6

When they departed from the Gojo clan compound in the morning, it had been a quiet affair. Similarly, when they return in the evening, it's equally quiet –but as soon as they pass through the gates, there is a servant who approaches them. The young woman bows politely and passes on a simple message:

"Daisaku-sama wishes to see you, Kansuke-sama. Ima-sama has been called for as well."

Ima-san is clearly nervous and fretful as she leaves, though she tries to hide it. On the other hand, Kansuke-san does not show any signs of being unsettled by the impromptu summons at all. But perhaps he had been prepared for this eventuality, given what he'd tried to pull off by taking Shiki to the Kamo Clan.

Would he be punished for what he tried to do? Praised for it? Shiki doesn't know. She doesn't know if she can rely on the Gojo Clan. So…

"Kansuke-san."

It's the first time that Shiki has addressed the man directly. He pauses mid-stride, then turns around to face her. Like most people these days, he does not hold her gaze for long. But it's amazing how he can still smile so pleasantly at her, as if there is nothing wrong in the least. And perhaps there isn't, in his mind. Perhaps from Kansuke-san's perspective, he was only trying to help Lady Kamo Matsuhime, and that was all that mattered. But even so…

"Ah, Shiki. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No," she responds. She's had quite enough of this man's 'help,' she thinks. "… Kansuke-san. There won't be a second time."

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean," he says kindly, crouching down to meet her. As if she is a child who doesn't know any better. The man even smiles at her, a soft expression. "Now if you'll excuse me, Daisaku-sama is calling, and I really must take my leave–"

Shiki ignores his excuses.

Instead, she simply reaches out her hand. With a single finger, she wordlessly traces the red line winding down the side of his face, crossing over his jugular, ending directly upon his chest.

She doesn't carve into it. Doesn't cut. Considers it for a moment, certainly, but doesn't act upon the impulse. Instead, Shiki merely presses down with her fingertip, feather-light and so very gentle.

Kansuke-san freezes rigidly at her touch, and this time when he looks at her again, there is a dawning realization in his eyes. Something akin to outright panic. Terror.

"There won't be a second time," Shiki repeats quietly, perfectly calm. "Do you understand me?"

"… Y-yes, my lady."

Shiki doesn't trust the Gojo Clan to protect her. It's bad enough that she's been separated from Kento-ojichan and placed under Ima-san's custody. Nearly being handed over to the Kamo Clan? It would've only been trading one cage for another –except that she doubts that the Kamo Clan's cage for her would have Satoru-oniichan checking in on her, or any visits from Kento-ojichan.

She doesn't trust the Gojo Clan to protect her.

So she'll have to take steps to protect herself.

… Shiki may not have asked for the ability to see deathly red lines wherever she looks, but she finds that she's not above using this newfound ability to protect herself, even when it's supposed to only be meant for exorcising curses.

Is she going overboard, threatening Kansuke-san like this? If she stops to think about it… it isn't as if he actually tried to kill her, or anything. Merely attempted to trade her away to the Kamo Clan, as if she were an object or even less, and his efforts were ultimately unsuccessful in the end. On the other hand, Shiki's ability literally allowed her to see the death of things. So deliberately threatening Kansuke-san with his own death like this for what he did is… is…

… disproportionate, in terms of a response. Unsuitable? Inappropriate?

But how else does Shiki possibly make a grown-up man like Kansuke-san listen to her and take her seriously? How can she make him stop? … How can she prevent others from acting as Kansuke-san had today in the future?

Shiki doesn't know. All she knows is that there are no cards in her hands for her to play –Shiki only has her eyes. These cursed eyes that the Gojo Clan is so invested in. To the Gojo Clan, Shiki's only worth is in these cursed blue eyes.

… She wonders how much Kansuke-san is worth.

Does this make her a bad person? Would Kento-ojichan be upset with her, if he knew that her mind was filled with such thoughts? … It's a distinct possibility. Would her parents be disappointed in her, if they were still alive?

Shiki doesn't know. She doesn't want to know.

