Chapter Text
Darkness.
That's all you could see. Pure darkness.
But...was the room dark or was there something covering your eyes?
'Blinded? ', you thought.
You couldn't tell. All you could feel was the cold numbing that slowly bled from the tips of your fingers to the rest of your body.
How long have you been here? In this cold, dark room? Alone?
No. The better question is- why?
You try your hardest to think back on the last thing you remember doing, but your brain felt so clouded. It was almost like you had been roofied. Or knocked out. God, why can't you remember?
Shhh.
Your ears perked up to the sound of a door sliding open, no more than a couple of feet in front of you.
'Shit,' you thought, 'I was hoping it was just sleep paralysis...Damn, did I really get fucking kidnapped?'- You of all people? But why?
There was nothing special to you. You're an average woman who runs a tea shop with her grandma and performs the occasional exorcism...does that really warrant kidnapping?
Clack. Clack. Clack.
Footsteps. Headed to your left. The padded floor allowed you to envision their movements.
One.
Two.
Three.
Three people to your left. You could hear their feet align with each other. Synchronized steps; This was clearly an organization of some sort.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
More footsteps. Three people to your right, encircling your position. You were surrounded on all sides.
With the clarity in sound, you figured you were in a smaller room. Dim lighting, clearly blindfolded. The open door allowed for small gusts of wind to hit your face, clearing the stifling air that was suppressing your senses.
'Ah.' You could now feel the tightly wound rope pricking at your wrists which were tied behind you. Your back rest against the wall, your head too heavy to pick up.
'I shouldn't move. Not yet at least. It's best if they just think I'm asleep.'
"She's smaller than I thought," A female voice spoke, poisoned with judgment, "Are you sure this is the girl that's supposed to best our Prodigal son?"
"Quiet. We don't know for sure, but best not to risk it. Our Clan is, and will, remain the strongest. I won't allow anything to jeopardize that," a gruff male voice responded, "Wake her up. Now."
"Why? Won't that just cause more trouble? Best to kill her now while she's sleeping."
'Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. They wanna kill me? I need to escape. Now!', you felt the adrenaline course through your body, no longer able to keep your sleeping act up.
"Don't be a coward. Besides, seems like the young lady is awake. Now take that ridiculous blindfold off," ordered the older man.
Rough hands reached over to unveil your frightened (E/C) eyes. You winced at the sudden light basking your face. As you adjusted to the brightness, your head danced around the room.
Three people to your left. Three more to your right. Small, dimly-lit washitsu.
Just as you predicted.
What you didn't account for was your clothes...or should you say...lack there-of. Looking at your body, you appeared to have been stripped down to just a sheer tank top and underwear. Your pajamas.
They kidnapped you while you were asleep.
The more you took in the situation, the more frustrated you became.
"Where am I? Who the fuck are you people?"
A younger guy positioned to your left giggled in his sleeve. The judgmental lady from before sneered.
"Some Sorcerer you are! Doesn't even know that she kneels before Greatness." The older woman stepped forward, her glistening white hair shining in the light. Her expression was riddled with wrinkles, plastered with a permanent scowl.
"You'd best learn our faces. They'll be the last ones you'll ever see," she hissed.
Whoever these old fucks were- they were not letting you leave here alive. You had to fight back- but how? Sure, you were decent at this whole sorcery thing, but you've never used your abilities to fight humans before. You didn't think you had to!
"What...What do you want from me? I don't understand. What could I have possibly done for you to want to kill me?" you pleaded.
"I'm afraid there is nothing that you can do," spoke an older man, "Killing you is the only way to ensure the prosperity of the Gojo Clan."
"G-Goju what? I have no idea who you people are! Look, you've got the wrong girl. I have no money and I'm not-"
"We don't need your money," another younger man stepped from amidst the shadows. His hair, white as well.
"They want to kill you cause' you're a threat to the fucking 'chosen one' or whatever," he rolled his eyes, seemingly annoyed to even be there.
"I really don't see the point in any of this. She's weak. If she were really a threat to Satoru, wouldn't she have been able to escape by now?"
"It's the Honoured One to you! And like we've discussed, the prophecy reads her abilities are soon to emerge. She will be destroy our empire if we don't take action now!"
The bickering continued, but none of it mattered to you. You needed to focus on how you were going to get the hell out of here. Your eyes darted across the room. There wasn't much to use; no weapons, no clear exit, and no way to untie your hands.
'Only one thing left to try,' you thought.
Your cursed technique.
But are you even skilled enough? Could you conjure up enough cursed energy before they caught on to your plan? These people have had proper combat training- all you had was a couple of pointers from your Grandma who mentored you.
But it was still worth trying.
Your cursed technique allows you to bend small realities. Objects and rules can be rewritten, or overwritten, at your whim.
