Chapter Text
“Shit.”
Maki squints as she looks around. The last thing she remembers was being under Naoya’s foot. She groans, clutching her head, the back of it burning.
“What the hell happened?” Maki demands. Nobara stands up and takes Maki’s hand, bringing her up with her.
“He tossed us in here, something about discipline, and now…” she bites her lip. “He broke your lenses; I don’t know if I can hold all of them off.”
Them.
That’s right—the Disciplinary Pit is filled with cursed spirits. It had always been a miracle Maki was never thrown into the pit herself. She figures it has to do with Naoya wanting to watch her suffer and struggle against the Kukuru unit. The cursed spirits of the pit are trained and conditioned to keep away from sorcerers outside of their pen. Maki’s certain Naoya’s presence strikes fear into the curses, they know his technique could easily exorcize them, so they withdraw instantly. That probably factors into why Naoya enjoys watching the Kukuru unit clash with Maki over throwing her into the pit.
“Fuck,” Maki rasps, touching her face and feeling the absence of her lenses. There’s no way she’ll be able to sense the curses now.
“We don’t have any cursed tools besides my nails…” Nobara adds, fishing out a handful from her kosode.
Maki takes a deep breath before she bends down, lifting up the bottom of her hakama. She’s not sure why Naoya didn’t sense them, or maybe he was just distracted while brawling her and beating on Nobara and Mai.
Either way, she’s lucky he didn’t.
She gently removes a strap of fabric around her leg, freeing the hammer that was nestled against it. She passes the weapon to Nobara.
“My hammer?!” Nobara gasps. She grabs it and presses it close to her chest in an embrace. Maki grins, moving to her other leg.
After all, if she's stealing from her clan, she’s not going to just take one thing. She pulls a hunting knife free from its strap.
“I’m not sure how much use I’ll be without the lenses,” Maki admits with a grimace. “Can’t see shit—can’t sense shit either.”
Nobara’s feet are planted firmly on the ground, her stance widened. “Maki-san… I have an idea,” she flashes one of the rusty nails. “You can see this just fine, right?”
“Yeah?” Maki replies. Her tone is plain, unsure what Nobara is getting at.
“Okay, keep an eye on it.”
Maki narrows her eyes. She watches as Nobara throws the hunk of metal into the air and smashes her hammer into it. The nail goes flying, and it pierces against nothing. Maki’s eyes widen in realization.
She can see the nail, embedded in nothing, practically floating in the air.
“I’ll be your eyes, Maki-san.”
Maki’s face splits into a grin. Her grip on the knife tightens. “Just hammer away then. I’ll get to slashing.”
Maki breaks into a sprint, charging at the emptiness. She brandishes the knife, slicing at the air. She can feel the blade pierce through flesh, even if she cannot see it. She slams her foot down where the nail sits and looks back at Nobara.
The other woman is still flinging nails in all directions, new spots for Maki to attack.
“Exorcised?” Maki asks, glancing down at the nail under her foot.
“Yes! Now help me with the rest!”
Despite the situation they’ve found themselves in, Maki can’t help but grin. It’s a ferocious grin, one she doesn’t get to use often. She follows the trail of embedded nails Nobara leaves for her, exorcising one spirit after the next.
“How many left?” She pants, returning to Nobara’s side.
The other girl exhales. “Two, the others are retreating… I think they can sense we’re a threat now.”
Her blood is pumping—even if she can’t see or feel the cursed spirits, the will to fight has never been stronger. Maki watches Nobara swing her hammer again, sending two nails flying into their invisible targets. Maki is about to leap in that direction, but a hand grabs her shoulder.
“Hang on, let me try something first,” Nobara says. Maki nods; she can easily break out of Nobara’s grasp and attack the curses, but she chooses to stay and wait instead.
Nobara snaps her fingers “Hairpin.”
The nails she just sent out explode before Maki’s eyes.
So this is the power of the Straw Doll technique? She can understand why the Zenin wanted to add it to their collection. Maki lets out a low whistle.
“Not bad—I assume everything’s exorcised now?”
“It would have looked more stunning if you had your lenses,” Nobara lets out a disappointed sigh. They’re in a life-or-death situation, and this girl just wanted to impress her? Maki can’t help but feel a little endeared by her antics; it’s cute.
Maki grabs Nobara’s wrist and starts to drag her to the door. They need to get out of here—they can handle the curses, but now Mai is alone. Naoya could be paying her a visit, and Maki can’t have that.
“Hurry up, I need to check on—”
Maki’s voice dies when the door doesn’t budge. She lets go of Nobara and kicks it roughly. The wood rattles, but it doesn’t give.
“Shit!” Maki growls, opting to kick the door repeatedly.
“He sealed it with cursed energy,” Nobara observes.
“I can’t do shit with this body!” Maki snarls between kicks. Why isn’t this working? She’s snapped cursed tools in half before! Is it just the raw level of energy Naoya imbued in the wood?
“Maki-san!” Nobara grabs her by the shoulders. “You’re just going to end up pissing yourself off…” she says softly, “Let me use my technique.”
