Her sleep was doomed from the start, of course. A good dinner and a peaceful end to her day weren't enough to erase the late-night anxiety that always showed. Everything always seemed so much worse in the dark.
Seeing her sister's bone white, bloody face would haunt her for a long time though.
It happened like this: she got isekai-ed in her dream, to some futuristic world. Original, she knew, but this time her sister had come with her. But something happened, some rotting sickness that ate away at her until she was somehow pale as a ghost and yet bloody red too, all over. By the time Lexi had told her what was happening, it'd been too late. She'd died there, in that Walmart parking lot that had happened to be the setting, and there had been nothing she could do to save her. The hollowness to her cheeks, the bloody sores all over her body, the anxiety in her sister's eyes, she couldn't get them out of her head.
It was an empty fear, meaningless beyond words because she was already gone, and when she woke up, she was actually kinda mad that that dream was the one to do it, the one to make her wake up sobbing like a little girl into her pillow. Nishinoya snuggled up to her, uncertain about how to soothe her besides giving her someone to cling to.
Every time she closed her eyes she could see it again, the ashen little girl covered in blood.
Going back to sleep was pointless, so instead she climbed out of bed, not bothering to put on her shoes or change out of her nightgown before leaving the room. Nishinoya held onto her hand unsteadily, and she slowed to keep pace with him in spite of her desire to take off and run until she couldn't anymore.
She wanted to go and sit by the river again, but going out into the forest in the middle of the night was too stupid to really consider, even with the barrier. The training grounds were a decent substitute, close to the forest, but not so close she couldn't make it indoors if a bear decided it wanted to eat her. Were there bears in Tokyo, Japan? Snakes, if nothing else.
The training grounds were empty, unsurprisingly, and she took a seat a short distance away from the robot, still wasting away outside. She didn't know if Yaga had got the sanding supplies yet, he might have been too busy, but a little more rust wouldn't hurt.
Nishinoya was in her lap, watching worriedly, and she pulled him into a tight hug, letting her chin rest on his head as she stared out into the forest.
"Nightmares are the worst. They don't even make sense half the time. Who dies in a Walmart parking lot?" She complained to nobody in particular. Nishinoya patted her on the top of her head anyways, his oversized arms perfectly capable of reaching around her arms and head. They were so long it was silly, nearly grazing the ground when he walked if he didn't hold them up a little. Good for extra reach, not so good for keeping himself clean and avoiding trailing vines.
The crickets were loud, it must have rained for a short while while she slept.
She didn't know what to do.
Going back to sleep was about as appealing to her as ripping out her eyes and eating them would be. Just sitting there just felt like defeat though, letting the nightmares win. Maybe the change of scenery would help if she just went to sleep right here.
She sighed and flopped over onto her side, curling up on the ground and cuddling Nishinoya like a pillow. A pillow that hugged back, even.
The noise of the insects and frogs was soothing, for the most part, letting her rapid heartbeat calm slowly.
A clatter made her head snap up from where she had nearly drifted off to sleep again.
Ieiri was frozen, clearly just saving herself from falling after tripping on the robot laying on the ground. Geto was behind her, hand outstretched as if to save her, and had frozen in place too.
"Sorry." Ieiri whispered, and Midori sat up uncertainly.
"What are you guys doing still up?" She asked in return. A glance upwards at the sky showed her nothing about what time it was, but it would doubtless be past midnight.
"Just tests." Geto was quick to reassure her. That really didn't help a whole lot, in fact, it let a lot up to her imagination.
"School," Ieiri jumped in to say, "school tests!" Better.
"Cool?" She said questioningly.
"What are you doing out here?" Geto asked, taking in the sight of Nishinoya still clutched in her arms and the dirt clinging to her cheek.
"Nightmare."
There was a slight pause before Geto made a sympathetic noise and scooped her up from the ground. Probably wondering what she had Seen.
"I'll just-" Ieiri started to say awkwardly, pointing away.
"No!" Midori said quickly, holding out a hand to stop here.
She quailed under both of their stares, confidence failing, and mumbled, "I don't want to be scared of you forever. You're so cool." Her last bit was nearly a whisper, and she hid her face with Nishinoya, still trapped in her hug.
This whole thing just sucked for both of them. She couldn't be in the same room as her without being hyper-aware of the teen's every move, and it didn't escape her notice that Ieiri hadn't even attended dinner yesterday.
"You're so cool, and it really sucks that I'm so scared of you, and I hate that you're avoiding me, so I want to hang out with you until I'm not scared anymore!" She said in a rush, the words tumbling from her mouth like she couldn't stop. She didn't bother to lift her head, talking into Nishinoya's stomach. It felt better, having a barrier.
Probably not helping her get over her fear though. She lifted her head to peek over at Ieiri, a little surprised to see her still standing there.
There was an awkwardness to the air as both girls stared at each other. Midori didn't really know what to do, and neither did Ieiri. Geto set her down slowly and she stood close to him, keeping Nishinoya held tightly in her arms, a security blanket.
"What're you guys doing now?"
"Just… we didn't really have anything planned." Ieiri seemed a bit cagey. Something age inappropriate? They didn't like each other like that as far as she knew. Ieiri likely smoked already as far as she knew, but did Geto on occasion? Neither of them likely did drugs, maybe a little underage drinking?
"Going to bed?"
"Wasn't planning on it." Ieiri replied, slightly defeated. Nightmares too?
"Want to watch a movie or something?" Midori asked slowly.
"It's like, one in the morning." The doctor replied.
"Semantics. I'm not going back to sleep anytime soon. I'll just be grumpy for school in the morning. Maybe I'll win my seat back this time.
"Your seat?" Geto asked, concerned.
"I've got a bully, apparently. An immature and cowardly bully too, can't even confront me by himself. I stole his seat instead. I punched his friend actually, the one who killed my butterfly, and I think that started it." She explained, try to alleviate Geto's potentially murderous revenge.
"Want to know how to beat them for good?" Ieiri ventured to ask, still a bit hesitant, but with the beginnings of a smile tugging at her lips. Midori tilted her head curiously.
"First, find the biggest boy. Then, bring him down, push him off the slide or a tree or some-"
"NO!" Geto protested, aghast.
