Chapter Text
You were exhausted, sweating, and drained but relishing in the fact that you were finally able to lie down in some particularly cozy grass, right in the line of some golden sunlight, after sparring with your teammates. This serene feeling, however, would not last long seeing as your teammates, both Suguru and Satoru, began dogpiling themselves onto you. Though your eyes were closed you didn’t need to open them to know that the two boys wore wicked grins at the thought of ruining your moment of relaxation.
“C’mon now you know you love it” cooed Satoru, the ever-confident pretty boy with unusually perfect white hair.
“Oh because I definitely love not being able to breathe“ You respond with a struggling breath. To which Suguru holds out a hand and begins rubbing two fingers together as if to play the world's smallest violin.
The three of you were third years at Tokyo Jujutsu High and had been working as a team since being first years. Although you were a foreigner, the two of them welcomed you wholeheartedly as a comrade and companion. Admittedly, it took you a while to figure out Satoru actually saw you as a friend rather than just a shy girl in a foreign land that he got to tease. They also respected the fact that you were able to hold your own when faced with cursed spirits. Both them and Yaga (your instructor) were shocked to see you use your cursed technique for the first time as it was truly unique the way you manipulated a granular blackness around you only to morph it into various shards that flew towards the opponent. You descended from one of the strongest cursed energy wielding families in America. However, the cursed technique held by your family was considered to be taboo in the states. Sorcerers were wary of the manner in which your kind, void benders, attained cursed energy. Because of this, it became common practice to take any members of your lineage that are imbued with particularly strong cursed energy and charter them off to international schools. Hence the reason why you were currently throwing two dimwits off of you when all you wanted was to make a B-line to anywhere that had food.
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Once at the hole-in-the-wall cafe that Satoru had dragged you and Suguru to you dramatically plopped yourself in the booth and laid your head on the table.
“Don’t worry Y/N, I’m happy to hand feed you if you’re so tired ;)” You merely flashed Satoru a look of disapproval before turning your attention to the menu in front of you.
“Dammit Satoru you could’ve told us this was a bakery. I was looking forward to some ACTUAL FOOD!” Your comment went ignored as the pretty boy simply continued to excitedly point at everything on the menu and exclaim how delicious it was.
You then turned your attention to the slick-haired raven of a man sitting across from you. Over the years you noticed that his eyes would always carefully and meticulously examine every room he entered. You found yourself transfixed with them as he scanned his surroundings. That is, until, in a flash they met yours. You hastily looked down at your feet but you’re sure he saw the growing warmth on your cheeks as you did so. Although Satoru was able to elicit your more outgoing side and you loved every second you spent with him, you found yourself questioning if he ever took anything seriously. Including you. But Suguru had a stoic nature that you found yourself naturally drawn to. Although you two were friends, he kept you at a distance and this only made you more curious about him. You continued to stare at the three pairs of feet under the table; you desperately wanted to reach one of your feet out and lay it on Suguru’s. Just to touch him, to close the distance between you and him in any way. The sound of the waitress fumbling with her notepad snapped you out of your thoughts and you looked up to see Suguru still glaring at you. A shudder ran through your body, could this guy read minds?
What you didn’t see, however, was the way Satoru examined you as you sheepishly ordered. Having sensed some kind of tension between you and Suguru he wondered if that was why you were suddenly shy. Why a rosy pink blush was painted across your face. It made him feel uneasy.
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Sitting cross-legged on the floor of your dorm you began to take in deep-breaths and slowly expel them from you. Your cursed technique was often quite taxing and was one that required constant reflection so it was habitual for you to do some meditation when winding down for the night. Your moment of quiet reflection was interrupted by the loud ringing of your phone. You reluctantly cracked an eye open and looked to see who it was. Geto Suguru. Your heart skipped a beat and you quietly chastised yourself for it before answering.
“What’s up?”
“Hey sorry if you were meditating or whatever but we have to go out on a mission :/ It’s a special grade so be quick.”
“Okay where does Yaga want us to meet?” You tried to hide the frustration in your voice as you slowly stood up, placed Suguru on speaker phone, and began changing out of your pajamas.
“He’s out of town right now but he said we can handle it. Satoru will be incharge so just meet up at his car.” With that he hung up and you finished getting ready. You felt a tinge of nervousness as you made your way down the corridor. The three of you had handled special grade spirits before but always with the supervision of a special grade sorcerer. You quickly shook off any concerns. Afterall, you were part of the strongest trio of sorcery students at the school. Possibly the whole region.
