Chapter Text
Yoriko
The shrill beeping beside my bed felt less like an alarm and more like a public execution. I groaned into my pillow, blindly smacking my hand across the nightstand until my fingers finally collided with my watch. The noise cut off instantly.
Silence.
For exactly three seconds.
Then my eyes cracked open.
The red digital numbers burned into my retinas.
8:47 AM.
My brain froze for a second.
Then—
“Oh, shit.”
I bolted upright so fast my blanket tangled around my legs and nearly dragged me off the bed. My shoulder slammed into the wall with a painful thud as I scrambled free.
Gojo had told me to be ready by eight-thirty.
Eight-thirty.
I stared at the time again in disbelief like maybe it would magically change itself out of pity.
It did not.
“Why didn’t anyone wake me up?”
Not that anyone here cared enough to.
The dorm room was still dim, pale morning light filtering through the curtains in thin strips across the floor. Clothes were scattered everywhere from the mission two days ago because I’d been too exhausted to clean anything afterward.
My uniform jacket hung halfway off my desk chair.
I lunged for it.
My pajama shirt got stuck over my head while I tried pulling it off too quickly, and for a horrifying few seconds I couldn't get it off, struggling to breathe underneath it. It is only until I heard a rip in my shirt did i manage to take it off, now well...ripped.
Cold air hit my skin immediately.
I stumbled around the room half-asleep, dragging on my uniform with all the grace of a dying animal. My skirt was crooked the first time I pulled it on. I fixed it while hopping on one foot trying to tug on my tights at the same time.
My hair was definitely a disaster.
I ignored it.
There wasn’t time.
The dark navy fabric of the uniform settled around me heavily, sleeves hanging slightly over my hands. I quickly fastened the gold buttons with fumbling fingers before grabbing the belt at my waist.
I snatched my phone off the nightstand, shoved it into my pocket, and rushed toward the door.
The moment I yanked it open and sprinted outside I slammed directly into the hallway wall.
A loud crack echoed through the corridor.
Pain exploded across my forehead.
I stood there in stunned silence for a second, one hand pressed against the wall, feeling like i've just gotten a concussion.
Then I slowly slid down onto the floor.
“…I hate mornings.”
“You know doors are usually in the middle.”
I looked up immediately.
Fushiguro stood a few rooms down the hall, already dressed in his uniform.
Of course he was.
His dark hair was still messy, though somehow on him it looked intentional instead of concerning. One hand rested in his pocket while the other loosely held his phone at his side.
He stared at me with the same expression he always wore.
Not exactly judgmental..i think?
I groaned quietly and peeled myself off the floor.
“I’m awake,” I mumbled.
“I can see that.”
“How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough.”
Heat crawled into my face.
Wonderful.
I quickly fixed my skirt and tugged my sleeves down properly, pretending I had not just nearly concussed myself in front of him.
Megumi’s eyes flicked briefly toward the watch still strapped loosely around my wrist.
“You overslept.”
“Thank you, detective.”
He ignored that.
“Gojo-sensei’s bringing the new first year soon.”
Yuji Itadori.
Right.
The boy who apparently swallowed Sukuna’s finger and survived.
The entire school had been talking about it nonstop for days.
I leaned back against the wall with a sigh, finally forcing myself awake enough to think properly.
“When?”
Megumi shrugged slightly.
“He didn’t say.”
Of course he didn’t. Because why should he, right?
Gojo treated schedules more like vague suggestions from the universe.
I rubbed tiredly at my eyes before finally looking properly at Megumi.
The bruises from his last mission were mostly gone now. A few days ago, when I’d passed him outside the infirmary, he’d looked awful. Bloodied knuckles. Torn uniform. Exhaustion carved into his face so sharply even I noticed it immediately.
Apparently the curse he fought had been strong enough to nearly kill him.
Now he just looked tired.
Normal tired.
His posture was still stiff though, and there was a faint scratch near his jaw that hadn’t healed completely yet.
“You look better,” I said quietly.
