Chapter 10
Goku swam toward wakefulness slowly, feeling warm and content as he snuggled into Iyame and let out a contented purr. He ran a hand down her back and felt her nuzzle him in return so he slid his other hand up her thigh, which was wrapped around his hip, and pulled her close. She snaked her arms around him and shifted so he was lying on top of her with him cradled between her thighs. If this isn't heaven, I didn't know what is.
Someone cleared their throat loudly not too far from them and two pairs of eyes, one gold and one blue, opened slowly. Goku looked down at Iyame and realized they were in a very compromising position. He looked up to see who had cleared their throat and saw Sanzo glaring down at them.
"S-Sanzo?" he asked as he scrambled off of Iyame. She sat up quickly, on guard and watching Sanzo carefully. Goku felt it and looked over at her. "Hey, Iyame, where is your limiter?"
"I took it off a while ago. You will need to replace it for me later."
"What's up Sanzo?" Goku asked.
"How are you feeling this morning?" he asked in a voice Goku recognized as trouble.
"O-okay. What happened?"
"You removed your limiter again." he replied as he flicked his cigarette butt into the fire and pulled out a new one in the same motion.
Goku blanched, "Did I hurt someone?"
"Surprisingly, no you didn't. But Iyame made you apologize for hurting us the last time. Interesting, ne?"
"Apologize?" Goku asked in clear confusion.
"I would love to know what you said to her that made her so upset with you." Sanzo murmured.
Goku looked over at Iyame in confusion but she shook her head. "Later." was her only response. Something in her tone let Goku know not to press for more answers.
"I also wondered something else." Sanzo said quietly, "Why is it you didn't attack on sight last night?"
Goku looked baffled so she answered for him. "Because I am here."
"You were there when he transformed and went after us."
"Yes, but I was badly injured and he panicked. Goku, would you please come here for a moment?" she asked him.
Goku blushed as he thought about where he had woken up but knelt beside her regardless. "I'm going to help you remember, okay?"
"Um, okay." he agreed.
She reached up and placed her fingertips on each side of his head. They glowed briefly and Goku's eyes widened as memories started filtering up from his subconscious. Sanzo watched in interest as his charge's face turned bright red before he buried it in his hands. He looked at Yochi who returned the look blandly before returning her attention to her distressed mate.
Goku's head snapped up as a specific series of memories surfaced, "We saw Kougaiji? And he didn't pick a fight with us?"
"What's that monkey?" Gojyo asked as and Hakkai had wandered over to join the group.
"Someone named Kougaiji wandered into our camp. He was badly injured so I healed him and we talked for a little while before he left." Yochi explained.
"That's it?" Sanzo asked.
"Yes. He seemed rather stunned when Seiten shook his hand."
"You shook his hand?" Gojyo said in disbelief. "You didn't even try to hit him?"
Goku shook his head before burying his face back in his hands as he remembered what they did after Kougaiji left.
"Are you all right, Goku?" Hakkai asked gently.
"I'm fine." he replied in a slightly strangled voice. Finally he looked over at Yochi and spoke quietly, "You said we wouldn't do anything I wasn't comfortable with."
She looked at him in stunned disbelief for a moment before replying, "But, Goku, it was your idea."
"You knew I wasn't in my right mind." he said accusingly.
"No, I did not. I did not even know your name, just that you were my mate." she defended herself.
"So you would do something like that with someone you don't even know?" he yelled.
"You are my mate. That is all I needed to know!" she yelled back.
"But it wasn't me!" he yelled back.
"Of course it was. You remember it, do you not? You are wearing my mark, are you not?"
"He's not me. He's a stranger wearing my skin!" Goku argued.
"That is patently ridiculous."
"No, it isn't. You lied to me and you love him more than you love me!" he cried before taking off at a run.
"Goku!" she cried as she moved to follow him.
Gojyo held her arm, "Let him cool off for a while, little sister. The kid just realized he's done what every boy wants to do and his whole family knows. I think he's more embarrassed than anything else. Hakkai?" the kappa asked.
