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hiitspath · 2 years

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The Six Eared Macaque could count the number of times he’s fallen in love on one hand. Some human, some demon, and some were so distant that he couldn’t remember what their faces looked like. At some point he found himself preferring to be alone than pursue a fleeting passion like romance. So much so that now the very idea of love was only for hapless mortals and love-struck teenagers.

Yet -despite himself- he found himself developing feelings for Tang.

***

One could say that Tang is his first real friend since Sun Wukong, but the less said about the Great Sage the better. Regardless it would be better to say that Tang was the first to approach him out of the Monkie Kid’s little group.

He was on surprisingly good terms with MK and his friends after the battle with Lady Bone Spirit. Not friends, not allies, but possibly friendly acquaintances, which seems more appropriate after what he had done. So what a shock it was to see Tang - the shy man with unknown power, the man he antagonized then attacked during his search for the Shamadi rings, the one who probably should hate him the most- was searching for him because he had some questions. Not without looking like a nervous actor on his very first play, fiddling with notes and trying to ask if He, The Six Eared Macaque, was featured in some obscure fabel.

The scholar had come across some text that vaguely mentioned a “six eared demon” that could be The Six Eared Macaque himself. Macaque had only agreed if he could leave annotations and check for possible translation errors. If someone was going to get him wrong, he may as well fix whatever was there. He was more surprised that Tang agreed, with some hesitation but one glare made him agree.

That’s how it started at least. Tang and Macaque would meet up every other day for two weeks as they scoured old texts and even older papers to find their answers, Macaque translating and translating from various ancient languages that he could remember. Tirelessly they worked and exchanged books that it almost became, domestic, and then the two made a revelation!

Until it turned out it was a mistranslation of “The Six Armed Warrior” not a monkey, a man.

It was silent inside Macaque’s apartment -temporary apartment- before uproarious laughter erupted from inside. The two finding themselves laughing with a mix of embarrassment, dejections, and humor of it all.

“I jus- I knew something was up but I-I couldn’t figure out what!” Tang said between gasps and laughter. Macaque slowly caught his breath before clearing his throat before speaking.

“That was a waste of my time.” He meant it to be playful but a simple “Oh” caught his attention as Tang began adjusting his glasses and spoke bluntly.

“Apologies for wasting that time.”

The way he said it made Macaque’s heart actually sink in guilt. Guilty? Guilty of what he wondered as the scholar began packing his things.

“Um…actually if you want, I can translate it for you. The correct translation.” There was no need for this but he offered it anyway. He knew that Tang was going to reject it outright.

“You mean it?” Before Macaque could say another word, up in his face and eyes he’d only given Wukong before The Incident with the Shamadi Fire. Now those same eyes were on him, and He couldn’t feel happier even if he could rub it in the Monkey King’s face. That his biggest fanboy was giving him -The Six Eared Macaque- the same eyes of admiration.

That was the moment Macaque -may- have started to like Tang.

It actually took him a few months to translate the obscure fable but was still unable to piece the mish mosh of a tale. Despite that, Tang’s visits became more frequent. Not that Macaque ever said no or implied that he hated it. He did at first, only because those visits were unannounced and when he wasn’t expecting it. He soon figured the times and began preparing meals for them, easier on Tang’s tab with Pigsy.

More convenient for him too of course. That was his justification at the time, but now he wonders if there was more to it. In between helping Tang translate what he could of the garbled fable, they talked about several different book topics, surprisingly they had similar tastes in fiction, especially the long Dusks series. A newer series by his standards but none so caught his attention like the books written by Jeri Thrattchet.

He even lent Tang a first edition copy of the first book in the series..

Tang was more than grateful, putting the book down and taking his hand to shake it. “Thank you, Mac!”

A lot of people called him Mac, he didn’t hate the name but when Tang said it with all the appreciation and happiness; Macaque couldn’t help but simply smile.

“I like his smile” Was a thought he had that day, and it lingered in him whenever he saw Tang.

