Chapter Two: Just A Monkey

2013 – Winter

Sumiko had sworn that Gojou would grow on Natsumi. That she, at some point, would even find him mildly entertaining as Sumiko did. Natsumi detested him, on all counts.

Forget the fact that he was too beautiful, and no person should be allowed to look like a work of art come to life. That was enough to piss her off as it was, but he also knew just how attractive he was and used it to his utmost advantage. She could even ignore the amount of sheer privilege that oozed out of his every pore. Money, power, beauty, this man had it all. Maybe, maybe, she could forgive these things, maybe she could have let go of her own insecurities and jealousy (she could admit this to herself but would be damned before she said it out loud). The real problem, however, was his insufferable personality. He was obnoxious, cocky, inconsiderate, and generally irritating. Gojou seemed to enjoy being irritating, while simultaneously believing his presence was a boon to all of humanity. He did not agree that this was a contradiction.

From what Sumiko had told her, that last bit was true. She had explained, more than once, that even if Natsumi was physically strong enough to kill Gojou (Sumiko assured her she wasn't), even if she could sneak up on him (she couldn't), she wouldn't be able to physically touch him unless he allowed her (the little shit had waggled his eyebrows at her). Unfortunately for Natsumi, as Sumiko got older she got more attached to her cousin and his sister, which forced her to share more meals with Gojou than she cared for (but at least he paid). In order to preserve Natsumi's pride (because knowing she couldn't touch him did not stop her from throwing punches) she often sat next to Sumiko's cousin, Megumi, and as far away from Gojou as was allowed.

Megumi had a similar attitude towards Gojou, though far less violent than Natsumi was. He had also had several years more to get used to him and was only a child, the violence may come as he got older. Natsumi much preferred Megumi, not only because he did not talk nearly as much, but because he was also intolerant of Gojou's… well everything. His sister, Tsumiki, got along very well with Sumiko and they both had far more patience for Gojou, they even seemed to enjoy his antics.

The relationship between Tsumiki and Sumiko was a lot of the reason that Natsumi consented to these dinners. She would have still done it even if it was only for her and Megumi because, with so little family left to them both, she would do what she could for Sumiko. But it was nice to see Sumiko get along with another girl her age, to giggle and be a child even if meant tolerating Gojou for a few hours.

Sumiko asked her to be friendlier, and sometimes she tried, but he made it extremely difficult. With his teaching schedule and missions exterminating curses, Gojou's schedule was unreliable and Sumiko's training was fit in where it could be, often with very little or no warning. The few times they tried to plan it (which was a task because Natsumi insisted that Sumiko's school work and friendships came first), Gojou often canceled. Which, might have been okay if it didn't mean Natsumi left work early to pick up Sumiko and then ended up babysitting Megumi and Tsumiki as well.

Megumi and Tsumiki lived at Jujutsu High, which Natsumi found odd considering they were both in middle school, but far be it from her to tell a bunch of sorcerers how to live their lives. It meant she didn't technically have to babysit them; they were the most self-sufficient kids she had ever met and there were adults not that far if they needed… but it felt wrong to just leave them to fend for themselves all the time. Tsumiki swore it was fine, that they had been fending for themselves for a long time before Gojou took them in.

It was probably the only redeemable thing about Gojou. She was sure there were ulterior motives that she didn't understand, but… he wasn't even a full year older than her, and he'd taken in two kids when he was about eighteen. He didn't boast about it, had never even talked about it. Sumiko had been the one to tell Natsumi, probably in an effort to make Natsumi like him (or at least tolerate him). It helped only slightly.

She really wished Sumiko just didn't like him. It meant he got invited to things, like Sumiko's birthday. Natsumi had already been forced to tolerate him through New Year's, but… how could she tell her no? She couldn't, not without a massive amount of guilt, and so she tried not to spend the entire day dreading it because Sumiko was so excited. Instead, she focused on shopping, trying to find a good gift. Sumiko wasn't really a picky kid, she'd probably be happy with almost anything, but Gojou tended to go overboard and Natsumi tended to compete with him. He really brought out the worst in her.

Natsumi went to the mall and let herself spend the day there, she didn't have work and the kids were all still in school. She had a few hours before she had to pick them up, she had plenty of time to look around and do what she liked.

She let herself wander aimlessly in and out of the stores before she let herself venture into the music store. Natsumi liked music, most of her gifts for Sumiko were CDs or tickets because it's what Natsumi knew best, and it was the easiest for them to bond over.

