A bathhouse--a secluded bathhouse on the far edge of town with much privacy and many mediums for relaxation. The Sanzo-ikkou's things have been moved quite effortlessly from their old rooms to their new ones, and while Sanzo and Hakkai deal with checking in and paying for their stay, Gojyo fulfills his job as transportation.

"Damn you're heavy. How much do you weigh, anyway?" the kappa jokes, kicking open the door to one of their rooms since his arms are currently occupied with a certain saru. "I think we need to stop feeding you for a couple weeks."

Goku grudgingly sticks out his tongue, squirming to get out of his friend's hold.

"Eager to get away, huh? Fine by me." Gojyo smirks, swinging his arms back and preparing to toss Goku the 10 feet from where they are to the bed.

Seized by panic, Goku clings tightly to Gojyo's neck, squeaking out a strangled cry of protest. He closes his eyes, waiting for impact, but when it doesn't come and he realizes he is still gripping Gojyo's neck, he peeks his eyes open again, furiously glaring back at the large grin looking down on him.

"Gotcha."

Goku scowls as Gojyo gently lays him down on the mattress, immediately writing out his frustrations on his pad. 'You didn't need to carry me, anyway. I can walk on my own.'

"Hey, don't look at me. Hakkai's orders." Gojyo defends. "Besides, it was a long walk from the inn to this place. We can't have you passing out again. Good for my upper body strength, too. Lifting you is like a day at the gym."

Glaring a little darker, Goku refuses to lie back on the bed, and instead writes out another message. 'I've been sleeping on and off all morning. I want to look around.'

Hands on his hips, Gojyo shakes his head. "Hakkai and Sanzo are getting everything settled. When they're finished, then one of us will take you around. I'm sure you'll get some time with everything this place has to offer, so just be patient. Remember what Sir Tight-Ass told us, 'This is for Goku's recovery, not for pleasure. We aren't here to have fun.' Jerk. He sure knows how to kill a mood, huh?"

Goku sees that Gojyo is about to turn and head out of the room, so he gestures wildly to hold the redhead's attention. Gojyo looks back questioningly, and for a moment, Goku isn't sure if he really intends to go through with what he must. He realizes, however, that he owes his friend all the honesty he can offer, and so he writes, 'Sit down. I have to tell you something.'

His eyes narrowed with even more perplexed emotions than before, Gojyo obeys, sitting on the edge of the bed and waiting patiently for Goku to continue.

Goku swallows hard as he begins to write again, deciding to start off easier in hopes that Gojyo's temper can be better subdued after hearing a little good news first. 'I told Sanzo how I feel about him, and he didn't freak or anything. I kissed him, too. And he kissed me back. He didn't say I love you, but he said he feels the same as I do. I know things are going to move slow, but I think it's going to be okay between us.'

The small whiteboard is almost completely covered in Goku's writing to fit all he had wanted to say, and Gojyo reads the narrative slowly, his eyes widening with every absorbed word. When he finally finishes, his shock has vanished, becoming something like pride instead.

"Way to go, kiddo. I'm happy for you." he smiles, fighting down a few fierce waves of jealousy by clinging to how honestly happy he is for his friend. "Guess I wouldn't have had to take away your meals even without releasing you from the pact."

This sparks Goku's memory, and he erases his previous words to ask, 'How is the no smoking going?'

Gojyo releases a short laugh. "Hell on earth. But I'll manage." he winks, holding up a rather shaky hand for Goku to see the affects of his withdrawal. "The headaches suck, my hands keep twitching, and if I have to pass that monk with a cig in his mouth one more time, I swear I'm gonna steal his gun and shoot myself out of pity. But other than that, I'd say it's a walk in the park."

Goku laughs along with Gojyo this time--his same, soundless laugh--but the lightness in his mood fades quickly. After all, he has barely begun saying what needs to be said.

"Is there something else..." Gojyo starts in, noting Goku's swiftly lost smile. "...or is gloating the majority?"

As much as Goku wishes he could return Gojyo's grin and pleasantly familiar humor, he knows he can't. He writes, 'Has anything happened with you and Hakkai?'

"Hn...nothing good. Not like with you and the bouzu, anyway."

'He didn't say anything?'

"Bastard. Like he would. I bet he knows, too, and he still won't say a word."

Goku grimaces, despising Gojyo's suspicions, and despising even more his own hand in the rift that has grown between his friends. Stealing a few more ounces of courage, he writes again, hesitating very noticeably before turning his message around. 'Hakkai didn't know.'