"I think that's part of it, but I also think he wasn't quite ready and now he's not sure what to do. The choice was taken out of his hands. And in his mind he wasn't even the one that did it."
Yochi looked at them pleadingly, "But Goku and Seiten are the same person."
"I'm sure he'll realize that soon enough." Hakkai said as he placed his hand on the distressed girl's shoulder. "Let's make breakfast. There's nothing like food to cheer Goku up." She reached up and gripped his hand for a moment before putting her cheerful mask back on and heading for their supplies.
"Sanzo," Gojyo said after the other two had walked away, "why is Goku so upset about this? Most guys his age would be thrilled to have slept with such a beautiful woman."
"He was raised in a temple. Sex wasn't discussed much but when it was he was made to understand that it was something you don't do lightly. Believe it or not, all of his practical education on that subject has come from whatever you've said in front of him."
Gojyo stared at the monk in blatant surprise, "You mean no one ever openly discussed sex with him?"
"I'm not exactly qualified for that discussion, Gojyo." Sanzo said irritably.
"But you're his guardian, Sanzo."
"So what? It's not like he needs to know."
"Actually it very much is. His wife is travelling with us and unless you want little Goku's running around you should see that he knows the basics at least." Gojyo argued hotly.
Sanzo cringed in horror at the thought of all the choruses of "I'm hungry" he'd hear if the two sages had children. They would probably have a litter just to spite him. "You're right. Go find him and talk to him and for Buddha's sake DON'T make fun of him."
"Me? Are you kidding? I'm the last guy that should give an impressionable young boy that talk!" Gojyo argued.
"What boy what talk?" came Hakkai's voice from behind them.
"Goku and THE talk." Gojyo said.
Hakkai looked at Sanzo curiously, "No one has had that conversation with him yet? Sanzo, he's eighteen, someone needs to."
"Fine. You're hired. Go take care of it." Sanzo growled, done with the uncomfortable conversation.
"Well, you're his guardian and he spoke with you before deciding to sleep next to Iyame. He's obviously more comfortable speaking with you about this than either of us." Hakkai pointed out."
"What can I possibly teach him about sex? I'm a monk. I haven't broken that particular vow."
Gojyo laughed, "That's probably the only one."
"Shut up or I will kill you." Sanzo snarled at him.
"Sanzo, I really think you are the best person to talk to him about this. He's sought you out before and I believe he will respond to you better than us on this."
"But-"
"You don't have to tell him how, Sanzo, he's already figured that out on his own. What he needs is the importance and responsibility explained to him, and who better than a monk for that?" Hakkai interrupted in his reasonable way.
Sanzo looked at the pair of them in disbelief before turning around and stomping off after the monkey. I don't want to do this. He followed the monkey's trail through the brush for several minutes, getting more annoyed with each step. Finally he spotted the teen sitting against a rock with his knees pulled up against his chest. There was another rock perfect for sitting on right next to him and Sanzo spared a thought to wonder if the monkey had chosen this spot for just that reason before deciding he was incapable of that kind of forethought.
"Monkey." he said as he drew near.
Goku peeked up at him before burying his face back in his knees.
Sanzo sighed irritably before taking a seat on the rock next to him and lighting the first in his second pack of the day. "Spit it out, monkey."
He was quiet for several moments before quietly saying, "She lied to me, Sanzo."
"How so?"
"She said we wouldn't do anything I wasn't comfortable with, but she took advantage of me not being me."
"Stop being stupid, monkey. She had less an idea of what was going on than you did."
"Doesn't that make it worse?" he asked.
"She trusts her instincts. You should follow her example."
"She loves that other part more than me." he said quietly.
Sanzo growled, "It's absurd to be jealous of yourself."
Goku looked up at that, "What?"
Why, Buddha, why do you surround me with idiots?! "You heard me the first time, monkey." he growled.
Goku thought about that while Sanzo smoked another cigarette. "I don't think I'm ready."
"Why not?" Sanzo asked.
"Well, I haven't known her that long and you said it was important and shouldn't be rushed into."
"You've known her your whole life." Sanzo corrected.