There weren't many people there, it was a school day and there were still a few weeks before the end of the semester. She saw two girls, maybe about Sumiko's age in the store, but she didn't really think much of it. Maybe they should have been in school but that wasn't really any of Natsumi's business.

The only concern Natsumi had, was the grown man standing just a little too close to them. He was a short man who looked to be in his 40s, and while he could have been their father, something about it just… struck her as odd. There was a gnawing feeling in her stomach that she couldn't quite explain so she stayed close. She had learned years ago to trust her gut, to trust that feeling of discomfort she got around some men. For as much as she hated Gojou, he had never given her that feeling. She might hate him, but she could trust him.

Natsumi casually flipped through the CD stack nearby, watching him out of the corner of her eye. That was when she saw the cell phone aimed in his hand, carefully pointed to peek under one of the girl's skirts as they giggled and chatted.

She dropped the CD in her hand and made a beeline for the man, so focused on what he was doing that he didn't notice her. Why would he notice her, a grown woman, when there were two teenage girls in a mostly empty music store? He only took notice of her as she grabbed his wrist and twisted it, forcing him to drop the phone.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" she yelled at him.

The girls whipped around as Natsumi confronted him, the man crying out as she grabbed him. She pushed him into the shelves away from the girls, half of the CDs on it coming down with him as he fell. "They are teenage girls, you fucking pervert!"

She stomped on the phone, repeatedly, until she was sure it was broken, the screen sputtering out.

"Are you crazy?!" the man sputtered as he tried to stand.

"Me?!" she cried indignantly. "You're the one taking pictures up girls' skirts!" Natsumi wanted to make a scene, if there was one thing, she could do it was that. Be loud, be noticed. "You're disgusting! Fucking pervert!"

The man's face turned red, his mouth falling open, "Excuse me!"

Natsumi looked around, but the few patrons in the store pretended they weren't seeing the exchange. How could they just pretend this wasn't happening? It made her blood boil. "You fucking heard me! Someone call security or the cops or something."

"You're insane!" he cried indignantly, and he tried to leave, to walk away from the whole thing. She shoved him hard again and kept shoving at him, not letting him walk any further. If he wanted to leave, he was going to have to put his hands on her.

Someone (probably the clerk who was watching from behind the checkout counter) must have called security because two men in uniforms came rushing in just as she shoved him into another CD rack.

One of them grabbed onto Natsumi's arm, keeping her from shoving the man again. "What's going on here?"

"This fucker," she pointed, "was taking pictures up these girls skirts."

"I was not! This woman just started attacking me out of nowhere."

"Oh bullshit, I saw you."

The other uniformed man looked towards the girls and then around at the other people in the store, most of whom had fled during the altercation. "Did anybody else see anything?"

"What does it matter? I'm telling you I saw it. This dude is a fucking pervert, you need to call the police."

"Watch your language," the man who still held her arm said. He glanced at the phone on the ground, crushed to oblivion. "I'm assuming that's the phone?"

"Well, no shit."

"Language."

The pervert pointed aggressively at her, his face still read, "I was just minding my business and this psycho came out of nowhere."

"Look," said the man holding her arm. "No one else saw anything and the phone is destroyed. There's no proving anything. How about you just let this drop and everyone goes on their way."

"Are you fu- Are you serious? You can't be, this grown man was – "

"You destroyed whatever proof there was of that," his eyes darted to the two girls, standing there watching the exchange silently. "What are they doing out of school anyways?"

She hated them, all of them. The people who stood by doing nothing, the clerk who stood frozen behind the counter, the disgusting man preying on underage girls, and the two security guards sweeping the whole thing away. They were so ready to excuse this poor excuse of a man and turn the blame on two teenagers for existing as if the girls not being in school excused sexual harassment. She could feel it, that rage simmering under her skin. She wanted to lash out, to fight, and to argue, but it wouldn't make a difference. It would get these two girls in trouble, and it would get her in jail, and she couldn't afford that. Not now, not when she had Sumiko.

"They're my sisters," Natsumi lied, "they didn't have school today, so I decided to take them out."

The security guard sighed but let her arm go. "Just get out of here, all of you."

"Fine, come on," Natsumi gestured to the two girls, hoping they would just go along with it. If they said anything they were fucked.

