DISCLAIMER: I own Saiyuki not. Except for the first four volumes. Score!
WARNING: Language. Angst. Verbosity. Connivance. Pairings in all flavors.
NOTES: Sanzo's chapters is in two parts on ffnet and is whole everywhere else. And we're doing the plotty scene next time or, I swear, I'm skinning all my muses.
Also, if there are any problems with the formatting--well, I apologize, but I just can't -take- this QuickEdit format (scowls).
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Hir Wicked Style
part 16: Sanzo (part 2)
by Nightfall
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"But I understand," Hakkai went on in a soothing, sedate tone that had Sanzo eyeing him suspiciously. "At first I was surprised, but when I think about it, it's only natural for Sanzo to miss our bouts, since he's busy keeping an eye on Goku."
Sanzo drew on him.
Into the silence following Gojyo's tiny 'whoa,' Hakkai grinned. It was that very -special- smile of his; the 'who me evil-oh -never- I'm much too -sweet-' one.
Sanzo took the safety off and locked his arm.
The grin only got wider. Bastard. "Yaone-san's fighting style," Hakkai lectured, his bearing harmless, engaging, and professional, his eyes unbearably smug, "is what I suspect analysts would call 'feminine' or 'moved by yin influence.'"
Sighing, Sanzo put his gun away. He could only handle so many hopeless causes at once.
Why the people around him insisted on taking a simple decision not to kill them yet as encouragement, he could not understand. Hakkai kept talking. "A style like hers is exceptional in two basic ways."
Sanzo shot him a this-had-better-be-fucking-fantastic glare. Everyone was looking at them in more and less obvious fascination. He sighed, and twitched his fingers, and groused, "You may as well."
"Oh, thank you," Hakkai nodded politely. "Yaone-san's style makes two unusual assumptions. First, it assumes that neither the fight nor the fighters are of any importance. That is to say, pride and enjoyment have no meaning when she fights. Victory is her only prize, because she believes that her life and her efforts have no value if they don't accomplish her purpose."
Off to his left, Goku was baffled. To his right, Yaone was blushingly avoiding Kougaiji's gaze.
"Her second assumption is that strength is also of no importance."
To his right, Kanan's face drew into a look of cool, polite, monumentally insulted disbelief. Huh.
Fortunately for them all, it was Kaikara, several meters behind them, who paused in her attempt to gnaw Gojyo's ears off and said, "Huh?"
Hakkai turned to look at her, and the brittle caution in his face melted so fast Sanzo nearly gagged. "I'm sorry, Kaikara-san," he called politely, cupping his hands around his mouth to explain to her how far away she was for civilized conversation. She obligingly started to unhook her ankles from around Gojyo's waist and slide off his back. The kappa straightened up and flicked his hair back in obvious relief, but there was an affectionate crinkle over his scars.
"Disgusting," Sanzo told Hakkai's still, coiled tiger eyes as the girl strolled over. "Would you still have that idiotic look if she were a year older and he groped her on her way down?"
"Gojyo is chivalrous," Hakkai said absently, his eyes hot and deep over the subtle smile of one who intends to ruthlessly pursue an advantage. "There's only room in his heart for one woman, and he's already wearing her favor."
Sanzo eyed him dourly. "Have you tattooed your name on his dick yet?"
"No," was all Hakkai said, still absently.
Sanzo unobtrusively fell back a step.
Kaikara, for her part, looked like she wished she'd stayed put, but it was too late. No one could stop Hakkai from driving a point home, and since that one especially noisy evening when he'd had to drag the backseat boys bodily out of a restaurant, he had lost a good measure of his patience and replaced it with a streak of ruthless melodrama.
Oh, -he- wouldn't call it that, of course--he'd call it pragmatism or some shit like that. But the result was the same, and lately no one Hakkai felt comfortable enough with to address by name was safe when he wanted to make a demonstration. She'd been doomed from the moment she opened her mouth.
"Oh, yes, Kaikara-san, you had a question." And before she could oh-er-not-really and edge away he had inoffensively laced the fingers of their four hands together. The other monk's shoulders snapped tighter with an ugly creak, and Sanzo didn't blame her. He wouldn't trust Goku to her qi-user's palms either, given the option, but it was the girl's dumbass trust to throw away.
"Push me over," Hakkai suggested in a friendly manner.
Golden dinner-plate eyes lighting, Kaikara gushed, "Are you as strong as Kanan?"
