Fair warning: I love the Nii x Hwang pairing. Don't be surprised if that influences future events. But until then, thank-you for reading and reviewing! Enjoy the next addition of Raising Kouryuu:

Chapter 11: Storms

"Have you found anything yet, Yaone?" Kougaiji asked as he lifted a few documents. A small flurry of dust floated in the air and the prince took a guess that no one had touched these files in a few weeks. There was writing on near all of the papers he could see, but he couldn't make heads or tails of what he was looking at. He looked up quickly to see Dokugakuji was even more confused than he was. At least he wasn't the only one lost. It hadn't seemed this difficult the last time they'd gathered information. Kougaiji tried not to let that thought bother him.

"Nothing useful." Yaone sighed in response to her lord. She dealt with non-organics, not this biology based research. Poisons, gunpowder, explosives; she could handle. The DNA structure of a cell and it's molecular components; not so much. She hated knowing her lord was counting on her when there wasn't much she could do. "I'm sorry, I just don't know what any of this means."

"Not many people do, little lady."

"Wang!" Dokugakuji looked up and cursed himself for not noticing the older demon. This could be bad. "Why are you here?"

"This is part of my lab if I remembered correctly. It's you all that are trespassing." The elder demon chuckled at the startled faces of the youngsters. He leaned on the end of a table and tried to pretend his bones didn't ache. To be young again, indeed. Maybe Dr. Nii had something going for him after all. "Don't give me that look, I won't tell your dear step-mommy. But I would suggest you leave, I'm pretty sure Nii'll be back any minute. He gets cranky when people mess with his things."

"What's he up to?" Kougaiji was never one to beat around the bush. If he was discovered, so be it. He'd just have to take advantage of someone who knew what was going on. Kougaiji tapped his claws impatiently on a table. "What's he planning?"

"Nothing you don't already know." Wang chuckled and played with the cord coming from his head. "Nii turned the Sanzo priest into a child. Why? From what I can tell he wanted to be nostalgic, but who knows how his head works. I just crunch the numbers that he gives me."

"To be nostalgic?" Dokugakuji repeated and stared blankly at the old man. Maybe he was going senile or something. "What on earth does that mean?"

"Like I would know." Wang tapped a monitor and smiled when it came on. He pointed to the tiny figure. "Nii'll be here in about twenty minutes. You might want to make yourselves scarce if you know what's good for you. He may be human, but he's frightening."

"Why are you being so nice to us?" Yaone couldn't help but ask. It was just something unexpected. She slipped a few papers into her portfolio while he pondered his answer. Something was better than nothing after all.

"Because I don't like chaos in my lab. Nii just got a hold of a new test subject and if anything dampens his mood, all of us will feel it." Wang clicked the monitor off again. Seeing the unconscious boy in that monsters arms was making him feel a bit sick to the stomach. Even he had limits and lines he refused to cross. Age did that to a person, and he hoped these youngsters would catch on quick. Not that he really cared about the outcome in the end. Age did that to a person, too. "And he'll take it out on Hwang and then she'll be bitchy all day."

"And no one wants that." Dokugakuji chuckled. At least the old guy had a sense of humor about him.

"Exactly." Wang pointed to the door. "Now scram while I feel like being nice."

"You'll be hearing from us again." Kougaiji growled as he strut towards the door. "Nii will be stopped."

"I'll be the first to congratulate you." Wang waved. "Now git."

Kougaiji paused as something registered in his brain. The prince scowled for not picking up on it sooner. He slunk a glance at Wang and asked as seriously as possible: "Did you say a new test subject? That he's bringing here?"

"You deaf already, boy?" The old demon adjusted his goggles. "He picked up the kid, what else could it be?"

"Shit." Kougaiji growled and slammed a fist into the wall and started walking again. "We'll see about that."

"Kou!" Dokugakuji dropped his papers in a flutter to trail after his prince. There was something in his eyes that spelled out trouble for the rest of the evening. He sped up when he realized Kougaiji wasn't stopping and had already turned a corner. "Wait up!"

Yaone followed after Dokugaku trying to keep her portfolio as close to her as possible. She knew that the old man noticed, but was thankful he didn't say anything. In a small moment of pause, she turned back to the old demon with a little bow. "Thank-you."