The girls looked at each other for a moment but followed Natsumi warily, and she couldn't really blame them. They hadn't actually seen the man doing anything, for all they knew she was crazy and had almost gotten them caught. She walked a good distance away before she stopped because she didn't want that piece of shit anywhere near them.

She turned and looked at the two, they couldn't have been older than thirteen, maybe younger. One girl had short dark hair with skin so pale it made Natsumi question how much she went outside. She wore a dark blue sweater and a matching skirt, a bored expression on her face. The other girl had the same bored expression, though her skin was a healthier color and her eyes more of a honey color. Her hair was a much lighter brown that she wore back in a ponytail, and she wore a faded black sweater that was much too big for her petite frame.

"So, uh, are you two, okay?"

They blinked at her, but said nothing, only stared at her curiously.

"I'm sorry that I got you kicked out, I really didn't mean to. That guy was just… well, he was a creep. I just can't stand that sh- um, right, well… You're okay though right?"

"Why did you do all that?" the one with the ponytail asked.

"Well, I guess I should have handled it better," Natsumi admitted. "I didn't mean to cause you trouble."

The darker-haired girl tilted her head slightly, "That's not what she means."

Natsumi shrugged, "Guess I'm not sure what you mean then."

"So, what if he was being a creep?" the first girl asked. "Why did you involve yourself? It wasn't your business."

"I guess not, but… well girls have to stick together, you know? We can't just let these piece of – These creepy guys do what they want." She was trying very hard to not swear in front of these children, she had given up when it came to Sumiko but these two girls had already seen her lose her shit in a music store. "It's not my business but… shouldn't you be in school? I'm not gonna snitch or anything," she assured them, "but you should like, probably call your parents or something, have them come get you. That guy could be hanging around."

"We're home-schooled."

"Oh… shouldn't you be home then?" They said nothing, only looked at each other wordlessly. "Right, so you snuck out. Sorry, but you have to call your parents. If they realize you're gone they will freak and it will be worse. Trust me, it was always easier when I called my parents than when they figured it out later."

The dark-haired girl pulled on the other girl's sweater, "She's right, Nanako. Getou-sama is already going to be really mad."

Natsumi raised a brow, it was an odd way to address a parent. Though maybe this person wasn't their parent, people often assumed Natsumi was Sumiko's mother until they met them and realized how close in age they were. It still felt like an overly formal way for them to address their caretaker.

Nanako groaned, "Fine, whatever." She whipped out her phone and started texting furiously, she flipped it closed and shot the other girl a look. "Happy?"

"I told you we should have stayed home in the first place!"

"You're such a coward, Mimiko!"

"Right," Natsumi interrupted. "Well until… uh, your… until they get here, how about I buy you lunch?"

Nanako eyed Natsumi skeptically, "Why?"

"Uh… to be nice? Also, I hate eating by myself in public, it's so sad you know? And I feel bad I got you kicked out," she admitted.

"Fine, but we get to pick."

Natsumi rolled her eyes but headed towards the food court with the girls in tow. "We can all eat different things for all I care. So… are you sisters or?"

"Twins," Mimiko answered.

"Oh… that's cool. How old are you?"

"Eleven."

Nanako elbowed her sister sharply, "Don't tell her stuff."

She stopped asking questions, not wanting to cause any more grief between the sisters. It was a rough day for them as it was, getting harassed (whether they noticed or not), kicked out of a music store, and (more than likely) chewed out by their… whatever they were.

"I have a niece about your age. She's thirteen today, I was buying her a gift, or trying to," she said, and her stomach dropped. Sumiko's gift. She had been so caught up with the chaos and making sure these two girls were okay that she hadn't gotten anything for Sumiko. A quick glance at her watch told her she was okay, there was still time.

"What were you going to get her?"

Natsumi smiled at Mimiko while Nanako glared at her, clearly Mimiko was the friendlier of the two. "Not totally sure," she said. "We both like music so that's why I was in there, but it doesn't feel big enough. Thirteen is a big deal, it should be something more… just more."

"There's a big music festival in November," Mimiko offered, ignoring Nanako's horrified looks. "We were thinking of going, but we don't know if Getou-sama will let us go."

She shrugged, "Doesn't hurt to ask." Nanako rolled her eyes and proceeded to pull out her phone. "It might be a bit cliché, but it's true. Worse they do is say no. I wouldn't recommend sneaking out again though. I get the appeal, really, I do, but it's extremely dangerous."