When he thought of Tang, he would think of that wide smile, and the feelings that warm him a little inside. But he smothered it as much as he could, knowing that if he let that feeling grow anymore; It would be a problem.

Until finally, out of nowhere, while watching the sun that one morning he thought of Tang smiling. How much he liked that smile, how much he liked making him smile, and how much he wished Tang was there now. Holding his hand and laying his head upon Macaque’s shoulder as the sun rose. That’s when he knew he had a problem.

Did he love Tang? Enjoyed his company, yes, more so that no one else visited him. Macaque likes having him around, he likes the compliments, he likes the praise. That’s it! He just likes it when Tang praises him. That can’t be love.

Macaque just liked him, that’s all it could be. How many other mortals did he love before that he watched grow older and wither away. He watched other loves leave him and his heart sink even further into loneliness. It’s been too long for him to know what that love even felt like. Yet the slightest thought of Tang holding his hand he simply took that imaginary scene in and let it out with a breath. It was just a fleeting thought of something that couldn’t be. It was impossible.

He tried to ignore it. But every once in a while Tang would do something stupid like trip over his own two feet, papers everywhere, that same feeling would swell and he had to push it down. Make a snide comment and help him up. Just hoping the feeling would eventually pass.

Months passed and while the visits soon became less frequent, Tang still made time to visit Macaque wherever he was. The days where Tang was gone, he would think of visiting him instead but dismissed it as simply useless. What would he do? What would he say? Would Tang even want to be seen with him?

Then one day, The Six Eared Macaque went for a walk.

A long walk.

A walk that leads to a boathouse.

A boathouse that belonged to Sandy.

“Well uh…hi?” The blue demon was hearing an apron that said “kiss the cook” with little red and white hearts decorating the fabric and holding a plate of freshly baked cookies.

“Seems I caught ya at a bad time?” Macaque asked as he walked in, grabbing a cookie off the plate with his tail and popping into his mouth. Sandy bumbled before sternly turning to Six and demanding answers.

“What are you doing here! You can’t just barge into a guy’s home!” He yelled with the confidence of a new step dad yelling at his new teenage son. It actually made Macaque laugh a little.

“Relax, I uh… Just wanted to…talk.” The truth just seemed to force itself out and actually saying it seemed like a relief. Sandy could only respond bluntly.

“Oh? … OH!” Before Macaque could blink he was sitting down on the couch with some sweet smelling tea and Sandy sitting across the coffee table.

“Don’t worry Mister Macaque! I promise anything you say will not leave this house,” Macaque was surprised to see how quick Sandy was to hear his thoughts, he wasn’t sure if this was a trap or not. However, Sandy didn’t indicate he was someone who couldn’t be trusted. So he sighed, sipped his tea, and started with Tang.

***

“-And it doesn’t make sense! He’s so nice to me, after all this time it’s like he forgot what I did. It’s been a year almost and he’s just so….forgiving? I don’t get it! I-I-I,” It had been at least 2 hours since Macaque started talking. But once he opened up he couldn’t stop. Every emotion that he hadn’t realized he had been holding came out like water flowing out of a broken dam. He bounced from one topic to the next about Wukong, about his time alone, about the resurrection and why he chose to disobey Lady Bone Spirit. Somehow he landed back on the topic of being in love with Tang. His first friend in at least 1000 years.

Sandy had been listening intently and taking notes, so far his notebook was almost filled to the brim, making him wonder what they were for but he scoffed instead. Macaque looked away from Sandy and paced the floor thinking of a good way to describe it. At least he could finally vocalize his feelings. But there was one truth he hadn’t vocalized, the big one that he hadn’t even considered.

“I don’t understand why I got another chance…”

“You mean, You don’t think you deserve redemption?” Sandy asked with such curiosity that Macaque just stopped in his pacing. This truth hit him like a rock, a large problem that he hadn’t considered. He did love Tang, that much he can admit now, but this was something he couldn’t allow himself to go through.