"It's fine, she's a good girl, she won't get expelled that easily," Ieiri waved him off, "besides, she already brought down one kid, that could be good enough for a start. Next, you have to reinforce it. The next time they get uppity, you've got to-"
"No!" Geto said, and this time put his hand over Ieiri's mouth, preventing her next words at the cost of a licked hand. The shriek that left his mouth had both girls doubled over, laughing as he grumbled.
"I'm just messing with you," Ieiri said, ruffling Geto's hair, and when Geto turned away she winked at her, "definitely don't beat those little dudes into the ground for thinking they could bully you and get away with it."
"Understood!" She said, and saluted. There was something much more comfortable in the air. She knew it could evaporate in a moment, but for now it was working.
"I need to teach Junpei how to throw a decent punch too, so he doesn't get waterboarded again. That was pretty terrible to see. Thank you, Ieiri-san, for helping him."
"I'm happy he's alright now." Ieiri said warmly. She was relaxing now, the longer that Midori didn't freak out in her presence. That comfort was something she needed to figure out how to keep.
"I'm not sure I should push myself too much right now, I want to end this on a good note. Want to try and watch a movie sometime?" Midori asked, directing her attention to Ieiri.
"Sure?"
She looked confused for some reason, glancing at Geto like she was asking him something. Midori… didn't really want to be here very much anymore, so she scurried away, letting Nishinoya down to finally walk under his own power.
Now she didn't really have anything to do. She could try and go back to bed, or she could find somewhere cozy and just think for a while.
The movie room was empty, unsurprisingly, and she settled down with a blanket on the beanbag where she had napped with Gojo. It had been a good nap. Maybe the good vibes would pass on.
Nishinoya was turning into a cuddler, crawling into her arms of his own… free will. Which he had, apparently. Yaga's good at what he does.
It was comfortable, but even with her eyes closed she felt very little actual tiredness, her mind too awake to feel the urge to sleep. In contrast, the peace and quiet was setting off alarm bells in her head, every distant sound a potential danger. She rolled over twice before she gave up and just laid there with her eyes open, watching out the window.
She had school in the morning. Probably only had hours left.
Maybe she could bake something. That sounded like a genuinely fun idea, actually.
Nishinoya followed close behind her as she slipped out of the music room and tip-toed over to the cafeteria.
The oven there was definitely small. She'd have to baby the cookies if she wanted them to turn out well. Nishinoya held the chair that she pushed over as she climbed on it, searching the cupboards for ingredients.
There wasn't quite a full cup of brown sugar in the bag she found, but it wouldn't hurt anything to be a little less sweet, and there was even a bag of chocolate chips, left unclaimed.
The cupboards worked through a claim system. If your name wasn't written on something, it was for whoever wanted it. She had a small section, left unused, out on the counter where she was more likely to be able to reach.
She found peanut butter, nearly full, and there was plenty of sugar and flour. The baking soda was clumpy, not that she cared enough to avoid using it, and there wasn't enough baking powder, barely even half a teaspoon, but it would work as long as there was enough margarine in the fridge.
There was some, in a tub on Yaga's shelf, which left her at an impasse. It would likely use nearly the whole tub, what if Yaga needed some before he went to the grocery store. Depending on how often he used it, the margarine could last him a long time, he hadn't bought it for her to use.
No cookies then. Damn.
Could she risk substituting butter? Surely Yaga would be willing to shop for cookie ingredients, but it would be a whole trip, just for her desire to make cookies. The gas, the price, and the time, it wouldn't be worth it.
Butter it was, she had everything else.
One cup of peanut butter, one cup of brown and white sugar, and 1 cup of softened margarine, or in this case, butter, and beat until creamed. She had to sit up on her knees to do so comfortably on the kitchen counter, and loyal Nishinoya stayed put, holding the chair firmly in place for her.
Two eggs, which took her nearly five minutes to crack because the first one exploded on her, filling half of the bowl with eggshells, and the teaspoon of vanilla, then mix again. In a separate bowl, mix a teaspoon of baking soda and baking powder, and -probably half a teaspoon- of salt with… she didn't remember how much flour actually, but she was a good baker, she could eyeball it. She dumped the ingredients she was confident in in the bowl with the wet ingredients, giving it a quick stir before adding the flour slowly.
Around three cups of flour, it seemed like. A little less, she didn't fill them all the way, but it didn't stick to her fingers too much, she could form them into balls. Her mom often simply tested how much flour was required by such a measurement. The whole bag of chocolate chips went in, because you measure those with your heart, not by any recipe.
She found a sheet pan and started rolling them out into little balls, keeping the balls rough so that they didn't look strange.
Right, the oven! She washed her hands quickly, getting the cookie dough residue off. Nishinoya moved the chair over to the oven at her gesture and she climbed up, setting the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
Wait.
It wasn't Fahrenheit here, was it?
She canceled the preheat, just in case she was about to burn the school down. What exactly was the equivalent of 350 for Celsius? She hadn't taken math for years. Like half or something, right? 175 it was, she'd judge by how hot it felt when she was opening it.
That could have been a disaster. Huh. Culture shock got ya when ya least expected it.
The oven beeped and she judged the temperature as good when she opened it, hurrying to put the first dozen cookies in the oven before all the heat escaped. Twelve minutes.
She… didn't have anything to put a timer on. The microwave probably could, but she didn't know all the buttons and it beeped loudly whenever she entered anything improperly and it honestly scared her a bit. It didn't need to be quite so loud about it.
There was parchment paper in one of the cupboards, so she and Nishinoya pushed the chair over and she laid out a sheet on the counter, for the cookies to go to cool. She grabbed a spatula and found the hot pad, but Nishinoya immediately snatched the hot pads.
"Are you going to pull the cookies out?" She challenged, and he actually nodded.
"I don't want you to get hurt though." She worried, but the cursed corpse waved her off, taking a seat next to her in front of the oven, which she checked every few minutes to make sure the cookies weren't done or burning yet.
The edges were browning a lot… maybe she should chill the rest of the dough and hope it would turn out less brown.
Nishinoya pulled the first batch out carefully, setting it on the counter on a prepared hot pad, and she waited a minute or two until she climbed on the chair to carefully move the cookies to the parchment paper. One cookie was sacrificed to her mouth, as tradition suggests.
