Crazy Trouble With Love Part 6

by yugiohfan163

Continuation, again what more can I say if you've come this far?

78. Hsi Wu and Jade

Crazy trouble with love part 6

Hsi Wu and Jade

Series: Jackie Chan Adventures

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It was another day in the Nether realm, that is it was day for the inhabitants after waking up. Without an actual sun it was difficult to say otherwise. Sitting on one of the countless floating rocks that made up the entirety of actual land was the demon sorcerer of the sky Hsi Wu.

Being the most energetic of his family he normally had a hard time keeping still. However today was one of those days where he simply had no idea of what to do.

Flying around the endless void got old fast, and other than sitting, the floating pieces of land served no real purpose for him due to his lack of muscle. He had exhausted all of the tricks he had in his repertoire on his brothers and sisters and they could see him coming without even turning around. Also with his nephew, Drago, possessing his chi it wasn't long before he too caught onto his antics.

If the being banished to this place was punishment, it certainly felt as such in these moments of absolute boredom. He growled before shouting out at nothing and fell on his back. "I'm so bored!"

"Oh shut it!" barked his lightning happy brother as he sat on his own rock.

"This is no more pleasant for us than it is you little brother." Tso lan spoke.

"Of course, there is very little to do in this prison." frowned Xiao Fung.

"This is no prison Uncle Xiao, this is Hell." Drago remarked. "Especially with this walking handbag." he pointed a thumb at Shendu.

"Silence you insolent child! You and I wouldn't even be here if you had just released me." hissed the dragon.

"Hey! I was doing what you never could, I got farther than all of you in the whole world domination thing. You needed an old book just to cheat your way into taking over the world."

"Bite your tongue, unless you want to be nothing more than a cushion for your Aunt." growled Bai Tza while pointing to Po Kong.

"Please, with all your chi combined, I could bench press Aunt Po without breaking a sweat. And for someone who's so smart you were pretty stupid not to realize that if you flooded San Francisco you'd drown everyone and be left with two empty kingdoms." shot Drago with his arms crossed and a cocky smirk.

The water demon hissed with her tentacles sticking up. "You are most certainly your father's son."

"And give the woman a prize for this year's 'No Duh' trophy."

"Dai Gui no understand." the earth demon scratched his head. "Dai Gui see no trophy."

"He was insinuating Bai Tza was a fool." spoke Tso Lan.

"No dip brainiac and can you please stop sticking your tongue out like that? Its gross."

"Why you chose to have children Shendu I'll never figure out." Po Kong remarked.

"Well auntie, maybe it's because you got more rocks for brains then Uncle Dai Gui does."

"Dai Gui has no rocks in head." frowned said demon.

"Everyone just calm down." Xiao Fung spoke up. "Let's not let a mere child get us wound up. Especially considering he might have gotten farther, but ultimately fell like all of us."

"And by Chan's of course." Hsi Wu remarked. "Honestly, even with our combined chi you lost to that family as we did. You are a disgrace."

"At least I wasn't dating one of them Seymour."

"I was NOT doing that!" he growled flying up to Drago's face.

"Yeah right, you actually miss that half pint Jade. Why else would you still have her camera?"

Hsi Wu looked at him shocked while the other demons looked at their sibling with frowns. "Tch, for your information brat, I kept it to watch you father's pathetic self when he was a disembodied spirit."

"Oh and you just happen to forget to record over the parts with her in it?" Drago asked stepping up. "Because if you've got nothing to hide, you won't mind showing us."

"NO!" he flapped his wings flying up the air. "You'll just break it to spite me!"

"Or maybe you know I'm right." smirked his nephew.

"Hsi Wu, give us the camera." ordered Tso Lan.

"No! it's mine!" he then flew away as fast as he could. He had to narrowly dodge a bolt of lightning that nearly took off his wing or rocks that were sent flying at him. "Leave me alone!"

"Get back here!" roared Shendu. He was happy not to be target of torment for once after so long.

Hsi Wu growled and swooped down to try and lose them. Bai Tsa was right on his tail and gaining. He needed something to slow her down, he spotted a larger rock up and had an idea. He flapped even harder to increase speed heading straight for the large land mass and Bai Tsa went faster also. When they got close Hsi Wu used his wings as air brakes. Unfortunately for Bai Tsa without anything to slow her down, the water demon splattered against the rock.

Hsi Wu snickered before taking off again. "Now who's more cunning Sister?!"

"Ooooooh! I loathe him!" Bai Tza screeched as she reformed her body from the water.

'Now to lose the rest of them.' he looked back and saw the rest of his family right behind him.

"Uncle Tso, use your gravity powers to throw Dai Gui!" Drago suggested.

Tso Lan held his hand out and covered Dai Gui in his magic before reeling his arm back and hurled it forward.

He shot at Hsi Wu like a bullet and grabbed the younger brother as they fell to another of the many islands of stone. Dai Gui searched him until he found the device only to break it into pieces from putting too much pressure in his grip.

"No! You idiot!" growled Hsi Wu.

"Aw man." Drago groaned. "I guess the funs over."

"I wanted to crush it." Tchang Zu muttered.

"Serves you right." Bai Tza said coming up to them.

Hsi Wu was shaking on his hands and knees over the device and was sniffling as his claws scraped the ground. "No….you ruined it."

"Quit your sniveling," Tso Lan waved off. "It was only a mere human device."

"IT'S NOT JUST THIS!" Hsi Wu roared. "IT'S THE ONLY THING MAKING MY STAY HERE TOLERABLE WITH USELESS SACKS OF MEAT LIKE ALL OF YOU!"

All the demons were honestly speechless at the outburst.

"EVERYTHING I HAD THAT WAS DEAR TO ME, YOU RUIN EVERY TIME! EVERY TIME!" he slammed his fist into the ground below him. "WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE SUCH TORMENT?! WHY MUST I SUFFER HERE WITH YOU?! WHY?! WHY?! WHY?! WHY?! WHY?! WHY?!" he repeatedly punched the ground even as his knuckles began to bleed. Tears ran down his cheeks and dripped to the ground."I'D RATHER DIE THAN SPEND ONE MORE MINUTE TRAPPED WITH ANY OF YOU! I DON'T WANT TO BE A DEMON ANYMORE! I WANT TO REPENT!"

His screams echoed in the void and were heard by an imposing figure who sat upon a throne. He looked like a middle aged man with elegant robes and black accents while wearing wooden sandals and a sword set across his lap. "Poor creature, I believe you have suffered enough." he spoke and reached out his hand and it glowed with a heavenly light.

Hsi Wu bursted into green flames and screamed in agony. The demons were shocked while seeing Hsi Wu slowly burned by the flames.

"Hsi Wu!" cried Bai Tza. She slithered over and tried to douse the flames but they would not go out. "HSI WU!"

"What the heck is going on?" Questioned Drago who was more freaked out then his other relatives.

"YES! THIS IS IT! I'M GOING TO DIE! Not the way I would have like to escape this place, but no matter, I could care less!" cried out Hsi Wu before his body slowly burned away into nothing in the flames.

"He's...gone?" Po Kong questioned with disbelief.

"That's not possible." spoke Tso Lan.

"What a way to go." Drago blinked.

Hsi wu opened his eyes, his vision was blurry and it was hard for him to make things out. He groaned and felt his whole body was in pain. "Ugh! I'm still alive? What was the point of that then?"

He slowly sat up with a hiss and saw nothing but dirt and rocks all around him. He groaned in annoyance and was tempted to bash his face in the ground before his vision started clearing. He blinked and saw the sky was blue instead of red, and the air actually felt free and relaxing. "What?" he looked around and saw he was in a desert. 'Am I dreaming?'

He quickly pinched his arm and winced at the pain. "No, I'm not dreaming." his lips slowly worked into a grin and he began laughing. "I'M BACK IN THE MORTAL WORLD!"

He crouched down before flying up into the air and started flying around in celebration. He flew through the sky spinning and barrel rolling happily "I'M FREE!"

After a good few minutes the excitement died down, he found an old shack, and took a moment to relax and contemplate how and why he was set free. He sat on the porch and tried wrapping his mind around it.

"Alright, I was yelling at them, got caught on fire, felt lots of pain, then passed out. It all seems so random." he rubbed his chin as he mulled over his thoughts. "The fire wasn't Drago or Shendu, so they didn't try to kill me. Ugh this is all so confusing! There's only one person I can think of to answer this, I just hope he doesn't have those protection spells up."

Hsi Wu spread his wings before taking off from his spot on the porch.

(Timeskip)

He searched days going from one city to another but did not find the one he was looking for until one afternoon he arrived at one with a familiar bridge. "Ah, San Francisco, finally!" he flew to a large spire with triangular shapes near the top and stopped to rest his tired wings.

"If I wanted, I could fly wherever I wanted to. No boxes to hold me, no siblings to bully me, and none of that accursed red sky! But first I need answers, let's see now." He noticed much of the city had changed. He so hoped his desired location was still the same. "If I'm right it should be straight ahead and to the left."

