Ooooh, child, things are gonna get easier

[erogappa]

Who: Gojyo and Sharak and Hakkai and guns and the rooster
What: Reunion shenanigans
When: /shrug
Where: Temple Aditi
Warnings: Violence, threats, poor life choices, probably graphic descriptions of amputation


Mind made up, Gojyo finds a temple and transports himself back to heaven.

It's been a chaotic couple of days, that's for damn sure. He holds his right arm -- or what's left of it -- carefully against his side. The end of the stump has been professional sutured and heavily bandaged, but he's still cautious about anything or anyone touching it. It hurts. A lot. The doc had tried to give him pain killers -- fat white pills in mismatched bottles, at least one of which had had a horse silhouette on the label -- but he'd refused. He needed to be sober while dealing with the mess in Japan, and he sure as hell wants to be sober when dealing with the mess here.

There's no goddamn way he's going to be loopy when facing Sharak.

Rounding the bend in the road, the temple slowly comes into view, and something in his chest eases. He'd called this place home back a thousand years ago, and it's still true. Home is where you go when you've got nowhere else to turn, home is where they yell at you because they care for you. Home is where your responsibilities lie.

His step gets lighter -- it's the middle of the night, he's exhausted and in pain, but things are about to get better -- and he mentally begins rehearsing what he'll tell Sharak. Assuming she lets him get a word in edgewise, he mentally chuckles. She might just chew him out, and that'll be fine. He deserves it. But once she's done being mad, he can't wait to talk to her about his new plan. About his new path.

They have the ability to make life better for so many people out in the living world, and not just in the way heaven wants them to. Ayakashi are bad, sure, but so are so many humans -- they can really make a difference, if they want to. And he wants to. He'll tell her about the kids he met, and the men who were making their living forcing the kids to steal and fight and worse things. Those men are dead now, but there's thousands of men like them still out there. Together, they can fix that.

Things are going to be okay.

Comments

[bussounoshima]

[As soon as someone passes through the barrier, Sharak's eyes snap open. As she sits up in bed, she quickly identifies who it is and smiles, just slightly and just for a second. Good. He's back. Before she even had to go chasing after him to drag him back, which makes for a pleasant surprise.

She gets out of bed quietly, pulling her white robe on as she sneaks out of the temple. No need to wake Hakkai or Celty at this hour, but she knows she won't fall asleep again now. She may as well say hello to the idiot first. She walks around the outside of the temple to end up at the top of the hill looking down on the approaching Gojyo. She crosses her arms and glares intimidatingly down at him.]

What'd I say, about making me wait up?

[Well, she has to scold him a little, that's only right- Sharak's act falters for a moment, as she frowns to peer at Gojyo a little better in the dark. Something isn't right.]

[erogappa]

[ Something is definitely not right. He raises a hand to her -- there's only a sliver of moon, but they've both got excellent vision -- and even though it's a warm September night he's wearing a long-sleeved shirt.

The sleeve of the other arm is tied in a knot, just below the elbow. The cuff hangs loose just above his hip. ]

My bad.

[bussounoshima]

[It's dark. She's imagining things. He's doing a dumb joke.

Or maybe she's just going to kill him.]

... Show me your arm. Now.

[Why can't she let any of these grown men out of her sight for five goddamn minutes?]

[erogappa]

[ He doesn't show her his arm. Fuck that. But the way he cradles it to his chest with his other hand -- his only hand -- makes it clear that this isn't a joke. ]

Yeah, I need to talk to you about that. [ And he nods over his shoulder back toward downtown heaven. ] There's a chick, red hair, pointy teeth. She was runnin' around the other night with a chainsaw. Pretty sure she attacked Shizuo, too.

[bussounoshima]

[She's seen Shizuo's injuries. Now she's thinking he got off lucky. Sharak storms down the hill to meet Gojyo and get a better look at him- yeah, that's definitely no joke.]

... Get inside. Has anyone looked at that for you? [Or did he just wrap it up and walk around like an idiot for however many days? She wouldn't be shocked, at this point.]

Did you get her name? Do you know if she's a god or a shinki?

[Shizuo attracts trouble and she doesn't plan on involving herself in every brawl that erupts in heaven, but it looks like that may be necessary after all.]