It didn't quite hit the mark like it should. It was delicious of course, but it wasn't her mother's peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. Whenever she had margarine, she'd try again, but it was hardly an unworthy result of her time. Hopefully everyone else would like them too.
"Can you eat?" She asked Nishinoya curiously, and he shook his head. Shame.
The next batch turned out much better, they wouldn't end up nearly as hard as the first batch. The final one she made a little bit smaller, and took them out a little earlier than she normally would, just to try and end up with a softer bite than the rest. She wasn't quite sure that they were entirely done but being a tad undercooked wouldn't hurt. She left those on the pan, just in case, to let the residual heat finish baking them a little more.
The cleanup went quickly, soap and towels in plain view, allowing her to hand wash the dishes, and Nishinoya was a handy little dude, drying the dishes as she finished rinsing them. She returned everything to its proper place.
They shut the oven off and she moved the cookies from the pan. She finally returned the chair to its proper place and took a seat, a small plate of cookies on the table in front of her. One from each batch to let cool and test the texture. The oven had said it was past three in the morning by the time she was done, having to move that chair around had slowed her down dramatically from when she could whip up a batch in twenty minutes. The lack of a mixer didn't help either.
The whole cafeteria smelled like cookies, a pleasant, comforting scent. She was exhausted, but not tired, so she just played little games with Nishinoya, tic-tac-toe with various items scattered around the cafeteria.
It got boring very fast, and they both decided to quit after the third cat's game.
"Want to play sharks and minnows?" She decided to ask after another long break, chewing on a third cookie. As she suspected, it was rock hard and crumbly. Delicious though, of course.
Nishinoya looked confused, so she explained slowly, "Sharks and minnows isn't really a two-player game, but it would work. We pick a spot to be the line, and one player, the shark, patrols the line and tries to tag the minnows, who are trying to run past. Anyone who gets tagged gets turned into a shark, which isn't in effect as a two-player game. If we ever play with Panda and Junpei though, it might work. The shark can't leave the line, and the minnows… I'm not sure how the minnows win besides not losing. Let's say three times up and down the cafeteria?"
Nishinoya nodded affirmatively, and they picked a line that was more or less centered to the cafeteria, an open spot between tables. He was the first shark, so she was the minnow.
It was going to be difficult. He was built for this type of work, defending, and each sidestep she took was matched by him. He was focused, completely. She'd have to outrun him.
Cursed energy was already circulating her limb, readying her for action, and she angled herself right, through the maze of tables. She couldn't juke him, most likely, he was too skilled for that. Five steps away from the line and she sped up, just skimming past him as his hand brushed her arm. Lost.
"Your turn!" She said after a moment, refusing to let the loss bring her down. She wasn't so childish that a lost game would make her sad.
Nishinoya was tricky, surprisingly so, juking back and forth. He didn't rely on speed.
And he was absolutely going to try and juke her. He was two feet away, leaning left, but his feet were angled right.
What direction?
The sound of the door sliding open made both of them stop, and she knew she probably looked guilty as hell when Yaga stepped inside only to stop at the sight of them.
"What are you doing awake?" He asked, surprised, and she cringed.
"Couldn't sleep well."
"What's that smell?"
There was a long pause before she said, "Cookies. Peanut butter chocolate chip ones."
Yaga leaned into the little kitchen nook, spotting the cookies resting on the counter.
"Where'd you learn how to make them?" Yaga asked, the million dollar question.
"Geto-san showed me a recipe book. American one. I wanted to try." Her words were short and stilted, she probably sounded like a robot. About as believable as saying the sky was blue.
Please drag her out from under this bus, Geto. He'd agreed to be blamed for any unreasonable jujutsu sorcery information she had, hopefully he'd be kind enough to take the blame for this too.
"Is anyone allergic to peanut butter?" She asked belatedly, after a long silence.
"Not to my knowledge."
Hmmm. Good.
"Have you been up all night?"
"Slept for a little bit. I think Geto-san and Ieiri-san said it was close to one in the morning? And I'd been up for maybe an hour or so, so I must have woken up at like midnight. I- I got a little sleep," she tried to reassure him.
Just digging herself a grave right there. She needed to put the shovel down and shut up now.
"Would you like to try and go to sleep with me now?" He asked after a while, and she shook her head automatically. No more attempts to sleep today, she was not seeing that face in her dreams again.
"You had nightmares?" He asked, and when she nodded, he continued, "Would you like to tell me about them?"
She appreciated the offer, she really did, but you couldn't torture the details of that dream out of her right now. Her own sister, decaying before her very eyes. The wide-eyed denial was written all over her face, and she didn't have to say a word.
"Is it time to get ready for school yet, or should I keep playing for a while longer?"
"I didn't intend for either of you to go to school today. Probably not for the next week." He answered, sitting down in the chair next to hers. He looked tired. She doubted it was even four thirty in the morning.
"That's a long time." She commented slowly, crawling into the seat next to him. She gestured to the cookies still sitting there, from the second and third batch. The second one was undoubtedly the best one, but the soft third batch wasn't half bad. Yaga eyed it for a moment before taking the one from the second batch. Good eyes.
"It's good." He said, unintentionally surprised and she smiled before he could try and catch himself. She knew he had probably been expecting something from an actual four-year-old, not someone who's been making these cookies for years.
"I didn't have margarine, so I used butter instead. Not sure how it changed the texture."
"You could have used mine." He offered, and she shook her head.
"Couldn't take it from you. I'd have used all of it."
"I wouldn't have minded." Yaga reassured her, and really, this was too much of a loaded statement, of a promise, at four in the morning. She leaned her head into the table, flinching a little when Yaga's warm hand rested on her back.
"Did you want to go to school?"
She shook her head wordlessly. He dragged her slowly from her chair into his arms, a warm hug that left her inches from tears.
Stupid kid's body and sleep deprivation was really getting to her.
"You do need to sleep, Midori-chan. It will just make everything feel a lot worse if you don't."
She groaned.
"I don't want to see that again." She whispered into his shoulder.
"What's the worst that will happen if you do?" He asked slowly.
Damn him and his psychological tricks. She was the one who was the closest to a degree here. She was even certified in some things, if not fully graduated.
