Seriously you guys, I am sooooo Sorry for not doing this faster.
Raimundo was completely amazed. Jackie could actually talk with the animals and understand what they said. But then a thought ran through his mind: the only friends Jackie has are the Jackbots and the animals, and no one else… which made him feel sad and sorry for her.
That sadness quickly went away when the pale girl smiled at him. And he couldn't help the light blush that appeared on his cheeks. He couldn't understand what was happening. Why was he always blushing when she smiled at him? Why did he look at her and think to himself 'I'll never find another girl as beautiful as this one' ?… Why did he wish to touch that beautiful snow white skin?…
He managed to smile back at her. What should he say to her?
"I'm amazed…"
"Excuse me?"
"I'm amazed." he repeated "I've never met anyone that could talk with the animals and understand what they say. It must be awesome."
"Well, yes, it is…"
"But how did you learn it? Is it some kind of gift?"
"Well, I do talk with them since I remember, but I guess that it's mainly because of my father."
"What… what does your father do to you?…"
Jackie sighed. She hated to recall what her dad does to her and her mother. Still, Raimundo had asked her that question, and he had the right to know. So she started talking.
She told him everything, explaining how her father used to lock her in her room and how much Jackie and her mother suffered because of him.
"So you see," she said after telling her whole story "since the doctor said the reason for my illness was the fact that I was always inside the house, my father decided that I could go to the forest, but only in two conditions."
"Which were?" Rai asked.
"One, I could only walk in this forest, and two, he would always come with me."
"Oh…hey, wait up! Then, how come you're here? Shouldn't you be locked in your room?"
"Nah. My dad started travelling around the world, so he's never here. But before he went away, he told my mom to keep locking me in the room and always come with me whenever I went to the forest."
Raimundo looked like he was really curious. Well, actually, he was…
"And what did she say?"
"She said she would, but… well, let's just say that she's not very good at keeping promises…"
Raimundo smiled.
"Your mum seems to be quite a nice person" he said.
"She is. I may have an awful father, but at least I've got a great mother…"
"So… that's when you learned to talk with the animals. When you started walking in the forest."
"That's right."
"Wow… "
The rabbit Jackie was holding twitched its nose and the pale teen seemed to pay attention to the white animal.
"Oh, c'mon, you always say that!" she said.
"What? What did it say?" Raimundo asked, not knowing if it was male or female.
"She said my dad's the demon in an human form…"
The darker boy couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips.
"You know, that's kinda cute coming from a rabbit…"
The animal looked at the boy like if it said 'if you weren't a friend of Jackie, I would kill you right here, right now!'
The brazilian shivered at the rabbits gaze, which made the redheaded girl giggle.
"Don't worry, few are the times she doesn't do that."
Those words made Raimundo relax a bit and smile once again.
They kept silent for a while, focusing their attention on the animals. Until Spicer broke the silence.
"I hate to tell you this, but we can't meet eachother while my dad is here…"
"What? He's coming home?"
"Yes. And if he finds out that I've been with you, who knows what he'll do to us."
"Us?"
"My mother, me… and you…"
Rai shivered, afraid of what the girl's father would do to him if he found out.
"Since he's always suspicious about me and if I meet someone, he would easily find out about everything that's been going on here." Jackie finished.
"Oh yeah, speaking of being suspicious, I've also been having problems back at the temple. You see, Kimiko is constantly watching me and everything I do. I'm afraid that she might find out that I've been sneaking out of the temple."
Jackie gave the boy a worried look.
"That's bad! That's really bad! What if she goes to your room to check on you?! If she sees… that you aren't there… she'll know you're gone!" The albino teen started to panic. She grabbed Raimundo by his jacket and shook him while she said the last sentence.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, Jackie. I took care of it." he said, trying to calm the girl down. "I made a fake body and placed it under my sheets. I just hope it's enough…"
She sighed with relief and started taking deep breaths. "Sorry about that. I have panic attacks when I get too nervous."
"Really, I never noticed that in Showdowns. Too bad no Wu became active today. It would be fun to have a showdown. Just you and me, 'mano a mano'."
Once again, Jackie blushed.
"Yeah, that would be fun… but I couldn't go anyways. My mom took me to the mall and we spent all day there. Honestly, you can't never imagine how it is to be at the mall with my mom. She doesn't stop, not even for a minute!"
The brazilian boy had to fight the big will to laugh again. Jackie's mother seemed to be a nice and a very funny person. Imagining the woman walking around in the mall pulling her annoyed daughter behind her made him want to laugh his ass off. Fortunately, he managed to control it.
"Anything odd at the mall?" Rai joked with a big smile.
"Besides my mom? Nothing. Except…" she cut off when she remembered who she found at me mall.
"Except what?" the wind dragon asked in a worried tone. "Jackie?"
"Chase Young…" she said lowly.
"Huh, what did you just say?"
"I met Chase Young there. Oh, and Wuya was in my coat's pocket."
"Chase Young? What the hell was he doing at the mall?!"
"I don't know. If I didn't know him, I would say that he needed to go shopping for some stuff, but I don't think he would do that. It's not… typical of him."
