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water9826 · 3 months

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Cursed Guardians (A JJK Fic)

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“I’m going to fucking murder you, Sukuna.”

“That’d kill you too, dumbass.”

“I don’t care! How could you NOT do the ONE thing I requested of you?!”

“Oi! It ain’t my fault that I didn’t notice!”

“You were supposed to tell me the second you sensed Yuuji’s presence! For fuck’s sake, you made a binding vow with me!”

“And nothing’s happened to me, right? I didn’t tell you about Yuuji on purpose. I didn’t sense him, so the binding vow wasn’t broken. I did nothing wrong!”

“YOU’RE SUCH A– I JUST– AGH! I HATE YOU!”

“WHAT?! I GOT US BACK HOME, YOU UNGRATEFUL BITCH!”

“Yeah, you did get us home, but you want to know what you also did? YOU ALERTED ALL THE JUJUTSU SORCERERS IN JAPAN! YOU PRACTICALLY INVITED THEM TO OUR HOUSE!”

“THEY AREN’T GOING TO COME! HAVEN’T YOU HEARD OF INTIMIDATION TACTICS?! THEY’LL BE TOO BUSY PISSING THEIR PANTS TO EVEN TRY TO FIND US!”

“YOU KNOW DAMN WELL-”

An ear piercing wail made all arguing screech to a halt. Ryomen glared murderously at Sukuna before heading to the baby’s room. The much taller being followed the man with a scowl that was more resemblant of a pout.

-One hour Earlier-

Once Infinite had deposited the group to the requested location, Ryomen had immediately gotten to work on cleaning up his long lost son of any grime he had collected when at the forest with soft baby wipes. The infant whined in pain when Ryomen gently brushed his finger against the dark markings on his chubby face and arms. A million questions flooded the man’s mind, but he ignored all of them due to the teary, golden eyes looking up at him. Ryomen’s heart melted and twisted at the same time at the sight. He soon began to prepare the formula for the hungry infant. The moment the bottle was placed in Yuuji’s mouth, the baby quickly devoured the meal greedily. As the infant drank, his loyal protectors were in a circle, watching him dutifully. At some point, Overtime used one of his wrappings to wipe off the mess of milk from Yuuji’s face due to the baby’s clumsy drinking. It caused the baby to squeal with laughter, causing everyone in the room to soften at the sight. Even Sukuna had to bite his lip in order to hide a smile at the happy squeals.

Once Yuuji had finished his meal and was burped, Ryomen carried the baby to the bathroom to give him a much needed bath. While the wipes had done well to clean off the dirt, a proper, warm bath was needed to help sooth the baby’s irritated skin and get rid of the tiny sticks in his hair. His six guardians had tried to follow them into the bathroom, but Ryomen was quick to scold them. Only Supernova was allowed to enter due to his small size. The cat purred loudly before jumping onto Ryomen’s shoulder. Yuuji made grabbing motions towards the purple feline. Because Supernova had been the first being that the baby saw, the boy had imprinted on Supernova. An undeniably smug look appeared in Supernova’s eyes as he peered at the other guardians while Yuuji’s attention was fully on the cat. Infinite squawked loudly in pure offense, the colorful feathers along his back raised to show just how unhappy he was at Ryomen’s decision. When the draconic creature tried to use his long body to steal Yuuji, Chimera was quick to summon one of his frogs to wrap around Infinite's beak before it could make contact. The dark goop immediately began to stick into the white fur of Infinite’s back, eliciting another affronted squawk.

“Damn, he’s loud. Think we’re going to have trouble with that in the future?” Ryomen raised a brow at Sukuna. Fortunately, the noise did not scare Yuuji in the slightest. In fact, the baby giggled and cooed at the draconic bird amalgamation. This made Infinite shake off the black goop and try to nuzzle the baby’s head, responding with coos and trills of his own. However, a swipe from Supernova’s paw caused the larger creature to whine with disappointment.

“It will definitely be a problem moving forward. That thing cannot live without annoying someone else. He never knows when to shut up. You can chop off his upper half and he’d still be a pain in the ass.” A glare was sent to the dramatic bird, who had used his smoky tail to hit Sukuna in the face. Sukuna suppressed a growl, not noticing that Ryomen was looking at him oddly from his choice of words.

Ryomen sighed, more than used to the ancient curse’s weird phrasing. He adjusted the now wiggling baby in a more secure grip and looked at the other guardians. He was briefed on the names and purposes of the guardians that would accompany Yuuji long ago, but nothing could have prepared him for how strange they looked. Any grievances he would have had disappeared once he heard his son’s happy squeals as Supernova began to groom the small amount of pink hair on Yuuji’s head. The cat was clearly different from the average feline. Not just from his purple fur and spikes, but also his behavior. All the cats Ryomen had interacted with in the past had no qualms with biting or scratching him if he so much as breathed the wrong way. In contrast, Supernova let the baby grab at his tail which most cats would have clawed someone for doing. His purrs were somehow much more soothing than other cats. The purring Supernova was emitting made vibrations go through Ryomen’s body, causing him to unconsciously relax. It had the same effect on Yuuji, so he knew he had to act quickly. Bathing a cranky baby was something Ryomen had no desire to deal with at this time of night.

To his chagrin, the five guardians that weren’t allowed to enter the bathroom were sulking. Boogie and Infinite were the loudest with their complaints, one was howling in pure agony while the other was chirping as pitifully as possible. The rose on Resonance’s left eye wilted at the edges while the green lights on Chimera’s face had dimmed considerably. It was nearly impossible to read Overtime’s body language, so Ryomen paid attention to the looser wrappings around his body. The wrappings were subtly reaching out in the direction of Yuuji. He felt terrible for separating the guardians from their precious ward.

Catching onto Ryomen’s internal dilemma, Sukuna rolled his eyes. “The guardians will not disappear if they are away from Yuuji for five seconds. I suggest you bathe Yuuji now, considering how sleepy the brat is getting.”

“He’s not a brat!” Ryomen responded instantly. Although, he knew that Sukuna was right about Yuuji’s sleepiness. “Just make sure they don’t break in, okay? They can watch by the door if they get too restless.”

“They’re already restless, so that is a given” Sukuna responded with a scoff.

Ryomen shook his head and flipped Sukuna off as he turned to enter the bathroom. The snarl that followed made Ryomen smirk as he closed the door. Big, honey eyes looked at the new space in complete awe. Yuuji was staring at the sink as if it was the eighth wonder of the world. A warmness that Ryomen hadn’t felt in centuries blossomed in his chest at the sight of his precious son’s curiosity. He had waited so long to have Yuuji in his arms again. If he wasn’t careful, he knew that he would be sobbing his heart out at any moment once being reunited with his long-lost son. However, duty calls, and Ryomen could not be bursting into tears while his baby needed him.

The bathroom had long been baby-proofed, so some of Ryomen’s many anxieties could be eased. He first took out a blanket from one of the cupboards and placed the fluffy material on the tile floor. Yuuji giggled when Ryomen booped his nose after placing him on the blanket. It took all of Ryomen’s self control not to cry and not to cradle Yuuji in his arms and never let go. He shook his head again, focusing on getting the supplies needed for the bath. Considering Yuuji’s sensitive marks, Ryomen chose the gentlest products he had. With that sorted, Ryomen knelt on the floor to turn the faucet on the tub. As the water warmed up, the pink-haired man stood and went to the cupboards beneath the sink. To start, he collected the foldable baby tub he’d bought online and placed it to the side. Afterwards, he grabbed three soft towels that had never been used before. Ryomen pointedly ignored the mirror of the sink, knowing just how rough he looked from his eventful day. If someone had warned him that he would be alerted of his son’s presence while buying groceries, causing him to run out of the store with one bag in hand as he forgot the rest of his groceries because he was too busy running down the street with Sukuna screaming directions in his ear, which then led to him looking like an insane person as he shouted at the parasite in his head for all to see, further fueling his determination to get to his son’s location as fast as possible, making him throw up at least four times from the overexertion as he sprinted about ten miles to the forest his son was in, only to find his baby boy wailing in fright and hunger whilst being surrounded by the most powerful and influential sorcerers in the country…then Ryomen would have drank all of Sukuna’s stolen saki until he forgot how to feel feelings.

I should still find the time to steal Sukuna’s saki. He stole it from the finest restaurants in Japan, so stealing it again shouldn’t count as a crime. Not like he can get drunk anyway . His musings were interrupted when a paw incessantly tugged on his pants. Ryomen snapped back to reality, and he was surprised to see Supernova sitting on his leg, nodding his head towards the tub with a disapproving gaze. Somehow, the sharp meow Supernova let out felt like a harsh reprimand. Shit, I really need to focus. Can parenting skills get rusty after a thousand years?

Ryomen breathed in deeply for a few moments to get his frazzled nerves under control. He placed one towel on the floor where he’d be kneeling, another on the edge of the tub to clean up splashes and bubbles, and the third was resting on the counter of the sink to be used at the end. Luckily, the water was the perfect temperature without Ryomen’s interference. At the same time, Supernova was being used as a living plush toy by a giggling baby. Yuuji was on the cat's fluffy back with a smile. His tiny hands gripped at the fur, and his head was buried into the purple softness. Golden eyes started to flutter as he further burrowed his head in the warmth. Supernova never once growled at the baby, only nudging the boy’s cheek to keep him awake.

When Ryomen turned to place Yuuji in the tub, a snort left his lips to see his adorable son trying to use Supernova as a bed. He gently plucked the baby from Supernova’s back and removed the baby’s diaper and dirty onesie. Part of him was worried that Yuuji would start wailing at the separation, but his fears were put to rest as his boy made grabby hands at Ryomen’s face. The father and son duo had matching smiles that could rival the sun in their brightness.

This time, Ryomen could not stop his tears from flowing when chubby hands grabbed at his nose. Yuuji giggled when Ryomen nuzzled his nose into the baby’s soft grip. Dark honey met golden honey, and Ryomen finally felt complete. One of Yuuji’s hands patted Ryomen’s cheek, coos of shere delight escaping the boy’s lips. His baby boy giggled again and looked back at his crying father. Ryomen let out a watery laugh that sounded more like a sob. “Oh…Hi…Hi, Yuuji … Hi …I’m your Papa, remember? I’m going to take care of you from now on, okay? You already have so many people who will always love you and protect you. You’ll never be alone. You’ll always have someone to dry your tears. You’ll forever have someone to hug you when you’re scared. You’ll always have a roof over your head. You’ll always be warm and cozy. You’ll never have to go hungry ever again. You won’t get sick anymore. I promise.” Memories of a long forgotten plague filled Ryomen’s mind. The helplessness. The pain. The grief. The rage-

Another pat on his face broke Ryomen from his spiraling thoughts. This time, Yuuji was patting his forehead repeatedly. His chubby cheeks were puffed out in pout. The baby looked just as disapproving as Supernova had earlier. Tears of pure joy soon streamed down Ryomen’s face as a much more pleasant memory surfaced.

“No sad, Papa! I hit sad away!”

“Yuuji, hon, you’re hitting me- OW! Stop it, sweetie, you don’t need to- OW! OW! Okay! Okay, the sad is gone! Good job, Yuuji! You can stop hitting Papa’s head now.”

“No!”

“N-No?”

“You still sad! Need more hits!”

“Wait, Yuuji- OW! OW! You’re doing this on purpose- OW!”

A genuine laugh burst from Ryomen’s chest. “I should have expected your lack of tolerance for sadness.” Ryomen kissed Yuuji’s forehead, remembering what he still had to do. He switched to holding Yuuji with one arm and placed the smaller baby tub inside the larger bathtub and waited until the tiny tub was at the appropriate water level. He also placed a stopper in to prevent the surrounding warm water from draining out. After testing the water’s temperature again, the pink-haired man carefully placed Yuuji into the baby tub. In an instant, Supernova jumped onto the rim of the bathtub in order to watch the baby like a hawk. There wasn’t much need to do so because the baby tub was shallow enough that drowning was impossible with Ryomen there. However, it was still nice to have someone care for his son so much.

Yuuji was confused at first from the new sensations, but he quickly relaxed into the warm water. Ryomen got out the baby wash and squeezed it into the water. As he swirled the water with his hand, Yuuji squealed as bubbles appeared. The baby was ecstatic as he slapped his tiny palms into the water. However, Yuuji had always been a boy with excess strength, even as a baby. Soapy water hit Ryomen in his face. He sighed and grabbed the towel on the corner of the bathtub. When he opened his eyes, he was relieved to see that no burn came, proving the gentleness of the baby wash and shampoo. He’d definitely be buying from the brand in the future.

Yuuji wiggled around and splashed some more, even managing to soak Supernova. The attentive cat simply shook his head to rid himself of the water and went back to watching Yuuji. The sight of the purple feline’s droopy, wet fur made Ryomen snicker. Eventually, Yuuji would calm down enough to allow Ryomen to properly wash him without making an ocean out of the bathroom. A mild scent of honey could be detected from the soap and the same was seen in the shampoo.

Maybe I should start calling him little bee. Ryomen thought to himself. With the stripes on Yuuji’s tiny body, it was easy to compare the baby to a bumblebee. However, he could not abandon his favorite nickname of all. The black stripes along his son’s face and body resembled a tiger much more than a bee. “Seems like my tiger cub finally got his stripes, hm?”

As cute as the stripes were, Ryomen knew that it wasn’t normal for a baby to have. There were two stripes on each side of Yuuji's cheeks, six stripes of varying length on his arms, three stripes along the length of each leg, and one circular marking on his chest. What was most concerning was that it was painful if he touched Yuuji’s tattoos. He was hoping the pain was temporary and would go away with time. For now, Ryomen would continue to use the gentlest products for his boy. When he began washing Yuuji’s tattoos, he treated them like they were more fragile than porcelain. Yuuji had initially whined at the touch, causing the spines on Supernova’s back to raise in anger. Fortunately, Ryomen’s face would not get mauled as the tiny whines stopped after a few seconds. On closer inspection, there was a faint outline of redness surrounding each marking. He frowned, but Ryomen knew of the many lotions he had bought specifically tailored towards irritated skin in infants. Turns out his many online shopping sprees in the middle of the night would prove useful.

When it was time for shampoo, Yuuji had splashed most of the water from his tub. Ryomen used a small pitcher attached to the wall on his right to scoop out the warm water surrounding the larger bathtub. It was still warm, so Ryomen gently poured the water into the near empty baby tub. Yuuji squealed with the additional water. Before he could splash Ryomen and Supernova for the umpteenth time, Ryomen plopped a dollop of shampoo on Yuuji’s head. Immediately, the baby cooed and tried to reach for his head. The man and cat both sagged in relief. Not wanting to have the shampoo run down Yuuji’s face, Ryomen used one hand to block Yuuji’s eyes and another to scoop water onto the baby’s head. With great care, Ryomen lathered the shampoo into the pink hair, making sure that every speck of dirt was gone. He had thought that he would need to spend ages removing each tiny splinter and stick from his boy’s hair. It seemed like Supernova had taken care of that when the feline had groomed the baby’s pink-hair earlier. Ryomen looked at the cat, who was still watching his boy with great focus. Thanks to Supernova, the bath would go much faster than Ryomen anticipated. It made sense that the cat would be so attentive according to Sukuna’s brief descriptions of the guardians.

Supernova will be Yuuji’s bodyguard in a sense. His regular form is smaller than the rest, but he is large for a cat. That’s why he can alter the size of his form to fit the situation, so Yuuji can take him anywhere. Supernova is capable of both long range and close range attacks with his blood manipulation technique. He’s the ‘all-in-one’ guardian and will protect Yuuji with his life. I doubt that protection will spread to you or me because that cat does not give a shit about what happens to anyone besides Yuuji. He doesn't even seem to care that much about the other guardians. Oh, and before I forget, don’t try petting him either. If you’re not Yuuji and you pet him, the little fucker will slice your hand off.

For once, Ryomen was grateful to Sukuna. If he hadn’t warned him, Ryomen would have pet the fluffy cat upon seeing Supernova. It was a good thing that Yuuji had shown nothing but happiness towards Ryomen. Any tears would spell his doom.

Yuuji luckily only continued to coo at Ryomen’s gentle ministrations. Once the shampoo was fully washed off, the peach locks were vibrant. Ryomen smiled as he realized that he, Yuuji, and Sukuna all shared the exact shade of pink. Additionally, they all had tattoos of their own. Sukuna had the most, but Ryomen had his fair share as well. He had the same markings on his forehead, nose, cheeks, and shoulders that Sukuna had. He had two black bands on each thigh and two on each calf. The two bands around each of his wrists were the most unique. They were thinner than the other bands on his skin. The top band separated into five lines that spread to his hand and fingers. In fact, the lines even grew onto his nail bed. No amount of filing would rub off the marks, so Ryomen got into the habit of painting his nails with the darkest polishes he could find. The lines would then travel down to the pads of his fingers, forming a perfect square on each one. He had an identical black square on the sole of both feet. All the squares were a symbol of the technique he has. While Sukuna had all the brutality and strength, Ryomen had the firepower so to speak.

“Oi, dumbass! Are you done yet or have you finally succumbed to your stupidity?” Sukuna’s muffled voice broke the peaceful environment. The curse had been relentless in teasing him when Ryomen had continued to puke during his dash to get Yuuji. He kept talking about how Ryomen would die any second with his ‘shitty’ endurance.

“Shut up, Sukuna! I thought you had ‘the patience of a god’!”

“I do, but not with these fucking demons throwing tantrums!” After Sukuna said that, Ryomen heard various whines and scratches coming from the other side of the door. A large claw tried going through the crack under the door with a miserable squawk. Infinite continued his mournful cries until a spotted wrapping yanked his claw from the door.

Seeing as his time was up and not wanting to have Yuuji’s skin get pruny, Ryomen grabbed the towel from the counter and wrapped Yuuji securely. He got out a soft cloth and began to dry Yuuji with it. He would have used a normal towel, but Ryomen was taking no chances in irritating his baby’s sensitive skin. Yuuji was quickly starting to fall asleep, so Ryomen used all his focus to be even more gentle. Behind him, Supernova was grooming himself to rid his fur of the soapy water. The cat went to the door crack and hissed. In response, the very tip of Infinite’s beak poked through. Based on the muffled swears from Sukuna and the sounds of things crashing, Infinite’s large body had knocked several things over in his attempt to peek under the door.

“Looks like our time is up, little tiger. Let’s get you to bed. You’ve had quite the day!” Ryomen carried a now dry Yuuji in his arms wrapped in another towel. The shirt Ryomen had been wearing was so soaked that he had to use the towel he had first bundled Yuuji in to wipe the slippery tile. He took off the wet fabric and threw it in the sink’s basin, too tired to clean the messy bathroom. It was a problem for future Ryomen. Current Ryomen was on his way to passing out like his sleepy son.

Supernova backed away from the door, shrinking in size before jumping on Ryomen’s shoulder again. His smaller form allowed the cat to curl up without having most of its body hanging off. To his relief, Infinite had removed his beak from the door. He took a deep breath in and opened the door and was met with a disaster.

Several vases lay shattered on the floor, spilling dirt everywhere. A few nails had been stabbed into the walls, and there were claw marks along the floor. Some of the paintings on the walls had been knocked over or were covered in slobber. Black goop managed to stain the ceiling. Shreds of spotted fabric also littered the floor. At the center of the mess was a tense Sukuna. He had his four arms crossed, refusing to look at Ryomen. It was clear that the guardians let their anxiety get the best of them, and Sukuna was a horrid babysitter. Before said curse could let a word out, Ryomen raised a hand. Whatever expression Ryomen was adorning was enough to shut Sukuna up and make all the guardians sheepishly back away.

