Hello again my faithful readers! I know it has taken me forever to get my other stories updated but don't worry they are in my head and just waiting to be typed! Outlines have been completed so I just need to stop being lazy and all that jazz haha! Well Enjoy!
Imporant Note!: Koori's name has been changed to Jayden (just recently because I felt the need...) So if you are wondering who the fuck Jayden is look at this note you bunch of dumbasses! Just kidding! I know you're not dumb... otherwise you wouldn't be able to read in the first place. So enjoy. And koori's name will be Jayden from now on. Oh and Sadiki's hair color has also changed... from green to pale pink (I think it suits him better so shut it)... Which consequently changes Paki's hair to pale pink also... teehee... Actually I have made a lot of changes… but those will be seen later. Cuz I'm too lazy to fix them now.
Disclaimer: Again I own NOTHING! It's lame... well except my oc's of awesomeness! Haha.
Chapters: 2/16
Italics=Thoughts
Chapter 2
-:-Meanwhile-:-
The brunette let out a loud yawn and rubbed at the tired tears that gathered at the corners of his eyes. "Why are we up so early again?" His voice held a whine as he dragged his feet to the jeep along with the rest of his party. His golden eyes glossy with sleep as he hefted himself into his seat in the back.
"Oh, quit your whining, you one trick monkey," came from the tall crimson haired half-breed as he bit back his yawn and lounged as comfortably as he could in the back seat.
"Don't call me a monkey! You stupid water sprite!"
"Who are you calling stupid, you little jackass?"
"I swear it's too early for your shit, if you don't want to die I suggest you shut the fuck up!" the deep growl sounded from the blond monk in the front seat.
Silence ensued for a while and the monk let out a heavy sigh, pulling out a cigarette and his lighter. He took a long drag and let the smoke flow out of his mouth as he let out a slow, light breath. After a moment he glanced back and saw Goku sitting looking bored but trying his hardest to sit still and keep quiet. Another sigh. "To answer your question from earlier, Goku, we need to keep heading west and now we have to find out about this new Sanzo everyone is talking about..."
Goku blinked and turned golden eyes to his friend, though he knew Sanzo would never say anything like that out loud. "Why? Isn't there always more than one Sanzo anyway? Why should a new one popping up matter?"
The blond rolled his violet eyes in annoyance. "How dense can you be? There are only 5 Sacred Scrolls and so there is only a need for 5 Sanzo priests. Considering I have one scroll and the scroll that belonged to my Master is in India, there are only three left, one Sanzo was lost in the desert... So there should only be three actual Sanzo priests walking around."
"But don't Sanzo priests usually take a student, like an apprentice." The driver never took his green eyes off the road; this darker brunette kept his hands firmly on the steering wheel of the jeep.
"True... But with the way this is sounding I don't think this guy was anyone's apprentice..." he grumbled and took another long drag of his cigarette. He let it out in a long breath and turned to see Goku looking rather perplexed but shook his head at the annoying brunette.
Goku watched Sanzo and when he shook his head he knew it was about him. He chose not to ask the question that was buzzing around in his brain. He definitely wasn't as scatter brained as everyone believed him to be, but he really didn't know any other way. The way he was got him the most attention the quickest. So instead of asking something that would only upset Sanzo in his bad mood anyway, he decided on something more practical. "I'm hungry! Sanzo, when are we gonna eat? We got up so early I didn't get a chance to eat breakfast!"
Sanzo felt a tick develop in his brow but chose to do his best to ignore the pest sitting in the back seat.
"Sanzo!"
"Shut up, monkey! Can't you see he doesn't want to listen to your blathering?" Crimson eyes glared at him but he didn't miss the flash of something in golden ones before the brunette simply glared at him in return.
"No one asked you! You stupid roach!" He swung his fist but not hard enough to do much damage.
Gojyo felt when the fist connected and knew how they would be passing the time. "For the last time I am not a roach!" He took a swing as well.
As they began smacking and hitting each other, the banter only grew into a loud drone, causing Sanzo to press his fingers into his temples to try and block out the headache that was beginning. When they only got louder, he snapped. "THAT'S IT!" He turned swiftly in his seat, pulling the fan from within his sleeve and began swinging his arm back and forth roughly, smacking them with several resounding thwacks. With each hit he said, "You guys need to knock it off! I swear I'm going to kill you!" When he finished he sat back down and lit another cigarette.
-:-Back to Jayden-:-
Elouera rubbed her sore ass as she looked up and saw they were now in some sort of laboratory. "What the... Jeez, Kira! You could have at least made the landing a little easier..." Looking over she saw everyone else standing solidly on their feet. "Hey! Why am I the only one that didn't land right?"
Akira looked down at her and grinned. "Probably because you suck at landing on your feet. Everyone else is a little bit more agile when it comes to landing after a teleportation spell." His tone was thoroughly amused even as Elou glared at him and scrambled to her feet.
