A/N: Saiyuki isn't miiiine!
Okay, welcome to the final one-shot before Blackjack, effectively ending Eights and Aces as the primary story. But for all of you who have mourned the shifting of focus, I hope this particular little ficlet will reassure you that Sanzo, Goku, Hakkai, and Gojyo are by no means out of the picture. It's also a pretty good lead-in for the actual plot of Kougaiji's continuation, so you'd do well to pay attention ^.^
Thanks muchly to everybody who reviewed E&A and my one-shots...y'all are dangerously shibby, and make me so-o happy. I'm glad somebody thinks I'm doing this right ^.^
Enjoy this, and hopefully I'll have Blackjack up soon!
***
Gojyo rolled over into a very cold, very empty divot on the sofa bed. He blinked muzzily, his hand scraping over the rumpled sheets, questing for a body that was no longer there. He groaned and opened his eyes, staring through the stringy mass of his hair.
"Good morning to you, too, Hakkai," he muttered, rubbing his face and swinging his lanky legs off the bed, wincing when his feet hit the floor. He wiggled his toes, willing blood into them, and rose, glancing at the clock. Midmorning. Hakkai -had- asked that they turn in early so he'd be ready for school. Gojyo smiled a bit at the memory, and padded to the bathroom, peeling off his shirt as he went.
The weather was turning chillier, but not so that they had to bundle up to survive even indoors yet. It merely meant that he had to wear a few extra layers of clothing to bed. It got a lot colder in the den than the bedroom, though, so even any attempts at friction would be finished with slipping back into extra layers. The sofa bed was the only bed big enough to accommodate them both, and Gojyo absolutely -detested- sleeping alone.
On the other hand, Gojyo loved taking showers in the middle of the day. Everybody else was at work, so he got to use all the hot water he wanted. Generic shampoo, generic soap, and scalding water. When he finished, he quickly toweled off and wrung out his hair, walking stark naked to his bureau for some clothes. The makeshift pajamas were thrown into the bottom of his closet for the moment, all deference to his housemate aside. Blue jeans with an artful rip in one knee, black t-shirt with an orange-line Doors logo, leather jacket, and black steel-toe boots. He wasn't even sure he really needed the jacket, but October was funny like that.
There was cake in the fridge. Gojyo smiled. Hakkai had turned twenty-four a few weeks ago, and Gojyo had brought him a bottle of champagne. He'd baked the cake for himself. It was damn' good cake. Gojyo had been there. His presence was definitely more detrimental than helpful, but the batter only had one raw egg so sneaking a few tastes couldn't make him -too- sick. He was more concerned with tastes of -Hakkai- anyway. They'd eaten cake and drank champagne and stayed up far too late and slept in on Sunday morning. And then Gojyo had given Hakkai his present.
Gojyo had cake and coffee for breakfast, staring out the window at the world and comfortable in his niche. Dealing Blackjack was supposed to be a placebo while Gojyo got his bearings, but it paid pretty darn well and he'd been able to save up for some nice things. That watch he sent Goku for the kid's eighteenth birthday. A nice lighter for Sanzo when he turned twenty-one. He'd had a cross engraved upon it. And for Hakkai, for Hakkai he'd saved enough to help buy a used car. One he didn't have to fix up.
"So you don't have to take the bus or a cab all the time. So you can move around on your own terms," he'd said. "I'm paying half of everything, including insurance. But it's your car." Gojyo didn't have to mention he'd never been taught how to drive, but Hakkai never once brought up the subject of letting him use the car on Saturdays. Hakkai was always able to figure out things like that. And so Sunday had been spent alternately receiving Hakkai's thanks (always a pleasure) and looking through the newspaper at used car ads. They were going to visit a car lot sometime, Gojyo promised, and Hakkai had smiled.
There was a single moment that day where the brunette looked painfully uncertain, swamped by brutal déjà vu. He recovered quite well, though, and Gojyo never noticed.
Nobody bought Gojyo anything special on his birthday. He'd never told them the day, but apparently Goku hadn't forgotten and he got a phone call in "early November" whenever that happened to roll around. A call to check up on him, to see if he needed anything. They never spoke face-to-face anymore. But Gojyo enjoyed those talks.
Gojyo left the dishes in the sink, promising himself he'd wash them later, and swiped up his wallet and keys. He wasn't going to stay in on his mornings off, oh, no. As soon as he got outside, he was glad for the warmth of his jacket. His breath hung cloudy in the air and the wetness of his hair sapped heat from his neck. He walked down the dirty streets, people-watching and being watched. Every so often he'd smile at a pretty girl. Days like these, cigarettes were good to warm a body. He patted his pockets and came up with an empty pack.
