So if any one has read my story Kaa-san (which I recommend you read first) this is kind of in the same universe. A say kind of because chronicles didn't exist when I wrote Kaa-san. So basically this is Kaa-san verse with the inclusion of Chronicles characters. Chase's personality, however, is more like the Xiaolin Showdown version because I just cannot take him seriously in Chronicles anymore after the whole egg fiasco. I just… no.

Anyways Enjoy!

Jie Jie

Shadow crouched in the bushes, tense and ready to spring into action at a moments notice. It was well into the night, the moon high in the sky. It shown brightly down upon the Xiaolin Temple, which ley at the bottom of the cliff Shadow was currently using as her hiding place. She glared at the Orb. A full moon did not make for the best sneaking. It was an inconvenience but the lizard woman wasn't considered the master of shadows and deceit for noting. Minor obstacles were no match against her determination. Shadow had a mission to complete.

Today had been rather humiliating. She had probably set the world record for the swiftest loss at a showdown. It had taken only two seconds for that damn Brazilian to defeat her. The man had toyed with Shadow, talking her into agreeing to a balancing showdown and using his wind to knock her on her ass the second she perched atop the pillar. She could remember lying on her back, feeling the stone eat into her back and Chase's disappointment as he stared down at his apprentice and shook his head.

"You should know better that to fall for taunts that wouldn't even rile my son." He had said disdainfully.

There wasn't quite anything as humiliating as having one of the most important people in your life compare you unfavorably to a toddler. Shadow knew then and there what she needed to do in order to gain some semblance of her pride back. So here she was, crouched like a gutter cat intent on sneaking in and stealing the lost Wu back. Maybe then Chase wouldn't look at her with the mocking amusement he had emitted throughout dinner.

She stared at the dark temple, waiting for movement. No bodies could be found and not a single light was on. The time was perfect. Shadow breathed inwardly, pumping her fist lightly. She could do this. The warrior tensed and began a slow but silent descent down the rock face. As she climbed Shadow was reminded of when she and Omi had been training together on a similar cliff all those years ago and the thought of his spit-ridden hands made her shudder inwardly. Thank god Chase hadn't made her stay there long. Between Omi's complete obliviousness, Dojo's nasty boils, and Raimundo's constant flirtation Shadow had been ready to skin someone alive after a couple of days. She honestly didn't know how Kimiko lived with it. The thought of having to deal with infantile men while raising a real baby made Shadow want to shutter. Hopefully the woman would get some kind of relief when Aiko began to look too much like his father for her to stay there. Then again, the toddler was quite the handful himself.

Shadow touched down onto the grass, careful not to crush the vegetation. She skulked quietly to the temple wall, pressing the side of her face against the white stone. Her ears twitched as they were greeted by a dead silence. Satisfied, Shadow tensed like a coil before springing into the air and gracefully twirling over the wall. She slammed onto her hands and knees and leaned close to the ground, looking in every direction. After a few seconds of quiet she stood up before letting out a breath. Part one of her plan was complete. Now she just needed to locate the Wu vault. Shadow crept through an arch into one of the airy passageways, her back pressed firmly against the wall. Luckily it didn't appear she had stumbled into the sleeping quarters, as she had feared due to her unfamiliarity with the compound. She almost wished she had brought Chase into her plan, as the man was a veteran at sneaking around the place and avoiding detection. She wanted to do this without him though, to prove that she could do these things on her own.

She slid through a doorway and into the moonlit hall. There was no color on the whitewashed walls and only the moon provided illumination. It was the perfect path to creep along. Finding more confidence Shadow slithered along the wall, carful to avoid the squares of moonlight projected by the windows. She made it about halfway through before squinting her eyes, using perfect reptilian vision. At the end of the hallway she could sea a stairwell leading down. As she was on the first floor the path likely led to the basement and the basement housed the Wu vault.

"Bingo." She whispered to herself with a smirk. As long as she was quiet a monk could probably walk by and not notice her in the shadows. She had this in the bag. Excitement thrummed through her and Shadow took a step further down the wall.

"Jie jie!"

Fuck.

She turned her head slowly, to avoid a rustle in the shadows that would cause detection although she knew it was futile. Shadow scolded herself for not realizing she had in fact stumbled right into the main sleeping quarters. She saw Aiko in the middle of the hall, a doorway to his left ajar. She could hear Kimiko's soft breathing in the room and was surprised the woman hadn't awoken. The toddler stared right at her, his blue eyes glowing eerily in the darkness through a wild tangle of dark hair. He had his thumb half in his mouth and wore a dopey grin, some saliva falling onto the blue onsie he wore. There was a silent pause and Shadow began to sag with relief that perhaps she had avoided detection before Aiko flung his arms towards her and began running, his clothed feet smacking loudly on the stone floor.

"Jie jie!" He squealed happily.

