Disclaimer: The usual… I still don't own Saiyuki…
A/N: Ah… it's nice to be back. Well, sort of. It's been a month! Remind me never to take those workaholic professors next time. : )
Just got back from a looong break (wished it was longer!) on the day after the application for the santa project in the 83 ml ended. Isn't life painfully ironic? I wanted to join!!! (Sniff, sniff!) Oh well maybe next time…
Anyway, arigatoo to those who reviewed! Helped a lot. Really appreciated. Maybe in time I might actually improve (in dreamtime). And learn to give proper warnings. hehehe… still trying to get a hang of this writing thingy… so I'll just continue experimenting for the time being.
Before I begin some quick msgs for the revs on my last 2 fics:
To Rasinah: thanks lots! and yep, I agree that the rain is a tad overused. And well hakkai was really supposed to be ooc in the last fic. Should have put the right warning. : )
To Chaosd: lotsa thanks, hopefully I'll learn. and try. don't expect anything though... : )
To Xcryptor: thanks. kage in your class, you say? Don't think it's me though. : )
To others: Thank you very much for bearing with me. Hehehe!
I missed doodling some fics… so I just doodled another one. Kinda informal…I don't know…but what the heck. here goes…
Lost by Kage Kurokawa
Prologue: Unusual
It was a hot, humid day. The kind of day that makes people wish they were staying at home, relaxing inside a cool, comfortable room with some refreshing icy beverage in hand. And not caught in a vast desert that lay under the blistering heat of the midday sun. Seeing the said desert stretching for miles down the horizon with no village or oasis in sight does not exactly help matters in any way. The whole place is dry. Parched. Searing. Lifeless. Silent. Only to be broken by the occasional screams of some birds of prey flying overhead in search of some unfortunate creature to feast on for lunch.
However, today is a most unusual day for this arid landscape because the sound of a roaring engine can be heard as one vehicle sped its way in the midst of the desert, leaving clouds of smoke and sand in its trail. Travelers, human or otherwise, very seldom, if at all, bother to traverse this long, dry, and difficult path. And those who do so are often deemed and labeled as either thoughtlessly brave, or just plain foolish. Many of them don't usually last very long and mainly end up as some main course for the predatory desert creatures. Thus, a small, brown army jeep traveling in the middle of the day looks quite out of place in the badlands. Let us set aside the fact that this jeep actually transforms into a dragon. As for its occupants, well, they may be a tad crazy, after all. They are anything but normal. They have this certain mission to accomplish. It's not really of any importance. Just something about going to the west, kicking some super-uberdemon butt, and saving the world from plunging into total chaos. Piece of cake. It's something they do everyday.
Today would have been just another day for them too. Would have been. Traveling in places such as this is quite common for them. Almost like a routine really. However, some noticeable things are quite uncommon with this company today. Most evident is the stifling silence that hangs in the usually 'lively' atmosphere of this jeep especially when they pass dehydrated terrains like this. Silence and seriousness during a drive were out of the ordinary and had no real place in this company. Today there were no throbbing veins, no never-ending grumbles about the weather, or about endless growling stomachs, or the pestering about how long it takes to get to the nearest villages. No arguments. No fights. No shouting. No soft laughter. No words. It's like everyone's gone mute. There is no whacking of a certain infamous fan, nor are there bullets raining from the sky. It's almost as if an angel passed in the midst of an unruly crowd and hushed everyone in sight.
That must be good right? Right?
Not really.
At least not for this particular group of young travelers (who don't believe in angels by the way). Though it must be noted that silence used to be a very welcome idea indeed. In fact, one would usually see this certain white-robed, sutra-bearing renowned figure threatening, hitting and shooting his way to achieve the quietude that he wishes. At least for a brief period of time. The kind of silence that exists at the moment however is not the welcomed type of silence. This stillness is different. This is the kind of quiet that usually means something is up. Something that bodes no good at all. Not good indeed.