Megumi blinked once, like he hadn’t expected the comment.
“…Yeah.”
Neither of us spoke for a moment after that.
The hallway was quiet except for the distant hum of morning activity somewhere outside the dorm building.
I glanced away first.
Megumi had always been strangely kind to me. Not openly or in a dramatic way.
But compared to everyone else at Jujutsu High, the difference was obvious.
Most students underestimated me the second they heard about my technique.
Osteokinesis. Basically Bone manipulation.
At first glance, it sounded horrifying enough to impress people. Then they realized the problem.
Curses didn’t really have bones.
At least not normal ones.
Which meant during practical combat training, my technique was inconsistent and difficult and nowhere near as flashy as everyone else’s. I wasn’t weak. I just…hadn’t mastered it yet.
But people saw hesitation and assumed incompetence.
It was easier for them that way.
I’d heard the whispers before.
“She’d be more useful against humans.”
“Her cursed technique is creepy.”
“She freezes too much.”
The worst part was that some of them were right. I did hesitate.
Because controlling bones inside another living body felt deeply wrong sometimes.
Especially human ones.
Megumi never said any of that, though.
He never looked at me like I was pathetic.
But he does judge me a lot.
I tucked a strand of messy hair behind my ear.
“So,” I said, mostly to break the silence, “what’s he like?”
Megumi looked mildly annoyed immediately.
“The new guy?”
“Yeah.”
“He’s loud.”
I smiled faintly.
“That bad?”
“Yes.”
“That’s coming from you, though.”
Megumi stared at me blankly.
“…What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You hate everyone.”
“I don’t hate everyone.”
“Oh please. Like you don't always threaten everyone with your dogs”
“They’re shikigami.”
“okay well they're dogs too so technically I'm still right.”
For the first time that morning, I thought I saw the faintest flicker of amusement in his expression.
Megumi checked the time on his phone before slipping it back into his pocket with a faint look of annoyance.
“He’s late,” I muttered.
Megumi gave a small shrug. “Obviously.”
I sighed and leaned my head back against the wall. Waiting for Gojo was exhausting. There was never a schedule with him, always just vague promises.
After another few minutes of standing there doing absolutely nothing, I pushed myself off the wall.
“If we stay here any longer, I’m going back to bed.”
“You just woke up.”
“Exactly. I miss it already.”
Megumi looked down the hallway again before speaking.
“We could walk around until they get here.”
I stared at him.
“You’re choosing voluntary interaction?”
“It’s not interaction.”
“Right.”
Still, I followed him downstairs.
The morning air outside was cool enough to finally wake me up properly. Thin sunlight filtered through the trees surrounding the school grounds, shadows shifting across the stone pathways beneath our feet. For a while, we walked in silence. Not uncomfortable silence, though. Megumi was just easy to be quiet around. He never forced conversation when there didn’t need to be any.
We passed the training grounds, then the vending machines near the courtyard.
The second lap around the grounds was quieter than the first. Even Megumi looked bored by then.
“We should go back,” he said eventually.
“Finally.”
We turned toward the dorm building again.
Before we even reached it, voices echoed from inside.
One loud and animated.
The other painfully recognizable.
Megumi’s expression flattened instantly.
I looked up just as Gojo appeared through the entrance with a boy beside him.
Pink hair.
Red hood beneath his uniform.
Relaxed posture.
Yuji Itadori.
He looked… normal.
Not terrifying. Not dangerous. If I saw him on the street, I might have thought he was an average guy.
Gojo spotted us immediately and lifted a hand.
“There you are.”
Megumi already looked irritated, which honestly made sense the moment I noticed where they were standing.
The room directly beside his.
Gojo held up a key with entirely too much satisfaction.
“And this,” he announced, “is Yuji’s room.”
Megumi stared at the door.
Then at Gojo.
“…There are other empty rooms.”
“Yes,” Gojo said easily.
“And yet.”
Megumi looked one inconvenience away from violence.
Meanwhile Yuji had already leaned slightly toward Megumi’s open doorway, peeking inside.