Tomorrow. It’s tomorrow’s problem. That was the mantra running through Ryomen’s head. The only source of solace for the poor man was the weight in his arms. Yuuji was completely knocked out with his tiny head buried in Ryomen’s right shoulder. On his left shoulder, Supernova was purring again with his warm fur tickling Ryomen’s neck. In silence, the others followed the pink-haired man into the nursery.

The nursery was made with love and care. Yuuji’s crib was meticulously carved by a certain curse with a tendency for slashing. Intricate swooping patterns were carved into the wooden crib. Flames outlined the edges of the crib with sharp notches between each flame. On the front of the crib was the symbol on Sukuna and Ryomen’s foreheads. According to the ancient curse, it was actually a rune marked into their skins to offer strength and bravery. He didn’t entirely believe Sukuna, but Ryomen let it slide.

“If anyone messes up the nursery, I am killing every last one of you.” Ryomen whispered to the others as he placed Yuuji on the changing table. Even with the room being so inviting with its beautiful abstract paintings of flowers and tigers, an army of animal plushies, fluffy blankets with matching pillows, and impossibly plush carpet, all the creatures in the room felt like they were facing death itself.

The exhaustion of a single father was not to be messed with.

With the threat in all their heads, the remaining guardians were very careful as they maneuvered around the nursery. Chimera headed towards a dark corner, hiding himself in the shadow with only his green eyes visible. Boogie laid his large body on the side of the carpet in the center of the room, tailing gently wagging. The canine laid his head on his paws and got into a comfortable position to sleep. Resonance was the most cautious, knowing her sharp appendages could do great damage to the room. She sat down on the red rocking chair in another corner and curled up as much as she could. Overtime loosened the wrappings on his body to plop down next to the crib. This allowed him to take up less space. His more solid left side began to glow brighter, heating up the room as Overtime allowed the magma inside his body flow along the cracks of his body. Being the longest and largest, Infinite had the most trouble fitting into the nursery. He chirped in irritation before he saw the stone rafters on the ceiling. The ancient origins of their home had its apparent perks. Infinite trilled softly as he used his lengthy form to reach the rafters that fortunately supported his weight. The high position allowed Infinite to have a bird’s eye view of the room, which was quite fitting for the draconic bird. Infinite let his smokey tail dangle from a gap in the rafters. The tail opened slightly, revealing six eyes that were bright enough to be a nightlight. Each eye was focused on the sleepy baby in Ryomen’s arms, now dawned in a yellow onesie and fresh diaper.

Despite his fatigue, Ryomen’s eyes were bright with happiness as he rocked Yuuji in his arms, patting his back. In seconds, the baby went back to sleep. He had been woken up when his father dressed him and was eager to fall asleep again. Ryomen delicately placed the baby into the crib as if the boy was made of glass. A small, pink blanket was draped over the infant. All the occupants in the room were momentarily frozen as each was immersed in watching the small baby’s rising and falling chest. Supernova shrunk again and curled around the baby, giving Yuuji one last lick.

Eventually, the exhaustion within Ryomen grew too great to handle. His limbs subtly trembled with the effort to remain standing. What broke Ryomen from his slight trance was a notification from his phone. He had left his phone on the changing table when Yuuji had first arrived. Seeing how the baby was in nothing but a bundle and diaper, Ryomen ran to get something to put on his son. The man reluctantly walked away from the crib to see what kind notification would pop up this late at night. He stared at the bright screen for about a minute, his eyes widening the more the information settled in his tired mind.

It was a message from an unknown number.

Congratulations on the reunion! Your odd little family has made quite the impact on Jujutsu society! Word spreads quite fast among sorcerers, you know? You’re the hot topic of discussion! Say hi to Yuuji for me :) -K

The phone shattered in Ryomen’s hand.

Without a word, Ryomen stormed out of the room, harshly grabbing the curse by the door so hard Sukuna felt his arm pop. The guardians were startled by the sudden fury in Ryomen, but they stayed where they were. Yuuji continued to sleep, unaware of the doom upon them.

Ryomen had dragged Sukuna into the living room. He pinched the bridge of his nose with his hand. His breaths were rapid and harsh. It took a couple minutes for Ryomen to gather the energy to speak. The rage in Ryomen’s eyes overtook the fatigue. His first words to break the tense silence were snarled, sounding more beast than human.

“I’m going to fucking murder you, Sukuna.”

-Present-

Sukuna was fond of the home they had found.

The place they were currently in used to be an old shrine dedicated to Sukuna. This allowed the massive curse to exist outside of Ryomen’s body. While Sukuna’s form in the shrine was visible, it was not tangible by any means. Ryomen could stick a hand through his form, much to the curse’s displeasure and Ryomen’s amusement. If he reinforced his ghostly body with cursed energy, he would become more solid. However, once the curse was outside the shrine’s given boundaries, there was nothing Sukuna could do to remain corporeal. The only way that Sukuna could return to his physical form was if he used Ryomen to do so. Over the years, the two had developed a give and take method. If Sukuna wanted to take over when Ryomen didn’t want to switch, he would need to do a favor for the man. The same applied for Ryomen if he wanted to take back control. Sukuna could take over the man’s body easily and never give it back, but it was counterintuitive to his goal of keeping Yuuji happy and safe. This goal alo prevented Sukuna from going on a mass murdering rampage as any large-scale attacks from the curse would garner too much attention from the sorcerers.

So much for not alerting the sorcerers.

With how angry Ryomen was at Sukuna, he doubted that the man would allow him to take over any time soon. For now, he would have to be satisfied as being a ghost for the time being. He leaned against the doorframe of the nursery with his four arms crossed over each other. The guardians Sukuna had wished for were just as unruly as he remembered. While the six creatures were dedicated to protecting Yuuji at all costs, they still had no intention of respecting or listening to Sukuna’s orders. In fact, they were all glaring at him from the floor of the nursery. He rolled his eyes and glanced at Ryomen. The tired, pink-haired man was cradling a crying Yuuji, rocking him gently to soothe the child. It wasn’t the cry of a hungry baby or a baby that needed a change. No. It was the cry of a baby in pain. Two other marks had appeared on Yuuji’s face. Marks that made Sukuna tense up considerably.

A mark on the tip of his right eyebrow, splitting it.

A mark on the left corner of his lip.

That’s where Yuuji’s deepest scars used to be.

Sukuna cursed under his breath. The curse was well aware of what he had done in a world that no longer exists. While most of his memories had become foggy, he had a general understanding of his actions, especially of the times he made Yuuji suffer. Ryomen was unaware of what Sukuna had done to the world, and the curse had no plans of ever telling him. This new world was supposed to be completely different but it seemed like there were some ‘stragglers’ that refused to go. Events that could not be erased. People that would not disappear.

He had a feeling he already knew who this ‘K’ was. The random message sounded friendly on surface level, but Sukuna wasn’t an idiot. The hidden threat woven into the amiable text was easy to detect. There was only one person that Sukuna knew who was crazy and powerful enough to mess with Sukuna and not die.

Only time will tell if I actually made things worse . Sukuna looked at the cursed souls surrounding Ryomen as the man continued to comfort the distressed infant, all anger from his previous encounter with Sukuna gone. Due to the nature of their souls, Sukuna knew everything there was to Ryomen. He had originated from the man, afterall. Even so, there were stark differences between the two. Sukuna hated children while Ryomen had an immense soft spot for them. Yuuji didn’t count . Ryomen was impatient while Sukuna was willing to wait decades for a plan of his to come to fruition. Sukuna kept his composure while Ryomen had a temper that would go off at a moment's notice. Ryomen was violent when he needed to be while Sukuna reveled in the bloodshed he caused.

However, there was one thing that both beings could agree on: Protecting Yuuji at all costs .

It was a pathetic goal for one as powerful as him to have, but Sukuna had made peace with it long ago. The curse glanced at the baby, whose wails had turned into soft sniffles, and felt a stabbing pain in his chest. Ryomen was soothing his hand against Yuuji’s tiny back. He was humming a nameless tune with his eyes closed and a soft smile on his usually stressed features. It was likely that Ryomen had not noticed what he was doing as he hated whenever Sukuna caught him doing something ‘weak’. Likely too tired to be aware of his surroundings. Normally, Sukuna would have shouted at Ryomen to startle the high-strung man and laugh at his misery. This time, the curse stayed silent to allow Ryomen time with the boy he had been waiting for for centuries. His beloved son. Sukuna noticed the guardians for the baby gently copying the tune Ryomen was unknowingly humming. There were soft purrs, rumbles, chitters, and trills in the air. The small symphony of sounds began to lull the baby back to sleep.

The sight was utterly domestic.

This was not a place a curse was welcomed in. Sukuna knew that he did not belong among such a peaceful sight, but he was prideful enough to remain where he was by the door. Nothing would force Sukuna to do anything he did not wish to do.

Infinite looked at him.

All the warmth that Sukuna felt had turned to ice. No one aside from Sukuna himself noticed the change in atmosphere, meaning that the annoying entity had targeted him and him alone. The cocoon of adoration and protection had been closed off in order to prevent Sukuna from entering. It wasn’t like the curse had any intentions of entering such a pitiful environment, but it was still irritating to see the obvious attempts at pushing him away. Out of all the guardians Yuuji had, Infinite was the most ‘aware’ so to speak. Each creature was wired to perform a different duty in caring for the boy. They were beings that operated on pure instinct, complex thoughts practically impossible for their fragmented minds. What little remained of their souls aided in their jobs as Yuuji’s protectors, yet it also caused the entities to have leftover feelings towards certain people. All of them showed great disdain for Sukuna, but Infinite’s disdain was different. Of course, the others' dislike of him specifically was more due to a personal instinct than anything else. In contrast, Infinite looked at Sukuna with nothing but clarity in the many blue eyes within his tail.

Stay away.

You’re not wanted here.

Get out.

I’ll kill you if you get any closer.

Those were the messages Infinite was sending Sukuna with nothing but his piercing gaze. The blindfold attached to the creature’s face did not hinder in his staring contest with Sukuna. His tail had more than enough eyes necessary to stare the curse down.

If the sorcerer Infinite originated from was completely aware in that draconic bird form, then Sukuna would not be still standing. Gojo Satoru was currently an eighteen-year-old boy who recently entered his third-year in Jujutsu High. Infinite was not Gojo Satoru, simply the minute remains of a long dead man. While Infinite was the strongest out of the six cursed souls, the creature was also the most intelligent. Sukuna could see the gears in Infinite’s head turning at all times, analyzing any potential threats to Yuuji and his fellow protectors. The bird’s ability to have somewhat coherent thoughts would likely be a pain for Ryomen to deal with in the future. Sukuna had long gotten accustomed to Infinite's infuriating habits.

No matter what form he took, Gojo Satoru would always be a thorn in Sukuna’s side.

With a deep sigh, Sukuna made his way out of the nursery. He did not have the energy to deal with Infinite’s aggression. Ryomen’s exhaustion was caused by the man barely eating, running several miles with no breaks, and the overall stress of today. Sukuna was different. His fatigue was perpetual, something Sukuna had gotten used to over the years. In his previous life, nothing was capable of tiring Sukuna out. He could keep going whilst all his enemies collapsed from exhaustion. No one was powerful enough to challenge Sukuna in a meaningful way. This did not mean that his current strength and cursed energy had been weakened in any way, but his exhaustion had caused Sukuna to ‘settle down’ so to speak. While Sukuna still enjoyed causing mayhem, he did not seek out as many opportunities to do so anymore. In his previous life, Sukuna had hated sitting still and being lazy. Now, Sukuna took naps and meditated often.

He did what he wanted, and Sukuna wanted to relax.

Ryomen would likely ignore him for the rest of the night. Additionally, the curse knew damn well that the stubborn man would refuse to sleep in his own room tonight. Sukuna mentally prepared himself for the crankiness to come since there was no way to get Ryomen to sleep on anything but the nursery floor.

The cool air of the night greeted the curse’s translucent skin. Sukuna could not properly feel the wind as a specter. It felt like a thin barrier was between him and the breeze in this form. He shook his head and continued walking until he saw a great pond in the center of the shrine’s gardens. The pond acted as a well of cursed energy for Sukuna. Whoever had created the shrine clearly dedicated every detail to the King of Death. Sukuna found himself liking this title so much more than his previous one. Crimson, wooden poles surrounded the shrine, a bovine skull on the top of each one. The poles also served as a visual marker for the area Sukuna had to stay within. Anywhere beyond the poles would cause Sukuna to discorporate and be sent back into Ryomen’s body.

Two large torch towers stood on each side of the back entrance of the shrine. The inferno on each tower was contained with a basin of human bones. When Sukuna had first discovered this shrine several years ago, Ryomen had lit the tower with his flames, and he had yet to relight it. It was one of the very very few times Ryomen had managed to impress Sukuna.

His supposed followers had sacrificed countless people in honor of their king. The remains of the sacrifices were buried underneath the ground, in the ashes and structure of the torches, carved into the wooden poles, and placed in the pond Sukuna was sitting in front of. Sukuna had a faint memory of the cults that were created to worship him, mostly done out of fear, which was a massive ego booster. However, Sukuna never paid them any mind, so the curse had been very surprised yet pleased to see a shrine dedicated to him that had remained intact in the modern era. At Ryomen’s many complaints, Sukuna let the human update the interior of the shrine with the technology of the time. It took a long time due to the unique layout of the temple. Stone had been used to build many support beams and even rooms. With Ryomen’s revamping the entire insides, Sukuna had full control over the decorations of the outside. Sukuna changed nothing, much to Ryomen’s displeasure. He only added one thing. Koi.

With the pond already built into the ground, Sukuna simply stole several koi from the many luxurious ponds of rich establishments and homes. Ryomen had yelled at him when he realized that Sukuna had been using his body to take priceless fish away from their owners in the dead of night. The man had said how important those fish must have been and other nonsense that Sukuna ignored. If those fish were so precious, then it shouldn’t have been so easy to pluck each one out of their pond! Sukuna tossed all the fish into the large pond with little care, promptly returning control to Ryomen. Despite wanting to argue with Sukuna about his terrible decisions, Ryomen had to care for the many stressed koi fish. He had always been fond of being a caretaker, so it was easy for him to fall in love with the colorful fish. Eventually, the koi would swarm to Ryomen each time he approached the pond, reminding the man of how his late son would beam at him and run into his arms. On the other hand, it had taken a few weeks for the fish to stop scattering in Sukuna's presence. During those weeks, the fish began to change in appearance. The immense cursed energy inside the pond began affecting the koi. Instead of their vibrant oranges and whites, the fish were either fully black, red, or a mixture of the two. Their fins got longer and more elegant at the price of having spikes emerge from their entire dorsal fin. Ryomen was upset at the change, but the koi’s bright personalities had, at least, remained. They still swarmed to the surface for food, but they now had sharp teeth in their mouths like piranhas. Sukuna preferred the change and began to sit at the pond every night, which he was currently doing.

Sukuna’s form became more solid at the proximity to the pond. It was wide and deep, allowing the fish ample space to swim in. At this hour of the night, the water looked pitch black, but Sukuna had no troubles seeing in the dark. His superior vision allowed the curse to see the depths of the pool. Skulls could be found everywhere beneath the waters. Some of the smaller koi used the skulls as a makeshift cave while the larger fish used the remains of rib cages as hiding places. Many plants in the pond grew out of or around the many bones at the pond’s bottom. It was a human graveyard with aquatic life.

The presence of death would never hinder the growth and birth of life.

How stubborn.

The koi were not very active at this hour, but some swam to the surface to greet the large being observing them. Four fish had come to see him. One was entirely black while the other two were red with varying black patterns. In contrast to the darker fish, there was a pink koi that swam eagerly to the hand Sukuna submerged.

“You’re new, aren’t you?” Sukuna smiled at the small koi. It was fitting that the pond would have a new arrival to match Yuuji’s own arrival. The curse knew the pond had become something akin to the supernatural from the cursed energy of the sacrifices, but he did not care as long as they stayed in the pond. The tiny koi matched the color of Sukuna’s hair. The familiar peach was present in Ryomen’s and Yuuji’s hair. Having pink hair was a shared trait the three had, and Sukuna took pride in their unique hair color. He knew that Ryomen secretly held the same pride. It immediately made the pink koi Sukuna’s favorite. Small pecks tickled Sukuna’s large palm as the smallest koi tried to investigate what the strange object was. It was endearing to see such a young creature be so eager to go near a curse like him. One reason that Sukuna frequented the pond so much was something he would not tell a soul even if he was tortured.

Interacting with the koi helped Sukuna learn how to be gentle.

There were a few accidents where Sukuna was too rough and injured or killed the fish. He used his reverse technique to heal them, which his old self would have guffawed at. Slowly, Sukuna learned how to control the strength of his grip. Now, the curse had no worries of hurting the young koi that was swimming through his fingers. While he did prefer to have claws instead of his blunt nails, it was necessary for the safety of the delicate fish. More importantly, his lack of claws was vital if he wanted to hold Yuuji without cutting the poor baby’s skin. Skin that was already marked up.

Because Sukuna knew he was alone in his shrine that was in the middle of nowhere, Sukuna let his body deflate. Ryomen and the others were too preoccupied with Yuuji, so no one would be coming to see Sukuna any time soon. With solitude came comfort for the curse. He had always preferred being alone than wasting his time with the weak. The koi were his only company, and they could not speak of the troubles plaguing the ancient being. Sukuna caressed the pink koi before retracting his hand. With practiced ease, the man folded his four arms and placed them in his lap. As if knowing that Sukuna would no longer pay attention to them, the small group of koi swam away into the depths of the pond. Without the fish’s movements, the dark water stilled. The combination of the calm waters and bright moon made the pond turn into a makeshift mirror. It was something Sukuna did not appreciate whatsoever.

Seeing his reflection within the dark waters made Sukuna’s features twist into a grimace. In a forgotten world, Sukuna used to have two eyes and one pair of arms. After his planned death, his cursed form reflected the monstrous crimes Sukuna had committed. This was not to say that Sukuna was self conscious or had low self-esteem. Sukuna did not care about his ugliness whatsoever. It was a fact that he was unpleasant to look at. His looks had no effect on his power, so he offered them no further thought. Additionally, he had never had an interest in courting someone and never will. Yorozu was the only person who had wanted him as a suitor, and he met all of her advances with boredom, disgust, and a fatal slash to her heart. His deformities irked him because of the memories that they brought forth.

He had had more than enough time to accept his deformed face and body. However, Sukuna was not delusional enough to say that his unique features were what made him attractive or that he had some ‘hidden beauty’ within. Absolutely not. His two left eyes were a demonic crimson while his two right eyes were a gaudy pink. A wooden slab of sorts had fused into the right side of his skin, causing his right eyes to be more vertical. It was the same wood that Sukuna had carved runes into that would ensure his new life after being burnt alive. Both the wood and his new pink eyes were a harsh reminder of his forgotten origins. While the wood represented his birth as a curse, the pink of his eyes were a symbol of the cause of his death. Itadori Yuuji.

Going against the rules of nature and time had its consequences. Besides the new color of his right eyes, Sukuna had several new tattoos adorning his skin. A thick, black band wrapped around each of his ankles. On the outside of his left leg, a blood red chain that emerged from the band on his ankle marked his skin. The same pattern appeared on the outside of his right leg, but the tattoo was black instead of red. Each of his hands had their own unique mark at the center of his palms. His bottom right hand had Mahoraga’s spinning wheel which had allowed Sukuna to reach new heights in power, his bottom left hand had the outline of the volcano that resided on the head of the cyclops disaster curse he’d fought, his upper right hand had an eye that represented the annoying Six-Eyes user, and his upper left hand had the horizontal stitching pattern that plagued each of Kenjaku’s stolen bodies. It was fitting. The markings on his bottom set of hands were a harsh reminder of the destruction Sukuna had wrought while the markings on his upper set represented the two people that had troubled Sukuna the most.

