Love from Outer space Chapter 1 (Modulo Usami x Simurian Reader)
Author's Note: I don't write in forever then all of a sudden I finish this in a night. I'm really surprised how much I'm enjoying Modulo. I don't see a lot of Usami material out there so I'm not sure how many people are going to see this. But it was still fun to write. Enjoy. :)
CW: family death, sexism
Recently, you found yourself reminiscing about the past, your upbringing in the desolate desert of Simuria. Back in your childhood with your big sister, sneaking out at night to see the kalyans. You’d speak in hushed whispers as you observed them from behind whatever hiding spot you could find. They were truly beautiful, and sacred to your people, the Rumelians. The two of you would scurry back home under the cover of darkness before your parents woke up. Then, the kalyans began attacking the neighboring Simurian tribes and the Rumelians became a target. Among the many victims were your mother, and your dear sister.
~
Jabaloma boarded the ship after another long day of talks with the human diplomats. Cross dutifully followed behind him.
“I must confess, I’m hesitant about this dinner party the humans are organizing.”
Jaboloma chuckled. “Interesting I thought you were beginning to soften towards the humans. Or should I say, one particular human?”
Cross blushed despite his best efforts to remain stoic, Maru must have been running his mouth again.
“Speaking of which, I thought you were being enlisted to assist with the preparations for tomorrow?”
Cross shook his head. “Debriefing Dabura and the others is more important than whatever Maru and his friends are doing.”
“I can handle Dabura and the council. You go Cross, I have matters to attend to myself.”
Cross hesitated for a moment before dutifully nodding and exiting the ship.
Osuki sauntered up to Jabaloma with a sour look on his face.
“Jabaloma, that daughter of yours is making trouble again.”
The old man sighed.
“Where is (Name)?”
~
Ever since you and your people had been aboard this ship, you had taken to sitting near one of the only windows in the structure. Situated in a quiet room that had been used for storage, you spent much time alone watching stars pass.
Now, you gazed at a small body of water surrounded by grass and wildflowers. It had brought you comfort in your arrival to Earth, reminding you of the canal that had brought the Rumelians a fleeting period of peace. The door opened and you pulled your attention away from the window to find your father standing with Osuki.
“You went to my father and told on me? Are we children again?”
Before he could rebut your taunting Jabaloma gave him a sharp look.
“Go tell Dabura I’ll be stopping by to see him in a while.”
Osuki narrowed his eyes on you as he left.
Your father closed the door behind him and walked over to where you sat.
“I hear you were rallying the other women aboard the ship and demanding to be included in tomorrow's festivities.”
You stood up to face your father.
“Yes. Please Father, can’t you ask Dabura?”
“(Name), we’ve been over this, we keep you and the other women on the ship to ensure your safety. We’re not familiar with these lands or the people who inhabit them.”
“While the men are able to venture out and acquaint themselves with their new home, we are expected to stay here and wait. When will we have the opportunity to adjust? A cultural exchange would be a wonderful opportunity to grow accustomed to our new neighbors, and we’ll all prove to be more useful the more informed we are.”
Your father reached out and took your hand. “When you speak like this I swear I can hear your mother’s voice. Your sister too.”
You gave him a soft smile.
“I learned from the best.”
“I’ll bring it up with Dabura but no more provoking Osuki.”
~
In the end, it was decided that among the small party of Simurians that were to attend the cultural exchange, women would be included among the group.
You passed Osuki on your way out to join the others. He sat on a couch surrounded by a few others.
“Still sulking?” you mockingly asked.
He simply rolled his eyes at you.
“Coexisting wasn’t my idea.”
You crossed your arms. “You're a fool to want more war after the turmoil we had to endure on our home planet..”
“And you're naive if you think humans will truly accept us.”
~
When you had arrived at the place called Jujutsu Tech your stomach felt uneasy in anticipation. While you had advocated for this, it was all a little daunting.
Still, you filed in with everyone else and sat among the other women while Dabura and your father sat on the other side of the room with the earthling diplomats.
~
“You're seriously going to this thing?”
Usami looked up from his desk to find his colleague, Yakumaru, standing in the open doorway of his office.
“Well,” Usami mumbled. “I don’t think a diplomatic meeting among foreign dignitaries would be complete without the acting minister of foreign affairs.
He checked his watch and began to collect his things, he was late and he really didn’t want to be kept any later by Yakumaru of all people.
