Disclaimer: I own nothing of importance.
Chapter 1
Gojyo grumbled to himself as he walked down the street, arms laden with groceries. "Why can't the stinking monk do the shopping?" he groused, making sure nothing fell from the over-stuffed bags. "If we're getting stuff for everyone, then everyone should have to take turns buying it!" He carefully maneuvered his way through the crowded streets. "Of course, it would be nice if I had at least a little help," he muttered, his mind wandering back to the conversation that morning.
Hakkai finished tying off the bandages, sitting back to study his work. "There you are, Goku. All of the beads went straight through, which is good. I don't think you want to repeat the experience of having one removed, although I would be a bit more gentle than Kamisama was," he said.
The teen didn't reply, staring moodily at the ground.
"In any case, you should be fine in a few days. Everyone still needs a little time to heal from our last encounter, anyway," he continued, gathering up the medical supplies. "Just don't overdo it."
"Thanks, Hakkai." The words were spoken almost grudgingly.
"Goku?" the emerald-eyed man questioned, looking at his friend in concern. "Is everything alright?"
"Yeah. Just peachy."
"Are you sure? You seem up--"
"I said I'm fine!"
"Calm down, monkey. He's just worried about you," Gojyo interceded. "And you are acting kind of weird."
"Don't call me that, you stupid kappa!" the short boy yelled, his livid gaze meeting the redhead's. "And stay out of this! It's none of your business!"
Although surprised by the saru's unexplainable anger, he had never been one to take an insult sitting down. He moved to stand, opening his mouth to reply when Hakkai held up his hand, shaking his head. There was a hard look in his eye that compelled Gojyo to comply.
"Whatever. I'm outta here," Goku said, slamming the door behind him.
"What's his problem?" the half-demon asked.
"I think I know what's bothering Goku," Hakkai said, his tone serious as he stared at the closed door. "I'll go talk to him. In the meantime, would you…" He turned back to his friend, his expression lightening as he smiled. "…mind doing the shopping for me?"
I should have looked at the size of the list before I agreed, the redhead thought, shifting the packages in his arms to be able to look at the paper. Alright, that looks like all of it. It's taken me most of the day-- Hakkai had better appreciate this! he thought, heading back towards the inn. He noticed a shadow pass over him as the large building came into sight. Looking up, he recognized the familiar outline of Hakuryuu flying back to the inn. Shrugging, he continued on his way.
Getting the door open was a bit of a challenge and he prayed no one met him on the stairs, but he made it up to the room they were sharing, opening his mouth to complain as he pushed the door open. The words died in his throat as his wide eyes took in the scene before him.
The room had been torn apart. Cups were lying broken on the ground, their contents spilled all over the wooden floorboards. Tables and chairs had been overturned, obviously in the way during a fight. Hakkai was sprawled on the floor lying in a large crimson pool. His eyes were dull and glassy, the sightless gaze staring past Gojyo's ankle. His jaw was slack, the trail of blood leaking from his mouth a stark contrast to his pale skin. His clothing was ripped and torn, the red liquid staining everything it touched. It looked like he had been trying to protect something.
No...This can't be...Not again... The thoughts tumbled over each other as the redhead's numb mind tried to process what he was seeing. But Gojyo knew that this was different than when Kinkaku had used the gourd from Kamisama to take Hakkai's and Goku's souls. This time his friend wouldn't be coming back.
The half-demon's eyes flicked up, seeing Sanzo also lying on the floor, half obscured by the overturned bed. His gun was next to his hand, as it he had been killed before he had a chance to use it.
Goku was crouching in front of the blonde priest, his head slightly bent over the body. He slowly stood up, blood running in rivulets down his arms and dripping from his claws. His long hair swayed slightly in the gentle breeze from the open window, pointed ears easily visible beneath the brown locks. He turned around, slitted golden eyes gleaming in anticipation as they landed on the kappa. The Great Sage smiled, bringing one hand to his lips and licking the crimson liquid from his claws.
Gojyo felt a shiver of fear run down his spine as he met the bloodthirsty gaze, his mind bringing back memories of the last time the monkey had lost the diadem. Kougaiji, Dokugakuji, Hakkai... We were all completely at his mercy. And he's only gotten stronger. I don't stand a chance against him. He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry while his hands were unexplainably clammy. It was a warm day, hot even, but a wave of cold seemed to envelope him, making him shiver in its icy embrace. What happened? Could this have something to do with whatever was bothering him earlier? But, what could have caused him to-- The redhead's eyes flickered up, landing on the golden circlet resting on the saru's forehead. No way! he thought, his heart hammering inside his chest. How can he be berserk?! He still has the limiter on!!
The Seiten Taisei took one step and then another, slow and deliberate. "…Gojyo…" he breathed, as if tasting the name and finding it to his liking. "…Gojyo…"
"Stay away from me!" the redhead cried, taking an involuntary step backwards. His eyes darted again to his fallen companions. They're dead. We're no match for him. I'm no match for him. Sanzo was the only one who could… But he's dead, too. His gaze was drawn back to Goku, who had stopped. Seiten Taisei's smile grew wider, his demon fangs catching the light. He crouched, getting ready to play with his last toy.
