea as their eyes turned to me in unison. I was saved when the waitress brought Fushiguro the coffee he ordered when he'd arrived. The smell was strong, and Nobara turned to him to speak.

"Are you the type to drink coffee black only when women are around to show off? You shouldn't do that." She said in a strange tone I couldn't name.

"You called me out here to talk to me about Itadori, right?" He grumbled, a vein in his forehead bulging. "I always drink it black. Let's stay on topic."

"Um" Yuko said timidly, drawing attention her way. "Do you happen to know what type of girl he likes?"

Megumi looked contemplative for a moment, before turning his eyes towards me. "He said something about how he likes tall girls."

Wait, he LIKES tall girls? Specifically?

Nobara and Yuko clanged their glasses together and started talking rapidly as Nobara pulled her phone back out and Megumi started in on his coffee and pulled out a little book, but I lost the thread of their conversation as I had a private crisis. Every time Yuji and I had had an interaction that turned weird at a seemingly random moment flitted through my mind, being recontextualized, reexamined.

There's no way he likes me. Probably.

However Nobara had called for Itadori, he didn't take long to show up, cutting off my internal meltdown before it could really gain traction. Apparently, his classmates were more important than wormo man four. Good. "Oh, Fushiguro's here too!" Was Itadori's opening statement. He had a brown plastic bag full of seemingly random items in his hands, and Megumi asked before I did. "What's that?"

"I couldn't find a cash exchange, so I traded in for prizes." Was his explanation.

"I thought you were going to see 'Wormo Man 4'?" I said, my tone making it a question. I ignored Nobara making an odd choking sound next to me as I spoke. She probably didn't want to laugh at me copying her way of making fun of the movie.

Yuji looked at me and opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by Nobara, "Hey Itadori, this is.." She began, gesturing towards Yuko. Yuji however, cut her off in turn, "Oh, hey Ozawa-chan. What's up? Small world."

Yuko, for her part, had her face twist slightly, like she was trying not to let herself cry. She had looked very different last he'd seen her, but he still recognized her.

Well done, Yuji.

After that, the conversation went in directions I had not expected. Yuko never said anything to Yuji about her feelings, and no one tried to help her along. After about fifteen minutes, we all left the restaurant with Yuko going her own way, looking deep in thought. For the rest of us, we started towards where Ijichi had parked after bringing Megumi to Nobara and I. Itadori fell back a little, offering a more private goodbye to Yuko I assumed, after giving his bag of random items to Megumi to hold for him.

"Was that really the best outcome?" Megumi asked. "They could have at least exchanged numbers."

"I exchanged info with her. It should be fine." Nobara responded.

I decided to add my own opinion. "It'd be best for Yuko to be fully ready, before she tries to start something with Itadori." They both nodded in acknowledgment of my point.

"More importantly," Nobara started, "I've realized my own feelings." Megumi and I both made questioning noises. "The thought that Itadori might land a girlfriend before I get a boyfriend really pisses me off!" She said, her face an annoyed grimace.

"That so?" Megumi said shortly.

"Sorry for the wait!" Yuji cried brightly as he caught back up with us.

"Here." Megumi said quickly, handing Yuji back his stuff.

"Oh thanks!" Yuji said, reclaiming his prizes.

"Here." Nobara said in a clipped tone as she handed him the bags holding the purchases she'd made earlier.

"Huh? What's this?" Yuji asked, confused.

"Just while you're at it. You wouldn't make a lady carry them, would you?" Nobara said, her tone leaving no room for refusal.

Yuji looked confused, but shrugged it off easily enough, slinging Nobara's bags over one shoulder. We walked for a moment, before Yuji suddenly jerked bodily, blurting, "Oh crap, the movie's about to start!" Then he started trotting towards the movie theater. Nobara chased him, telling him not to run off with her bags. Megumi also started accelerating, while he was here he was willing to watch a movie it seemed, based on his criticizing Yuji for assuming we'd watch wormo man. That reminded me..

"Itadori!" I barked.

He instantly slammed on the metaphorical brakes, the others stopping more slowly, all three of them turning to look at me. He looked like a kicked puppy, while I tried to school my face into something stern and arch. "What did I put special emphasis on about watching a movie with you earlier?"

He put on an expression of deep thought. Several long moments passed and I was beginning to think I'd have to remind him, before he snapped his fingers in realization. "You don't like crowds!" He said, full of confidence. Beside him, Nobara smacked her palm against her forehead. Evidently, she remembered what I was referring to. I wasn't sure what my expression turned into, but he looked embarrassed, pink tinges spreading across his cheeks.

"No, Yuji." I began, "I put special emphasis on agreeing which movie to watch." He made a noise of realization at my statement. "Now," I continued, "Who wants to watch 'Human Earthworm 4'?"

Only Yuji's hand shot up. "What other movies are showing?" I asked.

"None for another two hours." Yuji responded. "A few of the theaters are getting a special cleaning."

"In that case," I said, "I'm going home. Nobara, are you going with him to the movie?"

"No." She said simply.

"Okay, give her the bags back Yuji." He nodded, crestfallen about losing his movie companions as Megumi wordlessly walked over to me, joined by Nobara as soon as he handed her the bags. "Fushiguro, if you'd call Ijichi-san?" He nodded, pulling out his phone.

Yuji turned to walk away, significantly slower and with less cheer. "Yuji." I said again, less harshly. He turned around again, a wordless question on his face. "Are we still on for tonight?" He stared for a long moment, before he perked up visibly.

"Yeah!" he chirped. "Do you want to eat in the room? Or before?" He asked. I thought about it for a moment, ignoring the whispers passing between Fushiguro and Nobara.

"In the room." I answered. "Maybe some of those meatball things you make." He nodded vigorously, before I reminded him he had a movie to catch and he took off, his mood successfully restored.

"You sure he hasn't already gotten ahead of you?" I heard Fushiguro ask Nobara. She just huffed in response. "Ijichi-san should be here soon." He said to me. I nodded, happy to pretend I hadn't heard what he said to Nobara.

Now I just had to decide if tonight really was a date with Yuji, and if it was, how far I wanted this to go. I was heavily damaged. I hid it well, I thought, and it didn't really affect my day-to-day, but the issues were still there. Just a few nights ago, I had decided that if I was going to kill myself, I'd use my nano-thorn dagger. I'd take that, leaving Silence and Cry in my room, walk as far as I reasonably could into the forest outside the school, imbue the dagger with some of my Cursed Energy so I didn't come back as a Curse, and jam the blade into my brain. Maybe leave a note in my room with the Tools so no one would think I'd just vanished.

Beyond that, I'd only ever been in one relationship, and that had failed. Badly. I didn't even have a real reference for what made for a good relationship. Every time I thought about the relationship I'd had with Brian, I became less certain of it. When I'd first approached him, he'd turned me down. He'd said that he was just treating me the only way he knew how to treat girls, and I'd let basic human decency and his physical appearance draw me close to him. He'd honestly only gotten together with me after he'd been torn down by Bonesaw, and I'd been there to help build him back up. I'd never know for sure how he'd felt about me while we were together, we'd broken up after I joined the Wards and I had no idea if he'd even survived Gold Morning, or Khep-. 

Even further beyond those points, Yuji was under the damn Sword of Damocles. As soon as he ate all twenty of Sukuna's fingers, he'd be executed. That was of course assuming we could find them all, or that Sukuna would let anyone kill Yuji if he had all of his existence within him. There were a lot of variables there, not least of which what might happen if Sukuna killed me. I knew that Yuji had a bad habit of blaming himself for the actions of his passenger, not like I couldn't relate, so if we were together and something like the Detention Center happened again, leading to Sukuna doing something to me, that might hurt Yuji pretty bad.

I gusted out a sigh as Ijichi pulled up to the curb we were waiting at. As we climbed in, I felt my thoughts continuing to swirl around in my head.

Once the sun went down, I changed into more casual clothes, grey slacks and a blue long-sleeve, bell cuff shirt. I reached the secret room, and made my way down. Yuji was already there, riffling through the movies on the ground next to the T.V. He was wearing a red t-shirt and jeans, which sent a brief pulse of relief through me. Depending on how this went, and how I felt about moving forward, this could be a 'testing the waters' date. If he's been dressed up though, it would've been a little less ambiguous.

There was a heated pot with the little chicken meatball things he liked to make on the table in front of the sofa, along with soda, popcorn, and a few other snacks. I took off my shoes at the bottom of the stairs, and stepped deeper into the room. Yuji looked up when he heard my footsteps, and smiled before saying, "Hey. Good evening, Hebert!" in a chipper tone.

"Good evening, Itadori." I responded in a more level tone. "Have you found a few good choices?" I asked, meaning movies.

He nodded, before gesturing to the piles of movies in front of him. He pointed to one pile on his right, "This one is the ones I've seen already." The pile on his left, "This one is ones I wanted to see."

I nodded and went down on one knee, then began searching. Action, romance, comedy, superhero, for kids, the variety down here was impressive. It took maybe ten minutes for us to decide on a movie, an American action thriller about a former assassin trying to live a new life. Yuji said he'd heard of it but never seen it and considering it came out it 2014, a year that hadn't come yet on Bet, I hadn't either. As Yuji put the movie on, I sat on one end of the couch with a drink and a few snacks, tucking my feet up underneath me. After he started the movie, he sat on the other end of the couch, though the couch wasn't very long. There was maybe forty or forty five centimeters between us.

It was actually quite nice. Yuji had a lot of trivia knowledge about movies and what went into them that was surprisingly interesting, and he was good at not interrupting important or interesting scenes. As the movie continued, I found myself again dwelling on the possibilities.

I was damaged, but having friends was already doing well for me and my mental health. Maybe going one step further with someone would only help.

My relationship with Brian had never been very good, very real. Yuji is not the same as Brian, with the same issues, and I am not who I was then.

Yuji was possessed by a monster, he had a passenger that is even worse than mine was, and he's doomed to die for it. However, it might well be possible to save him. Maybe we could hide one of the twenty pieces of Sukuna and delay his execution indefinitely.

Glancing at Yuji out of the corner of my eye, I tried to figure out whether or not I believed he even wanted me. If he didn't, all my pondering might be for nothing. I'd made that mistake with Brian, I'd prefer not to make it twice.

Still.. maybe.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

Itadori Yuji

I wonder what happened to that guy. I thought to myself as I walked across the Jujutsu High campus. Kugisaki and Fushiguro were quiet, same as me, probably thinking the same as I was.

We had just come back from investigating a suspected traitor alongside Utahime-sensei. The suspect was one of the Kyoto students, the pilot, or controller, of Mechamaru. We'd busted down the door in the abandoned building we thought he'd holed up in, but there was no sign of him. So with no leads, we'd separated from Utahime-sensei and made our way back to the school. That was probably a really bad sign.

