---please read beginning author 's note----

Surprisingly, Maki wants to stay in Japan.

And not

just

Japan.

Tokyo,

even. Toji was a little wary of that, but Yuki assured him that she 'd keep the two of them under the Zen 'in clan 's radar; she had, after all, done the same for him over the past two years. Toji couldn 't really argue with that, and he wasn 't about to deny Maki what she wanted.

Especially

after everything she 's been through.

The two of them go house-hunting the day after the special grade incident, and Maki falls in love with the first apartment they visit. It 's the second-to-the-corner suite on the third floor of a mid-rise complex. Large, sprawling windows beckon natural light onto the polished wooden floors, reflecting off the dark-speckled marble tile in the kitchen until the surface almost looks liquid. What 's advertised as a third bedroom has been converted into an office by the previous tenants, but Toji 's sure he and Maki will repurpose it for training. He can see it in her eyes, the way she 's already drawing up a blueprint for where she 'll put the mirrors and a weapons closet, maybe a punching bag or two while they 're at it.

It 's just to the left of the Tokyo-Saitama prefectural divide, fairly close to the Arakawa river. It 's not quite the city and not quite the suburbs, busy enough that the area is lively but quiet enough to make it feel safe. There 's a quaint market a few doors down, along with a smattering of cafes and other little shops. A bus stop is at the end of their block and a train station is just a bit further. The roads are tidy and well-kept, perfect for riding bikes. A bridge arcs across the river about half a kilometer away.

While the place itself is nice, Toji 's convinced what sold his daughter is the view. The intricate silhouette of Tokyo 's metropolitan skyline is etched onto the furthest edge of their eyesight, just before the geometric cityscape dips below the earth 's curvature. They visit in the early evening, when the sun has just begun to melt into the river and its light seeps across the gentle waves, dyeing the cobalt water a striking emerald-gold. Dense foliage decorates the banks of the sidewalks in a palette of vibrant greens and colors of life. The city 's own version of wildlife, from a family of mandarin ducks, a dray of squirrels, and a pair of swans, seem to have made their homes in the surrounding area. Maki 's eyes watch in captivated wonder as the two majestic white birds pass by their window, and Toji knows she 's gone.

There 's no way in hell he can afford it, but Maki gives him one pleading look and that 's it for him. He signs the papers before the realtor can finish his sales pitch. He 'll figure something out. He always does.

His eye twitches at his signature. It 's weird to be using his fake name again, and his substitute surname is even weirder. They can 't use

Zen 'in;

not when the clan thinks both of them are dead. For the moment, they 're using Yuki 's. There 's no way they could 've passed a background check for anywhere worth living without a connection to an actual nonfictional person.

It 's just pretend, but a guy taking his wife 's last name? That 'd be something.

Moving takes a grand total of fifteen minutes. Maki couldn 't go back to the Zen 'in family compound to get any of her belongings -- not that she 'd even wanted to. Toji had about two suitcases of stuff worth keeping, one of which was full of weapons. The realtor eyes the suspiciously jagged shapes barely concealed beneath the thin black fabric, but ultimately looked like he decided not to pay it too much mind. He seems to care more about making the sale than who he 's renting the place to.

Fortunately, the apartment comes mostly furnished. Toji thanks whoever 's up there for that, considering his pockets are already hemorrhaging cash. His bank account needs a trip to the emergency room, stat. It doesn 't look like his wallet is gonna make it.

Once the realtor leaves, Toji and Maki flop back onto the ivory couch in perfect sync, surprisingly plush pillows cushioning their short fall.

'Welcome home, kid, ' Toji sighs with a grin.

'Yeah, ' Maki replies softly. 'Home. '

They fish out one of the movies Toji got for her birthday -- Maki

insisted

that he keep them, bless her heart -- and it clicks into the DVD player. They get through about half an hour of it before Maki falls asleep on his shoulder. He wraps her up in the throw blanket that came with the couch and tucks her into her new bed, mentally adding

'blankets and pillows '

to the frighteningly-long list of things he needs to buy.