"Will it come true?"
"No." she said, a little mulishly.
"Will sleeping make you feel better?" There was a slight grin on his face. He knew that she knew what he was doing, and that she was grumpy about it.
"Yes." She huffed. Why'd Yaga have to care? A missed day's sleep wouldn't kill her, she'd done it before.
"Would you try to sleep for at least an hour, while I'm there to wake you up if needed?"
Ughhhhhh…
"Fine." She mumbled. He'd won this round, the jerk.
He scooped her up fully, not just a hug, and she let her body go more or less limp. Defeated by her own guardian, like she was a real kid. Damn logic.
Yaga carried her to the movie room, as anticipated, and found a spot on the floor to sit and lay down, his head nearly brushing against the arm of the couch.
"Won't your back hurt?" She asked, a little concerned.
"How old do you think I am?" He asked, bemused.
"I dunno. Like fifty?" She said, purposely aiming high.
He coughed in surprise, and she doubled down.
"Are you like fifty-five, or something?"
He coughed a little more, before finally laughing out loud, a bright sound that she hadn't had the pleasure of hearing much before.
"Thirty-six, turning thirty-seven this year." He laughed, and she made a surprised face.
"Old." She commented, intentionally snide as she side-eyed him, and he flicked her forehead, making her break character and giggle.
"Just wait until you're my age, let all the little kids call you old." Yaga said playfully.
He really thought she'd make it to that age? Now that was wishful thinking.
"Go to sleep." He ordered finally as things settled down, and she curled up next to him obediently, Nishinoya securely cuddled into her arms and her head on Yaga's shoulder.
It was warm and secure and relaxing, and she was falling asleep fast. Already, her eyes were heavy, her tense muscles relaxing as her cursed energy returned to its spot over the seal, letting Yaga's warmth and the warmth of the blanket creep in.
She woke up suddenly hours later, the sunlight well and truly up. It would be hitting her eyes if Yaga wasn't shading them with a few pieces of paper, somehow doing paperwork from his position on the floor with his only free hand, paper braced against one knee. An expense form or something, from what she could read.
His face was smug as he glanced at her, his sunglasses on. He hadn't been wearing them earlier.
"Feel better?" He asked evenly. She grumbled about it but nodded. So much better. It was irritating, how much better everything felt. That edge of anxiety had faded away, and not a single dream, even positive, had reached her.
She was gonna be one of those kids who couldn't sleep alone, wasn't she?
"It's about," Yaga checked his watch, "ten now. Ready for breakfast?"
"Yeah." She said and slowly climbed to her feet. She kept the blanket, hoping to preserve some of that heat, even for a short while before her natural temperature returned. Yaga seemed to notice and bundled it around her before lifting her up fully, hefting her over his shoulder.
She's been burrito-ed! Fully contained by the blanket, she couldn't squirm her way out with Yaga's arm around her. He was carrying her over his shoulder too, like a sack of potatoes!
He carried her, a fiery little bundle of blankets and morning rage, all the way to the cafeteria just like that. The others were all there too, of course, and she growled a little as she renewed her efforts to get free.
Gojo patted her head like he was petting a dog, and she growled at him. He just laughed obnoxiously, of course.
"Let me out please!" She finally asked, and Yaga listened, setting her feet first on the ground, letting the blanket hang over her shoulders more loosely, like a poncho.
"There's cookies, Midori-chan!" Gojo called, shoving one in her face as if to make up for annoying her. It worked, of course, because who wouldn't love a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie?
Junpei was hiding the half-eaten one he had, looking guilty about it. She'd bet that Gojo cajoled him into taking it in spite of his protests about ruining his breakfast.
"Yes, Midori-chan made them at four in the morning." Yaga said blandly, and Yu-nii's concerned face immediately popped up, pulling him away from his conversation with Nanami.
She stared at Geto, trying to get his attention, but he was too busy making heart-eyes at Gojo, who was apparently pleading for another cookie. Geto must have taken it upon himself to make sure everyone got a fair amount, but Gojo was breaking down his willpower quite effectively.
God, Kami, Tengen, whatever being there is above, please let Geto get the message.
"Why were you up at four in the morning?" Yu-nii asked with concern, hurrying over. He was such a good brother, she adored him. Please don't dig her deeper into this little hole, she just wanted to stress bake some cookies.
"Nightmares."
Was she going to have to explain herself every time?
Yu-nii, clearly a god of emotional intelligence in disguise, didn't press any more, just made a sympathetic noise. There was a reason he wasn't even just Yu or Haibara in her mind, just Yu-nii. He was just an older brother, through and through.
"You got some sleep later though?" He asked, just to be sure.
She nodded and pointed to Yaga, "he logic-ed me into it. I'm kinda mad about how well it worked."
Yaga's answering laughter was exactly what she was aiming for.
"So!" Gojo announced loudly, clapping his hands to get everyone's attention as if his voice wasn't enough, "what's the plan for today, Yaga-sensei?"
"The plan?" Yaga asked coolly. Oh, there was totally a plan brewing, he just wanted to surprise them.
"The plan!" Gojo echoed, far more dramatic.
"Who says there is one? Maybe the children all need more simple, relaxing days. Yesterday was supposed to be one, after all." The judgment, the raised eyebrow, the sass.
"That's all in the past. Midori-chan's ready for her next adventure, right?" Gojo insisted.
She looked at the teen, aghast, and said, "No! Peace and quiet sounds good."
He looked disappointed, but she refused to regret it. She needed to let the water settle, let everything calm down so that everyone could relax.
"I was thinking of a game night of some sort, once everyone returned from their missions." Yaga finally caved, and multiple students looked up from their conversations and breakfast to look over at him.
"We've got a mission?" Yu-nii asked, disappointed.
"Should be a short one. I'll be overseeing you." Yaga reassured the first years, and Yu-nii brightened, clearly delighted to be working with Yaga.
"Gojo-san, Geto-san, there's three mission reports on that table over there," Yaga pointed to a table in the corner, "go together, split them or take them together as you wish, just try to be back before dinner. Ieiri-san, I understand that you have a test today. Good luck, don't worry about the children. I've called a babysitter in."