ᶠ̶̛̪͎͖̪͆̑͐̇ᵒ̵̩͕̙̟͚̑͌̉͝͝ᵒ̸̛͖̞͙̫̃͗́ˡ̵̗̱͚̯͊͑̕ⁱ̴̧̠̘̞̏̿͝ˢ̸̢̯̋̀̂͘ʰ̴̨͉̱̥̲͐͋͋͝ ̶͔̫̍͊͗̕ᵇ̶̺͍̣̘̅ʳ̴̬̺̿ᵃ̶̦̠̮͂͘ᵗ̴̖̈́ͅ.̶̯͙̙͚͐̏̀̓̕ ̸̧̮̣̄͝ᵒ̶͎̥͇̤̿͋̃͒ᶠ̸̢͚͕̘̇̌͋͝ ̵̗̰͈͍̎̿̎̋͝ᶜ̸̘͖̘͍̀͋̾̕ᵒ̷̻͎̀̽͝ͅᵘ̶͖͍͚͆͑̆͝ʳ̸̮̖̝̈́͆̇͠ˢ̶̛̟͉̞̐̀ᵉ̷̨̠̅̍ ̶̡͚͙̯̭̄ⁱ̵̠̪̎̿͘ᵗ̴͕̱͎̐ͅͅ'̷͚́ˢ̷̜̪̹̀̚ ̶̩͔̣̹̋́̕͠ᵇ̷͙͎̾͜ͅᵃ̴̞̇͑͗͋͘ᵈ̸͙͛̆̒̕͝,̶̤̦̫̀͛̈̓͠ ̶͉̑̽ʸ̴͖͙͈̪̌͒̋ᵒ̸̪̹͗̾͠ᵘ̴̡̼̭͚̹̌̌̆̍̇ʳ̸̱̣̘̳͖̓ ̵̣͋̀̌̋͑ᵇ̶̥̦̟͎͋̾̊̓ˡ̵̹̊̓̚ⁱ̵̟̺̀ⁿ̷̺͕͕̎ᵈ̵͙͚̉̃̈͛͝ⁿ̷̢̔͒̓̏ᵉ̶̦̍̒ˢ̸̯̟̩̳̼̒̈́̂ˢ̵̧̲̅ ̶̪̖̙̺͑̅ʷ̷̡̜͕̻̳̔͊̈́̕ⁱ̶̫̘̞̘̠̽͝ˡ̵̢̙̟̩͂̚ˡ̸̲̟̙͐͋͝ ̴̙̱̬͉͂̀͜ˡ̶̨͔̟͍͐ᵉ̴̨͈̰͍̌̾ͅᵃ̴̢̊̃̆̔ᵈ̵̤̣̩͑͌̓̀͘ ̸͍̥̇̾ʸ̵͈̩̻̂̀͒̒̉ᵒ̸̢̳̜̯̈́͂ᵘ̵̟̯͙̠̐ ̸̡̼̲̒̍͆͜͜͝ᵗ̸͍͇̋͌ᵒ̵̳͈͐̍̆͂ ̶̧̗̭͌̏̓̈ˢ̵̤͠ᵘ̶͕̲͓̐͋ᶜ̸̱͙̎ʰ̴̼̜̲̄͘ ̴̜̫̩̿͌̐̓ᵍ̴̗̦̙̱̙͗̈́ʳ̷̢͕͎̯̯̇͗͗̀͘ⁱ̶̧̱̰̀͝ᵉ̴͕̗̜͍̓͑̓́̌ͅᶠ̸̭̹̪̖́̄̍͌.̴̗̤͔̎

"I see Taylor, and that idiot." Kugisaki's voice interrupted my thoughts. I looked over at her and saw her pointing off to our left. I tried not to whip my head over in the direction Kugisaki indicated, like I was some kind of pointer dog, but I was really excited to see Hebert. And Gojo-sensei of course.

I wonder if she'd be okay with me calling her by her first name, too.

Ever since our almost, sort-of, kinda, date, I had been hoping to give it another go but there'd been no real change in our interactions as classmates. I was more than willing to give it some time though, Hebert seemed like the kind of girl who would prefer to take things slow. The three of us made our way over to where Kugisaki had spotted our teacher and his American pupil. Gojo-sensei was laying on the grass with his hands beneath his head, sprawled out in the sun, maybe asleep. Hebert, on the other hand, was in the shade sitting up against the trunk of a small tree a few short meters away from Gojo-sensei, writing in a notebook with her legs stretched out in front of her, both of them in full uniform.

Ever diligent. I thought, smiling slightly. As we got closer, I caught myself doing what I'd been trying to cut back on; staring at Hebert.

She really was an incredible girl. Tall, graceful, smart, determined, and with elegance in every line of her body. Her legs, especially, spoke to me. I looked down and over to where she had her ankles crossed and slowly back up towards her hip. Yup, long and lean, but well-rounded and firm. Her uniform pants were to her advantage, especially when her really cool half-skirt thing was splayed out flat on the ground, out of the way.

As we made it to where the pair rested and stopped, I let my eyes follow their natural path up from Hebert's hip to the notebook she had in her lap. I couldn't clearly see what she was writing, and it looked like it was in English anyway, which is not my strongest language, but I tracked the decisive, refined way her pen moved across the page, guided by her gracefully tapered fingers. The fact that she was writing with a Cursed Energy-controlled prosthetic didn't seem to slow her down at all.

"Hey, Taylor," Kugisaki said, causing Hebert to stop writing and turn her head to us. "What are you doing?" 

"It's a free-study day." Gojo-sensei said without moving. Kugisaki made an irritated noise, assumedly because she'd been talking to Hebert. Gojo-sensei swung his torso up off the ground and looked at the three of us through his blindfold, smiling all the while. "We're celebrating."

Kugisaki gasped dramatically, dropping down to sit on the ground shoulder to shoulder with Hebert. "Does that mean what I think it means?" She grinned and leaned into Hebert's shoulder, nudging her to answer. I felt my own smile spread in tandem with Kugisaki's. The reason Hebert hadn't been with us to check out the possible traitor was because she'd been on a mission for Mei Mei-san. Hebert's lips twitched slightly, and she reached into a pocket and pulled out her sorcerer's I.D., turning it slowly to show it to all of us as Fushiguro and I sat down as well, forming a rough circle including everyone.

"That's right, Taylor is now officially a Grade 1 Sorcerer." Gojo-sensei said, grinning wide. We all offered our congratulations to Hebert as she put her I.D. away, an ever-so-faint pink blush showing on her cheeks as she accepted our accolades. She'd always seemed a little embarrassed about receiving praise, but that never stopped us.

"So," Gojo-sensei continued, once we were done. "Once again, today is a free-study day. I would have given you all a day off, but Taylor refused." Sensei's voice turned amused, nearly teasing as he looked at Hebert specifically. "You little workaholic you."

Hebert only narrowed her eyes at him, as usual not deigning to actually respond.

"Sounds about right." Kugisaki interjected, again bumping the taller girl with her shoulder, smiling up at her. Hebert dropped her squint as she turned from Gojo-sensei to Kugisaki and bumped her back, returning the smile in kind.

"Well, after you hit a Black Flash, Itadori landed another one of his own, and Fushiguro used Domain Expansion on that mission with Nitta-san, I have to work hard to keep up." Hebert said, her voice smooth and low, but warm as she looked at each of us in turn.

Kugisaki scoffed roughly. "You call that keeping up? I feel like we're scrabbling along behind you, miss 'I got to Grade 1 in less than a year'." Fushiguro and I nodded in agreement, and Gojo-sensei chuckled. After Fushiguro had told us about his Domain Expansion I felt like both he and Hebert were pulling farther ahead, and I didn't want to just watch them vanish into the distance. There was no resentment, the only thing I'd felt was a real fire start under my butt.

"So," Kugisaki began again, cleanly changing the subject as she leaning over to look at the still open notebook in Hebert's lap "What are you working on?"

The small smile Hebert had worn slipped away as her lips returned to a neutral line. She tilted her notebook over so Kugisaki could see it better as she answered, all business. "Incantations and hand signs." She said simply.

"Huh?" I murmured vaguely. I felt like I'd heard something about those before, but it was escaping me at the moment. Kugisaki also looked uncertain, but I was the only one who'd made a noise.

ʸ̷̳͙̄ᵒ̷̛̟͂ᵘ̶̤̪̉ ̸͙͆̅ᵃ̸̥͓͐́ʳ̶̖́ᵉ̵̻͒ͅ ̸̥̖̎ˢ̷͙͂̊ᵘ̸͈̃͌ᶜ̸͙̄ʰ̸̱͈̋̄ ̷̭̌ᵃ̸͖͔͆̈́ ̷̡̻̽ʷ̶̙͊͝ᵒ̸̥̊̑ʳ̸̳͎̀ᵗ̵̯̱͆̐ʰ̷̛̟̄ˡ̶̜͍̔ᵉ̸̰͓́ˢ̷̻̟͗ˢ̴̹̂̃ͅ ̶̗́ᶠ̶͚͕͑͝ᵒ̸̣͙͘ᵒ̴̙̎ˡ̵̟̉̈́.̸̻́̐ ̶̣͛ʸ̷̧͙̐̈́ᵒ̸̨̔̇ᵘ̶͙̫̋͠ ̵̝̮͑ᵈ̴̙̺̽ᵒ̷̘̄͊ⁿ̶̩̆'̴̺̺̉͑ᵗ̴̛̜͗ ̷̼̤̊ᵉ̸͈̌̉͜ᵛ̷͍͌͗ᵉ̵̪̇ⁿ̴̧͕́ ̷̪͛ᵏ̴̤͛͠ⁿ̸̻̻̽ᵒ̸̲̐ʷ̷̾ͅ ̸͕͙̂̌ᵗ̸̻̣͐̕ʰ̷͙̳͐͝ᵃ̶̯͘ᵗ̵̱̤̇ ̶̤̪̿͌ᵐ̸͇̟̀̎ᵘ̶̡͇͝ᶜ̵͙̐́ʰ̶̞̋

Taylor turned her eyes to me, and took on a lecturing tone. "In the world of Jujutsu Sorcery, incantations and hand signs are tools that, depending on the Technique, either empower it or could be the only reason it works. Mastery of Jujutsu could be said to be the mastery of subtraction. The more one can omit Incantations and signs without losing effectiveness the better you are at it." As she finished, she turned to Gojo-sensei, nonverbally asking if he wanted to be the one to explain it.

"You're doing fine," He said, shrugging lightly. As he spoke, he pulled off the outer jacket of his uniform leaving him in a thin black T-shirt. He went on to fold up his jacket and lay it down on ground. "If you get something wrong I'll jump in but, eh." He finished carelessly, laying back down with his uniform jacket as a pillow.

Hebert's gaze flicked skyward in a mild eye-roll at Sensei, then refocused on me. "In the case of Techniques passed down like the Ten Shadows or the Limitless, the hand signs and incantations have already been set up, making them somewhat easier to learn. Once a sorcerer learns to use them to their fullest potential, then what they do is pare them down until they only need the bare minimum of prerequisites to use their Technique at it's best. For those of us with new or original Techniques, however," she continued, looking between Kugisaki and I, "we have to come up with them ourselves. Once we have our incantations and hand signs tied to us, we should be able to get a lot more out of our Techniques, and then learn to dial them back without losing power or efficiency."

There was a series of nods until Kugisaki once again trained her eyes on the notebook.

"Five Phases.
Define,
Measure,
Compare,
Analyze,
Take,
Self before others.
Reach and grasp."

Kugisaki rubbed her chin in thought, before asking, "What are these squiggles next to the words?"

Hebert shifted slightly, "They're supposed to represent gestures in American Sign Language corresponding to each word, somewhat modified so they aren't standard anymore, but to me they'll mean what I want them to mean as hand signs. This isn't finalized, I'm still workshopping these." 

There was a chorus of 'Oh's' and 'I see's' as she finished her explanation.     

"Why do you need them though?" Kugisaki asked, "Your Control seems really powerful and efficient to me."             

That was a good point, I thought. Hebert disagreed though.

"There's something big going on." She refuted, shaking her head, sending the waves and curls of her dark hair rippling. "Unregistered Special Grades working together, alongside Curse Users and Jujutsu society traitors. No, I need more."

"More?" Kugisaki asked.

I thought I knew what Hebert meant, and I had a chance to lighten the mood before it got too dark, though Gojo-sensei was probably the only one who'd get the reference. Taylor was a lot of things, but she had a tendency towards serious and maybe a little gloomy.

"I need more power!" I ground out, harshly enunciating each word while slowly clenching a fist in front of my face.

I heard Gojo-Sensei let out a bark of laughter, though just as I expected he was the only one who got it. Fushiguro and Kugisaki each looked at me like I'd said something really stupid, but Taylor just quirked an eyebrow.

