[Closed] he's a super awesome guy

[rockthemonkey]

Who: Son Goku and others
When: December 9th/10th and December 12th approx
Where: Li Tieguai's temple
What: Goku has just lost his first proper shinki in the worst way possible. It was a whole thing.



A. (closed to Hakkai, evening after Ayumu has been rended.)

[It's late at night when Goku makes his way to Li Tieguai's temple. He'd spent the day searching for what was left of Ayumu, failed to actually put her down once he'd found her, and then spent the rest of the day unable to find her again. The only reason he'd given up hunting was that he'd finally gotten word that someone else had taken care of her. So at least someone had managed to do something to help Ayumu today.

After that, the thought of going back to his own empty temple with only Ishi for company was more than a little terrifying. Facing Chikusa and Ken after what happened- or even Hakkai and Gojyo- only seems a little better, but he can't stand the thought of sitting in an empty house for who knows how long. Besides, Ayumu- or whatever he should call that thing- got him pretty good. He's not sure if he even has a first aid kit at his own temple, but he knows Hakkai has all kinds of stuff at his. He's still hoping that everyone is already asleep when he quietly lets himself into the temple and sneaks into Hakkai's workroom. This is where he makes all those medicines and stuff, right? He must have bandages here. Goku doesn't know what any of the other stuff in here is for, but he knows how to wrap up a bloody arm.]

Shh! [Hushing Ishi makes more noise than the shinki has made all day, but Goku does so anyway as he tries to navigate the room without turning the lights on and attracting attention.] Just help me find some bandages and stuff. Don't wake 'em.

[The shinki dutifully obeys his god's whispers, methodically examining the shelves and drawers for anything either of them might recognise. Goku starts trying to carefully remove his hoodie without agitating the injured arm. God, fuck today, maybe he should just ignore it and go to bed and see if he bleeds out by morning.]


B. (A few days later, for Gojyo)

[Goku's doing better than he was. He'll always bounce back relatively quickly from any physical injury. Other wounds take more time, but he can't be sad forever. That won't help anyone. Everyone is still shaken up by what happened, and after everything the least Goku can do is step up and make sure they're okay. He can't keep avoiding them. Sitting around being sad and pathetic is what caused this in the first place. He can't keep doing that.

So now he's sitting on the ground in Hakkai's garden, being sad and pathetic. He's working on it, okay? At least he forced himself to eat breakfast today. This is hard when they don't have an enemy to go beat up or a clear direction to go in. Instead, all Goku has is Bon laying in front of him with his head in Goku's lap, panting happily up at him and wagging his tail. It's not very productive, but it's better than sitting alone in his room.]


C. (Wildcard. Anything else that comes up.)

Comments

A

[reformedsinner]

[There's something about two people trying to be very quiet in a room full of clinking jars, un-oiled cupboard hinges and glassware that's even more attention-getting than someone not trying to be quiet.

And, of course, there's also the fact that Hakkai wasn't asleep. After a day like this one, it's a little difficult.

The indistinct whispers and quiet clinking from the workroom catch his attention where he's sitting in the kitchen just a few doors down, and he gets up, padding in stocking feet towards the sounds. Is that blood? He thinks he can smell blood.]

... Goku?

[Ah. That is blood; he can see it staining the hoodie Goku's trying to get off.]

What happened?

[rockthemonkey]

[Under any other circumstances, Goku with his head stuck in his hood while he tries to squirm out of it and spin around to face Hakkai at the same time might be amusing. Maybe it still is under the circumstances, actually. Judging by Goku's expression once he finally manages to get his face free to actually look at Hakkai, he doesn't see the humour.]

Uh, nothin'. We were just... lookin' for some stuff...

[Well, at least it's Hakkai who found him and not one of the others. He didn't want to bother Hakkai again, but Chikusa or Ken would have been worse somehow.]

[reformedsinner]

You're hurt.

[It's in the polite tone of someone pointing out that "Uh, nothing," isn't an accurate response. That is to say: while polite, it's also just slightly warning.

Hakkai steps away from the door he's still standing in, heading for Goku first.]

Were you looking for something to treat that? I don't keep the first-aid kit in here.

[rockthemonkey]

[Goku recognises the tone and takes appropriate warning. Right, he's being dumb. Getting hurt isn't a big deal, he shouldn't try to hide it.]

I wasn't sure where ya put it and I thought maybe it was with your other stuff. [This is where Hakkai does all his medicine things, right? The logic was sound.] It's not bad, I just wanted to wrap it up with somethin'.

[Applying bandages to bleeding body parts is about the extent of Goku's first aid ability, when he's not being given instructions.]

