Oh. My. God.

Finally. A new chapter.

To all of the readers, I want to say how sorry I am for not updating for such a long time. Things in reality just got so complicated that I didn't get a chance to update. Sorry. Please don't shoot me -.-

I'll try my best to update as more frequently from now on! Thank you for your patience!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Saiyuki, it's characters, or it's setting. All of that belongs to Kazuya Minekura. I just own Suzume, Aoi, Kasumi, Yuki, and the other characters who don't appear in the manga and anime.

Culture Shock

Chapter 10: A Youkai's Heart

Chung, otherwise known as 'the annoying monk who wouldn't shut up about his religion', was thirsty, hungry, and currently running for his life.

How did he get out of his restraints so quickly, you ask?

Well, he didn't. He was close to giving up when a random knife flew out of nowhere and cut most of the bindings while nearly stabbing Chung.

How was he so damn lucky to manage to get out of Bi-dam's well-tied, sturdy ropes?

He wasn't. It took him another two hours before he could wiggle his chubby wrists out so he could untie the rest, which took another two hours because Bi-dam was just that skilled in tying things up.

The moment he finally escaped from his bonds, he fell on top of a centipede youkai.

Luckily, his weight crushed it.

Unluckily, the centipede youkai wasn't alone. He had lots of brothers and sisters.

Today was definitely not Chung's day.

As he ran as fast as his little legs could take him, the monk cursed the red-haired hanyou, the fox hanyou, and the demonslayer for putting him in this Buddha-cursed situation.

Bi-dam sneezed.

"Uh oh, you're not getting a cold too, are you?" Dokugakuji teased the young boy playfully. Despite his light tone, he still leaned over and placed a hand on the child's forehead like his mother would do if she ever thought he might've caught a cold.

Bi-dam drew away from the man's hand with his nose wrinkled up in annoyance. "I'm fine. My immune system isn't as weak as that Monkey-girl. Someone just thought something nasty behind my back."

"You really believe in those things?" The youkai chuckled in amusement. "There's actually something about you that's childish. That's good!"

"It's not a childish belief." Bi-dam insisted. "It actually happens!"

Dokugakuji snorted. "Yeah, and you're three times older than me."

If only he knew. Bi-dam thought with a sweatdrop.

Know about what?

While suppressing his alarm, Bi-dam pretended to not hear Sora's mental question and privately noted to himself that he should be more careful about his thoughts.

"I'm not childish?" Bi-dam asked the youkai aloud while poking a stone with a random stick he found on the ground. "I don't act like a kid?"

"Well yeah, normal eight-year-olds don't hack up scary youkai that's ten times their size as if it were nothing. Actually, a kid like you shouldn't be on the battlefield. Seeing all this blood without getting scared is a pretty huge feat." Dokugakuji told him. "When I was your age, I played near the river and wrestled."

Bi-dam nodded. "Yeah, I saw many kids my age doing things like that."

"So why aren't you?"

Bi-dam poked the rock again. "I'm the man of the house. My dad disappeared before I was born so it's just my mom and I. Driving away the youkai was always the oldest male in the household's duty. I'm technically the oldest so they allowed me to join. It was a little scary at first, but I got used to it after a while." Bi-dam frowned. "They thought I would die first so they always put me in the front lines in hopes that I would perish earlier. They didn't like my red hair."

"Well that's not very nice of them." Dokugakuji's frown mirrored Bi-dam's. "What did your mother do about it?"

"Mom tried to convince them that I was too young. They didn't care. Why would they when they wanted me gone? Grandfather, who was the elder of our village, demanded that I should do my responsibility as the illegitimate heir to the blacksmithing arts by continuing my slaughter." Bi-dam smiled. "He wanted me dead too."

Why are you smiling like that? What your Grandfather did was terrible! He heard Sora shriek. Bi-dam mentally rolled his eyes. It's a stupid bully attempt. Why should I be bothered? It's not like it's uncommon.

Yeah, but…

You have to admit that my life was far better than yours. You guys were hunted down like animals and killed every year because they didn't look at you as an intellectual being.

No argument there

"I almost died." Bi-dam murmured. "On the third week, I almost died and everyone who was nearby just watched."

Dokugakuji's sharp eyes caught the tightening of Bi-dam's hold on the stick. "You know kid, you don't have to-

"But I lived." Bi-dam interrupted, ignoring the youkai's attempts in stopping him. It wasn't that he trusted the youkai, but he wanted Sora to hear this."I survived against everyone else's beliefs. But since then, everyone became afraid of me. They wanted me gone so Mom simply packed her bags and left with me without looking back."

