Chapter Text
When Gojo first met Megumi, his first impression of him was how irritated the child looked at him. There was no sign of respect for his elders.
Gojo made a face as he realized he was acting a lot more like his senior, Utahime. He spent way too much time around her and now he had some explaining to do since he was basically adopting a child.
Still, it wasn't like he cared too much about it.
"Megumi, your dad is from the Zen'in Clan, but he left the clan to have you. You're a special child because your father was saving you as a trump card to use against the clan. It's irritating, isn't it?" Gojo asked as he wiggled his hands in the air with a dumb grin plastered across his face.
The child stared up at him with disgust. Gojo tilted his head in confusion but smiled through it.
"So what? I haven't seen him in a long time. I don't really care what he does as long as Tsumiki is safe." Megumi stated.
That was sudden.
"Well, if you have any questions about your dad, just ask me because I can hopefully answer a few of them. I'll take care of things, so try your best!" Gojo smirked as he patted a peeved Megumi on the head before turning away to leave. But just as he was about to walk away, he heard light footsteps.
"Ah, who's that?"
Gojo turned around to see a brown-haired girl with long bangs on both sides of her face. She had a short build, though she was slightly taller than Megumi. No one ever told him this kid had a girlfriend already. "No, I think the question is, who are you? Megumi's boyfriend?"
Megumi pushed Tsumiki in the back and tried to send her back home. "He's nobody, Tsumiki. Just a homeless drunk."
Tsumiki peered over her shoulder with a look of confusion as she was pushed back inside the doors through their house.
"Who're you calling a homeless drunk?" Gojo asked, a grin lighting up his face as he realized who she was. There was no way a child his age would have a girlfriend, so she was his sister!
Once Megumi successfully pushed Tsumiki inside their house, he tried to close the door, only for Gojo to stick his foot right in between to stop it from closing.
Megumi glared at him and repeatedly slammed the door on Gojo's foot with as much force as possible, but the child's strength was like an ant biting his finger. It did nothing. In fact, it was kinda cute to see a child try their best to get rid of him.
"Hey, don't leave me hanging without telling me who she is, Megumi~." Gojo pried the door open and watched as the girl looked up at him in curiosity.
Even though he knew she was his sister, he just wanted to hear it from either her or Megumi.
"Megumi, who is this creepy old man?" Tsumiki asked, unsure of the white-haired person standing before them.
"I told you, he's a homeless drunk."
Gojo stuck his tongue out and rolled his eyes at the sky. "You two sure are insufferable, but if I treat you two to some food, would that change your mind?"
Seeing as how they had no father, he felt a sense of duty to protect both of them. At least for some time before they could fend for themselves. He was still prideful and selfish, so he would not spend all his days trying to take care of some children when they grew up.
"Food?" Tsumiki's eyes widened as she looked over at Megumi, who slowly shook his head. But it seemed like her curiosity and hunger got the best of her as she looked back at Gojo. "Where are you going to take us?"
"A very special place!" Gojo winked at them as he struck a stupid pose.
"Is he going to abduct us, Megumi?" Tsumiki asked as she pointed at him.
"I think he will," Megumi responded.
"Oi, when I say special place, I mean a restaurant where you guys can eat. Now choose a place because I have no intentions of stealing you guys." Gojo stated flatly.
Tsumiki glanced over at Megumi, who just looked back at her with a look of skepticism. "It'll be fine, Megumi! I'll take care of us if he is a dangerous man!" A reassuring smile crossed her face to soothe his anxious mood.
"So what'll it be? I can take you kids to eat sushi, udon, or anything you want!" Gojo patiently waited for their response. He shouldn't really be caring about these kids as much, but it wasn't a hassle.
"Can we go eat some sushi?" Tsumiki asked as she looked up at Gojo with hopeful eyes.
Gojo smiled and lowered his sunglasses down. "You're in luck because I know just the place!"
It was a cheap place where sushi was served on a conveyor belt, but Gojo didn't care. He said he would treat them, not spend every single penny he earned for them.
"This doesn't look expensive. I thought you said you were taking us to a special place." Megumi pointed out as he glumly looked around.
"Bleh." Gojo just rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out. He needed to stop doing both actions, but at this point, it was a bad, unbreakable habit. "I'm not rich, so deal with it."
