"So what can I do to save her?" He was quickly losing patience with Wuya's taunting. She had promised a way for him to keep Jiayi safe, but she was offering very little information.

"We know that he took her to his lair," she started. "The problem now is defeating him and getting her back. Tell me, how desperate are you to rescue the girl?"

"I said it before! I'll do whatever it takes!" Raimundo persisted. "Tell me what I need to do to rescue her!"

The witch stared into the distance at the lair of Chase Young. She had a good idea of what would happen. He intended to draw out her inner evil. "Why do you want to save her? For the good of the Xiaolin side or for yourself?"

His face burned with a blush and he gritted his teeth. "It doesn't matter!"

"Yes it does. Whichever reason you have will determine how we approach this."

"Fine! I want to save her for my own reasons, okay? Now can we go?!"

"Even if it meant joining the Heylin side again?"

The question made him frown. It was not something that he wanted to think about. Not something that he wanted to admit to considering. Though the thought had crossed his mind more than once since meeting Jiayi. "I'm not saying that I will. But if I did, could I beat Guan?"

Wuya grinned evilly. "Why do you want to beat Guan?" She could see the evil flicker in his eyes when he looked toward her.

"To protect her from him! To avenge her! You didn't see the way he went after her!"

"Such fiery passion. You really could bring her back. Alright, let's go."

Shift P.O.V

Jiayi dug her fingertips into the ground, her breath labored and her body trembling. His arm was around her midsection, his hips driving into the back of hers. She felt torn between wanting to tear him apart and wanting to push him down and grind against him. I hate him so why does it feel so good?! Why? I hate him! I know I hate him!

Chase let his hand shift up her abdomen to her chest, feeling her rapid pulse beneath his fingertips. "Where did you think you were going?" he taunted. She had moved as if to run from the room, but he had caught her. The sensation of being this close to her was intoxicating. To let her go now would leave him feeling empty inside. To let her leave at all was out of the question. "You still haven't screamed my name."

A loud growl left her, rivaling that of a tiger. "I will tear you apart if you don't let me go, Chase Young! I will rip open your chest and pull out your beating heart!"

"You want my heart? You can have it."

"Is that…supposed to be romantic?" she scoffed. Though she hated it, a rush of pleasure ran through her body and she arched her back. "I-I'm serious! Let go of me!" She felt his free hand beneath her chin, pulling her face to the side so she had to look at him. "Chase. Let go. Or I'll really make you hurt."

"I dare you to try it." He was not disappointed. She moved quickly and soon had him on his back, her claws sinking deep into his shoulder. Her free hand wove into his hair and pulled on it hard. He thrust his hips up against hers and watched her throw her head back for a moment. Her bright amber eyes were growing eviler with each second. He knew that she would soon be consumed by it. If he could only draw this out longer. Feeling her mouth on his neck, he growled lowly. "What do you intend to do now? Are you going to take my heart?"

"…don't I already have it…?" she teased. He's never once said that he loved me. Not that I care. This isn't about love. It just feels good. But it needs to end. I have to get back to Jack so I can save him. Her teeth scraped over his skin lightly and she swayed her hips. "Now. The Reversing Mirror, please. I have a mortal to save."

"I have no obligation to help you," Chase replied.

"Hm…fine. I'll just…turn into my tiger form…and tear your lair apart until I find the mirror." Jiayi stood and smirked down at him a moment before taking on her beastly form. Her tail swished side to side as she carefully moved around him toward the door.

He let her go, knowing that she would return when she was unable to find it. The villain waited for a long moment, determining his next move carefully. To let her escape the lair altogether was not an option. Now that he had her, he truly realized that they belonged together. It had been a simple idea to begin with, but to experience it was something else entirely. She made him feel something he had never felt before. Such satisfaction. Such hunger. He both hated and loved it.

She returned after several minutes and found him waiting for her. Chase was standing now, a smug look on his face. "Where did you hide it?" she demanded, rushing to get dressed. Her shirt was still ripped across the chest, sticky with old blood. It disgusted her. "If you don't tell me-"

"What will you do? If you tear my heart out, how will you know where the mirror is?" Watching the rage build in her eyes, he knew that he had her trapped once more. "Even if you do find it, do you think that you can return to the temple? Guan sees you as a bigger threat now. He could take you down so easily. If you join me, we can defeat him together."

"I refuse." Jiayi growled in frustration and resisted the urge to attack him. If I do that, he might disappear again. Then what will I do? She offered a flirtatious smirk and approached him slowly, running a hand up his well-toned chest and tilting her head. "Chase…tell me where it is and I'll make it worth your while…"

"You already have." He gripped her wrist and held her hand against his chest, watching the unease take form in her gaze. "Why should I help you? The second you have the mirror, you intend to go back to Jack Spicer."