"No," Hakkai said without hesitation, and braced himself. "But I'm as strong as me. Please, do your best, Kaikara-san! Let's both try!"
Off to the side, Gojyo almost discretely aimed a finger down his own throat. Dokugakuji coughed suspiciously, and Kanan was choking on disbelief.
"Really?" the girl squealed excitedly, and they started shoving at each other.
"Fascinating as this promises to be," Kougaiji said dourly, right in Sanzo's ear.
He carefully did not jump. Instead, he snorted and lit up.
"I wouldn't have figured your man for a showoff."
"Hakkai isn't my anything," Sanzo answered flatly, "but you aren't wrong."
"Sanzo, you're so unkind," Hakkai lamented, and while all the walking dead people were sniggering up their sleeves at the noise Sanzo made as he turned his face away (fine, so he was predictable. Up yours, Cho.), he twisted like a lizard and flipped Kaikara hard onto her back.
"Hey!" she protested after a second of shock. "You cheated!"
"I did," Hakkai said cheerfully, looking down at her. "But measuring strength was your purpose, not mine. You were playing a game, but I wasn't. Since I had an important goal, I can live with myself for cheating to obtain it. Sometimes rules and honor aren't very important, when you measure them up against other things. And when you think in this way, strength matters very little."
Kaikara, back on her feet, made a frustrated face at him and sulked back to the blonde.
"That's what you meant?" Sanzo sighed.
Hakkai inclined his head. "Moved by yin influence," he agreed, with an and-there-you-have-it gesture.
"Fuck," Sanzo growled, and he meant it. "This was your fucking idea, Hakkai."
"I have already agreed several times," Hakkai said, a little annoyed, "that we're insane even to consider it. The moment you come up with a better option, please, tell me."
"Fuck," Sanzo snarled again.
"So lost," Gojyo mentioned in a friendly sort of way, coming over to flop a casual arm over Hakkai's shoulders.
"Fuu-uuu-ck," Sanzo moaned in despair and disgust as Hakkai went subtly melty again (well, not -that- subtly, but it was clearly going over Gojyo's head) and looked around for something to beat his head against. Gojyo's skull, for preference. His schemer in focus when they were about to outrage the space-time continuum--was that too much to ask?
"The sorry excuse for a priest's repeating himself," Gojyo told Hakkai, interested. "Must be a good one--you gonna let me in on it?"
"Not just now," Hakkai said judiciously, but the look he cast up was warm. "I'll share with you later."
Again, right between the kappa's antennae, but Honshin did a double-take.
But then Gojyo leered, "Is that a promise?"
He was obviously joking, but Sanzo exploded on him anyway. Hakkai focused, dammit, God, why not?!
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OMAKE!The SEME At The End Of This Fic
starring lovable, placid old HAKKAI
And adorably vague but considerably older TENPOU
Kenren: Hey, Tenpou, he's -cute!-
Hakkai: (purrs) Ne, Gojyo, this is a good look for you... I can see your whole face... And most of your chest...
(pounce)
Kenren: Gyaaaaaaaaa!
(end part 16)
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Review Responses!
First of all, it seems like people have been going back and reading previously posted stories and one-shots. Since ffnet doesn't arrange these things by date that I've noticed, I'm daunted by the idea of hunting down all these scattered reviews and replying to them here. If you wrote something and don't see an answer, that's the only reason. You've all brightened a lot of days for me--and seeing as how the Northeast Coast is one of the darkest places in the States in winter, any kind of sunshine is a Very Good Thing. (chu!)
Permataform, you know already I tackleheartsquee you. And suspect you are terrible for my grammar. And the irony of you calling me your hero is enough to choke a Xellos (and we suspect that's not easy. n.n). (hugs) And you liked all my favorite parts! XD (feels vindicated)
Me-Nuriko: hee. I can really -identify- with that one, too...
DoSet: so glad someone liked the god-thing! It didn't seem improbable to me, as Gonou had access to both books and a surly imagination. Also really glad the counterpart synchs are working.
Anthy Oom: -Made- the time... wow. I remember when this was a -frivolous- CompletelyRidiculous!fic. (Considers throwing it a bar mitzvah party. For behold, it has become a man. Um, or something like that. n.n;; )
incandscens: Heh, the cliffhanger was because Sanzo refused to get up off his sutra and earn his keep