Beyond the Woods and Mountains

Chapter 12

“You heard me! I said I want you to ma-mar-m-m-“ Now Sanzo was having a hard time getting the words to come out. He literally felt sick to his stomach at the thought of all this.

“M-marry you? Are you serious? Or is this some kind of sick joke?!”

“Would I do this if I didn’t mean it?! Am I the type of person to joke?!”

“Why the hell would you want to marry me?!”

“I want to m-ma-m-mar- t-that thing because it would be the smart thing to do! You are unpopular now! Marrying me with gain back their respect and loyalty to you! The old farts will be able to shut up about it and the clan won’t fall apart. We need to find Hakkai as soon as possible! He knows this job better than I do but right now we need to get the clan to support you again. So you have to m-ma-mar-“ He could no longer hold his breakfast down and he leaned out the flap to vomit. Gojyo’s eyebrow twitched at Sanzo’s pure distain for him but said nothing. Sanzo brought his head back in, clearing his throat a bit. “Okay…now what do you say?”

Gojyo could not believe his eyes or his ears. Here was Sanzo standing in front of him and asking to be married. And not just to anyone but to HIM! His fantasy was finally coming true! Even though he never thought about actually MARRYING Sanzo he did desire the man for his own. He would FINALLY be able to stop fantasizing about taking Sanzo’s virginity. He could finally share a bed with the man and walk with him on his arm. Things were looking up for him! But why did he feel guilty about marrying Sanzo? Was it because he was married to Hakkai, Sanzo’s brother? How would Hakkai feel knowing he had married Sanzo?

“Well? What’s it going to be?!” Sanzo said impatiently, crossing his arms and tapping his foot.

“Yes. Lets get married and bring the clan back together!” Gojyo said with a smile, standing up and walking over to Sanzo. He took Sanzo’s hand and kissed the top of it only to have it pulled away from him.

“Gross. Don’t do that again!” He glared at him and pushed past him to get to the clothing basket. Gojyo watched as Sanzo threw their clothes all around, not stopping until he pulled out what looked to be Hakkai’s wedding attire. “Go wait outside until I’m dressed!” He hollered at him and Gojyo found himself obeying, quickly stepping out of the hut. It was best not to anger Sanzo, especially now of all times.

‘Just grit your teeth and bare it, Gojyo’ He said to himself.

“Okay, lets go tell the elders!” Sanzo said as he came out of the hut, dressed in the full wedding attire. Before Gojyo could say anything Sanzo drug him to the main hut where the elders were staying. The old men where talking amongst themselves when Sanzo and Gojyo burst through the flap. They all gasped in shock and surprise, more so at seeing Sanzo in wedding attire. Gojyo looked just as confused as they did as Sanzo started rambling off at the mouth.

“Listen up you old fools! We’re getting married, right here, right now! Get out the damn papers to sign! We don’t need a damn ceremony but the paper signing! I need to marry this…this man, in order to get the clan to calm down about shit! So do it and do it NOW!” The men all looked at each other, stuttering and mumbling. “NOW YOU OLD WINDBAGS!” The elders shrieked and scrambled all around the area as best they could, searching for the marriage papers. One of them found it and slammed it down on the table, opening it.

“Here it is…” He said, his voice trembling a bit. “Chief Gojyo…are you sure you wish to go through with this? Sanzo is not chieftain material. He has had no training in the ways of the clan, unlike Hakkai. Hakkai is smart and willing. He is even-tempered and considerate of his clan members. He knows how to run a household…he can cook, clean, read, write! Need I go on?!”

“No…because if you do, Old Man, I will personally gut you!” Sanzo hissed at the man and he backed down, holding out the quill to them. Sanzo took the quill and went to sign it but he stopped. For some reason, his hand did not want to move. He knew in his heart he did not want to marry Gojyo or be involved with the responsibilities of the clan. He pressed the quill to the paper but found his hand shaking. The bile in stomach just ached him and he felt like he was going to throw up again. Just the thought of having to sit NEXT to this man, sleep next to him, eat next to him; now he felt faint.

“S-Sanzo?” One of the elders spoke in a trembling voice. “Are you...a-alright?” Sanzo grabbed his wrist with his other hand, closed his eyes and quickly wrote his name. Despite how poorly it was written, it was still his signature and valid. Sanzo let out a deep breath and took a seat in the nearest chair he could find. His stomach was doing flip-flops as he watched Gojyo sign the paper also. That was it. They were married now.
Gojyo looked over at him and smiled, which made Sanzo belch a bit with the raising bile. This was the man who had almost raped him and Sanzo in turn was going to kill him. He always carried some type of weapon on him for just such a situation. He did not care if he was the chieftain of the clan! He would have slit his throat so fast Gojyo would not even know what hit him. He was not going to hesitate to kill him.

