Occasionally, getting back to normal took a long time.

Geto's voice played in Gojo's head like a broken record: "Hello? When will you consider coming down to earth again?" His friend had once half-chided, half-teased him like this when they had already grown apart without realizing it. Solo mission after solo mission, making it hard to maintain human relationships, making it hard to even feel human.

Hello? When will you consider coming down to earth again?

Trickling down from an impossible height, floating through the void like disjointed specks, tumbling aimlessly with no real aim. Somewhere, there was solid ground. He knew that he would eventually find it, he always did. But… sometimes, the world felt brittle, the atoms were barely sticking together. Then, nagging, uncharacteristic questions about healthy limits appeared in his head. He knew, without the mastery of the reversed curse technique he'd have fried his brain years ago. But what if there was a point of overuse where his powers could not keep up? It was always there, the possibility that he would entirely lose himself.

Ah, shit. I'm without a tether. Geto was my tether. Help.

Gojo put his hurting head against the black leather chair's back. I'll never drink again, he swore, not for the first time this week, never, ever. You can tempt me all you want, Utahime, I will not do it. Thinking of her was a general relief from feeling so out of sorts but then again not because he was here and she wasn't. Utahime, I want to see you, please tempt me...

Bang, the door to the office was slammed against the wall without warning and it took an effort not to jump out of the fauteuil and screech.

"Nice of you to finally show your face, Satoru!" Yaga thundered, stomping towards his desk. "Haven't you been back for days?"

"I was sick," Gojo mumbled, lifting his head to look at his teacher. Yaga had sounded increasingly pissed in the messages left on Gojo's phone. Yeah. Obviously, he was pissed.

"Haha, nice try," Yaga slammed a bundle of documents onto the desk. "Can you create less of a mess next time you exorcise? The higher-ups are very displeased. Again."

Gojo rolled his eyes, not that Yaga could see it behind the blindfold. "No," he said, "I really can't. Those special grades appear more frequently and are getting more ferocious, can someone finally investigate why? It's like those curses are up to something."

"Hm," Yaga sat down. "But they're no problem for you, are they?"

"No," Gojo shrugged. "Of course not."

"Good, then we don't need to investigate. I called you about something else - much more urgent," Yaga threw a thin red folder at Gojo, it spun through the air like a deformed frisbee.

Gojo frowned down at the documents once he'd caught them. "What's that?"

Yaga scoffed. "Can't you read?"

"Just tell me already," Gojo sighed. The letters danced in front of his eyes as if they wanted to mock him. Concentrating was hard. Yaga could laugh all he wanted, he really was sick. He felt like whining about it to someone. Maybe he'd call Nanami later. Or would Shoko be willing to show some sympathy?

Or I could go see Utahime. She'd be annoyed but maybe a little bit concerned for me? I could make her feel my forehead.

"Your family is withdrawing all funds from the school as per the beginning of March."

"What?" Gojo began flicking through the pages. A letter of complaint. The termination of an agreement. A load of legal documents. "Can they do that?"

Yaga shook his head in disbelief. "Satoru, do you not know about your financial affairs?"

Gojo shrugged. What was there to know? He used his various cards, sometimes withdrew money from a machine, and it never ran out. That was good enough for him.

"This is going to ruin us. We might have to close the school down until we can secure alternative funds."

"You can't possibly close the school!" It was far more than a school! It was a home to his students, a place to forge the next generation of sorcerers who would change the world. Gojo squinted at the signature at the bottom of the document ceasing the donations. His first cousin Asahiko? Wasn't he getting a PhD in economics in the US or something?

"They claim they are unhappy about how we run things."

Asahiko could make these kinds of decisions? Gojo remembered endless discussions about setting up a trust fund decades ago, gods, it had bored him half to death. The rest of the family was so afraid that he, becoming the single heir at the time, would cut them off from everything at a whim, they had begged him on their knees to sign over part of the Gojo fortune to their branches of the family.

"I'll look into this," Gojo frowned. The trustee of the Gojo Trust Fund was a small private bank in Zurich, Switzerland. Looked like he had to pay them a visit to find out what was going on.

But why this new provocation now? It made no sense to him. Annoyed, Gojo threw the red folder back at Yaga. He should have killed them all instead of just sending some uncles and their offspring abroad after their clumsy attempt to get rid of him in December. Ah, it never paid off to be lenient!

"Maybe you could consider doing some teaching today?" Yaga's face turned even more sour than it already was. "That's what we pay you for after all."