He waited till he caught his wind before flapping up into the air and flew in the direction. After landing in a hidden location he changed his form into a human with a black suit, fair skin tone and black hair. "If they recognize me, I hope they'll give me a chance to speak before throwing me out." he walked along the street and turned the corner to see a familiar shop that made him smile. "Perfect. Just like I remember it."

He walked in and saw Tohru at the counter. He cleared his throat while walking up. "Excuse me, I was wondering if there was a certain someone here. I hear he can help me figure something out."

"Here at Uncle's rare finds we do our best to provide the best help to anyone. What is it you need?"

"I need-" before he could finish his sentence the door burst open.

"We're home!" called an almost familiar female voice that made both turn to the door.

When Hsi Wu looked to the door his jaw almost hit floor. There standing at the door was an older Jade wearing a long black sleeved jacket which was opened to show a blue shirt underneath it and with matching jeans and white sneakers and with the same kind of face from when she was little, but more mature. 'By the heavens.'

"Jade, try not to kick the door open." grunted Jackie who was carrying some bags and who looked like he had some grey hair on the sides, but nothing too bad.

"Let me help you with that uncle Jackie." said Jade taking a few of the bags. She turned and noticed the demon in disguise and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, sorry. You a customer?"

He felt his stomach twist in knots and his hands get sweaty as she looked at him with those brown eyes. "Uh...Hello." he greeted. "You'll have to forgive me, I haven't been myself lately."

Jade and Jackie walked inside while Tohru walked over and took most of the bags to help lighten their load.

"Um, I was wondering if there was a….elderly man here. I hear he is somewhat of an expert in the supernatural."

"Yeah, Uncle can handle anything that goes bump in the night." Jade replied while Jackie and Tohru took the bags in the kitchen. "Wait, this isn't some prank right? Cause we tend to gets those from time to time from street punks."

"With someone like you working here, I can understand why if only to be close to such a lovely young lady." he found himself saying in a polite tone.

Both Tohru and Jackie blinked at the man's words and looked to each other.

Jade on the other hand crossed her arms with a smirk. "Flattery can only get you so far. Trust me, I've heard guys say that before."

"I don't doubt that. A maiden as fair as you must have quite a number of suitors fawning over her."

"Are you really here to speak to Uncle or just wanted an excuse to come in here and flirt with me?" she asked while feeling amused for some reason since this guy felt familiar.

"Originally I came for answers, but I wasn't expecting to meet such a radiant creature such as yourself, however I sense in you a wild and adventurous spirit." he said while looking into her eyes.

"Uh, thanks." she replied while looking at his eyes and got a quick memory image of Hsi Wu as Seymour and shook her head before stepping back. "So why exactly did you come here to ask for Uncle anyway?"

"I needed information about green fire and demons." he replied. "I….found something in an old book and wanted to see if they were a good sign or cause I couldn't read the language. Is he here?"

"He's in the back." said Tohru.

"UNCLE! We got a customer out here wanting to talk to you." Jade called.

"You do not need need to shout! Uncle is not deaf yet!" called the old man walking out while relatively looking the same while rubbing his ear. "Yes? How may Uncle help you?"

"Yes, I was hoping you could help me. See I'm doing research on demonology and I heard you might have some books on oriental demons."

"Ah, but of course." he smiled walking over to a bookshelf. "Uncle has numerous books and scrolls on demons most people have forgotten who have existed since the beginning of time."

"Great, mind if I look through them?"

"But of course, but be very careful, some texts are very old and delicate." Uncle warned.

"I will treat them with the utmost care." he bowed before walking over and looked across the titles before pulling one off the shelf and slowly flipped it open. He went through book after book until he eventually found some thing. "'The Jade Emperor's mercy'."

"Ah yes, quite the tale when it all began." spoke Uncle with a smile. "The Jade Emperor was one of the first gods and whom was well known for being one of the Three Pure Ones."

"Yes I heard that too." he said before skimming the pages and found some thing. 'At times imprisoned demons who wished to redeem themselves were given their freedom. However the spell that grants them this freedom will be undone should the demons prove they are unworthy and be returned to their prisons.' he rubbed his chin. 'If it was him who brought me here, then I need to prove myself to stay.' he then closed the book and looked to Uncle. "Thank you, this was most informative."

"Any time, would you care to purchase it? It is a very rare one of a kind that is said to be very few in numbers."

"No, The knowledge alone is priceless, better it stay in the care of someone who appreciates antiquities."

"You know, we never got your name." remarked Jade.

He went rigid again and started to think. "Oh, right. How stupid of me I'm...Simon…" he looked around and spotted a portrait of a stormy day. "Cloud."

"Well Mr. Cloud, if you are satisfied with your answer, perhaps Uncle can interest you in some of the fine antiques here in Uncle's shop." smiled the chi master gesturing to the various items.

"Uh, perhaps another time, I'm thinking about moving here in San Francisco, but I need to find a place to live first. But afterwards I'll give you a call." he said before slapping one last glance at Jade and waved before leaving.

"He seemed nice," Tohru said. "and I think he likes you Jade."

"Not the first guy." she shrugged while cupping her chin. "But something about him just seems familiar, like he's hiding something, it feels like when...Hsi Wu tricked me." she finished with a frown. "Besides he didn't even ask for my name."

"I'm sure you are just being paranoid Jade." her uncle Jackie said comfortingly and put a hand on her shoulder. "He and the other demons are sealed away forever, now come on, we need to get dinner ready."

"Yeah, alright." she said, but she couldn't shake her suspicions.

Meanwhile Hsi Wu walked along the streets, unable to get Jade out of his head. She had most certainly blossomed since childhood. "She was enjoyable as a child, but it seems time has been quite good to her. Aside from that I'm going to have to watch my step from now on. The last thing I want is to go back to that prison."

As he walked, a person in an overcoat and hat bumped into him. Feeling a hand go in his pocket Hsi Wu grabbed the man's wrist before grabbing the collar of his coat and pushed him into an ally knocking over some trash cans. "You dare try to steal from me you lowly thief?" he growled and picked him up and pinned him to the wall. "I was masterfully picking pockets before you were even conceived." growled Hsi Wu.

"Please, don't turn me in!" the man begged and squirmed as his hat fell off revealing him to be none other than Shendu's former lakey/host Valmont. Although it would seem life had not been kind to him.

"Wait, I remember you. You once served Shendu."

Valmont's eyes widened. "How do you know that lying dragons name?"

"Oh I know more than just his name." Said Hsi Wu turning his head back to its demonic form for a split second then human again with the exception of his glowing red eyes.

"Y-Y-You're one of his brothers!" he spoke with horror. "But...how? You should be in the nether world!"

"Let's just say I'm in parole, and keep it at that." he said dropping Valmont on his ass.

"Well, what are you doing back here?"

"For one, I'm going straight." he replied. "I have a chance to start over and I'm not going to waste it."

"So what? You plan to pass yourself off as a human? Not to burst your bubble but things have changed since your time."

"Oh really?" the demon raised an eyebrow. "Then you won't mind explaining, now."

"Well for one. Do you have any form of identification? Like a driver's license or perhaps a credit card?" Valmont questioned.

"What's a 'driver's license'?"

Valmont deadpanned. "I see you are in serious need of instructions." he said before grabbing his hat and standing up. "The point is that though you may look the part, there's a lot that is required if you want to avoid getting caught. If I still had the resources I use to, I could fabricate an entirely new life for you, but your insidious brother bled my funds dry searching for his wretched talismans."

"And you're a fool to trust him, What did he promise you in return?" asked Hsi Wu with mild curiosity.

"The lost treasure of Ching Xi Hung?" Valmont shrugged.

"You know dragons never give up their treasure, right? They hoard it for themselves, it's in their nature."

"A fact I learned far too late." said Valmont feeling his blood boil. "I snuck into his palace to steal it. I had it in the palm of my hands only for it to turn to dust before my very eyes. Now I have nothing, no dark hand, no resources, I'm nothing but a petty pickpocket and I can't even do that right anymore."

"Hmmm...what if I could get you into Shendu's palace, would you be willing to help me?"

"Ha! Nice try, but I'm done working with demons. Besides, everything there is dust and more dust. Also the palace only appears during the chinese new year."

"That is merely due to a spell Shendu put on it. It's a way of keeping thieves out when he's not around. I can get us in and once the treasure is outside its walls the spell has no effect on any of it. Besides it's not like you have anything more to lose from trusting me."

Valmont let that sink in and thought it over. One half of him wanting to leave and forget about it, with the greedy half of him pondering on what he'd do with all that wealth.

"It's a fair trade, I help you get your resources back and you in turn help forge a false life so I can pass of as human, deal?" Hsi Wu held out a hand as Valmont turn to glance back at him.

"...fine." he took the hand and shook it. "But you had best keep your word."

"You were dealing with a dragon before, a true demon keeps his word." Hsi Wu assured. "We just put some twist on it for a good laugh."

"Very well, then we just need a way to get to Hong Kong."

"Hello, demon lord of the sky?" he said before changing back to his true form and jumped to grab the man in his talons. "Hold on tight." he said before taking off with a screaming Valmont whose hands clung to the demons ankles.

(Later)

Despite the extra weight, they still made good time in getting to the location of Shendu's palace.

