Five beers, and four shots of tequila later, Gojyo lay awake and stared at the ceiling, arms folded under his head, watching the smoke curl upwards languidly. He fingered the watch on his- Yohji's- wrist lightly, shivering at the jolt of energy that surged up his arm.

He wondered just how Yohji had managed to kill the woman he loved twice. That was a pretty amazing feat, all things considered, and Gojyo had seen some pretty incredible things. Granted, the first time didn't really count as a murder he supposed, and when you thought about it, the second one wasn't really the same person. The playboy might have had something to say about life crapping out on his counter-part, but really, just about everybody he knew had their lives crapping out on them, so it didn't make Yohji's anything special or different.

Initially, Gojyo had been shocked and somewhat sickened. He hadn't been able to conceive anyone who was able to kill a loved one, especially in so brutal a manner. Gradually, however, things had fallen into place more clearly. His brother had murdered his own mother to save Gojyo from her insanity. And hadn't she only loved him? Even if she had mistreated Gojyo, she had always loved Jien. And she had been all either of them had had. But Jien had done it to save him. And Yohji had done it as well.

Gojyo couldn't help but wonder how someone could do something like that and wake up every morning on the right side of sane. He imagined that if Hakkai's sister or Sanzo's master ever came back to haunt them in the form of an evil twin it would be the undoing of both men. He supposed it took a stronger person to bear beneath the weight and still remain standing. He wondered what that said about his brother too. He wondered what sort of things were going on inside of his brother.

He'd glimpsed the sort of things that were going on inside Yohji. And though his life had been dark, Gojyo couldn't help but think that like Hakkai, Yohji took his life far too seriously. Things happened. Languishing in the pain and the destruction of the aftermath wasn't going to serve anyone any good. It would only do harm. He wondered if there was a way to get that out to his counter part.

He wondered how his counter part was doing. Or what he was doing. Gojyo had a feeling he was going to have a lot of payback for a certain monkey that was likely taking extreme advantage of the situation.

There was one other thing that was bothering Gojyo. Something that although insignificant, the half-demon was reluctant to give his attention to. Really, what on earth had Yohji been doing that he'd had the opportunity and the means just 'come up' to kill an old girl friend? And how had he been in the position anyway to have met her the second time around? The memories had hazed out when Gojyo had tried to grab for the details, as if Yohji's subconscious was keeping something far more sinister from him. Coupled with Aya's earlier ease using a pistol and lighting-fast lethal moves, the puzzle slowly coming together in Gojyo's head was not a good one.

Although, it wasn't as if his own little rag tag group was completely innocent either. The toll of demon bodies they were racking up had probably broken some kind of record already. But somehow, the blood didn't seem so bad. It was a necessity, something that simply had to be done. You didn't get by with a big heart in a world like theirs. That just made you a big, squishy target.

But somehow, judging by the sinking, twisting feeling accompanying the hazed-out memories, whatever these men were doing was something that had a darker, more sinister feeling. Gojyo couldn't help but feel uneasy about it. Better safe than sorry. He hadn't lived for as long as he had by being stupid.

OOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOooOOOooo

When Yohji woke up, he was in a bed, staring at his cracked, dirty ceiling. His head ached like the devil, and his breath was absolutely foul. It seemed as if Gojyo hadn't missed a thing while in his body. Good to know he'd never be out of practice. Although judging by how ill he felt, perhaps Gojyo had pushed it a little far.

Moaning, the lanky playboy rolled over, adapting quickly to his own body. Unlike what Aya had described, Yohji had no trouble orienting himself at all. Perhaps it was because he'd already had an example to follow.

Trying to ignore the aching hollow in his chest over the knowledge of absence from Hakkai and Goku, Yohji rolled out of bed groggily and staggered into his bathroom. He turned the faucet onto cold, grateful now for the simple ability to have a fully-running water tap when he needed it, and cupped his hands beneath the flow. After a couple seconds, he took a bracing breath and threw it at his face, the frigid temperature of the water shocking him into wakefulness. It was about three seconds later that he realized Gojyo had had a midnight snack, which was exactly enough time for him to get from the sink to the toilet.

Several moments later, his stomach felt empty although he fared no better. With a groan, he got up, brushed his teeth and gargled with Listerine. He scrubbed at his eyes and then studied himself in the mirror. There was a bruise forming on one of his cheeks, and when he poked at it, it proved to be rather fresh. That bastard had gotten his face bruised. Somehow, however, Yohji couldn't even drudge up the energy to be angry. He was raw and sore in places that hadn't seen the light of day since he'd killed Neu. Any pain or injuries he'd received he couldn't help but feel he more than deserved. He wondered what Hakkai would think of that.

