Okay! So the next chapter is out! Finally!

Sorry for the wait guys! You know how demanding school is but I appreciate your patience!

Let's get this part over with:

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own Saiyuki or its prequels, sequels, or tv series. No, not even their hot main characters. I only own the girls: Aoi, Suzume, Kasumi, and Yuki (Sorry!)

Now that we got that part cleared up,

Enjoy!

Culture Shock

Chapter 3: Teru teru bozu

"Teru-teru-bozu, teru bozu

Ashita tenki ni shite o-kure

Itsuka no yume no sora no yo ni

Haretara kin no suzu ageyo."

A younger Suzume sang this song to herself as she hung her handmade teru-teru-bozu dolls outside the temple. Some monks-in-training whispered to themselves that she was a witch trying to cast spells that would kill them all.

"That girl is no good. I can't believe she's aloud to even stay here!"

"I heard she came from an island called Japan!"

"I heard her kind kills demons! How impure!"

"What in the world is she chanting?"

"What are those creepy things she's hanging?"

These dolls will drive all the rain spirits away and keep the temple sunny and happy. The knowledge of this drove her to finish her mission. She sang the folk song under her breath as she hung the admittedly scary-looking dolls.

This was her third day in this new temple and she was thankful that she was accepted to live under its roof despite of her being a female, even if it was temporary. She had only recently been taken under her master's wing to become an exceptional shrine maiden. It was only because of her powers of purification that she was allowed to enter the temple.

Even though it wasn't very deep into China, Suzume's tutelage required her to visit China and learn of the different cultures that her 'spiritual brothers'.

But not only that…

"Ah, Suzume. I heard you've been giving the monks here some trouble." A bright and cheerful voice interrupted her soft singing. She looked up from her hanging and smiled at the person.

He was her savior, after all.

She dipped her head in apology. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare them."

The person smiled and patted her head kindly. "I know you didn't mean to, but it's only the third day and you're not making any friends."

"They don't want me to be their friends because I'm 'filthy' anyways." Suzume told him honestly. "I'm a girl so I can't join their games or talk to them. They won't even allow me to pray with them because I wouldn't be converting to Buddhism."

Her savior sighed. "I see."

"I don't mind, though. You're here and you like me so it's all right. Right?" Suzume asked in an adorable manner that caused her savior to pat her head and pinch her cheeks. "You're too cute for me to not like you, little Sparrow. Now, come inside and have some tea with me. It's lonely drinking tea alone."

Suzume nodded after hanging her last teru-teru-bozu and skipped after him.

"I'll brew some green tea for you…

She took his hand and squeezed it warmly.

…Koumyo-sama."

(About 14 years later…)

Suzume knelt by the river that she had bathed in the day before and washed the dirty clothing in the water. Some of them belonged to the guys back at camp. She took special care in their clothing.

She carefully laid out the wet clothes with holes to dry first so she could mend them. She wiped her brow after she was finished laying the clothes out. "Well that took a while. Really, can the men do any of the mending?"

"I admit my sewing skills aren't the best."

Suzume looked up and acknowledged Hakkai's existence with a nod. Her once relaxed expression hardened to a guarded yet polite aura that she had worn during the past two days. "I didn't hear you."

"Sorry about that." Hakkai apologized cheerfully, not seeming to be sorry at all. He held out his hand. "Want me to help you with the mending? The jobs seems quite bothersome for one alone."

"I would like that, Hakkai-san. Thank you." Suzume accepted the offer after slight hesitance.

The both quietly mended the clothing in silence. They only spoke to each other when necessary. It was mostly Suzume who avoided conversation. It wasn't that she didn't trust this man. Honestly he was the least suspicious character. Aside form Goku, of the group.

It was more like she was too shy to speak to a man alone. As a shrine maiden, she tended to avoid these private moments with a man for obvious reasons.

Hakkai suddenly broke the silence. "Miss Suzume, do I scare you?"

Suzume blinked in surprise at the honest question but didn't hesitate in answering with equal honesty. "No. But you men do put me on a certain edge. You must excuse me. I'm very inexperienced with speaking with your gender alone so I don't have a clue on what to do or say without Aoi and Yuki's aid."

"Oh, is that so?" Hakkai laughed good-naturedly, "Well you don't have to worry about that when you're with me. I tend to lean more toward the feminine side, or so I am told. Just treat me like any other of your female friends."

Suzume relaxed. "That makes things much easier, thank you."

