Altered Memories.

Disclaimer: Saiyuki belong to Kazuya Minekura-sensei.

Warnings: This fic contains Y-A-O-I!! So if you don't like it, get out of here!!! But you have come this far, so you should have like it.

Pairings: 39 and hint of 58. You know, the usual.

Authors Note: Hi!!! Sorry for the very, VERY slow update. Been very busy for the last few months, and going to be busy for the following 3 months too. Only manage to R&R, not enough time to come up with an idea to write. Special thanks to Mabaroshi16 for beta-ing the last 2 chapter and this one too. I hope you all would love this chapter, and I hope it won't be a disappointment.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Monologue about snow from the last chapter while Goku was in the dream, yeah; I forgot to put a disclaimer on it. I took it from the Saiyuki Reload Manga. Sorry to those who compliment me on that!! GOMEN!!

Chapter 3:

Part one;

Stage III: The betrayal.

"Who else? Kono baka."

At that same moment, his vision finally cleared. What he saw made him wish that he was blind and deaf as well. He didn't want to believe it, he wouldn't believe it.

"S—Sanzo…?"

"Took you long enough." Sanzo's grip around his neck was tightening and choking the life out of Goku.

"Why.....?" Goku could feel the tears falling from his eyes and dampening the pillow beneath his head. "Why....are...you.....doing....this?" He stopped struggling and his other hand fell down. He couldn't fight back; he was too busy struggling within his mind and telling himself that this was not Sanzo. But it was too hard; especially when it was happening right in front of his eyes.

"Why? It's because-" Sanzo began, and Goku tried hard to keep his consciousness. The physical pain on his neck was nothing compared to the pain that he felt inside; he was being betrayed, by Sanzo of all people.

I wish this were a dream…but it's too real…

"It's because- you're so fucking annoying that I fucking hate you." Goku wished that he were dead. He wished that Sanzo would kill him quickly. He'd rather die than listen to those words. Rather die while he still thought of Sanzo as his savior......his sun.

……the pain is too real to be a dream……

Goku had closed his eyes tightly and had already welcomed death calmly, when the pressure on his neck lifted abruptly. He opened his eyes slowly and saw that Sanzo was still on top of him. Even though his vision was blurred, he could see that Sanzo's guard was down. Seizing the opportunity, Goku quickly pushed him off the bed and onto the floor.

The moment he felt Sanzo's weight leave, he quickly got up and crawled to the other side of the bed, leaning against the wall. He hid himself under the blankets and, from the opening slits between blankets, watched Sanzo trying to get up. While Sanzo groaned in pain, Goku felt his body shaking like a leaf, fear overtaking him.

He saw Sanzo's mouth moving; talking, but he couldn't hear him over the beating of his heart. Everything in the world wasn't there anymore to him, only Sanzo and him and one thought that kept on playing over and over again

He...he's trying....to kill…me…

Goku snapped out of it when he saw Sanzo reach out for him. "Get..." The word hardly came out as a whisper, but he couldn't help it. The fear was too much, not to mention his throat was sore from Sanzo's attempt to kill him. All he could think about was how to get Sanzo away from him.

"Nani? Wh—"

He finally heard Sanzo's voice and quickly clamped his hands tightly over his ears before he could hear anymore. He glared at Sanzo and gathered up all his courage and strength to say only four words. "Get away from me!!"

It seemed that he had startled Sanzo, and Goku kept on glaring at him. Sanzo tried again to get closer to him, but Goku slapped his hand away. "Don't—don't touch me." He snarled as he brought his knees to his chest.

But Sanzo wasn't giving up; he grabbed hold of Goku's wrist. Goku was surprised and, by instinct; started to fight off Sanzo. But Sanzo was stronger than him right now and in no time Sanzo got hold of both wrists.

"L—let go of me!!" Goku started to struggle, but he was still weak from Sanzo's attempt to kill him. The tears were flowing out even more and he could feel Sanzo's hand trying to touch his face, but Goku shook his head vigorously.

"Stay put bakasaru!"

"Let go of me!! Ha—HAKKAI!!!!! GOJYO!!!!"

Not a moment later, the door slammed opened and he could hear the shouting of his fellow companions and the sound of their feet; scuttling towards him, but he didn't stop struggling and kept on screaming. "Get away from me!!! Let me go!!!" moments later, he could feel Sanzo's hands being yanked off his wrists and someone holding him securely. He looked up and saw Hakkai, while Gojyo was holding on to Sanzo.

