Okay, back to Amaranthine. Yes, I am going on a cycle with the updates. Well, with the stories anyways. This time I do an Omi narrative. Never tried it before, but it might just turn out okay. Does anyone have any suggestions for the next chapter? Because I am clueless as far as writing about Omi goes. As clueless as Omi is when it comes to slang.

--

Omi sat on a bench, reading scrolls. For the past two weeks since his friends had all left him, that was all he did. What else was there to do anyways, without anyone to do something with? It was a lonely life, and now he wondered how he had ever survived before Kimiko, Raimundo and Clay came to the temple. He remembered an ancient saying, dating back to 1500 years ago: To have something and lose it is often more painful than to have never had it at all.

Before, he had never bothered to comprehend it. After all, what did he have to lose at that time? He had always taken his friends' presences for granted, but now he felt the full sting of the event two weeks ago, where they had left him to go to their own homes. And he realized that the saying was right. He wished, miserably, that he had never met his three fellow dragons now, if it meant suffering so much. Yet also, Omi revoked that thought miserably. It was a confusing maze of thoughts, but that was the way he felt now. He wanted to have met his friends, because there was happiness and knowledge in those years they were together.

Omi threw his scroll into a drawer, getting angry. Then, after glaring at the table he was sitting at, he sighed heavily. "I believe I am still dumped in the downs," he said, shaking his big, bald head. He could almost hear Raimundo saying something about "It's not dumped in the downs, it's…" Omi couldn't remember. That was why he had such a hard time with slang terms. But at least it helped him remember Raimundo.

After a few minutes, Omi decided he needed to go outside. His yellow skin was starting to turn lighter, and he was sure that it was not a good thing. But it wasn't really his fault- he didn't have training anymore. Without training or Shen Gong Wu to find, it was pretty much useless to go outside. At least, he thought it was.

Finally, Omi stepped out after hesitating for a long period of time. He breathed the fresh air and smiled. It was heaven compared to the musty smell of the inside of the Xiaolin temple. It was so fresh, and there were so many beautiful things to look at out in the temple's lawn. It felt nice to be back here again.

"Help! Help!" Omi's senses went on alert as he heard the screaming of a girl. A girl? He had never heard a girl's voice in so long a time… Well, technically speaking, he had heard a girl's voice two weeks ago. But the time that passed by when his friends were not there seemed like eternity to him.

Omi ran towards the voice. It sounded desperate and pleading, and he knew that something bad would happen to whoever it was if he didn't hurry. "I am coming to help you!" Omi said, hoping to sound reassuring.

There was a clearing at a nearby part of the mountains that he had run into, and he ran as fast as he possible could. Suddenly, everything came to sight. A girl with brown hair and brown eyes was being held captive by a strangely blob-like organism.

"Hang out there, my friend!" Omi said courageously, not noticing that he had just messed up his slang again. The girl stared at him, a small light of gratitude shining in her beautiful brown eyes. She is very short, Omi noted, almost as short as me.

He kicked the blob and took the girl in his outstretched arms, carrying her safely as he ran, faster and faster, past the mountains. He never stopped to look back, but if he did, he would have seen that the blob was transforming into a Jackbot.

When he finally reached the temple, he laid the girl down and wiped the sweat off of his yellow forehead. It had been quite tiring, running fast while carrying a girl.

The girl just stared at him for a while. Then she said, finally, "Who are you?"

"I am Omi, a Xiaolin Dragon at the Xiaolin Temple," Omi said proudly.

"A what and a what?" the girl asked, giving him a questioning look.

"Never think," Omi said.

"I think you mean 'never mind'," the girl said quizzically.

"Ah, yes," Omi said. This girl reminded him of Raimundo. "What is your name, girl with brown eyes and brown hair?"

"I'm Neza," she said, never taking her coffee-colored eyes off Omi's yellow face. "Thanks for saving me from that horrible monster."

"What does it want from a girl like you?" Omi asked. "Are there more that I have not yet seen, my good friend?"

"No," Neza said. "I don't understand why that blob creature would try to get me. I mean, I've never seen one in my entire life, and I certainly haven't angered anyone that could create anything like it. Although…"

"Yes?" Omi pressed.

"Well, maybe they wanted to steal my one powerful and magical item. It is a puzzle box handed down from generations dating back 1500 years, one that each ancestor before has warned the next generation to never open. I'm glad to say, though, that even through all the years, it has never been opened. I know of only two other puzzle boxes, and all three, when combined, hold an unstoppable evil power," Neza explained.

"A puzzle box?" Omi asked. "Are you sure you are telling me the truth?"

"Yes," Neza said. "Why do you ask?"

"Because if we are talking about the same thing, then…it started out in the time of Dashi. An evil witch from that time, Wuya, was trapped within a puzzle box. Through my scroll reading, I have read of two other puzzle boxes, but…I have never seen another one."

"Do you want to see it?" Neza asked. She grimaced at the slung-over bag she was carrying on her shoulder.

"All right," Omi said. "But I will be careful."

Neza slowly unzipped the bag and took out a rectangular box, marked with what looked like ancient Chinese characters. The box was ragged and old, and much of it was worn and dusty, but it still gave off an eerie glow that gave Omi goosebumps, yellow skin or not. It emanated something evil, Omi could tell, but he did not want to know what.

"You can put it back in the bag now," Omi said, feeling repulsed.

"Okay," Neza agreed. She stuffed it back in and slung the bag over her shoulders once again. "Anyways, I know you probably want some more information about me if you're going to actually let me in here. So… I'm from a place from England. London, to be exact. And I ended up in this place-which I think might be China, judging from the land- because I was kidnapped by one man in a red mask, and then other people kept kidnapping me as well, like I was some precious item to steal, going from one thief to another. It's really sad, what people think of these days. But now, thanks to you…I'm safe and okay," Neza said, leaning over and giving Omi a kiss on the cheek. Omi felt his cheek burn where the kiss had been, and he blushed deeply, leaving a red imprint on his yellowish face.

"That is no problem," Omi said. "I am only the best Xiaolin Dragon here." Neza laughed appreciatively at his attempts on modesty, nodding along. "Right."

--

Master Fung welcomed Neza and told her she could take a stall- the stall that Kimiko had always slept in. Omi felt a little sad at that, because it was almost like she was becoming a replacement for his friends, and he didn't want that. But he figured it was okay, because he could continue seeing Kimiko anyways.

Dojo snuffed at her short height at first, but said it was fine for her to stay when she gave him extra portions of her meal. Neza thought he was very amusing from her talk with him at dinner, to which Dojo started crying in her lap, saying, "It's been so long since anyone's ever appreciated a dragon like me…" Neza nodded along sympathetically.

After dinner, Omi went to his stall. He could already hear Neza's soft breathing as she was sleeping, and stared at the ceiling. It was nice, having another friend in the world, but it also mixed him up.

He had a sudden stroke of inspiration. Tomorrow was a free day, as was almost all the days now… why not bring Neza to visit Kimiko? It made him a lot happier than his mood earlier on.

Omi had good dreams that night.

--

Okay, I think I might get Omi to hook up with Neza, but I'm not totally sure…yet…

I know this was the most terribly short chapter ever, but I don't care. :P I can't think of much.