fivebyfiction: Inheritance
Title: Inheritance
Fandom: Saiyuki
Claim: Koumyou Sanzo and Kouryuu
Set: #3
Prompt: Sunset
Word Count: 831
Rating: G
Summary: Koumyou returns after a trip to another temple and finds Kouryuu playing dress-up.
Notes: More childhood WAFF. I swear, Kouryuu is so cute it makes me cry.
It was nearing sundown when Koumyou returned to Kinzan. He had been away on a brief visit to a temple a few days from home and it was the first time in a few years that he’d had to leave Kouryuu behind. Kinzan was much safer for the three-year old, especially with all of the horror stories about bandits and unsavory youkai that lurked on the back roads.
The priest was welcomed back warmly by the other monks, but his thoughts lay solely with Kouryuu. It troubled him especially when the abbot told him that the boy had several nightmares during the time Koumyou was away and that Kouryuu spent a lot of time staring at the road leading to the temple, watching and waiting for his father.
Koumyou had thought that Kouryuu would have been among the rest of the monks in greeting him upon his return, but the boy was nowhere in sight. It occurred to Koumyou that Kouryuu might have been hiding in his room, or perhaps in Koumyou’s cell, since that was a place of safe memories.
A quick peek into Kouryuu’s room showed Koumyou nothing except a neatly made bed and a few toys piled in the corner. This told him right away that Kouryuu had not spent a night in his own bed since Koumyou left for his trip. The only remaining place to search was the priest’s cell itself.
He opened the door to his own room slowly, taking note of the covers balled up on his futon and other signs that the place had been lived in recently. Most curiously, at the foot of the futon, the chest where Koumyou kept his clothing was open with a few articles spilling out. ‘Has Kouryuu been going through my things?’ It seemed so unlikely.
It was at that very second that Koumyou spotted his adopted son. Kouryuu was standing in front of a small mirror, wrapped in one of Koumyou’s spare robes that hung on his frame like a blanket. He had even pulled on the fingerless gloves Koumyou sometimes wore and was making hand positions as the fabric sagged on his tiny hands. But perhaps the most alarming thing about this seemingly harmless activity was when Koumyou spotted his second sutra - the Maten - draped around Kouryuu’s shoulders.
“What are you doing?” he asked; though his voice was soft, it was filled with worry.
Kouryuu jumped, but didn’t cower at his game being discovered. Instead, he blushed a little and smiled softly. “I’m… I’m playin’ Sanzo…” he offered, scuffing his foot against the ground. “Are you mad at me?”
“Playing Sanzo?” Koumyou’s heart was no longer racing, but he mentally reprimanded himself for being so foolish as to leave the second sutra where it could be misplaced or stolen.
Kouryuu nodded and suddenly looked even tinier than he already was. “‘Cuz… I thought that maybe when I get to be a big kid, I can be Sanzo, too. Then…” He looked back up at Koumyou. “Then… when you go away for a long time, I can go too. ‘Cuz… ‘cuz you said that only a Sanzo can go where you go.”
Koumyou felt a distinct tug against his heartstrings. Children could be painfully perceptive at times, not to mention painfully honest. He motioned for Kouryuu to sit down on the bed next to him and the boy instantly complied. The priest felt the boy snuggle up against him and stroked his hair softly. “I don’t mean to make you feel bad, Kouryuu. I just know that sometimes, I have to go places, and the way to get there is scary and dangerous. I don’t want you to get hurt. I’d be so sad if you did.”
His arm now rested around Kouryuu’s shoulders, pulling him closer. “If I could take you and make sure you were safe, I would never make you stay behind. Maybe someday, when you get older, I’ll take you on a trip, okay?” He smiled down at his son, hoping to reassure him.
Kouryuu played with the sleeves of the robe and looked up at Koumyou with big eyes. “Can I still be Sanzo when I grow up? Just like you? I promise I’ll try real hard an’ be good at it.”
Koumyou looked down at the makeshift outfit. Even though the boy was swimming in the robes, with the sutra on his shoulders, the priest could almost see an older version of his son. The older Kouryuu stood tall and regal and chanted perfectly to release the hidden powers of the scripture. Somehow, it seemed like fate.
“If you promise you’ll do all your lessons and learn the sutras and laws, I think you might be able to do it.” He winked at the boy, who lit up at the prospect.
“Yeah! I promise, Daddy, I’ll do everything! Then, you an’ me can be Sanzo together and go anywhere we want!”
