[ why is his kid like this. After that message, Toji leaves him on read, and if Megumi is going to the training arena, it’s going to be awhile if Toji decides to show up. ]
[ megumi learned tenacity early on - and perhaps ironically, learned it because of toji's absence. he had a sister to protect and be strong for; if he caved so easily to what other people wanted him to do, they would be separated very quickly.
he couldn't let that happen to tsumiki. he couldn't let gojo satoru think he's weak-willed, either.
all that said, megumi did mean to train today, so that's what he's doing: going over his routines until his knuckles and palms are bleeding through the wraps, relishing in the fresh and mortal pain of hitting things with his hands and knowing they're his own.
after all, he needs to build his stamina and endurance up if he wants to keep up with yuji. ]
[ It takes Toji awhile, but eventually the doors to the training arena open, and he emerges like a slumbering bear who has been rudely disturbed. He’s in the baggiest kinds of clothes, because why would he wear anything else right now.
In the opposite side of his mouth from the scar, there’s a pretty big bruise that is still healing, skin still torn and swollen, but he doesn’t have any one to try and dress his wounds so he doesn’t bother.
Like before, he follows his nose and goes in whatever direction the food is gonna be at, whether it’s in the bleachers or somewhere else. ]
[ truthfully, megumi's expecting some clown behavior from the man he's biologically related to; something like toji showing up exactly as megumi's leaving, like two repelling magnets or oil drops in a glass of water. so when toji does show up, dressed in ill-fitting clothes and looking cranky, megumi's focus slips into a painful split.
so, he yelps a bit. ow. a shadow pool manifests on instinct under him so he doesn't accidentally torque a thigh muscle - or worse, a testicle - leg dipping in and rebalancing him. embarrassment is a big driving motivator for a teenager, though, so megumi lets himself fall straight in and just pop back up through his father's shadow.
[ that's fine, megumi's tired out anyway. just gonna sit on the floor and blatantly watch toji eat while he unwraps his hands and treats his knuckles for cuts and bruises. ]
Did you win?
[ whatever fight led to the bruise on toji's face, that is. ]
[ What a question to ask. Megumi is already proving that he’s too much for Toji to handle— the whole reason why he wanted to re-home him to begin with. He’s not the best influence or person in his life, yet he seems to insistent to talk to him. ]
I won the first fight. Ask Gojo about the second fight.
You could've ran away. Fighting someone is always a choice. There's no shame is running from a fight if you know you'll lose by dying.
[ he's done it enough times. probably he should've done it a little more, or a little less. ]
Babysitters. Some guy who smokes? [ a small frown. ] You didn't smoke, especially not in the apartment. [ SHRUG ] I thought maybe that was because of you.
Maybe it's Ieiri-san, then. Ah, when did she quit...
...Huh. Do you want me to ask him not to fight you again? Sometimes he listens to me.
[ please let him live. megumi had asked and gojo had done everything in his power to keep yuji alive. maybe... well, maybe not. things are fraught between them now. ]
I don’t care. He’s going to do whatever he wants because that’s who he is.
[ Toji polishes off the last of the meal and runs his mouth along the back of his sleeve. He doesn’t care about Gojo. He never actually did. He was passive about the rivalry that his clan had against Gojo’s. The only reason he wanted to defeat him during his enlightenment was to prove to somebody— anybody— that he could actually do something despite not having any cursed energy. He definitely sounds bothered talking about Gojo anyway. ]
He’s not anymore.
[ which, whatever. Shiu didn’t want to keep working with him and Toji is trying to ignore the fact that it bothers him that Shiu is gone now, also. ]
[ megumi notices it too, how talking about his erstwhile guardian just seems to tick his biological father off to heaven's heights. some kind of insecurity? certainly not over gojo raising his son; he was ready to give megumi away twice. it's something else, but megumi can't grasp at the shape of its edges. ]
You could make new friends here if you want.
[ for want of something to do, and it's quickly becoming a crutch now, megumi summons a rabbit from the shadows. he doesn't use the summoning gestures anymore, just touching his fingertips where the shadow falls and pulling them up and out, easy as breathing. one rabbit, two rabbits, three. ]
[ Toji doesn’t have a response for making friends here. He’s not really interested in that, but if asked when he was his happiest, it was when he had some form of companionship— friendship or romance. It was isolating to not have cursed energy, but here, it doesn’t matter since most people don’t have it anyway.