What made them so afraid?

Bi-dam shuffled through his memories and showed Sora a scene. As he expected, she gasped in shock and horror at the scene.

Youkai heads, arms, legs, guts, and blood was spilled everywhere, staining the once brown mud into a dark red. In the middle of it all was a younger Bi-dam, kneeling there with a sword three times his size limply in his grip and tears running down his blood-splattered face.

And they just…watched the whole time?

Yeah.

Bi-dam could feel disgust rolling down the hanyou. He sent soothing, comforting emotions as well as gratitude in her direction for caring despite of knowing each other for only a day.

Bi-dam traced something on the ground and pointed at it. "I saw the Monkey-girl playing this with Miss Yaone. It looks interesting. Can you teach me how to play this?"

Dokugakuji took the stick from Bi-dam with a small grin. He showed no indication that he was bothered by what he just heard. Bi-dam had to squint to see that Dokugakuji was still a little upset. Grudgingly, Bi-dam mentally applauded the youkai for his ability to hide his emotions so well for a child's sake. "This, my apprentice, is called Tic-Tac-Toe. Are you willing to learn?"

"Yes, Master!" Bi-dam went along with the youkai's antics. He watched intently as he was taught the simple children's game. A small, foreign, warm feeling spread through his stomach when he lost in his first try though the childish side of him stomped his foot in frustration.

Bi-dam's thoughts paused for moment before replaying that statement.

He lost.

Because of the nine lives of experience in his head, he rarely made a mistake in his life. Bi-dam never felt as human as he did now. It was slightly exhilarating. The eight-year-old part of Bi-dam, the part of him that would have been if it weren't for his memories of past lives, suddenly yearned to act and be normal. Bi-dam roughly shoved that part of him back into the deep parts of his mind.

Those thoughts were childish and unnecessary.

This scene looks like a father teaching his son to play something. Sora randomly commented. Bi-dam mind-shrugged. Yeah, it does, doesn't it? But if I ever meet that good-for-nothing father of mine, I'll punch his face for leaving Mom all alone to take care of me the moment I meet him.

Ouch. You're pretty strong so I bet it would hurt a lot.

Dokugakuji sneezed.

"Someone thought something nasty about you." Bi-dam informed him while circling a blank spot. Dokugakuji intercepted his victory by putting his 'x' beside it.

"Still going on about that?"

Pain

Searing pain

Irritating pain

Sanzo forced his eyes open and growled when light hit his eyes. While still keeping his eyes closed, the priest hoisted his body up to an upright position. Before he could get off the bed he was in, someone rushed to his side and gently pushed him back down. "You are in no condition to move around, Kouryuu. Rest."

Sanzo scowled in irritation. By now, his eyes weren't as sensitive to the light so he was able to see that Suzume's arms were crossed with a 'no-nonsense' expression. "You broke three ribs and you have bruises all over your abdomen. I think you have a concussion too. Does your head ache?"

"The youkai bastard?"

"Dead and gone. Now, about your head-

Sanzo interrupted her. "I have a headache 24/7 because of that annoying monkey! How the hell am I supposed to know if it's from a concussion or not?"

Suzume suppressed a smile. "Your head aches more than usual?"

Sanzo scowled but relaxed back into the bed. "Fine…smart-aleck." He muttered under his breath.

"I heard that, Kouryuu." Suzume pretended to be upset and lightly punched his shoulder. "Meanie."

"Good."

Suzume pushed a bowl of…something onto Sanzo's lap. "Medicine."

"Like I'll eat that crap." Sanzo pushed the bowl away warily. Suzume pushed it back. "If you want to get better faster, you need to take your medicine. Don't worry. I handpicked all of these herbs so they're safe."

"Like that would make anything better. Do you even know what you put in there?" Sanzo asked while sniffing the contents suspiciously. Almost immediately, he drew back in disgust.

Suzume automatically began listing down the medicine's contents. Sanzo was incredulous at the length at first but then he realized that she was serious. The long list of words made Sanzo's head spin.

And spinning heads equaled to worse headaches.

"Okay STOP! I get it! You know what you're doing." Sanzo snapped irritably. "What are you, a nurse?"