“Yes,” Koumyou agreed. “I’d like that very much.”
x-posted to fivebyfiction, saiyuki, and sanzou
Fandom: Saiyuki
Claim: Koumyou Sanzo and Kouryuu
Set: #3
Prompt: Sunset
Word Count: 831
Rating: G
Summary: Koumyou returns after a trip to another temple and finds Kouryuu playing dress-up.
Notes: More childhood WAFF. I swear, Kouryuu is so cute it makes me cry.
It was nearing sundown when Koumyou returned to Kinzan. He had been away on a brief visit to a temple a few days from home and it was the first time in a few years that he’d had to leave Kouryuu behind. Kinzan was much safer for the three-year old, especially with all of the horror stories about bandits and unsavory youkai that lurked on the back roads.
The priest was welcomed back warmly by the other monks, but his thoughts lay solely with Kouryuu. It troubled him especially when the abbot told him that the boy had several nightmares during the time Koumyou was away and that Kouryuu spent a lot of time staring at the road leading to the temple, watching and waiting for his father.
Koumyou had thought that Kouryuu would have been among the rest of the monks in greeting him upon his return, but the boy was nowhere in sight. It occurred to Koumyou that Kouryuu might have been hiding in his room, or perhaps in Koumyou’s cell, since that was a place of safe memories.
A quick peek into Kouryuu’s room showed Koumyou nothing except a neatly made bed and a few toys piled in the corner. This told him right away that Kouryuu had not spent a night in his own bed since Koumyou left for his trip. The only remaining place to search was the priest’s cell itself.
He opened the door to his own room slowly, taking note of the covers balled up on his futon and other signs that the place had been lived in recently. Most curiously, at the foot of the futon, the chest where Koumyou kept his clothing was open with a few articles spilling out. ‘Has Kouryuu been going through my things?’ It seemed so unlikely.
It was at that very second that Koumyou spotted his adopted son. Kouryuu was standing in front of a small mirror, wrapped in one of Koumyou’s spare robes that hung on his frame like a blanket. He had even pulled on the fingerless gloves Koumyou sometimes wore and was making hand positions as the fabric sagged on his tiny hands. But perhaps the most alarming thing about this seemingly harmless activity was when Koumyou spotted his second sutra - the Maten - draped around Kouryuu’s shoulders.
“What are you doing?” he asked; though his voice was soft, it was filled with worry.
Kouryuu jumped, but didn’t cower at his game being discovered. Instead, he blushed a little and smiled softly. “I’m… I’m playin’ Sanzo…” he offered, scuffing his foot against the ground. “Are you mad at me?”
“Playing Sanzo?” Koumyou’s heart was no longer racing, but he mentally reprimanded himself for being so foolish as to leave the second sutra where it could be misplaced or stolen.
Kouryuu nodded and suddenly looked even tinier than he already was. “‘Cuz… I thought that maybe when I get to be a big kid, I can be Sanzo, too. Then…” He looked back up at Koumyou. “Then… when you go away for a long time, I can go too. ‘Cuz… ‘cuz you said that only a Sanzo can go where you go.”
Koumyou felt a distinct tug against his heartstrings. Children could be painfully perceptive at times, not to mention painfully honest. He motioned for Kouryuu to sit down on the bed next to him and the boy instantly complied. The priest felt the boy snuggle up against him and stroked his hair softly. “I don’t mean to make you feel bad, Kouryuu. I just know that sometimes, I have to go places, and the way to get there is scary and dangerous. I don’t want you to get hurt. I’d be so sad if you did.”
His arm now rested around Kouryuu’s shoulders, pulling him closer. “If I could take you and make sure you were safe, I would never make you stay behind. Maybe someday, when you get older, I’ll take you on a trip, okay?” He smiled down at his son, hoping to reassure him.
Kouryuu played with the sleeves of the robe and looked up at Koumyou with big eyes. “Can I still be Sanzo when I grow up? Just like you? I promise I’ll try real hard an’ be good at it.”
Koumyou looked down at the makeshift outfit. Even though the boy was swimming in the robes, with the sutra on his shoulders, the priest could almost see an older version of his son. The older Kouryuu stood tall and regal and chanted perfectly to release the hidden powers of the scripture. Somehow, it seemed like fate.
“If you promise you’ll do all your lessons and learn the sutras and laws, I think you might be able to do it.” He winked at the boy, who lit up at the prospect.
“Yeah! I promise, Daddy, I’ll do everything! Then, you an’ me can be Sanzo together and go anywhere we want!”
“Yes,” Koumyou agreed. “I’d like that very much.”
x-posted to fivebyfiction, saiyuki, and sanzou