Chapter Text
"Ah, are you, Gojo Satoru?"
A voice calls out, though Satoru finds that for some reason he cannot understand what the person is saying. He blinks rapidly until light comes back into his eyes, then tilts his head back to see his glasses laying upside down a little bit away from him. Next to his glasses he sees a pair of feet in black loafers. When Satoru tilts his head even further until its lifted somewhat off of the floor, it’s to the sight of a man dressed in a long trench coat, fedora on head, wearing a plum purple kimono with gold clouds that feels oddly out of place with the blue tie that disappears beneath it.
Then again, even the Okina Noh mask (Okina, in this case, being the white mask worn by the main character of Noh theatre.), which covers the top half of his face, is out of place. Everything about this man is bizarre.
His judgement feels even more founded when the man offers a red-gloved hand to help Satoru stand up. He swats it away, though the man doesn’t seem that bothered by it, and Satoru rolls over on his side and points at the man. “Who’re you? Where’s Suguru?” the man tilts his head.
”Would you perhaps like to stand up before we continue?”
Satoru blinks, confused as to why he can’t seem to understand the man. Frowning, Satoru rolls over again before finally coming to a stand. He blinks when the man, who he sees now has long white-hair, offers his glasses to him. The seems to be smirking up at Satoru. “It seems now we can properly communicate. Do forgive me. You are Gojo Satoru, are you not?”
Though he doesn't really want to entertain this weirdo with his name, the fact that he knows Satoru makes him feel like he doesn't really have a choice. "Yes." he says, his voice very clipped. "Why are you asking?"
"Ah, then you and your friend were the people I was looking for!" the odd-ball man says. He takes his hat off, presses it against his chest, and gives Satoru a deep bow."It is a great pleasure to meet you. I am the Storyteller." Satoru blinks owlishly at this man, as if trying to compute the fact that he doesn't even give his name.
As though noting Satoru's confusion, the Storyteller steps aside, hat in one hand, and uses the other to gesture towards an old TV. Satoru blinks owlishly and bends 90 degrees to stare at the TV, wondering why it's so far down to the floor as he does. Then, as if realising he's letting his curiosity get the best of him, he straightens up near immediately.
Both him and the Storyteller cringe when they hear his spine make a crack at the sudden movement. Ouch. The thing that gets to Satoru, though, is the fact that this TV is reallyold. It has the wooden looking bases that those retro-ass TVs have with a very small screen; he tilts his head, trying to identify it.
With an amused smile, the Storyteller speaks, "this is a Hitachi TV, developed back in the 1980s. This is, specifically, the MT-2110C model."
"I wasn't curious." Satoru mumbles under his breath, though he is quick to gain his bearings and shake his head before he points at the Storyteller. "Wait, that isn't important! Where's Suguru?"
The Storyteller points to his left. Satoru looks over to see Suguru swinging back and forth on a rope with hands bound to his side and mouth taped up, looking decidedly unamused. Jolting, Satoru stumbles over, stopping only when the Storyteller gives him a boxcutter, and he rips the tape off first.
Ow! Fuck! Satoru!" Suguru yelps out, and Satoru can't help but note that he, once again, cannot understand what the other is saying. With it clicking in his head, he is quick to saw the surprisingly thin rope off, bites his lower lip to not laugh when Suguru lands with a loud thud on the floor, and he bends down and cuts the bindings around his wrists off.
The Storyteller is quick to take his box cutter back and he takes it into his coat sleeves. Suguru looks at the Storyteller with the same disbelief Satoru feels right now. "Where are we?" Suguru asks after a while, coming to a stand as well when he dusts his clothes off, and the Storyteller tilts his head to the side, amused.
"An in-between." the Storyteller says. He points up at nothing as he speaks, head still tilting to the side, like a cat curious about what its owner is doing. "You are only here temporarily, do not fret. I am here merely to soften the blow and to give you your task."
"What makes you think we're gonna just do what you tell us to do?" Satoru says.
"You have not been on a mission in a while." the Storyteller says, lips flattening to a line, hands clasping together as though a greeting a customer in spite of the way both Satoru and Suguru tense up. "Do you not wish to be active again? You are Sorcerers after all, are you not?"
