Scene 4: in which there is the Unexpected Development

'Sanzo-ikkou, give us the sutra!'

'Oh dear gods,' Gojyo groaned.

Sanzo scanned discreetly for Kanzeon. 'Don't say that, moron!'

They swung into action with the weariness of a prima donna on the ninth unsuccessful night, and within minutes, the youkai were all dead, and they were on their way.

'So,' Sanzo said quietly. Behind them, Gojyo and Goku snored. 'This fanfiction thing.'

'Goku started reading it a few days ago,' Hakkai replied. 'It's stories written by others that describe or speculate on our journey. According to Goku, the fanfiction parallels things that happen to us quite well. He says it's creepy, almost as if we really were characters in a story.'

'Ch,' Sanzo said. 'If this were a bloody story we'd have got to India by now, don't you think?'

'Ahahaha,' Hakkai said, but his reply was cut off as Jeep squealed to a halt; Gojyo and Goku both sprawled forward, waking with a yelp.

Something had stopped them. Something indescribably evil. Horrible. Petrifying. They stood frozen, staring at it, thought wiped clean from their minds.

Strangely enough, Goku was the first to recover. 'This must be the Unexpected Development!' he declared triumphantly.

Sanzo couldn't find the heart to disagree.

A/N: gift-fic for YYHgurl – please contact me for specifics. Thanks to my reviewers.