Wow. You did it again. It was just spiffy. You got the characters down wonderfully. Keep it up.

Aw... Cute. This is going to be Hakkai/Sanzo slash. I just know it.

Brilliant, that was simply brilliant. I absolutely adore chapters that veer off in directions in which I never expected them to go. There were really nice plot twists in so many interesting places this time around. The issue of Hakkai's limiters as a placebo was especially creative and something I'd never seen done anywhere before. (Sneaky author, using seven chapters of headaches to build up the suspense!) This chapter also just goes to show that Sanzo has a flawless understanding of human nature, as well as having nerves of solid steel.

Kudos on a well-thought-out and flawlessly executed installment. I'll be looking forward to reading the conclusion when it's complete.

Oh, wonderful! I love this chapter. It was well worth the wait! Seriously, this has just totally made my day. As always, your characterization was perfect, yet you still managed to make this chapter surprising. I absolutely love the interactions between Hakkai and Sanzo! You covered an interesting (well... maybe "interesting" isn't the word...) part of Hakkai's character that most authors don't go into, and you did a great job with your explanations. And as I said before, I can't get enough of your Sanzo. He's just awesome.

So, you've wrapped some things up, but not everything. I can't wait for the next chapter! It's always sad to come to the ending of a good story, but this is one that I'm going to reread often. Wonderful, wonderful job!

~tath-chan

P.S. I really hope that I didn't come off too harshly in my comments on your blog last night. (Er, early this morning.) I just want to reiterate that I wasn't trying to flame you in any way, and that I hope I didn't hurt you at all. Because as I keep saying, you're one of my favorite authors and my being unsatisfied with one story isn't going to change that.

Just wanted to make sure that was clear! ;

So, guilting works best for updates, huh? :D Having just finished your marvelous (albeit rather unsatisfying... you aren't REALLY going to leave that without a sequel, are you?), I can now go back to checking daily for an update to this one. I have to say, I think this is my favorite of yours, although I LOVED "A Dog's Life." (And it's not really like there's been any of yours that I've *dis*liked...)

Sanzo has got to be my favorite character - although I love all the ikkou - and I think you have him down perfectly. I can imagine how hard this is to do, so I'm very impressed with the consistency of your characterization! This goes for all your Saiyuki fics (gads, I loved him in A Dog's Life), but it really jumps out at me in this one. Maybe because there's a similar fic going on right now which I don't think captures him quite as well.

You do a marvelous job on the others as well; so far they have reacted precisely as I imagine they would in this kind of situation. Which is not to say that this story has been predictable - not at all! This latest chapter was completely shocking (although I'd been waiting and hoping for something similar to happen, mean Sanzo-fan that I am), but you always manage twists without messing with the characterization! I love it.

Okay... so this isn't really guilting, is it? Would it help if I repeated that this one is my favorite of yours and that I check for updates literally every day? Oh, and that I have found your fanfic to be very stress-relieving to read? I've been and will continue to be going through a lot of stress over this summer and into the fall, and having an update or two here would do wonders for my emotional stability, I'm sure. There, how was that? (It was entirely true, by the way.)

All right, guess I'll leave you alone now. Believe me when I say that I completely know what writer's block is like, so I won't pester you anymore. However, I've always found that encouragement (and yes, guilting) can really help speed up the creative process. :P So hopefully that'll work here. Best of luck!

~tathchan

Wow. That was a good chapter. I liked it. I can't wait to see what happens next.

I really like this story. It's wonderful.

Fantastic story. I love demon Hakkai. Well. Hakkai in general.

I also love your writing style. Very good.

Aw...why'd you stop writing? I really like this story! (I'd hope so since I just sat at my computer for two and a half hours reading this XD) I like Hakkai's struggle, yay angst! But why'd you have to end the chapter at a cliffhanger? X3

If you ever get the chance, you should keep writing this story!

Wow,Keeping Face. Awesome. All the characgters was really in character. I really loved Sanzo for what he is doing and I really loved the way Hakkai talks and acts towards Sanzo, especially when Sanzo "appears" to be asleep. I certainly hope this continues soon.

excellent writing! keep up the good work because honestly this is the best Hakkai story i have ever read on fan fic.

*disbelief* Oh, holy crap, no! That cliffhanger hit me in the face like brick. I was enjoying the story, too! *pouts* Aside from some then-than mixups and a little overuse of commas, you're a very good author. I breezed through "A Dog's Life" too, and it was great. You put my faith back in fanfiction. _

Damn.

Talk about your cliffhangers. Right when I was getting into this too! (sigh) Oh well~ All the more reason to keep an eye on it, eh?

This is awesome so far, and I can't wait to see what you can do with it in the future. I'll be waiting (and please ignore how creepy that sounded! XD)

Best of luck in this and all your future endeavors,

-J

love it! update soon

Hakkai's naturally tragic personality always makes me want to cry :P

I love this fic. It's well-balanced in plot, character developement, and mental play. The pace is tense, but not too fast. Great story, I'm definitely alerting this story to find out what happens next! :)

Oh man, getting exciting. can't wait for the next chapter. please update soon!