A false grin and stunted laugh replies. "Shit, I know that." Gojyo concedes, at first missing the monkey's deeper meaning. "I really don't know why I kept thinking--" But he cuts off quickly, registering Goku's phrasing. "Wait. Didn't know...?"

Goku swallows, returning his companion's gaze as best he can, though he doesn't yet reply.

"Goku...?" Gojyo prompts cautiously, already struggling to hold down the boiling emotions in the pit of his stomach. "What did you do...?"

Writing quickly, Goku hopes to defend Hakkai before he defends himself. 'He didn't know before, I swear.'

"Goku!"

Flinching back from Gojyo's sudden volume, Goku gives in, and writes out the simple truth that will undoubtedly bring everything crashing down upon their once well-intentioned pact. 'I told him.'

Although the heat remains sparked in Gojyo's eyes, all color drains from his usually tan face. "You...you..."

'I had to.' Goku adds, sensing the building fury in his friend.

Gojyo tries to keep himself calm, flexing his fingers in and out of very tight fists. "When...when did you tell him?"

'After your fight this morning.'

"WHAT!?" Any attempt to quell his outburst now would be a waste of barrowed time. "And he STILL didn't say anything?! He knows now and he still--urrg!!" Gojyo screams, leaping up from the bed, his fists clenched very tightly now as if he might at any moment turn them on his friend. Turn he does, in fact, directing all his enraged emotions on the boy in the bed. "This is all YOUR fault!" he accuses. "Because of you, I'm worse off than when I started, you fucking monkey! You made me make that pact! You made me second-guess myself! If it wasn't for you and your damn ideals I wouldn't have been put through all this shit! Urrg, damn you! I should've left you in that market to bleed to death!"

Gojyo whips around, charging forward to the door, but the moment his hand touches the handle, his own words come crashing back to strike him down. They had been brutal and unnecessary, and he knows it. Behind him, he can hear the soft sniffles of Goku trying to keep his tears at bay, and a strong sense of shame washes over him.

How could he say such things?

Releasing the doorknob, Gojyo slowly turns back, floored by the pitying sight of Goku in tears. The boy is strong and hates to be seen as weak in front of anyone, so he stares down at his hands in his lap as he sits up in bed, avoiding any contact with Gojyo's eyes.

"Fuck." Gojyo curses as he treks back to Goku's side. "I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean it." he reconciles, though he is not met with a reply; Goku wipes at his eyes, still looking down. "Ah, hell, quit with the waterworks, huh? I'm sorry for blowing up like that." Gojyo crouches down next to the bed, bringing him eye level with his whimpering companion. "I don't blame you. I made my own choices. It's better with all this out in the open, even if things can't be the same."

Goku looks up uncertainly, but despite his own shame over Gojyo's failings, he smiles and slowly nods, quick to forgive and forget the kappa's harsh outburst.

"Besides," Gojyo adds, grinning a little more like his usual self. "It was about time I got up off my ass and did something, huh?" He stands, but feeling he has patched up the destruction left in his temper's wake, he allows his mind to wander, thinking over Hakkai's complete passiveness.

The tall brunette has been given plenty of time and opportunity to say something, but he hasn't said a word. Gojyo forgives Goku for telling him, since Gojyo had only been making things worse with his suspicions, but now...now is a time for drastic measures. After all, what does Gojyo have left to lose...?

"If, in the end, this is gonna cost me my best friend...I damn well better make it count." he states, speaking mainly to himself. His thoughts are set on an unseen path now, and nothing can deter him from that. Briefly, he smiles down at Goku before heading once more for the door. "Sit tight, okay? Someone will be up to get you. I've got...some thinking to do."

Goku is not wholly comforted by Gojyo's odd words and behavior, and still feels the distinct echo of the redhead's anger even as he leaves. Gojyo is not a man to do anything half-assed, and judging by the look in his eyes as he slipped away, Goku imagines he is planning something with the potential to make things wonderfully better...or...a million times worse.

-----

"Yes, sir, all of our facilities are at your complete disposal. If you need anything at all, just ask." the bathhouse attendant informs the rather scary looking blonde leaning over his counter. He knows to be as polite as possible considering he is dealing with a high-ranking Buddhist monk who also happens to carry with him an impressive reputation--not to mention a rather deadly gun. "Here are your party's keys, for your rooms and for the lockers. We've set you up just as you were in our sister Inn on the other side of town, to avoid confusion. Though, of course, we can always move things around if need be."