[erogappa]

[ He nods yes to that first question as he heads towards the temple entrance. Of course somebody has looked at it, he's not that stupid.

Maybe their first mission together now that he's back can be to track down and kill chainsaw lady? ...Assuming he can still turn into a weapon for her.

Shit. What if losing his arm means that his sword form can't rend ayakashi anymore? ]

It's not like we sat down for tea first. I was heading back out to look for Hakkai and she just came out of nowhere cacklin' like the villain from a cartoon and attacked me.

[bussounoshima]

[She has to check. Who knows what his dumb macho pride might make him do. Sharak follows Gojyo, watching his steps and balance. God damn it.]

Shizuo might know more. I'll find her.

[And Sort This Out. Taking care of chainsaw lady won't do shit for Gojyo's arm, but they can't just let someone run around like this.]

... Hakkai didn't get tangled up in it too, did he? [They still don't know who it was he was in trouble from.]

[erogappa]

[ Whenever I feel like it is probably going to be far too early, but that's fine. He'll pretend to be put out about that in the morning. For now, he's just going to stumble down the hall, kick off his boots...

...okay, his boot laces aren't coming untied without assistance, but that's fine too. He's slept in his shoes -- and his jeans -- a couple nights already. One more night won't hurt anything. And then tomorrow there will be pain killers, and breakfast, and two showers, and he and Sharak (and maybe Celty?) will sit down and talk about how they're going to wipe out the mob. And then he'll go see Tsuzuki, and have a long talk with that fool about being a responsible alcoholic, and he's got some things he needs to say to Doku, too, and then--

And then there's somebody in his bed. Gojyo freezes in the doorway, one foot comically posed mid-step. That's definitely a body -- a full grown adult body, not a kid -- breathing gently on his mattress, under his blankets.

Goddamn Sharak rented his room out to another stray, didn't she?

He'd laugh if he weren't so tired. She picked up another homeless shinki and brought them home, but then put them in his room for some unknown reason. Probably to teach him a lesson about calling when he was going to be late or something. That seems like the petty kind of thing that she'd do.

So where the hell is he going to sleep?

With a sigh, he turns back to the main room. There's plenty of cushions and blankets out there. He'll manage on the floor for one night, and then in the morning he can confront Sharak – and his new roommate – and see about finding this new dude another place to sleep. ]

Enjoy it while you can, whoever you are [ --he murmurs. ] I'm kickin' your ass out in the morning.

[reformedsinner]

[There are no doors in Sharak's temple to wake Hakkai with their opening creak, but he's a light sleeper: a voice in his bedroom, no matter how quiet, is enough.

A familiar voice means that he wakes easily, with no jolt of hair-trigger adrenaline. Ah, it's Gojyo, he thinks, out late as usual, and props himself up on an elbow, blinking as he tries to bring the silhouette in the doorway into focus.

--kickin' your ass out in the morning, had he said?

The present catches up to his expectations a few seconds late. Hakkai stifles a yawn. Sharak had said he was on the Near Shore, and Hakkai hadn't doubted her; it's still good to see him. He's seen so few people he can trust, and so many mysteries, in the last few days, that he'd almost be grateful to see Hazel at this point.

He lets himself smile, honestly, if still sleepily, as his hand falls back to the bedclothes. Gojyo may not remember him; he'll have to pretend not to remember Gojyo-- but still.]

Ah, please excuse me. Is this your room?

[erogappa]

[ It's not possible.

Gojyo turns, the soon-to-be-dead first victim in every horror movie ever made, eyes and mouth both hanging wide. It's not possible that he just heard the voice he thought he heard. He's hallucinating. He's dreaming. This is somebody's idea of a sick joke.

Silhouetted in the doorway -- he can't bring himself to approach the potential ghost any closer -- Gojyo fumbles in his pocket for a loose coin, eyes never leaving the dim outline of Hakkai's face.

And then he throws the five-yen coin right at Hakkai's chest, fully expecting it to pass through the illusion. ]

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai's hand moves automatically to catch as Gojyo, in perfect silence, lobs something at his chest: the metal is warm against his palm, and he blinks at it, and then back up at Gojyo.

That's a seeing-a-ghost expression if ever he's seen one.

