XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN - "The Choices We Make"
by Stephen R. Sobotka Jr. / 2006
DISCLAIMER : Xiaolin Showdown is the creation of Christi Hui / Warner Bros. Animation; all characters of this story -- with the exception of any original characters that I created -- are the property of said licenses, and WB Television Animation, and are used here without knowledge or permission of same. This story was produced to entertain fans of the original show, and is in no way, shape or form intended to be published for monetary gain. Please do not sue.
This story is an original prose based on situations and themes from the original "Xiaolin Showdown" animated series. This story is the rightful property of the author; all original characters and the plot depicted within are protected by copyright law.
AUTHOR'S NOTES : I wrote this because it irks me that, out of all the XS fanfics out there, the general focus is on Rai/Kimiko 'shippers. So, don't hate me if I feel that the little fiery gal from Japan would be better off with a certain big boy from Texas.
Comments are most welcome, so please DO comment!
Enjoy the story! - SRS Jr
CHOICES
Chapter 5
"Kimiko Tohomiko... what in all of name of Texas are you doin' here?" Clay Bailey's face lay cold as the surface of a winter pond -- placid and unyielding -- as he stared at the young woman that had left the Xiaolin Temple over ten years ago.
Standing in front of the young man who had been the center of her greatest guilt -- which was the source of her darkest nightmares -- for all of those ten years, Kimiko felt the knot of ice inside her middle grow bigger. At the most, she expected at least a half-way friendly greeting. In the least, she thought Clay would be angry, hurt or in a murderous rage...
But to see him standing there in Master Fung's garden, radiating cold vibes like a mountain of ice...
"What are you saying?" Kimiko asked, finding her voice after the initial shock ebbed away from her already jangled nerves. "I, I'm here because I had to come here!"
Clay dropped his chin a bit. "Funny," he said evenly. "Took you all this time t'decide that? My Granny always told me that molasses can get pretty slow in wintertime... I just never figured you t'be like that!"
He's... sniping at me! Kimiko shook herself and took a step towards the tall, blond Texan. "Just what are you driving at, Clay? Are you saying-?"
"I'm sayin' you were actin' dumb ten years ago." Clay spelled it out in plain talk. "An' after all this time, I've got t'know... why did you do it?" Before Kimiko's eyes, the icy expression on Clay's face cracked a little. "Why, Kimmy? What in all Tarnation made you decide to leave th' Temple?"
Kimiko thought about pulling back, but she forged ahead with her own emotions surging. "You can ask me that, even knowing what you went through in that battle against the Heylin!" She glared at him. "Clay! Wuya nearly killed you! Am I too slow to grasp that concept? You charged in the middle of her attack, and she hit you with that... that green-fire blast of hers, and... and...!" Her voice trailed off as she felt the pain of seeing that day flash in front of her mind's eye once more.
In the silence that followed, Clay said in a somber tone, "She nearly punched my ticket, that's fer certain."
"Can't you see why I left, then? It was because of me that got you nearly killed!" Kimiko said sharply. "I should've been able to take care of myself in the middle of it all... but, you... you-!"
"I got caught in th' middle, when it should'a been you that got hurt?" Clay's eyes went wide as saucers. "Is that what yer sayin'?"
Kimiko dropped her chin and nodded, unable to force the words past the thickness that formed in her throat. Geez, can't he see how hard this is? she asked herself. I didn't come her to point fingers or bring up bad memories! I just... I...!
Unable to see his face or what he was doing, Kimiko waited for the other boot to fall... only to be surprised when she felt a set of thick fingers touch underneath her chin and lift her head up, until she met the steady, unblinking gaze of two blue eyes underneath a fringe of blond locks.
"Kimmy," Clay said, "I'd sooner take a roll over a prickly-pear cactus, than see you get hurt." He shrugged, signed and offered simply, "Besides, we both knew back then... and even now, that when Master Fung summoned us to become the Chosen Ones, it wasn't gonna be no stroll along the fenceline!"
