A/N: Here it is, the second installment. Sorry I was meant to post this yesterday but the internet connection here is just… plain crappy. Well anywho, I want to thank the following reviewers for taking some time in reading and reviewing (sniff, I love you people!)
Ahem:
VanillaStratos: Kyaaaaaa! You reviewed 'Teddy Bear Days' first and now in SOA as well! I love it! Thanks for the encouragement and I hope to hear from you soon!
kartoonfreek: Hello as well! Thanks for reviewing! xD
I'mInspiredByYou: Awwww thanks! I'm glad you've enjoyed it!
revolutionarymind: Thanks, I thought I made them a bit OOC but I thought, 'To hell with it, I see them this way!' Ahehehe :D
Well then, here we go! And remember: R and R! I also take questions, suggestions, comments and constructive criticisms! No flames please x3
Disclaimer: I don't own XS. They (once) belong to Warner Bros. and Christy Hui
Senses Overload Anthology
Theme: Sound; Worry
XxX
"Aaaaaaaaaah!"
The familiar sound of Jack Spicer's scream echoed through the mountains of the Andes. Omi jumped from one Jackbot to another, kicking their heads off and attacked those who were firing at the xiaolin warriors.
"Wudai Neptune, Water!"
A jet of water rushed to the robots, immediately freezing them in midair and fell to their demise with a loud explosion. Jack gritted his teeth and yelled at the next brigade, "Jackbots, take out the cheese ball!"
"Wudai Mars, Fire!"
Kimiko threw a blazing fireball to the bot that was aiming at the busy Omi. She flipped backwards; "Star Hanabi, Fire!" sending throes of flame to some that had flew to her direction. Bits of metal and blades were whirring along the air before flying right into the mountains.
"Kim, three o' clock!" She looked at the predestined direction and managed to dodge an elongated arm that was ready to crush her skull. She blew a strand of hair out of her eyes and gave a thumbs up to the grinning Shoku warrior. With another gust of violent wind, three bots were spliced into halves; Raimundo smirked and taunted the self-proclaimed Prince of Darkness, "Hey Spicer, what happened to those other robots of yours? What, your parents didn't give you enough allowance to give them an upgrade?"
"Hey I can upgrade them myself, I have my own sources!" He yelped when a large rock flew to his direction. The dragon of earth gave a smile of self-satisfaction as it hit one of his helipad. Jack yelped once again as his balance began to wane and smoke come out of his 'wings'.
"Shimo Staff!"
Omi hit several bots towards Jack's direction followed by Clay's attack, "Lasso Boa Boa!" which hurtled another group of wrapped up robots to the now fleeing boy before he found refuge behind a large boulder.
"Grrr, Idiot boy! Because of your incompetence, we will lose the Scepter of Kings!" the disembodied voice of Wuya hissed on his ear and ducked when a deadly combination of fire and wind began to swirl around them, making a fiery vortex.
The redhead gritted his teeth and called out a retreat, "You won this round losers! I'm getting bored so I'll let you off easy!"
Before he could completely get away, (Seismic Kick!) Clay stomped at the ground, hurtling a discarded robot head in midair before kicking it directly to the prodigy's bottom, "Here's your souvenir you yellow-bellied coyote!" he shouted, earning a grin from Kimiko and Raimundo while Omi thought into the metaphor, "Do dogs have yellow stomachs?"
"The Wu's over there!" Dojo cried while scratching all over his scales in futile effort. He pointed a clawed finger atop of one of the many ridges. They started to move when Kimiko jumped ahead and found what she was looking for; a long scepter encrusted with different gems that was hanging around a small crevice. "I see it!" she exclaimed.
"Kim, wait!" Raimundo warned. Kimiko frowned slightly and continued her advancement towards the Wu. Finally, she reached the crevice and carefully secured her feet on the patches of rocks that were sticking out.
Omi and Clay looked up at Kimiko who scaled the mountain with ease. Raimundo however felt as if something bad was about to happen. Call it his tiger instincts or just plain hunch but there's something on the back of his mind that something bad will happen and fast.
"Ha!"
She grabbed the handle; the large ruby on top of it was pushed into the small rock, therefore making it difficult to pull out quickly. Before she had a chance to completely retrieve the Wu, the measly piece of rock she was balancing on began to crack from the mountain. "Uh-oh-" was all she managed to say she was pulled down by gravity.
"Aaaaaah!"
The trail of her shout echoed through the crags and she blindly tried to find some stray branch for her to hang on but her hands met midair. 'Plummeting to the ground; not the way I wanted to go' she thought morbidly. She closed her eyes and readied herself before she mentally smacked her forehead and yelled, "Dojooooooo!"