"A miko is supposed to know her herbs to heal the wounded after a youkai attack, so yes, you can say I'm one." Suzume affirmed with a small nod. She then pinched Sanzo's nose, opened his mouth, and expertly poured all the medicine into the monk's mouth before he could blink. Sanzo swallowed in surprise before making a face. "That tasted disgusting."

Suzume laughed. "You are no different than the children I had to treat back home! Really Kouryuu, you act like a child for a man who 'hates brats'."

"Shut up."

She simply smiled and handed him a cup of tea. "Well, at least we have one thing finished. Disrobe please."

Sanzo began to choke. While spluttering, he gave Suzume an incredulous look. "What? WHY?"

Suzume…Sanzo didn't really take his childhood friend as the sort to do this out of the blue. She was usually serious. All miko were supposed to be like that. What came over her to ask him to undress in front of her? This wasn't like her. Hell! It was as if she was a completely different person! Was she possessed? There might be a chance that…no, she wouldn't be possessed so easily. She's a high priestess! No, it must be something else. Was she acting like this because of the Holy Agreement? Yes, the Holy Agreement required them to act as if they were married, but that didn't mean they had…skin contact rights! They still had to keep 'pure' and 'clean'. She was normally squeamish over these things! How was he going to react?

What should he say? What should he do?

"So I can change your bandages, of course." She stated simply. "Why else?"

"…"

"Kouryuu?"

"…"

"How hard is it to find a little kid?!" Gojyo fumed. Goku reluctantly agreed with the kappa for once. But only this once! Kasumi sniffed the air. "He isn't far, Gojyo-nii. Just trust me on this, 'kay? It's not easy trying to sniff out one person in a battlefield."

"Yeah! Give Kasumi some slack! I bet she's smelling all this yucky things for us and all you're doing is complaining!" Goku snapped despite mentally complaining himself. Gojyo gave him the evil eye.

"Oh, don't you start pointing fingers at me, Monkey Boy. Wasn't it you who complained about being hungry five minutes ago?"

Sensing another fight coming, Kasumi shoved herself between the two. "Fight and I'll tell Aoi that both of you wasted time." Kasumi solemnly promised. Gojyo shivered at the mention of the demonslayer and immediately snapped his mouth shut and walked on. Goku smiled in victory but sobered up once he saw the flat look Kasumi sent his way. The fox hanyou couldn't help but sigh. Even she got a little impatient in the lack of progress in their search for Bi-dam.

Kasumi sniffed the air again and her ears perked up. The next words that came out of her mouth sounded almost like a saving prayer to Goku and Gojyo's ears.

"Hey! I caught Bi-dam's scent!"

Aoi groaned and opened her eyes. "Kami, what fat ass danced on my head when I was asleep?"

Giggles sounded around Aoi's head and she quickly sat up. The demonslayer grunted in surprise when a small body slammed into hers. "Aoi-nee! You're awake!"

Many other faces came into Aoi's view. She smiled sheepishly when she saw Yuhwa and Hakkai's faces amongst them. Knowing those two, they were probably going to give her an earful for scaring them.

Wait, what happened anyways?

Blinking in confusion, Aoi tried to sit up but was hindered by Kiku, who was clinging onto her waist and blubbering apologies.

Why was she apologizing again?

A cool cloth was pressed onto her forehead. "I know you're a bit confused, Aoi, but you have to remember what happened. A survivor of the Chinese Army attacked you. You were killed…again. Then you turned into that form and killed the youkai. Hakkai saw. You passed out."

At those words, memories suddenly flowed into Aoi's mind. She winced at the onslaught of memories but she forced herself to focus.

Then the weight of Yuhwa's words crashed into Aoi's mind.

Hakkai saw her.

Hakkai saw her.

Aoi froze and her body became tense. Kiku, being the observant little bat hanyou she was, felt this and her sensitive ears heard her heart beat faster than usual.

"Aoi-nee? Are you okay?"

"…Yeah. I'm fine, honey, just tired." Aoi lied. Kiku believed her and smiled. "Please get better, big sister. Thank you for saving my life! I bet Mister Hakkai will fix any boo boos that you have!"

Yuhwa smiled and patted Kiku's head. "Kiku dear, why don't you shoo the other children away so Aoi can get her rest? I'm sure she's still tired from beating up that big bad youkai."

Kiku enthusiastically obeyed and the room cleared within moments.

