Chapter Text
It started when Tsurugi and Yuka decided to explore the estate, laughing and shouting as they chased each other down the halls. Their grandparents’ home was massive, and it seemed like they discovered new oddities and treasures around every corner. Without anyone to watch over them, and bored of Tsurugi’s unchallenged victories across several fighting games, the siblings decided it was time to see what new secrets they could uncover. Soon enough, their adventures brought them to a new (and rather dusty) room nestled deep within the manor. Bookshelves aligned the walls: their contents covering centuries of history about jujutsu society. Among these seemingly ancient texts were collections of photos and paintings depicting several nameless sorcerers and locations. Tsurugi was mindlessly flipping through one of the texts, trying to make sense of the archaic text, when a surprised gasp from Yuka caused him to lift his head.
“Is everything okay?” he asked, carefully returning the book to the shelf before walking over to his sister.
Yuka turned to him with a smile, eyes glimmering with excitement. “Look, Tsurugi! I think I found a photo of grandma.” She thrust the photo in his face, shaking it up and down as if it would let him see better.
Carefully taking it from her, Tsurugi could see that Yuka seemed to be correct. It seemed to be an old picture of some students at the jujutsu school in Tokyo, the class gathered together in a group photo. Despite its age, the boy could make out a few figures from the group based on the little he knew about those days. The frowning teen with black hair was likely Megumi Fushiguro, the Ten Shadows user well known for his serious, reserved demeanor even back then. On his left, the cheery guy who was holding up two fingers behind the head of an orange haired girl was probably Yuji Itadori. While the siblings knew little about the legendary sorcerer, the few images they had seen looked identical to the wide eyed student in this picture. Tsurugi felt a little discomforted as he saw proof of the sorcerer’s unaging body.
Tearing his eyes away, the boy finally came to the girl Yuka had excitedly pointed to. Standing between a white haired boy and what seemed to be a giant panda bear, she certainly looked different. The glasses on her face were a little odd- not to mention the complete lack of any scars and injuries. But that iconic smirk, dark emerald hair, and fearless gaze couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else.
“She was so pretty!” Yuka had slid right next to Tsurugi, standing on her toes as she tried to look over his shoulder. “Sometimes I forget how awesome she is. I wonder if there’s any more photos here of her and grandpa when they were at school.”
Tsurugi was inclined to agree, smiling as he thought over all the stories they heard of her time dealing with countless disasters such as the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons or the Culling Games. He was about to pass the photo back when something suddenly caught his eye. Yuka must have noticed as well, tilting her head in confusion when he suddenly froze.
“Did you see something?” She asked hesitatingly, looking back at the photo. “Is there someone else we know there?”
Tsurugi swallowed the lump in his throat, lowering the picture so she could get a better view. “Maybe. I’m not too sure.” He pointed to another figure, drawing Yuka’s attention. “This person here. She looks a bit like grandma, doesn’t she?” The person in question was a few feet away from Maki, standing beside a tall and shredded man who stared at the camera with an intimidating grin. But even as she offered her own small wave and concealed smile, her attention seemed to be glued to their grandma. She had the same verdant hair, and though her body language wasn’t quite as confident, her eyes carried that same weight and intensity.
Yuka pondered the question for a moment, looking back and forth between both students. Finally, she let out a small hum, placing a finger to her chin in careful contemplation. “I guess they look pretty similar. Did grandma ever mention having a sibling?”
Tsurugi shook his head, eyes still glued to the photo. “I know there’s a few distantly related members from the Zen’in Clan, but she never talked about her own family.”
“Well, maybe we can ask later tonight!” Yuka took the photo, carefully folding the evidence before placing it in her pocket. “It’d be great to know more about them.”
Tsurugi nodded, following his sister out of the room. But as they walked out of the room, Tsurugi couldn’t stop the heavy sense of uncertainty on his shoulders.
It wouldn’t take long before his doubts were confirmed.
Shortly after their meal began, their grandparents innocently asked the siblings how they spent the day, listening intently as always with playful grins. Yuka led most of the discussion, Tusurgi offering an occasional comment or explanation in between each bite.
“It was tough reading some of the books. They all seemed really cool, though. But that’s when I opened up this old photo album and ended up finding this picture of you in school, grandma! We wanted to ask if you knew anything about this girl staring at you. You both look pretty similar!” Proudly, Yuka lifted the photo high in the air, swinging her legs under the table in excitement. Tsurugi, for his part, felt a small bead of sweat form on his forehead as he saw their smiles slowly fade. Yuka at least had the grace to quickly notice the change in the air, her joyful attitude cracking as she noticed their discomfort. Her gaze turned to the table, bashful as she slowly lowered the photo. “Did I do something wrong?”