“You're making a mistake, Usami.”
“Well if you have a complaint feel free to bring it up at our next meeting.”
He stood up and brushed past the pest of a man as he hurried out.
He tapped his finger against his temple.
“Mino, I’m on my way.”
~
By the time he arrived everyone had already gathered in the dining room. Kyoko had nearly run him over on his way inside, but Yuka had thankfully held her back so they wouldn’t collide. He opened the door and quickly took his seat next to Mino and across from Dabura and Jabaloma.
“I apologize for my tardiness, I was wrapping some things up at the office.
Jabaloma shook his head.
“It’s no trouble. Shall we talk business?”
~
By your second helping of food, you had felt quite accomplished by your persistence.
“This food is divine.”
“It really is, I’m glad we came.”
“Well I think we have (Name) to thank for that.”
“Looks like being the boss's daughter has its perks.”
They all laughed as you set down your utensils.
“Please stop making me out to be more important than I am. Truthfully the look on Osuki’s face when we left was all I needed to consider this a victory.”
One of the older women at the table leaned forward.
“Is his uncle still pushing your father to let him marry you? I can’t imagine how long that could last without the two of your murdering eachother..”
This elicited another round of giggles.
Another woman spoke up.
“If I was to marry anyone it would be Dabura. He’s so handsome.”
You glanced up at Dabura, who had put a shirt on just for the occasion.
“Has anyone ever heard him speak anymore than ten words?” the older woman asked.
“Personally no, but Dura spoke very highly of him,” you softly said.
The table went quiet for a moment.
The older woman spoke after a moment.
“A partnership isn’t something to mindlessly rush into. When you're ready, when you find that person, they are all consuming but they’ll never allow you to lose yourself.”
Any further pontification was interrupted when the woman next to you accidentally dropped her spoon on the floor.
“Oh no,” she whispered. “Do you think the dropping of utensils is considered rude to humans?”
You picked it up and got up from your chair.
“I’m sure it’s fine. I’ll retrieve a new one for you.”
You quietly slid out of the room. ~
After asking a woman passing by for directions, you made your way to the kitchen.
When you arrived you stumbled upon a chaotic scene.
A woman was frantically poking at something on a plate while some familiar and unfamiliar faces buzzed around her. Everyone stopped when you entered. Maru poked his head up and raced towards you.
“(Name)! You're here!”
You smiled.
“You’ve been busy Maru, I’ve hardly seen you since we got to Earth.”
“Today I went diving for an octopus and got stung by a horde of jellyfish.”
You furrowed your brow in confusion, unsure of what any of those things were. Before you could ask the new faces gathered around. You cleared your throat and switched languages so they could understand you.
“Hello.”
Maru introduced you.
“This is (Name). (Name) this is Yuka, Tsurugi, and Kyoko.”
“It’s nice to meet all of you. Thank you for having us.”
“(Name) is Jabaloma’s daughter,” Maru clarified.
Yuka stepped forward.
“Is there anything we can help you with, um, your highness? Your grace? Princess?”
Tsurugi rolled his eyes.
“Jabaloma is a diplomatic envoy. He’s not a king.”
Yuka turned to face him, hands on her hips.
“I was trying to be polite stupid!”
The two of them went at it while Maru turned back to face you.
“They’re siblings. But it’s complicated.”
You turned to Kyoko and held out the spoon. “I don’t mean to interrupt you when you have so much to do, but can I have another spoon?”
Her eyebrows shot up.
“Is there something wrong with the spoons? Yuka!”.
“No. No. They’re fine,” you hastily assured her. “ One of the guests just dropped it on the floor. I hope another one would not be too much of an inconvenience.
Kyoko sighed in relief.
“Oh is that it? Of course.”
Yuka walked away from her brother mid fight and politely took the spoon from your hand.
“I can handle it. I have to deliver the rest of the food anyway.”
“Thank you. She’s the one on the end of the table with the hat.”
She nodded and raced off with Kyoko anxiously following after her. Tsurugi trailed behind the two of them.
“I’ve got to find Cross.”
“Okay,” Maru said.
Once they left Maru turned his attention back to you.
“Is everyone enjoying the food (Name)?”
You nodded. “It’s delicious. Did you really help with the cooking?”
“Yup. Cross and I tasted everything too!”
“It’s nice that you're making friends with the humans. Even Cross seems to be warming up to them.