"I know that," Mimiko muttered and shot Nanako an irritated look. Nanako stuck her tongue out at her sister and went back to ignoring her, her fingers flying across the keypad.

They continued chatting lightly as they got their food, Mimiko was a pleasant girl, and for all their bickering the girls seemed to mostly get along. Eventually, Nanako opened up a little more, speaking more comfortably when they started talking about idols while they ate. She wondered if they would get along with Sumiko, she needed friends outside the Jujutsu world. Sure, Tsumiki wasn't a sorcerer, but she was still involved in it all because of Megumi and Gojou.

Natsumi questioned her choice to let Sumiko be a part of it all. Every mission Gojou went on or talked about involved cursed spirits devouring and killing people. It was dangerous, and she was pretty sure he downplayed it to her sometimes, that they all did. She never felt like they fully shared the danger of it all, and Natsumi was afraid for Sumiko. She wasn't even at Jujutsu High yet and she was already coming home from training with scrapes and bruises.

She also couldn't try to talk her out of it, as much as she wanted to. She and Gojou had made a deal, whether Sumiko was a sorcerer or not would be because she chose it, not because either of them made her. It didn't stop her from dropping hints or reminding Sumiko that she could have any life she wanted, and Natsumi would support that. If the Zen'in clan ever did come for Sumiko and she wanted to run all over the world instead of leaning on Gojou's protection, Natsumi would make that happen.

"Getou-sama!" the girls piped up in unison.

The formality did not get less weird when she saw the man, they called Getou-sama.

The man stood at the end of the booth they had been occupying, a critical look on his face as he eyed the twins, clearly unhappy with them. "Would you like to explain now, or later?" he questioned the girls, decidedly ignoring Natsumi's presence.

The girls explained the situation, start to finish, and Natsumi took the opportunity to stare at him while they did so. She wasn't in the habit of staring, but he was a very attractive man despite the frustrated look on his face. He was tall and had an imposing presence that had very little to do with his height and everything to do with his demeanor. His hair was long and much darker than either of the girls, a true shade of black rather than dark brown. The sweater he wore was awfully reminiscent of the one Nanako wore now, though not nearly as faded, with dark pants to match.

She watched his jaw tighten as he listened to the girls, his full attention on them as they spoke, glancing at Natsumi only as they finished the story.

"Then, when they tried to blame us, she lied for us! She said we were her sisters, and then she stuck with us in case that creepy guy came back." Nanako must have warmed up to her more than she thought because she was singing her praises now.

Mimiko nodded in agreement, "She bought us lunch too."

The man turned his eyes fully on Natsumi then and his expression changed, drastically. Gone was the serious look, in its place was the most alarmingly fake smile she'd ever seen. It was unsettling, to say the least. "Thank you," he said. "I appreciate what you've done. Now, come along girls."

"But… we're still eating," Mimiko said softly, gesturing at the half-full plates of food.

"Yeah, can we just stay 'til we're done? Plus, we never got to buy those CDs, and we never get to leave home and we're already here so… Can we? Please Getou-sama?"

They pouted at him, eyes shining dangerously. Oh, they were good. This was a very practiced look they were giving him, something Natsumi was sure they had done before to get their way.

"Fine," he muttered. "An hour. Then we're going home."

"Two hours?" Mimiko pushed.

"Do not push it."

"But," Nanako said, "we were harassed. We're still in shock!"

Natsumi snorted, she couldn't help it. They were playing this man like a fiddle, and he was letting them. If only her parents had been this easy, she would have gotten away with so much more.

His eyes flicked to her, and she was surprised by the intense anger simmering there. It was gone a second later, the false smile in place. "Fine, but let's not bother this woman anymore."

"Matsuda Natsumi," she said. He could switch his facial expressions so quickly, almost effortlessly. Was he so angry that she'd been amused? It was more than a little funny to watch a couple of eleven-year-olds manipulate a grown man. It made her wonder again about his relation to the girls because he looked close to her age, and they had addressed him so formally. The formal address clashed with how casually they spoke to him.

"Matsuda-san doesn't like eating alone," Mimiko insisted. "We can stay here with her, she wouldn't mind."

"Yeah, you don't mind right?"

"Uh, no, I don't, but if your, uh… if he thinks you should go, maybe you should."