"Daijobu?" He had never felt so relieved to hear Hakkai's voice. He hugged Hakkai and cried with all his might. "He—he tried to kill me!!" he finally sobbed out. Hakkai tried to get Goku to look up at him, but Goku just tightened his grip and buried his face deeper into Hakkai's chest.

"Who did?" Hakkai asked gently as he gave up trying to pull Goku off him. Without lifting his head, he told them.

"Sa—Sanzo! He tried to suffocate me to death!!"

Silence befell in the room. The only thing that could be heard was Goku's sobbing. Hakkai and Gojyo looked at each other, surprised to hear what Goku just said. They looked at Sanzo but he was looking down at his feet. They couldn't tell what Sanzo was thinking since his face was hidden by his hair.

Suddenly, Sanzo yanked Goku off Hakkai by his wrist and lifted him up. Goku hung limply, but made a feeble attempt to push Sanzo away.

"Let go of me!!!"

"What the hell are you saying!!??"

"Let go of me!! Onegai, leave me alone!!" Goku kept on pleading, but Sanzo didn't let him go and continued shaking him fiercely. "I won't until you explain to me clearly!!" His grip on Goku's wrist was getting tighter, and the boy could feel his circulation cutting off.

"It—Ittai!!"

"Sanzo!! Let him go!!" Hakkai said but Sanzo paid him no heed. "Tell me NOW!!" Gojyo quickly yanked Goku out of Sanzo's grip and pushed Sanzo away. Sanzo staggered a little while Gojyo handed Goku back over to Hakkai. Hakkai immediately carried Goku out of the room and to his.

The moment they were out, Gojyo went over to Sanzo. "What the hell are you doing!!!?" He asked as Sanzo took a seat. Getting no reply, Gojyo continued on. "You know he's in no condition to move!! I leave for a while for a toilet break and this happens?!?!?" Goku was like a little brother to him and he didn't like to see him suffer.

Sanzo just stayed quiet and lit up a cigarette. Gojyo was irritated about this but followed suit. After a few minutes, and a few drags, Gojyo sighed. "What happened?"

"That's what I would like to know."

Even though Hakkai's room was two doors away, they could hear Hakkai's voice trying to calm Goku down. Goku's cries and voice carried as well, but slowly, his cries subdued and everything went silent.

About 10 minutes later, Hakkai came back into the room that Sanzo and Gojyo occupied and took a seat. He sighed deeply. They tried waiting for Hakkai to start talking first, but they weren't patient enough.

"How is he?" Gojyo was the first to ask. Hakkai intertwined his fingers and rested his elbows on the table. "He's quite shaken up. Took me a while to calm him down, even Hakuryuu was trying but he couldn't stop crying or shaking." Hakkai took another deep breath before continuing.

"But what he was saying was a little disturbing." He stopped and looked at Sanzo. Sanzo just glared back at him and asked: "What did he say?"

"He kept saying: 'Sanzo's going to kill me', over and over again. After he calmed down a little, he told me what happened." He stopped for a while and looked as if he were trying to find the right words. "Even though it's hard to believe, I don't think he's lying."

"Why is that?" Sanzo questioned dangerously.

"I checked his neck and saw bruises; signifying that a great deal of pressure was put there recently. And I can see silhouettes of fingers wrapped around his neck." Hakkai now looked at Sanzo severely and so did Gojyo, but Sanzo didn't waver.

"I didn't try to kill him." He said calmly. But Gojyo slammed the table hard as he stood up abruptly.

"Then who did!?" Gojyo snapped. Sanzo always threatened to kill them everyday, but it never occurred to him that he really would do so except under heightened circumstances.

"Gojyo, calm down. Nothing good will happen if we all get worked up like this." Hakkai said as he pushed Gojyo back down into his chair. Hakkai then looked at Sanzo once again with an indifferent smile.

"Would you mind telling me your side of the story, Sanzo?" Sanzo was glad that Hakkai gave him the benefit of the doubt, but he knew that Hakkai wasn't going to let him off easily, considering the fact that he and Gojyo loved Goku like a little brother.

Sanzo sighed and told them what had happened.

FLASHBACK

After Sanzo made sure that Goku was asleep, he sat up and leaned against the wall. Sanzo knew he could have hugged Goku all night if he wanted to, but it felt like he would be taking advantage of Goku's trust. He may be annoying but Sanzo still respected him. Besides, he'd be damned if he were to give Hakkai or Gojyo the chance to catch him red handed with him in bed.