None of the new markings plagued Sukuna as much as the tattoo on his chest.

A red spider lily seemed to grow out of the center of his chest. The flower was there for all to see since Sukuna refused to cover his top half. It was a simple drawing, but its simplicity only bothered him more. Such a delicate design had no place on his monstrous body. The deep reds of the flower blended perfectly into the blacks of the tattoo’s outlines. Sukuna knew damn well what the stupid flower symbolized. Death and Rebirth. He had no desire to look further into the supposed meanings. From what he had gathered over the past few centuries, this flower was poisonous, often grew or planted in graveyards, and only bloomed for a short period of time during the Autumn Equinox. It was also ugly in Sukuna’s opinion. The crimson of its petals were its only redeeming quality. Everything else was horrendous. The petals themselves were so thin and spindly. It looked like a spider with too many legs had gotten tangled with the shredded remnants of a better flower. However, there was nothing Sukuna could do to remove any of his new markings. He had killed the world, and then started it anew. Sukuna more than deserved the reminders of his misdeeds bashing him on the head for the rest of time.

It was strange to think of his actions as misdeeds. Even now, the regret did not come to Sukuna naturally. He was not a creature made for sympathy or guilt. The only reason that Sukuna looked at some of his prior acts and winced was the effect they had had on Yuuji. At the time, he had laughed at the boy’s misery and went out of his way to torture him. He had taken great pleasure in breaking the child back then.

I’LL DO ANYTHING! DO WHATEVER YOU WANT WITH ME! THIS IS JUST LIKE WHEN YOU FIXED MY HEART! PLEASE HELP JUNPEI!

NO. HAH! YOU’RE MINE! YOUR FUTURE AND EVERYTHING YOU WILL EVER POSSESS! YOU DON’T HAVE A SAY IN THIS! YOU’RE HELPLESS! HOW SAD! YOU’RE SO PATHETIC, YOU STUPID BRAT!

Hey, brat. Take a good look.

…Die…Only me…Just me…DIE! DIE! RIGHT NOW! DIE! JUST ME! JUST ME!

Remember when I said…we’d see…something interesting…brat?

…Fushiguro?

SUKUNAAAAAAA!!!! YOU!! WHY CAN’T YOU JUST LIVE A NORMAL LIFE?! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO SPREAD SO MUCH MISERY?!

Well, allow me to ask you this…Why are you so weak? You’re weak, yet you cling to life!

How can a creature that falls apart with one touch say that it always wants to be happy? The helpless have no choice but to swallow the suffering life gives them.

Then let’s see if you can swallow… my suffering.

I miss them, Sukuna! I can’t take it anymore! I want to be with them! Let me be with them! PLEASE !

He had never tortured someone as much as he had tortured Itadori Yuuji. Hell, Sukuna had gone out of his way to hurt Yuuji like it was his sole purpose in life. It was extraordinarily difficult to balance the feelings he has now towards his actions and his feelings he had in the moment of his murderous actions. Now, seeing Yuuji wail in pain from markings that weren’t supposed to be on the baby’s smooth skin, broke something in Sukuna.

Even after everything he had done to give Yuuji a better life, Sukuna had still failed.

Yuuji’s suffering had been too great. Restarting the world was not enough to erase all the trauma the boy was put through. His pain clung onto his infant self, who was supposed to be free of the pain of the past. Considering Yuuji had appeared far sooner than Sukuna expected and the message from an unknown number, the curse knew that there was trouble afoot. A third party had likely inserted themselves to ruin what Sukuna was trying to repair.

Sukuna couldn’t help but dig his nails into the stitching on his upper left hand.

Losing was equivalent to death. It was a belief that Sukuna still held, so this new failure affected the man greatly.

He had thought that all the ‘mushy feelings shit’ that he had felt when he had held a sobbing Yuuji was from the reappearance of Ryomen’s soul. In a way, it was from Ryomen. The long buried memories of a man losing his child and the overwhelming fondness for the teen were all Ryomen. In this new world, Sukuna was confident that he would not be subjected to the softness ever again. Once more, the world rightfully hated Sukuna. Emotions that Sukuna still could not place raged in a violent storm inside Sukuna’s mind at all times.

All the times where he had laughed while Yuuji sobbed uncontrollably from a vicious nightmare. All the times where he had relentlessly reminded Yuuji that the boy’s existence only caused pain. All the times where he had screamed within Yuuji’s head about his uselessness and weakness. All the times where he had denied Yuuji’s broken pleas to stop after barraging him with the reasons why the deaths of his loved ones was Yuuji’s fault.

The satisfaction he had when he saw the light in the boy’s eyes fade away.

The glee he had when he saw the smiles the boy was known for disappear.

The pride he had when he saw the unbreakable boy shatter further and further with each death of his loved ones.

He saw the memories of a younger Ryomen playing with a toddler Yuuji, causing the child to squeal with laughter. He saw the memories of the utter adoration Yuuji had shown towards his father and anyone around him. He saw the memories of the agonizing decline of Yuuji as an unknown sickness sapped his light until it was completely extinguished.

Because of Sukuna’s mistakes, Yuuji might have to go through that suffering all over again.

Small ripples agitated the calm surface of the water. The reflection of the massive curse was muddled as more droplets broke the crystalline waters of the pond. Its prior reflectiveness had vanished.

The mind of the being sitting before the pond had vanished as well.

A very, very long time ago

When Sukuna had requested for the rebirth of the world, he did not mean it literally. He imagined that the new timeline would begin the same year Yuuji swallowed his first finger.

It seemed like the world had other plans.

Sukuna had no recollection of when he had ‘appeared’. The best way for him to describe it is the moment he had properly gained consciousness. His first memories were laying on an empty beach with nothing but the clothes on his back. At first, Sukuna was confused as to why he was at an empty beach. After a few seconds, the knowledge of what Sukuna had done and the life he lived prior came rushing to him all at once. Once he remembered, the man had briefly panicked that his attempt at time travel had not worked. This was mainly due to the beach being identical to the one that Sukna had been at during his last moments with Yuuji.

At the thought of the pink-haired boy, Sukuna jumped to his feet, mind frantic, and looked around. Immediately, the curse knew that the world was indeed different. Yuuji was nowhere to be seen, and there were no buildings or roads in sight. The only thing that Sukuna could observe were trees as far as his four eyes could see. However, the grand forests were barren of life. There were no birds chirping in the air or the rustle of animals in the trees. This lack of life made Sukuna remember that he had eliminated all life on Earth. He was confused, though. The plant life had returned, so where was the wildlife?

His question was unfortunately answered in the worst way possible.

A strange creature began to crawl out of the ocean on tiny flippers. Sukuna stared at the fish-like animal with his mouth agape. The thing’s body was long and slender with a wide head that resembled an alligator’s. Thick scales covered the creature, who was slowly emerging from the sea with uncoordinated movements. It was unlike any animal Sukuna had seen before and he had been alive for thousands of years.

It looked like a rough draft of an animal that had escaped before it was finalized. Something one would see in prehistoric times.

…Prehistoric.

“Oh no. No. No. No. No. No. No. NO. NO !” Sukuna screamed at the clouds as the realization dawned on him. Surprisingly, the lizard-fish-thing did not react in the slightest to the loud roar Sukuna let out. When Sukuna went to kick the sand in pure frustration, he froze when he saw his foot go through the white particles. The sand showed no hints of being disturbed.

The world had restarted.

He was a ghost again.

The evolution of wildlife had begun.

Over the years, Sukuna would watch the rise and fall of so many species that he could not be bothered to remember. His previous experience being a cursed object for over a thousand years helped immensely in dealing with the excess of time Sukuna had. He had to spend millions of years waiting for the era of humans to come with nothing to do. Going into a dormant state for as long as he could was the only way Sukuna could deal with the waiting without going mad. Sleeping until he was awoken at some point had become his main activity. Time had become a mystery to Sukuna. He would sleep and wake up without knowing how much time had passed. Usually, he was able to keep track by seeing if there were any new creatures or evidence of further evolution.

At the start, Sukuna had used his excess time to explore the beginnings of the young planet. Traveling across the world had been easy due to his abilities remaining intact. His true form was Sukuna in his prime afterall. It was the strongest and the fastest. Sukuna could explore vast lands with his inhuman speed. There was no rush to explore every inch of the world, so Sukuna would only go on these excursions when he felt like it. Most of the land was the same as there were no distinguishing landmarks at the time. He had gotten bored of the plant life and unimpressive wildlife and decided to space out like he did when his soul was split into his twenty fingers without a vessel.

His first ‘nap’ had him awake in an entirely new era. Giant creatures roamed the land with their superior adaptability and strength. Sukuna’s boredom had disappeared as he saw the head of a dinosaur appear over the cliff he had chosen to rest on to eat the leaves off a tree next to him. It was the first time that Sukuna had been truly enamored by an animal. He blinked the sleep from his eyes and crawled to the edge of the cliff to see the dinosaur in its entirety. When he looked down, he saw that the head was attached to an impossibly long neck that belonged to an even bigger body. Other dinosaurs of the same species could be seen feasting on the vibrant leaves of the many trees. Because his presence did not affect his surroundings, he could get as close as he wanted to observe the new creatures. The only reason why Sukuna recognised the massive reptilians as dinosaurs was because Yuuji had been fascinated by all things jurassic as a child. As his vessel, Sukuna was able to see through his memories, something he never told the boy. He had done this as soon as he could to familiarize himself with his vessel while trying to find anything significant about the teen that could work out in Sukuna’s favor. At the time, he had found nothing useful and labeled the boy as a boring waste of space.

Being face to face with the grande creatures made Sukuna see all the reasons why Yuuji had been so intrigued by them. While there were curses he’d seen that could rival the dinosaurs in size, no curse could beat the grace and beauty of the animals. Curses were made from negativity, so their appearance would reflect that. Curses were ugly, vile creatures that were deformed and perverted. The animals before Sukuna were the complete opposite.

It was the first time Sukuna had been fond of a life other than his own.

The slow evolution of the world was making the man experience many firsts.

Sukuna enjoyed studying the fearsome creatures that dominated the land. His favorite specimens were those with intelligence and bloodlust. He would sit and watch packs of tiny dinosaurs overwhelm a much larger opponent, eating them while they were still alive. He found great humor in the small arms of the biggest carnivore of the era. The maddening boredom that had been plaguing him was momentarily cured as Sukuna took the time to learn about each new species. The old curse made up his own names for the many dinosaurs he saw. The faded memories of the book Yuuji loved only served to make Sukuna recognize the basic shape of certain creatures. In his head, Sukuna called every reptilian creature a dinosaur.

For once, Sukuna found himself appreciating nature. Waiting millions of years alone was a punishment, and it was affecting Sukuna more than he anticipated. He had always been indifferent to everyone and everything besides himself. Uraume was the closest Sukuna got to appreciating another’s existence. In the past, Ryomen only valued strength and nothing else. Without strength, one might as well cease to exist. His forced isolation made Sukuna rethink many of his prior beliefs. The only belief that remained unchanged was his belief that losing was equivalent to death. However, said belief only applied to Sukuna. He would never let himself forget his failures that led him to his current predicament.

One day, when Sukuna was watching his favorite specimen, he heard strange noises he had not heard before. The creature Sukuna was looking at was an old, battle-worn triceratops, but Sukuna had named the animals ‘Tri-horns’ in his head. The triceratops snapped its head at the same time Sukuna’s did. Sukuna’s eyes widened as he detected large amounts of cursed energy coming from the bushes. Humans were not supposed to exist yet, right? The man cursed himself for never bothering to learn the history of…well… anything .

Sukuna summoned his trident in his lower right hand, a manic smile on his face at the chance to finally interact with something. There was a tense moment of silence before multiple blurs burst from the bushes and trees. The triceratops snorted and went back to eating its meal of leaves.

Meanwhile, Sukuna’s brain was malfunctioning. Six entities stood before him. They were making direct eye contact with him, meaning that they could see him unlike every other creature. He stood tall with his trident. “Who are you?”

No response came, disappointing filling the old curse. He had hoped that they were capable of speech. Millions of years without talking to anyone was taking its toll, even for an antisocial person like him. Sukuna swallowed his disappointment and began observing each entity. The more he looked, the more distressed he became. There were too many similarities.

A black stripe across a nose.

The muscular physique of a meat-headed gorilla.

Deadly nails and roses.

Spotted fabric and peculiar glasses.

Bright green eyes and shadows.

A blindfold and six blue eyes.

“Goddammit.” Sukuna dematerialized his trident to rub at his temples. He recognized each one because of the brat’s many memories of them.

At the center of the group, a white dragon with bird-like qualities was putting on the most smug expression Sukuna had ever seen. The draconic bird got up and personal to Sukuna, pecking at his head while letting out shrieks of laughter. For the time being, Sukuna allowed it as his mind was still recovering. His stress only grew worse when a familiar voice spoke into his head.

Y̶̮͌o̵̮̎u̴̯̅r̶͙͑ ̶͍̓g̸̠͒ṳ̴̐a̴̙͊r̶͔̅ď̸̘i̴͈̊a̷͙̐n̸̞̽s̵̟̍ ̸̱̍h̶̤͝a̵͖̔v̷̦̚ê̶͈ ̷̣̋ā̵̞r̶̺̓ŗ̸͋ḭ̷́v̷̡͛ȇ̶͍d̸̥̅!̵̧̈́ ̶͈͂I̴͎̾ ̶͔̕c̸̡̿ḁ̷̽n̸͚͑’̸͕̎t̴̊͜ ̵̭̄w̵͍̒a̷͜͝i̵̺̒ẗ̷̳́ ̶̹̍t̷̢̕o̴̫̅ ̷̦͌m̷̦̓a̴̲̎k̷͙͠e̴͙͋ ̸̣̌t̵͇̕h̵̦͌e̴̬͒s̷̛̩e̶̤̍ ̶͓̚n̵̜͐ę̵͘x̷̝͑ț̵͝ ̷̫̚c̶̞̓é̷̲n̶̕͜t̵͖̕u̸̜͗r̷̙̐í̸̩e̵̝͊s̷͇͐ ̶̫͒a̵͍̽b̴̘̐s̶̩̿ò̸͎l̵̩̐ų̵̊t̷̨͊e̶͈̍ ̴̛̳h̵͙͌ë̵̻l̷̬̾l̶̥͂ ̵̼͝f̴̪͂o̸͔͘r̴̗̒ ̵͚͆ỹ̸̼o̴̹̎u̷̗̅,̷̛̭ ̴̰̋S̶̪̕u̷̝͠k̶̥͌ų̷̂~̴̗͛

That stupid bird would keep his promise.

Sukuna would have to endure countless assaults from each entity. The battles often lasted for hours that left each muscle of his throbbing in pain. Sometimes they were individual battles, other times it was six against one. Or three against one. Or two against one. And so on. At first, Sukuna despised the constant battles, but he soon realized that being idle for millions of years had made Sukuna soft. After he realized this, he gladly participated in the battles. It felt incredible to fight again, feel his cursed energy flowing through his veins. As they fought more and more, Sukuna became familiar with each entity’s personality and abilities. Their names had been ingrained into Sukuna’s head the moment he had encountered the beings.

Boogie was a beast in every sense of the word. His thick fur coat could not hide his muscular body whatsoever. He was surprisingly perspective as well. Anytime Sukuna thought he had caught the dog off guard, the beast would bark before he could land a hit. His bark would cause him to switch places with someone with a certain amount of cursed energy. Due to the lack of curses and humans, the only sources of cursed energy were Sukuna or the other guardians. It was disoriented every time his technique took hold. However, each time Sukuna thought he had gotten used to it, Boogie would surprise him with another trick. His most impressive trick was his ability to remove one of the tusks on the second skull on his head. Once dropped, Boogie would imbue it with cursed energy and switch himself or someone of his choice with the tusk. Out of all the guardians, it was the easiest to get along with Boogie. Sukuna and Boogie lived to fight. The canine was always energetic and tended to annoy his other guardians, especially Chimera. Overall, Boogie was a simple yet intelligent creature who fueled Sukuna’s will to battle.

Resonance was unsettling to look at first. Her body moved like a marionette, but was capable of moving at incredible speeds if needed. The sharp ends of her limbs allowed Resonance to stay rooted to the ground, giving her great stability. She was quick to launch a nail at Sukuna or anything that annoyed her. She had awoken Sukuna many times with a barrage of nails aimed at his head. Her nails always hit with deadly accuracy. Sukuna’s reflexes were put to the test each time he engaged with her. Additionally, she could control the direction of a nail until it snatched a part of her opponent. Once gathering the material, she would make the nail return to her, creating a makeshift hammer with her roses and vines to hit the nail into a straw doll she kept hidden within her body. She was as tough as the metal she was made of, but Resonance wasn’t all sharpness and violence. The cursed soul frequented places with loads of flowers, sitting amongst them for hours in a content state.

Supernova rarely interacted with Sukuna outside of battle. He looked at the curse with burning hatred at all times. When attacking, Supernova put effort into making his attacks as painful as possible. His blood manipulation technique was more advanced and deadly than any other Kamo-clan sorcerer Sukuna had ever seen. He wasn’t afraid to get physical, Supernova could grow to the size of a horse and charge at Sukuna with bloodied claws. His spikes could be removed if Supernova had no other choice. During one particularly gruesom battle, Sukuna had lost himself in rage after Supernova managed to cut off two of his arms with his Piercing Bood attack. The cat snarled and spit at Sukuna. He separated his longest spike from his back and shot it directly into Sukuna’s heart. The spike was still attached by a thin strand of blood, but it didn't take away from the force of the attack. It surprised Sukuna to see the cat land such a hit. Of course, Sukuna healed himself, only to see Supernova walking away from the fight with a bored expression. In fact, the cat was practically in a perpetual state of apathy. The only time that Sukuna had ever managed to see emotion on Supernova's features was when he had spied on the cat and saw that the cat was whimpering over several stones. There were ten in total with the three in the middle marked with a bloody paw print. Supernova let out soft whines as he tried his best to nuzzle the rocks. The rock in the very center had a pinkish hue and was the one Supernova was nuzzling the most. No longer wanting to watch the painful sight, Sukuna left with a new perspective on the cat.

Overtime stayed far from Sukuna. Not out of fear, but out of disinterest. The mummy-like creature spent most of his time by Infinite’s side, though it looked like it was often against his will. When not being dragged to places by Infinite, Overtime enjoyed being on the beach Sukuna first woke up at. They had the entire world at their disposal, so Sukuna and the six guardians would travel to the most remote areas. Any place with a beach was favored by Overtime. Though, as long as it was peaceful, Overtime would enjoy it. If the others were intruding on Overtime’s resting spot, he would use his wrappings to constrict whoever had dared disturb him. The most common offender was Infinite. However, the draconic bird would be allowed to stay once he gave Overtime a fruit and didn’t squawk. A few times, Sukuna had caught the often rambunctious bird sleeping in the sand next to Overtime. If anyone could calm the storm that was Infinite, it was Overtime. This ability to calm spread to the other guardians. He was the one that separated squabbles or forced the others to settle down. In turn, the others seemed to respect Overtime the most. Sukuna had even respected the volcanic mummy after engaging him in battle. Despite never seeing him fight, Overtime attacked like a seasoned warrior. His wrapping would lengthen at his request and would be shot out at Sukuna. Despite looking like cloth, Overtime could make his wrapping become as sharp as a blade when in combat. He hit with ferocious strength, speed, and accuracy. When hit by his ratio technique, Sukuna could feel the weak spot being forced to form on his body. When wanting to deliver a stronger attack, Overtime would use his wrappings to form a blunt sword. Each swing carried great power that shook the ground below. Although, if Overtime thought the battle was dragging on for too long, he would stop and go to the nearest secluded area.