Hearing footsteps Jayden lightly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, a man in lab garb walked around the corner and saw them. He paused for a long moment before shaking himself out of his stupor. "Uh... How did you all get in here?"
Jayden rolled his eyes deciding not to answer such a stupid question and instead answered the one that had remained unasked. "I am Jayden Caradoc. I was hired by your president to look into the matter of a criminal that escaped using your technology." His deep voice rumbled through the near silent room.
The man looked at him for a moment before recognizing him. "Oh... Oh! Forgive me, Mr. Caradoc. I wasn't aware you had agreed to the request. I am head scientist, Joseph Clemmingson. Please, Joseph, is fine." He recited seemingly as if it had been rehearsed.
Jayden saw it as a nervous, intelligent human, who had very little contact with people, trying to seem professional and impressive. Sadiki, however, saw it as a man trying to catch his mates his attention and his eyes narrowed into slits. His purple eyes glinting like hard stones as they caught and locked with Joseph. The man gulped and looked away quickly. Feeling even less confident than he had before.
An impatient snort resounded from the hired hand and the head scientist knew he was becoming an unwanted pest. "Uh, right, well, come with me and I will take you to the machine. The president has been examining it ever since Hexsius escaped..." He turned and quickly headed the way he had come. Jayden gestured to his group and they followed him quietly as Joseph continued rambling on about the escape.
As they arrived in front of a large machine and Joseph showed no signs of letting up, Jayden finally turned on him. He grabbed Joseph's shoulder and turned him to look him in the eye. "Listen, Joseph, if you insist on this cowardly rambling, I will personally rip out your voice box and leave you to bleed out on the floor," he growled and released the man shoving him away and walking up to the man talking quietly with several laboratory secretaries.
He carefully examined the device and found it was actually very well made. It must have cost them a fortune to create and master this technology... Examining, he wondered what sort of flaws it would have and shrugged. Probably just the usual... Only a way to get there and no way to get back... Good thing I forced Akira to read the tome.
He blinked as he noticed how calm the man seemed as he spoke to his secretaries, even as police processed the body of a woman and other scientists were scrambling around nearly hysterical. His eyes narrowed at the man as he reached him. "Excuse me, I am Jayden Caradoc. I have decided to just come to you and bring my group. We are ready to leave soon as you brief us on any details you feel are important for us to know."
The president looked at him and raised a careful eyebrow, before allowing his eyes to sweep over the large group gathered a little ways away. Lids slid closed and when they opened his eyes were alight with agitation. "I only asked for you to handle the situation. So, I do not understand why you felt it necessary to bring so many extra. In all honesty, they look like only a hindrance." The tone he had held little patience and he really only felt like continuing to woo the beautiful women around him.
Blue and yellow eyes narrowed at his tone and he nearly bristled at the insult to his family. "I believe it would be best for you to keep those kinds of thoughts to yourself. I bring whom I feel I need to and my price remains the same. But the longer it takes, the more it costs. You know that. This is still my mission; I will complete it in the end and strike the fatal blow. It is none of your concern who I bring with me or why." Jayden watched the man, his eyes remaining narrowed as he spoke and stood in complete silence afterwards, allowing the man to sweat out the situation.
"Fine... The man, Hexsius, escaped into a different realm, as you know, but before that he had apparently done extensive research on the machine... Because this device isn't just for going to realms parallel to ours..." he paused a moment and lead Jayden to the machine itself as he continued to explain.
The group watched warily, strangers were a danger to them all, and they hardly trusted anyone they hadn't known for an extensive period of time. So, they didn't like it at all seeing their boss and head of house being led further away from them. "You've got to be shitting me!" They heard the god say, the disbelief in his voice sending a note of surprise through them. It was true that hardly anything surprised Jayden anymore... The group sent concerned glances amongst each other feeling only slightly nervous for whatever was in store for them.
Jayden let out a sigh after reading over the information once again but quickly shook off his disbelief. "Well I suppose there is nothing we can do. We will be taking this job and we will hopefully come back unscathed and without any further mental scars." He would have shuddered had the very thought of doing so not been beneath him. Instead, he glanced at the president and felt his anger rise until it was merely a pleasantly warm fuzz flowing within his veins. "I'll have you know, if I come back and find you are still so inconsiderate of those that have helped you to achieve your goals... I will surely take this from you and make it my own." With that said, he turned and walked back toward his group. As he approached, the people in lab coats once again began scrambling around, setting a destination and time. "Okay, this man has been in the realm for almost twenty-four hours already. We do not know how different the times are, so he could have been there for weeks or months... In any case, he has more than likely already found someone to impersonate, just as he always does, so we need to look for suspicious actions from someone highly revered." Jayden looked at the president once again and sent him a cocky little smirk as he nodded. "All right. We are going to walk through the portal. Be careful. There hasn't been much testing so the landing may be tricky. They all nodded to him as everyone shot Elou in particular a warning glare.
"What?" Her outrage was clear even as she blushed and crossed her arms in a childish pout.
