I slept longer this time, but I was once again awoken by the sound of angry voices, and I came to with a jolt.

Dawn had only just cracked, leaving the woods still chilly and washed out by pale sunshine spreading across the land from the fiery sun in the east. My clothes and hair were both damp with dew, and my muscles were stiff from the cramped sleeping space I'd chosen. Beside me, Gojyo was still dead to the world, hair thrown across his face.

I scrambled to a sitting position, squinting through the haze that had gathered between the trees like cigarette smoke, searching for any sign of people. The voices rang out again, but they came from several different directions. They were men's voices, all, but I couldn't determine how far away they were, and I was painfully aware of how obvious a spot our location was, particularly in the daylight. I'd spotted Gojyo easily enough in the dark.

"Gojyo," I hissed, leaning over him to shake his shoulder. "Wake up."

He merely curled up tighter and moaned, mumbling nonsense.

I shook him more firmly. "Wake up. We have to go."

Slowly, he opened his eyes and turned over to look at me. "What? Go where? Where are we?"

At the moment, I didn't have time to explain. They could come into view at any moment and see us, sitting in this tree like cornered raccoons.

"Let's go," I insisted, tugging at his arm. "We have to find Sanzo."

"Sanzo?" Yawning hugely, Gojyo sat up and looked around. He seemed to recognize where he was, and his expression darkened. "Oh, yeah," he muttered. "This place."

"We'll be out of here shortly as long as we leave now." I began to climb back down the ladder. "Hurry."

Gojyo pocketed his cigarettes and began the descent directly after me. Halfway down, I let go and dropped the rest of the way to the ground, and he landed roughly beside me. I indicated for him to keep quiet, and we crept through the woods, trying to keep to the cover of the trees and bushes as much as we could.

As I snuck along, I tried to think of the best way to get back to Sanzo. Knowing him, he'd probably waited two hours for me to show up before telling himself it was out of his hands for now and returning to bed. I'd lost track of Jeep amidst all the drama, but he'd more than likely returned to Sanzo and Goku as well. Normally, I'd think the smartest course of action would be to leave Gojyo outside of town and reunite with my team mates, and then we could pick him up on our way, and we'd all continue together.

Still, I didn't like the idea of leaving Gojyo to fend for himself, given the circumstances. I was a little afraid he'd let these people kill him simply because he seemed to believe they deserved that.

"Gojyo," I hissed, as we darted in and out of golden patches of light, "I don't expect you to go back into town with me."

The voices seemed to be getting quieter, I thought, but I still couldn't figure out where they were coming from. Had they really spent their entire night searching for him? If so, they were quite determined to find and punish him for something I still didn't fully understand.

My room mate lit his first cigarette of the day. "So what do you want to do?"

"I think the safest thing for you to do is to get as far away from here as you can on foot."

I hesitated, naturally, expecting some objection or joke about how he didn't need protecting and how I needn't worry over him, but here merely nodded.

"As soon as I find Goku and Sanzo, we'll come and pick you up, but I'll feel much better if you get away from here."

Again, I received no more than a complacent nod.

The woods were utterly still now, the voices had silenced, and I hoped that meant the hunters had gone off in some other direction. If Gojyo set out on the road, they wouldn't find him, would they?

I hesitated to study his face. He looked tired and bothered, much more so than usual, and his hair was heavy and wet. "Do you think they'll really try to kill you?"

Goj shrugged. "That's what they said, right?" he husked.

"What are the chances they'll let you off the hook?"

"I don't know," he breathed, sounding as exhausted as he looked, and I wondered if he'd slept poorly. "Not likely, I guess."

That didn't mean they'd kill him. Not necessarily. It was possible they'd thought better of it since the chase first began, but I still didn't want him falling into their hands. I didn't know what he may have done to make them wish to claim his blood, but I didn't dare trust that they'd spare him any kindness, whether they killed him or not.

The idea of Gojyo being at their mercy made my stomach feel sick.

"Well, can you at least promise me that you'll protect yourself, assuming they manage to capture you? You don't have to hurt anyone, if you don't want to, but promise me you won't just stand there and let them punish you for something that happened more than ten years ago."

Gojyo met my gaze with bleary eyes.

"If you don't promise me that," I went on quietly, "I don't know if I'll be able to manage the anxiety brought on by being separated, even if it's not for very long."

"Don't worry, Hakkai," he huffed. "I wouldn't let them kill me, if that's what you mean. I don't wanna hurt them either, but I'm not gonna just stand there and let them do whatever… Not anymore."

I tried my best to smile. "I'm glad to hear that. Well then, perhaps it's best if we part ways now. I don't feel that there's even a moment to lose."

He cracked a feeble grin. "Right? The longer it takes, the more likely Master Sanzo is to leave us both behind. He's got the car, right?"

"I certainly hope so."

"You don't know where Jeep is?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Not precisely, but even if he isn't with Sanzo, he'll come back to me in time. Now hurry up and leave, before they find us."

Gojyo sighed quietly and nodded.

Automatically, I told him, "Even if Sanzo has already left us behind—which I highly doubt—I'll come meet you on the road, and we'll figure out what to do together."

"If you say so, man."

"I'll see you later." I turned to start back toward the town, and he faced the direction of the road. I hesitated though. A few men had emerged from the mist, creeping quietly toward us, still bearing their pitch forks and shovels, and now I saw that several of them were armed with hatchets and crude swords.

I spun around to face Gojyo again, but he hadn't moved. Another group of villagers was approaching from that side as well, with Tanda leading them, a rifle in his hands.

"Well," I muttered. "We waited too long after all."

"We found you," Samuiko cried gleefully, coming in from behind us. He had a rifle as well. "We were worried you might have escaped, but it looks like you were too stupid to run away."