The pound of a fist turned into the strength of a feather.
The harshness of the wind, to be felt as warm sun-rays on the skin.
Or in this case, a tightly wound rope constraining your hands, rewritten as a mere dry wheat leaf. Simple and breakable.
'Okay, once I untie my hands, I'll have to make a run for it...But the exit is fully blocked. I'll have to find another way out.'
You stretched your fingertips out to the wall behind you. The traditional clay walls felt hard to the touch.
But with just the right amount of cursed energy applied...
'I'm sure I could alter reality and break through them,' you thought.
The plan was set. Break through the rope. Crash through the walls. Get the fuck outta here as fast as possible. You took two deep breaths, hyping yourself up to the challenge.
'You got this. It's just life or death, (Y/N)-'
"Looks like our cutie is plotting," a young voice spoke.
Shit.
They caught on.
The older man huffed, stepping forward. His silver eyes glared down on you. You felt your body go numb with fear again.
"Hand me my blade. Let's end this. Now."
A sharp, engraved katana was passed into his skilled hands. The man wielded the blade into the light, as if to further torture you with the thought of death.
"(Y/N) (L/N). For the sanctity of the Gojo Clan, you must perish from this life. Please, prepare yourself for death," he spoke, his voice void of emotion or empathy.
Okay. No more time to think.
Your body moved on its own as the cursed energy flowing through your fingers. You felt the thick rope melt into a thin, brittle piece of wheat. Just as your hands broke free, the old man swung the katana blade across, aiming for your neck.
You had no time to dodge- But just enough cursed energy to alter what was happening.
Your mind focused on the blade as it traveled closer and closer to your throat. You tried to quickly think of something non-lethal.
Something light. Airy. Bubbly even.
"What the-" the old man staggered back in shock.
The engraved katana that once lay in his hands disintegrated, instead being replaced with a bubblegum pink balloon sword. The harmless "weapon" tapped your neck. From the corner of the room you heard the young man begin to crack up.
"You think this is a game? You will die!" yelled the old man.
He unsheathed another sword from behind him, aiming for you again. Before he could land another hit, you focused your energy on the wall behind you. The clay wall grew thinner and thinner as you applied your technique to the plaster.
The blade inched closer and you instinctively leaned back.
CRASH!
You forced yourself through the thin wall, rolling over into the next room. You coughed from the dust created by the impact. You stopped applying your technique to the wall, allowing it to return to its original thick state, blocking the others from following you.
"Get her! Don't let her reach that damn gate!" yelled the snobby woman from the otherside. You heard fast-paced shuffling head your way.
Right. Time to run.
Your feet moved faster than your mind could process. You slid open the door, and sprinted out the room.
'Crazy old lady mentioned a gate...could be my way out.'
Looking around, you felt you were at one of those mythical temples. The buildings were traditional to Japan, but the architecture was obnoxiously grandiose. The place itself was huge, adorned with large stone statues and beautiful, freshly groomed landscaping.
'Guess that guy was right. They really don't need my money. These fuckers are rich.'
You continued running, passing what seemed like endless doors.
"She's up ahead- by the garden!"
"You go left, I'll go right!"
"Get her cornered!"
"Stop yelling the plan you idiots- she'll hear us!"
Oh brother, these guys suck.
The shouting seemed far behind you, but you could hear more footsteps hit the wooden panel flooring up ahead. The asshats were relentless.
You felt your chest tighten with the strain of running for so long. If you kept going at this rate, they'll have you trapped again. You had to be smarter.
You stopped, and looked around.
'If they're trying to surround me from all corners, then the only way left to go is...'
You looked up at the flat tile roofing.
Ah. Up it is.
Quickly, you jumped up, catching onto one of the tiles. You managed to pull yourself up onto the roof without anyone seeing you. The slanted tiles required steady footing just to maintain your balance.
You kept running, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, trying your best to remain unseen. From below, you saw the clan members opening doors, searching the rooms for you.
The rooftop gave you a better view of the landscaping. In the near distance, you could see the large stone pillars that guarded the front entrance of the property.
'That must be the gate.'
You peered closer at the bottom of the pillars. Two large glowing sandbags lay on either side. You recognized that type of spell from one of your grandmothers many lessons.
It was a forcefield.
Sure enough, when you looked to the sky, you saw the ever-so subtle blue glint caused by a protective field enclosing the area.
'That's why they don't want me making it to the gate. It's my only way out.'
"She's on the roof! I see her!" Your head snapped down to catch sight of the hoard of men pointing directly at you. Some had already climbed up to the roof, their footsteps gaining on you.
Pew!
Just then, something whizzed by your body, just barely missing you. It blew by fast.
An arrow?
No, it felt hot. Like fire.
Just then, another blast of hot air flew by; This time, grazing the back of your arm.
