Primordial Contract

We were back in Gojo's house. I kicked off my sneakers, changed into the slippers, and took off my mask. Plopping onto the sofa, I rubbed my temples from exasperation and wondered how in the world I was going to explain this to Gojo. I really should have stayed in the car.

A few moments later, Gojo sat down on the opposite side of the sofa, having changed back into his work clothes. I braced myself for his questions, but they didn't come. Gojo hummed a small tune as he turned on the television and flipped through the channels.

He stopped on a popular news channel and glanced over at me. "You okay with this one, Rey-kun?" I nodded briefly.

"Good afternoon, I am Azuma Gina, here to update you on the latest news of Japan. Today's news comes from Aomori where a 5.9 magnitude happened yesterday. The earthquake killed seven people and damaged buildings in several locations."

The television showed the destruction from afar, but I could still sense the acute negative emotions emanating from that place from the pictures alone.

"We'll probably have to dispatch a sorcerer to patrol that area for curses after the accident is cleaned up." Gojo commented. "Do you think a curse will spawn there?"

"Mm," I acknowledged the possibility. The negative emotions were dense enough for a curse to spawn, but it probably wouldn't be a strong one.

"Probably a Grade 3 or 4. Maybe I'll send Megumi there to exorcise it." Gojo continued.

"The quake was felt in neighborhoods across Aomori, home to 300,000 people, and nearby cities. There had been aftershocks but there was no risk of tsunami. Reports of damage included parliamentary buildings, a school, a hospital and houses in several communities."

"There's a store in Aomori that sells really good Ichigo Daifuku. I wonder if it got hit by the earthquake. If it's still there, don't forget to remind me to buy one for you to try, Rey-kun."

I nodded absentmindedly. Why is Gojo purposely trying to avoid the subject?

"I can't believe I got scammed by Yaga. That explosion wasn't even my fault, why do I have to pay for his sunglasses? It's his fault that he didn't protect them," Gojo murmured under his breath, sending a whole string of messages on his phone. I assumed it was to complain to the principal.

"That's all for today, please tune in tomorrow at 2 pm for more. We will be right back after this quick advertisement." A cheerful jingle played, but I reached for the remote control and turned off the TV.

"Hey!" Gojo protested, "I wanted to see what that dorayaki advertisement was about."

I pressed the power button, and the advertisement appeared on the screen again. Passing by Gojo, I dropped the control in his lap and stalked off to the bedroom without a word. I couldn't stand the atmosphere in the room. For a second, I considered slamming the door but decided against it. After all, this was still his apartment.

Gojo watched the boy storm off into his bedroom and close the door. He scratched his head in bewilderment. Did he do something? Why did Rey look annoyed at him?

"Kids these days, why are they so hard to understand?" Gojo lamented quietly. He turned off the television and listened for the boy. He stood up and went to the door.

"Is he already in his rebellious phase or something?" Gojo wondered. "Man, taking care of a kid is not easy."

Gojo put his hand on the doorknob to find that Rey hadn't locked it. He gently pushed open the door and peeked inside. The sorcerer found the boy perched on the railing of the balcony.

"Rey?" Gojo stopped a couple feet from the boy and leaned on the wall. "What's wrong?"

I pulled up my hood and kicked my legs softly in the open air. "I think I should be the one asking you what's wrong. Don't you have some business with me? How come you're not asking?"

"Oh no, that was just to throw off Yaga-san." Gojo smiled. "I trust you."

"Isn't it tiring hiding your true emotions all the time, Gojo-sensei?"

Gojo's smile stiffened. "What?"

I slipped off the railing and put my back to the wall. "I can tell when someone is lying or not."

"Ah," Gojo sighed as he put a hand on his head, "that explains a lot. Looks like I can't lie about the location of my secret stash of snacks."

"I don't care about your snacks," I murmured quietly. "Aren't you missing the point?"

I brought my knees to my chest. Just what are these emotions I'm feeling? I don't understand them, but it makes me uncomfortable.

While being able to detect lies was useful, sometimes, I wished that I wasn't able to. I wouldn't be constantly reminded of how ugly a place the world could be. Things were so much simpler if everything just ended with a well-meaning lie. And I wouldn't know if that smile on his face was a lie or not.

I sighed and looked up at Gojo. "You're a liar. You lie to hide your worries. You lie to comfort those around you. You lie to everyone, even to yourself. You lie because you want it to become the truth. Your smile is your lie, Gojo-sensei."