Gojyo looked at me and asked quietly, "What now?"

"If we run they'll shoot us," I answered, feeling my heart begin to race again. I'd been foolish. I should have made him leave the area last night. It had been the peak of idiocy to think we were safe in Jien's tree house.

Tanda had nearly reached us. His red beard blazed in the early morning sun, and his rifle was leveled on Gojyo. His lips smiled, but a fearsome darkness ruled his eyes.

"I don't suppose you'd be willing to let us go," I said carefully. Perhaps I could reason with these people. They were rustic, but surely reason wouldn't escape them completely.

"You can go," he answered stonily. "The people of this village have nothing against you—you're as much a victim of this bastard's curse as anyone else is, I'd imagine."

"Just the opposite in fact. Neither are you, and it would behoove you to simply let him go. We're leaving town anyway."

Tanda shook his head, and he resembled a shaggy bear as he snarled, "Not him. He's coming with us. You can either go back to your friends and forget him, or you can try to interfere and die. It's your choice."

He jabbed Gojyo in the chest with the muzzle of his rifle. "You and Jien were always tough boys, but not even you can dodge a bullet, so why don't you just come along quietly?"

"Where're going?" Gojyo drawled.

A certain fire filled Tanda's eyes, and his expression blazed with animosity and triumph. "To see Maddi."

Gojyo stiffened at those words, and his breath hitched, his eyes darkened, and he turned slowly to me.

I had no idea what to say. In addition to not knowing who Maddi was, I knew there was nothing I could do to save Gojyo's life in this particular moment. If I tried to attack, they'd shoot him. Perhaps though, if I bided my time and kept my eyes open for an opportunity, I'd find some way to get him out of this. He didn't want me to kill these people, so I would refrain for as long as I could. Not if they hurt him though. If they hurt him, I'd see to it that they regretted it for what short amount of time they had left to live.

"Come on then." I laid my hand on his shoulder, and I hoped he knew I would protect him, even if it's not what he wanted. "Let's go see Maddi."

We marched back into town, side by side, with Tanda leading the way, and Samuiko walking behind us, his rifle constantly pointed at Gojyo's back. Neither of us said a word the whole way there, and I thought hard about what I should try to do. If that opportunity to save Gojyo from this never came, I would always regret not doing more, regardless of what happened after he was gone.

Our party hadn't been on the road a terribly long time yet, but I couldn't imagine going on to India without my best friend; we'd chosen to do this together, and with that decision had come the unspoken promise that we would watch each other's backs along the way. The notion of failure so early on in the mission was too weighty for me to bear, and I thought all the harder of what my options might be in this situation.

Tanda led us up the main road a little ways, and people set their breakfasts aside for a minute or two to come to their doors or porches or windows to watch us go by. I heard them murmuring, and I knew most, if not all of them knew by this time who Gojyo was.

It might have seemed like nothing more than an unfortunate coincidence to them at first, that another hanyou had found his way into their town, but surely many of them had known who he was at the very beginning—it hadn't been that long since he'd left, and his appearance hadn't changed too drastically, and even if it had, I was sure he still bore a resemblance to his brother and his parents, all of whom these people had known—the town was simply too small for them not to find out that Sha Gojyo had returned.

I chanced a look at him. Even though he held his head high and endured the walk with bravery, his eyes were tortured, and his mouth was twisted by pain. I knew he'd never intended to come back here. Maybe he'd known it would go this way.

We hadn't gone too far when Tanda turned us down a smaller, less-traveled road, into a neighborhood that grew shabbier and shabbier as we went. Some of the homes we passed were little more than hovels, and the yards were overgrown. The trees and shrubbery needed to be pruned. Children played barefoot in the dirt, and young housewives with bruised faces toted babies on their hips, looking at our procession with terror-filled eyes. Most of the houses appeared to be abandoned completely, with their windows broken out and their doors hanging off their hinges.

Samuiko leaned over Gojyo's shoulder, hissing, "You know where we're going, don't you, Gojyo-chan? You'd be stupid not to realize."

"Looks even crappier than the last time I was here," Gojyo grumbled with half-hearted mockery.

Samuiko just laughed. "A lot has happened since then. It's never been the nicest part of town though, I know that. Jien and I grew up here together."

I glanced back at him with vague interest. "You and Jien were close, I take it?"

"As close as a human and youkai can be." His eyes shone nastily and he suddenly nudged Gojyo with the butt of his gun. "Well, not as close as this bastard's parents, but let's not get into that."

Silently, I watched the houses pass by, wondering which one we were going to stop in front of.

As it turned out, it wasn't until we'd reached the very end of the lane, and the woods spread out before us on both sides, that we finally arrived at our destination.

The house was larger than most of those around it, but it had fallen into utter decay. It stood two stories, and every window was boarded up, its paint was chipping, and the roof sagged. The small porch was falling apart. A towering oak tree grew just outside, and a small tire swing rocked back and forth in the wind there. The grass sprouted up to my waist in many places, overpowering the small path that led from the front door to the road. Beyond the house, and on all sides except the one facing the street, the forest encroached, the line between civilization and nature very weak, a place where wildness and domestication existed side by side.

The woman we'd seen last night waited on the side of the road, watching our group approach with strict posture, head lifted high, long skirts rustling in the breeze. Her chiseled face and high forehead were white like marble, her eyes like obsidian, and again I thought she might have been very beautiful once, had not the lines of age, misery, and severity done their part to ruin her natural charms.

Tanda stopped just in front of her and tipped his head. She nodded in return.

"Here he is, Maddi-san," he said coldly. "Your bastard nephew."