Another thing not quite right with this scenario is that the jeep seems to be acting quite funny today, plowing through the desert wastelands recklessly, and at breakneck speed as if it is being driven by some possessed, drunk, maniacal speed demon trying to satisfy its hunger for maximum velocity (Click! hehehe). It is almost suicidal (another click! O.o). That is not what's off though. What is strange about this situation is that the others do not seem to mind at all. No scolding. No complaining. No begging for the lengthening of their existence on the planet.
And where in the world are those pathetic excuse for adversaries that usually, somehow manage find them every turn? One had come to expect them to appear at every nook and cranny. They had always been a source of entertainment for these westbound travelers. Most of the time, that is. But today it seems that these miserable pests are avoiding the group. Something seemed to tell them, whether instinct or reason, that it would be folly to approach, block or chase this particular jeep at this particular moment. Not if they value their wretched little hides. There is this particular aura that hangs around the vehicle that seems to send a warning that spells something akin to the sign "Flammable. Do not smoke within 50 feet." Nobody dare come near. Not even that redheaded, blue-eyed youkai prince and his little gang of misfits. Not at present time.
Meanwhile, two figures huddled uncomfortably in the backseat of the jeep sat quietly and by some wonder uncomplainingly, for the first time it seems, as if lost in deep thought. Which was an odd thing because it was contrary to the opinion of a certain cranky someone who had always believed that these two have not been given that part of the anatomy used for any intellectual purpose. Their usually expressive face held unreadable masks that are alien the respective owners.
The red headed one on the left stares down the horizon under heavy lids, with unseeing crimson eyes. His handsome face that normally have that carefree, flirtatious countenance now hold that uncommon faraway look tat one almost never sees. Dreaming. Rationalizing. Cursing.
Beside him a smaller golden-eyed boy burrowed himself further into the thick gray blanket draped around his form. His downcast eyes were slightly red, probably due to the warm, dry, sand-filled wind that unmercifully blows suddenly every now and then. As if by some miracle his stomach seemed to have forgotten its incessant whining for nutritional appeasement… or maybe his brain is too busy to hear it. Trying to believe. To understand. To cope.
As for the driver, he seemed to be driving blind actually judging from that surreal pace that he is going as he maneuvers the wheel and clutching at it in an iron grip. His expression as inscrutable as always. There is almost nothing to read in his face except when one looks in his eyes. They convey too many emotions burning all at once that those beautiful orbs almost seemed cold, frozen. Like the rest, he too, is lost in dreamtime. Recollecting. Reflecting. Questioning. Cursing.
In that eerie air of unfamiliar silence, everyone in that small brown jeep has an idea about what it is that the other was thinking. There is only one topic that their minds are focused on at this time. They are mulling over it in their heads. And for the moment, they respect that need to be left alone. They understand. Or at least try to. There is nothing they can do about it anyway. They have to deal with the situation on their own for now. Or maybe for always. Who knows?
On the whole, there is that particular sensation in the hangs in the atmosphere. So thick, one can almost touch it.
Feelings of loss. Of regrets. Of helplessness. Of grief.
And even…
Of anger. Of resentment. Of disappointment.
Maybe it's because the passenger seat is strangely empty today. The familiar figure who either sleeps or reads one of those outdated newspapers is not there. That scene will probably not happen again for a long time. If ever. But there is always that sliver of hope against all hopes that one day it might still…
But that splinter of optimism isn't around today as everyone sat there brooding on their own while zooming through the middle of that scorching, desiccated land. The driver and its two passengers…
Yes. The driver and his two passengers.
Of the four that set off in the beginning of this journey, only three of the company remained on the road that day.
And the final thing that is out of the ordinary?
Well…
The driver is blonde.
End chapter… tsuzuku?
A/N: Errr… so guess who's not in this picture?
Anyway, thank you for taking the time to read! Ya think I should continue? or I should just stop? hate it? like it? please let me know. Am I really getting worse?
I'm not a consistent writer and probably will never be. hehehe.
Is this one of those cliché stuff? I don't know… no idea as to what to do with this yet…
hmmm… I'm so bad.
Oh well. Comments, suggestions, the works. Please R&R. Please? Please!
Til next week (hopefully)…
Ja, ne…: )