Kimiko nodded. "But, you got-?"
"I got hurt, yeah, you just said that," he said. "It happens. All of us -- you, me, Rai and Omi -- knew what th' dangers were when we put on th' Xiaolin robes. Would you rather I'd not gone and tried to stop that no-good Wuya from turnin' ya into one crispy-fried China doll?"
At that, Kimiko cracked a small smile. "I'm Japanese, you big cowboy!"
With a chuckle and a sigh, Clay said, "My point is, we all were under the heavy end of th' Heylin hammer that day. If I hadn't stopped that attack, Rai or Omi or even Master Fung woulda stepped in to save your pretty little neck!"
Kimiko blushed a bit. "True... but, why did you do it, Clay? Why would you risk so much against Wuya?"
Clay's face rippled with a sad expression, all of the iron in him seeming to fall away in the face of her question. "Ya don't know what happened... after you left the temple that day, do you?" When she shook her head, Clay explained. "After I woke up, the first thing I asked for was what had happened t'you, and where you were. Master Fung and th' others all told me... how you left the temple, and weren't coming back. All because of how I got hurt."
Kimiko swallowed, feeling the ice return to her belly as she nodded. "They... did, did they?"
"I was as thunderstruck as a jackrabbit caught in th' middle of a spring storm on the prairie, after they told me th' whole shebang," Clay said. "But, over th' time it took me to heal from all the hurtin' I had, I managed to mull it over in my head... I don't blame you for boltin', Kimmy."
That made her pull back a bit. "You don't?"
"Way I figure it, anybody woulda felt the same in your shoes... but, I didn't meet my maker that day." He dropped his hand to pull the sleeve of his robes back to reveal his scarred arm. "I just got a little of my Daddy's luck that day, and... if you gotta know the truth, I'd gladly stand in the way of another blast, if it will save your life, Kimiko."
Shaking her head, Kimiko looked up at him and said, "But, why should you have to even think that I need protecting like that?"
"You still ain't usin' your ears so good, are you?"
Screwing up her face, Kimiko said, "My ears work fine! What are you driving at, Clay?"
Reaching back up, Clay removed his hat and held it over his chest. "I'm tryin' t'get this into your head, girl... because, I did what I did for a good reason." He dipped his head slightly, and said softly, "I did it... because I love you."
If the ice had been threatening before to overwhelm Kimiko, it swiftly vanished in the face of the simple words Clay just spoke in his simple, honest way. "You... you what?"
"I said 'I love you', Kimiko Tohomiko," Clay replied, without a single change to his tone or stance. "Always have... ever since th' first day we met here at th' temple. Though, I'll admit back then... it just started as 'like', an', well it just grew from there."
The shock slipped away, falling into wonder as Kimiko stared up at the tall, young man. "Why... why did... why didn't you say anything? From before-?"
Placing his hat back on his head, Clay said simply, "Because of all the trainin', an' then we had to deal with Daddy takin' me away... an' then the whole deal with Mala Mala Jong, an' every other bit of trouble Wuya and Jack kept stirrin' up for us."
Kimiko looked down at her hands, clasping them together as she tried to find words to reply to Clay's... but, she couldn't bring any to bear.
"Well, in any case, we'd best get back to th' others... it's near supper time," Clay said, offering her a sad smile. "Well, now you know the wherefore and the why of it all... 'supose you're going to have to deal with it now." With a grunt, he hitched up his sash and stepped around her to start walking towards the garden's exit.
Turning around, Kimiko watched him walk away for a bit, before she picked up her feet and ran after him. "Clay? Clay!" she called out to him, catching up just as he reached the exit. "Clay, wait! What do you mean by that?"
Turning around, Clay offered her an open expression of sadness. "Because even after all we've been through, you haven't told me how you feel 'bout me... but, no matter how you feel, an' no matter what you decide to do -- if you stay or go back to Japan -- ain't nothing gonna change th' way I feel for you." With that said, he turned and ambled through the exit and disappeared from sight.
