Day 43: Chapel, Second Shift

[screwthegods]

Once the shift had changed, Homura headed downstairs for a brief time to check on the assorted information posted on the bulletin. Some of it was relevant to his interests--much moreso than he might have initially thought as he added replies. By the time his written conversation with Okita had finished, the demi-god's mood had changed

Comments

[opposingheaven]

At least his conversation with Okita had left him feeling a little more himself than he had been that morning. He was tired, ridiculously so, and the thoughts in his head just wouldn't stop, but he was more ready to have company than he had been earlier. He'd need it to deal with Homura most likely. Reporting something like this hurt in a way that he couldn't quite describe.

He found Homura in the mostly deserted chapel and approached him casually, hands stuffed into his pockets. He slipped into the seat next to the other god, taking a breath and stretching out more comfortably.

"Hey. Sorry for the cryptic messages but I figured this was something that you'd want to hear in person."

[screwthegods]

Whatever it was, Kenren still seemed able to put up a decent front. Though Homura had no doubt that the facade would last at most a few minutes, for the moment it seemed that the elder god had somehow managed to calm himself. No doubt it was for the best, as the Taisho of heaven had been known for his reckless behavior when he felt an injustice had been done.

"That doesn't make me any more optimistic about your news, you know." Homura has known that whatever Kenren had to say, it wasn't going to be pleasant. That knowledge alone was the enough to make him almost restless to hear what had happened. More than once in Heaven, he found himself wishing the Jade Emperor would end his long speeches and simply deliver his orders to the Toushin Taishi who was to be sent on his next heavenly task.

The foreboding sense Homura had now was almost exactly like that.

"What happened, Kenren?"

[opposingheaven]

"I wasn't exactly going for optimistic," Kenren replied with a wry smile which somehow fell short of his usual one, even when he was at his most morbid. He never really considered himself an optimist anyway. He was firmly of the opinion that sometimes things were just fucked up. This was one of those times when the truth of that view was hitting him rather firmly.

But he didn't want to keep Homura waiting for something like this. Something trivial could be seen as teasing, but denying him this knowledge, no matter how much it hurt to speak about it, was crossing the line into downright cruelty.

"Genjyo Sanzo died last night. He was murdered." He couldn't dress it up in any way, just the brutal facts.

[screwthegods]

The lighthearted jokes were little more than an attempt at distraction, and Homura thought that both he and Kenren knew it. Whatever was coming would, simply put, be bad. Yet both men defied the systems that had tried to dictate their lives, and now they were doing the same. Trying to somehow temper the blow with humor that had as much success as tissue paper thrown into a bonfire.

Then Kenren told him, and for too long, Homura could only hear the words echo in his mind.

Genjyo Sanzo.

Had died.

died.

He was dead. Genjyo Sanzo had died. But--

He was murdered. Murdered

[opposingheaven]

He hadn't expect Homura to look so stricken, although maybe he should have done. A passionate connection was still a connection even when it was one of antagonism and, in Sanzo's case, hatred. And Sanzo had been a constant for as long as both Kenren and Homura had been in the Institute. It felt like something had been torn away, leaving a gaping hole with ragged edges.

He grimaced when Homura asked who had done it, staring down at the floor for a long moment. "I don't know," he ground out, and it hurt to have to admit that he had no idea. "I was there when he died. He'd been stabbed. No way that those creatures could have done that." He looked back up and there was a dangerous expression on his face. "I will find them though." And then he'd make them pay.

[screwthegods]

Not only a constant within these walls: Sanzo's unbeatable spirit had been part of Homura's inspiration. As Konzen, even though he had no fighting skill or strength, the god had given everything to set free a boy that Heaven hated, for no other reason than the color of his eyes. He had been the sun to Son Goku, given him joy and happiness and purpose, both as a god, and as a man

[opposingheaven]

It was easy to say that it was fine, but it wasn't that easy to be convinced. Kenren was supposed to be the one to protect them, to keep his people alive and he'd failed twice. Once he could forgive, they'd come back, come together even after five hundred years, but this? He hadn't even been able to find Sanzo's attacker and nothing, absolutely nothing had been achieved with his death. It felt like a punch to the gut. There was a bitter anger growing in him and it wasn't a feeling that he liked. Damn it, they were supposed to die on their own terms, not curled up in the dust of a bookshop while the undead clamoured outside.

