The Balance in Love, Lies and War Chapter 11: Confessing those little Details, a xiaolin showdown fanfic

The Balance in Love, Lies and War

Chapter 10:

'Confessing those little Details'

"So what does it do?" Jack asked as Kaida rolled her eyes again. Turning around to him, she hissed in reply, rubbing her temples with an agitated expression on her face,

"Jack, I'm going to tell you this one more time. I. Don't. Know. Got it?" Jack nodded slowly before blurting out,

"Couldn't the Zen just tell you?" Sighing, Kaida turned towards him again, being careful to tighten on grip on Dojo as not to fall off. She had moved up towards Dojo's head, partly to avoid any squabbles that involved falling off Dojo and secondly to stop the throbbing in her head.

"She says I have to find out for myself." Kaida drawled before turning around, trying to ignore the flow of thoughts that were pushing against the barricade she had built up in her mind. She didn't want to think of any of those things.

"Some use a spirit in you head is, can't tell you nothing!" Jack scoffed before Kimiko punched him in the arm and growled,

"They can hear you, just so you know." Jack whimpered, mumbling something about 'nice spirits' before Rai interrupted asking quizzically,

"If they're just spirits, how can they hurt you?" The evil glint returned to Jack's eyes before disappearing as Kaida stated,

"They could just manifest." They all looked at her, having absolutely no idea what she was on about. Groaning, rolling her eyes, Kaida spun around fully, clamping her legs tightly around Dojo's body before saying in that drawling tone,

"Please, don't tell me you haven't figured it out. What are the Spirits? Elements. Where are the elements? Everywhere. The Spirits are all around us; we just can't see them. They could manifest; meaning your perception of them would grow clearer and you'd be able to see them. It's not that difficult." The warriors looked puzzled for a moment before Jack started stifling a giggle fit, looking at Omi.

"People drink you." He whispered before collapsing into chuckles. Omi looked shocked and poked his stomach tentatively, exclaiming,

"I drink myself!" Kaida rolled her eyes and was about to turn around before Clay piped up, asking,

"So why don't they just manifest themselves, instead of staying in our heads?" Kaida smiled slightly, as if knowing something they didn't gave her great pleasure.

"What happens to water if you leave it in the sun? It evaporates. Then it turns into water vapour. Air. Wind. There would be no Water Spirit. Imagine all the catastrophes that could happen if one of the Spirits were accidentally evaporated while manifesting? Just because they're manifesting, they are still the Elements, and will be effected by other elements exactly the same." Satisfied with her explanation, she turned around, edging away from the loud squabble Omi and Jack were having, head pounding.

'"He is going to come for you. He is going to take you to Hell. But not before you ruin his plans first."' She couldn't escape it any longer. Like a wave crashing on her head, all the doubts and fears of that battle before came flooding back, the bruises aching and the gash on her cheek slowly scabbing over.

'What does it mean? "He is going to come for you. He is going to take you to Hell. But not before you ruin his plans first." What did that monster mean?' Rubbing her temples, she tried to use her limited knowledge of monsters, demons and Chase Young to piece together an explanation, but there was none. She had no idea. It scared her. She wasn't going to let anyone know about it though.

Suddenly, a pair of strong hands found their way to her shoulders, brushing against her back. Twisting away quickly, knocking the hands away, Kaida turned around sharply to see Raimundo looking at her with a softened expression. It made her insides melt. But she wasn't going to let him know that. Not just yet. There was silence for a moment, before Raimundo asked quietly,

"Are you alright?" Kaida smirked before turning round again.

"What do you think?" Raimundo inched closer; a smile edging it's way on to his lips.

"I think something's wrong, and you're going to tell me what it is." Kaida turned, playful spark in her eye, voice that seductive drawl,

"Oh, Am I?" Raimundo inched ever closer, placing his hands gently on her hips, grinning,

"Yes, I do believe you are." Kaida tossed her head, turning around, with no reply.

"Is it to do with those monsters, or the Kaida's Tear?" Raimundo asked tentatively, testing the waters. She turned slightly, hands gripping the recently won Shen Gong Wu tightly. 'Perhaps' was her only reply. Raimundo instantly knew it meant 'Yes'. Raimundo leant in close, wrapping his arms around her, whispering in her ear,

"Please tell me…" She pushed him away, untangling herself from him and did not look at him as she said

"I don't want to talk about it." He sighed, wishing she could trust him enough to tell him. There were no words he could say. There was silence.

There are many different types of silence. This silence was the sort of silence you receive after stabbing someone in the heart, one where they look at you with wide eyes wondering why on earth you did it, not fully understanding anything at all. Raimundo felt this distrust slice through his heart as if Kaida was holding the knife.

