Chapter 14: No Maker Made Me

As it turned out, it was incredibly difficult.

Genji forgot to clean up after himself immediately after making his messes, frustrated with the added responsibilities and the unfamiliar place, and Jesse nagging at him to 'pick up his shit'. It was only a shirt, or a plate, or an out-of-place spoon. Nothing serious, in Genji's mind.

And it was only day three.

Hanzo was due today with the money for Jesse's rent, as well as a few more things for Genji, completely against their father's will. Genji hadn't realized just how much his brother kept doing for him until the odds were stacked against them both, in this instance. And for once, Hanzo seemed intent on letting him know about what he was doing behind their father's back.

He felt a little guilty for taking advantage of Hanzo in the past, even if the whole situation at present made him want to pick a fight with everyone, over everything. And on top of it all, he was stuck with a stick in the mud to rival his brother, as his supervisor for the days he spent doing community service.

Genji sighed, wiping his face with the back of his hand and straightened from where he'd been picking up trash from the streets, a building catching his eye. "What's that building?" he asked the supervising officer, pointing down the street.

"That? Monastery of the Iris. Couple omnics and AI live and teach there. Sounds like a whole load of bullshit to me, but as long as it keeps them in their place and makes sure they don't riot, I'm fine with it," the man said, sneering at the building.

"Ohh... what do omnics and AI need a monastery for?" he wondered, putting one hand on his hip.

"Don't know, don't care. But whatever it's for, it's definitely not gonna help you clean up this shit in time."

Genji turned away and barely hid his bared teeth, rolling his eyes and got back to it.

By the time Genji was done for the day, he was just about muttering curses to the supervising officer under his breath nearly constantly.

His back hurt from bending over, he was actually even winded from the work, and he'd endured more insults than he would have allowed were he in a slightly better position. Unfortunately the last insult he'd thrown at an officer had gone right back to his father, who'd decided he could do the rest of the week with an extra hour of uncredited service every day.

He felt like he was five again.

He scowled as he walked back, a small allowance card from Hanzo letting him at least buy three meals a day. Genji tried to share with McCree once, only to find him somewhat insulted by the offer. But then again, McCree had also been in a pretty sour mood, trying to scrub Genji's two-day-old, crusty dishes clean. That might've affected his mood a little.

But Genji's feet had taken him right to the doors of the Monastery of the Iris while he was deep in thought, and Genji stood outside, looking up at the facade.

It wasn't anything like the Shimada estate and it's simple, timelessly traditional elegance, or the cold industrialness of the buildings on the ground, or even the sleek untouchableness of other Meth buildings. It fell somewhere in between all of that, with details that came out the more Genji stared.

He felt like it was supposed to tell a story, like those Old Earth churches from modern ancient history, but he couldn't figure any of it out. Couldn't make sense of any of it. He wondered if humans were allowed inside, stomach twisting and flipping as he took one step closer, and then another, making his way up the few short steps to the open door, and walked inside.

It was cool within, the colors cool but not unwelcoming in the main hall. Blues and greens and greys were predominant, the detail from the facade carrying on to its interior, though it was more spread out, as if the story was growing beyond what its creators could contain.

Genji stared, turning and padding along the edges of the room to take it all in, trying to make sense of the figures and the story. "What the hell, even," he mumbled, squinting up at someone bending over something.

"They are quite unusual, no?" a voice chuckled behind him, deep and melodic.

Genji didn't expect it to come from such a lithe, short young man - emphasis on young, too. He had to be a teenager, perhaps a little older. At least in sleeve form.

"Uhh... yeah, yeah they really are weird..." Genji trailed, gesturing up at the carvings and padded closer, feeling oddly exposed but not... judged. "So uh. I heard this was a monastery for omnics and AI; but are humans allowed, too?"

"Everyone is welcome here," the young man said, smile wide and warm, dark amber eyes shining. "Is there something we can do for you?"

Genji floundered, looking around as he tried to find the right words, the wrong words, any words. Any response. "I - I have to go. Thanks," he stammered, backing up quickly and stumbled over his own feet when he turned, the young man smiling softly when Genji glanced back.