Nanako persisted, "Oh come on! You never got to buy your niece that gift because of us. We should sit and eat with you, express our gratitude or whatever!"

"I didn't get to buy her gift, because that guy was a pervert, and those security guards would rather blame teenagers because it's convenient for them. Don't ever let anyone blame you for something like that or you'll blame yourself your whole life for stuff like that." Natsumi raised her voice as she went on because she had been doing that same thing for a long time and she was still unlearning it. Still trying not to blame herself for the things that men had done to her, because they always found a way to turn it around.

It was quiet for a moment before the man spoke. "We can sit, for a bit," he relented, and Mimiko switched sides to sit next to Natsumi so he could slide in next to Nanako.

"So…" Natsumi drawled out, "what were we talking about?"

"I was telling you who was going to be at the festival," Nanako said, and she dove back into the topic excitedly.

They sat for a while, talking, though it was mostly the twins talking back and forth while the two adults looked on. Natsumi offered an opinion here and there, suggesting a few bands and singers they should listen to. The man still hadn't really introduced himself and hadn't offered an explanation about how he knew these girls. He wasn't their father, but was he, their brother? Or uncle? But then why the formal address? It was a little weird, but it didn't bring on that gnawing feeling in her stomach, though the sweater she was pretty sure used to be his wasn't exactly comforting.

She stayed on alert, there was always the chance her gut was wrong, but the girls seemed comfortable around him. While he offered Natsumi that horribly fake smile that sent a slight chill down her back, he smiled at the girls affectionately and seemed concerned for them.

Her phone drew her attention, the familiar ringtone causing her to groan. "Sorry," she muttered to the girls and flipped it open. "What do you want?"

"Don't be pissy."

"No," she hissed. "You're not doing this."

"I have to, no one else can go."

"There has to be someone."

"There isn't," Gojou assured.

Natsumi rubbed her face, "I know we don't like each other – "

Gojou gasped on the other end, "You don't like me Natsumi-chan!"

"Don't call me that," she snapped at him. "She wants you there, and she'll be hurt if you're not."

"It's fine. I already told her, she's cool with it!"

She resisted the urge to scream several obscenities, but one look at the man across from her told her that would not go over well. She angled away, realizing she probably should be walked away for this conversation. "Of course, she's okay with it, she's always okay with it when you bail on her. That's fine for… the other stuff, but it's her birthday. I don't see why, you're an obnoxious self-centered overgrown child. Clearly."

"You know Natsumi-chan, that hurts, that really hurts," he pretended to sniffle on the other end.

"You know, I hope you trip down some stairs. Maybe I'll push you down them."

Gojou snickered, "Oh, please do it. It'll be so embarrassing for you." She didn't respond, because she couldn't say anything that would stop him, and they both knew she couldn't do anything to him but scream. "You know… I could bring Sumiko with me; she wants to go."

"Absolutely not, no way."

There was noise on the other end, muffled talking for a moment, and then Sumiko's voice on the other end. "Please, please let me go!"

"He pulled you out of school? Seriously?" Natsumi rubbed her temple, becoming more and more aware of the silence of the two girls next to her, who were very clearly listening. "No, it's… no, we've talked about this."

"Please? It's my birthday! I won't even be doing anything, just watching. I've never seen Gojou-sensei use his technique! Do you know how rare it is? The last time someone had it was centuries ago!"

"Yes, I know but – "

"Megumi's allowed to go and he's younger than me," Sumiko begged, so very out of character for her. "Please, I won't ask for anything else. This is all I want."

Sumiko so rarely wanted anything, and never this desperately. It had gotten harder the last few months, as she got stronger, as her cursed energy grew, she wanted to explore it more, to do more. "Pass the idiot the phone."

"She wants to talk to you!"

More shuffling. "Did you miss me Natsumi-chan?"

"If anything happens, I will kill you. I'll call her grandmother and I'll tell her it's your fault."

He scoffed, "As if Megumi would ever forgive me if anything happened to his favorite cousin. He'd probably go to them himself, just to spite me."

She didn't feel like mentioning Sumiko was the only cousin Megumi actually knew. "Fine, okay, when will you be back?"

"A couple days, I'll text you the details."

"She calls me every night! Every morning! Every change of location!"

"Sure, sure, if we remember, now say 'Bye Natsumi-chan!'"

She heard Megumi vaguely in the background and Sumiko's promise to call her in a few hours.

