Work Text:
Eat or be Eaten…..
…….a brutal, desperate survival scenario where consuming others is necessary to stay alive, or a symbolic, ritualistic act of dominance, revenge, or spiritual assimilation…..
Satoru was different now. Yuuji saw it the moment he came back from the prison realm. It was hard when his teacher was gone for two years. It was a hard battle everyday for surviving the influx of curses that came to claim Gojo Satoru's throne. In fact Sukuna wanted to be one of those curses but Yuuji was just so fucking sick of the bastard being in him and his voice taunting him that he just snapped. He had already eaten seven of the fingers and now he was just fucking done with him. Learning the fact he was actually somehow related to the psycho just broke something in him so Yuuji consumed the soul that was inhabiting his body that was forcing him to do bad things. Seems like being family made it easier to be able to just control the process of taking Sukuna into his own body. In a way some of the curses feared him now just as much as the other sorcerers did now.
Blinking heavily, Yuuji was so freaking tired of fighting for his life. He had taken Sukuna into himself and now the curse could no longer take control of his body but still they hated him. The only ones that still cared were his original friends and Gojo but like Yuuji said the man was different now Satoru was looking at him differently now. Satoru was looking at himself like there was something wrong with him now. Don't get Yuuji wrong it was still protective, even possessive but now Yuuji could see how Gojo would look at his hands for claws or lick his teeth for canines too sharp for a human to have.
He saw how the man would check his phone to see if his face had changed too and mostly Yuuji could see the love they both pretended wasn’t there but now it looked at him like he was starving it felt like Satoru wanted to eat his heart out the moment Satoru came back from the prison realm and Yuuji didn't know what to do but still love Satoru because there would never be anyone else but him and Yuuji was just as broken.
The thing is Gojo was tiptoeing around him like he was a criminal. If either of them was a criminal it would be him. Yuuji was also sick of how the older man would stare at him like he was a new person and not the same one he was when Satoru got sealed, yet Yuuji guessed he wasn't being 18 and having killed his fair amount of sorcerers and curses alike Yuuji knew he had changed. He just couldn't put his finger on just what had changed in his old teacher. Laying down on the man's couch in his basement again Yuuji watched the screen just seeing blurring pictures with it on mute when Satoru sat at the end of the couch and lifted his legs up to place his feet on his lap and leant back “I can sit up” mumbling softly as Satoru squeezed his ankle to keep him still muttering just as quietly back “you're fine” Yuuji couldn't understand what this was now what they had going on right now. Or maybe Yuuji still wanted to play naive.
Snuggling his head into his oversized hoodie Yuuji glanced up at him briefly to catch darkened blue eyes studying him back that Yuuji just looked at him, Yuuji just wanted to know “what happened to you in there”. Satoru closed his eyes tightly as if just asking that threw him back into the memory, the moment of being locked in that place before he opened them and answered “I can't say because I don't know. I just know I came back wrong Yuuji, so fucking wrong”.
Yuuji sighed slowly as he sat up himself and made sure to position himself next to the trembling male and wrapped his arms around Satoru's waist. He let the man hug him back and squeeze him like a teddy bear. Yuuji slightly rocked them as he kept his arms firm “I'm here”. Gojo shook his head squeezing tighter as it fell out of him in a loud gasp of pain “I missed so fucking much! I fucked up so much! Being too weak and too caught up in myself and I let you down! Shit that's the worse part to me that I let you fucking down Yuuji. When you fucking needed an adult in your corner to protect you or a friend a supporter…when you needed Satoru and not just Gojo-sensei. I wasn't fucking there for you and that part fucking hurts”.
Yuuji let out a trembling sigh and pulled away having to forcefully pull himself from Gojo's arms to look at the man who wouldn't meet his eyes until Yuuji wrapped his arms around his neck and leaned on him that he was given no choice but to look back his arms automatic circling Yuuji's waist to hold him close “yeah I did need Gojo-sensei back then, yes I did need one of my biggest supporters but I also needed to grow and learn to protect and defend myself and I made it Gojo. I made it with my strength alone and I am proud of that but I'm happier to have you back and I couldn't go through you being gone like that again but I also changed and that didn't mean I didn't want Gojo-sensei back. What I got was a changed man and now that I'm 18 I can hopefully call Satoru and our student-teacher friendship can be more?” Satoru smiled hesitantly at the firm way Yuuji had spoken to him and raised one of his hands to tenderly cup the curve Yuuji's neck to pull him close “is this okay?” Yuuji hummed at his just as hesitant question and let a small smile grace his lips as he moved to close the gap “it's what I waited for” Gojo chuckled before closing the small gap pressing their lips together just as gently, both closing their eyes to enjoy the moment.
Yuuji opened his first to see a dusting of white scales flash across Satoru's face and calmly pulled back using his fingers to massage Satoru's shoulders while connecting their foreheads and waiting for Satoru to open his eyes catching the brief serpent slit in them and licked his lip then what changed clicked “Satoru how many curse did you eat in there”.
Gojo licked his lips back and snorted harshly whispering to Yuuji “too damn many to get back to you” and then he kissed him hard like he wanted to crawl into his body and eat him. Maybe that was another reason they got along so well when it came down to it with them it was eat or be eaten.