(Because in her heart, she already knows the answer.)

.

.

"Shiki!"

The little girl doesn't quite flinch, but it's a close thing. As much as she had been looking forward to this moment through the haze of these last few days, she still can't help the reflexive jolt of fear, shame, that wells up in her chest upon hearing his voice.

"… Kento-ojichan," she whispers, slowly lowering the wooden training sword clenched tightly in her hands. Shiki misses him. She wants to see him. She doesn't want him to be here. She wants to hug him. She doesn't want him to touch her. She wants–

Warm hands gently grasp her by the shoulders, and Kento-ojichan carefully draws her into a gentle hug. For some reason, this is what becomes the final straw for Shiki. She lets her wooden sword clatter to the floorboards, wholly forgotten, as instead her fingers curl themselves into the dark fabric of the young man's school uniform. The little girl blinks rapidly, eyes watering most inconveniently in this moment.

Why is she crying? She shouldn't be. There's no reason for Shiki to cry, not when she hasn't been hurt, not when anything has even really happened to her, in the end. And yet, in this moment when her uncle drops to his knees and hugs her… somehow, something in her eyes stings inexplicably regardless. As if the emotional impact of everything that's occurred over these past few days has finally caught up to her, hitting her all at once.

(But still, the tears do nothing to dull the ominous glow of the ever-present red lines that she sees. The entire world remains covered in scarlet lines heralding death.)

For a moment, Kento-ojichan's arms draw closer around her, as if to reassure himself that Shiki is standing here alive and well. Then, he whirls around accusingly. "You said that she'd be safe!"

"And she still is, isn't she?" Satoru-oniichan's voice sounds from the side, unfazed. "Everything worked out just fine in the end."

"Gojo," Kento-ojichan growls, frustrated. "That's not what you–! You said the Gojo Clan would be safe for her!"

Her cousin sighs, dropping the cheerful front. "… Yeah, I did. Rest assured, I'll be having words with some of my clansmen over this. Ugh."

Kento-ojichan's jaw clenches. "She's only six. How could they…?"

"How could they try to stick a betrothal on her when she's only a kid?" Satoru-oniichan shrugs. "Unfortunately, most of the jujutsu world is pretty backwards. Some arranged marriages are made at ages as young as, what. Four or five?"

"… Arranged marriages, really? In this day and age?"

"What can I say? The old fogies like their traditional marriage alliances." The white-haired teen flashes them a sharp, humorless smile. "Should've known that there'd be shortsighted idiots who go ahead and try to do stupid things on their own, though. It's not going to happen again."

It's a confident declaration, said with such surety that Shiki wants to believe it. She does, really. But when she'd been standing in the middle of the Kamo clan compound, facing down Kamo Matsuhime-sama on her own, holding her ground even when the older woman's eyes were alight with cold fury for the insult she'd given…

When things come down to it, only you will be able to protect yourself.

… This time, it was an almost-betrothal against her will. What would it be next? The assassinations that Shiki had been repeatedly warned to expect coming her way?

The little girl bites her tongue.

"I… I still don't understand," her young uncle mutters under his breath. "Ima went along with this? I know she's never been on particularly good terms with our family, but Shiki is her niece. How could she just…?"

"Ima-san was pressured into it," Shiki offers quietly. It's not so much an excuse as it is the honest truth of why the woman stood aside without a fight.

Satoru-oniichan clicks his tongue, "Sounds to me like maybe we should think about switching a different guardian for Shiki here. Hah, and the Tobiume have been so proud of themselves lately, too!"

Kento-ojichan frowns, "'Tobiume?'"

"Eh? You don't know?"

"No." Kento-ojichan hesitates for a moment, gaze flickering down towards Shiki briefly, "My… my brother-in-law disliked speaking of his family to us. He was never very forthcoming on the topic, we were only aware that he was a member of a branch family in the Gojo Clan."