“Yes!” He yelled suddenly, making Sandy and his cat jump. “After everything I’ve done and everything I did? I should be dead for what I’ve done!” The words exploded from him like a bomb. It’s true, even if he loved Tang, he didn’t deserve a luxury like redemption, let alone love, so how could Tang or anyone, want to be seen with him?

The tears came and he only just noticed he was crying when Sandy handed him a box of tissues.

“It’s fine,” Macaque said as bluntly as he could. As he sat down as he wiped the tears away with his scarf. Sandy approached him and Macaque allowed him to sit down next to him.

“Maybe it was a mistake being his friend.”

“It’s not a mistake! You wanted to help him, it may have been about you but you got to know Tang because of it. Isn’t that a good thing? And even you deserve good things.” Sandy said it so kindly that it made the Six Eared Macaque freeze in place. Even he, The Six Eared Macaque, deserved something good? A monster like him?

He used his shadows to teleport towards his home without even saying good bye or thank you. Instead he tumbled outside the city and stumbled up a hill. Sitting down to stare out into the city lights as it continued to shine brightly across the night sky. He sat there for a long time repeating the words in his head, “Even a monster like you deserve good things.”

Did he deserve love as well? He figured he’d tell Sandy about it some other time. Cause once the tears finally stopped, he never felt more relieved and light, like a mountain had been lifted off him.

***

Macaque had been surprised when Tang invited him to a beach party, making the selling point of a huge bonfire. He didn’t want to go, but Sandy had told him about getting out of his comfort zone. And, maybe a bonfire would be the perfect place to tell Tang his feelings.

“Okay, as long as Wukong isn’t there, I’ll go,” and like that, Macaque would go to a beach party.

The day was filled with so much sun and water and everyone else having fun. While Macaque didn’t care for the water, he didn’t mind lying down in the shade and relaxing. Thankful for being left alone, at least until Tang came over to give him a book. The one Tang borrowed and Macaque was convinced he was never going to get back.

“I thought you lost this or something?”

“Ha, well I’m more thankful you didn’t hound me too much to bring it back.” Tang said as he sat down next to him. Macaque eyed him, the first time he’d seen Tang shirtless, soft and flabby, just as he figured a nerd like Tang would be. But still he smiled regardless, happy that Tang came to visit him.

“I was gonna read it a 6th time but I knew that you would want it back,” Tang said.

“6th time? Ha, might as well just let you keep it,” He teased before pulling the book away from a tempted Tang. “But my collection was getting pretty lonely.”

“Oh no, your poor collection,” Tang snarked, causing Macaque to fake a glare at him before the two began to laugh. Out of the corner of his eye saw Pigsy glaring at him before MK distracted him with something. Macaque knew that the two were close and had worried that Tang and The chef were already committed to each other. But Tang did mention being single a few times that it obviously wasn’t the case.

“So, I have to ask-”

“Exes, but on good terms.” Tang said casually.

“So you were dating! Wait, why did you break up then?”

“Ah, well… ``It's a long and complicated story that I’ll bore you with details later,” Tang said, watching Pigsy and MK deal with a jellyfish that washed up along the shore.

Making Macaque wonder if maybe Tang still had feelings for the Chef, and if that would complicate his confession. Even then, he’d rather be rejected because Tang still loved Pigsy than he didn’t love him back. At least then it would make the rejection hurt less.

***

Later in the evening Red Son made a large bonfire with everyone cheering and Mei already stuffing flaming marshmallows into her mouth. While Macaque only watched from afar and laughed a little at the sight, Tang got up with two s’mores in his hand. He took it despite not caring for sweets, he ate it in one bite.

“Hey, wanna do some stargazing atop that lighthouse?” Macque asked as he pointed to said lighthouse, not too far from the beach. The old man owed him a favor after he rescued him from demons a few months back.