She looked back at Raimundo, and noticed he was worried.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Did he… try to hurt you?…"
Her eyes widened.
"What? Why would you think that?"
The boy looked at her, his gaze telling her that it was obvious.
"Oh yeah…" she said, remembering how Chase used to treat her in showdowns "no, he didn't try to hurt me, but he was acting kinda strange…"
"Hum… define 'strange'" Rai replied.
"Well, he knew my real identity, he spoke to me in… in a nice tone and he didn't insult me not even once. He told Wuya to go away because he said he wanted to be alone with me, and after that, he took my collar and said he would give it back if he liked my voice."
Raimundo wasn't liking how the story was going. "Go on" he said.
"He gave it back. And…" she hesitated "…and that's it."
"Wait. You hesitated. He did something else, didn't he? Please tell me, Jackie. Don't make me get worried and thinking that Chase Young tried to molest you!"
"What?! No, he didn't molest me! He just… well, I asked him what the hell was going on and why was he treating me like if I was the most important person in the world."
"And what did he say?" Somehow, Raimundo was afraid that he would regret the fact that he asked.
"He said that I really WAS the most important person in the world."
He was right, he was regreting it. God, did he feel angry! How dare Chase Young say such a thing to Jackie?! How does that dragon jerk have the nerve to flatter her and try to seduce her?!
'Jackie Spicer belongs to me!' a voice screamed in his head. But when he realised what he just thought, he froze. What the hell was he thinking?! Jackie didn't belong to him. In fact, she didn't belong to anyone. So why did he feel so angry after what she told him?
"Rai, you alright?" the goth's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Just… a little worried."
"Hmm? Why?"
"Well, you see, I was just thinking… maybe that little 'coincidence' wasn't actually a coincidence, y'know. If Chase didn't go there for shopping, then that means…"
"…it means that he went there… for me…" Jackie froze, frightened. Chase Young, the man she loved for a long time, was searching for her. But now she wasn't happy for that. She was scared. And why? Because she no longer loved the man, and now it was easier for her to see how dangerous he was.
Raimundo noticed that his friend was scared, and that's when he realises what a great opportunity this was. He approached her and wrapped his arms around her. Spicer looked up at him, surprised with his actions.
"Jackie, I want you to promise me something."
"Oh? What is it?"
"Promise me that if you feel threatened by Chase, Wuya, Hannibal or anyone else, you come to me, okay?"
"Why… why do you want me to promise that?…"
"Because now that I know you better, I feel that you need someone to protect you. You seem so nice and fragile… like a flower. A flower, in the corner or a garden, the closest one to the street, can't defend itself from people that try to pick it up. So the only one that can help it is the gardener himself. He puts it in a safer place, away from the cruel, flower-picking people, so that it can be at peace and not afraid of being taken someday…"
Jackie Spicer was carefully listening to Raimundo Pedrosa, and before she knew it, her eyes were filled with tears of emotion.
Raimundo continued.
"So please, Jackie, you're that beautiful yet defenseless flower. Let me be your gardener. Let me protect you from all those evil people that wish to pick you up."
The pale girl didn't reply. She just wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face on his chest, her tears making the clothing get wet. It was true. She was just like a
defenseless little flower, unable to protect herself from people. And this truth was messing up with her emotions.
Raimundo was stunned at what he just said. Where the fuck did that come from? Did he just have the most touching speech he ever heard? He looked at Jackie, feeling his coat getting wetter and wetter with her tears.
'Well, at least it was worth it' he thought, while running a hand through her red hair.
After a long moment of silence, Jackie finally managed to say something.
"Yes."
"Huh?"
"Yes, you can be my gardener." She looked up at him "I want you to protect me."
All of a sudden, a wave of happiness ran through his body. He felt happy for having Spicer in his arms. He was happy for having her crying on his chest… He was happy for having those beautiful crimson eyes looking at his emerald ones, and before he knew it, the distance between their eyes shortened, for now their foreheads were touching.
They were both smiling. Jackie was feeling exactly the same as Raimundo. She was feeling happy and at peace. Oh, how it felt good to be in his arms, to feel his warm body against hers, his forehead against her own.
Suddenly, Fluffy places herself between them, separating them and talking to Jackie.
The girl, not forgetting about the Xiaolin Monk, tranlated it to him.
" 'Aww, if ain't this pretty. Specially with the rising sun…' "
This gave Jackie and idea.
"Come with me." she told the boy, grabbing his wrist and taking him further into the forest, with the animals following them.
When they got to the other side of the forest, Raimundo eyes widened and after that he smiled. He could see the rising sun, appearing from behind the mountains, and painting the view beautifully with light and shadow.
The teens stood there, gazing at the beginning of a new day, and Rai didn't resist the urge to put his arm around Jackie's shoulders. The action made Jackie blush but, at the same time, she liked it. Before she knew it, she put her arm around his waist and her head was resting on his shoulder.
They watched the sun rise, both smiling and enjoying eachother's company, until it was time to say goodbye.
"Too bad it's already morning. I was having so much fun…"
"Yeah, me too… I guess we'll have to wait until next evening, right?"