"So that makes it okay?"
"You two are mates, that makes it okay."
"But we didn't have any say in that." Goku argued.
"So you don't care about her?"
"Of course I care about her!"
"So how is that a problem?" Sanzo asked as he wished for the tenth time he wasn't having this conversation.
"I don't know! I just don't know what to think."
"Look, monkey, no one can tell you what to think but you. You two are mates and you care about each other so there's nothing wrong with acting on it – out of my sight and hearing. However, you need to act responsibly because the last thing we need is your offspring running around."
Goku's eyes got very wide. "Do you mean she could be-" he began.
"Don't even say it. You should refrain until the next town and you can do some shopping with Hakkai to ensure it doesn't happen. We should arrive in a couple of days."
"Shopping?" Goku asked blankly.
"For protection so you two can . . . have sex." he choked out that last part.
"Oh."
"Iyame and Hakkai are cooking breakfast." Sanzo offered hoping to distract the monkey.
"I'm not hungry." Goku whispered.
Sanzo looked at him with true concern for the first time that day. "What's wrong, Goku?"
"I'm not sure."
"Spit it out. Even if you're not hungry, I am."
"I just- I wanted- Never mind." Goku finally said.
"You feel like you missed the first time?" he asked when it looked like the monkey wasn't going to be able to spit it out after all.
A heaving sigh and reluctant nod were his answer. "Is that bad?"
"No. but it's too late to change it. Talk with Gojyo when we get into town. I'm sure he could give you some ideas."
"He'll just make fun of me." Goku argued.
"He takes this subject very seriously. He'll help you if you ask and if he doesn't I'll shoot him."
Goku considered this for several moments before nodding and standing. "Let's go."
They walked back to the camp together. Sanzo watched the monkey from the corner of his eye. Now that he was thinking about it, Goku hadn't been as hungry lately and it worried him.
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Meanwhile, back in camp Yochi and Hakkai were cooking breakfast. She had pulled the necessary supplies out of her pack and had already strapped the packs onto Dana's back. She worked silently and kept her face averted. Hakkai suspected it was because she didn't want them to know she was crying. She turned and Hakkai caught a glimpse of an injury on her neck.
"Iyame, do you want me to heal that?" he asked kindly.
"Heal what?" she asked blankly.
"The injury on your neck." he replied.
She froze for a moment before brushing her fingertips against it. "No, Hakkai. This one doesn't need to be healed."
"What happened?" He looked closer and saw that it looked suspiciously like a bite mark.
She blushed, "It's a mating mark."
"Oh. Haha. Never mind then." Hakkai replied quickly before returning to the cooking.
"A mating mark?" Gojyo asked curiously.
She nodded but made no other response.
The two men looked over as they heard two sets of footsteps come into the camp. Yochi kept her face averted but became noticeably tenser. At the sound of Goku's voice she hastily put the dish she had been holding down.
"I'm going to scout today's trail." she said before running to Virya. She leapt onto his back and urged him to a run before anyone could stop her.
Goku watched her leave with wide eyes before turning his searching gaze on the other two. "Where's she going?"
Gojyo answered, "She's going to scout the trail."
"Why?" he asked.
Gojyo and Hakkai just looked at him.
"She's upset?" he asked.
"What did I say about being stupid?" Sanzo snapped.
Goku went over to sit next to Dana, "Do you think she's okay? . . . But I didn't mean to upset her . . . Don't you think it's a lot to get used to all at once? . . . Okay." he stared down at his hands and made no move towards food when Hakkai called him over for breakfast. She left me. She never went far from his side.
Hakkai brought a bowl over and set it down next to him. Goku looked at it listlessly before offering it to Dana. She nudged him encouragingly but he just looked at it blankly for a few moments before putting it back where it Hakkai had left it.
"Great. Now we have to deal with their drama." Sanzo groused.
"Sanzo." Hakkai chided. "Give them a chance. It's been a difficult morning. Give them time to find their place and I'm sure everything will be fine."
He glared at Hakkai, "Let's get on the road. We've been here too long."