Wang laughed and pulled out the chess pieces to set on the board in the center of the beeping lab. "I don't want thanks, I just want quiet."

"Right." Yaone smiled and tagged after Kougaiji hoping something on her papers could be of use.

The old demon took a seat and placed the pieces slowly on the board. He rather doubted Dr. Nii would be in the mood to play, but you never knew with that man. Wang chuckled to himself with every piece on the board. Things were going to get exciting.

"Shit, Hakkai." Gojyo collapsed into the chair in the corner of the hotel chair. He took a slow drag on his Hi-lite as he sunk into the cushion and tried to disappear. Hakkai's face was taut and pale, but his eyes were still bright as they focused. Gojyo wondered how long it would take for the eyes to follow the rest of his body. "It's been a week and we've got nothing. We're exhausted and empty handed. And I'm just plain sick of everything right now."

"We can't give up." Hakkai set his bag down next to the bed and turned away from Gojyo to watch the rain pound into the window. The weather always seemed to have such perfect timing. Hakkai forced himself to stay focused on the task at hand and started unpacking a few supplies for the night. "We have to keep looking."

"I never said that we should give up." Gojyo watched the smoke linger on the ceiling and wave around the overhead light. He added another puff to the mass before continuing. "I just can't understand how nobody knows anything about that bastard. Not even the demons that keep attacking us know who he is."

"There is a chance that he's not related to the Gyumaoh incident." Hakkai sighed and let his thoughts drift to Goku in the room next door. He would be lying if he said he wasn't worried about that little powder keg, too. They were lucky it hadn't been ignited just yet. Hakkai was thankful Goku knew a break-down wouldn't find Sanzo any faster. "However slight."

"No," The half-breed shook his head slightly. He had a hunch about this one, wasn't sure where it came from, but it was there. "This has Gyumaoh written all over it, don't ask me why though. I think that's why Sanzo was targeted in the first place."

"Yes, but Kami-sama himself had nothing to do with the resurrection. Or at least nothing that we knew of." Hakkai paused a bit in his tedious chore, reconsidered how much he really cared about it at the moment. "It was just a reminder that we tend to attract trouble."

"I guess you've got a point." Gojyo held his head in his hand and rubbed slightly. He briefly wondered where he had put his hair tie when a few locks fell into his eyes. "Then again, that master didn't seem to care 'bout that kid too much. So maybe he's working for the demons and that was just a side-job for him."

"I guess that's a possibility." Hakkai pulled out a nightshirt and folded it neatly on the bed. He set the bag down on the floor afterwards. He just wasn't feeling motivated enough to truly unpack tonight. A nightshirt would suffice for now. "I just wish we had some concrete evidence to back things up. Or at the very least a lead to go off of. I almost hope it is Gyumaoh related so we are at least dealing with what we know. A stranger involves all new connections, options and circles to infiltrate."

"Damn, that just makes things even more complicated. What are we going to do, Hakkai?"

"Keep looking." The demon halted his thoughts to wander to the window and watch the drops hit the glass softly. The steady beat was straining his nerves. Hakkai gripped the window's sill and flexed his fingers. "And keep our tempers under control. If we're not in our right minds we'll never be able to help Sanzo."

"I'm scared, Hakkai." Gojyo watched the tip of his smoke fade and the little light flicker. He watched his friend until he walked away from the windows. Gojyo wasn't dumb enough to miss the subtle hint that Hakkai was having trouble keeping it together, too. Stupid rain. "What if he tries to do to Sanzo what he did to Kami-sama?"

"Sanzo's different, strong. He already has a master, and he's not that influential." Goku broke into the conversation before Hakkai could answer. The boy had been coming over to see what the plans for tomorrow were, but he couldn't help but interrupt. Their conversation was much too depressing to be allowed to continue. Goku pushed the door all the way open and sat quietly on Hakkai's bed. He kept his eyes downcast. "He won't go down that easy."

"I'm sure you're right, Goku." Hakkai smiled a bit to try and lift the mood. Goku's face was riddled with lines and his eyes were dark from the lack of sleep. He was looking his age, and that didn't quite sit right with Hakkai. "You should be sleeping."

"Can't."

"You can't help Sanzo if you're tired, monkey." Gojyo flicked a little ash in a tray, scowled when it missed and little lit embers hit the table. It was cheap wood anyway. "Go to bed."

