His wounds had healed quickly, with the exception of the deep scratch across his face. There was blood drying on the side of his face and neck, sticking the clothes beneath his armor to his side. It both sickened and excited him, remembering how she had been able to actually injure him. When he left Jiayi, he returned to the large cavern at the very edge of the Boneyard and scowled at its occupant.

Jack snickered at his appearance, having watched the whole fight. "You got your butt kicked! The great Chase Young just got beaten by a girl!"

"She did not beat me. I don't know what fight you were watching."

"She scratched you across the face! Look, you're still bleeding! And didn't I tell you that she wouldn't join you?" The redhead looked back to the small monitor that he was holding and frowned. "Why did Raimundo show up?"

Chase smirked as he felt the wound on his face healing. "You really can't see it?"

"What? You know why he's there?" Jack was watching them on the monitor. Jiayi was walking alongside the monk. He was unsure of what he was feeling exactly. Whether it was jealousy or fear. Even though she was once evil and now claimed to be good, he still had the feeling that he could sway her back to the Heylin side. If Raimundo tried to get her to join the monks, he would need to take drastic action.

"He thinks that he can take her." The words were said in a low tone, almost taunting. "You haven't noticed the way that he watches her?"

"She wouldn't join them."

"How can you be so sure?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "She loves me. Don't you have some planning to do? She's going to find me eventually. With his help, it might be sooner than you think."

"She won't reach you in time."

Shift P.O.V

"You think it's funny, right?" He looked over at her as they walked through the Boneyard, side by side. There was no humor in her expression and, though he knew that he should drop the subject, he chose to explain it. "I mean, Jack was kidnapped. It's like we're on a quest to save a princess. It's a little funny, isn't it?"

Jiayi glanced at Raimundo and her frown grew deeper. "…I don't know where he is…"

"Wait. What? Seriously? So where are we walking to?" He squinted at the horizon, the sky still dark and lightning flashed above their heads. Somewhere at the back of his mind, he suspected that the weird storm was caused by Jiayi and Chase Young, but he chose not to ask.

"We need to find that monster…and interrogate him. Maybe with your help…I might actually accomplish something this time…" She bit her thumbnail, not entirely sure of their success. I can only hope so. Raimundo's strength combined with mine could be enough to defeat him. At the very least, we could weaken him until he has no choice but to tell me where Jack is.

They walked on in silence for a while, both lost in thought. While Jiayi was thinking about her missing boyfriend, Raimundo's mind was elsewhere. His thoughts were much darker and shifted between avenging her injuries to how he might impress her. What he seemed unable to get away from was the thought that she was once evil so, naturally, an act of evil could work. Before he could stop himself an evil thought actually voiced itself, "We could torture him."

She raised an eyebrow and turned her head toward him. He had his sword leaning back against his shoulder, his eyes seemingly fixed upon the horizon. "…are you serious…?"

Sensing that she was not entirely opposed to the idea, he grinned a bit mischievously. "Well, yeah. Why not? He took something important from you, he attacked you, and what was he trying to do when I showed up? Don't tell me it wouldn't make you feel better."

"Whatever I want…I'll do on my own. It's much more satisfying that way." Jiayi smirked and flexed her sharp-nailed hands. "So…how do you intend to keep up with me anyway? I need to find Jack before something happens to him. I might need to go all out."

"I've got it covered." He rummaged in the backpack he wore and his grin grew. "I borrowed the Mantis Flip Coin and Jetbootsu in case you have to climb stuff. I also took the Mikado Arm and Ju-Ju Flytrap in case you need help fighting something." Raimundo looked truly proud of himself and was certain that she would be at least a little impressed.

Instead, Jiayi frowned. "…why are you so prepared…?"

"I wanted to help you."

She started to walk a little faster. "I can save my own boyfriend…I don't need help."

"You don't know where he is! And what would've happened earlier if I hadn't helped you?! Chase Young looked like he was going to rip out your throat!" he argued.

Biting her fingernail, Jiayi scowled. He's right. I know he is. Well, I wouldn't have had my throat ripped out. It just could have been really bad. She looked over at the young man and sighed quietly. "Fine." A glance up at the sky showed that it was still dark with lightning crashing overhead. "If I run at full speed…you can't follow," she muttered.