Hsi Wu let go of the man and let him drop to the ground.

"Oh yes! Sweet ground." spoke Valmont with relief laying flat on his stomach while rubbing the dirt. "I never want to leave you again."

"Are you done?" Hsi Wu questioned with his arms crossed.

"One moment…..okay now I'm finished." he said as he pushed himself back on his feet.

"Good because the treasure is nearly ours." the demon said looking at the clearing. He held his hands up and started making odd gestures before thrusting them out towards the plain. The ground started to rumble making Valmont wabble to keep his balance. Slowly the palace began to rise up around them from the ground and stood tall in all its magnificence.

"Well that's certainly a handy way to keep unwelcome guests out." Commented Valmont.

They walked through the palace and made their way to the treasure room.

"Ah. Just as I remember it." Valmont said with a grin while rubbing his hands together looking at the piles of riches. "And you're positive they won't turn to dust?"

"Only if its still here when we leave, and with Shendu gone we can help ourselves. So go ahead and take as much as your pockets can carry."

That was all he needed to hear before he ran over and started to grab handful after handful of gold and shoveled them into his pockets. "With all this I can rebuild my criminal empire a hundred fold."

"Actually since this is my brothers, I'll be taking half. I need to pass as human so I'll need money too."

"Fine by me, even with half I'll still be living easy for the rest of my days!" he said with an almost mad cackle.

"So long as you keep your end of the bargain Valmont." said Hsi Wu leaning over him. "Remember, you made a deal with a demon, the consequences of refusing to pay back what you owe should be very clear."

Valmont shuddered and gulped before nodding. "Trust me, after I'm back on top I'll get you the best forgers around. Why they could even make you sound like you were born in the fifties and no one would be none the wiser."

"I'll have a list of requirement drawn up." the demon said as he walked out of the room.

"I honestly thought raiding my brothers treasury would get me sent back to the netherrealm. Guess it's true what they say, it's not steal if it's already stolen. Wait till Shendu hears about this."

(2 weeks later)

Valmont was sitting in his new office dressed in the finest green suit and tie money can buy and a folder on his Mahogany desk. "Ah, now this is the only way to live." he said sinking into his office chair.

*beep*

"Mr. Valmont, there's a Mr. Simon Cloud here to speak with you." spoke his secretary over the intercom

"Good, let him in." he replied standing up before the double doors opened and Hsi Wu stepped in. "Ah! Mr. Cloud, how wonderful to see the man who helped me get back on my feet." He said with Hsi Wu narrowing his eyes. "Eh heh, *gulp*, uh, why don't I just close this so we can talk in private?"

"Do you have the documents?" he asked after the doors were shut.

"Of course." he pushed the folder over with a smile. "I had everything done to your exact requirements right down to this date, your name is Simon Alex Cloud, early 20's and you recently came into a large sum of money via inheritance."

Hsi Wu took the folder and opened it before looking over the paperwork. "These are some of the best forgeries I've ever seen."

"I told you I'd get the best men around." smiled the man leaning back in his chair. "I also made sure that the inheritance can't be found out as fraud by using some old names from china, and tossed in some info on some relatives who just happen to be dead and who were already questionable of having more children it says so it wouldn't be farfetched to think you happen to be one of them and who just happened to get all the money they had. Getting the false medical records onto a hospital mainframe and files took some work but it wasn't impossible."

"Thank you," Hsi Wu said closing the folder. "but before I leave, I have a little advice for you."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"Quit the criminal life while you can, I can honestly tell you from experience that it doesn't end well." he explained before leaving the office.

"It does when you have the money." remarked Valmont to himself with a smirk.

'Now to see if Jade's interested in a little date.' He got a cab and instructed the driver on where to go.

(Uncle's Rare Finds)

The cab pulled to the curb before Hsi Wu stepped out. As it drove off he adjusted himself and smirked before walking up and walked in. This time it was Uncle who was at the counter.

"Welcome to Uncle's rare… oh you again, you need more answers of demons?"

"No, this time I'm here as a paying customer. I've come into a large sum of money and decided I needed some new furniture. And... perhaps to speak with that lovely employee I met on my last visit, as embarrassing as it is I never asked for her name."

"Ah, you must mean my great niece. Jade! Come down, someone is here to see you!

"Coming!" called Jade who walked down and spotted Simon. "Oh, hey I remember you. You're the sweet talker with a fascination for demons."

"Simon Cloud. Jade huh? I gotta say the stone itself doesn't hold a candle to your radiance." he smiled to her as she came down the stairs.

"Dial it back a bit casanova." she held a hand up. "First buy a girl dinner before getting all sappy."

"Jade!" Uncle scolded. "Mr. Cloud is here to speak with you and make a few purchases. So behave yourself."

"I know I know." she sighed, even as old as she was her uncles still treated her like a child.

"Now then Mr. Cloud will you be paying in cash or credit?"

"Cash, and can I see that pad and pen?" he asked with Uncle handing it to him. He scribbled something on it and showed it to the old man. "I'm sure this amount can cover the charges."

The minute Uncle's gaze fell on the paper his heart nearly stopped. "AIYAH!"

"What? What is it Uncle?" asked Jade with concern as she moved around the counter and looked at what he wrote. "Woah….that's a lot."

"I have money to burn so why not use it, can't take it with you to the next live and it can't love you back." Hsi Wu said with a smile. "And I still have much more where that came from. Also if you're interested Jade, I could treat you to a date tonight maybe." he asked.

"Um, thanks, but...I'm kinda….busy tonight! Yeah, I have to...do my hair." she said lamely before Uncle jumped up.

"Don't be silly. Your hair is fine." he said with a laugh before leaning in close to her. "Please Jade, Uncle needs at least one good sale this week. Too many antiques coming in and not enough going out."

"But-" she looked at Uncle and then the paper before sighing. "Fine, but I better get a bigger allowance."

"Uncle promises." he said and moved over to Hsi Wu. "Now then Mr. Cloud, look around and pick whatever you like. Perhaps this satchell to put your folder in?"

He looked down at the folder he got from Valmont. It would be bad if he dropped it and scattered the papers for them to see and find out he wasn't who he said he was. "I'll take it!" he burted.

"Very good." nodded Uncle who handed it to him .

Hsi Wu opened it and quickly put the folder inside.

"Now then how about a nice ming vase?" Uncle suggested. "It will make an excellent conversation starter."

"Let's do business." Hsi Wu said putting the bag down.

Over the next few minutes Jade watched them talk and debate which antiques to buy when her gaze fell on the satchel. 'He was pretty eager to get a hold of that bag to stash those papers, I feel like he's hiding something, but what?' she glanced at them and the bag before slowly moving towards it. She opened the bag slowly and peeked inside.

"Jade!" yelled Uncle.

"Ah!" she yelled and closed it back up.

"It is rude to go through one's private things. Especially when they are customers!" he said and took the bag from her. He turned to Hsi Wu and bowed. "I apologize on behalf of my niece, she can get quite nosy."

"It's quite alright." he said while feeling nervous. "Now I trust you'll have my purchases moved to my address when I'm ready for them?"

"Of course. Uncle ensures everything is sent in one piece."

"Good, now if you'll excuse me I'll be on my way, but I'll be back to pick Jade up at seven." he winked at said girl before heading out.

Later Jade was getting ready for her 'date' while talking to Jackie through the bathroom door. "I'm serious, that guy is hiding something. You should have seen how eager he was to get his hands on that bag to hide that file."

"Jade, that's called privacy. Everyone does it. After all, weren't you the one who tried to hide your stashes of halloween candy under the mattress when you were younger?"

"Don't try to turn this around on me Uncle Jackie. Whatever was in that file was something he doesn't want people seeing." she said before walking out. "How do I look?" she asked wearing a white shirt under a red top and blue jeans.

"You look great Jade." he smiled. "Just relax and have a fun time. But also be careful."

"I'll have to be with this guy. I mean, who offers that much money? It's way too generous for any normal person." Jade said as they made their way down stairs.

"Or maybe you just want an excuse to stay home and wait for me to get sent on another dangerous mission so you can follow me." teased Jackie with a smile and raised eyebrow.

"I don't do that, anymore." she huffed crossing her arms.

"He seems like a nice man Jade, just go out and spend some time with him. Who knows you might like him."

"And you can get your green card if you marry him." added Tohru.

"Not helping." she spoke with an eye twitch.

"Well let's not go that far just yet Tohru." Jackie said not liking the idea any more than Jade just yet. "Trust me Jade. A good relationship is just what you need."

"This coming from the guy who still hasn't asked Viper the big question?" she shot back.

Jackie tripped over his words, trying to come up with an explanation. "I'm waiting for the right time."

"Sure." Jade teased as she laughed.

Hsi Wu arrived just as scheduled, dressed in a new suit he got for the occasion. He gave the front door a knock before waiting. "Here goes nothing." he said just as Jackie opened the door.

"Hello Mr. Cloud."

"Please, just Simon will do." he replied as Jade walked up. "Ah Jade, are you ready?"

"Yeah, let's just get it over with."

"Jade, be nice." said Jackie.