Jayden looked at the portal as it came to life and walked up to it, he felt someone grab his hand and looked to find Sadiki lacing his fingers in his once again. He smiled at his lover and led him through the portal into the unknown.
-:-:-:-
The Sanzo party had been driving for half of the day already, the sun shown high above their heads. It was getting closer and closer to noon. Their way of knowing was of Goku's more insistent whining for food. "SANZO! I'm gonna starve over here! Can't we stop to get something to eat? Please? I'm gonna waste away!"
As the priest lit another cigarette, he pointedly ignored the younger man's whining. Well, he tried, by the fifth time he heard his name being practically screamed into his ear all pretenses of keeping calm were gone. In a quick movement, he turned and smacked Goku with his fan in one fluid motion. "Shut up!"
"Ow! What the hell was that for?"
"That was for your voice grating on my nerves! Now shut up!"
A slight whining came from the jeep and Hakkai looked down at it a slight frown on his face. "Well, it seems it is definitely time to rest. I think Hakuryu is beginning to tire of being in this form." He pulled over to the side and they all got out removing their packs and as soon as everything was cleared away the jeep made another cooing whine and shifted turning into a small white dragon. It tiredly flew to land gently on Hakkai's shoulder. "There you go, you did really good today, Hakuryu." He smiled as the dragon cooed and rubbed his head against the green-eyed male's cheek.
Goku stretched and turned to look at Hakkai. "Hakkai! Please tell me we have something that I could eat? I am starving!"
Green eyes blinked at him and his smile was slightly nervous. "Uh... Well, we ran out... With the way Sanzo rushed us, we didn't have time to gather any supplies..."
"What!" The look that crossed Goku's face was completely scandalized. "But... But... How am I going to get something to eat?"
"Why don't you go foraging!" They all looked at Sanzo seeing the angry gleam in his eyes as he stood completely motionless glaring at the golden eyed youth.
Goku knew what it was but he paused a moment putting on an air of utter stupidity. "Wuzzat?"
"God! How stupid can you be! You'd think after being Sanzo's pet for so long you'd have learned at least something!"
Goku glared at the crimson haired half-breed but said nothing for a long while. He was getting really sick and tired of being the one that always had to be insulted.
"Come now, Goku, oh, look!" Hakkai reached into his bag and pulled out something that he had forgotten about. "I just remembered I have a meat bun." He handed it over to the hungry youth.
Suddenly, the air smelled different and Goku turned his head upwards, meat bun for once forgotten, his golden eyes sliding closed he as he glanced around the blue sky. He took a deep breath.
"What is it, Goku?" Sanzo asked seeing the change in his demeanor and instantly going alert.
"I don't know... It's like... something is going to come from the sky..." He opened his eyes and watched the sky while the others gathered around him to look as well. They had no idea what was coming.
-:-:-:-
Elou let out a pained groan and rubbed her soar ass again. "Dammit! They need to work out that landing shit! How do they expect to sell that thing to anyone!" She looked up to find Jayden staring down at her with a rather peculiar expression on his face. "Den-kun? What's wrong?" She glanced around and saw what looked like clothing underneath her. "Huh? Well, if this was their plan to help soften the fall it didn't work... I feel like I landed on a pile of bitchy rocks." She noticed the drop of sweat at Jayden's temple. She looked at him confused and glanced at the others as she began to dust off her cloak.
Sadiki was barely suppressing his giggles and had turned his head away from the scene before him. Jayden did his best hush his lover but he couldn't help the thought that his adopted sister was a complete moron. Elou gave them both the same curious look and she looked at Niko, his face was blank but she could have sworn there was a smile turning up at the corners of his lips and poor Paki looked like he was about have a fit, his hand over his mouth and the other clutching his mates sleeve. Getting to Akira, she saw he was doubled over his laughter so strong he wasn't even making a sound.
Then she heard it, a faint whining squeak. She looked up and saw a small dragon flying circles above her head. "Oh, dear! Don't tell me I landed on your nest little one." She stood but didn't move off of whatever she had actually landed on.
"For the sake of gods, Elouera! Get the fuck off of them!" Jayden had never before shouted at her but when she looked at him again she could tell he was restraining something and Sadiki had now begun to laugh hard.
"Huh? Who's 'them'?" She looked down finally to see what she had landed on; four bodies were face down on the ground beneath her feet. "Oh... Oh!" She scrambled off the four and went to Jayden's side. "No wonder the rocks were bitchy! They got squished by not only me but these people too!"
Akira had finally found his voice again and broke out into uproarious laughter. Jayden and Niko simply looked at each other dismayed while Sadiki continued to laugh and Paki continued to look on concerned.
"Elou... Never mind..." The redhead shook the thought away and moved on. He glanced at the four lying on the ground. "Are any of you seriously injured?" He didn't move towards them just yet, deciding to keep his distance incase any of them were unfriendly.
