[Episode 4: Lapse, Reverse, Refine]

[Opening Song: Bling-Bang-Bang-Born – By: Creepy Nuts]

For a place as weird as The Boiling Isles, with Witches and Demons and all manner of supernatural folk being real and living here, Luz had to admit that the forest was the most normal place in it by far. Sure, there were strange creatures that looked like something ripped right out of a fantasy book that lived within the woods, but aside from that, and aside from the grass and the leaves being orange, it reminded Luz of home.

Home…. A part of her missed home, but a part of her didn't miss home at the same time. Home was where all of her no-good rotten bullies were. Home was where everyone saw her as nothing more than a freak and a weirdo, save for her mother. Home was the place where she had to constantly deal with the strange looks and off comments.

Home was where everyone teased her about seeing things that "weren't there", even though they were there, which she now knew for a fact thanks to what Gojo was teaching her. And home was where she would've gone to that number-crunching camp her mom was so hellbent that she went to.

She knew her mother meant well when it came to sending her to Reality Check Summer Camp. But, at the same time, that wasn't what she wanted. Luz knew her Mom better than that. Luz knew that her Mom, despite being a little rough around the edges from time to time, meant the best when it came to her decisions. She knew her Mom meant no ill-will to her when she had elected to send her to that place.

But, Luz would've liked to have had at least a little bit of input on that. It had been sprung on her on the last day of school when she had already made plans over the summer. Sure, she might not have had a lot of friends—or any at all—but she was content with that. She was content with being lonely—no, she really wasn't, she wanted friends and she wanted them badly, but no one wanted to understand her, or try to understand her—and that was fine!

But, then again, the saying "mother always knows best" was a thing. And maybe, she was right. Maybe she had been right to send her to Reality Check Summer Camp. If she hadn't tried to do that, she would've never met Gojo or Eda, or had learnt about this new dimension that apparently had always existed! Nor would she have known that she had Cursed Energy thanks to meeting Gojo!

But, all of that aside, Luz had been in the forest for a reason. It wasn't just to go on a nature walk, sadly. Rather, it was for her training. Luz had wanted it to be yesterday, but that hadn't happened. It had surprised her yesterday that Gojo called off training that day, and that it was going to be a break day. But, with hindsight now 20/20, she knew that it probably would've been for the best.

That being said, it had upset her because she had been excited to learn more about Cursed Energy and what she could do with it. But, then again, they had stayed up all night the day prior, and Gojo had looked absolutely exhausted. So, she didn't push her luck.

But, that still didn't mean she was just going to sit there and… do nothing. That just wasn't her style. After all, she had to put her attention somewhere. She wasn't the type of person who could sit around and do nothing for hours on end. Sure, she could've helped Eda or maybe asked King if he wanted to do something. But, she had been so focused on this new thing that she learned, and what she could do with it, that she couldn't stop thinking about it!

Eda seemingly understood that and didn't bother Luz at all about it. And so, because of that, she decided to put herself to work to try and do the one thing that Gojo suggested her to do. It had to do with their, albeit brief, conversation yesterday about their training.

"Why not! I want to train today! C'mon Gojo, please!"

"No, Luz. Besides, you need to rest. You stayed up all night, and all day yesterday. Not to mention I'm tired, too. Can't keep this up forever, you know. Everyone needs to take a break now and again."

"Fine…. But, I want to do something. There has to be something that I can do today…"

"Look…. If you want to train something about your Cursed Energy today, then might I suggest trying to train your senses? Believe it or not, sensing what your opponent can do and how much Cursed Energy they have is one of the key components to Jujutsu Combat."

"You mean I'll have to fight people?"

"Well, of course! What? Did you think you wouldn't have to fight? Don't be silly. Being a Jujutsu Sorcerer isn't just being aware of your powers. You have to hone them, and the best way to do that is by combat. And sometimes, that combat is with other people. So, by being able to sense what they can do, you'll have an immediate advantage against them. Even if you can't immediately understand what you're sensing, knowing that your opponent might have a Cursed Technique is better than running in blind. So, if you want to do anything today that's toward your training as a Jujutsu Sorcerer, train yourself how to sense Cursed Energy. It'll make life a lot easier in the long run."

And so, that was exactly what she did. She spent the entire day yesterday learning how to sense Cursed Energy. If she were to describe how it was done, it would be like trying to listen to someone whispering, except instead of with your ears, it was with your body. All she had to do was focus really hard, and boom! From that moment on, she had been able to sense Cursed Energy.

Well, it wasn't an instant process. It was more like it took her a handful of hours of concentrating on her Cursed Energy, and trying to force it out of her body in a non-imbuing way as she had with her hands and the stuffed bear, but eventually, she had been able to do it! And, if she had to describe it, it felt like a constant, quiet hum in the back of her head.

At first, she thought that it would be annoying to constantly hear that humming noise in the back of her head. And for a while, say for the first hour, it was. When she had figured out how to sense Cursed Energy, she could never turn it off. It was like she had permanently unlocked a part of her brain that had been locked, and now it was irritating her.

But, after that first hour, the noise kind of became… comforting. She didn't know how to describe it. It was like being constantly informed that, at least for the moment, she was safe. She was secure. She didn't have to worry about anything. She could relax, let her guard down, and have a good day. Almost like she was being told directly by the world around her that she was all right. That she was safe.

And honestly? She liked it. She liked it a lot.

Not that she ever had a reason to be fearful of the world around her. But, it was just another layer of safety on top of another. It felt… reassuring. Her choice to train under Gojo was a good idea instead of giving up entirely.

She'd admit to only herself, but when she found out that she couldn't use Glyphs, she had actually considered asking Eda to use The Portal Door. She had been refraining from it up until that point—well, until she talked to Gojo and realized that she had Cursed Energy—but that day she had been considering going back home. Especially seeing as she couldn't do the one thing that would've made her useful or helpful.

She was thankful for Gojo teaching her even this much. It gave her an excuse not to go home yet. It gave her the excuse to stay here, in this world, at least until Summer Break was over so she could completely skip out on that god-awful Summer Camp.

When her mother had told her about the camp and that she was going to it, she decided to do some research on the place. 1-star review after 1-star review from people who said that the camp was akin to a boot camp and acts of abuse be it physical, verbal, or emotional, made her positively despise the idea of going there. Especially considering that Googling the camp brought up safety lawsuits about the place from last year, and how a kid died from the negligence of the staff.

It was safe to say that she was really glad that she was here and not there. If her mother had known about any of that, she probably wouldn't have even bothered with the place. But, then again, for as much as she loved her mother she was extremely gullible to what the teachers at her school spoke about, and that wasn't even talking about the other parents in the neighbourhood.

Again, she couldn't truly blame her mother for wanting her to go to that camp. But, that was behind her now. It didn't matter, not anymore anyway.

All of that aside, when she had finished learning how to sense Cursed Energy, immediately afterward, she got an idea. If she could sense Cursed Energy now, why not try and see where she was in comparison to her teacher? Surely, she wasn't too far off in being near his level, right?

That, and she was curious. She wanted to know just how strong Gojo was. Eda could tell that he was strong, because every time he used his Cursed Energy, she flinched. Eda was fairly strong as far as Luz was aware, so it made sense, right?

So, that was exactly what she did. When he was sleeping peacefully on the couch yesterday, she sensed Gojo's Cursed Energy. And when she did, Luz immediately understood the gap that was between her and him. It wasn't a puddle to a pond or a pond to a lake or a lake to an ocean. It was the size of the Grand Canyon to the space station up in orbit around Earth.