Fuck. What did he care what Hakkai thought about it? Hakkai had less-than nothing to do with Yohji's life, no matter what he'd managed to coax Yohji into revealing about it. Which, the playboy thought with a wince, had been entirely too much.

Hakkai, Goku, Sanzo, none of them really mattered, with the exception, of course, to the body-swap. And the less they meddled in each other's lives, the better. Even if their counter-parts could claim the blood of thousands of demons, they couldn't claim the blood of humans on their hands. They couldn't claim it deliberately. As a job. That they accepted money for. They killed and destroyed, true. But they had done so on a mandate from heaven. Not that Yohji could really understand how heaven would sanction something like that, but he supposed the Gods and Bodhisattvas had their divine reasoning. He hadn't really been able to grasp the whole of their alter egos' little mission, but he'd known enough. The sacrifice of a few to save the many. A few thousand demons. A few worthless human lives. Like his own. It didn't help that nine times out of ten the Sanzo-ikkou had little choice in the matter but to kill or be killed.

Yohji wondered how long Weiss' dark little secret was going to stay hidden. So far he and Aya had made it. All that remained to be seen was Ken and Omi. Hopefully Hakkai wouldn't be keen enough to unlock Omi's brain. Goku, he wasn't worried about.

OOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOooOOOooo

Gojyo groaned, and rolled over onto his side. He was rewarded with several popping noises and acing joints, conducive to lying on a moist ground all night. With another loud groan, Gojyo sat up slowly in the moss and rubbed at his aching head. He supposed it was only fair, considering the state he'd left Yohji's body in. Hung-over, like he was now.

Oh man, Yohji must have been drinking something terrifically strong for him to be in this much pain.

"Ahh. Paying Yohji's piper, I see." A painfully familiar and teasing voice called from beside him. Gojyo snorted.

"He'll be paying mine right about now, so it's only fair I s'ppose." He mumbled. Hakkai nodded as with some sort of inner wisdom.

"Oi. You two, what the hell do you think you're doing over here! Stop fucking around and let's get going! It's past dawn!" Sanzo's voice called from just beyond the clearing line. Hakkai chuckled.

"My, he's energetic this morning."

"I'll give him something to be energetic about…" the Kappa muttered darkly. Hakkai only chuckled again.

"You really must be patient with him you know. This week has been wearing him thin." Gojyo looked at Hakkai incredulously.

"What the hell? Like he's the only one!" the playboy growled. "We had to deal with the icicle in his place too. And getting stuck in some other guy's body is no friggin' picnic either. Maybe his highness Prince droopy eyes needs to freakin' deal for once. Either that, or he needs to get his all-high buddies on the line and pull some damn strings around here." Hakkai only shook his head.

"Somehow, Gojyo, I don't think the San-Butsu-Shin work like that. I certainly wouldn't expect Kanzeon-sama to." Gojyo frowned.

"Well, one of you two is next, I have a feeling, and I don't like what's going on. What was Yohji like?" Hakkai felt himself dragged back to the sight of a broken smile against a black, diamond studded sky.

"He was…closed off." The healer commented. Gojyo frowned darkly. "That's what I was afraid of. Something else is happening here, and I don't like it. 'Kai, what do you think is really going on?"

"I think that you two need to get the damn lead out!" Sanzo bellowed, punctuating the growl with several gunshots that landed just shy of where Gojyo and Hakkai were still sitting. Hakkai winced.

" Ah. I think speculation will have to wait Gojyo. Sanzo seems a bit out of sorts this morning." Gojyo said nothing, muttering darkly as he lit up a cigarette and stormed back to the jeep, following the brunet. Sanzo was gonna have to be more of a team player in this thing, or they were certain to get had. The playboy had an odd suspicion that there was another risk playing here that didn't bode well for anyone involved. And they still weren't certain that Prince freaking Kougaiji wasn't behind this either, though it certainly seemed to be lacking in his style.

OOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOooOOOooo

Omi was in the middle of a lovely wedding arrangement, tucking a few white orchids here or there (for a more traditional flare), when it happened. Just as suddenly as he was brushing aside a fern with gentle fingers, he was suddenly behind the wheel of an all-terrain jeep, speeding across what appeared to be a desert-ish landscape.