She groaned before walking out to join Hsi Wu. "So what's the plan, romantic stroll, dinner at fancy restaurant then back to your place where you assume you're gonna get lucky?"

"I hear the movies are a good place for a first date."

"Really?" she blinked. "You're not gonna try and make me swoon over some fancy stuff to get me out of my pants?"

"Of course not, I'm not planning on getting you into bed right away. It makes more sense if we got to know each other first. Unlike your former suitors who I assume got a little too grabby?"

"That's...one way to put it."

"I've had my fair share of women, and I've learned that doing something like that is extremely pathetic. In a way life is like a big masquerade party, you think you know a person when you meet them but the minute the masks come off you see what's really underneath, and you might not like what you see."

"Wow, that's pretty deep." she said. "Is that supposed to be your way to make me fall in your arms like some dainty little princess?"

"Naw, you don't seem the type to be into that kind of mushy stuff." he shrugged. "You seem more like the kinda person who likes things toned down, but exciting am I right?"

"Uh yeah." she answered while blinking. 'Who is this guy? How can he read me so well?'

"I hear a new horror movie is playing tonight." he suggested.

"Sneaky 3 better watch your back? Hmm, I have been a little eager to see it. Okay let's go, but don't think for a second I'm going to cling to you if I get scared, which I won't, nothing scares me." she warned with a frown.

However in the middle of the movie Jade was eating her words as she shook in her seat. While Hsi Wu was calmly eating his popcorn and was enjoying the movie and very buttery snacks.

"This isn't as bad as they make it out to be. The villain is overdoing it a little. And the gore is so fake." he said taking another hand full of popcorn. "Other than that it's pretty good."

"Y-Y-Yeah. Really...goo-AAAAHH!" She screamed at a gory scene along with most of the audience as the room was bathed in red light and buried her face in his arm. Making him drop some popcorn on the floor.

"Relax, it's not real. I thought you said you weren't afraid of anything?"

"Sh-shut up." she said with a frown.

(Meanwhile)

After Jackie got a call from Captain Black, he went to the secret phone booth entrance to Section 13. He input the code on the dial pad before it disappeared into the wall and he later met with his old friend in the briefing room.

"Glad you could make it Jackie." Greeted the captain.

"Well you did say it was very important."

"That it is." Captain black said switching the lights off and the projector on. "You remember our old friend Valmont?" he asked as said man's mug shot was projected on the screen

"Yes, I take it he's come back up?"

"Way up, he's rebuild his fortune practically overnight and he's richer than ever. We found this a little suspicious so we talked to his old contacts, some were a little tight lipped but eventually someone squealed. It seems he spent a large amount of money to create a new identity and history of one man calling himself," Captain black switched the picture to one of Hsi Wu in human form. "Simon Cloud."

"What!" cried Jackie with wide eyes.

"No need to be so shocked Jackie, these criminal types do it all the time, the odd thing is that Valmont put a lot of money and manpower into creating, or rather recreating this guy. Not even our computers could tell his history was falsified. We ran a facial scan for any records if criminal activity, no luck. We're totally in the dark on who this guy really is, that's why you're going to question Valmont tomorrow at his favorite Coffee shop."

"Captain Black, Simon Cloud is the man who's on a date with Jade right now!"

This shocked Captain Black before he immediately took action. "I'll send someone to look for and keep an eye on her."

"Is Jade in any danger?"

"I'm not sure, but if Valmonts behind it, it can't be good. Try to call her, find out where she is."

Jackie pulled out his phone and tried to reach her, but there was no answer. "No answer, her phone must be off."

"Do you know where they might have gone?" Black asked

"No, but wherever they are I hope she's okay."

Said girl was in a her favorite diner eating a burger with fries.

"You were right Jade, the food here is pretty good." remarked Hsi Wu biting into some fries. 'The food from the modern world is much better than the garbage mortals use to eat.'

"I gotta say this night wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." She remarked.

"You mean before or after you hugged my arm?" That remark was met with a french frie to the face. "Okay, Okay! I get it, touchy subject." he chuckled.

"Yeah, and speaking of which...are you hiding something?" she asked out of nowhere before biting into her burger.

Hsi Wu wasn't expecting that. He could have just as easily lied but for some reason...he couldn't, not to her. "Look Jade, truth is I wasn't always like this, I did somethings I'm not proud of, hurt some people….did some time. Now, I just want to forget my past and just start over." he admitted while being vague on details. "Please…. don't ask me anymore about it, it hurts to much."

Jade raised an eyebrow while seeing him look away before sighing. "Alright, I won't push the issue. Honestly I can understand being hurt by someone. But it's a different kind of hurt."

'She's obviously talking about me.' he said looking down.

"There was this guy I use to like,"

'Yep definitely me."

"His name was Paco."

"Oh, really?" he blinked. 'Who's that?'

"He was a sweet kid back in the day. We had a lot of good time and plenty of adventures. We were good friends."

'Oh, for a second I thought she meant me.' "So...what happened?"

"Same thing that happens to all boys, puberty. We went to his 14th birthday party and long story short he tried to kiss me, on the lips. I said no but he was just so insistent I ended up smacking him in the face."

"Well at that age boys tend to think with their other head. Did you tell anyone?"

"No, I was too embarrassed. I just stopped talking to him all together. He's still sending me letters now and then. But… I never open them."

"Sounds like you might wanna try and set the record straight you're not into him like that."

"That and it still hurts to think about him after what he did."

"You should at least look at the letters, see what he has to say. Then write back telling him exactly how you feel. You'll feel better once it's off your chest."

"Maybe, but it's not gonna be easy to forgive him."

"Was he the only one who hurt you or was their another?"

Jade looked down for a moment as she went into thought before glowering. "No one worth mentioning." she said in spite.

This hit the demon of the sky demon hard. 'Yeah that ones me.'

"But let's just drop it, it's souring the mood."

"Yeah, that's probably for the best." he said. "But I'm always ready to listen if you need to talk."

"Thanks, I appreciate it. It actually did feel good to tell someone, it's nice to have someone who listens."

"That means a lot." he said moving a hand onto hers. "You're really one in a million you know."

Jade found herself feeling a little flustered at the move and looked away shyly. "You're... not so bad yourself Simon." she said to him.

"Thanks Jade, you don't know how much that means to me to hear those words" he replied feeling lighter than air.

After their meal he escorted Jade back home. "Well good night Jade. See you again tomorrow?"

"Sure, I think that sounds great." she smiled before the two parted and Jade went into the shop. She walked in and looked around. "Jackie? Uncle? Tohru? I'm back."

"Jade?!" Jackie called and ran out from the back. "Oh thank goodness. Why was your phone off? I tried to call you a hundred times."

"Well it's rude to have it on and go ringing in the middle of a movie. Besides, I gotta admit, the date went better then I thought." she said with a smile. "Looks like you were right about this one Jackie. He really is a great guy. He's not pushy, egotistical, or cheap. And he really gets me, not to mention he's rich. Maybe I should start listening to you more often and think about settling down."

"I-wait, say what?" he questioned.

"Yeah I mean having adventures was fun back when I was younger, but when I'm with Simon….it's… I don't know. It s really hard to describe."

He blinked. "Um, but you two went on a single date."

"I know, and it was great." she smiled before hugging him. "Thanks for talking me into it."

He blinked and looked down at her before hugging her back. "No problem." 'Oh no, what should I do? I've never heard her say this on the other dates, but she just went out with a man who might be an extremely dangerous criminal!'

Jade broke from the hug and looked up at him. "We're going out again tomorrow for breakfast."

"Uh, Jade? I need to tell you something."

"Alright, let me just go brush my teeth first. I wanna get to bed early so I can wake up bright and early."

He was shocked to hear those words leave Jade's mouth, as he watched her head upstairs and facepalmed. 'Come on Jackie, this might be Jade's chance at happiness, do you really want to be responsible for taking that away from her? But still…' he pulled out his phone and called Captain Black.

"Jackie, did you find Jade?"

"Yes, she just came home." Jackie replied.

"Did you tell her what we found out?"

"I...didn't really have the heart to tell her." Jackie said.

"What? Why not?"

"You're not going to believe it. She was saying I was right, right to my face, and that she should listen to me more often."

"...for real?" Black asked.

"And she's willing going to bed early."

"We are talking about the same Jade right? The same dark haired spitfire who always says she's old enough to be up as long as she wants?"

"Yes, I mean I know this is important, but if this man could somehow cause her to get like this, well….I'm not sure if I can tell her. At least not until we know for sure she's in any danger. Can you get some agents to keep an eye on her tomorrow?"

"Well, I can try, but are you sure? I mean this is pretty risky."

"I'm sure. We both know she can take care of herself in a fight. But it wouldn't hurt to have some backup if she needs it."

"Alright, but if something happens you'll have to take a lot of responsibility for not telling her."

"I know, but Jade seems so happy. It would break her heart if I told her."

"Well then keep it on the down low while I try to find out as much as I can on him. You do what you can in your end.

The next morning Jackie waited in the shop for Jade to leave. He told Tohru and Uncle everything and they did not seemed pleased. For Tohru it was the the thought of Jade being in danger. For Uncle it was more about the thought of losing a customer.