"You are always welcome here, traveler," the young man said, smile a little fond, a little amused, and a little... sad, to see him go.

Hanzo sucked in air, gasping and panting from inside a new sleeve, cursing to himself as he slammed his fist against the dome to make it open sooner, omnic servants hurrying forwards with clothes.

He had succeeded in reaching out to his ferret-sized dragon biotech, connecting in mere seconds as opposed to minutes. He knew this because he'd done it consistently every time he connected to his biotech, large and small, and had done it with no issue since he'd tried it.

He had succeeded in opening his eyes, he hoped, because usually that only left him with a rather severe migraine, and not a full resleeving.

But the question now remained: had he been successful in moving the biotech with his eyes open?

The last five attempts had left Hanzo seizing on the floor, and twice he'd drowned on his own frothy vomit before recasting into another stack. Resleeving from those two attempts had been rough, to say the least, with the phantom sensations of liquid and chunks in his lungs lingering for a good few hours after resleeving.

Hanzo shook his head. This time he'd seized, and hit his head as he fell out of the chair.

"Welcome back, Shimada-san," an omnic aide greeted, presenting a fresh change of clothes that Hanzo took gratefully, dressing with the omnic's help.

"Thank you," he said, smoothing out his clothes when he was dressed and strode back to the lab he'd been experimenting in, his previous sleeve already removed and likely in the store to be repaired or destroyed, depending on the extent of the damage.

He seated himself at the desk, recalling the camera footage and let it compile while he gathered the little ferret-sized dragon into his arms and returned it to its pod, watching as the footage played. It seemed he had successfully opened his eyes, tracked looking through its and his eyes for roughly five minutes, before making the biotech take a step forwards.

And then another.

And another.

And to Hanzo's dismay and irritation - in spite of the glee at having succeeded - he forgot himself, and tried to move both his human sleeve and the biotech at the same time.

But for a brief moment it worked, then Hanzo watched as his body collapsed under the sensory overload, an omnic mechanic acting on the emergency disconnect protocol, waiting a few seconds while Hanzo fell out of the chair before sending him out to his latest sleeve.

Hanzo moved over to the chair at his desk and sagged into it, exhaling as he stared up at the ceiling. "So close..."

Now he only had to gather up a few things for Genji, and bring over McCree's rent for the month, while his brother searched for a job. They hadn't spoken much since Genji had been left at the precinct, and Hanzo had no idea if this McCree knew he was hosting a Meth, and if he knew he was hosting one of Shimadas, to boot.

He was going to need a different sleeve, something that wouldn't attract quite as much attention on the ground as his original sleeve would. All the pain of resleeving, somewhat wasted, he sighed, tidying up the space and left when he was done, making his way to the kitchen first to request a full meal for two to take down to Genji and McCree.

And steal some sweets for himself on the way out, earning a light chastising huff as he threw a grin and thanks over his shoulder, returning to the rooms where he kept his sleeves.

Hanzo had all kinds of sleeves available to him: clones of the body he'd been born in, like the one he was wearing now, in all ages: from young child to roughly middle-aged, having found anything older too cumbersome to manage. Aged joints were a trouble he had no desire to battle with.

But Hanzo also had a collection of genetically modified sleeves of a slightly different kind.

Yes, technically it was his DNA, but the appearance was... different. A few were female, some broad and strong as he was, others more lithe, slighter in frame. Some were also male, as Hanzo had been born, but were decidedly more scrawny in comparison, average and lacking in the decidedly Shimada eyebrows.

Others still were much more androgynous in appearance, flexible depending on the clothes he wore with it to appear more conventionally one way or the other, if he so chose.

I want something simple, he decided, examining the sleeves as he passed them by, nibbling on his stolen sweets as he went and finally settled on a female sleeve that looked a lot like Genji.

Fortunately without the bright green hair, and with a blue streak dyed into black hair.

Hanzo rolled his eyes at the choice, bringing up the protocols to resleeve into her.

Hanzo combed through his hair, styling it to display the shaved side and the blue streak to its fullest, grimacing at the band around his chest and very seriously considered ditching the bra altogether. It was long past the era where it was considered necessary, but he also had to admit that wearing this bra in particular was extremely flattering for his figure.