Now this was interesting. Everyone else had fallen asleep first. Omi wondered why he had just simply been booted out of his own skin; in broad daylight no less. He blinked owlishly, and it took another half a second before his brain kindly attached understanding to the fact that he was, indeed, driving. Omi gripped the wheel in two hands and did the first thing that came to mind. He slammed down on the brake pedal, of course. Hard.

All of jeep's occupants went soaring through the air in a beautiful arch before landing face-first in the hot desert gravel. They weren't very happy when they managed to get back up, either. Omi had to blink again when he found himself suddenly looking down the barrel of a gun. He gulped and followed the line of sight to meet up with a pair of murderous violet eyes.

"You have five seconds to explain to me why I've got sand in my hair." Genjyo Sanzo growled. Omi swallowed again.

"Ahh…Sanzo-san! How nice to see you again!" he chirped, slowly raising his hands in a position of surrender. Sanzo looked at him blankly for a good five seconds before his expression went flat.

"And you would be…?" he grunted. Omi smiled cheerily. Unlike Hakkai's smile, this one was positively beaming with good will and sincerity. Somewhere along the way he'd learned to smile genuinely despite the hardships. The effect on Hakkai's face was positively breath-taking, and it sent everyone into a temporary paralysis. Sanzo couldn't help but feel that perhaps that expression revealed Hakkai's true age in physical years. So young.

"Tsukiyono, Omi!" the youth called, bowing and nearly hitting his head on jeep's steering wheel. Gojyo groaned and Goku looked half suspicious and half excited. Sanzo merely snorted and slowly tucked his gun back into his sleeve.

"Well, Omi, do you know how to drive this thing?" Sanzo asked casually, gesturing towards jeep with his chin.

"While keeping all the people inside intact?" Gojyo added under his breath. Sanzo shot him a glare. Omi blushed and looked at his hands for a moment. So it was his turn to swap. Lucky him, his counterpart knew how to drive an all-terrain jeep. He took a deep breath and steeled himself. He wasn't going to be useless. He turned, favoring Sanzo with a sunny smile.

"Of course, Sanzo-san!" Sanzo eyed him doubtfully but grunted his approval, shrugging.

"Fine then, everyone in, let's go. " he barked. Omi cautiously shifted the jeep into gear and eased onto the gas pedal. It was then that the jeep made a noise. Not just any noise. A very distinctive 'kyuu!' Omi's eyes enlarged to the size of rice bowls, but before he could brake and send them all sailing again, Sanzo leaned over and firmly placed his hand on the boy's knee. Omi had no choice but to leave his foot on the gas pedal. And no choice but to hang on to the steering wheel in a white-knuckled grip as they began to accelerate at an alarming rate thanks to Sanzo's pushing down on said knee.

"S-Sanzo-san!" he tried protesting. Sanzo grunted.

"We need to get there today kid, not next week! " the monk growled.

"I'd like to sleep in a real bed tonight!" Gojyo groused from the backseat. Goku growled at him.

"Hey! You HAVE been sleepin' in a real bed! Yohji's been sleepin' on the ground!" the youth shot back. Gojyo shrugged casually.

"Same difference." He said passively. Sanzo sighed heavily before Goku could respond.

"The both of you shut up so we can concentrate up here." he grunted. He'd moved his hand from Omi's knee and substituted a murderous glare on the youth instead to keep Omi's foot in its down position on the pedal. Omi was swallowing nervously.

"Concentrate on what you perverted monk, I saw that hand!" Gojyo shot from the backseat. Sanzo felt a vein in his forehead come close to popping. Omi made a squelching noise and eyed the blond priest askance, looking for all the world like a nervous rabbit. Sanzo strengthened his glare.

"You so much as think about slamming the breaks again I'll break you." he growled. Omi nodded and turned his eyes back towards the road. What in the Hell had he done to deserve this?

The drive seemed to stretch on for eternity. Before Omi realized, the jeep's headlights flickered on automatically, and the youth looked up in surprise to see a twilight sky. Up ahead, a shadow loomed, flickering with the occasional lantern or small fire.

"Thank Kannon!" Gojyo muttered from behind the driver's seat. The only sound from Goku was a loud snore. Sanzo's head didn't move from its spot on his chest. They rumbled into the village slowly, Omi not wanting to hit any pedestrians, and came to a rolling stop in what appeared to be the main street.

"Yo! Monkey-boy! Get-up, we're here!" Gojyo shouted, jumping over the side of the car and landing with a heavy 'whump' in the road, a small dust demon swirling away from his boots. Not a thing stirred otherwise. It was kind of creepy. Unbidden, a thousand horror-movie images started activating in Omi's youthful mind. He hunched his shoulders in on themselves and curled closer to the steering wheel as Goku let loose with a loud 'whoop!' and leapt from the backseat with the enthusiasm of an Olympic gymnast. Sanzo grunted and slowly stepped down from his seat, turning an expectant gaze on Omi. Omi squirmed.

