Be Yourself
by: Chrys aka Hakkai no miko
"HEY!!!!!"
"GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DUMPLING, YOU ERO KAPPA!!!!!!!!!!!"
"'YOUR' DUMPLING!?! Since when did it become, 'YOURS'!??!!?"
"NOW!!!! GIVE IT OVER!!!"
"NO!"
"GIVE IT!"
"NO! NO! NO!!!--- ACK!! EWW!!! You drooled on it!!! BAKA ZAROU!!!"
"URUSAI!!!!!" a loud thwack was heard and the two stumbled backwards as a paper fan smacked them in the head at the same time. The blonde monk simply took his chopsticks and took the dumpling from the chopsticks of the twitching hand from under the heap. "I'll be taking that..." and with one gulp, it disappeared down his throat. "Waaahh!!! My dumpling!!!" the small boy's eyes started to water and as he finally bawled in tears. "Ara ara... you know how much food means to him, Sanzo, Gojyo... give him a chance," the mild-mannered one lightly scolded the two.
"Can I have your siomai, Hakkai?" the boy's face gave a wide grin as he rubbed his hands together eyeing his food. "Uhh...." without second thought, with a speed of Sanzo's gun, he took the plate in his hands and swallowed the remains inside. "Ano....Goku, I seem to run out of food..." he gave a light laugh. "Mou... you're all the same..." Goku hung his head low. "That's cu'z you're greedy and you want all the food to yourself," Gojyo ruffled his hair. "Mou! I'm not a cat!" Goku jerked his head away from him. "He's really upset about the food part..." Hakkai almost regretted what he did, but he thought again, and somehow, no matter how evil it might be, he was glad he finished his food ahead.
"You guys are all mean!" Goku rested his hands on his head in defeat. "It's okay, Goku. We're doing it for your own good. You don't wanna end up fat and.. uh... lazy do you?" Hakkai patted him on the head. "Lazy? HA! That's already taken cared of," Sanzo rolled his eyes. "Ha, I mean what good are you? Except fighting? Hakkai's smart, Sanzo's the cold-blooded killer, and I'm the handsome, devilish charmer whom women can't resist..." Gojyo brushed his fingers through his blood-red hair. "And you're the food-grabbing monkey! It ruins our image!"
"Gojyo! Don't be too hard on him! It's not his fault!" Hakkai's smile faded. "Tch.. I don't know about you three, I'm going back into the inn and I'm sleeping!" Sanzo rose from his seat, paid the bill and left in a hurry. "I'm goin' now too. I've got a date... in a few minutes..." the scandalous rouge stood up and stretched as he left. "..Let's go back to the inn, Goku," Hakkai placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "..Aa," but Goku didn't smile. That worried Hakkai. His spirits seemed to be low. Maybe Gojyo and Sanzo's teasing got this far...? "Don't mind them. We like you just the way you are, they just... have a way of showing it," he added. "I'm okay," Goku said nonchalantly as he stood up.
"Do you want to go shopping tomorrow?" Hakkai asked, hoping to lift the boy's spirits up. He was expecting a 'YES! I'm going!' as a response, but Goku merely nodded his head. Hakkai's smile faded, something was really bothering the poor boy. "Ano... maybe we should go back to the inn," he said as he stood up and walked beside Goku as they got out of the restaurant with a thousand stares back at them for causing the scene.
By the time they arrived in the inn, Goku returned to his room, today, he was sharing room with Hakkai, and Sanzo was stuck with Gojyo, but since the "handsome, devilish charmer" wasn't home yet, Sanzo had gone to dreamland by then. Goku plopped down onto his bed with a loud sigh. Hakkai was getting a little worried about the way he was acting, he wasn't his usual genki self. Hakkai let himself lie on his bed as he stared up at the ceiling. He glanced out the window and saw that Gojyo and not yet returned. "Mou..." he gave an exasperated sigh. "Gojyo-san is always late when it comes to these things. I hope he didn't pass out on the road or something..."
"...Hmm? Hakkai?" Goku's voice sounded serious so Hakkai fixed his eyes on the boy. "I've been thinking.... am I... always the bumbling idiot in this group?" Goku hugged his knees close to himself. "Of course not. Even Gojyo makes mistakes that are so--" Goku interrupted him, "Am I always the misfit? If only I was as cool as you, or Sanzo!? .....Even Gojyo! If I could.... then," Goku clenched his fists. "Goku, we like you the way you are..." Hakkai's expression softened. "You keep telling me that! But you guys are always calling me, monkey, stupid, or... or... idiot monkey!" Goku slammed his fist into the table. "Relax, Goku. That's what makes you who you are," Hakkai pointed out. "Ya, a brainless ape!" he muttered bitterly.
"Goku..."
"I don't wanna be a stupid monkey!"
"But--"
"I can be as good as them too!"
"Ano..."
"I'll prove it to them! I can be good and cool too!!!"
"Demo..."