He shuffles into his own room shortly after and topples onto his mattress; this one doesn 't squeak like his old one did, and gone is the musk of alcohol. His old pillows didn 't make the '

keep '

list, so he balls up his favorite sweatshirt and buries his face in that instead.

He 's not sure when he falls asleep, but it 's not for long. Sometime around midnight, just past when the rows of streetlights have flickered off and a hush has fallen over the neighborhood, a rustling in the doorway pulls the rest from Toji 's eyes. He blinks, vision still spotty, and he 's about to sit up -- until something curls up at the foot of his bed.

Is that '?

Toji hears a blanket rumple as Maki tucks herself in on the floor. His whole body paralyzes as he racks his brain wondering what the fuck to do. He still barely knows how to parent, but he knows enough to realize that if Maki wanted him awake for something, then she probably would 've woken him up.

...probably.

What the hell is she doing? Sure, it 's a nice place, but the floor

can 't

be comfortable. Toji might be kind of an idiot, but even he 's not dumb enough to not pick up that the only reason she 'd come here is that she wanted to be near him.

A part of himself that twists his guts to acknowledge whispers that maybe, Maki is doing this because she 's finally not alone.

Still, getting up would be a risk he can 't take. He 's not about to spook her off less than twelve hours since they moved here.

Then Maki sniffles, and all bets go out the window.

Toji sits up slowly to avoid startling her; but it 's dark, and the moment she sees a shadow undulating from the corner of the room, her eyes flash like a deer caught in the headlights of a truck.

'Toji! ' she says. She looks jolted, or maybe embarrassed. 'Did I wake you up? '

Toji gives her a sleepy grin. 'Nah, you 're fine. ' He hoists her up off the floor and tugs the blanket around her shoulders, and her brows knit with concern. He treks over to the couch and sits the two of them down, unpausing the old movie but setting the volume to the lowest level to serve as background noise.

Then Maki curls up next to him, and he can 't help the smile that spreads across his face at that. He 's perfectly fine being a pillow until he has the chance to buy real ones.

He wakes back up long before Maki does. It 's still stupidly early in the morning, but this Toji knows because of delicate birds chirping at the rising sun, not the racket of morning traffic and puffs of smog creeping in past his taped-shut window. Yeah, this new place is gonna take a

while

to get used to, but he 's kinda looking forward to it.

He heads down to the market to check the place out. Everyone in the store looks neatly groomed and chipper despite it being -- he checks the wall clock.

Seven fucking thirty?!

Toji knows he must stick out like a sore thumb, with his rumpled bed-head and old shirt that 's way too tight on him. Still, there 's a couple of women that are trying

very

hard to pretend they 're not staring at him, and Toji smirks at that. Heh. Still got it.

He picks up a few basics -- some milk, eggs, cereal -- he 's gotta feed his kid

something,

even if he barely knows how to cook. Whatever, he 'll figure it out on the fly. Can 't be that hard, right?

...wrong.

The previous tenants left behind some cookware, so Toji breaks them out to make Maki some eggs. Minutes later, they 're nothing but a charred black substance that probably needs to be exorcised. Great, breakfast is off to a magnificent start.

Toji thinks there must be an extremely small subset of human beings who can defeat a special grade curse but can 't fry an egg, and he 's definitely a part of it. For some inexplicable reason, he gets the weird feeling that there 's only one other man in this category with him, though he couldn 't say who.

Christ, he 's just praying this doesn 't set off the fire alarm. At least this place actually

has

one. Toji 's pretty sure the smoke detector at his old place was a paper plate taped to the ceiling.

Maki trudges into the kitchen, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. 'What 's burning in here? '

'Uh, ' Toji begins. He looks at the flaky substance that 's probably permanently bonded to the bottom of the pan by now. 'Eggs? '

Maki chuckles and shakes her head. 'Why are you like this? '

Toji barks out a laugh.