Standing among the greenery and serenity of Master Fung's garden, Kimiko's legs gave out from underneath her and she fell to her knees as a wave of sadness overtook her. H-how... how am I supposed to 'deal' with this? she asked herself, before burying her face into her hands. How? How...?
ooooOOOOoooo
Back at the Temple, Kimiko was in a very somber mood; so much in fact, she couldn't bear to join the other monks and the Xiaolin Dragons at their communal dinner table. Since her meeting with Clay, she hardly had any appetite, so she stood off to the side in the shadow of one of the entrances and watched as her former friends and their new teammates shared a hearty meal.
As she stood there, she couldn't help but watch Clay as he interacted with Rai, Omi and the others. Even though he wasn't as boisterous as she remembered in the past, Clay still managed to smile a little, and even kept Jack Spicer and Jessie from starting an impromptu food fight.
She sighed and leaned against the door frame, crossing her arms as she mused sadly: It's like parts of him changed... yet, overall, he's still the same good-old boy... er, man. Shaking herself, she added, But, why can't I face him again... after all of this-?
"Greetings, Young Dragon."
Nearly squeaking in surprise, Kimiko turned around, just in time to see the kindly face of Master Fung, as he emerged from the dim hallway beyond. "Master Fung? Oh, cripes! It... it's good to see you a-again!" She bowed humbly, before impulsively reaching out to give the old Xiaolin master a hug.
Master Fung gave her a gentle pat in return. "It is good to see you as well, my former Apprentice." Letting her step back, he folded his hands inside the sleeves of his blue-and-white robes, before looking towards the others inside the dining hall, before asking, "Why are you not with the others, Young One?"
Stepping back, Kimiko sighed. "I'm not really up for it, Master... for food, or for company, right now."
"Ahh, I see... then, I presume that you met with Clay already?"
Nodding, Kimiko replied, "Oh, yeah... we, well... we 'met', all right."
Master Fung nodded his bald head. "Why then are you unhappy? As you can see, Clay is recovered, and is now as healthy as he was before his injuries." Holding out one hand towards the cluster of the Chosen Ones around the dining table, he said, "He is back among his friends and teammates-."
Kimiko shook her head. "I don't mean to sound like it's not great to know that. I mean... that's not why I'm sad." She glanced back at the others, before looking up at Master Fung with an earnest expression on her face. "Master? Can we talk... privately, for a bit?"
Arching one eyebrow, Master Fung motioned towards the hallway with one hand. "Come, then... we can use the Shen Gong Wu chamber, while the others finish with the evening meal."
Kimiko preceded Master Fung, and together they walked down the hall, to where the vaulted, circular chamber lay in the center of the Temple-proper.
Here, the heart of the entire temple sat amid wall hangings and gold and bronze bells -- a couple of which, when rang in the right way, opened the vault beneath the floor that stored the various Shen Gong Wu.
Stepping inside, Master Fung led Kimiko to where some soft cushions rested on the floor, and motioned for her to sit down. As she settled herself, he asked gently, "Now, Young One... what is it that is troubling you this night?"
"Well... it's this, Master," Kimiko said, after taking a moment to shore herself up. "We both know why I left the temple, all those years ago... and, well, it's been the reason why I never came back, before now."
Master Fung nodded. "I had not told you then, that Clay would not condemn you for his injuries?"
"Yes, Master, but... that's not all he told me." Swallowing a bit, Kimiko continued, saying, "Master... Clay told me... that he loves me!"
Master Fung's face lit up with a small smile. "He did? That should be wonderful news, Young One!"
"It should be," Kimiko admitted. "But, I... I never knew what he felt towards me, and... after all that's happened, with me living in Japan and him recovering here, I...!" She slumped her shoulders before saying simply, "I just... don't know what to do."