The awkward moment was over and the pair ended up talking to each other during the remaining time that it took the clothes to me mended and dried.

"Ah, so you are an equivalent to our monks. That's very interesting, Miss Suzume. What do Shrine Maidens do for a living? Do you pray to some other unknown God or the Buddha?" Hakkai inquired curiously as they walked back to camp.

Suzume shook her head. "No, we don't worship any specific god or goddess. Our only purpose in life is to either keep the shrines clean for worshippers to pray in or, like me, to purify all youkai who poses as a threat to the defenseless people."

"Purify? Do you mean…?"

"Yes," She nodded to confirm his suspicion, "Wiping them from the face of the earth seems to be a better word for it. It's bloodless and no body is left to clean up."

Hakkai smiled. "That's scary! I sure hope I won't have to face against you in my lifetime, Miss Suzume!"

Suzume gave him a serious look. "Yes, it would be unfortunate if we would have to face off against each other, Hakkai-san. You are a youkai, after all." With a bit of a brighter tone, she added, "But that would only happen if you betray me or my friends in some kind of way."

Hakkai looked at Suzume in surprise. "You know?"

"Of course, your body sends off the same aura as the youkai that Kasumi beheaded the other day did. Except, yours is a bit…stifled." Suzume wrinkled her nose in confusion. "I've never encountered anything like this before. Is this common here?"

"Ah, you must mean the power limiters." Hakkai gestured to his ear with his free hand. "Here, the youkai limit their powers with these things so they could wander amongst the humans peacefully."

She looked at the limiters with envy. "If we had those back at home, there wouldn't be any fighting."

"Well if it makes you feel better, the youkai here that go insane don't wear them anymore." Hakkai offered with a grimace. Suzume analyzed the man carefully before slowly asking, "How are you not drifting into insanity like the others? Your spirit looks stable to me."

"Ah, maybe it's because I was originally human." Hakkai explained.

"You killed a thousand youkai and bathed in their blood." Suzume finished for him with a nod. "I thought that was some myth told to us to prevent getting the youkai blood on our skin but I guess it's true."

He glanced at the shrine maiden with slight surprise at her calm reaction. Hakkai had expected her to flinch or call his deeds sinful. Suzume's eyes raked over Hakkai's reaction and read it like a book. "What you did must have been backed up by a good reason, Hakkai-san. You don't seem to be the type who would kill for pleasure. Those things should be left to Aoi. She loves getting her blades into Chinese Youkai skin."

"Aren't you curious about why I did what I did?" Hakkai inquired. The shrine maiden shook her head indifferently. "It's not my place to ask. Though…I think I have a hint. Things like that don't really escape my eyes, you see. I can't help it even though I despise being nosy. It's my curse."

"Curse?" Puzzled Hakkai opened his mouth for clarification for her vague words but was interrupted abruptly. "What else would you like to know about us?"

Sensing that it wouldn't be wise to push, Hakkai followed the change of subject and discussed about the politics in her homeland until they reached back to camp.

"I'm hungry!"

That all-too-familiar cry was repeated for the millionth time within five minutes, which was very impressive in Aoi's opinion. She was surprised that the kid managed to keep silent about his stomach for at least two hours into the jeep ride. Suzume could quite literally feel the irritation of the monk beside her in the front and subtly leaned away. Both Kasumi and Yuki were oblivious of what was happening because they were taking their naps. Gojyo looked as if he wanted to snap back at Goku but refrained from doing so because Kasumi was asleep on his lap.

Not that he minded.

The poor girl had no common sense, Aoi decided to herself, she has no idea what torture she was making her hanyou counterpart go through.

Aoi frowned when she saw that storm clouds were gathering in the sky. She really hoped that it wouldn't rain.

She really hated it when it rained.

"Hey Suzume, it looks like it's going to rain." Aoi stated offhandedly. She didn't miss the stiffening from her new companions. Huh, they didn't like the rain either, did they?

Suzume looked up. "It seems so."

"Why don't you hang up one of those creepy charms to drive the rain away? You're a miko, driving away rain shouldn't be too hard-ne?"

Amused, Suzume looked back. "Do you really still believe in those things, Aoi? I'm surprised. You don't seem to be the type back in our war days."

"Tch, that was before you blew a whole legion up with just a couple of words." Aoi admitted grudgingly. "And that amazing display of power when you sealed that youkai bastard up at the climax of our final battle."