"Uhh…shouldn't somebody stay here? You know, with the car? I mean what-if…what if no one's home?" he muttered. Sanzo snorted, shooting him an exasperated stare .

"Just get out of the damn car kid. We'll find someone." That was precisely what Omi was afraid of, but Sanzo's imposing threat was far worse, and so the youth decided that maybe it was in his best interest to get moving, zombies be damned. No sooner had he set foot outside the jeep when it made that noise again, that sentient noise, and exploded into a cloud of dust. Omi 'eeped' and leapt back behind Gojyo. Gojyo raised his eyebrows in response and took a deep drag on his cigarette.

"What is with you kid? You need to learn to relax. S'just Jeep for chrissakes." He grumbled. Omi favored him with a dirty look and reluctantly trotted out from behind his protective shadow. It was at this point that a giant white bat decided it was the perfect time to land on his shoulder.

"ACK!" the poor youth cried, flailing momentarily as he tried to dislodge the creature. A gunshot ricocheted off the ground near his feet and he froze, mid-flail.

"Knock it off!" Sanzo growled, tucking his gun back into his sleeve. Goku trotted over curiously, coming to a stop in front of Omi.

"S'just Haku-ryu. He isn't gonna hurt ya 'r' nothin'." the youth said solemnly. Omi nodded, and sighed in relief when the pressure of two sets of claws was suddenly gone. He watched carefully as something that looked like a cross between a lizard and a bat, only white, flew across and landed on Goku's shoulder, curling its tail around his neck. It made the same 'kyuuing' noise as the jeep a few times at him for good measure before settling in comfortably. Goku shrugged and turned around, trailing off after Sanzo and Gojyo in their search for an inn. "Hey guys! Wait up!" he called into the gloomy distance.

Omi shivered uncomfortably as he watched them, taking a moment to study. He could tell Sanzo and Gojyo readily enough by their behavioral and speech patterns. By default that meant the youth was Goku. He assumed the little white dragon was somehow connected to the car and the fact that it had magically disappeared. Although taking that extra step into assuming that the car and the dragon were one and the same was a little much for Omi.

He watched them all curiously for another moment longer before feeling a sudden chill crawl up his skin. A heavy fog seemed to be settling in around him, creeping upon the edge of the town and Omi shuddered before taking off at break-neck speed to catch-up. Something really weird was going on, and he definitely didn't want to know what it might be.

OOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOoooOOOooOOOooo

Hakkai, like Omi, had been serenely in the middle of doing something when he had suddenly found himself doing something else entirely. He was so shocked that he wound up accidentally slicing himself up with a pair of scissors. Yelping, he dropped the offending objects and watched in shock as small splatters of red began falling upon the pristine petals of some lovely white orchids. He watched, transfixed, until a heavy hand on his shoulder startled him so badly he jumped.

"You ok Omittitchi?" That voice. Why did it sound so familiar? He whirled around a little too quickly, his head starting to spin. "Oi oi. You'd better watch-it chibi. You're too small to be losing any more blood." This voice was warm and languid with just a hint of teasing. When he regained his focus, Hakkai found himself staring at a man who resembled Gojyo if only in the energy that seemed to surround him. Laughing green eyes framed by shining, wavy brown locks complimented a pale, angular face that would have been any Adonis' envy. Hakkai swallowed and wondered why he was having thoughts like t his about another man. He watched the muscles of that prefect face fold themselves into a concerned frown.

"Omi? You ok?" he asked again.

"Yohji! Leave Omi alone and get back to work!" a voice bellowed from somewhere behind Yohji. Yohji ignored it, studying the face before him closely.

"Hakkai?" he asked, after a long period of silence. Hakkai found it in himself to nod. Yohji sighed gustily at the admission, running a hand through his hair. His eyes slanted to the side. "Ok. Let's get you upstairs so we can take care of that." he said slowly gesturing towards Hakkai's bleeding hand. He seemed uncomfortable, and Hakkai wondered why.

"Dammit Kudo! I said—"

"Yeah yeah, can it will you? The little one here isn't feeling quite himself…" At Yoji's remark, a pale face framed by shockingly red hair appeared over his shoulder. The eyes were vividly purple, and Hakkai recognized Aya instantly. What was it about people with violet eyes that made them so grouchy? Aya nodded and then grunted.

