Shocking New Development
Waiting… Sitting… That's often all there was to do whenever the Sanzo crew stopped at a boring town. No demons, no crowds, no activities whatsoever… Just sitting and waiting. On top of it all… it was made far worse, far quieter and boring when it rained.
--
They were unfortunate enough to enter town just as it started coming down, and they still had to drive quite a ways into it before finding a vacant Inn. Hakuryuu was overly anxious, and the moment Hakkai stepped onto the brake pedal, he transformed back, dumping all five of them into the mud.
Needless to say, the weary bunch wasn't too thrilled to go from wet and miserable, to wet, miserable AND dirty. Gojyo and Sanzo both cursed the crazy dragon, but he paid them no mind, and flew down to hide within his master's presence. Gojyo kept on cursing and slammed his fists into the muddy ground.
"GRRR…. This sucks! Could this day get ANY worse!"
"Stuff it."
"Yeah, Gojyo! You've already jinxed us once today! Don't go doing it all over again!"
"Me! Why don't you go blame Hakkai's stupid pet? He's the one who dumped us!"
Hakuryuu growled and squawked at Gojyo in retort, which only incited more yelling. Hakkai had his hands over his ears, too tired and upset to even stand back up. He was in no mood to play peacemaker and the yelling just wouldn't stop…
Koume, though, remained very calm as she helped Sanzo stand back up- her soft touch helping to quell the anger rising deep within him. She always helped him calm down, but in a situation like that, it was difficult to keep his cool even with her in his presence. Both of them turned around, and while Hakkai had a nervous breakdown, on top of a pounding head and a cold, the other boys were simply rolling around in the mud.
"Genjyo…?"
Without a word, Sanzo lowered his head and rose his gun high in the air. With a single fired shot, the rolling and yelling stopped, and even Hakkai's mumbling quieted down. even Koume jumped at the sound, even though she was expecting… and even hoping for it. when her arms tightened around his, Sanzo took in a breath and lowered his gun. Looking down at her, he paused a moment before speaking, looking calm, but with a bit of acid-irritation in his voice.
"Get Hakkai inside. I'll round up the two idiots."
"Yes!"
Koume then left Sanzo's side and ran as well as she could through the mud to get to her father. At first, he refused to respond or move, but with her soft voice and gentle coaxing, she managed to get him up to his feet and to the door.
"Mm…. My head hurts."
"I know, dad… almost there!"
As they were about to enter, Koume looked back to see Sanzo yelling at the other two, who struggled to get to their feet. They fell a few times, but otherwise were okay. Gojyo had just started walking when he felt splatters of mud on his back. When he looked back, he got some more onto his face. Goku was being sluggish and didn't look up, neither did he apologize.
"Stop dragging your feet, monkey! I'm dirty enough as it is!"
Goku looked up briefly, and didn't drag his feet as much, but he also didn't respond as he passed the other and headed for the porch. This grated on Gojyo's nerves, and he swung his face to glare at the other's back.
"Hey! Don't just go and ignore me you-"
That's when Gojyo received a firm kick to his backside, going face-first into the mud pile in front of him. He cursed several times before looking up and behind him. Given that it wasn't Goku, but Sanzo behind him, and it was raining heavily around them, he decided not to give the monk any lip just then, and he got to his feet and followed the others inside. No doubt, though, Sanzo would probably get a good talking to later on.
--
Koume took care of the evening preparations for the group, like food, arranging the rooms, bringing in and sorting their supplies, and getting everyone situated. Sanzo got his own room, Hakkai was put with Gojyo, and for everyone else's relief, Koume put Goku with her. She was given a moment with nothing to do, so she even offered to clean up the mess their group had made upon entering, and asked to use the laundry room, but the innkeeper politely declined her help, and offered to take care of cleaning and clothes for her.
About 20 minutes later, Sanzo was in his room, drying his hair and pacing, when he heard soft footsteps walking down the hall towards his room. Normally, he would have thought nothing of it, but it had been deathly silent since their arrival, so he was beginning to feel anxious. Curiosity eventually got the better of him, and once the steps got closer, he went to the door and opened it. In the hall, Koume froze when the door opened and Sanzo's head popped out.