Little spitfire.

'Good morning to you too, ' he snorts. 'Sorry ya didn 't sleep great. I 'll get some bedding and other stuff for the place today. '

In response, Maki blinks up at him. 'Can I come? '

It almost hurts that she feels like she has to ask. He ruffles her hair, and she only looks a

little

annoyed. 'Course ya can. It 'll be loads of fun, I swear. '

...he might also need a bit of help. The tag on the blanket from the couch boasted

'1000 thread count, '

and yeah, Toji doesn 't even know what that means. That thing

had

to have more than a thousand threads, right? It 's a whole damn blanket.

The reason behind it is kinda heartbreaking, but Maki is impressively good at running errands. After they 've taken the bus to a nearby department store, Maki darts through the shelves like a girl on a mission, checking off items from their shopping list one by one. Soon, their cart is piled high with home necessities, from pillows to towels to cutlery. Maki doesn 't even look at the prices; probably a force of habit, with the Zen 'in clan 's treasure troves of cash. Toji doesn 't have it in him to tell her to slow down. His account balance is already so far in the red it 's like he slaughtered it. With all the splurging they did today, the comparison isn 't too far off.

Still, it 's mostly

(mostly)

easy to put out of his mind once he sees how much fun she 's having. They 've never actually spent a full day together before now.

'What do you usually do during the day? ' she asks, as if reading his thoughts. Creepy.

'Oh, y 'know, ' Toji stutters, and

shit,

he really can 't tell her about any of it. 'Stuff. Of the uh, productive variety. Yeah. '

But Maki 's gotten used to enough of his answers being weirdly vague and inarticulate, so she shrugs it off like usual. 'Okay. '

Maki actually sleeps in her own bed that night, thank fuck. Not that Toji minded cuddling with his daughter on the couch, but now he needs to earn some money, and he no longer has the luxury of taking jobs during the day. He rolls back into their apartment somewhere around 6 AM both looking and feeling like the grim reaper, and he barely has the time to shower and get dressed before Maki 's up again.

A few relatively uneventful days pass -- which is nice, considering how unfortunately eventful their lives have been up until now. They spend time playing some of their old games and exploring the neighborhood, and Toji catches her glancing at some kids her age running around in a nearby park. He suggests that she should go play with them, but she shakes her head almost violently, and that 's the end of that. Maybe she 's shy or something? He can 't imagine she 's ever had the chance to make normal friends. Or any friends at all.

Dammit.

Fuck the Zen 'in clan,

seriously.

He doesn 't care if the curse was the one who 'd carried it out; in his mind, it was

them

that pushed her to the brink of death. What the hell is she supposed to do if she 's in trouble again and Toji 's not able to get there in time to help her? That cursed tool she brought with her was clearly useless, and even his second grade broadsword took a feat of sheer insanity to be effective. He needs new weapons, sure, but

his

needs come second. Maki needs a weapon that if worst comes to worst, will be powerful enough to do most of the work for her.

So when Maki 's finally asleep that night, Toji takes the red-eye train back to his old town. He slips into the old weapons shop, the same one in which they 'd finally been reunited, and looks around at the merchandise.

It 's all still pretty much the same. Just your standard selection of swords and knives, with the occasional crossbow or spear or some other slightly unconventional weapon. Any sort of firearm is out of the question, because bullets can run out. Toji 's starting to feel real stumped until it finally catches his eye.

The weapon has been there the whole time he 's been coming here, but he 's never given it a second glance -- mostly because it 's locked in a case that 's mounted right above where the shopkeeper sits, which means it must be so disgustingly expensive that it 's almost just for show.