Aoi scowled at her friend. "You're as sneaky as ever. Using innocent little children now?"

"You know that this is necessary-and Hakkai, don't even think about leaving this room. We have things to discuss and explain."

Hakkai paused his walking and backpedaled his way back to Aoi's bed with a sheepish look on his face. He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Sorry Yuhwa…I was simply obeying young Kiku's orders." Hakkai said innocently. Yuhwa rolled her eyes but allowed this to slide for the moment. There were much more important things to talk about. "Whatever. I think you deserve to be a little more enlightened about Aoi's…situation." Yuhwa looked at Aoi. "Aoi will be the one who will tell you everything, and I mean everything now Aoi."

Aoi looked down and her expression darkened. "Why don't you just shoot me now with that stupid monk's gun? It'll give me some relief from this torture."

Yuhwa gave her friend a look.

"Fine! Just leave the two of us alone so I can tell doc everything without you being that creepy onlooker!" Aoi spat. Yuhwa held up her hands in surrender. "I'll be waiting outside. It seems that Kasumi, Goku, and Gojyo aren't back with Bi-dam yet."

"Just leave!"

Yuhwa did.

As the door closed, an awkward silence fell between them. Hakkai cleared his throat and looked at the open window. "Ah…the setting sun looks nice. It's too bad that this nice day was ruined by those youkai."

Aoi appreciated Hakkai's attempt in making her more comfortable by acting as casual as possible though she knew he thought differently of her now. He was probably cringing away from her in fear in the inside.

They all did in the end.

"…Ask away, Hakkai." Aoi said in a defeated tone. "I'll tell you everything. Just ask."

Hakkai nodded. "Can you start by telling me what a Hanatsuki is?"

"Hanatsuki…hmm, that's easy to define. A Hanatsuki is a human who has a youkai's heart implanted into their chest. They can be identified by the unique flower-like mark on their chest. They're considered cursed because of their inability to die." Aoi droned as if rehearsing a line from a play. "They are despicable creatures who wanted too much power for nothing is more powerful than a youkai's heart."

There, Aoi thought, he knows. Now he's going to leave.

But he didn't.

"I see." Hakkai said calmly, "But there seems to be more to this than some definition. Can you explain your situation to me?"

Aoi couldn't help but gape at him.

"Well?"

Aoi snapped her mouth shut and blinked quickly before opening her mouth again to speak. "I'm a Hanatsuki. Can't you see, Hakkai? I sinned the most grievous sin that a demonslayer would commit and that is to live off of the exact power that we're trying to obliterate: Youkai."

"Yes, yes, you mentioned that before and I'm aware of what you are. But I want to hear your view in this story, not views from some people who I definitely don't care about." Hakkai explained patiently. He lifted his eyes to hers and held them there firmly. "I want to hear how you came to become a Hanatsuki."

Aoi's lips trembled a little as she took a small breath. "I was born with a weak heart so it was clear that I wasn't going to live long. My parents didn't want me to die so they desperately took the heart of a youkai infant and…"

Aoi choked.

"It was a baby, Hakkai. They killed it so I could live," Aoi murmured in horror and self-disgust. "This heart belonged to someone else and they couldn't live their life properly because I took it."

"But that wasn't the part that made me upset." Aoi admitted. "It was the fact that they convinced me that I was some miracle baby who was blessed by some god of flowers. I was actually foolish enough to believe them."

She loosened her shirt enough to make her mark visible. "This pretty birthmark was actually a brand that told others that I was cursed. My parents told me not to show it to anyone because they claimed that they didn't want anyone else to see how beautiful it was. They told me that they were afraid that youkai would take me away because of my pretty flower."

A bitter smile crossed her face. "I didn't really listen to them, my first mistake. Hanatsuki are like flowers so what were the butterflies?"

Hakkai didn't answer.

"Youkai. Youkai are drawn to the exotic smell of a youkai heart pumping human blood. Since I got this heart, hordes and hordes of youkai became attracted to my village. Many people died protecting the village, protecting me. This heart doesn't make me human anymore. Remember how my eyes turned silver? That was influenced by the youkai's heart." Aoi explained. "I guess you can call me a youkai-human hybrid. Though that doesn't make me a hanyou."

Aoi's eyes became distant as if she was remembering something. "I was stupid and I showed the wrong person my mark. I trusted that person too easily and many people died because of my foolishness."

It's my fault.