He sighed and looked at Goku and smiled a little when he saw the silly grin on his face. He wondered how things would be if they were together. But how? Goku didn't understand this stuff. He may be 18, plus 500, but he has the mind of a 10 year old. Plus, Sanzo knew that Goku had placed his trust and loyalty in him, he is his 'sun' anyway. Even if they couldn't be together at least Sanzo knew that he would always occupy a little space in Goku's heart.

He was about to retreat to his own bed but stopped when he heard uneven breathing from Goku. He looked over and saw that Goku's eyes were wide open in fear. "Goku?" He was kicked by Goku in the chest. He went into a coughing fit due to the kick and tried again to hold Goku. That moment he heard him mumble a question.

"Ack! Wh—who are you?"

But holding Goku wasn't an easy task. Goku acted as if someone were attacking him. Sanzo surmised that he was dreaming that someone was strangling him by the way he put his hands on his neck. Again he heard Goku's voice; fighting.

"G—get off—me!!"

Sanzo couldn't get near him without getting kicked, so the moment he got a chance to be close to him, he immediately went on top of him; straddling him. "Hakkai!! Come in here!! Quick!!" But there was no reply. Making Sanzo wandered where Hakkai was.

Sanzo felt Goku cease struggling and watched as his eyes filled with fear and disbelief. "Goku! Wake up!!" But it went unheard by the boy. One of his hands fell down.

"Wh—who are you!!?"

Sanzo was about to call Hakkai again when Goku stopped moving all together. His eyes now filled with hurt and betrayal.

"S—sanzo....?"

Sanzo stopped mid-way when he heard his name. Is he dreaming that I…Masaka. Sanzo immediately shook Goku as hard as he could, but he still didn't snap out of it. "Oi, Goku!" There were no direct reply, but he said:

"Why…?"

Sanzo could see tears running down his cheeks and there was a moment of silence. Sanzo swore that he was about to have a heart attack when he saw Goku closing his eyes.

He was about to leave and call Hakkai when the boy reopened his eyes and pushed him off the bed. Luckily his back broke his fall. He could hear the sound of sheets shuffling coming from the bed. "What the fuck are you doing?" He demanded as he got up, but was surprised to see the boy curled up in the blankets at the other end of the bed, shivering.

He tried to reach out when he heard the boy mumble something, but he couldn't make out what it was. "Nani? Wh—"

"Get away from me!!"

Sanzo was surprised to hear those words. He tried again to hold him, but Goku slapped his hand away. "Don't—don't touch me." However, Sanzo wasn't going to give up and immediately grabbed one of his wrists as Goku fought back. But he couldn't do much in his condition, and Sanzo manage to get a hold of both his wrists in no time.

"L—let go of me!!"

Sanzo looked into his face and could see more tears coming out of his eyes. Sanzo reach out to his face with his free hand to wipe out those tears when Goku shook his head violently. "Stay put bakasaru!"

"Let go of me!! Ha—HAKKAI!!!!! GOJYO!!!!

END OF FLASHBACK

"And the rest is history." Sanzo had told them everything except the part about his sleeping with Goku. Gojyo looked serious and didn't say anything while Hakkai looked like he was thinking.

"Did anything break?" Hakkai asked all of a sudden, to Sanzo's amusement. He looked around and saw that everything was in its place. "Not unless you count my ribs."

Hakkai continued to think and after a while he sighed. "This is weird. What do you think, Gojyo?" Hakkai and Sanzo looked at Gojyo and sweat-dropped to see him sleeping. Sanzo, who swore that he could feel at least ten veins pop out, knocked his head with his harisen and Gojyo's went face first into the table.

"WHAT THE HELL??!!" Gojyo looked up immediately and saw Sanzo glaring at him with his gun on his forehead. "I'll show hell to you if you aren't being serious here." Sanzo said dangerously and Gojyo could feel the murderous aura coming from him.

"May I help, Sanzo?" Gojyo looked at Hakkai who was smiling his usual smile and cracking his knuckles, but his murderous aura was worse than Sanzo's. "H—hey guys. I—I was only joking." Gojyo sweat-dropped at his predicament.

"Then your death will be a joke too if you don't stop playing around, koi." The way Hakkai said it gave him the shivers and he immediately got up and, in a dash, was at the door.