Maki pants and nods. She knows she’s being irrational, but she can’t help it. She backs up, giving Nobara space.
The younger woman smashes a nail into the wood, followed by two more. She hammers them in, making sure they’re deeply embedded. Then she backs up as well, standing by Maki’s side.
“Hairpin,” with a snap of her fingers, the wooden door snaps and splits apart, chunks of wood flying in all directions. Maki shields her face from the shrapnel; pieces fray into her robes.
“Let’s go,” Maki says as she lowers her hand.
She turns to Nobara, who wipes at her cheek, smearing a splatter of blood across it. Maki frowns at the sight. She takes the end of her sleeves and rubs Nobara’s face. The other woman makes no move to step away.
“You should keep your defenses up, Nobara.”
“R-right…” Nobara sputters back, her cheeks now a light pink. She pokes at the cut hesitantly.
“I need to find my sister,” Maki declares. She has no sense of patience, power walking across the courtyard. Nobara tries to keep up with her long strides.
“Naoya dismissed her before he threw us in the pit!” Nobara calls to her, sounding exasperated. Maki turns to look at her, but she doesn’t slow her pace.
“It’s not that I don’t believe you, but I can’t trust Naoya.”
Nobara falters in her steps. “Shit, right—we can’t,” she agrees, before coughing deeply.
Maki stops in her tracks and sighs. She takes a better look at Nobara. She looks rough—the new cuts and bruises from the Disciplinary Pit litter her exposed skin, her neck has marks from Naoya’s hand being wrapped around it, and Maki knows there are probably more wounds that she cannot see.
She fully turns around and walks over to the shorter woman, placing her hands on her shoulders. “Listen, Nobara… You should head back to your room. If Naoya’s with Mai, I don’t want to risk you getting hurt again.”
“You were literally just knocked out, Maki-san!” Nobara counters. “I can handle myself just fine, honestly!”
Maki hates that she’s making a good point. They worked well together in the pit; Maki never really had the chance to truly fight side by side with someone like that. It felt good—being able to rely on someone else, not worrying about a knife in the back or a fist upside the head.
“And—I thought I was being your eyes, Maki-san?” Nobara adds with a pout. Her hand reaches out, fingers grazing just under her eye. Maki almost flinches; she’s not used to a touch this gentle.
Maki bites her lip and decides to be honest. “I know… But I’d feel a lot better if you were safe in your room. I can tell you’re having a hard time keeping up with me.”
“I can keep up just fine.”
Maki raises her brow at her. “I heal fast, always have. You should rest.”
Nobara opens her mouth like she’s about to say something else—then she lets out a sigh. “Okay, just be careful.”
“I will,” Maki promises. Her eyes linger on Nobara longer than she means, flicking down to her lips and back up to her eyes. Maki frowns to herself and turns away. Nobara’s lips have a cut on them, and she’s not sure if a cursed spirit inflicted it. She continues on, heading towards the servants’ quarters.
Her fight from earlier with Naoya is a blur. She had only just snuck out of the cursed warehouse with her new loot securely tucked away. Maki remembers having a sinking feeling when she couldn’t find Mai or Nobara anywhere. The whisperings of other clan members made that pit in her stomach grow deeper. By the time she reached them, Nobara was being choked by Naoya, and Mai was on the ground. Maki merely acted on instinct next, and before she knew it, she was waking up in the Disciplinary Pit with Nobara.
Sliding the door open, Maki steps inside and glances around the room. Mai is in her bed, holding a sack of ice to her side.
“Maki!” She exclaims in awe, dropping the sack to the floor and standing up.
“Thank god,” Maki whispers to herself as Mai launches at her, wrapping her arms around her.
“I tried warning you,” her twin mutters tearfully.
“I know… I’m sorry. I should have known he’d go for you or Nobara,” Maki admits with a sigh.
“Speaking of,” Mai pulls away and looks behind her. “Where is she?” She examines Maki a bit closer, “and where are your lenses?”
“I told her to go back to her room and rest. And broken.”
Mai’s brows furrow. “You’re being serious?”
“Yes?” Maki says exasperatedly. “I thought Naoya was here, and she’d be better off resting, but clearly—” Maki eyes the wet sack on the ground. “Looks like you’ve been taking care of yourself.”
“Believe it or not, I’m not completely helpless, Maki,” Mai huffs.
“I never said that.”
“You didn’t have to,” Mai snaps back. She sighs. “Maki, if Naoya isn’t here, where do you think he is?”
Maki stills as Mai puts the idea into her head. If he hasn’t been to Mai’s yet she should be safe the rest of the night, but that might mean—
“Fuck, do you really think—”
“You and I both know how he is. Nobara’s like a shiny new toy to him. She knows how to handle herself, and you can’t see curses like this, so maybe…” Mai trails off.
“No, I’m going to go check on her.” Maki answers swiftly. Mai snorts.
“Of course you are.”
Nobara only settled into her room about fifteen minutes ago. Her heart’s been pounding from the adrenaline, since before Maki and her even escaped. Naoya wasn’t waiting for her in her room; was he with Mai and Maki right now? It made her stomach flip. She opted to pace around the room, trying to keep her emotions under control.
