Notes: dragonnutt, you gave me the idea for Ying-Yang Yo-Yo stuff. You are completely to blame for this. Also I hate titling things. Titling things is the worst. Also because Dashi totally would tell Dad Jokes.
Walk the Dog
He heard an old saying once, "Instincts are like old scars. They may dull, but are never truly gone." He may not have been remembering it correctly. Dashi had a tenancy to think about other things when the old masters started spouting off their proverbs. Yet that morning, he remembered that phrase, whether it be mangled or true.
He tried to remember which of his old masters spewed out that particular saying as he hauled himself out of bed, his joints creaking and groaning in a manner not befitting a man of thirty-two. His toes curled as his feet touched the cold floor and he told himself that the inexplicable feeling that something was wrong was nothing more than a wound taken in a fight with a chimera acting up. It was, after all, going to rain today. There was always something that hurt when it rained, whether it was an actual physical ache or no longer feeling connected to the water pouring down his face.
By the time he made it to breakfast, he convinced himself that it was nothing more than an old injury. When he sat down with his family, Hai proudly told him that Uncle Dojo showed her a new magic trick. He smiled as she made a pebble, "disappear," with the sort of clumsy earnestness that only a four year old could manage, told her that it was incredible, and asked just how she managed it. Naturally, she could only reply by saying, "Magicians aren't allowed to tell."
A few minutes later, he felt Jaing's arms slowly wrap around his waist and she laid her head on his shoulder for a moment before asking, "Are you alright?" in a way that said that she already knew the answer.
"I'm fine," he replied. This time, his smile was almost forced. "Just an old chimera bite, that's all." She kissed his cheek. Jiang knew better. She always did.
"You can work the bellows today," she said. She worked alongside her father long before Dashi became his apprentice and long after he stopped because he could no longer balance the fight against Wuya with smith work. She always took over when old injuries became too much.
"It's just gears and horseshoes today," he insisted. "Nothing I can't hand…"
"It's going to rain." He could lie to himself. He could not lie to his wife.
Yet by the time they started to work, he well and truly believed that the nagging feeling of dread was caused by a chimera bite. Yet he couldn't remember ever having been bitten by a chimera. He remembered fighting one, years ago in a land far away, but after years of being a hero, all the old battles started to run together. Whether it was a chimera or a nian didn't matter. What did was the twisting, gnawing sensation in his chest while he watched Jiang wipe soot from her eyes and sparks fly from her hammer.
It was not until well after noon when the tension within him threatened to rip him apart that the winds changed and he smelled the faintest note of sulfur in the air. The blood drained from his face as he stepped back from the bellows.
Dashi could hardly manage to say, "Take Dojo and the kids. Go to the mountain cave." It's the only place he could think of where they could hide, yet he couldn't imagine what good it would do when they were hiding from somebody who had himself spent days hiding out there. "No matter what, don't let anybody leave until I come to get you."
It wasn't much, but the warning was all he could do to protect his family. He and Dojo finished hiding all the Shen Gong Wu years ago, all but one. He gave up his element. He left the temple barely a week after Guan did. He retired from the hero business and his martial arts skills were rusty. A risky hiding place was all he could give.
"Do you think it's really…" The water hissed as she doused the shoe she was working on. They both knew it was only a matter of time until their former friend decided to pay them a visit.
"Tiger instincts." They were never wrong. He'd been a fool to ignore them for so long. If he had just a little more time, he could find a better way to keep them safe.
Without really knowing how he got there, Dashi crossed the distance between them and held her for what could be the last time. He kissed her forehead and said, "I love you. No matter what happens today, I want you to know that."
"I can stay and fight with you," she insisted.
"He only wants me." He couldn't say that he had no intention of fighting.
She knew him well enough to know that while he may have been a retired hero, he wouldn't let anybody else put themselves in danger for him. By the time they got back to the house, he already missed them more than he could say. While Jiang took Shui from the cradle and wrapped Hai in a warm shawl, he pulled Dojo aside.
"I need you to stay with them. Do you understand?" he said.
"But what are you…"
"I don't care. I need you to stay with them and protect them." He left off that it was as much for Dojo's own protection as it was for his family's. If the rumors he'd heard about the Lao Mang Long Soup were true, then it would be best for Dojo to stay as far away from here as possible.
"Fine," he said, slithering off to help Jiang prepare to leave. He could live with a slightly sulky dragon, if it meant that at the end of the day, there was a living dragon. Within minutes, they were out the door, saying goodbye.
