Goyjo stood at the cave's entrance, watching as the rain relentlessly hammered the world, and he scowled. His fingers itched for a cigarette he could not have because of the downpour, and he began to dislike the rain with a small amount of passion. He was also growing weary of being cooped in a cave for as long as the small group had been. He wanted to be out, to be on their way to stop the Demon Lord from being resurrected. They could not do what they were supposed to being doing stuck in a cave in who knew the hell where.

The prolonged stay was also taking its toll on everyone, not just Goyjo. Hakkai's mood grew darker with each passing hour, Sanzo was no longer even approachable unless he wanted a distraction from the rain, and Goku . . . well, he worried Goyjo most of all. the stupid monkey barely spoke to any of them, not even to complain about how hungry he was. Goyjo knew it was bad if he did not hear Goku complain at least once about his hunger. This silence from the monkey youkai disturbed him like nothing else.

"This is really starting to piss me off," he said to no one in particular. He hated the helpless feelings that were starting to overwhelm him and the general sense of despair permeating the cave.

"So do something about it," a little voice whispered. "You're not exactly powerless. You're just . . . stuck. That's all."

"Like what?" Goyjo muttered. "It's raining. By the time it stops we'll all be too weak to do a damned thing. We won't even be able to crawl out of here."

"Perhaps you will. Perhaps you won't. The answer you seek is there."

"Goyjo, are you all right?"

The red-haired man blinked then turned to see Goku standing behind him. The monkey youkai's face was an unhealthy white and gaunt, and his golden eyes were dim. It was not lost on Goyjo that the very spirit and life were being sucked right out of Goku, and his heart twisted at the sight. Goyjo nodded, noting the other demon's concern, and he reached over, tousling Goku's hair. He hoped to reassure both himself and the teen that things would be all right. Life just was not normal if Goku was not his usual hyper and annoying self.

"Yeah, just fine, you stupid monkey," he said in what he hoped sounded like a good-natured tone. The last thing he really wanted was to bring Goku down any more than what he already was. As he spoke, an idea came to him, and Goyjo offered Goku a smile. "In fact, I'm great. I've got an idea."

At this, Goku tilted his head. A bit of life flickered in the monkey youkai's eyes, but the teen remained cautious. A bit of a frown appeared on Goku's face.

"What kind of an idea?" he asked.

"You know how I have a corner of this cave to myself?" Goyjo replied. Goku nodded albeit with some hesitance. "Well, there are more than just that one corner. Maybe there's a way out of here through them."

"We've been here a long time," Goku pointed out. "Wouldn't we have found a way out already?"

"Not if the way out is small," Goyjo said. He turned away from the grey world beyond the cave and started to walk to one of the far corners. "Besides, we haven't been looking for a way out that's inside the cave. Come on. It'll give us something to do until the rain stops."

"Okay . . . Goyjo?"

"What?" He paused and turned to stare at Goku.

"Do you really think the rain will stop?" Goku asked. He looked and sounded uncertain, and he very much resembled a child in those moments than the confident and somewhat competent fighter that he was.

"Of course, it will, you stupid monkey," Goyjo answered and without hesitation. He silently added, "Even if we have to make it stop."

Sanzo glanced up the moment he heard Goyjo and Goku talking, and he hoped like hell that the half-demon was not going to rile the teen. The last thing he wanted to listen to was the pair bickering over the most idiotic of things, even if it would give him some semblance of normalcy. Knowing Goyjo, Sanzo believed anything was possible.

Fortunately for him (and them), the two never started to argue. Rather, as soon as they finished talking, they walked to one of the far corners of the cave and started to search along the walls. What they hoped to find, the priest was not sure. Oh, he possessed a fair idea as to why the two were examining the cave walls Goyjo had already once spoken of his idea to find a way out inside the cave to the priest, but Sanzo thought the effort to be pointless, time-consuming, and a waste of energy.

Well, he did not believe the idea was completely stupid. Sanzo, in truth, wanted a moment to rest and to receive a break from the half-demon. Every chance he got, Goyjo was on top of Sanzo, and the two were writhing on the cave floor like a couple of wild animals in heat. While he admitted, if only to himself and NO ONE else and grudgingly so at that, he enjoyed the attention he received from Goyjo, there were times when Sanzo desired a little time to himself. It was nearly impossible since he was stuck in a cave with Hakkai, Goyjo, and Goku, and they had been there for at least a month at that, but Sanzo desired the moments alone all the same. The other three tried to give him some space every so often, but it was still not enough for him. They knew he disliked the rain, and it was driving him crazy that it was raining for as long as it had. The rain brought back painful memories for the priest, memories he did not care to have, and yet the rain brought to mind something Goyjo had said . . .