A babysitter? She didn't really know any other adults in this time period. A sorcerer, of course, a nonsorcerer wouldn't be enough to scare the higher-ups away.
Who the hell did he call? Yaga clearly spotted her worried expression, and reached up to ruffle her hair.
"Don't worry too much, I don't expect you to behave perfectly. Besides, my cursed corpses will be here keeping watch, so if he does anything suspicious, you can have them contact me."
What the hell Yaga, that wasn't reassuring at all! Why would the mystery babysitter do anything suspicious? That did not imply that Yaga trusted the man at all.
"He's a teacher too, and he knows better than to try anything after yesterday."
Yaga, please.
Was it the principal guy? The one with the guitar? The higher-up principal guy?
Was this a punishment? She made cookies, he could have them all, surely that'd be fair.
"Don't panic too much, I promise everything will be fine." Yaga said earnestly, even bending down to look her in the eyes.
It really didn't sound like it would be.
But, she trusted Yaga. So, slowly, she nodded.
"Don't worry about your behavior either, I've told him that you have some behavioral issues around strange adults."
Just before she could process the hurt, because she really was trying her best here, he winked.
Oh.
OH!
This was permission. He was giving her permission to misbehave here.
Oh ho ho, this changed everything. She let a slow grin appear on her face as Yaga patted her head one more time and straightened. He groaned a little, his knees were probably killing him for bending down like that. How old was he, anyways?
"That's quite a look." Gojo commented, peering over at her, all the students taking in her manically delighted expression. He looked a little disturbed by what he saw there.
She just got permission to be an absolute bitch towards whoever was her babysitter today. Junpei too, surely. God, could she pull off the budding gang member archetype well enough? Junpei could be her harassed underling. Panda too, could be fun to play off of. Call it acting practice.
No one wanted an intolerable brat of a kid, not until they got old enough to grow out of it. This could be her chance to throw the higher-ups off of her trail, at least for a few years. She didn't want to damage their evaluation of Yaga's parenting skills and get herself assigned somewhere else either, so she had to still be misbehaving when they returned, and let Yaga discipline her enough to satisfy them that he was still the right caretaker for her.
Peace and quiet might be lost, but being a little brat towards a bastard of an old man was well worth it. He tried to have Itadori assassinated, after all. God knows what else he did between then and the end of the show, but he was likely complicit in getting Yaga sentenced to death.
"Junpei-kun!" She called as everyone started to pack up, hunting him down quickly, "How are you at acting?"
"Ahh… acting?" Junpei said uncertainly.
"Yeah! I'm going to annoy the heck out of our babysitter, and I wanted to know if you could help."
"You want to misbehave?" Junpei said, confused and surprised.
"Yaga-san winked at me when he said that I have behavioral issues. He wants me to be bad for our babysitter. If I had to guess, it'd be because they're either a higher-up or a spy for one."
"A spy?" Junpei parroted with awe, his eyes widening with wonder. There it was, all kids loved spies.
"Yeah! So I get to be bad to scare them off! That guy, Neko-kun, brought an unofficial invitation from a higher-up to me yesterday, which was very bold and wrong of them. Honestly it might have been an attempted kidnapping, but whatever. They're gonna try to smooth things over with us and with Yaga-san, so I get to show off how undesirable I am to get kidnapped!"
Junpei was nodding slowly, taking in the outpouring of information.
"It's like a movie!" Junpei said with awe, "What can I do to help?"
"My goal is 'budding yakuza'! You could be my timid underling, or you could pretend to model your behavior after me, make it seem like I'm dragging you down with me. Or did you have any other ideas?"
"I've seen a few yakuza movies, I think I could handle being a side character."
Junpei did not want to be just a side character, not in this anime. Actually, being a main character in Jujutsu Kaisen kinda sucked too.
They planned for over an hour, only pausing for some onigiri that Yaga shoved in their hands before everyone packed up and left.
She missed her carrots.
Geto and Gojo were waiting to greet the babysitter -meaning, scare the shit out of them- and she was in Geto's lap near the entrance to the school, listening to him as he read a textbook out loud to both Junpei and her. Something about the history of the clans, which was usually something that would interest her, but somehow it was so dry even Geto's voice couldn't make it interesting.
Gojo was draped over Junpei like an overly affectionate blanket, and the poor boy seemed simultaneously elated and terrified by the physical contact. It was good for him, and he wasn't getting too overwhelmed quite yet, so she didn't intervene. Geto's hands combing through her hair had nothing to do with her lack of desire to move.
The book snapped shut, jolting her awake, and she wasn't quite sure when the sound of Geto's voice and his hands stroking her hair had lulled her to sleep.
It WAS principal guitar hero!
"Good morning, Midori-chan, Junpei-kun! And good morning to you too, Gojo-san, Geto-san." The old man said pleasantly. It was definitely the principal guy, even about ten years younger, he still looked ancient. He felt like the type of person who looked old the moment they hit thirty.
"Who are you?" She asked, challenging, going from pleasantly fuzzy and sleepy to aggressive in a heartbeat. He didn't bat an eye.
"My name is Gakuganji Yoshinobu." He said, still pleasant.
"I thought we'd get someone to play with. Not this old guy." She complained, turning to look at Gojo.
"He'd probably drop dead the moment he took three steps." Gojo said sharply, walking up to Gakuganji like a thug, leaning in too close. She'd give him credit, he stood his ground.
"Three?" She said doubtfully, and Gojo laughed uproariously. Geto's giggles were stifled, but she could still feel the vibrations even as his face struggled to stay neutral as he turned away, ostensibly to put the textbook away safely.
"Fair enough!" Gojo conceded with a mean grin.
Gakuganji laughed, surprisingly enough.
"I suppose I do look old compared to you youths, but I've still got some fight in me yet!" He laughed, delighted.
"Gakuganji-sensei, I'm surprised to see that Yaga-sensei called you to watch the children." Geto said evenly, having composed himself. She crawled off of his lap, letting him stand.
Both boys loomed over Gakuganji. He wasn't a short man, the boys were just giants for some reason. She felt like a doll sometimes, when Gojo or Geto carried her around, they were just so big compared to her. She wasn't even that small, she was just measuring herself against those giants.