He rested a hand on Homura's arm at the offer and shook his head. "No. You need support for the club and the general acceptance for its existence. Posting something like that would destroy everything we've worked for when there's no guarantee that it would even work." He'd find a different way to do this, even if he had to threaten every damn person in the place.

[screwthegods]

Kenren was right. Homura knew Kenren was right, but at the same time, he still wanted to go against the elder god and common sense, if only to alleviate the sense of helplessness. Revenge was for Kenren, and Son Goku, should he ever return. Despite of how respected and even admired the traits of Konzen's soul, Homura was still Sanzo's enemy. His place wasn't to drive the sword through the murderer--for once, his role wasn't to kill

[opposingheaven]

Kenren grinned, a somewhat vicious expression which was at odds with his usual easy charm and smiles. "Tenpou and I had been checking things out for a long time before Goku ever arrived," he said with blunt honesty. There was no point to hiding something like that right now. "People underestimate a reckless idiot, no matter how good a general he makes." He could be patient when there was something that he wanted and this, this he could be patient for. It felt like the best way to strike back was to keep going with their plans rather than give up everything so easily.

He nodded, smile never faltering. "I wouldn't dream of doing anything to stop you," he replied. Homura was someone who deserved to be involved, no matter how complex it was. "When I find out, you'll be the first to know, but for now we need our leader and the strength of this group."

[screwthegods]

That explained it. The heavens had been corrupt for a long time after all, probably longer than either Kenren or Homura had lived. In those terms, it wasn't at all surprising that the best among them would do whatever it took to try and unravel the truth--Homura had striven to do the very same, following the example of that foursome. "I'll have to take care not to make the same mistake, won't I

[opposingheaven]

If Homura ever forgot how dangerous Kenren could be, then that would probably be the day that Kenren stopped following him. "I can't imagine you making that mistake. You've seen enough of me here to remember that." He could bide his time when it suited him and this place was no exception

[screwthegods]

"I'm glad you have such confidence in me." And it was true; Homura had worked with Kenren long enough now not only to get a sense of how he fought in battle, but his determination to escape this place. Most importantly, however, he knew that the former taisho was not one to be underestimated. If Homura faltered, or if their goals were no longer the same, Kenren would leave without hesitation--and that was not something the demi-god wanted to happen. "I'll be sure to do nothing that changes it; you're too valuable for me to lose, Kenren

[opposingheaven]

"I'd like to hope that it's more than me being an asset," Kenren said, mostly teasing although there was an edge of something else under there. He wanted to believe that they were friends at least. considering the things that they'd shared during their time here.

"I can wait. I'd rather get it right than be reckless and grab the first person I suspect," he said. "And we have enough opposition as it is." More irritating than anything at the moment, but that could change.

There was a long pause after Homura asked what it was, the two parts of Kenren warring within him. "A sutra," he said finally, hands clenching into fists on his knees. "He left me his sutra."

[screwthegods]

"You should know by now that it is." Now it was Homura's turn to reach out and touch Kenren, laying a hand on the god's shoulder. Kenren had been the first one to find him after that terrible night, and for so many times after. They'd been intimate, physically and otherwise, and the bond that had developed from that was something Homura cherished. To lose Kenren would be nothing short of devastating; to have it be from his own actions

[opposingheaven]

Kenren smiled, resting his hand on top of Homura's and squeezing it lightly. "I do," he agreed honestly. Homura had been a good man to work with despite their initial differences and Kenren hoped that their association would continue for a long time to come. He didn't want a reason to walk away from their friendship and what they'd built together