"Why aren't you coming with us?" Hai asked.
"I still have work to finish," he replied. It was as close to the truth as anything. "You're gonna take care of your mom and brother for me right?"
"I'm scared," she said.
"Well hello there Scared," he said, forcing the absolute most ecstatic and reassuring expression he could manage to his face. "I'm dad. Nice to meet ya." She giggled a bit. "I want you to practice that magic trick okay? You see this pebble here?" With a bit of slight of hand, he made it appear as though he made it appear from behind her ear.
"How'd you do that?" He knew it was a bad idea to fall back on his old habit of inappropriately timed jokes, but if he could distract his daughter and make her less afraid of a situation she couldn't even comprehend, it was worth it.
"Oh come on. You know I can't tell you that. But this is a very special pebble. Only the best magicians can do tricks with it. It's all yours kiddo." He placed the pebble in the palm of her hand. He turned to Jiang, held her and Shui close for a moment, before whispering, "If I'm not there by dawn, you need to find somewhere else to hide."
"You will be there," she muttered back. He wished he could believe that.
"Love all of you," he said, stepping back again. "Goodbye."
"We'll see you later," she replied, helping Hai onto Dojo's back before hopping up herself.
Dashi stood in the doorway, watching them fly away until Dojo disappeared in the rain clouds and then for a time after that. Then he retreated back to the house and started to boil water for tea. He went into the back room and pulled out an old trunk.
The old robes were folded just as he left them, a little dusty and faded, but it wasn't as if he ever wore them much, even when he was with the Xiaolin Temple. They still fit perfectly. There was still that stain from the Incident with the Pillow and the Porcupine, but that was never going to come out.
Dashi sat next to the fire, watching the door, hoping that this would soon be over. He didn't have long to wait. Just as the water began to boil, he heard a knock on the door. If he were younger, and under different circumstances, he would have remarked at how polite an evil doer his old friend had become.
"Come in," he said. The door slowly opened. Chase looked much the same as ever, despite the new armor and draconian eyes. He still shook his head upon entering the house, not unlike a wet dog. Yet there was an easy self-assurance to his posture that Dashi had never seen before. "You know, I've been thinking about putting up an, "I Am Retired," sign on the door. At least once a week, I've got some person in here looking for a hero and I've got to tell them that the temple's down the road and the new monks are just as capable as me."
"Stop joking around," Chase said. The firelight made his eyes shine like they were themselves ablaze. "You know why I'm here."
"And it is so nice to have tea with an old friend," he said, standing up, taking the pot out of the fire, and setting it on the table. "We should have done this sooner."
"You know, I never thought you were funny when you did that," Chase said.
"So I invite you into my home, make you tea, and you're insulting me? I thought you were so polite too." He started to pour tea. Deflection was his best defense, although not always the smartest.
"If you keep this up, I will kill you," Chase said.
"I'm sure you will." He continued to pour second cup of tea. Upon hearing the inhuman snarl that came from the other man's mouth, he added, "I'm serious. I don't doubt that you will kill me. In fact, I won't stop you. I won't like it of course, I kinda like my life, but I'm not going to fight you."
The next thing he knew, Case's foot connected with his jaw and scalding hot water spilled over his body. One of the cups clattered to the floor beside him. He lay on the floor, dazed and certain of nothing but the pain.
"Oh look, now you've spilled the tea," he said, his head still spinning as he dragged himself to his hands and knees.
"You're really still clinging to the delusion that I'm your friend?"
"No," he said. "Whatever Hannibal's ordered you to do, do it." He reached up and wiped blood from his lips.
"Hannibal doesn't order me around anymore and you're just as weak as ever. You're letting our former friendship blind you to…"
"I'm not refusing because you were my friend. I'm a fool, but I'm not stupid," he said, putting a hand on the table for support as he stood up. "I'm not going to fight you because I know you'll win." If he fought back, even in the slightest, he would have accepted Chase's challenge. He was older, more scar tissue than man, out of touch with his element, and his skills were rusty. Chase was ever the same, but now with powerful Heylin magic and super human strength.
If the rumors were true, then if he lost, he would join the other fallen warriors. There was no telling what Chase would make him do then. He didn't know this Chase. He didn't want to risk a power mad Heylin sorcerer sending him after his own family. Chase could do whatever he wished with him, but Dashi would do everything in his power to ensure that he would not hurt his family.