"Just leave it as is," he told himself, flinching and frowning at the softer, higher pitch of his voice. He would need to get used to that before he engaged in a full conversation on the ground.

At least he still had his tattoos, shrugging into a leather jacket and snagged a small bag with his com and card inside, along with a chip to pay the first month's rent for his brother, and paused by the kitchen to pick up the food.

Hanzo used the drive to speak to himself, getting used to the new sound of his voice and parked a few blocks away in a parkade, walking through busy streets to the address Genji had sent him and knocked on the door.

"Hold a minute," a voice drawled, followed immediately by the sound of cursing and a crash, the door wrenching open to Genji's excited face, his eyes narrowing in confused suspicion as he gave Hanzo a once-over.

"Anija?"

"Yes, Genji. It's me," he said, feeling his cheeks flush when Genji snickered and opened the door.

"Well come in then, Hibiki-neesan," he said, eyes glowing green. "McCree, my sister, Hibiki. Nee-san, this is my roommate, McCree."

"A pleasure t'meet you," McCree greeted, extending a hand towards Hanzo.

"And you as well; I hope Genji has managed to be slightly less trouble than usual," he said, shaking McCree's hand and smirked at his brother as he took stock of the apartment.

Small - cramped, even - with most of the mess and chaos Genji's.

As expected, Hanzo nodded.

McCree gave a chuckled snort, shaking his head. "I think trouble would find him anywhere, but he's good company for the most part. Could I offer you somethin' to drink? Coffee, tea?" he asked, stepping past them into the kitchen.

"Coffee would be appreciated, but I unfortunately cannot stay for long, so I must decline," Hanzo said, pressing their dinner into Genji's chest. "This is dinner for both of you. And I believe my brother owes you rent for the month," he added digging in his bag for the chip and placed it on the counter. "This month, in full, as Genji advised me it would be."

"Ah, thank you, I appreciate it," McCree said, expression twisting into something vaguely uncomfortable for a moment before he smiled and slid it closer. "You sure you ain't stayin'? Even to catch up a little?"

Hanzo glanced back at Genji, already digging through dinner to see what there was. "I am sure. Thank you, for agreeing to take him in. It means a great deal to me," he said, turning to McCree and offered a small bow.

"Ever so stiff, Neesan," Genji smirked. "But she's right. I'm grateful for you, McCree. Oh! Dinner's fresh, we'd better get started on this, then."

"Yes, you should. It was a pleasure to meet you, McCree," Hanzo said, extending a hand towards him in farewell.

"A pleasure t'meet you too, Hibiki," McCree replied, his hand warm and calloused before letting go. "I'll see you out, since yer brother's busy."

Genji made a noise in his throat as he unpacked both dinners, waving them off. "Anija can find hi-her own way out, I'm sure. Thanks for dinner! Oh, but can you bring me some of my other clothes? And take these with?" Genji added, snagging a rice ball and stuffed it into his mouth, roughly digging up clothes and shoved them into a bag.

"Genji..."

"Just once, please? I couldn't afford laundry and dinner so I chose dinner," Genji said, holding the bag out to Hanzo, his eyes going a little wider with a puppy look that Hanzo couldn't resist.

"This is the first and last time, Aniki."

"You're the best, Hibiki-neesan!" Genji grinned when Hanzo took it with a sigh.

McCree pursed his lips when Hanzo glanced his way again, saying his farewells and thanked McCree again, left, waiting outside for a moment to listen to the man chastise his brother in a low, gentle tone, then inquired after the meal.

It seems you may be a good influence after all, Hanzo mused, making his way back to his car, and eventually, home.

"Thought you said you had a brother," Jesse said, after they'd settled on the couch to eat.

Genji looked up, then shrugged as he popped another morsel into his mouth. "Brother, sister, what difference does the sleeve make? I have a sibling."

"It matters t'me. I'd like to know who's comin' and goin' around here," he frowned, setting aside the chopsticks. He might be decent enough with them, but he was tired and didn't feel like the extra effort of consciously thinking about bringing a pretty tasty dinner to his mouth. "Helps me make sure I'm not gonna stick my foot in my mouth."

