Chapter Text
Gojo, Tsumiki, and Megumi were at a carnival, enjoying their time. Gojo had paid a cameraman to take a picture of them and print it out on the spot, so they could cherish their memories.
Tsumiki was wearing a pink dress with a white ribbon tied around her waist. She was also wearing some souvenirs from shops around the carnival that Gojo had bought for her. It was a pink hat sitting on top of her head and a purple balloon in her hand. On her other hand, she held an ice cream cone they had bought a minute earlier.
Megumi was wearing a blue shirt and black shorts with his very own blue hat. He also had an ice cream cone in his hand.
Gojo bent down to get in the frame for the camera and held his head next to Tsumiki's. As for Megumi, he was a bit away from Gojo, but still in the frame. He was looking at something on the ground, so he didn't hear the cameraman saying the countdown.
"Smile, Tsumiki and Megumi!" Gojo exclaimed.
Tsumiki did as she was told, but Megumi was still absorbed on an ant crawling around.
"3..."
"2..."
"1..."
When the camera clicked, it captured Megumi's ice cream sliding off the cone and splashing on the floor. Two pictures were taken, one with it sliding off and the next with the ice cream on the floor.
The pictures came out as so. For the next week, Gojo wouldn't stop teasing Megumi to death about how the picture was hilarious.
"Hold on, tight!" Gojo called out as he held onto both Tsumiki and Megumi while they were propped up on his shoulders, clinging for dear life.
"But I can't see anything! What are we running from?" Tsumiki asked while Megumi stared at her in confusion since he could see them clearly.
"From curses!" Gojo jumped up in the air and stayed afloat before releasing his Cursed Technique Reversal: Red on the curses gathering beneath him.
An amalgamation of arms reached up to him right before they withered away from the wicked explosion, tearing its way through the army of twisted curses. Gojo landed on the ground and skidded to a stop as Tsumiki and Megumi both rolled off his shoulders. Gojo laughed as he stood back up and scooped them up in his arms.
"I'm never taking you guys anywhere near my missions again," Gojo said, walking away from the area as the curtain was deactivated. With a cough, Gojo waved the dust away from his face.
"But why? It was fun to see you work! There was a big kaboom and a whoosh!" Tsumiki threw her arms up in the air as she replicated the explosion that had erupted a few seconds earlier.
"Isn't Megumi supposed to like this stuff more than you?" Gojo asked as Tsumiki laughed.
"I just want to be home, but you dragged me out here because Tsumiki wanted to see you work again," Megumi commented, his arms crossed over his chest in slight annoyance.
"Well, don't worry about a thing! I'll treat you guys to something delicious today!" Gojo put them down on the ground and patted their heads.
"Then I want sushi again!" Tsumiki voiced her opinion.
"And what about you, Megumi?" Gojo asked, looking down at the small child.
"Me too."
"Hey~. It's okay to voice what you want to me." Gojo teased, picking up Megumi and crushing him gently with a hug.
"But that's really what I want!" Megumi cried out, struggling to escape Gojo's grasp.
"Oh, Megumi, you never fail to make me happy!" Gojo said, spinning him around while Tsumiki begged for a turn, which Gojo granted after he was done playing around Megumi.
Over the winter, there was nothing to do other than his usual exorcising duties, so Gojo visited his kids more often, especially after school. And because of the holiday season, curses decreased by five percent or less. It wasn't much, but at least it felt like winter with snow swirling down from the sky.
Gojo stared out the window with Tsumiki in his lap. He had been tying her hair for so many days, he could do it without looking, sparing only glances to check if he did it correctly. His sunglasses sat at the tip of his nose as he mimicked what old ladies did to get a good glimpse of her beautiful, smooth hair.
It really felt festive this time around with two kids to take care of and celebrate Christmas with. Now all he needed was to do something stupid and ridiculous to Utahime, and his holiday would be complete.
Tsumiki sunk into the couch once Gojo was done and flashed him her brightest smile. He ruffled his hand through her hair and returned the smile.
"So what is your step-brother doing? I haven't seen him all day. Is he in his room or at school?"
