Somewhere I Belong

A Saiyuki fan fiction by Iapetus
Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki.
Beta Readers: Orenda

Chapter 7: Knossos

•

Tonpu leaned back in the ratty-looking swivel chair and looked at the paper in his left hand. In his right hand was a red pen, the cap off and poised over the paper – ready to start writing at any moment. The tip of the writing utensil only just avoided making any marks on the document as it moved slowly downward, following the same path as the editor's eyes.

It was his first read-through of the new article, and Tonpu made it a point to make no marks on anything until he had read it through once completely. He found that it actually saved him time in the long run – he would catch more mistakes the second time around than if he just read it objectively in the first viewing. That, and he had to put each article through his own specially devised litmus test.

No matter how good the writing was, if it somehow contradicted some sort of value of the Diet, he'd have to refuse it. It was more than his job, and even his life, was worth to forsake his position at the newspaper. In these rough drafts, if an article had conflicting issues he'd simply tell the reporter in question that they had to trash it. He wasn't like some of the other editors that had them work endlessly on an article that would just be refused when it came time to print. Tonpu scowled; he wasn't a sadist like that.

Over time, Tonpu had built up the reputation of being the most fair of all the editors on the staff. While he was required to follow the rules just as much as the others, his lack of desire to play unnecessary mind games had gained him the respect of nearly everyone there. He took no sides, in their view. He was neutral.

Sighing, the Weakling threw the article in an overflowing desk wire basket marked "rejects." There had been a few minor grammar mistakes, but it was otherwise an incredible piece. Yet another amazing piece of writing that only he'd be able to see. Looking over to where his monitor was turned on, he opened up his e-mail program and scrolled down the list of incoming messages. He found one that bore the same title as the article he had just read, and opened it up. It was the same piece of writing – all reporters were required to send both a physical and electronic copy to their editor when submitting anything. Tonpu smiled faintly, and moved the e-mail to one of the many "reject" folders he had created.

The few articles that he discarded that were actually informative he would save to his own personal file. If he was to formally reject an article, it had to be archived in the paper's database that he had done so, and the physical copy would be shredded. However, he would simply send a copy over for Shuuei to look at, and he would pass any of the relevant information along accordingly. But… it just frustrated him that those reporters would never know how much their writing helped. It wasn't fair.

Picking up the next paper out of yet another overflowing wire basket (this one happened to be marked "In"), Tonpu set about to repeat the process. He was just lucky that he didn't have the influx of articles like some of the other editors did during the day. While his piled up on his desk until he came in, the only stories he had to worry about coming in while he was at work were from some of the few reporters who were vampires like himself.

He never threw out articles written by them. They were wise enough to figure out which stories wouldn't fly and would be best not mentioned at all. None of those reporters were under his jurisdiction, and Tonpu didn't know if this was a good thing or bad thing. It was dangerous to get close to any vampire – friend or foe.

The editor would have continued his pre-read of his current piece when he noticed the telltale popup that appeared on his monitor at least fifty times a day. He had gotten a new e-mail. Glancing at the window, he saw that it was not someone from his address book. It wasn't one of his reporters or fellow editors, and that surprised him. Tonpu's e-mail account had been specially altered by the Diet (as did all the other editors) to only accept e-mails from their coworkers, or fellow governmental employees. Restrictive would have been a nice term to refer to it as, but on the bright side he didn't get any spam. But if his computer didn't recognize the sender… then it had to be a member of the Diet. Setting the article down, he clicked the "ok" button to direct himself to his e-mail server, and opened it up to read.

Dear Sir,Recently it has come to
my attention that
the Oniori Daily
has been pushing to do a series of articles
on various
writers
within the Empire.
If this is so, then the Diet humbly
requests that you write about the following authors
first and foremost.
We believe that the public would like to know
primarily about them.