He scowled at it and pitched it into a garbage can, one of the more conscientious pedestrians that day, and made his way toward the local convenience store. Parked in front of it was a cop car, a sight that used to send his heart to his throat and his gut clenching in fear of recognition. But he was comfortable, so many years out of the old loop. He glanced in the open window when he passed by and stopped.
"Hey, I know your face." He leaned down to grin at the driver. "So this is where you went, Tongpu, you dirty bastard."
"Hey, now, I'm a cop. You can't say that to me no more." Tongpu grinned at him, swiping a lock of unnaturally blue hair over his ear. "I could bust your ass." The man was as classically handsome as Gojyo was striking. Though his hair was a strange color, his eyes were bright and knowing, and his features were strong.
Gojyo ran his hand through his wet hair, resting his elbow on the car door. "No shit! What happened to the barman, eh?" Memories of a high, blue ponytail and lines of glittering taps through the smoke. Memories of easy laughter and a stern "Come on now, you've had enough." Memories of fast friendship with the newbie, even when he jumped from janitor to dealer virtually overnight.
"Cleaned up. It's not a bad job." Tongpu shrugged. "Bust speeders, muggers, druggies. It's kinda easy sometimes, you know?"
Gojyo laughed. "You know the hang-outs, eh?" He poked Tongpu with two fingers. The man grinned sheepishly.
"Only a few. You overestimate me sometimes. You still dealin'?" he asked, devilry flitting across his face.
Gojyo raised an eyebrow at the double connotation, but still smiled. "You know it. It's the one thing I'm good at."
Tongpu had left the casino not long after Gojyo had arrived, but the redhead had already made quite the impression upon him. "Besides getting in everyone else's pants."
"Which you'd bust me for." Gojyo laughed. "And that doesn't have as steady pay." This was very true.
"Oi, Tongpu!" came a cry from the doorway. "Help me with these? This is your Goddamn' box of donuts!" The two looked up at the call and Gojyo broke into a disbelieving grin.
There was a young man standing there, prim and proper in his tan uniform, his brown hair corralled by his cap. Two tan, muscular arms stuck out from the short sleeves, already bristling in goosebumps against the cold. He took a few careful steps, tottering with the weight upon him. When his eyes met Gojyo's, he nearly dropped the stack of junk food balanced precariously in his arms. "What are -you- doing here?"
Gojyo began to laugh, incredulously and loudly. Tongpu glanced up at him. "You know this kid?"
"Know him? We used to live in the same house! Holy shit, kid, you're a cop now?" Gojyo plucked the cap from Goku's head and studied it, as if searching for a tag that declared it part of a costume. "I don't believe it." He ruffled Goku's hair, and the kid frowned at him.
"Believe it. At least open the door for me, horny bastard," Goku growled, wishing he could make a swipe for his hat but not daring to loose the avalanche of sugar-coated goodies that would come with the motion. Gojyo dropped the hat on Goku's head at a jaunty angle and did as asked, helping him maneuver the pile of food into the car. Tongpu snatched his box of donuts and tore it open.
"Man, Goku, you've gotten big and shit. When'd you break away?" Gojyo asked, leaning in the open window on the passenger side. He took a sip from the kid's soda, casual as if it were his own.
With his arms freed, Goku took the cap off, ran his hand hastily through his hair, and replaced it at the correct angle. "Few years after you did. I was told I did such a good job being a bodyguard I should just make it a profession." He shrugged. "I'm doing okay."
"Candy's got a funny sense of humor. She pay for it?" Goku nodded, getting out his badge and letting Gojyo check it for authenticity. "Well fuck me, I'd never have expected it from you. How's Blondie? Still smoke?"
Goku frowned a bit. "Yeah. I think I'm wearing him down, though. He only does it when I'm not around. We've got a house near his church now. He went from deacon to priest and spends a lot of his time there. Keeps people in line." Gojyo would have been surprised had Goku not mentioned it in conversation over the phone once. He'd nearly choked on his coffee, then, but had taken the time to acclimate himself to the idea of it. He didn't believe Sanzo would make a very good priest, but to each his own.
Gojyo laughed. "It's good for him, I'm sure." The mental image of Sanzo in purple robes veritably exploding out of the pulpit to attack some idiot who lit the candles wrong was far too easy to conjur. Gojyo looked down. And smiled. "By the way, I like your watch."
