The Good, The Bad, and the Omi

by Mortal Anonymous

The timelines have merged, and everyone remembers all three of them. Opinions have changed, alliances shift, particularly regarding the destiny of Jack Spicer. In the wake of twin futures where his morality makes or breaks the direction the world heads, the battle for who wins Jack over begins instead of who finally gets annoyed enough to kill him.

11. Chapter 11

Having just completed his lawn manicuring chore, though not exactly sure he had needed so many days to reflect on the simple fact that it wouldn't kill the others to just let him have the spotlight when he deserved it, Omi gave the freshly-mowed fields a satisfied sigh. At last, he was free to spend his spare time as he chose.

He wondered if Jack had been thinking about him these extra couple of days.

Just thinking he'd drop by and ask the boy himself, Omi was about to turn away from the magnolia lily tree he stood underneath when he heard his name called.

Looking back, his brow sterned some to see Jermaine approaching with a hand raised to catch his attention. Of all the rotted timing...

Still, Omi kept in mind that Jermaine had been nothing but supportive of him and pushed a pleasant beam onto his face, raising his own hand in turn.

"Hello, my friend! What brings you out of the temple?"

Jermaine hummed lightly. "Thought I saw you finishing up out here. Got a minute to rap with me?"

Omi blinked slowly. "I beg your pardon? Wrap what? Is there a gift-giving occasion I am unaware of?"

A lightly amused tut slipped out of Jermaine's nose now. "Naw, Omi-dawg. Not like that. Rap as in talk, ya dig?"

The yellow boy eyed the ground curiously. "I suppose I have time for a quick chat, but I do not see what digging will add to the conversation."

"Hmm. Never mind." Coming forward, the darker boy took a sprawled seat underneath the tree, only a couple feet away from where Omi stood. Tilting his head towards the other, he got to the point with a casual, "I just figure, now that things have aired some, it's a good time to ask: why you still be trippin'?"

The shorter boy looked to his legs now, only more confused. "I am not tripping. I am standing quite steadily." Did Jermaine think he was incapable of even staying upright? Did he fancy himself a standing prodigy too?

"I mean about me, dawg. You seem kinda tense about having me around just as much as you're enjoying it."

Understanding that sentence at least, Omi passed the notion off with an animated flip of his wrist. "Ha..! You do not know what you are speaking about. I am only happy to have a familiar face such as yourself join the Xiaolin Temple permanently as a Dragon Warrior."

Jermaine's lips shifted unconvinced as he leaned back on his hands. "Mmkay...you wanna tell me what your 'tude in training's been about, then?"

The monks still trained daily, and though they hadn't tackled any major lessons like the one earlier in the week, Omi still seemed a bit on edge and insistent on overselling his own abilities.

More emphatically, Omi pressed, "Ha! Most ridiculous! My attitude is the same as it has ever been!"

"Mm, well yeah, see. That's actually kinda my point. You've always been like that."

Face falling in irritation, Omi's head turned for the curly-haired boy. Now he was getting a lecture on his behavior from his own peer? That was certainly something he never enjoyed.

Offering a peaceful one-armed shrug, Jermaine went on to offer, "Hey, I get it. I had just as much struggle with staying humble. You want me to show you some of the stuff my Master taught me to help with it?"

Omi's brow pinched slightly. Unlike Jermaine, he'd never thought anything was wrong in particular with thinking he deserved praise. He'd recognized his jealousy, and did not wish to have it towards his friend, but being recognized for his prowess was something else entirely.

In the skeptical silence, Jermaine held his small smile and leaned back even further to lay in the cool, soft grass underneath the magnolia. His eyes closed and he sent his left arm out sideways, fingertips burrowing themselves in between the blades while the other hand rested on his stomach. His fingers then glided effortlessly through the green as Jermaine drew his left arm up, stroking the grass as though it were fur.

"It's all about the universe, Omi-dawg..." he sighed in contentment, "And knowing your part. We all got our roles, y'know? Appreciate each blade of grass, but appreciate more how they come together to make a nice bed to rest on."

Cracking his eyes open to glance at the boy silently monitoring him as he echoed this lesson, Jermaine shared, "This is actually how I found my Dragon potential. Reflecting, meditating on how petty hangups and quarrels really don't mean anything in the grand scheme of things. Figuring out it's so much better to just go with the flow. Bettering myself by bein' one with nature. It just kinda clicked after a while, and that's when this happened." Reaching the hand on his stomach upward, he smiled as the tree overhead bowed and extended a lone gnarled branch, at the end of which was a saucer-sized magnolia lily. That gently delivered itself into his palm, parting from the branch which just as delicately retracted to set itself back into place.

Jermaine let out a peaceful sigh as he gazed at the lily.

"It's freeing, man. Everything just fits when you find the flow. You're Water. I feel like you should be even better at that than me."

The teasing quip was met with further silence, though Omi had placed his hands into his sleeves and turned to stare at the ground, his brow now creased in an almost worried manner.

One the one hand, was Jermaine seriously giving him a lecture on what basically sounded like meditation?! Omi had been trained on such things since birth! Though this did seem ever so slightly deeper. And Omi could admit his concentration wasn't always the best when meditating anyway. Plus, on the other hand, he fully recognized that he in fact was hung up on the differences between himself and Jermaine. Jermaine was everything he always touted himself as being. An amazingly fast learner, incredibly wise for his age, vastly talented...Omi was highly talented, to be sure, but when it came to Jermaine, he just couldn't help feeling...inferior. He'd tried to meditate through these feelings, but for some reason that method was not working to quell his emotions. Each time Omi felt like he had a handle on them, some new perfect thing Jermaine did irked him on a gut level. It nagged and nagged, and despite recognizing that Jermaine's words made perfect sense, his own mind refused to accept that sense and insisted he remain jealous.

Was there perhaps something wrong with him? Jermaine had done nothing wrong, but that very aspect was what was making Omi so bitter this time. Perhaps even...realizing how much he still felt the need to outshine the other boy despite Jermaine doing nothing to spark a rivalry, Omi could perhaps see that he...might have a slight ego problem..?

As crazy as that was to even entertain, maybe Omi was not, in actuality, as flawless as he'd like to think. If so, he could only wonder what he was doing wrong to not be able to focus himself past his bottled feelings.

Letting out a breath, Omi at last addressed the other boy. "I apologize if I have caused you any discomfort. I promise you, I do not wish to harbor any ill will in your direction. In fact, I am most appreciative of your support in letting me continue my mission with Jack Spicer. And your desire not to fight. I will...take your words under consideration. And continue to do my best to master my feelings, yes? I do not know why they persist."