“Really? Yeah let’s go!” Tang said, practically pulling Macaque to his feet and holding him by the wrist. It was enough to make him blush a little.

As they reached the door, Macaque checked to see if the door was open. Hopefully the old man remembered to unlock it. Sure enough the door opened to a cleaned up apartment and a small note addressed to Macaque.

“Oh good,” Tang sighed out loud. A tiny bit offended at Tang’s reaction but laughed it off.

“You thought I just break into the place?” Macaque joked as he looked into Tang’s unconvinced eyes. “Okay, I probably would have but come on, I can be a jerk, but not that much of a jerk,”

Tang made a noise before looking around, almost like he was in a museum. Macaque was just more lucky that the old man kept his word and let him do some sea gazing, this invite was just a good excuse to make his confession a little more romantic -in a certain sense at least- regardless, even this couldn’t really allow his nerves to stop tormenting him of the impending rejection.

But he had to allow it so he could move on.

“Hey,” Macaque said with a grin, already halfway up the spiral staircase. “You’re gonna love the view up top.”

Tang excitedly followed him up the stairs. Macaque opened the hatch of the trap door, leading to the stairs leading up the light tower. Tang looked at him like he was about to really make him climb at least 16 flights of stairs. Macaque couldn’t help but laugh as he teleported them to the walkway of the light tower.

“Whoa,” was all Tang could say as he looked out into the descending sun, painting the clouds in soft pink as the yellow sun sunk into the ocean shore. Soon letting the starry night overcome the light and Macaque figured he’d turn off the automatic lights for the lighthouse.

Tang continued to admire the shore, his happy grin wide and delighted. His eyes shone like the night sky as he pointed to some of the constellations he could see. Macaque watched as Tang rambled off all of the constellations he could see. Just happy to get to see this side of him - the nerdy one

Tang at his most passionate, the one where he had to hold Tang’s shirt to make sure he didn’t lean over the railings.

“This is amazing! I wish I’d brought my telescope!” He said continuing the night sky.

How Macaque wished to pull Tang in and tell him that he was in love with him. But the words halted in his throat and he held in his breath and let it out, just like Sandy taught him.

“I-uh I assume you’re enjoying the view?” Macaque kept his tone comedic, as Tang turned his attention to him.

“You have to ask! I’m just surprised that the lighthouse beacon hasn’t turned on.”

“Yeah, yeah…Uh listen Tang, can we talk?”

“Macaque, it’s been two years. You know you can talk to me about anything.” Tang wasn’t wrong, it just made Macaque laugh a little.

“Right right….” Macaque cleared his throat again and this time Tang’s sarcastic laden face turned serious,just by looking at him. So he just let the words rush out of him.

“I-I just- Wanted to say that…I think-I think I’m inlovewithyou,” He watched for Tang’s reaction, the one thing he had been dreading, would he be disgusted? Betrayed?

Confused was only his third guess as Tang tilted his head to the side.

“C-Come again?”

“You heard me! I think I’m in love with you!” He yelled suddenly before calming down and stepping away and apologizing.

“I-I heard that but…I mean…Um…” Tang was for a loss of words as he eyed Macaque. His heart beat against his chest as he couldn’t read the scholar’s face. He could see that Tang was thinking, either about what to say or how best to reject him. Either way he braced for the inevitable.

“You only think you’re in love with me?” Tang asked and it made Macaque pause for just a moment. So he told him the truth.

“That’s why I wanted to tell you. I just think that. I don’t know and I’m still trying to figure it out” Once he started, he - once again - couldn’t stop talking. He needed Tang to know, he had to get it out so maybe when their friendship ended, it would hurt less.

“I just, the more we hung out, the more I liked being around you. But I don’t know if it’s love, or I just like the attention you give me. But I like talking to you, I like sharing books with you. I like you. I love you. I think? And-And I can’t keep seeing you without you knowing. So if that…creeps you out, or something. Then I understand.”

