Ghost on the Bridge gasp!
Disclaimer (noooooooo!): I don't own Saiyuki. Okay! Happy? I SAID IT!
Moi Musings: Fear not! It's one-shot! Don't hafta wait for the next chappie!
But a word of warning: this is my first one! So if it isn't up to your standards, then too bad! (for me)
It was 1 a.m. All was quiet, except for the odd 24 hour teahouse or pub. The drunken redhead stumbled through the winding roads, muttering to himself. "So what if I don't have any bloody money? He'll have bad business for throwin' lil ole me out." He snorted, and continued shuffling on.
It was 1.15 a.m. He had reached the bridge. He thought about what Hakkai had told him. 'It's said to be haunted.' 'Haunted?' 'Yup. That's what the villagers say so. Don't try to cross it at night.' Pah. That whole lot was bullshit. A load of crock. No such thing in ghosts. They were just a figment of the villagers' imagination. Right? He paused. But…what if it was real? He had heard of such stories. A guy went missing and he was found days later. And his innards werelined neatly by his side. Gojyo shuddered. Still, he had to cross the bridge if he wanted to get back to the hotel. He sighed. This would be a whole different story if he hadn't lost the three quarters of the money he had at poker. He sighed again.
It was 1.21 a.m. He started to cross the bridge. There was a scuffle in the shadows. He froze. What if it was…After a minute of thought, he passed it as his own imagination. He shuffled a little further. Then he saw it. The towering black shadow, with its huge head disproportioned to its body, like the ghost of someone who had met a terrible fate of getting his head swollen up. If Gojyo was not drunk or if it was daylight, he would have laughed at how silly the creature looked. But it wasn't daylight. And Gojyo was drunk. Very drunk.
It was 1.26 a.m. The middle-aged man was cleaning up his teahouse. He was putting back the last teacup on the shelf when he heard a loud splash and a piercing scream. It sounded like a woman. Next thing he knew, a drunken-looking guy with long red hair ran up to his doorstep, screaming away. Kids nowadays, and the strange things to do to their hair. Still, he was a nice guy, so he half-supported half-dragged the babbling redhead to a seat and poured a nice hot cup of tea. "G-g-ghost!" whimpered the young man. "I p-pushed itinto t-the l-lake…d-dunno where I g-got the s-strength…" The middle-aged man patted him on the back, reassuring him, "It's okay, there ain't no ghosts here."
It was 1.32 a.m. There was another loud yelp, and the sound of running footsteps. Another kid, this time with a golden headband (Tsk. Jewelry too.) collapsed at the doorstep, drenched from head to toe. The poor man sighed. What had he done to deserve this? He poured another cup of tea…
It was 1.35 a.m. "Goku! You saw him too, didn't you?" "The g-ghost?" "Yeah." The boy took a long drink of his tea. Gojyo eyed him cautiously. "Come to think of it, how come you're here, saru?" "Don't call me saru! Hakkai sent me." Goku raised a hand to his head. "The huge hat I bought at the bazaar is gone. Must have lost it when the ghost pushed me into the lake…"
Good? Bad? Downright ugly? Please review! Then I'll try to improve! (winks) I got the idea from a comprehension passage. Test papers prove useful for once…