Kindly, Jermaine smiled wider. He'd known Omi had been trying. In his eyes, it was nice to clear the air, though.

"Appreciate the effort likewise, Omi-dawg," he granted, then after a thoughtful pause, polled, "Yo, what's up with you and that Jack, anyhow? Somethin' happen since New York, or I just miss it back then?" He'd only seen Jack for any significant time when meeting him in his own hometown. The second time he'd seen him, he'd barely gotten a glimpse and had been much more focused on his issues with Omi. He could not tell how long this obvious fawning had been going on for.

Omi's face fell blankly this time. "I beg your pardon?"

Jermaine couldn't believe Omi would be that dense. "You know..." he shot a sly glance at the stout boy. "I vouched for you 'cause it was obvious how excited you were seein' him. Since when you been all over the bad boys like that?"

Omi's head tilted curiously. "I am still not entirely sure what you are asking, but if you are asking about why I choose to persist in turning Jack Spicer to good, I believe I have simply felt this compulsion since nearly the beginning. I feel drawn to do this when he is around. But if you are asking when I began this quest, I believe I first noticed the urge spiking when I split myself apart with the Ring of Nine Dragons. When I was following blind compulsion, I found I could not stop smiling in Jack Spicer's direction, or refrain from becoming incredibly giggly in his presence."

Here he rubbed the back of his head, really finding that to have been a strange event. Then he shrugged. His gut told him to be near Jack, to touch Jack, and so he followed his gut.

"I concluded my instincts were informing me of his great ally potential. Once he helped save the world from Wuya, however, I knew my judgement was sound! He is very much meant to be a friend instead of an enemy!"

Well. It seemed Omi could be that dense. "Mmmm-hm. Okay, so I guess a better question might be...what do you see in him?"

"Oh..!" Omi perked, and then placed a knuckle to his chin as he glanced up in brief thought. Then he looked back to Jermaine and counted off on his fingers, "I suppose he is very resourceful. I admire his diligence and fortitude. There is much more to his abilities than meets the eye. Speaking of eyes, his are veeeery nice. Have I said? And he is nice to hug. All good things for a Xiaolin Warrior to possess." Eyes closing brightly, Omi beamed like he thought that was a pretty good list off the top of his head. Then suddenly he shot Jermaine a suspiciously quirked brow. "Why do you ask?"

Pushing back up onto his hands, Jermaine spent an extra second blinking blankly at Omi. This boy had to be the densest person at emotional intelligence he'd ever met. "Just checkin'," was all he responded, however, "If you think all that stuff's real? I got you one hundred percent, dawg." He shot a friendly trigger finger his fellow monk's way. If Omi ever figured out that he might want to decide to upgrade those friend goals, Jermaine would hardly mind playing wingman. Jack seemed like a fairly normal guy minus the whole evil bit. The New Yorker could get behind a bit of fraternizing with the wrong side of the tracks. Of course, if Jack really was capable of turning good, than Jermaine wouldn't mind just supporting that notion either.

"Um...thank you?" Omi replied. He wasn't sure what Jermaine was getting at, but at the very least it sounded like the darker boy was for his mission to convince Jack that the good path was better for him. He felt another small spike of shame for the way he couldn't stop himself from treating such a supportive friend unfairly.

"No prob." Looking across the expansive yard, Jermaine spotted Raimundo escorting a soccer ball out of the temple gate and took his chance to rise. Passing Omi one more glance, he granted, "Anyway, good talk. I'm guessin' you were pretty eager to head out and see him with your chores done, so I'll leave you to it."

Omi watched Jermaine go to meet Raimundo, blushing in a small spot of being caught. Was he that easy to read?

Jermaine gave a small knowing smile to himself, sensing Omi hesitate, but then scurry off behind him. Then his attention was on Raimundo as the Brazilian glanced down and quirked a brow.

"What's with the flower?"

Having been absently carrying the lily he'd made himself in his hand, Jermaine paused momentarily to register it was still with him, but then let his breezy smile return as he instinctively turned it into a smooth gesture, passing the flower over to Raimundo's hand.

"Just somethin' I grew. Here. Give it to someone nice."

It was Raimundo's turn to stare at the flower for a curious second as he kicked his soccer ball up and caught it to tuck under the other arm. Then his own sly smirk was played across his lips and he reached forward, placing the magnolia lily into the tight curls just over Jermaine's right ear. With a cheeky double click of his tongue, he winked.

Jermaine's face fell slack as he blinked, admittedly caught highly off-guard by the play. In the next second, he'd snorted and tipped his head playfully at the other. "Okay? Smooth."

"Keep tryin' me, dude. I can out-flirt you any day," Raimundo boasted, dropping his soccer ball to begin kicking it around idly again. "Hey, you wanna play?"

Placing his hands behind his back, recognizing this as a response to his own teasing passes at the other boy, Jermaine breezed, "Naw. Call me when you wanna play a real sport, like basketball."

Raimundo gasped in exaggerated offense. "Oo. You have deeply insulted all of Brazil this day, my friend. Major points off."

With that and a shared chuckle, the two boys bumped fists and went their separate ways.

Just inside the gate, Jermaine delicately touched the flower in his hair, unable to help the tiniest of soft smiles. Of course it had been in jest, but dang if turning right around and giving it to him hadn't genuinely been charming. Leave it to the Dragon of the Wind to know how to sweep someone off their feet.

...

Jack sent a strange look to Omi as he approached his world domination planning table, freshly-fetched pudding cup in hand. The small yellow boy was in Lotus Position, but turned upside down so that he was balanced on the top of his head. The nine glowing dots on his forehead were visible.

Spooning a generous portion of pudding into his mouth, Jack asked the obvious. "What are you doing..?"

From under closed eyelids, Omi answered the dessert-muffled question. "I am meditating. It requires greeeaaat concentration and greeeaaat focus, but it leads to a clear and agile mind..! I promised I would work further on this most zen of practices."

"Uh-huh..." Jack swirled his spoon around in Omi's general direction, leaning casually against the table lip. "And any particular reason you're, y'know, giving yourself a head rush?"

Omi's eyes opened and his lips frazzled. Not that his mind-clearing had been going the best, as lately usual, but Jack's doubtful tone made him feel silly about his position. His dots faded as he rolled to sit more naturally, but insisted, "Balancing requires even greater concentration, therefore it leads to a clearer mind..!"