We are also aware that a
few of the authors mentioned here write
under pennames.
After much thought, the Diet has
decided that these authors do not have anything to hide
from the public, and
should be written about
first.
If you are having trouble
finding information
about them through your normal means,
the Diet will put forth the funds for
any reward you wish to
offer for information. You would
be amazed at the information you would find once others realize
that money is involved.

Of all the people on this list, I
suggest that you look for the authors in the order
we listed them.
I'm sure they would be
overjoyed to get an
interview from the prestigious
Oniori Today.

My best regards on being
able to
find this information.
Again, if you have any trouble,
the Diet would be
more
than
willing
to help you with your
job.

Sincerely,
-Bunny-san

Bunny-san? Wasn't that the same freak that Shunrei told me was bugging- His eyes widened as he examined the list of names that had been enclosed. Tonpu cringed. It shouldn't have surprised him to see Kougaiji's penname listed first.

...What the hell did you do to get the Diet so interested in you, Kougaiji?

•

•

"You're early."

Hakkai smiled as he was invited in. "My watch must be getting a bit faster these days. Would you like me to come back later?"

"No, no, that's ok," Shuuei said, waving his hand. "I was just surprised. You don't usually come this early."

Hakkai glanced at his watch again. It was twenty minutes before Shuuei had asked him to stop by the Shrine today. "Well, it's better to be early than late, and I know how often you have to deal with people being late. I thought it might be a nice change in pace."

Shuuei smirked. "Yeah, it's nice to have a little variety. I'd get bored if people were late all the time. Thank you ever so much for making sure that wouldn't happen, Hakkai." Here he laughed softly, and gave his fellow Hunter a mock bow. Hakkai chuckled and returned it before they continued to walk deeper into the Shrine.

Without a guide, even the best navigators would become hopelessly lost in this area. Every time a Hunter came to the Shrine for whatever reason, it was required that Shuuei lead them in. It was what the Abbot liked to call a "living maze," and it had been created decades ago to help increase the security surrounding the Holy Water. Only those who had lived there for an extended period of time could ever have a hope to find their way alone, and as a rule Hunters did not take up residence in the Shrine unless there were literally no other options. While it was hazardous to have only one person know the way around, there wasn't anything they could do about it.

After a few minutes where Hakkai could have sworn that they went through the same door three times, they arrived in a shabby-looking sitting room. Computer cords were duct taped to the paint-cracked wall and out of the way, and they all lead to where one laptop was resting on an end table that Shuuei sat down next to. He sat on an ottoman that had seen better days, but it was the perfect height for him to type so he voiced no complaints. Hakkai sat down in an old rocking chair across from him.

Shuuei typed something in before speaking again. "Do you want something to drink? I don't have any wine to offer, but I do have some nice sparkling water that Yaone got for me the other day…"

Hakkai waved a hand in refusal. "No thank you. I'm not very thirsty right now." Shuuei nodded in understanding, but rose and went to a small fridge in the corner of the room to get one for himself. The carbonation hissed as he opened his bottle, and he sat back down. Taking a sip, he grimaced.

"This stuff takes some getting used to, but it's starting to grow on me…" Hakkai silently agreed with the statement. "But anyways," Shuuei continued, "Have you found out anything new about that girl's death in the alley?"

The Hunter shook his head as he leaned back in his chair. "Not really. I went off the information that you gave me, but that's all we really have. She was just a law-abiding citizen who was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Being out that early in the morning is dangerous, and everyone knows it," the Abbot said darkly. "Vampires aren't the only things haunting the streets."

"Yes, but she wasn't near any of the gang territories either," Hakkai pointed out. "She was in a Weakling's territory, but that's it. Nothing worthy of notice previously, and the Weakling was out cold when I found her body."

Shuuei eyed his computer screen and took another sip of water. Hakkai had noticed that his friend had a habit of glancing at his computer screens whenever he was nervous. It was an interesting habit that he noticed several of his hacker friends possess. But not all answers could be found with a hacker program.