Macaque let out a loud sigh as the weight of his confession lifted from him. He still wasn’t sure if those were the right words to say, yet they felt right at the same time.

Silence.

The one thing he didn’t expect was silence.

Tang contemplated for a few moments before letting out a large sigh.

“Thank you, I think?”

A thanks. He got a ‘thanks’. Macaque suddenly laughed and laughed and laughed at the absurd answer.

“Y-You’re really something Tang. You know that?” He said between a cool down of laughs. Tang simply watched him as the laughing finally died down and Macaque coughed a few times.

“What I meant is that thank you…for telling me and I’m not-” Tang stopped and it was the first time the shadow noticed that he was blushing. “I’m actually not against the idea of us dating.”

Now he was the one who needed that repeated.

“You’re not against us dating?” He repeated, as if to make sure what Tang said was true.

“Buuuuuuuut,” the long extended word made Macaque actually brace himself for what he would say next. But Tang took a second or two, continuing to search for the words to reject him with. But he eventually sighed and looked into his eyes as he spoke.

“I noticed you keep saying ‘I think’ it’s pretty clear you’re trying to figure stuff out, which is good! I’m really proud of you.” Tang said with a kind smile that Macaque's heart was swelling with love for the scholar. Tang paused for a moment before speaking again.

“I really want you to figure it out and believe me. I need time to figure it out too. Cause…I do like you Macaque.” He said it so casually that it took Macaque back a bit.

“I mean, of course! I’m just…” In actuality, he hadn’t really considered the option that Tang might like him back. It still didn’t feel like an actual answer. “Just so I’m clear tho. You’re not saying no?”

Tang moved closer to him and bumped his shoulder as the two met eye to eye.

“Once you figure it out, ask me out again. I might say yes,’”

He knew Tang was joking, but somewhere deep down inside Macaque’s once cold heart, he wanted nothing more than to kiss Tang right then. Instead he laughed with Tang as the awkwardness of the confession died down as the two gazed into the night sky. Macaque savored this moment with Tang and that happiness that he wished would last longer than tonight.

#lego monkie kid fanfic #lmk macaque #lmk tang #inkypages #inkypageshipping #tintedlensesshipping #tintedlenses #lmk six eared macaque #lmk tang shifu #my fanfics #probably the first one in a very long time

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chaozsilhouette · 2 years

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A Simple Act

On a peaceful mountain top, the wind gently blew. On the horizon, the sun was halfway through passing under the skyline as stars started to emerge from the growing darkness of the night.

It was a relaxing view, one in which you could almost forget the encroaching wave of ice and death in the opposite direction. But that didn’t stop one demon from laying back against an old tree and savoring the warmth of the fading sun.

Being her servant was like being drowned in the coldest, deepest patch of space in existence. The icy chains wrapping around one’s limbs until they threatened to break reinforced bone. The ghostly whispers slowly draining one of their strength and spirit to feed their mistress. The torturous agony of feeling all life and passion escaping your grasp with every breath.

Macaque was forced to live with that as he hunted down the kid and his idiot master, but he’d take that over being infused with her power every time.

That power…there was something terribly wrong with it. The instant it made contact with his spirit his entire body was wracked with pain. As every millimeter crawled across his body, he could feel his soul being dragged to an unknown location. It wasn’t death, that much he was certain about. He was quite familiar with the sensation of death.

No, this-this was far worse.

The Samadhi Fire was his only hope to purge his body of her chains, physical, mental, and spiritual. The knowledge his presence pushed the new pilgrims into speeding up their timetable to release the ancient power was the only thing that got him moving. The more power he used to reach his targets, including the energy needed to collapse the impressive distance, increased the rate the bone and ice-encased his form.

A sign of Lady Bone Demon’s impatience and desperation.

He hated how easy it was to pin down the royal pain and former celestial wild child. He could have fought them on his own, but this power… There was no honor to it. No pride is to be gained through this victory.