Goku glanced at it and then smiled back at Gojyo. "Sanzo popped the doll, by the way." When Gojyo's easy smile turned into a thoughtful leer, Goku hastily added, "With a pin! With a Goddamn' pin, you pervert!" Not a very good priest at all.
At this time, Tongpu not-so-politely cleared his throat. Gojyo took the hint. "Well, Goku, it's definitely been interesting seeing you again. Maybe me and Hakkai will come by your house sometime. I know he misses you guys."
"D'you know where the church is?" Goku asked skeptically.
Gojyo shrugged. "We'll find it." With a wink, he pulled back and patted the hood of the car. Goku waved a little as Tongpu pulled out of the parking lot and Gojyo disappeared.
"So how did you know Gojyo?" Goku asked, looking over to his partner. Tongpu shrugged.
"Used to work with him." Tongpu glanced over and saw Goku's eyes had gotten big as dinner plates. "At the casino," he clarified. Goku immediately relaxed. Tongpu raised an eyebrow, but didn't inquire further. "You lived with him?"
Goku laughed nervously. "Well, it's kind of a long story." He popped a potato chip into his mouth. "See, I used to work for this really rich lady, protecting her nephew, who's the priest I was talking about. He got attacked once so I was assigned to be his bodyguard, you could say. Gojyo was, uh...with her. So we were under the same roof for as long as -that- lasted."
Tongpu made a low, noncommittal noise. "This is weird."
"Mm?" Goku asked around a mouthful of food.
"You didn't go to the meeting this morning, but there's stuff going on that the higher-ups don't like. It's real quiet. No gang-related robberies, no brawls, no nothing. Drag racing's dropped to just punkass kids and vandalism too. Every gang around here has been hibernating for a few years. First we thought maybe we'd knocked the problem down a bit but there's other things going on. Prison busts. For hundreds of miles around, prisons have been broken -into-. State pens, juvenile halls, everything. Everything but criminal asylums. It's like they've all been planned. It's been going on long enough they're telling us about it now. We're just the grunts and we're getting told. They're getting nervous."
"Well what do we do about it?"
"That's the thing." Tongpu reached up and readjusted his cap with a frown. "No persecution without evidence. We can't get 'em for -planning-."
A red sportscar, to a symphony of horns, blazed through a yellow light just as the amber died and the red above it burst into flame. Tongpu frowned and turned on the siren. "We've got other stuff to worry about, anyhow."
Okay, welcome to the final one-shot before Blackjack, effectively ending Eights and Aces as the primary story. But for all of you who have mourned the shifting of focus, I hope this particular little ficlet will reassure you that Sanzo, Goku, Hakkai, and Gojyo are by no means out of the picture. It's also a pretty good lead-in for the actual plot of Kougaiji's continuation, so you'd do well to pay attention ^.^
Thanks muchly to everybody who reviewed E&A and my one-shots...y'all are dangerously shibby, and make me so-o happy. I'm glad somebody thinks I'm doing this right ^.^
Enjoy this, and hopefully I'll have Blackjack up soon!
***
Gojyo rolled over into a very cold, very empty divot on the sofa bed. He blinked muzzily, his hand scraping over the rumpled sheets, questing for a body that was no longer there. He groaned and opened his eyes, staring through the stringy mass of his hair.
"Good morning to you, too, Hakkai," he muttered, rubbing his face and swinging his lanky legs off the bed, wincing when his feet hit the floor. He wiggled his toes, willing blood into them, and rose, glancing at the clock. Midmorning. Hakkai -had- asked that they turn in early so he'd be ready for school. Gojyo smiled a bit at the memory, and padded to the bathroom, peeling off his shirt as he went.
The weather was turning chillier, but not so that they had to bundle up to survive even indoors yet. It merely meant that he had to wear a few extra layers of clothing to bed. It got a lot colder in the den than the bedroom, though, so even any attempts at friction would be finished with slipping back into extra layers. The sofa bed was the only bed big enough to accommodate them both, and Gojyo absolutely -detested- sleeping alone.
On the other hand, Gojyo loved taking showers in the middle of the day. Everybody else was at work, so he got to use all the hot water he wanted. Generic shampoo, generic soap, and scalding water. When he finished, he quickly toweled off and wrung out his hair, walking stark naked to his bureau for some clothes. The makeshift pajamas were thrown into the bottom of his closet for the moment, all deference to his housemate aside. Blue jeans with an artful rip in one knee, black t-shirt with an orange-line Doors logo, leather jacket, and black steel-toe boots. He wasn't even sure he really needed the jacket, but October was funny like that.