Gojo was far stronger than she could ever hope to become. In some respects, she was disappointed by that. She had read tons of comics, and manga, and watched about a dozen different shows and anime, and in all of them, the pupil became stronger than the teacher. But, she guessed, for her, that wouldn't be the case.

When she realized just how large the gap had been, Gojo told her that it was alright to realize that, compared to him, she was weak. Because everyone was weaker than him. It wasn't just a few select people. It was everyone. He was the pinnacle of Jujutsu, as he had been born and bred to be.

She had to admit when Gojo had said that to her, she thought that was more than a little dystopian. He was born and bred to be the strongest? That sounded like eugenics. Nobody gave her credit for paying attention in classes, but she did. What Gojo described sounded like that. She just hoped that she wouldn't be judged by those who would be her peers if she ever went back home.

"Alright, Luz!" Gojo's voice cut through her thoughts, as she looked over at him. They were somewhere deep in the forest, around about an hour-long walk away from Eda's house, surrounded by tall trees. They had found themselves in a clearing, so there wasn't much in the way of things around them, aside from the trees of course. "Today, we're going over the three different ways to use Cursed Energy. Of course, you already know how to imbue Cursed Energy, but now, we're getting into the slightly advanced forms of it. So pay attention, okay?"

"Alright," Luz said, nodding. She was ready to learn. She had been ready to learn since yesterday, and she was also extremely excited. She didn't know what it was about how Gojo taught things. Maybe because it was hands-on, or maybe it was because of his personality, or maybe even both. But unlike most of the teachers in her life, Gojo made things fun.

Maybe her other school teachers could take notes on how to teach a class like Gojo could. Maybe that way she'd be able to pay attention instead of staring off into the distance thinking about literally anything else.

"Now, there are three main ways on how to use Cursed Energy. Technically, this all applies to Cursed Techniques, but the basic knowledge is still something worth knowing." As Gojo said that, Luz spoke up, a curious look in her eyes.

"So, I know what ya said yesterday, but, I'm curious…. Do you actually think that I can use a Cursed Technique?" Luz asked, excitement in her words as she practically vibrated in anticipation. Gojo looked at her, seemingly lost in thought, before he started stroking his chin.

It was true that she had a Cursed Technique, but it was buried so far deep inside of her Cursed Energy, locked away in that imaginary box, that he had a hard time believing that she would be using it anytime soon. More often than not, those with Cursed Techniques have access to them after coming to terms with their Cursed Energy. Luz had already reached that point, but, upon peering into her Cursed Energy, the box still had the other three locks on them.

Yet again, it showed to Gojo that Luz was special. Only this time, it was in a bad way. Not only that, but it made Gojo wonder why her Cursed Technique had been, essentially, sealed. Who sealed it? How was it sealed? When was it sealed? And why now were the locks only just starting to come off? What were the criteria for the locks to come off?

So many questions, with very few answers. It was both interesting and frustrating. Never in his life had he been met with a question he couldn't answer, and it was starting to get to him. But, even though he couldn't properly answer the question, he did the best he could.

"Well… I'll be honest, Luz. While you have it in you, the chances of you using it in the near future are slim to none," Gojo said as Luz tilted her head in confusion, prompting Gojo to explain further. "Typically, when a Cursed Technique manifests into reality, there are two ways for it to happen. The first is pretty basic, i.e. when the Jujutsu Sorcerer-to-be comes to terms with their Cursed Energy. Or, the second way, and the more dangerous of the two, when that person is in a high-stress situation," Gojo said, continuing once Luz straightened her posture.

"You see, it's more typical for the former to be the case. But, if the former doesn't happen, the latter happens instead. Oh, and by the way, what I mean by high-stress situations, I mean when a person is amidst a life-or-death experience. As a matter of fact, it was how I was able to learn the Reverse Cursed Technique—when I was on the verge of death."

Luz blinked, straightening her head as she registered the words that came out of Gojo's mouth. Gojo? Near-death experience? How? Just what kind of monster did he have to face to have ended up in that kind of situation? And that wasn't even mentioning what it was he had said. Cursed Technique's manifest amidst a life-or-death experience? Was he just saying that, or did he mean it?

She had to assume that he meant it. And because of that, a wave of fear washed over her. Would doing this lead to her death? Would training in Cursed Energy lead to her eventual death? She didn't want to die—she was fairly certain everyone had that same mentality—but she really didn't want to die.

"No…. Gojo will protect me. I shouldn't have to fear death," Luz thought, calming herself as Gojo stared at her blankly. His expression hadn't changed even remotely, not until she breathed out, a small smile on his face.

"It seems you came across a realization, Luz. What's your take on it?" Gojo asked as Luz steeled herself.

"I've already come this far, right? So… I shouldn't have to fear that happening to me," Luz responded as Gojo's small smile turned into a proud grin.

"That's the right answer. Now, let's get into the lesson, shall we?" Gojo said as he stuck up his right pointer finger. "Let's start with the simplest explanation here," Gojo began as a blue orb of light began to converge on his fingertip. Luz watched in awe as it came into being, and when it did, Gojo kept it there. It didn't move, or anything like that. It simply stayed on the tip of his finger like a beacon of light.

"This, Luz, is my Cursed Technique. Or, at least, a facet of it. Limitless. Specifically, this is my Lapse: Blue. A pure example of my Technique, forcing Infinity into reality and bending it to make a miniature black hole that sucks up anything around it. Granted, I have intense control over Lapse: Blue. So, that's why right now, nothing's happening," Gojo explained as Luz listened with full focus, staring at the blue orb of light.

"Now, the reason why it's called "Lapse" or, what it can be translated into, forward rotation, is because rather than just pouring my Cursed Energy into my fists, I am refining it and pouring it into my technique. Of course, you're going to need a technique before you can use "Lapse", but the sooner you're aware of it, the better," Gojo continued as Luz stared blankly.

"So, wait… I can't use what you're telling me," Luz said, raising an eyebrow, and tilting her head again, albeit this time only slightly. "I mean, I get why you're telling me, but what's the point? Why not just get to the stuff I can use?" Luz asked as Gojo sighed, dispelling his technique.

"I'm telling you so that you can use that knowledge for later. Sooner or later, that Technique of yours that's buried within you will come out, so having this knowledge on hand will help you in the long run. That, and there will be times when I won't be there to protect or guide you, so you'll have to remember this knowledge for when you're completely on your own. It's important that I tell you this now. If I don't then what kind of teacher would I be?" Gojo said as Luz slumped. He patted her on the head with his left hand, ruffling her hair again, embarrassing her.

"Can you not do that…" Luz murmured as Gojo snickered, pulling his hand away before stuffing it into his pocket.

"Well, you get the point. Now, onto something, or at the very least the concept of it, that you'll be able to do," Gojo said, taking a step back as he raised his right hand and right index finger. Instead of blue energy, red energy began to converge at the tip of his finger, as Luz looked up at it. It hurt to look at due to how bright it was, but she still stared regardless.

"This is my Reversal: Red. Don't pay attention to the fact that it's a red ball, but the word "reversal". Instead of using "Lapse" or forward rotation, I'm using "Reversal" or backward rotation, twisting my Cursed Energy into Positive Energy by constantly twisting it backward over and over again until it becomes Positive Energy."

As Gojo said that, he dismissed the red ball, and Luz rubbed at her eyes, squinting as she did so. "That was very bright…" Luz complained, before looking back up at Gojo. "So… it's just Reversed Cursed Energy, yeah? That sounds simple enough."