When he snapped the fake rings, Nezha’s face said it all. Once more the mischievous Monkey King was up to his old tricks. Keeping everyone in the dark unless it served his goals.

And Wukong wondered why he didn’t trust in his little plan. Not that there ever was one to begin with.

Like the others, he never imagined there was a fourth holy ring, much less than it was inside the girl. The looks of fear and betrayal etched onto their faces were all too relatable. They learned why the king wasn’t to be trusted in one of the worst ways.

But it was all worth it.

The release of the eternal flames washed over him like a wave. The glorious snap of dozens of chains once hooked into his bones as links faded into nothing. Freeing him from the frozen abyss to leave him gasping in a burning whirlwind fueled by a child’s sacrifice. For a brief moment, the flash of heat eclipsed that of the icy curse. The temperature shock paralyzed him for far too long, but he couldn’t bring himself to care about his moment of weakness.

He was free. Fully and truly free.

And he intended to keep it that way.

Two days.

Two glorious days since he had been freed from the bone bitch’s chains.

Just the mere thought of it brought a smile to the ancient shadow demon’s face. But Macaque wasn’t a fool. He knew Lady Bone Demon sensed the instant he had been freed. He knew she wouldn’t take his failure, much less his desire to rid himself of her so-called destiny, with the grace she liked to project.

So, his best option was to run. Hightail it out of China until the heat died down. With any luck, Wukong’s little band of misfits would pull off the impossible or the Celestial Realm would finally get off their asses and do something. Alas, he didn’t hold much faith in either one.

Which left him to continue expanding the distance between him and Megapolis. Once more alone with his thoughts, you’d think he’d get used to it. Everyone left you eventually, so there was no point in getting close after they fulfilled their purpose.

He made that mistake once and paid for it with his life.

It didn’t matter if the kid was too kind for his own good, Wukong meant too much to him for there ever to be a conflict of interest. The girl was entertaining, a true beacon of sass, but with the fire now raging inside her it was doubtful she would live long even with proper training. And Tang…

Oh Tang, that silver-tongued devil. In a moment of weakness, he could almost believe the human wanted him around. Didn’t hurt that he wasn’t too bad looking, for a human. Or that he stopped Wukong from nearly taking his other eye in a fit of rage.

In the end was just another human, one with an abnormally large amount of holy power, but a human fated to die all the same.

“Macaque!” A voice pierced the silence with a strange mixture of relief and exhaustion.

That voice…It couldn’t be.

Ears flicking, Macaque turned to the side where a single human trigged up the walkway. Behind thick lenses, dark eyes widen with unmistakable joy as his lips formed a smile. “There you are. Are you alright? Have you been able to eat?” Tang asked all these questions, absentmindedly putting down a pack he had brought as he further closed the distance between the two.

Before Tang’s fingers could so much as graze the monkie’s clothes, Macaque stepped away, more than a little cautious. “Okay, last I checked you lot were pissed I threatened your little dragon for you to unleash the Samadhi Fire, so what’s with all the concern?” Underneath his constant glamor, his infamous ears were fully splayed to detect the slightest hint of this being a trap.

Tang closed his eyes and nodded in understanding. “I was angry. We were angry. Okay, Pigsy is still pretty angry, but with everything happening we don’t have time for blind rage. Besides I’m sure most of the blame fell to Monkey King after the truth came out.” He couldn’t deny it hurt. They placed so much faith in the King’s plan, to learn there never was one, that they were essentially flying blind…He doubted any of them would look at the legendary figure the same way.

For Macaque, this just confirmed what he suspected. And he loved being right. “Really? Now I almost wish I stuck around. But none of that explains why you’re wasting time with me.”

“Macaque, you are many things. Manipulative. Arrogant. Dangerous.” Tang listed.

“Flatterer,” Macaque mockingly batted his eyes.

Rolling his eyes, Tang ignored the obvious baiting. “But despite everything I’ve experienced, everything MK told us about you, when there is a serious threat, when it comes to being honest, we can trust you more than Sun Wukong.”