However, now he had to TRY to get along with the red haired bastard. He had no clue how he would go about doing it. Gojyo lusted after him and there was no doubt in his mind that he would try to consummate the marriage. Well, he would have to put an end to that right away. The moment his hand touched ANY part of his body, the man would loose it. Sanzo would not lay next to Gojyo either. He would bring his own furs from his hut and sleep on the other side of the room. They only had to be married in name only and did not have to go all the way. He would not fall into the ‘wife’ category. Hakkai would not have either but his brother was more likely to give in. But not him. Gojyo was going to get a rude awakening if he thinks that Sanzo was going to turn into a wife overnight. Sanzo would rather bite off his own tongue and feed it to the dogs before THAT could happen.

“Sanzo?” He looked up at Gojyo. “The elders are going to make the announcement that we are married. Should we go back to the hut?”

“Yes, lets do that. I want to talk to you about some things.” Gojyo smiled happily at him and nodded, following Sanzo out of the council house. They went back to Gojyo’s hut and before Gojyo could open his mouth, he came face to face with the tip of a hunting knife. The point was right between his eyes and they crossed to look at it.

“Uh….Sanzo?”

“Listen Gojyo, lets get a few things straight here. One: I’m not your ‘wife’ in real life, only on paper! Two: I will not obey you nor will I listen to anything you have to say. Three: I will not sleep with you. Four: I am sleeping in my own bed of furs! Five: I will not allow you to touch me in any way or form. Six: Only talk to me when we are OUTSIDE of this hut! Seven: I will continue to hunt regardless of any complaints you have. Eight: I will NOT cook
you meals, rub your back, wash you, feed you, dress you, or anything! Get it, got it, good!”

“Wow…anything else on that mighty list, Sanzo?”

“Until I think of other things you do that might annoy me, then no.” He put the knife away.

“But this marriage could be a way for us to get to know each other more! You might like being married to me. Hakkai did!”

“Yeah, and look what you did to him!” Gojyo gasped.

“WHAT?! You gave me the idea!”

“And I stand by it. However, you will find that I am NOT like Hakkai!”

“THAT I know first hand! But you have also never had limitations or responsibilities! You’re a spoiled rotten brat!” Sanzo’s eyes widened and he gave Gojyo a look that could kill over his shoulder.

“What did you just call me?” Gojyo smirked and crossed his arms.

“A spoiled rotten brat! You got to do nothing but play games and live a worry free childhood! You were your father’s favorite! Always getting away with everything! Your brother had to grow up working and studying while you got to run around free! Someone should put you in your place!” Sanzo practically snarled at him.

“You think I had it EASY?! I had to watch my ass everyday from being raped or harassed by some pervert! Hakkai never had to worry about THAT!”

“And you’re comparing YOUR freedom to Hakkai’s childhood?!”

“Damn straight I am! Hakkai doesn’t know what it’s like to be grabbed from behind, your legs forced apart behind some bush with a hand over your mouth! I had to watch for that everyday! All Hakkai had to do was listen to some lectures and read some books!”

“That’s only a small portion of the larger picture! Did anyone attempt that with you as a child?”

“N-no…” He hissed.

“Then you can’t compare! You are on your high horse now because you always could be! Hakkai was never allowed to speak his mind or say what he really wanted! I heard from the elders about you! All you had to do was sit on daddy’s lap and you’d get whatever you wanted!”

“You bastard!” Sanzo lunged at him but Gojyo moved out of the way this time, remembering that attack from before. He managed to grab Sanzo’s wrist tightly and yank him back towards him. “LET ME GO!” Sanzo tried to pull away but Gojyo sat in his chair and easily flung Sanzo over his lap.

“Naughty children like you usually get spankings!” Sanzo gasped.

“You do that and I’ll kill you!”

“You can’t kill me.” He raised his hand and Sanzo gave him an icy glare over his shoulder.

“I’ll annul the marriage so fast your head would spin! Then I’ll rally up the clan members to rise against you!” Gojyo lowered his hand at that then pushed Sanzo off onto the floor.

“You’re a real bitch, you know that? Do you have ANY kind of sympathy or compassion or kindness in you at all?” Sanzo narrowed his eyes.

“No, I don’t.” Gojyo put his fists on his hips and glared down at him.

“Now that I’m married to you, I don’t even know what I saw in you other than your exotic body and your temper. This is the longest I’ve spent with you and I have to say it’s not what I would have thought it would be.”

“That’s just too damn bad now, isn’t it?” He scoffed, getting up from the floor. “You actually THINK I would buckle down and play the good wife? Did you think you would be able to CHANGE me?”

“If you would let me sleep with you I bet I can bring out some feelings you didn’t know you had.”

“You’re disgusting! As if I would let you do that to ME! I told you this strictly business because we need to get Hakkai back and you need the loyalty of the clan! Whatever you THINK is between us is nothing more than your own lustful imagination!”

“What you need is a beat down with a good fucking afterwards!”

“If you talk to me like that again, I won’t hesitate to take my knife to your throat!”

“Try to carry through with that threat and my side of the clan will eat your side for breakfast! Don’t push me too far or I might just carry out MY threat!” Gojyo pushed passed him and stormed out of the hut. Sanzo growled at the flap and threw his knife angrily, watching as it went right through the fabric. He was to pissed off to care about the poor sap, if there was one, who happened to pass right then.