"You pay me?" Gojo was genuinely surprised to hear that but Yaga only looked more enraged at the question, his chin had even started shaking from suppressed anger!

Fleeing Yaga and his unfair ire as quickly as possible, Gojo went to find his flock. Was he to be made responsible for cousin Asahiko's deeds? The guy had always hated him with the fervor of a second born, lesser family member. Was it his fault his mother, a Gojo by blood, had married a mean, violent businessman? Was it his fault that Asahiko had no Jujutsu powers at all, so little it was actually a phenomenon? No, it wasn't! But obviously, Asahiko had figured out how to optimally annoy him, forcing Gojo into a battle.

Fine, Gojo knew about battles and he won all of them.

Upon spotting him, his students seemed genuinely happy he was back (apart from Megumi, who just didn't know how to make a pleased face) and that made him feel better.

"Alright," Gojo shooed them away gently after answering tons of detailed questions about the curses he had fought on his recent mission, "into the classroom we go!"

"Can't we go outside to train, Sensei?" Maki begged, dragging her feet. "What about we hunt you down as a team!"

"Hunt me down…?" There was too much eagerness in the group.

"Yes, you hide in the forest and whoever first finds you, wins."

"You want me to just sit there and hide...? That's a total waste of my talents."

"It's a well-known training method!" Panda rumbled. "We could do a bell test! Like they do in Naruto!"

"Oh! You mean I could pose as Kakashi and… wait a minute. I think I get what's going on," Gojo grinned, watching their faces turn anxious. "You want to distract me! Ah, I get it - so that I forget we haven't done any math in two weeks."

"Told you he'd find out," Megumi grumbled.

"Deal," Gojo beamed at them. "You hunt me down and at the same time, you solve this practical math problem. Whoever gets it right first, wins." He began to scribble stick figures onto the blackboard. "Imagine this is a curse, this is you. You hit it with your fist. Tell me how much power you, given your weight, need to apply to snap its head off clean. It has the following density and mass. Oh, and also consider the angle and the optimal velocity."

His students' all tried really hard and even though "Benito Flakes" definitely wasn't the right answer, he praised all of them for their excellent performances. Not that he had bothered to solve the problem himself, he just hit his opponents with reasonable force, that always did the trick.

It was already getting dark when Gojo made his way to the morgue to say hello to Shoko and whine extensively about his poor health and his stupid family. But Shoko wasn't in - the building was deserted and not a trace of her energy lingered.

Now what to do with his evening? He reconsidered going to visit Utahime in Kyoto once more but that made his stomach feel weird. In fact, he had frequently thought about going to see her in the past few days but found himself confusingly hesitant. For example, he wondered what to say to her, endlessly playing different scenarios in his head. He preferred the truth in all situations but the palatable Hi, can we continue where we left off on Saturday night? I cannot stop thinking about kissing you and want to do more of it? wasn't the full truth. The full truth was, kissing her wasn't all he wanted to do, oh gods no. But he feared she wouldn't appreciate hearing about what he imagined in great detail they'd do after the kissing because… what if Utahime had not liked kissing him? It was already Thursday evening and not a single word from her. What if she preferred kissing that non-sorcerer?!

Feeling increasingly sorry for himself, Gojo went to the Roll Ice Cream Factory in Shibuya where he ate five servings of strawberry ice with whipped cream for dinner. He felt marginally better after that. A call with his banker in Switzerland confirmed that cousin Asahiko had been granted full powers by the other branches of the family to represent them in all financial matters. Stopping the payments to the school was legit because the money came from a part of the fund he was now in charge of.

At the end of the call, the banker, a tall blonde who had not been disinclined to show Gojo around town the last time he visited, said something cryptic à la "then we will be seeing each other soon?" but Gojo had already hung up without paying her any further attention, his brain having moved on to the really pressing issue: getting Utahime a present. The way her eyes had lit up over the tickets… he wanted to see that again. He had come to the conclusion just now that it was inevitable that he would go to see Utahime soon - as in tonight.

He ended up buying two silk ribbons for her hair, one white, one red, but he wasn't sure she'd like that enough so he went to a bookstore next. It was a very large bookstore. Where to even begin? After meandering this way and that for a while without being able to decide what to buy, Gojo whisked out his phone and speed-dialed his number one.

"What." Curt and efficient, as always. One of his favorite people.

"Nanamiiiii!"

"No. I'm not available, Gojo, it's past 9pm!"

"I wanted to ask you whether you think Utahime would like…"

Nanami groaned loudly. "Stop, Gojo. There's exactly one way to find out what Utahime Senpai likes and that is to ask her!"