"Of course, as a fellow teacher, it only makes sense that your sensei would call upon me."
"I was referring to your authority, not your occupation." The way that Geto spat the word authority, he could have been saying 'steaming pile of poop' with the same vitriol.
"We hold no quarrel with Midori-chan, or those at Jujutsu highschool. Sato-san's unfortunate actions were not representative of us as a whole, I can assure you."
"Ah, you're one of those old guys too?" She made a noise of disgust, even sticking her tongue out. Gojo mimed retching.
"Aww, I'm sorry to hear you have such a negative opinion of us. I'll be sure to show you the other side of us. The young have such a hard time understanding the decisions of those with experience. I understand we must seem callous at times, but I assure you, we only want what is best for Jujutsu society as a whole." Gakuganji said, probably lying through his teeth like a poisonous little toad. She hated the higher-ups with a burning passion, he was not going to change that in a day.
"Midori-chan," Gojo said suddenly, dragging her into a tight hug, "if you get scared, call us and we'll come and save you!"
"I know, Satoru-nii-san!"
Gakuganji seemed surprised for a split second, she only noticed because she looked his way as she said it, checking for his reaction.
The boys left slowly, leaving her and Junpei alone with principal Gakuganji. Junpei put the plan in effect immediately, clinging to her shirt like his anxiety levels had tripled. In absence of the two special grades, it likely had.
"Well, shall we start the day then?" Gakuganji asked, friendly, and she stared at him, vaguely disgusted. He wasn't truly being friendly, just trying to make up for his compatriot's misstep. He'd proven himself willing to kill children when it suited him, and had the balls to order other children to do it for him. She'd never respect him. They'd misstepped just by sending him.
"No," she said after a long pause, "I'm gonna watch a movie with Junpei-kun."
She pivoted on the spot, accidentally making Junpei stumble, but he recovered quickly. The arm she threw over his shoulder, keeping him upright, was possessive, and she glared at Gakuganji as he watched them, clearly analyzing their relationship.
She marched him away, keeping him close as the old man followed. They had an estimated four hours or so until Yaga got back, a quick watch of the absolute bloodiest horror movie should do nicely.
What was Suicide Club about?
Junpei put the DVD in the player with trepidation, glancing several times towards Gakuganji like he was expecting the old man to suddenly attack him the moment he turned his back. She let Junpei sprint back to her, ducking under her arm like a chick under its mother's wing, like she could protect him from the man. It was likely only partially an act.
Oh, this was quite the movie. Junpei had watched this before? It had come from his movie collection, after all.
Holy shit, someone sold or gave this to a six-year-old! What were they hoping that he would get an idea from it? She would have covered his eyes if she didn't know he had already watched it before.
Gakuganji looked bewildered by the whole movie, often looking their way as if horrified by the fact that both of them were actually watching and not completely horrified. It was actually really gory so far, and the way the scene was developing was… unpleasant. She was silently relieved when the movie finally went too far and Gakuganji lunged to hit the power button on the remote.
"Why don't we watch something else?" Gakuganji asked, scrambling for a separate option besides letting them continue to watch an R-rated horror movie.
"Junpei wanted to watch one of his movies." She said, challenging, making sure to look the man in his eyes. He seemed to be searching for something to say without pushing his authority on them. He wanted to give them the freedom to act freely and observe their natural actions, but also didn't want to be too lax and have Yaga get upset about his inability to keep two young children in line.
"I want to play outside now." She said, and Gakuganji's expression changed subtly, relieved. Junpei scrambled to shut the DVD player and return to her side, two steps behind her as she left.
"I could lead you through some beginner training exercises." Gakuganji offered, and they both pointedly ignored him.
Plan B was in action now. Junpei headed off around the corner and she slowed naturally, glancing outside as if to check the position of the sun. By the time she and Gakuganji rounded the corner, Junpei was gone. The old man clearly noticed too, but didn't mention anything.
She took an extra two minutes to get outside to the training area near the forest, merely by walking slowly.
Two steps out of the door, she lunged sideways, just in time for Junpei to blast Gakuganji with the hose, drenching the poor man. She laughed out loud and both of them bolted, listening to the man's enraged noise.
He grabbed Junpei by the scruff of his shirt and she kicked at his hand, forcing him to let go before placing herself protectively in front of Junpei. Gakuganji's rage, visibly at least, lessened at their defensive postures.
"It isn't nice to get people wet like that without warning." He lectured, controlling his tone.
"It isn't nice to turn off the tv when other people are watching it either. Trying to force a teenage girl into killing herself for the greater good isn't very 'nice'. Chasing a little girl around a school like a pack of wolves isn't very 'nice'. You'll dry." She said, sassier and angrier than she had initially intended to. He looked taken aback, surprised by the vitriol in her voice. This was no superficial hatred. The higher-ups couldn't make this up with some minor pleasantry, and he seemed to realize that too.
"I… regret that such actions had to be taken. It was necessary for the safety of Jujutsu society."
"Necessary. If there were other vessels, why did it have to be Riko?"
He sighed, seeming genuinely regretful.
"She was simply the best option."
"The fourteen-year-old girl was the best option? The girl who was scared and brave, and who should have been live her life like any other fourteen-year-old girl, not walking straight to her own death. If she was your granddaughter, would you have let that happen to her? Just ushered her quietly to Tengen, like a secret sacrifice in the dead of night, not even a goodbye or a thank you? You guys are cowards, treating her like that, like she wasn't a little girl being braver than any little girl should have to be. I don't understand how anyone listens to y'all, you're all just so out of touch with the real world. It's like you don't even see people anymore, just pawns to sacrifice at a whim. I'm not a pawn to be used, I'm an actual child, just like Junpei, just like Riko, just like Geto and Gojo too. Yet y'all treat them like their robotic soldiers, who inconvenience you by being injured or needing breaks, y'all will run them into the ground just because you can."
She might have gone a little overboard, but she was just so angry at the higher-ups. Nothing pissed her off more than those in power who didn't actually care. Those they ordered around were real people, with families, hopes, and dreams, yet they sent them to their deaths without pause.
There was something dripping down from her mouth, like liquid nitrogen, making her breath fog in the morning air. As it dripped to the ground it formed little puddles of ice, not just droplets, but actually froze the ground around where it made contact.