"Far from it," Gojo retorted, crossing his arms. "Reversing Cursed Energy is extremely difficult to do. I'm considered a prodigy in Jujutsu Sorcery, and even I had a hard time trying to figure out The Reversed Cursed Technique. As a matter of fact, as I said before, It took me nearly dying to finally figure it out. It's actually what ended up saving me."

As Gojo said that, just as she was about to ask what he meant, he raised his hand to his hair and pulled it back. What Luz saw made her eyes widen. There was a scar, albeit hardly visible, right in the center of his forehead. She involuntarily gasped, covering her mouth when she did as Gojo sighed. "Back when I was in high school… I was attacked by a madman. I'll save the details, but that madman stabbed me with a sword that could nullify Cursed Techniques, rendering me just the same as everyone else. If it hadn't been for my split-second realization, when he stabbed me through the head and nearly destroyed my brain, I would've died."

Gojo dropped his arms to his side, letting his hair fall with it. Luz lowered her hands from her mouth as they hung uselessly by her sides as he continued. "Thankfully, both that man and the weapon he used are gone, but that's beside the point. My point is that the Reverse Cursed Technique is a powerful tool any Sorcerer worth their salt knows how to use. Out of all of the current Jujutsu Sorcerers, only eight, myself included, know how to use it. Some can only use it on themselves, whereas a very special few can use it on others. I'm one of the people who can only use it on myself."

Gojo approached Luz, who was deep in thought. Being a Jujutsu Sorcerer sounded terrifying. If people like Gojo could wind up almost killed, someone who was so powerful, then what did that say about her? She was nothing compared to him, and even he could be taken down. Sure, the way to do so was destroyed, but the mere idea that Gojo had come close to death terrified her.

She hadn't noticed it, but her face had drained of all colour, and her eyes shrunk down to nothing but the size of pinpricks. Fear had washed over her, as countless scenarios rushed through her mind, all of them being various ways of her meeting her end.

It was only when felt a hand placed on her shoulder that she snapped out of her trance, and was met with Gojo's blindfold, yet despite that she could feel his eyes on her, and if she had to guess, a look of sincerity were behind them. "Luz. One of these days, I'll teach you the Reversed Cursed Technique. I don't want you to be put into a similar situation as myself back when I was closer to your age. I'd do it now, but, we have other things to do," Gojo said, taking his hand off of her shoulder and standing up.

"You've only been training with me for a day, and yet, you've already shown yourself capable of imbuing objects with Cursed Energy, and in turn, your hands. Not to mention you can control both your emotions and your Cursed Energy flawlessly, and, you can even sense Cursed Energy around you. Which means, I can take you out into the field for some training. Proper training."

"Proper training?" Luz questioned as Gojo smirked. He grabbed her by the back of her hood, causing her to yelp as they suddenly teleported elsewhere. When they arrived at the location, Luz had been confused. They were still in the forest, but as Luz was able to see, they were closer to Bonesborough, being able to see the town just a few feet away through some foliage. "But why?" And as she thought that, that was when she saw it, her eyes widening in both shock and horror.

The reason why they had teleported to this specific location was because of what had been in front of them. It was a creature, similar to the ones that she had seen back in Gravesfield. The reason she knew this was because it, much like the creatures back in Gravesfield, had Cursed Energy radiating around it. In Gravesfield they were docile, and hardly ever did anything aside from laze about. They were peaceful, and she knew that.

But this? This was different. It was an entirely different type of beast, simply because the Cursed Energy it radiated was a far more dangerous feeling than what she assumed the other Cursed Spirits would've felt like back in Gravesfield. Not to mention, its appearance was far different, matching the energy it gave off. For starters, it was taller and larger, easily matching her in size if not a tad bit smaller. The ones back in Gravesfield were far smaller, easily being about the same size as maybe her hand or a finger. And while they were still icky feeling, they were a lot calmer. But this one? Not this one.

It felt like a true monster, with it standing on four legs with what appeared to be webbed hands. It had the appearance of a fish mixed with a cat. The fish part of it had to do with the shape of its head and body and the way its four eyes looked with the same film over it a fish would have, said eyes glowing red with nothing but pure hatred rolling off of it. There was also a massive fin running down the base of its neck down to the long, thin tail that showed that it was also part cat; further shown with the slit irises and whiskers.

Its mouth was stained with blood, meaning that it had already killed someone. That made Luz's stomach churn. This thing… it had already killed someone, and judging by Gojo's expression he didn't look too happy about it. Its teeth were long and sharp, glistening in the sunlight as its long purple tongue licked its lips, cleaning the blood off of its mouth.

"This is a Cursed Spirit. Unlike the ones in your hometown, Luz. This one can be graded. It's still super weak, sitting at the bottom end of Grade 4, but even a Grade 4 can be dangerous to inexperienced sorcerers like yourself," Gojo began as he let go of her hood, her feet making contact with the ground as she audibly gulped. "Now, I want you to pay attention to what it's doing."

Luz looked from Gojo to the Curse. She tried to figure out what it was doing, and by the time she caught on, her eyes went from wide to narrow. The Curse was eyeing a girl probably about her age. She had dark green hair and was dressed in a black cowl with a yellow button keeping it together, a dark gray dress, and purple sleeves and leggings with black shoes. Her hair was tied back into a wide bun, and she wore glasses. She was a little on the bigger side, but aside from her pointed ears, she looked human.

That was something that Luz couldn't understand. Aside from having Magic, what was it that made Humans and Witches different? Was it because they had pointy ears? If that was the case, then weren't they just Humans with pointy ears?

"You're getting sidetracked, me. Stay focused!" Luz thought, clapping her hands against the sides of her face before answering. "It's looking at that Witch, right?" Luz said as Gojo nodded.

"Correct. That's because it thinks that the young Witch over there is easy prey. The witch probably can't see the Curse, and therefore, if the Curse catches her, she's as good as dead. And, considering it had blood on its mouth, that means its already killed someone. Meaning that it has a taste for flesh, and most likely wants more," as Gojo said that, he glanced down at Luz, a small smirk making itself present. "Now, guess what you're going to do?" Gojo said as Luz finally clued in on what Gojo was implying.

"Oh no…! Don't tell me that he's gonna make me fight that thing! I can't even punch air without falling over!" Luz thought, shakily looking over to Gojo. "Y-You want me to… fight that thing?" Luz said, her voice slightly panicked as Gojo patted her on the back, pushing her forward slightly. "U-Uh…!"

"You gotta learn somehow, and this'll be your gateway. I won't train you any further until you can exorcise this Grade 4 Cursed Spirit. Goodluck~!" And just like that, Gojo teleported elsewhere, leaving Luz all by herself. Panic took over, as Luz swallowed audibly again, shakily exhaling as she tried to keep herself from freaking out. The keyword being: tried.

Her body shook like a leaf as she stared the Curse down. It was huge, about up to her chest in height, and it looked terrifying. And she had to fight it. Gojo said it was weak, but to someone like Gojo, everything had to have been weak. "What am I gonna do?!" Luz thought, eyes darting from place to place, looking at a tree, then a bush, then a rock, then back to the Curse.

She had no weapons—not that she knew how to use any—and all she had in terms of herself were her skinny frail nerd arms. She had a very basic understanding of Cursed Energy, with no Cursed Technique either. She knew nothing about fighting aside from what she saw on TV, and to make matters worse she hated confrontation. What was Gojo expecting her to do!?

"This is insane! Absolutely, utterly, completely and totally insane!" Luz panicked, taking a step back. When she did, she stepped on a twig, making it snap as the sound echoed throughout the woods. Luz paled. "Please, please, please, please don't hear that!" Luz thought, staring at the Curse with fear drenching her very soul. Unfortunately for Luz, luck seemed to not be on her side that day.