"At yet, I still want to live." Aoi's bangs shadowed her eyes. "I truly am a monster."

"You are not a monster, Aoi. You are a wonderful, charming, beautiful woman with a talent of making young children smile."

Hakkai took Aoi's hand and smiled. "I don't think any more differently than I did before, Aoi. This was how you always were so I accept that. You are still Aoi, no?"

Aoi suddenly let out a cry and a broken sob.

Since when had a man told her that he accepted her ugly form? Since when had a man not turned away in disgust once upon discovering her secret and called her beautiful?

Never

Never until now

"I was given an indestructible life by my parents." Aoi confessed. "And not once did they think to ask me if I wanted it."

"Not once did anyone ask me if I wanted to do anything. They gave me everything and I appreciate that but they never thought that it was necessary to ask me if I wanted it."

Hakkai listened with a pensive look on his face until the end of her rant and suddenly drew Aoi into his arms, effectively silencing her into shock. He gently cradled her as if she was a baby.

Hakkai didn't look as she cried into his shirt. Aoi was a strong woman and he knew she wanted him to always view her that way. In respect to her strong spirit, Hakkai didn't look at her face. Hakkai didn't say anything.

"Hakkai?" Aoi hiccupped after a good length of crying. "Thank you for listening." And for staying with me even though I'm not natural.

"Not a problem." Hakkai assured her airily. "In fact, I'm a bit relieved. For once, I feel that I'm starting to truly get to know you. Is this what girls call 'bonding moments'?"

Aoi sniffled and laughed.

Hakkai looked off to a wall while rhythmically patting her back in comfort.

"Let me tell you a story."

Aoi drew back and gave Hakkai a quizzical look. Hakkai smiled. "Humor me please. I'd like to tell you a story."

"…Okay. What is it about?"

Something flashed across the healer's eyes.

"It's about a man named Gonou and the things he did."

Hakkai told Aoi everything as if it was a bedtime story. He pretended it was some fictional tale that didn't really happen.

He wished it didn't happen.

He began Gonou's tale with his thousand sins. He told her about the Centipede King and how Gonou slaughtered many villagers and youkai alike. He told her how, with the thousand youkai's blood, Gonou turned into a youkai.

At first, Aoi didn't get it. She listened, but it wasn't long before she began to catch on. She was a smart woman, so that was to be expected. She listened with rapt attention and held onto every word.

Hakkai told her everything.

Well, everything except Kanan. She was the only part that made his sins seem okay, justified. He did it for the woman he loved. That part of the story seemed to sway people's hearts into feeling pity for him instead of anger and hatred.

He left her out to see her reaction.

"-And the criminal Gonou finally faced justice in the Temple of the Setting Sun. He died. The End." Hakkai finished.

"That was a depressing story." Aoi stated. "I don't think I'll be able to sleep knowing that Gonou lived a sad life."

"Do you hate him for what he did?" Hakkai asked. "Or do you pity him?"

Aoi snorted. "Neither. He wasn't a villain so I can't hate him but he wasn't a hero either. He's just a person I don't know. But I understand him…so I can say that I feel his pain." Aoi sighed. "And I sort of wish he was alive so I can talk to him. That would make me less lonely, you know?"

Gods, she really was sent by the higher beings, wasn't she?

Hakkai looked at Aoi and slowly lifted his hand to her face. Aoi didn't stop him. When his hand cupped a cheek, Aoi leaned into it. Hakkai marveled at how her face fit into his hand so perfectly. He marveled at how beautiful she was, with her blue hair all messy and her eyes swollen by the recently shed tears.

He didn't kiss her. He just admired her face, her personality, and her past.

He admired her.

Aoi

She wasn't Kanan, but Hakkai couldn't help but ask a question that was pulling at his mind since her eyes turned silver.

"Do you want to live, Aoi?" He wondered.

A fierce look flashed across Aoi's brown eyes.

"Yes."

Hakkai stared at her for a moment before bursting into light laughter. The demonslayer stared at the healer as if he grew a third head, but he didn't pay any heed and kept laughing. The thought that a strong woman like Aoi would wish death seemed ridiculous now that he saw that expression on her face.

What a relief. She wasn't going to die any soon.

Oh dear, it seemed that Hakkai wasn't going to ever let go of the demonslayer any soon. Not ever.

Now, to win her youkai heart…

"Kouryuu, why aren't you talking to me?"

