pomegranate ink | y. okkotsu

ii

a/n: BYE IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE I UPDATED THIS KJSDNSDKJFHS I AM SO SORRY. Apologies if everyone is even more out of character, I'm a little bit rusty 😩 I'll definitely update more often over the summer so hopefully I'll get better with writing for JJK LMFAOOO

Another thing: there will be original characters in the story (not sure if I mentioned this earlier). Obviously they won't be the main focus, because I'm not that kind of author and I find it annoying in other stories when they are, but using original characters helps me in developing the canon characters properly as well. I apologize in advance if that sort of thing annoys you 💔 I do try my best to make them realistic and not irritatingly Mary-Sue-ish, because that would bother me as well.

You had never been in a public high school before, so this was a new experience. It was deserted and cold, the moonlight an eerie silver color. You weighed the merit of running back to the safety of Gojo's embrace. The tears that threatened to gather in the corners of your eyes meant that there was some value to the action, but your pride would not allow for the cowardice. So you determinedly kept walking, ignoring the heavy cursed energy pressing down on you, choking your lungs until breathing was a chore and it felt like you were wading through syrup.

Whoever this sorcerer was, he was breathtakingly powerful, and you questioned Gojo's judgement at sending you to face him alone. You and your thin silver needles. Their musical clanking in your pocket, muted but noticeable, was the only thing comforting you as you walked. They would probably not do much against a special-grade, but it was still soothing to know you had something with you. It was like — like a security blanket of sorts, but a threadbare one, the type that would do little to warm someone but was nice to cling to anyways.

"Room 313," you said to yourself, allowing yourself a moment of distraction and pulling out your phone. Gojo had forwarded you the email with the PDF containing the mission details; you had been surprised to find out that the higher ups used emails to communicate, but it made sense enough when you thought more about it.

The sorcerer and his pet curse were estimated to be located in Room 313, a science classroom. Perhaps they were something of a science experiment gone wrong; you snickered at the thought that a chemical shower could've prevented all of this quite neatly. It was a naive and uninformed take, but as you were nearing the classroom rather rapidly, you preferred to be amused than wetting yourself from fear.

The final few steps were the hardest, and not for the first time, you wished that you were not alone, that you had some companion making this easier. Maki, with her nearly abrasive personality, or Toge's kind smile and calm experience; you would even take Panda, though you barely knew him. The cuddly bear would at least be a solid barrier between you and an enemy, but as it was, Gojo's whole plan was to teach you total self-reliance. Which was well and good, but at the moment, you had barely any skills to rely upon, so this was sort of a silly idea on his part, really.

Even his half-baked plan of you trying to charm the sorcerer was easy to poke holes in — not only were you engaged, it had been an arranged relationship, carefully planned out at dinner tables by your parents and several Kamo clan elders. You and Noritoshi had little to do with it; actually, the only role you had played was accepting the ring he gave you and appearing at parties when told to do so. You had no experience with being charming. Also, you still wore your engagement ring on your left hand. You hoped the sorcerer would not notice it, but you also did not want to take it off. It would feel too much like cheating if you did so.

The door to Room 313 creaked open ominously. You winced — there went any ideas of sneaking up on the sorcerer. If he had not known of your presence beforehand, he certainly did now. Reaching into the pocket of your uniform, you let your fingers curl around the small box of needles you had brought with you.