Goku stopped his whining for a moment to stare at Suzume in awe. "Whoa, did you really do that?"

"You exaggerate." Suzume stated flatly.

"No! Seriously, that's how I saw it!"

Suzume shrugged. "Then why would you expect me to stop the rain? It's a normal cycle that just can't be stopped."

"You know why…"

Suzume sighed and turned to Kasumi who was still napping on Gojyo's lap. "Kasumi, do you mind waking up for me?"

Kasumi's eyes snapped open and she sat up. She yawned and rubbed her eyes cutely. "Awww, why did you wake me up? I was having such a great dream!"

"Aoi was complaining about the chances of it raining. Do you mind helping me make a Teru-teru-bozu? Goku can help too. My hands are a bit full with Yuki." Suzume told the hanyou apologetically. Kasumi didn't seem to mind and slid off of a disappointed Gojyo's lap. "Sure thing! Hey Goku, this is going to be fun but I'm going to need your help in this."

"Okay! I'll help!"

Kasumi distracted Goku from his stomach successfully by making him gather all the things needed to make a Teru-teru-bozu. After they were finished making it, Goku held up the little doll triumphantly. "I did it!"

Kasumi, Aoi, and Suzume clapped. "Good job, Goku!"

"Don't praise him too much. You'll spoil him rotten." Sanzo grumbled from his seat. He looked at the little doll with slight recognition but didn't say anything about it. "Besides, the thing looks like a creepy ghost."

"That's what it's supposed to look like ya dumb monk." Aoi told him rudely. "It's a doll that drives rain away for us. Little kids make these."

Hakkai dared to glance at the doll before quickly returning his focus back onto the road. "Japanese culture is really different than ours."

Goku turned to Kasumi. "So…what do we do with this?"

"We hang it up." Kasumi said while passing it to Suzume. She somehow managed to hang the Teru-teru-bozu. Sanzo turned from the doll and lit a cigarette. Kasumi's sensitive nose smelled it and she covered it quickly before the stinging smell filled her nose. "Ouch!"

"So what do we do next?" Goku asked. Aoi answered the question lazily. "Well, we now get to hear Suzume sing."

"Why must I be the one to sing?" Suzume wondered aloud. Aoi chuckled. "I don't remember the song and Kasumi never had it taught to her. I don't think Miss high-and mighty Yuki would be kind enough to sing it for us too. Besides, you priestesses seem to have this holy touch to all these magical things."

Kasumi clapped in glee. "Yay! We get to hear Suzume sing!"

Suzume sighed. "Really, you two, you're making me embarrass myself in front of our new companions already."

"Sing!" Goku demanded. "I want to hear Suzume sing!"

"Teru-teru-bozu, teru bozu

Ashita tenki ni shite o-kure

Itsuka no yume no sora no yo ni

Haretara kin no suzu ageyo.

Teru-teru-bozu, teru bozu

Ashita tenki ni shite o-kure

Watashi no negai wo kiita nara

Amai o-sake wo tanto nomasho…"

"What a creepy song." Sanzo interrupted rudely. Suzume stopped singing and lifted her eyebrows at the monk. "I thought you would've gotten the theme of this by now. It's supposed to drive the rain away by scaring it."

Goku looked up and gasped. "Wow! It really did work! The clouds are going away!"

And they were. The dark clouds that appeared to bring rain had rolled away, leaving the sun to shine down onto the road that stretched ahead. Suzume smiled at the hanging doll and took a small ribbon piece from her robes. She gently tied it around the doll's neck. "It's no bell, but I'll wrap a pretty ribbon around your neck for your job well done, Teru-teru-bozu-san."

Sanzo snorted. "It's just a stupid doll. And that was just a coincidence. There's no way that a doll made from tissue and string would ever be able to prevent rain from coming."

"Suzume specializes in making and breaking seals so it's natural that she can put seals over the weather for a limited amount of time. She's actually the only person in Japan who can do this." Kasumi said. Sanzo shook his head. "That's the most useless thing a seal could be used for."

Hakkai gave Sanzo a chiding look before praising Suzume. "That was an amazing example of your ability Miss Suzume. You must be very well known back in where you lived."

"Very well known?" Aoi snorted and ignored Suzume's pointed look. "She's the youngest High Priestess that was ever appointed in Japan! Hell, she can kick any of your monks' asses in chanting and creating seals. Well, aside from the grouchy Sanzo here of course."