So much had just happened in such little time. Naoya knows about her and Maki… there isn’t even much for him to know! They haven’t done anything! Sure there’s been the lingering stares and subtle touches between the two of them, but nothing has happened!
Her body still aches from the day's events. She bruised her lips when she bit Naoya, her back burns from where he threw her—really her whole body aches when she stops moving.
There’s a faint knock at her door that startles her out of her thoughts. Nobara grabs her hammer, holding it up ready to strike. Her expression hardens, watching the door.
It slides open, and Nobara nearly drops her hammer. Maki’s standing in front of her, out of breath.
“Maki-san?”
“Uh… Hi,” Maki nods and enters the room.
“Mai’s okay?”
“Uh-huh…” Maki nods again. While her body seems to be calming down, she still seems a little antsy, her green eyes roaming around the room.
“What are you doing here?” Nobara asks. She sets her hammer down.
“Sorry,” Maki lets out a sigh of relief, “I thought Naoya would come here instead… or that he will. I’m going to stand guard.”
Nobara’s eyes widen. “Wait, all night? What about your sister?”
“Both of us agree if Naoya’s going to strike, it will be here.”
Nobara exhales and moves to her bed. She sits down on the stacked tatami mats. Her throat aches, and she presses at the forming bruises on her neck. “It never ends, does it?”
Maki sits down beside her. “Our best bet is he’s drinking himself stupid instead; he takes after his father, after all.”
Nobara hums and shifts closer to Maki, pressing into her side. Her heart flutters when Maki’s arm wraps around her shoulder.
“Maki-san?”
Maki stares at her, eyes darting down to her lip and back up. A calloused thumb rubs at the sealed cut on her lips.
“How’d this happen?” Maki asks her quietly. It’s the most gentle tone Maki’s used with her before.
Nobara shutters, and Maki pulls her hand away, whispering an apology.
“No, it’s not you,” Nobara says. She reaches and grabs Maki’s wrist, keeping her from fully moving away. She grimaces as she recalls the events from earlier. “Naoya did it… Or I did it; I don’t know.”
Maki’s furrowed brows only encourage Nobara to continue speaking.
“I thought he was going to hit me,” she confesses. “But he kissed me instead,” she exhales deeply. “It was some power move—make me feel violated…or something,” Nobara trails off. The hand around her shoulder tightens. Nobara looks up at Maki. The taller woman’s expression is stone, trying not to give a reaction to the news. “He’s done worse to other girls, hasn’t he?”
Maki gives a curt nod. “Yes,” her voice cracks. Nobara curls into her, a silent apology. She’s not sure why she’s apologizing.
“I bit him like a dog,” Nobara adds, breaking out into a wry smile.
“I shouldn’t be surprised,” Maki says, a smile finally forming on her face.
Nobara hasn’t known Maki for very long, but the word ‘soft’ isn’t one she’d use to describe her. Yet, something about this moment—this feels soft. With her head tucked into the crook of Maki’s neck, her powerful arm wrapped around her shoulder, she feels safe.
Does Maki ever feel safe? Nobara can’t help but wonder. Nobara leans up, and the arm around her shoulder moves down to her waist. Their foreheads press together, and Nobara tilts her head, leaning in before gently pressing her lips against Maki’s. The older woman’s hand comes up to cup her face, keeping her in place. Their lips make an audible smack as they separate.
“Maki-san… Sorry, was that okay?” Nobara asks slowly. Despite her tone, her heart is racing a mile a minute.
Maki chuckles; she leans down and kisses Nobara. “Yeah… I… I’ve been thinking about doing that,” she confesses.
“Was that your first kiss?”
Maki lets out a small sigh. “No, but it’s the first one I've wanted.”
It feels like a weight lifted to confess that to Nobara. The other girl nuzzles against her, looking at her like she’s hung the moon and the stars herself. It makes her heart flutter—Maki doesn’t feel like she deserves this attention. But she’s greedy, having been robbed of it her entire life, she pulls Nobara closer and presses her lips to the other girl’s forehead.
“He really won’t be happy about this,” Maki sighs to herself.
“I don’t care,” Nobara grumbles against Maki’s neck. “He’s a horrible person, and I don’t think I’m ever going to stop fighting him.”
Maki swallows. “He’s going to keep viewing you as a challenge… I don’t think he’d be as interested if you arrived already behaving obediently,” Maki’s face crinkles in disgust.
“I’ll keep fighting,” Nobara murmurs. Maki tucks a stray hair behind Nobara’s ear. For all the bravado Nobara is exuding, it’s becoming increasingly obvious to Maki she’s on the verge of falling asleep.
“Yeah… I’ll fight too,” Maki whispers back.
For so long she’s accepted her place at the bottom with Mai. She’s endured everything Naoya and the rest of her family sent her way.
Maki’s had enough.
She doesn’t want to see her sister get hurt anymore, and now… Maki glances down, feeling a weight against her chest. Nobara has fallen asleep. She leans back, bringing them both into a resting position, and rubs the other girl’s back.