The youngest looking one raised his head and golden eyes glared at all of them through chocolate brown bangs. "Hey! What was the big idea falling from the sky like that? You could have killed one of us!" He looked beneath him and sighed heavily, he didn't really care but it would be out of the ordinary if he didn't say anything. "AND YOU SQUASHED MY MEATBUN! That's it! You are so gonna pay!" He launched himself at Jayden without another thought.
The god raised an eyebrow but otherwise didn't move. A flux of his mind power had the boy flying backwards. "I'm sorry, but it wasn't our intention for her to fall on you. Elou, apologize." He deadpanned and looked at the girl at his side. She made a face that clearly stated she did not enjoy the idea of apologizing for something that wasn't her fault. "Now."
She looked down at her feet and pouted like a child. "I... I'm sorry." She bit her lip; she never did like apologizing.
Niko went over to help one of them up. The man smiled gratefully and fixed the monocle on his eye as he dusted of his green tunic like shirt. "It's all right. We are all fine for the most part. But I have to ask, who are you and how did you come to fall from the sky?" His voice was friendly and his smile was gentle.
Niko and Jayden glanced at one another, both being perfectly capable at reading people. But Jayden left reading their minds for a later date.
Akira himself went to help the crimson haired man up. "Hey, man, sorry, she never was a graceful lander." He grinned cheekily and held out his hand.
The redhead looked up at him and saw a very familiar grin and couldn't resist the urge to grin back. "Eh, it's no problem, it's a good thing something like this doesn't happen very often otherwise I might be a little more irritated."
Jayden merely shrugged his shoulders, a sign to himself of giving the strangers the benefit of the doubt, and moved forward to the blond man that was just barely beginning to rise to his hands and knees. "Well, I am Jayden Caradoc. My group and I were hired specifically to go after a serial killer that supposedly escaped to here." He didn't say anything further as he held out his hand to the blond.
The blond looked up at him, his violet eyes studying him rather intensely for a moment before he looked away, roughly pushed the hand away from him, and stood on his own.
Akira saw this obvious instant dislike of his brother and frowned a moment... before slowly grinning again. "Well, I would say Elou was right... Bitchy rocks indeed."
Jayden smirked and only stepped away from the blond when he was standing.
The blond looked over the group and thought they were the oddest-looking group he had ever seen. "Hn... Are you sure you're the leader?" he asked resting his eyes on Jayden once again.
A thin blood-red eyebrow rose and Jayden knew what he meant. "If this is about my height... I can deeply assure you, I am the strongest of the group. The oldest as well. So yes... I would say that makes me their leader." He rolled his dual colored eyes at the blond's lame attempt at insulting him. He was just shy of average height but it was never enough to bother him. Still, even after all this time, some of the comments about his height got on his nerves.
He paused as he felt a tugging on his mind and figured something like this would happen when he arrived. But he promptly ignored the demand. "Anyway, if pleasantries from the bitchy rock are over, the guy with the black hair and eyes is Akirashima Ayameami... He's my half brother."
Akira waved nonchalantly at the group his ever-present grin still on his face. "Akira is fine."
"The heifer with the gray and blue hair and matching eyes, that landed on you, is Elouera Anitaavalon."
"Hey! I am not a heifer! You are such an asshole, Den-kun!" She glared at her adopted brother but turned to the others and grinned widely. "Hiya! Sorry for landing on you, Mr. Bitchy Rock... Oh and everyone just calls me Elou."
"This beauty with the long pale pink hair is my mate, Sadiki Nazaire..." He turned to smile at his lover, who winked back at him flirtatiously.
"Oh, do go on, Ame. But it I am very pleased to meet you. I hope this sudden drop in won't ruin such a marvelously blooming friendship." He gushed batting his eyelashes enticingly. Jayden fought the urge to roll his eyes and instead watched for the reaction of his loves audience.
The redhead just continued to grin back, probably convinced Sadiki was a woman. The brunette with the monocle just smiled pleasantly while the blond seemed intent on ignoring them completely.
"The one with the teal and maroon hair and pale pink eyes is Nikolei Nitpattanasai... My student. And the one tucked so securely at his side with the pale pink hair and blue eyes is my son and Nikolei's mate, Paki Nazaire." He smiled at his son and pupil with a fatherly affection.
Niko nodded in acknowledgement, it was Paki who spoke for them both. "Everyone calls him Niko for short. And you have to forgive them." He looked at the blond as he spoke. "They don't take kindly to strangers and their defenses are all up. I know your name isn't Mr. Bitchy Rock..." he said sweetly.
The looked at him for a moment and studied his face, Paki oozed innocence and kindness almost like it was a contagious disease. "Tch..." He lit a cigarette and didn't say another word.
Jayden smiled at his son for his natural ability to make people love him and would have ruffled his hair had he been close enough to do so. "All right them, that's it for us. What about you guys?"
