Hello, and welcome ! I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter !
Warnings : N / A
Gojo Satoru, sixteen, was sent in the capital city of France, Paris. Why ? Because the administration took ten years before they finally noticed that there were no cursed spirits reports at all. It meant that either something could disturb negative energy to the point of preventing curses to form, or, more probably, someone that was not registered exorcized them.
Hence Satoru was sent to investigate, because surely the unregistered sorcerer was strong if they could keep a city of two millions inhabitants free of cursed spirits. During the day, nothing seemed unusual, the city bustling with activity, and Satoru couldn't notice even a Grade Four cursed spirit. How unusual… And peaceful.
He didn't see anything unordinary, no barriers, nothing, but he wasn't expecting to find any to begin with. It was when the sun set and the moon shone brightly in the sky that he felt it. Cursed energy, potent in the air, to the point he could almost taste it. He quickly raised his sunglasses, ignoring the few passersby looking at him weirdly and he saw it.
A pure, golden energy was shining brightly in the top of a hundred meters tall building. What's more, he could see what this golden cursed energy was doing, and he felt baffled.
Negative energy was purified, preventing cursed spirits from forming at all. He tucked his sunglasses in the collar of his sweatshirt.
He was on the rooftop in barely a second with his speed, Limitless preventing him from feeling the harsh air pressure. The unexpected melody froze him in place, coming from a kind of wooden cross flute, the sound felt so peaceful he felt himself relax against his will. Golden waves were coming out of the instrument, but he could not see any cursed energy into it at all, meaning it was the player's cursed technique that was in effect.
The player… Had hair so dark it looked like shadows, flowing in her back in waves, her round shoulders relaxed. She was sitting on the edge, her legs dangling in the void without a care in the world.
He stepped closer silently, and when he was barely a meter away, she ended her melody, the flute dissipating in thin hair like it wasn't here to begin with, cursed energy twirling before fusing with her hand. Apparently, the instrument was linked to her cursed technique.
"Hello", he said. She didn't startle, meaning she knew he was here since the beginning, but didn't perceive him as a threat, or so he concluded. He hoped she would be able to speak English, because he didn't know any french.
"Good evening", she politely answered, her voice soft and soothing to his ears. She didn't turn around, balancing her feet slowly to a beat he couldn't hear.
"So… This is one interesting cursed technique you have", he declared, letting himself drop next to her and throwing his own legs in the void.
"Is that so ?", she mused, turning her head towards him, and he had to control his facial expressions when he met her eyes.
Cursed eyes. Glowing, fiery green cursed eyes. She had a small smile turning the corner of her lips upward, her demeanor peaceful. Satoru didn't know what her cursed eyes do, but he was curious.
"And interesting eyes", he added slowly.
She blinked, her glowing eyes twinkling and, like a switch, they turned emerald, losing their prismatic shine.
"You have pretty eyes", she countered. "They look like the summer sky reflecting on the Maldive's sea costs"
It was the first time someone called his eyes pretty. He didn't know how the sea looked in Maldive, didn't even know where it was, but the words stuck all the same.
"Why thank you", he smiled, crooning. "So, I take it you are the reason for the absence of cursed spirits here, hm ? Does it work on cursed spirits, or does it only affect negative energy ?"
"Cursed spirits…", she repeated pensively, seemingly trying to define what it was.
"The ugly things that destroy human life as a sport", he suggested.
"Yes, it also works for them", she agreed easily. "Although I wouldn't call them ugly."
"What would you call them, then ?"
She seemed to think for a moment, her fingers playing with a stray strand of hair. She was definitely European in her looks, nothing remotely Asian in her traits. And she was… Beautiful. Satoru didn't know how old she was, he didn't meet enough Europeans to be able to estimate their age by look only.
"I guess I would call them pitiful", she mused, dropping the strand of hair and pressing her palms behind her to shift her weight. "Born of human negativity, forever lost and suffering."
She had for sure a really unique way of seeing them, but she seemed to emanate such peacefulness that he guessed it was not that surprising that she didn't view them as monsters.
"Is Paris your limit ?", he asked her, curious. Was that her full potential ? Which was already impressive, obviously. He was curious to see how cursed spirits would react to her melody. Would Special Grade react ? Would it affect them ?
"There is only so far that I can reach with a flute", she answered, her voice soft.
Satoru would need to see her utilise her cursed technique a few more times to be sure, but he started to suspect it had something to do with sound travel.
"Can you utilize any other instruments ?", he asked next.
The more he knew, the more he could write in his report. He suspected that the Jujutsu administration would be extremely eager to recruit her once they read it.
"Well… Yes. But the bansuri is better for what I want to do", she said, and then she got up, her hands tapping her backside a few times to clean the dust away. "I have to go now."
Satoru rose to his feet. She then proceeds to blow his mind away, wings of cursed energy forming in her back and stretching like the real thing, golden feathers, the color of her cursed energy, shining softly. Oh man, he couldn't wait to tell Suguru all about this meeting.