"Yeah, I don't have anything with super speed," he reluctantly admitted.

"Hm." Jiayi shifted forms and narrowed her eyes on the horizon. "Just…climb on."

"Wait! What?! Why?" Raimundo's face started to turn red quickly.

"…what are you embarrassed about…? It's like…riding a horse. Except I'm a tiger." Her tail twitched back and forth as she watched him. "Well? Climb on…or be left behind." She smirked when he climbed onto her back, his fingers weaving into her shaggy blue fur. "Hold on tight…and keep your eyes closed."

He tightened his grip and closed his eyes with reluctance. She immediately began to sprint across the landscape, his legs wrapping around her midsection subconsciously. Many thoughts rushed through his mind at that moment. He wondered if she was blushing beneath the fur. What she might be thinking about. He fought the urge to open his eyes and watch the ground pass beneath them. The smell of lavender shampoo emanated from her dark blue hair and it calmed him marginally. "Didn't you call Jack your boyfriend earlier?" he shouted over the rush of air passing them.

"What about it?" The voice that came from her feline mouth was undoubtedly her own, tinged with a tiger's growl. Jiayi was trying hard not to think about how tightly the young man was pressed against her back. He's just scared, right? This means nothing. And besides, he reminds me too much of someone else. That fool. He'll never know what he missed when he rejected me!

"So you're dating him?" Raimundo half-expected her to have just picked up the word 'boyfriend' without understanding its meaning.

"Dating?" she repeated. Her thoughts went to the romance novels that she had recently read and frowned. Dating? Like holding hands? Like cuddling on couches and watching movies? Her eyes narrowed. "I suppose. I like him a lot."

He opened his eyes now as her pace slowed. The tiger decreased her speed to a brisk trot and finally paused in front of what could only be described as another canyon. Raimundo could hear her panting and climbed down from her back, waiting for her to shift forms. Her wounds were healed, leaving only light scars, and her dark blue hair was tangled and wild. "What are we doing now? Do you know where he might be?"

"…I didn't anticipate a second canyon…" Jiayi tilted her head back and scowled. The lightning had vanished, giving way to dark clouds that threatened rain. Once it begins to rain, all of this will turn to mud. We'll move slower and visibility will be bad. She glanced at her companion, watching him fidget slightly with his sword. As much as she hated the thought of letting more time pass, it would be best to wait until the rain stopped. "We need to find shelter."

"What about Jack?"

"The weather here…it's unpredictable. It could rain fire on us," she stated firmly. "It's best for all of us if we wait for the rain to stop before proceeding." Jiayi began to walk away, entering the canyon as if it were nothing.

He followed, but was wary. When he crossed the first canyon, every rock creature seemed reluctant to even look his way. It made him wonder what she might have done when she crossed before him. "So what do you like about Jack? If you don't mind me asking," he spoke up, hoping to keep his mind off of the possibility of fire rain.

She half-grinned. "He's sweet…thoughtful…smart…"

"Are we talking about the same Jack here?" Raimundo flinched at the glare she gave him. "It was a joke. I was kidding. So you really like him that much?"

"I let you ride on my back…so we could hopefully get to him sooner…" Jiayi frowned. "I have never let a human ride on my back before today. Just remember that."

His cheeks flushed pink. "Alright, I get it. So where are we going? It's dangerous to stay in this place. If we stick around for too long, Chase Young will come back."

The girl paused a few feet into the canyon and smirked. "Up there," she said with a nod. There was a cavern opening in the rock wall about thirty feet above them. "You can even use your shen-gon-wu to get up there." She shifted back to her tiger form and began to climb up to the cavern. The boy dug around in his bag for the Mantis Flip Coin and leapt up to meet her there.

A long silence ensued as they settled in, each sitting on one side of the cave against the earthen wall. The rain began to fall shortly after and Jiayi drew a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the storm. The air felt electrically charged, urging her to continue her search. Urging her to find Chase and tear him apart. She suppressed these urges, remembering logic. The canyon, the Boneyard, everything will turn to mud soon and I won't be able to move quickly. Raimundo would move even slower. I need to just think this over and consider my options now.

