A week had passed, but the feeling persisted. He looked across the laboratory at Jiayi, who was perched comfortably in a chair and eating instant ramen. She saw him looking and offered a half-smile before returning to her meal. It was odd to see an immortal eat. A powerful immortal that could possibly rival his idol in power. Even weirder was that she ate anything he suggested. She seemed to be alright with anything, just going with the flow. When he planned a burglary, she went along with him and made no protest. She seemed almost like a normal girl his age, the more he looked at her. Of course, he had wondered briefly if Wuya had lied to him. If Jiayi really was normal. This suspicion was put to rest when she used superhuman speed to throw him out of the way of a speeding truck.

Sitting back, he continued to stare. She's just eating that ramen like it's no big deal. Even eating instant ramen, she looks dignified. He frowned and finally turned away to check some surveillance tapes. Since the feeling of being watched did not go away, he had taken to checking the tapes a few times each day. So far, they yielded no results. It doesn't surprise me. If her immortal friend is here, he can probably keep himself hidden. Who is it though? What if it's H.B.? The thought of that villain storming into the house, destroying everything in his path, and taking Jiayi with him…made Jack extremely unsettled.

The young woman had finished her meal and set the bowl aside, turning her attention to the chart of shen-gon-wu. She tilted her head and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, smirking. "…these ones…that belong to your 'idol'…"

"You want to go after one of those?" he asked, full of hope. It might be his only chance to see her use her abilities to their fullest. He might even get to see her beast form.

"…not me…but if you want them…"

"Oh. Right, you don't like other immortals. Forgot for a second." Jack looked at the artifacts laid out around the room and frowned. We got these without having to try too hard. It was almost too easy. Kind of takes the fun out of it. Hearing her yawn, he looked back to Jiayi. She was stretching, her eyes closed. She was beautiful, he had to admit. But in an almost terrifying, inhuman sort of way. It made him nervous. It always did. He would never tell her, but sometimes he had thoughts about her. Certain thoughts. He was sure that it would disgust her. After all, she seemed to show no romantic interest in anyone.

She met his gaze and half-grinned. "Jack…what should we do today?"

He looked away quickly, ashamed that he was blushing. "It's kind of late. I don't think we should go out."

"…okay…" Jiayi sat back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling with a thoughtful expression on her face.

Jack wondered if she ever thought about her past love. The "extraordinary" man that made her want to turn evil just to get his attention. It really was a weird reason to become evil. Not that he was complaining; he could not ask for a better partner. She was quiet, she could cook, she had interesting stories, and she was pleasant to look at. He still wanted to see her fight, but she had refused so far.

Shift P.O.V

When night fell, Jiayi sat awake beside Jack. He was drooling on his pillow again, hugging her pillow to his chest as he slept. She stared at him for a moment, feeling vaguely creepy, and smirked. He…looks cute when he sleeps. Her fingertips gently brushed his bright red hair away from his pale face and she raised an eyebrow. He forgot to take off his eyeliner.

She turned her gaze to the alarm clock and saw that it was extremely early in the morning. Falling onto her back beside him, with no pillow, Jiayi sighed. She tried to fall asleep, but heard him whimper once or twice in his sleep. Absently reaching over, her fingers ran through his hair until he seemed to calm down. What sort of nightmares could he be having? He doesn't actually talk much about himself. He talks about his mother sometimes and about Wuya, but not really about himself. Why not? The young man released her pillow in favor of wrapping both arms around her, pulling her close against him. Color rushed to her pale cheeks and she squirmed for a moment before relaxing. I guess…it's not so bad. I've never actually been held this way before. Even when he slept next to me, he didn't hold onto me like this.

Jack mumbled something in his sleep and moved closer to her, leaving no space between them. The young woman tried to keep her breathing steady and closed her eyes. She gave sleep her best attempt, but it simply was not going to come. Not when she was so nervous. I'm over 1,500 years old and I'm getting nervous over a boy like Jack. How did I ever think I could handle taking over Asia and Europe? Her eyes opened as a chill ran down her spine. From her peripheral, she could see a shape in the darkness that should not be there.