Hakkai was encased in complete darkness since he was taken from his village. He knew the sack was still over his head and tied around his neck so he could not shake it off. He had even lost track of time but was pretty sure it had to be at LEAST the next evening. All he could hear were distant voices, animals, and occasionally people walking around him. The area he was in was and still is, freezing beyond compare. He could feel no wind or draft but only did he feel when the people were around him. He assumed he was in a tent or some kind of hut. The ground was cold there was clearly no snow where he sat. His hands were tied behind his back around a pole so it had to be a house or prison of sound kind. He would not talk when he heard the people coming into the hut nor would they say anything to him. Anyone who came in was completely silent.

For the time he was sitting there and listening, he could hear many different clan languages. He knew it was Homura's group that had captured him and that he was at their camp spot right now. Why had no one come in to interrogate him yet? They should have done it the moment they had brought him to their camp. Maybe they were trying to break him first so he would talk. Keeping him cold and hungry for a day, or maybe more, would persuade him tell all. His stomach growling confirmed that bit. If that was Homura's plan than the man was wasting his time, for Hakkai could easily bite his own tongue off and bleed to death before he gave any answers. He would endure this predicament for as long as he could before he would take that kind of action. His breath caught in his throat as he heard someone walking towards him.

"Are you Chief Hakkai of the Eiravada Clan in the mountain range?" Came a man's voice. The question was soft spoken, hearing no hits of sarcasm.

"Surely if one were to kidnap an important clan figure, they would have already investigated the clan to make sure they were targeting the right person." There came a chuckle from the man.

"Ah, true, true. I suppose simply asking you the question would save me time having to explain how I managed to capture you."

"So you must be Homura then; the one disrupting the peace of the clans."

"Disrupting? Well, I guess you could say that, but you make me laugh when you say the world 'peace'."

"And why would that be?"

"Obviously, Chief Hakkai, you have no clue about what is going on in the rest of the world we live in. You and your clan are high up in the mountains, isolated and safe from the world below. You can see far off into the distance but you cannot see what is going on beneath those trees and valleys. There is a whole other part of the world that YOU are missing and have no understanding of. But I do. Perhaps there is peace around YOUR side of the world, but where I come from, war and destruction have been a large part of my existence."

"We just made peace with the Sedalon clan of the woods. They were our last rivals. Every other clan in our area we have all made peace with and it has been staying that way. Until you came along. You destroyed the Misty Valley clan!"

"That's true, I did. I asked them nicely to join in my crusade but I should have figured what their answer would have been. All of the large clans, such as yours and the Misty Valley, are proving to be the most troublesome for me."

"You are not even sure if I am who you think I am."

“Like I said, I'm pretty sure I have the right guy. Your little brown haired friend kept me warm in a little hut where I took the time to listen to the clansmen around me. You were married to Chief Gojyo, who annulled the marriage after your father passed on. You joined clans to be able to defend against my growing one. That is the only reason your father's pushed for a peace between the clans. It would be easier to face my army as a team rather than as enemies. Am I correct in all this?" Hakkai knew he was right but chose to keep silent and not give an answer. Homura chuckled again. "You are a smart one. Do you know the reasoning for me capturing you?"

"Obviously it could only be one reason. My little brown haired friend told me he accidentally sheltered you in our clan village. So you must already be aware of what was going on in the clan at the time. Many of my clan members were angry over the annulment of my marriage. The only reason they still supported my ex-husband was because I was still there as military leader. But now that I am gone, their alliance with Gojyo's clan will break, thus making it easier for you to conquer us."

"Hmm...very good. But why would I capture you over your gorgeous brother, Sanzo, then?”

"Another obvious answer. Sanzo is my half brother and not a FULL Eiravada clan blood member. He is not as popular or respected as I. Less of a cry would go up if you had taken Sanzo." He heard clapping.

"Congratulations, you figured everything out so far! You are the smart one! However, do you have ANY clue as to why I am attacking clans?"

"I can assume, by what you already told me, is that you must have some kind of anger or jealousy towards the larger clans. I know a lot of the world is making up of small tribes. You can only be from one of those small tribes although I heard that you were from a clan. You want to be as big as the rest of us on our side so you can be respected. So by gathering up various tribes, you can build an army and start your own large clan."

"A lot of what you just said is right. But remember, my army has already taken out the Misty Valley clan as well as Sanzo's clan. All are killed and destroyed. That only leaves your clan, the Dark Woods clan, and the Lost Valley clan."

"But no one has seen the Lost Valley clan in almost a hundred years."

"Exactly. So how many allies does that leave you? Both the Misty Valley and Big Water Clan have been destroyed, the Lost Valley is a myth, and the Dark Wood's clan does not associate with anybody."

Hakkai knew every word he said was true. His clan no longer HAD any allies! As of now, it was just his clan defending itself. If Homura's army was big enough to wipe out two large clans than he must have more tribes than previously thought! Homura even knew now where their clan was! He could only hope that Gojyo and the others had enough sense to strengthen their scouts and lookouts. Maybe Homura would not hesitate to march his army up a snowy mountain like he had previously thought……