Suzume didn't understand at all. Why wasn't her childhood friend talking to her? She knew he was easily angered, more so now than then, but she had absolutely no idea what made him so grouchy all of the sudden.

Sanzo huffed under his breath and turned the newspaper. "Forget it."

Suzume really hoped that he would cheer up soon and explain.

Chung groaned in pain as he dragged himself through the corpses of the recently slain youkai. Well, he was alive, so he shouldn't complain.

Thank you great Buddha for allowing your humble student to survive. He thought gratefully.

A pair of shoes suddenly stepped in front of his face. "Hmm? Ah! It seems that I found a surviving local! And a monk! How lucky!" A voice said cheerfully.

Chung felt himself being lifted up and carried, which was a great feat since he was so fat. Not that he was fat. "Who are you? Where are you taking me?"

"Eh? No 'thank you' for me? How rude." The person said with a pout. Looking closer, Chung realized that the person helping him was a child with a beautiful face. If it weren't for the child's clothes, Chung would've mistaken him for a girl. "But to answer your question, I'm going to take you to the closest inn to treat your wounds."

"Are you a doctor's apprentice?" Chung asked cautiously.

The child giggled. "Nope! I used to be a painter's apprentice but my teacher got eaten about a week ago. I know a little acupuncture, but that's it!"

Chung scowled and somehow found the strength to rip himself away from the child's grasp. "There is no way I'm going to leave myself in the hands of an imprudent child!"

The child shrugged. "Suit yourself, Mister Monk."

Chung began to march off but hesitated. "…If you want to go to a safe inn, there is one twenty stone-throws away straight ahead."

The child blinked in surprise.

"Huh? How nice of you to tell me the inn's location, Mister Monk. I'll remember your kindness. My name is Yong-soo."

"Yong-soo? That doesn't sound Chinese at all." Chung huffed. Yong-soo shook his head as if he was ashamed for the monk. Perhaps he was.

"Mister, I'm not Chinese. I'm Korean."

Chung really didn't care where the brat was from, frankly. But he was a kindred soul who saved a monk's life, so he turned his back to the boy and said:

"I made an honest mistake."

That was about the closest to an apology that any human being was going to get from the stubborn monk, unfortunately. It's in his nature.

But Chung really was trying to be kind.

When there was no reply, however, Chung began to get angry. How dare the child not respond to his honest apology? He turned back and opened his mouth to give the child a what-for only to find that there was nothing to yell at.

Chung's face turned purple.

"He wasn't listening to me at all!"

"Brat!"

It took a while for Yuhwa to find the lost trio, but she found them.

Now Yuhwa was a strong woman. She was a blacksmith, for crying out loud! But she was human too, a setback amongst the supernatural group. Her son, Bi-dam, was also more fragile than the other children and that fact worried her.

Why didn't she make him stay by her side?

Yuhwa trusted Kasumi to quickly find her son. It was the other two that she had doubts about. No, she didn't think Gojyo would purposefully slack off on the search, but she noticed that the Monkey-Child and he fought…a lot.

Surprisingly, she found the three diligently looking around the landscape by the time she got there. She had expected at least some grumbling or insults, but everything was silent.

Yuhwa went behind Gojyo and tapped him on the shoulder. "Did you find him yet?"

"Gah!"

Gojyo jumped at least two feet from the ground in fright and the cigarette he was smoking fell out of his mouth. Goku began to laugh.

Kasumi giggled and smiled apologetically at Yuhwa. "I can smell him, but he moves around a lot. It's a good thing that he has Sora with him, or I would've lost him ages ago."

"Sora?"

"She's one of my hanyou children and Kiku's older sister." Kasumi explained. "She's a good fighter, so I'm sure that she kept Bi-dam safe."

Yuhwa sighed in relief. "Well, at least I'm sure my little boy is safe."

"I know you're still worried. No need to pretend in front of us…especially in front of me." Kasumi informed Yuhwa apologetically. "As I said before, Bi-dam isn't that far away. Nothing in his emotions tell me that he's panicking or in trouble."

Kasumi put her hand on Yuhwa's shoulder. "He's your son. And he looks and acts a lot like Gojyo-nii, too! So there's no doubt that he's being calm and smart about his situation just like Gojyo would! Right Gojyo?"

Kasumi looked expectantly at the red-haired hanyou. Gojyo blushed and looked at the opposite direction. "Psh, of course I would. I always do."