Now she has someone else she needs to protect.
Naoya and Nobara are to wed tomorrow evening. It’s rather atypical for wedding ceremonies to be conducted, but when you’re one of the most well-known clans, a ceremony and party are expected.
While she hasn’t been to any, she knows her twin sister has at least gone to one. Maki received a direct invitation from Yuuta Okkotsu when he wedded his second partner, much to the chagrin of the Zenin clan. They were shocked, Maki—The disappointment of the Zenin clan being invited to witness the Gojo clan heir getting married? It was absurd to them. The clan head, Satoru, even insisted on her showing.
Mai’s never been to a wedding before; after all, she and her sister aren’t seen as big figures within the clan. They would simply tank the Zenin reputation by showing up to a wedding held by another clan. It’s another reason Maki is so despised by the Zenin clan.
So now Mai finds herself with Yoriko and Naoko at the entrance of the estate.
Perhaps Naoya wanted to boast, extending such a large invite to both members of the Gojo clan and the Kamo clan, even offering them rooms to stay in for the festivities. Mai can never be certain with him.
The first of their guests have arrived. A very tall man, with stark-white hair, his eyes obscured by a piece of black silk tied around his face. He’s followed by two black-haired men, both tall, but not quite as tall as the other man. The clan head of the Gojo clan makes his appearance.
She bows before the guests. “Welcome to the Zenin clan, Gojo-sama; it’s an honor.”
“There’s no need for formalities,” the tall man waves his hand. “It’s good to see you again, Mai.” Satoru grins, lifting up his blindfold, exposing his bright blue eyes. Mai has only met him a handful of times before, mostly in passing. She’s surprised he remembered her name, but then again, the Gojo clan—or rather, the clan head—was interested in her sister.
“Allow us to help you with your belongings!” Yoriko chimes in, she and her daughter move in to help acclimate the three men.
“Mai-san, it’s good to see you!” The taller of the younger men chirps, Yuuta. “Where is Maki-san?”
“Training,” Mai rolls her eyes. It’s not with distaste for Yuuta by any means, but for her sister. Maki could be such a brute sometimes, choosing to train instead of blowing it off to see one of her close friends. At least, that's what Maki told her, Mai's not sure if her twin was being completely honest.
“Sounds like her,” the other boy speaks up. Mai wasn’t expecting to see him. She hasn’t seen Megumi in literal years, not since his father abandoned the clan and took his son with him. Naobito was furious when he found out the boy who had the Zenin clan’s prized technique was gone, only to turn up at the Gojo clan with no interest in returning.
“Megumi-san?” She can’t stop the look of shock on her face.
“Why’re you looking at me like that?” Megumi growls.
“Easy, easy,” Satoru laughs. “He won’t even tell me why he decided to tag along. My beloved Suguru is watching over the Gojo clan in my absence.”
Yuuta rolls his eyes and barely masks pretending to gag. Mai can’t exactly blame him; seeing Satoru be lovey-dovey is…odd.
“Anyway, it’s just us three. Rika-chan and Toge-kun are back at the estate. We didn’t want to overdo it…” Yuuta says, rubbing the back of his head.
“It is Naoya after all,” Satoru snorts. “I’m sure he’ll be ecstatic that I arrived.”
“That one didn’t even sound like sarcasm,” Megumi notes.
“I don’t think it was,” Yuuta adds quietly.
“The Kamo clan is sending a representative too,” Megumi tells Mai.
“Yes, I heard the clan head is away on business.”
“No, he just hates Naoya,” Megumi shrugs, not a lick of subtlety. “They’ve gotten into skirmishes before.”
“So how is the blushing bride?” Satoru chirps. “I heard she’s from the middle of nowhere.”
Well, he’s not exactly incorrect about that.
“She’s nervous about her big day,” Mai says as calmly as possible. Even if she can trust Satoru, she’s not sure she can trust the eyes and ears of the fellow Zenin. Many were watching, simply to get a look at the so-called strongest sorcerer. Mai turns to Yuuta.
“Actually, Okkotsu-san… Can I ask for your assistance?”
He tilts his head curiously; he reminds her of a dog, his dark, round eyes don’t help. “What is it?”
“Maki’s lenses broke the other day—she can’t see any curses.”
Satoru clicks his tongue. “That’s no good; if we knew ahead of time, we might have been able to bring a replacement.”
“Well… I have something else in mind, but I need help.”
“If it’s for Maki-san, I’ll always help!” Yuuta exclaims with a grin.
“Well said Yuuta, I’m more than happy to support Maki as well,” Satoru claps his hands together.
“I’m going for a walk,” Megumi interrupts. The man takes off. It’s clear that despite his absence, he still knows his way around the estate.
“Something up with him?” Mai whispers to Yuuta.
“He’s just moody since the Kamo heir isn’t here yet,” Yuuta whispers back and then presses a finger to his lips, “but keep it a secret—he doesn’t want Gojo-san knowing.”
Mai raises her brow at that.