He watches the rabbits appear with a tired expression. This kid just keeps asking the hard questions, but as shady as he is, he’s not much of a liar. ]
You do.
[ But it’s not because of who Megumi is. It even isn’t exactly the fact that he is Toji’s. It’s because being around Toji means he has some sort of responsibility, and he knows he is no good for that. ]
—But even so, I never wanted to do things that weren’t right for you.
[ sorry for what? megumi frowns at himself, at the thought. there’s no reason for him to claim responsibility for his father’s discomfort; the man left, first of all, and hadn’t they agreed to give only what they were willing to give? they should only accept what they’re willing to accept, too.
but the fact remains that this man is megumi’s father. however it was that megumi came about, his existence requires fushiguro toji to exist first. ]
You don’t have to feel responsible for me anymore, if that’s what bothers you. I can take care of myself now.
[so why am i here still?
one of the rabbits chirps up at him, questioning his mood. megumi covers its face with his palm and rubs down on its fur. he sighs, and dalls back on the one topic he’s fairly certain they can talk about. ]
What was your plan, after selling me to Naobito? Everyone was surprised when he named me heir in his will. Was that your doing?
[ There’s a couple of reasons, most of them are pretty petty but Toji is allowed to be validated considering his past with his clan. He leans forward, resting his elbow on his knee and shoving his chin in his hand to regard Megumi. ]
It was part of our agreement.
[ but he doesn’t answer the rest of the question. ]
Why would I be mad at you? You were already dead by then, weren't you? You'd been gone from my life for over a decade, I didn't expect that to change.
[ he waves the rabbits away, sits back on his hands to look up at toji in the eyes. ]
What's left of the clan is my responsibility now. If I'd known it would be... I'd have wanted to prepare for it. Figure out what people actually need, and not just the ones who have cursed energy — I'd want to carve out a space for Maki, who has Heavenly Restriction, and for Mai, who has cursed energy but not the kind the clan heads would've wanted.
It's a selfish thing to want, right? To just come into a family with so much history and change everything because I want to. But there is more to the world than me. There are people out there who deserve to live fairly, even if the world is unfair.
After Sukuna, I promised myself I'd live for others. Be someone who helped good people do good things, not just do what's expected of me.
[ megumi sighs. ]
They probably won't take me seriously, though. Or take me too seriously. I'm not sure which is worse.
[ He isn’t sure what he expected Megumi to say, but it wasn’t that. It wasn’t word for word the exact reason why Toji wanted that arrangement to be done. Although Megumi was a baby, he was born out of that fucked up mess, and Toji has faith that he could shape the estate into something else. Something better. Something where everyone could be treated equally, cursed energy or not; man or woman.
To hear it, though.
His tired eye grow ever slightly, each time Megumi rambles on, and Toji is certain he feels his heart jump. It’s pride. He’s proud. But also, he knew he was right about it and he loves being right about things.
Briefly, a small smile appears on his face as he looks away from Megumi and at the arena. The smile is gone in an instant. Megumi might miss it if he blinks. ]
That’s exactly why.
[ He doesn’t know who Maki is, but if she was in the same situation as him, he knows she was probably treated even worse than him. And Sukuna? He will have to revisit that. He knows that name from having to study about it.
But first, he has to bask in whatever euphoric feeling he has right now. His lips might even still be a little upturned in the corners. ]
[ he's still not sure he's built for this. he's still expecting — hoping — for gojo-sensei to help him, to guide him in this brand-new age of sorcery. he doesn't know what he's doing any better than he did months ago, when his biggest concern was keeping up with gojo-sensei's training, going on errands across the country while juggling homework.
the world is so much more confusing now. all the rules are different, and so are the people involved. it's an exciting, terrifying time, and megumi wishes he felt more secure of his place in it. ]
It'll be a lot of work. As I told you, a big part of the family's gone, so we're probably rebuilding from the ground up.
[ Happy and proud are weird and foreign feelings for him to experience, so it takes a moment to process that. Megumi asks a question and he doesn’t respond right away but then he finally tears his gaze away from the empty arena to regard his son. ]
[ megumi hopes that ends that particular line of argument; the shikigami answer to megumi, but they are their own beings. only the gyokuken are truly his, their forms born from his cursed energy, but the others have existed perhaps long before even the zen'in line came to prominence. he respects each one, and they serve him sincerely in return.
the datto are familiar with toji now, and they have a childish dislike against the man, so megumi herds the few he's called up to huddle next to him as he summons kon this time. quick, efficient gestures; the summoning is practically instinctual now. kon rises from the shadows like an eldritch being, all large and hulking with his tongue lolling out from between large, monstrous teeth.
megumi leans under the giant wolf-dog's chest, scratches him where the scruff thins out just a little leading to the underbelly. ]
I hope I didn't disturb your rest, [ megumi starts off, reaching up to scratch at the shikigami's neck now. ] I've got someone for you to meet.