"No one will miss you guys when you're gone. People will be relieved, when you higher-ups are dead and gone. Your tradition is only hurting the jujutsu society that you're trying so hard to protect. " There was disgust in her tone with her final words, and she tugged Junpei with her as she left Gakuganji behind.
The frost breath kept coming, leaking from her mouth, down her neck, freezing her clothes and the floor wherever it fell, and she had to release Junpei's hand to make sure it didn't touch him accidentally. She was so mad at the higher-ups, her cursed energy was running riot in response, ready to fight, ready to kill. Probably a bit of an overkill response to being mad, but definitely helpful for what she was aiming for, presenting herself as too troublesome to mess with.
Did they know how little the sorcerers that they ordered around respected them? She couldn't think of any Tokyo students, current and future, who did. Was it Gojo's influence that allowed them to stay clear of the indifference of the other sorcerers, to look beyond the complacency of the sorcerers who never looked beyond obedience to those above them?
Things needed to change, Gojo was right about that. The new generation would never be so complacent again. The higher-ups needed to change or die, she didn't know for how long Gojo and Geto would remain patient with them.
Junpei was watching her worriedly as she stalked through the hall, practically bristling. She had no clue where they were in the school, just going from hall to hall, building to building.
"Sorry, the higher-ups just really suck." She said eventually, residual anger in her tone, glancing Junpei's way.
"They're really that bad?" He said after a pause, and she halted.
"Yeah. They tried to have Riko-chan sacrifice herself to a really important man. There were other options, other people, they just wanted to pick the person who would be the easiest to manipulate, and Riko's only fourteen. They told her she had to sacrifice herself for the sake of everyone else and then tried to send her away without so much as another word. Gojo and Geto agreed to protect her from it, but she's still in danger if any sorcerers who were loyal to the higher-ups got to her and tried to force her to go to Tengen. I don't know if she could be forced into it with force, or if they could use a hostage, but I know the students and Yaga-san are trying their best to keep her safe. I know that Kuroi and her are trying to figure out how to let her live a normal life, to go to school like a normal teen, but she's still at risk because of them."
It was all so pointless. Tengen was fine in the original series, after Riko died. They had been able to figure something out, whatever that was. Riko wasn't an option for them anymore, but still, she was at risk. She deserved the chance to live without the threat of being sacrificed over her head.
If there were multiple Star Plasma Vessels, why couldn't they simply protect them until they were old and had lived their lives happily? They didn't need to do it every five hundred years on the dot, they could just wait until one was ready to pass on and do it again. Maybe it would shorten the effects if the vessel was already old, but she failed to see why using someone old and willing, slightly more often, was a worse option than using an unwilling teenager.
"How long's it been?" She asked after a long silence. The frost breath had settled along with her cursed energy, letting her relax more.
"Oh, I-I don't know, really. It's hard to tell the time just by the sun, sorry." He answered nervously, his shoulders nearly touching his ears.
She waved off his apology, it wasn't like she could really tell either.
"Any chance you know where we are?"
Junpei shook his head. Nishinoya, a silent bodyguard, also shook his head slightly. Appears he only could find his way back to school, not around it.
"Wanna start opening doors?"
"Is that allowed?"
"Never told me I couldn't."
Uncertainly, he nodded, and she went right to the nearest door, opening it.
An office. The next room, surprise surprise, another office.
"This might be more boring than expected." She commented, but Junpei only shrugged, tugging another door open to peek in.
They worked their way through the building, finding mostly abandoned rooms, offices, supply closets, which Junpei shied away from, and storage rooms. They checked the desks and boxes for any interesting items, but nothing stood out enough to take with them. She felt like she was looting the world's most boring dungeon.
The next building was much the same, and the next. It took nearly fifteen minutes per building to search for them, so they'd successfully killed forty-five minutes or so until Yaga returned. Nothing like losing the children you were looking after to kill your chances to babysit again. She wasn't the best at being intentionally bad, despite her initial eagerness.
It felt… well bad, to be intentionally disrespectful to someone who was being so nice, even if she hated him on the principal. Even if she had permission, it still felt uncomfortable, like she was doing something wrong.
The fourth building had a stash of weapons, hidden behind a painting, which drew both kids in like flies to honey.
There were a few knives, which she pocketed immediately, and a flipping spear, which Junpei latched onto instantly with a look of awe. She could envision him using a nice spear later in life, shikigami by his side.
"Does this count as misbehavior?" She asked, not really expecting an answer, and he shrugged.
They moved onto the next building more confidently now that they were armed, sticking together as they swept from room to room.
There was nothing special about the next building either, but neither of them particularly expected the door to open into a huge hallway, far, far longer than the building was.
"Should we explore this?" She asked, glancing towards Junpei. He didn't look as timid about it as she expected, instead, the light of adventure was in his eyes as he nodded excitedly.
So, they walked in, leaving a pretty paperweight that Junpei had found a few minutes earlier to hold the door open, just in case.
It was ridiculously huge. They walked down the dark hallways for nearly ten minutes without a single change, just sloping gently downwards. Even the lighting was stable, never changing from just slightly too dim to be comfortable, making their own shadows into something eerie and grasping.
The light of adventure had drained away from Junpei as they continued to walk deeper and deeper. He clung to the back of her shirt childishly, and she pulled him off just to take his hand in hers. Junpei smiled, uncertain but grateful for the support.
Eventually, the light brightened, and they reached what seemed to be an elevator, a single light above it acting as an additional light source in addition to the generally even constant light.
She walked up to it warily, keeping Junpei's hand clenched tightly in hers. He glanced at her several times before slowly pressing the button.
Rusted metal screeched as the metal doors pried themselves open, folding back.
"Think it'll collapse on us if we step in?" She asked, and Junpei nodded urgently.
There were footprints in the dirt, semi-recent disturbances. Clumps of rust littered the floor.
"It was used, I think. Pretty recently." She said, pointing out the footprints to him, "I won't force you though. We can go back."
"I really want to go in." He admitted quietly.
"Come on then. First, we could send it down, then use the button to call it back up. At least we know it can make it up and down while it's empty then!" She offered, and he nodded.
She stepped in with trepidation, finding the buttons easily and pressing the bottom one before sprinting back out before the door closed.