"Happy Birthday, I love you."

"I love you too!" And the line disconnected.

Natsumi flipped her phone shut and turned back to the three people waiting on her. Their caretaker and Mimiko at least pretended not to stare, Nanako stared unabashedly.

"Was that your boyfriend?"

She spluttered in horror, "Absolutely not. It would take several head injuries and a lobotomy."

"Well, who was it then?"

"It was… a friend, sort of, not really. It's hard to explain."

Mimiko cocked her head slightly, "Was it about your niece?"

"Yeah. A family friend said he would come but instead, he has to travel for work, and she wants to go with him and… and it's hard to tell her no." Natsumi glanced at the man sitting across from her, "I'm sure you understand that."

He didn't respond, the false smile still firmly in place.

"Anyways… uh, I'm sorry, that was really rude of me. I should have stepped away; I didn't think it was going to get so intense. I should have, he never calls for anything good." That wasn't really true, or fair, she knew that Gojou really couldn't help it when it came to these missions. Sumiko had explained to her, that there were only two people even close to his strength. One of those people had defected from the Jujutsu world and the other was traveling the world, they rarely even knew where she was, let alone how to contact her. No, there was only one Gojou Satoru. It was just unfortunate that Sumiko cared about him.

"Well, that gives you more time to find a good gift!" Mimiko said brightly.

Natsumi smiled weakly, "Yeah. I think I'll look into those tickets, she'll probably like that." She felt tired after that phone call, and even more exhausted when she remembered that she was going home to an empty house.

"Do you like sweet stuff?"

"Uh… sure?"

Nanako stood and grabbed hold of Mimiko, "We'll be right back!"

"Girls!" the man shouted after them, but they were halfway across the food court.

Natsumi laughed at them, "Why do kids not listen? I mean I didn't listen either but, I mean, come on. I was a shithead, and they seem like good kids. I thought good kids listen to their elders?"

"Good kids that snuck out," he muttered.

She lifted her head only slightly, surprised he said anything at all to her. He'd barely spoken at all and when he did it wasn't to her. He hadn't actually spoken to Natsumi since he first showed up. "They went to a music store, as far as sneaking out goes, that's pretty mild."

He didn't answer her, only kept his eyes on the girls as they stood in line. It reminded her of the way she watched Sumiko when they went anywhere as if at any moment someone could swoop in and hurt them. "You're really protective of them, aren't you?"

"Very."

"So… I have to ask, or I don't have to but I'm going to. Are you related to them or?"

"Our ties run deeper than any blood relation."

Did he not realize how horrifying that sounded? Looking at his face, she was pretty sure he wasn't being funny. "That makes you sound like a creep; you know that right?"

"I do not owe you an explanation."

"Obviously not, I'm just concerned. There are a lot of creeps in this world, case in point the guy who tried to take a panty shot of an eleven-year-old." He looked at her with the same angry look as before and she realized it wasn't anger, it was hatred. There was pure hatred in his eyes, she hadn't done anything to deserve a look like that. She held up her hands in defense, "Honestly, you seem okay. They seem okay, I just… I want to say that I did what I could, that I said something, that I asked, that I didn't look the other way."

His jaw worked restlessly, clenching and unclenching, as turned his eyes back on the girls. She dropped it because she couldn't make him tell her and the girls did seem okay. A little odd, but okay.

"They have no family, no one else to care for them. I can't abandon them, so I've raised them. They are my family."

Natsumi nodded, "Okay. I get that, sorry I pried, I just… wanted to be sure."

"You still can't be," he said dismissively, "I could be lying."

"Maybe," she relented, "but… I don't think so. You're a little intense, but my gut says you're okay."

He scoffed at the mention of her gut but didn't comment on it. Silence fell between them for a moment as they both watched the twins standing in line, waiting their turn.

"Why did you help them? Why interfere?" he asked suddenly.

Her brows furrowed, "Was I supposed to do nothing?"

"Most would. It's what everyone else did."

Natsumi shrugged, "Yeah well… girls have to stick together."

"So, it's a matter of gender? If they were boys, you would have done nothing?" His words were clipped, a dangerous edge in his tone.

"Oh, don't do that. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about. It's different for girls and you know it."

He made a noise of disbelief in his throat but said nothing.