This is Fushiguro-san. He's my father. [ kon... growls a little. ] Don't bite him, please.
[ then, to toji; ]
Hold out your hand. He's a shikigami, so it shouldn't really matter, but he behaves like a dog. I think that part's my fault.
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not today
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he couldn't let that happen to tsumiki. he couldn't let gojo satoru think he's weak-willed, either.
all that said, megumi did mean to train today, so that's what he's doing: going over his routines until his knuckles and palms are bleeding through the wraps, relishing in the fresh and mortal pain of hitting things with his hands and knowing they're his own.
after all, he needs to build his stamina and endurance up if he wants to keep up with yuji. ]
ACTION.
In the opposite side of his mouth from the scar, there’s a pretty big bruise that is still healing, skin still torn and swollen, but he doesn’t have any one to try and dress his wounds so he doesn’t bother.
Like before, he follows his nose and goes in whatever direction the food is gonna be at, whether it’s in the bleachers or somewhere else. ]
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so, he yelps a bit. ow. a shadow pool manifests on instinct under him so he doesn't accidentally torque a thigh muscle - or worse, a testicle - leg dipping in and rebalancing him. embarrassment is a big driving motivator for a teenager, though, so megumi lets himself fall straight in and just pop back up through his father's shadow.
pretend it's like, planned, or something. ]
You're actually here.
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I don’t waste food.
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Did you win?
[ whatever fight led to the bruise on toji's face, that is. ]
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I won the first fight.
Ask Gojo about the second fight.
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Only an idiot picks a fight with Gojo Satoru and expects to win more than once.
[ megumi hums as he finishes taping back his hands, flexing the fingers in different directions to see which parts pinch or pull. so far, so good. ]
Gojo-sensei's not so bad. He's loud and annoying, but he's just weird.
Did you hire babysitters?
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[ #facts
Toji knows better not to deal with Gojo a second time, especially when he’s not in the way of a job to be done. ]
What are you talking about?
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[ he's done it enough times. probably he should've done it a little more, or a little less. ]
Babysitters. Some guy who smokes? [ a small frown. ] You didn't smoke, especially not in the apartment. [ SHRUG ] I thought maybe that was because of you.
Maybe it's Ieiri-san, then. Ah, when did she quit...
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I did.
[ But Gojo managed to get a few hits in anyway because, well. It’s Gojo, and he’s even stronger than Toji remembers. ]
You think I had any money to hire any kind of babysitter? That person you’re referring to, his name is Shiu Kong. He’s Korean.
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[ please let him live. megumi had asked and gojo had done everything in his power to keep yuji alive. maybe... well, maybe not. things are fraught between them now. ]
Or maybe I shouldn't. I'm avoiding him, too.
Shiu Kong is your friend?
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[ Toji polishes off the last of the meal and runs his mouth along the back of his sleeve. He doesn’t care about Gojo. He never actually did. He was passive about the rivalry that his clan had against Gojo’s. The only reason he wanted to defeat him during his enlightenment was to prove to somebody— anybody— that he could actually do something despite not having any cursed energy. He definitely sounds bothered talking about Gojo anyway. ]
He’s not anymore.
[ which, whatever. Shiu didn’t want to keep working with him and Toji is trying to ignore the fact that it bothers him that Shiu is gone now, also. ]
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You could make new friends here if you want.
[ for want of something to do, and it's quickly becoming a crutch now, megumi summons a rabbit from the shadows. he doesn't use the summoning gestures anymore, just touching his fingertips where the shadow falls and pulling them up and out, easy as breathing. one rabbit, two rabbits, three. ]
Do I make you uncomfortable?
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He watches the rabbits appear with a tired expression. This kid just keeps asking the hard questions, but as shady as he is, he’s not much of a liar. ]
You do.
[ But it’s not because of who Megumi is. It even isn’t exactly the fact that he is Toji’s. It’s because being around Toji means he has some sort of responsibility, and he knows he is no good for that. ]
—But even so, I never wanted to do things that weren’t right for you.