They packed up camp and Gojyo prodded Goku into the jeep. "You can't sit there all day, monkey. Come on, it's time to catch up with your girl."
He slowly walked over to the jeep and climbed in without a word. Once Hakkai had checked to make sure everyone was in their seats he put his foot on the gas and they took off.
Gojyo stared at him with real concern before leaning closer to him. "Goku?"
The monkey looked up at him and there were tears shimmering in his eyes.
"Hey, monkey, talk to me."
"Why did she leave?" he asked softly.
"Ah, monkey. Don't worry. You'll see her at lunch or dinner. She'll be back."
"How do you know?"
"Because any girl that spends five hundred years looking for you isn't going to let one little argument get in her way."
"But, Gojyo, she left me."
"Goku, she didn't leave you. She's just upset. I'm sure she feels bad about what happened this morning and figured you wouldn't want to be around her and she didn't want to hear you say it."
"But I do want to be around her." he argued.
"Well you need to tell her that, not me."
"But how can I when she left me?"
"Get on the damn tiger and tell it to find her if it's bothering you that much. I don't want to listen to you mope all day." Sanzo growled.
"I don't know if that's the best idea." Gojyo intervened. "She obviously wants to be away from everyone right now. We should allow her to come back to us when she's ready instead of forcing the issue."
Goku looked between the pair of them before catching Hakkai's eye in the rearview mirror. "I agree with Gojyo. Give her time to work through it and if she's not back by dinner time, we'll ask Dana to find her."
Goku slumped in his seat, "Okay."
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Yochi rode Virya at top speed for quite a while before her crying stopped and her breathing returned to normal. The tiger sensed it and slowed down to their normal ground eating pace. He knew his charges were upset but there wasn't much he could do to help if they wouldn't talk to each other. He said as much to his daughter and waited patiently for her response.
"But he did not even give me the benefit of the doubt. He just assumed I had taken advantage of him or that I was some sort of loose woman. I have no idea what to think about his belief that there are two people living in his skin . . . Well, how can I talk to him if he runs away from me? . . . I left because I could not hide my hurt and didn't wish for him to see how deeply his actions cut . . . I have been nothing but open and look where it got me . . . I'm trying to understand, Virya, but I cannot. He is acting like we did something wrong. The only way it could be wrong is if he does not care about me and I do not want believe that is the case." She sighed, "I know we need to talk to each other, but I have no idea what to say."
They spent the rest of the day in companionable silence, changing their pace only when the sound of jeep reached their ears not long before dark. Yochi's tension increased as the jeep got closer and Virya twisted to give her a look that clearly stated he would not be available if she was planning on running away again.
"He is going to be mad at me for leaving him all day." she said quietly. "That was not very mature of me and he probably worried about me getting hurt the whole time."
Virya huffed in agreement before nuzzling Dana hello and adjusting his pace to follow the jeep. She fell in beside them and the pair started discussing their cubs. Yochi listened with half an ear as she studiously avoided looked at the jeep. She could feel Goku's eyes boring into her but she refused to take her gaze from Virya's neck.
When the jeep stopped she jumped off the tiger and started removing the harness on Dana before Goku had a chance to get out of the jeep. She started dinner and avoided looking at or speaking to anyone.
Goku watched with hurt showing clearly in his eyes while Yochi got off the tiger without his help and went straight to cooking without even looking in his direction. It was like she didn't want to be there and he didn't understand. He had looked forward to talking to her all day and now she refused to look at him. He looked helplessly at Gojyo who smiled encouragingly.
"It'll be okay, monkey." he reassured him. "Just give her a little time. She's here after all, so she must want to be around you, even though she's not ready to talk to you."
"But we caught up to her, Gojyo, not the other way around." he argued.
"They could have made sure we didn't catch up today if that was what she had wanted."
"Okay." Goku sat down next to Sanzo dispiritedly and missed the look the monk gave him.
Not once that day had Goku said he was hungry and Sanzo had had to threaten to shoot him to get him to eat lunch. He had hardly spoken and was now sitting silently on the ground at his feet. The monkey in love was an unsettling thing.