“Huh,” he said. “Your room’s so clean and organised. You a germophobe?”
Megumi stepped forward immediately. “Don’t go in.”
“I wasn’t—”
The door slammed directly against Yuji’s face.
Yuji jerked back. “Ow.”
Gojo smiled. “You two are getting along already.”
“We’re not.”
Yuji rubbed the side of his head before glancing toward me instead.
His expression softened a little, more relaxed than overly energetic.
“You’re Akane, right?”
“Yoriko Akane,” I corrected automatically.
“Right.”
He held out a hand casually. “Yuji Itadori.”
I shook it after a second.
His hand was warm like a Human's.
It felt strange knowing Sukuna existed somewhere inside him at that exact moment. Like actually inside him.
I found myself studying him longer than I meant to.
No extra eyes.
Nothing unnatural.
Just a normal face.
Though he does have two little marks underneath his eyes.
Yuji noticed eventually and laughed awkwardly. “What?”
“Nothing,” I said quickly. “It’s just…fascinating.”
“The Sukuna thing?”
I nodded once.
“Yeah, it’s weird for me too,” he admitted.
"Not weird. Interesting actually." I beamed.
Gojo leaned against the wall nearby, arms crossed.
“He talked nonstop yesterday.”
Yuji groaned. “Don’t remind me.”
Then he paused slightly.
“…Actually, now that I think about it, he’s been quiet all morning.”
Megumi frowned. “Quiet?”
“Like completely silent.” Yuji looked uneasy saying it out loud. “Usually he’s insulting me every five seconds.”
“That sounds exhausting.”
“It is.”
Gojo hummed thoughtfully beside us, though he still looked amused more than concerned.
I glanced at Yuji again without meaning to. Or maybe not at Yuji exactly. At the body carrying Sukuna. The idea still felt impossible. A human body containing something ancient enough to become legend.
By the time we left Tokyo to pick up the last first-year, I already had a headache.
Mostly from Gojo.
The train ride had been loud from the beginning. Yuji asked questions about everything.
Like seriously everything.
How curses worked. How missions worked. What the uniforms meant. Why Gojo covered his eyes. Whether sorcerers got paid overtime.
Gojo answered maybe half of them seriously.
Megumi looked like he wanted to jump out the window.
I sat across from them with my head resting against the glass, half listening while the scenery blurred past outside.
Yuji really was strange.
Not in a bad way.
Just… strangely normal.
Too normal.
Every few minutes I caught myself glancing at him again without meaning to.
Nothing about him matched the idea of Sukuna. And apparently Sukuna still hadn’t spoken since arriving at Jujutsu High.
Yuji mentioned it twice more during the ride.
The second time, even Gojo stopped joking around for a few seconds.
“Hm,” he’d said thoughtfully. “That is unusual.”
Then immediately started talking about sightseeing.
By the time we arrived to pick up Nobara Kugisaki, Megumi’s mood had somehow worsened further.
Nobara’s had not.
She fit into the group disturbingly fast.
Within twenty minutes she was already arguing with Yuji like they’d known each other for months.
“You look shady,” she told him bluntly while they walked through the city streets.
Yuji stared at her. “What does that even mean?”
“You just do.”
“That’s so mean.”
Megumi walked slightly ahead of us with his hands in his pockets, clearly pretending not to know any of us.
Gojo walked beside him humming happily.
I stayed near the back while Yuji and Nobara continued bickering.
The city around us buzzed with late afternoon noise. Cars passed nearby, conversations drifted from crowded sidewalks, sunlight reflected off windows so brightly I had to squint sometimes.
Then Gojo suddenly stopped walking.
The rest of us nearly walked into him.
He pointed casually toward a tall abandoned building wedged between newer structures farther down the street.
It looked wrong immediately. The windows were broken in and the walls—actually the whole building in itself, looked faded and haunted. The entire place felt heavy with cursed energy even from outside.
Nobara noticed first. “What is that?”