Gojo sat down at a table while Megumi sat on the opposite side, away from him. He also expected Tsumiki to sit with Megumi, but she sat next to him, even bumping into his arm by accident.
This caught him off guard as he realized just how small and fragile a child could be, especially when she was compared to his tall and lanky, yet muscular body. And the way she smiled at Megumi to comfort him caused Gojo to wonder what he was doing, intruding on their closely-knit relationship.
"Oh, sorry..." Tsumiki apologized as she scooted away from Gojo to give him more room.
"Nah, it's fine." It was a weird thing to realize, but something that never really hit him fully until now.
"Sorry again, but I don't think I know your name, old man."
Gojo winced at her temporary name for him, though what did he expect? He had white hair, so it was expected, especially since she was a child. "It's Gojo. Now, what do you want to eat? I'll give it to you since, you know, you're short!"
"I'll have the tuna one then, please!"
"Coming right up!" Gojo took a quick peek at the conveyor belt and waited for a few seconds before picking up a dish, holding two pieces of tuna nigiri sushi.
He placed it in front of her and watched as she took a small bite out of it with her chopsticks. He smiled, knowing she enjoyed the sushi he was buying for them.
Across the table, Megumi was just staring at the two of them the whole time with his head lying on the table. His glare was staring daggers through Gojo's skull, causing Gojo to put his head on his hands and stare back at him with a goofy expression.
"And what would you like, Megumi?" Gojo asked in a false angelic voice.
"Nothing. I'll get it myself because, in my mind, you're still a creepy, homeless drunk." Megumi stood up and watched the selection of sushi pass by him.
Gojo smiled at Megumi, who seemed to be more interested in how the conveyor belt worked as small plates of sushi slowly ticked by until it went to their next destination.
As Gojo continued to supply Tsumiki with her favorite sushi, he waited for Megumi to say something, but it was clear to see the child was extremely skeptical about him with the way he was avoiding his gaze and ignoring his kind actions. Though it was understandable because Gojo was never one to take care of children, nor did he appear someone trustworthy since he was a complete stranger.
Or who came off trustworthy in the first place unless they were a well-known relative? He was just a random white-haired dude who burst into their lives and claimed their father disappeared.
When Gojo glanced over at Megumi, the kid had finally chosen a plate at that exact moment. With his usual disinterested expression still on his face, Megumi sat down and poked the raw sliver of yellowtail sitting on top of the rice with his chopsticks until he realized Gojo was staring at him.
Megumi looked away for a second and muttered a quick thanks to Gojo.
Gojo smiled and reached over to pat him on the head. "If you want to do anything else today, make sure to tell me because I'm sure your sister would love it!"
Tsumiki beamed at Megumi, who blushed slightly from the attention he was garnering from both of them. He fought Gojo's hand from patting him but failed as Gojo's strength overpowered his weak grip.
"Fine, but she's my step-sister," Megumi told Gojo as he accepted the hand ruffling his hair.
Pulling his arm away from his head, Gojo looked down at Tsumiki and lowered his sunglasses to get a better look at her. "Really? Now that's something I didn't know! Well, I have one thing to say, be more like your step-sister, Megumi~!"
"Gojo, can we go shopping after we eat?" Tsumiki asked, her eyes twinkling as she wholeheartedly believed he would say yes.
And there was no way he could say no to such a pure and innocent child. Even though he wanted to spend some time honing his already overpowered cursed techniques, it wouldn't hurt to spend some time relaxing with them. And he had already promised them to go anywhere they wanted today.
Gaining the trust of kids was easy.
Gojo was in a dream-like state from imagining how he would use Megumi's cursed technique to his advantage when he felt a small tug on his sleeve. It was Tsumiki, who was still waiting for his answer.
Gojo grinned while Megumi was slowly shaking his head. "Of course, we can go! That's why I like you the best because you know what's best for your step-brother! What do you say we dress him up like a clown?"
"I wouldn't mind!" Tsumiki responded, much to the disappointment of Megumi.
"Then can we go back home after we shop...?" Megumi muttered, probably trying his best to not offend Tsumiki.
"Right! We'll torture Megumi as much as possible before heading to your home!" Gojo exclaimed.
Megumi sank farther into his seat while watching the two of them burst out laughing. It was going to be a long day for the child.