"Why are you sitting at my feet instead of talking to Iyame?" he asked with what he felt was an overly generous amount of patience.
"She's not ready to talk to me yet. She won't even look at me. Gojyo said she wanted to be nearby but maybe wasn't ready to talk yet." Goku replied quietly.
"So it's fine to pester me when I don't want to talk to you but not her?"
"Yeah." Goku agreed with a smile. "Besides, you're the one that started talkin' not me."
"Why don't you go steal some food from her?" Gojyo asked as he wandered over.
"Wouldn't that count as talking?"
"Not if you only do it once and then scram. It'll probably make her smile."
Goku thought about that for a moment before getting up and moving stealthily over to where food was being prepped. He knew the moment she realized he was getting close because her entire body visibly tensed. He almost didn't go through with it then but a quick glance at Gojyo and an answering smile got him moving forward. He swiped a carrot off her cutting board and saw a flicker of a smile as he darted away.
He waved the carrot at Gojyo and munched it on the way back to him. "You were right. She did smile." he said happily.
"See? You just have to remember to give her some space but let her know you're there when she's ready." Gojyo looked over the monkey's shoulder to see Iyame watching him. She still looked upset but it had a thoughtful quality to it now. He reached over and hit Goku's shoulder to get his attention. "There's hope for you yet, monkey." he said with a smile.
Goku flopped down next to him and studied his hands for a moment before looking back up, "If I wanted to talk to you about something, would you promise to be serious?"
Sanzo took this as a broad hint to make himself scarce if he didn't wish to be scarred for life and moved over to sit near Hakkai and Iyame. He watched Iyame until she looked up to acknowledge him. She held out longer than he thought possible.
"When are you going to have Goku replace your limiter?" he asked without preamble.
"Whenever he wishes to do so." came the quiet reply. "Does it make you nervous that I'm not wearing it?" she asked.
"No. If you are affected by the minus wave, I will kill you."
"That would be unwise."
"Really?"
"Yes. Goku would kill you before you could stop him, provided Virya and Dana did not get to you first. He would not be able to help himself. You need not worry. I can sense that something is wrong but it is so minor that it does not affect me."
"I'm not worried. We're going to reach a town tomorrow and it wouldn't be wise for you to enter it looking like that."
She shrugged carelessly. "He will do it when he is ready and I will not be the one to push him into something he is not ready to do."
"Little late, wouldn't you say?" Sanzo asked sarcastically.
She narrowed her eyes at him, "Do not speak of what you do not understand." She pointedly returned her attention to her cooking and the only response he got to his glares was her setting her tessen on the ground next to where she was cooking.
Hakkai looked over at the sound of her setting it down and chuckled quietly, "You wouldn't."
She flicked him a look before picking up the fan and swinging it at Sanzo's arm quickly but lightly. It was enough to say that she could swing it at him and he wouldn't be able to stop her if she meant business. He glared at her but there was an edge of appreciation for her fearlessness.
"Have you ever used that on the bad guys?" he asked sarcastically.
"Does that time when I used it on you when you smacked my husband with your fan count?" she asked innocently.
He growled while Hakkai gave a genuine smile. She handed Sanzo a steaming bowl with an almost smile. She filled up the others and Gojyo and Goku came over to get theirs. Everyone sat around the fire and Yochi took a seat between Goku and Hakkai. She sat a little bit further away from the fire than everyone else did and ate quietly. Once dinner was done she moved next to where Dana was stretched out and cuddled into her side to talk quietly.
Goku watched her closely while quietly continuing his conversation with Gojyo. Sanzo moved further away from them so he would have less a chance of overhearing them and spoke with Hakkai until it was time to turn in.
After checking that she was still talking with Dana, Goku set out his blankets and curled up in them. He tried to will himself to sleep but it felt alien to sleep alone, he was cold and lonely. Sometime later he pretended to be asleep as he listened to her set her blankets out on the other side of the fire and told himself it didn't hurt to have her so far away. He tossed and turned for hours trying to fall asleep with no success. He had to fight the urge to go to Iyame with every ounce of willpower he had. Goku didn't understand why he felt the need to be next to her as strongly as the need to take his next breath but it had been driving him slowly insane all day. He heard a small sound and flipped over to find the source.