"But I'm asking you. Do you think she is interested in gardening?" Gojo got off the escalator to look at the selection of books before him. So many pretty flowers!

"She lives in a small apartment, Gojo. She has no garden."

No time to feel upset that Nanami knew such a thing and he didn't. "See, I knew you would be able to help me!" He moved to the next section. "A book about origami perhaps?"

"Yes, I'm sure she'd like that. - Are we done now?"

"Done...? No. Nanami. The next thing I need to know is: do you think Utahime would be pleased to see me at this hour or not?"

Gojo chose the biggest and most expensive book on origami and made his way to the cashier section.

"Not, Gojo. Absolutely not."

Harsh. Gojo wasn't so sure anymore whether Nanami really was one of his favorite people or rather the rudest person he knew?

"Has she contacted you about the Sister School Event?" Nanami asked before Gojo could make his displeasure known.

"The… what? No. Why would she contact me about that? It's months away."

"Ha," Nanami sounded jarringly smug. "She called me to get your number last Sunday. I knew it was just an excuse!"

Gojo didn't like this at all. Well, he did like that Utahima had wanted his number and had called Nanami for it. But if she had his number, why had she not called him? Texted him? Facetimed him?!

"I haven't heard from her," Gojo lamented. "Why if she has my number? Why?"

"Maybe she is waiting for you to contact her," Nanami still sounded much too smug. "Women are like that."

"And how do you know that?" Gojo bristled.

"That's common knowledge," Nanami boasted.

Ugh. Gojo hung up the phone without saying goodbye, feeling even more out of sorts than before. Getting lectured by someone who wore a business suit to kill curses? It was that kind of day! He went to Roponggi and walked around aimlessly, then to Ginza because the crowd's tumultuous cursed energy in Roponggi made his headache grow worse.

"Hey, you still awake?" He typed a message to Utahime. "Wanna go for a drink?"

Ah, but he had sworn he wouldn't drink alcohol anymore. He added "non-alcoholic" to the message. Which made him sound like a boring old man. Delete.

"Utahime, how are you? I'm in the neighborhood and I…"

A lie. Gojo teleported to Kyoto - Now it wasn't a lie anymore. Utahime lived in a neighborhood that was calm and almost free of cursed energy. That suited her. He liked that about her a lot, how she drew the calm towards herself.

"I really need to see you, please don't say no. Can I come to Kyoto right now?" Ugh. Delete.

"I really need to see you, please don't say no. I'm in front of your house."

He pressed 'send' before he could develop doubts about the message again, yet immediately felt the urge to hide in a hole.

Two things alerted him to the fact that something was very wrong.

A phone with a cracked screen lying on the street in front of him lit up just as the one in his hand buzzed to signal he had received a message. It was not, as he very briefly hoped, from Utahime inviting him up into her apartment. It was from an unknown number, telling him "We've got your girl. Come to the family shrine. If you use your powers against us, she dies."

Gojo grabbed Utahime's broken phone off the pavement and he teleported.

###

It had taken them only a second of her inattentiveness - she had bent down to pick up her phone and at least five of them had overpowered her, then gagged and blindfolded her before she could open her mouth to scream. After tying her hands tightly behind her back, they shoved her into a car that came roaring out of a side street. Struggling against their grip, she had ripped her stockings and skinned her knee on the pavement and they had almost dislocated her shoulder when dragging her forward. When she had rammed her head into one assailant's body, he had retaliated with a sharp blow across her face.

Clearly, these people were not official Jujutsu Society agents.

Now she sat in the car with a split lip and a ringing head, trying to calm her breathing and pay attention to her surroundings. Smart of them to gag her as a first measure but she still had her ears: they probably didn't know that her powers involved voice and hearing. And thanks to picking up sounds and vibrations from the world around her, Utahime realized quickly where they were headed: The Gojo family shrine.

As for the why…? Utahime didn't understand. What do I have to do with the Gojo Clan? she shouted at them in her head. You're making a mistake!

There were several people waiting inside the shrine, all of them were sorcerers though not particularly powerful ones, the air almost sickeningly thick with the fragrance of incense sticks.

"Why is she bleeding?" A female voice gasped.

Because she had increased the cursed energy flowing to her ears, Utahime recognized that voice immediately: Gojo's aunt, the older one. Nice of her to notice: Yes, she was bleeding and everything hurt. Naturally, she had tried to escape on the way through the forest, but not only had her foot caught on a root (she had taken a fall, how embarrassing), she had also received another blow from the black clad ruffian who enjoyed hitting women.