"Kaida's Tear!" Kaida shouted, desperate to end the silence that was breaking them in two. There was a flash of bright light that surrounded Kaida, forcing Raimundo and the other monks to stop what they were doing and cover their eyes. Letting his eyes adjust, Raimundo tried to make out a change in Kaida, but there was none. Nothing had happened. Except the Kaida's Tear had gone. Kaida seemed in shock, not moving at all. Raimundo watched her cautiously as her fingertips slowly moved under her white fringe, touching the hidden cheek. Moving away the fringe slowly, not enough to show her entire face, but enough to show part of her hidden eye, Raimundo gasped. Underneath her left eye there was a tiny, electric blue tear shaped mark. Moving her fringe back to its regular position, Kaida wondered why on earth the Kaida's tear was suddenly under her eye, it didn't make any sense; what was it going to do there? Suddenly a cloud caught her attention, shaped exactly like a cat. Smiling, Kaida started to think of a cat she had once known at the temple, giggling quietly to herself…

Moments later, when looking back at Raimundo, he seemed… larger than normal. Much larger. The world around her seemed to be filled with strange noises and smells and everything seemed different in some way or another. She also had the sudden urge to lick herself.

"Rai, did I shrink or something, is that the power of the Kaida's Tear? That's fair boring, do you have any yarn? I have a craving for yarn…" Raimundo however, was not listening. He was starring at her with wide eyes, a shocked expression covering his face. Just as she was about to ask what was wrong, she heard Kimiko cry out shrilly,

"Raimundo, where's Kaida and where did you get that outrageously cute kitten from?" Kaida turned towards, peering around Rai, feeling her pupils grow smaller and smaller as she heard Raimundo reply,

"Kimiko, that is Kaida." Tail flicking from side to side, Kaida hissed at Raimundo,

"I am not a kitten! Why would I be a kitten! Shut up, give me some yarn and let me clean my paws in peace!" Raimundo raised his eyebrow, smirking, while Kimiko giggled in the background. Kaida looked down at her paws, gulping, realising what she had just said. Smacking herself gently, she frowned.

"Kimiko, give me a mirror, I want to see what I look like as a cat." Kimiko ruffled around in her bag for a moment before drawing out a small hand mirror and passing it along until it reached Kaida. Raimundo held it up for her, a spark twinkling in his eye. Kaida tried to ignore it as she peered at her reflection.

She wasn't a fully-grown cat, but she wasn't exactly a kitten. A sort of in between. Her body was thin and tail long coated in black fur. Her paws were covered in white fur, as was her underside. Her eyes were still the same grey with black and white flecks, the left one having the Kaida's tear hidden underneath. Of course, the hair that covered the left side of her face was longer and white, making a little fringe for Cat-Kaida. The cat smiled, sharp teeth showing off before saying softly,

"I'm… I'm a…"

"Adorable!" Kimiko and Raimundo cried at once, interrupting the cat. They both reached out to hug the kitten and Kimiko frowned as Raimundo bundled the cat up in his arms, scratching behind her ears, chuckling as he made her purr. Sulking Kimiko grumbled,

"Why'd she turn into a cat anyway? It's not that amazing…" To answer her question, pawing at Raimundo to make his stop for a moment, Kaida called out,

"Well I was thinking of a cat, maybe that has something to do with it." She giggled as Raimundo started to stroke her warm belly. Kimiko just rolled her eyes as Omi asked, confused,

"Why were you thinking of a cat?" Jack shrugged, looking sheepish saying quietly,

"Sometimes I think of Katnappe. She scares me." Kimiko growled, punching him in the arm.

"Don't be such a loser." Jack smirked before saying,

"Sometimes I think of Kimiko, she scares me the most. She's like my worst night- Ow!"

"I repeat. Don't be such a loser." There was a cough at the front of Dojo and everyone turned towards it. Raimundo was holding a rather sheepish looking black and white crocodile that said quietly,

"Heh heh… Opps."

The doors slammed into the terracotta walls, making the windowpanes shake and rattle. Athanasius looked up from his book before smiling slightly, throwing the book into the fire, which was behind him, where it smouldered into black dust before disappearing. Chase Young approached him, shadows darkening his face; eyes lit up with anger and hostility. With each step he seemed to grow taller and fiercer and angrier, his shadow lengthening and face darkening. Athanasius seemed unaffected.

"Haven't you ever heard of knocking, you big bad wolf you?" the Demon King hissed mockingly at him. Chase growled shouting,

"What did you do to my monsters!" Athanasius shrugged, getting up slowly, brushing off soot from his silhouette shoulders.