"I'm amazed Jade would be so quick to go on another date." remarked Tohru. "This Simon Cloud must be one smooth talker."

"I hope Jade realizes she must be careful. Uncle does not want to lose shop before he retires, every customer is valuable."

"Hey guys, I need an opinion on my outfit." she said walking down the stairs. She wore a short sleeved black top with blue jeans and a black bracelet. "Does this look too dark?"

"Well...Eh?" Uncle stamnered.

"Its...I mean it's not." Jackie added.

"Its pretty hot today Jade, and dark colors hold more heat." said Tohru making an excuse to try and keep her from going out.

"Yeah I thought the same thing too. Oh Simon's gonna be here any minute and I'm so not ready." She said and ran back to her room.

"I have never seen her like this." Jackie stated.

"Yes, she is acting like schoolgirl seeing crush." Uncle added. "Almost normal."

"I can only hope this Simon fellow doesn't try anything." spoke Tohru.

"I feel the same way." Jackie crossed his arms before Jade came back

"Okay how about this?" she asked leaving them shocked as she wore a bright orange sundress with a pair of red pumps.

"Aiyah! Jade, that outfit is far too bright." Uncle said

Tohru rubbed his eyes, not believing he lived to see the day Jade wore a dress.

"Hmm, good call, I'll be right back." She said and ran back up.

"Wow, she actually wore a dress." remarked Jackie with surprise. "She really does have it bad."

"Hmm, makes Uncle wonder what her parents will say when they hear of this."

"Do not call them. If they let Jade stay here because her behavior improved they'll be planning their wedding."

"Good point."

"Okay guys what about this?" Jade came down in a white blouse with sleeves that stopped at her elbows, a red skirt and knee high boots. "Is it too bland?"

They were about to answer before hearing a knock at the window and saw Simon waving outside.

"Oh man, guess this will have to do." she said and rushed to the door. She opened it with a smile. "Hey Simon, sorry if you had to wait a bit."

"No problem, you look great in that outfit by the way."

"What this? It's just something I threw on."

"I like where it stuck." he joked with a chuckle.

She chuckled with a small blush. "So, ready to grab some breakfast?"

"Ready when you are." he held his arm out, which she wrapped her own arm around before they walked off with her waving to the others.

"Don't wait up guys!" she called to her uncle's and Tohru.

"Be safe!" Jackie called out and watched them leave with a pair of section 13 agents standing across the street reading newspapers before following the two.

"Do not worry, Jade will be fine." spoke Uncle.

"I hope so, I need to meet with an old a acquaintance." Jackie said he made a trip up town to the coffee shop to wait for Valmont.

He had a newspaper to hide his face while occasionally looking over the top. "No sign of Valmont yet." he spoke into a wire on his collar.

"Keep a look out, he might try to stay low since he's back and might expect us to be onto him." spoke Captain Black through it. He and a team were waiting in a surveillance van across the street.

Jackie was about to respond before spotting Valmont walk into the shop while whistling and headed directly to the counter. "He's here."

"See what you can get out of him, but don't make a scene." Said Captain Black as Valmont placed his order and went to a table to wait for it.

"On it." Jackie stood up and walked to Valmont's table. "I see you're doing well."

Valmont looked up and smiled. "Well, small world isn't it Mr. Chan?"

"I hope you won't mind if I sit here." He said sitting down in the seat across from Valmont.

"Not at all." he smiled folding his hands together. "The fact you're here leads me to guess that you heard about what happened, correct?"

"Criminals like you suddenly gaining a vast amount of money as fast as you did doesn't go unnoticed by section 13."

"Oh I know that, but if you think it was stolen, I can assure you it wasn't. But then again, I could say I worked for it all and you wouldn't believe me for a second, now would you?"

"Not one bit." Jackie said.

"Here ya go dawl." Said a waitress bringing Valmont's order over to him.

"Thank you Christine, here's a tip." he smiled pulling out a twenty and handed it to the waitress.

"Aw thanks." She said before looking at Jackie. "This guy right here, heart 'o gold." She stated pointing to Valmont before leaving the two men.

"It seems you're still good at fooling people as usual." remarked Jackie while Valmont sipped his cup.

"What? Her family owns this place, and makes damn good coffee if I do say so myself. Is it so wrong to want to invest in it?"

"With money that never existed before, yes." He said glaring at the other man.

"It exists alright, and it was all thanks to a help of a generous benefactor. He scratched my back and I scratched his." Remarked Valmont.

"This Benefactor, he wouldn't happen to be Simon Cloud would it?"

Valmont's eyes widened which Jackie took as a yes before he took another sip from his cup. "Never heard of him before."

"Section 13 knows you created a false life and identity for him. We questioned your old contacts."

Valmont clenched his fist and growled. "Ingrates." after all the money he paid them they ratted him out like cowards.

"You can either tell me the truth here or back in Section 13, your choice."

"Look Chan, I may be afraid of going back to prison, but that man scares me even more. You have no idea what he's capable of if I told you...let's just say his type aren't the ones you want to screw over. Just leave him be." Valmont spoke and sipped his drink.

"I can't do that, he's dating my niece." revealed Jackie.

Valmont was shocked by those words so much he did a spit take. "What!" He exclaimed quietly and coughed a little. "Him and Jade?! My lord."

"That's why acting clueless won't work this time."

"Look Chan, I can't tell you his name, but one thing is for sure, you may want to have your uncle get one of his spells ready." Valmont stood from his seat. "I can't be involved in this, he terrifies me. Please just leave me be, like him I just want a fresh start. Now if you'll excuse me I have a meeting to get to."

Jackie watched Valmont leave feeling more confused than before. What happened to the crime lord he used to know? Just who was this Simon cloud and what did he have that would make Valmont so terrified?

Jackie met with Black in the van. "I've never seen him that frazzled before."

"If that's not a good indicator of how dangerous Cloud is I don't know what is." remarked Black. "I think I'm gonna need to send more agents to tag along with Jade to make sure this guy can go down without a fight."

"Contact your agents, I have to know if Jade's okay."

Black grabbed a mic and spoke into it. "This is Captain Black, I'm checking in to hear about Jade and Simon, has there been any suspicious movement or behavior?"

"None so far, he just bought her an ice cream cone, she's just sitting on a park bench."

"Aaaahh!" Jade screamed making Jackie panic.

"What's going on?!"

"He just snuck up behind her and startled her, she looks kinda mad now."

"You jerk!" they heard her shout over the speaker.

"Yep she's defiantly mad. Clouds trying to talk her down."

Jackie sighed with relief and patted his chest.

"She looks like she's gonna let him have it, he's backing up to the fountain."

*Splash*

"Okay now he just fell in and Jade's cracking up."

"Keep a visual, I'm gonna send two more agents just in case, don't lose track of them."

"Understood."

As time went on Jade and Simon headed back to the shop with both of them laughing.

"So uncle Jackie runs as fast as he can screaming 'BAD DAY BAD DAY BAD DAY!' and just barely makes the jump. He was jumpy for weeks."

"Oh man, that sounds like some kind of catchphrase."

"With how often he says it it probably is." she smiled before they stopped. "Thanks again for breakfast, and the ice cream, but I'm not gonna thank you for nearly giving me a heart attack."

"What? Getting soaked through my clothes wasn't enough to say sorry?" he asked smiling and tilted his head.

"Well, it was a start." she said to him.

"Well, then maybe I can make it up to you later. Say, over dinner?"

"I'd like that." she replied.

"Great, what time can I come pick you up at?"

"Maybe...Eight-ish?"

"Then I'll see you there beautiful, dress nice." he smiled before pecking her on the cheek. He was about to pull away before she pulled him into a kiss. His eyes widened at the move, but didn't move away and closed his eyes to kiss back as be wrapped her arms around her waist and pulled her close.

'Man, he doesn't wait around. But damn what a kisser.' she thought.

'Her lips are so sweet, so soft, so divine.' He sighed and tried to moved his tongue into her mouth but she broke the kiss.

"Nuh uh. No tongue on the second date." she smirked. "If you impress me tonight, then we'll see."

"I'll do my best then." he smiled before waving to her as he walked away.

Jade sighed and headed into the shop. "I'm home!" she called

"Jade!" Uncle and Tohru called and came out.

"How was it?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yup, I've never felt better." she smiled and walked by them.

"Well what happened?" asked Tohru looking her over with Uncle. "Did he try anything?"

"Well just wanted a bit of tongue action, but I told him if he did good on the next date tonight I'd think about it." she said feeling a little claustrophobic. "Okay seriously guys, personal space. What is going on with you?"

"Apologies Jade, we are merely concerned." spoke Uncle as they backed up.

"About what? I was just on a date." she said.

"Well... many things can happen on a date." spoke Tohru pressing the tips of his fingers together.

"Considering how many dates I've been on, I already knew that. But you guys are acting like I was on a date with the devil himself."

"Do not say such things, Uncle is old enough and does not need to worry about image like that in head." spoke Uncle. "We are merely being concerned, remember the last two men you went on dates with?"