Gojyo doesn't know how he died... does he? If there's anyone Hakkai would take with him into a potentially deadly situation, that man is standing on the other side of the room right now, with the whites showing all around his eyes.

He drops the coin on the bedstand and sits the rest of the way up. He's not sleepy anymore.]

I see you must have heard too.

[He keeps his tone light, cautious.]

Are you Sharak's shinki?

[erogappa]

[ It's not a ghost. It's not an illusion. It's not a hallucination. Hakkai's alive. ]

Get out.

[ There's no door frame for him to slump against, and that's the only reason he stays standing. He's alive. And here. Why is he here? Why is he in Gojyo's bed?

He glances down the hall, but Sharak is long gone. Why didn't she tell him Hakkai was here?! Did she know? ...Of course she knew, nobody can come through the barrier without her knowing. She knew. She knew, and she let him believe that Hakkai was dead. She told him to go to bed, knowing Hakkai was waiting for him.

Is this what happens when he trusts people?

His voice is a rasp. ]

Get the fuck out.

[reformedsinner]

[That's not just shock. That's real pain stripping Gojyo's voice raw.

What hasn't Sharak told him, Hakkai wonders, absolutely still for a moment as his eye finishes adjusting. What hasn't--

One of Gojyo's sleeves is tied off just under his elbow, the cuff hanging empty below that. Hakkai can't control the way his eyes widen, but he averts his gaze, and slips out of the bed. He's wearing loose drawstring pants and an old T-shirt, not what he'd choose to go out in, but it will do, and there are cots at the school.

Still. First. He steps away from the bed, leaving Gojyo space to step away from the door in turn.]

Your arm...

[Get the fuck out is not the kind of welcoming attitude that suggests Gojyo will respond well to this question. But he's lost a hand since the last time Hakkai had seen him, however long ago, for him, that was. That's a serious injury. He wants to know.]

Is that recent?

The next morning, at Kinyobi

[erogappa]

[ Thankfully, he makes it to the bar long after Tsuzuki has closed up for the night. The nap futon (frequently the “I’ve drunk too much and now have the spins” futon, but in the end it’s the same thing) in the back room is clean enough, the tattered blanket adequately warm, and, with a couple eight or so beers in his belly (just to help him get to sleep), it’s as homey as he deserves.

Just before dawn Gojyo pitches over onto the lumpy bed and passes out, dead to the world. ]

[sweetdeath]

[He'll get a few solid hours of sleep before Tsuzuki shows up: the place doesn't open until after lunch, and even when he's trying to keep track of the accounts (he's pretty sure he has all the numbers wrong, because they keep not adding up, but he's keeping all the receipts he can find anyway) he doesn't show up before one.

There's a rusty snore emerging from the back room. Ayakashi don't snore, right? Even the kind who might unexpectedly jump out of old bottles at him?

Just in case, he grabs the nearest weaponlike object (a cheap, but heavy, bottle of vodka) and creeps towards the sound.

Gojyo, passed out on the futon, with a couple beer cans scattered around him and the old blanket in tossed-and-turned disarray around his middle, is a huge relief. He stops, lets the bottle (half-raised in one hand) fall to his side, and sags against the door frame. His held breath escapes on a heartfelt sigh.]

Hey.

[...how asleep is he? Tsuzuki raises his voice a little.]

When'd you get in?

[erogappa]

[ Ugh why do people keep talking to him. Can't everyone see that he's sleeping!? ]

Go 'way. [ --he mumbles, rolling over onto his stump. Alas, pain is an excellent alarm clock; Gojyo swears, long and disjointedly, and rolls up into a sit. Only then does Tsuzuki's presence register. ]

Yo. [ He raises his bandaged (and kinda stained) stump in greeting, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. ] Fuck. What time is it?

[sweetdeath]

Shit--

[The bandages on Gojyo's hand (no, Gojyo's stump, the actual stump of his hand, which, unlike Tsuzuki's, won't grow back) are stained, and Tsuzuki's too occupied with the sudden clanging of panic in his veins to bother looking cool. He jolts forward, reaching out, and then stops with his hand hovering a good foot away, concern twisting his features.

It's not like he's got any healing magic, after all. Not the kind that works on somebody else. He swallows.]

