A/N: My first XS fanfic. Please be nice. Haven't read any stories of fics so I'm sorry if there's a similar story like this one.
Disclaimer: I don't own Xiaolin Showdown. It's the property of Warner Bros. and Christy Hui.
Teddy Bear Days
What would happen if stuffed toys could talk? Sure there were movies about toys magically coming to life but those thing just don't happen in reality, only in the movies. Those plush toys that were either filled with cotton or some with plastic beans have brought joy and comfort to the young and young at heart. And this one particular bear has seen more action than any of the regular toys would have experience for, a lack of better term, a lifetime.
You see, this bear; was given the name 'Ninja Fred' affectionately by his owner when he was nothing but a five year old boy as a Christmas present. Glassy black eyes reflected the boy's round face; brown hair, tanned skin and emerald green eyes.
He was there in every stage of the boy's life. The times when he couldn't sleep because he had a bad dream. All he had to do was snuggle on the bear's fluffy tummy and he was back in dreamland, the good side, that is. He was there when the boy had a cold in flu season and kept him company even if there were plenty of children running around the house. His charcoal black eyes were the witness of the boy's hidden tears, anger and even embarrassment as the boy poured out his feelings to his silent companion in the sanctuary of his room.
The boy slowly grew into a teenager. His younger siblings would try and sneak into his room. All five of them, the three older ones were too old to play with him anyway. He had his right arm ripped once; there had been an incident of an almighty tug-o-war fight between his owner and the smaller ones and with a forceful tug, his seams popped out and so did the stuffing. The mother sewed it back on with such expertise that is looked as good as new.
Kids grow up, that's an inevitable fact and it was a bittersweet moment for toys (assuming they are alive)
But ninja Fred was one of the lucky few to grow with his beloved owner. He was the only one packed in his owner's bag when he was invited to a temple. After that, the teenager had changed.
The early nights of turning in with a bored or cheerful look turned to tired, frustrated or even wounded and wrapped in bandages. He would even fall asleep before his head would hit the pillow but the only thing that stayed was his habit of embracing him with child-like innocence; like he was back at home in his bed.
His owner wasn't the only occupant of the room. There were four of them sharing the same space so he was hidden under the pillow and blanket that was folded on the mat. He would only be taken out whenever they were alone in a warm lazy afternoon or on the middle of the night while talking about fascinating characters and terms like "Master Fung", "Dojo", "Jack Spicer," "Wuya" and "Shen Gong Wu" he might have noticed his face was tired but he still looked happy enough.
There came a time when his owner didn't come home... The three other occupants looked grim and ninja Fred was a lone figure on the mat that already has a shallow layer of dust collecting on the surface.
If he could only hear, he would listen and hear the depressed words of the small bald boy and the bulky blond haired cowboy. And sometimes, a soft sobbing coming from the other side of the room that suspiciously sounded like a girl's.
It was weeks before the blanket and pillows were touched once again and his owner's face was against his dusty fur. He was washed and hung dry, something he might have appreciated, and lay with him on the mat with a contented smile on his face. The stories also got more interesting now it added the characters "Chase Young" and "Hannibal Bean"
He was first revealed when the teenager was having trouble sleeping. Out of panic, he was still in the boy's arms as he ran out with a sword in his other hand.
The girl had teased him about having a bear but the boy; bless him, calls him his good luck charm. He stopped having nightmares about whatever it was that keeps him from having a fitful rest and soon, everything came back to order.
But then, the irregular sleeping patterns started again and the wounds became more severe; the boy was turning from teenager to a young adult. They were given separate rooms and this time, he was sitting atop of the pillows instead of being flattened by them. His owner was now taller, toned like a young man and most importantly... his owner wasn't the only one sleeping on the bed.
While his owner wouldn't return to his room for a day or two, another occupant would lie and hug him. A female with long black hair that was tied to two pigtails, fair skin tone and blue eyes. The one that slept on the mat beside his owner's previously.
It turned to be a habit and he didn't mind. It was comforting he can still serve his purpose. There was one night when the girl was asleep on the bed and his owner unexpectedly returned to his room. It was quite a sight. The flustered girl with her face painted with red on her cheeks while the boy had a mischievous look on his face. Then it happened-
The girl was about to run out of the room when the boy grabbed her hand and said something along the lines of "I miss you Kim..."
