DUST ┄《 gojo s. x oc. 》

四.

"Have you guys seen the new senior around?" At the door, Shoko would ask whilst holding a piece of folded paper between her fingers.

Inside the classroom was the two walking testosterone; Gojou, who was comfortably rocking back and forth on his chair, wobbling between two desks, and Getou, who had his legs propped up on the desk behind the snowy-haired boy.

"Nah, not after she was assigned to 2nd year," Almost instantaneously, Gojou would provide a slurred answer, having slight distasteful undertones regarding the older's 'disappearance', "who knows, maybe she already got crippled on a mission." Though the prodigy ended the sentence with a snicker, his mind's been occupied by the exact question raised.

It's been around a week since anyone last caught wind of her whereabouts other than the 2nd years themselves. Even then, they would only see her for brief intervals throughout the day, usually during class dismissals. It's beyond difficult to locate her when they couldn't even find her name or grade.

'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.' In this case, it makes the cat grow curiouser and curiouser. To put it into words, what occurred was an itch in his brain, constantly nudging him whenever he gets a single moment to rest. Irritating, unbelievably irritating. And it shows through his words' bite.

Getou, though also intrigued by the mild oddity, didn't experience anything as extreme as his friend did. Hence, his stance is visibly more laidback, but still considerably engrossed, "why'd you ask, Shoko?"

In response, the cigarette-biting girl would unfold the note, revealing the official typed letters regarding a mission involving her and her assigned partner. Despite every sentence being written in the same size and font, their attention all fell onto the singular name beside their classmate's, typed next to their headshots.

Yin Ketsuyuki, what kind of parents give their children a name like that? A drop of blood in snow?

Ironically, he thought getting to know her name would relieve his mentality slightly, maybe make him less enticed. But when someone bears a name from a family he's never heard about, bears a name sounding like a curse, bears a name he feels they could live up to — he'll be chasing clues as much as he wants to fight her. The prodigy had half a heart to take the picture from his friend, but ultimately tucked his hand beneath his chin. His fair brows would furrow at his temple, seeming to be fighting the urge to dig more regarding her information. Cobalt pupils found themselves circling, driven by annoyance from the mere thought about her.

"You're going on a mission with her? A 2nd year?" Although it was as clear as day, Gojou reiterated his own surprise. Usually, different years don't get assigned to the same mission, due to grade level gaps. Both him and Getou were exceptions for working with people significantly older than them. However, Shoko was a somewhat different case. More often than not, she would be sent to aid in rescue projects alongside weaker sorcerers to provide treatment. Most ranging from grade 4 to pending grade 2.

"Guess she wasn't as strong as we thought," hummed Getou, who had sneaked the paper away from their brunette friend's fingers. Reading through the details, he would astutely notice a crucial highlight that pulled his eyebrows up in surprise, "Yin Ketsuyuki... grade 4?"

"What?" Despite the thick, darkened lenses covering his eyes, anyone could sense the disbelief radiating through. Neither Shoko nor Getou were that dubious regarding her ranking, but they didn't question their peer's reaction either.

"She's a grade 4 sorcerer. That explains why Shoko's goin' with her," Upon skimming the vapid contents in the notice, he would return the slip to the brunette, who exchanged it for the cigarette dangling from her mouth. Whilst they stated the obvious, Shoko returned her concern to where she could find their senior, "Alright, Sherlock and Watson. Do you guys know where she is or not?"

"We just found out about her name. You think we have any better idea than you?" Even when he's processing information, Gojou never loses his tongue for fun. Used to his snark, the brunette would merely tuck the paper back into her pockets, hands picking the cigarette away from the bun-dawning man's fingers and placing it back between her own lips. With a swift turn, she would make haste to the classroom door, "I'm heading off then. See you guys la—" Right as she was one step away from the frame, another figure would interrupt her path.

Smoky, wolf-bitten locks would flow into their viewpoint, and despite being at a similar height to the brunette, the three could recognise the subject immediately. Maybe it's her distinctly tailored uniform, straying away from the standard immensely. Maybe it's her piercing-studded features. Maybe it's her sickly pale skin painted by violet. Nonetheless, it was her.

Her eyes were still dazed, like a day-dreamer roaming the cold reality they didn't belong in. But no day-dreamer would reek so heavily of intestines and curses, it would be a nightmare instead. However, the fleeting flash from a sharp glimmer in her pupils spoke volumes on her state. Half-awake, half-sleeping.

"Let's go," a monotonous voice would ring in the classroom rendered eerily quiet. Bandaged hands would place her own notice onto the brunette partner's palms, almost re-confirming their status for the mission. The cigarette on her lips was hanging on a thread, as Shoko slimly managed to recollect herself and purse her lips back into its usual shape.

"Good luck to you two," already thinking about the information Shoko could feed them once she gets back, Getou was quite encouraging regarding their departure. On the contrary, Gojou was even more riled up than he originally was. A kaleidoscope of unknown bitterness blurred his vision from properly dissecting her through his six eyes, and he only realised once they had already taken off.

"Getou."

"Yeah?"

"I wanna fight her," With too much fervour for his good, Gojou found himself still staring at the subtle footstep on the wooden panel, pondering the endless possibilities in a fight against a grade 4 sorcerer.

Coughing the smoke in his lungs back up, Getou would mentally question the glittering eyes still fixated on the now empty doorframe. Though, you can't really say he was surprised or anything, considering the prodigy's penchant for provoking his seniors into absolute fury and vexation; Akari, Utahime and he supposes, Ketsuyuki in the near future. But, the ravenette somewhat feels like this wouldn't lead to anything good. After all, a special grade 1st year fighting a 4th grade 2nd year? Talk about power imbalance.

Maybe, he's just joking. It wasn't the first time Gojou had said something similar anyways.

Screeeeech—!

Bouncing off the chair he had been rocking in, the white-haired boy would make long strides towards the exit, stepping and rubbing off the muddy footprints presumably left behind by the gone senior. "I'm gonna go convince Yaga to lemme get on a mission with her," after sending a peace sign towards his resting peer, the prodigy too disappeared from the vacant classroom.

Dumb-founded but compelled, the now alone student would reach into his uniform pockets, fishing out a half-finished cigarette box, a lighter and fetching one in one habitual, smooth movement. Flicking the lighter to the rolled cigarette, he would too slowly stand up.

Drawing possibly the deepest inhale of smoke in his life so far, Getou doesn't exhale nearly as much back out. Engrossed in his own considerations, the fox finds the edges of his lips tilted upwards, tightly clasping the cigarette in between whilst he finds Shoko and Ketsuyuki's departing figures leaving the school gates.

Particularly, the grey-haired sorcerer's.

I wonder if she's someone who could take Gojou.