"I don't like the sun, no da!" Chichiri complained, although his mask ruined the effect.
"That's not going to fuckin' make it go away!" Tasuki barked, sweat streaming down his back.
"It was your idea to come here, although why is beyond me, no da."
"I already told you! And shut up with the damn 'no da's'!"
"Just save your breath, no da, we need it to get out of this desert," Chichiri breathed, hoping his fellow senshi would sense the finality in his voice.
"Fuckin' desert," Tasuki mumbled.
The two senshi lapsed into silence as they continued their long trek through whatever desert they were currently stuck in.
My heart's in chains And still remains in Deja Vu But first I wanna spend the night with you
Finally, when the first stars started to sparkle in the sky, Chichiri broke the silence.
"We need to find a place to sleep for the night," he turned towards the orange-haired bandit.
"Huh?" Tasuki was walking in a daze, or at least pretending to, while in actuality he was sliding glances at Chichiri whenever he thought the monk wasn't looking.
"A place to sleep," he repeated, the sweat on his back, mixed with the cold air causing him to shiver.
The dazed senshi nodded and turned his head to the left to avoid Chichiri's eyes. He spotted a black dot on the horizon.
"Oi! Chich-Chan!" Tasuki softly backhanded his friend in the chest, "Is that an oasis?"
"Iie, it's just a mirage...W-what did you call me?"
"Nothing, Chi-C-chiri..."
Everything you need Come get it from me Set your emotions free
"You know, I think it is, no da!" Chichiri confirmed, squinting of into the distance.
"Well, let's get there before it gets too cold," Tasuki took of in the general direction of the black dot on the horizon.
The mage was still hesitant, not because of the probability that it could me a mirage, but because Tasuki had gone over four hours without swearing.
"Well?!" Tasuki turned around, "Are you coming or are you gonna fuckin' freeze there?!"
A wave of relief washed over Chichiri as his friend swore and gladly followed him to whatever fate awaited them on the horizon.
"See?!" Tasuki beamed triumphantly as he knelt down to drink to his hearts content, "I told you this was an oasis! But, no~o! You didn't believe me!"Again, Chichiri was baffled by lack of obscenities from his companion, but then again, he wasn't really paying attention to his words, but the orange strands of silk whisking about his neck, wondering if they really were as soft as they looked.
Oh, yes baby Come on and give in the name of love And let our bodies slowly touch Tonight let's move on
Chichiri shook his head to regain a normal train of thought as he knelt down besides him to drink from the spring, "I never said that, no da."
"Deny it all ya want, you doubted the great Tasuki and you were wrong!"
"Stop it, no da, we need to get a fire started so we don't freeze to death, ne?"
The smile faded from Tasuki's face as he found out that his heart's content and his stomach's content were very different and vomited much of what he had drunk.
"Daijobu?" Chichiri asked, worried. And again his mask ruined that effect, he tore it off.
"H-hai," Tasuki wheezed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Let's get a fire started"
"Iie," Tasuki protested, "They might see it!"
"And I will deal with that the same way I will deal with the fire, no da." Chichiri stated very matter-of-factly.
He barley managed to suppress a laugh as Tasuki gave him a blank stare and blinked twice before Chichiri explained, "I'm a mage, or have you forgotten that."
He lightly bonked the ex-bandit on the head with his staff.
"Itai!" Tasuki stuck his tongue out at the mage through his fangs.
"Enough, now help me search for some wood, no da!"
About half an hour later, the two men were curled up as close as they dared to the fire, but they were still cold. Chichiri eyed Tasuki as he shivered, then moved closer, trying to warm him up with his body heat.
"Ch'! Chichiri, you're doing one shit job of warming me up!" Tasuki shivered again.
Yes I do Take you to be How about you and me Damn, I wanna be your lover
"I'm glad you think so," Chichiri smiled and pulled Tasuki closer, protectively wrapping his arms around his friend.
"Ano...Chichiri?" he asked against Chichiri's chest.
"Mm?" Chichiri lazily asked, his chin resting in Tasuki's orange mop of hair, which was indeed as soft as it looked.
"Nothing..."
"It wouldn't be nothing if you asked, no da," Chichiri murmured into the orange silk.
He got a soft snore in response. The extra warmth added to the walking all day in the hot sun without water finally caught up to Tasuki as he dozed in Chichiri's arms.
"Baka."
And soon sleep claimed him as well.
"O~i, Chich-Chan!" Tasuki sang.
"Nanda?!" Chichiri cracked his good eye open and ended up staring into bright hazel eyes.
"Oi! I see that you're not a morning person!"
Don't refuse Cuz I need you Damn, I wanna be your lover (I wanna be your love, your lover, oh baby, yeah, yeah)
Chichiri ineffectively glared at his fellow senshi, mask firmly back in place.
"We have to get goin'."
"It's still dark, no da," the blue-haired senshi mumbled observantly.
"We gotta get some distance before the sun fries us!" Tasuki seemed very anxious to leave and now.