It 's a katana, but a katana unlike any other. The blade is almost entirely transparent, only visible from the way it slices through the light trying to hit it, severing it into a kaleidoscope of colors around its edge in broken prisms. A rich ruby hilt peeks out from behind a snow-white cord wrap, woven with silver threads that glimmer depending on which direction he looks at it. The blade guard and collar are a shadowy platinum, etched with serpentlike designs that slither up to the blade as if ready to strike. The accompanying scabbard is made of pure ivory, engraved with some sort of leviathan with brilliant crimson eyes.

It 's beautiful. It 's perfect. Maki

has

to have it.

Toji walks up to the shopkeeper and lazily points at it. 'How much? '

The shopkeeper snorts. 'More than you can afford. '

'Shut the fuck up. How much? '

'How can I tell you how much if I shut the fuck up? '

Asshole. Toji scowls. 'Hey, don 't push me. You 'll regret it, ' he says half-heartedly. 'Answer my goddamn question. '

The man gives him a smug look. 'Fifty million yen. '

Fuck it. 'Gimme a week, ' Toji declares. 'Put that thing on hold for me. ' As if the man would even need to.

'Anything for my best customer, ' the shopkeeper shoots back sarcastically, but Toji waves him off.

'You 'll see. '

Toji does a lot of things he 's not proud of over the next week. He already knew he was going to hell before, but now he 's absolutely sure of it. Every night, he waits until Maki 's fast asleep before sneaking out of their apartment to carry out work he doesn 't regret for even a second. He always returns just prior to dawn, before the sun is even a thought in the sky yet, just a dim hazy idea tucked behind the Tokyo metropolis. The bathroom fogs up with steam while his scorching shower runs pink as he washes off the blood and gore.

He really needs a new fucking job.

At the end of the seventh day, Toji heads back to the weapons shop. He slams down the massive stack of cash onto the countertop with a deafening thunk, soaking up the way the shopkeeper 's eyes bulge out of his skull and his face blanches bone-white. Toji hops onto the countertop, shatters the glass viewing case of the katana with his bare fist, wrenches the weapon from its placeholder and sheaths it, then leaves the store without uttering a single word.

Toji smacks it onto his bedside table and stares it down once he gets back home. It doesn 't feel right to say it 's

just

a sword -- but without any curse power, it technically is just a

normal

sword, if this ridiculous fucking thing can even be called that. He 's sure there must be some special way a weapon goes from a lifeless hunk of materials to one oozing with cursed energy, but he 's got no clue what the hell it is. He

does,

however, know someone who must have the answer.

Yuki 's at his door about two hours later. They actually live a lot closer together now, but it took her a while to reply to his text. She 's wearing a short black party dress that hugs her figure like a second skin and there 's glitter in her hair that twinkles when the warm lights of his doorstep bounce off of it, and in those razor-thin cherry red stilettos, she 's even taller than he is.

Toji gulps, eyes unhelpfully drifting to examine every crease in the fabric of her dress.

Focus.

'Nice place, ' she says, leaning languidly against the railing of the outdoor hallway. 'Does Maki like it? '

'Yeah, she 's obsessed, ' he responds. 'Caught her starin ' for hours at a couple of swans that live nearby. I think she likes watchin ' the little boats float by in the river, too. '

Even in the dark, it 's quite the view. Yuki tosses her hair over her shoulder to take a quick look before turning back towards him. 'That 's adorable, ' she chuckles. 'So you said you 've got something you wanted me to take a look at? '

'Uh--yeah. ' He reaches inside to pluck the sword off the entryway table and hands it to her.

Yuki 's jaw drops. 'Oi,

oi, '

she exhales. 'How the fuck did you afford this thing? '

Arching an eyebrow, 'Don 't ask questions you don 't wanna know the answers to. '

Yuki just chuckles and shakes her head, giving him a light kick in the shin with one of those fancy shoes. 'Is this supposed to be for Maki? '

Toji sighs. 'Fuck, I 'm a terrible dad, aren 't I? '

'Oh, you absolutely are, ' Yuki laughs. 'She 's gonna love it. It 's perfect. '

'That so? ' he replies.