"Hmm," Satoru-oniichan hums consideringly. "Okay, fair enough, I suppose. So, there are multiple lines in the Gojo Clan –the Tobiume lineage is your brother-in-law's branch of the family, and the one that Shiki technically belongs to by birth. They were actually on the verge of getting their status as one of the named lineages revoked entirely, until Shiki here showed up."

"Until Shiki…?" The blond teen makes a sound of understanding, "Ah, yes. Her eyes, I take it?"

"Ding ding! Got it in one," Satoru-oniichan grins humorlessly. "The Tobiume went just a few too many generations without seeing any actual sorcerers. You'd think that would mean they'd know to take good care of the one kid with potential that they have, right?"

A disgruntled look crosses over Kento-ojichan's face at this. "I'd hope that Ima would care for Shiki because she's her niece, not because of your clan politics."

"Really, the best scenario would be both. Best to make sure there's an incentive for her to be good to Shiki as insurance, yeah?" Satoru-oniichan waves his hand. "Gojo Ima is currently the head of the Tobiume. It would certainly be nice if she cared for the kid because she loved her, but let's be realistic here–"

"Gojo!"

"It's fine, Kento-ojichan. He's right," Shiki says simply, tugging gently at the dark cuff of Kento-ojichan's sleeve. It's… touching, that her uncle immediately tried to head off Satoru-oniichan's words the instant he realized where they were headed, in an attempt to try and spare her feelings. But that didn't really matter. After all, Shiki was well aware of Ima-san's attitude towards her, and why. "I know perfectly well why Ima-san took me from the hospital. Because of my eyes, right? If I didn't have these eyes, then she wouldn't have spared a second glance my way. I've known that from the start."

Her voice is soft, her words quiet. Regardless, there's still something distinctly pained in her uncle's eyes, as he looks down towards her.

"… It shouldn't be like this," he says, and he's right. It shouldn't be.

(Shiki should be dead.)

"I'm okay, Kento-ojichan," Shiki smiles. Or tries to, at least, hurriedly wiping away at her still-watery eyes. "I… I'm sorry for crying. It's not… it wasn't even scary. I was never in any danger the entire time. But I still… I just…"

Her tongue ties itself into knots. Why is she crying?

"You don't have to apologize," Kento-ojichan sighs quietly. "If anything, I should be the one who's sorry. I know it's been hard for you, all this time."

… Has it been hard for her? Ever since coming to live with the Gojo Clan, Shiki has had her every need taken care of. Food, clothes, education… even if the education involves learning how to wield a sword and use cursed energy. But that's because the Gojo Clan trains sorcerers, and one day Shiki will be a sorcerer just like Kento-ojichan. And so the Gojo Clan trains her. Takes care of her. There shouldn't be anything for Shiki to complain about, and yet…

And yet, what is this feeling in her chest? Something tight, twisting. A sensation of being helpless, wronged, even though there shouldn't be anything for Shiki to truly be upset over. After all, she's perfectly fine, isn't she? And Gojo Kansuke wouldn't try something like this again. She'd warned him off–

… She'd warned him off by threatening to kill him.

"Shiki?"

"I'm sorry," she whispers automatically, reflexively. "I'm sorry, I didn't… I wasn't… I just needed Kansuke-san to listen to me."

Kento-ojichan appears confused by her sudden incoherence. Satoru-oniichan, on the other hand, seems to understand exactly what she's trying to articulate, and merely nods before asking a single question.

"Is there a body that we need to hide?"

"Wait, what?" Kento-ojichan straightens, alarmed.

"No!" Shiki jolts and shakes her head rapidly. "I didn't use my technique to kill anyone!"

"What?"

… Actually wait, no, that's not right. She'd used her technique to kill that cat-curse, hadn't she? No, no, curses didn't count as people! Technically she still didn't kill anyone!

"Oh? Is that hesitation I see?" Satoru-oniichan snaps his fingers, "Don't worry, I promise it's fine if you did! Your favorite cousin will make sure it's just passed off as an accident–"

"Hold on just a minute here," Kento-ojichan grits out. "What's this about killing? Didn't you say that she wasn't in any danger?!"