The girl, whose eyes was hidden underneath her bangs blushed furiously and whispered, "Missed you too Rai," she then looked up to him and gave a small smile, "Welcome back"
All Ninja Fred could say, if he could, was that he witnessed one of the cornerstones of his owner's life. Soon, almost every night the girl would sneak into the room and hug him, either if his owner was there or not but he knows she was permitted to stay there. And there were some nights that his owner would not sleep in his room, but now he knows where he sleeps. It was a bit lonely but he's still happy that his owner's happy.
Years had passed.
His owner moved from the temple and stayed in Rio, his homeland for a year. The younger siblings still played with him although with less gusto than before but he knows they're just growing up.
"Raimundo, gostaria dejantar coma gente?" his mother had yelled from the other side of the door of his old bedroom.
"Nenhuma mãe, obrigado, eu estou cheio" he answered back
His eyes just stared blankly on the ceiling, his arms and feet were now worn with age but his fur was still warm and fluffy as the day he was bought.
His owner, now a man of twenty, jumped on the bed and crossed his arms under his head and lay next to him.
"Hey, Ninja Fred" he started
"It's been a while since we talked like this huh?" he spoke in thick Portuguese accent, "I mean, fighting the Heylin, looking for Shen Gong Wu and protecting the world; I kinda missed it. Haha, weird thing huh?"
Of course, only silence answered him so he continued talking,
"Omi stayed in the temple to train more, he couldn't really accept that I was made the leader," he snickered in a good-natured way, "Clay went back to Texas to help out with his dad's ranch" His tone lowered when he came to the subject he almost never touched, "And Kimiko went back to Japan to take care of her dad's business..."
Based from what she and his owner was talking about before leaving the temple; the urgency of her returning to Japan because her father had suffered a breakdown. It wasn't anything life threatening but still an immediate call for attention to the only heiress of the business to go home. There were a lot of tears on both parties but they both accepted the fact they have responsibilities.
Another year passed and Ninja Fred was once again inside the bag with clothes. They were in a plane and the first thing he saw as the bag was opened was the room he resided in for five years.
He heard voices, deeper than those he remembered in their adolescent days. And the first visitor was the young monk who was now grew a bit since their last 'meeting' and the cowboy who didn't change much except for a small five o' clock shadow that was beginning to grow under his chin.
Night came and now, a stranger entered their room. The woman he had never seen before but there was something familiar about her; long raven hair that was tied into half a ponytail, fair face that was colored by the faintest trace of make-up, soft petal like lips and baby blue eyes that sparkle like sapphires. It WAS her. The girl- no, woman, his owner was yearning for for the past years.
As soon as she pronounced his owner's name, he immediately rushed to her and glued their lips together. Needless to say, they had a private moment and Ninja Fred was the unwilling onlooker.
Soon, the patterns made themselves visible again. The sleepless nights, the tired and wounded owner and of course, the woman who would still come into his room and snuggle with the bear whose sewn smile was a sign of comfort.
They would do... "Cuddle time" as he might have described it though he would be unceremoniously be kicked off of the bed along with their clothes only to be returned to his place in bed in the morning either by his shirtless owner or the woman who was dressed in a blue robe.
He didn't know what happened or why but he found himself in a storage along with worn out blankets and extra mats in his owner's room. It's strange... for a teddy bear to want to cry for being stored away. He might have enjoyed more if he was given to another child to give joy instead of collecting dust but still... He was grateful that he wasn't thrown out since his stuffing had been poking of out the sides and his left eye was almost hanging from the string.
Was it months? Or years?
The storage door opened and revealed the woman. She looked the same, only more mature and on her left hand was a gold wedding band that fitted delicately on her ring finger. She took him in her hands and gently patted the dust off of him.
"Raimundo, I found Ninja Fred!" she half-shouted but her gentle smile stayed on her face
"I knew he was in the storage!" a laid back voice responded. He would have shed tears upon seeing the boy he watched grow before him. His face was more defined but still had his boyish charm, the mischievous twinkle in his green eyes and his lean physique that was lined with muscle.
"Oh don't give me that look Rai, admit you forgot where you kept him" she chastised.
His owner smiled innocently and took him in his arms like old times and looked down on him, "Hey buddy. Long time huh?"
He was cleaned and repaired back to his former glory. The woman sure knows how to handle the needle and thread. They then took him to a room that was new. He was so sure it's in the temple but this room looked as if it popped out of nowhere from a totally different place. Sky blue wallpaper filled the walls in every corner and on the middle of the room was a large crib. A mobile was sitting on top of it with figures of dragons, the cute kind. He was placed next to the pillows and, if he could smell, he would have smelled the scent of fresh baby powder and a scent only a baby could have.