"We're fine." Sanzo grunts, not wanting to deal with any more complications, despite his slight apprehension towards continuing to share a bedroom with Goku. "Just hand over the keys and don't disturb us. We like our privacy, understand?"

"Yes, of course." the attendant smiles, swallowing hard as he hands the keys to Sanzo, who immediately defers to Hakkai. Hakkai gratefully accepts them to sort them out, and the attendant takes this opportunity to make himself scarce, mumbling something about having work to do in the back.

"You really need to work on your people skills, Sanzo." Hakkai smiles, handing over Sanzo and Goku's set of keys to the monk beside him, after having sorted out which ones belong to whom. "One of these days neither your card nor your title will be enough to gain us hospitality."

Sanzo scowls, pocketing the keys swiftly. "Mind your own business. I'm on edge and in no mood to be friendly to imbeciles."

Hakkai debates whether or not to inquire what has set Sanzo so on edge, but decides against pursuing such a dangerous subject. Then, just as he is about to mention going to the rooms to collect Gojyo and Goku, a familiar, crimson blur bounds towards them from the hallway.

"Ah, Gojyo, we were just about to come get you." Hakkai explains with a beaming smile. "I have your keys for the room and lockers, so if you'd like to--"

"Yeah, thanks." Gojyo says hurriedly, snatching the keys from Hakkai's hand and immediately walking away in the direction of the locker room. "I'm beat so I'm hitting the baths early. Don't forget about Goku, ne?"

Hakkai barely has the time to express his acknowledgement, slightly taken aback by how Gojyo hadn't even looked him in the eye, before the kappa is gone from sight completely. He had thought things were relatively normal between them, and hoped to keep them that way until he decided what he was going to do about his recent discovery of his friend's feelings for him. Apparently, things aren't going to be quite so simple.

Turning back to Sanzo, Hakkai decides it would be best right now to leave things be and continue sorting out his own feelings. They probably won't be getting another opportunity like this for quite some time, and he means to take advantage.

"Sanzo, would you be so kind as to take Goku around? The sauna and the baths should do wonders for his condition. Relaxation is the best medicine for him right now while he recovers."

"And just why the hell do I have to do the babysitting?" Sanzo grumbles, stubbornly crossing his arms over his chest. "He's even more annoying with that damn message board than when he's talking my ear off."

Hakkai chuckles lightly, breezing past Sanzo to gather his things from his room before heading to the lockers. "He can't take the board into the sauna or baths, anyway, so it shouldn't be a problem. And...you know how much he prefers your company over anyone elses." Offering a knowing and somewhat challenging smile, Hakkai then disappears around the corner, leaving Sanzo to himself.

(Damn it.) the abandoned priest thinks irritably, grinding his teeth as he slowly follows Hakkai's escape route to go and gather Goku from their room. It isn't that he doesn't want to spend time with Goku, he just doesn't know how to address what has passed between them. (Prefers me, huh? Believe me, that is something I won't be forgetting any time soon...)

-----

A few minutes and an impressive amount of yelling later, Sanzo and Goku are stripped--still with towels wrapped protectively around their waists, of course--and are ready to enjoy their time at the bathhouse as they walk down the hallway to the sauna. Sanzo hasn't spoken much to Goku since the episode earlier that day, other than to tell him to hurry up and to not exert himself any more than he has to. After all, there are far too many thoughts and possible regrets fluttering through his mind.

What if this is all a mistake? Sure, he let Goku kiss him and he even offered a second kiss himself, but that doesn't mean he is ready to declare his love and turn a new lease on life. Genjo Sanzo is a hard and stern person for a reason; he lost everything in the past and does not care to lose it all again. He had once thought he could outwit Fate by never again allowing himself to love at all, but that was a battle he couldn't win. The question now is whether or not Goku's love is enough to break down the shell he has maintained for over 10 years.

Sanzo's mulling is interrupted by the feel of a small hand gently brushing his arm. He looks down at his side, instantly met by large, golden eyes he knows all too well. Goku smiles up at him brilliantly, hoping he can somehow have a positive affect on his guardian's glum mood. Judging from the monk's tightly knitted brow, however, he sees that he is not being successful.

"What?" Sanzo growls, pulling his arm out of reach.

Goku recoils back and shakes his head, dismissing it as nothing.