"I still don't like this. We have no idea who could have possibly killed the both of them, Kougaiji gets that disturbing e-mail, and then…" He rested his forehead against the palm of his hand. "…and then Goku gets ambushed. Shunrei's a mess, Lirin's beside herself, I have no idea how Goku must feel right now, and I…" He trailed off, seemingly losing himself in thought. After a quick shake of his head, he looked up. "I don't like this," he repeated.

"No one does," Hakkai agreed. "The only thing we know is that whoever killed those two in the alley was good. They don't leave witnesses so no one knows about them. There aren't even any rumors besides the usual ones for vampires."

"And Gojyo hasn't heard anything either?"

"No," Hakkai said simply, "unless he's told you something before he was able to tell me."

The Abbot shook his head. "I've heard nothing; Gojyo's heard nothing. Everywhere we go, we hear nothing. We're losing this fight day by day. How long are we supposed to last?"

Hakkai didn't know what to say to that. There was nothing anyone could say to make the situation look any better.

"You and I both know the answer," Shuuei said darkly. "We aren't supposed to last. How are we supposed to live this life, watching those we care about die or turned into devils?"

"I don't know," Hakkai said truthfully. An awkward pause followed, in which both men found themselves lost in their own thoughts. He was a unique Hunter – one that had the ability to kill Keikans. It was not some honored fighting technique, but to use it his target couldn't suspect. But what good was he if the one Keikan he desperately wanted to kill the most would be the last one to fall for his trap? With that he was back on the level of the rest of the Hunters. He could not avenge Kanan no matter how much he wanted to. There was always the possibility of Gojyo avenging her for him – his friend wanted to do a bit of avenging of his own – but the risk was too great. He would not risk Gojyo's life in a quest for his own revenge, especially since there was no hope to save Gojyo's soul.

"Master Koumyou did much better than I ever could, or can," Shuuei said suddenly. "If he were still alive I bet he could turn the tides of this war."

The green-eyed man shook his head. "Things were horrible even when Koumyou-sensei was leading us. Yaone and I didn't know him long, but we knew this weighted heavily on his mind too. We were losing even then."

Shuuei didn't say anything. He finished his water in silence and threw the bottle into a bin across the room. It bounced off the rim and rolled across the floor until it stopped against a wall. He smiled as he got up.

"Well, we do know one thing for sure. I can't shoot like Goku can."

They both laughed. "That's true enough," Hakkai said, "Although you may be able to catch him off-guard right now. He's not in season, after all."

Shuuei laughed again, and then headed back to the small refrigerator. "You sure you don't want any?"

Hakkai decided that it would be good to humor his friend. "I guess I could have just one." Shuuei got two out and kicked the door shut with his foot. Walking over to where they were sitting, he handed one bottle out to Hakkai, which he took promptly.

When the Hunter opened the bottle and took a sip, he was reminded of why he refused the first time. After taking another sip to be polite, he put the cap back on and set it next to his feet. Across from him, Shuuei had already downed half of the container, and was rolling the cap between his fingers. It slipped from his grip, but he caught it before it fell to the ground.

"There's something else," he said finally.

Hakkai wasn't too surprised to hear this. There was always something else. "Yes?" he said politely.

Shuuei continued to roll the bottle cap as he spoke. "Goku isn't telling us something."

That much is obvious, Hakkai agreed, but he simply nodded and waited for the Abbot to continue.

"It isn't even his demeanor. Anyone could tell he's hiding something, but why he wouldn't tell us is beyond my comprehension."

Hakkai smiled, but it was one of his fake smiles. They had neglected to mention to Shuuei exactly what had happened that night. It disturbed Gojyo, Kougaiji and himself that this "Sanzo" knew of Shuuei, and even more so wanted to talk with him. Shuuei had enough on his shoulders to know that some unknown powerful Keikan was looking for him. They were going to look into it more first, and until then Shuuei could be preoccupied with dealing with other things – namely about how they were going to get Goku's spike back from the detective.

