Chapter 12: The Hanged Man

Author's Notes: ARGH!! This maybe the hardest (and perhaps the most interesting) part of the story I've written so far… There's some lime up my sleeves so you better beware. I'm not a good citrus/lemon writer, so I reduce all the fun to lime. Hey, it makes sense… I'm just a damn kid. Well, even if my birthday's coming up in two months or less, I'll still be a damn kid by then. Boo hoo… I'm not old enough to write lemon/citrus… Oh yeah, for you peeps that really are sensitive, prepare the Kleenex. You may cry near the end of this chapter.

Kouryuu laid Hakkai on the bed. He was still fast asleep. The blonde monk watched him in worry. With all the energy he was radiating, there might be demons that might attack him in his sleep. He admonished himself to protect Hakkai no matter what and starting to feel tired, he decided to take a shower before going to sleep.

As Kouryuu was in the shower, Hakkai's eyes snapped open. He felt a strange impulse pulling him to Kouryuu. He entered the bathroom silently, his feet making no sound on the tiled floor.

"Kouryuu…" His voice smoothly sounded across the room. Kouryuu's blonde head popped out from behind the shower curtains.

"Nanda, Hakkai?" He asked.

"Ah… Kouryuu… Embarrassing as it may sound… May I join you?"

Kouryuu paused before giving an answer, "You've taken baths with me six hundred years ago… Why not?"

"If you say so…" Hakkai smiled as he took off his clothes.

Meanwhile, as Hakkai and Kouryuu were in the shower together, Hibiemi grumbled as demon blood splattered on her coat. The immortals had to work with stealth to reach their goal, to kill Hakkai. Unfortunately, things weren't as they planned since there were a large number of demons attracted to Hakkai's power.

" Shit," Nii hummed, "Why do me and Komyo have to face these with you?"

"We want to kill Hakkai, don't we?" Quietus questioned the scientist, "Then we should have you two along. Komyo knows the Silver Apocalypse better than anyone else here and you on the other hand have your technology. It's handy having people like you for a stealth mission like this…"

"Oh." Nii replied, "And what would be your purpose here, Mr. Reaper?"

"I'll be killing Hakkai."

"Then what about Hibi?" Komyo asked.

"She says she'll stay here and watch out for demons." Quietus clarified, "I know she really wouldn't like the job of killing Hakkai…"

"Of course I don't want the job. I wouldn't be able to finish it anyway…" Hibiemi smiled as she finished killing another demon. The demon blood shining in its lustrous glory on the front of her black trench coat. Small drops of the blood were visible on her childish face making her look like some sort of vampire, "Saa… Minna… We'll have to wait until we're sure those two are asleep. Then Quietus will go in for the kill."

Hakkai held Kouryuu's waist as they both stood naked underneath the shower.

"Aishiteru…" Hakkai closed his eyes as he whispered words on Kouryuu's wet skin, "…Sanzo."

"I know…" Kouryuu clasped his hand on his lover's own, "But this isn't six hundred years ago…"

"Gomen, Kouryuu…" Hakkai giggled as he pinned Kouryuu to the wall and kissed him hungrily, "Why don't we just take this to the bed? I don't feel comfortable under the rain…"

Kouryuu smirked in response and turned off the shower.

When they got to the bed, the unexpected happened, Hakkai's smile seemed to turn twisted and sadistic. Pinning Kouryuu to the bed, he grabbed some rope his lover hid under the bed. He tied him to the bedposts and smiled as he got off him. He looked through Kouryuu's closet for a blade of some sort. He returned later with a light dagger.

"You'd give everything to please me, would you, Kouryuu?" Hakkai's voice seemed to play sadistically, "Then would you sacrifice me some pain? Just for tonight?"

"Katte ni shiro…" Kouryuu growled, "But you're not acting yourself…"

"Really?" Hakkai asked curiously.

"Somehow, you seem to be acting like that stupid clone of yours…" Kouryuu replied.

"Maa, maa… Kouryuu… You know Quietus doesn't know you like I do…" Hakkai smiled, "Just for tonight, please? Let me just fill my fantasies…"

Meanwhile, back to where the immortals were hiding…

"Why on a night like this?" Komyo struggled to suppress his instinct.

"I'm really jealous…" Quietus moaned as he watched the shadows playing on the lit windows.

"Oh shield my innocent forever child eyes…" Hibiemi looked away from the scene.

"Interesting… I wonder if Kouryuu knows that mortal blood is the ingredient to strengthening immortals?" Nii tapped his chin.

"What?!" Hibiemi asked in shock, "If Hakkai over there is playing kinky with Sanzo… erm… I mean Kouryuu, then… then…"

"It's no big deal…" Quietus hummed, "The big deal is if Hakkai's already an immortal and fortunately, he's not."

"It's psychology…" Komyo pointed out, "The power surge Hakkai's feeling must be the cause of all this possessiveness…"

"Could be." Everyone else nodded.

After a few hours, the immortals watched the lights go off through the windows of Kouryuu's room.