"I'm guessing Goyjo and Goku are going to try and find another way out of here," Hakkai commented. His voice broke into the priest's thoughts, startling him a little. In response and in an effort to not show Hakkai he had been startled, Sanzo grunted and shrugged.

"As long as they're quiet, I don't care what the hell they do," Sanzo replied. "Besides, there might be a way out of here."

"And what then?" Hakkai murmured. "Even if we did find a way out, we couldn't really leave. The rain's keeping us here."

Sanzo said nothing to Hakkai's words. He, too, had thought the same thing when Goyjo first brought up the idea of finding another exit. The priest even pointed out the rain as the reason for why they were stuck in a cave in the first place. Then Goyjo said something that had captured Sanzo's attention, and the comment would not leave him alone, no matter how hard he tried to banish it.

"There's something not right with this rain," the half-demon had said. "It's one thing for it to pour a couple of days here and there but for an entire month? That isn't natural. I don't care what anyone says. It isn't normal."

"It's like someone's trying to keep us here," Hakkai said, which caused Sanzo to start. This time he did not try to hide it, and the other man tilted his head. "Goyjo said the same thing to you, didn't he?"

Numbly, Sanzo nodded, and he shifted a little. He lay on his stomach so as to give his ass a slight reprieve. While he enjoyed Goyjo's ministrations, he did not relish the ache and burn that always followed. Since their first time, he had not been able to become as comfortable as he wished to be.

After a moment or so, he sighed and gave up trying to find a comfortable way to stretch out. The cave's floor was hard and cold, and Hakkai's stare was not helping any.

"Yeah, he said something like that," Sanzo finally said. He kept his voice low so Goyjo and Goku would not hear him. They were getting along for the moment, which actually pleased the priest, and they were keeping themselves busy. It did not happen often. "And now that I think about it, it is odd it's been raining non-stop for a month."

Hakkai's head bobbed up and down.

"It could be another attempt on our lives," Hakkai began in a thoughtful tone, "but at the same time, it doesn't feel like it is. It's like it's running a little deeper than that."

"Like someone's trying to drown the whole world, not just with sorrow but with actual rain," Sanzo added, his tone and his emotions dark and melancholic. Then he blinked at his own words. It did feel, to him, like someone wanted to drown the whole world, not just with sorrow and despair but with rain as well, and it was not the Gods. They enjoyed the fact most humans worshipped them, even though they ignored the moral world for the most part. That left the questions of who would want to drown the world, why they wanted it done, and how they were able to accomplish such a feat.

"Sanzo, are you all right?"

It was not Hakkai who asked him but Goku. In front of him were Goyjo and Goku, and both men were watching him with concern in their eyes and on their faces. Sanzo thought he also saw something else in Goyjo's eyes, but he could not discern what it happened to be. He also wondered when Goku and Goyjo had approached him as he had not heard them walking towards him. The notion they could sneak up on him like that rattled Sanzo.

"I'm fine," he snapped, sounding harsher than what he intended. He could not help himself. He hated being startled by anyone, and he was grouchier than usual. His response caused Goku to flinch and look away. Goyjo, however, snapped right back at him.

"Forgive us for caring then," the half-demon growled. "The next time you pass out, we'll just leave your ass alone."

"I didn't pass out," Sanzo shot back.

"Actually," Hakkai interjected, "you . . . zoned out or something after you said it felt like someone was trying to drown the whole world. Your eyes were open, but you weren't saying anything else. You didn't even respond to anything I said until Goku said something."

"Do you really think that, Sanzo?" Goku asked before the priest could say anything more. "Do you really think someone's trying to drown the whole world?"

The teen's voice held an edge of steel, a tone that Sanzo had never truly heard from Goku before, and he found himself afraid of the monkey demon for the briefest of moments. Then the sensation passed, and Sanzo finally shifted himself into a sitting position. His ass protested the change, but Sanzo ignored the pain. He also did not get a chance to answer the teen.