"I would say it with a little less melodrama, but yes. I need more power." She said, her tone still utterly serious. I tried not to tsk at my failure to lighten her up. Well, she's already in a mood for real talk, might as well lean into it.

"Why?" I asked, meeting her eyes more firmly. "I want strength so that when I die, I'll be surrounded by the people I helped save with that strength. Why do you?"

She stared right back at me, ignoring the looks she got from our fellow students and even Gojo-sensei as he perked up, clearly listening. Taylor's eyes were captivating. Large, nearly black, with just a hint of green in the right light. Fit for someone to drown in.

For a moment I thought she wouldn't answer, but her voice sounded out, the hints of her American accent sharpening the edges of some words, and sanding the corners of others.

"Why does anyone want power, Yuji?" She asked rhetorically. She sounded..unhappy, and she had a frown on her face. "People want power because without it, they don't matter."  

I reflexively started to disagree, but she wasn't finished.

"Political power, economic power, physical power. Real, imagined, projected, or granted, it's all the same. Laws are only valuable if they can be enforced, which means the power of law. Ideals are only as meaningful as the ones who uphold them, and if no one who holds to an ideal has the power to defend it, they'll be eliminated by those that do." Her voice was as hard than I'd ever heard it, and I felt myself shudder as she went on. "If Patchface killed you he wouldn't be any less of a villain, but his truth would be the one left, and by default, the only truth that mattered."

Hnn. Perhaps this one is not as foolish as the rest. You should listen to her, brat. Strength and power are the only truths in this world.

"That's not right!" I blurted out, half arguing with Hebert, half with Sukuna. I was vehement, I couldn't accept that.

At the end of it all those that live decide what matters, and only the strong live.

She quirked another eyebrow at me and took a breath to continue, but she was interrupted by Gojo-sensei. "Foolishness, Yuji." We all turned to look at him as he sat up. He ran his fingers through his white hair to spike it up and back, and the blue of his eyes was violently bright as he pulled down his blindfold and continued to speak.

"Foolishness. Might controls everything, and without strength you cannot protect anything, let alone yourself." 

I stared at him for a long moment, then I huffed out a laugh I couldn't quite stop and Gojo-sensei smiled. I felt myself relax somewhat and I turned back to Taylor to find her already looking at me. She had a small smile, but an irritated glint in her eyes.

"I feel like you two are mocking me, but in short, yeah." She said, a little curt.

"Ah, it was just a little reference to break the tension Taylor, don't worry about it." Gojo-sensei said lightly, easing himself back down onto his makeshift pillow, pulling his blindfold back up. I broke eye contact with Hebert, and she turned back to her notebook.

"Do you really feel that way?" Kugisaki asked, still in her original position, leaning against Hebert and looking up at her.

Hebert looked over and down at her, and spoke, "Yes, I do. It's unfortunate, ugly, even cruel. But the world won't allow for good to flourish without strength to back it up." She turned her dark and heavy gaze back to me. "I wasn't trying to advocate for killing anyone who disagrees with me, or taking whatever I please just because someone else can't stop me. No, I was saying that I need to protect myself, those I care about, and uphold my ideals. To do that, I need more." 

Ech  a contemptuous snort echoed through my mind It seems I was wrong. 

I nodded, barely keeping my sigh of relief from gusting out. Hearing Hebert seem to agree with Sukuna freaked me out. She nodded back to me, then returned to her notebook and started writing. At the same time Kugisaki and Fushiguro each pulled out their phones and settled in to our free-study time. For my part, I turned my thoughts inward.

What's the matter with you? Why are you like this?

Normally I strove to ignore Sukuna's voice in my head, and I usually succeeded, but I wanted to hear it from him, though I doubted he'd answer.

Too harsh for you? It's simply the facts, brat. Weren't you listening to that one? When I take this body for my own and kill you all, all of your dreams and hopes will come to naught, because none of you will be able to stop me. That's simply the way it is.

And when I stop you from taking my body? Or you take it over and then Gojo-sensei kills us both? Will that be 'simply the way it is?'

Skipping over your delusional belief that the white-haired brat could kill me, yes.

I drew up short at that. The blunt admission that if things shook out that way, Sukuna would accept it was surprising. I shook my head slightly and looked over at Hebert, thinking about what she'd said. I started at her notebook, but accidentally let my eyes slide up from her lap and over her torso. She had the legs of a runner, but she had the upper body of a swimmer, or a gymnast. Slim and svelte, but strong.

I approve of your choice in females.

I jerked in shock at the voice.

What? Really? Do you like tall girls with big butts too!?

I heard him snort in disdain.

Of course not brat, I meant for you. I think you should go for it. Try and seduce her, make her your concubine, or even wife.

I was stunned. This was totally out of left field, and I felt a prickle of wariness and suspicion crawl up my spine.

Why?

I quickly got the feeling I shouldn't have asked, but it was too late to take it back.

Because, it will hurt you all the more when I make this body my own. After I kill that white-haired brat, she will be next.

I ground my teeth, and tried to push his voice back down to the mutter it had been earlier, but he shoved on.

Cherish her, 'love' her, and when the time comes, I will kill her. Yes, I will kill her, but it will be your hands that choke the life from her, your eyes she looks into as the light fades from her own, and it will be your lips wet with her blood when I devour her. Will you cry, I wonder, when your teeth split her soft, pale skin? Or will it be when you taste her hot flesh for the first time? How loud will you scream when you feel the weight of her meat in your stoma-

"SHUT UP!!" I heard myself scream, slamming my hands against the sides of my head.

Everyone jumped, whipping their heads over to me, startled concern on all four of their faces. I shook my head as I lowered my hands and said, "I'm alright. I can usually just ignore him, but sometimes he gets to me."

They all nodded, taking me at my word, and slowly went back to what they were doing. All except Taylor. Her eyes were alight with concern, and the shape of the frown on her expressive pink lips was different than it had been earlier.

"Are you sure you're alright Yuji?" She asked slowly.

I nodded slightly, and spoke before I thought it through. "I just don't get him. I know he's a Curse and all, but didn't he start out as a person? How does a human being get that messed up? Why does he do these horrible things?" It was intended to be a rhetorical question, but Taylor made a considering noise.

"It's hard to say." She began, and I leaned towards her without meaning to, listening close. "Delving into the psychology of of a mass murdering cannibal is likely an exercise in futility, but we might as well. From what I've seen of him, my theory is that Sukuna does the things he does because it makes him happy." I jerked back, a disgusted noise coming out of my throat. She nodded in agreement, and went on. "Some people are just built that way. Inflicting suffering, spreading death, living and breathing for the horrors brought on others, just because they can. Because it brings them joy."

It does make me happy. The weak can only swallow the suffering life brings them, but I can bring myself joy.

I felt a bit of bile rise up my throat, but I swallowed it back down. Taylor looked at me closely, before she shrugged slightly and kept going, "That's not necessarily the whole of it though."

I tilted my head with an "eh?" She nodded and continued her little lecture. "From what I've read about Ryomen Sukuna, he was never exactly normal. The records on him aren't really that comprehensive, he tried pretty hard to eliminate any accounts of his life, but it's known that he was born with four arms, four eyes, and two mouths."

I leaned in a little more, and nodded to show I was listening 

"A baby born like that, a thousand years ago?" She shook her head lightly, almost disbelievingly, "It's surprising they didn't kill him while he was still wet with amniotic fluid. But they didn't, and there is no doubt in my mind that he grew up as an unwanted child. However he was raised, there's no way it was pleasant. Abused, maybe. Neglected. Hated. Cursed." I felt myself go still, and I let my eyes drop to the ground in front of me as she spoke.

"If we're assuming he wasn't just totally sociopathic or psychopathic from day one, he would have lived a life hated and cursed by everyone around him. A child who is refused a place beside the fires of a village will burn it down to feel the warmth. Maybe that's what happened, he inflicted himself like a natural disaster on a world that rejected him and he found that there was joy in it." I heard her sigh, and looked back up at her, but she was staring at the pen in her hand. "Even if that's the case though, it doesn't change anything. Being a victim does not give a person the right to victimise. Period."

I tried to come up with something to say after she finished, but drew a blank. Fushiguro, Kugisaki, and Gojo-sensei were still all doing their own thing, no doubt they'd listened, but no one else seemed keen on filling the silence. I looked back at the turf at my feet, and thought about what she'd said. It sucked, but she was probably right. A real shame.

What was that? What is that you're thinking, brat? Is that.. pity?

I pressed my proverbial lips together, and tried not to let anything slip. I knew Sukuna was a proud guy.. demon.. Curse.. thing, and I didn't want to have to deal with him raging at me for pitying him. Even though pity and sympathy are not the same thing, I doubted he'd appreciate the difference.

...You will regret this, brat. I promise.

I swallowed heavily, somehow him sounding totally calm was way worse than if he'd started yelling.

"So, who's excited for Halloween?" Gojo-sensei asked abruptly.

"Geto Suguru"

"Aw, come on Hanami, it's not that big a deal!" Mahito's voice was practically indistinguishable from a human being's, even as he whined at his fellow Disaster Curse.

"You're wrong, Mahito, it is a 'big deal'." Hanami, the Disaster Curse of the Forests argued. "Jogo is dead. We'll see him in the wastelands in time, but for now there are none who can replace him. And though it barely bears mentioning, we lost several of the human Curse Users as well."

Mahito scoffed. "Geto has more where those came from, and he even has a few Special Grade Curses to cover Jogo's absence. I say we go ahead as planned."

I was interested to hear what Hanami had to say about that. It had a point, in that Jogo was the most dangerous, and arguably most powerful of them, but they all considered Mahito their leader. Would it continue to argue with the Human Curse, or defer to him?

A few moments of silence, before Hanami bowed it's head with a sigh. "As you say, Mahito. I only urge caution."

"Yeah, yeah, we'll be careful Hanami." He said dismissively. Then he turned to me. "How about it Geto? You have some replacements for Jogo, right?"

"Of course, Mahito. It will likely take two or three to cover his abilities, and wear down Gojo Satoru, but between them and moving Dagon over, it can be done." I said reassuringly. It was even the truth. Suguru Geto really was one of my best investments.

"Excellent." Mahito chirped brightly, leaning back in his beach chair, hands behind his head, "Then everything will go ahead on schedule. This Halloween is gonna be great."

Choso, from his spot near the door, spoke up, "Yes, Halloween is an excellent day to mark the death of the murderer of my brothers, Itadori Yuji." 

Mahito rolled his mismatched eyes at Choso's melodrama, but didn't bother responding. Dagon, of course, just bubbled and burbled in the surf nearby. That one was focused on maintaining it's Domain at the moment, but I was pleased with it's progress in mastering Domain Amplification and uncovering it's Maximum Technique.

I was a little less sanguine than Mahito about the way things were going overall, but only slightly. I had really wanted to absorb Jogo, and his loss was unfortunate. That, and an American Jujutsu Sorcerer running around under Gojo's wing was an unusual and unforseen occurrence, but those were minor hiccups overall, and everything should still work out. Gojo Satoru would be sealed, and the experiment would continue.

I reached 'my' hand into a secret place, and felt the edges of the Prison Realm.

Yes, Mahito, this will be a Halloween to remember.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

Record of the Incident on October 31st, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.

A curtain with a 400-meter radius was cast with the Tokyo branch of the Tokyu Department Store at it's center.

"Bring Gojo Satoru here!"

That was what the people were shouting. All together or one at a time, so many people were in Shibuya, all saying the same thing. Men, women, and children, all trapped inside a barrier they didn't understand, calling out the name of a man they had never heard of.

"This isn't good." I heard someone say. "that curtain only traps civilians, Sorcerers can pass through at will."

I don't think I've ever seen such an obvious trap.

The night started off so well.