"What are you talking about? I never once touched your monsters. I do believe you're the one who summoned them." Roaring, Chase grabbed Athanasius by his collar and thrust him into the wall, terracotta tiles splitting with loud cracks.

"Don't lie to me! You messed with my monsters! One of them was a demon, not a monster! What did it mean!" Athanasius said nothing for a moment, studying Chase's face. There seemed to be a reptilian anger in his eyes, his face twisting with an overpowering ferociousness. Smiling Athanasius hissed,

"Did you forget to take your potion darling?" Chase gasped, stepping back, distracted. Before he could say anymore, a sharp punch was delivered into his face, forcing him into the floor. Getting up slowly, eye starting to bruise already, Chase received a sharp kick in the ribs and another in his face. He looked up shakily to see the Demon King standing over him, in complete dominance over him.

"Didn't mommy ever tell you not to play with the big boys? Don't bother getting up." Chase's world went black.

"Another, another!" Omi shouted out gleefully, clapping his hand together joyfully. Kaida sighed, tired, changing back from a black and white flamingo to human looking at Omi with a piercing gaze, asking the a bored drawl,

"What animal do you want?" Her stomach growled loudly and she frowned as Omi thought. She was hungry and wanted to get her lunch, but she didn't want to disappoint the little monk either. Omi thought for a moment before Master Fung entered the scene with Dojo wrapped around his shoulders.

"Young Monk, I do believe it is time you gave Kaida a rest." Omi pouted exclaiming,

"Please Miss Kaida, just one more! The most magnificent of them all!" Kaida rolled her eyes and agreed,

"Only as long as you call me Kai, or Kaida, not Miss Kaida. Ever again." Omi nodded quickly, leaving Kaida to think of what animal to turn in to.

After a couple of practice tries she had found using the Kaida's Tear to be rather easy. She had turned into many forms, including: a wasp ("Where's that infernal buzzing coming from! Oh yes, Me."); a dolphin, ("This pond is too small, my flipper's stuck!"); an eagle ("I can fly, I can fly! Ow! I can fall…"), and a snake ("Thisssssssss isssssss sssssssstrange…"). All had the appropriate black and white colouring, all with the Kaida's tear under her left eye and a white fringe of some sort covering. Sometimes it was actual fur or just a colour change in feathers or scales. But what could be most spectacular? As if to answer her question Dojo huffed,

"No animal will ever be as magnificent as me!" Smiling a crafty smile, Kaida thought up the image on a dragon and let the Shen Gong Wu do its work.

Moments later, she looked down into the pool, treating it like a mirror watching her reflection. She was no ordinary dragon, with a white fringe and white paws. Instead, she looked exactly like the Zen. Omi gasped and Master Fung smiled, almost nodding his head. They all understood that this form was something far greater than any of the others.

On her right side, she had white scales with black curved stripes stretching along her spine, a black cross on her elbow, hands white like the rest of her. On her left side, it was exactly the same, but the opposite colouring, black scales with white stripes. Her arms were human like, her legs animal like, shining clear claws erupting from fingers and toes. Her snout was not long and her eyes were a misty grey, a blue gem situated in the middle of her forehead. Instead of horns sprouting from her head there were blue wisps, like antennae, The same sprouted from her cheekbones, connected by a black leathery skin. Blue gems travelled their way down the sides of her face and sides, dotted along her wrist, one on each knuckle. The gems stopped at the end of her tail, which was coated in black and white scales, according to the appropriate side.

Smiling to herself, Kaida heard the Zen laugh, voice clearer than ever before and whisper,

'Thank you, for giving me this chance to smell the air again, to feel the Earth beneath my feet. Thank you.' Kaida simply smiled.

"Very good, but still not as magnificent as me!" Dojo teased, laughing to himself, the other two still taken back by the grace of this strange but majestic creature. Kaida grinned feeling the Zen shrink back with a frown and said,

"We'll see." Concentrating on Dojo, she formed a picture in her head and let the Shen Gong Wu do its work. But this time, there was something unexpected.

Pain.

Clenching her teeth together, her skin crawled in a most unpleasant fashion, stomach churning and bile bubbling; eyes rolling into the back of her head. Shaking, her back arch, feeling spines rip through her skin and her legs grow numb. Silver claws forced their way through her fingers and her snout grew longer, scales ripping themselves off and new ones attaching. Roaring loudly, her claws dug into the Earth as the transformation took hold. It had never hurt before when she had used the Kaida's Tear, why now? Eyes focussing slowly, sweat dripping down her brow, arms shaking to support her, Kaida peered into the pool to see what she looked like.