She expected to feel scales under her hands but instead, she felt the smooth and soft silk robe. She opened her eyes and all she saw was black and red fabric. She tilted her head up to see Raimundo who, for once, was not smirking at her and saying "I told you so!" playfully as he would have done. Instead, he had her tucked in his arms and was literally flying towards the Shen Gong Wu.
"Shoku Hurricane!"
With a wave of a hand, sharp gales of wind cut through the rock, freeing the scepter. But instead of grabbing the Wu, he signaled to the now large Dojo to follow him. She looked down and saw Clay preparing to lasso the Wu with the rope he always carried around his person.
They touched down near the cliff side and for a second, Kimiko braced herself. Her temper was a force to be reckoned with but for an easygoing guy like Rai, he's a lot scarier when he's mad.
She took a deep breath and dared to look at him. All she could see was his chin as he looked straight ahead, his face unreadable and his stance was taut. Kimiko took in his heartbeat since the left side of her face was pressed on his hard chest.
Ba-bump
Ba-bump
The soothing rhythm relaxed her despite the storm that was brewing inside his system. She heard him took in a deep breath as well before lowering her feet to the ground.
"Rai?" she asked in a quiet voice.
The Shoku warrior sighed deeply and pinched hard on the bridge of his nose. Thousands of thoughts ran through his mind in a matter of milliseconds as he watched Kimiko fell from the cliff. He wanted to berate her for her indifference. The fact that she deliberately left the Third Arm Sash and didn't wait for the others in case of something were to happen, like just what transpired. A small fear crept into his heart as his mind played back her fall in slow motion. What if they hadn't made it in time?
"Rai?"
Her voice sounded so small right now, glass-like, even. He was so used and familiar on the tone of her voice that was strong, confident that she sounded as if someone killed her puppy. Her usual tone would be stern yet gentle, commanding yet submissive at the same time.
A steel bar wrapped in a deceiving velvet sheet; that's how he would describe her. A walking contradiction.
The thought of her, limp and lifeless scared the living daylights out of him. Her panicked scream echoed in his head and he shook his head to get it out of his system, the sound would haunt him in his nightmares.
He turned to Kimiko and asked her straight out, "Do you have any idea how much you made me worry?"
Her mouth fell open and her blue eyes widened. Raimundo Pedrosa? Worried and, possibly, scared? Well, it is kind of understandable, being teammates, their leader and... her boyfriend. They've been dating for a few months and had gone through minor changes. Like they would sneak out at middle of the night for some time alone, Omi and Clay would find their mats empty. He would tease and bully Jack Spicer whenever the boy would try and (unsuccessfully) flirt with her. Or he was more mindful about how much attention Kimiko really gets from other guys whenever they would visit other countries, be it in the west or east. She would say he was a jealous person but he likes to think he's just protective.
Dragons in fairy tale stories his mom used to tell him when he was a kid were always pictured as the ultimate test for the knight to pass in order to get the most beautiful treasure; the princess. Of course in this story, he is both the dragon and the knight. But then again, Kimiko was never the damsel-in-distress type. She needs her independence and he needs his. The wind is uncontainable and formless and fire feeds from the wind. No wind means no fire and they both understand their elements.
Kimiko slowly cupped his cheek with her small hand and gave an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry Raimundo"
Green met blue before he crossed his arms and a scowled, his thick eyebrows scrunching in an angry shale and his jaw tensed, "Sorry doesn't cut it Kim."
Kimiko blinked before she withdrew her hand and mirrored the position of his arms with hers. "Oh I'm sorry oh majestic leader!" she hissed sarcastically, "I didn't realised the great Raimundo hated feeling scared!"
Raimundo opened his mouth for an angry comeback when a cough broke their 'conversation'. "I hate to break a sweet moment here kids but we have to get back to the temple" Dojo interjected with Omi and Clay watching them with curious expressions. Kimiko huffed and jumped on the dragon's back next to Omi while Raimundo shook his head and sat behind her, knowing they would have a fight as soon as they went back to the temple.
As they flew on the skies, Clay took out the scepter; its jewels sparkled along the bright sunshine. "What does it do anyway?" he asked.
"Hang on," Kimiko sighed impatiently, grabbing the scroll in the pocket of her jacket. She was wearing one of her extravagant outfits. Her hair was done in a harajiku-style ponytail with deep blue color (Rai keeps telling her her natural hair is the best) and her clothes was a dark violet trench coat tied on her waist was a pouch and her feet was covered with knee-length boots.