"No, he's home, enjoying his time alone. He's just avoiding you." Tsumiki fiddled around with her fingers cutely and giggled.
"Ouch, that hurts." Gojo stood up from the couch and walked down the hallway with Tsumiki following closely behind him. "Whatever could our cute Megumi be doing?"
Gojo slowly opened the door and observed the room since Megumi always blocked his entry. Not that much differed from Tsumiki's, though the color scheme was blue instead of pink.
He looked down at Megumi, sitting on the floor, who stared up at him in disgust with a blue crayon in his hand. A white paper lay on the ground with a myriad of colors painted across the scene. Splotches took form and gave birth to shapes and sizes that definitely resembled a kid's drawings.
"Megumi~," Gojo called out with a high-pitched, playful voice while Tsumiki peeped out from Gojo's leg with a joyful expression.
Megumi was about to say something mean, but the moment he saw Tsumiki, he faltered. "What do you want, old man?"
"Blah... I thought I told you to stop calling me that since I adopted you guys a few months ago." Gojo stuck his tongue out in annoyance. "But we just wanted to see what you were doing."
Gojo walked over to Megumi, carrying Tsumiki with him as she clung onto his leg. When he saw the drawings on the paper, he found himself poorly drawn with lightning striking him down from the clouds.
"I have to give it to you, Megumi. That's a yikes from me... I'm beginning to think you don't like me very much..." Gojo commented as he grimaced at the drawing.
"I agree, four eyes," Megumi stated as a grin crossed his face.
"Hey, it's six eyes! Got it! Six eyes!"
Tsumiki couldn't hold it any longer as she let go of Gojo's leg and rolled onto her back while she died from laughter. Megumi exhaled from his nose in mirth and handed the drawing to Gojo before running out of the room with Gojo playfully chasing him around the house.
Gojo let Utahime inside the house and waved his hands over to the couch where Megumi and Tsumiki were sitting, watching the TV blaring its usual nonsense to the kids. "Here they are! Aren't my children so cute, Utahime!"
"Did you kidnap them?" Was Utahime's first question.
"Yes, he kidnapped us." Megumi blurted out before Gojo could answer.
Utahime gazed at the kid and shook her head in disbelief while a small grin lit up her face from Megumi's lack of hesitation to her rhetorical question. "I can't believe you didn't tell us about them until a few days ago. Maybe this will teach you to be a nicer person."
"But I'm the nicest person you already met."
Utahime swung her hand where his head once was, but he ducked down and laughed. Once she calmed down, Utahime looked at the list of ingredients she brought to cook for the kids and sighed. "If they've been suffering this much, I feel bad that I'm making something as simple as Alfredo penne pasta with chicken... Shouldn't we be treating them to something better?"
All three of them just stared at her in silence until she rolled her eyes and pulled her sleeves up to prepare their dinner. "Okay, forget I even said anything! Because apparently, someone doesn't know how to take care of children by cooking home-cooked meals for them!"
"Does taking them out for dinner every day count as good parenting?" Gojo asked, mirth overflowing from his goofy expression.
"Of course not!" Utahime growled.
Gojo shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and put an apron on to help her make the pasta and chicken. Though most of his help came in the form of messing around with her like accidentally burning one of the chicken breasts, looking over at the TV a tad too long because of the interesting show his kids were watching, and splashing Utahime with water as they drained the pasta.
When Utahime opened the fridge to check if there were any extra ingredients to add to the pasta, she found it half empty. "Wow, when you said you took them out every day to eat, you weren't kidding... It's like this fridge exists solely to keep the air inside of it crisp and cold... Do you know if this place has any parmesan cheese, Gojo?"
Gojo ignored her as he hummed to himself and kept a careful eye on the chicken breasts cooking in the frying pan. He didn't want to burn it this time.
"I know you heard me, Gojo!" Utahime snapped.
"Well, maybe you should have brought it with you, Utahime~."
"You invite me to cook for the kids and offer to help me, yet all you're doing is slowing us down!" Utahime dragged a hand down her face in defeat. "I knew I should have moved closer to the Kyoto Jujutsu school and applied there instead..."
