:: Perfect World ::

Gensomaden Saiyuki

Disclaimer: I don't own Gensomaden Saiyuki, which rightfully belongs to Minekura Kazuya.

Rating: PG-13

Pairings: mentioned Goku/Homura

Warnings: AU-ish, mild angst, language, original character

Notes: I apologize for not updating over the holidays as promised. My account was locked during that weekend, and by the time it was unlocked, it was nearly halfway into the next week. So I decided to hold it off for this update. (And to think, it's not even a special chapter to make up for it. Sigh.) Belated happy holidays, and Happy New Year.

Also (and I don't often do this) for the Homura/Goku lovers out there, I have a reccomendation. Quite possibly the best depiction of the pairing I've ever come across, I give you New Rebirth by chibiryu. For quick access, it's on my favorite's story list. Considering how few non-rapist!Homura examples of the coupling are out there, I was delighted by this particular rare gem, and I highly reccomend it to anyone who likes the pairing-- as well as anyone who does not like it, simply because it is that good.

In any case, the usual. Constructive criticism and feedback is appreciated.


Chapter Sixteen

He breathed a sigh of relief when the jeep fell out of sight. Swinging out from his hiding place, Goku hung precariously from a tree branch for a few moments before letting go. Luckily he had rocked his body forward, so instead of falling several feet to the ground he landed in the roof of the inn.

Hope that's an attic under me, or someone's gonna be pissed, he thought absently, crouching in his place. He looked west to see if the jeep really had disappeared. When there was no further sign of Konzen's group he grinned and looked around, trying to find the best place to climb down to the ground.

It had been dumb luck that Gojyo and Hakkai had also found them. Goku wasn't scared of the red-haired jerk; of course not! That wasn't why he had run. No, he'd run because he wouldn't have known what to do if he had kicked their asses and taken the scripture he knew Homura wanted so badly.

And, a tiny part of him admitted, he would have been equally at a loss if they would have somehow had the luck to beat him again. He had the distinct feeling Homura would have been less than pleased if Goku had somehow ended up killed-- and for some reason, a nasty feeling told him it wasn't just because it would mean Homura had lost a lover.

Goku shook his head. He refused to think about that right now. Half the reason he'd even left the tower was because he had been frustrated with Homura and needed some time away.

Peering over the edge of the building, Goku noticed a narrow balcony. There was only a slim chance he'd land on his mark, but it was also his best option at the moment. He took a deep breath, gripped the edge of the shingles, and swung himself over.

He landed safely.

A quick peek in the room he had landed outside of told him no one was renting it out. Breathing a sigh of relief, Goku smiled and swung his legs over the side of the railing. He sat on the edge, teetering for a few moments, and jumped the last two stories. He landed on his feet, and the impact sent a piercing shock through his legs. Goku hissed, nearly loosing his balance and toppling over. He managed to right himself, but the painful tingle in his legs made him decide that he was either never going to do that again, or he'd have to work on jumping from fairly high places.

"Ow, ow, ow," Goku muttered, rubbing his thigh a few moments. Once the tingling had faded to a bearable level he started walking around the inn and into the streets.

People were beginning to crowd the streets. Goku blended in easily, probably looking like another person just passing through. At least, that was what he hoped. Causing a ruckus would only get him into trouble-- and he was sure he'd be in enough of that once he returned to Konran tower.

Then again, you don't have to go back, a voice in the back of his mind whispered. The thought made Goku freeze, guilt striking him as soon as he realized what had just crossed his mind. He should not be thinking that, could not think such a horrible thing. That would mean betraying Homura, turning his back on the man who had set him free-- on the man Goku trusted and cared for more than anyone in the world.

He did have to go back. Goku had to, wanted to, no matter how much Konzen reminded him of the sun he had been waiting for.

Besides, he reasoned with himself. Konzen didn't save me. Homura did. I owe Homura enough... to at least go through with his plans like he asked me to. After that it was going to be up in the air, and all Goku really knew was that his future had to involve Homura somehow. After all, he'd been around the man for three years already. He was sure he knew what he wanted, even if everyone else told him otherwise.

"Right," he muttered to himself. "Homura saved me. Not Sanzo. I..." He trailed off, blinking as he did a double take and realized what he had just called Konzen. Sanzo? But...