“Nervous?”
Nobara wrapped her arms around Maki’s neck. She snickers against her. “About getting caught?”
“No.”
“Oh—I don’t want to think about that right now.”
Guests were beginning to show up, a telltale sign that what little freedom she possesses will soon be taken. The arrivals meant Nobara had roughly 24 hours left unwed, she’s taken to hiding on and off all day, avoiding Naoya, the upper clansmen, and the guests. It didn’t take Maki long to find her on a trail just outside the estate. At least she knew Maki wasn’t going to drag her back inside.
“Alright,” Maki replies back softly, her arms winding around Nobara’s waist. She leans down and kisses Nobara.
She doesn’t care about getting caught, not with the wedding on the horizon. This is her last bit of freedom; she might as well enjoy it.
Nobara sighs softly into the kiss, her eyes fluttering closed. The hands on her waist move down to her hips, pulling her flush against Maki’s body. Nobara gasps at the sudden gesture, giving Maki the opportunity to deepen the kiss.
Someone clears their throat, and Nobara quickly breaks away from Maki, her heart rate skyrocketing. She wipes at her mouth and turns to see a man standing behind them. She’s never seen him before, but his sharp facial features and deep green eyes immediately clue her in that he must be a Zenin. His dark hair is spiky; it looks like it’s never seen a brush before.
“So this is what you’ve been getting up to, Maki-san?”
Maki chuckles, which instantly sets Nobara’s mind at ease. Maki must have noticed her distress as she reaches out and places her hand on the small of Nobara’s back.
“I wasn’t expecting to see your face around here ever again, Megumi.”
He has the Zenin scowl, Nobara notes. An even stronger sourpuss than Maki or Mai.
“I came for the wedding,” Megumi answers with a shrug. He folds his arms and stares at the two of them. “I still can’t stand this place.”
“Why come? You didn’t come to Naobito’s funeral.”
Megumi clicks his tongue, clearly frustrated. “I’m not a Zenin anymore.”
Nobara tilts her head, feeling a little confused and out of the loop. “Did you get married out of the clan?”
Maki bursts into a fit of laughter, and Megumi’s scowl grows.
“No. Bara, Megumi’s father—is the deserter you’ve probably heard about. My cousin, so I guess Megumi is also sort of like a cousin.”
“Oh,” Nobara murmurs. She blushes slightly at the nickname—even if it is just her name shortened, Maki manages to make it sound so personal.
Maki had assumed correctly; Nobara had heard whisperings of a man born in the clan without cursed energy, much like Maki herself. Apparently his strength could go unmatched; the Kukuru unit was a force to be reckoned with when he was part of it.
“Would have been great if he just took me with him when he left,” Megumi grumbles.
“Wait, but you’re not in the clan anymore? But your dad left you here?” Nobara asks, even more confused.
“My mother died when I was an infant. My father lost his mind—he found a new wife and that gave me a sister… Then one day my new mother disappeared, and not long after that my father did too,” the dark-haired man shrugs. “It’s complicated; apparently he made a deal with Gojo-san. So now I’m in the Gojo clan, and my sister is safe.”
Nobara smiles fondly. She understands how hard it is to leave the clan, especially if you’re a woman. “Oh, shoot. I’m Kugisaki, by the way—Nobara Kugisaki.”
She figures if Megumi introduced himself by his last name it would only be fair to do the same.
Megumi’s eyes drift between the two girls. “The one getting married tomorrow—to Naoya-san?”
“Don’t give me that look,” Maki sneers. “Marrying is about power; your clan is just weird with their relationships.”
“It is odd how different it is there… Gojo-san and Geto-san are usually attached at the hip.”
“Yeah, and Yuuta's personality is practically being in love with Toge and Rika,” Maki says with an eye roll.
“Really? Marrying for love instead of politics?” Nobara chimes in. “I’ve never heard of that happening in a clan.”
“I don’t think the elders of the clan are all that pleased with how Gojo-san runs the clan… But I can’t complain.”
Nobara hums at Megumi’s words. He seems a bit stingy, but his company sure beats the rest of the Zenin clan.
“So why are you really back? You wouldn’t be here to see Naoya get married,” Maki asks. She pulls Nobara a little closer to her, her hand wrapping around her waist. Nobara reciprocates, winding her arm around Maki in turn.
“There’s someone I need to see,” Megumi answers. What an incredibly vague response.
Maki sighs. “That’s just like you. Who the hell has your interest? It’s definitely not someone in the Zenin clan. You ought to be careful—Naoya probably wants you dead, and the elders want your technique.”
“What technique?” Nobara asks.
“He has the Zenin clan’s prized technique, the Ten Shadows.”
“Yeah…” Megumi frowns.
Nobara’s eyes widen; she had heard of that technique before she even arrived at the Zenin clan. It was almost as famous as the Gojo clan’s Limitless technique.
“I’ll be fine. I have no plans on usurping Naoya—I want nothing to do with the Zenin clan.”
“Truer words were never spoken,” Nobara mumbles, earning a laugh from Maki.