Maru beamed.
“I’m glad the council voted for coexistence. I really think we could be happy here.”
You smiled.
“I hope so. I should go.”
Maru nodded.
“I’ll be out there in a minute. Let me just finish cleaning up here.”
~
Usami wasn’t sure if what he saw was progress or potential disaster.
Yuka had burst into the room with Kyoko just as Dabura was leaving. Both he and Jabaloma had waited with baited breath as he looked down at the two of them. Before he could intervene Kyoko was frantically asking Yuka if she looked okay. A flustered look was on her face. Dabura, the once stoic warrior, awkwardly stumbles around. Mino’s suggestion about a political marriage briefly entered into his mind, before quickly leaving.
What a ridiculous idea.
They were trying to achieve positive political relations, not indulge in some fairytale.
Once the dust had cleared he got up from his seat.
“Excuse me gentlemen. I’ll be right back.”
~
Usami made his way down the hall. Five minutes. He just needed five minutes to himself. He was exhausted. Between managing the students and filling in as acting minister he barely had time in the day to breathe. In the last week he couldn't have gotten anymore than five hours of sleep, and there was still so much to do.
He passed the library and halted in his tracks when he spotted a Simurian woman.
Was she lost?
~
You had fully intended to return to the dinner party, but a persistent noise had led you to this room. When you opened the door you found the source of the noise was a furry creature perched on a table. You locked eyes with it and slowly approached. You were still learning about this new planet, but if you recalled correctly this was the animal called the cat. You cautiously took a seat in front of it. Its tail swished as it slowly stalked towards you.
Was it a dangerous creature?
It almost resembled the very Kalyans that you and your sister had observed in your youth. The creature stopped at the edge of the table. Against your better judgement you reached out to touch it, the fur was soft and it shined in the dimly lit room. You attempted to listen to its thoughts but you couldn’t hear anything.
“Hello,” you whispered.
A deep purr vibrated from the creature, the cat.
Fascinating.
“Are you lost?” a deep voice asked.
You looked up to find a human man standing in the doorway.
You quickly stood up.
“I heard this…cat making noise and I wandered inside. I’m sorry for trespassing.”
He quickly shook his head and entered the library.
“It’s fine, you're not trespassing. Every visitor to Jujutsu Tech needs to meet Smooch.”
He approached the table and held out his hand which the feline instantly pushed his head against.
“Smooch?” you asked. “What an interesting name.”
“Yuka, one of our students, named him when she was little and it just stuck.”
“Yes, I met her in the kitchen.”
Usami gestured towards the table.
“Please, sit.”
“Thank you.”
You sat back in your original seat and he took the chair to your left.
“Are you enjoying yourself?” he asked.
You nodded.
“Yes, the food was amazing.”
“Well Kiyoko will be happy to hear that once we coax her out of hiding.”
Usami noticed the puzzled look on your face and cleared his throat.
“Sorry, bad joke.”
You shrugged.
“I’m afraid the ways of this planet are still very new to me.”
“I can’t even imagine. It must be challenging leaving everything you know behind.”
You nodded.
“It is. But I’m hoping we’re able to make a new home for ourselves here.”
Smooch licked your hand with his sandpaper tongue.
“He likes you,” Usami murmured. “He’s usually shy around strangers.”
You scratched the cat behind his ear.
“Well I hope everyone is as welcoming as you.”
Usami thought back to Yakumaru.
A knock on the door pulled your attention away from one another.
Jabaloma stood at the door.
“There you are (Name), we’ll be leaving now.”
You stood up.
“Of course Father.”
Usami looked up at you. Father?
That must have meant in the Rumelian hierarchy you were placed rather high. Was it even proper custom to be talking to you so casually?
He’d be sure to ask Maru later.
You took your place beside the envoy.
“Thank you Usami. I think this went well.”
He nodded.
“We’ll be in touch.”
~
As you were leaving you leaned towards your father.
“Father, who was that man?”
“Usami is the acting minister of foreign affairs. He’s a highly revered government official and a capable sorcerer who can help our cause.”
~
Later that night, you lie awake in bed.
When you closed your eyes you saw Usami, his title and strength not even entering your mind.
Instead you thought of how gentle his eyes were when he recounted how Smooch got his name, the way a smile nearly escaped his lips when he made his bad joke.
Usami.
~
To be continued…