Then he remembered. That had been the name Hakkai had called him that morning. Frowning, Goku rubbed the back of his head. Homura had called the man Konzen, but it seemed Konzen's companions knew him as Sanzo. Was Homura confused? Possibly. Did he have the wrong person? That was highly unlikely, especially since Konzen-- Sanzo-- the blonde man had the scriptures Homura wanted.

Great, Goku thought, crossing his arms and frowning down at his feet. Now I'm even questioning him. Bad enough I left the tower, but--

"Ow!"

The exclamation came from both him and another person. Someone had bumped into him, instantly cutting off Goku's train of thought. He only stumbled, but it seemed the person behind him had fallen.

Turning, Goku rubbed his now sore and possibly bruised shoulder. "Sorry," he muttered, even though he knew it wasn't his fault.

His apology was met with a blazing blue glare. "You should be," the girl on the ground snapped. Her response made Goku blink. Huffing, she picked herself up, making a face when she saw all her food had been scattered on the ground. "You," she said, pointing at Goku's face. "Help me pick this up and carry it home."

Her attitude made Goku's temper flare. "Why should I?"

"Because you were the one standing in the middle of the road like an idiot," she growled. "Move it, mister!" She snapped her fingers, crouching down to retrieve her paper bag.

"Geez," Goku muttered. Even if it had been half her fault, she did have a point-- and it wasn't like she was making him do all the work. Sighing, Goku knelt down, helping her gather whatever foods were salvageable after being dropped in the dirt-- oranges, apples, potatoes, and even a few canned goods.

The bag hadn't broken, but with the way she was shoving everything back in she was going to. Shaking his head, Goku reached out with his free hand, taking it from her. "You can't do that," he said, pulling out the carrots she had already put in. "If you just shove things in you're gonna have a harder time carrying them."

She scowled. "That's why you're helping."

"Look," Goku said, getting a bit impatient. "Just trust me." Balancing the food on his knees, he put the cans in first, followed by the vegetables, and then the fruits. "There. Less damage, more happy." When he looked up she was still glaring, but a spark of mirth made her eyes light up and her lips twitch. At last she broke out into laughter, shaking her head and waving her hand.

"All right, all right," she giggled. Suddenly her round face seemed more amiable. Goku relaxed. "You're kinda funny," she remarked. "And sweet. So I guess you're not so bad."

"Um... thanks." Goku blinked, not sure if it was really a compliment or not. He stood up, cradling the bag in his arms.

As they walked, with the girl a couple paces ahead of him, she turned her head to give him a curious glance. "I haven't seen you around here before," she said. "And you look about my age, so you'd think I'd have seen you working or something."

The comment caught Goku off guard. He did his best not to show his surprise and think of a plausible answer. "I'm traveling," Goku finally said.

The girl raised a skeptical eyebrow. "By yourself?"

"Sort of," he admitted. "I'm... on my way home. I stopped here to say hi to someone I know." That was true enough. He didn't have to mention that he'd sought Sanzo out on purpose, that it had taken days to not only get this far but to find him in the right town. As long as he didn't completely lie there was little chance she would be able to tell he wasn't being entirely truthful.

"Hm." The girl pursed her lips. "Anyone I know?"

"Doubt it. He's a traveler, too." She gave him another odd look, so Goku fumbled for a way to explain without giving the details. "That is... we just... we met a while ago, and right now we're traveling in different directions." Hopefully she wasn't the type to poke into things for every little detail.

"Mmhm," she said, eyeing him cynically. "There's not a lot of people traveling west nowadays, you know. Not with all the demons going berserk lately."

Goku winced. "Well, not all of them," he said tentatively. "You know... going crazy, I mean."

"Ha!" The girl snorted, reaching up to twirl a loose lock of her otherwise tightly-bound sand-colored hair. "Definitely all of them. And it's really pathetic, I say. It just proves that no demon has any sense of self-control."

Bristling at the comment, Goku said hotly, "Oh, and you think humans are so much better?"

"Of course!" The girl turned to face him, stopping dead in her tracks. She spread her arms wide, her feet set apart in a firm stance. "Look at this town! All humans, all in control! None of us have gone crazy, have we?" she demanded. "None of us have gone on rampages. Look at me! Look at you! How can you possibly think demons are any better?" She strode forward, pointing until her finger was inches away from his nose. Goku went briefly cross-eyed.

"We," she said in quieter tones, "are clearly superior. We have not gone insane. We are the ones suffering, not the demons."