Kaida looked exactly the same as Dojo when in full size, except slightly smaller with black scales and white hands, white fringe covering her left eye and the mark of the Kaida's Tear. Panting, she winced as her scars stung in pain, something that hadn't happened in any other of her animal forms. Blood running cold, heart momentarily stopped, she pushed away her fringe to see a black scar hissing menacingly. Roaring, she changed back into a human, breathing deeply, collapsing to the floor, and holding her head in her hands. Master Fung frowned while Omi jumped around excitedly before running off into the Dinner Hall to tell the others. Helping the weakened girl up, Master Fung said quietly,

"I believe Raimundo is looking for you." Kaida nodded, seeing the boy in the distance, and walked off towards him, still in shock..

"Why did it hurt her? I mean, it didn't hurt her before did it?" Dojo asked worriedly, biting his claws shakily. Master Fung did not look him in the eye, shrugging before walking away. Dojo instantly knew the old monk was hiding something from him, but didn't dare ask. Something stirred deep inside him, another consciousness brushing against his own, hissing one word before Dojo brushed it away,

"Demon."

Kimiko was typing furiously into her laptop with one hand, the other attempting to feed herself with chopsticks, failing miserably. She was so engrossed by what was happening on her laptop that she did not notice Jack come up and sit beside her until he tapped her on the shoulder lightly. She turned towards him, smiling briefly before her eyes returned to the laptop, letting out a hiss of rage.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked simply. Kimiko growled saying nothing, scratching her ankle furiously. Her ankle was in plaster and it itched terribly, only adding to her irritation.

"Kimiko, tell me what's wrong." The girl looked at him, eyes blazing with a fiery anger before she burst out,

"This girl who's supposed to be one of my best friend is being a total cow saying I'm a slut because there's this stupid rumour going around that I'm two timing Rai when I'm not even going out with Rai and she believes it all which is totally unfair 'cause I'm not cheating on Rai and I'm not even with Rai and she won't believe me at all and it's so frustrating!" Gasping for a breath, Jack blinked slowly before saying,

"Let's see." Kimiko blushed replying quietly,

"It doesn't matter, I don't want you to get involved." Jack smiled warmly.

"I want to get involved." Blushing even harder, Kimiko handed over the computer, looking away. Jack turned his eyes towards the screen and began to read.

'Rockgirl2000: Kimi, hey it's been a while girl! How are ya?

Kimi: Hey girl! I'm brill, you?

Rockgirl2000: Fantabulous! Anyway I actually wanted to ask you about something.

Kimi: What's that?

Rockgirl2000: Do you think it's right that you're cheating on Rai?

Kimi: I don't think I follow…

Rockgirl2000: Well, Amber told Keri who told Alex who told Penny who told Becky who told Hannah who told me that you were cheating on Rai with what's-his-name.

Kimi: But I finished Rai ages ago, Rai is with someone else now!

Rockgirl2000: And who might that be, the tooth fairy?

Kimi: No, Kai! She came back! And her and Rai are totally hooking up ;)

Rockgirl2000: Yeah right! Kimi, Kai disappeared four years ago hun, you were what, twelve? As if she's just magically reappeared now you need someone to back up your story!

Kimi: You don't believe me?

Rockgirl2000: Let me think about this, no.

Kimi: I cannot believe you! How can you not believe me over that stupid rumour!

Rockgirl2000: Like you haven't done it before! Poor Rai, he probably has no idea what you're doing! You were always a bit of a slut in high school!

Kimi: I am not with Rai anymore! I'm single! Kai is with Rai! And I was not a slut!

Rockgirl2000: So you're saying that you're not cheating on Rai with that scientist guy like everyone is saying?

Kimi: That's exactly what I'm saying!

Rockgirl2000: Maybe we did get the wrong end of the stick…

Kimi: Thank you!

Rockgirl2000: Maybe you're with that guy- Jack Spicer and you're cheating on him with Rai!

Kimi: No way can you accuse me of that! Just because I want to be with Jack Spicer doesn't mean I am! And I am not involved with Rai, at all! Kaida is! Please say you believe me?

Rockgirl2000: …

Kimi: Oh come on!

Rockgirl2000: …

Kimi: As if! Cow! You're supposed to be my friend!

Rockgirl2000: Shut up! Slut! You can't say anything!

Rockgirl2000: Hello?

Rockgirl2000: Are you there?

Rockgirl2000: Get back here you stupid cheat!

Rockgirl2000: Uh, whatever, slut.'

Lifting his eyes from the conversation, heart in his mouth, Jack reread those wonderful words, sure that he was dreaming.