My heart skipped a beat at that word. I had never thought Gojyo had any living relations outside of Jien—a naïve part of me had assumed he'd be with them if he did, just like I might be with mine if I had any—and at first I wasn't sure she could honestly be the woman we'd seen last night. She'd given the order to have him killed.

Maddi stepped forward, regarding Gojyo with the utmost disdain. "Well, well," she cooed in an icy tone. "You're the same age your mother was when she died. I never thought you'd live so long."

Gojyo stared back at her, mouth half-open like he wanted to say something and couldn't.

She cupped his scarred cheek. "I heard how Lady Sha treated you. It filled me with such relief to think she'd sponge out your life eventually, though I'm sure it was a torturous affair for her, living under the same roof as the bastard hanyou of her husband and his lover."

"Lady Sha suffered more than anyone thanks to this little shit," Samuiko agreed, his tone finally sullen with rage.

Maddi turned her unfeeling gaze on me next. "I'm sorry, onisan, we haven't had the pleasure."

"My name is Cho Hakkai," I answered numbly, too distracted by this scene to remember my manners.

Maddi lifted her chin all the higher, nodding imperiously, "And do you know, Hakkai-san, why we're here today?"

I hesitated to look around, up at the house again, and around at our captors, and into my room mate's brooding expression. "I've no idea, obasan."

"We're here for the trial, of course," she answered serenely. "I apologize that you've gotten tangled up in it, but I think you'll make a reasonable judge. You see," she clasped her hands together in front of her and paced away, head bowed in contemplation, "I believe my nephew deserves to die for the crimes he's committed. But this is a civilized world, isn't it? It will be good to have an outsider's perspective."

I looked hard at Gojyo again. He'd told me precious little about his childhood, and his recount of the day he left this town had been vague—"She tried to kill me, but Jien stopped her, and then he left, so I ran away." He could have left things out of course. He would have known I wasn't going to pressure him into telling me more. It wasn't impossible he had committed crimes here before running away. But still. A twelve-year-old? What could he have done that merited being killed now, ten years later? "What is going on?" I demanded. "What did you do?"

He merely jerked his head, continuing to stare at the stately figure of his maternal aunt.

Maddi came back to us. "We shall hear from several plaintiffs this morning. I have little hope that anything you say will change our minds concerning this matter, Hakkai-san, but you're welcome to try. I'll begin.

She looked at me, and then at the others. "As most of you know, when I was thirty years old, my younger sister took her own life, alongside her youkai lover, Master Sha. Up until that point, she had hidden, even from me, her pregnancy and the infant spawned by their taboo affair. For many years since then, I have berated myself, thinking myself an unfit sister for having not noticed, but then I didn't live in this town at the time.

"When I came back for the funeral, I was presented with the child. Elder Tantra—Tanda-san's own father—informed me that I was the next of kin and that the boy was my responsibility from that point on."

An outraged murmur rippled through the crowd.

Maddi chose to clarify regardless. "The fiend that stole my sister, that at such a young age had already spilled so much blood, that was fitted with such a dreadful curse—my responsibility. Elder Tantra made it clear I was expected to take the beast into my home and nurture it like my own. He said that, despite the appalling nature of the task, it was what my sister would have wanted.

"I disagree though." She leveled a vicious gaze on Gojyo, and a sneer played her thin lips. "My sister loved her son so much she slit her own wrists and left this world. Why should I think she would expect me, or anyone, to bear the responsibility of his evil nature?"

Gojyo's shoulders slumped.

I stared at her, bewildered by the monologue, and glanced around again, wondering if I should argue the absurdity of it.

Before I could, Samuiko began, lifting his voice for all to hear, "My name is Shunda Samuiko, son of the late Shunda Ramiko. I've lived in this town all my life and I've seen the curse Maddi-san's talking about first-hand. I grew up with Sha Jien. We were playmates in school from kindergarten up until the day he died."

His voice fell, ringing with despair. "Jien was a good man—the best man—the greatest friend anyone could ever ask for. We did everything together, and I loved him like a brother. When we were very young, we were even neighbors, and our parents always laughed about how inseparable we were. When I was ten, Jien suddenly had to move here, to this disgusting part of town." He bared his teeth as he looked around the neighborhood, like it was despicable to even see it. "He wouldn't tell me why, and for many weeks I didn't see him at all.

"Slowly though, the truth came to light: Jien's father was dead, and his mother was in a bad state over it. Poor Lady Sha." He sighed deeply. "For as long as I knew her, she was a sweet, gentle, beautiful woman, and she was always kind to me. She loved Jien more than anything.

"But after Master Sha died, Elder Tantra saddled her with this freak of nature." He shoved Gojyo's shoulders with his rifle. "I still don't understand why Elder Tantra would do that—she had no relation to him. If Maddi-san didn't want him we should have drowned him in the river; I wish we had. Ever since that day, the Sha family had nothing but hardship and despair. Jien started failing in school, and he barely had any time for his friends or for girls even. Eventually, he dropped out altogether. Lady Sha was sick and couldn't work. She holed up in this filthy place, tending to the thing that was responsible for it all, raising it, like a reed warbler raising a cuckoo, putting all her energy and sanity into trying to do the right thing."

His voice rose with anger, and he had to hesitate a moment to compose himself, sweeping his thick, black hair away from his forehead and taking a deep breath while the crowd murmured, in their rustic, uneducated way, about brood parasitism.

When he went on, he sounded calmer, but no less angry. "Before I knew it, Jien was missing—presumed dead—my closest friend. Gone, just like that."

The crowd whispered their sympathy, and another young man clasped Samuiko's shoulder comfortingly.

I waited for his story to continue, thinking there could yet be some purpose in it, but instead, Tanda started speaking. "You all know me, of course—Master Tanda, your village head. I've lived here all my life as well—forty-seven years—and although I've only spent nine of them serving as the leader here, I know to listen when my people cry for justice.