The one in the green shirt, with short brown hair and dark green eyes smiled softly. "I am Cho Hakkai. The one with the red hair and red eyes is Sha Gojyo. The one with the golden eyes that you... uh... misplaced..." he paused looking at Jayden curiously for a long moment before going on, "is Son Goku... and the blond you have so charmingly named is Genjo Sanzo." He looked up when his dragon landed on his shoulder once again. "Oh, and this little guy is a friend of mine, Hakuryu." He grinned when the dragon cooed at him and waited for some sort of recognition from Jayden's group about the blond but they didn't seem to know how important he was. That... or they really didn't care.
It was a bit of both, as Jayden felt the tugging on his mind become rather persistent, but the redhead gave it a firm and friendly "Fuck off" as he stayed where he was. "I see. Please allow me to retrieve your friend." He closed his eyes for a moment and in an instant Goku appeared once again in front of them. "Sorry for that. You came at me and I'm afraid I used too much force in keeping you back..." He smiled apologetically.
Goku watched them, his golden eyes wary, for a moment a frown planted on his face. "Whatever..." He muttered before going over and standing next to Sanzo. Jayden watched him and instantly knew what the problem was but didn't make a move to comment on it.
"Hey, as my way of saying sorry, how about I treat you guys to a meal? I am a pretty good cook and I do feel bad about my pet landing on you, so rudely..." He grinned and jerked his head at Elou, who was too busy examining a bug she found to pay attention to the insults.
"I am going to name you... Clarice!" She shouted in glee and followed it around for a while.
Jayden looked baffled for a moment. "Uh... Yea." He resisted the urge to knock her out and instead turned back to the others. "So what do you say?"
Goku looked at him and a smile easily spread across his face. "Hell yea! I'm starving! And you owe me for squashing my meat bun!" He looked up at Sanzo in question.
The blond looked down at him and let out an irritated sigh before shrugging his shoulders. "Sure, why not? You do owe us after all..."
Jayden smirked and nodded his head. "Great, and I promise not to poison you until after the meal." He laughed at his own joke but missed the worriedly exchanged glances.
He began to walk, heading for a place off the road and out of plain sight. As he reached the trees, he called back over his shoulder. "Don't want you guys to get run down as well as being landed on." Everyone in his own party followed him without another word or a backwards glance.
Sanzo watched them walk away, his violet eyes following them silently. "What do you think?" he asked his group when he figured the others were out of earshot.
Goku's frown returned once again, "I don't know... I can't even sense his power or his presence... As a matter of fact... I can't sense any of them... And he's powerful too. He didn't even blink or twitch when he blew me back..." His stomach growled rather loudly and his demeanor changed in an instant. "But, hey! He offered to feed us, so I say let's give them their fair chance!" He grinned again and started heading into the trees. Even though he kept his guard up despite feeling an inkling that he could trust these newcomers.
Hakkai stepped up to Sanzo's side. "I, too, am a little unsure. He is strong... very strong... There is a dark and dangerous aura I sense from him... From all of them, except the little one, Paki. But I don't think they are evil. I'm fairly certain they don't want to cause us harm. And I know that they could if they wanted to. The fact that they look so different from anyone we have ever met has peaked my interest..." He then walked ahead following Goku into the trees.
Gojyo settled a hand onto the blonde's shoulder. "Just think of it this way, Sanzo. Things have been a little too quiet around here lately. And those rumors about the rogue Sanzo Priest running around could have something to do with them suddenly appearing like they did... Let's test the waters a bit, so to speak. We can decide what to do if we ever get on their bad side." He winked and followed his other two companions.
Sanzo sighed heavily, feeling a peculiar tick developing above his right eye, and took another drag from his cigarette. "Whatever..." he said to himself and walked ahead deciding to just see what happens next.
He heard Goku give a shout and despite his many denials about caring for any of his so called "friends" he picked up his pace only slightly to make sure everything was okay. He arrived only to find Goku seemingly debating something with Akira, Gojyo talking with Sadiki, and Hakkai sitting calmly beside Niko and Paki while Jayden and Elou were nowhere to be seen.
"I'm telling you man! I won't believe it until I see it! There is no way you can kill something without using some sort of visible weapon!" Goku shouted, stamping his foot like a child in his stubbornness to not believe what the other man was telling him.
"I'm telling you, kid..."
"Don't call me a kid!"
"Sorry, but I'm being serious. Come with me and I will show you what I'm talking about." He chuckled and turned to head deeper into the trees, Goku following, his curiosity stirred by Akira's cryptic words.
Sanzo watched them leave, an odd feeling of trepidation stirring in his breast. Another feeling he didn't quite understand had him feeling warm under the skin of his cheeks but not enough that he flushed. About to call out to Goku, he was stopped when he felt a presence step up beside him.
"Don't worry so much. Akira has a mate back where we are from. He won't be trying anything with your friend," Jayden said his tone reassuring as well as amused. He nodded to Elou before turning to look at Sanzo again.
Sanzo glared down at him for a moment. "I'm not worried about that." Deciding he shouldn't have to play it safe with this new band of freaks, as well as change the subject, he added, "I'm more worried your guy won't be able to handle himself should Goku get competitive…" He smirked down at the group's leader waiting for him to defend his brother.