"You'll probably see Hibiki then, and if it helps, you didn't get the infamous 'eyebrow of disgust and disdain'," Genji said, swallowing. "Seems that my brother's more keen on staying anonymous... Or are you interested in my brother?" he finished with a smirk.

Jesse groaned, face wrinkling with distaste and threw a pillow at Genji. "If he's anythin' like you, I don' have time for that kind of shit. Besides, I -"

"Oh, so you are interested!" Genji grinned, cackling from his cross-legged spot on the floor. "Unfortunately for you, I don't know what Hibiki-neesan likes. Could be anything, could be nothing. I don't think I've ever even seen her with a hickey."

"Maybe yer sister's just better at bein' discrete," Jesse drawled, chuckling at the scandalized gasp from Genji. "An' maybe she's got way more goin' on that you think, just 'cause she's better at hidin' it than you are."

"That is absolutely disgusting and I will now have nightmares about my sibling, thank you," Genji nodded, picking out the last of his dinner. "But I only have one sibling, to answer the question you haven't yet asked."

"Alright, thanks. Just. Just let 'em know to keep usin' the same sleeve when they come? So I know it's them."

"Trouble with the law, McCree?" he smirked, expression stiffening when Jesse sighed and pursed his lips.

"Yeah, actually I do. An' a few other unsavories," he muttered, setting aside his dish when he was done. "Clean up here while I take a shower, please."

"Yeah, yeah. Fine," Genji sighed, pulling the empty containers and dirty plates closer to stack them and take them to the kitchen, missing Hanzo bitterly.

The week was nearing its end, and Genji had yet to find some place to talk to someone, on Reyes' request.

He'd wondered if the captain and Hanzo had coordinated, but the way Hanzo had stiffened at the request, Genji had to guess that it was probably just a coincidence that they'd ended up talking about the same thing. He just hated the idea of talking it out to some unfeeling stranger who couldn't claim to even guess what it might be like for Genji.

He didn't want to be someone's experiment, or a hypothetical.

But still, Genji found himself passing by the Monastery of the Iris another two times after the first, and finally coaxed talked himself into going inside again. Just to look at the carvings, he told himself. Nothing else.

Well. Maybe he'd see the young monk again.

Genji shook his head and walked in, careful to walk as quietly as he could, licking his lips when he was inside, as if that would cure the dryness he felt in his throat at being back.

The carvings were still as chaotic and numerous as before, but this time Genji could pick out a few stories; a farmer, a tailor, omnics working on some kind of vehicle, biotech... each of these were set in day to day activities, and some were less common, more violent, a battle scene catching Genji's eye next that left him with an odd ache just below his sternum, a kind of hollow loss-longing that left him staring at the scene until his eyes watered.

He saw the monk this time, the young man walking out from deeper within, expression soft as he read from some kind of text.

But Genji had no idea how to catch his attention, or speak to him. If he even wanted to, if he was allowed to.

He drew in a breath, once, twice, too quiet to be noticed, and the monk walked on, still reading, his back to Genji and about to disappear, and Genji resigned himself to being alone.

Except his exhale came out as an undignified, loud squeak that made Genji burn with embarrassment, the monk pausing and looking up, then turning around to him.

His entire face lit up with a bright smile, almost gliding back to where Genji stood, looking at least half as lost as he felt. "You returned, traveler," he greeted, pausing a safe distance away and carefully closed the text he was reading. "Welcome."

"I, uh. I did, yeah."

"Perhaps, would you like to see the gardens? They're as interesting as these carvings, but a little more peaceful than those, in particular," he said, gaze lifting up to look at those behind Genji - the battle scene he'd just been staring at.

"Yeah, yeah that would be nice," he nodded, meeting the monk's gaze before dropping it to the floor.

"Come with me, then. I was just going out that way myself," he smiled. "I'm Zenyatta."

"Genji," he replied, smiling back, and followed the monk through.

Gabe rubbed a hand over his forehead, trying hard to ignore the single line of some song - something about mountains and mothers or something - that was repeating itself over and over in Jack's head, along with his grooming narration and offhanded thoughts about the taste and texture of his sweat and scales.

