Pastimes

Chase left Master Fung and walked out into the court yard to enjoy some piece and quiet before he had to deal with the constant changing and other effects going off the soup would cause. He sat on one of the stones and began to meditate, only to find his concentration broken by the voice of a young female. "Chase?" He opened one eye to look at the Fire Dragon. "Can we talk?"

He opened his mouth to say that he was in the middle of meditation, but the look on her face told him that what Kimiko wished to talk to him was important. He scooted over on the large rock and patted the hard stone as an indicator she should sit down as well. He then set his hands on his knees and waited for her to speak up.

"How do you feel about what is going to happen to you?"

"You need not worry about me." The older male turned to look away from her.

"Except I can't not worry about you. Nor can Omi for that matter." Kimiko closed her eyes. "I don't think he understands what going off the soup means for you as his mind is fixated on the idea that you'll be like your old self once again. Except I don't think you ever lost your old self."

"I sold my soul for the soup Kimiko." Chase could feel one finger tapping at the stone while the corner of his mouth twisted down in frustration. "I've also got an ego the size of China now, in case you haven't noticed and that was something I never had before."

"I think your ego is just you trying to hide what you really feel about what's going on. And even if you do have a major ego it isn't as bad as Rai or Omi's egos." The female crossed her arms across her chest. "I think having an ego goes with the territory of being a guy and only a select few guys like Clay are actually without an ego. Even my dad has an ego."

"I haven't spent much time with them, so I honestly don't know what kind of egos they have." The man leaned on one hand and looked at her, now wondering where the conversation was going to go.

"Omi wants to be the most powerful of us all rather then working in a group. Rai lets his achievements go to his head and he imagines these girls suddenly surrounding him."

"And what is my ego issue according to you."

"You don't like it when things go your way and you don't like dealing with people with lower intelligence then you." Kimiko remained with her arms crossed. "If you could describe your ego as being the size of China, then Rai's is the size of Africa and Omi's is the size of the world."

Chase couldn't help but laugh. "That actually fits. Would you say your friend Clay's humbleness is then the size of the galaxy?"

"Yeah, but don't tell him that. He'll deny the whole thing." Kimiko redirected the conversation. "I asked you how you feel about what is going to happen to you?"

"I haven't thought about my feelings in a long time, so I can't say." The man watched as a frown appeared on the female's face. "So I need time to think about all of this."

Kimiko let out a sigh. "Well, then I'll let you get back to meditating. That may help you figure things out."

"There is one thing I'm going to ask of you." Chase closed his eyes. "Don't let your feelings for me get yourself hurt by myself."

The female shook her head before taking off.

M

Guan found his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he heard another complaint from the two younger monks. Yet again he heard Doan let out an exasperated comment. "How much farther?"

"I think that should be quite obvious to the both of you." The man crossed his arms. "So now you can rest from your exaustion and..."

"We're here!" Tao suddenly ran forward and Doan hurried after him through the gates of the monestary.

The master monk felt his eye suddenly twitch. "Now hold on here, you two are guests here."

He watched as the two suddenly crashed into Master Fung and fell to the ground. The man raised an eyebrow. "While it is good to see you Master Guan, I am wondering who your two friends are."

"These two are young monks in training that have been sent through time from the past. You might say one of your young dragons actually knows them as well as a certain person on the Heylin side." Guan let out a deep sigh. "I walked them here since I was visited by Master Dashi. It took many hours of marching since early this morning, but they seem to still be full of energy so you are free to have them clean the floors of the entire place."

Master Fung raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of a certain someone, he happens to be here. Why don't you all follow me."

The two boys found themselves sitting on cushions at the back of the training hall while the two masters spoke at the front. Guan frowned at the master. "What is this about Chase Young being here?"

"As you may or may not know, the Wind Dragon has won a dual with Chase Young that allowed him control over the freedom of movement. Rai made the decision to have Chase Young destroy his soup and then he brought him back here."

"That could be very dangerous. No one knows what will happen to a person if they go off the soup."

"Yes, well Rai is wanting to gamble that Chase Young will become his old self by going off the soup." Fung turned to look at the two at the back. "How much do these two know?"

"They are not familiar with the fact that Chase changed sides let alone the fact that Chase has had a growth spurt since they've seen him. There is a chance that they'll start a fight with him. Or they may get on the bad side of young Kimiko if they say the wrong thing. She knows them as well. It will be interesting to see how this all turns out."

Doan suddenly raised his hand. "Can I use the restroom? And do you have a restroom that doesn't have that strange device in it?"

"Sorry, but we've fully embraced indoor plumbing because it helps to prevent issues of bad smells."