𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑳𝑴 𝑶𝑭 𝑺𝑯𝑨𝑫𝑶𝑾𝑺 ⇢ Gojo Satoru

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐈 - 𝐈 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔, 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐌𝐄

ELEVEN YEARS AGO, 2006 –

THE SLAP CUT ACROSS THE AIR LIKE A KNIFE, the back of Asahi's hand hitting Mikazuki square in the face. The sorceress stumbled back, golden blood dripping from her mouth while she tried to catch herself, hand reaching blindly for the principal's desk. And maybe she should have expected it – Asahi wasn't a violent man, at least not when it came to his family, but the way his eyes simmered with raw fury, she should have known he hit his limit.

The pain didn't even register, not when part of her arm had been slowly dissolving since she uttered those cursed words. She could feel Gojo's eyes watching the event, his Six Eyes cutting through layers of plaster and wood as he stood outside the office.

Suddenly, Mikazuki felt shame. She felt weak and small, so easily overpowered by her father, like she was nothing but a small dot on his radar, someone not worth his time or attention. After all, Mikazuki was only the spare, right? Kinzoku Keisuke was the heir, and Kinzoku Mikazuki was the spare. Mikazuki was just the back-up, the spare parts, the 'just in case'.

Asahi looked down at the girl, disappointment written all over his face.

"I don't know why I even bother with you, you've always been the lesser twin"

Somehow, the admittance hurt more than the cut on her lip or the open wound on her arm. Somehow, this was worse. Asahi shook his head, stepping out of the room and meeting with the principal right outside the office. Mikazuki lingered there for a couple of seconds, a mixture of grief and pure agony settled in her face. The sorceress took a deep breath, walking out of Hirata's office and heading straight for the girl's bathroom.

The sixteen-year-old stood in front of the sink, staring at her reflection momentarily before averting her gaze and turning the faucet on. The water was cold, but Mikazuki didn't hesitate, pushing her injured arm under the stream. The pain was unbearable, chunks of skin and bone washing down the drain as her flesh burned. Even now, she had no regrets.

Mikazuki sighed, pulling her arm away and turning to inspect her face. The damage wasn't so bad – just a couple of cuts and bruises from the fight with Cheshire. Oh, and the cut on her lower lip and the huge bruise blossoming on her right cheek, all courtesy of dear ol' dad. The sorceress hunched over the sink, gathering water in her hands before wetting her face. When she straightened back up, her gaze caught a familiar figure on the mirror.

Gojo Satoru didn't appear to be harmed in the slightest, the only evidence he'd been in a life-threatening mission being the red claw marks circling his eyes. The sorcerer stood outside of the girl's bathroom, hands buried deep in his pocket as he settled his stare on Mikazuki, taking in the newly acquired injuries.

"How often does this happen?" he asked, his tone resigned.

Mikazuki shook her head, taking a paper towel and washing away the blood still coating her arm. The sorceress ignored the sting of pain every time she pressed the wet towel against the open wound, grinding her teeth together and pushing through it.

"Very rarely" she answered eventually with far more honesty than she expected "I shouldn't have angered him further" she mumbled lightly, more for herself than for the boy still watching her.

Gojo lingered at the edge of the door, leaning against the wooden doorway until he finally made up his mind and stepped into the bathroom. Mikazuki watched him, a confused expression washing over her as he stood right in front of her, his baby blue eyes looking right at her. For a moment, the sorceress forgot all about the steps – they weren't supposed to be this close, no matter what. One touch, skin-to-skin, and the world would unravel.

She should have backed up like the good girl she was, but something in Satoru's gaze kept her rooted to the spot. Instead, she looked away, attention drawn back to the mess she was making on her injured arm.

"This is the girl's bathroom" she tried to argue despite the fact that they were the only two people currently standing there.

Gojo didn't miss a beat, tilting his head to the side as he inspected her face.

"I don't care" he answered honestly, gaze settling on her lips as he examined the still bleeding cut "He shouldn't have hit you"

Mikazuki laughed, the sound far more bitter and destitute than she intended. Kinzoku Asahi shouldn't have done many things, and yet, no one seemed to ever stop him. Certainly not Hide, who seemed to look away every time he raised his hand at any of his children. Certainly not Keisuke, the golden boy who could do no wrong. As long as she carried the Kinzoku name, Mikazuki would always be alone. The sorceress inhaled sharply through her nose.

"Yeah, well..." she looked at her reflection, a flicker of anger flashing trough her golden eyes before it melted back into acceptance, like this was just another thing she had to deal with.

Satoru stepped closer, twenty steps turning into fifteen and then ten. He smelled like peppermint and sawdust with a hint of candy – Cheshire's lair had been brimming with it; caramels, candies and cotton candy. It then occurred to Mikazuki that she hadn't noticed Satoru having any particular smell before, not that she would have noticed if he did – she was never close enough to.

"You really did save us with that move" Satoru spoke sincerely, leaning against the wall with a thoughtful expression "I'm sorry he hurt you"

Mikazuki looked at him, tilting her head to the side, almost as if she was trying to figure him out – to read his mind. Gojo Satoru wasn't known for being a particularly kind person, everyone at Jujutsu Tech knew this – even his siblings didn't seem to extract a single sentiment out of the boy. He simply didn't care about anyone else other than himself, a harsh but fair outlook considering their profession.

And yet.

And yet, here he was, standing in front of the woman he was set to marry, blinding concern written all over his iridescent blue eyes. Satoru walked closer once again, leaving nothing but a mere three – maybe five at most – steps between the two. He reached out with his hand, only stopping himself when his fingers were so close to her face he could feel the heat coming from her lips.

One move. One move and the world would cease to exist.

"You're still bleeding," he announced, turning to take another paper towel from the dispenser taped to the wall "let me take care of it" he asked softly, not really expecting an answer.

Satoru closed the remaining distance, standing directly in front of the sorceress as she tilted her head back, a trail of golden blood falling from her lower lip and to her chin. Gojo moved his hand towards her, paper towel carefully folded, but before he could press it against her lip, she flinched away. There was no thought behind the gesture, just a reminder of the fear she felt when it was Asahi's hand instead of his.

"I'm sorry" Mikazuki quickly apologized as Satoru stepped back, but he wasn't hurt by the gesture, just concerned.

Someone like Mikazuki should never fear being touched. The sorcerer set the towel aside, his expression softening as he laid his eyes on the girl.

"You have no reason to apologize, this isn't your fault" he said slowly, getting closer again and pressing the damp paper against her busted lips while making sure he wasn't directly touching her skin "But, just for future refence..." he began, a small smile playing on his lips "You can be afraid of many things, Mikazuki. But never of me, okay?" he asked, the tone making it sound like a plea more than a question.

Mikazuki blinked rapidly as an answer, too afraid to move and accidentally touch him when they both knew what would happen if they did. Satoru smiled, pulling away to check the wound as the swelling slowly subsided.

"I promise you, you will never have to fear me"

I promise you, you will never have to hate me.

And like the idiot Mikazuki was, she believed him.