"Oh! …Hello, Genjyo!"
"Koume…"
"You look a bit more refreshed now… how do you feel?"
"A little better."
"I'm so happy to hear it!"
Sanzo had to turn his head to hide a miniscule blush from her. she could be so much like Hakkai, it was embarrassing at time. But once he got over the shock, he took a look around the hallway and looked back to her.
"What happened to the others? It has been too quiet in here! …Did you finally kill Goku and Gojyo?"
"No, no. Hakkai wasn't feeling well, so I gave him some medicine and put him to bed. Gojyo is outside smoking and Goku is just finishing washing up."
"O-oh… You took care of all of that since we've been here?"
She simply smiled in response. Yep. She was TOO much like her father… but he supposed he could handle that.
"No worries, Genjyo. We'll all be able to get a decent night's sleep!"
"Good. It's much needed and just as much appreciated."
"Mm! Is there anything you need, Genjyo?"
"Um… no. I'm fine for now."
"Alright. I'll leave you to rest, then!"
Koume rose up on her tiptoes and planted a soft kiss on Sanzo's cheek. When she started to pull back, he put a hand beneath her chin and brought her lips to his for once more. The taste of sugar was on her lips, and the scent of lavender was on his skin and in her hair. Those tastes and scents stayed with him long after she had left his sight. Oh yes, he would definitely sleep well that night.
--
Goku was sitting in a chair in the middle of the room with his shirt off and a yellow towel draped over his shoulders. He was very quiet and still, and since he was being mostly good that night, he wasn't left with a bump on his head to bother him. It was funny, though, that Gojyo got a beating that night and not him.
His hair was still dripping wet, and he hadn't even tried to dry it off since getting out of the showers. He simply sat there, staring out the window at the rain. A lot of things went through his head, as he imagined where going through the minds of his keeper and friends, like it always did when it rained. They were very serious thoughts, though, when there came a knock to the door, all of them were left forgotten.
A great big smile came to the boy's face when he heard the knock, knowing very well who it was. Goku quickly jumped off the chair and ran to the door, nearly pulling it off its hinges when he swung it open. Koume smiled down at him, and Goku smiled up, at least until he saw Gojyo standing behind her, acting grumpy.
"What's the matter with you, indecent chimp! Put some more clothes on, will ya?"
Gojyo forcefully pushed past Goku, and that made the boy's face puff up like a balloon as he glared back.
"Only YOU do that in a bad way, Gojyo! How gross!"
"In most cases, yes, but I wouldn't dare act like that around Koume. Not only would Sanzo murder me, I bet Hakkai would do it, too!"
"Mm-hmm…"
"So… Koume is officially off-limits."
Sitting at the far end of Goku's bed, Gojyo sighed and leaned his head back.
"It's a damn shame, too…"
Goku stuck his tongue out at Gojyo silently, and Koume closed the door. On her way in, she petted Goku's head, but pulled her hand back, startled, seeing as it was still soaked with water, and some remaining shampoo.
"My! Goku, didn't you even attempt to dry off?"
"Ahahahaha… Sorry! I kinda got distracted!"
"Oh, that couldn't have been too hard.
Koume threw a warning glance, shutting Gojyo up, temporarily, and smiled down at Goku.
"That's alright, Goku… take a seat and lets get you ready for bed."
Goku yipped gleefully and bounced back into his chair. Once he was seated, Koume took the towel from him and started scrubbing through the boy's matted locks. Koume didn't notice it, but the whole time, Goku had a big, goofy grin on his face, and it made Gojyo sick. …And jealous.
"Pain in the butt Monkey pet."
That's when Goku opened his eyes and half-glared at Gojyo, though he was too relaxed to speak. That's when the silence started. It went on for, probably, much longer than it should have.
--
It annoyed Gojyo to no end, how silent it was, and how long said silence went on. Waiting in silence… that's what had gone on for the past few hours, and he was sick of it. Waiting for them to get tired, waiting for the rain to stop falling, waiting for the sun to come up and allow them to get on with their westward journey. During that long waiting period, Gojyo was more than tempted to smoke, but he wasn't allowed to do it in there, and it was now too cold for him to go outside again. So, exhausted but unable to sleep, and nicotine-deprived, Gojyo simply sat there like a bump on a log. It sucked.