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[ sorry for what? megumi frowns at himself, at the thought. there’s no reason for him to claim responsibility for his father’s discomfort; the man left, first of all, and hadn’t they agreed to give only what they were willing to give? they should only accept what they’re willing to accept, too.
but the fact remains that this man is megumi’s father. however it was that megumi came about, his existence requires fushiguro toji to exist first. ]
You don’t have to feel responsible for me anymore, if that’s what bothers you. I can take care of myself now.
[ so why am i here still?
one of the rabbits chirps up at him, questioning his mood. megumi covers its face with his palm and rubs down on its fur. he sighs, and dalls back on the one topic he’s fairly certain they can talk about. ]
What was your plan, after selling me to Naobito? Everyone was surprised when he named me heir in his will. Was that your doing?
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You ask too many goddamn questions.
[ that he was not prepared for. He was peacefully dead, and now he’s back to life and having to deal with all of this. He never asked for it!! ]
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It was part of our agreement.
[ but he doesn’t answer the rest of the question. ]
What? Do you not like it? You mad at me?
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[ he waves the rabbits away, sits back on his hands to look up at toji in the eyes. ]
What's left of the clan is my responsibility now. If I'd known it would be... I'd have wanted to prepare for it. Figure out what people actually need, and not just the ones who have cursed energy — I'd want to carve out a space for Maki, who has Heavenly Restriction, and for Mai, who has cursed energy but not the kind the clan heads would've wanted.
It's a selfish thing to want, right? To just come into a family with so much history and change everything because I want to. But there is more to the world than me. There are people out there who deserve to live fairly, even if the world is unfair.
After Sukuna, I promised myself I'd live for others. Be someone who helped good people do good things, not just do what's expected of me.
[ megumi sighs. ]
They probably won't take me seriously, though. Or take me too seriously. I'm not sure which is worse.
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To hear it, though.
His tired eye grow ever slightly, each time Megumi rambles on, and Toji is certain he feels his heart jump. It’s pride. He’s proud. But also, he knew he was right about it and he loves being right about things.
Briefly, a small smile appears on his face as he looks away from Megumi and at the arena. The smile is gone in an instant. Megumi might miss it if he blinks. ]
That’s exactly why.
[ He doesn’t know who Maki is, but if she was in the same situation as him, he knows she was probably treated even worse than him. And Sukuna? He will have to revisit that. He knows that name from having to study about it.
But first, he has to bask in whatever euphoric feeling he has right now. His lips might even still be a little upturned in the corners. ]
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[ he's still not sure he's built for this. he's still expecting — hoping — for gojo-sensei to help him, to guide him in this brand-new age of sorcery. he doesn't know what he's doing any better than he did months ago, when his biggest concern was keeping up with gojo-sensei's training, going on errands across the country while juggling homework.
the world is so much more confusing now. all the rules are different, and so are the people involved. it's an exciting, terrifying time, and megumi wishes he felt more secure of his place in it. ]
It'll be a lot of work. As I told you, a big part of the family's gone, so we're probably rebuilding from the ground up.
...Do you want to meet my shikigami?
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[ Happy and proud are weird and foreign feelings for him to experience, so it takes a moment to process that. Megumi asks a question and he doesn’t respond right away but then he finally tears his gaze away from the empty arena to regard his son. ]
They won’t like me.
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[ megumi hopes that ends that particular line of argument; the shikigami answer to megumi, but they are their own beings. only the gyokuken are truly his, their forms born from his cursed energy, but the others have existed perhaps long before even the zen'in line came to prominence. he respects each one, and they serve him sincerely in return.
the datto are familiar with toji now, and they have a childish dislike against the man, so megumi herds the few he's called up to huddle next to him as he summons kon this time. quick, efficient gestures; the summoning is practically instinctual now. kon rises from the shadows like an eldritch being, all large and hulking with his tongue lolling out from between large, monstrous teeth.
megumi leans under the giant wolf-dog's chest, scratches him where the scruff thins out just a little leading to the underbelly. ]
I hope I didn't disturb your rest, [ megumi starts off, reaching up to scratch at the shikigami's neck now. ] I've got someone for you to meet.
This is Fushiguro-san. He's my father. [ kon... growls a little. ] Don't bite him, please.
[ then, to toji; ]
Hold out your hand. He's a shikigami, so it shouldn't really matter, but he behaves like a dog. I think that part's my fault.
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🎀