Cough "Liar" Cough

Kasumi innocently turned to Goku. "Are you okay, Goku? You're not catching a cold, are you?"

Goku grinned. "Nope! I just had to clear my throat!" He suddenly took Kasumi's hand. "Look! I bet that pathway leads to a clearing! I bet Bi-dam's that way!"

Goku dragged Kasumi ahead, leaving Gojyo alone with Yuhwa.

Gojyo glared daggers at the back of Goku's retreating figure. Why that little-

"Enthusiastic little thing, isn't he?" Yuhwa suddenly commented, breaking Gojyo's angry train of thought. "I think he'll be the perfect playmate for Bi-dam."

Gojyo snorted. "Nope. If that kid's anything like me, he'd be annoyed by that Monkey in no time."

Yuhwa nodded distractedly. "Yes…he would."

Gojyo was no emotion-detector, but he could tell when a woman was worried and Yuhwa, without a doubt, was worried. Gojyo always knew what to do when it came to women, but Yuhwa was his sister, family, a completely foreign subject for the hanyou who had to depend on himself before and after his mother's death.

Well, stepmother.

But that was completely changing the subject. The fact was: For the first time, smooth talking, womanizing, sarcastic, Gojyo was struggling on what to do or say to his older, half-sister.

Dammit. It wasn't supposed to be this hard.

Gojyo coughed. "Um, sorry about not finding him sooner…sis."

Yuhwa smiled warmly at Gojyo's awkward attempt in recognizing her as a family member. She stood on her tiptoes and patted him on the head. "It's fine, little brother. He's a strong boy but he tends to get lost frequently. It's not surprising that you didn't find him yet." She winked at him. "But if you feel that bad, why don't you try spending time with him? He grew up without his father so I'm sure it'll be nice for him to spend some time with a male relative significantly older than him."

"Well, I'd do a better job than the Monkey, that's for sure."

"That's right, that's right!"

The two chuckled simultaneously.

"HEY! KAPPA! WE FOUND BI-DAM! AND GUESS WHO ELSE WE FOUND?" Goku yelled, completely shattering the silence and surprising a good amount of birds from its perch.

Gojyo smirked when he recognized Dokugakuji's form. He was about to wave but he stopped in confusion at the look of complete shock on the youkai's face. Gojyo cautiously looked around for any enemies but no one was there.

Then he realized Yuhwa was beside him wearing the same expression. Gojyo wanted to slap himself. Of course, the two were lovers. How the hell did he forget that?

"Let's leave them alone." Kasumi suggested quietly from behind him. She gently herded him and Goku away. "They haven't seen each other for a while."

Seconds, it only took seconds before Dokugakuji was in front of the shocked Korean. He tentatively touched her face as if she was going to disappear or end up being some twisted illusion.

Years. It was years since he last saw her. It was around the beginning of the war between the Chinese Youkai and the inhabitants of Japan when Yuhwa's father took her away. He was enraged when he discovered that his daughter fell in love with a youkai of all things. He dragged his daughter and the rest of the family to Japan. It was bad enough that his wife had an affair with a youkai. Her father wasn't going to risk another hanyou to be brought into the world.

Dokugakuji thought she died when he heard that the ship she and her family took was destroyed by a storm.

Thank the gods that wasn't the case.

The youkai grabbed the Korean and squeezed her tightly with a hug. "Yuhwa."

Yuhwa, now recovering from her shock, looked as if she was going to cry. "Jien."

"You're alive." Dokugakuji went on. "I thought you were dead."

"Dead? You thought I died?"

"Yes, your father-

A dark look crossed their faces simultaneously.

"Oh. Father."

Yuhwa bitterly smiled. Of course it would be her father to ruin things. Yuhwa had thought it was strange that her father didn't take the first ship.

"Father." Yuhwa growled under her breath. "How lucky you are that you're already dead or I would have gone against everything that I was taught about filial piety."

That old man never knew when to stop with his decades-old grudge, did he? Yuhwa knew that her mother's affair with Jien's father and her death broke his poor heart, but did he have to ruin her own happiness in the process? Because of the bitterness in his heart, the old fool didn't realize what he had lost. His very own grandson, though a hanyou, was the best blacksmith in the east despite his young age. He was charming. He was polite. He was strong.

He was of youkai blood, but he had her father's blood. Why couldn't he see that?

Then, she remembered.

Bi-dam. Jien didn't know about Bi-dam.