"Do you mind if I sleep with you, Goku?" Yochi whispered.
"Yes. I-I mean no, I don't mind." He scrambled up to help her combine their blankets. Once they were combined he climbed in and pulled her in with him. He tucked her small form against his and wrapped his arms around her tightly. Ahhhh. Much better.
"I missed you today, Iyame." he whispered.
"I missed you too, my love." she returned.
"Do you really think of both sides of me as one person?"
"Yes. It is all you and I love all of you." she said seriously.
"How can you love something that kills for pleasure?"
"Is there a part of you that does not find some enjoyment in killing? I have seen you kill with your limiter and without and you enjoy it either way."
Goku's eyes widened at the realization that she was right. "Oh."
She smiled softly, "Oh, is right. Shall we leave the serious talk for now and get some rest? It has been a difficult day."
"I have two more questions." he said quietly.
"All right." she replied just as quietly.
"Why do we have bite marks on our necks? I remembered giving them to each other but I'm not sure I understand why."
"These are our mating marks. They completed the bond between us."
"Is that why it was so hard to stay away from you today and I felt better as soon as you came over here?" he asked curiously.
"Yes. The completed bond is new so we will feel a strong pull towards each other for a while before it levels off. I can show you how to see it and control it tomorrow if you want."
"Okay." he replied thoughtfully.
"What was your other question?" she asked.
"That was it." He framed her face with his hands and leaned forward to give her a lingering kiss. "Good night, my heart."
She sighed, "Good night, my love."
----------
"I see the lovebirds have made up." Gojyo observed the next morning while Hakkai made coffee.
"Terrific. Now he can ride with her and I can enjoy a quiet day." Sanzo growled.
"We'll be in town by late afternoon. I'll do the shopping then so we can get on the road first thing in the morning."
"Take the monkey with you. He needs to pick up something." Sanzo said.
"What does he need? I'll add it to my list." Hakkai offered, knowing a rambunctious monkey would slow down his shopping.
"I'll go with you Hakkai." Yochi said as she stretched out the sleep kinks from her back.
"I trust no one needs to tell you what he needs?" Sanzo said.
Yochi studied him sleepily for a moment before blushing profusely. "No. I understand."
"Iyame? Are you gonna show me our bond now?" came Goku's cheerful voice.
"Before breakfast?" Gojyo asked in surprise.
Sanzo looked over, eyes narrowed. "Monkey. Why aren't you hungry?"
Goku looked up at his sharp tone and shrugged. "I dunno. I'm just not. Come on, Iyame. You said you'd show me our bond this morning." he scampered over to where they had been sleeping and took a seat while looking at her expectantly.
"Iyame. What's wrong with Goku?" Sanzo demanded.
She glanced at him and then studied Goku closely enough to have the boy blushing from across the clearing. "What do you mean? I cannot find anything wrong with him at all. He is in perfect health."
"Look again. Something is wrong with him."
"Why do you believe he is ill?" Yochi asked in concern. She had travelled with them long enough to know Sanzo did not worry without more than good reason.
"He's not hungry. Goku is hungry all the time."
Yochi studied him again thoughtfully before smiling and returning her attention to Sanzo. "Most of his hunger was probably due to the emptiness he subconsciously felt because I was so far away. Now that I am here he is not suffering as much. Five hundred years of not eating probably didn't help any."
"You're certain?" Sanzo asked.
"Yes." came the calm reply.
He nodded and went over to the fire, thoughtfully lighting a cigarette on the way.
"Come on, Iyame. You promised." Goku called.
She smiled as she walked over to him and sat close enough that their needs touched. She held up her hands and indicated that he should do the same. "I'm going to take you into a deep trance state, all right?"
He nodded and twined his fingers with hers so their palms were firmly pressed together.
"Follow my breath." she said as she started breathing deeply.