"Yeah!" Kasumi piped along proudly. "You can say that she's the equivalent to the status of a Sanzo!"

Sanzo seemed to start in alarm at Kasumi's words. He looked at Suzume in disbelief and horror. Suzume couldn't help but feel a bit offended at his reaction.

"Quiet!" Suzume snapped. "Don't bring up that!"

"Awww, someone's embarrassed." Aoi taunted.

Hakkai sent a questioning look at Suzume's way. "Why are you so adamant in keeping your status in the dark?"

Suzume groaned and pressed her head into Yuki's back. She was currently sitting up and sleeping on her lap so this wasn't really hard to do. "I was hoping to not bring up my status for the whole trip. Please tell them why." She directed the last statement to Sanzo who was now scowling and covering his face with his hands.

"No way, you tell them, woman. I'm not going to give them the satisfaction of knowing the stupid tradition." Sanzo snapped back rudely. "And why did you have to bring it up in the first place?"

"That was Aoi's doing, not mine."

Sanzo scowled at her. "Well, keep your damn friend's mouth shut then the next time! Because of her blabbermouth, we're in a deep load of shit here!"

"Don't say those things about Aoi! And it's you who has a problem about this! I, unlike you, actually don't think that this is such a huge deal! You're overreacting!" Suzume snapped angrily.

"That's not the point, dammit! I don't even know you!"

Kasumi shrank back as the pair argued. She buried her face into Gojyo's chest and covered her ears, much to his delight. "Suzume never got this angry before. I wonder why she gets this angry with Sanzo, Gojyo-nii?"

Gojyo patted her head. "He has that affect to a lot of people. She's bound to snap sometime."

"But this is different…she's not only upset but sad, too." Kasumi whimpered. "She's so, so sad."

Gojyo raised her eyebrows and shared a look with Goku. Aoi patted Kasumi's head lazily. "Just block it all out, Kasumi. You did this before. I don't think Suzume would appreciate you reading her emotions during such a vulnerable time."

"But it's so hard!" Kasumi wailed quietly. "She feels it so much that it's overflowing! She's literally forcing it all into my mind. It hurts!"

Kasumi began to cry.

Aoi sent an alarmed look at Suzume's way but she was too busy with her heated argument with Sanzo. A dark look passed across her eyes. She leaned down to Kasumi's level and stroked her hair comfortingly. "Kasumi, I want you to relax. I'm going to knock you out for a little bit. Is that okay to you?"

Kasumi nodded. "Please," She begged, "make it go away!"

Aoi pinched Kasumi's neck and muttered something under her breath. Within seconds, the orange haired girl was out like a light. Her distressed expression relaxed but the tears running from her closed eyes kept flowing.

She slumped into Gojyo's arms. The kappa let out a low whistle. "Was it really necessary to do that? Yeah you asked first, but really?"

"Kasumi was suffering." Aoi replied shortly.

Goku looked at Kasumi's tear-stained face. "She looks calmer now. I think what Aoi did was for the best."

Aoi patted his head. "For a kid, you're pretty bright unlike the lazy snow-top sleeping in the front."

A sandal flew at Aoi's face and made a deafening slapping noise. Peeling the thing off of her face she glared at the said person. "You little brat! What was that for? And when the hell did you wake up?"

Yuki was wide-awake and surprisingly calm. "That was for comparing my intelligence with that monkey, you blue freak show." She turned to Suzume and Sanzo. They stopped their little bantering when she threw her sandal. "And you two should just shut up. The tradition is nothing big and besides, you're squabbling like an old couple. Oh, and Kasumi fainted."

Suzume took a deep breath and composed herself. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"Che." Sanzo looked away and brought the cigarette back into his mouth.

An awkward silence fell within the jeep.

Hakkai broke it with a cheerful, "Oh look, there's a village."

"Finally!" Goku said in relief, "I'm starving to death! I'm so hungry!"

Suzume still was upset despite of her calm appearance. She couldn't believe that he still couldn't remember her. She had tried dropping hints and clues all day for him.

"I don't even know you!"

That idiot, he used to be the one who knew her more than anyone else.

(About 14 years ago)

It was raining outside. Young Suzume grimaced at the overgrown straw hat that was the only thing that was preventing her from getting too wet. Her master briskly walked ahead of her, only stopping to make sure that her student was catching up. "Hurry up before the rain gets heavier."