It was standing against the far wall, arms crossed in the dark room and seeming to stare at the bed's two occupants. Jiayi narrowed her eyes, trying to determine who it was. Her mind first went to Wuya. It would not be surprising if the witch was spying on Jack while he slept; she had always given Jiayi the creeps. Her next thought was that it might be her friend. She had not seen him in quite a while and he might have sensed that she left the shack. Though she remembered him having broader shoulders. Another chill raced through her as the figure started toward the bed. She closed her eyes tightly and shifted to wrap her arms around Jack. If they try to take him, they're getting me too! Or…well I guess if they're after me, they're getting him too!

Instead, they halted at the side of the bed and continued to stare down at the two. Jack's left arm was wrapped around her waist, his right arm wrapped around her just beneath her bust. His fingertips dug into her ribcage, as if he unconsciously sensed the presence. She bit her lip to keep from crying out in alarm. "…don't know who you are…but you should leave…" she snarled quietly when she could take the silence no longer.

"What will you do if I refuse?"

Her eyes snapped open, but the figure had gone. As much as she hated to do it, she closed her eyes again and finally felt sleep wash over her. Moments later, she woke again and slipped out of the bed. Jack whimpered in his sleep, but did not wake. Jiayi changed into a clean t-shirt and tattered jeans. She left the house with the sun still down, trying not to think about how she felt as if she was being watched. It unsettled her greatly and she even considered returning to Jack's house once or twice, but she knew she had to do this.

When she reached the Xiaolin Temple, she returned a small portion of Jack's shen-gon-wu into the vault and found a temple roof to perch upon. The sun was starting to rise, turning the sky a soft pink. I wonder if he's even noticed I'm gone. Jiayi frowned and let her hair down from its ponytail. Jack. He's still asleep. I wonder if…Guan has noticed that I'm gone. Probably not. It's been a while since I saw him.

"Hey! What are you doin' up there?" a male voice called.

Jiayi looked down to the ground below and saw the blonde monk staring up at her. "…just…reminiscing…" she quietly answered. When he continued to stare, she raised an eyebrow. "…Clay, was it…?" He nodded. "You…want me to come down…?"

He tipped his hat forward. "I reckon that wouldn't be the worst thing you could do."

The worst I could do? You have no idea. She stood and jumped down to land beside him. He seemed alarmed, but said nothing about her leaping so many feet without injury. "…good morning…you're up early…"

"I always wake up this early," he replied. "What brings you here?"

She shrugged and pushed her hands into her pockets. "Clay…you know, don't you?"

"If you're talkin' about the missin' shen-gon-wu, everyone knows."

"…I came to return them…"

"Why steal 'em in the first place?" He frowned when she started to walk away and moved to keep pace with her. "Jiayi. You're-"

"It's not easy…it just gets harder…the longer you live…you never get used to it…" Her sharp amber gaze met his blue eyes and she saw him wince. "…I'm not evil…"

"Never said you were. But what are you?"

Again, she shrugged. "I may never know for sure. I just wish you hadn't seen me."

"You should stay here. Everyone was wonderin' if you'd come back."

"I left my partner alone so…I can't stick around. Sorry. Maybe another time?" Jiayi saw him reach to the shen-gon-wu tucked into his belt and hurriedly leapt onto the roof again. She stared down at him and tilted her head. "Clay…you don't want to hurt me."

"If you're fixin' to steal more shen-gon-wu, then I gotta stop you!" he answered.

She hated it, but seeing someone want to fight her ignited animal instincts. Her hips swayed back and forth, as if she were swishing a tail like a cat, and she smirked. "…oh, Clay…you don't want to do this…I've tried so hard…spent centuries…working to repent for my past transgressions…and if I attack you, I'll really have returned to the Heylin side."

"Jiayi, don't make me come up there! Just come down nice an' easy now!"

"What's going on?!" To the young woman's absolute horror, the other young monks soon arrived and were staring up at her. Raimundo's appearance in particular made her start to feel guilty about what she had done. "Jiayi, what are you doing?"