It’s a bit of a lie, Nobara has to admit to herself. The clan is an awful, horrible place. But it did give her Maki, she likes talking to Mai, and Yoriko and Naoko have always been kind to her. She can’t help but wonder what the Zenin clan would be like if Naoya was out of the picture. Is there anything worth saving here?
“So you came for a date to a wedding for someone you don’t care about?” Nobara adds with a smirk.
“Shut up,” Megumi glowers.
“Who else is coming? Noritoshi—god, do you have a thing for him? I’m sure that’ll make the Gojo clan’s day. Now that’s a political marriage,” Maki teases with a shit-eating grin.
“Yuuji isn’t used to events like this,” Megumi mumbles awkwardly.
“Oh, so he has a name?” Nobara chimes in next with a grin. She’s known this man for under thirty minutes, but she can’t help but tease him.
Megumi stalks off, having had enough. Maki spins Nobara to face her and cups her cheeks.
“Now where were we?”
“Are you sure you want to do this? Your cursed energy output is low,” Yuuta begins, his face fraught with worry. He holds his hands up in surrender. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that!”
“I’m not a sorcerer, so I don’t care,” Mai rolls her eyes. “But yes, I want to do this. That’s why I asked for your help.”
Yuuta pouts. “You don’t use your technique often, do you? How badly does it damage your body?”
“I hardly ever use it.” Mai confesses to him. “But I want to do this for her, so I don’t care.”
He understands her; Yuuta after all, has always found himself to be the type of person to sacrifice his own comfort for the sake of his loved ones.
“I just don’t want you getting hurt—Maki-san wouldn’t want that either.”
“That’s why you’re going to use your reverse cursed technique; you're one of the few people that can apply it to someone else, no?”
“Ah… Yes, that’s true,” Yuuta nods in agreement.
It’s just him and Mai now. She had led him into her and Maki’s bedroom, away from the prying eyes of the clan. Yuuta knows Mai invited him inside, but he still feels a bit anxious—this is Maki’s room too, and she didn’t give him permission to enter.
“Loosen up,” Mai tells him. He gulps when he realizes she has been staring at him and his tense posture. “If you’re worried about Maki, don’t. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.”
“I just feel a little uncomfortable doing this behind her back,” Yuuta admits. Mai is cherished by Maki, so that means she is important to Yuuta as well. But Yuuta’s love has a hierarchy; maybe that’s wrong or selfish of him, but Toge and Rika will always come first in his heart, followed by Satoru—the man that found him on the streets—that welcomed him into the clan. Satoru hadn’t even realized they were distant relatives; he just saw a boy struggling with a technique considered taboo and welcomed him home with open arms. He wouldn’t have met Toge if not for him.
Of course Maki comes after them; meeting her was merely by chance when Satoru brought him to the Zenin clan one fateful day. He wasn’t expecting to find good company while visiting the notorious clan, but Maki left her mark. She wasn’t exactly the kindest person, sneering at him for keeping in Satoru’s shadow, but they were words he needed to hear. The Gojo clan has designated him the next heir, and part of Yuuta felt that he should strive to follow in Satoru’s footsteps. It was important to him that he had people who saw him outside of that.
It’s why he loves Rika and Toge so dearly. Rika could merely see curses—she wasn’t a sorcerer by any means, she lacked the ability to use cursed energy. Despite that, she was Yuuta’s first friend; she stuck beside him even when she found out the exact details of the Copy technique—even when their village formed a mob and drove him out—she followed him. Rika was more accepting of him than Yuuta’s own parents.
Toge was similar to him. His technique was seen as a curse upon his body. Yuuta believes the way the Inumaki clan treated him was even worse than the treatment Yuuta faced. Both of them had forbidden techniques, ones that ostracized them from the others; it made perfect sense that Yuuta felt drawn to Toge and vice versa.
“She probably won’t be too pleased I’m using Construction,” Mai states, drawing Yuuta out of his thoughts.
“It’s risky since you don’t have much experience…” Yuuta mumbles in thought. “But if anything goes wrong, I’m here,” he affirms with a soft smile.
Mai sighs, blowing some of her bangs out of her face. She cups her hands and holds them out, shutting her eyes in deep focus. Yuuta watches as cursed energy bubbles up and through her hands. It's faint, especially in comparison to Yuuta’s own reservoir cursed energy.
The cursed energy starts to form a physical shape before Yuuta’s eyes. He’s never seen a technique quite like this. Maki had mentioned Mai’s technique in passing before, that it was one of the Zenin clan’s hereditary techniques.
The lenses fully form in Mai’s cupped hands. They’re more circular in shape than the last pair Maki had. Mai breathes heavily, clutching the glasses tightly.
Yuuta acts immediately, moving to her side.
“Mai-san! Are you okay?”
Her breath comes out shaky, a trickle of blood oozes out of her nose. She shudders but holds up a hand.
“I’m fine,” she insists. “It’s not done yet—I need to imbue my cursed energy into them.”
“I can do that,” Yuuta offers. Mai already has so little cursed energy to begin with, using Construction and then imbuing a cursed tool will be risky.