Jayden looked at him his eyes going half lidded and a simple look of boredom came across his face. "I see… But it would be understandable if you were worried about him though… I mean he is attractive enough to warrant attention."
Sanzo raised his eyebrow at the lack of defense for his kin but did a bit of a double take at the male's words. "So… you are attracted to men? I find that hard to believe considering your… mate…" he decided not to question him on the odd word choice, "is a woman…"
Jayden raised his brow at him but smirked and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm sure there are people who are attracted to both. But I, myself, am attracted to love." He looked over and saw Sadiki sitting carefully so his skirts fanned out about him rather elegantly. He smiled adoringly at him and continued watching how cute his lover was.
The blond watched him a moment but looked back to where Akira and Goku had vanished into the trees saying nothing for a long while. "So Akira already has someone?" he asked without much thought. Silently he cursed himself for asking.
The redhead smirked knowingly at the sudden question. "Yes, he does… but it is well known throughout the group that they are a little rocky at the moment. So maybe he'll try to have some fun while he's here…" He shrugged once again, nonchalantly. "Who knows though… if Goku isn't yours…"
Violet eyes glared in irritation. "He's not!" he said quickly.
The smirk remained on Jayden's face as he found teasing the tall monk an entertaining hobby. "Maybe he can even join me and Sadiki… He seems innocent enough… It probably won't be too hard to convince him…"
Sanzo glared at him a moment longer before turning away and scoffing slightly. "What do I care? As far as I am concerned he is a nuisance and I have no say in who he associates himself with. Or what he decides to do in his private matters."
Jayden watched him a moment, Damn… this man has some serious issues with getting in touch with his feelings… I think he needs a little sit down and share time at some point… Dual colored eyes blinked at the thought and he looked down to pinch the bridge of his nose. I have definitely been hanging around Elouera too damn much lately…
Elou walked up to him in that moment. "Denden! I'm serious! Why can't you just do what you did before? It would make things a lot easier…" she whined in his ear and looked into his eyes a pout forming on her shapely lips.
A thin red brow twitched at the nickname but said nothing about it instead sighed heavily. "Elou! I already told you no. I can't do that here, this isn't my plane and I have to follow certain rules. Creating a home tied to me doesn't work here."
At this, Hakkai looked up his green eyes flashing curiously. "What do you mean this isn't your 'plane'?" He couldn't stop himself from asking still trying to figure out who these people were, but not succeeding due to the lack of information.
Jayden smirked again, though this time it held a mischievous light to it. "All good things to those who wait," he said with a slight wink.
-:-:-:-
Akira stepped carefully, his elven heritage allowing him to move almost silently through the thick foliage as he hunted for his prey. He twitched when he heard another twig snap beneath his companion's foot and turned to level him with a dark glare. "If you could please learn a little stealth, I would find what I was looking for all the more quickly," he grumbled at the brunette walking towards him.
"What?" he asked loudly, confusion in his gold eyes.
Another twitch and black eyes met gold. "… …" He sighed after a moment of silence. "Just… be quiet and wait a moment, okay? I need silence, otherwise we are going to be here for hours."
Goku looked at him, annoyance flashing through his golden eyes but he was hungry and decided to give "being quiet" a try. He watched Akira move slowly, leaving him behind as he ventured further into the foliage to find whatever it was he was looking for.
He jumped startled when he heard something, it sounded like Akira but it came from within his head. "Hey, I found one, I need you to come find me but be careful. I don't need you scaring it off." He blinked in confusion but decided not to ask and continued walking, finding Akira's trail and trying his hardest not to make a sound. He found the raven-haired elf and stepped up to him. "What-" he began, but cut himself off and started again whispering. "What did you find?"
Akira looked at him smirking and again Goku heard his voice in his head. "It'll just be easier if we talk like this you know… But do you see that buck? The big one directly ahead of us?"
Golden eyes looked ahead of him, where Akira had gestured with a nod. He saw the buck and tilted his head, never having really seen many animals around… Probably because Sanzo had money and they didn't have to hunt for their own food very often… "Yea I see it… What about it?"
Akira rolled his midnight eyes and stood straighter, holding up his hands like he had a bow and arrow strung and ready. "Well, I am going to use my power and kill it so we can bring it back with us to eat," he responded casually as he made a motion like he was pulling the arrow back and waiting for the right moment to loose it.
Goku looked at him his eyes wide and grinned. "You mean it?" His mental question was loud and Akira winced slightly as he turned black eyes to look at the brunette dubiously.
But a smirk crossed his handsome features again. "Duh..." he responded as he quickly looked to the deer.
"QUIT TREATING ME LIKE A KID!" A growl escaped him but he somehow managed to keep quiet enough not the startle the creature into running away.
"... Compared to us, you are a kid. Well... Maybe not, Elou... She is still pretty young compared to the rest of us. She hasn't even turned fifty yet..." He went on almost rambling as he conjured up more power into his invisible bow and arrow...
"... Whatever..." came the muttered response.