"I—I think I'll go check on him." With that, he literally ran off to Hakkai's room. The remaining two sighed and sat down. Sanzo looked at Hakkai who was shaking his head slowly.

"I have no idea what you see in him."

Hakkai just chuckled at those words and said: "He may be slow at times, but he does have his own value." Hakkai then started to look serious again. "There is something weird about yours and Goku's statements though."

"What is that?"

"Goku said that he pushed the bedside table and broke the lamp to get our attention, but the way I see it and what you said, nothing broke. And you couldn't possibly have had the chance to clean it since we arrived the moment we heard our names." Hakkai said thoughtfully and at last he smiled.

"Ok, you're innocent." Hakkai said it so easily that Sanzo was perplexed. "How is that?" Sanzo demanded.

"First; no way you would try or even think about killing Goku. Two; I don't think you're lying." Hakkai said so playfully that Sanzo wondered if Hakkai was all right.

"So, you're saying that Goku lied to us?" Sanzo asked doubtfully, but keeping his composure nonetheless.

"Iie, he's too shaken up to lie. But that leads to another conclusion." Hakkai said as he got up. "Someone else is behind all this, most likely working for Homura." With that, he walked towards the door but stopped before he went out.

"Don't worry; I'll explain to him that it was all a dream. But I advise you to stay away from Goku for a while, let him cool down and think first" Hakkai said gently but Sanzo was disapprove of the idea "I do what I want."

"I know this is hard, but Goku is very afraid of you right now. Not out of respect, but out of fear. Give him a chance to set his mind straight." With that, Hakkai left Sanzo alone in the dark room and the sound of Hakkai's door closing could be heard through the emptiness.

"Kuso!!" Sanzo punched the table and went to the door and slammed it shut. He then turned around and headed for his bed.

I don't know what your plan is, Homura. But I'll stop you even if it kills me.

"Oh, I see. You gave them dreams."

"Yes, by giving the victim a dream so vivid and realistic, he would think it was reality." She said as she smiled a very wicked and sinister smirk. "That is how I always get my victims; through their dreams. Humans and youkais always think that they can escape to the world of dreams. But they never knew how dangerous it can be when the enemy is someone who can control the world of dreams and memories."

Homura looked at her normally sweet and innocent face now twisted into evil glee. "Subarashii…" The mumbled voice snapped Homura from his reverie. "Nani?"

"Subarashii… to see the fearful faces of the victims as they face their deaths in the world where they used to seek refuge from reality." She was smiling even more, but it looked vicious.

"Now I see how you got your name, Yume." He said respectfully to his subordinate. Yume's face turned from evil to solemn as soon as Homura spoke. She didn't look at Homura but lowered her head. Her bangs covered her eyes, so Homura couldn't tell what was wrong, but she smiled.

She then started chanting, but she still hadn't lifted her head. Homura didn't notice a single tear drop go down her cheek and fall onto the crystal ball.

It's not my name.......

The next morning, neither Sanzo nor Goku was at breakfast. Goku was still asleep, but Sanzo… no one knew. He refused to leave his room or let anyone in. Gojyo was a little happy knowing that he could have a peaceful breakfast with Hakkai and Hakuryuu, but was worried nonetheless.

"So," Gojyo started as he stuffed his mouth with food. "How's Goku?" Hakkai didn't answer immediately; he fed Hakuryuu with a morsel of beef first.

"He's been sleeping quite well, but last night he woke up crying twice." Hakkai said regretfully. Gojyo slowed down a little a looked at his food; feeling sad for them all.

"I had to give him sleeping pills and hope that he would sleep a little better. It worked fortunately." Hakuryuu looked at his master and tried to cheer him up by nuzzling against his face. Hakkai just chuckled and patted Hakuryuu's head.

The two went silent, the sound of people eating their breakfast in the inn's restaurant seeming louder than usual. Breakfast was so long without Goku or Sanzo, it was too quiet. Hakkai looked at Gojyo and saw that he was trying his best to make it look alright. That made Hakkai smile again, no use moping around and just hoping that everything would be okay again. Just go on with life and try to make the best of it. They'd find a way, surely.

"Ne, Gojyo? Did you notice that everything that has happened has had one thing in common?" Hakkai waited for the answer, but was surprised to see that Gojyo was choking on a spring roll.

"Yeah. All of them started in their dreams." Gojyo finally answered after drinking a mug of beer to push down the spring roll. "Is there a youkai who can control dreams?" Hakkai asked again more to himself rather than Gojyo.

