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Life is good.
Gojo crosses his legs, leaning back into the beach chair he had plopped down on.
Sure, he and Megumi had their ups and downs, but for the past two hours, there had been no arguments and only three eye-rolls from the younger one.
Gojo sips from his fruity cocktail, peering over his circular sunglasses to see what Megumi is up to.
It had been Nanami’s idea for the two of them to take a vacation to the beachside and get away from all of the sorcery work. A time for them to “bond.” The word had drawn out a scoff from Megumi and a grin from Gojo.
“How does that sound?” Gojo had asked, as he ruffled Megumi’s hair. “Gojo and Megumi bonding time!”
Megumi had taken no time to duck away from the hand and cross his arms. “Sounds torturous.”
Gojo’s shit-eating grin had only grown wider. “That’s his way of saying ‘I can hardly wait.’” He had explained to Nanami.
As it turns out, Megumi could wait. He could wait a very long time. Gojo learned this fact during the 4 hour drive to the coast line, where Megumi barely made a peep. Gojo sometimes envied the younger boy's patience and inner peace.
Gojo sits up in his chair and sets his glass aside when he sees that Megumi is talking to someone. A girl that looked to be around his age. Gojo can hardly wait to tease the eight-year-old about this later, considering Megumi doesn’t make friends often.
He watches as the little girl builds a sandcastle, talking to Megumi enthusiastically. She waves her hands around and has a brilliant smile on her face, like talking to Megumi was the best thing to happen to her all day.
Gojo knew Megumi had little tact and absolutely no charm, so he couldn’t help but worry that the kid would say something to upset the girl. Said boy was sitting cross legged in the sand, drawing little pictures with his finger while seemingly listening to his companion.
The girl then bursts out laughing, drawing a smile from Gojo. Megumi must have said something in his dead-panned voice that the girl took as a joke, even though the boy was probably dead serious.
Satisfied that the kids' game was improving, Gojo turns back to his phone and is about to text Nanami, when a shadow appears above him. Gojo looks up, shading his face as he is met with a bright smile that looks nearly identical to the girls.
“You must be that young lady's mother, am I right?” Gojo asked, appreciating the woman's pretty face.
“I sure am,” the woman says, stretching out her hand in greeting. Her lavender eyes crinkled with a smile. “My name is Akari Saito. I couldn’t help but approach you when I noticed our children were playing together.”
Gojo chuckles and placed his phone down, gesturing for the woman to sit. He doesn’t bother correcting the woman on the fact that Megumi isn’t technically his.
“Seems they’re becoming friends,” Gojo said.
The woman nods with a brilliant smile. “I’m glad. My daughter has a hard time making friends so she cherishes every chance she can get to make a new one.”
“Hmm,” Gojo murmurs. “They have something in common then. Well, except for the whole ‘cherishing’ part. I’m pretty sure Megumi couldn’t care less if he has any friends.”
The woman chuckled. “My daughter's name is Sora by the way.”
“Lovely name,” chirped Gojo.
“How long are you and your son on vacation for?” Akari asked, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
“A week. How about you?” Gojo began to reach for his drink, but found himself lost in Akari’s eyes.
“Same for me and my daughter actually,” Akaris said, holding eye contact with Gojo.
Gojo swallowed and attempted to tear his eyes away from hers, but he couldn't. The purple iris’ began swirling around, similar to a whirlpool. Gojo felt himself begin to sink deeper and deeper into their depths as his vision began to darken around the edges. He felt an unsettling feeling creep into his gut as he once again tried to shake the hold Akari’s eyes had on him.
“Wha…what are you…” Gojo wasn’t able to finish his sentence as Akari reached two fingers forwards and touched in between his eyes, forcing darkness to finally overtake Gojo as he collapsed onto the beach chair.
____
2 hours later…
Gojo woke up with a gasp, shooting upright in his seat. His brain began to work overtime, trying to fill in the gaps of what happened. The sun had begun to set and the beach was near empty. On instinct, Gojo’s eyes immediately flew to the last location he had seen Megumi.