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You soon arrived at the location of the spirit; it was a secluded countryside with the last drops of sunlight hanging onto the trees that surrounded you. You thanked yourself that there would be no need to put up a barrier. The idyllic scene seemed utterly undisturbed except for the putrid smell emitting from an unknown source. The three of you carefully made your way towards the growing stench to find the silhouette of a mangled creature on a hillside. It certainly didn’t look like a special grade but you knew better than to underestimate an enemy. Because of the unknown nature of the creature you decided to be the first to close in on it considering your technique was useful for any combat range. Once it noticed your presence it spewed a rainfall of acid that showered over you. Luckily you were able to manipulate your void-like cloud above you to protect you. You weren’t, however, quick enough to dodge the acid soaked tendrils that shot from the spirits body leading one to pierce your gut. The sudden burst of pain snapped you into focus and you dispatched the spirit quickly. You sat holding your wound, silently cursing your supposed teammates that offered no help. You looked over with the intent of scolding them only to see them both fighting spirits of their own and by the way these spirits were able to keep those two on their toes, you concluded they must be special grades. Without properly assessing your injuries you lunged forward to offer assistance only to take one step then collapse back onto the ground. As you peered down you cringed at the sight of your shins and feet which had been splashed with the harsh acid leaving you momentarily immobile. In your helpless state all you could do was watch your peers as they engaged in battle.
Things seemed to be going okay, both Suguru and Satoru only acquired minor injuries so far but things took a drastic turn when you noticed a sheath of fire begin to envelop you all. Shit. you were all about to be in the enemy’s domain.
You watched helplessly as Suguru took a debilitating blow to the face leaving him only semi-conscious. Satoru wasn’t fairing any better seeing as his inherited abilities and cursed techniques were yet to be fully developed. He soon was laid out on the ground with extensive injuries and burns that engulfed his leg.
“They’re dying..”
“They’re gonna die..”
“They’re gonna d-...”
You’re panicked rambling was instantly cut off by the feeling that washed over you. The entirety of your eyes turned to a swirling smoky black color as the true power of your inherited abilities began to overtake you. This exact instance is why so many sorcerers are averse to your kind. You’re a void bender, a cursed energy user that lives constantly on the brink of becoming a cursed spirit yourself. This allows you to draw immense amounts of energy from the “other side” but in exchange you put yourself in the precarious position of possibly tipping over into the realm of cursed spirits. You must not let yourself be drawn into it. Into that void overrun by feelings of malice, hate, and sadness because doing so means never returning; it means becoming a cursed spirit yourself. Satoru and Suguru were aware of this fact which is why when Satoru caught a glimpse of the black sands swirling around you and the indifference in your eyes that he shouted your name. And he kept shouting it in pure desperation to draw you back to reality but there was no use. Seeing those closest to you in distress caused your mind to go blank and raw instinct had taken over as you calmly made your way towards the two spirits. Large wisps of the black cloud now surrounded you and some parts of your own body began to disintegrate into it, becoming one with it. Your lifeless black eyes met Suguru’s as he came out of his incoherent state but you didn’t blush, you didn’t feel shy, you simply held his gaze as you barely audibly spoke...
“Domain expansion.”
With that the fluid black structures that surrounded only you now expanded and fragmented until all traces of the flames were doused and the entire field was blanketed in your shadowy presence. Satoru’s desperation grew as he’d never seen you this far gone before. He crawled towards you and just before he could reach a hand out to grab yours, you made your way towards one of the spirits without even granting him so much as a glance. Suguru simply stared at the unfolding situation in awe.
You motioned your arms in a slow fashion around you as the void bent to your will. You and the spirit each ran towards each other and made a decisive blow. You had paused as you waited to hear the split as his body fell in half. He didn’t manage to strike you but his flames did burn off most of your uniform exposing the intricate scars that danced down your spine. All void benders received such scars at a young age before they could practice bending. The meticulously engraved patterns were carved into the skin during a painstaking process that was, by design, meant to be as grueling as possible lest you ever forget what it feels like to have a human body. They were not only the traditional markings of benders but also served as a painful reminder that you were human, and must remain human by any means.
Once your attention was turned towards the other spirit present you were able to dispatch him with ease. So why weren’t you calming down? Why wasn’t the blackness settling back down, back into you? You peered into the void, into the realm of cursed spirits and saw how enticing it was. How much you wanted to be there. Just as you began to lean towards the euphoric darkness that beckoned you a distant voice caught your attention. It was no more than the buzzing of a fly to you but it was enough to remind you of something. What was it again? Something important...something...important to me. The faces of your teammates flashed in your mind and coaxed you out of your dissociative state. But it wasn’t enough. At this point you knew you wanted to go back, back to your human state but you were so enveloped in the void that surrounded you that it would take a tremendous gesture to bring you out. Something that reminded you you had a body... something...
Before you realized it you had sliced multiple large gashes into the outer sides of each of your thighs. The pure shock, visceral pain, and rush of adrenaline was enough to fully draw you back out of your mind. You stood there, and with blurry vision you saw the outline of two figures coming towards you. You reached out a hand and took two wavered steps towards them only to collapse into one of them. They were both frantically talking to each other, saying something you couldn’t quite understand. All you knew was that you were safe now. You were relieved and perfectly content to just fall asleep in the warm arms that embraced your body. The last thing you remember was looking up and seeing some wisps of white hair then everything fading away as you drifted into unconsciousness...