Chimera was the second most frequent attacker. It was obvious as to why, considering the person Chimera originated from. Sukuna had always seen the great potential in Fushiguro Megumi. As a cursed soul, the fragments of the ten-shadows user could still be seen within the dark creature. Without any morals to hold him back, Chimera attacked with total abandon. He would summon armies of frogs just to see how much he could overwhelm Sukuna. He would mix up his strategies each time they fought. Chimera enjoyed seeing Sukuna caught off guard and made it his job to startle the curse at any given moment. When Sukuna tried to rest, usually because there was nothing else to do, Chimera often manifested out of the shadows to summon a pool of darkness underneath the curse. The only touch of color Chimera had were his green eyelights. The light would shift into the form of the shikigami Chimera was summoning. Despite the disadvantage it gave Chimera, the shadow monster did not give Sukuna a chance to prepare for the oncoming shikigami. Chimera was perfectly capable of fighting without the help of his shikigami. The fact that Chimera did not need to keep his hands free to maintain his technique, Chimera had no problems barraging Sukuna with blows and strikes. Besides his shikigami, Chimera could summon a pair of tonfas, a sword, and a blade. Each was made of the goopy material that Chimera himself was made of, but it did not take away from the sharpness of the weapons. It was exhilarating to battle Chimera. Sukuna could fight the cursed soul for hours with no victor in sight. The way that their battles usually ended was when Overtime physically dragged Chimera from the area. The mummy would use the magma burning inside the left side of his body to force the shadow creature into giving up.

Infinite, as always, took great care in being as infuriating as possible. While fighting the others was exciting and invigorating, fighting Infinite was more akin to torture. Both Infinite and Sukuna were equal in physical strength and speed, but Infinite had a new advantage that the sorcerer he was based on never had. Gojo Satoru’s Infinite Void was a domain that overloaded the victim with so much information that they were struck frozen and vulnerable. Sukuna remembered the overwhelming sensation well during their fight. However, Infinite used this ability to overload an opponent with information much differently. If Sukuna made eye contact with Infinite, the creature was capable of plaguing the curse with violent hallucinations. If Sukuna made eye contact with the eyes on Infinite’s tail when it was fully spread, the hallucinations given were so vivid that Sukuna would think his real body had been attacked. Infinite could construct the hallucinations he caused to his liking. In other words, Infinite personally created the most horrific images to infect Sukuna’s mind. The hallucinations always contained Yuuji in some way since Infinite wanted to make Sukuna suffer. The need to make Sukuna hurt was an instinct engraved deeply in the feather dragon. It pushed the cursed soul to attack Sukuna the most. He did not give Sukuna hallucinations every time they fought, unknowingly preventing Sukuna from preparing his mind for the onslaught of horror. Most of Infinite’s attacks were petty in nature and meant to annoy Sukuna. Infinite would use his smoky tail to wip Sukuna across the face or use the eyes within to stalk the man. His beak would be used to deliver quick pecks to every inch of exposed skin. There were more than twenty times where Infinite dragged a rabid animal with his claws to throw it at Sukuna. Other times, Infinite would screech loudly when Sukuna tried to nap, not stopping until one of his fellow guardians forced him to. The only proof that Infinite had the capability to be anything but insane was when he interacted with the other guardians. He showed great affection towards Overtime, Chimera, and Resonance. The other two did not appreciate the dragon’s touchiness whatsoever, so Infinite begrudgingly let them be. Though, the bird would still try to mess with them from time to time. Infinite seemed to take pride in how irritating he was.

Eventually, the exhilarating battles and spars grew old. Sukuna had allowed himself to fight each cursed soul as long as he could. He knew he could end the battles in moments, but the curse had been desperate for something to do. Infinite was the only one whose battles Sukuna never tried to drag on. The thrill Sukuna had felt vanished. It seemed the group of cursed souls noticed as their attacks stopped. One day, it became too much for even Sukuna to bear. He turned to the six creatures and spoke with exhaustion clear in his tone.

“I cannot wait another million years like this. It’s mind numbingly boring, and I am sick of such monotony. I am going to rest for as long as I can. Do whatever you wish, I don’t care. Ideally, I do not want to wake up unless it’s finally the Heian Era. Do not bother me until then if you wish to keep your heads.”

Thankfully, the world would give the sleep Sukuna had wished for. The only memories he had of his self-induced hibernation was the smell of smoke in the air, then sudden feeling of everything being ice cold, and the occasional noises from the six creatures who would periodically check on the massive curse. Sukuna did not dream the entire time. It felt like he closed his eyes, got stuck in a void that had no light, noise, smell, or surface, then woke up to a screeching bird.

Sukuna had to listen to the loud squawks until his muddled mind regained its sharpness. Once awake enough, Infinite dragged Sukuna out of the cave he did not remember falling asleep in. Outside of the cave, the other guardians were waiting with excitement clear in their features. When he looked around the place the cave was situated in, he felt a wave of familiarity wash over him. The villages nearby were identical to the ones Sukuna remembered of the Heian Era. More importantly, the cursed energy he senses indicated the birth of sorcerers and curses. Instead of getting to familiarize himself with ancient Japan again, Infinite grabbed Sukuna and tossed him onto his back. Before Sukuna could react, the dragon leaped into the sky with great speed. Like the prior blindfolded maniac, Infinite was able to float. Infinite had grown to his full size, allowing his fellow guardians to fit on his body. Boogie and Supernova were clinging desperately to Infinite’s long neck while Resonance and Overtime were tightly gripping Infinite’s white mane like the reins of a horse. Chimera had simply hidden himself within Sukuna’s shadow. It had happened so fast that it took Sukuna a few minutes to realize what had happened. Eventually, Sukuna began to watch the clouds fly past them. The air was thin, but it was crisp and fresh. It ended much too quickly in Sukuna’s opinion, but Sukuna was immediately distracted by the familiar village they were heading towards.

It was Sukuna’s village when he was a human.

Infinite landed in an empty field to prevent anyone from seeing the cursed souls. Unlike regular curses, cursed souls could be seen by all. At the time, this was unknown to Sukuna as he only knew that animals could see the guardians.

Based on the insistent nudges Infinite was giving Sukuna, the curse knew that something crucial was about to happen. He adorned a stern expression and arrived at the village in the blink of an eye. It was obvious when he was due to the stench of death and sickness in the air. Sukuna walked through his village, looking for his human counterpart. The human that had become Sukuna was long gone in an erased world. The Ryomen of this world was about to reach his point of no return if Sukuna did not act quickly.

It was easy to find Ryomen. No one had ever looked like them with their pink hair, but Ryomen stuck out even more with the tattoos etched onto his skin. That was new, but Sukuna did not dwell on it as he reached the scene that broke Ryomen unfold. It was almost pathetic to see his former self kneeling in the dirt as he begged the village elders and healers to help his boy. The sight of a lifeless Yuuji made Sukuna feel sick. Seeing a child version of the boy he had hurt was horrible, but it was even worse considering the evidence that the child had been dead for at least several days. Ryomen continued his begging like a madman. His grief was so great that Ryomen had become delusional. Sukuna watched silently as the villagers surrounded the suffering young man.

“TAKE THAT INFECTED CORPSE OUT OF THE VILLAGE THIS INSTANT, RYOMEN!”

“THERE IS A PLAGUE. WE DON’T NEED YOUR ROTTEN CHILD MAKING IT WORSE!”

“WE SHOULD GET RID OF BOTH OF THEM. RYOMEN HAS ALWAYS BEEN A BAD OMEN WITH THOSE MARKINGS!”

“WE SHOULD GET THE JUJUTSU SORCERERS TO EXORCIZE HIM! HE’S CLEARLY NOT A HUMAN! WE WERE FOOLISH TO EVER BELIEVE HE WAS!”

“CURSE!”

“DEMON!”

“MONSTER!”

The crowd quickly turned into a riot of angry villagers too paranoid to see the clearly human man sobbing for help. The Ryomen from Sukuna’s old world was never treated this badly, nor was he so dangerously thin. Then again, this Ryomen had tattoos that old Ryomen never had. Such a supposedly insignificant addition must have caused the young man’s life to become worse than ever before. Sukuna could not interact with any of the humans, so he continued to wait patiently until Ryomen’s cursed energy reached its peak. It had been steadily increasing with each new insult from the villagers.

All it took was a small torch to make Ryomen snap.

A man had thrown a lit torch at Ryomen in an attempt to rid the village of the infectious corpse and the black sheep of the village. In an instant, the rags both Ryomen and Yuuji wore caught on fire. Cruel, sick smiles were present on the elders of the village as screams of agony erupted from the grieving father. With Ryomen set aflame, one of the healers grabbed Yuuji and ran to throw the child into the mass grave pit.

Before the healer could get very far, maniacal laughter made her stop in her tracks. Despite his flesh peeling off and blistering, Ryomen began walking to the healer. It was a gruesome sight. Some of the villagers were already throwing up at the sight and smell of Ryomen’s burning flesh. Sukuna was amazed by the man’s ability to remain standing.

Even though Ryomen could not speak anymore or really see, he smiled wide with bloody cracked lips. The aura of his cursed energy grew potent enough that all the villagers, no matter how old, were left trembling and unable to move. Ryomen raised his arms, seemingly ignoring the layers of skin being burnt off, and mimicked how one would draw a bow and arrow. Sukuna recognized the motion and grinned. The flesh on his hands and fingers were nothing but blood and muscle, but the squares on each fingertip had remained, even without the layer of skin. With gums bleeding and skin peeling, Ryomen spoke with a broken voice.

“F u g a.”

An arrow made out of fire formed between his burning hands, but Ryomen did not waver once. The villagers were still paralyzed in terror as the arrow grew bigger. A myriad of colors could be seen within the flames, it was a beautiful sight. That was until Ryomen released the arrow aimed directly at the healer who had stolen Yuuji.

In less than a second a once thriving village had been reduced to nothing but ash. The charred corpses of the villagers were unrecognizable and the smell was unbearable. Sukuna stood among the destruction, simply admiring Ryomen’s power. His pleased observations were overtaken when the wail of a tortured man filled the air.

This bastard better not be dead. Sukuna ran towards the noise and easily found the source of the cries. Blood pooled from every orifice and inch of Ryomen’s burnt skin. However, the wails were not caused by pain but grief as Ryomen knelt by the incinerated remains of his son. The fire had been so strong that the boy was nothing but bones and ash. Sukuna looked at the horrific sight with an intense sadness he had never felt before. Without a word, the massive curse knelt next to Ryomen and placed a hand on his back. Unlike every other living being he had encountered, Sukuna’s hand did not pass through upon contact. Ryomen jolted at the unexpected touch, his grief-filled screams stopping.

“Your son is going to be okay. I promise.” Sukuna spoke softly at the man, not reacting to the gore underneath his palm. The curse let his reverse cursed technique flow through Ryomen. His skin began to stitch back together, and his bleeding stopped entirely. Considering the extent of the damage to Ryomen, Sukuna took extra care when healing him. Most of his nerve endings had been fried, so Sukuna focused immensely on fixing them without error. After some time of meticulous healing, the only proof that Ryomen had been hurt was the ash on his face and body and the bloodstains.

Ryomen passed out immediately upon becoming fully healed, collapsing against Sukuna. Again, Sukuna’s body remained solid against his human counterpart. Sukuna reached out another hand to scoop up one of the charred bones that had once belonged to a lovable boy. Sukuna felt pain in his chest again, but he refused to break. With even greater care than before, the monstrous being poured as much of his reversed cursed technique into the tiny bone. Eventually, the cracks on the bone disappeared and it regained its ivory color.

Without looking up, Sukuna already knew that the guardians had arrived. They had perfect timing as always. When a beak gently nudged the hand that had Yuuji’s bone fragment, Sukuna raised his gaze.

For the first time, the blindfold that was supposed to be permanently attached to Infinite had disappeared. Six eyes, a pair of three on each side, looked at him imploringly. There was no cheekiness or teasing to be found in Infinite’s gaze. Sukuna nearly refused to give Infinite the last piece of Yuuji, but he then remembered the purpose of the guardians. It was in the name, they protected Yuuji in every sense of the word. He knew how much the people the cursed souls were based on loved Yuuji. They would never wish any harm on the boy. With a great sigh, Sukuna opened his palm to reveal the bone shard. Infinite cooed at the tiny piece and delicately picked up the fragment with his beak. When Infinite turned to walk towards his other guardians, he paused and looked back at Sukuna. There was gratefulness in those eyes and Infinite bowed his head in thanks.

Sukuna would never see the guardians again after that.

It did not matter as he had a new person to focus on. Ryomen would be Sukuna’s proper vessel, but the curse would make sure that the human would stay alive no matter what. He knew in his soul that Yuuji and his guardians would come back, so the boy would need Ryomen. Yuuji needed his father and Ryomen needed his son.

As Sukuna sat in the remains of the village, he made a binding vow with himself that he would never fail the two people who would become his most precious treasures.

Things would be different.

Things would be happier.

Present Time

“Sukuna.”

“Suuuukuuunaaaa!”

“Dumbass!”

“Fuckface!”

“Uh…Suku?”

In an instant, Sukuna grabbed at the hand poking him and twisted. Ryomen yelped in pain and wrenched his arm from Sukuna’s grip. “I told you to never use that infernal nickname.”

“Well, it woke you up, right?”

A grumble was the only response Sukuna gave. He opened his eyes that he hadn’t realized he closed and was surprised when he saw a sunny sky and fluffy clouds. Sukuna glanced at his left, where Ryomen had been poking him, and guffawed at the outfit the baby in his arms was wearing. Ryomen held Yuuji like the lion cub from the movie Ryomen forced him to watch a few months ago. He looked extremely proud of himself, and Yuuji squealed as his father raised him high in the air.

The baby was wearing a tiger onesie with detachable paws and ears on the hood of the outfit. Yuuji giggled like a hyena as Ryomen bounced him. “He’s finally in his true form.” Ryomen chuckled to himself as he looked at his adorable tiger cub. It was a slightly delirious laugh, and Sukuna saw the reason as to why. The usual bags under Ryomen’s eyes had darkened so much it looked like a bruise. Ryomen desperately needed to sleep, and Sukuna had just woken up from an accidental nap.

Sukuna sighed and raised his two upper arms towards Yuuji. “Give him to me, idiot. You are going to blackout any second now, and I do not wish for Yuuji to sustain an injury so soon after acquiring him.”

There were still many issues to talk about, especially the concerning message Ryomen received, but his sleep deprivation caught the best of him. When Ryomen was about to refuse, his vision started to blur, and he knew it was his body screaming at him to rest. “Fine. Wake me in ten minutes. I’ll make this a test for you.”

“Mhm.”

“I’m serious. Once I come back, there better not be a single hair misplaced on Yuuji’s head.”

“Alright.”

“If there is even a-”

“Ryomen. Go. To. Bed.”

“...Ten minutes.” The pink haired man gave one last glare to Sukuna before walking back towards the house. However, his walk was more of a stagger.

Sukuna rolled his eyes at the stubborn man’s antics. The tiny baby in his lap made any irritation the curse would have felt disappear. Yuuji held one of Sukuna’s fingers with a curious expression. He looked so impossibly small compared to Sukuna. Yuuji’s hands could not even wrap around Sukuna’s finger. Despite the size difference, Yuuji showed not a hint of fear towards the curse. His bright, wide eyes looked at Sukuna with so much happiness. No being had ever looked at Sukuna like that. A warmth blossomed in Sukuna’s chest at the smile Yuuji was giving him. This time, Sukuna relished in the warmth instead of suppressing it.

With great care, Sukuna picked up Yuuji and stood. The baby was small enough to fit in Sukuna’s palm, but there was still no fear from Yuuji. Sukuna breathed in the fresh air. For a moment, he was worried that his form would dissipate, but Yuuji’s presence only strengthened Sukuna’s ability to remain tangible. He couldn’t help but nuzzle his nose into Yuuji’s hair, dislodging the hoodie. Yuuji grabbed at Sukuna’s nose with his chubby hand, and the warmth within the curse grew like a welcoming hearth. The happiness Sukuna felt could not compare to his past life. Doing what he desired and killing who he wanted had never brought Sukuna such a feeling of warmness and joy.

Sukuna’s smile was the brightest it had ever been. He let out a content hum as he held Yuuji close to his chest. The baby responded to his hums with happy coos.

He was happy.

No matter what, Sukuna would make sure that the smile on Yuuji’s face never disappears again.

30 notes · View notes

ssentimentals · 1 year

Text

labels {boo seungkwan}

pairing: seungkwan x fem!reader

prompt: 'i know you don't like labels so can i be your one-and-only-person?'

warnings: none, pure fluff as usual!

seungkwan smiles widely, showing off two huge bags in his hands. before you can ask what is happening and did he buy the whole store, he says: 'i wasn't sure in mood for what you'd be, so i got both salty and sweet things.'

you smile back, shaking your head. sometimes he can be so silly but in the most endearing way that makes your heart feel like it's too big for your chest. you come closer, taking a look at what's inside the bag and cheering at the sight of your favorite chips. 'you are the best! let's go?'

you already secured your favorite spot with the blanket and now when you both sit there, he feels like this is going to the best day. in all honesty, it always feels like day is going to be great if you are in it. he sits next to you, emptying the bags and grinning at your excitement. this place became a home for you two, somewhere to hide from the rest of the world and all the troubles. your friendship blossomed here - quickly and unexpectedly - and seungkwan loved to think that you two have a secret place to go to.

'no way,' you take a look at the snacks he bought and start clapping. 'those are my favorite! i love you, thanks!'

his smile falters a little at the 'i love you' part and seungkwan pretends to be busy on the phone, looking down. you are a very easy-going person and 'i love you' falls from your lips all the time: you say it to strangers who pick up things that fell from your backpack, you say it to your friends when they say goodbye, you say it to the passing dogs or cats. he loves this about you, loves how you don't hide your emotions, loves how your heart is full of love. it's just, he can't help but wonder - is there a place specifically crafted for him there? does your 'i love you' to him means something more? the desire for it to mean something more fills his entire being - he's afraid it might overflow if he won't control it.

'earth to kwannie!' you shake him awake, smiling. 'i took some card games with me, do you wanna take a look?'

'of course!' seungkwan says it a bit too loudly but you don't react.

you start explaining which games you took and he tries to pay attention, he really does but when you decide to lean on him, all of the thoughts turn into a mess. this casual way of you entering his personal space, how you don't even have to think twice or ask him - it makes his heart race knowing how comfortable and safe you feel around him. his whole face is burning and the scent of your shampoo tickles his nose; seungkwan has to physically stop himself from burying his face in your hair, wrapping an arm around your waist, pulling you close. you two already act like a couple without being one and he doesn't want to scare you away, not when he knows your stand in this thing. ('i don't like this whole...'boyfriend and girlfriend' thing, you know?' you said, walking with him to the cafeteria. 'i just- i don't like labels i guess? the need to call each other something when you both know how close you are and- i don't know, maybe i'm weird.'). he didn't say anything at that time but then it took seungkwan one whole week to find and read all articles on the topic of 'labels' in order to grasp what you meant and what it meant for him.

('i think she was inwardly telling me to fuck off,' he wailed loudly, leaning on vernon's shoulder. 'god, she really was, right? should i just back off?'

vernon patted his back and shared a look with seokmin who sat on the floor. 'i honestly think she just shared her thoughts,' vernon commented. 'no, seriously boo, i'm not saying that to appease you, i really think so.'