"No idea, but who knows. Every youkai has his own special abilities; like us. Goku might be the strongest youkai there is, you specialize in using you chi as weapon and for healing, while me; I might be the most gorgeous half-youkai there is." Gojyo ended it with a little joke and a charming smile, in attempt to make his lover a little more cheerful. And it worked; because Hakkai flashed a true smile at him and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"You always know how to make me feel better. Arigatou." With that he finished his breakfast feeling a little better. He still had to send breakfast to Sanzo and Goku. He also had to explain everything to Goku later. So much to do and the day was just beginning.

Oh well. I guess Gojyo will have to do the shopping today.

After Goku woke up, he did eat, but very little, as in VERY. He only ate a few nikumans and a spring roll. Hakkai could see that he was still shaken up, even though he tried to be cheerful. Hakkai understood how he felt, he might be this shaken up if someone he trusted very much had tried to kill him, even in a dream.

"Why don't you eat more? You'll feel better if you do."

"Iie, I'm not that hungry.' He said mournfully. Hakkai just sighed and put the tray outside of the room. He looked down the hall at Sanzo's room and could see the tray of food he had left there for Sanzo. Hakkai can't do anything if Sanzo refuses so; the man will do what he wants, regardless of what people say.

"Where's Sa—, I mean; where's Gojyo?" Hakkai heard as he sat on a chair next to Goku's bed. Hakkai knew that Goku still worried about Sanzo, but he must have been afraid to voice it.

"He went shopping for our supplies." Hakkai answered plainly with a smile, not wanting to push the issue. "Oh..." Was all Goku could say. Hakkai then went to the table in the middle of the room to get some water for Goku.

"Sanzo's still in his room." He continued without looking at Goku. He could hear Goku's breathing hitch when he said that. He looked around and saw that Goku had lowered his head. Hakkai couldn't see his expression since Goku's brown locks were covering his eyes. As Hakkai walked back to him, Goku slowly raised his hand and touched the scar between his eyes. The scar he got while trying to help Sanzo the other day.

"Here you go." Hakkai handed the glass to him, but he didn't take it; so Hakkai put it on the bedside table. He looked back at Goku and saw his other hand clenching the blanket, so hard that it was shaking. Hakkai was about to pat him on the back when he saw a drop fall onto Goku's hand.

"Nande? Why did he try to kill me?"

Hakkai retracted his hand and took a deep breath before he began, "He didn't try to kill you. He never did." Goku abruptly lifted his head to look at Hakkai. "I saw him, Hakkai!! I saw him, I felt him!! How do you intend to explain that!?"

"I will, if you calm down."

Hakkai explained everything and Goku listened intently. He was quiet the whole time and every second, his eyes grew wider with surprise.

"That's it. The incident about Sanzo trying to kill you was all a dream. He tried to save you."

Goku was speechless; he didn't know what to think. "Demo, it was so real…the pain was too real to be a dream." He tried to reason out, just to prove to Hakkai that he wasn't lying, not to accuse Sanzo. In fact, he was glad to hear Sanzo was innocent.

"Goku, there are dreams that are so real, that we think they are reality. That kind of dream can even leave marks; just like the ones on your neck." Hakkai said with a smile. "The mind tends to play tricks on you. And dreaming is one of them." Hakkai looked at him as he nodded in understanding.

Goku still didn't know that Homura might be behind this, as Sanzo wouldn't allow them to tell him. Hakkai knew that Sanzo was worried, but the boy needed to know sooner or later. Hakkai thought he would see Goku smiling like usual now that things were cleared up. but what he saw was exactly the opposite.

"Goku? Daijobu?"

"I.....I just accused Sanzo.......I accused him of trying to kill me...." Goku said with a solemn face. Hakkai could see where this was going, but before he could do anything, Goku pulled his knees to his chest and hugged them.

"I....he...he's my sun........but I didn't trust him.........while he must have trusted me......." Hakkai didn't mean for things to get worse, but he didn't predict this would happen, not at all.

"He tried.....to save me......but.... sniff .....I accused him......of something terrible......."

"Goku! Get a hold of yourself." Hakkai tried to reason with him but it seemed that the boy was tuning out his voice as his tears started to make their way down his cheeks.

"......he must hate me now.......... sniff he'll.....leave.....me behind...... sniff .....

Goku rocked back and forth as he repeated those words again and again. Hakkai felt like crying upon seeing his state of mind right now. He knew how fragile Goku's mind was at the moment, and Sanzo might be the only one he held as a support.