"Pffft! Sucks to be you!" Gojo snorted as he avoided another swing from Utahime.
"Respect your elders!"
When they finished cooking, Utahime called Tsumiki and Megumi over to the dinner table. They thanked Utahime for the meal and dug in.
But what happened next took Gojo by surprise, but filled his heart with warmth. Tsumiki grabbed a small chunk of chicken from her plate with her fork and lifted it up to Megumi, who hesitantly opened his mouth to consume it. It was then he realized his mistake. Gojo and Utahime were staring at him with interest, though Gojo's face was one of mischievous interest because he realized what he could tease Megumi on next.
Megumi blushed and avoided their gaze. "Tsumiki made sure I ate by feeding me when our dad and mom left us before Gojo interrupted our lives, that's all… It's not cute or anything, okay?!"
"Oh no, I wouldn't dare think it's cute..." Gojo said as his expression suddenly lit up with delight. "In fact, I think it's super cute!"
Tsumiki giggled as Megumi sunk in his chair. Even Utahime covered her mouth while she laughed silently. As for Gojo, he was performing his usual antics of poking fun at Megumi to his death while the kid's cheeks transformed into a deep shade of red.
When they finished their meal and Utahime washed their dishes in the sink, Megumi walked up to her while Gojo was busy watching TV with Tsumiki.
"Yes, what is it?" Utahime asked, turning off the water and squatting down to meet him at eye level.
"Are you our mommy now?"
That took Utahime by surprise, but she just smiled and patted him on the head. These poor children. "If that's what you want to think of me, then go ahead."
"Okay. Thanks for the food... Mommy."
"Don't worry about a thing. I'll be here tomorrow to make another delicious dish."
Megumi nodded as he suddenly wrapped his arms around Utahime's neck. "I like you a lot better than the white-haired old man..."
Utahime cried with happiness inside as she cherished the warmth of the child and hugged him back because, yeah, she agreed with the kid. Gojo is way less likable than her.
It was late at night. Gojo had gone to get some snacks for Tsumiki and Megumi while they stayed up late to play a board game. It was a Saturday night, and they deserved it. What Gojo didn't know was Megumi was telling Tsumiki a horror story while he was gone.
"It was a dark night like this with two siblings at home without the supervision of their parents. They were playing a board game just like us, actually. From outside the hallway, they both heard a step and a floorboard creak." Megumi paused for a dramatic effect and watched as Tsumiki trembled in fear.
"When one of them looked outside, he saw a white cloth down the hallway and two black shoes peeking out from underneath as it took a few more steps. They closed the door and huddled in the corner while the continuous creaking announced his arrival at their door."
"Ahh! I don't want to know what happens next!" Tsumiki shrieked as she covered her eyes with her hands while Megumi grinned.
"It slowly opened the door and made its way to the kids in the corner. Its shoes made a clicking sound every time it hit the tiled floor. They screamed in fear as it uncovered itself to reveal that it was a tall human with white hair." Megumi looked around and waited for a bit until Tsumiki peeked out from the cracks of her fingers.
"A-And then what happened?"
"He grabbed them and poof. End of story."
Tsumiki closed her eyes and hugged herself. "Ugh... Please don't tell me stories like that ever again."
"Don't worry, I won't. It was just this once." Megumi smiled as he heard the door close from Gojo's arrival.
The sound of his feet stepping on the floor of their house echoed and creaked down the hallway where they were and Tsumiki's eyes widened in fear. When Gojo opened the door, he heard Tsumiki let out a shrill scream of terror.
"Ahhhh! A white-haired monster!" Tsumiki cried out before diving inside Megumi's closet.
Gojo lowered his sunglasses and stared at the location Tsumiki was hidden in with massive confusion. He pointed at himself while looking down at Megumi. "Me...? A monster?"
The next few minutes were spent with Megumi laughing like the mischievous brat he was and Gojo coaxing Tsumiki out of the closet to eat snacks and finish playing the board game, which took a while since she was traumatized by Megumi's stellar storytelling.