Hello!
I'm back with a new chapter for you!
For those of you who are interested in the "Youkai Hakkai"-FanArt that I mentioned in my ramblings the last two chapters, check out my profile, I just put the link to it in there, as I can't post it in here. In exchange, if ANY of you could make me a screenshot of Reload 10, I would appreciate it! I GOTTA see Sanzo as a youkai...
05.04.2005: Answers to reviews removed. See chapter 3 for details.
Current Obsession: Saiyuki-Image-Albums... as long as you leave Hakkai's songs out, the Seiyuu has a nice speaking voice, but would starve if he had to make a living as a singer ;-)) Favorites: "Solitude" by Seki Toshihiko (Sanzo – WHO ELSE?) and "Proud of my Loneliness" by Hoshi Souichiro (Goku). And then, there's still "Double Dear" in my playlist – I guess I still have to watch Weiss Kreuz sometime...
DISCLAIMER: Saiyuki is not mine. It's property of Minekura Kazuya.
CHAPTER 8
Thankfully, the town did have another inn – not as clean as the tavern they had been checked into before, but it would have to suffice until Hakkai awakened from his unconsciousness. It sure beat the hell out of sleeping on the floor somewhere in the wilderness.
After they had managed to carry the unconscious man up the stairs and put him into one of the rooms, Goku stayed behind to apply bandages to the various scrapes and burns the healer had suffered. Gojyo first was about to protest that he was sure as HELL not going to go shopping for new supplies alone, but the look in Kouryuu's eyes told him that he better keep his objections to himself.
"Get me a pack of cigarettes while you're at it", the blond man told him, and his glare seemed to say, '... or I'll rip you a new one.'
The half-demon bit back an angry response, remembering that it had been Kouryuu who had saved Hakkai out of the burning building while he had been standing there, too scared for his own ass to get his friend out of there himself... never mind that the former monk might still be toying with suicidal thoughts and hadn't really cared whether he died in the flames or not.
Instead, he simply nodded, and left.
When the red-haired half-youkai had finally taken his leave, Kouryuu entered Hakkai's room, just to see Goku finishing up his work by opening the window. A chair stood by the bed; the golden-eyed boy must have put it before bandaging their unconscious companion.
'Strange', he reflected, 'it's always one chair by the bed... one of us sitting next to another...'
He had been on the bed, on the receiving end, more than once, and either Goku or Hakkai had been sitting on that chair... and yet, he had never tried to lend his support when one of the two had been injured before.
'Non-Attachment', the voice, which he had come to call his 'Sanzo-Voice', whispered in his head – and he brushed it aside. What did repaying a favor have to do with attachment?
"Goku", he addressed his charge, and the boy turned around to face him expectantly, "go after Gojyo and help him shop. I'll stay here until you two get back."
Golden eyes stared at him in puzzlement.
"Are you sure? He shouldn't be left unsupervised..."
The blond man felt his eyebrow twitch just once, annoyance rising up in him. How he longed for his harisen right now! But he had discarded it along with his robes, and it had stayed in the other inn, to be burned to ashes.
Goku, however, seemed to get the point by just looking at him.
"Um, okay, I'll be off then. See if you can give him a little water – the heat must have dried him out..."
And with that, the boy walked past him and out of the door, which closed a second later.
Kouryuu sat down on the chair and took a glass of water from the nightstand (Goku must have placed it there before he left). He lifted Hakkai's head off the pillow with his other hand, slowly poured some of the clear liquid into the slight gap between the parted lips. Then, he remembered what he had seen Hakkai do to Goku and Gojyo whenever they were unconscious, and used his thumb and index finger to softly push against two points below the jaw to stimulate the swallowing reflex.
After he had made the brunette youkai drink two or three sips of water, he put the glass back where he had found it and leaned back in the chair to study the still body on the bed.
"I'm sorry for what I said", he murmured softly, not even realizing it before the words had escaped his tongue. "I claimed the right to all the sorrow in the world because of what happened to me. I had no right to do so. You were right – I was being selfish. Forgive me."
A pale hand reached out to touch the Hakkai's hair, to caress his cheek...
'What the HELL am I doing!'
Eyes wide in shock about what he had done, Kouryuu pulled his arm back as if his hand had just been burned.
'Damn limiters – don't seem to block out every impulse the monster in me wants to give in to...'
He got up from the chair and walked over to the window, feeling his cheeks blush furiously. Behind him, the door opened – Gojyo and Goku were back with the supplies.
"Oy, Kouryuu, your cigarettes!", the red-haired kappa called out to him. A second later, he felt the pack snatched from his grip, then the door closed behind the blond man.
Gojyo exchanged a look with Goku.
"What's his problem now?"
The boy shrugged.
"Maybe he was just sick of being stuck in here. Why don't you stay here and watch Hakkai, and I go and order supper... don't worry, I won't get the whole menu!", he defended himself at Gojyo's amused grin. "Ah, Kouryuu has managed to get him to drink some water... good... hopefully, he will wake up soon."
The half-demon watched Goku leave, then took up his place on the chair next to the bed.
He longed for a smoke, but did not dare to pollute the air right next to his friend, who had been subjected to the noxious fumes of the burning building not even one hour earlier.
About fifteen minutes later, a rasping breath and a cough made him look over to the bed; Hakkai's eyes were open. Gojyo smiled down on his friend.
"Welcome back in the waking world, old pal. You gave us quite a scare there..."
"What happened...?", the brunette youkai managed to get out before a coughing fit grasped him. Gojyo reached for the glass on the nightstand and gave it to him.
"Here, have some water. It will help."
Hakkai gulped down about half of the water at once, coughed again and then settled for smaller sips. Finally, the glass was empty, and he gave it back before he repeated his question, with a voice that was still rough, yet much stronger than before.
"Something exploded in the inn, and you were knocked out. The building burned to the ground," the half-demon answered, the memories still vivid in his mind.
Green eyes rested upon him; he had his companion's full attention.
"The others... are they..."
Gojyo shook his head. "They're both okay, and that's a damn miracle. Kouryuu went in and got you out of there, although the inn was about to collapse... He saved your life."
"I see..."
Hakkai had been sitting up to drink and speak with Gojyo, but now he let his head sink back on the pillow. Kouryuu had risked his life to save him...?
'This dream... he was here, on the chair Gojyo is sitting on right now... he apologized... and then...'
The green-eyed youkai lifted his hand to his cheek, where a tingling sensation still spoke of the dream, the hand which had felt so surprisingly REAL...
"Are you okay?"
Gojyo's voice, filled with concern.
"Yes... or better yet, I will be. If you don't mind, I will go back to sleep... It should be about suppertime, why don't you join the others and have a bite to eat? I will be fine on my own for half an hour."
The half-youkai got up from the chair, but not before he had asked: "You sure?"
Hakkai nodded.
"I would appreciate it if you could bring me some of the food after you're done."
That got Gojyo to break into a grin.
"If I can save some of it from the monkey... I'll be back."
He strode over to the door and closed it behind him, leaving Hakkai alone to ponder over the strange dream, which had not been one.
Another chapter finished... as you can see, I'm taking it slowly! Please let me know your thoughts by means of the pretty purple thingy in the left corner... thanks!