Yuki nods once. 'I 'm guessing you called me here because you want to know if you can turn it into a cursed weapon, right? ' she guesses, and damn, she really is too smart. Toji 's never been the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he feels like plastic picnic cutlery compared to her. 'Honestly, this is the perfect base for it. One of the best I 've ever seen, maybe ever. I can definitely do somethin ' special with this. '

Well, that 's promising. 'How? '

Yuki flaps a hand dismissively. 'Don 't worry about it. '

'I wasn 't worried about it, but now I kinda am. '

'Hey, just trust me, ' she chuckles. 'We 're friends, aren 't we? '

Pfft.

Toji snorts. 'Sure, sweetheart. '

Yuki laughs at that, then they chat idly for a little while longer before she heads off. Toji goes to bed feeling a little less horrible about himself and falls asleep before his head even hits the pillow.

Toji spends the next few days ripping apart the old office with Maki and turning it into a training room. They visit a local construction shop to buy mirror tiles they glue to cover the entire back wall, and a sports store a neighborhood over from theirs has the perfect mats. Toji offers to get her a punching bag, and she quips that she can just use him as a target instead, and they both crack up at that. The cashier gives them a weird look, but whatever. Toji 's pretty much used to that by now.

It 's almost another week before he finally hears from Yuki again. She stops by around mid-afternoon, when Maki 's tired herself out a bit from chasing after the family of ducks that lives near the river. She 'd tried her damn best to hug those little ducklings, so Toji had

very gently

snatched one up so she could hold it. The picture he took of that with his shitty phone camera is now his lockscreen.

Yuki looks...weirdly tired. Her vibrant golden hair is a little duller than usual, and her concealer seems to be working overtime to cover the bags under her eyes. He meets her at his entryway and props himself up against his doorframe.

'Hey, pretty woman. You miss a night of beauty sleep or something? '

'Oh, shut up, darlin '. You 've missed a whole year of it. '

They both laugh at that. They throw back a few more lines of banter before Yuki yawns. 'You been out late partyin ' again? ' he asks her.

She gives him a look that 's half a smile and half a pout. 'Nah, not this time. ' She unzips her bag and hands him the katana, neatly sheathed into its scabbard. 'Told ya to trust me. '

Toji reaches out a hand to receive it, and as soon as his fingertips wrap around the hilt, cursed energy floods his veins like a summer monsoon, jolting in electric crackles throughout his body as if his skin is a lightning rod. It 's unmistakable. This is a special grade cursed weapon.

Whoa.

Toji whistles through his teeth. 'Fuck, ' is all he can manage to say. Nice, real smooth.

Yuki laughs breathlessly. 'I know, right? ' she agrees. 'Turned out great, I think. That damn thing took way more effort than I thought it would. '

'What, you put your own energy into it or somethin '? ' he jokes.

But Yuki just gives him a flat look.

Oh.

Oh,

wow.

Wow, she

did.

'That 's-- ' Toji gulps, '--wow, thanks. You really did all that just for my kid? '

Yuki 's features soften into a warm grin, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she gives him a friendly flick on the shoulder. 'I didn 't do it

only

for your

kid. '

What?

Toji 's always been good at talking to women, but he finds his tongue tied in knots, words stumbling over themselves like a jester on a tightrope. 'Uh--um. Oh, okay. Cool. Cool, that was cool of you. Well, thanks. '

Yuki throws back her head and cackles. 'Wow, my heart skipped a beat there. You really know how to talk 'em up, lady-killer. '

Yeah, Toji 's got no response to that. 'Oi, shut it. You just caught me off guard, that 's all. '

He gives himself an internal slap in the face. Yuki doesn 't even try to hold back another laugh.

'Toji? ' Maki 's voice calls from inside, and both of them instantly freeze up. 'Is there someone outside? '

Yuki 's eyes widen as she gives him an apprehensive look. Toji gives her a sheepish grin. 'You wanna meet my kid? '

Her face flushes and she nods fervently. Toji steps aside as he ushers her past the entryway.