"Oh, you really think it's the same? Let's swap war stories," she said and clapped her hands together, "I was nine years old the first time a man told me how smooth my skin was. I was eleven the first time a man on the train smelled me. I was thirteen the first time a man groped me in public. Have you ever had a man ask to sniff your panties? Because I sure the fuck have and I was definitely underage. Actually! I was in my school uniform, on my way to school."

He said nothing, and so she continued. "Oh, you don't have a similar story? I wonder why that is."

"Your point has been made."

She rolled her eyes because she still didn't think he really understood, most men didn't. It bothered her more than it should, but she'd just gotten off the phone with another willfully ignorant man. She leaned on her arm, watching the girls finishing up at the food counter. "The world is shitty, and people are shittier, so yeah, I paid more attention to the girls because they're girls. I wanted… no one ever said anything when some creep harassed me or my friends. If I can do that for other little girls, then I will, because someone should have done that for me."

It was barely past noon and already she was planning to crawl in bed as soon as she got home, maybe even drink herself into a small coma. The heaviness of the day weighed on her, the thought of going home to an empty house was more frightening than it should have been. The man who had harassed the girls and the conversation she was having with their caretaker, it brought up too much. Residual anger for things that had happened when she was a teenager. Anger for the men that had hung around her, anger for the people that turned a blind eye, and the shame, the ever-present shame. The shame for all the things she had let some of those men do to her.

It would be hard tonight, to stay afloat, to not let it drag her below the surface. She couldn't let it, because Sumiko would be back, and she couldn't let her be the caretaker. And Sumiko would, it was just who she was. She was too much like Ichiro for her not to care for the people around her.

He turned his gaze back on her as the girls headed towards them. He no longer bothered to plaster the false smile on his face, but he kept his face rather passive, all except for those eyes. Mimiko sat next to Natsumi, handing over the pastry she had bought while the two girls continued their chatter. She could feel the exhaustion dragging at her, and the man's intensity wasn't helping matters. She was burnt out, and the girls were safe so Natsumi finished eating quickly and excused herself.

She made it a few steps away before she turned back, "Uh, wait. I um… Thanks for the idea about the music festival and, uh, I'm sorry again I made that whole scene. I should have handled it better."

"You said that already," Nanako said.

"Yeah, I know, I just wanted to say it again. Also…" Natsumi dug through her purse, searching for a loose pen, she usually had at least one rolling around in there. She grabbed a napkin off the table once she did and jotted down her phone number. "I know you've got… Getou-san?" She said it like a question because he never really introduced himself, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him for confirmation, she didn't want to see the animosity in his eyes again. "But, sometimes, there's girl stuff that's hard to talk about with guys. If you need anything, you call me, anytime. Even if it's just to come yell at some creepy guy or… anything really."

Mimiko took the napkin with her number jotted down while Nanako looked towards Geto for… she wasn't sure what. "Girls have to stick together?" Mimiko echoed.

Natsumi smiled, "Yeah, we have to stick together." She turned and left with a quick wave goodbye, she didn't really expect them to call or reach out, but she thought it would be good for them to have that option.

"She was really nice," Mimiko said as they watched her walk away, only speaking once Natsumi was well out of earshot.

Nanako rolled her eyes, "She's still just a monkey."

"Yeah," she trailed off, folding the napkin carefully into the pocket of her skirt, "but she was a really nice one."

For the first time since Natsumi took in Sumiko, she went home to an empty house. It was dark and none of the lights were on, and she wrapped herself in her old comforts and vices. She drank too much and stared blankly at the television screen because she had changed but old habits died hard. Especially when the reason for kicking those bad habits was off doing dangerous things with an overly confident reckless twenty-something.

Sumiko had called her, every morning and every day for the three days she was gone, but still, Natsumi felt on edge. She watched the news nightly until Sumiko came home, just in case there was… something, something that would happen that Gojou wouldn't tell her but made its way to the public. Sumiko had pointed out multiple incidences in the past year that had been poor coverups for cursed spirit interference.

It was exactly a day before Sumiko came home, that Natsumi turned on the news, only to be well and truly shocked when the predator that had harassed Mimiko and Nanako was found dead in his apartment. His death had uncovered a scandal, a middle school principal with a string of young girls that he had brutalized.

Natsumi remembered the intensity in Getou's eyes and knew it wasn't a coincidence. He had found this man and he had killed him, or had him killed, whatever the case may be.

She couldn't find it in herself to blame him.