“Shit.”
The beach where he had been playing with Sora was desolate. A mound of sand where a sandcastle had formerly sat is all that’s left.
Gojo jumped off of his chair, heart pounding. He rubbed the blur away from his eyes and sprints to the area where the sand castle once was. The sand in the area is a mess, footprints presented in a way that signaled a struggle had occurred. Gojo’s stomach dropped when he sensed some remaining bits of Megumi’s cursed energy. He had clearly summoned his dogs for help.
I was useless to protect him.
Gojo patted around his pockets for his phone, but of course it had been taken.
I’m so sorry kid. I’ll find you. I promise.
Gojo gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, allowing his nails to cut into the palms of his hands.
How the hell was I bested by some woman?! I’m supposed to be the strongest sorcerer and I was caught off guard that easily? I failed Megumi.
“Get yourself together, Gojo.” The man said to himself, furiously rubbing his hands through his tousled white hair. Taking a deep breath, Gojo closed his eyes and pictured the kid. Little Megumi with his spiky black hair, slender frame and dark blue eyes. Little Megumi with his quick wit and snappy comebacks. Little Megumi with his pure soul and innate talent. Little Megumi who Gojo would do anything for.
Gojo held still and searched inside himself, keeping his senses on high alert for any sign of Megumi’s curse energy.
There.
There it was. A tug. A tiny, weak tug, but it was there all the same. Megumi’s cursed energy was calling out to him.
I’m coming for you, kid.
____
Megumi had been in worse situations. Although it wasn’t ideal to be bound to a chair with cursed ropes, he was sure he would be able to get out of this situation.
So much for Gojo-Megumi bonding time.
Megumi rolled his eyes and gave another tug at the ropes, but to no avail.
“Give up, would you?”
Megumi turned a withering look to Sora, the girl who had gotten him in this situation in the first place. This is why he avoided making friends. It wasn’t every day that a girl you were becoming friends with kidnapped you with the aid of her mother.
“Go back to your natural form, would you? I’m not afraid of your ugly self.”
Sora laughed and shrugged her shoulders. “Alright then. If you’re sure.”
A clear mist began to seep out of every pore on the girl's body. Her jaw opened as steam poured out and the body began to vibrate and seemingly deflated as the girl's body collapsed on the floor, merely a vessel for the curse inside. The mist floats around for a minute before seeping into another body, one much more grotesque. The curse’s true form rises up, a disgusting thing covered in warts, countless eyes and three mouths, each filled with razor sharp teeth.
“Do you like this better?” The curse asked in a rough voice.
“It fits your personality more, so yes.” Megumi says in a bored tone. The curse snarls at the quip and hits Megumi across the face, forcing the boy's head to whip back from the force. Megumi bites his lip to keep in the cry of pain. The curse’s claw-covered limb left a gouge across the boy's cheek.
“What do you want from me?” Megumi asked, spitting on the ground.
“Do you really want me to start monologuing?” The curse asked, phasing in and out of view.
“It would pass the time.” Megumi said.
“You must have some idea of why you’re a high target for kidnappings. Fushiguro Megumi, holder of the Ten Shadows technique. You’re in high demand. I happen to have a buyer that I’m selling you to, he should be here any minute.”
Megumi’s heart skipped a beat.
Why me? I never asked to be born with this technique. Where the hell is Gojo? He should be here by now. Unless…
“You’re very high value, you know. I’m getting a lot of money from you,” The curse continued. “Such a small thing like you, being valued at such a high price. What a novelty.”
Megumi drowned out the curse’s talking with a ringing sound that began to sound in his ears. He closed his eyes and let his head fall forwards. He needed to call out to Gojo. Let him know of his location. If Gojo knew where he was, he would be able to warp to his location.
With the little strength Megumi had left, he sent a call out to Gojo with his cursed energy.
Please tell me you’ll get this. I can’t let myself be sold. If I can’t get out of this…I’ll…I’ll kill myself. I won’t be used by some curse. It may be better off if I die anyway. Have someone else inherit the technique.