Yuta, as always, broke the tension first. “No, no. You two did nothing wrong. We’re just surprised is all.” He smiled softly at Yuka, calmly gesturing for the photo. The girl, consoled a little bit by his assurances, passed it over to their grandfather for him to look over. He chuckled lightly as he took it in, finger tracing over everyone that was there. “It’s certainly been a while since those days. I still remember my first year attending school. It was the best and worst days of my life. Your grandma had her work cut out for her watching over me.”
Maki, still silently looking at the picture, smiled as they both recalled their time together. “That’s one way of putting it. I thought we were going to get eaten alive on our first mission together, if I didn’t go deaf from all your screaming. Still, you did learn pretty quickly.” Sighing, she took the photo from her husband, staring at the mysterious girl in the photo. She took a few moments staring at it, leaving Tsurugi and Yuka to look at each other in trepidation. Finally, Yuta took her hand carefully with his own, silently encouraging his wife as always. She turned to their grandchildren, eyes hiding what seemed to be a whirlwind of emotions. “Yes, this girl is called Mai. She is..was my sister.”
Tsurugi couldn’t stop himself from speaking up, dying to know more. “We didn’t know you had a sister. Did she...pass away?”
“A while ago. Shortly after this photo, in fact,” Maki calmly answered. She placed the photo down, not looking at it again. “My sister and I had a hard life growing up in our clan. It was difficult seeing eye to eye, balancing between what we wanted and what our families desired from us. Shortly before the Culling Games, the clan fell into turmoil over who would lead, and I had to fight to escape. Mai...didn’t make it. I tried to save her but, instead, she died to protect me. I wouldn’t have made it out if it wasn’t for her sacrifice.”
“Maki,” Yuta softly spoke, never letting go of his grip. “It’s okay if you don’t want to share everything now.”
“I know,” she answered calmly, squeezing his hand. Maki turned back to the kids, the two leaning forward in their seats as they listened to her story. “I’d prefer not to go over everything that happened right now. Besides, it is not a story appropriate for children. But when you’re older, I think we would be ready to tell you more. I just want you to know that she was strong, and brave, and I wish she could have met you both.”
Yuka and Tsurugi looked at each other once again, both silently communicating what they wanted to ask. Finally, the former turned back to their grandparents once more. “If you don’t mind, we would love to know more about her.”
“Or even what kind of food did she like? What dresses did she prefer to wear?” Yuka suggested. “Maybe we have something in common!”
Maki nodded, smiling at the children alongside her husband. “Of course.”
The four spent hours at that table, food forgotten as they talked about Mai. When it was finally time for bed- exhausted from a long series of questions and answers- Maki noticed the two siblings clutching each other’s hand tightly as they exited the table. As Tsurugi made sure to lead his nearly asleep sister away, the half asleep girl leaning on his shoulder, Maki smiled at the cute display. It seemed, at least, that this pair of siblings would be able to look after each other.
“That’s what it means to be an older brother. Right, Maru?”
Even now, Tsurugi wondered how everything could fall apart so quickly. For a while, he genuinely believed they could find a way to stop the fight. He spent several sleepless nights tossing and turning in bed, hoping for a miracle. First: that Cross would eventually wake up. He would recover from his injuries, still determined to maintain peace between both societies despite the injustice that was committed against him. Then, when that failed to materialize, he wished that the duel could somehow be called off. The Simurians would suddenly decide to leave Earth, and find some other part of the galaxy to settle in. But now…
“And what about Cross!”
Despite his aggressive command and determined stance, Tsurugi understood his opponent’s refusal. Maru and Cross were siblings, family. The only people they had left to look after each other. Maru needed to find a home for them to be safe and live without fear. He needed to stand up for his people. To fight and ensure that the Simurians would find a path forward together against the cold indifference of the world.
It was everything Maru could ever want for Cross.
It was everything Tsurugi wanted for Yuka.
The teen wonders deep in his subconscious if this was how Maki felt. A lone sorcerer hopeless and powerless to stop what was coming but still desperate to save their family at any cost. He wonders how long she carried that sadness and regret over her failure to protect Mai. How many times had she repeated those events over and over in her head? Imagining some timeline where she and Mai could live together and Yuka and Tsurugi meet their great aunt. He wonders what she would give up if it meant Mai could have just a few extra days of peace.
He wonders, suddenly overcome with a sense of overwhelming doom, if he could still give Yuka that same kindness.
Maybe being a sibling was a curse: forced to watch one’s family wither away in front of them until only a few memories remained. Maybe there was no way to save her.
He still had to try, right?
It’s a last desperate wish from one sibling to another. A futile and worthless last minute prayer.
But it’s enough for him to draw his blade.