Akira rolled his eyes at the childish comeback and waited for the perfect moment. He released the arrow and in his eyes it flew true, striking the beast in the neck with a hollow thump. He smirked in triumph and headed over to his kill. He looked at it and made the arrow vanish, allowing the blood to drain from its body freely. Kneeling he placed a hand over its face and another over its stilled heart. He began to speak words tumbling from his lips, "Solonar Thelandira, shaer sor cor, sar mal ail sia basti, sai thaer tia vasia."**
Golden eyes widened as he witnessed the kill and the prayer afterwards. "Woah! That was cool! Could you teach me how to do that?" Look at him hoping he would be able to learn a new kickass technique.
Akira looked at him and raised a thin black eyebrow. "... I don't think so... My power is different from yours so I doubt it would work for you, little man."
Goku glared. "I told you I'm not a little kid!"
Black eyes looked him over and he shrugged in a noncommittal way, his face hiding the fact that he was unconvinced. "Right... Let's get this buck back to the other's so Jayden himself can make us a meal out of it."
Emotions did a one eighty, going from irritated and grumpy to excited and bouncingly happy. "Oh shit, man! I can't wait! He said he was good cook, right?"
A wave of his hand and the buck was airborne, floating leisurely behind them. "Yes, he is the best that I have ever met..." He began walking back to camp no longer needing stealth and just making a ruckus wondering if he could be able to cause any alarms.
He grabbed Goku by the arm and leaned close to whisper in his ear. "Hey, hold back a second I want to see if I can freak out anyone..." He grinned, loving a good prank.
Golden eyes looked at him confused but lit up when he understood the other's intentions... He bounced slightly in excitement as Akira used his powers to make several loud rustling noises.
Jayden glanced around but recognized the presence of his lover and merely smirked continuing to get his area prepared for the feast he felt the need to prepare.
Sadiki looked around slightly started by the rustling, he figured it would be best if he stuck close to his mate so he stood and went to him. "Ame...?" He whispered in question as he continued to warily watch the trees.
Thin lips continued to smirk as he leaned close and kissed his love's cheek. "Don't worry, love. You will be fine." He chuckled as his lover grabbed his hand in order to reassure himself.
Paki found himself clinging tightly to Niko's arm. Niko merely rolled his eyes but leaned down to kiss the top of Paki's head, whispering reassurances in his ear.
Elou looked around and glared at the trees. "Noisy trees..." grumbled and sat down.
Hakkai, not really having much of a clue what was going on, stood and watched the trees carefully. He glanced at Sanzo who merely looked irritated. And Gojyo also stood to watch the trees unsure of what was really going on...
Another rustle and the sound of a gunshot was heard. Everyone blinked and turned to look at the blond holding his gun and glaring at the source of the rustle that was now little more than a leafless bush. "If you don't knock it off, I swear I'm going to kill you both!" He ground out his voice thick with irritation...
Akira and Goku stepped out from the tree, Akira grinned while Goku looked a little sheepish. "Aw, Sanzo... you didn't have to go and fire your gun like that... What if you hit one of us?"
Violet eyes glared into golden ones. "As far as I'm concerned... If I had shot either of you I would have done the world a favor..."
Black eyes sparkled as the grin remained firmly on his face. "Well, that's not very nice... But I suppose Mr. Bitchy Rock would still be bitchy, ne?" He looked over to Jayden and was rewarded with his chuckle.
Elou piped up. "His name isn't 'Mr. Bitchy Rock' anymore..."
Akira blinked. "Oh? You found another one you liked better? So soon?"
Elou nodded vigorously the smile on her face could only be described as a shit eating grin.
Sadiki frowned, not sure where this was going but couldn't resist. "Please, enlighten us?"
Blue and gray locks swayed as she shook her head. "Nope..."
Pale pink eyes blinked and Niko tilted his head; it was rare for Elou not to tell them something like a new nickname... This must me a good one... "Why not?"
Blue gray eyes flashed. "It's a secret til I decide to call him out on it..."
Sanzo glared at the girl but said nothing; really not wanting to know whatever ridiculous nickname she had decided to give him now.
Dual-colored eyes rolled slightly. "Well, if that's over, Akira, did you bring anything for me to cook?"
Black eyes locked with blue and yellow and Akira smiled. "When have I ever not brought back a kill for dinner?"
Dual-colored eyes watched him dubiously. "Do I really have to remind you of the time you decided to kill a dragon for dinner and it turned around and nearly took off your hand... if not for Moon Willow you would only have one arm..."
Akira blinked and he tilted his head. "Oh yea... Well any other time than that?" He wondered almost afraid of the answer...
A sigh escaped the shorter demon. "Remember the time you wanted to get something exotic and use it as an aphrodisiac for Damien?"
Akira launched himself over at the shorter male. "Yes, yes... A very... interesting day... So I brought deer..."
Jayden blinked and looked at the large buck that levitated behind him as if waiting to be placed somewhere. "Excellent... It should be good to feed all of us I would think..."