Maki blinks up at Yuki. 'Who are you? ' she asks bluntly.

'Hey, nice to meet ya too, ' Yuki chirps back with a friendly wave. 'Special grade sorcerer Yuki Tsukumo, at your service. '

It takes a second to click, but when it does, Maki 's eyes gleam with wonder she doesn 't even try to suppress; she stares at Yuki like she 's just met the tooth fairy, as if she 's discovered that something she 's only heard about in fairytales all her life is

real

and standing right in front of her. She takes a hesitant step closer, so Yuki crouches down to meet her.

'You 're a

special grade sorcerer? '

Maki repeats in disbelief. 'Even though you 're a woman? '

Concerned, Yuki glances over her shoulder and gives Toji a look. Damn, he should 've warned her that Maki can say off-putting shit like that without context. 'There somethin ' wrong with that? ' Yuki says tentatively.

'The women in my family aren 't allowed to be sorcerers, ' Maki explains. 'My cousin said that any woman who can 't walk three steps behind a man should get stabbed in the back and die. '

Yuki frowns. 'Yeah, well he 's never gonna get laid, like, ever. '

'Laid? '

'Yuki! '

Toji barks.

Yuki cracks up and waves him off. 'Your cousin has no idea what he 's talking about, ' she continues, glazing over her earlier comment. Thank fuck, Toji 's nowhere near ready to give Maki

'the talk '

yet. 'Of course women can be sorcerers! The only difference between men and women is the superficial stuff on the outside. On the inside, everyones ' souls are the same, and it 's up to you what to make of it, no matter what gender you are. The only person who decides your limits is

you.

If someone else has the nerve to try to tie their own shackles around you, just kick 'em right in the face and break their chains instead. '

Maki looks absolutely starstruck. It 's ridiculously cute.

Then Yuki ruffles her hair the way Toji always does, and Maki doesn 't even try to stop her. Hey, no fair.

'Okay, ' Maki finally says. 'Um--how do you know Toji? '

Yuki laughs as she stands up, then she claps Toji on the back a little harder than she probably needs to, and he huffs out a muffled

'oof! '

'He never told ya? I 'm the one that fixed this guy up after he got hurt a while back! '

If Maki 's eyes were sparkling before, now they 're a whole fucking galaxy.

'Oh, '

Maki murmurs, then even quieter, she adds, 'Thank you for saving him. '

He and Yuki exchange glances, and she clasps a hand over her heart. Toji clears his throat to avoid getting choked up. It doesn 't really work all that well.

Yuki opens her mouth to continue before something beeps in her pocket. She glances at her phone and her lips curl into a frown. 'Shi--uh,

darn,

I gotta go, ' she announces. It 's almost funny that she censored herself before the curse word could complete. If she only knew the shit he says on a daily basis.

Maki 's voice snags in her throat. 'Uh--can you maybe come over again sometime? '

With eyes full of hope, Yuki looks at Toji as if to ask permission, and Toji shrugs. 'Sure she can. '

'Cool, ' Maki says. 'Bye for now. '

'Bye, Maki, ' Yuki says warmly. She waves at Maki one last time and Toji walks her out, gently clicking the door shut behind them. Yuki turns around.

'Oh my god, she 's so precious. '

Toji 's mouth tugs into a proud smirk. 'I know, right? '

Smirking, Yuki wags a finger. 'You know, I bet she needs a strong female role model. '

'Yeah, you 're probably right, ' Toji agrees, then he teases, 'You know any? '

Playfully, Yuki punches him in the arm. 'Fuckin ' asshole. '

'Crazy bitch. '

Christ, when did their faces get so close together? Toji jerks his head away before heat can rise to his cheeks like a flustered schoolgirl. He clears his throat a lot louder than he probably needs to.

Though Yuki might actually be right. Maki 's lived her whole life being told she 's not worthy of becoming a sorcerer because of her limited cursed energy and because of her gender. Toji 's got one of those bases covered, but he might need some help with the other.