Primal instincts took over, namely that of self-preservation, and Gojyo was down the hall before he had even made a conscious decision to run. He had already made it to the bottom of the stairs when he heard, "MEAT BUNS!!" This exclamation was followed closely by, "BAKA SARU!!" and an accompanying thwack as the paper fan connected solidly with someone's head. It took a few seconds for the redhead's mind to register what this meant. Eyes narrowed in anger, he stormed back up the stairs.
Goku was sitting on the floor, one of his fake demon ears hanging at an odd angle as he rubbed his head. His other hand was clutching a meat bun from the grocery bags that Gojyo had dropped in his haste to escape.
"Now, Sanzo, don't be so hard on him," Hakkai said, picking himself up off the floor. "After all, he did last longer than we thought he would."
"Hmph."
"Would one of you kindly explain what's going on here?!" the kappa demanded, looking pointedly at Hakkai. He was furious with his companions for the not-so-nice prank and the brunette's satisfied smile wasn't doing much to help.
"This," the demon said, holding his index finger up like a school teacher lecturing students, "is called 'retribution.' "
"Retribution for what?! Saving your sorry hides and then taking care of you all after Kamisama beat the crap out of us?!" the half-demon exclaimed, still seething. "If this is the thanks I get, next time I'll just leave you all there to rot!"
"No," the emerald-eyed man replied, still smiling brightly. "You caused us a lot of trouble when you left in the middle of the night, without a word to anyone." His expression changed subtly, the severe look in his eyes conveying more than his words told. "Sanzo wanted to kill you. For once, Goku was in agreement with him."
Gojyo saw the warning in the green gaze. And you too, I'll bet, he thought, running a hand through his hair. His mind wandered back to when they had to find him at Kamisama's place. Now that I think about it, that's the first thing Sanzo said-- he demanded that Kamisama step down because they were going to be the ones to kill me. I must have really pissed Sanzo off if he took the time to come find me instead of heading on. Or perhaps they did and then had to backtrack? Yep, I really pissed him off. I didn't think anyone would care that I left. Apparently, I need to give them a letter of resignation at least two weeks in advance. "And you convinced them to give me a heart attack instead?"
"Well, as you said, you did care for us after that unfortunate encounter," Hakkai continued, his tone light as if he were discussing the weather. "So, I managed to convince Sanzo that this would be a better form of revenge."
"Boy, was it! You should have seen the look on your face, Gojyo!" Goku piped up, grinning broadly. He had taken out the fake teeth and was happily munching on the groceries the half-demon had dropped in the hall. "I didn't think it would work," he admitted between bites. "But, Hakkai did!"
"Thanks a lot, man," the water sprite grumbled. He looked at Goku, suppressing a shudder as he met the slitted golden gaze. "So, did you spend all morning getting dressed up to play the part?" he asked nonchalantly, pulling off the fake ears while wishing he could do the same with the contacts. The prank had hit a little too close to home and his heartbeat wasn't quite back to normal yet.
"Actually," Hakkai said, "most of the time was spent coaching Goku. He had to convincingly act the part, after all."
"Even if he did let his stomach get the better of him," Sanzo added.
"True, but I can honestly say that I'm surprised he made it that far," the demon replied.
"Aw, come on, guys," the saru whined. "Give me a break, I haven't eaten anything all day long! I'm starv--" Goku's sentence was cut off as the paper fan connected with the side of his head. "Ow!" he cried, clutching his head. "What was that for, Sanzo?!"
"I've had to listen to you all day long. If you say you're starving one more time, I'm going to kill you."
"But, Sanzo--"
Thwack! "And quit eating all the food! That's for all of us, baka saru!"
"But, Sanzo, I'm starv--"
Click.
"Now, now," Hakkai interceded, his hands raised placatingly although he knew better than to step into the priest's line of fire. "Goku, if you can be patient, I'll start making dinner right after I change," he said, moving over to his bag to retrieve a set of clothing that wasn't torn up.
"Great! I'll help you!" the boy replied enthusiastically.
"So, what are we going to do about this mess?" Gojyo asked, looking around the room.
The demon looked at the redhead, smiling brightly. "You're going to clean it up."
"What?! Why me?!" the water sprite demanded.
"Why not? It's your fault to begin with," Goku said, gathering the groceries back into the bags. "So, you should have to clean it up."
"My fault?! I wasn't the one who decided to play dress-up and tear apart our room!"
"No, but you're the one who left, so it's all your fault!" the boy replied.
"That's the lamest explanation I've ever heard! Your head must be as empty as your stomach, you stupid monkey!" the redhead returned.
"Don't call me that!" Goku yelled, glaring at the half-demon.
Gojyo froze, his eyes meeting slitted golden orbs narrowed in anger. The long tresses spilled over his shoulders, swaying gently as he moved. The half demon resisted the urge to put a hand to his chest in an effort to slow his heartbeat. Man, he really needs to take those off.
"Consider it a final form of retribution," the tall brunette said, tying his sash as his waist. He turned around to look at his friend, smiling mischievously. "Unless, of course, you'd like us to come up with something else."
"Well, it seems that I've been outvoted," he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a pack of cigarettes. His hands shook very slightly in response to the adrenaline.
"How nice of you to volunteer," Hakkai said, handing him a bucket and a washcloth. "Make sure you clean it all up-- we don't want anyone thinking that we killed someone in here."
Gojyo accepted the items silently, his dour gaze wandering around the room. He sighed. This sucks.
. . .
The End
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