It had begun with all the second and first-years of Tokyo Jujutsu High getting together at about 6:00 in the evening and spending some time getting all our plans straightened out. We'd been planning to head into town, have some fun, visit some festivals, but that was cut short when Ijichi caught up to us right as we passed through the gates of the school.

It all became a bit of a blur after that. Putting uniforms on, gathering Cursed Tools, meeting up with assistants, and moving towards Shibuya. As we did, I kept having the same thought.

This is it.

I couldn't shake the feeling that tonight was going to be the night everything changed. I was assigned to Mei's team along with her little brother and Yuji. We met up in a cemetery not too far from our destination, and settled in to wait for instructions.

8:31 p.m. Gojo Satoru arrives at Shibuya Station 

Gojo had entered the curtain. He was by himself, of course. His powers and personality meant that when he was fighting alone was when he was fighting at his best. I understood, although I wasn't happy about it, but it seemed Yuji hadn't gotten the memo.

"Gojo-sensei is going in alone!?" He said, halfway yelling at Mei Mei, "I get the reasoning, but isn't there anything we can do?"

"Of course there is Yuji, that's why we're here." I told him, cutting off his near-rant before he risked ticking off Mei or Ui Ui. He turned to me, and I continued. "We're all going in. All the different teams are going to Shibuya to back him up, and cover all the bases."

He nodded, subduing slightly, though he still paced and fidgeted.

I turned to Mei to ask what her opinion on the curtain and the whole situation was, but cut myself off when I saw that she was practically cheek-to-cheek with Ui Ui, and they were whispering back and forth. I had never had a sibling, so I had no personal experience, but it looked a little too intimate at a glance. Sometimes, how close those two could get made me uncomfortable. I was saved from having to interrupt them though, when Mei got a call on her phone.

"Hmm, I see." Was all she said before she hung up and turned to Yuji and I.

"Another curtain like the one in Shibuya appeared at Meiji-Jingu-Mae Station. We're going there." She said, before turning to give us a considering look. "We're gonna run, so keep up okay?" 

"Yeah!/Will do." Yuji and I replied together.

8:40 p.m. Tokyo Metro Shibuya Station

Gojo Satoru engages multiple Special Grades

8:51 p.m.

"This is the curtain that's surrounding the platform and keeping the civilians trapped." The female assistant said, drawing a crude but reasonably accurate diagram for the four of us. "Inside, there's another curtain on the Fukutoshin Line Platform that's keeping Jujutsu Sorcerers out. Between the two curtains," She continued, tapping the diagram, "is the one who cast them."

"Between? Not on the platform?" Mei asked before I could.

"We think that whoever it is, Curse or Curse User, is taking the risk of leaving the curtain alone. We've already lost an assistant manager, and also.. we think there may be transfigured humans inside." She told us, hesitating briefly. I looked out the corner of my eye at Yuji as he went dangerously still at the mention of the calling card of Patchface, the Curse he seemed to hate most, probably even more than he hated Sukuna.

After confirming all the intelligence gathered so far, the four of us moved on to the Meiji-Jingu-Mae Station entrance. Mei turned to me and said, "See what you can find out Taylor, I'll send my crows in if we need more information."

I nodded my assent, ignoring Ui Ui as he told me how lucky I was to have his sister say my first name so casually. I closed my eyes to really maximize my sensory input as I let Control unspool slowly, getting a feel for things one step at a time. Normally Control didn't reach downward, it stopped at 'ground level', but if there were rooms and structures beneath me it could.

"There's quite a few transfigured humans inside, they're killing a lot of the people that are down there in B4F. There's also two powerful Cursed Spirits. One is leagues above the other and is quite a bit deeper, moving slowly. I would assume that if that's Patchface down there, it's on B4F. It may be getting ready to go lower, or maybe to leave. The other one is between B1F and B2F, and it's stationary, that's probably the one that set up the curtain." I had a rough idea of which levels and platforms were which thanks to prior knowledge of the stations' setup, and good old guesswork and intuition.

Mei and Yuji both nodded to show their understanding as I opened my eyes. After a few long moments of contemplation, Mei made the call.

She and Ui Ui would go towards Exit 7 to B4F to rescue civilians. Yuji would go to Platform B2F and take down the Curse there. Since she had one more member on her team, I would go through a maintenance entrance that lead down to B5F. I wouldn't be able to get in until the second curtain came down, which is why she told us that if I hadn't been there, she wouldn't use it, but once it was removed I would be in an excellent tactical position.

We separated, and made our way to our assigned locations. I followed one of Mei's crows to what looked like a manhole cover, pulled it open, and climbed down the ladder. It lead down into the dark, until eventually it stopped on a landing in a narrow and poorly lit maintenance corridor. I followed that until I hit the curtain barrier, and I settled in to wait.

It didn't take very long, all things considered, maybe five minutes of waiting later the barrier fell, and I was on my way to B5F. After a few moments of running, I felt the ground shake, and heard the rumble of the train as it passed down the tracks, only separated from my maintenance corridor by a thin wall. I muttered an expletive under my breath, that could only be the train that we'd been trying to reach.

I stopped in the corridor, and thought hard. I could go back, leave the corridor I was in and meet up with Yuji and Mei. If I did, we would probably all follow the Fukutoshin line together. Or.. I could keep on going. Mei told me that this corridor went on to link to the Den-En-Toshi line, which I could then follow to Shibuya Station from another side.

I could hear the distant sounds of shouting and screaming, likely drifting down from the surface. I took a long breath to steady myself and unspooled Control out to it's in innermost range boundary so that I would get warning of an incoming attack, but not give away even my generally location.

Then I made my choice.

I moved quickly, traveling down the corridor, through a pair of neglected looking doors and out onto the train tracks of the Den-En-Toshi Line. Then I moved towards Shibuya Station, sticking close to the wall, as fast as I could without announcing that I was there. It seemed my efforts to stay beneath notice were rewarded, as I traveled unimpeded.. right up until I ran into another barrier curtain.

I hissed in irritation as I crept closer to the barrier preventing access to Shibuya Station. As I went I felt a little twitch of motion in my Control-sense. I snapped my left hand out and caught a little bit of metal and plastic before it could reach my head. I turned my hand over and slowly opened my fingers so I could take a safe look.

"Hello, Hebert." I twitched in surprise at the tinny voice that came from the little device. It looked like Mechamaru's face, if it was miniature and nearly flat.

"Mechamaru?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

"The real Mechamaru is dead. I was killed on October 19th by a Curse named Mahito, though you probably knew it as 'Patchface'. What I am now is a left-over, a contingency plan I left behind to do as much good as possible. I had hoped to join all of you, my fellow Sorcerers, in the sun but that is impossible now."

I wasn't convinced. "Mechamaru was officially declared a traitor. Why should I trust you?"

"I have no way to prove my intentions to you. I can only hope that you and the others I sent these to, can gain something from what I have to offer." It told me, it's mechanical tone flat.

I let out a small, skeptical huff, but any more talking would have to wait while I thought this through. I was at what seemed to be the final barrier. I had made a judgement call by following the Den-En-Toshi line to come at Shibuya Station from another angle, but now I was something of an impasse. Going back to meet up with Mei Team would take time, time we may not have. On the other hand, I was alone and had no way to get more information as the first barrier prevented remote communication. I took a slow breath, and made another call.

I pressed the back of the Mechamaru device to the back of my left wrist and it stuck, looking a little like a watch. I may have decided to keep it around, but that didn't mean I wanted it attached to my head.

"What information do you have?" I asked.

"Gojo Satoru has been Sealed."

I hissed a rough breath out between my teeth. That was bad. Catastrophic even, for everyone in this country, Sorcerer or not.

"I'm glad to see you appreciate the gravity of the situation. It's not all bad though, they're still in there with the cube they used to Seal him." It told me, "Gojo also managed to kill several of the Special Grades, including the Forest Curse. The only ones left are an Ocean Curse, the Human Curse Mahito, a Blood Manipulation user, and someone acting as Geto Suguru. Itadori is on his way back to the surface, to find a way to disable this barrier as well as warn everyone he can about the situation. Coming this way was smart, I don't think they have anyone watching this line, and once the curtain falls you should be able to make it to the Station proper without any resistance."

I nodded an acknowledgement, then settled in to wait. As soon as the barrier went down, I'd be on my way. After a few minutes, Mechamaru's voice sounded again from my wrist. 

"Hebert, good news!"

"What is it?" I asked. Anything that could get a robot that excited had to be big.

"They can't move Gojo from B5F! I don't know the exact reason, but the cube has somehow wedged itself into the ground in the Station."

I nodded, pleased. We were still in the fight, we could still win this.

10:04 p.m.

It took some time, but eventually the barrier shimmered, then dissipated, and I was off.

I reeled in Control all the way, stealth was paramount, and drew Silence in my prosthetic hand. I moved as quickly as reasonably possible, though still cautiously. I had no idea what would be waiting for me when I got to the station, especially since Mechamaru mentioned that the device he'd placed in the station had been destroyed.

I quietly hustled, and it seemed that we'd been right, or maybe we just got lucky. They didn't know anyone was coming down this line, and I went uncontested. Soon enough, I saw light, and there was the platform. I froze as I spotted someone coming up to the edge, ready to step down onto the tracks. He was tall, with long black hair, what looked like gauges in his ears, and was wearing a monk outfit. Shoko had shown a picture of him to me before, so I recognized him, though the scar and stitches across his forehead were new.

Geto Suguru.

I held my breath, and waited for just the right moment.

Geto stepped off the platform. He landed lightly on the tracks, then turned, and began walking towards the Fukutoshin Line. Most important, his back was to me.

Now!

I dragged up all my power, then took off with all my Cursed Energy Reinforcement-lent speed. I caught up to him in moments and swung Silence as hard as I could with both hands at his neck before he could turn around. I was hoping to take his head off before he even knew I was there. When the pale blade was about a foot away from his throat, a distortion appeared in Silence's path, black and roiling.

Damn it!

Out of the distortion appeared an almost crustaceous looking shell, and on the other side of it I caught a glimpse of Geto's eye as he turned his head to look back over his shoulder at me with a slowly widening smile. I swore internally, but I was committed, so I did the only thing I could.

I pushed the blade harder.

I shoved more Cursed Energy out my prosthetic, into the blade and felt something in my back pop with the force I was imparting, and then Silence struck the Cursed Spirit's defensive shell.

And everything in my line of sight disappeared beneath a flare of black light.

Black Flash

Silence's arc continued, and I felt only the slightest tug of resistance. After an ever-so-brief moment, my vision cleared and I saw the aftermath of my opening strike. It wasn't quite good enough.

Whatever Cursed Spirit Geto had placed in the path of my blade hadn't been enough to stop it, not with the power of the Black Flash, but it had been enough to deflect it. I saw him stagger a few steps away from me with a short bark of pain, his blood flew through the air, and his right arm hit the ground at my feet. I kept my eyes on Geto, and saw him rally nearly instantly, more roiling black distortions appearing around him as he summoned more Cursed Spirits.

I crouched, ready, watching for any opening. The Curse User recovered fast, holding one hand to his stump to slow the bleeding and locking his wild black eyes on me.

"You." He said. His voice was tight with pain, but not ragged. "The American. You came down the Den-En-Toshi line?" His question seemed rhetorical, not that I was likely to answer him anyway. "Mimiko and Nanako were meant to watch that path, but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised they didn't stick around."

I had no idea who those names belonged to, but it wasn't really important.

"Well, no matter." He continued. The bleeding was already nearly stopped, and he was recovering his composure fast. "I-"

In that moment while he was hopefully distracted, I shoved at Control. It didn't unspool, it surged out to thirty meters faster than I thought possible, and seemed to fill the air with an ominous hum. In that same fraction of a second, Geto reacted, and unleashed the Curses he had been prepping. I brought Control down on everything in range as hard as I could, and everything in range writhed.