Why?

Because it moved.

Not toward the girl in the town, but rather, it straightened out, as if trying to gauge where the sound of a snapping twig came from. Luz covered her mouth to stop herself from shrieking, but it was already too late. The Curse began to turn around, slowly, like that of a big cat in the wild after realizing it had been disturbed, its red eyes looking at her as Luz straightened herself out. She could hear it snarl, its mouth dripping with drool as Luz took another step back.

"Crap! Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap!" Luz thought, sweat beading down the side of her face as the Curse took a step forward, her doing the reverse. That was when Luz noticed that the girl was looking in their direction, eyes widened. For a second, Luz thought that she was staring at her, but on a second glance, it wasn't her that the girl was staring at, it was the Curse. "Wait… can she—"

Before Luz could finish that thought, the Curse lunged at her, mouth agape and a bizarre snarling sound mixed with a gargle came out of its mouth. Luz screamed, turned around, and ran for her life, taking long strides as she dodged past bushes and hopped over small rocks, grass crunching underfoot as the Curse kept up with every step of the way, galloping behind her as it kicked up dirt with each movement.

"Damn you, Gojo! Why'd you have to leave me with this thing!" Luz screamed internally as she ran, her breathing heavy. She wasn't built for this kind of thing, and he expected her to not only fight this thing but win!? Was he insane!? Was her teacher actually insane!?

Luz glanced over her shoulder to look at the Curse, and instead of having lost it, it had been the complete opposite. The Curse was gaining momentum as it trailed her, making her eyes shrink in fear. "CRAP!" It was at that point that the Curse had caught up to her, raising its right arm up, and swatting her in the right side of the head. As soon as it made contact, Luz felt as if her whole world had been turned upside down.

Her feet were kicked up off the ground, and her whole body was sent flying, the wind blowing through her hair as she slammed into the closest tree a few feet away, hitting it with the same force as a piece of wet paper would to a wall. A wave of pain surged through Luz's body as the impact forced out all the air in her lungs.

Her back hurt, her head hurt, and her whole world spun around her as she raggedly tried to catch her breath. Her chest hurt from breathing as hard as she had been, made ten times worse by the fact that she had just been slammed up against a tree after having been thrown like a ragdoll. Shakily, she looked up at the Curse, who slowly began to stalk toward her.

She had to get up. She had to, otherwise she would die. She knew she would die if she didn't get up, even though she desperately wanted to stay there and wallow in the pain she had been feeling. And so, despite her body screaming at her to stay right where she was, she slowly began to stand up. It hurt to move so much as a muscle, but if she didn't, she would end up like whatever that thing had killed previously.

This was what she signed up for when she agreed to train under Gojo. This was what Gojo expected of her. This was what she had to do. She had no choice in the matter. Even if what Gojo did was cruel, having left her with this thing, she wouldn't hold it against him. How else was she supposed to get stronger? He was right, even if she didn't like it.

All of her life, her mother had coddled her and protected her. That was what mothers were supposed to do, but Gojo wasn't her mother. Gojo was her teacher, and because he was her teacher, he didn't have to coddle her or hold her hand. If she wanted to amount to anything, she had to train. She had to fight. She would've expected the same out of Eda if she had actually been able to use the Glyphs.

She felt something run down the side of her face. Reaching up to touch her forehead with her right hand, she felt something wet, and when Luz pulled her hand away to look at what it was, she felt sick. Blood. It was blood, specifically, her blood. She was bleeding, because the Curse had hit her. Her breath shook for a split second, before she steeled herself, looking back up at the Curse.

"I won't train you any further until you can exorcise this Grade 4 Cursed Spirit." Those words echoed in the back of Luz's head as she stared down the Curse. It had a perverse, deadly smile on its face as its eyes narrowed at her. She wasn't going to lie to herself. She was terrified. Her body was screaming at her to run away. To turn her back and run. But she wasn't going to listen. She couldn't listen.

She knew in the back of her mind that if she ran, she was as good as dead, and then when she died, it would continue to hunt after other people and kill them. It was either she killed it, or it killed her. It wasn't a human, or a witch, or a demon, so she wouldn't feel bad for killing it. All she had to do was actually do it. Even if it had caused her to bleed, and even if it had hit her like a car would after speeding down a street, she had to kill it.

It was her against this thing. Right here, right now, she had a choice to make. Lay down and die, or fight this thing and either kill it or die trying. And while that thought was both morbid and horrifying, because she really didn't want to die, it wasn't like she had much of a choice.

Of course, there was the option of waiting for Gojo to save her, but a part of her believed that wouldn't happen. Besides, this was a lesson. He was the teacher, and she was the student. She would fail if Gojo had to step in, and then he would stop teaching her. And she couldn't let that happen. So instead of shaking like a leaf and being afraid, she had to suck it up and do what Azura would do.

She was going to exorcise this Curse.

Letting out a shaky breath, she stared down the Curse Spirit head-on, lowering her hand to her side and narrowing her eyes as she did so. "I know that I should run…" Luz muttered as the Curse took a step forward. As it did, Luz clenched her right hand into a fist as Cursed Energy flowed throughout her body. A dark blue and black energy coated her hand, roaring like a blistering flame despite it not being such.

The Cursed Spirit paused in its movements, narrowing its eyes at her as she glared at the Curse. "But… I have to prove to Gojo…" Luz continued, as her other hand she had turned into a fist began to do the same thing as her right. Her heartbeat picked up the pace, as adrenaline pumped through her body. She could feel both the adrenaline and The Cursed Energy surge throughout her body, as a small, confident smirk took up her visage. She brought her hands up to just below her chin, getting into a fighting stance that she had seen in movies countless times before. "…That I'm worth something!"

Unbeknownst to her, the girl whom she had diverted the Curse's attention away from had followed her to the same location she was at. The girl, Willow Park, was both amazed by what she was seeing and also a tad bit scared. Not even a few moments ago, she had been minding her own business, lamenting the fact that she had been completely humiliated in her Abominations Class earlier today, and had gone out for a walk to clear her thoughts. During her walk, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye.

She had thought it was nothing but a figment of her imagination, but upon a second glance, she realized that it wasn't just something her mind had made up. It had been a real, tangible thing. She had come face to face with a strange bipedal fish creature with cat whiskers. She wanted to call it a Beast Demon, but it looked too bizarre for even that.

Willow had to admit, she had been scared out of her mind by the thing. But then, something else had caught its attention, and that something else had been another person. A strange-looking person. She had no idea what she was, but she looked like a witch, minus the pointed ears. Willow was half-convinced that the person before her was a human, but after witnessing what she was doing now, she didn't quite know.

Humans were said to not have magic, yet this one clearly did, even if it was without the magic circles needed to perform such a feat. Even Willow, someone who could barely even use Abomination Magic, knew that. Yet, this… thing—no, thing was too rude—this person didn't need to. And to make matters even stranger, the strange witch-human person was going toe-to-toe with the same creature that had been looking at her like she was food not even a few moments ago.

The human-witch person had blood trailing down the side of her face, trailing down her right eye, and she had seemed completely unbothered by it. The creature, meanwhile, didn't seem to care either way. It still stared at her, and it was still moments away from attacking. Willow could tell based on how the creature's shoulders were raised, and how its teeth were gnashed together like a starving Werewolf.

"If only I could actually do something…" Willow thought, watching with bated breath what was about to happen. Her hands shook in fear, terrified for both the girl and also for herself. If the girl had died, then it would no doubt notice her afterward. "I don't know who you are… but I'm rooting for you!"