'i agree with vernon here,' seokmin voiced, nodding. 'i actually think..she's done it on purpose? like, so you would know, you know?'

'so i would know,' seungkwan repeated dumbly. 'for what?'

'for when you'll confess, idiot.' vernon rolled his eyes. 'cause you are going to confess, right? at this point i think everyone's waiting for it, including her.'

seungkwan sat up, eyes full of hope. 'you think so?'

'we know so, boo.' seokmin assured him with a gentle smile. 'it's the most natural thing ever for you two.')

natural. seungkwan watches you laugh at the way he's losing the game and thinks that a) you are beautiful, b) he can lose every single game just to hear you laugh and c) he's in too deep to back out now.

'so,' he starts, awkwardly clearing his throat. thinking that he's thirsty you immediately hand him water and he smiles, taking it. 'i wanted to-'

'wait, there's something on your mouth,' you reach out and wipe away few chips crumbs from the corner of his mouth and then sigh when you notice few spots on his t-shirt. 'i love you kwannie, but you're so sloppy sometimes.'

his breath hitches. oh dear god, here we go. 'you love me?' he asks, hating the way his voice comes off high-pitched. natural, my ass.

your eyebrows furrow and you tilt your head to the side a little. '...of course i do. even when you are such a sloppy eater.'

right. seungkwan tries to calm his racing heart and speaks slowly: 'do you have spots like this one with anyone else?' you shake your head and he continues: 'so, it's only me. and you love me even when i eat like a pig.'

you look weirded out but he doesn't blame you - he'd be weirded out too but he can't say what he wants any other way. bringing your knees to your chest, you stare at him with worried eyes. 'where this is going, boo? i don't understand.'

'you don't like labels,' seungkwan states and gives you a whiplash with the sudden change of the topics. 'right?'

'yes..' you drift off, confused. 'what this has to do with-'

'considering that information and that i am in love with you, i thought that we-' he swallows before continuing: 'i know that you don't like labels so can i be your one-and-only-person?' you blink in stupor and seungkwan thinks that if he doesn't say everything now then he might never say it: 'i mean, we are so close and you have a secret spot only with me and you love me- i mean, you say that you love me and even though you say that almost to everyone i think when you say it to me it's a bit different - i mean, i'm assuming that it means different and i really want it to be different and - i think that we can be so good together! only with your consent, of course- cause-'

'seungkwan!' you interrupt, reaching out to take his hands in yours.

'yes?' he squeaks, shutting up.

'breathe.' you let out, squeezing his hands.

seungkwan's brain comes to a halt and he exhales, not breaking eye contact with you. 'does that mean that you-'

'just breathe for now, kwannie.' you interrupt again, rolling your eyes at his behavior but not being able to hide a big forming smile on your face. 'that was some speed.'

'yeah?' he asks out of breath, still trembling with a need for your answer.

'yeah,' you chuckle. 'i think vernon raps slower than that.'

you both grin at each other at this and - seungkwan suddenly understands that you already gave him your answer. he sees it in your eyes - how they sparkle, in the way you hold his hands - steady and with all the care, in your smile - how you can't seem to stop it from forming. relief washes over him when you start caressing his skin with you thumbs, smiling gently at him. 'you know, now that your hands are in mine, i feel like the luckiest person to walk the planet.'

'oh for god's sake,' you mutter, leaning forward and hiding your face in his neck.

this time seungkwan doesn't hold back - he leans in, wraps his arm around your waist, pulls you closer and buries his face in your hair. and it feels just like he thought it would - like the most natural thing in the world. 'so how do we call each other?' he asks, squirming when you tickle him a bit. 'if girlfriend and boyfriend is not it?'

'i like the way it is right now. we don't have to change anything.'

seungkwan nods in agreement. 'you are mine and i am yours one-and-only-person,' he concludes and then looks down at you. he leans in, pecking your nose. 'i like that.'

'i like that too.'

with a startle, seungkwan realizes how easy it is. how everything is easy with you and this is how it's meant to be, natural.

a/n: boo is the cutest! come check out my other works here - nini

tag list: @smalliechelle @jaetaimjadore @yeow6n @pearlygraysky @a-wandering-stay (let me know if you want to be added!)

#seungkwan #svt seungkwan #seungkwan x reader #seventeen scenarios #seventeen imagine #seventeen fluff #seventeen seungkwan #boo seungkwan #seventeen boo seungkwan #seungkwan scenarios #seungkwan au

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sixpossumsinatrenchcoat · 3 months

Text

Memories of Defeat (pt 4/4)

An In Stars and Time retrospective that revolves around everyone's favorite star. Major "secret ending"/epilogue spoilers below the cut!!

[Start from Part One here.]

Once upon a time, there were two brothers: one made of light, and one made of meat.

The elder brother was capable. Resourceful. He’s the one who had to point the way. Even if he was lost, or exhausted, or hungry and scared and alone, he didn’t have a choice. There was nowhere left for him to go. So he died! He died on purpose!! He’d rather be dead!!! Anything would be better than this!!!!

The younger brother burrowed out of their sibling’s ribcage. They were afraid, too, but they weren’t hungry. How could they be? They were born from a banquet of muscle and bone. Fermented in a womb of fresh-spilled blood.

The younger brother swallowed their elder. They swallowed his liver and his entrails, his heart and lungs and light. Everything good that was ever inside him would be theirs now. Then they wiped their mouth and howled their loneliness into the stars. Why did it have to be like this? What can’t I remember? Why am I so alone???

The night sky looked down and said, Because I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I hope you eat shit and die. Die unloved and alone. It’s what you deserve.

But I didn’t do anything wrong! the younger brother wailed, pathetically, and also totally blinding hypocritically because they literally just ate their only kin, like, ten minutes ago. I only wanted to be loved!!!

Cool, the Universe said. Try telling someone who cares.

* * *

There’s no room for Loop in the caravan.

Which is fine. Preferable, even. It’s not as though they’re particularly eager to spend the night two inches away from the nation’s most nauseating lovebirds.

Siffrin insists on pitching a tent for them. That’s fine, too. It’s a free country. Siffrin can do whatever he wants. It doesn’t mean that Loop actually has to sleep there.

(They can’t even look at it. It smells like the past. Like the hole in their chest.)

They sleep on the ground, with a scarf draped over their eyes. They don’t want to look at the stars.

* * *

Loop’s eyes snap open a few minutes before sunrise. There’s someone watching them.

“You’re not sneaky,” they announce, without looking up. “I’m not one of your oblivious little friends. You can’t hide from me. I’m better at it, anyway.”

“Maybe I wasn’t trying to.”

“You know it’s pointless trying to lie to me.”

“…Yeah.”

Loop rolls their eyes. He’s the one who won, isn’t he? So why does he always go around acting like a sopping wet cat left out in the rain? “What do you want, stardust.”

“I’m deciding if I have to give you our cloak,” Siffrin admits.

That gets their attention. Loop sits up, intrigued.

Siffrin tucks their chin behind their collar. “It seems maybe… right? Um. Morally. But I really don’t want to.”

“Aww, stardust. You think I want that ratty old thing?”

“Of course.”

…Of course.

Loop smiles sunnily. “I bet you think I’m going to say something like, Ohh, you don’t have to do that. It’s the thought that counts! That you even considered it is more than enough for me!”

Siffrin looks hopeful. Stupid little beast. How were a hundred bloody deaths still not enough to wring all the optimism out of them?

“Well, maybe I won’t! We don’t all find you so charming, you know. Maybe I do want it! It was mine first!”

Siffrin’s face scrunches miserably. As they reach for the clasp that holds their collar shut, the first gleam of dawn catches on a silver coin, still pinned to their lapel.

…Ugh. “It’s fine, okay? It’s not even my style anymore. Anyway, I got to keep both our eyes, so. Who’s the loser here, really?”

Siffrin opens their mouth.

“If you answer that, I’m taking the cloak just so I can throw it in the river.”

Siffrin closes their mouth. But they don’t walk away. They just keep standing there, staring.

“Stars, what?” Loop demands. “Have you got some more restitutions for me? Going to give me your other eye?”

Siffrin shakes his head. “It’s just, um. Loop.”

“What?”

“No, I mean the name. ‘Loop.’ Are you sure that’s what you want?”

“Stars, it’s one thing after another with you! Talk about intrusive! Do you do this with all your little friends, or it just me you can’t trust to make a single blinding decision for myself?”

Siffrin scuffs the heel of their boot through the dirt. “It just… doesn’t seem fair.”

“Oh, you figured it out, did you!! Ve~ry clever, stardust! It is unfair! Much like everything else in this miserable world! Nothing was ever going to be fair! What do you want me to do about it? Well? Go on! I’d love to hear your brilliant solution!”

Siffrin just keeps standing there, silent.

Loop’s fingernails dig into their palms. “Do you think I should be Siffrin again? Is that it? You think we should both be Siffrin? I’m sure that won’t confuse anyone. When your pet Fighter calls your name and the both of us come running.”

“...It would get confusing.”

“I’m not him anymore, anyway,” Loop spits. “They’re dead. You should know. You’re the one who killed them. And killed them and killed them and killed them and killed them! And—if I can be honest? Good blinding riddance!! You think I liked being you? Being some desperate, needy little freak with no past and no future?” They let out a tinkling laugh. “Get over yourself, stardust. Frankly, I’d rather die.”

“I’m not saying you should be me,” Siffrin says quietly. “I just mean… Loop, specifically. It doesn’t seem a little… masochistic?”

Loop blinks at them.

“I know you’re not me,” Siffrin says again. “Or even the me you used to be. But you’re not the loops, either. They’re just—something that happened to us.”

Loop rolls their eyes. “You escape one time loop and suddenly you’re a qualified therapist?”

“Do you really like it, though?”

…Well. Well of course they don’t blinding like it. But it’s fitting, isn’t it? It’s funny, isn’t it? Just like them!! Soooo~ funny!!!

“…Loop?”

“I don’t like it,” Loop hisses. “But. It’s… not as though I like anything else. And it’s. Familiar.”

Siffrin nods. Even he can understand that much. This world’s Siffrin may have had it easy—like, really, ridiculously, embarrassingly easy—but both of them went years without finding anything familiar. “Okay. If you’re sure.”

“I am.”

“And you know you can change your mind.”

“Hard as it may be to believe, I am, in fact, fully capable of thinking for myself! But thanks ever so much for trying to dictate another aspect of my life! I was starting to worry that I might actually have to be a real person!”

Siffrin frowns. “You’re a real person.”

“Oh, for Stars— Haven’t you done enough? I’m exhausted. You’re exhausting.” They flop back in their bedroll, draping the scarf back over their eyes. “Just leave me alone, stardust. It’s what you do best.”

[You dreamed that you were drowning. Even now, you still can’t catch your breath.]

There’s an old fairytale, back in (don’t think it DON’T THINK IT IT HURTS) about the saddest man in the world. He’s so miserable, so totally consumed by his hurt that he can’t even talk about it, because no one would ever understand. He is utterly alone in his grief.

So the world’s saddest man makes a wish. He wishes for a copy of himself! Someone else, someone new, who might reflect the emptiness inside him.

But the copy is too good. Much, much better than the man ever was. There’s no bitterness inside it because, for as long as it’s lived, it’s always had him. It never had to learn how it feels to be alone.

The man hates it. He hates it. He can't stand to see it walking around, smiling and laughing and failing and trying. So he lures it back into his study. He gives it a smile. He opens his arms.

It’s still smiling at him, trusting, when he drives the knife into its chest.

The man drinks the light from its veins and swallows the wish in its heart. He leaves it empty empty empty. And do you know what?? In the end, when he’s left shuddering in a puddle of blood and spattered viscera, nothing has changed!! There’s nothing different at all!!! He still isn’t any less alone!!!!!

* *

* * *

The morning after the party sets out from Bambouche, Loop wakes up to find Bonnie standing over them.

“How come you don’t glow anymore?” they ask bluntly.

Loop blinks. “Oh. Um. W-Well, it was wreaking havoc on my beauty sleep. Looking this good doesn’t come cheap, you know! It’s practically a full-time job!”

“But how? What happened to your sparkles?”

“They… washed off?” It is sort-of true. For a while after Siffrin set them free, Loop wasn’t anywhere at all. When they finally gasped awake, they were neck-deep in the same black, frigid water that carried them to Vaugaurde, all those years ago. Except this world’s Siffrin already took the boat. Loop had to claw their way to shore with their own two hands.

Bonnie looks disappointed. What else is new? Water is wet and Loop is disappointing. “That sucks. It was cool. But I guess it’s good you can sleep now. Being tired sucks too.”

Loop’s mouth ticks up. “I’ll tell you a secret,” they find themself saying. “But only if you won’t tell Siffrin.”

“DEAL.”

“You promise?”

“Yeah!!”

“Super promise?”

“Of course!!!!”

“Super duper promise?”

Bonnie flaps their arms. “You gotta tell me right now or I’m gonna explode!!!!!”

Loop looks left and right, conspiratorial, before beckoning them close enough to whisper in their ear. “...I can still glow a little.”

“What!!!!!”

“Shh!!”

“Ahem!” Boniface clears their throat. “Ahem, hem. Of course what I meant was: forsooth, how doth you, um. Glow?”

Wow, they really have been going to school. Loop’s mouth ticks up. They might not be the real Boniface, but they’re still way too cute. “Okayyyy, okay. You wore me down! I can’t hold out any longer! I have no choice but to confess!”

“Yeah,” Bonnie agrees, scowling fiercely.

“Okay, check this out.” Loop scoops a fistful of dust from the ground beside their bedroll and holds it in front of their nose. Their eyes scrunch. Their face puckers—

—and they sneeze a spray of sparks into their palm.

Bonnie’s eyes light up. “What!! What!!!! You sneeze light?????”

“Not always,” Loop explains. They still don’t really understand why it happens. It’s not as though the Universe ever deigned to explain. “And don’t tell anyone! It’s our secret, okay?”

“But why!!! It’s cool!!!!!”

“Haha, well. Sometimes people don’t like things that are cool.”

“But it’s shiny!!!!”

Loop smiles wryly. “Sometimes people don’t even like things that are shiny.”

Bonnie’s shoulders sag a little. “But that’s… That stinks.”

(Do NOT make Bonnie sad.) “Oh, no, i-it’s not bad! It’s, um, cool! Like having superpowers! Or a secret identity or something!”

“It is bad!” Bonnie snaps back at them. “People are so stupid!! I think your sparks are cool!!!”

For a second, Loop almost forgets to laugh. “Haha! Well, I commend your exemplary taste. But there’s no need to worry about me, Bonb– Boniface. I’m doing just fine!”

Bonnie frowns at them. “Frin says that sometimes.”

The nickname nearly knocks the smile off their face. “...Is that right.”

“But usually only when they’re not.”

“Well. I wouldn’t think too hard about it. Siffrin is pretty stupid.”

“You’re his friend, though.”

(…Are they?) “Of course!”

“So maybe you’re stupid too.”

Loop chokes on a laugh. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re sort of scary-smart?”

“No,” Bonnie says promptly. “Mostly they say I have learning disabrilties. ‘Cause my brain is bad at words.”

“Well,” Loop tells them, confidential. “Don’t tell your sister, but between you and me… I think the people who say that might be even stupider than me.”

“Pffft— You can’t say that about teachers!! They’re in charge!!!”

“Not of me, they’re not.”

Bonnie stares for a second before breaking into a radiant, gap-toothed smile. “You’re cool, Loop.”

“I— Ah?” For the first time in several lifetimes, Loop finds themself at a loss for words.

“It’s okay!” Bonnie says generously. “Frin doesn’t know what to do when people are nice to them either. You don’t hafta say anything. You can just know you’re cool and not even say anything.”

Not as cool as YOU! That’s what they could have said. But of course it’s always already too late. “Um…”

“I’ll leave you alone!!” Bonnie shouts in their face. “Cause Nille says I’m bossy which is a strenth but sometimes means I have to give people space so they can decide if they wanna keep hanging out or not! But I’m glad you came back!! ‘Cause Frin and Za are all gross and lame now, so it’s cool to have someone cool!!”

“H-Haha. Well. I’ll… try to meet your expectations?”

“You don’t hafta worry ‘bout that,” Bonnie scoffs. “You already sneezed glitter.”

* * *

When the party meets Madame Odile at the crossing, she looks at Loop very, very closely. She shakes their hand politely enough. But she doesn’t approach them directly until later, after the Fighter’s already turned in for the night and Boniface is fast asleep.

“Loop,” she greets them. “I wasn’t sure you’d want to discuss it in front of everyone, but I wanted to tell you that I’m very glad to see you again. I’d been hoping for a chance to give you my thanks. I know I was a bit, ah, preoccupied when last we met… But it seems we owe you a great debt. Siffrin’s life, for one. Not to mention the state of our physical world.”

Loop bites back a sigh and readies the usual spiel. Haha, yes, that’s me! Eternally helpful etcetera etcetera! I can see that you’ve noticed the new look; would you believe, it’s actually a very funny story—

“And Siffrin,” Odile says levelly. She doesn’t look away. “It seems we owe you an apology.”

Loop chokes. “Aha? Haha, um… I think you’ve… perhaps… mistaken me for someone? H-Haha, ah… Maybe in your old age, your eyes have finally—“

“She knows,” Sif blurts out, from across the fire. “Sorry. I had to tell her. She’d already mostly figured it out.”

“Not when it might have counted,” Odile says ruefully.

“Which would be….?”

Odile looks at them like they’re stupid. “Obviously, when it still could have saved you.”

OHHHkay. Hahaha, okay!! So they’re just going to talk about that!!! She’s just going to look at them with remorse in her eyes, and regret, like she can actually see them!! Like she thinks it’s not their own blinding fault that everything went—

“…Siffrin?”

“Don’t call me that.” That’s someone else now.

“Of course. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

She quirks an eyebrow. “Hmh. Well. I think it probably isn’t.”

“What do you know?” S— Loop snaps. “No, let me guess. Because you’re old, you think you must be wise? Well, I do hate to be the one to tell you this, but I’m afraid that’s just not how it works. I would know.”

“Of course,” she says again, backing off. “I’m sorry.”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I know.”

“And I don’t want anyone’s apologies. It’s not like there’s anything any of you could have done.”

“Hmh,” she says. Probably thinks she’s being diplomatic. Maybe she would be, if she were talking to someone as stupid as Siffrin.

“And I’m not—” The words lodge in their throat. Loop is seized by the violent urge to take a deep breath, but just thinking about it makes them want to peel their skin off.

They can feel Odile’s eyes on them, assessing. “...What was she like?”

“Wh-What?”

“Me,” she explains. “The one that you knew.”

...Oh. “Different,” Loop admits. “And… the same? You—or. She never figured it out, like you did. But I think maybe she might’ve. If I’d been less—” Weak. Spineless. Pathetic.

“Tch,” Odile scoffs. “Doesn’t matter what she might have done, if she didn’t.”

Loop blinks.

For once in her life, Odile actually looks embarrassed. “Ah. My apologies. I only mean that… I’m sorry that I was so useless.”

She startles when Loop barks a laugh. “You—haha!!! Hahaha!!!! You’re sorry! For being useless!!! That’s—no, no, it’s very funny!!”

Because their Odile could have been plenty useful, if they hadn’t been such a blinding coward. If they’d trusted her enough to let her in. But they didn’t, and now the Odile that Loop loved is gone. She needed them and S— Loop couldn’t take the heat. They gave up. They left her behind.

“I’m not sure I get the joke,” Odile says quietly.

“Well! It’s not exactly your strong suit, is it!”