"Fine. Get him out of here then before the customers catch wind of it." The red-head conceded. Hakkai couldn't help but stare after him as he turned back towards the main space they were in. The healer recognized a flower shop when he saw one. Filled with young twittering females. That were approaching him at an alarming rate.

"Omi-san! You're bleeding!'

"Oh no! Omi'san's bleeding!"

"Oh! I took first aid! Let me see it!"

"No let me!"

"I'll look at it!"

"Someone get a doctor!"

"Oh poor Omi! Being a florist is so dangerous!"

Before the females could get any closer, an arm slung around his shoulder, the scent of tobacco and expensive musk drifting through his senses.

"That's alright ladies. We'll take good care of our little Omi-chan." Yohji's voice was deep, with a slightly nasal, slightly hoarse tone to it that had likely come from many, many nights spent breathing in smoke and drinking far too much beer. Hakkai let himself be steered around in the opposite direction to the disappointed tittering of the young women who'd been fawning over him.

"If you aren't buying anything, get out!" Aya bellowed. Another dark-haired young man Hakkai could only surmise to be Ken shook his head, gave the Healer a wink and then went about his work. Hakkai lost sight of him as they rounded a corner and he found himself wandering up a set of stairs.

"Our living areas are back here. We've all got separate doors leading directly outside, as well as these doors here." the lanky playboy beside him explained, waving lazily at the doors lining the hallway. "Here's yours." And still, Yohji hadn't taken his arm from Hakkai's shoulders. He dug out a ring of keys seemingly from nowhere that looked to be a master set and unlocked the door before them. Hakkai couldn't help but feel as if he were trespassing.

Yohji, however, seemed to have no such qualms. He strode through the doorway and flicked on the lights, tossing the key-ring down on the counter. Hakkai followed him warily, studying everything at once. At Yohji's soft chuckle, he looked over, startled. The playboy was shaking his head.

"Man, it figures you'd wind up as Omi. Brilliant strategists I suppose. Level-headed. Although I've always thought of Omi as a kid." He stopped shaking his head and favored Hakkai with a half smile. "Well, let's have lunch then, and I'll answer your questions." Hakkai wondered why Yohji was so eager to help.

"Ahh…I wouldn't want to interrupt your working, Yohji." He replied softly. Yohji shrugged and waved a hand carelessly.

"You're not interrupting me from anything I actually want to be doing." He replied airily, opening what Hakkai assumed was a refrigerator and rummaging around. "How's yakisoba sound?" the lanky man called out, the sound slightly muffled.

"Ahh, anything is fine, thank you. It's very kind of you to take the time." The healer replied. Yohji came out of the fridge with his hands full and shrugged, smiling cheerily. "Hey, I'm hungry too." He said by way of trying to comfort. Hakkai nodded. He pulled out a chair and sat slowly, unused to this new, smaller body. Omi seemed so fragile. And so very young. Even though in reality he wasn't much younger than Hakkai.

"Omi still goes to school, you know. You'll have to take his classes. Unless we can talk Aya out of it. But the chibi freaks when he misses." Yohji spoke as he cooked, and Hakkai enjoyed watching him; his arms and hands move with the casual grace of someone who takes for granted that they are well in-tune with their space. He nodded in response, and then realized that Yohji couldn't see him.

"Ahh, that's fine. I'm both a student and teacher myself, always." Yohji nodded this time, and silence descended upon them for a moment, save for the hissing sound of the noodles in the fry-pan. Hakkai finally cleared his throat self-consciously, wondering at Yohji's odd behavior.

"Is there anything else I should know?" Yohji's form tensed, the movement almost minuscule.

"Er…you can probably plow through the flower-arranging, and I'm sure we've got busy-work for you in the shop. Omi generally gets a lot of homework and spends a lot of time on his computer. So all in all, school is the only major thing." Yes, Yohji was definitely sounding tense. He was nervous about something. Hakkai recalled Gojyo's unease at their counter-parts and kept it in mind. He was going to find out what had everyone so up in knots, and make certain that his own group wasn't getting involved in something too dangerous. In the mean time, best to keep things as casual as possible. He smiled as Yohji lowered a plate in front of him, still steaming.

"Lunch is up. Penny for your thoughts."

"Ah. I was marveling at how it feels to be so…small again." Hakkai remarked with a smile. It wasn't a complete lie. This body really was weirding him out. Yohji threw his head back and laughed. Hakkai chuckled, feeling for the first time since this whole thing had started that maybe things would be alright.