Master Fung sat in silence, before he folded his hands before him and let out a cleansing breath. "Matters of the heart, are not a completely alien thing to the followers of the Xiaolin beliefs, Kimiko. The truth of this matter, is that I knew of Clay's feelings for you, long before the incident that injured him in the final battle against Chase Young."
Kimiko blinked. "You... y-you knew about his feelings?"
Master Fung nodded. "I was unable to tell you, because Clay felt that, should his feelings be known, that it would distract you during the battles to come against the Heylin witch and her forces." He offered a sad-tinged smile. "I am sorry, but Clay made me promise not to tell you, though now I do wish that I had broken that promise. It might have kept you from departing the temple."
Kimiko nodded, picking at the cuff of her khaki shorts as she mulled this over. If you had known, would that have changed your mind back then? she asked herself. "But, now that I do know, what do I do, Master Fung?"
"That is something you alone must decide," the Xiaolin Master said. "You have a singular problem to solve, Young One. For I feel, the crux of your biggest dilemma is how do you truly feel about Clay."
That made Kimiko look hard at the old monk. "How I truly feel...?"
"I advise you to search your mind and heart, Kimiko," Master Fung said, before he slowly rose to his feet. "But, do not take too long to seek your answer... for both the sake of yourself, and of the one who loves you." He paused, then nodded to himself. "I think the others have retired from the dining hall now... if you wish to eat, I can have Master Shen fix you something?"
Kimiko sighed, and nodded before she gave Master Fung a small smile. "Actually, something to eat sounds... like a good idea."
Offering her his hand, Master Fung gave her a smile in return. "Come then... as a former Master Dragon once told me, 'One must not seek the Wisdom of the Universe, while their stomach is an empty vessel'."
Taking his hand and rising, Kimiko smiled wider and said, "You really should write some of those words down, y'know, Master?"
With a soft chuckle, Master Fung replied, "Our friend Dojo tells me that, many-a-time, Young One."
ooooOOOOoooo
Nighttime... and the temple of the Xiaolin was cloaked in the indigo blanket of night; fitted with sparkling stars, which were echoed by the warm glow of lanterns and lamps around the temple grounds. The majority of the monks had already bedded down for the night, leaving only a few of the warriors awake to finish their nightly duties.
Inside the dormitory building, Kimiko had returned to the room left for her. After the simple meal she'd eaten, the young woman had taken time to rest, then make her way to the baths to wash and prepare for sleep.
Standing near the small, portable wardrobe she'd made out of one of her garment bags, Kimiko slipped out of her bathing robe and slippers and put on her usual sleeping garments: a pair of pale, yellow boy shorts and a matching mini-shirt with a perky kitten logo on the front.
Smoothing her hands over her shirt, she sighed, feeling the fatigue from the bottoms of her feet to the top of her head. "Face it, Kimi-kun. After a day like today," she told herself aloud, "you need to get some big-time zees!"
Taking her time, she then turned and pulled out an antique, lacquered brush -- one of the many gifts of her mother's heirlooms -- and some matching hair combs, and started working on brushing out her long, dark hair.
Yawning softly in the middle of one long stroke, she reached over and turned on the small digital clock radio she'd brought with her. "I need some music... maybe that will help." Returning to her task, she let her mind drift a bit as the bristles of the brush worked their way along each length of hair she pulled through it.
I'm tired, but my mind's all a-whirl over everything I've heard, seen and felt! Kimiko sighed. Taking a moment to pick up one of the antique combs and use it to pin back a good portion of her hair against the side of her head, Kimiko added, "Master Fung told me to search my heart... how I really feel, about Clay." Brushing more of her hair, she sighed and said, "How do I really feel? I mean... he's a good person, and he's always been there for the rest of us." Pausing again, she cocked her head as she smiled softly. "He's also a perfect gentleman... in that rough-shod, cowboy way of his. He never once tried to be mean to me on purpose. Unlike Rai, or even Omi did a few times!"