Geto grunted like someone punched him in the solar plexus, though I could immediately tell I wouldn't be able to suborn him like this. His Curses, on the other hand, responded.. strangely.

I had no idea what mechanism Cursed Spirit Manipulation operated on but when Control, which normally causes the things caught in it to freeze in place, met the Manipulation driving the Curses to attack, they seemed to split the difference. Rather than either freeze or attack, they spasmed in the air and on the ground, thrashing randomly. Geto looked surprised, and I figured I looked about the same.

"Hebert!" Mechamaru's voice rang. "In his hand, the cube!"

My eyes flicked to his left hand. It was soaked red, but empty. That meant..

I couldn't look down, I was unwilling to take my eyes of the Special Grade Curse User, but he heard Mechamaru as well as I did and I saw his eyes track down, then widen.

Big mistake.

I took the opportunity he provided, and lunged forward. He had a Curse already out on his left side, which meant any swing with Silence on my right was liable to be intercepted, even accidentally. So I launched my left fist in a straight jab with everything I could muster.

I heard a crack from the ground under the foot I used to push off, and saw Geto's eyes snap back up to me as he registered my motion.

He was just in time to see my punch incoming but with his Curses aimlessly thrashing under our conflicting influences, his right arm MIA, Control slowing his potential dodges, and a Curse in the way of his left hand, there was nothing he could do. My flesh and blood knuckles collided with his nose and upper lip, and once again, my entire field of vision was filled with black light.

Black Flash

Geto was hurled backwards, smashing into the wall of the subway tunnel, filling the space with the sound of shattering stone, and all his summons sank back into whatever pocket dimension he kept them in. I bit down on a groan as my vision cleared. At least a few bones in my hand felt like they'd cracked, and my knuckles had split open, sending drops and splatters of my blood to join Geto's on the ground. I sucked in a heavy breath, almost a gasp, and braced to go after the seemingly insensate Geto where he slumped against the wall, preferably with Silence this time.

"No!" Again, Mechamaru's voice split the air. "He's baiting you, grab the cube and run!"

I stopped short, narrowing my eyes in a glare and saw Geto's lip twitch, like a kid trying and failing to pretend to be asleep. He cracked open one eye to look at me, then let the smile spread across his face when he saw I wasn't approaching. He seemed unconcerned about the blood flowing from his nose and staining his teeth.

"Well, I almost got y-" He began, which I cut short by kicking the ground, shattering a small section of the concrete floor and sending the shards of it hurtling at his face all in one motion. He flung up his arm to cover his face and I used the chance to break visual contact, looking down.

Sure enough, clutched in the slowly cooling, severed right hand was an ominous cube. It wasn't very big, or ornate, just.. eerie. I hesitated for a split second, not sure if I should stay on the attack, or make my withdrawal.

I shook off my momentary indecision just as Geto swung his arm back around, clearing the air in front of him. I slammed my foot down on the wrist, shattering the bones and breaking any grip it had left, and snatched the dark cube out of the limp fingers with my aching left hand. Then, hearing the scraping and scratching of shifting stone as Geto hauled himself vertical, I shoved Cursed Energy into my legs, turned to face the Fukutoshin tunnel where hopefully I had allies in the wings, and ran.

My Energy flowed like never before, shifting and thrumming with every twitch of every muscle strand, and I flew down the tunnel with speed beyond my normal limits. Control too, which I had left at a thirty meter spread, hummed in my mind and body in concert with the world around me.

So this is what it feels like to be 'in the zone'.

I clutched the Sealing Cube tight in my left hand, hard enough for the edges to bite into the flesh of my fingers, turning the skin white, then red. As I ran, more apertures opened and Cursed Spirits flowed out to intercept me, only to seize and tremble when Manipulation met Control. Only one of the Spirits didn't move to chase me, and I presume it activated a Technique because a split second later a cavernous hole opened up beneath my feet.

For half a heartbeat I was falling, but then my foot hit the ground and I was running. The Technique scraped against Control as it tried and failed to influence my mind, just like the Forest Curse and it's field of flowers all those months ago.

As I ran, I was scanning ahead both visually and with Control, so I spotted Mei Mei before she saw me. She was walking calmly down the tunnel, axe over her shoulder, but she stopped abruptly and I saw her eyes widen as she took in the sight of me. We looked at each other for what felt like minutes. I knew she saw the blood, my drawn weapon, and the cube and before I could even start to slow down I saw her lips twitch towards a smile, and I heard her voice.

"Keep running." She ordered, leaving no room for dissent.

I didn't want to, I wanted to help her fight, but I knew how important it was to keep the Sealed Gojo out of Geto's hands. We had to free him, and to do that we had to keep him. With that in mind I pushed my legs harder, obeying Mei's order, and kept running.

It may have been due to the tunnels acoustics, or perhaps Mei's voice just carries, but despite the distance I had already covered, I heard what she said next.

"I don't think so 'Geto'. She's an investment, and if you want her, you'll have to get past me."

The next thing I heard was the horrid sound of stone and concrete screeching as Mei launched her Bird Strike against the walls and ceiling of the tunnel, sending tiny shards of rock shrapnel flying through the air to patter against my uniform and draw hot little lines of pain across the bare skin at the back of my neck and left hand. The sound of the tunnel collapsing behind me and cutting off pursuit followed me as I sprinted up several flights of stairs and out the Meiji-Jingu-Mae Station, back into the open streets. 

My thoughts were whirring through my head as I ran for cover, almost too fast for meaning. All things considered, I wasn't terribly afraid for Mei and Ui Ui. After my Grade 1 Promotion, she had told me about Ui Ui's Cursed Technique in the same conversation as Bird Strike. If things got bad, she and her brother would be able to escape.

As for the rest of us, myself in particular, I wasn't sure what to do. I could just pick a direction and run. If I could make it out of Shibuya, I'd have taken Gojo far out of the bad guys' reach, and we'd win the night by default. On the other hand, if I got caught all alone by any of the Special Grades running around before I got that far, it'd be well within the realm of possibility that they'd be prying the cube out of my cold, dead hands before long.

No, my best option would be to lay low, find some allies, and then move as a group away from the hot zone.

My next steps established, I moved into an alleyway a few streets away from the subway entrance and stopped for a moment to catch my breath and get my bearings. I reeled in Control, and breathed, slow and deep. Now that I was holding still, the thrumming of my Cursed Energy became impossible to ignore. I turned my thoughts to it, and swiftly realized in full what my teachers meant when they said Black Flash gave insight into your own Cursed Energy.

It was like the difference between simply listening to music, and reading the manuscript, watching a band play the song in person, and seeing the composer at work, all at the same time. I could feel the ebbs and flows of the power like never before. Back and forth, wax and wane, crest and trough, wavelength, frequency, and amplitude.

Gojo had spoken several times about the Reverse Cursed Technique. He'd explained that in order to create Positive Energy, you just needed to multiply a Negative by a Negative. Cursed Energy times Cursed Energy.

(-) x (-) = (+)

The problem with that explanation was never the mathematical framing, it was with applying something as static and regimented as mathematics to something as fluid and abstract as Cursed Energy.

Now though? Now I could see it. I just needed to shift my perspective. See it not in numbers, but waves.

I pulled my Cursed Energy up into my brain, and rolled the 'wave' back on itself. Line up the wavelengths like so.. shift the frequency like so..

There.

Now I had it, a constructive interference waveform. As soon as my new Energy pattern clicked, I felt a wave of warmth pass through me. I pushed it to concentrate in my hand, and felt the ache of cracked bones and sting of split knuckles fade. I released it and let flow through my whole body and pains I hadn't even noticed passed like they had never been.

I found myself smiling as I let the Reverse Cursed Technique disalign back into its regular state as Cursed Energy. This was a big breakthrough for me. I'd been trying to activate the Reverse Cursed Technique for months.

My smile faded though, as I looked at the Cursed Object, the cube in my left hand. My breakthrough wouldn't mean much of anything if I couldn't save Gojo. He could be annoying beyond belief, but it was better by a mile to have him around than not.

"Oh? Now where did you find that?" 

I jumped half out of my skin and whirled around to look at who spoke, then froze. Standing five or so meters away was a man. Or at least it was supposed to look like one. It missed a few of the marks. It had a patchwork face and heterochromatic eyes, one gray and one blue. It had long grayish-blue hair that reached past the neck and was sectioned off into three large strands. Along with his face, it had stitches all across its body, wherever skin was visible.

Idiot! I cursed myself. Why didn't you keep Control unspooled and your senses open to prevent exactly this from happening!?

I gritted my teeth and adjusted my grip on both the cube and Silence as Mahito, because who else could it be, sidled a little closer.

"You're not who I was looking for," the Curse said, voice bright and chipper, "but you'll do for a warmup. Plus, I do need that back." It said, pointing to the cube.

I tucked the cube close to my side, held my blade in a striking position and took a deep breath. This was going to be rough.

Chapter Text

One Curse For Another

It was a standoff.

The Cursed Spirit Mahito stood not ten meters away from me, smiling. I pressed the Sealing Cube tighter to my side, close enough that the edges dug into my ribs. I had foolishly reeled in Control all the way in order to concentrate on my Cursed Energy, and now I had to decide what to do next.

Mahito was a Special Grade. That meant it was effectively impossible for me to take it over with my Technique, even if I used Individual Control. I was also not all that certain of my ability to outrun the damned thing, even though I was still 'in the zone'.

The biggest problem I had, however, was that I had no means of hurting the Spirit. According to Nanami and Yuji, Mahito could use its Cursed Technique on itself, 'maintaining the shape of it's soul', whatever the hell that meant. The practical effect was simple enough though, it meant that damage inflicted on the Curse wouldn't accumulate. It wasn't exactly healing, but similar enough in principle. Yuji was the only person who had proven to be able to hurt it.

So, if I can't run to escape, and I can't realistically fight, then, run to allies.

My choice made, I waited for a few more moments, until Mahito finally took a step towards me. Then, I made my move.

I pulled my right hand back, as if to strike at it with Silence, and saw its mismatched eyes track to the motion. Then I whipped that hand forward, feinting a throw, and saw the Spirit twitch. I surprised it though, as instead of attacking, I used the momentum to twist my whole body 180 degrees.

Then I ran.

"H-hey!" I heard it cry out in surprise, it almost sounded indignant. Then the rustle and patter of its feet as it chased me. I let Control unspool once again, and felt it snap out to ten meters with alacrity. I didn't try to take over the Curse, just left my Technique spread to monitor its movements. According to the reports, Mahito had a Striker power that was well worth avoiding. It had to touch me with its unaltered hand, but if it did I was as good as dead.

I managed to keep a reasonable distance ahead of the thing as I ran away, and tried to keep my voice down when I spoke. 

"Where is Yuji?" I asked, directing the question towards my left wrist. Mechamaru was likely my best chance to find him, as I couldn't track down an assistant with a Cursed Spirit chasing me, and I didn't want to unspool Control any more than I had to, as having it out would narrow down my location when Geto came looking for me.

"He's in Shibuya Station, he was fighting the Blood Manipulation user." Came the response from Mechamaru, also pitched down.

I banked left, not responding verbally, but turning to run towards the station.

"Why are you running?!" Mahito called out, sounding exasperated. "Did Itadori Yuji tell you about me?" I declined to respond, not that the foul thing deserved a response.

I might be angrier at it than I thought.

It was fine to be angry though. As long as I didn't let the feeling make me do stupid things, I could be as pissed at the things it had done as I wanted to be.

My train of thought was interrupted as I felt a twist and a surge in Mahito's Cursed Energy. I yanked my torso to one side as I seized the Spirit's arm with Control and wrenched it the opposite way as the limb lengthened and shot towards me.