Pain singed through the body, but you couldn't stop to assess the damage. Your eyes swelled up with tears from the tingling sensation that ran down your back. Still, your legs seemed to be locked in on survival mode.
You gripped at your burn, suppressing the pain, and continued moving. The gate was just up ahead.
More shots flew your way, but your body found the rhythm to dodging them.
From down below, you could see more people climbing up to the roof. Your hands swelled with cursed energy, turning the ledges into slippery oily slabs. You watched as the henchmen lost their grip, hitting the ground with a hard thud.
That just leaves the people behind you. They were gaining on you; their breaths practically down your neck.
'I have to lose them for good.'
With your last bit of strength, you sped up your pace, nearing the end of the rooftop. You barely had time to think before leaping off the edge. You winced, bracing your body for the harsh welcoming of the hard ground.
But that feeling never came.
Instead you were met with an odd sense of cushioning. You groaned, grabbing your pounding head and sat up slowly. Looking down, you were surprised to see a young man lay beneath you.
Your legs were straddled across his chest, with his arms lightly placed over your bare waist, supporting your body over his.
If you weren't being chased by murderous idiots, you might've been embarrassed landing on a stranger in such a position when you were just barely clothed.
His expression was slightly shocked, although you couldn't tell much with the blacked out sunglasses covering his eyes.
Still, his clothing was rather nice. A blue button-down, fitting for the wealth of the area. You were close enough to smell him- a subtle scent that surely had some expensive French name to it.
But you couldn't be bothered with analyzing this guy. He had pristine white hair- much like the other crazy fucks at this place. He must be part of this "Gogu Clan".
"Hey! Stop running!"
Your head snapped behind you to see the men on top of the roof jumping down. Before they could land, you dug your fingernails into the ground and projected your cursed technique- transforming the dirt into quick sand. The men quickly sunk, their arms flailing as their bodies continued to stick to the mud.
"You in some kinda trouble, Miss?"
The man beneath you shot a sly smile. You wanted to slap that rich smirk right off of his face- but there was no time for witty comebacks as more men were headed your way.
You groaned, stumbling to your feet despite your aching muscles. You were surprised that the stranger didn't try holding you back.
Pew!
You flinched as a spear pierced the air, flying right past your ear.
Pew! Pew!
More came, slightly grazing your body. Your arms grew bloodied from the shallow cuts.
Your ears seemed to open on their own, listening to the pattern at which the spears were launched. Focusing on the sound of their footsteps, you could almost calculate the angle at which the spears were thrown.
Left. Left. Right. Your body flinched and jerked at all the right moments, just barely missing the hit.
The gate seemed so close now. You could almost taste freedom. Just outside the exit, you could see a stone staircase leading downwards to the level ground. Tall trees, and thick shrubbery grew on either side of the staircase.
'I could try losing them in the bushes with more quicksand,' you thought.
But your planning was quickly interrupted when a blade swept the wind from right under your feet.
Your balance was thrown, and your body plummeted forward.
Swoosh!
You had enough momentum to roll to your right, just as another slice from the katana came crashing down to where your head was positioned just three seconds ago.
Pain shot up from your leg, coursing through your entire body. You instinctively grabbed your ankle that had twisted upon your harsh landing.
Fuck.
There was no way in hell you could run now. You writhed in pain, trying your best to hold in the tears that began to form in your eyes.
Your head snapped up to your attacker- the old man leading this whole operation.
His eyes gleamed, looking down at your incapacitated state. He knew you were helpless. The old man twisted the katana in his hand, contemplating how he'd strike you next.
"You're quick, young lady. And your cursed technique is...remarkable. Too bad it wasn't enough." The man smiled, arrogance dripping from every word. "Had you been born into our lineage, perhaps you would've been strong enough to escape."
'Can't believe I'm boutta die to this arrogant fuck', you groaned.
Your mind swept to your Grandma. She was probably worried sick.
You did everything for the woman. The household chores. Maintaining the tea shop. Hell, you even made sure she took her medication on time.
Without you...she wouldn't be able to manage on her own.
You can't let that happen.
Mustering the last bit of energy you had left, you gripped at the grass, slowly dragging yourself away.
"Still running?" the man cackled. "Very well. I'll allow you one final taste of hope...before I take it from you."
His eyes watched your weak frame as you continued to grovel across the prickly grass. Your clothes grew muddy with your sprained leg dragging behind you.
It was nothing short of pathetic. Your hands could now touch the pillars that stood at the front gate. Your arms dropped in exhaustion, knowing your time was up. You turned on your back, ready to face your killer.
"Have you gotten it all out of your system?" he hissed. "Prepare to d-"
"Having fun without me, Old Man?" a teasing voice spoke up, causing both you and the old man to peer over at the stranger.