[reformedsinner]

[The logic is sound, and it's not Goku's fault that the conclusion is wrong. Hakkai stands silently for a moment, before inclining his head back towards the door.]

It's upstairs. Come with me... and, Goku. How did this happen?

[rockthemonkey]

[Goku hurries to catch up with Hakkai, so he can follow more closely. Ishi pauses and then slowly follows as well, keeping a respectful distance.]

... I went lookin' for Ayu.

[reformedsinner]

Alone? Goku--

[He'd gone out himself, too. The cut on his arm is shallow, but still stings, as if in rebuke of his hypocrisy.]

I take it you found her.

[rockthemonkey]

I had Ishi with me! [Whining defensively. He's not a complete idiot, he at least remembered that he'd need a shinki with him to rend her. Gojyo was busy with Hakkai, but Ishi should have been able to do it too.

Maybe if Ayumu wasn't so good at fucking up people's arms, they would have managed it. Goku puts his good hand over his injury, holding it in place.]

And I found her and everything, I just- [Mrm. Goku looks away.] She got away.

[reformedsinner]

She got away from me and Gojyo, too.

[Hakkai pads up the stairs and turns into the bathroom on the left, crouching to open the cupboard under the sink. There's a fairly large case there, which he pulls out and settles on the counter.]

... I suppose we all should have gone together. I'll take care of your arm, and we can all go out looking tomorrow, if we haven't heard anything further by then.

[His tone is quiet and matter-of-fact, although the thought sends a thread of ice slipping through his chest. The ayakashi roaming the Heavens isn't Ayumu any longer. She's a danger to others now. She deserves the same mercy that he would want if he were to lose himself so irrevocably.]

[rockthemonkey]

[Goku sits down on the edge of the bathtub and nods at that first bit. It would have been better if the three of them had been fighting together. Maybe.]

... We don't haveta. [Otherwise Goku may not have come back at all, even as exhausted as he is.] Some other guys found her after I did. They took care of her, they said.

[It hadn't been a very detailed conversation, and Goku's not quite sure who he was speaking to right now, but that was all Goku needed to hear at the time.]

... I don't think she got to hurt anyone else, at least.

[It's what all of them would want, under the circumstances. To be killed as quickly as possible before they could hurt anyone.]

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai breathes out, his shoulders sagging slightly as he turns to wash his hands at the sink. It's a relief to know that she's no longer suffering and no longer at risk of hurting anyone else. It's also a relief that he didn't have to look into her eyes as she died.

He is ashamed to be relieved by that.

He shakes the water from his hands and pulls the disinfectant out of the kit, along with a square of gauze, before he turns to look at Goku's arm.]

I see. I'm glad she couldn't hurt anyone else. Turn a little to the side, please?

[He wets the gauze with disinfectant, and reaches out to begin wiping the blood away from the skin for a better look at the wound beneath.]

[rockthemonkey]

[It's a relief, but it's also kind of pathetic. In the end, Goku didn't do a single thing that helped Ayumu.]

Mm, okay. [Goku twists to the side and holds his arm out for Hakkai to look at. It's not that bad an injury (by their admittedly terrible standards) but it is a messy one that takes up a lot of his upper arm. Even if Hakkai could get all the blood out of his shirt and jumper, they're probably better off in the trash.]

... Hey, Hakkai?

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai considers the shirt; the tear is ugly, and the fabric is matted to the wound in several places, besides the bloodstain that he doubts will come out. He picks a pair of shears out of the packet, pausing in his attempt to clean the wound to neatly cut away the sleeve. It's not, really, all that bad; it might have been all right just to wrap it up, but it'll heal better this way.

Still cleaning, he murmurs:]

Yes, Goku?

[erogappa]

[ And, let's be fair, with Gojyo moping about the temple for the last few days, it's no wonder that Goku's had trouble shaking off his sadness. He's been grieving for two, whether he realizes it or not.

But he and Hakkai have come to... let's call it an understanding, and the late morning sun seems brighter than it did yesterday. Things are going to be okay, Gojyo's decided. It's time for them all to move on.

(He's actually decided that things are going to be terrible, everyone he loves is going to vanish and leave him and at some point he'll probably give in to blight and turn into a monster like Ayumu did. But that can happen tomorrow. Today, he's alive, Hakkai loves him, the sun is shining, and Goku needs to be shaken out of him slump. That's all there is to it. ]

Oi, shrimp!

[ That asshole Banri had said Goku was in the garden (or rather, he'd pointed; Gojyo's still pretty damn sure the guy is going to murder all of them in their sleep one day soon, and they won't even hear him coming), but of course he didn't say where. So Gojyo's stomping through the greenery, searching out Goku with his usual lack of grace. ]

You out here?