Till the end of existence Macaque would deny would that simple sentence made his heart beat a touch faster and his tail wag with joy. “Nice speech, but pardon me if I don’t jump on the redemption bandwagon.”

“Heh. Don’t worry the kids are currently focused on Red Son.” Tang stated, quite proud of his children’s hero work. Turns out it had the added benefit of helping Mei focus on anything but how she ended up in this predicament.

That earned a raised eyebrow. Macaque suspected the kids were drawn to Red Son due to shared experience on the battlefield and relatively similar mental ages, but this? He almost pitied his nephew.

“Right…Anyway, just because you’ve actually decided to listen to my hard-earned experience dealing with that peach obsessed idiot, doesn’t mean I’m throwing everything into a plan that could just as easily leave me in an even worse situation.” He just found his freedom; he wasn’t about to toss it to the winds for some kind words and a pretty face.

Tang took a deep breath in preparation for what he was about to offer. Even if he knew it was the best, if not the only option, it didn’t stop the fear. “Then use me…”

“Huh?” Six ears and still Macaque wasn’t sure he heard that right. No one would be so crazy as to place their life in his hands. No one was that trusting. Or maybe it wasn’t trust. Maybe it was simply…

“If you can’t bring yourself to trust us, use me.” Tang stated clearly and without stutter. If one was truthful, it resembled a surgeon telling his patient he had to remove a major organ if they were to live. “You said it yourself, I don’t have much to contribute to the group, but I have their trust and MK’s ear. If you know something, I can relay that information word for word while you remain out of sight. You can ensure the plan will work while staying one step ahead of the one who chained you down. And if Sun Wukong discovers you, you can simply threaten my life in exchange for your safety.”

…Desperation.

“Hmm, tempting. Very tempting.” Macaque had to smile at the little mortal, once again he proved far more courageous than his appearance would ever let on. The plan itself wasn’t too shabby either, needed some fine tuning obviously, but it did offer him a prime situation to cover his ass while watching her’s go up in unquenchable flames.

“But let me ask you this,” Vanishing into the shadows, Macaque suddenly appeared mere inches from Tang’s face. “are you truly willing to put your life on the line for the likes of me?” Eyes glowing solid purple as his unglamored fangs were in full view, so close to weak flesh. Claws unsheathed, just grazing cloth, barely touching skin yet one wrong twitch could sever bone.

It would be a lie to say Tang wasn’t scared. He could feel his heartbeat blocking out everything but the sight of those razor-sharp teeth and his spiraling thoughts of what this demon could do to him with no one ever being the wiser. But he couldn’t afford to be scared. Everyone was doing their part to ensure a better tomorrow and he refused to be the weak link any longer.

Gathering all his mental strength, Tang looked past the terrifying visage to the hurt demon who was in far more pain than he could ever imagine. “Everyone deserves the chance to better themselves, to live free, to be happy. Sun Wukong deserves it. Sandy deserves it.” Placing gentle hands over tan cheeks, less than an inch from deadly fangs, Tang brought their foreheads together. “And so do you.”

Just like that, the stuff of nightmares was replaced by an expression of pure disbelief. As though no one had ever told him such a thing, no one believed he deserved such a thing.

“Take your time. I will be waiting for your answer.” Bowing, Tang took his leave and began his walk to rejoin the others.

Macaque watched until the human disappeared. Focusing, he could hear the sounds of the scholar being addressed by the chef about his whereabouts only to wave it off at the sound of several cats demanding attention and a burst of flame accompanied by authoritative shouting.

This was concerning. Based on the reverberation, they were little more than an hour’s hike away. He should have heard their approach. Either way it was time to start heading to the next mountain range.

Looking down, the demon noticed the pack Tang brought. Curious, Macaque loosened the drawstring to it filled with gauze, a canteen, and mangos. Giving the fruit a tentative sniff, the monkie was surprised, they were almost ripe and had no trace of being tampered with. Macaque could help but smirk at the human’s attempts.