"I wasn't! There wasn't any danger!" Shiki tries to explain. "It was just a curse–"

Her uncle whirls on her cousin with a thunderous expression. "She exorcised a curse?"

Satoru-oniichan smiles disarmingly in response.

"Gojo, you absolute–"

"Kento-ojichan, it's fine! It was a weak curse, it just looked really big," Shiki tugs at his sleeve, attempting to draw her uncle's attention back to her so she can finish explaining. "It's not the first one I've killed! The stronger ones usually have this sort of heavy pressure to them, and this one wasn't like that at all–"

The blond teen holds up a single hand in a clear sign for stop, looking increasingly upset for some reason. "Shiki. Are you saying that the Gojo Clan has been having you exorcise curses already?"

The little girl blinks. Is that a trick question?

"… Yes?" Shiki hesitates. "Kento-ojichan, isn't… isn't that what my eyes are supposed to be for?"

Kento-ojichan nods calmly. Then, he turns towards Satoru-oniichan, "And just when were you going to tell me this?"

Her cousin blinks, nonplussed. "You're overreacting, Nanami. Yes, the clan has asked her to kill curses, but that was more for the sake of determining the specifics and limitations of her technique. Testing her eyes. So far, it seems that she doesn't have any trouble seeing lines on curses up to Grade Two. We still haven't exactly had the opportunity to test out a Grade One or Special Grade yet –kidding, kidding! Geez, get that scary look off of your face."

If looks could kill, Satoru-oniichan would already be six feet under. "This isn't a joking matter, Gojo. It doesn't matter that she has some rare ocular jujutsu, she's still only six! I didn't put up a fight because you said your clan would take care of Shiki. But it's barely been a month, and she's been exorcising curses and nearly sold off into an arranged marriage. How can you possibly expect me to be alright with any of that?!"

Kento-ojichan sounds… uncharacteristically angry, and it makes Shiki vaguely uneasy. Unsettled. She's not used to seeing her calm, level-headed uncle like this. She doesn't quite understand his anger, either, although she understands enough to know that it's not aimed at her, thankfully.

Luckily, it seems that Satoru-oniichan knows how to handle the situation.

"Okay, so, first of all," her white-haired cousin raises a finger, "Like I've mentioned before. Exposing her to curses of varying levels was a reasonable test to determine if the grade of a curse affects her technique or not. This was done under a controlled environment, with the clan's other sorcerers present to subdue the curse in question. The clan isn't going to risk a new ocular jujutsu, trust me. At no point was she under any real danger."

Satoru-oniichan pauses for a moment. "Yes, sometimes the clan will make you fight curses as part of your training, but that's usually way later down the line. Shiki here shouldn't have had to fight and exorcise her first curse until at least a few more months of training… although that might be subject to change now, since she just KO'd a Semi-Grade Three Curse on her own the other day without a scratch."

At that, Kento-ojichan glances quickly towards her, eyes wide. "You… you exorcised a Semi-Grade Three?"

Shiki shrugs noncommittally. She hadn't known what grade the cat-curse was when she'd killed it. It sounds about right, though.

Satoru-oniichan raises a second finger and continues, "Secondly. Nanami-kun, my adorable little kouhai. Even if you put up a fight, you're still not going to be able to get custody of Shiki from the Gojo Clan. I think we all know why that's not very likely. But… the mess with the Kamo Clan is definitely something that shouldn't have happened. There are no excuses for that. It shouldn't have happened in the first place, and it certainly won't happen again."

Kento-ojichan's hands clench into white-knuckled fists at his sides. Concerned, Shiki reaches out to take one of his hands with her own, carefully avoiding the prominent glow of eerie red lines as she does so. There's something in Kento-ojichan's countenance that softens at her touch, although there's no hiding the frustration in his eyes.

"I… I know there's nothing I can feasibly do," the young teen hangs his head. "Damn it all, I just–"

"Language!" Satoru-oniichan sing-songs loudly.