"I'd rather not." she frowned. "Trust me guys, if something was off about Simon, I wouldn't have agreed to this date tonight."

"Another date?" asked Tohru.

"He scared me so he's making up for it with dinner."

"Scared you?" Uncle raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "How so?"

"He snuck up behind me and scared me, whats with the third degree?"

"Merely being concerned, is that so wrong?"

"You're hiding something aren't you?"

The two fumbled with their words trying to come up with an answer before Jackie burst in.

"Jade, I have to talk to you." he said and walked up. "There's something I need to tell you, something I should have mentioned sooner."

"Can it wait? I need to find the right dress for tonight. Simon's taking me to dinner."

"It's about Simon."

"Well make it quick then."

"Jade….he's made dealings with Valmont."

She looked at her uncle and crossed her arms. "What?"

"Valmont has acquired a vast amount of wealth and regained his criminal Empire. All thanks to money given to him by Simon."

She widened her eyes before shaking her head. "Please tell me this is just some joke, please."

"I'm sorry Jade, but this is what I heard from Captain Black." he frowned while Jade facepalmed and groaned.

"You gotta be kidding me!" She screamed. "What is wrong with me? Why am I drawn to guys who will just end up hurting me?"

"I'm sorry Jade." spoke Tohru putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Uncle wishes there was a spell to help you forget, but there isn't."

"Great, just perfect. Well, now I can add date one of Valmont's friends on my list of bad choices."

"We're going to get him Jade. But we need hard evidence first." Jackie said to comfort her.

"Well what are you gonna do? Make me wear a wire or something?" she asked sarcastically.

He was about to reply before stopping and put a little thought into it. "You know, as much as I hate to say it, that's not a bad idea."

"Jackie, what do you mean?" asked Uncle. "Jade must call date off and get away from bad man, why not have Captain Black have his agents arrest this delinquent and question him harshly?"

"Because we need solid evidence, and from what I saw, Valmont won't testify if it means his life is at risk. For some reason he's terrified Simon."

"So you want me to actually go on this date? Are you nuts?!"

"I know it's out of character for me, but think of this a mission, a mission that would guarantee you a job at section 13."

"...So let me get this straight. You want me to go on a date with some shady guy, to get evidence on what he's done, a guy I thought was different, and all to consider it a way to get in section 13 at the same time?" she questioned and got a nod from him. "Okay, I'm in."

"Now I know it might be-come again?"

"I'll do it. Mostly because I want Cloud to rot behind bars, but a job a Section 13? That's the icing on the cake."

"Well I don't mean you'll get it right away, but I think Captain Black might be persuaded to give you a chance sooner than later if it goes off without a problem."

"Just tell me what to do and I'll get it done."

"I'll get Captain Black on the phone, you just get ready and find something to wear for the date.

After Captain Black was informed about the plan he texted Jade with instructions on exactly what to do. Her 'mission' was to get close to Simon, earn his trust then, have him take her home where she would look for anything incriminating.

Of course she made it clear she wasn't gonna open up, which the agent was fine with, but said it was imperative to get as much info out of him as she could. But the last part, getting into his home would be easy enough, it was looking for evidence that would be tricky.

"Alright, I'm ready." called Jade from upstairs. She walked out in a strapless black dress that stopped a little ways past her hips and black high heel stilettos. "Is this fine?"

"You look fabulous." Black said with a smile.

"Thanks, I just hope that jerk doesn't get any bright ideas." she said.

"Don't worry, if things look dicey then just speak the code word in the wire and we'll rush in. Or if you can't speak then tap it three times in a row. Just try not to get sweet talked into his bed." Black teased.

"Not funny." she deadpanned.

"Sorry, little pre-mission banter." He shrugged.

"So what will the rest of you be doing?"

"Keeping an eye from where ever we can." said Black who handed her a taser. "Now take this incase you get in trouble."

She slipped it in her bag just as the phone rang. She looked on the collar ID, saw it was Simon and took a deep breath before answering. "Hey Simon."

"Hi Jade. Just calling to let you know I'm on my way."

"Great, great. So um, can I ask where we're going?"

"I was thinking this one fancy place down town, it's a bit expensive, but I figured you were worth the treat."

"Okay then see ya." she ended the call. "He's on his way."

"Good luck Jade, and be careful." Jackie said giving her a worried look.

"Relax Jackie, I can handle anything this asshole has in store." she said confidently and headed out.

'I hope so.'

She stood outside the shop and waited for her 'date' to arrive and tried steadying her nerves. 'Easy girl, you got this.'

After a few minutes she turned and saw him walking down the street in a black suit with matching tie and a smile. "Hello Jade, wow you look…..wow."

"Easy there, my eyes are up here, dinner first, not before " she tried teasing while groaning in her head. 'I can't believe I'm actually acting like this.'

"Sorry we have to walk there, my car is...in the shop." 'Or it would if I even had a car.' thought Hsi Wu.

"It's fine, we can use this to really talk." she smiled while grabbing his hand. "Let's go."

"Yes ma'am." he smiled as they walked down the sidewalk with him trying to keep from getting too excited, but that dress was making it difficult. 'She looks breathtaking in black.'

"So...mind if I ask what you do for a living?"

Hsi Wu stiffened up hearing that which made Jade feel she hit a nerve while he coughed. "Uh, well it's nothing big, just a small business on the side. I'm mostly living off my inheritance until it takes off."

"Oh? Is it something your parents left you?"

"Yes, the entire family Fortune." he replied while being vague. "You could say it's something my brother helped with for most of it."

"Brother huh?" 'Probably some random thug.'

"Yes he's...a bit of a hot head." he remarked with a cough. "I don't talk to them much anymore."

"Them?"

"Family in general, we didn't see eye to eye most of the time. They're barely aware I even exist." he frowned. "Sometimes I feel it'd be easier if I was born in some other family."

'Wow, he actually looks down.' she thought while feeling bad for him, but had to keep herself from getting distracted. 'Get your head in the game!'

"But I'm making things feel gloomy, what's your life at home like?"

"Nothing special, I was born in Hong Kong. I come visit my uncle s every summer." she replied. "You could say the biggest moments of my life were when I was just a kid. But that was back when I stayed years at a time."

"Oh? What was it like?" 'As if I need to ask.'

"It was fun for awhile, but I spent my high school days in Hong Kong." she replied while they turned a corner. "Let's just say I was a bit of a troublemaker when I was young."

"I'll take your word for it." He looked at his watch and was surprised by the time. "We better hurry or we'll miss out reservation. Taxi!"

A taxi slowly drove over and stopped before he opened the door.

"After you."

"Thanks." she climbed in followed by him before he shut the door.

"Where to?" asked the cab driver."

"The restaurant up town."

"Which one? There's a dozen of them."

"I'll point you to it."

The driver shrugged before starting up the taxi and drove off.

Jade had to admit the restaurant was pretty fancy. "Huh, you know I pass by this place a lot and never saw the insides."

"I know you're not really into stuff like this, but I thought 'she's totally worth it'." smiled Simon before leading her inside which looked as fancy as the outside.

After a few courses Simon excused himself to use the bathroom. Jade took the chance to take out an earpiece from her purse.

"Hey guys where are you?"

"We're in a van just across from the restaurant." spoke Captain Black. "How's things going so far?"

"Not bad, so far it's just been small talk."

"Find out anything we can use?"

"No, so far we just talked about his inheritance and his family."

"Did he mention any names or what they do?"

"Only that he has a brother."

"Well if you can get any names we might be able to run it through the database and see if we can find any leads on his real name."

"Ok, but I don't want to ask to go back to his place too soon so it doesn't look suspicious."

"Good call."

"Oh I gotta go he's coming back." he looked up as Simon sat back down. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah I'm good." He replied. "Care for some desert?"

"Yeah, but while we wait for the waiter why not tell me more about your family?"

He looked away and rubbed his neck. "I'm not sure, there's nothing really exciting to tell about them."

"You said you had a brother, is it just the one or do you have more?"

"Several, one of which who has a son along, and then there are my two sisters."

"Sounds like you have a few issues."

"It's not something I'm eager to go on."

"Alright let's just forget about it. Hey if you want we could go back to your place and watch a movie or something."

"Oh? So you want to go ahead and see my place already? You don't hold anything back."

"It's Thursday, Uncle always stinks up the shop with mung bean casserole."

"Well give me a sec to pay the bill and we can be on our way."

Black and Jackie waited patiently in the van, either tapping fingers on the dash or fiddling with the windows.

"How much longer can this take?" Jackie questioned as the wait became unbearable.

"Be patient Jackie, you can't rush these stake outs." he replied before seeing them walk out. "Looks like they're on the move."

Jackie looked as the two walked down the sidewalk while holding hands.

Black started up the van and followed the two without drawing attention to themselves before arriving at a hotel. "Oh boy, this part's gonna be the real tricky part." He said opening the door. "We're gonna have to go in."

With the two they were heading up to the highest floor in the building while Jade felt a little nervous as he rubbed her side.

"So….you live in a hotel?"

"Well it's more like a temporary stay at the moment. But...it's plenty cozy." he replied before the doors opened and they went down the hall which had fewer doors compared to the lower levels. "This way." he said and lead her through the hallway.