A shout came from Elou as she pumped her fist into the air. "All right! Jayden makes some kickass deer steaks!"
Goku perked up his golden eyes watching Elou. "Steak? Hell yea! Count me in for seconds... and thirds... and fourths!"
A smirk crossed Jayden's lips again. "Better go find another, Akira, if he is that serious about it." He began prepping the buck to be cooked.
-:-:-:-
After everyone had eaten, Goku finally finished his fifth helping and rubbed his stomach. "Oh, man..."
Elou grinned and looked around at the other group. "So? What did you think? Jayden is the best cook I know. So feel free to criticize. He won't be offended I promise. He might just be a little sad. Actually he might head to some random corner and cry, but feel free to say whatever you want!" She began laughing at her own joke.
The Sanzo party all traded glances not sure how to take Elou's random sense of humor.
The heavy sigh came from Jayden. "Elou... You keep forgetting that not everyone gets your jokes..."
Red eyes blinked as a crimson haired demon tilted his head. "There was a joke in there?" Gojyo asked incredulously.
Jayden shrugged. "She believes there was..."
"Oh, shut up, Denden! You know you find me funny..."
A roll of his eyes. "We are not talking about your looks at the moment..."
Blue and gray eyes widened and she opened her mouth, but nothing came out...
Purple eyes watched her with concern. "Dear... I think you might have broken her... It's rare of you to use your wit against her..."
"Whatever, she was getting annoying. She'll recover soon enough." Jayden glanced up at the sky and noticed the setting of the sun. He tilted his head and gathered some of the extra wood they had gathered earlier and built a fire pit. He placed the pieces accordingly and with a snap of his fingers a tiny fire burst and began consuming the wood. "I believe it would be a good time to get some rest..." he said to his party not much caring what the other's did. "I have a big day tomorrow..."
The other's looked at him curiously but nodded their heads and moved to their packs to get their sleeping things. Paki and Niko found a place and went straight to sleep, while Elou, Akira, Sadiki, and Jayden huddled together.
They said nothing but eyes would shift from one face to another as if they were having some silent conversation...
"I know what they are doing..." Goku said rather suddenly, watching them along with his other three friends.
"What do you mean, how would you know what they are doing, monkey?" asked Gojyo, smirking at the nickname.
"Don't call me that! Anyway, I know because that Akira guy did it with me earlier today! He spoke in my head. It was weird but cool..." he said, looking smug as the other's watched him.
"Speaking with their minds? That certainly is interesting. I guess whatever they are talking about is something we shouldn't be overhearing. At least not until they decide to tell us," Hakkai said a slight frown on his normally smiling face.
They watched as they all split up, Akira going to lean against a tree his face pensive; Elou moving to lay down with her own blanket and mat, not bothering to remove her cloak; Sadiki and Jayden went to lay down, Jayden taking his place leaning against a tree and allowing Sadiki to lay his head in his lap. Jayden smiled at them and closed his eyes.
The odd glow from his yellow eye didn't go unnoticed, but no one questioned it. It continued to glow faintly but not in a distracting way, and everyone seemed to still and begin to fall asleep.
The Sanzo party glanced around each other and Gojyo shrugged, beginning to make his own bed to lay down. Goku did as well, finding a comfortable spot close to the other group, finding their peacefulness oddly comforting. Hakkai sat next to Sanzo. "So... Any thoughts now?" he questioned their leader.
"Ch... None that really make much sense at the moment. But whatever... I guess we'll just have to stick around them if our curiosity is ever going to get satisfied... It's interesting that as much as they seem to talk, they have managed to not mention at all where they came from or what they are really here for... I mean... the vague reason they gave us earlier just doesn't sit right with me..." he grumbled. He found it so annoying when he didn't know something.
"Well, I guess we should get some sleep, then?" Hakkai asked, green eyes going half lidded with his sudden tiredness.
Sanzo nodded slightly. "You go ahead, I'm going to stay up for a bit. I don't quite trust them enough to sleep so soundly just yet..." He looked over at the other group and moved to sit closer to the fire.
Hakkai shrugged and moved off to go find a place to sleep.
Sanzo sat and soon silence surrounded him, except for the occasional snore, which only meant Goku wasn't fully asleep yet. He glared into the fire, not liking the uneasy feeling he had. After an hour of pointless waiting, Goku well asleep now, if the snores he was making were any indication, he cursed Jayden and decided it was time to get some rest as well. He moved to an empty space in the clearing and lay down. His last thought before falling asleep, was how he really disliked Jayden for putting weird thoughts into his head.
To Be Continued~
**Translation: Solonar Thelandira (Name of the elven god of the hunt,) bless this kill, twas slain in thy name, to feed my party.
Well thank you once again to my wonderful beta she says the Saiyuki peeps are a little Ooc and that's fine for now I will be sure to work on it next chapter as well as add more fighting since she says its needed XD Truth be told I don't do a lot of fight scenes so hopefully any I throw in there will be good. Please don't forget to review I love reviews.