"Yes, you've been up for two days straight, Goku." Hakkai rubbed the boy's back a little in the most comforting manner he could muster. Pressed harder when he could see Goku's eyes droop slightly. "Sleep will be good for you."

"It's not that I'm not trying." It's that every time he shut his eyes he saw blonde hair, slightly dirty, swaying slightly in a breeze. It's that every time he shut his eyes he could see a set of large violet eyes glaring at him, blaming him. Every time it was the same image over and over of a face and a set of hands he couldn't get to in time. Goku pulled his knees into his chest. "I want to be in fit shape so I can beat that bastard's face in when I get my hands on him. I won't forgive him for this. Ever."

"Well, just keep that thought in your head and maybe sleep will come." Gojyo smiled a little. He was proud of the kid for holding it together this long in the game, especially when they were losing. Gojyo was thankful revenge was the only thing he wanted, though that did leave a bit of competition open. "Just remember to leave a piece for the rest of us. Forget Sanzo, I still owe this son of a bitch for Kami-sama."

"Yes, well." Hakkai reached over to drop the blinds and pull the shade shut before following his own advice. Goku and Gojyo weren't the only ones who were exhausted. "Tomorrow morning we'll get something to eat and start looking again. For now, let's all try and get some sleep."

"That goes for you, too." Gojyo blew a puff in Hakkai's direction. "Rain or not."

"Yes, I'll be sleeping, too." Hakkai gave Goku a gentle shove and pat on the back to encourage him to stand up. "Have a good night, Goku."

"Yeah." Goku nodded and dragged his feet out the door to his room next door. He couldn't help but feel slightly upset about being shoved out of the room so quickly, but everyone was on edge. He hoped that the others were as okay as they acted, he doubted it, but he could hope.

After the door clicked shut, Gojyo snuffed out his cigarette and yanked off his jacket. It was getting muggy in the room with the window latched shut. It was a pity his friends got so cranky around rain, it would have cooled down the room to have the window open. "It ain't right seeing Goku that depressed."

"I agree, but there's not much we can do about it Gojyo." Hakkai smiled softly and turned down the bed. He put his hand on Gojyo's head and pet the hair lightly. It was highly distracting, and soft. The texture reminded him of Sanzo's hair just a little, not that he'd tell that to Gojyo. He pulled away at the thoughts and changed his clothes quietly. "We'll talk about it in the morning."

Gojyo pulled himself up out of the chair and away from Hakkai's side of the room to collapse on his own bed. He didn't bother changing his clothes, there wasn't any reason to. "Yeah, morning."

"Good night, Gojyo."

Gojyo wondered how it could possibly be a good night, but that was Hakkai. He was the most optimistic pessimist Gojyo had ever met. But that was just the thing they needed sometimes. Gojyo buried his face in his pillow and decided to just shut down his brain. Sleep was something they all needed right now. It was going to be a long day tomorrow, and probably an even longer week. Or Month. Or Year. "Damn, I'm depressing myself again."

"Good night, Gojyo."

Gojyo chuckled. "Yeah, whatever."

"Kou." Dokugakuji grabbed his prince's shoulder to slow him down a bit. He hated it when Kougaiji got something into his head like this. It always meant trouble and clean-up for the rest of them. No matter how much they loved the man. "Have you thought about this? All the way through?"

"Yes, now let go." Kougaiji pushed his friend's hand off of him. The prince was stressed and couldn't figure out why the heck his two companions were taking the time now to complain when they had been just fine about it at the castle. Sometimes Dokugakuji could worry too much, at least Yaone was on his side. "They have a right to know what's going on."

"I think Dokugakuji had a point." Yaone added as she trotted behind the two men. Her lord was walking awfully quickly towards the town and even Dokugaku was having trouble keeping up. "They're going to blame you and start a fight. And even if they don't, we're helping the enemy."

"Why are you two having second thoughts now?" Kougaiji stopped walking to turn to the two behind him. So maybe Yaone wasn't one hundred percent behind him on this one. This was more delays he didn't need to deal with.

"We're behind you, Kou. You know that." Dokugakuji waited a beat. "If this is what you want, we'll do it. We're just worried about the consequences."