"I'll be alone again.........."

Hakkai hugged Goku. "No! You're not alone Goku! You never will be. We won't leave you." But the boy was still the same; his blank eyes kept on looking at nothing as tears continued falling down. "He'll leave me......"

"He won't. Sanzo won't....so please, don't think about it anymore......"

But Hakkai knew that Goku wasn't going to listen to him. What he needed now was Sanzo.

Sanzo was examining himself in the mirror; he looked like a walking zombie because he was deprived of sleep. It's not that he didn't want to sleep, he just couldn't. He kept on hearing Goku's voice accusing him over and over again the whole night.

He did go to see Goku when the couple went for breakfast. He peeked into Hakkai's room and he saw that Goku was up and crying with his head behind his knees. He was about to go when he heard Goku's hoarse voice.

"Sanzo…What did I do that you hate me so? Until you want to kill me…I rather die than to hate you…than to be alone again…"

Sanzo clenched his teeth and forced himself to close the door. He wanted so much just to go in and hug him like he used to three years ago, but he couldn't. He might traumatize the boy if he did.

The moment Sanzo went into his room, he kicked the wall to vent his frustration. He was cursing in his mind a certain Kami for giving him this trouble. An hour later, he heard Hakkai's voice; telling him that breakfast was just outside. But he didn't have the appetite to eat. After a while he heard Goku's voice yelling;

"I saw him, Hakkai!! I saw him, I felt him!! How do you intend to explain that!?"

For a while, he heard nothing but guessed that Hakkai was explaining it to Goku. Sanzo lay back on the bed and waited. When he heard Goku's voice again, it was not from Hakkai's room, but in his head.

/I didn't trust him..../

He looked around and listened for the voice.

/Now, he really hates me....I'll be alone again......./

That moment he heard Hakkai's voice; coming from the room. Hearing the panic in the voice, he immediately went out of his and headed towards Hakkai's room. He listened to the noises inside and slowly opened the door to see what was happening. Again, he saw Goku's tears. These past two days, he had been crying more than trying to smile like he usually would do.

"No! You're not alone Goku! You never will be. We won't leave you."

He heard Hakkai's voice and he saw Hakkai hug Goku. This time, Sanzo could see Goku's eyes and was slightly surprised to see the blank looks they had. He saw Goku move his lips; the voice was barely audible, but Sanzo heard it anyway.

"He'll leave me......"

"He won't. Sanzo won't....so please, don't think about it anymore......"

Sanzo couldn't take it anymore. Screw Hakkai if he gets mad at him for not obeying, he didn't care. If he thinks Goku needs him, he will be there next to him. With that, he opened the door loudly to announce his presence, but Hakkai was the only one that noticed.

Sanzo looked at Hakkai and signaled that he would handle this. Hakkai understood perfectly and, in no time, was out. Sanzo locked the door and glanced at Goku. Slowly, he walked towards Goku and sat down on the bed. "Goku."

The boy snapped out of his reverie when he heard Sanzo's voice. He looked up and saw him, but he didn't know whether to go to him or to stay put, so he just lowered his head.

"Look at me when I call you." Sanzo said sternly but softly. Goku did as he was told and was ready for the worst. "You're giving me a lot of trouble, you know that?" That statement startled Goku and once again, tears welled up in his eyes, but he nodded nonetheless.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" It was more like demanding than asking a question.

"Go—gomen ne, Sa—Sanzo." He said slowly and he searched Sanzo's face for any sign that he might be forgiven, but the man just continued on looking at him with his usual scowl. Seeing no reaction from him, he continued on; "I—I didn't know... sniff …I thought you hated me…"

Sanzo sighed deeply when he saw the boy start to cry again. Slowly, he got up and moves closer to the boy. He then lifted the boy so that Goku was sitting on his lap. The boy seemed dazed, but when he looked up at Sanzo he felt relieved.

"Baka." Goku could feel an overwhelming relief washing over him. He then cried to his heart's content against Sanzo's chest, as he felt two arms securely holding him and Sanzo's chin resting on top of his head.

"Gomen ne! Gomen ne!! I—didn't mean to! I'm really, really sorry!" Goku keep on apologizing over and over again as he cried while Sanzo just kept quiet, occasionally saying a few comforting words.

"Gomen ne..."

"Just rest, saru."