Her master's voice was always so strong and beautiful. Suzume wished that one day she would become as powerful and confident as her beautiful Master.

Her Master was a very important person. She was the Head Priestess, a title given to the most talented of the miko. This title is only passed down from one Head Priestess to the other. It was said that the moon herself marked the Head Priestesses when they were appointed to prove to the world that they were worthy.

A crescent-shaped mark on the right shoulder that emitted an eerie glow when the moonlight shone upon it

But not only that, her master was also her mother's older sister. That meant that she was also the only family that Suzume had.

They two stopped by a certain house's door and let themselves in. Koumyo was sitting by the window. He looked pleasantly surprised at the two's appearance. "Oh! I didn't hear you coming, Kaede! What are you doing here in such an hour? And little Sparrow is sopping wet!"

"Yes, yes, and she'll die from a terrible cold." Her master said dryly. Suzume giggled then sneezed, earning concerned looks from the two adults. Her master gently pushed her toward the direction of the baths. "Take a warm bath before you really do catch a cold."

Suzume sniffed and nodded before shuffling to the washing room.

Koumyo watched as the charming little girl made her way to take a warm wash. "I'm glad that we managed to save her. She brings so much life into this gloomy temple. Though, it was a bit tragic that we couldn't get there soon enough to save her parents." He stated in Japanese. "I apologize for the loss of your younger sister, Kaede."

Kaede sighed and sat across from the Sanzo. She ignored his statement about her sister and pursued the other topic at hand instead. "Is this a good idea, Koumyo? I want Suzume to have a normal life where she can meet her 'special other' and have children like any other girl."

"Yet she was given a peculiar gift that only a select few have." Koumyo pointed out. "Yes, she could've led a normal life if it was just her ability to purify but she has the gift of sight also. Just like you yet even more potent."

Kaede shook her head. "Her mother was a sister of mine yet she never told me of Suzume's unique ability. Her parents were wise to keep her gift away from the world. If they had lived, she truly would've grown to be a wonderful noblewoman."

"Yes," Koumyo admitted, "but wouldn't that life be a bit boring?"

Kaede chuckled. "For a person like her? Probably."

The two enjoyed a peaceful silence and listened to the rain. Kaede flinched in surprise when she felt something warm wrap around her hand. She glanced down to see Koumyo's hand holding hers.

"Kaede…do you regret that choice you made?" Koumyo asked now in Chinese. Before Kaede could answer, she heard the door slide open and Koumyo's warm hand was gone in an instant.

"Master, I brought dinner."

Kaede could feel something different from the boy before she even laid eyes on him. There was just some strange warmth that he emitted. When she looked at him, she was surprised to see that he had hair of gold. If she didn't know that Koumyo was a man of holiness, she would've thought that the boy was his son.

And he was shining.

He looked a bit surprised to see her sitting across from his master. He composed himself and bowed in respect. "Ah, hello Miss."

He was very polite for his age.

Kaede returned his bow with a nod.

"Kouryuu, don't tell me that you forgot Kaede!" Koumyo said aghast. Kaede sent her friend a chiding look. "He was only an infant. How do you expect him to remember anything at that age?"

Kouryuu sent a puzzled look at Kaede. "I don't seem to remember meeting any woman."

"Well then, there's no harm in reintroducing myself. My name is Kaede and I am an old friend of your master's. I also had a hand in raising you during my stay here about eleven years ago due to your master's inexperience."

Koumyo pursed his lips with displeasure. "You forgot to mention that it was you who waded into the water with me to pull the basket out!"

"Yes, yes, I did that too. Apparently, your master remembers every detail of the experience." Kaede said in both amusement and annoyance. "You're worse than my mother!"

"Gah! Please refrain from comparing me with that wretched woman!"

"Koumyo!"

The Sanzo smiled innocently. "What? She called me a "weak-limbed", "no-good", and "pathetic" during our first and hopefully last encounter. At least I'm nice enough to say that when I'm not in her presence."

Kouryuu watched with interest at the lady who raised him long ago. He tried his best to find even an inkling of a memory but came up with nothing. That was a pity. He wanted to know what type of person this lady was. She must be nice. His master seems to like her, after all.

He didn't understand it back then, but the way that his master looked at Kaede was not a look that one would have when looking at a friend. Not that he would even remember this. Kouryuu had a tendency of forgetting some things that he deemed 'unimportant'.