"URUSAI!!!!!!!!!!" it seemed as if the monk upstairs heard all the noise and sent a paper fan flying over Goku's head, knocking him over and making him fall back into bed.... knocking him unconscious...
"Goku! Goku!" a voice called out to him. "UUghhh... damn... my head... where am I?" he blinked. "You're silly. You called me remember? So you want to be someone else don't ya?" Goku's vision was blurry so he couldn't see much until his vision cleared. In front of him was this girl who was his size. Her outfit resembled that of Ririn and her golden blonde hair was bundled up but her face was pleasant. Her blue eyes studied him. "Who... are you?" he squinted at her. "I'm your guardian angel, Mingling~! I was sent here to watch over you. And you have summoned me here to fulfill your wishes. You've got five~!" she beamed. "But don't you usually give out.. like, 3 wishes?" Goku arched a knowing eyebrow.
"You're special~! So I'm giving you an offer you can't refuse! I will let you live as Hakkai, Sanzo or Gojyo and then, if you like it, I'll let you be them! How about it?" she winked at him. "YA!!!" Goku pumped his fists in the air then, he stopped. "Were you sent by Gojyo or Hakkai to try and trick me?" he eyed her suspiciously. "Nope. Came here on your summons," she assured him. "But where are they? Isn't Hakkai supposed to sleep in this room with me?" Goku asked. "He is. He's sleeping and he can't hear us," she giggled.
"Huh? Hakkai? Hey--!" Goku tried to shake his shoulders to wake him up but his hands went through him as if he was a ghost. "What the--!?!" "I told you Goku. I can't let anyone see me..." she batted her eyelashes at him innocently. Goku backed away for a minute. "...It's true! This is really... cool!!!!" he jumped up and down. "Okay. Give me your FIRST wish..." she rubbed her hands together. "Okay! I... uh... I want to be.... HAKKAI!!!" he said out loud. "I mean, what could go wrong, he's always nice to people and he's got charm and... I'm gonna be cool!!!!" "Your wish is my command... Oh, wait, if ever you need me... just call out my name, okay? 'Mingling'.. and I'll come running~!" she said as she waved some powder over his eyes and he fell to the floor.
"Oi! Wake up!" came a small tug on his shoulder. "Eh?" he opened his eyes to find out one of them can't see. Then, a realization hit him and he faced himself. The Goku in front of him. "Oi! Hakkai! Wake up! We're going shopping today remember!?" "Aah.. hai." he got himself up and rubbed his head and looked for his one-glass spectacle. "Ah, here it is..." he put it on and faced the mirror. It WAS true. He WAS Hakkai. He grinned to himself. "Oi! Stop admiring yourself in the mirror!" came Gojyo's voice from behind him. "Hey, I gotta talk to you," Gojyo said. "But he was going shopping with me!" the Goku stood up and waved his fist over Gojyo's head. "I'm his best friend. Scram!" Gojyo shouted at him.
A smile curled in Hakkai's lips, "Gojyo! Leave Goku alone. I promised him shopping so you'll just have to wait your turn~!" The look on Gojyo's face was something he wanted to remember for a long time. "YAY! BLEH!!! Stupid ero kappa!!!" Goku stuck his tongue out and took Hakkai's arm as they rushed out the door. "Oi, where do you think you're going," Sanzo's voice interrupted them. "Uh... would you believe... shopping?" Hakkai grinned sheepishly. "But we just went shopping yesterday.... Goku..." Sanzo glared at the boy. "You take advantage of Hakkai too much. Besides, Hakkai said that he was going to get my cigarettes and beer today, not go to the market..." Sanzo eyed them. "Isn't that right... Hakkai?" his sharp eyes darted until it landed on Hakkai's face making him sweatdrop.
"Y-yes... S-sanzo..." Hakkai grinned nervously. "Mou! But I wanna go!" Goku stomped his foot. "HAKKAI!" Gojyo's face twisted in anger as he grabbed him by the collar. "You said I was your best friend and that you'd listen to stuff! I have this problem and you're not helping! It's as if you're someone else!!! You're like a stranger to me!!!" he shook him. Gojyo looked like he was on the verge of tears. "You're going to buy my beer first!" Sanzo pushed Goku and Gojyo away from him. "NO! SHOPPING! SHOPPING! SHOPPING!!!!" Goku bawled. "LISTEN TO ME!!!" the red-haired man grabbed him by the collar again. "FINE! FINE! How about this? I go shopping for Sanzo and Goku and Gojyo goes with me and tell me his problems!!" Hakkai pushed all of them away, breathing deeply.
"Fine. Here, remember you're using my money!" Sanzo tossed his credit card to him. "But it's not really yours, its----" and Sanzo pointed a gun right under Gojyo's nose. "It's yours..." he gave a small squeak as he eyed the gun fearfully. "I'm coming too!!" Goku tugged at Hakkai's arm. //How can Hakkai stand all this...!!??// the Goku in Hakkai thought to himself. He shook his head, no, he was happy. Now he wasn't a stupid monkey. "Okay. The three of us will go," Hakkai sighed in defeat. "But I don't wanna tell him my problems!!!" Gojyo pushed Goku away. "But I wanna go! I wanna pick!!" "URUSAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sanzo hit the two of them with his paper fan.