Satoru glares at the Storyteller, arms crossed, but he doesn't say anything. Suguru and him share a look with each other, with Satoru trying to gauge what he's thinking. The Storyteller, taking their silence as permission, continues on, "you can treat what I am showing you like I am offering you a mission." a smirk settles back onto his face. "Though, this may not be what you are used to, traditionally. You are free to ask me any questions you wish."
Questions, huh?
"What are the details of this mission?" Suguru asks, hand curled into a fist at his chin as he looks at the Storyteller quizzically.
"Of course, a logical train of thought. You are investigating the murder of a certain man by the name of Okiie Shogo. Before you worry yourself with the details, he was killed by Cursed Energy. See? You now have a reason to investigate this case."
Suguru glares at the Storyteller.
"Okay, I have a question then. Who's Okiie Shogo? A sorcerer? Someone from a clan?" Satoru asks, hands on his hips.
"Hmm..." the Storyteller taps his chin, before he snaps his fingers and points up. His lips are in a flat line once more. "I am afraid I cannot divulge much of his past to you. The only thing I can tell you, definitively and without a doubt, is that Okiie is an office worker in a company that sells and produces soap. There is not much else can I tell you."
Suguru frowns so deeply that it almost has its own noise. Satoru doesn't know how he can necessarily classify the noise, however. "Guess my next question is gonna be, was this done by a cursed spirit or a curse user?" Satoru continues.
"The latter."
"I think that just introduces even more questions... questions that I am going to bet you will not be answering so easily."
"My, my. Geto Suguru. You are a bright one."
"Ugh."
"I posit a question to you then. Would you revive the dead if it means killing others?
"Huh?" Satoru blinks owlishly. Sensing his confusion, the Storyteller repeats his question: "I posit a question to you. Let us say that you were given the opportunity to bring someone you love back to life, but it would require you to kill humans to build up the cursed energy for it. However, if you kill cursed users, the energy build-up is faster and there are less you need to kill.
"Would you?" the Storyteller's hands are clasping together again, his expression extremely unreadable thanks to his flattened lips.
Suguru looks away pensively, arms crossed and fingers tapping against his elbows. "No." Suguru says after a while. "I don't know the circumstances of what would happen if I were to bring someone back to life, and I don't want to gamble with those consequences."
"Seriously?" Satoru asks, looking sidelong at Suguru with disbelief. "Well, if I lost someone important to me and the only thing I had to do was kill cursed users to bring them back? I'd do it. I can probably fix the consequences of my actions no problem. I'm me, after all." with a flourish, Satoru swipes his hair up playfully then places his hand on his chest, his other arm flaring out in a shrugging motion.
Suguru glares violently at Satoru.
"Are there any other details you can give us, Storyteller?" Suguru asks after he gives Satoru a good smack on the back of his head.
"Pick up a newspaper when you are in the park." the Storyteller smiles. "You will understand your circumstances then. Ah, and make sure to trust Kurosuzu, will you?"
Satoru rubs the back of his head. "I think that's all the answers we're gonna get outta him, Suguru." Satoru says. "Wait! Actually, hold on."
"What the hell is up with your like gimmick?"
The Storyteller looks amused. Suguru stares at Satoru with utter disbelief on his face. "I am a benshi. Yes, the very same katsudo benshi you are thinking of. (Katsudo benshi are Japanese performers who would narrate for silent movies.) I hope that satisfied your curiosity, Gojo Satoru."
"Yeah, it did, actually."
Suguru smacks Satoru once more.
With an extremey beleagured sigh, Suguru looks down at the floor then back up at the strange man who is patiently waiting for them. "... that's everything for now." Suguru says slowly, staring at the Storyteller with clear distrust with his eyes.
He places his hat back onto his head, then gestures once more at the TV, obviously wanting the two of them to look at it. When they both glance towards it, they both jolt when the TV suddenly turns on and shows a sepia-toned footage of a park.
"Farewell." the man says, before both Satoru and Suguru yell as the TV seems to drag them in. With the two of them gone, the Storyteller looks at the TV screen for a bit, watches as it turns off once the two are at the park, then he looks up, as if in thought. He smiles a little bit after, staring forward as he does.
"My, I hope you enjoy the story as much as I hopefully will."