Kento-ojichan lets out an explosive exhale and raises a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "… My apologies. It's… maddening, knowing that things like this are happening to Shiki and I can't do anything about it. I..."

"Right, and this is where your favorite senpai here comes in!" Her cousin stretches himself lazily, like a cat. "So, I'm thinking that going forward we'll have to make it a little more obvious that messing with Shiki here is going to be a Bad Idea, yes? Wanna start with hiding Kansuke's body?"

"… There's no body to hide," Shiki replies after a stilted pause, finally recognizing her cousin's teasing for what it is. "I wouldn't cut Kansuke-san's lines for what he did, it's not… I wouldn't do that."

"Well, that's good to hear. But you did do something to Kansuke, right?" Satoru-oniichan props a hand under his chin. "C'mon, spill. I know most of my clansmen think Old Daisaku is scary, but he's not that scary. I hear that he literally hasn't left his house since returning from the Kamo Clan and getting chewed out for what he did. Care to explain?"

Shiki shifts uneasily, doing her best not to look at Kento-ojichan. "I… I told Kansuke-san that there wouldn't be a second time."

"And…?" Satoru-oniichan coaxes leadingly.

"And… I…" Why are the words fumbling over themselves on her tongue right now? Shiki certainly hadn't had a problem with going ahead and threatening Kansuke-san at the time, had she? So why are these words so hard to say, in this moment? "I traced the lines on him. Just a little bit! And I didn't cut him at all, I just… I needed to make sure that he listened."

"Huh," Satoru-oniichan raises a hand to his chin, a thoughtful pose. "Okay, yeah, in that case I see why he'd want to lay low for a while, then."

Kento-ojichan frowns, "… I get the feeling that I'm missing something here."

"Eh?" Satoru-oniichan tilts his head. "Nah, just admiring Shiki's self-control. Good thing, too. It'd probably be a little harder to get the elders to cooperate with us if we have to do it in wake of a funeral."

"A fune-… Gojo. What are you implying?"

Ah, that's right. That's… right. Kento-ojichan still doesn't… Shiki had never filled him in on the particular details regarding her technique. Her eyes. The red lines represent death. She'd been scared of the implications of such a thing, and even though she'd been able to talk things through with Satoru-oniichan the other day, she hadn't had a chance to broach the topic with Kento-ojichan yet. And now Kento-ojichan was looking at her with an expression of faint alarm, but underneath that alarm was concern, and Shiki–

"My technique," she says haltingly. Satoru-oniichan's words drift across the forefront of her mind. Nanami isn't the type of person who'd turn his back on you or treat you differently just for something like a dangerous technique. "It's not… it's not exactly what the elders are saying. The lines, they're not like your Ratio Technique, Kento-ojichan. They…"

Say it. Just say it!

"They represent death," Shiki finally manages to get out. Even though she's quietly acknowledged this in her mind, somehow, saying it aloud like this makes everything feel more… real. It's rather daunting, to say the least. "It's not just manifesting a weakness that can be physically struck and broken. Anything that's cut along the lines… dies."

Beginning and end, open and close. Despite appearances, the lines don't actually represent an object's flaws and imperfections, contrary to what the clan's elders have proclaimed. There's more to the red lines than that, Shiki knows this. Death, expressed as scarlet lines.

"Death…?" A quiet intake of breath. Kento-ojichan reaches out to her with a hesitant hand, a hand split neatly in half by a crimson line, and it's all Shiki can do to keep herself still as her uncle… draws her into a hug again?

Why?

"… Kento-ojichan?" Shiki asks tentatively, confused. She gets a pat on the shoulder, before Kento-ojichan turns towards Satoru-oniichan once more.

"You're certain of this?"

"Well, even if that's not precisely what her technique is, it's still close enough that the end result of her technique is effectively the same thing," her cousin responds, tapping lightly at the edge of his dark sunglasses for emphasis. Right, his Six Eyes are sharp enough to observe details easily overlooked by others. "They might look similar on the surface, but it really is an entirely different beast compared to your Ratio Technique, Nanami-kun."