"Excuse me. I'll be taking my leave now." Kouryuu said politely while rising. "I'll be in the washroom if you need anything, Master."

Koumyo was too busy with Kaede to pay too much attention to what his pupil said. "Yes, you do that Kouryuu."

After a little while, Koumyo and Kaede finally processed what the young blonde had told them and looked up in panic. "Oh no, Suzume-

"Eeeeeeek! Look away!"

Kouryuu entered into the washroom without looking up and stripped, unaware by the other presence in the room. If he were aware, he wouldn't have had any thought of it. He was used to living in a place without the different gender that the prospect of a girl being in there seemed impossible.

Unfortunately, that wasn't so.

Suzume saw him first and was too scared to make a sound. She had never had this kind of situation before. When he looked up, he saw her. It took him a few seconds to realize that the person in the washroom was a girl. He was struck dumb in shock. That gave her enough time to open up her mouth and let out a shriek.

The adults were there at a moment. Kaede quickly covered her sobbing student with a large piece of cloth and Koumyo calmly covered his beloved disciple's eyes.

After the chaos was all over, the two were left alone in the same room while the two adults talked alone in another room. Whatever the reason it was, Kouryuu cursed his master for the first time for being so insensitive. The two children had refused to even make eye contact because of their recent traumatic experience.

"S-Sorry."

Kouryuu looked at the girl in surprise. Her voice sounded a lot like Kaede's and their appearances were a bit similar so that put him into a little more at ease.

"I-It was my fault that it happened. I was a bit cold so I decided to t-take a warm bath. I h-hope you don't think badly of m-me now." The girl apologized guiltily. Kouryuu shook his head firmly. "I hate to say this, but I blame Master for not warning me that a girl was here. You're not at fault no matter what angle you look at it."

Suzume smiled weakly. "It's still strange, though. You're the very first boy, aside from Father, to see me like that."

Blushing, Kouryuu snapped, "Of course I was! That wasn't supposed to happen! No girl was supposed to see me either! It's pretty embarrassing for me too, you know!"

"T-Then do you promise not to tell anyone what you saw then if I don't tell anyone?" Suzume asked meekly.

"Why would I do that?" Kouryuu asked in annoyance. "Besides, I don't have anyone to tell it to anyways."

"M-Me too."

The thought that someone else had something in common with him made Kouryuu feel a little less…lonely. He looked back at the girl in interest. "Why? I thought someone like you would have bunches of friends by now."

"The girls that I met never really played with me because they said that I said weird things." Suzume wrinkled her nose. "But I was only telling the truth! And the monks here think I'm weird too. They say I'm 'dirty' and 'evil'. They also think that I'm putting curses on the temple because I always hang these." She produced a Teru-teru-bozu from her robe.

Kouryuu raised his eyebrows. "That was you? What are those things for?"

"Yeah." Suzume nodded. "These are Teru-teru-bozu dolls. Dolls that drive rain away. I thought that it would be nice if it didn't rain so much so Master Koumyo can admire the sun more. Though," she frowned slightly, "I didn't have a chance to hang them yesterday. I think that's why it rained so much."

Kouryuu snorted. This girl…she hung up all those dolls just for that? "Those idiots have no idea what they're saying. You being a scary witch was just some sort of stupid rumor after all."

"So you don't think that way?" Suzume curiously asked.

Kouryuu shook his head. "Nope, you just took a bath so there's no way that you're 'dirty' and I just can't picture you as something 'evil'. You look too cute to be something bad." He muttered the last part a bit reluctantly with a red face.

Suzume also had a similar color on her cheeks. "No one ever told me that before. People say that I'm plain. Look at this hair. It's such a dull color compared to yours. My eyes too are like the color of mud while yours is like…like that pretty gem that Father used to like. I think it's called an amethyst."

Kouryuu fingered his hair. "This hair had brought me nothing but trouble. What's so special about it? And my eyes sometimes scare people. It's better to have normal, plain features."

"Can I touch it?" It was a childish question yet to the two it was a very personal subject. Kouryuu mulled over it for a moment before crawling toward Suzume. He stopped in front of her and bent his head down so it would be easier for her to reach.

Suzume's little hands reached out and intertwined with the golden strands. She marveled at how soft they were. "Strange," she murmured. A little hurt by her comment, Kouryuu was about to back away but hesitated when he heard the other part of her statement. "I expected your hair to be untouchable. You know, like the sunlight."