"I just heard this morning that Lady Koushuu has approved Nii's actions personally. We'd be interfering with the revival plan and that means more trouble for us than we've already got to deal with. We're just thinking of your best interests."

"That woman doesn't scare me." Kougaiji paused to look at the town below. According to his contacts the Sanzo party was staying in one of the rooms. "And she wouldn't dare touch Lirin. Or is it the Sanzo party you two are really worried about?"

Dokugakuji sighed and tried to figure out the words in his head. It's not that he didn't have faith in Kougaiji's fighting abilities, he was just worried about motivations. Kou was pretty scary when you threatened Lirin, and he imagined Goku got the same way about the grouchy monk. "Are you prepared to take the Sanzo party to Houtou Castle, Kou?"

"Of course not." Kougaiji crossed his arms. "They're still our enemy, even if I am being generous."

"Then we should be prepared for a fight, and I can bet it'll be a nasty one." At the prince's lifted eyebrow, Dokugakuji briefly wished he wasn't the oldest of the group. He always got stuck with being the responsible one or the bad guy. "Let me summarize your plan for you again: We're going to go in, tell them Nii's got Sanzo, and then leave. You know that Goku's going to go crazy on us if we're holding out info on them, especially when it comes to his little pet priest. If we try to exchange info for the scripture it'll be even worse. They're going to want help and transportation, whether we give it freely or they have to take it by force."

"Why are you bringing this up now, and not at the castle?" Kougaiji hated to admit it, but the thought of facing a vengeful Goku wasn't exactly comforting. He couldn't figure out if he was grateful or angry at Dokugakuji for bringing this information to light.

"Too many ears, my Lord." Yaone dropped her eyes a little. "I doubt this is the type of conversation you want your step-mother to hear. Or worse, Dr. Nii."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Kougaiji dropped his arms and clenched his fists. He could see the town lights flickering on and off as the humans went to sleep. He felt like they were wasting time just standing around. "We just can't leave things like this. My pride won't allow it."

Dokugakuji took in his lord and looked down at the roof that was concealing his little brother. He could empathize with the grief and torment they were all going through. He was sure they were feeling what him and Yaone experienced with that bastard took Kou. In that respect, he agreed that things couldn't remain as they were, but he still had his doubts. Dokugakuji also couldn't shake the feeling that this was going to get a lot worse real fast if they didn't stop Nii soon. Call it gut instinct.

"We could leave them a note." Yaone shifted her weight on her hips a little and wringed her hands together slightly. She hoped that her Lord could listen to reason at the moment. His pride had gotten them into quite a few scraps that she'd rather not repeat. "That way we can give them the information without a conflict."

"Yeah." Dokugakuji smiled a little. Leave it to Yaone to save the day. "And we wouldn't even have to sign it with our real names. We'd be able to let them know and not have to worry about the help they'll want that we can't give them."

"What if they think it's a prank?" Kougaiji pondered. It was a good idea, but it was always good to look at the pessimistic side. He watched as a few street lamps lit below to compensate for the setting sun. "Or a trap?"

"If I do say, my lord, it'll be the only lead they have." Yaone shrugged a little and moved her hands behind her back. "It's not like many people know about this event. What other option would they have?"

"Let's do it." Kougaiji left it at that and started walking towards the dragons to get paper from the packs. It was better than sitting there and doing nothing.

"Now we're talking." Dokugakuji grinned and pat Yaone on the head. Laughed when she swatted him away. He gave her a playful knock with his knuckles to her cheek and lowered his voice. "Good going, Yaone. I was scared he wasn't going to listen to us for a bit."

"Oh please. Next time, you think of something to keep Lord Kougaiji out of trouble. I'm tired of covering for your laziness, Dokugaku." Yaone responded just as softly.

"I heard that."

"Sorry Lord Kougaiji!"

"Sorry Kou!"

"I'm sure. Dokugakuji, get over here. I can't find the paper." Kougaiji grumbled digging through a supply pack. He never knew where Yaone put his things when she cleaned.

"It should be in the left pocket."

"I don't see it."

Yaone giggled at her friends' antics and jogged after Lord Kougaiji and Dokugaku. They'd never find it at this rate and she had to make sure the letter was appropriate. Men were hopeless.

"Excuse me!"