Chase closed the distance between them, his hand twisting and contorting as it turned to a claw. His talons closed around Dashi's neck, yet he still did not move. "You want to kill me? Do it." The claws closed by a fraction of a centimeter, yet did not break his skin. A moment later, he heard something clatter onto the table.
He remembered giving it to Chase like it was yesterday.
It's far too late for anybody to be awake without a project to work on. Yet here he is, standing by the temple gates, hidden just out of sight, watching the dormitory. He feels as though there should be a chill in the air, but it's mid-summer and warm as ever. He's been out here for hours, waiting, hoping that he's wrong, hoping that he knows Chase better than Hannibal does. He knows how this will play out, he's seen the future in the Crystal Glasses, but if anybody could give such a massive, "Screw You," to fate, it would be Chase.
Yet still his heart sinks when he sees a shaggy haired figure sneaking out of the dorms. He lets Chase go through the gate before he says anything.
"So there's nothing I can say to make you stay?" It's a statement of fact, but he phrases it like a question to keep the pain at bay. He wants Chase to say that there is something, because he'll do anything to keep his friend.
The younger man jumps, then turns to face him. "How did you…"
"I'm Grand Master Dashi. I know everything," he says, shrugging as nonchalantly as he can manage. He's struggling to keep his tone casual tonight, to force down the pain and betrayal and anger. "You don't have to do this."
"That's where even you're wrong. I'm destined for more than this temple." Chase doesn't keep the anger out of his voice. He sounds half-feral already. "Your petty begging won't stop me."
"I know. Do what you have to do," he says, reaching into his pocket. "You'll know when to use this." He holds out the Ying Yo-Yo to his friend. Chase hesitates a moment before taking it, then leaves without another word.
Dashi is still standing by the gate come dawn. When Guan comes rushing up to him, asking if he's seen Chase, trying not to sound terrified, Dashi can only put a hand on his shoulder, tell him to stop looking, then go to bed.
"You were right. I knew when to use it. Despite your best efforts, my destiny has been fulfilled, so I no longer have need of your trinkets."
"You can keep it you know."
"I've imprisoned Hannibal Roy Bean in the Ying-Yang World. What other use could I have for such a thing?" He laughed, dismissive and cocky as ever.
"I don't know, like…" He told himself ever since that night that he gave Chase the Yo-Yo as a way home if he ever wanted it. He was one of the good guys. He wouldn't exploit a friend turning to the dark side, even if it meant ridding the world of great evil. Yet the closest they could come to defeating Hannibal was to imprison him in the Ying-Yang World and nobody else could get close enough to Hannibal to do it.
He told himself that there was nothing he could have said or did that would have changed Chase's mind. He told himself that he hadn't just let him walk away. He told himself that giving him the Yo-Yo was for Chase, not to imprison Hannibal. Yet he knew that if he gave Chase half the Yo-Yo, only half of Chase would return should he use it and Chase knew that just as he did.
Yet he could not admit this, even to himself, so he would continue to believe what he said.
"I don't know," he admitted. He may have believed that the Yo-Yo was a way home, but Chase didn't and there was no point in reasoning with him.
The immortal turned to leave, then paused at the door. "You said there were new monks at the temple?"
"They're an inexperienced and unbalanced team. There would be no honor in defeating them." He'd helped the elders pick the new Xiaolin Dragons himself. Wood, Earth, and Metal. They were good kids. They just needed more training. His only disappointment was that the girl who was chosen to be the Dragon of Metal had shown considerably more promise with Fire. Yet the elders decided that there was not to be another Dragon of Fire. Not after Chase.
"Tell them to be on their guard. It won't be long until they're interesting," he said, striding back out into the rain.
He took his time before heading into the mountains. Just long enough to make sure that Chase was no longer watching him. He cleaned up his face to the best of his ability and made sure that the hot water burns were only superficial before beginning the climb. The cave he'd hidden from Wuya in countless times was the safest place he knew. So long as it didn't occur to Chase to go looking for his family, they would be safe.
The gnawing feeling that he'd carried with him all day melted away when he finally saw that they were alright. All that remained was to go home, a happy ending like in the stories. Yet when Jaing asked him what happened later, he could only say, "He wanted to know about the new monks," as they lay in bed.
To say what happened would mean admitting what he'd done, let a friend fall to darkness in the name of the greater good. All that remained was to dispose of the evidence. He pulled Dojo aside the next morning, handed him the Yo-Yo, said he'd forgotten all about it, and instructed him to hide it where nobody would ever look for it.