At least three-quarters of what went on in Jack's head was far beyond his control, but that didn't exactly make it easier to bear. Especially when Gabe was trying to enjoy his movie in peace, and use it as a distraction against the work that was waiting for him at the precinct tomorrow.

"Jack."

Hm?

"Could you stop grooming for a little? The noise and the narration is driving me nuts."

Jack cooed, rumbling as he straightened out on the mattress Gabe had laid out for him in his lounge in his apartment, licking his chops a few times. At least the lyrics quieted down a little, thankfully.

Yeah, sorry. You okay? You feel more than just irritated with me, to be frank.

He sighed, rubbing his forehead again and pulled off his beanie, taking his feet off the coffee table he'd been resting them on. "Kind of. Maybe. I don't know. The stacks and sleeves you gave us is turning into a shitshow; Genji's doing suspiciously well which means when he fucks up, it's going to be monumental, and I strongly suspect that he's going to be lying about where he goes for meetings. Which is again, his problem since he's a goddamn adult, but what you've told me about him when you've gone to keep an eye on how it's going, the kid's actually pretty decent. Just lost. Really, really lost. And with forever ahead of you and nothing to keep you going, what's the point of doing anything at all?" he frowned, then heaved a sigh, Jack's blue eyes heavy on him when Gabe chuckled. "I guess I'm having an existential crisis for him, huh."

I... I try not to think about the future too much, honestly, Jack admitted, voice unusually quiet, and when Gabe looked up at him, he found Jack kneading his forepaws together. This body is designed to last forever. It can't decay, can't age. It can be killed and hurt, of course, but aging is beyond it. If I have to think of that stretching out in front of me, I think I'd go mad. Genji... Genji might be stuck in that without realizing it. His father is a Meth, he's seen a couple centuries himself. I couldn't imagine trying to live up to that. What would you do? I... I -

Jack cut himself off with static and crackles that actually hurt Gabriel's brain a little, watching the ivory of Jack's scales fade to an ugly blue-grey-brown as he shook his head.

"So, what? Give him a purpose?"

No. You can't give that to someone else. He has to find it on his own. But, but I think... he also has to be ready to find it on his own. Horse to water, and all that, Jack said, cooing softly and shuffled closer.

Gabriel chuckled softly, sliding across the couch to pet Jack's head. "Yeah, I suppose you're right about that too, huh. And Hanzo's coming through in the morning to testify that you're a conscious individual. I just hope we manage to keep that little tidbit out of the media," he grimaced.

Eh, it'll come out eventually, one way or another. Especially when people get charged with assaulting a biotech, Jack said, cough-barking a laugh and pushed into the petting and scritches that Gabe offered. But I don't think it'll gain that much traction, yet. Everyone's too busy looking towards Shimada Labs to see how Hanzo's gonna run things to worry too much about why he's downtown a lot. The one speculation I saw on it, was that it was because Genji's down here.

Gabriel hummed, leaning forwards and brought both hands up to pet Jack, smile small when the other started purring and rumbling his delight at the attention.

"And then you'll be a free man," he murmured. "You'd better come visit me from time to time, you know," Gabe smirked.

Oh, I definitely will, Jack grinned, big teeth all on display with a rush of smug-glee-contentment. I will come around just to tell you how my grooming has been going.

"Don't you dare, you bastard."

Oh no. How scary, Jack cooed. You gonna chase me down with your biotech once you get it back?

"Oh yeah. I'll chase you down and wrestle you to the ground, Jackie."

Ha ha ha. I'll let you win the first round, just because I'm nice. And definitely take it easy on you: we both know you don't stand a chance against me, Jack grinned, whuffing and warbling and laughing when Gabe challenged him back, tickling a spot behind Jack's jaw that left him writhing and warbling pleas to stop, colors flashing bright and warm over his scales.

Gabe barely noticed that the greatest influence to his mood came from Jack, the warmth and joy seeping through their link and lasted long after Gabe finally turned in for the night.

Maybe, just maybe, he'd miss having Jack around.