Luz stared the Curse down, as it did to her. For the next few seconds, it was a stare-down. Both Luz and the Curse were sizing each other up, waiting for the other to make a move. Finally, either out of annoyance or hunger, the Curse charged at Luz and raised its right hand to swat at her again. In a swift movement, Luz did the only thing that she could do and that was dodge to the left, turning her whole body as the Curse's claw-like hand slammed into the ground.

Using the opportunity she was given, Luz reared back her arm, raising her shoulder as she did so, her fingers digging into the palm of her hand as the Curse watched her. In the split second it took to blink, Luz threw the heavily choreographed punch, but the Curse wasn't prepared for it. Her fist slammed into the creature, Cursed Energy meeting Cursed Energy.

When two sources of Cursed Energy met, it was a battle between whose Cursed Energy was stronger to overpower the other and to wear it down. This was a fundamental rule in Jujutsu Combat. Of course, it wouldn't destroy the Cursed Energy of the opponent, but it would allow for damage to leak through. Like a forcefield taking too much damage, it would drop its guard for a second, and that would allow for the pain to seep through, dealing damage.

The Cursed Energy of the Curse and the Cursed Energy of Luz were totally different from each other. Luz had far more Cursed Energy than the Curse, and because of that, it lost in the battle of Energy. Luz's fist, despite her wimpy nerd arms, indented the Curse's face, as Luz fully extended her arm, digging her fist deeper into its face as the Curse was sent flying backward.

It tumbled, rolling over itself before it was able to catch itself, its claws digging into the floor as it ground to a halt. Dark purple blood trailed down its face, as two of its eyes were closed shut, bleeding the same foul liquid as well. Luz didn't give it a chance to get its bearings. She watched far too many action shows to know what would happen if it had been able to. So, despite having a bad feeling about rushing in, Luz did just that.

Kicking off the ground, Luz pushed forward, charging the Curse. Her Cursed Energy flared, as the Curse opened its mouth. She watched as water seemingly brought into existence by Cursed Energy began to form at the base of its throat, as it charged up some kind of beam-like attack. In a split-second decision, Luz did a rather ballsy move, got low to the ground, and slid on her knees after having built up enough momentum.

Despite her frail arms, Luz had incredible legs. Why? Because of cheerleader practice. That was what she wanted to be before she had been ousted by a majority of the kids her age for being a weirdo. She had practiced for a full year to build up her leg's endurance and had made them less skinny and more as if they were a part of a body rather than being uselessly tagged on.

Not to mention, due to how demanding cheerleading was, she had to be extremely flexible to meet even the most lenient of coaches. Her mother had paid hand over fist for the most talented coaches to help Luz get good at being a Cheerleader, only for it to all flop when the teachers and her peers found her boundless energy to be "too much", effectively quashing the one thing she wanted to do.

Luz had been far too demotivated to try again, especially with all the names she had been called, and the bullying she had to endure because of it. Despite that, though, she stayed optimistic. She never gave up because she found it fun. She had fun practicing, so she still kept at it, even if it was just for fun. Hence why even now she still had what it took to perform a daring move like the one she was doing now.

So, when she slid, it not only didn't hurt, but it made her heart beat faster, causing more adrenaline to build up, and for her to get excited. At the same time, just as she began to slide, the Curse fired its water laser, if only briefly. The beam of water cut through the air, shaving a few strands of hair off of Luz's bangs, and blasting through the tree where she had been not but a few seconds ago, leaving a clean circular hole through it.

Once the beam finished and died out, Luz jumped up, springing up into the air like a jack-in-a-box. The Curse looked up at her as she floated for a split second, her hooded shirt hiking up with the airflow a tiny amount as she raised her leg past her stomach and just to below her shoulder. Cursed Energy flowed to the base of her foot, coating it from the tip of her boot to the end of her ankle. She glared down at the Curse, before shouting "Hi-ya!"

Her foot came crashing down against The Curse's head like a falling boulder from a high-up cliff, the heel of her boot digging into the top of its head as Cursed Energy burst around its cranium, slamming it into the ground. She bounced off of it, doing a little front flip in the air like she would have if she had still been in cheerleading, before landing semi-gracefully behind it, taking a second to orientate herself.

"Whoa!" Luz breathed out, turning around to look at the Curse as it slowly got up, wobbling a little bit to the left as if it had been dizzy. "That wasn't enough to take it out?!" Luz exclaimed in thought, breathing heavily. "Focus, Luz. It's nearly beaten! Finish it!" She thought, breathing out again before charging the Curse again. Cursed Energy once more flowed to the ends of her fist, just as the Cursed Spirit turned around to face Luz, purple blood coating the left side of its face and trailing down the center.

Rearing back her right arm yet again, this time quicker than the last time, Luz slammed her fist into the nose of the Curse. Cursed Energy surged through it, and upon doing so, its face caved inward. But, it didn't stop there. The Cursed Spirit staggered back, following the punch's trajectory as its skin rippled like water. Purple blood splashed out from its mouth like a raging tidal wave, as it screeched in the same roar and gargle noise it had before, its skin folding into itself before it practically blew up like an overstuffed water balloon.

Purple blood coated the floor and surrounding trees. It coated up to Luz's elbow and splashed all over her shirt, and even a little on her face as black, whispy smoke arose from where the Cursed Spirit had once been.

From behind the shrub she had hidden behind, Willow had watched the whole fight play out, her mouth slightly agape at what she had seen. That human-witch person beat that thing up, and did so in such a way where it looked easy! A part of her wanted to talk to her, but another part wanted to stay parked right where she was.

Yet, despite having made it look easy, the girl looked burnt out, only further compounded when someone teleported out of nowhere, as the girl collapsed into him, the man catching her with a half-hearted hug. He was dressed in a black jacket of sorts with a highrise collar, with matching black pants and boots. He also wore a blindfold over his eyes, and he had white spiky hair and pale skin. Notably, he didn't have the same pointy ears as all Witches did.

Was he the same thing as the girl? Now she was truly starting to wonder if humans had magic or not. These two people matched the supposed appearance of humans, and they both had some form of magic. Not to mention they both gave off a very… gross feeling. It only happened when the girl flared that blue energy around her hands, but the man had it constantly.

Was that their magic? Why did it feel gross? Willow had no idea why, but it felt weird, unclean, and toxic. Was it Wild Magic? Was that why The Owl Lady was a fugitive? Because her magic was unclean and toxic? But, if it was toxic and unclean, then why could humans—who were supposedly magicless beings mind you—have the ability to use it?

"What is going on here?" Willow thought as the man began to speak. "You did amazingly, Luz," the man said, sincerity in his voice as the girl, Luz, groaned.

"It's so gross…." Luz muttered. She was probably talking about the purple blood on her hand and clothes. The man chuckled at that, letting Luz go, pushing her back slightly to look at her. He wiped some of the purple blood off of her face, smirking.

"I'm proud of you, kiddo. Against all odds, you beat the Curse. You still have a long way to go, but now I can see that you have potential. You're not just some kid who has a bunch of Cursed Energy. You truly have what it takes to be a Jujutsu Sorcerer. I can now officially declare you as my Student. Welcome aboard, Luz!" As soon as Gojo said that, Luz smiled, before immediately passing out, with Gojo catching her in the process.

"Poor kid. She's definitely tired after that. I should take her back," Gojo thought. Just as he was about to teleport away, Gojo caught notice of someone hiding behind the bush next to them. He didn't move or make it apparent that he knew the person was there, but he knew. They didn't seem hostile more than they were curious. Not to mention it was also the kid that the Cursed Spirit was preying on.