"What's your name?" Kouryuu blurted out, a bit uncomfortable with the nice things that she was saying to him.

"Mine is Suzume. Yours?"

"Kouryuu."

She took her hands away from his hair and bent down so Kouryuu could see her smile.

"Well Kouryuu, I think there's nothing wrong with your hair. It feels nice to touch and it smells nice. I guess the others are just jealous. Your hair reminds me of the sun that appears after a storm. Beautiful."

And for once, Kouryuu thought the same.

"Hey, do you want to make some Teru-teru-bozu dolls with me?"

Suzume quietly excused herself and went to her room early without eating any dinner. She claimed to be tired and assured the others that she would eat in a later time.

Yuki glowered at the Sanzo priest from her seat across the table. "You, monk, go upstairs and apologize for being a stupid jackass."

"And since when do I listen to mouthy little Brats?" Sanzo shot back with equal intensity. Yuki smirked evilly at his comment. "Since you realize that 'this Brat' can blabber out to the others the reason why you overreacted."

"Why did Sanzo react like that, Yuki?" Goku asked. Yuki grinned and opened her mouth just to have Sanzo's hand cover her mouth. She also felt the metal end of the gun against her temple. "Speak and die."

"Child harassment!" Yuki cried out while whacking him on the head with her iron fan multiple times. Something fell out of her pocket and rolled onto the floor. Sanzo picked it up and inspected it critically. "What's this?"

"It's Suzume's treasure! She gave it me for safekeeping! Give if back you big fat JERK! And you still have to apologize to her!"

"Fine! I'll go up to her and make her come back down but I won't apologize!" Sanzo snarled and stormed away with the item still clutched in his hand.

Yuki's satisfied smile faltered a little as she watched the monk go. Hopefully they would forgive each other. This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

Goku, noticing that she looked a little down, poked her lightly on the side. "Sanzo will say something that will make her feel better. Him apologizing might be asking a bit too much, though." He pushed his ice cream to her. "Here. Eat something sweet and cheer up already!"

Aoi smiled at the sweet little scene. "Now that is the sweetest thing I've ever seen. Now all we need is a certain someone to apologize."

Hakkai grimaced. "Easier said than done."

Suzume frowned a little as she held out a little Teru-teru-bozu doll and looked back up at the cloudy-looking sky. She was currently sitting at a deck that allowed her to sit outside. Let it rain then. She didn't want to see the sun for now.

He forgot everything so easily…

"Tch, I knew that it was just a coincidence."

Suzume restrained herself from groaning at the sound of the moody monk's voice. He was the last person who she wanted to see at the moment. He noisily sat across from her and lit a cigarette.

Suzume refused to speak or look at him.

After a while, Sanzo spoke. "I overreacted." That was the closest he was ever going to get to an apology. "Happy now?"

"And tell me, good monk, how does that statement make me happy?" Suzume asked sarcastically.

"Gah! You women! How much does it take to make you happy?" Sanzo asked in frustration and threw his hands up. Suzume eyed him wryly. "You can apologize."

"No way. Never did, never will."

Another silence fell between the two.

Sanzo grimaced at the strange feeling that was wrapping its coils around his stomach. He felt as though he swallowed lead. This strange feeling started ever since he saw the pained look on the woman's face as she muttered her apologies back in the jeep. It was obviously connected to that.

"Sorry."

Suzume looked up in surprise. "What was that?"

"If you didn't hear me then it's your loss, woman." The heavy feeling was gone now thank Buddha. That was going to be the last time that he was ever going to apologize.

Suzume suppressed a smile and looked down at her little doll.

He looked down at the object in his hand. Oh yeah, didn't that brat tell him that this thing was her treasure? It looked like some sort of box. "Oi woman, here."

Suzume turned just in time to see the box sailing toward her face. She caught it clumsily and looked at it. "Oh! It's my box! Where did you get this? I thought I gave this to Yuki for safekeeping!"

"Well she's doing a shitty job of it so I'm returning it to you."

She made something that sounded like a snort before turning away.

Suzume clutched the box and chanted something under her breath before a clicking sound is heard. From the box, a wooden set of prayer beads poured from it and into her hands.

Sanzo looked at the necklace in recognition. Isn't that-?

(About 12 years ago)

"Kouryuu! I don't wanna go!" Suzume sobbed as she clutched the end of his robe. "Who'll tell me stories before I go to sleep? Who'll wake me up every morning? Who'll help me wash my back?"