"Finally!!" Quietus stretched as he prepared to assassinate Hakkai. He checked his katana again; making sure it was free of demon blood.

"Ganbatte, Qui." Hibiemi smiled as her subordinate left to kill.

Qui stealthily entered the room. Looking around with perfect vision in the dark, he saw Hakkai sleeping beside Kouryuu. Kouryuu's arms clasped around Hakkai's, his wrists red from the rope.

"I really didn't want to do this but… Gomenasai, aniki. You have to die." Quietus took out his katana and prepared to thrust it through Hakkai's body. But something compelled him to stop. It was Hakkai's face.

"A-Aniki…" Quietus put his sword down. He couldn't kill Hakkai. It was like murdering someone he loved. He couldn't kill Hakkai. Even if he knew that he was just a reincarnation of his brother.

"Demo… Just for the sake of the world… You must die!" Calling upon his strength, the reaper finally thrust his sword down. It didn't hit Hakkai, but instead, it hit right between him and Kouryuu.

"Why can't I kill you?!" Quietus sobbed as he took his sword out of the bed, "Do you have some sort of power that holds me down?! Answer me!!"

"He isn't doing his job properly…" Komyo noted as he heard Quietus' audible sobbing.

"I knew it… He's been hiding it from us for so long… Hakkai was his brother in another life, too…" Hibiemi said with concern, "Qui-niichan… Get out of there, quickly. I know something bad will happen…"

"What are you doing here?" Kouryuu awakened. He had spotted Quietus with his sword drawn.

"I'm here to kill Hakkai…" Quietus growled in response. Kouryuu rose from bed and put on his demon hunting gear.

"Like I've said before… I'm not letting you touch Hakkai!" The blonde demon hunter took his gun from inside the closet, "Get away from him…"

"Kouryuu…" Hakkai slowly stirred out of his sleep, "What's going on?"

"Those immortals were trying to kill you in your sleep…" Kouryuu replied.

"Hmph! If my emotions didn't get in the way, I could have killed you, aniki…" Quietus smiled, "Let's take this battle outside, shall we?" The reaper disappeared.

"He's in the grounds!" Hakkai said, his senses working for him. He quickly put his clothes on and rushed after Kouryuu into the grounds. Kouryuu was already in heated battle against the immortal. Quietus' years of training gave him the upper hand in the battle. He quickly hit Kouryuu, but was blocked by the tough metal of his gun.

"Hah! Do you really think a gun can save you from my blade?" Quietus laughed as his blade clashed against Kouryuu's gun. Sparks came forth due to the friction and Kouryuu decided to take advantage of his long-range attacks and the reaper's force against him. He ducked and rolled towards where Quietus attacked from and as the immortal tumbled forward; he quickly shot him twice from behind.

"Where are your companions, immortal?" Kouryuu cocked the gun at the fallen immortal's head, "Or else I'll have to blast your pretty head away…"

Behind the bushes, Hibiemi couldn't stand to watch someone die. Out of rage, she tried to attack Kouryuu, but Nii restrained her.

"Let me go!!" Hibi stomped on Nii's foot as she continued to rage, "I don't wanna watch anyone die! Let me go now!!" A blast of wind knocked Nii away as she cried. As soon as she tasted freedom, she brandished her naginata and charged at Kouryuu.

Sensing the danger Hibiemi posed to Kouryuu, Hakkai quickly shot her with a ball of ki. But unfortunately, the wind intervened with the blast and dispelled it.

"Kouryuu! Abunai!" Hakkai yelled out. Kouryuu faced the raging immortal and blocked her naginata's blade with his gun.  The nimble immortal easily used Kouryuu's strength to her advantage and flipped over him using the naginata as a lever. As soon as she was behind Kouryuu, she calmed down and pressed the blade against the mortal's neck.

"Let us kill Hakkai and we'll spare your life…" She threatened him. Quietus on the other hand was recovering from the bullet wounds and struggled to get up.

"Kotowaru." The monk folded his arms across his chest, "Like I said before, I won't let you touch him."

"Very well…" Hibiemi walked backwards, preparing to kill Kouryuu. She eyed Hakkai and gave a small signal to Quietus, "I might as well kill you…"

She began to rush forward, but instead of preparing to slash Kouryuu in half, she turned and ran towards Hakkai. Kouryuu knew that was going to happen and pushed Hakkai out of the way at the exact moment the immortal jumped into the air.

The sickening sound of steel cutting gut and bone hung in the air. Time seemed to be suspended at that very moment.

"Sou na…" Quietus' eyes widened in horror. Tears seemed to fill his eyes as he saw the corpse on the ground.

"Atashi… Atashi…" Hibiemi's breathing quickened as she saw who she slew, "I can't take this… anymore…" She screamed in horror and dropped to the ground screaming.

"Kouryuu…" Hakkai began to cry, "Why did you do this… Why… WHY!!" He broke into sobs and screamed in mixed emotions.

"Let's run…" Nii said to Komyo as the tragedy happened, "I don't want to stay here any longer!"