The question was… "Were they able to see the Cursed Spirit? If so, was that why they had followed Luz into the forest?" Gojo thought, curiosity wracking his brain as he tried to think of a reason for them to have followed Luz. Ultimately, it didn't matter.

He paid it no mind and teleported back to Eda's residence with Luz in his arms just like when he had carried her from yesterday morning. He had teleported directly into the living room, in front of Eda, who bolted up from the couch upon seeing the blood trailing down Luz's face.

"Shit! The kid!" Eda exclaimed, concern and fear in her voice as Gojo looked at her with the same nonchalance he gave in any situation that wasn't one of immediate consequence. After all, it was just a light flesh wound. There was no need to worry about it. Then again, Eda didn't know that, but still.

"She's fine. Well, kind of. Tired, and with a minor head injury that'll recover in no time, but fine," Gojo said as Eda narrowed her eyes at him. He could tell that she was angry at him, and he had a feeling what it was exactly that she was mad at him for, but there wasn't much he could've done about it. "Look, Eda—"

"You said that you were training her. What did you do, beat her up?!" Eda all but shouted at Gojo as he scoffed.

"Please. If I had beaten her up it would be a lot worse. If you must know, I had her battle against a Cursed Spirit. A weak Cursed Spirit, but a Cursed Spirit nonetheless," Gojo replied as Eda's pupils seemed to sharpen, like a cat when angry. Gojo sighed, "She needed the in-field experience, and also so I could properly gauge her abilities and whether or not I should sink my time into actually training her other than teaching her the basics," Gojo continued as the look in Eda's eyes never changed.

"She could've died!" She shouted, disbelief in her tone of voice, "What in the Titan were you thinking?!" Eda demanded as Gojo laid Luz down on the couch, placing a hand on her forehead before pulling back, wiping the blood off on his left pant leg. The wound was shallow, but even shallow head injuries could bleed a lot.

Not a fatal amount mind you. Maybe enough to cause a very slight headache, but nowhere near an amount worth panicking over. As a matter of fact, it looked worse than it actually was, which probably didn't help things. He looked back at Eda, slipping his hands into his pockets.

"What was I thinking? Well, a lot of things. You're going to have to be specific," Gojo remarked as Eda huffed.

"Don't get snarky with me! What you did, it could've—"

"I know what it could've done, and I would've leapt in to save her if it got too dangerous for her. You weren't there, but if you were, you would've seen how well she had been handling it. I'm actually quite impressed with her skills. The fact you're doubting her is what's upsetting me," Gojo said, staring down at her through his blindfold.

"You threw her at a dangerous curse, and you expect me to not get angry at you!?" Eda shouted, before chuckling mirthlessly, shaking her head with disbelief. "I mean, I thought you were responsible, but this is insane! I don't care what you think of her skills, she could've died, does that not mean anything to you?!"

That… that hit a nerve. Gojo went from calm, to pissed. He didn't show it, though. Eda probably meant nothing by it, but regardless of what she meant, Gojo didn't care. His posture went from relaxed, to pointed and angered, and as he spoke, his voice gained a certain edge to it that indicated his anger.

"For starters, Eda, that was completely uncalled for. Secondly, whether you like it or not, she's my student, not yours. I have the say in what she does and what she doesn't do regarding her training. That means she's going to be doing more of these in the future. She's not being sent to a school to learn how to use everyday magic, she's being taught how to exorcise Cursed Spirits with her Cursed Energy. She's being taught how to fight and defend others at the cost of her life. She is, essentially, a soldier in active combat training."

As Gojo spoke, he watched as Eda got progressively more and more angry at the words that came out of his mouth. He sighed, calming himself down as he did so, whilst pinching the bridge of his nose through his blindfold. "Look, lady, let me level with you. If Luz had learned how to use those Glyphs, assuming she could, what exactly were you planning to do? Just let her waste time not knowing how to use them and have her figure it out on her own? Or were you going to teach her?"

"Magic is supposed to be experienced, not taught," Eda ground out. "And this and that are not the same thing! If I had known you were going to turn her into a child soldier then I would've never let you near her after we first met!" Eda spat as Gojo crossed his arms.

This was starting to get ridiculous. It was clear to Gojo that she wasn't listening, and if she was, it was going through one ear and out the other. Utahime was much the same way, and so was Shoko to some extent. Hell, even Suguru back when he was still alive after the incident had been the very same. It was why they had stopped being friends, among a myriad of other things.

The point was, was that Eda wasn't willing to listen to him. She was in what Gojo liked to call "helicopter parent" mode. This was exactly why Jujutsu Tech schools practically abducted children. It was so to avoid this. To make things easier and for training to be smooth. It was a district policy that they would essentially fake the death of the students so that, to the world, they were seen as dead so that the parents didn't come looking for them.

It was scummy, but it was what had to be done unless the people in question were in the know of Jujutsu Sorcery. Gojo wasn't a fan of it, but he saw the upsides to the practice. At the very least the children were aware of what was happening.

"Still, that doesn't make it any less frustrating. People who don't know what they're talking about are always the worst," Gojo thought as he glared at Eda from underneath his blindfold.

"Alright, if that's going to be how it is, then let me tell you what it was that I just heard right now, and then we'll see how utterly stupid you just sounded to me," Gojo said as Eda went to talk, only to stop when Gojo flared his Cursed Energy, making Eda instantly back off. Was it shitty for him to do? Yes, but as of right now, he didn't care. He wanted to make sure that Eda listened to him, and if it meant upsetting her senses to make her stay quiet, then so be it.

"This kid, who has Cursed Energy the likes of which most people, including myself, in my profession, would dream to have, knows nothing about how to use it. Because she knows nothing about it, she's essentially a sitting duck. Cursed Energy attracts Cursed Spirits as I've said before, and the more Cursed Energy a person has, the more powerful Cursed Spirits get attracted to her. That means that she's essentially a walking danger magnet. I don't think I should have to explain to you why that's a bad thing, but considering your attitude and your lack of wanting to listen to reason, I'm going to have to," Gojo said as Eda glared up at him.

Once again, Eda went to say something but stopped for the same reason. "Because Luz is a danger magnet, and because Cursed Spirits see her as a beacon to feast on, she's constantly in danger 24/7. The only reason why she wasn't in constant danger before, was because Gravesfield is some sort of anomaly that I've yet to fully figure out. Therefore, she's had no reason to learn how to fight or use her Cursed Energy, which presents a problem," Gojo said, uncrossing his arms as he placed one hand on his left hip and the other in his right pocket.

"Cursed Spirits are naturally hostile, as I've said before. Because they're hostile to anything that breathes, they do not care who or what it is they are attacking. They attack for the sake of attacking, and they kill for the sake of killing. You cannot reason with them, you cannot talk them down. If they want to kill you, they will do so or die trying. Now, take Luz, who not only did not know how to fight, but before she had even met me, she had no idea what Cursed Energy or Cursed Spirits were, which presents a massive problem. If she had gone anywhere, she would've died. And not just die, she would've been mutilated by whatever came her way once she left that town."

Gojo waited for Eda to attempt to say something, but she didn't. She just stood there and stared at Gojo, as if waiting for him to continue. Oh, sure, she still had that furious look on her face, so it was clear that she was still mad, but at least she was listening. Seeing as she wasn't going to try and interrupt him again, he continued.

"Now, take into account that we, and by we I mean myself and Luz, are in an entirely new dimension with beasts that we have no idea are friendly or hostile, with Cursed Spirits starting to show up. You mean to tell me that I'm somehow in the wrong for having her learn how to fight against the very things that she will soon have to hunt?" Gojo said as Eda went to speak, something Gojo had been waiting for, only for him to immediately interrupt her.

