Chaos Cursed (Geto x OC)

Fresh Start

A few weeks later

Umekiri carried her box of things and followed Gojo, who was wheeling a heavy suitcase behind him. The only things she kept from her home were her clothes, a few books, a notepad, and a photo of herself and her parents. She couldn't stomach looking at anything else that would remind her of what she had lost. 

What was taken from her. 

By a non-sorcerer, nonetheless. 

She isn't naive enough to blame all non-sorcerers for this one horrendous crime, but she can't seem to fight the nausea that roils in her gut when she thinks about fighting to protect them. It doesn't give the same rush of satisfaction that it once had, when she used to train with Gojo. 

When the newspapers and local television stations were reporting the crime, her old friends from high school tried reaching out to offer their condolences and help. She couldn't answer any of their calls or texts for almost an entire week. It turned out that the man who had broken into her home was a member of a local group of non-sorcerers who knew about curses and those who exorcise them. The members all have a tattoo along their neck indicating their position in the hate group. They somehow found out that my parents were once sorcerers and planned their murders. A group went in, but the man who Umekiri ended up killing stayed to rob the house. 

The thought absolutely infuriated her. 

Her parents would hate her newfound feelings for non-sorcerers, so she bites her tongue and hopes that the fury will disappear. 

The weather was particularly warm for the time of year. The snow had melted, leaving the world a muddy mess. Gojo took a large step over a puddle on the paved pathway that led to the school.

To Jujutsu University Tokyo. 

Had she come here a month or so ago, or last year when she really wanted to join, she probably would be running around with glee to see all the campus has to offer. But now, as things are, she had a hard time feeling too excited about anything. At first, she felt a bit uneasy about starting school here. After all, she never actually got the chance to speak to her parents about it. 

"Almost there," Gojo said with a glance back. 

Umekiri only nodded her response, keeping her gaze ahead. 

"I think you'll enjoy your classmates," he continued. "They're a varied bunch, but they're good."

She knew that he would keep pushing for her to say something, so she gave him a slight smile and said, "I look forward to meeting them." It wasn't a lie. She was actually excited to meet other sorcerers, especially ones around her age. That excitement was just buried underneath a lot of anger and grief at the moment. 

Her mind flashed to the man she met before her world crumbled. Suguru. She wondered if she would see him here. He had mentioned that he was a student once, and she never asked if that meant he was a mentor now. Like Gojo, who was a student here before he became a teacher. Sometimes Umekiri had seen Gojo wear an older uniform, one that she has received herself now. A student's uniform.

"Are you looking for someone?" Gojo asked. He had slowed a bit so that they were walking side by side. They passed a few other students, the group too engaged in a conversation to acknowledge them. 

Umekiri realized that she had been scanning the grounds, which, she also realized she hadn't really taken in. The campus, somehow warmer now that they had passed the barrier surrounding it, was a maze of buildings, bridges, and trees. She imagined that when the trees bloomed, it would be beautiful here. 

She shook her head and refocused on the path. "No."

They walked the rest of the way to the dormitory in silence. Gojo apparently had to convince the Jujutsu Council to let her become a student here, since she technically killed the non-sorcerer that day. And honestly, she didn't quite regret it. That man deserved his sentence. Every one of them should have been dealt the same punishment. 

Why non-sorcerers felt that they should rid the world of the only people who protected them against cursed spirits, she had no clue. If jujutsu sorcerers decided to quit or leave one day, non-sorcerers would never make it.

They needed them. 

"Well, here we are." Gojo slid open the door, revealing a plain room beyond. A single bed rested against the right corner, just underneath the only window in the entire room. The left wall consisted of a large wardrobe and a desk. A small shelving unit sat along the wall next to the door. "I had a friend who stayed in this room once," he added as he placed the suitcase on the desk. 

Umekiri put the small box on the nightstand and peered out the window. Her dorm room looked out over a small stream on the westside of the school's property. Beyond that was the forest that ran parallel to the property. She decided that she would have to hike around when she had a moment. 

"I can give you a tour if you want," Gojo suggested.

She shrugged. "Sure."

~~~~

After the tour, Gojo brought Umekiri to the cafeteria. They grabbed food and sat alone together at a table in the corner. He had suggested they find her classmates, but she wanted to meet them tomorrow. Today, she was okay with just him. Once tomorrow came, she would be completely submerged into a new life. At least while she is alone with him, there was a bit of her old life. After tomorrow, she wasn't sure if they would even be able to have their usual training sessions. Since she was a part of the school, she figured it would be her and her classmates from there on out. 

"I still don't know how to control my cursed energy," Umekiri said around mouthfuls of soba. She took a sip of her tea to chase away bits of food. "How can I be placed with a class who already know the basics?"

Gojo smiled. "Well, as far as your skill with weapons, you probably are about on tier with Maki. She is one of the best fighters I have seen, and she's only a first year." He put down his chopsticks and leaned back in the chair. "Yuta is getting there. He is good in hand-to-hand combat but needs more work with weapons and imbuing said weapons with cursed energy. Panda relies heavily on his brute strength while Toge is all about speed and his speech."

Umekiri lifted a brow. "His speech?"

Gojo nodded. "He is a cursed speech user. Do you remember me talking about them?"

"I do. I can't remember the main clan that uses that technique, but their speech is powerful." She finished her drink and pushed the tray away, resting her chin on her steeped fingers. The cafeteria was busy, but they picked a table far enough away from the majority of the crowd that it wasn't too loud. 

"Yes. The Inomaki clan. You won't get much of a conversation from Toge, he only speaks in rice ball ingredients."

She knitted her brows together. "Interesting."

"Basically, Ume, you'll fit right in." He added in a jovial tone. 

She watched the smile form on his lips at the sentence, but she didn't return it. "Except that I have no family and I've killed a non-sorcerer. If they find out, will they still accept me?" She wanted to be happy. To relish in the fact that she finally made it to the place her soul had always craved. But the parts of her that so looked forward to being here died a little that day in her childhood home, forever stained with her parent's blood. 

His smile disappeared and he leaned forward. "One word Ume, and I can find a new place for you. Don't feel like you have to be here." His words were sincere, full of worry and sympathy. "I get that our hearts change when things happen that rip them apart." She noticed that his frown seemed to deepen at that confession. It made her wonder what horrors he has seen in his life. "But, do know that many people here, including your classmates, have a sad story, too. They understand that life can be cruel. They push forward because of it. That is what we all do here."

He waited for her to say something. But when she didn't, he added, "Do you think you can do that? Push forward?"

Umekiri stared where she knew his eyes were underneath that mask. Gojo had told her once that some jujutsu sorcerers work with the government to fight against the hate groups that would threaten the lives of so many. Perhaps, for that, she could fight and train to become stronger. For the chance of bringing her parent's killers to justice. So, she gave her teacher a firm nod. "Yes."