"Considering it's been raining for nearly a month," Goyjo said, "I'd say it's very possible."

"Why? Why would anyone want to do that?" Goku cried out. His face was filled with anguish and anger.

"I don't know," the half-demon replied. "Just like I don't even know how it's possible, but it's happening all the same."

"So what do we do about it?"

"I don't think there's much we can do," Hakkai answered. "Even if we did find a way out of here, we don't know who's behind this or why. We wouldn't even know where to begin looking."

"I don't buy that," Goku all but shouted. "I won't buy that. There's got to be something we can do!"

"Settle down, you stupid monkey," Goyjo said. He was about to say more, but Goku did not give him the chance.

"But Goyjo!"

Sanzo fought back a groan. The last thing he wanted to deal with was a fight between Goyjo and Goku, despite the normalcy it presented. He was out of his cigarettes and out of beer, and his ass ached from the last time he and Goyjo coupled as well as from sitting on a cold stone floor. He started to reach for his fan. He would end the argument before it even started.

Goyjo, however, surprised him. Instead of continuing to insult Goku and rile the teen further, the half-demon raised an eyebrow at the teen and folded his arms. His tone was soft yet not allowing for any kind of nonsense.

"I said settle down," he murmured. "Just because we don't know who's behind this doesn't mean we're going to stay here and take whatever else is in store for us. That's not our style, and you know that. Now sit down and be quiet. We'll figure something out and put an end to this. I promise."

"Did you really mean that?" Hakkai asked. Goku had fallen asleep some time before as had Sanzo. Only he and Goyjo were awake, and they were standing at the mouth of the cave and watching the rain fall for the countless time in a row. Hakkai had not forgotten what Goyjo had said to the teen earlier. He simply wondered if it were possible for the half-demon to make good on his word.

"Did I mean what?" the half-demon murmured. His fingers twitched, as if he were trying to control some kind of impulse, and he sounded distracted. It was as if he were not truly there.

"The promise to Goku," he replied. "Did you really mean it?"

"Of course I did," Goyjo said. "He's just no fun when he's so mopey and not complaining about how hungry he is. He needs something to hang on to."

"I'm sure there's a reason for Goku's behaviour," Hakkai answered. He recalled the secret Goku had told him several days before, and it had been about his five-hundred year captivity. The revelation from Goku caused Hakkai to worry more for the teen than for his companions. They would at least die eventually. Goku would have to watch them do just that, and Hakkai was not sure if the teen could stand another emotional trauma such as that.

"I don't doubt that there is," the half-demon stated. "It couldn't have been easy for him to be stuck in a cave for five hundred years. Can't be easy for him to be here right now, either, and I don't blame him for wanting to do something. Hell, I want to do something."

At those words, Hakkai tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at his friend. Sometimes Goyjo could be quite insightful, and it never ceased to amaze Hakkai when it happened.

"You don't blame him?" he asked.

"No." Goyjo shook his head. "I don't blame him in the least. Like I said, I want to do something and get the hell out of here. It only makes sense Goku would want to do the same thing."

"What exactly did you have in mind?"

Both men turned to see Sanzo standing behind them. The priest looked as if he were ready to leave, but to where he intended to go, Hakkai could not say. He could not even begin to guess.

"I thought you'd never ask," Goyjo replied, smiling. "You sure, though, that you're ready to do this?"

To that, Sanzo shrugged. The half-demon's question, however, left Hakkai baffled. His two friends were not making any clear sense to him.

"Doesn't matter," the priest answered. "It's time to put an end to this rain."

With those words spoken, Sanzo cocked his gun, and Goyjo's smile grew wider. Suddenly, and for no real apparent reason, Hakkai felt as if he were no longer part of the discussion. Indeed, he felt as if they were not seeing him at all.

"Then let's just do that," Goyjo said. He turned back to face Hakkai. "Can you handle Goku while we're gone?"

"Gone?" Hakkai echoed. "Where are you going?"

"Out," Sanzo said, walking for the entrance. "We'll be gone for a while."

"Wish us luck," Goyjo added. He rose to his feet and followed the priest towards the darkened world beyond their sanctuary. Before he could comprehend what they were doing and react, Hakkai watched as his two companions disappeared into the silver-grey torrent bathing and drowning the world.