"Speaking out of experience, Rey-kun?" Gojo said softly. He didn't deny my words.

I thought for a moment and then nodded. "Maybe not the smile, but yes."

"Then that makes two of us huh?" Gojo sat down beside me and leaned his head back against the wall. "Hey, Rey. What do you lie for?"

"To save someone, to kill someone, to help someone, to ruin someone. Sometimes, lying is easier than telling the truth."

"Rey-kun, have you ever lied to me?"

My heart skipped a beat at Gojo's question, and I fell silent. The silence was enough to tell him the answer.

"Will you give me some time, Gojo-sensei?" I asked. "There's a lot of things about me I can't tell you, at least not yet. Can you trust me enough to wait for me?"

My Master didn't answer immediately, and I felt his gaze studying me. I didn't meet his eyes. This was a decision that only he could make. However, he navigated our Master and Servant relationship was his choice.

After a long moment of silence, Gojo gave an audible sigh and shook his head.

"Everyone has their own secrets, Rey-kun. I won't force you to tell me yours," Gojo promised.

"Thank you, Gojo-sensei." I bowed my head deeply. "I won't betray this trust."

"In exchange," I met my Master's eyes, "in exchange for this trust, I will do my best and learn to open up a bit more. I know I can be a little lacking in this area."

Gojo gave me a warm smile and nodded gently.

That smile again...

"How do you," I paused for a brief moment before continuing, "how do you always keep a smile on your face?"

Gojo let out a small laugh. "That's a good question, and tell you the truth, there are times where I don't want to, but I can't do that. When there are people who look up to you, who see you as their teacher, you can't let them down. The best thing you can do for them is to smile to show them that everything is okay."

Rey… in the world, whenever someone is afraid, they let loose the darkest parts of them. What you have to do is calm them down, give them a smile, and tell them that everything is alright. You try it now. Show me your smile.

Gojo observed Rey as the boy thought over his words. Gojo seemed to understand why Rey was upset. He understood the unhappiness that came from being suspected by those you thought you trusted.

"Like... like this?" Rey looked up at Gojo and gave him his best smile. Despite having his blindfold, Gojo was nearly blinded by the sheet amount of cuteness in the boy's smile. He clutched his chest and dramatically collapsed the ground. "A..Adorable! My god! My heart can't stand it anymore!"

The smile immediately dropped from my face as I deadpanned at Gojo's reaction. He really can't be serious for more than a second, could he?

"Ack! Rey-kun, why did you stop smiling?" Gojo directed his phone at my face. "Come on, just a few more seconds? For the picture?"

"No." I stood up and squeezed past Gojo to return to the house. Gojo followed me, still not giving up on the photo. "Come on, Rey-kun. Please~?"

"No." I turned on the television. The dorayaki advertisement was playing again. I pointed at the screen and looked at Gojo, "But if you buy me one, I'll consider it."

"Deal!"

—-

One rare morning of peace and silence, and I have no idea what to do with it. I yawned and laid down on the sofa, staring blankly at the black television screen. My thoughts were jumbled up, and I didn't really feel like pulling them apart. It's hard to think straight when you get the past mixed up with the present. And it doesn't help when you've lived for too many years that you've stopped bothering to count.

A couple minutes later, I heard movements at the door. I went to go check it out.

"Oh, hi, Rey-kun! Were you waiting for me?" Gojo gave me a quick pat on my head and slipped past me to place a plastic bag on the table. "Did you miss me?"

"It's only been three hours," I replied.

Gojo laughed at my answer. "You must really miss me to know the exact time I was gone!"

I ignored the man as I settled myself in a chair. Gojo sat down across from me and rummaged through the bag. "I bought pork katsu sandwich from the store at the foot of the mountain."

He pulled out a plastic container and proudly showed it to me. "Of course I didn't forget dessert! Fresh strawberry mochi from the best dessert store in Tokyo!"

I wondered if he expected me to applaud him for his achievement. Well, I didn't, so I simply reached for half a sandwich and unwrapped the plastic foil around it. I was about to take my first bite when I suddenly felt that Gojo's smile was a bit too bright. I looked up and eyed the man across from me. What is he being so hesitant about?

"What happened?" I asked bluntly.

"Dammit, I thought I was in the clear already," Gojo lamented as he took a quick bite of his lunch, "you still caught me. Ahhh, Rey-kun, that ability of yours is really something!"

He laced his fingers together and propped his chin on his hands. "You and I need to talk about a lot of stuff." He emphasized the word "lot" as if he was afraid I didn't know what he meant.

