ITSY BITSY SPIDER. ― ( Jujutsu Kaisen )

CHAPTER ONE. curiosity killed the cat

Arisu wanted to help him, though more for her own selfish reasons. All she did over the years was to collect bad karma. She wanted to do something good, so that she could be less ashamed of herself when she looked her friends in the eye on Monday and lied about how she spent her weekend. It was going to cost her greatly, but she desperately needed it.

You better be lying dead somewhere to be ignoring my calls, you prick.

He frantically nodded, stopping when he made himself dizzy. "I— I can be your friend."

"I'm so happy to hear that!" Arisu jumped away from the car and clapped with a pretend cheer. The poor guy was startled by her fluctuating mood. His irises were shaky, the gray band shirt he wore was soaked in sweat and stuck to his torso. "You see, Ando-kun, many friends wanted to take advantage of my kindness before. So now I can't help but be—"

"Get to the point."

She clicked her tongue. "Not the chatty type, are you? Or just impatient? But I understand. After all, you don't have too much time on your hands to waste with chitchat. I'm not an expert at this, but with the pace the curse is spreading, I'd say you have less than two hours before I'll need to exorcise you."

His left eye widened. The other one was already blocked. "Wha— What? You said it wasn't spreading!"

"Didn't I just tell you I'm not an expert? I'm more of a cleaner: the person they send after the situation is at the point of no return. Do you really want to waste your time with trivial matters?" The sweetest smile played on the corners of her lips, faking the affection of a big sister. "I'll be direct with you, Ando-kun. I'm going to get into a shit ton of trouble for helping you. I want to see what caused this mess so I can have leverage on my... ugh, I hate saying this... boss. He's a real pain in the ass."

"Fine. As long as it shuts you up," Ando groaned.

"And he says talking doesn't get the job done," she proudly muttered.

The young man knew that his own curiosity had robbed him of any cards to negotiate. He was at the mercy of the woman if he wanted to end the day in the uncomfortable bed in the cheap motel room he rented. A hand around the grip of the pistol (Arisu didn't understand how it was safe), he grabbed the box on the hood of his car and approached her with cautious steps, like a wounded, frightened antelope. If she was to make a move, he was going to run the other way.

A plain, old box he handed her; a bright colored wood she couldn't identify, shaped similar to a coffin and covered in dents and scratches of different ages. The lid was pried open with a hunting knife — the crime weapon was tossed on the trodden grass. The young smuggler too had given in to its eerie song. The same way the sorcerer was drawn to it with a blank mind. It was a familiar tune, one that Jorogumo had encountered in one of her previous life cycles. What a shame it was at that moment that memories weren't one of the things they shared.

There was more to the mystery object than triggering her fight reflex. No questions asked was the standard procedure in most of the confidential missions the woman was sent out to, whether it was something to fetch or someone to take care of. Yet, she was always given enough information on her target to satisfy her curiosity. This time she was completely blind. All she received from him was an address and an order: Do not open the box.

But what harm was there in an innocent peek if she wasn't the one to break the seal?

She carefully lifted the lid.

The box slipped out of her hands. Or was she the one to drop it as if it suddenly burst into flames? The object, either way, rolled out of its confinement and disappeared in the tall blades of grass. "Why would you..."