Still not impressed, Jack returned, "Yeah, look, I know what meditating is supposed to be, but I don't buy into it. You sure didn't look very relaxed or 'zen' or whatever."

Passing a considering look to the boy scraping the edges of his pudding cup into his mouth via gravity, Omi noted, "Actually, I think you would benefit greatly from learning to meditate, Jack Spicer."

Cheeks full, Jack perked. "Eh?"

"Yes. Your mind is quite scattered and burdened. You could use the time to organize your thoughts and let those burdens go."

Jack snorted, finding the idea of himself doing anything so...monk-ish...ridiculous, but then also supposing that taking a load off didn't sound awful. Tossing his empty snack container into a trash can, he breezed, "I'm not scattered. I'm just busy. But alright, Opi, I'll humor you. How's this supposed to go?" It sounded like a goofy bit of pretend, at least.

Omi patted beside him on the table, and Jack shrugged, hopping to sit on the surface as well. He tried to copy Omi's Lotus, but ended up with a leg cramp as he let out a steady stream of "ow ow ow ow..."

The shorter boy had to help un-stick him, and then instruct him into an easier Half-Lotus. Then as they were side by side, he closed his eyes and set his hands on his knees, telling Jack to relax his forehead and breathe slowly, deeply.

"I don't have to stand on my head, do I?"

"No, Jack Spicer, standing on your head is not required..."

"Oh. Okay. Good."

Strangely, as things progressed, Jack did find himself letting thoughts pass through his mind without sticking. Pressing deadlines and even looming threats seemed to distance themselves from the forefront of his worries. He did feel himself simply...enjoying the moment.

Likewise, Omi felt like instructing Jack helped his own focus in a way. He enjoyed the sense of the other boy's presence beside him, and it almost felt like it grounded him. Sadly, he could not shake the concerns plaguing his mind over how he was handling his own emotions, but he was able to keep them enough at bay to allow a small smile to grace his lips.

Together, the boys simply shared the calming silence. Secretly, Jack decided maybe this wouldn't be such a bad habit to pick up after all.

...

Controllers in hand, Jack and Omi sat poised attentively on the couch in Jack's entertainment room, speaking casually around an intense fighting game match.

"You know," Omi was informing, "Though you fought admirably today, I believe that if you had simply taken more effort to remain observant of your surroundings, you could have have avoided such a severe beating. Or at least that kick from Raimundo. He is quite swift with the blind siding."

Sporting a lightly swollen black eye, Jack grunted dismissively next to him, keeping his gaze on the game. "Yeah, well, same to you. If you'd been prioritizing Wuya instead of Cyclops, you prob'ly woulda gotten the wu instead of her. She may be insufferable, but she's pretty sneaky. Honestly more of a threat between the two. If I had to pick who to fight, anyway."

"Oh..! That is a most intriguing prospect. I will have to take that valuable information into account."

"Same."

A small lull where the boys simply let their fingers do the talking, and then Omi let out a lingering soft note of frustration.

"...this game is most ridiculous. It is not like real fighting at all!"

"Ah, you're just saying that 'cause you're a sore loser, sweet pea~."

...

"Ha!" Jack swerved mid-air, having noticed Raimundo flying at him in his peripheral. "Not this time~!" Raimundo scowled as he sailed past, redirecting the air current he was riding to make a U-turn and confront Jack directly. Jack snapped his fingers and retreated as a row of his new Jackbot model came up in front of him.

Raimundo stuttered to a halt, blanching in dismay as he recognized the updated self-repairing robots. "Auh! These ones fly now?!"

"More than that! Enjoy my latest combat program, breeze boy!" Sneering, Jack flew away, Raimundo looking from him to the robots as he perked in concern. The Jackbot most immediate to him produced a sizable blue orb, then declaring in its chipped, monotone voice, "Orb of Tornami."

Raimundo's eyes widened as a jet of water burst forth from the object, slamming him in the chest and sending him sailing across the Outback sky with an elongated cry. Below, his friends looked up from their own fight against Wuya, Katnappe and Le Mime.

"Did that robot just use shen gong wu..?" Clay polled.

"Sure did!" Jack swooped in to inform cheerfully, "Thousands of new strategy scenarios in my updated algorithm. Good luck blowing through these babies like birthday candles!" A hearty and well-deserved evil laugh.

While Le Mime pretended to hide from Omi by covering his face with his hands, Omi looked up and chirped, "Most clever, Jack Spicer! I see you have taken my advice regarding your blind spots into account as well!"

"Eh, maybe. Thought about installing some rearview mirrors. What do you think?" He indicated around his shoulders where he might be able to mount such attachments.

"I think you should be paying a little more attention~," Wuya broke the momentary lull to quip, jumping to land a kick squarely between Omi's shoulders and knocking him onto his front, then keeping him pinned with her foot.

Le Mime opened his palms to peek at her, then grimacing in fright and slamming his palms closed again before turning on his heels and fleeing for a safer part of the field.

Realizing that the painted man had basically been wasting his time, Omi called out, "Ah yes. My friends! Get Wuya first! Also, help, please!"

"WIND!" Having returned from the side of the rock he'd been gracelessly slammed into, Raimundo heard Omi's call and soared in to give the yellow boy backup, sending a strong gust to blow at the witch.

She put up one forearm and scowled at the Brazilian. "Do you have any idea how long it takes to detangle this much hair?!"

"Not long enough to look good!" Jermaine darted in from dealing with his own portion of regular Jackbots, also coming to Omi's call. He flipped himself into a handstand and held up his right leg, around which a sleeve of ornate segmented metal armor was wrapped. "Charge of Celeste!"

At once, the elemental shen gong wu let forth an incredible burst of light, like the sun as it blinded not only Wuya, but everyone on the field had to shield their eyes. When it faded, Wuya found that she no longer had Omi pinned. Jermaine had caught Omi around the wrist and ridden away with him on the boughs of a nearby eucalyptus tree he had animated.

Raimundo tutted. "Nice one!" Simultaneously, he praised the assist and the diss. Jermaine shot a thumb up as he moved to drop Omi to the ground and turn to support the others. Clay was backed into a corner by Katnappe, who he adamantly refused to fight on the basis that she was female, and Kimiko had begrudgingly come to his rescue, though she could use the backup as a swarm of kittens tore at her scalp.