Stopping mid-stride, Sanzo rolls his eyes in response to Goku's pout. "Stop acting like a wounded animal. It's annoying."

Stopping with him, Goku plays off his pout all the more and opens his mouth as if he is about to speak.

Sanzo's hand is quicker than Goku's tongue, and any words the boy may have tried to force out are silenced by the presence of a large palm. "Don't." he commands, leaning down to better match Goku's level. He removes his hand almost as swiftly as he had raised it, and looks from side to side, making sure no one is around to hear his next few words. "Listen, I'm not trying to act like nothing's happened between us, but I refuse to have you fawning all over me."

Goku's expression shifts as if to indignantly reply, 'I wasn't fawning.'

"Whatever. But you were clingy enough before all this and it makes me...uncomfortable." Sanzo answers his charge's reworked pout. The pout then, of course, becomes even more pronounced than before. Sanzo crumbles beneath it, and moves to lean in a little further, his voice a hushed whisper. "Just...don't act so obvious. I told you I care, and I meant it. This isn't easy for me."

Finally, Goku's pout disappears, replaced by a beaming and understanding smile. Nodding happily, Goku quickly leans up to peck Sanzo's cheek and then bounds on ahead towards the sauna, leaving Sanzo to follow in his wake.

Sanzo's face flushes with light color, and as he stands up straight, a hand instinctively reaches up to touch the spot Goku kissed. "Baka..." he breathes, his eyes following Goku's retreating form long before his feet can do the same.

No, this is not going to be easy, but it sure as hell won't be a dull ride along the way.

-----

On the other side of the bathhouse, Hakkai walks around the main area to a secluded hot tub out of view from the others. He is a modest man, and even walking in just a towel has been a bit much for him. There is a table a few feet from the water, so he places his monocle on top of it, not wanting to get it wet, and then removes his towel, tossing it over the back of the chair beside the table. Free of everything now, he moves quickly to climb inside the tub.

A rush of warm chills assaults him as he slips into the water, eased and relaxed already, after barely a moment. He sinks under, allowing the water to envelop him, and then springs up with a light splash, shaking out his now wet hair and tossing it out of his eyes. The water feels wonderful against his worn muscles and frazzled nerves. It is a welcome escape from travel AND his travel companions.

Leaning back against the hot tub's edge, Hakkai closes his eyes, sitting comfortably on the tub's seat. It is small, enough for maybe four people, though one or two would be best. Hakkai finds himself exceedingly happy that no one else can see him from such an out of the way spot, because he adores the solitude, content in being alone.

Despite the warmth and wonder of the water and how much Hakkai wishes he could simply banish all thoughts from his mind to enjoy it, he finds those thoughts drifting to the pressing matters at hand--Gojyo, in love with him; Gojyo, saying no to a woman for him; Gojyo...so amazing and caring and beautiful...

(I am being such a fool.) Hakkai sulks, his eyes still closed as he lounges in the water. (Why haven't I said anything? I owe him trust, if nothing else, but...what am I supposed to do? I know I care deeply for him. I know I enjoy his company. Even his close company.) he muses, thinking over the many, indiscreet touches Gojyo has slipped in over the years without him noticing.

He realizes, of course, that he must have noticed if he is remembering them now.

(What does it matter?) he sighs, banishing his straying thoughts as the same self-hatred he has depended on for years on end returns to crush his spirit. (How can I even entertain holding someone with these hands...?)

Images of his once cherished beloved attack his senses--Kanan's face, her hair, her kind eyes, her subtle smile, the feel of her delicate body pressed against his, and then...the sight of that body bleeding as she dies right in front of him.

In an instant, he is back within the horrors of that night, staring at Kanan's dead body, screaming her name, praying that time can somehow still be turned back. He would have loved her child, whether it was his or not. He would have cherished it, cherished every moment of raising it together. Boy or girl, human or youkai, it wouldn't have mattered. It would have been a half-breed--like Gojyo. Crimson hair and eyes. Hakkai couldn't imagine a better child if it had been anything like Gojyo.

As he had remained there on his knees, eyes locked on Kanan through the cell bars, Chin Iisou had come up from behind, taunting him, pushing him further than he dared go before. He was changing, becoming the very thing he had slaughtered--youkai. Then, just as Chin Issou cut deep into his side, his own weapon became himself. His ears pointed, his eyes became slit, a vine-like pattern wove its way over his skin, and his fingernails became sharp talons that slashed through Chin Iisou's body, cutting the last of that clan's members down.

