CHAPTER SIX: STORYTIME

"I'm telling you guys. Whatever Chase was saying, Kimiko was just stood there, listening. She didn't even try and run for help or anything." Raimundo finished seriously. He had awoken extra early this morning, before dawn, and awoken Master Fung, along with Omi, Clay and Dojo to tell them the full story of the events the night before. He feared that if he retold the events in front of Kimiko, she might be angry with him. An angry Kimiko usually meant an accidental burn from her, particularly as she was so angry at the moment.

The monks were huddled around the dining table and listened to the story. Master Fung had listened intently, taking everything on board, whilst Clay's mouth hung open. Omi sat silently, not wanting to believe what he had just heard. Dojo was resting on Clay's shoulder; his expression was a mixture between anger and shock.

"For all we know, she could have. Chase Young is a very skilled warrior and most powerful in battles." Omi commented, he knew exactly how manipulative and persuasive Chase could be. From the way Raimundo had described it, Chase was definitely up to something, and Omi only hoped that it was not what he feared it was; an attempt to recruit Kimiko.

Master Fung sighed and stood up. His expression was unreadable. He looked at Raimundo.

"Go and get Kimiko and bring her here, young monk." Master Fung said calmly. Raimundo stood up, nodded and left the room.

Oh God! He thought, Kim is going to kill me! I've told Master Fung, she's going to murder me! I'm a dead man! He's going to punish her even more. Oh no! Raimundo was panicking and his heart was racing in his chest. Kimiko was already pushed to the edge of breaking point and another argument with Master Fung was sure to push her over the edge. She was dangerous when she was angry because she often lost control of her element. If she lost control again, she could go as far as to destroy the temple, not to mention accidentally kill one of them. Raimundo gulped. He peeked inside the tiny area that was her bedroom, expecting to see her sleeping soundly. But she was gone; her room was empty and there was no sign of where she could be. For a moment, he thought she might have run away and deserted the temple, but then he decided to comb the place for her first. He should probably check everywhere before he ran and told Master Fung she was gone. He half expected her to be gone, Raimundo would have done, placed in her shoes.

As Raimundo walked the many corridors and rooms of the temples, he found nothing. He was almost ready to give in. With a fleeting look around the vault room, he sighed in annoyance. Then he had an idea; the bathrooms! He had not checked in there. Almost running, Raimundo fled to the bathroom and tapped his knuckles on the door.

"Kimiko? Are you in there?" He asked and crossed his fingers; hoping for a reply.

Kimiko opened her eyes slowly. The dark room told her that it was still night time and she felt cold with only a thin, yellow blanket covering her. She closed her eyes again, hoping to drift back off into some sort of sleep. She pulled her knees against her chest, but something did not feel quite right. She opened her eyes once again and her body froze. A large shadowy figure was standing over her.

She flew into an upright standing position and lowered her back against the wall.

The tall, dark figure whispered a shushing noise at her. Instinctively, she snapped her fingers and a small flame appeared over her hand, lighting up the shadowy room. She stared ahead, and recognised the intruder immediately.

"Chase?" Kimiko whispered, as Chase stepped forward. Her body tensed up and she could not move. Her instincts told her to scream for help, but in her vulnerable state, she doubted if she could even manage to get in a good hit before he killed her, which he surely would if she tried to scream.

He reached out his hand and with an expressionless face, touched her forehead with two fingers. Kimiko felt her eyes slide upwards and her knees give way. She hit the floor with a dull thud.

Kimiko jerked awake, gasping for breath. Her chest heaved as she flew upright. Once she had established that she was in her bedroom at the temple, she took a few steady breaths. The light dim light pouring in through her tiny window told her that it was almost dawn. She touched her forehead where she remembered Chase had touched her; it felt warm, just as it always did. It was just a dream. She told herself, just a dream. Kimiko knew that she would have more work to do today, so she decided to take an early bath to relax herself. She needed to be calm for when Master Fung informed her of her duties for the day.

Kimiko moved around the temple quietly. She did not want to speak to any of her friends, nor Master Fung. Kimiko would have to face the consequences of her actions sooner or later; she would much rather it be later. She ran herself a deep, warm bath in the temple's bath tub and lit a few candles. She undressed herself and climbed in; it felt good to be able to relax her body at last.

Her thoughts wandered back to the dream and the events of the night before. She began to wonder if Chase knew Kimiko would be thinking about it as much as she was, but then again, he probably did. Kimiko shook her head, as if doing so would divert her thoughts. She attempted to enjoy her bath while she could, but she found her mind drifting back to Chase's words.

As she climbed out of the bath, there was a knock on the bathroom door.

"Kimiko. Are you in there?" Raimundo called through the door.

"What do you want, Raimundo?" She said back, not really want to speak to any of the other monks, least of all Raimundo.

"You have to come with me, Kim. Master Fung wants to speak to you." Raimundo said. "It's important, so hurry."

"What's it about?" Kimiko called through the door, wrapping a towel around her body. She wondered what Master Fung could possibly want other than to victimise or punish her further, particularly after last night's events. She was not going to be humiliated by Master Fung for not fighting. He was the one who had taken her out of training and made her work all day! How could he expect her to be able to fight after that? Kimiko felt her anger beginning to show slightly; her palms were warming up considerably. She took a calming breath, and then remembered Raimundo had not answered her question.

"Well?" She asked, after Raimundo was silent for a while. She hoped he was still there.

"Just hurry up." He said finally. Kimiko sighed and climbed into her Xiaolin robes. If she was going to be punished further, she would do it with dignity. She swore to herself, that no matter what happened this time, she would not lose her temper again.

"Kim. Hurry up!" Raimundo knocked on the door again.

"Coming." She said, and looked in the mirror. Let's do this. She opened the bathroom door and followed Raimundo.

Kimiko followed Raimundo into the dining room and saw Master Fung watching her. He, Omi, Clay and Dojo were all sat around the dining table, except Dojo was perched on Clay's shoulder. All eyes were on her as she froze, not wanting to take her place at the table, not just yet.

"Kimiko. Please sit down." Master Fung said calmly. Kimiko did as she was told and sat at the dining table with her fellow monks.

"Are you comfortable?" Master Fung asked her. She nodded. Kimiko thought that if she spoke, she might wind up getting angry again. She could not afford for this to happen again.

"Good." He said. Kimiko could have sworn she saw the corners of his mouth turn slightly. Is he smiling?

"I am glad you are comfortable, Kimiko," He paused for a moment, while Omi's eyes were fixed upon Kimiko's face. Clay was staring at Master Fung, whilst Raimundo's eyes were darting furiously at each of them.

"Because I am going to tell you everything now." Kimiko looked up at him hopefully, her eyes gleamed.

"Shall I begin?" Master Fung asked.

Kimiko nodded.