He was trying to coax Macaque into working with them by manipulating his desire to control others along with his need for revenge. He was trying to manipulate a manipulator with an added touch of kindness. Naturally, Tang was far from the first to attempt such a play, but the demon had to admit his pitch was by far the most compelling. Offering his life as collateral was a nice touch.

Picking up the pack, he froze at a strange sound. Almost like the crinkling of paper. Opening the pack, Macaque saw something new. At the bottom, nestled among fruit and cloth was a small piece of paper with a series of numbers written across it with a message.

If you ever wish to talk

Macaque smiled at the horizon.

“Stubborn human.”

Carefully folding the small piece of paper, Macaque returned it to the pack and continued his journey.

§~~~~§~~~~§~~~~§

In a secluded corner of their campsite, Tang contemplated everything that had happened.

The combined efforts of Nehza and MK were enough to restrain the Monkey King (didn’t hurt that he really held back with MK present) long enough for the ancient trickster to face the grim truth and allow himself to return. The rest of them had managed to find Mei, strangely in the presence of Red Son.

Apparently, he sensed something was wrong when they stayed at the Bull King’s fortress. It made sense as the flames were apparently born from him that he could sense when they were near and what could happen if they were allowed to roam free. The knowledge he was willing to aid them in their quest did help, if nothing else it raised MK and Mei’s spirits.

Although Nedhza always looked at the young demon with suspicion, probably debating on if letting the Samadhi fire’s true master stay within close proximity was the wisest course. But even he caved to the wisdom that Red Son was their best option in getting Mei to the point where the slightest burst of emotion wouldn’t turn her and anything close to her to a smoldering pile of ash.

Looking at those he had grown close to, those he had nearly died with, Tang truly wished things were different.

They can’t face this threat on their own. Even with aid of ancient warriors and powerful demons, it was doubtful Mei could truly master the Samadhi Fire before the Lady Bone Demon showed herself. Even if she learned to guide it, she’d constantly be plagued by thoughts of accidentally killing them, thoughts the Lady would be all too happy to abuse.

They needed more power if they were to survive.

And since the Celestial Realm had been silent, aside from the presence of Nehdza (who did have a history of doing things his own way), they had to make do with what they had. Which meant seeking help anywhere they could.

Tang knew his actions would have mixed reactions.

He wasn’t lying when he said the others were enraged by the dark monkie’s actions, even if they sympathized with his plight. One can’t simply forget how he ruthlessly hunted them down across seas and deserts.

But the more Tang thought about it, the more it became clear Macaque was always rooting for them.

When they first met, he could have simply hid on the airship and stole MK when they went to sleep. His assault on the Eastern Sea Palace was so grand and bold it forced the Dragon King to allow them to leave. Mei’s rendition of their time split between two trucks proved Macaque could have kidnapped both Monkey King and MK and neither of them would be the wiser until it was far too late. Monkey King was suck in his meditation, MK had only unlocked the eyes of truth, hell he was sleeping. Instead, he prodded MK, threatened Sandy and Mei until he regained the powers necessary to fight back. The ancient simian could have killed them at any time, yet he purposely chose to play with them so the kid would be motivated to regain what he had lost.

It was these actions paired with their talk that proved to Tang this vital truth, Macaque was their ally.

It was obvious he held no love for his jailer. He too wished to see her fall. But he had to work smart and unlike Sun Wukong his actions made sense. Everything he did forced them to put more effort into finding the rings and completing the ceremony. His actions reminded them of what was at stake because his life was on the line too.

He hoped the monkie would take his offer. He hoped they could work together. He hoped Macaque would voluntarily join their group. No one deserved to face the world alone.

He prayed to be able to gaze at the skyline without constantly being reminded of their failure.

Looking down at his hands as a golden aura emerged, he prayed certain pieces of the past could just stay there.

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