𝑲𝑰𝑵𝑮𝑫𝑶𝑴 𝑶𝑭 𝑴𝑨𝑳𝑰𝑪𝑬 ⇢ Gojo Satoru

𝑽𝑰𝑰𝑰 - 𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬 𝑴𝑶𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹, 𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬 𝑴𝑶𝑵𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹

❝𝐼 𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑦 𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑎𝑦 '𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑤𝑎𝑠 ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝐼 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 𝑚𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑑. 𝐼 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑝 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑢𝑡, 𝑦𝑒𝑎ℎ. 𝐼 𝑘𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠. 𝑌𝑒𝑎ℎ, 𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑠, 𝑤𝑒'𝑟𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑏𝑟𝑜𝑠: 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑦 𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑒❞

MIKAZUKI LANDED SOFTLY ON THE GROUND, the air around the sorceress stilling as the golden blanket hovering above her head rippled, changing into a different shape before lulling back into a sharp sea of needles and charging forward. The sorcerer in front of her put his arms up, his own fickle golden shield covering his face as the needles plummeted against it, falling to the ground like aureate sparkles before dissolving back into the air.

The display was beautiful, and although the man – the boy, really – was a talented first-grade sorcerer, his abilities were still no match to hers. Kinzoku Asahi grinded his teeth as he watched the match, his own gold still inside of his veins thrumming with excitement at the event. Although the numbers within the Kinzoku clan had been dwindling with time, the lesser branches of the family were still worthy of his attention, and once upon a blue moon, someone like Keijo would appear.

He was the youngest of his line, grandson of one of the elders who were so far removed from the main family the gold in his blood was nearly gone, and yet, it seemed his lineage had been strong enough to produce at least one valuable sorcerer. Asahi rested his gaze on the field, taking in the fight with both wonder and a certain degree of doubt, watching as his precious daughter fought back easily, the golden mass of Everlasting not even stirring as she fought back using her own body instead.

Mikazuki's movements were slow yet natural, like a sparkle dancing over the water. Unlike other sorcerers, she did not rely on Cursed Energy nor on the blood running through her veins, opting to charge head on with the daggers she carried around and fighting with her whole body instead. To Asahi, this was another one of her attempts at rebellion – Mikazuki had always been wild, with a temperament similar to that of her mother, but never to this extent. It was as if her mere existence was an act of defiance, her every breath a nail on Asahi's coffin.

Kinzoku Himari settled next to her son, she too taking a long look at the training session in front of them before resting her weary arms against the railing of the deck. As the mother of the current clan head, Himari was revered by many of the elders as well as the rest of those carrying the Kinzoku name, however, unlike Asahi, her soul was not tainted with hatred nor the bloodlust that seemed to inhabit her son.

Himari sighed softly, her own golden eyes following Mikazuki's movements across the training grounds.

"She is a fine sorceress" the woman commented absentmindedly, unable to take her eyes off from the heiress, fascinating both by her strength and the certainty with which she moved.

There was a wildness to her, the same one all Kinzoku women seemed to exhume as well as the same one Asahi's bride didn't hesitate to show whenever she was displeased by the family's decisions. Kinzoku women were not born to be pliable and bred, they were staples of power, worshipped like goddesses even before Kogane was long born. It was in their blood as much as it was in their heart, and Mikazuki was no exception, just like Himari had been a great sorceress not long ago, her own abilities far more superior than any of her siblings'.

Himari's gaze travelled down, to the cracks running along Mikazuki's arms out of which the gold continued to pour out like an endless river. Everlasting truly was a gift.

"She will make a fine wife" Himari added absentmindedly, the thought of her granddaughter wearing a white gown and heading down the aisle suffocating enough to take the breath out of her "Any man would be lucky to have her"

Because, no matter how strong Kinzoku women were, they were still women, and the world of Sorcery and Jujutsu was one of men. Of that, Himari didn't have a single doubt. Asahi scoffed at the comment, aware that despite the many assets his daughter possessed both as a sorceress and as a woman, no man would ever want to marry her if it weren't for the name that was attached to her. Mikazuki was the key to the Kinzoku empire, and as such, she was his most valuable piece to play.

"That is, if we manage to convince anyone to marry her" Asahi commented coldly, his tone filled with bitterness "Her antics are no secret, and rumours of her exile still arise to this day"

How could they not? Gossip ran wild, even in a community made of sorcery and casted spells. Mikazuki's banishment, although surrounded by a certain amount of secrecy, had been a public affair. Aside of the fifty nine souls who witnessed it, everyone else could only live off rumours and speculation, whatever truly happened that day being between the Kinzoku family and the Magistrate.

Himari rolled her eyes, wincing when Keijo was pushed back against the wall, his back hitting the concrete with such force the semi-wall cracked and crumbled under the pressure.

"None of that matters, she is a pure blooded Kinzoku" she said, as if that statement still held the same power it did years ago "I am sure that is more than enough to sway any possible suitors"

Asahi paused, turning to face his mother. There was a resemblance between the two, although it was quickly hidden away between the hard lines of old age that sauntered down Himari's face.

"And what of her opinions, how should we handle those?" Asahi asked, his question cutting through the air like a knife.

"If I recall correctly," Himari cocked her head to the side, the golden in her eyes shimmering with what was left of the raw power still bubbling in her blood "you yourself didn't seem to have a problem with your very opinionated wife"

Kinzoku Hide, a gold-blood by marriage but a spitfire by birth, and also Asahi's only weakness. But Kinzoku Asahi had no weaknesses, and he would have never married someone who would become one, meaning that whatever Hide was to him was something else entirely.

A shield, or maybe a staff to lean on when things got hard. Or maybe just another monster, just like he was.

"Hide might be a spitfire, but when it comes to family, she is still willing to do what needs to be done"

He said it with such certainty not even his own mother was ready to refute it. Still, Himari was not willing to leave the conversation hanging, which is which she narrowed her eyes, now standing right in front of her son, the height difference of little to no importance when he could feel the power radiating off from her in waves.

"And you believe Mikazuki is not?"

Is not... a spitfire? Willing to do what it takes? Two very different questions with the same answer. After all, like father, like daughter.

And like mother, like monster.

"That girl has been coddled since the day she was born, I doubt even ten years in exile will have toughened her up" Asahi's sharp words echoed in the gardens, Mikazuki's movements stilling the moment they reached her ears "And God knows what she's done during that time. Thankfully, the Jujutsu Society is forgiving these days, otherwise, she would have been ruined long ago"

Ruined. Like she was a pristine little lady with an honour to uphold, as if he wasn't the one who had ruined her in the first place when he refused to fight the accusation and the trial that followed.

"Do not speak ill of my granddaughter, Asahi" Himari warned, her tone cold as ice despite the fire visible behind the gold in her eyes.

"She is my daughter, and I will speak of her as I please"

His daughter. His heiress. His property. And now, at his own request, his nightmare.