With no obstructions at the moment, Omi saw a clear shot to the rock into which the crack of today's shen gong wu was wedged. It was an ornamental sphere, the ever-shifting plasmoid substance inside so light blue that it was almost milky white, around which a golden coil of metal snaked to protect and seal the orb. In the center of the orb, the single Chinese character 'shou' floated, the only hint that this artifact was related to the purpose of life itself.

With a short laugh, Omi took the shot and darted for the magical item with determination. Behind him, Jack grit his teeth and swooped to grab a shocked Le Mime by the underarms with a curt, "Let's go, Tongue Tie! Time to shine!"

Omi was pursued with a beeline, until suddenly both Jack and Omi slid to a halt with twin gasps. Suddenly standing atop the cracked boulder housing the shen gong wu, was Chase Young. Casually, he bent down to pick the thing up in one palm. Then he sent an expressionless glance down at the trio coming to meet him.

Fists balling, Omi steeled for the encounter. "Chase Young! Hand over that shen gong wu! You know not how gnarled and sketched it may be!"

Jack groaned and corrected, "Gnarly and sketchy, my guy...and outdated even by your standards!" Meanwhile Le Mime had placed a disgracing palm over his eyes and shook his head at this slang use.

Above, Chase finally let a small smirk slide onto his lips. "On the contrary, Omi, I know more than well the capabilities of this shen gong wu. I may not care for these trinkets, but it is ones that hold as much gravity as this that I feel are best kept out of the reach of children."

Jack and Omi both grit their teeth in defiance here. Jack sniped, "You're probably just gonna stick it in a drawer to gather dust! At least let me have it! I have evil needs for it!"

Distaste entered Chase's face as Jack spoke. "You are exactly why I can't let you have this. I do not appreciate your dragging me into your insignificant rat race, but so long as your supposed world-breaking prowess has yet to show itself, I consider it best to keep it that way by removing the most...troublesome of wu from the picture. Dashi did manage to create a few notable toys with this hobby of his. And besides, every now and then I suppose it couldn't hurt to have one or two on hand."

Jack's fists tightened around Le Mime's arms, starting to feel the ever-mounting disillusionment with his idol reach a peak. "What use do you have for the Last Call Casualty? You're immortal!" Le Mime squirmed in discomfort.

Chase tutted in a condescending manner. "Are you asking for a fight? I can't help but notice your new pet is absent today..."

"Oh. Yeah. I gave Cyclops the day off. He's been kind of irritable and pouty lately. Think he's been working too hard. But I still got him~!" He pointed to the mime he held aloft.

"Hmm, yes..." Chase sent his gaze wandering in boredom before reiterating, "In which case, why don't we see if we can't make use of this one-time wu right now?" Springing from the top of the boulder, he entered a front flip as he aimed his leg to drop and crush Jack's head.

Gasping to realize Chase was intending to use what he saw as an opportunity to crush him, Jack backpedaled swiftly and flung Le Mime forward in front of him. "Mime! Mirror gag!"

Omi had been about to launch forward to protect the other two, but paused the same as Chase when the mute man was flung forward. Le Mime himself had looked quite apprehensive about the situation until he heard Jack's order, at which point he perked in understanding and now stood tall, facing Chase Young with matching posture and bold stoicism.

"What kind of pathetic shielding is this, Spicer? Finally run out of straws to pull?" The long-haired man had stepped forward, only to find Le Mime had done the same, now blocking his path in a most annoying way. Chase creased his brow at the thinner young man, feeling even less like dealing with him than Jack, and raised a simple curled middle finger and thumb to flick the pest away.

Le Mime did likewise, and as Chase flicked, he found the other's fingers meeting his in a neutralizing blow, sending the two of them sliding back several feet away from one another in an instant. Chase's brow went up as the dust clouds from the sudden movement drifted around them.

Almost unsure this would work, Jack had curled into a defensive ball and shielded his face, but now he peeked out from behind his arm and saw that Le Mime had been successful. Immediately, his demeanor switched and he shot back up to his feet with a sharp "Ha!" Then he slapped a palm to his forehead and swayed slightly. "Woah...okay, stood too fast..."

Omi too gawped as Le Mime managed to successfully block Chase. Chase was scowling, and came forward again, this time aiming to use his fist to squash the other. Once more he found his action mirrored, and nothing happened but the force of the fists meeting sending out a small shockwave.

With a growl, Chase began a rapid succession of blows, kicking, punching and doing everything he could to assault the man before him, but finding every action without opening and just as flawless as his.

"What trickery is this?!" he burst, "This simple clown cannot be a Tai Chi Grand Master! None can match me!"

Smugly, Jack came to rest his elbow on Le Mime's shoulder as there was a break in the exchange. "Oh yeah. Did I forget to mention he's a magic mime~? He can totally do everything you can. And more~!"

A flash of something alien flashed across Chase's face through the increased anger he tried to project. If Jack hadn't known better, he'd swear it almost looked like intimidation. At the very least a falter. But he didn't get time to think about that as Chase let out an even angrier growl and charged again, trying to go for his throat.

The jet-haired main only found his hand once again meeting Le Mime's. Chase tried to avoid this magically-linked motion by swirling himself and the mime around so that he would be the one facing Jack, but all Jack had to do was scurry to hide behind the man in pancake makeup again.

Enraged, Chase let out an inhuman roar, his form shifting suddenly as he burst through his armor and his true form came forward: an eight-foot humanoid dragon with sharp claws and massive dripping fangs. In a flurry, he launched for Le Mime all over again.

"You got this, buddy~!" Jack encouraged timidly, reaching to pat Le Mime briefly on the shoulder as the silent man paled, his employer then sending his arms overhead and running in a flailing panic to hide. Even he had no idea if Mime's act could hold up against this monstrous form.

It could not, as a brief exchange of blows proved, followed by a tail sweep that sent Le Mime tumbling to the ground. Having no tail, Le Mime had nothing to meet the sweep, nor could he magically enhance his body's strength when faced with any opponent more beastly than he, so he collapsed.

Luckily, Omi flew in with a kick to Chase's head as this happened, sending the dragon man reeling backwards.

Le Mime wiped his brow, grateful for the rescue, but the relief didn't last long. Omi called over his shoulder, "Le Mime!" catching the man's attention, and then requesting as Chase now came to fight him, "Do you remember how you once incapacitated me and my friends?!"

Eyes rolling up in thought, Le Mime had to consider it before brightening and nodding with a smile. As he was knocked to the ground himself, struggling to hold a pouncing dragon at bay, Omi begged, "Pleeeeease employ your magic trappings once more! I cannot hold Chase Young off of you myself!"

