Saiyuki Gaiden fic: Down That Road | Kenren/Tenpou | PG-13

Title: Down That Road
Author: Rhea enchanter
Warnings: None
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: 3,500, one-shot, complete
Pairing: Kenren/Tenpou
Summary: This thing between them is a mutual agreement. The kind that knows what it is, that knows what it means without needing to be explained; the kind that tries not to make anything harder than it needs to be. A snapshot of Kenren and Tenpou's rather unauthorized foray into the human world for post-battle wind-down.

Notes: A little fic to start off 2014 on a Saiyuki note. Happy New Year, everyone!

Saiyuki in all of its incarnations belongs to Kazuya Minekura the genius, and I'm just playing with her creations, hoping I won't get shot. Thank you for reading!

Link: The guards stepped aside to make way for them, scurrying like frightened rats, and maybe it was justified because Tenpou breezed past them through the Dimension Gate like a hunting shark cheated out of dinner.

End of the Year Meme 2013

01. What did you do in 2013 that you'd never done before?

-Spoke in a really serious business meeting because I was the only person whose English didn't put my company to shame :P;
- Bought an apartment
- Started actual Japanese classes with a Japanese tutor in addition to self-studying
- Wrote Saiyuki fanfic (like finally! :P)

02. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I didn't make any, so I had none to keep.

03. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Various coworkers; no one actually close to me.

04. Did anyone close to you die?

No, fortunately.

05. What countries did you visit?

Finland, Lituania, Slovakia

06. What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013?

Peace of mind and the knowledge of how to actually live with it; closer relationships with people.

07. What date from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

No dates; just events:

- Writing a scalding letter to one asshole's lawyer in February and pwning it
- Buying an apartment in September
- Seeing Johanna in October
- Moving in November

08. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Not losing my shit, hands down.

09. What was your biggest failure?

Being productive at work. Oy.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Minor things.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

New laptop and a fully weighted digital piano.

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?

Tamara's, mostly.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

My mother's, which is nothing new.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Mortgage-related expenses and renovations oh gods. Still broke from those. >.<

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Watching the Saiyuki Gaiden OVA, once I realized it got animated. Don't ask me why that beats moving to my own house. :P

16. What song will always remind you of 2013?

KOKIA's Sakura no Ki no Shita

17. Compared to this time last year, you are:

Happier or sadder? Fuck yes I'm happier, although still not quite where I want to be.
Thinner or fatter? About the same.
Richer or poorer: Poorer, because of all the house expenses.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?

Music.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?

Freaking out about things instead of doing something about them, although I've been exceptionally good at that, surprisingly.

20. How will you be spending/did you spend Christmas?

Part of it with my family, part of it with Sami's.

22. Did you fall in love in 2013?

Yes, with Saiyuki, all over again. :P

23. How many one-night stands?

None.

24. What was your favorite TV program?

Does Saiyuki count? :P Other than that, Elementary and Supernatural.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

I still don't hate people.

26. What was the best book you read?

Amy Chua's Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother was one I really enjoyed.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?

KOKIA, the Danna brothers.

28. What did you want and get?

A new laptop, digital piano, a house to live in.

29. What did you want and not get?

A new car; as far as non-material stuff goes, things that would probably merit their own entry.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?

The Hobbit 2, probably.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

Turned 31 (hey, isn't this question no. 31? o.O), there was a BBQ.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

A closer, more open (communication-wise) relationship. Music.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?

Same as always - nonexistent. :D

34. What kept you sane?

That's a very good question. :P

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

"Fancy" is probably the wrong word for the Dalai Lama?

35. What was your favorite video game of the year?

None.

36. Who has made the most cameos in your dreams this year?

Can't really tell.

37. Who did you miss?

Friends I don't see as often as I would like; some friends I used to have who are still in my heart somehow.

38. Who was the best new person you met?

A coworker named Magda with whom I spent the New Year's Eve. Lovely person. <3

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013:

Worrying is pointless - whether you can do something about a problem or not.
Suffering comes from attachment. It really does.
And also: things are rarely as bad as I think they are.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:

Hmm. There isn't a song I know that could describe it, actually. This is probably a first. ;)