"It doesn't matter, mother," a high-pitched male voice answered. One of Gojo's cousins, it seemed. He spoke in an unpleasant, unctuous manner that Utahime associated with vain, self-centered people who were deeply offended that the world did not recognize their "true" value. "She will likely die anyway."

I will? Utahime grimaced. How fitting. I'm not having a good week.

"When will you inform Satoru, my pumpkin?" The aunt asked. She sounded nervous. Figured: Gojo might get angry enough at the provocation to destroy the entire area. Somehow, Utahime wished he would. These people were impossible.

"Soon," the cousin came towards her, the air whispered around his stocky form. This man's meager cursed energy sounded like thousands of insects scuttling around in panic, making her shiver in disgust. In addition, he smelled of a flowery cologne that didn't sufficiently cover up his stale body odor. "Well," he chuckled. "You're not much." His hand pawed at her body briefly, only increasing her disgust. "I always thought Satoru could get any woman he wanted, haha, why would he go for a disfigured one?"

"I hope we haven't misjudged," the Aunt said. "He brought her along in December. There has to be a connection."

"Yes, it has to be her who saved him," the Cousin said, his voice turning ice cold, "there is no other explanation. This time, she won't be able to use her powers though. If he wants her alive, he needs to do what I tell him."

So it's a trap? Utahima thought alarmed, they want to use me to lure Gojo here! I hope he won't be stupid enough to come!

She tried to come to her knees, but somebody grabbed her by the hair and yanked her upright. It hurt so much she almost blacked out. She missed a conversation between mother and son, picking up only a conspiratorial murmur, then she felt the air change around her when she was thrown into the inner sanctuary of the shrine, landing painfully on her side. Somebody slammed the door shut behind her.

Oh no. Not good...

Breathing was difficult. There was so much concentrated evil… A very powerful, very angry Spirit was awake. If she was lucky, Michizane Sugawara wouldn't remember her.

Of course she wasn't lucky.

The kami's presence settled heavily on her shoulders, pressing her even further down. Any more and she feared her bones would crush.

"Well, well, well," a graveling voice chuckled at her ear. "I know you."

"We offer her as a sacrifice, oh Great Ancestor!" the cousin's muffled voice sounded from outside. The little coward was keeping a safe distance from what had to be the Gojo Ancestor's innate domain. "She is all yours to do whatever you want!"

"A sacrifice?" the Ancestor sounded very pleased. Utahime winced when a cold ghostly finger moved down her cheek and her neck. "Mhhhhhh, I'm so thirsty for blood." Another ghostly touch against her wounds, it stung and she flinched.

The air around her whispered, took form.

"You tricked me the last time, you vixen," the Vengeful Spirit chuckled, "and I am a very proud man. You need to be punished."

I'd trick you again this time, Utahime told him in her head, but they gagged me, see? I cannot see, I cannot speak, nor can I sing. Where's the challenge?

"You would try, wouldn't you," the Spirit laughed, it sounded like an old tree creaking in the wind. "You are truly fearless! I have to say I enjoyed our conversation the last time."

Fearless? Only fools are. But my ears work very well, she continued, fortified by the confirmation that he could hear her, and I can sense how weak and mean the people out there are. Someone like you should not associate with the likes of them, it will only tarnish your image.

"You don't tell me what to do, mortal woman," though he was chiding her, the Spirit shifted his presence away so that she could breathe more easily. "I can be appeased by sacrifices and are you not a glorious sacrifice? I will mount you before I kill you, you are small and shapely, just the way I like it. I hope you'll scream."

You want to hear me scream? Then take my gag away! Utahime demanded in an enticing sing-song. It was unlikely her thoughts held any power but it was worth a try.

"You are attempting again to fool me, do you think I'm stupid?" The Spirit bellowed. "But I do remember what it felt like when you sang to me! I haven't felt anything like it in hundreds of years. Maybe I will let you live for a few hours? If you sing."

Yes, I'll sing! Utahime offered. Anything. Anything to buy herself time until...

"He's coming!" the cousin outside squealed.

He was. Utahime could feel it in the air, raw burning power drawing closer at lightning speed. Gojo's anger was barely controlled and Utahime shivered at the extent of it, feeling fear for the first time this evening.

"I see," Gojo's ancestor said. "You are not only a sacrifice, you are also bait. The fools!"