Le Mime flustered, his hands motioning randomly as his face fretted, unsure how to voice his concern. Nearby, Jack popped out of a bush and had the same concern. "Hey, what? Like that? You'll be trapped with him!"

"It is better than letting him have your head!"

A sting shot through Jack's torso at that adamant declaration. The monk was seriously willing to take his chances fighting Chase in a close quarters cage match rather than give him the chance to harm him or Le Mime? More strongly than the last time Omi had protected him, Jack felt like there was no way Omi could be that selfless. But he really was, wasn't he? Jack had spent too much time around him by this point to not know how sincere Omi was. And more than last time, knowing that made Jack feel bad. Omi spent so much time with him now. Sure there was always that pesky element of nagging trickery, but as much as the monk insisted he didn't want to let Jack be killed, he just kind of didn't want Omi to die either. Whether or not he would have here, Jack felt compelled not to take that chance.

Feeling incredibly foreign to act this way, he shot both hands overhead, a shen gong wu in each. "Juju Flytrap! Tongue of Saiping!"

From the first object burst a large swarm of ornery tsetse flies, and the mounted tongue on the other sprang to life as Jack held the plaque in front of his mouth to shout, "Flies! Attack that overgrown lizard! Leave the bald kid alone! Get Chase away from him! Keep him distracted!"

Obediently, the summoned flies turned and shot for Chase's face, biting at his eyes and any sensitive corner of flesh they could find. With a fresh roar, Chase reeled and sent his claws swiping for the flies as they attacked, but unable to retaliate against a cluster of such small adversaries. He staggered back, and Omi's jaw hung open as he watched, turning to look at Jack, who was watching from the safety of his bush with tensely wavered lips. Quickly, Omi rolled to his feet and got himself out of the danger zone.

Into the tongue, Jack ordered, "Hold him there!" To Le Mime, Jack ordered, "Box him!"

At attention, Le Mime gave a salute, and, with Chase held in one spot, gladly took the time given to him to construct an invisible prison for the immortal man.

With this done, Jack let the pair of wu he held deactivate and meandered to lean casually against the box. "This feels kinda familiar, huh~?" he taunted, "Me, trapping you with wu. Me, trapping you on a waterboarding table. How many times until I get you to admit it's not a fluke~?"

He let out a sharp note of terror as Chase slammed his claws into the wall where Jack leaned, causing the albino boy to jump back despite the invisible box also muting the occupant. Chase's lips moved to form words, but he soon realized Jack couldn't understand him and settled with drawing a single claw slowly across his neck while his slit irises bore into Jack's soul.

Jack gulped. He might be good at this, but it was still intimidating to know how high the desire to have him dead was mounting. The price for acknowledgment of his abilities seemed to be death no matter what.

Omi stepped forward between Jack and Chase, sending his own adamant glower back at the dragon man. "Not if I have anything to say about it!"

Chase's eyes narrowed, his twitching tail the only indicator at how much he despised his favorite taking the side of his least favorite.

Feeling somewhat touched as a light flutter passed though his ribs, Jack passed a small smile to the back of Omi's head before feeling a tap on his shoulder and looking at Le Mime, who was thumbing back towards the rest of the fight.

"Oh. Right. Yeah, we should prob'ly...go." The Last Call Casualty was irretrievably in Chase's hands at the moment. Or claws. There was no reason to stick around and watch how the immortal warrior set about getting free. Putting a hand to the side of his mouth, he hollered at the others, "Hey, fight's over! Jackbots, forget those losers and let's get moving!"

The group mid-combat all paused in confusion, especially when the Jackbots did, in fact, pull back and begin a departure formation. Jack activated his helibot to join them, only to find a tug coming to the back hem of his coat.

"Wait!" Omi was beaming, "I must thank you for your assistance, Jack Spicer! Helping me by distracting Chase Young was most honorable! And your battle tactics today have been most, how you would say, in chains!"

"Off the chain..! But...you too. Nice moves." Jack corrected automatically, then froze and widened his eyes as he registered how Omi had just declared him honorable in front of everyone. Not to mention just let them all know he'd teamed up with Omi.

"And don't look into what just happened! I was just returning the favor! It was temporary! Only temporary, everyone! I'm still dishonorable!" He raised his hands as he addressed the crowd.

Silence loomed.

"Anyway. Chase was here..?" Wuya blinked, then clutched her fists in front of her and steamed, "Oh, of course that big blowhard would want the most powerful shen gong wu..! He got away with it, didn't he!" Why else would they be informed that the fight for it was over?

"Well, sorta..." Jack admitted, rubbing his neck, "I don't think anyone's gonna wanna go get it. He's still over..." Turning to thumb towards where Chase's cage was, his eyes inflated again to find only a mound of dirt surrounding a large hole. No exit tunnel was in sight.

Immediately hovering, Jack scanned the ground in paranoia. In an accusatory tone, he demanded of Le Mime, "Why can't you do floors?!"

Puffing one cheek out, Le Mime folded his arms. He thought he'd done rather well considering the dire circumstances.

Flatly, Wuya commented, "I'll take that as a yes."

"Yes," Omi informed as he stepped forward, mainly addressing his friends, "Chase Young is regretfully now in possession of the ability to revive a single life. I also regret to imagine what he might do with that power."

Under her breath, Wuya mumbled, "Probably just wait around until someone else raises the dead..."

Arms brandishing wide, Katnappe complained, "So you're basically telling me you called me out to the middle of nowhere for nothing?! You so owe me overtime for this, Wuya! Putting up with Jack for more seconds than I have to is a job in and of itself!"

Zooming over to her, Jack leaned down and shot his tongue out. "Mnyeah!"

"Mnyeah!" Mirroring the action, Katnappe doubled the aggression in it.

Jack pushed her in response, she pushed back, and soon the two were engaged in a flurry of immature slapping.

Helplessly, Wuya sent her eyes to the sky, unsure if either teen was really going to be the answer to ultimate power for her. How far had she fallen to end up with these as her only options?

Nudging Clay with his elbow, Raimundo quipped, "Oo. Catfight." Clay snorted.

Coming forward, Wuya reached to pick Katnappe up by the scruff of her catsuit, effectively stopping the girl from clawing at Jack. Instead she went wide-eyed from being so effortlessly hoisted. Sweating, she gave a very timid chuckle over acting so childishly. Wuya simply said, "Enough. Say goodbye to your little friend, girly. We're going home." Still holding Katnappe by the scruff, she carried the girl off with her as she took her leave.