"Which one's yours?"

"This one, 101." he replied stopping and using his key to unlock the door before they went inside and turned on the light. "Home sweet home."

Jade looked around and was impressed since it was obvious this place was NOT cheap.

"Why don't we don't we sit and get….comfortable?"

"Uh, sure thing." she gulped as he lead her to the the sofa. He sat down beside her while sticking close. 'Hooo boy, getting a little close for comfort.'

"You know, this might be a little fast, but you really are a special girl. Probably the most special one in my life." he said snaking his arm over her shoulders.

"Oh, I'm sure you're just exaggerating." she replied while trying not to shudder or push him away and gulped.

"Believe me, it's completely true." he whispered and moved his hand slowly down her back making her shudder but not like he thought.

'I gotta get him away from me.' she thought and nearly jumped when his hand moved around the small of her waist. 'Fast!'

Hsi Wu wiggled his eyebrows while tilting her chin and started leaning in. He held her close breathing in her scent before sighing.

It was then Jade got an idea and pushed him away. "Uh, sorry about this, but your breath kinda...stinks, didn't you eat the after dinner mints?" she questioned.

He blinked and covered his mouth before moving back. "Uh, well I, I'll be right back!" before running off to the bathroom.

Once he was gone she shivered and reached into her purse and pulled out the earpiece "Captain B, Uncle Jackie, where are you? This guy's all over me like a frisky octopus!" she whispered.

"Relax Jade, we're still here. Did you find out anything new?"

"Not yet, he's brushing his teeth." She said and started looking around. "But I'm in deep here guy's and once he gets back I got a feeling he'll wanna go deep too, and I mean balls deep."

Jackie turned green hearing that and shivered while Captain Black grimaced.

"Please tell me you guys can come running up with here packing heat."

"We can't just break in unless he forces himself on you. Just look around and if he does try getting fresh just say no." Said Captain Black

Jade let out a groan and facepalmed. "Fine. But you better be on this floor."

"Uh…." Captain Black let out looking around at the lobby. "Right."

"Be careful Jade!" Jackie called into the end piece.

"Oh yeah right, like I'm eager to catch what ever STD's this guy is carrying." she rolled her eyes.

Hsi Wu opened the medicine cabinet and tried to find some toothpaste. "Gotta make this quick."

"Brother…" came a distant voice that made him freeze and squeeze the tube in his tight grip.

"W-Who said that?" he questioned.

"Brother?…"

"No...Tsao Lan?" he closed the mirror and went wide eyed when he saw the floating face of his brother looking back at him.

"Ah there you are. I've been looking for you for weeks."

"Tso Lan?" he dropped the tube. "H...How?"

"How did I find you? Well you made it easy by responding to my call. I've been scanning the other worlds looking for you."

He gulped. "Are the others aware of this?"

"Not yet. Brothers! Sisters! I have found him!"

"No stop you fool!" Hsi Wu cried in panic. He saw the other faces appear and growled while facepalming. "Just perfect."

"Hsi Wu?!" Po Kong exclaimed in surprise.

"You're still alive?" asked Xiao Fung.

"Impossible." spoke Bai Tza. "We saw you burst into flames."

"You did, but that didn't mean I was dead. Turns out I was granted something none of you got, a second chance at TRUE freedom, a chance to be rid of that accursed realm forever. And away from you thrice cursed, misbegotten, group of degenerates.'

"Big talk from a demon who looks like a dork." spoke Drago. "What are you, on a date?"

"As a matter of fact, yes." he said looking at the door. "In fact it's the very female who dealt with you dear nephew."

"A-Are you...no."

"Bingo." he said pointing at the mirror. "We just finished dinner and returned to my place."

"You're on a date with that accursed brat? Just what are you planning?" questioned Shendu with narrow eyes. "You should be working towards freeing us."

"You mean like how you 'freed' all of us when you were in Valmont? No, not a chance. You'll just have to figure out how to get free on your own." he smirked while adjusting his hair. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get ready for my night with Jade, I just came into the bathroom to brush my teeth." he said and holding up his toothbrush. "Could a few of you move aside so I can see what I'm doing?"

"How?! How in all the known realms were you allowed a second chance?!" roared Tchang Zu as his brother looked for a gap to see his reflection before casually applying the paste to the brush.

"Seems I was deemed more worthy. That or it was a pity case, I'm fine with it either way." he shrugged and started brushing his teeth.

"Then maybe like Shendu said, you should be trying to find a way for us to get out." frowned Xiao Fung."

Hsi Wu groaned and pulled the brush out. "If I help you there's a chance I will be sent back. I have a life worth living and I'm not going to screw it up just so you can get off on causing destruction."

"Oh please, you're no better. Why I wouldn't be surprised if you're just trying to seduce that child to lower her guard and then end her life." Tso L1an stated.

"Oh she's no child anymore." Hsi Wu grinned as he continued brushing his teeth and chuckled. "Why I'd say she's become quite the beauty, one who could make even Drago here drool like a common mortal teen."

"Hello, from the future. I've seen her."

"Point is, I'm going to do something you couldn't, claim her as my own. Now then, consider this my final goodbye to you all, and enjoy the rest of eternity, you can find someone else as the little scapegoat for entertainment. Personally I think Shendu or Drago would be just perfect. Speaking of whom. I helped myself to your treasury dear brother."

"WHAT?!"

"I also let Valmont have some to help me get my new life started."

"You dare give a human the treasure I spent decades hoarding!?"

"It's not like it was doing you any good. Besides he only took half, and I took the other half."

"When I get out of this world I will roast you both alive and feed you to my underlings!"

"You mean IF you get out." he took some water before spitting it out and dried his mouth. "Ah, much better. Oh and interesting fact, gold is far more valuable now than it was in our time, especially relics so I can live of a few coins a year. I'm living the high life."

Shendu roared out loud while Hsi Wu chuckled.

"So I bid you all a nice eternity." he said before waving a hand in front of the mirror making their faces vanish. "Hmm, wonder if I should use mouth was just to be safe?"

Meanwhile Jade finished looking around the living room and looked in the hall closet. "The hall closet is totally empty guys. Not even a box of holiday decorations."

"That's odd, you'd think he'd have something there." remarked Black. "Look in his bedroom. There's bound to be something in there."

Jade headed down over to the door and slowly opened it and peeked in before going wide eyed. "What the…"

"What is it what do you see?" asked Black as jade walked into the room and approached a number of sacks. Most of which were tied to prevent the contents from spilling out. Except for one that was wide open with its contents of treasure out in plain view.

"I'd say about enough gold and jewels to make Uncle retire for the next few centuries with a lot left over." she said reaching in and scooped out some coins in her hands. "There are dozens of full sacks in here. And if I had to guess I'd say this stuff is pretty old."

"Sounds like he might be some greedy treasure hunter." frowned Jackie. "That treasure belongs-"

"In a museum?" Jade and Black finished together in the form of a question.

"Yes, how did you know?"

"You've been saying that since I was a kid Uncle Jackie. You're predictable when it comes to ancient artifacts." she remarked pouring the treasure back in the sack before seeing a dresser and headed towards it. "Hang on, I got something else." she went to the dresser and opened the top draw. "Huh? Okay that's weird. No clothes, just a bunch of cheesy adult romance novels, oh and look at that more gold and Jewels. Guy must have some in every nook and cranny."

"Anything else?"

She closed the drawer. "One sec." she reached for the bottom drawer and opened in before blinking. "Wow. Okay there's definitely more treasure but there's also a few boxes of Condoms."

"Well, sounds like he either likes to make it seem like he uses protection, or he's one of the rare sleazeballs who do."

"That's not the weird part. Each box has different sizes. Small, medium, large. Is this even normal?"

"Probably something to boost his own ego, or…..maybe he's a virgin and never used one before."

"Wait there's something under the boxes." she said and moved one of the boxes. "The file!"

"That's what we need, take a look and be clear on what it says."

"On it." she replied and was about to reach in.

"Jade?" Simon called.

"Crap, he's coming!" she panicked and pulled out the earpiece and pocketed it before the door opened.

"What are you doing in here?"

"Uh, well you see…"

As she tried to come up with an explanation, he took notice of what she was holding. "Oh I see."

"Y-You do?" she asked as he walked up.

"You couldn't wait to get started." he smiled tapping on the box of condoms.

She blushed crimson and hearing alarms go off. As if it wasn't bad enough she had pulled out the box of large size condoms.

"I didn't think you were that eager, but who am I to keep you waiting?"

Every fiber of her being told her to run, but she needed that file. 'Oh man, I'm gonna hate myself for this.' she thought before giving a seductive look. "The only question I have is this. Do you prefer clothes on or off?" she asked giving her most sultry smile.

He grinned and walked over before wrapping an arm around her waist. "Why don't we keep them on?" he said then knocked everything off the dresser, lifted her up, and sat her down on it.

She tried to stay calm and keep up her smile as he started to trail his hands up her legs and under the bottom of her dress. But the closer he got, and the further his hands went her smile began to falter.

