❝Love opened a mortal wound. In agony, I worked the blade to make it deeper.❞ ━ Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
COPYRIGHT 2023 JASPERHAIE.
JUJUTSU KAISEN.
KENTO NANAMI x OC.
SHIMIZU AIYA STAND-ALONE.
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CHAPTER ONE: harsh truths— and even harsher goodbyes.
DESPITE BEING KNOWN FOR HER composure, SHIMIZU AIYA was not immune to bouts of anger.
They rarely ended well. Adults and authority figures had little appreciation for backtalk. Aiya noticed that those with patience and a gentle demeanour were far more likely to succeed, but only in the short-term. So, when given the right cause, Aiya was not beyond expressing her displeasure.
Even if it costed her.
"I won't allow this."
Aiya was hardly phased. "I'm not asking permission." She'd already made her choice.
A muscle in Umi's face twitched. A tell-tale sign of rage, but Aiya wasn't discouraged. She'd been dealing with Umi's anger for the better half of a decade. It didn't little to terrify her now.
"The arrogance..." she seethed. "Do you think the will of your family a joke?" Umi pushed the paper from her, using only one finger to slide it back to Aiya. As if the mere sight of it were an offence against her.
It was, but Aiya wouldn't let her know that.
"For your sake, I ask that you reconsider," Umi continued. "If you do this, you have no claim to your family's fortune."
Aiya was annoyed now. "I don't care."
CRACK!
The meter stick landed just inches from where Aiya's hands were splayed against the desk. In spite of her resolve, one finger twitched. More instinct than fear. It didn't matter how many times Umi lashed out at her, the meter stick never failed to miss. The hit was deliberate.
As principle, Umi held authority like no other. What went on within the halls of the Redwood Institute could hardly be considered virtuous, but its alumni were not dismayed. Sending their younger generations to face its wrath was a test. The purpose of the Institute was not to build up bright, blooming intellectuals. It was to groom strong, cruel heirs.
If you could survive Redwood, you could survive anything.
And Aiya had survived. First year was said to be the worst of it, but Aiya wasn't like the others. There was no indignation to beat out of her. No arrogance to correct.
Aiya had been born with nothing, so she shared little of the same sensitivity as her classmates. She'd long been used to being met with indifference instead of praise. Though, the ways in which the faculty could find fault in every action was interesting, if nothing else.
You could be crucified for nothing more than a wrinkle in your uniform. A slouch in your posture. While grades were important, there was nothing more critical than the way in which you carried yourself. Heirs were not like the rest of the world and so you were expected to act as such.