She took him into a deep meditative state that he would have been unable to attain on his own. Slowly he saw Yochi come into focus and looked down at his hands to see long talons.
"Yochi?" he asked cautiously.
"It is all right. Deep in our hearts we are our true forms. See now, our connection." She indicated to a cord of white and gold light that contained all colors swirling mistily around it in a helix pattern. It was very strong and bright and connected at their heart chakras. Three other, smaller, ropes flowed out as well. They were quite strong, but not as powerful as their connection.
"What are the smaller ones for?"
"Our connection with the others that form the five elements." she replied before explaining how he could use the connection to find the others.
"Oh." Seiten moved a hand towards it tentatively but stopped when his claws were centimeters away and looked at her uncertainly.
Yochi smiled, "You can touch it. Nothing will hurt it." She ran her fingers through it and it swirled up around her arm for a moment before returning to its natural shape.
Seiten followed her example and smiled in delight as he felt the warmth from the light climb up his arm.
"You can control it to an extent, if you need to." She showed him how to narrow the connection to half so that it was easier to live with. "You should only put it at less than a quarter for very short periods of time as it will harm our wellbeing to be so disconnected over the long term."
He practiced opening and closing the bond and saw that the light did not diminish or change but he felt less of Yochi's presence. After a few minutes he opened it back up because he had started to feel lonely without her right there.
"Yochi?" he asked quietly.
"Yes, Seiten?"
"Do you really love me or is it just our bond?"
She stepped close to him so she could peer up into his downturned face. "I love you. I have loved you for longer than I can count. I would love you without the bond because of who you are."
"Really?"
"Yes." she said as she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. When he returned it she smiled happily and held on for a moment longer before releasing him. "Ready to go back?"
"I guess so." he said as he ran his hand gently through the light one last time. "I don't have to be able to see it to control it?"
"Now that you know how to do it it can be done by feel."
"Okay. Let's go. I'm starting to get hungry."
She shook her head and smiled once more before leading them out of the trance state.
When Goku opened his eyes he saw that they had leaned towards each other and were nearly close enough to kiss. He stole one from her before slowly leaning back and standing. After he had pulled her up and against him, he stole another, much to her delight.
"Goku." Sanzo called.
They broke apart and Goku looked over at him. "Hey, Sanzo. What's up?"
"We're going to hit a town today. Put Iyame's limiter back on."
Goku looked at Iyame and realized her limiter was still off. "I can replace your limiter?" he asked in surprise.
"Of course. Sanzo could as well, but I would prefer you do it."
"How do I do it?"
"You just place your hand on my forehead and concentrate on creating a limiter. It is very simple, really. If you wish, you may replace it after breakfast. Otherwise I will have Sanzo replace it before we get into town later today." she replied casually.
"I'll do it." Goku said before grabbing breakfast for both of them from Hakkai.
She accepted the bowl and everyone settled down to eat. Once they were done and the dishes cleaned up, Goku walked over to Iyame.
"Ready?" he asked.
She nodded and stood still. "I'll probably sleep for a few hours after you replace it." she warned.
Goku smiled at the thought of her snuggling against him while she slept and reached out to place his hand on her head. Several moments later a silver band shimmered into existence and locked around her head. Goku caught her as she collapsed and swung her up into his arms. He walked over to Virya and studied the cat thoughtfully.
"How the hell am I going to get up there without pulling your hair or dropping her?" he mused. "Do you mind if I jump on just this once?" he asked the big cat.
Virya gave him a look that plainly said that was not an option and Dana came over to Goku's side. She nudged Iyame and Goku looked at her in confusion as she opened her mouth.
"Eh?"
"I believe she wants you to put Iyame in her mouth while you climb up and then she'll hand her to you." Hakkai offered.
The cat nodded so Goku gingerly set Iyame across her tongue and behind her incisors before he climbed up onto Virya. Once he was settled, Dana lifted her head and Goku accepted Iyame's limp form from her. "Thanks, Dana."
She butted his shoulder before turning around and looking expectantly at the group.
"Let's go." Sanzo said.