Sanzo could feel his shirt getting wet, he didn't care. Right now he just wanted Goku to know that he'd always be there for him; that's all. Everything else would just have to wait. Sanzo was going to make sure that fucking Kami paid for making Goku depressed and confused.

"It seems that every thing is okay again."

Hakkai just smiled at the words. "Really? Yokatta..." Hakkai said as Gojyo finally tore his ear off the door. The moment Sanzo locked the room; Gojyo had come back from shopping, well, not really, as he had forgotten to ask for the gold card from Sanzo. When he heard that Sanzo was in the room with Goku, he immediately pressed his ear against the door to eavesdrop. Hakkai didn't try to stop him, since Gojyo wouldn't have listened to him anyway.

As Gojyo stood up straight, Hakkai closed his eyes let out a sigh of relief; he was glad that this was over, for now. When he opened his eyes again, he was shocked to see that Gojyo was right in front of him. Gojyo saw this and smiled. "I surprised you, didn't I?"

Before Hakkai could answer, Gojyo kissed him lightly on the lips. Hakkai was startled at first, but he quickly deepened the kiss. After awhile, they stopped to catch some fresh air. Hakkai glanced around, hoping that no one had seen them. Luckily, there was no one.

"You worry too much, Hakkai."

Hakkai just smiled and kissed him back. "Same as you, koi." He said sweetly after the kiss. They looked at each other with a knowing smile. After a few minutes of doing that, they finally let each other go.

"Now, let's go and finish up shopping."

"Kuso!!"

Yume smacked her crystal ball off the altar as anger seeped through her. The spell should have worked!! Her beautiful face was scrunched up in fury as she glared at the crystal ball rolling across the room. She was so angry that Goku trusted Sanzo again, and so quickly too.

"This is the first time I've seen you mad, Yume."

She snapped towards the sound of Homura's voice. "Ho—Homura-sama!! Why didn't you tell me you were coming?" Yume said as she bowed to the Kami. She was a mess; she only wore her night gown since she had come to her ritual room the first thing she after she woke up. Homura always gave her surprise visits in her mansion, unfortunately.

"So, the third stage failed?" He asked, amusingly but knowingly. "Hai, Homura-sama. It seems Goku's trust towards Sanzo was incomparable to my previous victims." Yume explained as she pulled her silver hair into a casual bun and materialized a long, sharp blood red hair pin, and used it to hold the bun. She sighed as she put the rest of her loosed hair behind her ear.

"But, never mind. All the other stages went well; we can use a direct approach." She said as if it were done already. Homura was slightly amused by her confidence. "How do you intend to do that?"

"Technically, the spell was to make the victim's memories altered. Memories have a strong effect on who we are today. But the memories are supported by our trust towards ourselves and the people around us." She said as she took out some vile filled with a black substance.

"By making the victim lose his trust towards another, he will doubt them and himself; thus making his mind vulnerable. Only then, can I alter the memories according to what you want." She then opened the vile and poured it on herself. Homura was again amused by her acts and wondered to himself what on earth this girl was thinking. Plus, this girl wasn't answering his question at all.

"And again; how are you going to do it?"

"We go and accomplish the third and the fourth stage ourselves," She then bit her finger and blood came out from the small wound. She used it to make symbols on her already stained face and arms. She then took a robe that was situated near the altar and put it on.

"If I can't make Goku distrust Sanzo by dreams, then I'll do it myself." She started to chant as she rose a few feet until an immense light shone brightly against the early sun, making Homura close his eyes in order not to blind himself. He could still hear the chanting until it slowly stopped.

After Homura was sure that the light was gone, or at least lessened; he peered around the room and saw the girl descending back to the ground. Homura could see what she meant and smirked.

"Well done, Yume."

Yume just smiled at him as he gave a small applause. She waved her hand and materialized a huge mirror next to her and slowly, she looked herself up and down, proud of her work. She then waved her hand again and turned around to adorn her work. She giggled like a little girl, but stopped immediately when she remembered that Homura was still there.

She quickly bowed and apologized to Homura. But Homura just leaned against the wall and opened his mouth to ask something that had been bothering him ever since this girl asked to work for him.

"Yume, I must admit; I've never met an 18 year old girl who can perform such high-ranked magic. I'm surprised that Gyumao's followers didn't ask you to join them."

The girl smiled sorely and answered the question. "I'm not 18, I'm much older than that. My true age is almost four hundred years old." Homura raised an eyebrow at her statement.

"Oh?"