Kento-ojichan nods. Then, his attention returns to Shiki. "Does it hurt?"

Does it hurt?

Shiki pauses, startled. It's –it's the first time she's been asked this sort of question, regarding her technique. Kento-ojichan's first concern isn't 'What are the limitations of her ability,' nor is it 'How should we maximize her combat effectiveness.'

Does it hurt, Kento-ojichan asks her, and Shiki is struck by the sudden urge to start crying again.

She doesn't, of course. Crying means that there's something wrong, and –and there's nothing wrong wrong, so Shiki rubs desperately at her eyes and determinedly tries not to sniffle. Kento-ojichan already has enough to worry about on his plate, between his studies and the looming pressure from the Gojo Clan. The last thing he needs is to be worrying about Shiki on top of all of this, too.

"It doesn't hurt," she tells him. Her voice trembles lightly, shaking, but Shiki clears her throat and tries to steady her words. It's not a lie, not really. Yes, sometimes she has a bit of a mild headache from seeing all the lines and it's hard to focus, but it's really nothing. Breathe. Be calm. You don't want Kento-ojichan to worry, right?

"That's good," Kento-ojichan says quietly. "I… I can't even imagine what it would be like, seeing something like this all the time. And you said that you see them on everything, too?"

Shiki nods mutely.

Her uncle sighs, a heavy sound. For a moment Shiki wonders if he's going to be like the tutors she's had, who alternate between preaching to her that all life is precious, and telling her to use her technique to kill all curses. She wonders if he's going to tell her that what she did to Gojo Kansuke was wrong. If he's going to–

"Promise me you'll be careful?"

Oh.

Oh, that's…

Kento-ojichan smiles a little wryly at her, as if he has already guessed the general direction of Shiki's thoughts. "You have a good heart, Shiki. Just… keep in mind that your technique isn't one that has room for any regrets, so… be careful, please. Promise me that, will you?"

Shiki is silent for a moment. "That day, after coming back from the Kamo Clan. I… could've killed Kansuke-san."

"Yes," her uncle responds patiently. Steady, calm, and with no trace of any judgment. "But you didn't, did you?"

"No, I didn't." The little girl pauses. "I wasn't really going to cut his lines. But… I thought about it, at the time. And… not just Kansuke-san, either. I've thought about it for other things, too. Objects, people. Not just curses. That's… bad, isn't it?"

"Oh, I don't know," Satoru-oniichan comments breezily from the side. "Pretty sure Nanami here has half a mind to murder Kansuke himself–"

"Gojo, you're not helping," Kento-ojichan slants an irritated look at the older teen. Satoru-oniichan raises his hands harmlessly in a clear gesture of surrender, still smiling. The blond teen shakes his head, then turns back towards the young girl staring up at him, "Shiki. Having such thoughts is one thing; acting upon them is another. That you can recognize it yourself if it's right or wrong for you to use your technique… remember that feeling."

The little girl nods silently.

"But," Kento-ojichan continues quietly, a note of something much more grave to the cadence of his next words, "If… if there ever comes a day when you find yourself in a dire situation, if it's you or the other person… Shiki. Promise me that you'll live."

Promise me that you'll be careful. Promise me that you'll live.

By all rights, Shiki should be dead, just like her parents. She should be dead. But Kento-ojichan is hugging her, telling her to be careful and to live, and… really, there is only one response that Shiki can give to him.

"I promise, Kento-ojichan," she says softly.

Shiki's technique is, at its core, the ability to kill things. To kill anything she sees. There's no middle ground, no in-between. Anything that's cut along the glowing red lines, dies.

Her technique makes killing easy, but something deep inside her still recognizes that killing really shouldn't be as easy as it is. This realization wars against her burgeoning instincts, but even though it makes everything so confusing, Shiki also knows that this isn't something she can compromise on. Kento-ojichan has said as much, just now. And Shiki… Shiki doesn't want to disappoint him. So…

"I promise."

.