"I knew the Sha family well. I knew Maddi-san's sister. The Sha's were respected in this town, for generations back. Even though they were youkai, they were still hard-working, peace-loving, and generous. Master Sha was known for his wild side, of course, and for a streak of irresponsibility, but he was well-loved, and I never expected this level of debauchery from him. Madame Sha was, as has already been stated, sweet and ladylike. Their son was handsome, intelligent, and worthy. Maddi-san's sister was a compassionate and loving girl. None of them deserved to die. None of them deserved to be murdered."

"Murdered?" I demanded out loud, but he ignored me and kept going.

"On the day I was called here to the scene of Madame Sha's murder, I could hardly believe my eyes. I could hardly believe something so despicable could have been done to her. But then…" he looked angrily at Gojyo, spitting, "I always knew nothing could good come of this demon's birth."

Furiously, I grabbed my roommate's arm and hissed in his ear, "Aren't you going to stand up to any of these…" allegations wasn't the right word. I wasn't even sure he was being accused of anything. "It's absurd!"

Gojyo just mumbled, "They won't listen to me."]

Tanda gestured to the house. "For those of you who might have the stomach for it, I'd like to go inside now and examine the evidence.

Behind me, someone in the crowd chirped, "But Tanda! No one's set foot in that house since Lady Sha was killed! It's…it's cursed ground!"

The rest of the crowd sputtered and complained about that, professing similar fears. You'd think there was a portal straight to hell under Gojyo's childhood house.

"I'm not asking anyone to go with me," Tanda shouted over the din. "If you're all too afraid, I'll take the accused inside and show him the evidence myself."

"I'll go," Samuiko announced. "I'm not afraid."

He and Tanda each seized one of Gojyo's arms, but he resisted them for the first time all morning. "No way I'm going in there!" he growled.

Samuiko laughed. "What are you scared of? The curse can't hurt you."

Gojyo glared at him. "I'm the only one it ever has hurt."

"There's no curse!" I cried, but my words fell on deaf ears.

Several young men dragged Gojyo toward the house, though he fought every step of the way, and Tanda and Maddi led them, calmly.

I followed after, determined that I had to do something. I had to get to the bottom of this. I had to at least uncover what it was they meant by bring up these strange accounts of Gojyo's dead family.

Tanda kicked the door down, and Samuiko threw Gojyo inside, knocking him to the floor. I stepped in immediately afterward, helping him up and glancing around with intrigue. By all appearances, it was a normal house, though it was dilapidated and threadbare. I saw no sign of carpeting on any of the floors, and it had very little furniture. Thick, dusty curtains blocked light from coming in, and it bore an odor of mildew now. The stairs leading to the second floor appeared treacherous, their wood worn away and smooth. I realized it had been empty for an entire decade, but I got the feeling it had never been a very welcoming or homey place.

When Gojyo got to his feet, he lowered his eyes immediately, refusing to look around for even a moment. I kept my grip on his arm and whispered again, "Why are they doing this?"

He wouldn't answer.

Tanda strode to the other side of the living room, along with Maddi, and Samuiko and the other man shoved Gojyo across to them.

"Look there," Tanda pointed at the floor.

I made my way to stand with them, squinting down at the partially rotted floorboards. I could just make out a large patch of blood, turned brown by the years. My heart pounded, and I faced Gojyo again, but he wouldn't look back at me, or at anyone else.

"Look," Tanda insisted, and Samuiko jerked Gojyo's head up by his hair. "Do you see, boy? Do you remember how she laid there? She was a mother to you in everything but blood—blood you spilled by your own hands. Do you remember the way it felt to steal her life away, you fiend? You monster!"

Gojyo stared at the stain, teeth gritted, face twisted by horror. He shuddered, and I knew he was reliving a terrible memory. He tried to jerk away, but Samuiko and the others held him.

"What in the world is anyone talking about?" I demanded, utterly out of patience for this sham of a trial. "What are you even getting at, bringing us in here and talking about monsters?"

Tanda knelt beside the stain, brushing his fingers over it reverently. "She was dead several days before anyone found her, but this is where Madame Sha breathed her last. When they brought me here, the maggots had already started their work, and we found a sword and axe lying with her."

Gojyo tried to pull out of their grips again, but they held him firmly.

Tanda stood up and faced him heartlessly. "Sha Gojyo, you've come back here and been given your chance to confess the crime, so you may as well take it. Tell us the truth. Tell us about how you murdered your mother and brother—butchered one body, hid the other—and fled like a coward. They may have only been youkai, but they were members of this town, and they raised you when no one else wanted you! This was your thanks, was it? Killing them in cold blood? Out of your perverted lust for brutality?"

"And my sister," Maddi-san reminded us loudly. "You took her life as well, your father's life. You ripped their lives right out of this earth the way you ripped the entrails of Lady Sha out of her body. Admit it!"

Gojyo mumbled, "I did not. I didn't do any of that…"

"Tell them!" I shouted, stepping to the head of the group and facing him all the more seriously. "Tell them the truth!"

"Even your ally implores you to make the confession," Maddi told him with a note of pleasure. "Listen to him."

"You witch," I turned on her. "You shut your poisonous mouth!" She drew herself up, sniffing, and I looked at Gojyo again, pleading, "Tell them what really happened. Tell them how she tried to kill you!"

He was gone though. I could see in his expression and posture that he'd utterly checked out. Perhaps the trauma of the memories he found in this place were too terrible for him to face. He merely murmured under his breath, "Hakkai…I didn't…"

Angrier than ever, I faced Tanda and Maddi instead. "What evidence did you bring us in here to look at? This pool of blood that dried up ten years ago? What evidence is there that Gojyo killed anyone?"