"And let's say she decided to turn down my offer if we hadn't been interrupted by that stupid wooden owl toy of yours, need I remind you that if I had told my superiors that she had declined, which even if I lied to them they would find out, they would've sent an assassin out to kill her and most likely her family and I would not be able to do anything about it. So there's no point in bringing up the fact that she could've said no, because, if you'd recall, she doesn't have a damn choice."

Those words rang out in Eda's head like an unwelcome slap to the face, as her expression went from angry, to furious with the glare in her eyes intensifying. "She does. You bastards just won't give her one," Eda spat as Gojo chuckled, shaking his head like a disappointed parent. She was really starting to dislike Gojo now. He just seemed so… full of himself. Like he could do no wrong, and frankly, it irritated her to no end.

The worst part about Gojo was that she couldn't get a read on him. At first, she pegged him as if he was like those Coven head assholes, trying to fit people in neat little boxes. He proved her wrong and that had actually made her start to warm up to him. But now? Now she was back at square one. She was back to not knowing what he was.

But, what Eda had figured out was that he was worse than those Coven Heads. He was the type of person to be heartless and ruthless with their students. And because of that, Eda now had a genuine reason to hate him. And yet, she couldn't. Because what he was saying, even if it didn't resonate with her, made sense.

And no more did that come through than with what he had said next.

"Oh yeah? Really. She has a choice. Well then, what choice does she have? Run like a fugitive for the rest of her life? Speaking from personal experience, are we?" Gojo said as Eda's glare never wavered. "Well, news flash, Old Hag, but being hunted by top-of-the-line Sorcerers who can sense where you are 24/7 without so much as having to try and being hunted by those pathetic, weak, canon fodder soldiers are two entirely separate things. So, no, in all reality, she doesn't have a choice. She has the illusion of choice, but not an actual choice. Now, are you going to continue to stand there and act like an idiot, or are you going to shut up, and maybe heal her? Because from what I know of magic, there's healing magic, is there not?"

Eda scowled, and while she wanted to continue this conversation—argument—she knew that it would go nowhere. Despite herself, a part of her knew that Gojo was right. A part of her understood that he was right, but her pride wouldn't let her acknowledge it. Her pride as a witch wouldn't let her admit that he was right, and because of that, she refused to even so much as believe that he could be right.

"This is not over, Satoru Gojo," Eda spat before walking over to Luz. She created blue rings of light with her index fingers, a healing aura coming out of them as the wound on Luz's head healed almost instantly. Gojo had to admit, it was kind of pretty cool to see happen in real-time. "Get me a cloth so I can wipe the blood off of her face." And that was exactly what Gojo did, noticing that at the stairwell, King was watching the two of them.

He paid the dog thing no mind and teleported to and from the bathroom with a wet cloth in hand. Eda snatched it from him and began to wipe down Luz's face. The two stayed silent, with Gojo being the most annoyed out of the two.

If she truly had the best intentions for Luz, she would've known that this was important. She couldn't coddle Luz forever. There was no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Luz needed to learn how to fight if she wished to survive. She was lucky to be in Gravesfield when she was, but, as he had stated several times over, if she had gone anywhere else, she would've died.

Maybe Eda was right to be afraid. Luz was just a kid after all. And maybe if Luz wasn't cursed with Cursed Energy, then maybe he could understand taking it slow. Maybe he could understand not putting her through the ropes. But, unfortunately, that wasn't the timeline that they lived in. They lived in a timeline where Luz had Cursed Energy.

Gojo couldn't hold back. Gojo had to treat her as he would treat all of his students. Sure, there were times when he could be childish and goofy—as a matter of fact that was almost all the time—but Gojo was in teacher mode. He was in serious mode. He wasn't in "Goofy Satoru" Mode like he usually was.

He was in a foreign land, far away from home, with no real means to communicate with the outside world and to make matters worse two months from now was supposed to be a new semester for Jujutsu High. He was supposed to be with Megumi right about now. This couldn't have happened at a worse time than now.

Gojo looked over to Eda and frowned. He could sense how the healing magic worked. It was stitching back together the wounded skin, meaning it wouldn't leave a scar. That was good because scars could be ugly from time to time. Not even the Reversed Cursed Technique could prevent scars from showing up. It was impressive to say the very least.

Once it was all said and done, Eda stood up from kneeling in front of Luz, placing the damp and now blood-soaked cloth on the table. Eda looked over to Gojo, glare still present as Gojo tilted his head forward, furrowing his eyebrows. "You know I'm right. Whether you want to admit it or not, you know I'm not wrong. So just admit it. You can pretend to be angry at me all you want, but it doesn't change anything."

"She's a kid," Eda hissed as Gojo scoffed.

"So was I when I had my whole life turned upside down. I lost almost everyone I ever cared about because of what happened when I was a kid. But you don't see me crying about it, now do you?" Gojo retorted as Eda flinched, both in a way of going "what the fuck" and also as a way of showing her discomfort. "What you have to realize, Eda, is that this world is not, nor has it ever been, safe. Regardless of what mindset you have, regardless of how you want to be, the world will beat you down. After all, you of all people should know this."

"I—"

"Just want to protect her, yeah?" Gojo interrupted as Eda sighed, shoulders slumping. "You're a very easy person to read, Eda. Very transparent. And you know what? Good on you. Believe me, if I had the choice to hide Luz away in a neat little box where she couldn't be hurt, I'd gladly do so. But, unfortunately, I can't do that. The world is tragic, it's dark, and it's unforgiving. And to people like myself and now Luz? It's even worse. Her getting a little scratch on her head is nothing to what could've happened as you were so keen to mention over and over again."

Eda pursed her lips, finally letting everything that Gojo had said register. He was right. She might not have liked it, just as Gojo said she wouldn't, but he was right. They lived in two very separate worlds. What she might think was appropriate in one situation, was wholly the opposite in the situation Luz was in.

There was no real overlap in the two worlds that Eda and Gojo lived in, aside from the basics of morality. It was infuriating, so much so that Eda couldn't comprehend how Gojo put up with it all. Did he even put up with it? She already garnered that he wasn't too happy with how the society he lived in functioned. He had even said as much, but he still hadn't done anything about it.

Was it because he had been biding his time? That made sense. These so-called Elders sounded like no joke. No wonder why Gojo was so uptight. There was a reason why he hadn't made a move yet. Probably because he couldn't.

A sigh escaped Eda's lips, as she shook her head, a genuine look of regret seeping its way into her face as she spoke. "Look, Gojo, I'm—"

"You don't have to apologize. I'm not looking for an apology," Gojo said, straightening his head as he sat next to Luz's sleeping form. He placed a hand on her ankle, his expression morphing into a slight frown, seemingly deep in thought. It was hard to garner what it was that he was thinking with that infuriating blindfold over his eyes, but considering his expression, it wasn't hard to believe that he had been genuinely worried about Luz. That alone was enough to prove to Eda that he really did care about her.

And she had said that he didn't care.

"Titan, I'm such an asshole…" Eda thought. That was low, even for her. She should've known better, and yet she still spat that out with no care in the world. And the fact that Gojo didn't immediately snap at her afterward showed that he had more restraint than she did. Sure, he used that Cursed Energy of his to shut her up, which was dirty of him, but if she were in his situation she would've done the same thing.

Yet again, they were the same yet different at the same time. Gojo flashed her a smile, gesturing to Luz as he did so. "How about you get her something to eat for when she gets up, yeah? I'd do it myself, but I've burnt water before, so I don't want to ruin your cutlery and stuff like that. The last time I did that my old roommate tore me a new earhole for her to screech into. So, I'll sit by her and make sure that she's okay when she wakes up. Deal?"