“A test,” Gojo said cheerfully.
Megumi sighed instantly.
Yuji looked confused. “Right now?”
“Yep.”
Gojo clapped his hands once before turning toward Yuji and Nobara.
“You two are going inside.”
Nobara grinned immediately.
Yuji looked nervous for exactly two seconds before trying to hide it. “But you said I don't have any cursed energy."
"And thats exactly why you'll need this." Gojo handed yuji a weapon, a sword to be exact. It was maki's.
"This is a cursed weapon. Not all jujutsu sorcerors are born with cursed energy, so they use these weapons instead."
Yuji grabbed the weapon, grinning. "Woah, thats sick!"
I glanced toward the building again, feeling the cursed energy pressing faintly against my skin.
Definitely a curse inside.
Probably low-grade.
Still dangerous enough for beginners.
Megumi stepped forward slightly. “What about us?”
Gojo pointed lazily between me and Megumi.
“You two stay out here.”
Megumi frowned immediately. “Why?”
“Because I already know you can handle yourselves.” Gojo shrugged. “I’ve seen both of you fight before.”
Then he gestured toward Yuji and Nobara.
“These two are new.”
Nobara crossed her arms. “You say that like we’re weak.”
“I say that like I want to know whether you’ll die or not.”
Yuji blinked. “That’s comforting.”
Gojo smiled brightly.
“It’ll build character.”
Megumi looked deeply irritated now.
I could tell immediately, though not because he was worried exactly.
Megumi just genuinely hated standing around while other people fought.
Especially if he thought he’d be more useful inside.
“You’re seriously making us wait outside?” he asked flatly.
“Yes.”
“That’s stupid.”
“Probably.”
Gojo sounded completely unbothered.
Nobara rolled her shoulders before starting toward the building entrance.
“Well, whatever. Let’s just get this over with.”
Yuji followed after her, though he glanced back once.
The doors closed behind them with a heavy metallic sound. Silence settled afterward.
For a few moments, none of us spoke.
Then Gojo casually wandered toward a nearby bench and sat down like this was some normal afternoon outing instead of a curse mission.
I exchanged a look with Megumi before sitting beside him.
Megumi remained standing for another few seconds before finally dropping onto the bench too, shoulders tense with irritation.
Gojo leaned back comfortably.
“You’re pouting.”
Megumi ignored him.
“It’s healthy for first-years to gain experience,” Gojo continued. “Especially Yuji.”
“He’s Sukuna’s vessel,” Megumi muttered. “If something goes wrong—”
“I’m here.”
That shut him up.
Gojo said it with complete certainty.
Nothing really compared to the confidence Gojo carried naturally. Sometimes it was reassuring. Sometimes it was terrifying.
Though oftentimes it was more reassuring than terrifying.
I rested my elbows against my knees, staring toward the abandoned building.
Beside me, Megumi clicked his tongue quietly.
“You really wanted to fight, huh?” I asked.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You look offended.”
“I’m not offended.”
“You absolutely are.”
He leaned back against the bench with a faint scowl.
“I hate sitting around.”
“I noticed.”
Gojo tilted his head slightly toward me.
“You’re surprisingly calm today, Yoriko.”
I blinked once. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re usually more nervous during first meetings.”
I frowned a little.
Maybe he wasn’t wrong. Normally meeting new people exhausted me almost immediately. Especially sorcerers.
But Yuji and Nobara felt… easy somehow.
And Yuji especially still occupied this strange space in my mind I couldn’t quite explain.
By the time we got back to Jujutsu High, the sky had already gone dark.
The trip back felt longer than before somehow. Probably because everyone was exhausted now. I obviously wasn't tired of fighting since I didn't fight, but the walk from that building to the train was quite long.
Even Yuji had finally quieted down during the ride home, slumped against the train window half-asleep while Nobara scrolled through her phone beside him looking equally dead.
Gojo disappeared almost immediately after we arrived back at the school.
Typical.
Megumi muttered something under his breath about irresponsible teachers before heading toward the dorms without another word.