"This sucks…"
Predictable, ne? XD
"Yeah… that's the fifth time you've said that."
"No, I mean this REALLY sucks now!"
"Mm…"
More silence consumed the room, and during that short period, Koume fell asleep. So, Gojyo was left to brood, but at least Goku managed to keep himself occupied and quiet at the same time, somehow. He seemed quite content with just walking around the room, though he drug his feet as he did so. Eventually, that noise was too much for Gojyo to handle, and he looked up, almost forgetting his train of thought when he noticed Goku's hair standing on end.
"Goku, fix your hair, you ape-ish slob, and while you're at it, stop dragging your feet across the carpet! The sound is grating on my last nerve!"
"Hmph. Fine…"
Goku grumpily took a seat at the other end of his bed and puffed his cheeks up. Sitting down was more boring than standing, so soon, he started to fidget. Looking around, he tried to find something with which to entertain himself, and that's when he spotted a deck of cards on the table, beside the lamp. Smiling, he reached for it, but when his hand got close to the lamp, it flickered, and Goku felt a shock through his fingers. It stung at first, and his first thought was to put his finger in his mouth to soothe it.
Blinking a few times, Goku wondered what had happened, unconsciously moving his socked feet on the carpet again. Curious as he was, Goku again reached over to the lamp, and just like before, he received a shock. He sat in silence, pondering this for a while, until he finally noticed he was moving his feet on the carpet. He wondered if maybe that had something to do with it. He tested his theory, and sure enough, it was the carpet's fault!
Then, since shocking himself wasn't fun or entertaining, he began to wonder if he could shock other people! Koume was asleep, and a nice person, too, so he wouldn't go after her. So, Gojyo, who was conveniently still sitting next to him, was the perfect dummy! Rubbing his socks on the carpet again, Goku slowly reached over and very lightly touched Gojyo's arm. The redhead immediately opened his eyes and sat straight up, holding his hurting arm. Where could it have come from? Koume was asleep across from him, and though he didn't think Goku would be able to do it, he looked over and saw the boy staring at him with wide, amazed eyes.
"Goku… did you do something just now?"
Still wide-eyed, Goku shook his head, no, and after looking around the room, rubbing his arm, Gojyo leaned back again and closed his eyes. Meanwhile, Goku was laughing on the inside! His plan worked, and better still, he didn't get yelled at for it! Gojyo had no clue what was going on… and there was no way Goku would simply stop there! So, he counted to twenty, moving his feet again, and this time touched Gojyo's leg. Gojyo got up once more and questioned Goku, looking around, but again, Goku denied having done anything in an innocent manner.
This game just didn't get old, but after a while, Goku got more tricky and discreet about his touches, like shifting around instead of reaching out, and stretching out to yawn, and so forth.
By morning, Gojyo was too tired to converse, complain or pig out at breakfast, since something had kept him up all night, shocking him. That means Goku was also up all night, but he was rechargeable, so all he had to do was eat a hearty meal, and he would be fine. He would simply make up his sleep time on the road. Goku was happy as he ate, and was still occasionally shocking Gojyo, for fun. Though, he didn't notice the kappa's wandering eyes. When Goku reached over to shock him again, Gojyo shot up out of his chair and pointed an accusing finger at the monkey boy.
"You! I knew it had to be you, shocking me all night!"
"! Oh, crap!!"
"GRRR!"
Gojyo tackled Goku right out of his chair, and other customers started to stare. However, the rest of the group didn't seem to care, as they were sitting at another table at the time. Koume was smiling and serving them tea and pampering them. Hakkai looked and felt better, and Sanzo wasn't in a lousy mood.
"This is good tea…"
"Yes! And what a wonderful morning! I don't even care about what's going on behind us now!"
"Neither do I. I'm imagining a trip west without those idiots right now… and it makes me feel all warm inside!"
"Mm… I'm with you there!"
Koume smiled sweetly, as Goku and Gojyo continued to wrestle and shock each other on the floor. That was one discovery that goes both ways, perhaps.