Shadow was stuck. If she rejected him, the toddler would likely have a fit and if he were anything like his father things would get very loud very fast. She couldn't risk the monks waking up and barging in on her trying to steal their wu, or for them to hear what Aiko was calling her. There was only one thing to do and Shadow accepted her fate with a quiet sigh, holding out her arms as Aiko crashed into them. He burrowed adorably into her stomach, his wild locks twisting around his head. Despite herself Shadow melted. Her brother was just too cute to stay mad at for long.

"Hello di di." She sighed, running an affectionate hand through the toddler's hair. He squealed in reaction and Shadow quickly hoisted him onto her hip and dove back into the shadows. She looked down to see him resting against her shoulder, his eyes so wide she could almost see the elongated length of his pupils. The grin refused to leave his face.

"Be quiet!" She hissed and the toddler giggled, likely amused by the irritated expression she wore. He stopped suddenly and she could see his eyes roving around the darkness. He twisted his head quickly from shoulder to shoulder before settling back on her with a curious expression.

"Ba?" He squeaked quietly.

"Your father isn't here." He seemed puzzled at her answer. Did everyone think she was attached to Chase's hip?

"Ba?" He asked again uncertainly, peering at the end of the hall and pointing. Shadow followed his hand but saw nothing but the stairwell leading to her prize, reminding her of the goal. She glanced at Aiko who was now staring at the stairs with unbridled excitement and she wondered if he had taken a blow to the head. He suddenly spun his face back to her so fast, she had to recoil before his head smashed into her chin. His grin had grown impossibly wider, the thumb exiting his mouth and leaving his hands free to wave wildly.

"Go!" He laughed, flailing even harder. Shadow gave him a long breathy hiss, pressing her nose close to his and glaring. He hissed back, although he was laughing so hard the noise came out in puffs and spurts with chunks of spit squeezing through his front teeth. He obviously wasn't going to listen to her command for silence.

"Go! Go!"

"Okay! Okay! Be quiet!" Shadow whispered fiercely. She heaved a sigh, resigned to her fate. It looked like if she didn't want Aiko waking the entire temple she would have to sneak him along. How exactly she was going to navigate the various traps that were likely down in the vault with a toddler on her hip Shadow had no idea but for the sake of her pride she would figure it out. She clutched Aiko closer and resumed sneaking down the corridor. Aiko had gone quiet, perhaps sensing her concentration although she could literally feel him vibrating in excitement. It was beyond her how the child could be so thrilled over a flight of stairs, but she wasn't a toddler. Sometimes Aiko would stare at a simple string in fascination for hours on end, twirling it around his fingers with rapt attention while Shadow looked on absolutely befuddled. Chase would often proudly proclaim that such behavior signaled how intelligent his son would be when he grew older. To Shadow it was just one of the many quirks that characterized her brother's rather odd personality.

Her silent journey to the corridor seemed to last an eternity as she constantly feared Aiko would get riled up gain and start screaming. Little brother or not, she would get this wu and prove Chase wrong. She would not, however, mention the fact that she brought his son along on the adventure through the endless pits and swift spikes that likely littered the basement. The woman was so caught up in her thoughts, Shadow almost didn't notice when she reached the end of the hall, nearly exposing herself in the moonlight. She jerked to a stop on the border of the darkness and Aiko giggled at the sudden movement.

"Hush didi! We don't want anyone knowing that we're here." She whispered. Her brother looked at her, the grin on his face widening as his haunting blue eyes took in her face with amusement.

"It is a bit late for that I think." The smooth voice emanating form the darkness caused Shadow to freeze.

"Ba!" Aiko squealed, twisting wildly in Shadow's arms. A sliver of moonlight traveled across the corridor and into the stairwell, revealing Chase Young leaning against the wall at the top of the stairs. His glowing golden eyes glimmered in amusement as he crossed his arms and assessed the scene before him. Shadow felt Aiko's nails digging painfully into her arm as he continued to squirm. She crouched down and set him on the ground, the toddler bolting towards Chase the moment his little blue feet touched the ground. He crashed into him, wrapping his arms around the warlord's legs like a leech and squeezing. Chase leaned down and scooped him up with one arm, settling the bouncing toddler on his hip with a flourish.

"And what are you doing up erzi?" He whispered in amusement. Aiko responded by burring his face into Chase's shoulder with a giggle.

"Well it looks like someone knows they have been naughty." He smirked and Shadow flushed as he met her gaze. Chase began walking down the corridor, his steps as silent as death. Two pairs of glowing eyes watched her as they passed.

"It seems my offspring have a knack for sneaking around places they ought not to be."

Shadow bristled and was about to open her mouth in protest when Chase used his other hand to throw something shiny in her direction. She caught the metal object with ease.

"Something can be said for effort though." Chase said before making a turn and disappearing into Kimiko's room.

She saw a final glimpse of Aiko's grinning face over the immortal's shoulder before the door shut quietly behind them. Shadow glanced down to see she was holding the wu they had lost earlier that day. She growled and prowled her way back into the courtyard. As she scaled the wall to the outside she could hear Aiko's laughter ring in her ears.

Dammit.

Like it? Hate it? Leave me a review and let me know!

AF