“No. I want it to be from me.”
Yuuta understands the sentiment; he backs away, giving Mai more space to work. While Mai’s cursed energy is significantly low, his own was bountiful. It got to the point that Yuuta had to be careful with his own cursed tools—if he overexerted himself, he could easily break them. It’s happened with a handful of his swords before.
Mai is the ideal choice here; it’s more personal and less strain on the lenses. Still, there is the added risk that the glasses do not break—but instead Mai breaks.
Yuuta won’t let that happen.
“Done,” Mai wheezes out. Her pale skin is whiter than usual, she’s panting heavily, her hands clenched tightly. The blood continues to trickle down her nose, past her chin, until it drips down and onto her robes.
Yuuta extends his hand to Mai’s forehead. She flinches away at first before relaxing into the contact as his cursed energy becomes white. He has some understanding that the type of technique Mai uses requires brainpower, so he focuses his reverse cursed technique output directly to Mai’s head.
Her nose stops bleeding, and her breathing evens out.
“Did anyone ever tell you that your cursed energy feels creepy as hell?” Mai scoffs. Yuuta chuckles awkwardly and runs a hand through his hair.
“Several times,” he admits, removing his hand.
Mai looks down at her hands, staring at the new pair of glasses. Now they just need to find Maki.
“So when was the last time you saw Megumi?”
“A couple of years,” Maki answers Nobara as they walk down the halls towards her room. Maki shrugs. “I don’t know, no one wanted to talk about it when he left—same shit with Yorozu.”
“Yorozu?”
Nobara’s brows are furrowed in deep concentration, as if she recognized the name Maki mentioned.
“Yes, you’ve heard of her?”
“I think so. She was associated with Ryomen Sukuna, wasn’t she?”
“She was also a Zenin.”
Nobara’s eyes widen, her mouth opens before closing. Maki lets out a small laugh and squeezes Nobara’s hand in hers.
“It’s alright that you didn’t know; the Zenin clan would rather she be forgotten about. Another stain on their legacy.”
Maki pushes open the door and tugs Nobara inside with her. She halts once she realizes that they aren’t alone. She’s not surprised to see Mai—this is their shared room after all, but she wasn’t expecting the tall man beside her.
“Maki-san! It’s good to see you.” Yuuta exclaims, making his way over to her. Maki lets go of Nobara’s hand as Yuuta pulls her into a hug.
“I guess the Gojo clan has arrived?” Maki gives a wry smile as she hugs him back. Nobara inches over to Mai’s side.
“Who is that?” She whispers to Mai, although Maki is easily able to pick out the words. Mai raises her eyebrow at Nobara before answering her.
“That’s Okkotsu-san.”
“Wait—seriously?” Nobara looks back and forth from Mai and Yuuta as Maki lets go of him.
“It’s good to see you too, Yuuta.” Maki grins.
“It’s strange not seeing you without your glasses,” Yuuta admits, rubbing the back of his head.
“Shut up,” Maki huffs and mimics his movements.
“If you told me sooner, we could have brought a spare—Gojo-san wouldn’t have minded. He really thinks you're great, Maki-san.”
Maki bites her inner cheek at the praise, unsure how to respond. She’s never sure how to respond to praise, she’s just not used to it.
“Well, they only just broke. Naoya doing what Naoya does best,” Maki grimaces, watching as Yuuta’s face falls. She turns and steps back until she’s at Nobara’s side, taking the woman’s hand into her own. It’s time to change the focus.
“This is Nobara Kugisaki, the reason why you’re visiting.”
“Uh, hi,” Nobara says uncharacteristically meekly. Probably because of the reminder of the wedding, Maki tells herself.
“It’s an honor to meet you Kugisaki-san,” Yuuta gives her a bow; Nobara repeats the gesture.
“You too; I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Oh?” Yuuta smiles. “All good things, I hope?”
Nobara gives a little shrug, an expression just shy of smug. “Well, I’m not so sure about that.”
Yuuta opens his mouth and looks over at Maki before pouting. “Maki-san! What lies are you telling her?”
“I haven’t told her anything but the truth,” Maki deadpans.
Nobara giggles. “Relax, the people gossiping about you are the other clan members. Naoya went on a rant once about you too,” she adds.
“Oh,” Yuuta sighs in relief. Maki huffs out a laugh, finding it infinitely amusing that Yuuta would be more bothered by Maki selling him short than the head of the Zenin clan actively spewing garbage about him.
Mai clears her throat. “Speaking of your lenses, Maki.”
“Yes!” Yuuta stands upright, his eyes shining. “Mai-san has something for you!”
“I thought you just said you didn’t have a spare—” Maki starts. She stops when she notices the small wooden box in Mai’s hands. She lets go of Nobara and takes the object into her hands.
“Open it,” Mai urges.
Maki pulls off the top of the box and peers inside. She’s shocked to see a pair of new glasses sitting at the bottom. They’re circular in shape; not a dent or a scratch on them.