"I come from a clan of youkai whose bodies only grow one year older by human's standard once every 10 years. My clan was small but because of our ability, we were respected and feared. Gyumoa himself came to us and asked us to be on his side but…I don't know whether or not they accepted." She said gloomily. She cleaned the mess she made and found the crystal ball she had thrown a few minutes ago. She lifted it up and as she peered through it with a solemn face, continued.

"But.....I was an exception. My body grows older once every twenty years; and my clan believed that I was their new future leader."

"Where are they now?" Homura asked the seemingly innocent question, unaware that the girl would glare at him with eyes full of hatred.

"The clan is gone.......wiped out...."

The last few sentences after that weren't audible, but Homura didn't press it. He make a move to leave.)

"Well, tell me when your plan is commencing. I think I'm going to enjoy this."

Yume bowed at Homura as the Kami headed towards the door. "Hai, a few hours from now."

"Fine"

Homura teleported himself to Konran Tower and sat back on his throne. Soon after, Shien materialized and bowed immediately to his superior. "Homura-sama, are you sure about this plan?"

Homura smirked. "I am." Shien stared at Homura searching for any doubts, but found none.

"Very well, but you do know what will happen to Goku if the spell backfires." Shien said, reminding Homura of the possibilities.

"If he goes through it, then his strength is something we should expect more of than we do." With that, Shien went silent; analyzing the words. He got up and took his place next to Homura.

"Yare, yare. We're really doing this?"

Zenon stepped out of the shadows in the corner of the throne room while rubbing the back of his neck. He didn't need the answer considering he heard the whole, and very short, conversation.

Homura couldn't wait for Yume's visit to the Sanzo-ikkou. This will be interesting indeed.

And Goku will finally be mine.

To be continued.....

A/N: Well, that's it folks! Hope you enjoy it. And here is the reply for all of the review that was given to me!!

Crimson1: Thanks. But about the monologue thingy in the dream with the snow, I took it from the manga, just in case you didn't know. But thanks anyway, that was the best compliment so far!

Lirin-Chan: Thank you. And you're welcome! I hope you love this chap.

Keistje Yeah, I know. But sanzo wouldn't be Sanzo if he shows that he really cares about Goku, right?

Ethereal light: Thanks. Glad you like it. I am! So, don't worry!

SLIS: Oh dear. I hope you haven't died yet from the suspense. Thanks, I know it would. Yeah, you're welcome. It was no problem.

Atsu Tenshi: Sorry, I have a knack for writing long chapters, but glad you like it! I hope this was worth your wait. Sure, it was no prob!

RuByMoOn17: Sorry it wasn't soon enough.

Zelgadis55: You're a Slayers fan, aren't you? Anyway, yeah, I know how that feels. Sometimes you can't even find the story you wanna read. And thanks for the compliments. I hope you love this chap.

Koryu-sanzo It does? Yeah, it does look purplish-periwinkle. Thanks! hugs back And thanks for putting my story in your favourite list. And thanks for the red ballon. Here's a brownie!

Nya This is the shortest and the cutest short name I ever seen. Really? I'm glad you do. Yes, I know it's gonna be sad, but I'm not telling if it'll be a happy ending. Thanks, I was hoping that it is.

Flames Afire: I'm sorry that I'm late. But thanks for waiting!

Wasabii Sorry. Here, I hope you love this chap.

Yumekage Aly- I mean; Akuma! What are you doing here? I thought you don't like yaoi? Yes, I know you don't know. See? I'm not such a goodie-goodie little girl most people think I am, hehe. Why would Xellos like Yaoi? Is it because he's a Mozaku? Really? But there are kissing scenes here, does that count as Shonen-ai or yaoi? No, I won't make a hardcore Yaoi. I can't bring myself to write lime, let alone lemon.

Xellos Ha? No lemon? Damn.

Hakkai He sounds like me. The voice I mean.

Eve: Ha ha.....wonder why.... Yes Xellos-san, there'll be no lemon.

Xellos Are you sure......? Hehe....... smile malevolently

Eve: Hakkai!! He's scaring me. Q.Q

Hakkai & Xellos: Are, are.

Eve: You guys sounded like twins....;;;

A/N: My last note before the next update. The next Update will happen around Christmas, so wait for it. And please, stop spamming my e-mail! You know who you are, so please stop it. Thank you! I hope you all will wait for the next chap, please don't go away!! I wuv you guys!! After the National exams, I'll be updating quicker!! So, please wait and thank you for reading this!!