pomegranate ink | y. okkotsu

iii

a/n: back with another update in like a week 😩 see i told you guys it wouldn't be forever this time

"Aren't we lucky? With the addition of Tullia and Yuta, we have an even number of students in our class!" Gojo said, clapping his hands. You looked over at Maki, who looked back at you, sharing your exasperation.

"You know, despite the fact that you tried to teach us calculus the other day, you're pretty bad at math," she said dryly.

"What do you mean?" Gojo said.

"Well, sir, there were an even number of students even before Yuta and Tullia came..." you trailed off awkwardly. Gojo faced you, nose scrunched and lips parted in shock.

"Huh?" he said, tilting his head.

"Uh, because if you add two to an even number it stays even? So if only Tullia or Yuta had come, then we would've had an odd number, yeah, but because both of them came it stayed even," you said. Gojo thought about this before shrugging.

"Math is unimportant to what we're doing today, anyways. We'll be having a practical jujutsu class! You all will be split up into pairs to exorcise curses. The question is how do I want to split you up? I mean, we have two fresh faces, not to mention Y/N's not that experienced yet...but then again not everyone's compatible with everyone and I don't need someone crying...ugh! This is so hard! Can you guys just pick?" Gojo said, throwing his hands in the air. It was probably hard for him to try and please everyone, so you resolved to do something nice for him sometime soon, to acknowledge his efforts.

You had been staring steadily at Maki, willing her to be your partner, so you nearly leapt out of your skin when you felt a soft tap on your shoulder. You whipped around to see Yuta standing there, clasping his hands in front of him and offering you a shy smile.

"Do you think we can work together?" he said. You chanced a longing glance back at Maki, who had noticed your predicament and scowled, stomping over to pair up with Tullia, and then returned your gaze to Yuta, schooling your expression into a bright grin.

"Of course!" you said.

"Are you sure? I know you probably wanted to work with one of your friends," he said.

"I mean, I won't lie and say I didn't," you muttered before hastily amending the statement, "But we're friends, right? So of course I'm alright with being with you."

"Okay!" he said, sounding properly excited at the turn of events. You allowed your features to relax into a gentler, warmer smile — one that was genuine this time. Working with Yuta would be alright, probably.

It was not, in fact, alright.

Yuta was the worst partner you had ever had. Gojo had dispatched the two of you to an elementary school with some cheerful final words and a warning not to die, casting a barrier that awed Yuta for a solid five minutes. You were currently waiting for him to stop staring at the sky and wondering how it was that both the absentee Gojo and the unconscious Toge had been more efficient to be with than him.

"How is it night?" Yuta said in wonder.

"It's a barrier technique, colloquially known as a veil. It'll prevent non-sorcerers from randomly entering the area we're scoping out as well as hiding us from them, and it'll also reveal any curses in the area, making it so that they're easier to get rid of," you said patiently, "Are you ready to go? Kids have been going missing a lot recently, and we should really exorcise this thing before more get hurt."

"Isn't this an elementary school, though? Why would there be a curse here?" Yuta said.

"Schools and hospitals are notorious for cursed energy. Think about it — most people hate school, and hospitals are places of grief. The amount of negativity associated with such places means that it's easy for curses to spawn. Other spots like these include cemeteries and abandoned buildings," you said.