"Okay, so…?"

"I had a chat with the higher ups, and they want to lock you back up," Gojo continued. "Not that I care what they want, but I need more information to work off of to prevent that." He spread out his hands and smiled at me, "You're making me grasp at straws, Rey, so you'll help me out right?"

It's not like I have much of a choice. "Mhm," I answered.

"Great!" Gojo said, "Now then, my first question is about this." He held up his right hand and tapped the back of his hand. At his touch, a glowing red symbol appeared faintly on his skin. It pulsed with a mystical energy, and it caused the space around it to contort.

"That's a Contract Seal. It means that you have made a contract. The crown on the top is my symbol, the eye below it is yours, and the wings around them signify the contract rank."

Gojo turned his hand over and examined the seal. "There's three pairs of wings. What does that mean?"

"There are three levels of contracts: Lower, Upper, and Primordial. Three wings means it is a Primordial Contract, the strongest and most powerful contract."

"Do you remember the man at the lake?" I asked.

Gojo nodded. "He also had a Contract Seal, right?"

"Yes. His is also a Master and Servant Contract, but it was a Lower Contract. He was the Master while the loch ness monster was the Servant. Lower Contracts link together the two side's cursed energy and can raise their energy by a set amount. Upper Contracts allow the two to form a certain connection almost similar to telepathy. As for Primordial Contracts, it's different for each one."

Gojo rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "How are the Master and Servant positions decided?"

"Usually, the side with the stronger soul will become the Master and the weaker becomes the Servant. However, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, one side can voluntarily choose to become either the Master or the Servant as long as the other gives their consent. Our Contract was such a case. I chose to be the Servant while you chose to be the Master," I explained.

"So..." Gojo donned a serious expression as he leaned across the table, "would I have been the Master if it was determined by soul strength?"

I shrugged. "Probably. Your Six Eyes is very powerful." Gojo nodded contently at my explanation and took another bite of his sandwich with a smug look on his face. I didn't have the heart to tell him that there was no way he would have beat me. Regardless of how talented he was, his soul was still young, too young to beat me.

"And moving on," Gojo held up two fingers, "question number two! I've seen your strength, the higher ups wouldn't have been able to keep you if you wanted to leave. How did you end up in Tatsuya's hands in the first place?"

"I was sleeping," I said.

Gojo immediately burst out into laughter. "Seriously? You were sleeping?"

"Mm," I said with a straight face. "They found me three years before I was supposed to wake up, so most of my powers were still sealed. They took advantage of the situation to imprison me."

"So you didn't have an alarm clock or anything? Also, who counts their sleep in years?" Gojo snickered.

Well, technically, decades would be the most appropriate unit. I waited for the man to get over his laughing fit to continue his questions.

"That definitely wasn't the answer I was expecting," Gojo joked, "but it does make some sense. So, why did you wake up now, anyways? You needed to use the restroom or something?"

My gaze turned dark, and Gojo caught the change in tone. He cleared his throat and toned down his carefree attitude.

"The techniques of Contracts have been long lost in time. For it to resurface now, that's not good news. Something is coming, and my presence is required. The cursed energy in the world is getting restless, and blood will be shed. I need to be here."

Gojo seemed to understand what I was referring to. He nodded solemnly and gathered his thoughts. "I thought so, too. Looks like I'm not the only one who's aware of this. But those damn geezers won't admit it, so I have to be the one doing the work."

"I'll help you," I said quietly.

Gojo smiled at me. "Of course. That's why we have this contract."

"And one more thing." Gojo had a calculating look on his face. My guard automatically went up, but I reminded myself that we've already made a contract, so there was nothing to fear. If he did want something from me, then I would have to follow through with it.

"I was wondering, if you ever was forced to turn on me, what would happen?"

I paused for a moment before giving him a small smile. "That seal on your hand symbolizes your status as a Master, but it also symbolizes something else. It means absolute obedience from the Servant, so don't worry. As long as you honor our contract, only you can command me, Gojo-sensei."

"That's good." Gojo nodded. A cheeky smile settled on his lips. "So does that mean I can command you to let me pinch your cheeks?"

Uh oh. I felt a drop of cold sweat fall down my back as I felt an unnerving presence sneak up behind me.

"Don't move, Rey-kun."

"Don't you da-" The rest of my words were cut off as I felt Gojo's long fingers pinch both sides of my cheeks.

Gojo laughed triumphantly, "Heh heh, I've been waiting to do this for so long!"