'Well, she seems to like ya, ' he tells her, as if it wasn 't the most obvious fucking thing on the planet. 'By the way, that katana. You give it a name or anything? '

Yuki tilts her head. 'A name? '

'Yeah, a name. Don 't all weapons like that have special names? Y 'know, real weird and mystical shit that barely makes any sense? '

She smirks at him. 'Maybe. What do

you

think it is? '

In contemplation, Toji taps his chin. With that unique clear blade and smoky complexion with splashes of red, it 's gotta be something real mysterious. 'Uh...ghost something. Ghost Knife. Ghost...Weapon? Ghost Protector! '

'Toji, that 's the name of the movie we got hammered and watched in a theater at 3 AM together six months ago. '

It is? Wow, he does

not

remember that. 'Uh, I know. I was just seein ' if

you

remembered. '

But she just laughs and shakes her head. 'Sorry, handsome. You gotta figure this one out yourself. '

Yeah, Ghost Protector is kinda lame.

He 'll think of something better later.

Yuki heads off after that and Toji walks back inside. When he finally catches sight of Maki, she 's holding Ghost Protector(?) in her hands, surveying it with some mix of curiosity and reverence. 'Hey, what 's this? ' she asks.

'Uh...a present, ' he replies. Maki unsheaths it and her eyes jump out of her skull.

'This is a special grade weapon, ' she states. It 's not even a question.

'Yup. ' He strolls over to her. ' 'Do ya like it? '

Maki nods without tearing her eyes away from its crystal-clear blade, watching in admiration as it cuts the air itself into tiny pieces. 'Yes, ' she finally breathes. 'Thank you, Toji. '

That alone makes all the atrocities he committed in order to buy the damn thing

more

than worth it. 'Yeah, no problem. ' He picks up the scabbard and sheaths the weapon. 'Keep it in your room with you, okay? '

'Okay. ' She takes it from his hands and pads over to her room. Toji pours himself a glass of wine to unwind from the day, and Maki emerges a few moments after he hears it click on her nightstand. 'Um--Yuki is pretty cool. '

'Yeah, guess so, ' he replies with a smile.

Innocently, Maki blinks at him. 'Is she your girlfriend? '

Toji chokes on his drink. 'N-no, ' he sputters. 'Uh, no. No she 's not. '

'Oh, alright, ' Maki replies, and she actually looks mildly disappointed at that. Toji takes one last look at his glass, then decides to start drinking directly from the bottle.

A few days later, Toji does the laundry for the first time. He refuses to let Maki help him with that -- though he really,

really

should 've, because the floor of the building 's laundry room ends up drenched in some sorry mix of spilled water and soap bubbles that go up to his ankles. He returns to their apartment somewhat defeated, but at least their clothes are dry.

Maki really doesn 't have much. Toji puts them in her room and crosses his arms across his chest. 'You really need some new clothes, ' he announces.

She furrows her brows at him. 'Yeah, I guess. I should probably go shopping. '

Yeah, Toji has no idea how the hell to do that. 'I can try to take ya. '

In response, Maki looks him up and down and pulls a face. 'Uh, or not. '

'Oi! What 's what 's wrong with my style? '

Maki smirks.

'What

style? '

Toji gasps and clasps his chest in a dramatic motion as if lanced by an arrow. Demolished, by his own kid. 'Didn 't your mom ever take ya? ' he asks, and he

hates

to call that random woman her mother, but the only alternative is telling her that she no longer has one. Maki shakes her head.

'No. My mom wasn 't allowed to leave the compound. She said the only way I could make her proud was to be obedient and know my place. '

Now Toji

really

feels like his heart has been skewered. He lets out a long sigh and whips out his phone, punching in the number he should really have on speed dial by now.