Hakkai paused as the man at the desk waved him down. He pointed to himself to make sure that he was the one being addressed before the clerk waved him over. Smiling, he politely asked Goku and Gojyo to go ahead and grab breakfast without him before turning back to the clerk. "Did you need something? I could have sworn we paid in advance."

"Oh no, sir." The clerk smiled. He reached under the desk and pulled out an envelope sealed with wax that was a tad oversized. It had 'Sanzo Party' scrawled over the front in neat lettering. "This was left for you by some guests late this evening after you had retired. The name on the letter doesn't match your registry, but the lady insisted that it was for you."

"Yes, it is indeed for us. Thank-you." With a nod, Hakkai let the man to rejoin Goku and Gojyo as quickly as possible. It seems that whoever was behind everything had finally made his move. Or it was another assassination attempt. Hakkai almost wished for the latter just so he could kill something.

"What's that, Hakkai?" Goku asked around a yawn. He had tried to get some sleep, but it just wouldn't show up. He took another bite out of the waffle the nice waitress had brought to his table. At least with a full stomach he'd have the energy to make it through the day.

"I'm not sure, but I have a bad feeling about it." The demon ripped through the wax to open the slightly large envelope. Hakkai stared at the piece of paper and was almost disappointed. "It's just a plain, hand written letter."

"What's it say?" Gojyo leaned over Hakkai's shoulder, careful not to drop his cigarette ash on the paper. He put his guard up when Hakkai clenched the paper tightly and he held his breath. "Hakkai?"

"They know where Sanzo is."

Hakkai's voice had been deathly quiet during that last statement. Goku didn't like it, but he liked what he had heard. "Where is he?"

The demon made sure his voice was lowered when he continued. You could never be too careful with who was around and listening in on conversations. "Houtou Castle. Someone named 'Dr. Nii Jianyi' has kidnapped him. The letter doesn't state why, just where he is and that this man is responsible for what's happened to Sanzo in its entirety."

"That's it?" Gojyo cursed and crushed his cigarettes in his hand. "That's all? A name of a place we're already failing to get to and a name of some crazy doctor. Hell, that doesn't even qualify as a threat or a trap, it's practically useless."

"That's not true." Goku glared. "It tells us where he is and who has him, right? And that's where we're going anyway, so it just means we have to get our butts there even faster."

"I agree." Hakkai stood from the table. "We'll take the food to go."

"Now we're talking!" Goku grabbed a napkin and piled the food into it before snatching his pack and heading outside where Jeep was parked. Gojyo and Hakkai followed behind at a more morose pace, but he could tell they were determined. They weren't out of the water yet, but they were going to cross this river if it killed them. Goku was going to find Sanzo no matter what.

"Isn't it beautiful, Dr. Hwang?"

"You." Hwang lost all thought processes. Despite the events of the past month, it was still hard for the woman to wrap her brain around what she was seeing. It had suddenly become tangible and within arm's reach instead of a tiny picture on a blinking screen. This, this was a biological breakthrough for science. She was lucky to have mumbled the one word that she had.

"I knew you'd be impressed."

"Does, does Lady Koushuu know about this?" Hwang pressed her fingertips to the glass and watched the tiny bubbles float by the motionless figure. She was briefly reminded of Lirin's short stay in a tube, but that experiment didn't send a chill down her spine. This was on a whole other level; there was power here. Hwang could feel her other hand tighten painfully around the flat of her clipboard. It was beautiful and terrifying all at the same time.

"She does." Nii lit a cigarette and let the smoke out in a slow ring. Watched Hwang's spine tighten and twist from her neck to the curve of her skirt. "Signed and approved personally."

"How did you do this?"

Nii's assistant carried a bit of awe in her voice, with just a trace of fear lying beneath. He knew today was going to be a good day. "That's a secret."

Hwang felt Nii take a few steps closer and slant up against her back. Flush against her, he reached an arm out and placed his hand over hers on the glass. He was so cold. She shuttered when he leant in close to speak directly to her ear. His whispered breath felt like it was burning her chilled skin as he spoke. "Would you like to be his new mommy?"

Hwang ripped her eyes from the tube and turned to face the stubble laden man behind her. Their noses nearly touched. Nii smiled as the clipboard fell from the woman's limp fingertips. It was going to be a good day, indeed.