I caught a glimpse of it's arm as it whipped past me, through the space the arm holding the Cube had been. It was long and flexible, almost tentacular, and had several metallic looking blades and spikes on it. I released its limb from my Control as it retracted, no sense it letting it get used to the feeling of my Technique, and turned another corner. I was getting close to Shibuya Station.

As I drew closer, I jumped over another strike from Mahito as it struck at my legs. This time its arm was thinner and snappier, more like a whip than a tentacle.

I could see the signs on the street pointing to the subway entrance when I felt a shift in the air, but nothing in my Control-sense. I slammed on the metaphorical brakes and yanked my head back as a small, fast moving object shot through the air where my skull would have been. Mahito and I made similar sounds of confusion as we both stopped and turned to look where the object came from.

Damn.

I ground my teeth together in frustration as Geto Suguru walked calmly towards us. He tucked his right hand, looking good as new, into his voluminous sleeve after apparently having thrown something at me to get me to stop running.

"Ah, Geto," Mahito said brightly, "Good to see you." I slanted a look towards the Cursed Spirit as Geto walked into the edge Control, then took one step back. It sounded.. off.

The two of them traded smiles, but Mahito looked at him with a strange sense of measuring, or considering, even as it spoke. "When I saw that this one had the Prison Realm, I was worried something bad had happened to you. How'd she take it from you?"

Geto, looking entirely unconcerned, just shrugged.

Even as Mahito gave the Curse User an uncomfortably predatory look, I was thinking hard. I didn't want to lead Geto to Yuji, but I was at a loss on how to get away from both him and Mahito.

My thoughts were abruptly interrupted though, and all three of us turned in unison as a surge of Cursed Energy erupted a few blocks away.

"Heh," Mahito said, "looks like Dagon found his own fun."

I kept a watchful eye on that direction, even as I slowly started edging away from the two Special Grades. That was where the Zen'in team should be, if I remembered correctly. Hopefully they would be fine, 'Dagon' sounded like it would be the name of the Ocean Curse Mechamaru had mentioned.

I had my own fair share of problems however, as Geto turned his eyes back to me.

"Well," he said, "I will admit, you surprised me earlier Hebert." I went still, surprised he knew my name. "If you give Prison Realm back to me without a fuss, I promise I won't let Mahito here make an example out of you." 

He held out one hand to me, smiling, as Mahito squawked an objection. Even though Geto's face and voice were seemingly sincere, I wasn't reassured for a multitude of reasons.

"Yeah?" I said, hoping to buy a little more time to think. As the swell of Cursed Energy from Dagon shifted again, I was distracted slightly by the sight of big guy with black hair moving calmly down the street in that direction.

"Yeah." Geto responded, turning my full attention back to him.

"So you'll kill me quickly?" I asked sarcastically. I wasn't trying to provoke him, so I kept my tone, if not my words, a little subdued. "Or will you 'make an example' out of me yourself, instead of letting that do it?"

" 'That' ?" Mahito snorted, pretending to be offended, but sounding more amused instead.

Geto, for his part, just smiled wider and chuckled lightly while lowering his hand. "I suppose that's your answer." Was all he said. He and Mahito both altered their stances and I felt the shift in the Spirit's Energy through my Control-sense. I felt Geto's Energy the normal way though, as it roiled and rose up in anticipation from outside the ten meter spread of Control. Out of the corner of my eye I saw when, down the street, a dark head turned in our direction, seemingly in response then-

Then there was a large man with black hair, right beside me.

I jerked bodily. I whirled to face him fully, and backed away fast. He was tall, maybe half a head taller than me, with straight black hair down to his ears. He was wearing a loose white sweater with black pants and shoes. 

I skittered five-ish meters away from him, holding Silence up as if to ward him off. He glanced at me for a brief moment, and I saw that his sclera were black before he turned back to look at Geto.

I couldn't sense him. At all. No Cursed Energy. Not even the Plant Curse had been this invisible in my Control-sense.

I looked back towards Geto and Mahito. Mahito was visibly confused, but Geto looked angry, and his smile turned strained with what could have been worry.

"Zen'in Toji." He said, sounding slightly aggrieved. "So, Ogami called you up after all. I assume she's dead? I warned her you were a bad choice."

'Toji' didn't respond. Just looked at him for a long moment before a feral grin spread across his mouth. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and a shudder ran up my spine. Even if he was invisible to everything but my eyes, I could feel the violence radiating off of him like heat off a furnace.

Then he lifted one foot up to take a step, and disappeared. I flinched, and felt just a breath of air from behind and a slight tug at the back of my belt. I had my Cursed Energy Reinforcement up and running, but I still couldn't turn my head fast enough to catch anything but the faintest flicker of motion as 'Toji' moved from five meters away, to behind me, to right in front of Geto. 

I saw light flicker off of something metallic as Toji swung his right arm at Geto. The hit landed with a loud ping and the Curse User went skidding backwards, his arms up to block, and smeared with the remains of a Cursed Spirit he'd brought out in that fraction of a second. In the brief moment of stillness that followed, I saw Cry in Toji's right hand.

So that's what that tug was.

He'd snatched the Tool off my belt and swung it at Geto before I'd even had a chance to really register the theft. Geto clenched his jaw and lowered his arms, dark apertures opening around him as he prepared to fight.

Well, if this Toji guy wanted to fight Geto, I'd do my part. Even if he didn't need or want help.

As the large man turned his body and settled into a fighting stance, squared off against the Special Grade Curse User, I let Control spread once again. It spread out to seventy meters, covering both of them, though only one of them registered, and I seized at the Curses and their User.

Even though the Cursed Spirits had only just began appearing, they still writhed under the combined grip of Manipulation and Control. Most importantly, they were rendered effectively useless to their Master.

In that moment, Geto's black eyes flicked to me, and I could see the rage in them.

Less than half a heartbeat later, Toji closed the distance and slammed Cry across the Curse User's jaw, audibly shattering it. He'd slipped through the flailing Curses, and expertly took advantage of Geto's marginally slowed reactions. Then, they both disappeared into blurs of motion, and I felt it as Geto rushed to get outside of my range, pursued by the invisible man.

I also felt it when Mahito started to take a step in the direction the two had rushed off in, before it aborted the motion and turned to me instead. I also turned to face off against the Human Curse. I was pretty close to Shibuya Station, but I'd accidentally moved closer to Mahito when I'd backed away from Toji, and if the Curse caught up to me on the stairs I was done.

It grinned at me, "So, were you running for Shibuya Station? Is Itadori Yuji down there?"

There was another surge of Cursed Energy from the direction where Dagon was battling, and this one was bigger. Both of us turned to look, and saw a huge swell of water, eerily still in the city streets.

"Oh, so they pushed him far enough that he had to use his Supreme Art?" Mahito chirped, excited. "Can you guess what it is?" It asked, turning back to me.

The water visibly trembled, then swelled higher. I could see a shape, vague and inhuman, inside the rising water.

" 'Tsunami'." Mahito proclaimed.

Then the mass of water slammed down, a violent crash. The street shook as it rebounded off the ground and rose into walls of water that surged in every direction. I looked at Mahito, and it looked at me. The water rushed down the street towards us, shattering windows, picking up cars and rubble, and smashing through barriers as it went.

I knew the wave wouldn't hurt the Cursed Spirit, and I was reasonably confident it wouldn't kill me outright. What it would do, however, is hurt and disorient me, leaving me easy prey for Mahito to finish off. It wasn't all bad though, I had an idea. One that, if I could pull it off, would get Mahito off my back. At least for a little while.

As the wave got closer, I moved slightly. I was close to the edge of the street, and behind me was what I assumed was an office building. I used the building on the opposite side of the street as a reference for my aim.

I bent my knees and concentrated my Cursed Energy, braced to move. Mahito mirrored the motion, still grinning, enjoying our little game of chicken.

3

2

..1

As hard as I could, I shoved off the ground, leaping back and up.

Individual Control

In the same moment, I took my vow and brought it down on Mahito as hard as I could. Its own leap to pursue me stuttered, and it lost its chance to avoid the wave as it broke nearby.

"You littl-" was all the Curse got out before the wall of water slammed into him, carrying it away down the street.

For my part, I had aimed my leap to send me through the second floor window of the building behind me. I was mostly successful, just clipping my shoulder on the frame, spinning myself halfway around. I also managed to collect several scratches from the shattering glass.

A fraction of a second after I made it through the window, the tsunami of water passed by. The building shook, cracks spreading over the walls, and the roar of the water as it went by was nearly deafening. Mist and incidental sprays of water entered the building through the broken window, and I tasted salt.

It seemed like it took an hour for the wave to pass, but it was probably less than ten seconds. The surge of water lessened steadily, along with the crashing and clattering of everything it had picked up on the way.

I jumped back out the window moments later, returning to the street. Then I looked around, taking stock. There was now about fifteen or sixteen centimeters of water filling the streets around me. It flowed slowly, filled with trash and rubble.

And worse things.

The streets around Shibuya Station has been filled with civilians and transfigured humans. Most of them had been moved or killed respectively, but with the flood of water unleashed by Dagon had come the remains left behind. Blood and viscera stained the salt water that now sloshed through the area.

I shuddered, my gut clenching as the filthy, bloody water flowed over my feet, all the way up my shins to wet the bottom of my half-skirt. For a moment, I could have sworn I felt cold rain on my skin, soaking through my costume.

Wave

I clenched my teeth, and looked around for the creature that I knew was here, surprisingly fast and quiet for it's siz-

"-wave." A tinny voice came from my left wrist. I flinched, and brought my arm up.

"Hebert, are you listening?" It continued. I shook myself mentally.

Mechamaru, not Dragon.

"Another wave is incoming, you need to move." He said, urgency in his mechanical tone.

I looked over towards the source of the destruction. Sure enough, water was gathering again. Before it could coalesce, there was a spike of Cursed Energy I recognized as Nanami's, and a distant flare of black light I could just barely see.

Black Flash 

The water that had been gathering lost all cohesion, and fell apart. I wasn't sure where the water had come from, the Plant Curse had been able to use a Creation technique to make surprisingly massive amounts of matter, but it was equally likely that Dagon had simply been gathering the water from the air or from the pipes and mains under the streets.

"Well, nevermind." Mechamaru said, a little nonplussed. "Are you alright? You froze for a moment there. Is the Cursed Energy in the water throwing you off?"

"I'm fine," I lied to him. "I was using Control to look for Mahito, and got a little too distracted."

I shook off the memories more firmly.

You are no Leviathan. Not even close.

I reeled Control in to about thirty meters, I couldn't sense Mahito anywhere nearby, and resumed my journey to Shibuya Station.

I made it to the subway entrance without any further problems, and made my way down the stairs. I moved carefully, not only was I unsure if anything was down here, but water was flowing down from the street, flooding the station with Cursed salt water, debris, and a not insignificant amount of blood.

As I descended, I sensed three people deeper in the station.

Is that Todo?

Sure enough, in the now-flickering lights I saw Yuji, looking bad, Todo, and a third guy I didn't recognize. Whether they sensed me in turn, heard my footsteps splashing in the water, or both, all three of them turned to look as I got closer.

I sucked in a harsh breath as I got a good look at Yuji. The lighting down here sucked, with the damage I was just now noticing and the flooding from above. His right eye was sealed closed with dried blood, his left eye was heavily bruised, his right shoulder looked caved in, and he looked like he'd been stabbed six or seven times. He was kneeling on the ground, and the stranger was standing behind him, one hand on Yuji's back.

"Yuji!" I barked, "Are you alright!?" I yelled as I moved over to them, skidding slightly in the water as I drew to a stop. I dropped to one knee and sheathed Silence before putting my hand on his uninjured shoulder. I would have used my left, my real hand, but like hell I was putting Prison Realm down anywhere. Not unless I really, really, had to.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Yuji responded, his voice a little coarse. "Ijichi-san pointed these guys in my direction, and this guy used his Technique to help me out with my injuries."