There was cake in the fridge. Gojyo smiled. Hakkai had turned twenty-four a few weeks ago, and Gojyo had brought him a bottle of champagne. He'd baked the cake for himself. It was damn' good cake. Gojyo had been there. His presence was definitely more detrimental than helpful, but the batter only had one raw egg so sneaking a few tastes couldn't make him -too- sick. He was more concerned with tastes of -Hakkai- anyway. They'd eaten cake and drank champagne and stayed up far too late and slept in on Sunday morning. And then Gojyo had given Hakkai his present.
Gojyo had cake and coffee for breakfast, staring out the window at the world and comfortable in his niche. Dealing Blackjack was supposed to be a placebo while Gojyo got his bearings, but it paid pretty darn well and he'd been able to save up for some nice things. That watch he sent Goku for the kid's eighteenth birthday. A nice lighter for Sanzo when he turned twenty-one. He'd had a cross engraved upon it. And for Hakkai, for Hakkai he'd saved enough to help buy a used car. One he didn't have to fix up.
"So you don't have to take the bus or a cab all the time. So you can move around on your own terms," he'd said. "I'm paying half of everything, including insurance. But it's your car." Gojyo didn't have to mention he'd never been taught how to drive, but Hakkai never once brought up the subject of letting him use the car on Saturdays. Hakkai was always able to figure out things like that. And so Sunday had been spent alternately receiving Hakkai's thanks (always a pleasure) and looking through the newspaper at used car ads. They were going to visit a car lot sometime, Gojyo promised, and Hakkai had smiled.
There was a single moment that day where the brunette looked painfully uncertain, swamped by brutal déjà vu. He recovered quite well, though, and Gojyo never noticed.
Nobody bought Gojyo anything special on his birthday. He'd never told them the day, but apparently Goku hadn't forgotten and he got a phone call in "early November" whenever that happened to roll around. A call to check up on him, to see if he needed anything. They never spoke face-to-face anymore. But Gojyo enjoyed those talks.
Gojyo left the dishes in the sink, promising himself he'd wash them later, and swiped up his wallet and keys. He wasn't going to stay in on his mornings off, oh, no. As soon as he got outside, he was glad for the warmth of his jacket. His breath hung cloudy in the air and the wetness of his hair sapped heat from his neck. He walked down the dirty streets, people-watching and being watched. Every so often he'd smile at a pretty girl. Days like these, cigarettes were good to warm a body. He patted his pockets and came up with an empty pack.
He scowled at it and pitched it into a garbage can, one of the more conscientious pedestrians that day, and made his way toward the local convenience store. Parked in front of it was a cop car, a sight that used to send his heart to his throat and his gut clenching in fear of recognition. But he was comfortable, so many years out of the old loop. He glanced in the open window when he passed by and stopped.
"Hey, I know your face." He leaned down to grin at the driver. "So this is where you went, Tongpu, you dirty bastard."
"Hey, now, I'm a cop. You can't say that to me no more." Tongpu grinned at him, swiping a lock of unnaturally blue hair over his ear. "I could bust your ass." The man was as classically handsome as Gojyo was striking. Though his hair was a strange color, his eyes were bright and knowing, and his features were strong.
Gojyo ran his hand through his wet hair, resting his elbow on the car door. "No shit! What happened to the barman, eh?" Memories of a high, blue ponytail and lines of glittering taps through the smoke. Memories of easy laughter and a stern "Come on now, you've had enough." Memories of fast friendship with the newbie, even when he jumped from janitor to dealer virtually overnight.
"Cleaned up. It's not a bad job." Tongpu shrugged. "Bust speeders, muggers, druggies. It's kinda easy sometimes, you know?"
Gojyo laughed. "You know the hang-outs, eh?" He poked Tongpu with two fingers. The man grinned sheepishly.
"Only a few. You overestimate me sometimes. You still dealin'?" he asked, devilry flitting across his face.
Gojyo raised an eyebrow at the double connotation, but still smiled. "You know it. It's the one thing I'm good at."
Tongpu had left the casino not long after Gojyo had arrived, but the redhead had already made quite the impression upon him. "Besides getting in everyone else's pants."
"Which you'd bust me for." Gojyo laughed. "And that doesn't have as steady pay." This was very true.
"Oi, Tongpu!" came a cry from the doorway. "Help me with these? This is your Goddamn' box of donuts!" The two looked up at the call and Gojyo broke into a disbelieving grin.
There was a young man standing there, prim and proper in his tan uniform, his brown hair corralled by his cap. Two tan, muscular arms stuck out from the short sleeves, already bristling in goosebumps against the cold. He took a few careful steps, tottering with the weight upon him. When his eyes met Gojyo's, he nearly dropped the stack of junk food balanced precariously in his arms. "What are -you- doing here?"