He can still remember the rush of emotion and drawn away power when his youkai form faded, quelled by the manifestation of his ear cuff power limiters. How they had come to be, he still doesn't know, but had they not, he shudders at what he might have done.

Limiters in place, he had left the youkai palace and staggered along the bath to the neighboring town. He didn't want help. He didn't want to come across anyone. He only wanted to get away from that place and die in peace. When he finally collapsed to the cold ground, the rain still pounding in his ears as it had all day and all night, he had thought it would soon be over, and his suffering would end, but it wasn't to be. Suddenly, there was a voice, and when his head was lifted and he caught sight of that crimson above him, he couldn't help grinning at being rescued, saved by the very child he would never get to raise.

(Gojyo...why did you have to find me that night...? Why...?)

The sweat forming on Hakkai's face from the heat of the hot tub mingles with his light tears, streaming unseen down his cheeks and into the water. But just then, as he is finally breaking down in his shame over wanting Gojyo when he feels he does not deserve him, Hakkai also begins to feel strong hands smoothing over his shoulders, digging deep into the tight muscles.

Becoming instantly rigid, he struggles to look back.

"It's just me." soothes Gojyo's clear voice, close beside his ear.

The redhead is crouched down at the edge of the tub, wrapped only in a towel as Hakkai had been. He sits down, hanging his legs into the water with Hakkai basically between them, pressed back against the tub's wall.

"You looked like you could use more than just a good soak to get rid of all this tension."

Hakkai faces forward, allowing Gojyo to work at his sore muscles, though he hates how vulnerable he feels under a touch he longs for and despises at the same time. "Ah. Well...I...I don't want to keep you from relaxing yourself."

"Nah. I think this is right where I need to be."

Hakkai swallows, trying his best to swallow back his fears along with it, and slowly, he begins to enjoy Gojyo's expert touch, making him unable to do anything but give in, at the mercy of those warm hands. They remain that way for a good few minutes, with Gojyo working the muscles along Hakkai's shoulders, neck, and back. After those few minutes, however, Gojyo gently nudges Hakkai forward.

"It's getting a little cold up here." he comments, as if hiding some sinister plan beneath his easygoing tone. "I think I'll join you."

A swift rustle of cloth tells Hakkai that Gojyo has tossed away his towel before slipping in behind him into the water--naked. Hakkai's breath hitches when Gojyo's hands return to their work, rubbing out the soreness along his back. The act brings their bodies close, closer than he cares for when both of them are as bare as the day they were born. And still, he says nothing, choosing to ignore the angry butterflies swarming in his stomach.

Gojyo rubs deeper, firmly down Hakkai's spine to the small of his back where the brunette is just the tiniest bit ticklish. Hakkai shudders, angry at himself for enjoying the thrill of that tingling touch, something wonderful that borders on discomfort. He continues to disillusion himself, however, fooling himself into believing this is nothing but a harmless act of kindness. Or at least he does believe that, until Gojyo pushes things further than he can rightly dismiss.

Pulling closer, Gojyo continues Hakkai's massage, but adds a little more, bending his head to kiss his companion's shoulders. It is light and fleeting at first, but he does not stop at just one. His lips strike again and again, down between Hakkai's shoulders and up along his neck, becoming deeper and longer with each one.

"G-Gojyo! What are you doing...?" Hakkai gasps, trembling within Gojyo's hold now that the redhead has slid his arms down to grip Hakkai's shoulders more firmly.

Gojyo's lips curl into a grin as he kisses Hakkai's neck again, and he pulls Hakkai closer against him. "What do you think I'm doing?" he purrs. "I'm taking advantage of the situation..."

tbc...

A/N: Again, sorry for being late, but I was on Spring Break and I had an Anime Convention to attend. It was wonderful by the way. I bought tons of things I didn't need, mainly Saiyuki related, and had a blast cosplaying as Paine from FFX-2. The best thing was getting an art commission of Gojyo and Hakkai about to kiss. It is wonderful!

Anyway, back to the story. Sorry I keep popping out cliff-hangers, but I can't help it, they make the best endings to chapters. Obviously, the next chapter will continue right where this one leaves off. What is Gojyo up to? You'll just have to wait. Also, Sanzo and Goku still have some growing to do, too, and who knows if some remaining threat won't pop up to complicate things further. Hope you still enjoy and thanks so much for all the support you continue to offer. Every ounce of criticism and praise is equally appreciated. Love you all, minna!

Crim