Madame Odile studies their face, frowning. Then, disconcertingly, her gaze flicks toward Siffrin.

“Don’t look at them,” Loop snarls. Instinct thuds in their ears, take it back take it back TAKE IT BACK—

—but they won’t. What would be the point?

“Did you think we’d be the same?” they ask, sneering. Contempt dripping from every word like blood from the tip of a blade. “That you’d have one more cute little Siffrin tiptoeing around, hiding and crying and lying to people? Well! I’m ever so sorry to disappoint, but I think you’ll find otherwise. Oh, but don't get the wrong idea! It's not just me, teehee! We're both soooo~ much worse than you think."

“…Is that right.”

In another life, Loop let the King squeeze Bonnie into bloody pulp. They let the King throw Mira around like a ragdoll. They lied and lied and lied till they were sick with it, till their throat scorched black and their tongue dripped silver. They smiled and let her die and die and die.

“It really is!” They flash a bright, brittle smile. “How many times do you think I let you die, Madame? Would you like to take a guess?”

“I would not.”

“Too easy? I’ll try another, then. How many times do you think I killed you?”

She doesn’t flinch. Every muscle in her body deliberately Doesn’t Flinch. “...Loop.”

“Madame~?”

“I like your jewelry.”

“I—um?”

“Did you make it yourself?”

“I… did, yes.” When Loop finally clawed their way out of the sea, they had every intention of lying there until they died. But it wasn’t long before they were found. Apparently they’d washed ashore just a stone’s throw from a beachcomber’s hut: an artisan whose dilapidated hovel glittered with gleaming fusions of glass and stone and rusted steel.

Loop’s savior never spoke. Maybe they couldn’t. But their quick, clever hands could turn the ugliest, most disintegrating flotsam into inimitable treasures.

“Impressive.” Madame Odile says coolly, nodding. “Siffrin never had the knack for that sort of thing. Carving wood with physical tools is one thing, but mixing media? And across different Craft types, no less? That’s very advanced Crafting.”

“I—ah? Or, I mean… it’s not like it’s hard…”

“You may just have the knack,” Odile informs them. “Not everyone does. It’s a valuable skill, nonetheless.”

“R-Right.”

Madame Odile yawns. “Forgive me. I’m too old to be up this late. But I’ll see you tomorrow, I expect. And, ah—I suspect you don’t care to hear this sort of thing, but—I really am grateful. Truly.”

And before they can even begin to consider their reply, she’s vanished into her tent.

* *

* * *

Have you heard this one before? A Traveler walks into a House. Says, Housemaiden, I'm depressed. I can't find the joy in anything. I can't connect with people. I can’t feel ANYTHING. I can't eat, I can't sleep. No, I mean, literally, it’s been eons since I slept. The insides of my eyelids are brighter than the sun. It’s like a fireworks show in here.

Housemaiden says, You should talk to the Savior of Vaugarde. They’re soooo cute and special and pretty and perfect and everyone loves them no matter how many times they ruin everything by being a stupid little freak who can’t even talk right. I bet they could give you some advice!

The Traveler puts their head in their hands and laughs and laughs and laughs and laughs and laughs. Says, But Housemaiden! I -am- the Savior of Vaugarde!!!!

Aaa~nyway, they kill her and eat her heart. And would you believe? It doesn’t make them feel anything!!!!!!

[you’re fine you’re fine you’re fine you’re—]

—fine. You’re totally fine. It’s a clear, bright morning, the breeze brisk and playful, and walking into Dormont doesn’t make you feel sick. The smell of flowers and pastries and juniper doesn’t make you want to vomit. The spiraled roof and crenelled towers of the House don’t turn your breakfast to stone in your stomach. Looking down the path through the trees doesn’t make you want to pull your spine out through your mouth. You’re fine.

Why wouldn’t you be? Just because you abandoned this place? Just because it killed you? No. No. You’re toooo~tally fine. You’re being so normal about this.

A few steps from the House’s gate, Siffrin jerks his hand out of the Fighter’s and throws up. Pathetic. You step into their line of sight to make sure they can see you roll your eyes. They were always soooo~ sensitive.

* * *

Siffrin refuses to enter the House, because they’re a delicate flower who insists on making their damage everyone else’s problem. Loop, of course, never had that privilege.

* * *

“Ugh!” Mirabelle huffs, scowling down at her pottery wheel. “I’ve ruined it again! Siffrin, would you—”

She stops short.

“I-I’m so sorry!!” she squeaks, one hand flying to her mouth. “I meant Loop, of course!! Sorry!! That was so rude; I promise I wasn’t thinking of someone else, it’s just that you… remind me of them, sometimes? N-Not because you’re from the same country! The King was, too, and he felt very very different!! The two of you just… feel sort of similar, is all. The way you take up space, and… the things that catch your eye… It’s almost like you’re—” She shakes her head vigorously. “Ohh, never mind!! I know it doesn’t make any sense!! ”

To Loop’s horror, they can feel their eyes start to itch. Oh, Stars. It’s the worst thing imaginable. They absolutely cannot cry.

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean— I-I’m so sorry!!!” Mira’s hands flit toward them before landing in her lap. “I shouldn’t have said anything; I didn’t mean to make things even worse, I— Do you want a, a… cup of tea? Or some cookies?”

Don’t worry! Loop tries to tell her. I’m completely fine, haha! No problems here! I’m probably just allergic to ceramics!!!! Unfortunately, the best they can manage is, “No Thank You.”

“I—!!” Mirabelle squares her jaw, both hands clenching in the fabric of her skirt. “Loop. Is there, maybe, some way I can help you? I know you don’t think much of us, but we owe you so much!!”

Loop looks away. “You… think I don’t think much of you.”

“Oh. W-Well, um. We… never saw you again, after you helped us save Siffrin. And they’d go quiet anytime we tried to ask about you, so I—I wasn’t sure if—”

“Mira,” Loop says. They take a moment to collect their thoughts. “...Mirabelle.”

“Y-Yes?”

“That’s not a very reliable gauge for what someone thinks of you.”

Mira’s eyes widen.

“For all you know, I might’ve thought the world of you,” they go on, uncharacteristically reckless. “Anyone might. People disappear all the time! They hide, or they die, or they… go somewhere else. It doesn’t mean they never cared. It only means that they cared about something else, too. Or they cared a little too much. Or they’re dead, teehee!”

Mirabelle pulls out a handkerchief and dabs at her nose. “I-I’m sorry… I know you’re only here for our sakes, and now I’m being nothing but trouble…”

Um. What? “I’m here for what?”

“W-Well, um… I guess I thought you’d come to visit because Siffrin told you how upset we were, after you disappeared? Because you saved us—saved everyone—and then we couldn’t even thank you?”

“…What?”

Mira blinks at them, her disorientation mirroring their own. “Which part are you confused by…?”

For the first time in several eternities, Loop lifts a hand to their chest. They take a deep breath in, and out. “H-Haha. I guess, all of it? I certainly didn’t save anyone. Much less everyone.”

“But you did!!!”

“Uh…”

Mira’s eyes widen. “Ohhh,” she gasps, “I see. You don’t like that, do you?”

“—Um?”

“People giving you compliments and things. Praising the things you accomplished, as though you were some sort of storybook hero. When you know that what happened was much less heroic, and much more… accidental. Embarrassing.”

Oh. Huh. Loop had never thought about it in so many words. Probably because no one's ever tried to give them a compliment. But now that she mentions it... yeah. Maybe they can sort of relate.

“I’m sorry,” Mira says again, looking despondent. She slaps both palms against her cheeks. “Sorry!! I won’t do it again!! You just want to feel normal, right? So let’s—let’s Craft some clay!”

“If you’re sure,” Loop says faintly. (Calm down. You’re freaking her out. For once in your life just BE NORMAL.) “…But don’t take it personally if I turn out to be pretty good at this. I have it on high authority that I may have something of a knack.”

* * *

They keep it together for the rest of the afternoon. They finish Crafting their vase and help Mirabelle patch the weak points on hers, smoothing rough edges and pressing air pockets so it won’t shatter in the kiln.

They make it all the way to the bathroom before their smile drops.

The bathroom’s undergone some renovations since the last time they broke down here. Now tiny clay figures dance over the sink, and childish painted murals adorn the doors. A little Change God stands guard over each stall: waving its clumsy arms, kicking its stumpy legs. Its eyes are obscured, its expression unreadable. Its face is laughing. Leering. Mocking. What does it see when it looks at them? A memory? A means to an end? Or only a ghost?

Loop reaches out and takes it in their hands. The Craft that animates it makes it squirm like a worm on a hook. Loop doesn’t pity it. It’s only fair. The Change God never pitied them, either.

“Was it fun?” they whisper, as they squeeze. “Did you have fun? What about now? Are you having fun yet?”

Wet clay oozes between their fingers. The statue twitches and jerks. Loop’s chest feels hot. Their skull hums like a nest of wasps. Lumpy paper swollen with stinging hate.

“I’m having fun,” they tell the wriggling godling, smiling wide. They can’t even tell if they’re lying. To make the distinction, they’d probably need something to compare it to.

The wriggling slows. The heat of Craft fades as the statue goes limp in their hands.

Loop opens their palms. There’s no god there anymore. Only dead, lifeless clay.

They flick open the lock and shoulder through the door.

Outside the stall, there’s someone waiting. Watching. Staring straight at them.

Loop flinches. The stranger looks familiar, but also not. Like maybe Loop’s seen them before, but only in a dream.

—Claude. That’s who it is. Mirabelle’s roommate, Claude. (And who says they don’t have a good memory!)

Claude narrows her eyes. “…Did you just mulch that statue?”

Loop looks down at their hands, crusted with molten clay.

“People work hard on those,” Claude informs them.

Loop has already used up all their willpower for the day. They don’t have the strength to stop themself rolling their eyes. “People work hard on lots of things.”

Her eyebrows go up. “I could report you.”

“Please do,” Loop spits; and in one fluid movement, they’ve whirled around and flung themself out the bathroom window.

They’re three stories up, but they’re not worried about the fall. Worst-case scenario, they’ll drive their blades into the mortar and grind to a halt before they splat on the ground. Best-case, they die on impact.

[You dreamed you were being eaten alive. You can still feel the crunch and grind of tearing cartilage. The way the sinews stretch before they snap.]

Siffrin is fishing by the river. Just looking at the rod in their hands makes Loop want to throw up. They snapped that rod in half once. Tore it out of the fisherperson’s hands and broke it clean over their knee. And then they threw it in the river. And then then jumped in after it.

It’s not just the total futility of it all. It’s the whole process. Catching a thrashing, squirming being in your hands and squeezing the life out of it. Aligning your blade with the seam of its gills, just behind the thrum of its throat. Staring into those gaping eyes, that gulping mouth as you press down hard and harder. Careful, now! If you hit the angle wrong, you’ll miss the artery entirely! It’ll take ages to die! Minutes that stretch into eternities. Gasping, gulping, choking on the hot slick slurry of your own black blood.

Loop shudders. “…I can’t believe you can still touch that thing.”

Siffrin hums thoughtfully. “I think it’s the only thing that never got worse.”

“Ew. Or, I mean. Can’t relate.”

“Well,” Siffrin says. “We were always pretty different.” They flick the rod expertly, sending the fly dancing over the surface. “How’s Mira?”

“She recognized me.”

That gets their attention. “She what?”

“Not specifically,” Loop admits. “But. She said I felt… familiar. Like…” The words lodge in their throat. It doesn’t matter. Siffrin knows what they mean.

“…Hm.”

“Aw,” Loop purrs, mocking. “Does that scare you? Is it scary, to know that you could be so easily replaced?”

“No,” Siffrin says right away. “I guess I feel… relieved?”

(…What?) “Why.”

“I wasn’t sure they’d know me,” Siffrin shrugs. “You, I mean. Us. I wasn’t sure they’d even want to, if we were being… less careful.”

Loop bristles. “I’m more careful than you could ever imagine.”

“No, you’re not.”

Yeah, no, they’re really not.

“So it’s… comforting,” Siffrin shrugs. “To think they’d still like us, even if we were—“

“What? A failure? A ghost? A pathetic piece of work?”

“Well. Yeah.”

Loop squawks a laugh. “Well!! Aren’t you the lucky one!! Even if you wind up as disgusting as me, your friends will still love you! Isn’t that nice!!”

“Yeah,” Siffrin says. “It really is.” They shift their weight, thoughtful, and then seem to remember something. “Oh, yeah. I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

Loop rolls their eyes, but they don’t not listen.

“Why won’t you talk to Isa?”

Loop fails to suppress a flinch.

“He keeps asking,” Siffrin explains. “And I don’t know how to answer. But it’s getting harder to not-answer. I’m… not a very good liar.”

“…Is that right.”

“I’m an okay liar,” Siffrin concedes. “It just—feels bad.”

Loop is very much aware of that, yes.

“He just wants you to like him,” Siffrin says quietly.

“Be reasonable.”

“It’s hurting his feelings, I think.”

“Good,” Loop says coldly. They hope it does. It doesn’t even come close to evening the score.

Siffrin opens their mouth to argue and then just—shrugs, instead. “It’s your life.”

[You dreamed you were alone. You dreamed you were alone. You dreamed you were alone. You dreamed you were—]

—having a nightmare. You know it’s a nightmare because it’s the same one you have every night. You’re standing under a tree, looking at the man you love. He can’t be more than an armslength away. If you stepped out of the shadows, he would see you.

But he wouldn’t know you.

You watch him think of you. You watch him think of what to say to you. You watch him lose himself to heady daydreams. (This is not a metaphor. Subtlety is not his strong suit. The man you love is very obvious.)

You watch yourself approach him. You are short and strange and awkward. You are hiding and lying and you’re so, so, so-so-so-so stupid. The man you love loves you anyway, because he’s stupid, too.

“Isa!”

“Sif!!!” he shouts, when he sees you. “I was just looking at this Favor Tree!! Isn’t it cool!!!”

“Yeah,” you say slyly. “You might say it’s a pretty… TREE-mendous tree.”

Ha ha!! Ha ha ha!!!!! What a stupid blinding joke!!! It’s almost like your pathetic sense of humor wasn’t what won him in the first place!!! Almost like, all along, he was laughing along because he loved you!!!

Not that it matters now. The tree is in the past. The man is in the past. Your future is in the past. Everything you love was meant for someone else. There’s nothing left for you.

* *

* * *

Loop jerks awake. The dark is intractable. Undisturbed by any snore or snuffling wheeze. They are utterly alone.

Siffrin begged them to sleep in the Clocktower with everyone else. They even offered to sleep on the ground so Loop could have a whole bed to themself. But Loop wouldn’t budge. How could they? The thought made them physically sick.

They twist out of their bedroll and onto their feet in one smooth motion. They don’t know where they’re going, but they do know that if they have to lie here, alone with their thoughts, for a single second longer, it is actually going to kill them. So—getting up! Getting moving! One foot in front of the other! If they walk fast enough, maybe they can outrun an eternity of unrelenting dread!!!

They don’t have anywhere to go, so they just—go. They just walk. Anywhere would be better than here.

* * *

Their feet take them to the Tree. Probably because it’s the closest thing they still have to a home. (And isn’t that just the saddest thing you’ve ever heard!!!!!)

They stand at the foot of the trunk and look up at the canopy. Thick strong boughs and wide, glossy leaves framing little windows to the starry void beyond. Idly, without any real urgency, they imagine setting it on fire. It would be easy. They don’t even need flint or tinder, now that their lungs crackle with swallowed stars. All they’d need is a bit of kindling, some pine cones or dry needles, and they could reduce this place to ash.

—A twig snaps.

Loop’s stance stiffens, then hardens. They know that gait. The slow, careful breath before each heavy clumsy footfall. No one sounds more obvious than a great stupid oaf of a Fighter trying to be discreet.

Maybe he won’t notice them. They could make sure he wouldn’t, if they wanted. Loop knows how to disappear. But they’re tired of going unseen.

“…Can’t sleep?”

The Fighter startles so violently that he nearly keels over backwards. Loop could catch him by the elbow, if they wanted. Steady him; help him catch his balance.

They don’t move.

“W-Woah!!” the Fighter gasps. “Haha, whoa! Um… Loop? That’s you, right? Wow, you are really quiet! I totally didn’t see you there at all!!”

Yes, well, what else is new. “I’d expect nothing less, teehee! You’re not exactly observant.”

“Oh. Haha, um, yeah. I guess not.” Siffrin’s Fighter shifts his weight, uneasy. “ Um… Loop?”

“That’s what they call me!!!”

“Did I… do something wrong?”

Loop stiffens.

“Like… I don’t know. Step on your feelings, somehow? It just feels like you… maybe sort of don’t like me? Which is fine!!” he rushes to clarify. “Not everyone has to like me!! It’s just… if it’s something I did, I could… make sure I don’t do it again?”

Loop almost hits him. They want to. They want to grab him by the collar and shake him. To throw him back against the trunk of the Tree and shove into his space until he can’t not see them. They can see the angry thrum of his pulse in his throat and they want to trap it under their thumb. To close the space and feel his heartrate spike. For months they had to watch themself stand in front of him, wanting and wanting and doing nothing, knowing all the while that if it was them, they wouldn’t just stand there, wanting. They’d take him apart with their hands. They’d eat him alive.

“...Loop?”

“Siffrin,” Loop grates out, an ugly scrape of sound. “Sif. Before I killed myself, that’s what you—all of you used to call me.”

“Wh-What?” the Fighter asks, baffled. “What does that even—”

“But that doesn’t matter now!!!!" Loop shouts, grinning wildly. "He’s dead now!! Now there’s only me!!!!”

“I—I don’t understand. I just saw Sif? Th-They’re totally fine!“

Loop rolls their eyes theatrically. “Ugh. Weren’t you supposed to be smart now? Not your Siffrin, obviously. I obviously meant another Siffrin.”

“But—what? What do you… How would that even work?”

A molten sort of hunger comes over them. Loop flashes a glittering smile. “Isn’t it obvious? ~I’m~ what happens when you don’t save me! When you just let me die!!”

“N-No,” the Fighter mumbles.

“Y-Yeah, actually,” they stammer, mocking. Throwing his pathetic stutter right back in his face.

“No, but… Come on. No way. Sif would’ve said something!”

“Oh, because you can definitely count on Siffrin to tell you anything that matters.”

The Fighter has the gall to look offended. “Hey!! They’re honest about important stuff!!”

“I am literally telling you that we are not!!!”

Isabeau shrinks a little. “B-But— But that’s not possible. It doesn’t make any—”

“Then how do I know them?” Siffrin snarls. “How do I know everything about them? Why do I blinding hate you?”

“I don’t…” Isabeau trails off. They can see him starting to wrap his mind around it. Blood cooling, stance wilting. “You… Are you telling the truth?”

“What do you think.”

His shoulders slump a little. “You… killed yourself?”

“Your Sif tried to break the world,” Loop says scornfully. “I think we can all agree on who’s the more well-adjusted.”

Isabeau staggers back. They can see him getting ready to freak out.

“Nope!!” they shrill. “Not allowed!! This is mine!! You weren’t even there!! Besides, you already saved your Sif! So clearly I wasn’t worth saving!! Or were you just holding out for the new model?”

“That’s not—”

Bile sours in their stomach. Steel screams in their veins. Their blood burns with the absolute assurance of what will hurt him the most.

“Do you want to know the truth?” Loop asks sweetly. “If you must know… I hate you! I always hated you. You had everything. Everything!! A home, a family, friends… and still you were dissatisfied? I mean!! Talk about entitled!!”

“I— What? I never said—”

“But you di~id! To every version of me! Even the pathetic rotten failures, teehee! You shared all your ugliest, stupidest hang-ups and guess what? They were all soooo~ lame! Barely an inconvenience! Baby-school trauma for babies!!! It's no wonder you couldn't save me, teehee… You were way, way, way out of your league!”