"As I said, there was a sword and hatchet close at hand. Lady Sha was dead already, Sha Jien had vanished."

"So you assumed a twelve-year-old boy murdered them both and fled? You jumped to an asinine conclusion like, and they still made you the head of this village?" I laughed at the thought.

Tanda's eyes darkened. "Twelve-year-old demons can commit their share of heinous acts, and the curse of the Children of Taboo is something we've bore first-hand witness to."

"It's true," Samukio spoke up. "All through Gojyo's childhood I saw it. I saw how bad things happened to the people closest to him. I saw how the curse fed off the lives of Jien and his mother. I'd stake my life on it."

I whirled around to face him. "Well then you're a fool as well. There's no curse. It's a fairy tale made up by rustic fools like yourselves to scare children!"

"Hakkai-san," Tanda said with a fatherly note. "Maddi-san named you a witness to her nephew's character, so you have your chance to speak, but we do expect honesty, and we won't tolerate disrespect."

"Disrespect," I spat. "I've never seen such a disrespectful group of people. Dragging him in here to this place where that bitch tried to kill him. It's heartless!"

Their expressions dropped into disgusted frowns. "Lady Sha was a good and gentle woman," Samuiko argued.

"Perhaps to your face," I snapped. "Oh, yes, I'm sure that when you came by for cookies and milk back in grade school she was always kind to you. You want to discuss monsters, do you? Fiends? That good and gentle woman attacked her own stepson with a hatchet of all things!"

They shook their heads and mumbled.

Desperately, I turned to my room mate. "Gojyo, tell them!"

He still wore that horrified expression, like he'd fallen into a nightmare he couldn't wake up from. I'd have to convince them on my own.

"She spent his entire childhood abusing him," I said as calmly as I could. "In a small place like this, you must have noticed that. I refuse to believe no one saw the evidence of that, though it does sicken me that you chose to look the other way. You talk of justice, but one of the denizens you say you're bound to protect suffered brutalization under this very roof, and you did nothing! Do you deny that?"

They exchanged looks, but Tanda's voice was sickeningly apathetic, "The hanyou was hers to treat however she wanted. She did her duty clothing him and feeding him, but I didn't expect her to waste any kindness on him. Even my father didn't expect that."

My stomach twisted with hatred, but I merely faced Samuiko. "Did Jien feel that way as well? He of all people had the right to say what he thought of that. He was Gojyo's next of kin, not her."

Samuiko gaped at me and took a moment to answer. He chanced a look at Gojyo, and his voice faltered. "Jien always acted like he loved the abomination. That's what he told me."

"Did they spend much time together?" I asked, half-sarcastically.

Again, he paused, but he nodded. "Jien spent more time with that evil brat than he did with anyone else. Gojyo was always tagging along everywhere." He glared at Gojyo, like that too was a crime.

"Why would Gojyo kill him? Tell me that. Literally the only person he had in this world who cared for him…or who was willing to provide for him… Why would he take it into his head one day to kill him?"

Samuiko's expression hardened further. "The same reason he killed any of the others, I figure. He's a hanyou—a hateful, perversity of nature."

"Well then can you tell me how? Jien was a swordsman, wasn't he? Every account of him I've heard has told me he was a warrior. And he was much older than Gojyo. Can you explain how an abused child managed to strike down what was essentially a grown man, drag away his body, and hide it?"

Samuiko merely repeated, "He's a hanyou."

I gave up on him and faced Maddi-san instead, feeling rather desperate. "You say you're not from this town. I hope that means you have more sense than he does. How can you blame an infant for the death of your sister? Where's the logic in that?"

Unfortunately, her cold response was just as illogical. "My sister lost her will to live after she birthed this abomination. If he'd never been born, I know she'd still be alive today."

"Are you all mad!?" I screamed. "You're telling me an infant intentionally drove both his parents to suicide, and then killed what little family he still had as soon as he was old enough? You're telling me he has some evil powers that might have even helped him in that?"

They only snorted and scowled, like I was the fool for not seeing it their way.

"Gojyo," I grabbed my friend's shoulders and shook him, "Gojyo listen to me. You have to tell them what happened that day. Tell them how she tried to kill you!"

He stayed frozen, eyes fixed, unblinking, on the aged pool of blood at his feet.

I brushed the hair away from his face to reveal the scars. "See this?" I snapped at Tanda. "She did this that same day. She did her best to tear him limb from limb, and when she failed she got an axe of all things. She fully meant to hack him to pieces with it as far as I know—a child! As for Jien, he's alive. I saw him not long ago. Gojyo didn't kill anyone!"

Tanda asked calmly, "Well then how did Madame Sha die?"

"How? You're not able to deduce that on your own? Well, Tanda-san, tell me, if you stumbled into the room and found someone on the verge of murdering your little brother, what would you do? Samuiko-san already told us Jien loved Gojyo. If you found her dead, and both brothers gone, where do you suppose Jien went? Obviously, Jien's the one who—"

Gojyo clawed my wrist, digging his fingers into my skin so viciously it hurt, and I stopped short.

He was finally looking at me, a silent plea shining in his eyes.

I hissed at him, "You'd rather die than tell them what really happened? He's not ever coming back here."

"He still could if he wanted," Gojyo whispered.

"You're as insane as they are! I half-think you must believe you're guilty of this nonsense as well!"

"Yeah, well maybe they're—"

"Don't you dare," I snarled darkly. "Don't you dare tell me you're responsible for the deaths of all the people who were ever supposed to love and protect you. Don't."