Sleeves shredded and arms covered in scratches, as Katnappe had a bit of an advantage in a swatting match, Jack ignored the ribbons he'd been sliced to and just put his hands on his hips, calling, "Yeah..! You'd better run..! Next time I won't go so easy on you..!"

Once sure he'd had the last word, he turned to order, "Jackbots, grab Le Mime. We're out of here too." Le Mime looked uncomfortable being picked up like a piece of cargo, but let a robot clutch him around the waist and escort him anyway.

Jack looked over his shoulder, pausing to hover an extra second as he met Omi's gaze. Omi smiled at him brightly. Lips pursing, Jack didn't say anything and turned away to fly off with a resolute sulk.

...

"Help..! Help..! Losing consciousness..!"

Pinned by the piece of the personal jet he'd been working on, as he had dropped it while trying to affix the panel to the undercarriage of said jet, Jack had directed his plea at any nearby robots, but having been observing the mechanical work from nearby as he demonstrated his grass weaving skills to Cyclops, Omi was the first to respond, sliding smoothly on his back under the jet with the coatless goth, picking up the hunk of shaped metal effortlessly and holding it up in place with one finger.

As Jack sucked in a deep breath, hating how Omi kept making him feel like he owed him, and hating how it seemed like he was showing off using only one finger, Omi simply laughed. "You should really train your arms, Jack Spicer..! With your lack of upper body strength, you are as helpless as a girl..!"

Quirking a brow, Jack glanced at the other and just went, "Wha..?"

Still chuckling, Omi persisted, "Yes! Because girls are not naturally suited for such things as lifting or fighting..! So it is humorous that you too fit into the traditional female role..!"

Screwing a bolt in a solid enough place he could leave the panel hanging, Jack pressed his palm against the jet's belly and shoved himself out from under it on the wheeled mechanic's roller he lay on. From there he sat up and twisted to send a perturbed look at Omi.

"What are you even talking about, Baldy?" He more than understood making fun of his weakness. That happened all the time. But he'd never heard Omi say something so...blatantly sexist. Maybe a tease here and there aimed at one's sex, but the way he said this now, it sounded horribly insensitive.

Unsure why Jack wasn't laughing, or why he had stopped his work in constructing himself a new jet, Omi too scrambled out from underneath the vehicle. Looking at Jack's face in curious scrutiny, he returned, "I am simply referencing the natural inferior strength of females for humor. I am not sure what part was hard to understand."

Lips falling open slightly, Jack really couldn't believe he was hearing this from Mr. Wholesome.

"Okay," he said bluntly, putting everything on hold and lifting his palms to signal as such, "I knew you were ignorant, but this is a whole new level. Where are you even getting this from?"

Blinking, Omi didn't know why Jack was reacting this way. He suddenly sounded so serious. Offended? Brow furrowing, from context Omi could deduce that he'd said something wrong. Was this another mistake he'd somehow made about the world outside the Xiaolin Temple? But he'd been saying these things for years and no one had contested it...

"What am I getting?"

Jack's hands swished pointedly. "This whole idea about girls being helpless and inferior? What's that about? If anything, I figured you'd be preaching equality and junk. You're always so...righteous."

Omi scratched his head. "You are correct in my valuing of righteousness, but I am most confused. Am I not correct in stating females are naturally inferior?"

The taller boy's arms folded. "Uh, very wrong. Every girl I know can kick my butt." He wasn't exactly proud of being a weakling, but he could still admit it. "Whiiiich brings me back to my question. Where did you pick that junk up? Is the whole Xiaolin side secretly sexist?" He could only guess this had to be part of their teachings if Omi had managed to reach teenhood with these ideas in his head.

Omi turned away slightly. "I am unfamiliar with that word, but it sounds veeeery naughty." He waggled a shunning finger at Jack.

With a sigh, Jack pushed Omi's hand back down. "It's not. But it does describe the stuff you just said. Which is all way more offensive."

The short boy's spine straightened in his own spike of offense over being called offensive. "Hmph!" he countered, "How can you say my words are offensive when I have gotten them from an ancient tome of wisdom? After Kimiko joined the temple, I prepared myself with much research on females, and no one has argued any of my findings. So perhaps it is you who is misguided."

Befuddled, Jack blinked a few more times in silence. "You're kidding, right? Awkward as the idea is that you felt the need to research something like that, nobody said anything about this?"

"Nope!" Omi beamed smugly, feeling he was being proven correct, "In fact, Kimiko even told me how lucky I am to be cute..!"

Suddenly feeling annoyed at Kimiko for letting this slide, and the monks in general for not steering Omi away from falling into pit traps as he attempted to educate himself, Jack supposed it was once again up to him to course correct. How could those losers call themselves the good guys if they were acting worse than the bad guys? Jack had been correcting Omi on his misinformation now and again, and unlike what he'd heard the Dragons were like, he had no trouble just giving 'difficult' concepts a brief, direct explanation. Luckily, for the most part, Omi seemed to like that. He just also had to be proven wrong first.

"So where's this 'ancient wisdom'?" the goth challenged. He needed to see the kind of junk Omi had been filling his head with before he could correct it.

The yellow boy perked. "Oh! Would you like to see it? I could borrow the Golden Tiger Claws - which you have in actuality stolen - and retrieve it from the temple..!"

"Close to what I was thinking, but not quite. Temple, huh?" Raising a hand, he snapped his fingers, and behind him, the nearest free-roaming Jackbot quickly swooped up at attention. "Jackbot! Fetch!"

Obediently, the robot sailed off on its hover boosters and left the two boys sitting in idle silence for a few moments before returning with the Tiger Claws in hand and offering them to Jack. Jack put them on. "As much as I know you're all about your word and whatever, I just feel better about it this way," he informed Omi, "Golden Tiger Claws!"

With a slash, he'd opened a portal to the Xiaolin Temple and offered his palm towards it. Recognizing the invitation, Omi nodded and hopped through, now leaving Jack alone to sit and make sure the stout monk had a return trip available.

As the portal sat floating in the central walkway, Dojo slithered by with a platter of egg rolls and passed it a curious lingering look before deciding the anomaly wasn't his business.

Then, Omi was back in Jack's yard, proudly holding forward a thick brown book. Surely this would prove how right he was.

Taking the book and tossing the claws back to his robot to hold, Jack passed the weathered binding a doubtful curl of his lip right from the title. "The Ancient Guide to Females..?"