"Jien." She urgently said. "When my father forced me to Japan, I wasn't the only one who was forced away from you."

"What?" A perplexed look crossed the youkai's face. Not the only one? What was she talking about?

Yuhwa took her lover's hand and rested it on her abdomen. It didn't hold the wonderful treasure in it since she gave birth to the said treasure eight years ago, but the act was symbolic enough for even dense Jien to understand. A beautiful smile spread across the blacksmith's face as she told the overdue news to the father of her child.

"I was pregnant, Jien. With your child."

There was a heavy silence that settled between the two to the point of it being extremely awkward for the Korean. Did she break the news to suddenly? Oh dear, what if he didn't want a child?

"….What?"

That wasn't Jien's voice. Both Yuhwa and Doku looked up in surprise to see Bi-dam and Sora. Yuhwa smiled warmly at her son. "Bi-dam."

Bi-dam looked as if someone played a terrible joke on him. Sora could only look at her hanyou friend as he struggled for the proper emotion.

"Mom, is it true? Is this…youkai my father?"

Yuhwa nodded a bit hesitantly since the expression on her son's face looked like pure horror instead of the joy she had expected. "Yes."

"Yuki-sama, please rest. You've been sitting outside the Demon slayer's room for a while now. I'm sure that your friend is fine and well."

The crow youkai begged for the thousandth time but just like the last nine hundred and ninety nine times, Yuki just ignored him. She absent-mindedly played with an uneaten apple.

Fancy that. Yuki had an apple and not even a part of the skin was nibbled on.

Komu's concern was now justified.

"Yuki-sama~" He began to whine but was interrupted by a knife (the gods know where that came from) that landed precariously near his left wing. He gulped loudly. "A-Ah…do not mind me, my Lady. I'm just a foolish, insignificant youkai who overstepped his bounds."

"Shut up Komu or I'll actually pluck all your feathers out and make you my dinner."

"Yes." Komu snapped his mouth shut and fluttered away, muttering to himself as he went.

Yuki lent back against the doorframe from outside Aoi's room.

Seeing Aoi's pale and still form being carried in was by far the scariest thing she's ever seen. For a second, Yuki thought that she lost her again.

She was the first to fall out of the six of them.

Yuki shook her head stubbornly. Like hell she was going to allow that to happen again. This time was different. This time, she wasn't some cooped-up, naïve girl. She was stronger. She was prepared.

A traitorous little voice whispered in the back of her mind, Yet, Aoi got hurt.

A shadow fell upon Yuki's eyes as her head lowered shamefully.

Aoi got hurt.

And she still couldn't do anything.

"I'm such a failure." Yuki muttered to herself was she buried her head onto her lap.

The apple remained untouched.

Bi-dam didn't know what to feel at the moment.

Dokugakuji, the youkai who taught him how to play tic-tac-toe was his father.

His father

How should he feel about this?

He wanted to feel happy for his mother since it was apparent that she loved the man. Though his mother believed him to be dead, Bi-dam had a feeling that he was still out there. His grandfather dropped so many 'subtle' hints about his father still being alive that it was painfully apparent.

The mature side of Bi-dam, the side that went through many cycles of remembered reincarnation, had known that the right thing to do was to inform his mother about this.

Yet, a childish part of him had wanted to keep her for himself. He didn't want to share this precious love with a stranger who failed to raise him during his eight years of life.

Surprisingly, the childish part of him had won in that inner struggle. Yet, despite his failure in telling his mother about his father's survival, fate had decided to bring both of them to China.

And now, his father was right in front of him.

Is this what they call karma?

What are you going to do now? Sora asked him tentatively.

That was the easy part.

Bi-dam stormed over to the warrior called Dokugakuji and sucker-punched him on the face as promised.

Yeah...so that's sort of it for now.

To make some things clear:

The character, Yong-soo, wouldn't be very important for a couple of chapters. It depends where my imagination takes me. But he's still important.

Bi-dam is a pretty complex character. Like all the characters in Saiyuki, he was reincarnated. But, unlike everyone else, he remembers his last ten lives and is struggling to find his own identity. Because of his situation, he has a century's worth of experience and knowledge. He also has random flashbacks about his old life so watch out for that.

Sora has a unique ability to see the dead. How and why she's able to do this will be disclosed in future chapters.

If there's any other confusion, please don't be shy and ask!

(Again, I'm sorry for the wait. Really, I am.)