He gestured vaguely at the third guy as he moved off to stand next to Todo. I looked a little closer at him. He looked young-ish, average height with light-colored, straight hair down to his chin. He was wearing what looked like an English butler's clothes. Black trousers, a tailcoat, a gray vest, white gloves, the whole shebang.

He hunched slightly under my look. As he well should, if this was his idea of helping with injuries he had some explaining to do. Yuji looked like he was one foot in the grave.

"My Technique doesn't heal," he began, sounding equal parts defensive and apologetic. "It just prevents the wounds he currently has from getting worse, and helps with the pain."

I nodded slowly, letting it go, and looked back to Yuji. I reeled in Control, and set my focus on realigning my Cursed Energy. It wasn't smooth or easy yet, but it didn't take me very long to get the Reverse Cursed Technique flowing again.

I felt the scratches and bruising from when I jumped through that window fade away, but that was incidental to my actual goal.

Once I had it, I pushed at the Positive Energy, trying to get it to flow out of me and into Yuji. I couldn't seem to manage it though. The Positive Energy stopped at the seam in my right arm, refusing to pass through my prosthetic. So, I picked up my left arm and pressed the skin on the inside of my wrist to his neck, hoping that skin contact would help. The cube in that hand bumped lightly against him.

Come on, pass into him. Heal him.

"What's in your hand?" Yuji asked. I looked at his face, focusing hard, and didn't answer. It could wait.

"It's called Prison Realm." Mechamaru said, taking the initiative. "It's how they Sealed Gojo. Hebert stole it from the one acting as Geto Suguru."

All three of them jumped, and started loudly exclaiming, asking a great many questions. I tuned them out, not quite listening as Mechamaru answered, telling them who he was and what had happened.

I focused hard, twisting and pulling and hauling at the Positive Energy. Nothing happened though, it refused to leave my body. I grit my teeth, frustrated. What was the point of it if I could only use it to help myself?

Maybe this will do something. Anything.

On a whim, or maybe out of desperation, I dragged it up into my head. There, into the metaphorical reel that operated Control, I fed the Positive Energy. 

Normally I turned the reel 'forwards' to restrain Control, since its natural state was to spread as far as it could. Now I pulled the reel 'back' shoving the Reverse Cursed Technique's Positive Energy through in a way that felt decidedly odd, even unnatural.

My gamble was rewarded, however.

Cursed Technique Reversal

It felt both similar, and very different, to Control. When I let go of Control, it felt like relaxing a muscle and the spread of the Technique was a natural result. This felt like tensing a muscle I'd never known I had, and pushing something out of me in a way that left me feeling strangely hollow.

It spread out to sixteen feet, which seemed to be the maximum. Yuji, Todo, and the stranger all went still as it passed over them.

"Is this the Reverse Cursed Technique?" Todo asked first, more uncertain than I'd ever heard him.

"Sort of." I said in a distracted tone. I was still concentrating. "I figured that out earlier, this is my Cursed Technique Reversal."

"Incredible." The third boy said. "It's healing him. It's healing us." He continued, sounding amazed. He pulled one of his gloves off and showed Todo his hand. "I split my knuckles training yesterday, and look, they're good as new!"

As he spoke, Yuji opened his newly healed eye with a quiet squelch of partly dried blood separating, and looked me in the face. He looked poleaxed as his right shoulder slowly started easing back into place.

"That's my brother's girl all right!" Todo said, his tone back to its usual boisterousness.

Yuji jerked bodily, his face turning an interesting shade of red as he whipped his head to face Todo. "I never said that she was my-"

Todo spoke over him, ignoring Yuji's spluttered protests. I would voice my own objections to that lable, as well as ask when they'd spoken and what they'd said about me. Later though, when I wasn't focusing on something else.

"Your Cursed Technique expands a field of your Cursed Energy to take Control of others. It limits their movements and diminishes them!" Todo said, halfway yelling. "But I can feel it, I can tell!"

He dropped to one knee, putting one hand each on Yuji and I's shoulders. His voice lowered somewhat as he continued. "Your Reverse Cursed Technique creates a field of Positive Energy, Liberating others from whatever might hold them back! Wounds, pain, even fear." 

At that I turned away from Yuji, looking at Todo. "Fear?" I asked. Pain and wounds I could understand. If he was right about the field of Positive Energy, and I thought he was, healing my allies made sense. 'Liberate' them from the likes of fear though? That I was less sure of.

"Just so!" He confirmed, nodding firmly. "I can feel it, I'm as strong and free of doubt and worry as a man can be. It's as if Takada-chan were here beside us, cheering me on!"

Who the hell is 'Takada-chan'? Todo's a third year at the other school, maybe Takada is a fourth year in Kyoto that he finds particularly inspiring. Why would he call her '-chan' then though?

"I think he's right." Yuji said, still on his knees in front of me. I turned back to him, deciding I was better off not asking who Todo was talking about.

"It's more than healing," Yuji continued now that I was looking at him. "I feel.. good." 

He stood up, and Todo and I followed. I dropped my prosthetic from his shoulder and my wrist from where I had been touching his neck. He flexed his shoulders, though his right one didn't quite look at one hundred percent.

He patted himself down, rolling his head on his neck and clenching his fists.

"Yeah, I feel great." He said once he was done, giving me a bright smile, one that was only slightly spoiled by the blood on his teeth.

"That's good to hear." I said simply, smiling slightly back. "I'll maintain my Reverse Technique until you're back to one hundred percent," I continued, sobering. "After that, we need to move." I held up the Prison Realm, reminding us all that we were still in a serious situation.

"Where should we go?" Yuji asked, deferring to me.

"We'll meet up with the team fighting Dagon." I decided after a moment's consideration, remembering too late that they wouldn't have heard the name like I did.

"That's the name of the Curse that flooded Shibuya?" Todo asked, kicking lightly at the water we were all still standing in.

I nodded before giving Yuji a significant look.

"Also," I said. "I was being chased by Mahito for a while. I managed to lose it when it got hit by the water, but I don't know where it ended up."

His jaw clenched, and he stiffened at the mention of the Curse. I thought about trying to say something to him. Maybe something reassuring, but I didn't get a chance. As if it had been waiting for the cue, the Cursed Spirit Mahito came hopping down the stairs, splashing in the water like a little kid.

I snatched Silence out of its sheath, and Todo and Yuji took stances almost like boxers'. The third guy, who's name I just now realized I had forgotten to learn, backed up behind the three of us, quietly waiting for a chance to scarper.

I had been too focused on my Cursed Technique Reversal to sense it, and I couldn't use my Reverse and Control simultaneously. I was making a lot of mistakes tonight, as if to balance the luck I'd had with Geto.

Mahito grinned as it reached the landing, practically skipping as it moved closer.

"So this is where you went." It said to me. "That was a dirty trick, getting me hit by Dagon's Technique." I couldn't tell if the mild offence in its tone was genuine or not, but I would bet it was an affectation.

"As if you deserve any better." Was all I said in response.

It huffed at me, then turned its attention away, looking at each of us in turn. "Itadori Yuji. I was looking for you. Thank you, runner, for leading me to him. And Topknot Gorilla, you're here too. Hanami mentioned you."

It spread its arms out, and the excitement on its face grew as it narrowed its focus back to Yuji.

"I'll kill the runner first, then the gorilla." It said to him. "So we can Curse one another freely, you and I."

As it leisurely started to close the distance, I stepped closer to Yuji and shifted my Reverse Technique so that it only covered about a meter. If I could keep Mahito from realizing what I was doing until an opportune moment, it would be a nasty surprise for the thing.

"Todo," I said quietly, getting his attention. "Can you hold it off until I finish healing Yuji? He's the only one who can hurt that thing, we need him." 

Todo grunted in acknowledgement, then stepped forward.

"Taylor," Yuji said, just as quietly as me. "What's up with your knife?"

I was about to ask what he meant, but I decided to risk taking my eyes off Mahito and look for myself. I squinted at Silence in confusion. The blade was slowly but steadily darkening. Normally Silence's blade was white, but it looked like it was slowly absorbing aerosolized ink. Absorbing from the.. air?

No way.

If Todo and I were right, and my Reverse Technique filled the space around me with Positive Energy, and if Silence was absorbing it, was being changed by it, did that mean..?

"Never mind." I said louder, enough to get Todo's attention, though he didn't turn to look. "Don't keep anyone back."

He chuckled as he pulled his jacket off. "Couldn't hold my brother back, or yourself?" He asked.

Hopefully the question was rhetorical, because I didn't have a chance to respond before Mahito attacked. Its right arm shifted into a blade, and it leaped at Todo, swinging.

clap

The blade passed through empty air, and Todo stood behind the Curse, hands together with his body relaxed.

Mahito was still smiling as it swung its body around, this time its left arm shifted into another bladed tentacle. It whipped towards Todo, whistling as it passed through-

clap

- empty space as Todo and the Curse switched places again.

The Curse let out a sound that was equal parts snarl and laugh as its whole body twisted and lengthened. It spread and split apart until its torso resembled a thorned net, seeking to cover enough area as it attacked that Todo couldn't swap them so easily. It descended over Todo, but its plan backfired.

clap

Todo was right beside me, and the mostly healed Yuji was right in front of Mahito, who was in no position to dodge or block.

Yuji's fist blurred as he swung a vicious uppercut. Mahito couldn't even make a sound as the strike sent the net-like body, which lacked any rigidity, ass-over-teakettle. The Curse landed in disarray.

Yuji moved in to follow up, and Todo made to join him, but I wiggled Silence at him to get his attention. He looked at me, then his eyes flicked to Silence. For all that Todo was batshit crazy, he was also a lot smarter than he seemed. He almost instantly understood, and his wild grin only grew wider.

Mahito recovered fast enough that it had a torso formed that could properly support its arms as it blocked another hit from Yuji. Then it looked over at Todo who was rushing towards them, getting in close. The Spirit grinned as both of its arm shifted to flexible bladed tendrils, and its torso spun like a top, aiming at both of its attackers.

clap

I was between Yuji and Todo as Mahito spun uselessly across the platform. I heard the thing let out a frustrated noise as it realized what had happened and stopped.

"Hanami was right, that is a troublesome Technique." It said to Todo as I moved around, placing him between Yuji and I. Mahito looked like it was thinking hard, then we felt a shift in its Cursed Energy.

clap

Mahito was between Yuji and I. It instantly swung an arm at him that grew and hardened until it looked like a kanabo. Yuji took the hit on his forearms, getting sent sliding backwards from the force, water spraying from under his shoes.

I was mid-swing with the darkened Silence, hoping I was right about why the weapon had changed, when Mahito turned to look at me. I saw it smile, it was confident that I couldn't hurt it.

Keep that certainty. Let me hit you.

It was in the last fractions of a second before impact that I saw the doubt form in the Curse's heterochromatic eyes. I had run away from it. It had also seen Silence earlier, the white knife was hard to miss. Now I was fighting it, attacking, instead of fleeing. The 'runner' was swinging a black blade at its head.

I imagined I could hear it's thoughts.

'Something's off.'

It tried to dodge. Cursed Energy shifted, and it's neck twisted unnaturally and it moved.

Too slow.

Silence, black blade gleaming strangely, clipped its head. One eye, nose, cheek, all split open by the Tool. The scream Mahito let out felt like it was one decibel short of rupturing my eardrums.

Even as it screamed, it reacted. Its Cursed Energy didn't shift, it erupted.

It abandoned its humanoid form and sent spikes and spines, blades and hooks in every direction. I didn't try to keep attacking through that, I backpedaled furiously, ears ringing.

Yuji, however, dove right in.