Gojyo began to laugh, incredulously and loudly. Tongpu glanced up at him. "You know this kid?"
"Know him? We used to live in the same house! Holy shit, kid, you're a cop now?" Gojyo plucked the cap from Goku's head and studied it, as if searching for a tag that declared it part of a costume. "I don't believe it." He ruffled Goku's hair, and the kid frowned at him.
"Believe it. At least open the door for me, horny bastard," Goku growled, wishing he could make a swipe for his hat but not daring to loose the avalanche of sugar-coated goodies that would come with the motion. Gojyo dropped the hat on Goku's head at a jaunty angle and did as asked, helping him maneuver the pile of food into the car. Tongpu snatched his box of donuts and tore it open.
"Man, Goku, you've gotten big and shit. When'd you break away?" Gojyo asked, leaning in the open window on the passenger side. He took a sip from the kid's soda, casual as if it were his own.
With his arms freed, Goku took the cap off, ran his hand hastily through his hair, and replaced it at the correct angle. "Few years after you did. I was told I did such a good job being a bodyguard I should just make it a profession." He shrugged. "I'm doing okay."
"Candy's got a funny sense of humor. She pay for it?" Goku nodded, getting out his badge and letting Gojyo check it for authenticity. "Well fuck me, I'd never have expected it from you. How's Blondie? Still smoke?"
Goku frowned a bit. "Yeah. I think I'm wearing him down, though. He only does it when I'm not around. We've got a house near his church now. He went from deacon to priest and spends a lot of his time there. Keeps people in line." Gojyo would have been surprised had Goku not mentioned it in conversation over the phone once. He'd nearly choked on his coffee, then, but had taken the time to acclimate himself to the idea of it. He didn't believe Sanzo would make a very good priest, but to each his own.
Gojyo laughed. "It's good for him, I'm sure." The mental image of Sanzo in purple robes veritably exploding out of the pulpit to attack some idiot who lit the candles wrong was far too easy to conjur. Gojyo looked down. And smiled. "By the way, I like your watch."
Goku glanced at it and then smiled back at Gojyo. "Sanzo popped the doll, by the way." When Gojyo's easy smile turned into a thoughtful leer, Goku hastily added, "With a pin! With a Goddamn' pin, you pervert!" Not a very good priest at all.
At this time, Tongpu not-so-politely cleared his throat. Gojyo took the hint. "Well, Goku, it's definitely been interesting seeing you again. Maybe me and Hakkai will come by your house sometime. I know he misses you guys."
"D'you know where the church is?" Goku asked skeptically.
Gojyo shrugged. "We'll find it." With a wink, he pulled back and patted the hood of the car. Goku waved a little as Tongpu pulled out of the parking lot and Gojyo disappeared.
"So how did you know Gojyo?" Goku asked, looking over to his partner. Tongpu shrugged.
"Used to work with him." Tongpu glanced over and saw Goku's eyes had gotten big as dinner plates. "At the casino," he clarified. Goku immediately relaxed. Tongpu raised an eyebrow, but didn't inquire further. "You lived with him?"
Goku laughed nervously. "Well, it's kind of a long story." He popped a potato chip into his mouth. "See, I used to work for this really rich lady, protecting her nephew, who's the priest I was talking about. He got attacked once so I was assigned to be his bodyguard, you could say. Gojyo was, uh...with her. So we were under the same roof for as long as -that- lasted."
Tongpu made a low, noncommittal noise. "This is weird."
"Mm?" Goku asked around a mouthful of food.
"You didn't go to the meeting this morning, but there's stuff going on that the higher-ups don't like. It's real quiet. No gang-related robberies, no brawls, no nothing. Drag racing's dropped to just punkass kids and vandalism too. Every gang around here has been hibernating for a few years. First we thought maybe we'd knocked the problem down a bit but there's other things going on. Prison busts. For hundreds of miles around, prisons have been broken -into-. State pens, juvenile halls, everything. Everything but criminal asylums. It's like they've all been planned. It's been going on long enough they're telling us about it now. We're just the grunts and we're getting told. They're getting nervous."
"Well what do we do about it?"
"That's the thing." Tongpu reached up and readjusted his cap with a frown. "No persecution without evidence. We can't get 'em for -planning-."
A red sportscar, to a symphony of horns, blazed through a yellow light just as the amber died and the red above it burst into flame. Tongpu frowned and turned on the siren. "We've got other stuff to worry about, anyhow."