She had a point, even if it wasn't entirely valid or fair. Goku grimaced, taking a step back in attempt to get some breathing space. Humans were suffering because of the recent effects unleashed on demons. Goku wasn't sure exactly who or what was causing it, not even why it was only affecting the demons in such a negative way.

While he tried to think of a way to explain his thoughts, she appeared to be appraising him. "Hey," she said suddenly, cutting through his thoughts. "What's your name anyway?"

He blinked, taken aback by the sudden turn in conversation. "Goku," he said before remembering something Homura had told him once. "But it's politer to give your name first, you know."

Her lips twitched into another smile. When she had been ranting at him her demeanor had been hard and angry, but the coldness softened when she smiled. "Smart-ass," she said, rocking back on her heels. She tugged on her hair. "I'm Mariko."

Nodding, Goku lifted the bag a little to remind her of their mission. "Where do you live? I'll help you with this, but I gotta get going after that." Embarrassingly enough, his statement ended with a loud protest from his stomach.

Mariko snorted. "How about you help drop that off, I make you lunch to pay you back, and then you go?"

Perking up at the mention of food, Goku nodded eagerly. "Sounds fair to me!"

"You're weird," Mariko said under her breath. It wasn't quite low enough for Goku to miss it. Before he could say anything she waved a hand and walked off. He was supposed to follow. Not one to argue against the promise of a free meal, Goku hurried after her.

------

The house was smaller than he'd expected. Goku stood in the doorway a few moments, looking around quickly. From the doorway he could see the tiny kitchen, a dining room, and a short hallway with two doors that likely led to bedrooms.

"Put that in the kitchen," Mariko instructed. "And take off your shoes; it's not like you live here!"

Frowning, Goku paused to do as instructed, kicking his boots off and nudging them against the wall before he walked to the kitchen. He set the bag down on the small table and the girl started removing the items.

"Good thing I didn't have to buy milk or bread today," she muttered, storing the fresh foods in the smallest refrigerator Goku had ever seen. He observed the house again, taking better note of its condition and furnishings.

"Um..." Mariko didn't look up, so Goku assumed she was listening. "You don't have to make me lunch, you know. I can just go--"

She cut him off by giving him a sharp look. Slamming a cabinet door shut, she strode up to him and poked rudely at his chest. "Look," she snapped. "We're not usually a charitable family, and quite frankly, if my father found out I had even offered to feed you he would have my ass." Goku yelped as she poked him again, this time more viciously, and he shoved her hand away. She didn't back down. "I offered because you're a hell of a lot more decent than most men in this town... hell, most women. And I find you a little interesting, even if you are close-minded and an idiot."

Goku blinked, letting her words sink in as she turned around and grabbed one of the fresh tomatoes and a knife. Then he frowned, his voice indignant as he spoke. "You're calling me close-minded?"

"At least you didn't deny you're an idiot," she muttered.

"I'm not that, either!"

"Whatever. Since you're just standing there, go into that pantry and get the loaf of bread that's already been cut," she ordered, pointing to her left.

Sighing, feeling frustrated and somehow defeated, Goku reluctantly did as she told him. Honestly, if he knew she wasn't going to feed him he wouldn't have done a single thing she had told him to do. Goku's stomach growled and he winced, hoping Mariko didn't hear it. When he returned with the bread she was eyeing him, her lips twitching in amusement again.

Annoyed, Goku handed her the bread.This timeshe kept her mouth shut and didn't make a remark, pulling the bread from its plastic wrapping and cutting a couple of slices.

"No meat for you," Mariko said simply, putting together a tomato-and-lettuce sandwich. "Father watches those portions the most, and if even a thin slice if anything is gone, he'll know."

It wouldn't sustain him long, especially not with his appetite, but Goku was eager for just about anything by now. Training with Zenon had helped him curb his appetite for certain periods of time, but it was still murder for him to go a day without food. To Mariko's credit, she hadcut the bread slices thick, and she had used half of a rather large tomato. Goku nodded his thanks and bit hungrily into the sandwich.

Mariko snorted at his behavior, leaning against the counter and picking up the leftover portion of the tomato. She took a generous mouthful, chewing almost thoughtfully as Goku polished off his sandwich fairly quickly.

"Thanks," he said when it was gone. It had settled the noises in the pit of his stomach, and for that he was more than grateful. "I gotta be going now. Bye."

Mariko shrugged, as though his hasty retreat were normal to her. "All right. Shame I won't be able to see you around again." She took another bite, getting some of the sticky juices on her chin.