What happened? Where've you been?

Uh, it's -- about one-thirty.

[Since he asked.]

[erogappa]

[ Yeah, sorry, this really isn't the way he'd wanted to spring his injury on Tsu, but... surprise? ]

It's fine. It's healing, I'm adapting.

[ Little white lies, the biggest of all being the hope he's harboring that they all turn out to be true. He nods at the bedding tangled around his waist. ]

And I'm kinda livin' here now. [ And, because he realizes after the words are out of his mouth that there could be some misunderstanding there... ] Not related to this. [ Exhibit A: his half an arm. ] Related to my god bein' a lying bitch, and I finally had enough.

[sweetdeath]

[Tsuzuki shakes his head, letting his own hand fall back to his side.]

... Shit.

[Sometimes the first reaction is the best reaction. Also, he doesn't know what else to say. Deliberately looking up from Gojyo's stump, which keeps drawing his eyes back down (he knows exactly how much that has to hurt) he tries on a sympathetic half-smile.]

So did she release you, or what?

[What kind of jerk would release a one-handed shinki to go his own way? When he wasn't even healed?]

Two days later

[erogappa]

[ He's not there the next morning, when she returns. He's not there that evening either. It's not until shortly after noon the following day that Gojyo strolls up the walkway toward the temple... for a given definition of strolls that has a decided list. He found some good mortal world painkillers, and he took them, and life is now much softer at the edges. ]

There you are. [ He's slurring gently -- not badly enough that a stranger would notice, but there's a definite lack of effort being put into his enunciation. ] I'm done with this. Unname me.

[bussounoshima]

[Sharak's sat on the floor, as usual, with papers surrounding her, as usual. If Gojyo's paying attention, he might recognise them as local newspapers from the area of Tokyo he was hanging out in during his retreat. She looks up when he enters, concerned but not... too shocked. She knew he was angry.]

... If that's what you want, I won't say no. [It's his decision. Sharak gets to her feet.] Are you certain?

[erogappa]

[ He's not really in the mental place required to notice things like newspapers. ]

You lied to me! [ --he snarls, but there's real hurt under all that anger. ] You told me he was dead while he was lying in my goddamn bed!

[bussounoshima]

I didn't lie to you. [Perhaps by omission. She can feel that hurt though and her tone is slightly apologetic.] The evidence suggests that Cho Hakkai died. I thought you deserved to know.

I would have told you that he'd come back to life as well, but your reaction interrupted me. [Second-hand panic attacks aren't exactly fun.] After that... I thought you might need to process those feelings a little longer. It wasn't as if you'd be able to stay ignorant for long.

[He was less than twenty feet away the whole time. It's not like she let him go weeks thinking the guy was dead or anything.]

[erogappa]

[ His reaction. Right. It's his fault that she didn't bother to tell him that the psycho killer was alive and snoring in his room just on the other side of the curtain. ]

Why the hell was that your decision to make!?

[ Hopefully there's no other visiting murderers napping nearby, because he's not using his inside voice. ]

You've been telling me from the beginning what a good guy he is, but he's not! He's a killer and a liar and, and he hid his blight from his god back when he was a shinki... [ Pacing now, he gestures wildly at the room at large. ] He wanted to be my friend, and you wanted to...

[ He can't bring himself to say be my mom. He just can't. His voice trails off, and when he recovers, it's darker. Colder. ]

This whole time you've been telling me that what I thought I knew was wrong. But it wasn't. And I don't need you to protect [ --the word is a curse-- ] me anymore.

[bussounoshima]

[Hakkai could never hide his blight from his god, but Sharak doubts that's what Gojyo is actually upset about by now.]

I told you what I thought he was. If you disagree, that's your decision. [Sharak is infuriatingly calm in the face of Gojyo's anger.] I thought you were wrong and I told you so.

[But defending Hakkai isn't the point, not really. Sharak takes a step past Gojyo, heading outside.]

If you want me to remove the name then I will. [She doesn't want to, but she will.] But if I don't need to protect you anymore, I'm going to need you to prove it first.

[Sharak looks at Gojyo over her shoulder. What comes next is unquestionably an order.]

Summon your staff. Try to kill me.