It rattled like a pile of bones as it went down, the sound loud in the silent hallway. Eventually, the sound stopped, and she pressed the button again.
It took nearly seven minutes to get back to the top, and she actually counted it aloud while Junpei played idly with her fingers, bending them curiously like he was analyzing how they moved. Her fingers were almost completely lacking sensation, her cursed energy reacting to her nerves. It appeared that that was fascinating to Junpei, for whatever reason.
It arrived with a pleasant ding and the doors screeched open yet again. This time, they stepped inside.
Junpei clung to her, just about hanging from her shoulders, and his breath sped up as the doors closed. She held him just as tight, consciously forcing herself to take deep, relaxing breaths.
The elevator was clearly faster going down than up, taking a mere four minutes to get to the bottom, and she couldn't help but rush out as it finally swung open, Junpei literally stepping on her heels.
Oh, shit.
This was Tengen's realm.
The floor tiles were a familiar shade of brownish red, and a long corridor made from bricks, lined with evenly spaced lights, led straight to a brighter light farther down. Junpei started to walk, but she caught his hand.
"We should head back." She whispered to him urgently, and turned, but stopped at the groaning clatter of the elevator leaving.
"Someone's coming down!" Junpei whispered, alarmed, but she was quick to reassure him.
"Most likely, it's Gakuganji, who saw the rock keeping the door open and realized where we'd gone. The chance of it actually being someone dangerous is very low."
They exchange doubtful glances.
"Find a place to hide?"
"Find a place to hide."
They moved at a brisk trot. There were footprints on the tiled floor, and she made an effort to follow them enough to hide her own footprints, and Junpei fell into line behind her.
They reached the large open room with the massive city and tree, and she immediately led him over to the nearest stairway, rushing over to the building on the left.
It was old, it creaked with every step and her foot went through the floor with every other one, making her stumble. She called her cursed energy to her with a rush, letting it pool around her feet to fill in the gaps of the flooring, at least temporarily, and she dragged Junpei up the creaky stairs on hands and knees. They army crawled over to the window where they set up shop, looking for…
The entrance.
What one had they entered again? The footsteps would lead the way, probably.
They waited there tensely for too long to keep track of half an hour, but less than two hours, but nobody came. It was impossible to keep track of time without any view of the outside, or visual way to see the time passing. They were basically underground.
"Should we go back up?" She whispered to Junpei, who looked at her with such alarm that she shut her mouth instantly, settling right back down. This whole adventure thing was getting to him, it seemed.
They waited nervously for what she was guessing was another hour. Surely Yaga should be getting back soon. He'd find them.
Nishinoya was waiting with them too, so she did feel too bad about their chances of being attacked and murdered down here. At the least, they'd have a fighting chance.
"Can you lead us back if we need it?" She asked the cursed corpse, who nodded quickly.
That's one problem down then.
"Think you're ready to move now, Aniki?" She whispered gently, and Junpei nodded with visible reluctance. She led him down the steps much more carefully, crawling down on all fours just to spread her weight around and keep from breaking through the flooring.
The underground city was huge, and she took a moment to appreciate the size and the architecture. The rows were perfectly even, even if the buildings were falling apart, and the buildings themselves had been well maintained once.
Nishinoya led them up the steps, lined with carvings along the base in a way that had been hidden on the way down. Stars, mostly, Tengen must like them, but images of some people too.
At the top, Nishinoya stalled for a moment before picking an entrance. She… didn't see footprints though. Halfway down the hallway, Nishinoya turned, instead beelining for an entrance almost a third of the way around the circle.
Then, he stopped again, going the completely opposite way.
"He can't find a way back." She said out loud the moment she realized the truth, and Nishinoya paused, glancing back at her.
"The entrance, is it changing? Or are the rooms shuffling around, stopping us from finding the original path?"
Nishinoya didn't agree to either option.
"Don't tell me we're gonna have to go down the middle." She whispered, horrified. No way was she meeting Tengen with no one but six-year-old Junpei and Nishinoya as backup.
Nishnoya nodded slowly. Junpei watched, looking confused.
"We could just wait here until everyone finds us!" She said firmly, but Nishinoya shook his head, pointing down towards the large tree in the middle.
"Why?" She asked stubbornly, and Nishinoya crossed his arms sternly before pointing down towards the tree yet again, insistent.
"He could hold us hostage until Riko shows up or just kill us entirely!"
"Kill us?" Junpei hissed, alarmed, "What do you mean, who will kill us?"
"It's fine, we aren't going." She reassured, but Nishinoya grabbed her hand urgently, trying to tug her towards the tree.
"Nishinoya-kun, I'm going to need an explanation before I take a step closer to that guy."
The cursed corpse seemed to sigh.
"The tomb is his. He moves the entrance." Nishinoya said reluctantly, and Junpei's eyes went wide with shock, looking at the doll with a mix of amazement and horror.
"So, he's the one not letting us out?" She asked, just to clarify, and Nishinoya nodded quickly.
Damn. Why'd he want to make them come to him? They could be hostages. Surely Gojo could reach them if he tried. He could teleport, for goodness sake.
"We really have to go and talk to Tengen if we want him to let us out of here?"
Nishinoya nodded.
She was going to get herself smited, or disowned, or something, wasn't she? There was no way, if he mentioned Riko, that she wasn't going to throw some hands. She'd fight him to the death over that particular topic. If he could do this, why'd Toji ever even get out in the first place? Tengen could have kept him here until he starved to death. Was it because he wanted the Jujutsu sorcerers who came to the rescue to have a clear path to save Geto? Or was it the risk of Toji deciding to go after Tengen just to get out?
She sighed.
Damn him.
"Aniki, I need you to stay very close to me," she didn't need to even say it, he was on her like glue already, "we're going to see Tengen. If he tries to hold me hostage, run away and wait for rescue, tell Satoru-nii what happened. Be as respectful as possible, he's ancient, he's probably super traditional."
Junpei nodded, terrified.
Time to face the closest being to a god she'd ever likely meet.
Aside from Satoru Gojo, of course.
End Note Important Bit: the recipe is a real one! Try it out if you wish, but use one cup of margarine, softened, instead of butter!