Isabeau just stares.

Loop’s fists clench. They wish he would get angry. This would be so much more satisfying if he would lash out already. Throw them back against the Tree and snap their brittle neck. But instead he just keeps standing there, looking devastated.

“Ugh,” Loop spits. “This is pointless. You’re pointless. I’m done.”

“L— Sif!!” Isabeau yelps, and that’s the last blinding straw. Loop tucks their head and bolts.

* * *

Isabeau tries to chase after them, but he’s big and slow and Loop can reach terminal velocity in about three seconds from a standstill. He might as well have tried to catch the wind.

They don’t slow down until they reach the field.

Then they cry.

(The cruelest thing is this: If there was no Siffrin in this world, Loop would be the one everyone loved. Loop would be the one who was difficult but loyal; high-maintenance and universally adored. Loop could have been the weird little freak who everyone considered worth the effort.

But Loop gave up. They gave their chance away. And now they’ve got what they deserved: absolutely nothing.)

What are they even doing here? Why would they come back? They knew what was waiting for them. There’s no space for them here, in this place, with these people. The understudy already took their place.

It’s all Siffrin’s fault. Siffrin the hero, leading their perfect shiny life surrounded by all their perfect shiny friends. Siffrin, who got everything they ever wanted and still demanded more. Siffrin wishing wishing wishing to see them again, yanking on Loop’s subconscious mind all day and night to make sure they could never, ever forget. To make sure they’d never be truly free.

…Maybe they’ll just leave. Without telling anyone, without leaving a note. That would show them, wouldn’t it? Siffrin would be so blinding pathetic about it. So hurt and confused. Almost as hurt and confused as Isa, when he found out that his precious little Siffrin could turn into something like this. Something ugly, broken, hateful. Living spite, made manifest. A ghost haunting their own blinding life.

There’s a rustle from the bushes. Light, uncertain footfalls. Loop stiffens. There’s someone coming up the path. Not Isabeau. Not Siffrin, either. A stranger?

From the shadows, someone clears their throat. “Um—”

They don’t get the chance to say anything else. Loop already has the jagged teeth of their knife pressed tight against their throat. “Who are you? What do you want???”

“I’d let go if I were you,” the stranger says coolly. “Unless you want to lose that hand.”

“You wish,” Loop spits. “You’re out of your league.”

“Bet?”

Against their better judgment, Loop can feel themself starting to smile. It’s strangely comforting to be on the receiving end of a threat, for a change. Talking to someone who doesn’t quiver and quail and bend over backwards to accommodate their every demand.

Loop flits backwards, out of slashing range. Probably Siffrin would land in a fighting stance, but Loop is above that sort of petty, childish showmanship. They don’t need a lot of posturing just to kill someone. “What do you want?”

“I heard crying.”

Oh. Was Loop crying? They didn’t notice. Though now that they think of it, their vision does seem a little blurry. “So?”

“Are you stupid or something? So I thought someone might need help. Obviously.”

Hm. That voice isn’t entirely unfamiliar, is it? It feels like Loop might have heard it before. Possibly recently.

—Oh. “Claude,” Loop realizes.

The stranger’s eyes narrow. “So what if I am?”

“Mira’s roommate, Claude.”

“Oh. You’re with the Saviors.”

“I’m not,” Loop snarls. (STOP IT, calm down, you’re going to scare her. Just apologize and run. Say something conciliatory and disappear, like every other—)

“Change,” Claude swears grumpily. “Sorry for breathing, I’m sure. I know you’re lying, anyway. I saw you show up with the Saviors. I’m not gonna act like I didn’t.”

…Oh. She… really isn’t scared, is she? “I—um. Traveled with them, I guess. For a little. I’m not with them.”

“I wasn’t asking if you all made crabbing friendship bracelets,” Claude huffs. “I just meant you’re not from here. What’s your damage, anyway? Why are acting like that?”

Loop chokes on a laugh. Wow, she really isn’t scared. “…Lifestyle choice?”

“Kind of a shitty one.”

“Like you’re one to judge.”

“Takes one to know one,” Claude says coolly.

Hah!! “Well. I’m sure you were really looking forward to swooping in to save some pathetic little loser, but I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. I’m doing great, actually. Just… out on a walk.”

“Uh huh.”

Why do they feel so defensive about this? “Sometimes I can’t sleep! Is there a law against that? Is it illegal to go for a walk?”

“It’s not illegal to go for a walk.”

“Well! What a relief! Then it seems like you have no justifiable cause to follow me around, harassing me!”

Claude snorts. “Wow. Okay, now I know you’re not with the Saviors. Those guys are way too sensitive for this kinda thing. And too sanctimonious for all that… you know. Lying.”

“Shows what you know,” Loop sniffs. “They’re not half as righteous as they’d like you to think.”

(But even so… She’s right, isn’t she? Siffrin would hate getting talked to like this. For a party of powerful warriors, the gang was awfully terrified by confrontation. Fighting Sadnesses is one thing, but fighting with each other? You couldn’t pay them enough.)

Claude gives Loop a flat stare. “For someone who’s not with the saviors, you sure act like you know them.”

“Well!” Loop says brightly. “W-Well!!! What if I told you that I used to be with them! For long enough to know them better than they know themselves!”

“I’d say you were full of shit.”

“Shows what you know!!!” Loop practically screams. “You have no idea what you’re talking about!!!”

“So tell me.”

* * *

Somehow, the whole story comes pouring out of them, in fits and starts and halting, hysterical gasps. Another life, another world. Another Wish. Another Mirabelle, abandoned to her fate. Another pathetic blinding failure of a Savior.

Claude listens, nodding. Then she says, “The King.”

“I’m familiar.”

“I wanted to be the one who beat him. The one Euph— The Head Housemaiden chose. I’m not saying I was right,” she adds, defensive. “Mirabelle is a marvel. There might be no one else who could do what she did. But I— I still wanted it to be me.”

Loop blinks.

“Mirabelle was… the right choice, probably,” Claude concedes. “Better suited. She’s got the right constitution, or whatever. No one could have done it alone. And I’m— I don’t know if I could have recruited like she did. Going around making friends and things. People don’t like me,” she explains. “People love Mirabelle.”

“I like you,” Loop hears themself say.

“Oh.” Claude stares for a beat, unblinking. “Really?”

“Yes.” They’re 90% sure that it’s not even a lie. When’s the last time they could say that?

“Oh. Well, um. Thanks. But I think you might have sort of bad taste. And maybe a bad personality.”

Loop sputters a laugh. “Haha!!! Yeah! I get that a lot.”

“Really?”

“No.” Most people are too scared to say it. “I should, though.”

Claude nods. She can understand that. “But I never got the chance. I couldn’t save everyone. I couldn’t even save anyone.”

“...How do you live with it?”

Claude shrugs. “Eat. Sleep. Don’t die.”

…Right.

“You should probably get out of here, though.”

Loop raises an eyebrow. “Are you throwing me out?”

“Are you actually stupid? Or are you just being difficult?”

(Hah!!!) “I’m being difficult.”

Claude rolls her eyes. “I just mean… You can’t step out of someone’s shadow if you’re still walking side-by-side. You gotta do your own thing.”

“And if I can’t?”

“Then you can’t.”

“And if it kills me?”

“Then you die,” she shrugs. “Isn’t that what you said you wanted?”

Wow. Mirabelle’s roommate is… actually cool? “I think you could have done it,” Loop finds themself saying. “If you’d been the one Chosen. I think you could have beat the King. You just didn’t get the chance.”

Claude stares at them for a moment before her mouth ticks up. “Hah. Yeah. Maybe. No way to know now, huh? We just hafta go from here.”

* *

* * *

At the outskirts of town, a blot of stillness catches Loop’s eye. The absolute absence of movement. A hole in the dark, black against the surrounding gray.

“I told you,” Loop says coldly. “You’re not sneaky.”

Siffrin huffs a quiet laugh.

Loop eyes them warily. Even now, Siffrin has almost no presence. Almost like Loop is the one who survived, and they're the one who's dead.

For once, Siffrin is first to break the silence. “Running away from home again?”

“You are not my home,” they can’t help snapping. “But, well. I suppose so. Why not? After all, it went so well the last time.”

Siffrin chokes on a laugh. Then the smile drops. “I don’t want you to go.”

“I should hope not! I’m excellent company.”

Siffrin looks unconvinced.

“But there comes a time in every beautiful traveler’s life when they must shake off the bonds that hold them back and move on to bigger and better things! Forge their own path; digest their own trauma, etcetera and so forth! Maybe I’ll wind up even more famous than you!!”

Siffrin frowns. “…If you’re really leaving, can I ask a favor?”

“You can ask.”

“Can you tell me the truth?”

Ugh. “Fiiiine. I can’t stay because I—I can’t be here without— Without wanting my—” Their throat closes over the words. Fortunately, Siffrin isn’t so stupid that they can’t connect the dots. (My friends back. My life back. Everything that was supposed to be mine.)

Siffrin gives them a plaintive look. “We could share..:”

“Aw, stardust,” Loop laughs. Not a fake laugh. “Two people can’t be the same person. Anyway, we already aren’t.”

“...I know.”

This world’s Siffrin is the source of all of their problems. The root of all their suffering. So why does it make them so sad to see his shoulders droop?

“I’ll come back,” they hear themself mutter, grudging. “I won’t be gone forever. I wouldn’t—”

Loop falls silent. They know that they’re both thinking of the same scrap of paper, crumpled on the library floor.

“I won’t be gone forever,” they say again; only this time, they say it like a Wish. Like they can make it true just by wanting it. “I won’t disappear. I just—can’t be here. Yet.”

“I’m sorry,” Siffrin whispers.

“We all had our roles,” Loop shrugs. “You just got a better one.”

“But— But what if I never find you? What if we never—”

“We’re family,” Loop tells them firmly. A different kind of family. Not the kind you choose—the one you’re saddled with, by blood and bone, whether you wanted it or not. “Aww~~ Don’t worry, stardust. We’re bonded, aren’t we? You know I’ll always find you.”

“If you even want to,” Siffrin mumbles.

“Stars, how are you still such a brat!!! I’ll find you when I find you! Okay? You don’t get to control this! Just let there be one blinding choice that’s mine!”

Siffrin takes a breath. They let it out. “…Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay,” they say again. “You can be in charge. But you have to tell me everything, next time. How you came back, and… everything else. Because we’re family.”

Loop can’t stop themself from smiling. It’s just that—it’s all so unfair. They way Siffrin always gets what he wants, and… the way they can’t help loving him anyway. “Yeah. Okay. I promise.”

Before vanishing from sight, Loop glances over their shoulder. “Stardust?”

“Loop.”

“How do you get used to it?”

Siffrin tilts their head. To what?

“The not-knowing.”

“Hah,” Siffrin huffs softly. “If you find out, write me a letter. I’d really like to find out.”

[You dreamed you were alive.]

Did you know that hamsters eat their young? If you stress out a nursing mother—leave her out in an earthquake, or make too much noise around her tank—she’ll eat her pups alive. You’ll open the lid to find her nest stained black with blood. The half-eaten husks of her children, their claws and bones and hindpaws shriveled-pink and lifeless. It isn’t malice. It’s pragmatism. We can’t survive this threat, she’s saying. We must recoup these resources. Some of us, any of us, have to survive.

Wish Craft can’t hear your words. It only knows the Wish inside your heart. Loop ran away, but they never gave up. They wanted to be free, but they didn’t want to lose. And besides! What’s a little cannibalism between friends! They are family, after all.

There are things that Siffrin wants, too. Things they want and can’t have, because they’ve sunk their roots into the present. Loop isn’t trapped like that. Loop can go where they please.

Off the coast to the north lies an island that Vaugarde forgot. A graveyard for the lost. A monument to stories long forgotten.

But Loop knows how it is to be forgotten.

They look to the sky. The stars have already started to fade, making way for the brilliant flare of dawn. Loop runs a few calculations, cross-comparing the angles from the horizon to the Highstar and the sun.

They go north.

If you want, feel free to read the series in full here! Or if you want for something a lil comfier, you're invited to this very cozy isa/sif side-story.

#isat spoilers #isat siffrin #isat loop #isafrin #isat bonnie #isat mirabelle #isat odile #isat fanfic

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shourin · 2 years

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Bruh

Reverse isekai au crackhead brainrot thoughts. The characters greatest enemies are angst fics of themselves x reader or whatever you save or bookmark in your device that they somehow found out.

Imagine that reader is an angst lover. Some fics depicts the characters as ooc but it’s for the plot. And reader can appreciate a good plot.

It’s feels weird for the characters at first. Reading about themselves but still they persist because they’re curious of what would happen next. Curiosity kills the cat tho.

They are immediately horrified once they read that certain angsty part which they will then have a violent outburst on how unrealistic it was and how they wouldn’t do that to reader EVER(Childe and some others). Some may even appear catatonic in pure shock and horror(Xiao and Diluc). Others will sought out reader and started telling them they won’t do that ever and started begging for them to stop reading those type of things(Kazuha, Zhongli, venti and some)

Child deleting reader’s bookmarks and acting innocent when reader ask him about it.

Meanwhile Xiao would just grabbed onto reader’s sleeve, trauma evident in his eyes as he firmly but weakly said “I would never ignore your calls and left you for dead even after a petty argument.”

Reader: pardon????

Then there’s Zhongli who would confront reader about that particular story about how he supposedly see his current s/o as a replacement for Guizhong.

“My love, Guizhong is merely a dear friend of mine. Please understand that my feelings for you are as unwavering as the rock we-“

“Wait hold on, what?!”

Some of them will be a menace, others will be too traumatized to speak and just look for reader for comfort and the other will go on this poetic tangent on how their love is eternal and unbreakable as bedrock or something. Venti however will ugly cry and begged at your feet to not believe this blasphemy about his love towards you.

“Don’t ever *hic* *sobs* ever EVER *sobs some more* doubt m-my*hic* loveE FOR YO-*wails* YOU!! PLEASE DONT LEAVE ME!!*sobs uncontrollably* THEY DONT EVEN ACT LIKE ME AT ALL!!! I DONT KNOW THOSE VENTIS!! THEY DONT EXIST!!*wails*”

“Of course they don’t, they’re just fiction.”

Reader would be spending the rest of the day comforting a hysterical venti.

Meanwhile there are those that acknowledges it as fictional and Amgen even impress at the plot line.

In conclusion, angsty stories would leave this poor characters traumatize or highly amuse.

I'M WHEEZING THIS IS SO GOOD NONNIE I TRIED BUT I DON'T THINK I CAN ADD ANYTHING TO IT CAUSE IT'S ALREADY PERFECT SFLJSLDKFJ

ok ok ok ok but hear me out.... what if.... what if the angst fics the reader likes are those where the reader dies? def not projecting here lol nonono

ALSO bonus point if they read it on your pc/laptop and you have those browser extensions where it auto-replaces [name] with your actual name. they would be so scared/confused/wary because wait wtf how did this fiction thing know your name wait wHAT IF IT'S A PROPHECY OF SOME KIND OR LIKE AN ALTERNATE REALITY OR IT DESCRIBES WHAT HAPPENED IN A DIFFERENT WORLD OR-

.... you get the gist.

also taking this opportunity to recommend some good good angst where reader dies come cry with me:

★彡 KISS ME WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED. by @/seelestia

Death and Regrets series by @/primofate

go give them some love and don't tell them i sent you

ps. if you want to be removed/added from the taglist, just send an ask or dm me!

#genshin impact #genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader #rin writes #rin answers

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rebouks · 1 year

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Transcript:

Oscar: They’re worlds apart! Courtney: Are they though? They both lost their way, did things they regret to appease someone they were scared of, killed people they thought deserved it-.. felt guilt, tried to put things right. We can’t condemn one and embrace the other, it’s hypocrisy.

Oscar: [hisses] Among other things, he’s a murderer. Courtney: So is Bruno-.. and don’t lie to me and say you’re incapable of the same, you could’ve killed Wyatt just as easily. Oscar: He deserves-…

Courtney: You just proved my point! If he’s truly a bad person, he’ll get what he deserves one day. Oscar: You can’t leave things like this to karma, Cookie.. it doesn’t even exist! Courtney: It’s not our decision to-…

Oscar: Of course it is, he’s sat in our fucking living room! Courtney: He’s scared of the goddamn cat! Oscar: And?! We can’t just let him-…

[Robin wails loudly, having had quite enough of the commotion] Wyatt: I think I’ve overstayed what little welcome I had; I should go. Oscar: Do you have any idea how lucky you are?

[Wyatt wrings his hands, nodding slightly] Oscar: If it were up to me, you’d be in cuffs by now-.. or strapped to a fucking kettlebell at the bottom of the ocean. Wyatt: I wanted to thank you, Courtney.. however brief it was, you treated me like a real person. I never should’ve-…

Oscar: Fuck off-.. it’s only because of her immense compassion that you get to leave at all. That and the fact I’d literally do anything for her, but I doubt you’d be able to experience that emotion. Courtney: Oscar…

Oscar: If I catch you anywhere near my family, I swear to god-… Wyatt: Don’t worry, I’m not sticking around. Oscar: You better fucking not.

[Wyatt teeters dangerously at the top of the stairs as Oscar shoves him over the threshold]

Oscar: Get the hell outta my house. Wyatt: Uh, my jacket-… Oscar: Fuck your jacket, it’s mine now.

[Wyatt yelps as Oscar slams the door shut in his face, unable to prevent himself from tumbling down the metal staircase. After a series of clangs and grunts, Wyatt comes to an abrupt halt halfway down] Wyatt: [mutters] Could’ve been worse, all things considered…

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vaspider · 2 years

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The worst sound I hear on a regular basis -- possibly one of the worst sounds I've ever heard -- is the sound of this dog howling and crying in terror in his sleep. He screams. In his sleep.

Someone hurt him, badly, a long time ago. He's scared of hoses and strange men with hats. If he hears fireworks at night, he refuses to go out to pee after sundown for days. He doesn't even want to be on the first floor of the house after sundown if he's heard fireworks in the past week or so. He's so afraid of motorcycles that he will run into the kitchen where he knows he's not allowed to be, this most gentle and obedient of dogs, because the kitchen is the furthest away from the street he can get.

He's so gentle and submissive that he won't even play tuggy with other dogs because he gives up immediately, but he loves to play any game with humans. He isn't too keen on fetch but he loves to chase a rope if you drag it around. He's strong but delicate, and has tiny little ballerina feet that his giant muscular body balances on.

He's so in tune with his humans that Evie can tell I'm having a pain spike because his head will pop up and he'll start whining and trying to get to me before I can even tense up or cry out. He has in the past stood at the gate downstairs and cried because -- somehow -- he knew I was upstairs silently collapsing to the floor with a muscle spasm that left me unable to stand. When Evie's old roomie had her ancient cat put to sleep before we moved in, Rumba heard her crying in the basement with the visiting vet and crashed through the gate at the top of the stairs to go comfort her. (I've only ever seen him disobey a human for two reasons - to get away from Loud Noises and to Comfort A Hurt Human.) We call him Dr. Rumba because he knows the cure for all human ills: it's snuggles and kisses and a nap. (He's usually right.)

He belongs to my wife, his Eema, and he's incredibly devoted to her, but dotes on all of us. He loves to sit next to me on my recliner while I write and go to the basement shop with Emet to keep them company.

He's so incredibly in love with Cap. They're best friends, or married, we're not sure which, or if it matters. We call them the Salt and Pepper Shakers. If he can manage it, he will lay on top of Cap and stretch his limbs out so he's also touching at least two humans.