Back then, Mei Mei was still normal and had no… disgusting proclivities. It was the first and last time he cooked around her, and since then they were on iffy terms, even worse so after he found out how it was she acted around Ui Ui.

Eda nodded, not saying anything. When she left the room, Gojo sighed. Today was already hectic enough as it was, but even so, things would only get worse. He knew it would. Such was the way of life, and the sooner that realization was made, the better.

[XXXX]

When Luz came to, she no longer had a headache. Her body also didn't hurt anymore. She felt good as new, which was weird considering what had happened. Groggily, she sat up, cupping her forehead in the process.

Opening her eyes with a squint, she was greeted by Gojo sitting next to her, seemingly patiently waiting for her to wake up, and upon giving her immediate surroundings a quick glance, she was able to discern that they were back at Eda's home.

Just how long had she been out for? An hour? Two hours? A whole day? Her eyes darted to the window. It was still daylight out, so that was good. Maybe she had only been out for a few hours?

"Luz!" King's voice cut through her thoughts as the small dog creature hopped up on top of her stomach, causing her to wince slightly. He stared down at her, worried eyes staring into her. "I was worried about you! Well, no, I wasn't, because I knew you'd be fine. I mean, I—"

"King, can you get off me, please?" Luz asked as King blinked, before doing just that, bouncing off of her and onto the couch cushion next to Gojo, who smirked at his antics. Luz sat up, her hand dropping to her side as she looked at Gojo. "So, uh… how long was I out?"

"An hour, if that," Gojo replied cooly as King huffed.

"You two made Eda mad. That's not cool. You especially," King said, half-glaring at Gojo who shrugged. What had happened when she was out? Did Gojo and Eda argue over her?

"It's fine. We resolved it so there's no need to bring it up, O' mighty King," Gojo said as King relaxed, but still showed annoyance if only because he knew that Gojo was just mocking him. Gojo then turned his attention to Luz, his smirk still present. "Gotta say kid, you impressed me. Where'd you learn to move like that?"

"Uh… Cheerleader practice?" Luz admitted as Gojo nodded, a neutral expression taking up his visage.

"That's good. Being fast and flexible often leads to avoiding serious injuries. We just need to make those arms of yours stronger and up your dodging and things'll be a-okay! Oh, and maybe up your endurance so that if you do get hit, then it won't hurt you nearly as bad as it normally would," Gojo listed off as Luz stared and listened with rapt attention. He clapped, snapping her out of her semi-trance. "But, that can be saved for later. You need to eat since we skipped out on breakfast."

That's when Luz noticed the bowl of soup on the table. It looked a little… off. The meat looked pink, and the broth looked like toilet water. "Don't worry, I've had it before. It's pretty good. The pink meat is on purpose because that's what it looks like cooked. When it's raw, it's purple. Slitherbeast meat, if I recall. And the broth is Bat Bone Broth. It's like regular beef broth but with an extra kick. Eda made it a few minutes ago before heading to get clean upstairs."

Luz inched closer to the soup, took the spoon next to it, and decided to try it. Much to her shock, it was actually really good. It had a little spicy kick to it, if not it being a little muted. The meat was on the chewy side like overcooked steak, but it was still really good. Her Mom constantly made spicy food, and spicy food was one of her favourite kinds of food. Especially pollo guisado. That was one of her favourite things her mom made.

For a split second, she thought about home, but immediately shut it out. She didn't need to think about home right now. And so, after a few minutes, she finished the soup that Eda had made for her, sighing after the fact. "That was actually really good…" Luz commented as Gojo smirked.

"I'll let her know you said that," Gojo said as the sound of someone walking down the stairs sounded out.

"No need. I heard her," Eda called out. When she came down, she was dressed in the same red two-toned dress as she had been when they first met. Notably, however, the gem on the sternum of the dress was slightly darker than before. "You're welcome, squirt. Now, was there something you wanted to ask me, Blindfold?"

"Yes, actually. I was waiting for Luz to wake up before I did, though," Gojo said as he stood up from the couch. "Out of curiosity, but I remember passing by a school on my walks through town. What do you think the chances of Luz potentially enrolling at that place are? If for nothing else but to make some acquaintances while we're here?"

Luz sunk into the couch at the prospect of "school." Luz already had a negative opinion of school considering her previous experiences. "Although, this is a new world, so maybe things could be different?" Luz thought, sitting up as she did so.

Eda's nose shrivelled in disgust upon mentioning "school," a frown worming its way on her face. "You're talking about Hexside, yeah? What would be the point? She can't use magic," she said as Gojo shrugged.

"Aside from her potentially making friends? Well… I believe we saved a student from that school from being mauled to death by a Curse. I'm sure that she'd like to meet Luz, and also, I'd like to meet the people who teach the new generation of Witches. I'm a teacher after all, and I've noticed that some of the Witches here are starting to develop Cursed Energy that seemingly overlaps with their Magic. From what you've described of how Magic works here, that should be impossible. And since no one knows how to use Cursed Energy, having someone who knows how and someone who can set an example of such a thing…" Gojo said as Eda picked up on the implications.

If Cursed Energy was indeed becoming a thing in The Boiling Isles, The Emperor would more than likely want to stomp it out. But, if Gojo presented it in such a way that it could be controlled and tempered so that it wouldn't be outlawed… "You know… Maybe that would be a good idea. All you'd have to do is talk the Principal into it. It's harder than it sounds, but I don't know why the kiddo would be there."

"Well, she's a kid, Eda. Think about it. I'm sure Luz would want to explore the town instead of just being cooped up in here all the time, right? Not to mention that if she makes friends, she'll be less in your hair and bugging you about stupid things, like those bile sac questions she keeps asking. I mean, don't get me wrong, but I'm sure she'd learn about that stuff at the school. And, again, friends, new people, new location, the question answers itself," Gojo said as Luz nodded.

"Yeah. No offence, Eda, but I do kinda want to meet new people…" Luz said sheepishly as Eda shrugged.

"I'll see what I can do. I haven't talked to the guy who runs the place in a long time, and the last time we spoke, we weren't exactly on the best of terms. But, I think your best chance will be tomorrow," Eda said as she crossed her arms, piquing Gojo's interest.

"Oh? And why's that?"

"Because the Covention is happening tomorrow. A place where young witches get to see what Coven they could be sorted into given their interests and classes taken in certain tracks. It's a practice I wholly despise. But, if you're so gung-ho on this thing, then I'll talk to Bump and see if he'll be willing to meet you. If nothing else, it'll be to sate whatever curiosity he has, because I'm sure he's noticed the changes too," Eda said as Gojo smirked, wrapping an arm around Luz's shoulders and pulling her into his side.

"Then that's exactly what we'll do!" Gojo said, much to Eda's chagrin. She sighed but didn't argue with Gojo. It would've been a losing battle, anyway. Besides, if it meant that she could get him out of her hair for a few hours a day, then she'd take it. Because while Gojo was cool and all, he seriously tested her patience.

And that was when a devilish grin took up her visage. "Oh, actually, this works just fine. This'll be my get back at Bump and that stupid school! Ha!" And just like that, she was now fully onboard with the idea. Sure, she worried about the prejudice that could be inflicted upon Luz for being a human, but if Gojo could torment that school, then she'd look past it for now.

Besides? What's the worst that could happen?

[-To Be Continued-]

[Ending Song: 怪物/Kaibatsu/Monster – By YOASOBI]