"Yes!" Omi granted confidently, "Retrieved from the very depths of the temple archives themselves!"

Cracking the book open, Jack's lip just curled more. "Wait, as in, this is actually stuff they teach?" He began skimming over the text and his nose only wrinkled.

Here Omi scratched his head a bit absently. "I do not know about that. Master Fung has never brought such things up in lessons...but it is in an ancient tome! It must be correct."

"Uh, yeah. Don't believe everything you read, sweet pea. Hasn't anyone ever told you how dangerous that is?"

"No..? How can that be possible? Writing is for the very purpose of preserving fact."

A scoff. "That's how. You end up believing stuff like that. You know what fiction is, don't you?"

"Of course! Some of my very favorite stories are entirely fictitious works of-" Suddenly Omi's eyes bulged. "Ohhh. I believe I am seeing your meaning. But...would someone truly be so unkind as to record an archival manual with fictitious information?"

"Better believe they would," Jack confirmed casually, "But this is more like...things change in a few hundred years. Like here: do you really believe a woman should be illiterate? Banned at like...every event possible? Or drowned if you don't want them? That really doesn't sound very good-guy-like. Ew! Don't tell me you think this stuff about foot binding is right!" In disgust, he turned the book around to show Omi a nasty illustration of a woman's horribly mutilated feet. He hadn't even heard of any of these things! "How could you possibly believe this stuff? You have a girl on your team."

Rubbing the back of his head again, though a bit more meekly as he had to admit that some of the traditional practices did seem a bit extreme, Omi then granted, "Well yes...but Kimiko is not a very female-like female. She is nothing as the book describes."

More perplexed than ever, Jack's arms hung limply as he bluntly professed, "Omi. My guy. What the heck." Seeing Omi shrink more in uncertainty as it definitely appeared to be sinking in that something was very wrong about his thoughts, Jack just kept pushing. "Girls aren't a species. They're just people. If you wanted to learn about them after you met Kimiko, don't you think you could have like...asked her?"

To this, Omi had no answer but to shamefully shift his posture. With it spelled out like this, it all seemed kind of obvious. He didn't know why he'd thought reading up on the subject would be so much better, or why he trusted it so absolutely. It just seemed...so official. And no one had ever told him he was wrong. Kimiko had made a face or two, but never spoken out. And the boys had simply snickered at his comments, enjoying the way Kimiko irked.

Jack closed the book firmly, not wanting to read about what other gross practices were considered "traditional". All of a sudden he was wondering if Wuya made a point of not wearing shoes as a form of rebellion. Actually, thinking of her, he noted, "What about Wuya? She's one of the most powerful enemies either of us have ever faced. She's been around even longer than me. Have you thought she was just 'not female-like' this whole time..?"

Hardly believing something he'd thought was fact could disillusion Jack to him so much, Omi's eyes fell to the ground under Jack's bewildered stare. "No..." he admitted, "Wuya has been a most worthy adversary. And...perhaps has proven that girls are more suited to leadership than I realized." He'd mocked Kimiko for thinking she'd had a shot at Dragon Leader when the position was up for grabs, but Wuya had ruled the entire world for a spell. And, come to think, Katnappe had won the last Xiaolin Showdown...she'd even beaten Omi in fights before. She'd beaten him in the fastest Showdown ever.

Maybe Omi really was misguided. Again.

...how could his friends allow him to continue thinking these things if they were wrong? Why did someone who considered himself evil have to keep coaching Omi on how the world really worked?

Face souring some, Omi then let his brow arch in shame as he let out a saddened breath. "I must once again thank you for your bluntness in explaining these difficult topics to me, Jack Spicer. It is most appreciated that you do not simply allow me to continue making the same mistakes over and over for so many years."

Almost relieved it seemed like Omi was coming to his senses, Jack let out his own breath, glad this seemed to be yet another issue chalked up to naivety. "I'm just glad you don't really agree with this garbage." Over his shoulder, he tossed the guide to land in his garage's trash can. Omi tensed, but then figured that was probably for the best. Jack continued, reaching to smack Omi lightly upside the head, "Like jeez, don't you know how to think for yourself, Chrome Dome? Your enemies shouldn't have to be teaching you how to be virtuous and junk."

After a brief flinch, Omi felt even more ashamed when Jack essentially echoed his own thoughts. The monk had always thought he'd upheld the most virtuous of values. Rubbing the spot that had been smacked, though it really hadn't been hard, he granted, "I will attempt to keep this in mind going forward. In fact, I believe I now have much to reflect on. Would you please open me another portal home so that I might reach a place of meditation faster?"

Surprised by how humbly Omi was taking his hazing comment, Jack folded his arms and realized how hard Omi must have actually been taking this. He'd expected some snark at least. Maybe a shove back for his swat. "Well...don't get all mopey about it..." This was his best attempt at cheering the other up. It wasn't really something Jack ever had the inclination to do. "But, um...sure." Sending Omi home would certainly make things less awkward for him if the yellow boy was going to get all somber.

With a fresh portal opened, Omi bowed and said plainly, "Thank you again, Jack Spicer. I am faring you well until next time." Coming forward, he crushed a brief sincere embrace around Jack's legs before turning to hop calmly into the vortex.

As it vanished, Jack grumbled at how casual that had just been. "Stop hugging me!" he insisted to the empty air. Hugging, touching, it all made him so uncomfortable as something he simultaneously longed for and hated.

...

With a heavy head, Omi walked the Xiaolin Temple grounds. He walked the familiar paths, admiring the greenery he'd only recently spruced up himself. He let Jack's obviously truthful offense ring through his head as he compared it to three years' worth of trusting that so-called ancient guide he'd been allowed to get away with. Why hadn't his friends ever said anything? Had Clay and Raimundo simply thought he was joking to get under Kimiko's skin? Had that been all they were doing when they said similar things? If Kimiko was truly offended, why had she not corrected him? Friends were supposed to communicate their troubles, weren't they?

Passing by an open-walled room where Master Fung and Dojo were playing Mahjong together, Omi felt as though he could clear up one important distinction. As the wisest person Omi knew, the elderly monk could certainly tell him if the book he'd read was wrong.

As the stout boy approached, Master Fung and Dojo both looked up. Dojo greeted, "Hey, why so gloomy, pal?"

The bald man found the demeanor rather notable as well, and greeted evenly, "Is something troubling you, young monk?"

"Perhaps," Omi replied as calmly. Folding his hands into his sleeves, he held his gaze on his teacher and inquired, "Master Fung, is there any particular reasoning as to why Kimiko is the only female warrior at our temple? Is it not in fact because girls are not as suited to such things?"