Face it, Kimmy... he's probably the nicest guy you've met in your entire life, she mused inwardly. And, for all the fact you've never even looked at him as more than a friend...
"So... what do I do about it?" Kimiko let her hands drop after fixing the last comb into place. Folding them in their lap, clutching her brush, she let her gaze fall on the clock radio, where it's numbers cast a green glow into the dimly-lit room.
"What do I do?"
Just then, Kimiko took notice of the music playing on the radio. Currently, oddly enough, the passage was from a country song... and Kimiko realized just then how much the words were so in tune with how she was feeling earlier this day:
"Can't you see what I've been thru?
All I've done I've done for you.
Can't you see your world won't end?
It's just a summer wind..."
Putting down the lacquered brush on the small table beside her small bed, Kimiko turned and switched the radio off. "Not that I don't appreciate the style... I really don't want to feel that guilty again."
Kimiko then turned towards the bed, sliding across it to tuck herself next to the small, round window in the wall next to it. "Face it... you have to come down to making a choice, Kimiko," she told herself. "Do you let Clay's feelings go unrequited, or... can you even return them, in kind?"
Drawing her knees up to her chin, she wrapped her arms around her legs and sat there. Her eyes gazing out into the moonlit-night, watching as the silver light touched the leaves of the trees, the skin of the rocks and the surface of the practice ground's pond with shinning highlights.
"You've got to decide, girlfriend... and, Master Fung said it best. You can't put it off for much longer!" Sighing, she rested her chin on one knee, letting her attention drift... like the soft, winking lights of the fireflies scattered over the temple grounds. It was a peaceful scene... like something out of a relaxing trip to the mountains in Nara.
Then, much to her surprise, Kimiko heard a sound; a soft twang-twang-plunk sound, which she quickly recognized as that of the strings of a guitar, being put into tune. A moment later, the sound of a single chord -- all five strings strummed by the touch of expert fingers -- drifted on the air.
Then, to Kimiko's delight, a soulful tune followed with the wordless, humming accompaniment of a deep baritone voice.
That... that's Clay. He's singing! Kimiko cocked her head, trying to pick up the identity of the tune. For a moment, she couldn't do more than follow Clay's humming and the notes he drew out from the instrument's strings... and then, without preamble or warning, Clay's murmured tuning changed into words: nothing of any major consequence, just whatever happened to pass from his mind to his lips.
Unable to stop the smile from spreading over her lips, Kimiko closed her eyes and listened to the bittersweet words Clay sung. His voice -- while certainly nowhere near 'Idol' caliber -- still had that timbre of honest, heart-felt emotion, and it's what tugged at the strings of her own heart as she continued to listen.
It was clear he wasn't aiming to put together something that he'd share with everyone else. But, Clay clearly wasn't just putting together a jumble of words and half-formed phrases. He was putting some deep thoughts to the melody he strummed... and, from the soulful way he sang along, it was as transparent as glass to Kimiko as to how the blond cowboy felt... about her, his feelings, and more.
With eyes close to spilling over with wetness, Kimiko didn't realize she'd held her breath, until the last notes of the guitar's final refrain faded away into the night. Letting it out of her lungs with a shivering sigh, her chest was filled with a pleasant sensation, rather than something sad.
Wow... who knew Clay had such talent in him! Kimiko strained to hear more, and after a moment of silence, she was rewarded by a much brighter, if still quiet tune that flew from Clay's guitar strings.
Though she'd felt content to listen to this new performance, Kimiko's mind was moving nearly a mile a minute, and her heart fell in step as well. Clay... He's a good man. Kind, loyal and polite. He put the lives of others before himself... and he never thinks twice about the consequences, she told herself.
And... he said he loves me! He LOVES Me!
Rising, Kimiko padded barefoot to the small travel wardrobe, and pulled out a light, summer kimono robe and slipped it on. Before she even had the belt clinched tight, she was out the door and on her way to Clay's room.
TO BE CONTINUED...