With that, I looked at Tanda again. "It's utter madness to think a child could be responsible for these deaths. As I said, Sha Jien is alive and well. You'll have to use what little powers of deduction you were granted to understand what happened to his mother. Furthermore, this trial is tedious, and we have companions waiting on us. We'd like to leave your wretched town as quickly as possible, so tell me what I can do to convince you to let us go."

Tanda shrugged. "You're free to go at any time, Cho Hakkai. I told you that already."

"I'm not leaving without Gojyo. Do you understand? So you either tell me what I can do to resolve this peacefully, or I'll find another way to resolve it."

He exchanged long glances with Maddi-san. She replied, "I named you a witness, remember? Coming here and shouting your own biased opinions about what took place in this house ten years ago won't save your hanyou—"

"He's not my hanyou," I spat. "Don't speak to me as if I own him. He's my friend. My best friend."

Her eyebrow quivered in ill-concealed disapproval. "The only thing you can do now to have any hope of changing our minds is to give us an account of his character. You don't seem to believe he could have done this, even though you weren't here at the time of the murder. Why is that?"

"If you knew him at all," I answered bitingly, "if you'd done your duty as his aunt, if any of you had been willing to overlook what type of blood runs in his veins and actually spent time with him, we wouldn't be having this discussion at all! He's been my closest friend, my house mate, and my traveling companion for nearly four years now, and I know him with thrice the amount of intimacy that any of you ever will, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he didn't kill anyone. He's not even capable of what you're accusing him of."

They all just stared at me without emotions, and I knew I wasn't getting through to them.

I insisted, "All of you have said the same things about his family. You said they were all kind, compassionate, good people; you said that whether they were human or youkai didn't matter. You must have cared for them if you're willing to go through this—they must have inspired loyalty and affection in all of you." I turned to his aunt. "Maddi-san, your sister… I'll never meet her, but in my heart I know she must have been a beautiful and sweet woman, because I know her son. If you could look into his eyes and see something other than blood, I know you'd find her there." Maddi turned to study Gojyo, and I thought her expression softened ever so slightly. "You should have taken him," I insisted. "You shouldn't have let a cruel woman half-mad from grief trample him the way you did. But you can't take it back now, so you may as well spare him further injustice and let him leave."

Next, I looked at Samuiko. "You say Sha Jien was your best friend. Believe me I understand what it's like to love your best friend—it can't be defined by anything the human tongue knows, because it isn't romance, or brotherhood. It's very much like finding a half of yourself you didn't even realize you'd been missing. I'm sorry Jien had to leave you behind—there are a lot of people Jien shouldn't have left behind—but Jien's the only one who cared about Gojyo, and he's the only one who put any effort into raising him properly. I assure you, the best qualities Jien had—bravery and loyalty and compassion—were instilled into his brother before they had to part ways. I know he has them too, because they saved my very life."

Samuiko just stared at me, his lips parted, like he could hardly believe what he was hearing.

Finally, I looked at Tanda. "You're in charge here, and I respect that. Judging by your age, you knew Gojyo's father as a peer. For all I know, you were friends. You yourself remarked that even though Sha-san was rambunctious and irresponsible, he was well-loved. His less honorable attributes were forgivable, because he could always make you laugh, and he made you forget how awful life can be, and you knew if you needed him he'd be there, without asking questions or complaining, and you knew that when he did his best, it would be worth ten responsible, serious, hardworking men."

Tanda gaped as well. "You…did you know him…?"

I touched Gojyo's shoulder. "I'm not a betting man, but I would be willing to bet you money that Gojyo's twice as rambunctious, twice as annoying, and twice as valuable as his father was. The only reason none of us will ever know is because he let his irresponsibility get the best of him and died, abandoning the son who needed him the most, and that's something Gojyo would never do.

"You see," I softened my voice. "Unlike his father, and brother, and mother, Gojyo doesn't leave behind the people who need him. I know that because I need him. I'd like it very much if you'd drop these ridiculous charges and let us go, but if you won't then please be aware: I would die for this man, and what's more I would kill for him."

Everyone stared at me. They glanced at each other at intervals, but they stayed utterly silent. At last, Tanda demanded quietly, "You're honestly asking us to let this murderer go? To allow him to get away with these crimes?"

"If I can't convince you he didn't do it with everything I just said, I very much doubt I can in any other way, but I must reiterate that these charges are absurd. Sha Jien killed his mother when she attempted to slaughter Gojyo with a hatchet, and then he vanished, and Gojyo's been looking for him ever since."

Under my hand, Gojyo jerked and snarled, "I said not to tell them that."

I merely smiled. "To me, that makes a great deal more sense, don't you think? After all, you all know she was abusive, and that Jien loved his brother. Is it really so hard to believe that things escalated? You can't blame him for any of that, because he would have rather died than let it happen. What you're doing here isn't justice, it's cruel."

I'd presented the soundest, most heartfelt argument I could muster, but still I feared they wouldn't listen. This wasn't a murder trial after all; he was being punished for being a hanyou. I stared down at the bloodstain momentarily, and I wished I'd been here that day. I wished I could have made the so-called Lady Sha suffer for what she did.

Tanda drew me out of my thoughts, saying, "This is all a lot to think about, I'm sure you'll agree. Take the hanyou to the town prison, and I'll talk things over with the elders. In the morning, we'll have our decision."

Samuiko and the others tried to jerk Gojyo away, but I kept my grip on him, asking, "What decision is that, Tanda-san?"

"Whether he's innocent or guilty, of course." He smiled a little. "Whether he's to be absolved or executed."

"You may as well let him go now," I warned ferociously. "If you decide on anything other than absolution, I'll kill everyone in this town."

Tanda chuckled. "If it comes to that, we may have to kill you too then, Hakkai-san. I'm sorry for that. I did give you the opportunity to walk away."