"When he was being purified," Shuuei said slowly, "he screamed."

Whatever Hakkai had expected to hear, it hadn't been that.

The Abbot shook his head. "I never heard such a sound before. It was as if I were trying to wrench something from him – I don't know." He closed his eyes against the memory. "It killed me to make him go through that. He wasn't crying, but you could see the tears in his eyes from the pain.

"We both know that bathing in Holy Water is by no means a fun experience, but for it to be that painful? I have no idea why. I took off that bandage myself – he wasn't bitten like he said. There's no reason for there to be any more discomfort than usual."

"And this is why you think he's hiding something," Hakkai said in conclusion.

"What, Gojyo didn't tell you that either?" Shuuei smirked. "He said it got so bad he was willing to try to hypnotize him into telling what happened."

No, Hakkai knew that. It had become a double-edged sword that Gojyo had taught Goku how to throw hypnosis himself. The first person he'd be able to defend against was the one who instructed him.

"We're not supposed to be the 'bad guys,'" Shuuei said, disgusted. "We shouldn't have to stoop to that level." They did anyways the moment they let other vampires join the fight, but neither one of them were going to voice that statement.

"Then how are we going to find out?" Hakkai asked. "We've already had to use those methods before on other people."

Shuuei shook his head. "I have an idea, but I really don't think it's going to work…"

•

•

The sky outside looked like something out of a painting Yaone had seen in a museum before. Multiple hues of gray painted the sky in shapes of clouds that the Hunter wished would bring a storm. She sighed a sigh of relief and thanked the clouds for their presence. Vampires didn't like water at all, and in any form. Whenever it rained it would reduce the number of their jaunts, and therefore cut the Hunters a bit of slack. Rain was always welcome in a Hunter's eyes, especially recently since there had been a drought for several months. It wasn't just them that wanted the rain, but everyone in the capital. Maybe if it rained, their water bills wouldn't be so high…

Thunder sounded in the distance, taunting her with its possibility. It was so close but so far – she wondered if it would make it to the city limits at all. The storm couldn't be more than three or four miles away at most. She wondered if Kougaiji would be back before then, or if he'd get caught in the rain as well, if it rained at all. The blue-haired woman giggled to herself. It wasn't a laughing matter, but she half-wished that Kougaiji would get caught in the rain on the way home. He had been indifferent to it as a human, and while now he naturally hated it along with the rest of his kind, his expression was always priceless when he came in soaked. He'd look like a cat that had its fur rubbed the wrong way. She shouldn't think of him like that as being adorable, but it was.

A gentle knock caused Yaone to stop her thinking and turn her attention to the door. Who could that be? She wondered. There wasn't any way it could be Kougaiji, and he wouldn't have knocked even if he lost the key.

After a quick check through the spy hole, she undid the several locks and opened the door. There standing at her threshold was Shunrei, trying to wear a happy expression on her face but failing miserably. Yaone quickly invited her in and closed the door, making sure she locked all the locks before turning back to her impromptu guest.

"How are you?" she asked good-naturedly, walking to where Shunrei had taken her seat. When she didn't respond right away, Yaone grew worried. Sitting down next to her, she felt her voice grow softer. "What's wrong?"

Shunrei couldn't respond right away, and fidgeted with her hands. "I can't stand this. I can't stand waiting anymore."

The Hunter blinked in surprise, and it took her a moment to realize what she was talking about. For once, she was glad that Kougaiji was gone.

"It's about Goku's ambush, isn't it?" she asked gently.

The blonde nodded. "I was just trying to help, and on my way I was clumsy and lost his spike to the Diet. I'm pathetic."

"No, you are not," Yaone said firmly, taking her friend's hands into hers. "If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have found out about Goku when we did."

"That's not the point. It's only a matter of time before I'm questioned, but they haven't yet," she choked back a sob, "and I'm scared."

