Title: Fragments of Memories
Author: AznSage
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.
Pairings: Sanzo/Goku, Hakkai/Gojyo
Rating: PG-13
Note: Goku POV. The actual fic takes place in the present, the years do add up correctly and I'm pretty sure it's historically accurate. The Mongol invasions to China began in 1200 so that year is not wrong. They completely succeeded in 1241 though, so the Song dynasty did not fall yet (which is why the history books will have a different year for the rise of the Yuan dynasty). Anyway, this note won't make any sense until you read, so just ignore this for now. ^^;;
The current world population is at around six billion. And yet I'm trying to find one man. It'll be nearly impossible but since fate and destiny always bring the four of us together, I'm sure it will do so again.
I walked off the bus with Hakkai, each of us carrying a pack for the long hike up the mountain. The sun was hot and the air was humid but we were here anyway. Here to visit our old friend Sha Gojyo. Gojyo had died about twenty five years ago in a car accident. He had still looked very young, but signs of aging had started to show. I guess the human blood in him had started to win over the youkai blood. Hakkai had mourned for half a year until he finally snapped out of it and decided to get on with life. To live because Gojyo would be reborn and they would find each other again.
Which brings us back to now with the two of us carrying packs up to Gojyo's grave to clean it and then do a bit of praying. Hakkai had become a Buddhist, even though he knew that clean living wasn't necessary in sustaining his longevity.
As he began the annual ritual, I stood off to the side. I had no right to barge in on Hakkai's time with Gojyo. It was hot and neither one of us wanted to stay too long or we'd get a heat stroke. I closed my eyes to wait, unable to take the glare of the sun anymore. But as I closed it, images began to flash in front of me.
There was Sanzo during his first reincarnation, dying. There I was screaming again. There was Hakkai and Gojyo, holding me back. We had found Sanzo in the royal palace in Hangzhou as a general and we had made our way up the ranks to become generals ourselves. We astounded the public with our feats and the four of us were unstoppable. Eventually, the emperor realized that we did not age at all since he was getting old but yet we were still filled with our youth. When he died and his son came to power, we still maintained our titles in order to protect the emperor and stay together. However, upon the Mongol attack in 1200, Sanzo died in battle. We could not disturb human progress and it was time to move on. The survivors of the dynasty would think we died in battle and the Mongols had never seen our faces before so we were safe. We moved east after that to Shanghai. I had grieved for a good year after that. Because in this life, I had yet again failed to tell Sanzo how I felt.
Another five hundred years dragged by slowly after that. We had moved around so many parts of China that I had almost lost track of the year and date until I saw Sanzo in Szechuan province. He was a simple farmer there and lacked the sharp tongues of his previous lives. He still maintained his solitude though and had no family there. We had stayed with him, at first against his will, but he had grown attached to us, just like he did in every lifetime. The years passed and the one day that we loathed came. Sanzo died once again of old age when he was eighty. Except this time I don't really know what happened, but I snapped. I had to watch Sanzo die three times, each in which I could not do anything. Heaven had heard my cries and Kanzeon descended upon us once again. It was too painful. Each lifetime, I had failed in my task and Sanzo did not look at me as anything but a brother. Kanzeon took pity on me and said that Sanzo would be reborn sooner this time to shortern my suffering. How much shorter though, she never said.
When the Japanese had invaded China previous to World War II, the three of us escaped to Hong Kong. Another new life to establish, but it had been good to us so far. It had almost been a hundred and seventy years then and there were no signs of Sanzo. Fate had always brought him to us or us to him so this lifetime wouldn't be any different. Of course, Gojyo's death had not been at all expected. But when Hakkai asked Kanzeon, she had explained to him that since Gojyo was not like Sanzo, a being who needed to have the purity of a few lifetimes, Gojyo would be reborn. If my count was not wrong, The Gojyo that we would be looking for would be around twenty four years old. And now it was two hundred years and yet I still had no way of knowing if Sanzo was alive yet or not.
"Ne...Goku." I snapped my eyes open in surprise and found Hakkai there waving hand in front of me. "It's time to go." He smiled at me, knowing of who I had been thinking of, but being kindly enough not to mention it but only grab his pack and start to walk.
"Ah...coming." I grabbed my pack and followed after him, taking the chance to also grab a bottle of water out of my backpack. "Hakkai..."
"Yes?"
"Do you think that we'll see them again?"
"Of course we will. It's fate."
I nodded and followed Hakkai back to the boarding station of the bus. We were going to head back into the city and just rest today. We had gotten the day off for a reason.
Taking a seat in the back, Hakkai smiled at me before curling up towards the window for a nap. His job must have exhausted him so it was no big deal. He knew I'd wake him up when we got there. I took out my manga and was about to just read on the way back. But when I lifted my head, I saw the most beautiful sight in the world. Golden hair like the sun and stormy violet eyes. There was no other like him.
I began to shake Hakkai to make him wake up. Slowly he stirred and flashed me a look of concern. "What's wrong, Goku?"
"Sanzo's here! Look!" I pointed to the front of the bus but he was already gone. I looked in confusion, he was here a second ago though...
"Goku, maybe you're just seeing things."
I sighed. Maybe I am...
-TBC-
This fic has been asking to be written since.....about three months. The outline's pretty sketchy, but it's done. My curiousity towards the idea of youkai immortality brought this idea. They only die when they're killed and but they maintain their youth because of youjutsu. Which means that I might bring Kou-tachi into this. Er...anyway, it takes place in Hong Kong (my hometown) now, so there might be a few mentionings of a certain respiratory virus in the fic too. Well, until next time then ^^ Feedback is welcomed ^_^