Anyway, someone is setting off fireworks at midnight for no fucking reason and I just had to give Rumba his sedatives because he keeps screaming and wailing in terror in his sleep, so instead of sitting here marinating in revenge fantasies about what I'd do to the people before us, the ones who made the sweetest soul I've ever known capable of such witless terror, I'm telling you all about Rumba.

I love him.

#rumba #dogs #animal death #animal abuse mention #he's so sweet #every day i try to be as good as he thinks i am

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that-random-outsider · 6 months

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Okay so I just watched Heroes and Huntsman part two and we'll I have opinions. Again. Also This is pretty much composed of a rant I sent to my friends As soon as the credits rolled so I'm sorry if this is a bit everywhere.

Firstly, they fixed the problem with Yangs characterization. Pretty much in volume 8 - 9 maybe even 7-9 it was like the writers forgot that SHE IS RUBY'S SISTER!! Like everyone was so obsessed with the bees that they forgot RUBY TRIED TO OFF HERSELF. Which I know I mentioned on her already but it just bothered me so much. And like in the latest season Ruby was going through her trauma arc and it was like no one gave a shit. Like Yang did not give up her entire childhood to take care of Ruby only to shrug off when she drinks a cup of poison.

And I'm sure there is no way Yang wouldn't go fucking crazy in that scene because (1) THAT'S HER SISTER (2) SHE GAVE HER LIFE TO PROTECT HER (3)SHE'S HAD AN ENTIRE ARC ABOUT HER BEING SCARED HER LOVED ONES WOULD LEAVE HER. And guess what? RUBY WAS READY TO WILLINGLY LEAVE HER. It was like the writers were like "okay so we either have gf Yang or Sister Yang" INSTEAD OF REALIZING THAT THEY ESTABLISHED EARLIER THAT A LOT OF HER FAMILIAL RELATIONSHIPS IMPACTED HER ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS.

But in the new movie we got cute scenes of Yang not knowing how to talk to her little sister to establish how worried she is for her, While also getting scenes of Blake expressing how much she loves her. And even as a bonus we get to see her going back to her original pattern of being the one to take on everyone's problems or to just give a pep talk and listen with her talk with Berry. We finally got to see her not having to give up one part of her for another or ignoring one characteristic to emphasize a different one.

Not to mention Ruby! They characterized her so well in this movie. Like you can tell she's trying so hard for things to go back to notice but she just has so much shit and baggage weighing on her. She claims that she's better yet she running blindly into danger. It's like just because she's no longer actively trying to die (hopefully) she's still not fully sold on living, so instead she's taking down leviathans blindly wailing her scythe around claiming that it's confidence but it's just a death wish. Like I wanna get into her conversation with Clark but real quick one more Yang rant.

There was this scene towards the end of the movie where Yang was finally expressing how much she's worried about Ruby and she's about to start raising her voice when Blake puts a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. LIKE THIS IS WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT!! SHOW HER AS A CARING SISTER WHILE ALSO ACCEPTING HELP FROM HER GIRLFRIEND!!Back in season 7 Blake was empathizing more with Ruby than her own sister and it just made no sense to me. Okay sorry Back to Ruby so she has this conversation with Clark that is absolutely stunning because I just love their dynamic and the added ability of him being able to understand her pain is just amazing. And he says this one line that's basically like "I try not to dwell on my parents too much because I know that they wouldn't want me to join them too soon" and like I just love that line because it's exactly what she needed to hear and when she promises Yang "I won't be joining anyone too soon" as Clark is watching approving from the side!!!!

Like it's such a simple movie but it's just soo much better than then the volume before in my opinion, and I'm so glad that it wasn’t the last we'd see of the team even if they don't greenlight volume 10. Also the struggles with Whise and Barry was also so good but I'll save that for another day. The only thing I'd say I'm disappointed about is Blake Yang and Diana scenes because in part one they made the absolute entire movie for me. Oh and als GIVE BLAKE HER CAT EARS BACK sorry I just missed them so much throughout the movie 😭😭

#rwby #Justice league x rwby part 2 spoilers #spoilers #rwby analysis #rambles #ruby rose #yang xiao long #blake belladonna #I want to talk more about this later #i loved it #It wasn't anything to blow me away but it was exactly what I needed #Rwby spoilers #justice league x rwby #justice league x rwby part 2

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aj1dordinary · 4 months

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Not Feline Too Good

A/N: omg the semester I just had… anyways, sorry for being M.I.A for a bit. I made it home for the Winter Break and decided to take some time for myself and family. Also to celebrate my sister’s birthday and my own tomorrow! I also needed time to think about advance the plot and development of my character. I’ve settled in now and hope you enjoy the new addition to the series. This should be like the last filler part before all the action takes place. Hope you enjoy!!!

the restful week had passed and you soon found yourself back at the Wu Shi Academy, this time as an active participant rather than a spectator.

you sat among the jungle that surrounded the palace of the fire god in a meditative state, the lush grass bending in the slight breeze. liu kang had incentivized you to do so in part of your training to become one of Earthrealm’s champions. meanwhile, the boys would continue their physical training. you tried to push out any thoughts that made their way to the front of your brain but it became increasingly difficult with the surrounding sounds of nature.

it should be calming, but the rustling of leaves in the wind, branches crackling, and small critters playing around had you thinking about your place among them, you had yet to make the distinction if it was natural or not.

more noises entered your brain, the pitter-patter of paws as they hit the ground, the clinking of metal, the wail of an animal — wait a second…

successfully pulled from your attempt at meditation, you spin your head to figure out what direction the sound had come from. another wail put you in the right direction.

your moves were soft and calculated, you attempted to make no noise in hopes you wouldn’t scare the creature further. approaching a clearing, the first thing you saw were black and orange stopes, making identifying the creature easy.

i should’ve stayed my black ass at home.

you thought as you were facing the back of a tiger. an angry tiger that was caught in a trap nonetheless. you immediately made a move to turn around and let any nearby monks know of the predicament, surely they were better prepared for this. but then you heard shouting in the distance, human voices. the tiger thrashed its head around in a frenzy, trying to escape but only pulling on its injured leg more. in its attempted escape, it made eye contact with you.

you stilled. it stilled. the jungle suddenly became eerily silent. the voices were becoming closer and the tiger got more and more agitated. surely, it did not want to see what was on the other side. you raised your hands in front of you and crouched, making yourself appear smaller to it. what the fuck am i doing?!

your heart was pounding and the silence was so deafening you could hear the blood pumping in your ears. you inched closer and closer, your hands never leaving the tiger’s vision as if that were to convey that you weren’t a threat like whoever was looking for it. it growled as you approached and you stilled again.

“do you want my help or not?” you backed away a little and suddenly it seemed to understand your intentions. it chuffed. almost beckoning you to approach again. taking a deep breath, you got to a point where you could reach over and mess with the trap, you made no move to get closer.

you finally break eye contact to take a look at the trap. a standard bear trap. you go to touch it and the tiger growls again. this time, you feel it reverberate through you due to your proximity. so you remove your hand.

“look,” you point at it as if it were some common house cat, your eyes a bit grounded now as you look the large creature in the face, “you’re trying to get away from something and I’m trying to help.

do you want to be someone’s throw rug or continue frolicking through the jungle?”

it turned its head away from you with a gruff. you take a look around until you are able to find the release switch, then you maneuver your fingers through the teeth and pry it open until all of a sudden, the tiger snatches it’s paw from the trap. frightened, you squeak and quickly pull your fingers out as the trap went off again, nearly taking them clean off.

you fall back on your butt with your arms covering your face preemptively. peaking through your shut eyes, you see the tiger standing over you. you can take in its large stature now from its standing position. it was easily twice your size. the growling returned, this time, drool dripped from its barred teeth. you wanted to curse a god - liu kang, perhaps - about your predicament. how you went out trying to be nice and instead of praise, you were mauled to death by a maneater.

as the tiger’s face inched closer, you pleaded with it not to eat you. you felt it’s cold nose press against your chest and take a deep inhale. with shaky hands, you place your hands on either side of its face, fingers threaded through the fur in case you had to forcefully remove it.

suddenly there was rustling nearby and both you and the beast whipped your heads to look at the source. as quickly as it was on you, it had receded to the tree line with a newfound limp. you propped yourself on your elbows to look at it as it slinked away. before disappearing completely, it turned its large head back to you and gave you one last chuff.

“there you are.” a familiar voice broke you out of your staring contest. “you okay?” raiden asked, seeing your blown eyes and messy form. you look one last time at where the tiger had gone, but it wasn’t there.

“yeah.”

——————————————

you threw a punch towards kung lao who used his forearm to redirect it. you replanted yourself as to not fall over and used your non-dominant arm to send another punch which he dodged. now on the defensive, you quickly brought your arms into an x to block his kick which sent you back a bit. still standing, you came out of your defensive position only to find him running directly toward you. you internally panicked, looking left and right to find an escape. to your left you could see your spectators: liu kang, johnny, raiden, and kenshi who would soon make the decision on whether or not you could be support on the mission the god of fire had yet to disclose you on. kung lao was closer now, you could see him winding back to land a strike on you. with approximately 3 seconds until impact, your neurons raced on adrenaline, trying to rack your brain for any reaction.

you found it as you pulled one of your solo lessons with liu kang from the back of your brain. “face your fears or face defeat every time” he said as he threw a couple combos of his own, leaving you on your ass each time you hesitated or tried to run from him. in his assessment he mentioned one thing that stood out to you, “you seem to be stronger and sturdier when you use your core and legs, i suggest you use them more often.” you were broken out of your head when you heard johnny cheering for you.

“kick his ass y/n!”

you know what you must do. as kung lao reared his arm back, you took a form similar to a handstand to plant yourself on your arms, effectively raising your lower half in the air. carrying the momentum through, you bring your legs back and scorpion kicked kung lao right in the face, breaking his flow. he grabbed his nose trying to recuperate from the blow. still maintaining the handstand, you use one arm to grab on to his leg. he looks down at you in confusion and sees you sticking your tongue out at him before finishing your roundoff, dragging him to the ground. you were careful to not land on his face, planting both feet just beside his chest. his razor hat which he usually smugly wore had rolled off in the direction of the spectators before spinning and wobbling until it stopped right by liu kang’s feet.

“wooooo! i told you she would win. she’s had to manage like, multiple fangirls for me.” johnny said while nudging raiden’s side.

“the rules were that the first person on the ground longer than 3 seconds loses. y/n wins.” liu kang said with a smile on his face.

you reach down to help kung lao from the ground which he gladly accepts though he brushes himself off to hide his damaged ego. you walk over to his prized hat and pick it up, placing it on your own head.

“y/n - 2, kung lao - 0” you crossed your arms and held your head high.

“actually kung lao - 1. you nearly cried the first time you were partnered.” kenshi broke your confident smile. he snatched kung lao’s hat from your head and returned it to its rightful owner who accepted it graciously. you turn to him and flip him off as liu kang rolled his eyes at your childish behavior. he cleared his throat which caused all the commotion to halt immediately. you lined up amongst the men, standing between kenshi and raiden. from an outside perspective, the height difference would be laughable.

“well, we had a deal did we not? all those in favor of solidifying y/n’s position as one of Earthrealm’s protectors speak now.” liu kang turned to raiden first.

“i accept.” raiden shot you a smile as he was the one who spoke highly of you to liu kang in the first place.

“i accept.” kung lao nodded. he felt more confident in your ability to hold your own after you beat him, the smug bastard.

“for sure.” johnny said with no hesitation. he felt a swell of pride in his chest at your growing smile with each member’s approval.

“i do not…” kenshi began. you felt your heart skip a few beats. you held back tears from building in your eyes. you were sure that you had worked out your differences, “disagree with the others.”

“i am so gonna beat your ass, takahashi.” johnny said before you could begin to put a curse on his bloodline.

“oh it was just a joke, cage. she’s clearly capable of holding her own.” kenshi clapped a hand on your back.

“well then it is settled.” liu kang sent you a look that ‘i told you so’, as if he knew this would happen.

“now as for your mission. raiden and i will head to the capital of Outworld as he must conduct diplomatic business as Earthrealm’s champion. it will also double as cover for your whereabouts. you four must find this man and bring him back for questioning.

he handed kenshi the scroll which he unraveled to show a man with long hair who wore a smirk that definitely said ‘i am up to no good’.

“yes. If what I fear has happened, he is a grave threat to the realms.”

“shang tsung is a master of deceit —“

“oh so like a pathological liar.” you interrupt.

“Do not trust a word he utters.”

“sounds a lot like my first agent.” johnny joked.

kenshi sent you both a look. “and these are the tools we need to get the job done? can we have support from some of the monks?” obviously referring to you too.

“your words don’t hurt me takahashi. you complimented me earlier so no take-backs.” you crossed your arms and turned your face away from him in mock disgust. you stood closer to the silent observer kung lao.

“‘this one’ has all the requirements for the job.” johnny walked up, nearly bumping chests with kenshi.

liu kang stopped the argument from getting any further, “This mission must be done quietly. By sending you on this mission, I am breaking my word with Empress Sindel by sending you there against her knowledge.”

“i assure you kangaroo, i will cover our tracks. it’s what i do best.” you smile trying to air out the tension.

“is that a diss towards me or — ow!” you stepped on johnny’s foot to shut him up.

liu kang also handed kenshi a talisman that he said would help guide you to his location like a GPS.

“be careful,” he looked at kenshi. “and may the Elder God’s protect you.”

—————————————————————

to say you weren’t tired would make you no better than a liar that Shang Tsung was said to be. the men were much taller which meant that you had to take more strides to keep up with them. the armored gear did nothing but weigh you down and make you sweat in the desert-like heat. you even made them stop a couple times to dump sand out of your shoes.

johnny spoke for you when groaned and asked, “are we there yet?”

“how old are you again? five?” kenshi spoke without looking behind him as he led the group. you lagged behind with kung lao keeping casual conversation as you let the duo duke it out how they typically do.

“so kung lao, what did you do back in…”

“fengjian,” he finished for you. “i was a humble farmer.”

“‘humble’ farmer turned warrior. i’m sure this is doing wonders for your ego.” you rolled your eyes and twirled your locs, bored and wanting to keep your hands busy.

“what about you?”

“easy. i was orphaned and became johnny’s assistant.” you answered a bit too quickly for kung lao’s liking.

“so was that like right after the other or?” he tried to coax a little more out.

“oh no. i was jumping through orphanage after orphanage until i aged out of the system. i was already a teenager when my family died and no one wants damaged goods. they all want a baby they can pass as theirs. with what little money i had made through jobs, i booked a ticket for L.A and didn’t look back.”

“surely you had other family that could’ve taken you in.” lao tilted his head in confusion.

“they all think i should’ve died that night too.”

“oh.”

“it’s alright. then, when i made it to L.A, i got a job as a cleaning lady under a company and slept in a cardboard fort.”

“i’m sorry —“ you quickly cut him off.

“don’t be. it was the most fabulous cardboard fort the world had ever seen. then as any fan fiction would go, my serviced were hired out to johnny. since he’s a millennial superstar, current technology and trends aren’t really his strong suit. i’m young and love trends so i helped him with how to cash out on social media. he loved it, his fans loved it, and so he went looking for me one day for more ideas and saw the state of my life. i’ll never know why he took a chance on me, but i owe him everything.”

you look forward to see johnny dragging his feet in the sand like a child being made to take their first steps. you laugh to yourself about how your description of a man wanting to help the less fortunate sure didn’t behave like the man who was featured in Forbes’ ’30 Under 30’.

“guess i was wrong about him.” lao sighed.

“johnny just doesn’t cope very well. his job is to make others happy, even when he isn’t all the time. try that for a week and i think you’d be more appreciative that he acts like this rather than some grump like kenshi often is.”

“these boots surely weren’t meant for walking.” johnny complained again.

suddenly, all the compassion kung lao felt went out of the window at the reference.

“if that’s all the pain you’ll feel today, consider yourself lucky.” he said almost unconsciously.

“oh, im feeling lucky. i’ve got Sento strapped to my back.”

“oh, that’s not the flex you think it is.” you winced as johnny had undone your work of trying to make him look good.

“i will reclaim it, cage.” kenshi’s voice had turned cold.

‘i will never speak proudly about a white man again’ you thought to yourself

“are you not cold?” you asked lao as you crossed your arms over your chest to brace against the chill that had begun to take effect.

“no. why?” his focus turning back to you.

“you’re always sleeveless. are you not impacted by the weather? you trying to impress someone by being a manwhore with your arms out?”  “is it working?”

“i regret asking.”

you were broken out of your conversation when you approached kenshi and johnny arguing. you only caught the last of it.

“i got out. i need my clan out, too! we can’t be apart of their crimes any longer.”

the talisman glowing is what stopped kenshi’s death glare from actually killing johnny.

you and kung lao walked passed johnny who remained still. lao, the ever so petty, flashed the light in his face like a mic-drop.

“y/n, help me out here” he started.

“i’m sure you deserved it.” you kept walking, a little irritated at his behavior.

you finally arrived upon a town that looked to be in shambles. you caught johnny looking at you out of the corner of you eye and so with a sigh, you brought out your phone to record the altercation you were witnessing.

the people were disfigured to say the least. their lips pulled back to reveal rows of teeth. their skin looked as though it was made of stone blades as they fought back against the palace guards.

“shang tsung is here.” kenshi said as a matter-of-fact.

“there.” you point out a figure who held a syringe before plunging it into one of the disfigured people.

“this reminds me of..” johnny started.

“this reminds me of how i’m telling your fans you sleep with 10 stuffed animals when this is done.” you turn to him to return a look that says there is a time and place.

silence.

“jokes on you, they already know.” he muttered.

you were interrupted by the beginning of a coup as the group of beings started to retaliate against Shang Tsung and his followers. Just as Shang Tsung was getting engaged, you spoke.

“is this the part where we join in or?” you said, looking to kenshi.

“seems like they’re doing fine without us.” johnny took a step back.

“liu kang needs him alive.” is all kenshi said before leaping into battle. all you could do was follow your self-imposed leader.

kenshi grabbed the man before he could finish shang tsung. he kicked kung lao and johnny as they each went in for their attacks. you watched that in his moment of rest, shang tsung transformed in to one of the disfigured beings before sneaking off.

“i would have killed him but for you!” the man’s voice was gravely. you stepped forth between kenshi and the large brute. you held your hands up as to signal peace.

“understandable, but we’re hear to retrieve him so he may face punishment for his crimes alive.”

“then you will die.” oh ok.

“i’ll handle him, you go help cage and kung lao hold off the others.” he didn’t have to tell you twice.

you held your own. it seems as if the others did not possess the ability to form blades as the man you encountered just before. you focused on providing support and assist whenever kung lao or johnny got tired or faced multiple opponents. as small as you were, it worked as you often evaded attacks and attempts to grab you.

you look back over your shoulder to see kenshi had worn the brute out, but the others were still closing in.

kenshi made quick work to dispatch tension and explain the situation. and as he attempted to make a friendly gesture, the brute introduced himself as baraka and told you all that their appearance is an effect of a disease called Tarkat. by his explanation, it was to your understanding that these were a doomed people.

with kenshi as your negotiator, baraka stood the army of Tarkatans down and allowed you to pass.

“the talisman…” you pointed out. it had gone out.

“i know where to find him.“ baraka’s gravelly voice sounded.

“then by all means.” kung lao stepped back to let baraka lead the way.

“great. more walking.” johnny muttered and rolled his eyes.

#mk1 2023 #johnny cage #kenshi takahashi #mk1 x reader #lui kang #mortal kombat #reader insert #platonic #x reader #shitpost #x black reader #x black fem reader

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