I clenched my fists, watching them for any sign of movement, looking for my chance to strike.

Sanzo appeared next to me out of nowhere, looking charismatic and composed, if not a little angry. He had his gun in hand. "Trying to kill either of these bastards would be a mistake, but threatening Hakkai…that takes balls."

Goku arrived next, standing beside Gojyo like he'd always been there, twirling his bo. "Yeah!" he laughed. "You must really wanna get your butt kicked, ass-face." With two strikes of his bo, he beat Samuiko to the ground and knocked the other man unconscious.

"What's it going to be? Life?" Sanzo cocked his pistol and aimed it at Tanda. "Or death?"

I practically shook with anticipation. After enduring that farce of a trial and hearing all the terrible, slanderous things they had to say about Gojyo, I would truly enjoy forcing them to eat those words. They thought they could get away with belittling and threatening him, but I wouldn't allow that. As soon as Sanzo's gun went off, I would finish these self-righteous savages with my own two hands.

Tanda and Maddi's faces both paled as they watched us. "You're fools," Tanda hissed, clutching his rifle tighter. "You're outnumbered." But I knew Sanzo would have him down before he could squeeze the trigger, and then Goku and I would annihilate the others. We'd tear this town down if we had to, and we'd leave it in the dust. We'd—

With a heavy sigh, Gojyo stepped in front of us and scraped at his hair. "Forget it, guys."

The three of us studied him. I started to object, "Gojyo, these people want to punish you for all the events that ruined your life." I thought perhaps he didn't understand, seeing how he'd all but gone into a coma once we entered the house.

Gojyo nodded and lit a cigarette, filling the room with smoke. "I know. And the four of us are more than enough to take them all down and rip this place apart."

Tanda stiffened at those words, and stubborn violence filled his eyes.

"If it's because this is where you grew up," I said carefully, "we don't have to raze it completely."

He raised one eyebrow at me, reminding me, suddenly, that I was being rather violent. I was acting more like Gonou than Hakkai. "Nah, it's not that. Nobody wishes this place could get scraped off the map more than I do. It's just…" he shrugged, "We've got more important shit to do."

"That's true," Sanzo said under his breath.

"For all we know, a band of youkai will come along tomorrow and tear it all down anyway, and that's the kinda shit we're trying to stop, isn't it?"

"Enemies are enemies," I said coldly.

Gojyo nodded and seemed to think about that, and then he just shrugged in that maddeningly flippant way of his. "Nobody ruined my life, Hakkai. I just got dealt a hand the same way everybody else did, and I played it and got what I could out of the pot. If these people wanna be mad at me forever for that, that's cool. I don't have time to worry about what they think, 'cause if I wanted to get my panties in a bunch every time some fuck-job came along and called me some racial slur and blamed me for everything that's ever gone wrong in their life, I'd just be a nervous wreck anyway, and I wouldn't have any of the shit I have now."

"They want to kill you," I insisted, but my argument was getting weaker and weaker.

"I know. And I know you won't let them. We don't have to slaughter all of them just because we can."

My shoulders slumped under those words. That's who I was, wasn't it? Killing people because I had the strength to… That was the behavior I'd been trying to run from, but I couldn't change the fact that it was part of me. It was true I wouldn't let them kill him, but did listening to them call him names and blame him for things he hadn't done really merit destroying them all? I guess it didn't…

Gojyo slung his arm around my shoulder and started to lead me toward the door, "Can we go now? I can't stand in this fuckin' house for one more goddamn second."

"Yes," I murmured. "By all means…"

The four of us filed out of the house. Sanzo tucked his gun away, and Goku let his bo vanish back into thin air. As soon as we stepped back into the sunshine, Jeep swept down from the roof, cheering, and landed lightly on my shoulder, nuzzling my ear. I petted him and greeted him quietly, and then we turned around to face Tanda and his party as they emerged as well, Samuiko rubbing his head and helping his comrade Goku had knocked out. The rest of the crowd lingered on the road, and I knew we were still in a precarious position.

"Are you going to give us trouble?" Sanzo demanded. "Or can we go?"

"This is a gross obstruction of justice," Tanda complained. "I can hardly believe a priest would behave this way."

"There's no justice in killing stupid kids for shit their parents did," Sanzo replied smoothly. "I have a bullet for everyone who tries it."

Tanda threw his hands in the air. "Fine. If you're all that willing to sacrifice yourselves and the lives of perfectly decent, full-blooded human beings for that monstrosity, then fine, you may as well—"

I struck him in the face so hard with my elbow it shattered his nose and knocked his front teeth out of his head. He hit the ground like a rock. The others around me jolted and screamed as they watched their leader writhe on the ground, but I just snarled, "I'll never wonder again why you have such poor manners, Gojyo—this town is full of nothing but rude people."

Gojyo snorted. "Tanda's always been a jackass."

I kicked Tanda in the side and spat, "If I had the time, I would break every single one of your extremities until you apologized."

Tanda sputtered through blood.

"Hakkai," Sanzo said caustically, "don't make this harder than it has to be."

I looked up to see some of the villagers starting toward us nervously, like frightened sheep deciding to fight or not.

"Very well," I turned and began to walk again, grabbing Gojyo's arm as I went, but he stayed where he was, and I looked questioningly at him.

He turned back to Maddi and Samuiko and took a drag off his cigarette. "You don't have to believe me, Samuiko, but Jien's still alive. He's in love and shit, so I doubt he'll ever come back, but he's out there. I know you guys were buddies, and I know he probably misses you."

Samuiko lowered his eyes, ashamed of his appalling behavior I hoped.

Next, Gojyo looked at Maddi-san, that pained wince once again returning to his face. "Obasan…"

She drew herself up.