"Yay~!" Goku was running ahead, picking things off the shelves as he was looking for treats. Behind him, Hakkai and Gojyo were talking to each other, "Now will you listen to my problem?" "...Hai, hai..." Hakkai sighed. "Okay, remember I was on this date..... with that chick....?" he said, his face full of seriousness, the Goku in Hakkai would have wanted to laugh. "..Y-ya? And?" "....IT'S NOT A FRIGGIN' CHICK! IT WAS A FRIGGIN' DUDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" he bawled and buried his face on Hakkai's sleeve and he made a loud sniffing sound. The Goku in him wanted to laugh so hard. His chest was bubbling with laughter punching from his insides. "I--It's okay, Gojyo... there...... there are... queers in the world too." it was kind of hard to keep from laughing.
"LIFE is so unfair! I thought she was perfect! We had so much in common!!!" Gojyo bawled a lot until all the passersby were eyeing them with a sudden weird intuition. Gojyo practically wet his entire shirt front with his tears. "H-how did you know.. uh.." Hakkai asked. "Okay, fine. I was walkin' up to her while we were hanging out in the bar and then, when I sat next to her, I felt something.... against my.. thigh. and...AAAGHH!!!" he shuddered and gave a louder cry of despair. Practically everyone in the store was looking at the scene. A deep blush of embarrassment tinted Hakkai's cheeks as the spotlight was on the two. Then, Hakkai pushed Gojyo away gently. "We will all make mistakes... now, please... relax..." Hakkai was having a hard time relaxing too with all eyes on him.
"I'm back!!! Let's buy these!!!!!" Goku certainly got back and brought back a tower of food products. Hakkai's eyes grew slightly wide, "All... that? Isn't that.. much?" Hakkai slapped himself in the head. "O-of course not! Why don't you get these and those, while you're at it!" he beamed. "What about Sanzo' cigarettes and beer?" Gojyo wiped the remaining signs of his crying a while ago and he looked fine. "WHA--!? I totally forgot!" Hakkai jumped a bit. "He's gonna kill you if you don't buy those... oh, and while you're at it, you gotta buy me a new lighter," Gojyo added. "I'll bring these!!!" Goku ran ahead with groceries in hand which weren't paid for yet. The owner was eyeing Hakkai, waiting for the payment for such a large amount of food. "Okay, okay... the card... I'll pay for Goku's first... hmmm?" Hakkai reached into his pocket where the card is... was...
"Uhh..." Hakkai checked his other pockets as well. "T-the card...!" he suddenly realized as he couldn't find it anywhere. "You........... lost....... Sanzo's card..............!?!" the cigarette in Gojyo's mouth dropped to the floor. "A---" a large sweat drop formed in both their heads. The owner was overhearing their conversation. "You... don't have... money---!" his eyes narrowed. "RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Gojyo yelled as he ran for his life. "M-matte!" Hakkai followed him as well. The owner with a couple of people were running after them with forks and shovels. Then, they lost them on the way. Goku was already back in the inn. "Oh no! Sanzo's cigarettes!" Hakkai slapped a hand against his forehead.
"Forget his cigarettes! You lost his card! He's going to shoot holes through you!" Gojyo pointed out. Then, all of a sudden, there was a loud 'KYU!!!' right behind them. "H-hakuryu!" Hakkai jumped up, being a little startled. "Kyu!" it looked angry as it buzzed around Hakkai eyeing him with his beady red eyes. "He looks mad..." a sweatdrop formed on both their heads. "Did you feed Hakuyu today?" Gojyo asked. "A--, no...am I supposed to?" he grinned sheepishly. A muscle twitch appeared in the dragon's features as it blew a fireball at them. "RUN AGAIN!!!" Gojyo said as he ran out and away from the dragon. Then, as Hakkai stepped out of the curb, the market people saw him. "THERE HE IS!" and then, this time Hakuyu was chasing him as well.
As Hakkai was running he shouted, "MingLing! MingLing! Get out here! I need you!!!!" "Goku-san!" she appeared in front of him, as small as a fairy. "Get me out of this predicament!" "Your second wish is my command..." and with a snap, everything else around him stopped as if time was stopped. The people behind him stood as stiff as a cardboard. Gojyo up ahead as still in the middle of running. "......This... is... not... what... I wanted..." Hakkai wheezed. "How can Hakkai stand all this!?! I'd go crazy if I were him!" "So.. you don't wanna be him? SO you wanna be Goku again?" she smiled. "No! I don't want to be a stupid monkey! I wanna be..... uh... Sanzo!!! It can't be too hard!"