“How did you—”
“I did it with my technique,” Mai admits with pride, slapping her hand to her chest. Maki’s eyes narrow, and she looks over Mai.
Her twin looks to be in good health; nothing seems off. That should be impossible. The lenses look perfect. Maki gingerly takes them out before placing them on her head. Her shoulders droop, as if her body finally realizes she can relax; she doesn’t need to be on constant guard.
“Thank you…” Maki whispers quietly. “But—how did you manage to pull this off?”
“Okkotsu-san provided support. I made them, I imbued them, and he was there in case I got hurt.”
“Quite the team,” Maki murmurs, setting the empty box down.
“I had no idea that was your technique,” Nobara says.
“Well, you never did ask,” Mai taunts. Maki sighs, watching as Nobara’s face scrunches up in retaliation.
“I was telling Nobara about Yorozu—just before we got here.”
Mai sighs deeply. “Another reason our clan looks down on both me and Maki…”
“What’re you getting at?” Nobara asks, perplexed.
“Yorozu was the first Zenin to possess the Construction technique. And the next person to have that technique after her… It was me.”
“Geez… It sounds like you both got dealt a shitty hand,” Nobara mumbles, and Mai scowls.
“You’re not wrong. Twins, both girls, born to someone in a position of power,” Maki speaks before Mai can. She knows that Mai was probably going to start something with Nobara over her bluntness. Maki realizes it’s another thing she has in common with her paramour. “Now one twin can’t use cursed energy in a clan full of sorcerers, and the other has a technique that only reminds people of something horrific—even if Mai had a decent amount of cursed energy they’d still be—”
Yuuta interrupts her. “I honestly think that Mai-san’s cursed energy output can be improved. The Zenin clan doesn’t seem interested in fostering that development, though,” he shrinks as he speaks, now that all eyes are on him.
“It’s not like Mai wants to improve it anyway,” Maki waves him off.
“You don’t have to answer for me, Maki,” Mai grouses. “I can do that myself.”
“I’m just being honest,” Maki huffs in return. She doesn’t want to start a fight, especially not after receiving such a kind gift from her sister. She lets out a small groan before finally adding, “Sorry.”
“The Zenin clan just seems to be full of bad luck,” Nobara murmurs. “I mean the whole thing Megumi said about his father, both of you, I guess—I count too,” she awkwardly runs a hand through her hair. Yuuta hums in agreement.
“The Clan is soiled to the core,” Maki says. She then turns to Yuuta and asks, “Anyway, is it just you, Megumi, and Satoru?”
Yuuta nods. “Yes, Geto is acting as temporary head for the time being,” he grimaces as he says the name.
Maki has to stop herself from chuckling. She never quite got the full gist of why Yuuta didn’t like Suguru Geto; the lack of honorifics is rather telling. Maki had only heard rumors that Satoru and Suguru had a messy past before finally reuniting. She’ll have to get Yuuta drunk off sake and get the rest of the details. Ideally, with both Nobara and Mai around, she figures both girls would enjoy the gossip.
“You’re the next in line, aren’t you?” Nobara asks him.
“Oh, yes, that’s right. Gojo-san named me next in line if something were to happen to him.”
“So… Are the rumors true?”
“Uh,” Yuuta awkwardly tugs at the neckline of his robes. “Which ones?”
Poor Yuuta, Maki thinks to herself. She knows he tends to have a wandering mind from time to time; he’s more than likely worried about a new person judging him for his technique, given the previous conversation.
“That you have two partners!”
“I—that’s what you want to know?” Yuuta asks, bewildered. “It’s not weird—a lot of people do!”
“Don’t forget she’s from the sticks,” Mai offers up with a smirk.
“Shut up!” Nobara barks at her.
Maki scratches her head, watching this all unfold.
“I do… Rika-chan and Toge-kun. They’re at the Gojo estate as well.”
“Aw,” Nobara deflates.
“I mean… You’ll probably end up meeting them when you’re—”
“Yuuta.” Maki snarls, instantly making him shut up. She already knows Nobara’s anxious about tomorrow, and part of her knows she has to do something about this wedding. Maki just doesn’t know what she should do. If Nobara runs away, Naoya will come for Mai.
“Sorry,” Yuuta says quickly. He fishes out a piece of parchment from his robe and hands it to Nobara. “This is them—I always keep a piece of them with me.”
Nobara’s eyes widen with delight as she looks over the paper. It’s a small painting of the three of them together, with Yuuta in the middle.
“You bring this everywhere?” She asks, looking up from the picture before handing it back.
Yuuta gives her a nod before carefully returning the painting into his robe’s sleeve.
“That’s so sweet!” Nobara exclaims, and then she whispers to herself, “And to think I was almost jealous.”
Maki raises her brow at that but chooses not to comment. It wasn’t meant for her ears, although the idea of her being jealous of Yuuta was rather funny. She and Nobara just spent a majority of the day together, holding each other, kissing each other, and she gets jealous over this?
Whatever little jealousy Nobara had been experiencing in the last twenty minutes cannot compare to the rage Maki feels when she has to see Naoya stand near Nobara.
She has to do something about this.