"Don't be afraid." he whispered. "I'll try to be gentle."

That was the straw that broke the camel's back. She looked around for something before spotting a small decorative stature and grabbed it before quickly swinging down against his head where it broke, but the shocking part was he didn't fall down or bleed, but she did see his eyes suddenly turn red with him scowling. "Heh heh?"

"WHAT was that for?" he narrowed his eyes before quickly shaking his head and stepped back realizing what happened and held a hand to his head. "OW! Oh god that hurt!" 'Did she notice? Did I mess up?'

She quickly swung her foot and kicked him right in the jaw before he fell to the floor. She rushed to get the earpiece, but heard Simon groan and saw his hands slowly change into black looking claws and went wide eyed before he sat up and she saw the red eyes again. "What are you?"

He hissed and slowly stood up before seeing the claws and groaned. "Damn it, I was hoping you wouldn't find out about this."

Jade remembered her goal and swiftly retrieved the file. She made a run for the door, but a sudden black tail lashed out and slammed it shut making her turn and go wide eyed seeing it attached to Simon. "Wait, that tail...oh my god! You!?"

"Look Jade, I know what you're gonna say-" he spoke while slowly transforming into his real form while the girl glared and took a fighting stance. "Hold up! I'm not going to fight you."

"After all these years, it just had to be you." she spoke before letting out a battle cry and jumped before swinging her foot towards his head with all her might. He didn't even try to block. It hit and he stumbled a little back, but was still standing and saw her run out.

"Jade please!" he groaned rubbing his head. "At least she didn't aim low."

Said girl ran to the front door and grabbed the knob just as Hsi Wu rushed out of the room and quickly jumped over and put his claw over her hand. "Get away from me!"

"Please at least let me speak." he spoke without taking his claw away. "Let me explai-OOF!"

"Stow it!" she snapped after hitting him in the stomach and tried getting her hand free. Once she did she backed away and looked around before her eyes landed on her purse. 'Oh yeah!' she ran over and pulled out the tazer Black gave her. "Stay back or I'll fry your wings!"

"J-Jade….please." he rubbed his stomach. "I mean you….no harm." he said taking a step forward.

She panicked and fired without looking, sending two electric prongs shooting at his head.

His eyes widened before jolting when he felt a large shock go right into him. He sputtered and twitched before falling down, the battery was completely drained by the time he passed out.

Jade let out a sigh of relief. "Thank god tasers work on demons." she said before sitting down. She glared at the demon before remembering the ear piece and moved to pull it out, but saw it was broken and groaned. "You gotta be kidding me." she whined and dropped it.

That's when she heard a groan and saw Hsi Wu start moving again.

"Oh come on, he takes a whole taser battery and keeps going?!"

"Ugh, please no more." he spoke pulling the prongs from his forehead and groaned rubbing the spot. "What kind of magic was that? I've seen the things humans have made but not something so tiny and still able to give me a jolt like that."

"It's called a taser. And lucky for you it's out of power or my next target would have been between your legs."

He gulped and covered his loincloth hearing that while seeing her cross her arms. "Wait, if it's out of power, then do you have some hidden weapon hidden in your dress?"

"No, but as you've already seen I'm more then capable of defending myself."

"Yeah no kidding." he remarked rubbing his jaw before popping his neck. "It's been far too long since I felt a solid hit like that, one that didn't come from my infernal siblings that is." he said and slowly stood up.

"Well if you're gonna try and keep me here, think again."

He sighed and walked over before sitting down across from her. "Look, I can get why you'd be mad-"

"Mad? Mad! You think I'm mad? Oh no, I'm pissed off! You lied to me!" she glared while he shrunk back. "Do you have any idea what my life was like as a kid?"

"Uh, no?" he answered as more of a question.

"I was an outcast to everyone. Whenever I tried to tell people what Jackie did and all the stuff we've been through, they just laughed it off and thought I was weird. All I wanted was things to go my way and maybe get a little praise because I wasn't just some little girl, I had seen things that would make all of them wet their pants. I was honest and told them amazing stuff, but they just laughed it off and thought I was just an asian transfer student who wanted attention. No one believed a word I said until your nephew from the future started wrecking the city after stealing your powers."

"To be fair, with how much the world's changed and how humans see magic and beings like me as being tall tales, is it really a big surprise?"

"But it wasn't!" she stood up. "It took nearly the city getting destroyed and taken over just for them to realize 'Oh my god, Jade was telling the truth!'. The only satisfaction was after it was over and they all tried to be my friends and suck up to me. But to me, I figured if they were that quick to change, then they weren't worth it. But seeing Drew try and see if he could come on one of our adventures was nothing but gravy. The point is the only one who ever believed me, the only one that I really let in, turned out to be a flying rat!"

He looked away at that remark while rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, you make a good point."

Jade took a deep breath to try and calm down before sitting back down. "Speaking of which, how did you even get back? You were sent back through the portal forever."

"Forever isn't as long as you might think Jade." he remarked with a grin which was only returned with a 'stop stalling' glare from her and sighef. "Okay look from what I could deduce from your Uncle's books. I believe the Jade Emperor, in all his divine wisdom, gave me another chance at freedom."

"The who?"

"You don't know about the Jade Emperor? What did they even teach you back in school?'

"Math, history, and how to write our names in cursive, along with a bunch of other boring stuff."

"Well in short the Jade Emperor is what you might call 'The Big Man Upstairs'." he pointed upwards. "Somehow he decided to take me out of the netherworld in a huge burst of green flames, and I found out that any demon brought back this way is given a second chance, but if they take it for granted and keep doing evil deeds, they lose it for good. And I am not going back there!"

"So in short, you decided you're gonna turn over a brand new leaf? As in turn good? Then what's with you working with Valmont?'

"He tried to mug me on the street and he told me about all I would need to pass for human. So we struck a deal. I give him half of Shendu's hoarded treasure and he had forged documents made for me."

She blinked. "Wait….so all that treasure in your room is Shendu's?"

"Every last piece."

"Ok, now I gotta see what dragon face looked like if he heard that." she remarked with a small smile.

"It was priceless. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets."

"Wait, he already knows? How?"

"We have our ways of communication. The most common is through reflective surfaces. Like the bathroom mirror."

'That explains how Valmont and Shendu talked with them before.'

"I know I lied to you Jade. But I just want to start over." he spoke with his claws together. "Before I met you, before I was banished, I was a demon who had no regards for human life or what they might have to deal with since I had abilities they couldn't wield. It wasn't until I spent century after century being a punching bag for my siblings. When Shendu was a spirit it was him, but now that he's flesh and bone it went to me. I started to feel weak and powerless, something I wonder if that's how the humans felt under my rule. Then when you battled me with Shendu's talisman despite being-"

"If you say small I'm gonna deck you."

He averted his eyes. "I was actually going to say young. The point is I hadn't seen many like you with that sort of fire and determination."

"You did kidnap Uncle."

"I mean someone young and with potential. But now that you mention it I was a little envious of the old man. Not even my own family would come rescue me unless it benefited them."

"I got that."

"Jade please, I beg you. Give me another chance."

"Oh really?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Really."

"Prove it." she said sternly poking his chest.

"Like how? Name it and I'll do it." he said to her clasping his hands together with a glimmer of hope.

She tapped her chin and started to feel a lightbulb go off. "Alright, then from now, whenever you address me, it has to be your highness."

"Oh come now, you don't think that's a little childish?"

"Hey, I might be older, but that doesn't mean I stopped being a kid at heart." she smiled. "Okay, how about you donate a little of that treasure to the museum? You got tons in that room of yours."

"Sounds simple enough."

"Oh that's not all. You're about to learn that modern day women aren't like the pushovers in your day." she said making him gulp. "First off, no drinking, no smoking, no drugs, no gambling, you might wanna get a pen and paper to right all this down."

He looked around and grabbed a pen and paper while getting a chill down his back.

It took another few minutes but he jotted down all her demands. "I actually this stuff." he muttered.

"So long as you follow these rules I'll give you a second chance. But break them and I'll give you hell."

"Yes ma'am."

"Ah ah, what did I say?"

"Yes...your highness."

She smiled. "That's better, and since we're being honest, Captain Black and my uncle are probably worried sick and on their way here since I kinda...came here to get dirt on you. We wanted some info on just who you were, but this might be something they REALLY didn't expect."

"As long as I don't have to do that 'your highness' rubbish in public or around others I'll comply."

"Alright, then let's go see them, with you as a human, and let me try to get them to stay cool. If they see you they'll probably shoot first and ask questions later."

"Understood...but don't tell the old wizard, I wanna see the look on his face when he sees me."

"Easy, if you spook him too hard he'll croak." she joked as Hsi Wu turned into Simon.

"Captain Black, please tell me the signal didn't go silent because of….you know." Jackie asked.

"I'm not sure, all I'm getting is static." he frowned looking at the ear piece. "We're gonna have to take a chance and make our move." the two made their way to the elevator before seeing Jade and Simon walk out of it.

"Jade?" Jackie spoke in question

"Hey guys."

"What happened?"

"You're not going to believe this one." Jade remarked as Simon's eyes turned red and the scene fades to black.