"Shush! You weren't supposed to say anything about that!" Kouryuu hissed in embarrassment. He glanced at his master's direction and was relieved to see that he didn't hear them. He reached for something under the folds of his robes. "Here. I know you're no Buddhist, but it's something."

Suzume looked at the wooden necklace in awe. "Really? Are you really giving this to me, Kouryuu? But you were found with this!"

"Nah, I have another one that looks exactly like it. In this way, I'll be able to recognize you when we meet again! Because it's an ultra-rare item!"

Suzume clutched the necklace tightly.

"Will you promise that we'll meet again?" Suzume inquired. Kouryuu flicked her forehead. "Idiot girl, you know that I always keep my promises."

"I'll be meeting you again before you know it."

"Hey, Yuki. You still didn't tell me why Sanzo overreacted like that." Goku stated with a mouth full of…whatever it was. Knowing Goku, it could be anything.

Gojyo leaned in. "Oh, this is something that I'd like to hear."

Kasumi, now awake and as happy as ever, smiled in excitement and Aoi made a smirk that mirrored Gojyo's. "Yes please do tell."

"Well, he was upset about the 'Holy Agreement'." Yuki blurted out excitedly.

A moment of silence before…

A gasp from Kasumi, "Really? No wonder!"

Aoi cackled. "Oh Kami, I'm seriously going to rub this on the cranky Monk's face! He's seriously not going to live this one down!"

Hakkai, Gojyo, and Goku shared looks of pure bewilderment. "Um, what is this 'Holy Agreement?"

"The 'Holy Agreement' is an agreement made between the Chinese Monks and the Japanese Shrine Maidens to respect each other's cultures by making a special 'bond' between the best of the best." Yuki explained, "Which means the five Sanzo and the one Head Priestess. There's all these other mumbo jumbo stuff about the bond but there's one part that takes the cake."

Aoi picked up on the explanation from there. "When a Sanzo and a Head Priestess cross paths, the Miko officially becomes the Sanzo's."

"Which means that Suzume is something like Sanzo's spiritual wife!" Kasumi piped in excitedly.

"Oh, that makes sense." Goku stated while nodding.

"Yeah, if you put it that way." Gojyo agreed.

It took a few seconds before the information sank in for the two.

"WAIT, WHAT? HIS WIFE?"

"I'll be meeting you before you know it."

The wooden prayer beads fell onto the ground with a noisy clatter but Suzume didn't really care about that. She stood stock-still in shock as she felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her. The cigarette lay on the ground, forgotten.

Trying to act unaffected, she coolly looked over her shoulder. "Took you a while to remember, baka."

"Shut up, the idiocy from the other two is contagious. It's not surprising that I lost a part of my mind during my two years of traveling with them." Sanzo…no, Kouryuu muttered. "Don't ruin it. I'm trying to give a warm, friendly 'welcome back' as Master used to call it. Am I even doing it right?"

Suzume knew she couldn't stay angry with her friend for too long.

"Well, it looks more like a romantic 'welcome back' more than anything." Suzume joked but returned the embrace with equal warmth, maybe even more. "But I'm glad that you remembered, even if it took a really, really long time."

"Shut up and fill me in with what I missed with your life."

"That's a bit hard, how can I 'shut up' and 'talk' at the same time? Try making more sense, Kouryuu." Suzume teased only to have her forehead flicked.

"You know what I mean."

Suzume smiled at him and beckoned him over to sit. The monk grumbled but obeyed. She was family and one of the last part of his precious past that wasn't taken away from him…yet.

Suzume sat across from him and told him everything that happened since she left the temple. In all that while, Sanzo lit his cigarette and listened with rapt attention.

The storm clouds rolled away and the setting sun was clear enough for everyone to see and miss.

But not Suzume

She had her sun right there.

"Your hair…it's like the sun."

And...CUT!

Here's the third chapter! Whew! I thought I would never finish this one. It was a bit hard to write but I think it turned out better than I expected it to be. Hopefully, you all liked it and enjoyed it like the others.

Sorry if Sanzo's a little OOC here, his character is really hard to write.

Oh, and I've been meaning to ask this for a while but...

Are the pairings clear enough? I mean, if it is, I'll just keep writing the way I am but if it isn't, I'll try my best to make it more clearer. My writing is impossible to understand sometimes. -.-

Don't forget to REVIEW! I just love my REVIEWS!