CELESTIAL FLOWERS ( s. gojo )

arc iii ━ chapter ii. tranquility

a r c iii.
❝ and when the heavens cried in anguish,
all the burdens come tumbling down. ❞
━━ chapter ii. tranquility

KAZUKO WANDERS. It's an aimless action, her feet dragging her to the different places in the Nakano estate. The decor that reminds her of some faraway era, artworks that make the place look sophisticated and the hollow feeling that gnaws at her chest as she passes empty rooms and desolate hallways.

Kazuko expects to feel that feeling of fear crawl on her back, like it does every time she's in a windowless room, when she hears footsteps and rustling fabric, when she sees a knife. When she closes her eyes and feel metal on her skin. But the fear doesn't come. The places are illuminated by moonlight, silver glows cast in every nook and cranny. It's okay, I'm safe here.

She arrives at the garden. It's well maintained: carefully trimmed hedges, raked sand and pebbles, polished wooden benches and lit stone lanterns casting shadows on the bending bamboo. It wasn't her favorite place; she preferred the silence of her bedroom, the comfort of her blankets as candles and lamps illuminated the pages of her picture books. Beautiful sights she never tired of. And yet ever since those fateful days, Kazuko has begun to crave open spaces; no roofs, no walls, no locked windows. The sky in all its bare glory and the breeze that caresses your skin. Makes you feel free. Makes you feel safe.

(What a strange word for something you can never feel again...)

She sits in one of the benches and begins perusing through a Tokyo pamphlet, fingers tracing the signs and eyes skimming over the paragraph of descriptions: historical value, the number of visitors, shows the place featured and whichever famous actor visited it.

"Well, well..." A voice. Kazuko flinches, crumples the pamphlet by instinct as she turns to the direction of the sound, eyes filled with fear. Then the flames light his face, features becoming familiar and she sighs, loosening her grip on the pamphlet and subtly smoothening the creases she made.

"Gojo-san," she says in lieu of a greeting. Footsteps scared her, but the lack of them in the presence of another person moreso. She reverts to her blank face, hoping to erase the traces of earlier emotion.

"Isn't it way past your bedtime, twerp?" he asks, moving closer. Something registers in his face before he speaks, but he probably chose to discard it as his composure remains the same. A cheeky smile, hands on his pockets and the dark glasses unsuited for the current time revealing a slip of his blue eyes.

"How about you grandpa?" Kazuko takes a jab at the white hair. "You should be asleep by now."

"How rude..." Gojo answers as he skips over a couple of lanterns, his lanky frame making it easy. "I'm only what? A year or two older than you."

"And I'm only a year younger than you but you insist on referring to me as if I'm a child."

"You act like one."

Kazuko smirks as she looks up at Gojo looming over her. He's blocking the moonlight which only irritates her more. "Look who's talking."

Silence. He steps out of the way of the light and sits next to her. She makes a point to move away, like he's caught some infectious strain of a virus. Kazuko's ready to respond to any jab, but she opts for peace when he maintains his silence, watching the scenery in front of him. There used to be fireflies in this place, but they refuse to appear now so the only noteworthy view is the full moom up above shining silver light on the water lilies and reflecting on the pond water.

The wind blows, flips Kazuko's pamphlet close. She snatches it, her eyes lingering over the hiragana for Tokyo. She looks up at the sky, millions of stars scattered about. The Nakano Estate was situated in a relatively rural area, only a few buildings and modern establishments situated here and there. It didn't help that the whole place was surrounded by a forest and the only other place within sight was a tall industrial building they used for manufacturing steel.

"Do they have lots of stars in tokyo, Gojo-san? As many as the ones we're seeing tonight."

He shakes his head. "Nah, the lights from the towers and skyscrapers make that impossible."

Kazuko clenches her fist. It's going to be so different. A nightjar lands on one of the tree branches, claws at the wood. The scent of the forest lingers in the air. She's never been infatuated with this place, never grasped onto it tightly. It's always been Erisu that mattered, her duty which held more weight than her worth. Yet the idea of leaving was invoking unfamiliar emotions.

Kazuko decides against those emotions, closes her eyes as if it would stop the loneliness pounding at the sealed doors of her heart. As if it would cease the fear. The knowledge of incoming destruction. The threads that linked Erisu and her together, unraveling one by one.

"I see," she says to herself as if it's a consolation. What did the elders say again? It is your job to be the brain, the calculated tool. Tools didn't feel and so she must shut everything away.

"I'm sick of these stars anyway."

▪ ▪ ▪

GOJO TURNS TO HER. His eyes are wide in surprise. Jaw hanging open if only a little bit. What the hell was he hearing? Was she quitting? Or was Erisu going to be with her? A permanent move? Questions flooded his brain, but the only words he spoke were curt. "You're leaving?"

She nods. "Temporarily." Kazuko pulls her knees closer to her chest, her slippers falling off her feet. Her voice is shaky, hoarse. Just like that last time he found her in that dark room. He'd never seen somebody so broken as he saw her that day, the despair in her eyes, shaky breaths and trembling figure. "I got fired."

Gojo can't see her face. Her back is shaking. He knows she's crying. He doesn't know what to do. He's never been good at comforting people. He could hold her in his arms like he did the last time but Kazuko was half dead that time and in the rush of adrenaline, he thought that was the only semblance of comfort he could provide. This time, Kazuko is very much alive. In pain, but living. She's going to kick his ass if he so much as touches her that's for sure.

"Think of it as a vacation," he says, hopes his words won't elicit an antagonistic response. "Haven't you always wanted to travel?"

He thinks of the travel brochures she always reads, the postcards she looked at lovingly and treated like treasures. That barely perceptible glimmer in her eyes at the mention of new places.

"Going to school doesn't count as vacation," she says after a while.

School?

Ah.

Gojo had connected the dots. She was going to Jujutsu High, huh? Why go all the way to Tokyo if not? It felt more believable than her quitting. Was Erisu going to come with? Would she bear being apart from her mistress? Well, she was already crying and shaking so that was a negative. "It's a nice place," he says.

"You don't need to lie to me."

"I'm not. It's a strange place, but it'll offer you plenty of freedom. You'll meet people you can rely on, people you'll bond with. People you'll cherish." People you'll lose. He doesn't say the last part, tries to erase the thought of his bestfriend who's probably committing mass murder. How hypocritical was he being? Ever since he ascertained his place as the honored one, Gojo wouldn't rely on everyone, wouldn't bond with anyone the way he did with Suguru and yet here he was, preaching to a girl who reminded him of himself as strange as it sounded. All those burdens cast upon your shoulder. All that pain. All those emotions stowed behind facades. Lies. Lies. Lies. A bunch of pretty lies.

"If it's any consolation, I'll be there," he whispers. Probably the only bit of truth he's said for a very long time. "You can rely on me."

He expects her to ruin the mood, to say something blunt and deadpan or something along the lines of it's going to suck more if he's there, but she doesn't. Kazuko looks at him, a lone teardrop rushing down her cheeks. A smile on her face. A twinge inside his ribcage, what was that?

"Thank you."

━━ to be continued.
|| i really enjoyed writing this chapter. it's lowkey one of my faves hahahaha
|| please share your thoughts on the chapters, characters, etc. i really love reading them ♡