"What's that?" The young man squinted down at something in the distance.

Jiayi followed his gaze and smothered a laugh. There was a female figure trudging through the muddy canyon, bright red hair soaking wet and dress clinging to her in a way that made her look miserable. "…Wuya…"

"Why would Wuya be here? Did she help him kidnap Jack?"

"I don't know…" She saw him move toward the opening of the cave and grimaced. Moving quickly, she covered his mouth with a hand and wrapped an arm around him to drag him back. "Don't. I don't want her to see us." Jiayi felt his heart pounding beneath her fingertips and frowned. Why is his heart beating this fast? She carefully released him and raised an eyebrow. "Rai. Why is your face red?"

He rubbed the back of his head and settled against the earthen wall at her side. "I mean, I'm a guy. You're cute. It doesn't matter. Look, maybe she can help us."

"I doubt it. If anything, she'll hinder our efforts." She drew her knees to her chest and watched Wuya slip in some mud, falling face-first onto the ground. A snort escaped Jiayi. "So…what does being a guy have to do with you blushing? Girls blush as well."

"I said it doesn't matter."

"You say many things, don't you?" With a deep sigh, she wrapped her arms around herself. As long as Wuya doesn't see us, we should be able to make decent progress when the rain ends. It's still unpredictable. From the corner of her eye, she saw Raimundo move a little closer to her. "…cold or something…?" she murmured.

"A little bit." He was surprised when she shifted an arm and motioned for him to lean against her side. She was pleasantly warm, despite missing her jacket. Her skin radiated just the right amount of heat to warm him and make him comfortable. The young man briefly considered putting his arms around her, but decided against it. It was still too soon. Surely he had to do something first. Something to prove his worth to her. He was certain that she questioned how useful he might be. "So Kimiko said you turned evil for a guy?"

Jiayi's amber eyes half-closed. "…basically…I wanted to get his attention…so when I was offered power, I devised a plan to make him notice me…obviously, it didn't work out quite right. He grew to despise me. When he defeated me, he refused to even look at me."

"Obviously, he didn't know much about you." He heard her snort quietly in amusement. "No, but he didn't, did he? If he knew how cool you are-"

"I was not always like this. When I was very young…I loved to cook. Even more than that, I loved to play music. My father made me a flute and I would sit outside in any sort of weather and play…because it soothed me. It made me feel like everything would be alright. I was foolish." She shook her head and grimaced. Outside, Wuya was shouting in outrage at the muddy earth. The rain was making Jiayi depressed, dampening her spirits and making her question if she would even find Jack before something horrible happened.

"Well I think you're cool. Even if you were evil." Raimundo was testing her to see what her reaction might be. If she acted angry, he would drop the subject. Jiayi was silent. "Just get some rest. I'll keep watch. You were fighting Chase Young earlier." To his surprise, she nodded her agreement and slid down to curl up on her side. Raimundo shifted to sit beside her while looking out upon the canyon. "He doesn't know what he missed out on. That guy that you liked."

She bit the inside of her cheek and tightened her hands into fists. A few minutes of silence passed between them as she lied there on the earthen cave floor. "…I loved him, you know…and he never once looked at me…" A shuddering breath left her as she tried not to cry. "Raimundo…what's wrong with me? Why is it…whenever I love someone…they either despise me or they're taken away from me? Even my parents…I loved them so much and they just…died. Without saying good bye. Without any explanation. They just…burned…with the house and everything else…"

He could tell by her voice that she was beginning to doze off. The young man turned toward her and very carefully brushed his fingertips through her long, dark blue hair. Her body was trembling beneath his touch and it pained him to see her that way. She had been so powerful just earlier that day and now the thought of her first love reduced her to a trembling, melancholic bundle of tears. "It's going to be okay. We'll find him," he tried to reassure her.

Jiayi lifted a hand toward her face and sank her teeth into her own flesh. It brought pain, but the pain quickly began to overshadow her despair. When she tasted blood, she finally released her skin and licked at the wound. "…we'll find him…and I'll tear out Chase Young's beating heart…"