He moved closer to her. This time, the fingers that touched her face were warm. "Make a deal with me, Future Wife," he whispered into her ear. He smelled of old parchment, ink, and incense.

Gojo's first attack shook the very foundation of the mountain they were on. Wood splintered, people screamed, and Utahime closed her eyes underneath her blindfold, trying to make peace with the world during her last moments.

"I only demand that you come and pay me your respects on my death day every year," the Spirit whispered.

26th March, yes, I remember, Utahime felt like laughing hysterically. And what is in it for me?

"I will let you live," Michizane Sugawara answered - and removed her blindfold.

She saw a young, handsome man in the dim light, dressed in the clothes of a scholar from the Heian Period. He was tall and well-built and the family resemblance was so strong, she felt a treacherous surge of relief at the sight of him. But, how foolish of her, this wasn't Gojo. Gojo was outside, flattening the mountain.

"I will let him live too," the Ancestor's lips curved upwards slightly, a cruel, calculating smile. "If you do not consent, I will kill him as soon as he enters here. You know I can. This is my domain, no descendant of mine has any power here."

"Where is she?" Gojo stood right outside the shrine.

"In there!" the cousin squealed. "Satoru, do as I tell you or she dies!"

The door to the honden splintered, cold air flooded in. The wooden building outside was destroyed, Utahime could see the darkness of the forest through the gap in the shrine wall. And she could see Gojo, so beautiful, purple light wavering around him, his white hair standing on end, his blue eyes shining like the sun flooded sky.

Gojo, no! Utahime wanted to scream, but the gag was still in place. Her warning would have been useless anyway because Gojo had already entered the inner sanctuary with his usual reckless boldness.

"Get away from her," Gojo hissed at Michizane, who had moved between him and Utahime.

"Hahaha, I can't believe you went in there!" Cousin Asahiko cheered, "How stupid can you be? Satoru, you're done for!"

"What do you want," Gojo addressed his Ancestor, not paying any attention to what his cousin was saying or doing behind his back. "I'm ready to bargain."

No, Gojo! Utahime struggled against her bonds. Don't be stupid!

"Ah?" Michizane smiled broadly and had the audacity to wink at her. "Get on your knees then, insolent brat. Bow down to me!"

Without hesitation, Gojo went to his knees and bowed deeply, hands outstretched before him. It made her want to weep. Utahime could not feel even the faintest trace of power flowing through him. He was powerless and unprotected again, just as his Ancestor had proclaimed he would be.

Michizane lifted his hand. "Now you die," he smiled.

No, don't kill him! I'll do it, Utahime shouted, I agree to the deal with you!

"This is working so much better than I thought!" Cousin Asahiko laughed, "Mother, mother, do you see this? When Satoru is dead, I will become the Heir! We do not even need to force him to sign a new financial arrangement!"

"Pathetic," Michizane scoffed, flicked his wrist - and Asahiko exploded with a soft, ugly plop, blood spraying everywhere.

Oh my god, Utahime screamed in her head.

Gojo lifted his head and blinked at his ancestor in surprise.

"I am satisfied," Michizane Sugawara declared, nodding in Utahime's direction as he became translucent and disappeared. His oppressive presence vanished.

"What the…," Gojo scrambled upright and rushed over to Utahime. He removed the gag from her mouth and untied her wrist. "Utahime, are you alr… you're bleeding. Who did… who…"

He turned her body this way and that to check for wounds, his eyes growing darker by the second.

"Don't worry," she wanted to say but she was beginning to shake violently when the shock took over and she sagged forward into his arms, suddenly devoid of all strength.

"I'm going to kill them all," he growled, picking her body up and cradling her to his chest.

"Please don't," Utahime murmured against his warm neck.

The family shrine was in ruins, only the slightly elevated sanctuary stood unscathed, looking small and lost in a sea of broken timbers. Gojo's aunt stood amidst the bloody rubble, as pale as a ghost, her hands clasped over her mouth.

Gojo stopped in front of her. She shrank back a little but otherwise held her ground.

"If you wanted more money, you could have asked for it," he said, his voice cold and dangerous. "Why risk your lives over something like this?"

"You do not deserve to carry our name!" his Aunt shrilled, "you never did. You are a disgrace, a buffoon!"

Utahime felt the power surge within his body.

"Don't," she said again, struggling against his grip, "don't do it."

Gojo looked down at her, his rage turning his handsome face into the mask of a demon.

"Just take me home," Utahime said. Reaching up with a shaking hand to touch his cheek. "Please."

"Okay," he said. "Okay."