Delays

[Spoo]

Oh. My. God. It has been a LOOOOONG time since I've written for the Saiyuki fandom. I can't believe I even managed to crank this out! I recently started re-reading the manga, so I suppose that's the reason. Before I was obsessed with Ouran High School Host Club, this was my addiction. Come on, four handsome men traveling to India together and fighting demons along the way? YES, PLEASE!

I'm not too sure where this is going yet, but I can say that I'm focusing on Hakkai for now. This story will mainly revolve around him. I might toy around with the others later. We'll see. I'm still getting back into the Saiyuki feel of things, haha.

Warnings: Foul language, male slash (there will be light intimacy among males).

Reference-wise:

Genjyo Sanzo, a foul-mouthed, immoral priest who smokes, drinks, and swears like it's nobody's business.

Cho Hakkai, a polite, well-mannered man who uses his chi to heal others.

Sha Gojyo, a perverted half-demon who loves sex, gambling, and picking on Goku.

Son Goku, an energetic young man who has a bottomless pit for a stomach and an appetite for getting into arguments with Gojyo.

There won't be any specified pairings for now, but I am partial to Sanzo/Hakkai. Just sayin'. That goes for Gojyo/Hakkai as well.

Anyway, here's a short prologue of sorts. Enjoy!

~*~

Delays

Prologue

“Quit hoggin’ the seat, you stupid kappa!”

“Maybe if your monkey ass would sit still you wouldn’t have to move around so much!”

“Yeah?! Well, maybe if YOUR ass wasn’t so big, we’d have more space!”

“What are you trying to say, you goddamn chimpanzee?!”

“ENOUGH!”

The piercing sound of a gunshot rang clear through the area, shutting up the two bickering voices in the back of the jeep. Two terrified pairs of eyes turned to the angry individual that sat up front, gun pointed at the sky. There were no further comments. Now, this may have seemed unusual to a random stranger, but to the traveling quartet this was quite normal. There wasn’t a day that went by where there wasn’t some argument which eventually encouraged a trigger-happy man to nearly claim two lives. That was the nice way of putting things.

The great priest, Genjyo Sanzo, had little patience for the fools he traveled with. It was bad enough being stuck in a vehicle with the bastards day in and day out, but to hear their constant squabbles nonstop? It drove him insane. Many a migraine was blamed on those damn hellions.

If Son Goku wasn’t complaining about being hungry, then he was harassing Gojyo.

If Sha Gojyo wasn’t complaining about needing a woman, then he was harassing Goku.

Sanzo decided to enjoy the peace and quiet while his intimidation still hung thickly in the air. Lowering his gun and slipping a fresh cigarette between his scowling lips, he lit the nicotine stick up and sat back, sighing out a haze of smoke. Sure enough, the silence didn’t last very long.

Faint mumbles wafted from the back of the jeep to the front, followed by distinct noises that suggested shoving. Sanzo twitched. The short fuse of his temper was nearing its end.

“…Ugly pervert.”

“…Brainless ape.”

“Are you two fucking deaf? I said—!”

“Ch’kksshiih!”

The soft, barely audible sound stopped the three males. This time, all attention targeted the driver. Cho Hakkai was in the process of removing the lower part of his face from his shoulder with a light sniffle. When he noticed the rest of his party gaping at him, and quite rudely at that, he chuckled to himself.

“Pardon me,” he said politely. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Goku was intrigued. He leaned forward and bent over the front seats, his golden eyes never once leaving the green-clad healer. “Wow, Hakkai! I’ve never heard ya sneeze before.”

“Seriously, man,” Gojyo agreed. He seemed to have forgotten his quarrel with Goku. “We lived together for a while, and you never once did that.”

“Ahaha, I suppose not,” Hakkai replied, feeling rather put on the spot. He didn’t normally cater to the whims of his body while in front of others. Being a private person by nature, he tried to keep any and all natural outbursts, be it hiccups, a cough, or a casual yawn, to himself. After all, he didn’t want to worry everyone over what was probably nothing at all.

“You better not be catching a damn cold,” Sanzo grumbled, nursing his cigarette with another deep puff. “We don’t have time to stop. We’re already running behind.” That was, of course, thanks to yet another lovely run-in with a band of assassins less than a week before. They were just short of fifty miles from the next major town. They couldn’t afford to make any pointless delays along the way.

“I was unaware that one sneeze indicated illness,” Hakkai countered, albeit pleasantly. He had yet to remove a sweet smile from his face. “I’ll have to be more mindful next time.”

Sanzo realized Hakkai was being sarcastic. Anyone who knew the man well enough could see through his cheerful demeanor for what it truly was. “Pff, whatever. Just get us there as fast as you can.”

“As you wish.”

The jeep accelerated, if only slightly, and kicked up a cloud of sand behind it. As if the pause button had suddenly been set into play again, Goku and Gojyo started their banter anew.

Hakkai had an impressive gift for tuning out the soundtrack of his friends. He normally focused on other things, such as the blue sky, the beautiful weather, and the feel of the sun warming his hair. However, he was presently more preoccupied with the scratchy irritation in his throat, which coaxed him to swallow more than he cared to. If that wasn’t enough to distract him, then the dull itch in the back of his nose would do the job nicely. Either way, he came to a startling realization.

He was, unquestionably and unfortunately, unwell.

TBC

[NameTaken]

SAIYUKI. You have no idea how big my grin was when I saw this!! One of (if not my favourite) fandom of all time~~ So excited!!!

Loving it so far! The fact that they'd never heard Hakkai sneeze before is unbelievably adorable to me He's such a gentleman. Le sigh. Can't wait for more!

[The Random Lurker]

That was great! I have no clue about the fandom beyond what you've told us but I enjoyed it none the less. It was very entertaining. I can't wait to read more!

[Zane]

I think I just died! I can't believe you wrote a Saiyuki fic! I love you!!! you've written so many of my favorite animes! and Hakkai sneezing?! ahhhhhhh!!!!! I just died again. and it's all your fault!!! You have the characters down exactly to a science, and this is a very promising story! I love it! I so hope you continue and that there is more sneezy Hakkai and maybe even Sanzo thanks so much for writing this. I love Hakkai/Sanzo. ok so I'm going to go back into my grave (because you killed me) for now.

[Emily]

Sanzo looks like an idol, and nothing like a priest. He looks more infectable than Hakkai, who also happens to be hot. Can't wait for the next update!

[Ciuty80]

this is just OHHHMYGOD!!!! wonderful

sneezing hakkai is too cute for this world too

REALLY CAN´T wait for moar.... *rawr* *re-read re-read re-read....*

[March Hare]

WAHOO! It's my second favourite band of "brothers" XD This is shaping up to be some seriously enjoyable fetishcandy, Spoo dear! You've got the characterisations down pat, and I love how you've made the least likely one to get sick succumb to it

There is one little thing though and I do hope you don't mind my saying, but by all means ignore it if you do... Here and there, your language tends to be a bit too formal, a bit too elaborate. Almost stiff, and it can have a distracting effect. Your writing is good, and in my opinion it doesn't need many fancy words. Emphatically no offence meant.

[BlueRandom]

There is one little thing though and I do hope you don't mind my saying, but by all means ignore it if you do... Here and there, your language tends to be a bit too formal, a bit too elaborate. Almost stiff, and it can have a distracting effect. Your writing is good, and in my opinion it doesn't need many fancy words. Emphatically no offence meant.

I actually disagree with this - I think it's very Hakkai, and it seems to be kind of from his viewpoint.

This is such a cute fic, and very in character. I never liked Hakkai much, but this describes him really well!

[Akahana]

PLEASE CONTINUE!!!!! <3