"The Scepter of Kings. This Wu can petrify someone when the ruby is directed to them. Kinda like the Sapphire Dragon but less dangerous" The moving figures showed a person using the scepter on his enemy and the enemy laid flat on the ground.
"Yeah, Dashi hid it in the caves in case someone would want to take it out for a spin. Or maybe world domination" Dojo explained. By the time they reached the temple; the stars and the moon were already out. A loud grumbling was heard but before they could look at Clay, they realized that they're also hungry as well.
"Man, I'm so hungry I could eat a horse" Kimiko whined as she tucked her hands on her stomach. She felt a hand pat her head and turned to see Raimundo who gave her a small smile.
She smiled back hesitantly, their earlier spat still fresh in her mind but still leaned on him. Omi tapped his chin and turned to Kimiko, "You shouldn't eat a horse Kimiko. Girls are far too sensitive with their figure and you'll be fat the moment you consumed something bigger than your plate!"
Clay and Raimundo clamped their mouths shut to prevent their laughter from gushing out. Kimiko sent Rai a scathing look that he immediately took the warning. Kimiko then turned to Omi, "Be careful about what you say Omi, my feet's right next to you." The sight of xiaolin temple made them cheer internally and as soon as they landed, Dojo shrunk to his 'gecko-size' and slumped to the ground in exhaustion. Omi placed him on his shoulder while Raimundo took the scepter to present it to Master Fung for safekeeping.
Kimiko walked to the kitchens with Clay in tow. Her cupid bow lips pursed as she knew that her lecture from Raimundo would definitely resume and the mere thought of him lecturing her made her blood boil. Clay, sensing her distress, gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder and said, "Just understand Rai's feelings Kimiko. He saw you fall fifty feet off the mountain so he jumped off of Dojo and flew straight for you. He was really worried about you, you know?"
There's that word again; "Worried" Raimundo was not the type to get worried. He will just let it roll right off his shoulder and maybe even forget about it within a matter of seconds.
The still thought of Raimundo reacting to a foreign emotion remained in her mind even while they were eating dinner in a furiously fast pace. Master Fung called for them shortly afterwards and reminded them they had training the next morning, something only Omi was happy about.
They all returned to their room, her mat was located away from the boys' and a small divider was the only indication of her area. The dragon of wind went past her and gave her the look which meant 'see you later' she nodded and went to the bathroom to change to her night clothes.
-•-
The moon was full as she slipped into the gardens to meet with him. The night air was chilly and the song of the crickets soon enveloped the area. She climbed on the tree and settled on the familiar spot where she and Raimundo had spent most of their nights talking about each other's lives and sometimes, quiet nights watching the stars... then followed by some intense lip lock which resulted to sleepless nights that Master Fung had disapproved of.
Kimiko closed her eyes and let the sound of the wind rustling the leaves flow and the chirps of crickets lull her. A sudden increase of weight on the branch made her aware that he arrived. She opened her eyes and saw him looking at her. His lip set into a straight line. His eyes, although it glistened with its natural playfulness, now lined with seriousness that was still outlandish to her.
"Kimiko, you really scared me back there you know?" he asked, almost like the question he asked before. She bit her lower lip, loss for words on how to comfort him. She just let him stare at her before she thought of something that would ease his restlessness. Kimiko carefully took his head and cradled it to her chest.
"Whoa whoa! Kimi... what are you doing?" he quipped in a weird tiny voice, he could feel her... assets, pressing on his face and his hormones were waking up. He can't help it, he's a healthy seventeen year old guy who has a pretty hot girlfriend. Ironic that her element is fire, she had quite a temper to match as well.
"Just listen" she snapped, her face was hot and red as well. She felt him move a bit before she punched him lightly on the head, "Don't even think about it!" she yelled.
Raimundo felt a bit lightheaded from the hit but he let the sound thrum in his ears.
Ba-bump
Ba-bump
Her strong yet steady heartbeat echoed his and for a moment, it made him feel so peaceful he almost dozed off on her chest.
"Kim?"
"Mmm?" she hummed, her fingers playing with his thick brown hair.
"Promise you won't do anything like that again?"
He felt her tense before she took a deep breath, "I promise"
She could feel him grin against her robe and let her heartbeat bring him to sleep. Her heartbeat was the only thing he could hear and not her bloodcurdling scream. A sound that will relax him even through the darkest nightmares and something he will protect with his whole life just so it will remain beating as long as he lives.
A/N: Aaaaaand- CUT! I hope you've enjoyed it! To be honest, I have no idea what theme I should do next. Could you guys help me out? I also do requests x3