Honestly, I wanted to do the same.
My entire body felt heavy. Missions always left this strange lingering exhaustion afterward, not just physical tiredness, but energy fatigue too. Like something underneath your skin had been stretched too thin all day.
But the second I got back to my room and dropped onto the bed, my stomach twisted painfully.
Right.
I hadn’t eaten properly since morning.
With a sigh, I forced myself back up again.
The walk to the cafeteria was quiet at this hour. Most of the students were either out on missions or already asleep, and the halls felt unusually empty compared to earlier. The fluorescent lights overhead buzzed softly.
I pushed open the cafeteria doors and immediately relaxed a little at the warmth inside. No one was there.
I grabbed the first decent thing I saw—which mostly consisted of rice, miso soup, and whatever leftovers remained in the heated trays—and carried it over to one of the tables near the windows.
The chair scraped quietly against the floor as I sat down.
For a while, the only sound came from distant kitchen noises and the occasional tapping of rain beginning softly against the windows outside. I hadn’t even noticed it starting.
I rested my cheek briefly against my hand before finally starting to eat.
The warmth helped immediately.
I hadn’t realized how hungry I actually was until now. My body still ached faintly from the tension of the day, though. Especially my shoulders.
The cafeteria doors opened again behind me. I glanced over my shoulder just as Nobara walked in. She looked exhausted.
Her uniform jacket hung loosely off one shoulder, and her hair was slightly messier than earlier, probably from the mission and the long trip afterward.
She spotted me almost immediately.
“Oh, thank god.”
I blinked once. “What?”
“You’re here.”
She grabbed a tray without waiting for a response and walked over a minute later, dropping into the chair beside mine with a tired sigh.
“I can’t deal with those two anymore tonight.”
I smiled faintly despite myself. “Yuji and Gojo?”
“Yes.” She pointed accusingly with her chopsticks. “One of them never shuts up, and the other encourages it.”
“That narrows it down surprisingly little.”
Nobara laughed quietly under her breath.
Up close now, she looked less sharp-edged than earlier during the mission. Still confident of course, but tired enough that the energy had softened around the edges.
She stole one of the packaged drinks from the middle of the table without asking.
I watched her open it.
“You survived your first day,” I said.
“Barely.”
“You did fine.”
“I know.”
The immediate confidence in her answer made me snort softly.
Nobara glanced sideways at me. “What?”
“Nothing.”
She leaned back slightly in her chair after taking a sip.
“I thought Jujutsu High would be worse.”
“Worse how?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “More depressing.”
“That part comes later.”
“Good to know.”
Rain continued tapping softly against the windows beside us.
For a little while we ate in comfortable silence. It was surprisingly easy sitting with her. Nobara wasn’t awkward the way most new sorcerors are. She said exactly what she thought and somehow made everyone else adjust around her naturally.
Eventually she rested her chin against her hand and looked at me properly.
“I’m glad there’s another girl here.”
Something about the way she said it made me laugh quietly.
“Yeah?”
“You have no idea how bad it was when I realized my team was basically two idiots and Fushiguro.”
“Well, atleast Megumi’s not that bad.”
“He looks like he hates sunlight.”
“He kind of does.”
“And Yuji’s insane.”
“He swallowed a cursed object.”
“Exactly.”
I smiled into my soup slightly.
Nobara studied me for another second before speaking again.
“You’ve known Megumi longer?”
“A little.”
Nobara stirred her drink absently.
“And you,” she added, “are less scary than I expected.”
I blinked. “Scary?”
“I heard about your cursed technique before we got here.”
Of course she did.
I looked back down at my food. “People usually react weirdly to it.”
“Well, yeah,” Nobara admitted casually. “Bone manipulation sounds horrifying.”
“It kind of is.”
“But you don’t seem creepy.”
“Thank you. I think.”
She grinned slightly.
Outside, the rain grew heavier against the glass.
The cafeteria lights reflected softly across the dark windows now, turning them almost mirror-like.