[ His heart still hurts from the loss of both Ayumu and Tsuzuki, but it's Goku's he's worried about. ]

[rockthemonkey]

[To be fair, it's been around three days since someone Goku was magically bonded to died in a painful, brutal manner. He'd be sad whether or not Gojyo was. There's something to be said for just letting yourself be sad for a while.

But right now, Goku is zoning out more than he's feeling anything. Being lost in his own thoughts is never fun. It takes a couple of shouts for Goku to register than someone is calling for him and notice that Bon has lifted his head and started looking happily in another direction.]

... Gojyo? [What's he doing here? For a second, Goku considers not responding and letting Gojyo march past him, but only for a second.] I'm over here!

[erogappa]

[ Ah, there he is. Shit, he looks even worse than Gojyo was expecting. What is it with the folks in this temple getting upset and then hiding under the dog? ...Is he a magic dog? That will have to be looked into, but later. Right now, he's got a shrimp to cheer up. ]

What're you doin' out here? It's freezing! [ It's actually pleasantly chilly, since heaven, being perfect, never gets too hot or too cold. Still, it's too cold to be sitting on the ground, even with a station wagon-sized dog as a lap blanket. ] C'mon, I need your help with somethin'.


[ And with that, he turns to go, fully expecting Goku to follow. ]

[rockthemonkey]

[All dogs are magic when you're sad, Gojyo, don't you know that?]

It is? [He didn't even notice the temperature drop. That's probably not good. Goku just stares up at Gojyo helplessly, like he's not sure what's going on.] ... Um, okay!

[And then he scrambles to his feet, gently pushing Bon out of the way, and hurries after Gojyo. First he's close behind, almost right by his side, then he falls a few steps back. Is this okay? Is Gojyo mad at him for what happened? Goku doesn't think he would be, but what if he is?]

[erogappa]

[ He's been avoiding dogs lately, sorry squirt. Bad memories.

Gojyo heads into the temple, straight for the portal to the living world. He's almost there when he notices that Goku's lagging a ways back. Turning, he's careful to keep his tone and expression light -- mocking, yes, but that's light. ]

What, did your feet fall asleep? What's the holdup?

[rockthemonkey]

... I'm coming!

[He can't summon the energy to bicker or mock back just yet, but Goku smiles slightly. Right. Of course Gojyo won't change, no matter what he remembers or what Goku does. They'll still be the same. He rushes forwards to catch up again, standing as close to Gojyo as he can without making it weird.]

... Wait, where are we goin'?

[erogappa]

[ Was that a smile? That might have been a smile! Score one opint for team Sha! ]

Hakkai needs some stuff, and if I have to go run errands so do you.

[ Please note: this is a straight-up lie, but because he doesn't feel bad about it in any way, there's no blight calling him out for lying. Turning back to the portal, he starts counting the list off on his fingers: ]

We need fatty beef, mushrooms, bok choi, pork loin, fish balls...

[ Sounds like hot pot, doesn't it? ]

[rockthemonkey]

[For a split second, it might have been a smile! Mission successful, time to go home.]

He didn't say anythin' to me... [That sure sounds like hot pot, but Goku is dumb when he's sad. He doesn't put the ingredients together in his head. It does sound good though.] We need all that?

[erogappa]

[ He stops again, and this time fixes Goku with a deadpan stare. ]

You want to go find him, tell him his shopping list is too long?

[rockthemonkey]

It's not too long! I was just askin'! I'm not gonna go complain to Hakkai!

[If Hakkai wants him to do chores, Goku is going to do the fuck out of some chores. The last thing Hakkai needs right now is Goku whining at him about something dumb.]

Come on, let's just go.

[erogappa]

[ With a snort-laugh, Gojyo ducks through the portal. Hakkai's scary, and if you were smart, you didn't tell him no when he asked you to do something. Gojyo figured that one out awhile back, and it's interesting to see that Goku came equipped with that knowledge already. Sometimes, the memories line up, he thinks, drawing in his first icy breath of a non-heavenly winter.

It's damn cold in Japan right now! ]

Okay, next part is on you. [ He pulls out his phone, opens the map program, and taps a location. It's an industrial area on the wharf, a long way from any grocery stores. ] Here. Can you take us here?

[rockthemonkey]

[Goku follows Gojyo through the portal, struggling with the urge to shove him. He gasps when the cold air hits him and rubs his arms. Okay, now he feels the cold. Don't mind him taking the excuse of looking at Gojyo's phone to stand close to him again. ]

Huh? [Stares at the map. Blinks a couple of times.] ... You don't know the way?

[He has no clue what you're talking about, Gojyo.]