Saiyuki snippet for lisa_bee

[louiselux]

Snippet for lisa_bee: Gojyo, "disoriented" and no more than 15 minutes... (let's say 20), and inspired by an idea in emungere's Cut Off

Weapon of Choice

"Show me then," Hakkai said.

He was leaning against the back door. Gojyo stood in the middle of the backyard with bare feet and no shirt, wishing they hadn't got into this. He wanted to go inside and drink beer, read the paper, even wash the dishes.

His arms bloomed tiny goosebumps and his hairs raised. When he looked down he saw that his nipples were hard too. He felt exposed under Hakkai's soft gaze.

Hakkai shifted slightly and the door frame creaked. Right. Hakkai was waiting.

"Is it hard?" Hakkai asked, sounding curious.

"No! No. It's easy."

And it was, even though he could count the times he'd done it on one hand. He just had to wish it and it was there, body-warm metal filling his palm and the slight, pleasing chink of oiled chain. The shakujou was as tall as him, taller, and looking up he moved it so the blade glinted in the sun.

He grinned, but it faded when he saw Hakkai's face. Was that shock? Shock or-- lust. Hakkai had pushed himself away from the wall, his fingers were clenched, and Gojyo took a step back without even thinking about it. His fingers tightened and he has to loosen them with an effort.

"Did you choose that," Hakkai said, "or-- or-- "

"Kind of," Gojyo said, thinking of his mother.

"Show me," said Hakkai, again.

The chain arched, glittering in the sunlight, as the blade soared and dipped like a swallow, for endless minutes, until Gojyo swayed, dizzy with it. Chains rattled in his ears along with his blood and in the middle of it all was Hakkai's upturned face, his eyes huge and wide. He was smiling, a beautiful, wide smile.

"It's very good," Gojyo heard him say, and then the blade tips thudded into the door post next to Hakkai's hand. He reached out to touch, but Gojyo blinked, stomach flipping, and it was gone.

"Sorry," Gojyo said.

His knees shook and he sat straight down with a thump, legs folding under him. He shut his eyes and heard Hakkai's footsteps, then a hand on his shoulder, trembling just like he was.

"Don't be," Hakkai said.

Comments

[lisa-bee.livejournal.com]

It's really interesting that we hardly ever think about just what his weapon means to Gojyo. It's proof of his heritage, and it's just about the only object we ever see that came from his father, but it's also part of himself. Lots of emotional baggage, if you stop to think about it.

This fic is great because it makes you really look at the fact that he pulls something out of thin air (or out of himself) and kills with it, and question whether it was always that easy, that intuitive. (Not just learning to use the weapon, but learning to use it around other people: it's the final proof that he's not just a human guy with unfortunate hair dye, and he tries so hard to blend.)

One of my favorite lines is this, because it really brings home the curious intimacy of the scene:

He reached out to touch, but Gojyo blinked, stomach flipping, and it was gone.

And the idea that it's Hakkai pushing (in his not-overtly-pressuring-you, Hakkai way) that gets Gojyo to actually pull it up is a great touch. (I could go into the "they force each other to grow and adapt, see?" spiel, but I won't.)

[louiselux.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes! I love thinking about Gojyo's kappa side and how it might fit with and affect his human side. Gojyo's shakujou is absolute proof that he isn't human, yet it's heartbreaking just how hard he *does* try to blend in. Banri says as much in the Burial arc. One more reason why he fits with Hakkai - they are both outside both youkai and human society, being neither one nor the other.

I would love to hear more of your 'they force each other to grow and adapt' spiel, because this is what this story is about, really.

Great feedback, thank you so much!