"Um... yeah," Goku said nervously, rubbing the back of his neck as he made his way to the front door. He actually wouldn't mind if he didn't see her again. Most women he'd met had been mild-mannered, so her blunt, boyish attitude put him off.

Once he had jammed his feet back into his boots, Goku looked up to see the girl still watching him. She was still eating the tomato and had to lower her eyes a moment to lick the dripping juices off her hand.

Goku stopped, staring at her for a long moment. He used the wall to support him as he got to his feet, but instead of leaving he walked right back to the kitchen.

Mariko looked up, but she was scowling. "I thought I told you; you can't wear your shoes in here! This isn't your house," she snapped.

Ignoring her rudeness, Goku leaned in to get a closer look at her eyes. They were cornflower blue, dark with annoyance at the moment, but still the right color. Goku drew back a little, circling around her. Mariko was growing noticeably uncomfortable as she shifted from foot to foot.

"What the hell are you doing?" she demanded.

Her hair and eyes... Goku had a bad feeling, not wanting to do what he was about to, but he also knew he'd regret it more if he didn't. "Do you take after your mom?"

Mariko took a step back, scowling. "I swear, if you're hitting on me--"

"I'm not," Goku assured her hastily. "Believe me, I'm not. I don't go for--"

"What do you go for, then?" she sneered. Goku realized a little too late that she was probably used to boys telling her that they didn't find her their "type." He groaned, pressing the heel of his hand into one of his eyes. Why did he always have to encounter the more difficult people?

"Not you," he finally said. "Not... girls."

She narrowed her eyes, looking doubtful, but she finally shrugged, seeming to relax a little. "Better that than wanting to grope me, I suppose," she said off-handedly. "Why do you ask about my mom?"

"Well..." Goku lowered his hand, wondering how much he should reveal. It occurred to him that what he knew wasn't much, but still... "I'm helping someone look for a friend of theirs," he finally said. "And he asked me to look for girls that looked like you... y'know, blonde hair, blue eyes. I guess he's lookin' for an ancestor or something."

Mariko arched an eyebrow. "I do look like my mom," she said slowly. "But if he's looking for her, Mom's dead. No one on her side of the family is alive anymore." She smiled thinly. "I can give you a list of names all the way back to my great-great grandmother, though."

"That'd be good," Goku agreed, missing the subtle sarcasm laced in her words. Mariko rolled her eyes but rattled off a few names. Goku doubted he would remember all of them, but at least he could say he'd done his job.

"Anything else I can do for you?" Mariko asked heavily.

Shaking his head, Goku backed out of the kitchen. "No. That's good. Thanks," he said, aware he sounded too cheerful. He gave the girl a final wave and hurried out the front door. He heard her curse loudly when he slammed it too hard. He had only made it a few yards away when a sudden shout stopped him.

"Goku!" Startled, he turned back to see Mariko leaning out the window, waving him back. Curious, he started back. She waited until he was within talking distance before she spoke again. "Maybe your friend is looking for an item-- like maybe a precious possession or something."

Goku blinked. He hadn't thought of that, partially because Homura didn't strike him as the type to be so sentimental over even an heirloom piece. The only material object Homura seemed attached to was his cape; it was the only piece of clothing he didn't have a replacement or extra of.

Still, it was a possibility. He shrugged. "Maybe."

"If that's the case, there's a house my mother's side of the family used to have," Mariko said, smirking. "It's old, run-down, and nobody would ever think about living there anymore... and I'm pretty damn sure anything valuable has been taken out."

Goku nodded indulgingly, wishing she would get to the point. As though reading his mind, she continued, "Anyway, if that's what he wants it's in the next town south-east of here." She pointed. "Actually, it was set quite a ways from the actual town... but if I remember right, there's a road that leads there. If there hasn't been an avalanche, it should still be there."

Somehow knowing this only made him even more uncomfortable. It was almost as though having possession of this knowledge was only going to help Homura find this person or thing-- and thus have Homura taken away from him.

Still, he didn't want to seem ungrateful. After all, he had been the one to ask for any information she could give him. Goku managed a weak smile. "Okay. Thanks."

Mariko rolled her eyes. "If I knew you were going to act so upset about it, I wouldn't have told you. Big baby," she grumbled, drawing back inside and sliding the window shut before Goku could protest.

Sighing, Goku shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. Might as well go home, I guess... Despite the sinking feeling in his gut that told him things were only going to get worse if he went back, Goku turned and started down the road again.