-•-
"Wait, where's Caleb?" Kimiko asked; worry line appearing on her forehead. He placed his arms on her shoulder and squeezed them reassuringly.
"He's gonna be fine, Omi and Clay just took him out for a walk" Raimundo said soothingly, he didn't want to be the brunt of his wife's fiery temper, again.
Kimiko groaned and rubbed her fingertips on her temple, "Omi had been trying to 'train' Caleb to become a xiaolin warrior. For Kami's sake, Caleb's only one!"
Raimundo laughed and gave her a one-armed hug, "Well, as long as he doesn't teach him those wrong slangs, I'm sure he'll be fine. I just hope it isn't Clay who was teaching him those western 'sayings'" he said while air quoting the emphasized word. Kimiko giggled and kissed her husband's cheeks, "Have I ever told you I love you?"
"Not as much as I love you" he answered
"Heh, getting cheesy are we?" she teased with a coy smile.
Raimundo in turn gave her a sweet peck on the lips and winked at her, "Only for you, amor"
"That better be true buster" she threatened under her breath. Raimundo looked surprised and immediately got what she was referring to;
"Oh c'mon Kim, those girls in Rio were just asking for directions. And I was wearing my ring, you were there too!"
Kimiko gave a secret smile but kept her indifferent face, "Hmph, and here I thought I married my knight in shining armor"
They kept jabbing at each other before the door opened to reveal their son who was squirming on the arms of Omi who was dripping with water.
Caleb stopped his squirming as he say the sight of his parents and happily giggled, "Mama, Pa!"
"Omi! What happened?" Kimiko screeched as she ran to her son who was thankfully dry.
"I was merely trying to demonstrate my power to my godchild when he played with the Orb of Tornami and threw it into the stream. It was, how you say, as cold as snow!"
"It's 'as cold as ice' Omi. And why did you leave it near Caleb? You know how he gets around round objects... Aside from your head" he chuckled. Same old Omi, slow in street slangs and first to try and mentor his son and prove he was better than his 'brother'.
-•-
Ninja Fred just sat there, having a 'staring contest' with one of the ducks that was placed on the opposite of him. He suddenly felt a hand, a child's hand. He soon came face to face with the carbon copy of his owner's face when he was just a child except for the baby blue eyes. He blinked at him before giving him a tentative hug which earned an uncharacteristic 'Awwww!' in the room. The child pulled on his ear and nose but in a curious way.
His owner's hand ruffled the boy's own thick brown hair, "Caleb, this is Ninja Fred, my best friend-"
"I thought I was your best friend" the bald headed man said only to be poked by the woman on the side, "Not now Omi" she warned. The huge Texan man with something green was wrapped around his neck, a gecko?, also entered the room with his ten gallon hat hiding his flaxen hair. "He sure does look a lot like you Rai, spittin' image of his daddy that is" he nodded at the child.
The green gecko slithered to the crib and nodded to the child, "Yep, I see a new mini Raimundo in this kid, let's just hope you got your mother's brains" he stated. Everyone except his owner laughed.
"Hahahaha, very funny Dojo" he replied sarcastically, "Wait until he could walk, let's see if you can survive being pulled, chewed on thrown around by my kid"
Yes... now it makes sense! This child is his owner's child and therefore his new owner. He was suddenly brought into eye level with his former owner and was given a nostalgic smile, "Take good care of him Ninja Fred; like how you've taken care of me" he said and gave the bear a hug before giving him back to Caleb who was watching the scene with curious eyes. As soon as Raimundo, his former owner let go of him, he knew he was being passed on. And it will be another great adventure.
-•-
"Why is Raimundo talking to the stuffed toy? Is he removing his head?" the monk asked
Clay laughed and clasped the shoulder of his shorter friend, "Y'mean 'losing his mind' and naw partner, he was just saying goodbye to his friend."
He then steered Omi out of the room to give the small family a bit of quiet time with their child before going back to train.
"Rai... It's two in the morning, give Ninja Fred back to Caleb before he finds out you took him again"
"Waaaaah! Waaaah!"
"Ooops, too late... hehe..."
"... You're on diaper duty for the next three months"
Translations:
Raimundo, gostaria de jantar com a gente? : Raimundo, would you like to have dinner with us?
Nenhuma mãe, obrigado, eu estou cheio. : No thanks mom, I'm full.
A/N: So… review? Oh and no flames please.