Megumi tried one last time to break the ropes around his wrists, but he couldn’t. All the strength was drained from his body. He fell limp as he drew in ragged breaths.
“Hey!”
Megumi’s head snapped to the side as he was hit again.
“Sit up straight! I need you looking presentable when the buyer arrives.” The curse demanded.
“Yeah…and hitting me is…really gonna help with that.” Megumi coughed and drew in a wheezing breath.
The curse shrieked in fury and grabbed Megumi’s chin harshly. “If it was up to me, I would carve you up right here and send your body to Satoru in a box. That fate would be ten times better than the one my buyer has in store for you though. By this time tomorrow you’ll be begging for death.”
Megumi groaned and yanked his jaw away from the curse harshly.
Gojo please.
___
Megumi was never a believer. He figured that religion and god was a waste of time. But perhaps he could be convinced otherwise. Perhaps prayer did work. Because not a moment later, a telltale glitch appeared in the air and soon after, the furious form of Gojo Satoru appeared.
Megumi let his eyes take in the familiar figure and allowed the feeling of safety wash over him before he fell limp, unconsciousness taking over his body.
____
Gojo’s eyes took in the situation in a split second. Immediately his gaze locked onto Megumi, who looked to be unresponsive, tied up in a chair. A fury so white-hot built up inside Gojo and he focused it all on the curse.
“How dare you,” Was all Gojo said before he approached the curse, who started begging for its life. “You don’t deserve to breathe the same air as him.”
Gojo shot his hand forwards and the curse flew backwards, pinned against the rocky wall. It tried to struggle free, but the energy was too strong. Gojo knelt in front of the chair Megumi was in and gently held the boy's face. He bit down a scream of anger at the sight of the deep cuts along Megumi’s cheeks and the clear bruising along his jaw.
The man's nimble fingers worked to undo the ropes, cursed energy seeping away from the binding with a snap of his fingers. Megumi’s light form slumped forwards into Gojo’s arms. The man lifted the boy up with one arm and turned to the curse.
“You hurt him. So I’ll hurt you ten times more.”
Gojo began with the curses multitude of eyes. Staying a safe distance away, he gouged each of them out individually, ignoring the shrieks of pain. He then began slicing away at the arms and legs. A purple goo trickled out of the wounds and severed limbs. Gojo then squeezed his fist together, sending cursed energy throughout the curses body, breaking each bone. For the final touch, he sent the curse’s splintered spine up through its brain, finally killing the grotesque being.
The red anger began to disappear from Gojo’s vision as he heard a whimper from the kid in his arms.
“Let's get you home.”
Gojo wrapped both arms around Megumi and warped back to their home in Tokyo.
____
A hot bath and first aid session later, Gojo and Megumi were on their couch with a blanket draped across their laps and steaming bowls of udon in their hands.
“Next time Nanami tries to give us a vacation idea, lets remind him of this, yeah?” Gojo said before taking a slurp of his noodles.
“Sounds good.” Megumi said.
Gojo looked down at the kid, eyes traveling across the bandages on his soft cheeks. The wounds would likely scar.
“Hey, Megumi. I’m sorry I couldn’t get to you faster.” Gojo said, poking at a piece of broccoli floating in the broth.
Megumi just shrugged. “Not your fault. I shouldn’t have gotten kidnapped in the first place.”
Gojo sighed. How perfectly on character for the kid to blame himself. The man gently carded a hand through Megumi’s hair and left it there for a while while a movie began to play on the t.v.
“You’re a really strong kid, do you know that? Not just a strong kid, but a strong sorcerer.” Gojo said.
Megumi looked down at his meal, frowning. “I guess that’s why people want to kidnap and sell me.”
Gojo’s hand in Megumi’s hair stilled. “I’ll find whoever was going to…buy you. I promise. They’ll never hurt you again.”
Megumi nodded. “I know.”
With that, Megumi yawned and let his head fall onto Gojo’s shoulders. The hand in his hair started its movement again, lulling the boy to sleep.