Head tilting a micro-degree in puzzle, Master Fung held his composure and replied, "Of course not, Omi. A warrior is not defined by their body, but by their spirit and their heart. This just so happens to be the way it's worked out."

Hearing even his mentor didn't hesitate to denounce any inferiority, Omi felt his cheeks burn in a combination of shame and the fact that he'd even had to ask after all this time. How had his friends let him think the way he had for so long?

Master Fung continued gently, "Might I ask as to where this question is coming from all of a sudden..?"

Dojo quirked a brow. "Yeah, seems kinda...weird." Earning a sharp glance from Fung, he spread his tiny arms in defense. "What? Like you weren't thinking it was kind of outta left wing?"

With an outlet of breath, Omi just granted, "It is just...there was this book I found in the archives. It said some most curious things about girls that I am just now beginning to realize may have been misleading." His fingertips pressed one another in a minor fidget. "Mostly because nobody told me until Jack Spicer just now..."

Matching blinks from the others. Then Master Fung spoke once more. "I see. Well, I apologize for not realizing your struggle, Omi. It had appeared you were getting along just fine with Kimiko. Though, you must be careful when digging through the archives. Some of those scrolls and books are merely kept as a part of our history. They do not always reflect the modern teachings. The outdated ones should be in their own section, but this is also not always true." Another glance to Dojo.

The small dragon flustered. "Hey, hey..! I guard the Shen Gong Wu Scroll! I'm not the official librarian! But...y'know, nobody ever uses those dusty old relics anyway..! So I haven't reorganized in a couple hundred years, so what?"

To himself, Master Fung rolled his eyes lightly. Then to Omi, he assured, "To me, it seems as though what you have read has not been impeding your friendship with Kimiko, at the very least. So long as you have learned the error of your ways, I do not see any reason as to why you should let it weigh on you."

Lifting his head slightly, Omi offered a minute smile.

"And," Master Fung noted, "I am pleased to hear something is coming of your time with Spicer. I did not expect he would have anything to offer you in return for your friendship." To the elderly man, it had seemed like a one-way street thus far. Hearing Jack had actually helped Omi better himself was shocking, but welcome.

Only happier to have his mentor's approval, Omi smiled a bit more and bowed, feeling better. "Thank you, Master," he granted, "It has indeed been most enlightening."

With this, he took his leave, but still took time to himself to sort out his thoughts. He was trying to undo three years of misinformation in a day, and it still felt completely foreign that he could have been that wrong for all that time. Omi meditated on his own feelings for hours, eventually discovering one nagging sentiment that he had to act on.

...

Kimiko looked up from her laptop to find Omi standing at the entrance of what was called her room. In reality, the monks each only had a modest space of floor with curtains placed between their segments, and nothing to act as a door.

"Hey, Omi. What's up?" the pigtailed girl greeted, then noting her visitor's hesitant composure, "Is something wrong..?"

In preparation, Omi cleared his throat, hands remaining behind his back. "Yes. But that something is what I have come to remedy."

As Kimiko's head tipped curiously, Omi insisted, "I wish to apologize for what Jack Spicer assures me is not a naughty word, and he has called the 'sexist' things I have been mislead to believe."

Now the girl's brow went up and her jaw went slack. Nothing about that statement registered. Not Omi knowing what the word 'sexist' meant, or the fact that Jack Spicer had taught it to him.

Pressing forward, Omi declared, "I have been made aware that girls are in fact just as worthy warriors as boys, upper body strength or not. Also that you are not another species, even if you have a tail."

Regaining some composure, Kimiko couldn't help a scoff there. "I don't have a tail, Omi...that is very much not a thing, girl or otherwise." Face softening, she added, "But that was...almost a nice thing to say. What brought this on?"

"As I said, Jack Spicer has pointed out the error of my ways. I am most sincere in my apology. I am filled with shame that I have allowed my desires for perfection to let me even think such things about a dear friend could be true." During his meditation, he'd come to the dreaded conclusion that he just may have a slightly inflated ego that had contributed to him latching onto the idea his sex could be superior. Humbly, he bowed towards Kimiko.

The Japanese girl blinked again in a moment of speechlessness. "You're serious? Jack Spicer told you this? But he's always so gross towards...ehn, actually, everybody. Never mind." The albino weasel was very bad at endearing himself and came off sleazy if he tried, but if Kimiko thought about it, it wasn't just girls. Jack was just a slimy character no matter what. It was still weird to hear he was less sexist than Omi.

"Ooookay," Omi obediently paid no mind, "But yes. In light of what I have learned, I wish to present this!" Finally taking his hands from behind his back, he presented a crudely drawn image of himself and Kimiko in what looked like fighting poses as their elements shot from their hands. The perspective was wonky, but it looked like they were supposed to be in a field, and they were surrounded by several large decorative flowers floating in the void. A swirly sun sat in one corner.

Taking the drawing she was presented, Kimiko tried to ignore how it looked like it was drawn by a five-year-old. Actually, that just kind of highlighted how innocent Omi was. "Awww..! Thanks! You are just a sweet little monk inside, aren't you?" How could she be upset? In fact, she reached to rub his head appreciatively.

Blushing and hunching his shoulders with pride, Omi's lips curled widely as his peacemaking present was well-received. He was sweet, wasn't he~?

Quirking her brow at the picture as she took a second look, the black-haired girl then asked, "What did you draw this with, anyway? It looks...unusual."

Perking, Omi informed, "Oh! I simply used your large selection of tubed pastels that I now know are not candy. As it was for you, I did not think you would mind."

"My...pastels..?" Kimiko didn't own any art supplies. She wasn't much of an artist type. Spine jolting, she suddenly realized what Omi was talking about and swirled around to open a large makeup case, a well where about twenty tubes would normally stand being notably empty.

"MY LIPSTICK?!"

With a snap of his fingers, Omi recollected, "Ah, yes. That is the thing. Also, since our friendship has been once more solidified, I feel I must ask why you did not see fit to inform me of-"

"I'LL SHOW YOU FRIENDSHIP!"

All at once, Kimiko was livid, and leaping for Omi. The smaller boy screamed in surprise and flailed briefly, but was unable to react in time to flee. All that could be heard were the mixed shouts and Kimiko's blows as she avenged her lipstick.

Well, Omi could feel quite thoroughly that there was nothing falling short about the girl's ability to scrap.