He strained toward her, like he wished he could reach out to her. "I'm sorry…I'm sorry about your sister, Obasan…" His voice fell to a whisper, "Nobody…wishes she was still alive…as much as I do…"

Those words touched the wounds inside my soul like a hot iron. To hear him of all people to say something so honest and poignant broke my heart, and I couldn't help remembering the people I had lost myself. I touched him, and he swung his arm over my shoulders, and we leaned against each other.

Maddi moved forward suddenly, something affected suddenly brightening her black eyes, and she reached toward him.

Gojyo flinched back in surprise, but she brushed the hair out of his eyes and cupped his cheek with a petite hand, and then she spent several moments staring into his face, while he looked back at her, half shocked and half-afraid. Her expression refused to flinch, as if she truly were searching his eyes for someone she had lost.

Finally, she whispered, "I'm the one who's sorry, boy. I was so hurt over her death…I didn't give her son the chance he deserved." She glanced at me. "Your friend made me realize that." She stroked his scars, and her voice turned unexpectedly sweet, "It was wrong of me to blame you. Of course it wasn't your fault, oi-chan. Of course it wasn't. Your mother was full of love—of course she loved you. She would have wanted me to love you, and I failed her. I failed you both. If I can't blame you, I shall never understand why she took her life, but that's no reason to make the fault yours. For all I know, it was my own lack of empathy that drove her to it…" Suddenly, she spun to face Tanda, who was just getting to his feet again. "I drop my charges. I suggest you drop yours also—there's not an evil bone in this boy's body."

With that, she picked up her skirts and glided away without so much as a goodbye, pushed through the crowd, and marched up the street.

Gojyo stared after her a long time, but I looked again at Tanda.

He mopped blood from his beard and waved us off. "All right, get out of here then. Take your friend and go."

"Thank you terribly," I said dryly, and then I gripped Gojyo's arm and led him away from the house. The crowd parted as we stepped through them, looking incredulous. Several voiced their objections, but no one was brave enough to stop us, and the four of us passed through without incident, turned back onto the road, and made our way through town, heading toward the western road.

By and by, Goku said, "Hey, we got outta that without a fight."

"Better enjoy it while you can," Sanzo snorted, lighting a cigarette, "it's probably the last time it'll happen."

"They were only humans," I said, drawing a deep breath and attempting to calm myself. Even though we'd avoided bloodshed, it had been a harrowing experience. It could have easily turned to violence, and unlikely as it had been, the possibility that it could have taken Gojyo's life did exist. I looked at him, but his face was impassive, as if he'd never been in danger.

Goku looked at him too. He opened his mouth several times, but stopped. When he eventually found his tongue, he asked, "So this's where you grew up?"

Gojyo jerked his head.

Sanzo berated him, "You could have saved us all this trouble if you'd just said something the second you realized where we were."

Gojyo accepted that without comment.

"Yeah," Goku agreed, but quietly, and I knew his sentiments were more compassionate than annoyed. "Why didn't ya tell us?"

"Dunno," Gojyo mumbled at last. "I didn't know it was gonna be such a big deal."

Obviously it was a lie. Goku frowned at him, but I shook my head, quietly advising him not to push it, and then he turned to Sanzo instead. "What're we gonna do about stocking up on supplies?"

Sanzo sighed, deeply. "Personally, I don't care to waste any more time in this dump." He looked at me. "What are the chances we have enough food to make it to our next stop?"

"Well, we're running rather low, unfortunately. And, you may remember, I'm not sure of our precise location, so I don't know with any certainty where our next stop will be. I think it's likely that if we don't purchase some essentials here we'll find ourselves in an uncomfortable predicament."

"What?" Goku squawked. "Ya mean we're gonna go hungry?"

"I doubt that's acceptable," I answered with a laugh. "We might be able to forage berries and roots, but nothing substantial."

"San-zooo!" he whined, turning to our leader. "What're we gonna do! Hakkai says we're gonna starve!"

"Hakkai didn't say that," Sanzo muttered.

"Yeah he did! Ya gotta know how ta read between the lines with that guy!"

Sanzo and I both hesitated to look down at him, our surprised looks mirroring one another.

Goku jerked his chin at Gojyo. "That's what the kappa says."

"Well…" I allowed after a brief pause. "I suppose there is a certain amount of implication that goes into what I say… Still, Goku, I don't think we're going to starve necessarily, just that we won't be able to eat our fill."

"It's the same thing to Goku," Sanzo said quietly, and then he sighed again, all the more exasperated. "Fine. We're in town. We might as well take the opportunity while we have it." He met my eyes again.

Automatically, I told him, "I'd rather not, Sanzo. I've had more than my fill of this place."

"Did I say anything about you? I was going to say the monkey and I can go pick up a few essentials while you wait for us outside of town."

It was so unlike him to take any such common chore upon himself, it took me several seconds to decide on a reply. The idea was a relief to me, that Gojyo and I could get out of here before Tanda changed his mind, but I tried to maintain an accommodating disposition. "You don't have to Sanzo. I'm sure it wouldn't take me long to procure the things we can't do without."

He shook his head. "We don't need any more difficulty, and if you stay here I'm sure you'll wind up killing somebody."

I did feel close to the edge, even now. I looked at Gojyo, but he stared straight ahead, pretending not to notice, and by all appearances acting as if he were somewhere else entirely. If nothing else, I knew he needed to leave.

"Very well." I dug out my shopping list and handed it to Sanzo. "These are the things we need, in descending order of necessity."

He took the scrap of paper, arching his eyebrows at it, but my friends had long ago gotten used to my level of efficiency, so he said nothing about it. He agreed to take Goku and get the most important items, saying they'd meet us in no more than an hour, on the western outskirts of town, and then the four of us parted ways.