"Wait, wait-' he exclaimed when she lowered her gravity center, ready to fly away, and getting a curious look in return. "What's your name ?"
"Eileen", she answered softly.
"I'm Gojo Satoru. It's nice to meet you, Eileen-san", he introduced himself, obtaining a polite nod in return.
And then, she flew away, her golden aura easily traceable in the night sky.
He couldn't wait to see her again. He had so many more questions to ask her. What did she mean by "what I want to do", did it mean she could affect others another way ? Did it depend on the instrument ?
He was so curious. And he had a report to write. Ugh.
It took a few days before he was sent to Paris again, this time accompanied by Yaga-sensei. They were sent to recruit her. Not that Satoru was expecting anything else when he saw what she could do. Yaga-sensei didn't know any English, so he would be the translator.
Could they have sent someone else to do this ? Yes. Did he let them ? No. He wanted to see her again.
As instructed by Satoru, they waited for the night. It would be easier to find her this way. She was on the rooftop of another building, the melody of her flute barely reaching them, but he could see her cursed energy, spread far and wide, and most of all, he could trace it back to its source, the cursed energy traveling like a slow current.
Yaga-sensei took a sharp intake the closer they got, feeling himself relax. It was as impacting as it was the first time. Satoru had to wonder if it would ever stop being like that. When they reached the rooftop, she had just finished playing, her flute dissipating in her hand the same way it did the previous time.
"We meet again", she said, her back to them. "Should I be worried ?"
"Not at all", Satoru answered, hands in his pockets.
"What did she say ?", Yaga-sensei asked. Satoru translated to him what she said. "Ask her if there is perhaps somewhere we could go to have a conversation"
Satoru translated this to Eileen, who turned around, her eyes glowing the same fiery green he saw before, and Yaga-sensei froze in place under her gaze.
"We can go to my place", she answered in perfect Japanese, to their shared surprise.
"What, you can speak Japanese ?"
"Now I can, yes", she answered curtly.
"What is that supposed to even mean ?", he whined, getting an amused look in return.
"My eyes can see souls", she slowly said. "I can tune my speech to be understood, no matter the language. I can't read nor write it though"
She can see souls. How cool is that ? What does it entail ?
She spread her wings, and it was as impressive as it was the first time. They looked so real. She looked like an angel. Aw man, Satoru started to think he was starting to fall for her. Something about her made him feel… whole, like a missing piece in his chest setting itself in place, never noticed missing but fitting all the same. It made him feel at peace instead of cold.
She gave them her address and flew away.
Her place was a small apartment in a silent part of Paris, almost bare of furniture except for essential items.
They sat on her couch, and she took a chair from the kitchen to sit in front of them.
"So, what did you want to talk about ?", she brought up.
Yaga-seisei cleared his throat.
"We were wondering if you would be interested in coming to Japan to join our school for… people of our kind. Do you know about sorcerers, perhaps ?"
She raised an eyebrow, she wasn't expecting this apparently.
"Sorcerers are people capable of cleansing negative energy, I take it ?", she suggested.
"Well, more precisely, they can fight and excorcise cursed spirits", Yaga-sensei answered with a little smile.
"And you want me to come and fight for you ?", she pointedly asked, seemingly displeased.
It was the first time Satoru saw her frown. She was still pretty though. Ugh, not the time for that. She visibly didn't like the idea of fighting. Which he understood, weirdly enough. She seemed way too peaceful to want to do anything with violence.
"There are a lot of cursed spirits across the world, particularly in Japan, but not so many sorcerers. We will always need help", answered Yaga-Sensei.
Her face softened at his words, accompanied by a compassionate gaze.
"I am not a fighter, I'm sorry", she declined politely.
"What you do every night is considered fighting", quipped Satoru. "Even though you're not violent"
She hums at this pensively.
"If I want to leave one day, will I have to expect retribution ?"
That's a very smart question. After all, once a jujutsu sorcerer, it was no easy task to leave the fold. As mentioned, the shortage of sorcerers assured a strong resolution to keep them.
"Well… It would be frowned upon, but no, we would not chase you down if you decided to leave" is Yaga-Seisei answer, even though Satoru doubts the jujutsu administration would let her leave with a cursed technique capable of exorcising in such a vast radius.
She was, without a doubt, a Special Grade.
"I guess I wouldn't be opposed", hums Eileen pensively.
"But ?", Satoru encouraged her, hearing the "but" in her sentence.
"But it's a little sudden. I am not familiar with your language, nor your traditions", she explains softly.
"Nothing you can't learn," smiles Yaga-sensei, pleased with her only grievance.
"Fine", she accepted. "I will need a few days to settle things here, I will join you in Japan directly, if that's fine with you"
"Sure thing", Yaga-sensei accepts easily.
She stretched a small smile. Soon, they got up and left her with the promise to meet again at the airport of Tokyo.
That's it for this chapter guys :) Next chapter, Eileen will meet Satoru's classmates and take her marks in Japan !