"Good point, no da..." Chichiri painfully got up and silently promised himself that never again would he fall asleep sitting up.
After a long drink for each of them, the two senshi took off again.
The day was silent, neither senshi wanted to waste their breath or their water. When the sun was high in the sky, the two friends found shelter, this time at the edge of the desert.
"Tasuki-kun, no da! Is that what I think it is?!"
"Hai, my mage," Tasuki whispered.
Chichiri ran to the edge of the desert and plopped down under one of the inadequate trees.
"This feels so nice..."
"Let's rest here until it gets dark again," Tasuki collapsed under a tree facing Chichiri.
"The shade is nice, the grass - even though it's brown - is nice, you are-" he stopped himself just in time, nut it didn't matter anyway, for Chichiri was already asleep against the tree.
Tasuki watched him for a while, then crawled over to his friend and wrapped his arms around the dozing Chichiri, much as he had done to him the night before.
Why don't you stay Desert will make you Call out my name My first and last name
The mage opened his good eye, smiled and let out a content sigh which could only be compared to that of a puppy.
"Oi, Tasuki-Chan!" Chichiri sang, much as the said senshi had done before, only much softer.
"K'so!" Tasuki suddenly let go of Chichiri as if he had grown another head, faltered and landed on his back with a sickening thud.
"Gomen! Gomen nasi! Daijobu?" Chichiri ran over to where Tasuki had landed.
"H...hai," Tasuki tried to get up and faltered again.
Only this time Chichiri caught him. He gently placed Tasuki on the brown grass before he did something stupid like kiss the man in his arms or something along more ecchi lines...
Tasuki blushed a color that clashed dreadfully with his orange hair and looked away.
And yet another time of awkward silence fell over them.
That she is being All you'll ever need To take you higher than eyes can see
After a long uneasy hour, Tasuki yawned hugely, "Ya know, Chich-Chan, we really need to stop having all these riveting conversations."
Chichiri, unhappy about being pulled from his thoughts, glared at Tasuki, "What do you plan to talk about, no da?"
"Don't know," he admitted, "How 'bout the other senshi?"
"Iie," Chichiri shook his head.
"Aww! Why not?" Tasuki complained.
"Do you want them talking about us?"
"Depends," he gave Chichiri a wolfish grin.
"Stop it!" the monk demanded, "That's not funny!"
"Well then, how about Tamahome acting all weird lately?"
True, Tamahome had been acting very strange before they left...but that was none of their business!
"I think," the grin on the ex-bandit grew larger, exposing even more of his fangs, then licked his cracked lips, "It has something to do with Miaka."
"You...you don't think...that...?" he left the sentence hanging.
With the grin still in tact, Tasuki nodded vigorously.
Chichiri felt faint, not just because of the images of Tamahome and Miaka bouncing around in his head, but the sun and lack of water held a big part too. With a thump, he collapsed face first into Tasuki's lap.
Oh, yes baby Why don't you give in the name of love Let our bodies be common Cuz tonight I wanna give you all Baby, let's move on
Tasuki yelped and jumped back.
"To shame!" he said fondly at his unconscious friend. He then slapped him once on each cheek and Chichiri groaned into consciousness.
"Not funny, no..." the typical 'no da' was swallowed by Tasuki's hazel eyes, inches away from his face.
Chichiri lowered his head, lips intent on finding Tasuki's. The ex-bandit didn't pull away but participated in a soul searing kiss. Their mouths worked together until they were both breathless. They stared at each other panting. Tasuki ran his fingers in the blue hair at the nape of his friend's neck.
Chichiri tore his gaze away and looked up at the velvet sky. "It's getting dark. We should head out, no da," he got up expecting Tasuki to follow.
"Where the fuck are you going?!" Tasuki demanded, "We go nowhere until you finish what you started!!"
Yes I do Take you to be How about you and me Damn, I wanna be your lover (I wanna be your love, your lover, oh baby, yeah, yeah)
Chichiri dropped his staff from his sweaty palm and turned to face Tasuki, "You-you want me to...?" he stammered.
"Fuck yes!"
"That?" Chichiri was taken aback by the bluntness of his friend.
"Yes!" Tasuki pleaded.
Chichiri returned to his beloved.
"Oi! Nuriko!" Tasuki called the moment he and Chichiri entered the palace, "How were things when we were gone?"
Seeing Chichiri's fingers twinning through Tasuki's, Nuriko laughed, "I see your plan worked."
I don't wanna have to compromise The things you make me visualize Intuition keeps on telling me These emotions need to be set free
Tasuki gave an impish grin to Nuriko before Chichiri realized what was said.
"Plans? What-? You planned that?!!"
Tasuki took off with Chichiri hot on his heels.
Don't you want to give it to me We'll feel the heaven's prophecy Take a visit to my paradise We can hang around for the rest of our lives
"Well, your majesty, it worked," Nuriko smiled as a hand rested on his shoulder.
"I'm glad," Hotohori spun Nuriko around and kissed him passionately.
I know, I know not my best, but far from my worse...