Yaone looked at the hands that were resting in her lap. She didn't know what to say. Instead, she squeezed Shunrei's hands reassuringly.

"Maybe this is a good sign," she tried to reason. "It's been a week, after all, and you've still heard nothing."

Shunrei shook her head and looked away, responding as if she hadn't heard what was said. "They've launched a large-scale search for the perpetrator. They don't even know who they're hunting for, and what would happen if they found it was Goku? And even if they didn't and thought it was me, there's no way I could get out of that." The Diet took action much quicker than it did investigations, and it wouldn't be uncommon for them to silence someone who later was proven innocent. The blonde woman continued. "If they catch me there will be serious trouble. I can't resist hypnosis like you Hunters can."

"It isn't easy to do," Yaone admitted, trying to reassure her friend. "I had such a hard time with it at first."

"But you're a Hunter, Yaone!" Shunrei practically cried out. "I'm only human. I don't want to be anything more, but like this I'm helpless."

"Don't say that." Telling Shunrei that she was needed just as much as anybody else in the resistance wasn't going to help her now. It wasn't a matter of need; it was a matter of survival.

Yaone chose her words carefully. "Did either you or Shuuei find your name mentioned at all in the police records?"

"No," Shunrei said. "I don't know what to make of that either. It's too much to hope that Detective Taishi said nothing.

"Have you hacked into his computer?"

The hacker sighed. "Of course. There wasn't anything there either."

Yaone shifted in her chair uncomfortably. "That's strange…"

Shunrei pushed some hair out of her face. "Because of what happened, Shuuei put my apartment on the surveillance list this week. It would be too convenient if I wasn't on that list now, whether it be coincidence or not."

Yaone stood up and walked to the coffee table and put a wayward magazine back in its pile. She couldn't just sit around and only talk anymore. "Well, I guess we'll just have to have Goku and Lirin's study sessions here this week." She smiled and turned back around. "Lirin said she didn't mind taking a rain check and I know Goku feels bad for causing such problems even if he couldn't really help it…"

Shunrei finally smiled back. "It won't be a problem. For their homework we just need a normal computer. Would Kougaiji let us borrow his?"

The Hunter's expression faltered. "…he has to buy a new mouse first."

That seemed to surprise Shunrei, and she didn't hide it in the tone of her voice. "He still hasn't gotten a new one?"

Yaone shook her head. "He hasn't gotten around to it."

"Is he afraid he'll just break it again?" Shunrei asked.

"No, that's not it," the Hunter wrung her hands together. "He's broken so many before. Something's different now."

"What?"

"I'll show you." With that, she went into her bedroom and got a shoebox from under her bed. She brought it out to the main room and sat down next to Shunrei. "I haven't seen him this upset in so long. I asked for Gojyo and Hakkai's help, but they won't tell me exactly what's wrong." She took off the lid of the shoebox to reveal the contents to her friend. Inside was the broken mouse. It looked as if someone had squeezed the life out of it, and it was a mess of plastic and wires. Yaone knew that the only way anyone could recognize it was by the cord.

"That's what you found in the trash?" Shunrei asked.

Yaone nodded. "Usually when he breaks them they just crack in two, but this…"

Shunrei took the box from Yaone to look at it closer. "I can see why you'd be concerned. But why in the world would Kougaiji keep something that would make him this upset from you?"

At this, Yaone's eyes started to mist. "You know how proud he is. He's probably upset that I told Gojyo and Hakkai that something was wrong. They told me he was planning on seeing Shuuei about it, so I thought it might have something to do with computers, and so that's why I was wondering if you knew anything about it." Her eyes were hopeful as she looked at her friend. "Do you know what's wrong?"

Shunrei bit her lip, as if debating whether to say anything or not. "Trust me, Yaone, you're better off not knowing."

Comments and criticisms always appreciated. ♥

-Iapetus