Clay explained what was happening, what she had said, and her shame grew immensely. She pulled herself out of their line of sight and curled up in a ball. I can't teleport. I can't fight them. I just can't! I'll lose control; I know I will! I might hurt them and…he would be so disappointed in me…

"What is everyone looking at?" It was the very last voice that she wanted to hear just then and sent her into an absolute panic. "Is there something on the roof?"

Two options came to mind, but both would require an immense amount of effort. The first option was to shift forms and run as fast and as far from the temple as possible. This, of course, would put everyone around her in jeopardy. The second option was to leap down and try to bolt past all of them without him noticing her. Instantly, she realized that neither option would work. "…I'm not evil…" she quietly called.

"We know that, Jiayi. Just come down. Everything will be alright." The voice was soft and reassuring, but she was shamed nonetheless. When she did slip down to the ground, he met her worried gaze with a smile. "It has been a while since I've seen you interact with people."

Her hands were shoved into her pockets again and she averted her gaze. "Guan…it's been a while…" she muttered.

"What brings you so far from home?"

"Wait, you know each other?!" Raimundo exclaimed.

"Jiayi is a reformed member of the Heylin side," Guan explained. "She makes medicines for the nearby village."

She winced when he put a hand on her shoulder, irritated and humiliated that they had to find out. I need to get back to the lair. But I don't want him to know where I'm going. Standing there, listening to him converse with the young monks, she considered running again.

"You should really consider staying for a while," Guan finally told her. "I just arrived to teach the young monks…" His eyes narrowed on a shape in the distance and he pushed Jiayi behind him.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she hissed.

"You need to remain invisible," he stated over his shoulder. "Take refuge in the temple while I take care of this."

Take care of…what? Jiayi's hand was grabbed by one of the male monks and she was led into one of the buildings, but not before glimpsing a figure approaching from the distance. A vaguely familiar figure. What did Jack call him? Wait! Jack! I left Jack at his house alone! I have to get back to him!

"Why does he want you to hide?" Kimiko gave her a suspicious look.

"How do you know Master Monk Guan? He has never mentioned you before," Omi pointed out.

"What are you?" Clay asked for the second time.

Jiayi sat in a corner, drawing her knees to her chest and absently biting at a fingernail. "…Guan…might have been ashamed…" She saw their looks of skepticism and she frowned. "I did…try to take over Europe and Asia…a long time ago…"

"Why would you wanna do that?" The blonde settled in front of her, staring her down. He was trying to determine whether or not she was a threat.

Raimundo sat beside her, watching her closely for signs of an attack. She was nervous, but seemed calm enough. "I was evil for a while."

"…that…doesn't mean that you completely understand…" Her eyes half-closed and she bowed her head. "…my partner…I left him by himself…I need to go back soon…"

"If you go out now, he's gonna see you. I don't know why Master Monk Guan is so dead-set on hidin' you, but it seems like he might know what's best," Clay told her.

"…I was told by my partner…that I could probably fight him…"

"Master Monk Guan?!"

"No…not him. I could never…fight him. I meant that arrogant fool that he's hiding me from." She smirked and stood, curling her hands into fists. "If I don't go now…I won't return before my partner wakes up. I can think of a way that I can get past them both…but I need help. A distraction. If you're willing…"

"What do you need us to do?"

Jiayi started for the exit, her smirk growing with each step. "Cause a commotion…say that I'm making my way to the road. I'll take the long way back to my partner. I just need for those two…to look away for a while. That's all it should take." She heard a confirmation from each monk. "One last thing…don't look at me once I'm outside. It won't be pretty."

"I still don't get why you need to hide from him. He's never mentioned you before," Kimiko pointed out.

"We've never met before. I don't know why Guan wants me to hide…but everything he does, he does for a reason. I won't question it. I owe him too much to question his motives." She waited for the others to step outside and move off in one direction before she took a deep breath. Steady…steady…don't forget your humanity. Don't forget that they mean you no harm. Jiayi stepped out into the sunlight and felt her bones begin to shift as her body changed shape.