'Yuki, ' he begins, and fuck, this is gonna have consequences. 'Can you take my daughter shopping? '

Yuki squeals over the phone so loud he 's sure she ruptures one of his eardrums.

When Maki returns back to the house after her shopping spree, she 's got at least six bags on her arms and a huge smile plastered across her face. Toji drapes himself over the back of the couch. 'Did ya have fun with Yuki? '

Shyly, Maki looks away but nods ardently. 'Yeah, ' she murmurs. 'I had a

lot

of fun. '

Toji flops back onto the couch cushions and heaves a sigh so heavy he completely deflates like a popped balloon.

He might be the tiniest bit totally screwed.

Life is immeasurably better since Maki moved in, but Toji 's the brokest he 's ever been in as much of his life as he can remember. Between the new place, stocking up on daily necessities, the excruciatingly expensive katana, and Maki 's recent shopping spree, his bank account is constantly teetering on empty -- and for once, it 's

not

because of his nasty gambling habits. He can no longer afford to turn down jobs he gets during the day, and until he finds a new occupation, this is his only shot.

Toji recalls how Maki had wistfully looked at the children playing in the park that one day, and it dawns on him the way it should 've the moment he watched her do that.

'Hey, ' he suggests, as casually as he can. He already knows this request is gonna freak her the fuck out no matter what. 'You ever thought about enrolling in school? '

He was totally right. Maki freezes and glares at him with a panicked expression.

'School? '

she squeaks.

'Yeah, school. Ever heard of it? '

'Uh-- ' she starts, then she cuts herself off, eyes dropping to the floor. 'Of course I 've heard of it. But I 've never really been. '

Not a surprise, but still kinda tragic. 'Yeah, I figured. I think you might have fun, though. You can get to know some other kids in the neighborhood. Who knows? Ya might end up even making a couple of friends. '

Maki meets his gaze again, eyes almost watery.

Oh, shit.

That must 've hit her where it hurts. 'Friends? ' she repeats.

Fucking hell. She 's gotta do it now. 'Friends. ' He pats her on the head without rustling her hair. It 's getting longer now, the tips dusting the middle of her biceps and her bangs sweeping to the side. 'C 'mon, at least give it a shot. '

After a stupidly long time, Maki finally nods. Toji allows himself a sigh of relief, and he signs her up for the local public school the next day.

-----------------------

Maki can 't believe she let Toji talk her into this.

She 's endured years of torment and nearly been consumed by the ravenous jaws of a special grade cursed spirit, but they almost pale in comparison to the terror she feels as soon as she steps onto the local elementary school campus. Kids are frolicking about without a care in the world, slipping down slides and crawling across monkey bars with zero technique. Don 't they know you should never lock your elbows like that?

Evidently not. One kid falls off the bars and totally eats it. Maki barely conceals a laugh at that. Okay, now she feels a

little

bit better.

The first class of the day is pretty tame. The Zen 'in clan 's teaching was strict and thorough, and Maki already learned this material at least a year ago. Her nerves steadily calm, until -- the dreaded recess bell finally rings.

Unsure of what to do, Maki pads off to the sandbox on the corner of the playground and starts poking at the damp sand. Maybe she 'll look less awkward if she focuses on a solo activity to not draw attention to the fact that no one has a clue who she is.

Off to the side, her classmates are crowded around another student. Evidently, she 's not the only kid who just started here; scattered voices ask if he 's new here, and he replies that he just moved to town from the countryside. Maki looks up; it 's some kid in a yellow hoodie. Nothing really special about him, from what she can see.

But he seems popular already. More kids bombard him with questions and he answers them with a friendly grin -- until from the corner of his eyes, his gaze meets Maki 's. He seems to notice that she 's all alone, and for some inexplicable reason, he abandons the entire group of kids clamoring to befriend him just to greet her.

Weird.

'Hi! ' he beams, eyes sparkling. 'I 'm Yuuji Itadori! What 's your name? '

Maki scowls. He looks like a freakin ' potato.

'Go away. '