"Not necessarily. If we get lucky, a Sheng-Gong-Wu will become active."
"Oh, that would be great…"
Again they stayed quiet, until Rai broke the silence.
"Well, I have to go now, Jackie. Bye."
"Yeah… bye…"
The tanned boy turned around and started to walk away, but he stopped on his tracks, hesitating. He turned back to the girl, quickly approaching her and kissed her on the cheek.
"See ya…" he said, then turned around and left, leaving a stunned Jackie Spicer behind him.
When he was already out of view, the girl placed a hand on the cheek that the boy kissed, and she smiled. She was confused, though. Raimundo was her enemie, but she was always feeling happy and warm inside when she was with him.
'Why do I feel like this?'
Hiding behind the trees of the forest and observing the scene between the teens, Chase Young gave a low growl.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here…" Wuya said "seems like you're having a bit of competition here, Chase. Raimundo's…"
"Dead if I see him approaching her again."
The gostly form gave the dragon lord a surprised look, and then she smiled.
"I don't believe it… Chase, are you jealous of Raimundo?"
"No. I just cannot allow Pedrosa to take her before I do."
"Oh, so all you want is to fuck her up, hope to get her pregnant and then dump her like if she was trash!"
"The last part is not quite true. When the baby no longer needs her, there is no need for her to keep living."
Wuya stopped smiling after hearing Young's last sentence.
"You… you're planning to kill her?! Have you ever thought about was her father might do if he finds out?!"
"I am not concerned about that. You see, Wuya, the reason I am going to kill Spicer… is because Sirilis told me to do so."
Now the evil witch was sure her jaw hit the floor.
"Did… did you just say… Jackie is Sirilis's daughter?!"
"I'm surprised you haven't discovered that yet. Why other reason would he ask Harold to give her the box that contained you?"
"Good point… but still, why would Sirilis ask you to kill his own daughter?"
"Now that Pedrosa became her friend, Spicer might turn to the Xiaolin side, and this time, she will not be willing to come back to the Heylin."
"Oh…"
"That wouldn't actually matter" Chase continued "if she wasn't so powerful."
"Powerful? You call that skinny snow-white girl powerful? Open your eyes, Chase!"
The warlord looked at the witch one more time. "I do not believe that Sirilis's child doesn't have powers. She has them, but she doesn't know it yet."
"So what's the big deal, it's not as if they were the most powerful."
"You're quite mistaken, Wuya. Her powers are much stronger than mine, yours and Hannibal's joined together. She's not what she seems to be."
"In that case, you better be careful. You wouldn't want her to use her powers against you…" Wuya said in a teasing tone and left.
Chase smirked as the witch went away. 'Foolish witch.' he thought. 'Spicer is too afraid of me to even try using them.'
Young looked back at the pale teen and his eyes widened in surprise. She didn't have the overcoat anymore. She took it off and laid it on the ground so that she could sit and talk with her 'friends'. It was full moon, and the light that came from it hit Jackie's skin, making it glow a beautiful shade of white.
"She… she looks like a goddess…" he murmured.
From that moment he understood something: it was going to be very hard to take such a beautiful girl's life.
"So, what do you think of him? Jackie asked.
"Well, he's a very sweet boy." Lucy, the wolf, answered..
"Yes, he seems to be very nice" the owl, named Hedwing, replied.
"He's perfect for you, Jackie-girl" the female rabbit, whose name was Fluffy, said.
"W-what?!"
"It's true, Jackie. We're animals, so we manage to smell human emotions, and you know what we smelled tonight?" Wally, the male rabbit, asked.
"What?"
"I smelled love in the air."
Spicer stared with wide eyes at the rabbit.
"You can't be serious!"
"Trust me, he is." Fluffy said "So, when will you give him the first kiss?"
"What?! Are you kidding?! I can't just jump on him and kiss him. He would hate me and he would never want to see me again!"
Rodney, the squirrel, climbed up the pale girl's arm and sat on her head.
"Jackie, sweety, baby, don't worry about it. Rodney here assures you that he feels as much for you as you feel for him. So don't be afraid to go forward."
The teen smiled at the squirrel. He always spoke in the third person when he was talking about himself, and he was contantly using words like if he was dating whoever he was having a conversation with, but she always considered him a very sweet animal.
"You really think this could work?"
All the animals made their sounds in agreement, and she smiled even more.
"Thanks, guys, you're the best!"
Then, everyone said goodbye and went away, each one going back to it's home. But before she went away, Fluffy whispered to the girl's ear.
"Jackie, watch your back when you head home. I'm sensing someone here. He's close, and watching you."
"Who… who is it?" she whispered back.
"I don't know, but it's not the boy. This is a man. An evil man."
The redhead gulped. There's was only one person she knew that could match that description.
"You better go, Fluffy. I don't want you to get hurt by him."
The rabbit did as she was told. Jackie stood up, putted her overcoat on , and prepared to meet the man she knew was watching her.
"Show yourself, Chase Young!" she yelled.
Noticing that he's been caught, Chase appeared from the shadows and calmly walked towards the albino teen.
"Hello, Spicer. Nice to see you again…"