He didn't seem to care about the hits he took, his blood scattering randomly as he charged. He started striking, snapping off the spines that were within his arms' reach. 

It didn't take long for Mahito to recover, all things considered. The spikes receded, the mass rolled away from Yuji, and the Curse resolved back into its almost-human shape.

Now though, it had an open wound across its face. It had managed to restore the eye, but not much else. There was a ragged line, almost parallel to the stitches it already had, that looked almost like a burn drawn across the front of its head.

Most significantly, the wound wasn't closing. The edges looked raw, and though the wound wasn't getting worse, it also wasn't getting better. It seemed like I was right about what happened to Silence.

Information on the 'Blade of Exorcism', also called 'Blade of Extermination', was scarce. People who could use the Reverse Cursed Technique were rare. People who could use it on others were even rarer, and Cursed Tools that could use it were rarer still.

Supposedly the Ten Shadows Technique had something to do with a Blade of Exorcism, though the details were not available to the public. The only other information I'd come across was that a Blade had existed in the Heian Era, but it was destroyed by a Special Grade Cursed Spirit before that Era ended.

It was unlikely that Silence was a true Blade of Exorcism, but it seemed to be a close approximation after it absorbed the Positive Energy in the air from my Reverse Technique.

Mahito glared at me, rage contorting its features, twisting its new wound. "That hurt." 

I glared right back. "Good."

It practically snarled at me, then shifted and charged.

clap

I was off to the side, and Yuji was in my place, already swinging. His fist collided with Mahito's hasty guard, and the Spirit staggered. Todo moved around and was now charging Mahito's back as Yuji moved to follow up his attack. The Curse ignored Todo in favor of keeping its defense facing Yuji.

clap

I was right behind Mahito, and Silence almost sang as I sent it into the Spirit's back. It carved deep, and again Mahito screamed. Its entire back shifted, growing blades that shot out towards me, while it kept Yuji in its sights.

clap

I was right in front of Yuji, and I heard Mahito's quieting, pained groans coming from right behind my head as the sound of shattering ceramic came from the now empty space between Mahito and the nearest wall.

clap

Yuji was between the Spirit and I, hammering blows into the Spirit's front. I shoved at my Reverse Technique, spreading it out over Yuji and Mahito. I heard Yuji take a deep, fortifying breath as it engulfed him. For its part, the Curse hissed and flinched.

Yuji's next hit landed harder, the next one sharper, as my Technique helped him along. The Curse shoved its feet against the ground, moving back, trying to gain some distance but Yuji and I both kept pace.

The spikes it had sent out of its back had been retracted at some point, and there was Todo, shoulder checking the Curse from behind, shoving it straight into Yuji's fist. In the moment after their double strike landed, I moved around Yuji's right side, and stabbed with Silence. The dark blade stuck effortlessly into the Curse, like a stick into water.

The Spirit's scream was oddly breathless this time, and it once again lost its composure, lashing out randomly. I was forced back as I was the least durable one involved. Mahito took the opening my retreat offered and moved away. It had to take a hit from Yuji in order to break free from the proverbial corner it had been in, but break free it did.

It was seething as the three of us repositioned. Its eyes flickered back and forth, thinking frantically. Then it acted. It shoved fingers down its throat, and pulled a surprisingly large amount of small, misshapen things out into the open.

Yuji and I rushed it, and Todo moved laterally, keeping his options for using Boogie Woogie open.

"Body Repel!" Mahito yelled.

The Cursed Spirit's Energy surged and the things it had dragged out of its stomach burst into motion. They swelled and fused together, becoming horrible, fleshy battering rams that slammed into Todo and I, pushing us back. Yuji managed to juke the one that targeted him, and charged Mahito.

I slashed at the extremely transfigured human pushing at me, cutting it open. I shoved at it with my right hand, and curled my left into my body, keeping Prison Realm close.

I managed to disrupt the momentum of the thing pushing me, and slammed a knee into the closest approximation it had for a head. Something shattered, and it stopped moving, blood leaking from its open wounds.

I stepped around the now dead transfigured human, and went back after Mahito. It was fighting Yuji, and now that it was just the two of them, it seemed to be having fun again. It was smiling wide, fiercely exultant, as it slipped a punch passed Yuji's guard, slamming hard into his chest with a flare of black light.

Black Flash 

"Ha ha!" It crowed as the magnified force sent Yuji up and away to smash into the ceiling of the station. Stone and concrete shattered, leaving Yuji lodged where he struck.

I heard footsteps behind me as Todo also ran to reengage with the Curse. We split up to attack from two sides and Mahito's eyes locked on me. Wariness colored its expression and it grew a few extra eyes to keep watch on Todo.

We moved in, and as my Reverse Technique passed over it, its whole body flinched, eyes squinting and its face tightening. It was like if a person stood too close to a bonfire. The Positive Energy I was emitting was hurting it, purely by proximity.

The Spirit responded to the pain by shifting its entire body. It condensed into a rough sphere, and every part of it sent out bristling spikes. Now that I was expecting that, it was easy enough to avoid. I moved in, weaving between the spines and once close enough, I struck at the center with Silence. As I did, I heard the shifting of stone as Yuji shoved his way out of the hole he'd been stuck in.

As I was mid-swing, I felt another shift in Mahito's Cursed Energy.

Crap

Out of the nearly shapeless mass that it'd turned itself into, a hand shot out and seized my wrist. A head, shoulders, and most of a torso then resolved itself out of the twisted mass of spines, a right hand gripping mine.

It was smiling again.

"Gotcha." It told me, as its unaltered hand tightened it's grip on my right wrist.

"Idle Transfiguration." The Spirit seemed to be rubbing in how helpless I was by saying its Technique out loud.

As the Technique activated, I heard Yuji's cry of dismay. He'd forced his way out of the ceiling just in time to see Mahito holding my wrist. Todo was still forcing his way through the spikes on the Spirit's other side, he probably couldn't see me. I felt the Cursed Energy that I used to control my prosthetic fuzz as Mahito's Technique entered, and a phantom pain crackled.

And nothing else.

Pure confusion, then a mix of dismay and anger crawled across the Curse's face.

"It's fake!?" The thing yelled, twisting my prosthetic wrist.

I still had my Reverse Technique active, so I responded by driving my knee into what would be the solar plexus on a human. The thing wheezed and bent, so I kneed it in the face next.

It's head rocked back, but even though I was emanating Positive Energy, unless I hit it with Silence the damage I was doing was minimal, so it recovered fast. The Curse didn't take the risk of releasing my hand that was holding the dark Silence and hastily reformed its left hand and arm, swinging its open palm towards my ribs.

I did the only thing I could think of. I swung my left hand under my right arm, and slapped away its hand with the Prison Realm I was still holding.

Mahito let out an angry noise, but st-

clap

Yuji was right in its face, freed from the ceiling and very angry. I was mid-air, falling. Yuji swung for the fences, hitting Mahito hard enough to send it flying, spiky ball half notwithstanding. It crashed into a wall, and as I landed I immediately moved in to attack.

As I closed in, once again Mahito went for its store of transfigured humans. This time, I had an idea I wanted to try.

As it puked up its living weapons, I let go of my Reverse Technique. It reeled itself in, and I let the Positive Energy disalign. Mahito took the transfigured humans in hand and its Cursed Energy spiked. For my part, I pushed Cursed Energy into my own Technique, hard.

Cursed Technique Lapse: Control

Control spread out to roughly thirty meters, and I brought it down on the remains of the people Mahito had twisted. I found I couldn't really take them over, but as soon as they left the Curse's hands, I could influence them.

Mahito had retrieved far more of them this round, and they fused together into a column that shoved straight upwards, breaking through the subway floors above where we were fighting and up onto the surface, taking us all with it.

Once we had all been dragged topside, the column split into what seemed like a thousand tendrils that lashed out in every direction. They didn't get to strike at any of us Sorcerers though. No, I had enough Control that they split around the three of us like water around rock.

We all closed in on Mahito, who abandoned the attempt to attack us with his current setup, instead shifting the transfigured column to be something approximating a stage, or a stadium, maybe ten meters above the waterlogged streets of Shibuya.

Once the shifting settled, the Spirit once again put on a smile. It looked over at Todo and I, then opened one of its hands. There were several more transfigured humans in its grip that it hadn't used for the big move.

It closed its hands over them, then tossed them towards us before facing Yuji squarely.

"Polymorphic Soul Isomer." It said.

The transfigured humans shifted, changing radically in bare moments. There were three of them, twisted, bulky and asymmetrical. Muscle swelled where there should have been skin, their flesh folding over itself in thick, corded masses. They had no faces either, just mouths.

Mahito pointed, and the three of them charged at Todo and I, two for him and one for me. Mahito had miscalculated however. They may have been Cursed practically beyond recognition, but they weren't beyond my reach. I brought Control down on them as hard as I could. 

I wasn't entirely certain what would happen, but it would appear that even though these things do as Mahito commands, they have no minds or wills of their own.

Thus, they instantly folded under my Technique, and I immediately directed them to attack one another. They faced each other in a triangle, and threw a full-force punch to each of their rights. One hit each, and they were struck dead, to my surprise.

They must have been more strong than durable.

Mahito had only had time to trade one or two hits with Yuji before Todo on and I were back on our way to join in.

"That gorilla is troublesome, but you are just the worst, runner!" Mahito yelled at me once it saw that its mooks were dead. As we got closer, I had another idea I wanted to try.

Individual Control

I reached out with my altered Technique, and aimed it inside of Mahito. It could only manipulate the transfigured humans if it was touching them with its hands, so if they're still in its gut, I should be able to..

There.

I took one, and though it couldn't move much, I could still send it spinning and twisting inside of Mahito's stomach. The Curse let out a sickly sounding hurck then glared at me again. It should have kept its eyes on Yuji though.

He slipped through the Curse's guard while it was distracted and hammered a blow into its chest. The air rushed out of it, and it lashed out with bladed limbs like a praying mantis' to drive him back. Mahito started to barf up more transfigured humans, but I still had Control of one, so I manipulated it to twist about and lodge itself in Mahito's throat.

The Cursed Spirit let out another choked gurgle, then it evidently decided to do away with that, currently worse than useless, part of its arsenal. It turned its Technique inward, and I felt the transfigured humans inside of the Spirit disappear from my Control-sense. Starting with the one I had stuck in its throat.

The bare moments that it had taken to destroy its store of once-humans were a few moments too many, as Yuji and Todo had once again closed in on it while it was focusing inward.

It desperately slammed both hands down on the platform it had created, and raised up a wall against us. Then the wall bulged, and five huge mouths opened, then rushed us.

I released my Vow, and wrenched on the horribly changed humans with Control. Mouths slammed shut, momentum shifted, and I Sensed Mahito's real plan.

I only had time for one word, "Inside!" I yelled to Yuji.

It was enough.

When the transfigured human closest to Yuji split open, and Mahito sprang out already swinging for his face, he was braced for something to happen. He blocked the strike meant for his face, catching it on his forearm, and his left arm split open, blood scattering.

Mahito let out a noise that was an ugly mix between satisfaction and frustration. It had hurt Yuji, but had missed its real target. The transfigured human it'd used to close with Yuji was blocking the line of sight with Todo, and it seemed to want to keep it that way, along with keeping me away, so it once again pressed both hands down on the platform we were all on, and the whole thing twisted.

The center caved in, and the edges raised up, then the sides pushed outwards. New walls were raised up between the Curse and Todo and I, though it kept Yuji close. The expanding sides pressed hard into the surrounding buildings, and smashed them, pressing outwards and opening up more space.

I let Control unspool all the way, and so felt when the expansion stopped at roughly one hundred meters.

Now we had an arena.

"Let's kick this up a notch, Itadori! This could be our last chance to Curse each other!" I heard Mahito yell over the sound of shattering glass and crushing concrete.

No. Just your last chance.