Jack had been alone for quite some time. Neither the bean nor Chase had been inside his head for quite some time. Jack figured that he wasn't working to their advantages so they just gave up.

Since the internal silence befell him, Jack had been able to actually train. Gradually, he gained more and more control over the shadows. He was be able to control them in the real world, not just his dreams.

Jack smiled. Things had never been better. It seemed as though he really was one of the dragons. They had accepted him as if he had been with them all along. His past was just that, something of the past. More and more frequently, he began neglecting to apply his make up. What was he trying to hide with it anyway? His bright red eyes had softened into a more mellow orange. All his thoughts of world conquest in the name of evil were gone.

Now he only strove to succeed. After the bean had pointed out that he had so many Shen Gong Wu attributed to his element, Jack decided to reject the Shen Gong Wu all together. He wanted his success to be truly earned without the help of those mystical objects. However, he still joined the other dragons in their never-ending hunt for them.

Jack was good now, but not annoyingly so. The days of covering up his insecurities through sucking up and self humiliation were over. Now he took to openly insulting himself. He would be the best, but even his tiniest flaws were subject to his own ridicule. At first the other dragons found it funny, but after a while, Jack's reckless treatment of himself began to bother them.

"You okay?" Kimiko said softly as she approached him.

"Yeah," he smiled, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"It's just, well… You've been beating yourself up a lot lately. What's bothering you?"

Jack thought. What was wrong with him? Nothing that he could tell.

"Nothing," he shrugged.

"You sure?" she whispered.

No, he wasn't…

"Yeah," he whispered.

"Okay," Kimiko sighed.

No, he knew what was bothering him.

"Hey, Kimiko," he called after her.

"Hm?" she turned to him.

"If, um, if not being a chosen one, uh, hmm… If there was some stipulation that… If I could never be as good as the rest of you, you'd tell me, right?"

Kimiko was confused. What was he talking about?

"Yeah, I guess," was all she could say.

"Right," he sighed.

"Why?"

"I've just got this nagging feeling that Wudai'll be the end of my training…"

Kimiko laughed, "Hardly! You need to train to become a full-fledged dragon! Wudai is nowhere near the end," she patted him on the back, "You'll get there, someday."

Jack winced, "I guess."

"Don't worry about it," she smiled, "You'll do just fine."

"But what if I don't?"

Kimiko's smile faded.

"What if I'm predestined to fail?"

Kimiko laughed, "Oh please don't tell me that you believe in that crap, Jack? 'Predestined'? Please. Your future…"

"Is what you make it," he interrupted, "I know."

"Then make it a good one. I mean, despite the rough start, you really are a good person."

Tears burned in his eyes.

"Thanks," he wavered.

"So come one," she laughed, trying to better his mood, "We want you to train with us. We wanna see how you'll interact with the Dragon X Kumei formation."

"But you're all past that…"

"But you're not."

"I don't…"

"We need to help you train so that one day you can be as good as us! So come on," Jack felt a weight lift from his heart, "Let's train."

"Okay," he smiled.

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A/N: Since I'm heading off to college, chapters will be a bit sporadic for a while. I don't plan on dropping this story, so just hang in there please! Thanks again to all those who read and to those who comment. I really do appreciate your patience.