#my man toji was a runner. an absolute trackstar. child support invoices are never catching up to him

[pitasmare]

recently saw a tiktok about toji n megumi…and good god. ppl in the comment section were willing to die in the trenches to convince others that toji had at no point sold megumi (which is so easily fact-checked it hurts) and that he was a great father. girl, we did not read or watch the same series. and mind you, this is not coming from anti-toji angle at all.

i don't understand glazing over the turmoil present in the text. it's what makes their father-son relationship so interesting and compelling. the tragedy of it all! how grief and trauma molded their relationship - or actually, lack thereof. and yet, even then, megumi was still toji's last thought as he was dying. the softness in his voice when he said "i'm glad" after coming to the conclusion that gojo had intervened in the toji-naobito agreement and had allowed megumi to stay a fushiguro!

and how delusional do you have to be to claim fushiguro toji is a good father?? bro??? toji loved megumi, sure. but his approach to his son, post his wife's passing, was hands-off: extreme edition. megumi himself says he hasn't seen his father in years and toji asks "who's that" in response to shiu asking about his son. all the "caretaking" choices he made for megumi (like arranging a future sale with the zenin, leaving him with his then partner, mamamiki) resulted in son's well-being and rearing being out of his hands. telling gojo that particular info but leaving it up to him what do with megumi's fate, is another wild example of his claim to absentee father of the century.

and i think it's easy to understand why. it's not out of malice, toji's treatment by his clan left him thinking that he was worthless and also, deeply unstable. all those traits resurfaced again during his grief. so, with an example of childrearing like that, zero positive influences in his own parenting (mamamiki isn't winning any mother of the year awards either. althought, idk if that would have changed anything) this was probably his way of trying to provide megumi w/ a better life by taking his presence out of the equation. the same happens when it comes to the sale. in his head, toji probably believes he is providing better odds for megumi by selling him back to their ancestral clan (even though, i'm sure toji knew he wouldn't be exempt from hardships - the zenin clan's still toxic even if you are an asset).

obviously, there here is also selfishness, lack of motivation, and a whole cocktail of other negative bullshit, in all of that. out of sight, out of mind (so out of mind he forgot to who the name megumi fucking pertained to. and, adding to the cherry on top, HE was the one who named his son). also, i cannot stress this enough,,,,he was going to financially benefit from SELLING his son. which is, and i cannot believe i have to say this so, bad! that, cancels every and any possible good (even if misguided) intention in leaving megumi in the zenin's care! he's a flawed fuck! he's another cog in the great old generational trauma of the zen'in clan! fushiguro toji is objectively not a god person or father! however that's part of what makes him, him. and as a consequence, what makes him such an interesting character. it's why their little father-son (unbeknownst to megumi) moment hits so hard. the baggage has to exist in order for that little moment to hold so much meaning.

in sum, i love all is well au’s as much as the next person, but why reduce such an interesting relationship, when discussing actual canon, to something with so little complexity? why viciously sanitize it? i want to see that energy in fics! in aus! but like. time and place ❤️