"He might die if I don't save him." She kept her tone light, not wanting to tempt him into refusing. If he knew how much this mattered to her, he would surely refuse to help. "Alright…you know that if you help me…it might help me love you."

He smirked. "I don't think so."

Jiayi tried to pull her wrist from his grip, but his hold tightened. "Guan will be looking for me. Do you really want to face him?"

"Do you really want him to see you with me this way?" he countered. "That fool dotes on you, after all. How will he react when he finds out that we-?"

"That's enough! It was…a lapse in judgement. Nothing more." She finally pulled free and took a step away from him. Tears of frustration were beginning to form in her eyes and she wanted to leave. He was watching her so closely and noticed when she blushed. He's still…naked. Why?! Why is he just standing there like that?

The sound of voices drifted to them down the hallway through the open door. Jiayi turned to the door and swayed her hips anxiously. That's…Raimundo? A flash of a memory returned to her just then. He betrayed Guan to protect me…Behind her, she knew that Chase was putting his armor back on. It almost made her want to laugh.

Shift P.O.V

It was an odd sight. A sight that both frightened and amused the three young monks. Jack was awake now in the Sphere of Yun and stared in alarm at the spectacle. Raimundo had returned to the temple, riding on the back of a large blue tiger and brandishing the Blade of the Nebula. Jack watched this with wide, red eyes and wondered briefly if he should feel jealous. He's riding on my girlfriend's back. My girlfriend, in the form of a tiger. It was truly perplexing.

Something seemed different about the monk, but Jack was unable to place what it was. Raimundo dismounted from Jiayi's back and she changed to her human form, accepting the Reversing Mirror from him. She was soon in front of the Sphere of Yun and gave Jack a small grin before releasing the redhead. He instantly pulled her into a hug, tears forming in his eyes. I thought I'd never see her again. When Wuya told me that she went after C.Y. I thought for sure that he would never let her go! He tried to pull away so he could look at her. So he could ask her if she was alright. She refused to release him, her arms wrapped around him and her cheek pressing against his neck. "Jiayi? Hey, what's wrong? Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

Tears slid down her cheeks, wetting his neck and jacket. "…I'm fine…I was worried about you though…"

"What happened? Did you kill C.Y.?"

"…no…" Her voice was barely above a whisper and her body was shaking.

"Are you sure you're okay? You don't seem okay." Jack glanced over at Raimundo and felt a chill run down his spine. Something isn't right, he realized. What is it? What's wrong here? The monk was staring at them, even as Guan approached him for questioning. Even as he spoke, answering the questions without his facial expression changing. We need to leave.

"…Jack…we can't stay here," she finally said. "I'm going to change shapes. Get on my back. Hold on tight. Keep your eyes and mouth closed."

He was reluctant to obey, fearful of what might happen, but was not disappointed when he suddenly found that they were at his house. The girl went in ahead of him, moving slowly and flopping weakly onto his bed when they reached his room. "Are you really sure you're okay?"

Shift P.O.V

Her boyfriend looked terrified. Jiayi wanted to tell him that everything would be alright. But that would be a lie, wouldn't it? What happened at Chase Young's lair…I can never tell Jack. I can't tell him any of it. He would feel hurt. He would feel scared. She shifted an arm to lay across her eyes, her heart racing. The day had brought her such stress that she felt she could sleep for a thousand years.

Jack settled at her side, glad to stretch his limbs after being trapped for so long. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," he assured her. His arms tentatively wrapped around her, pulling the girl close. "I'm just glad that you came back."

"I'm glad…that you're free now." She kissed his cheek and closed her eyes. I can't sleep. I need to protect Jack. Chase might come here tonight. Or…worse. Jiayi absently bit her thumbnail, brow furrowed. "Your video surveillance system…"

"It's on right now."

"How late does it run?"

"It runs twenty-four hours a day. Why?" He looked at her with worry and it did not diminish when she offered a shaky smile. "Jiayi, should I be worried?"

"We…wounded him. If he does come here, it won't be for a while," she tried to reassure him. "Just…don't worry about it. I know. I'll make you some food. You must be starving." She got up and wandered over to her box of clothes, searching for a clean outfit to wear. Jiayi settled on a black t-shirt and a short black skirt. Will the others be okay though? I'm worried about their safety as well. They might be in worse danger because they don't know…

Jack followed her to the kitchen and watched her cook. From the way she stared longingly at the bowl of ramen she put in front of him, he could tell that she was hungry as well. "Did you eat at all since I went missing?"

She snorted. "…do you believe you're the center of the universe…?" she teased him. "No, I did not eat. Because you are, for me, the center of the universe." He blushed and started to eat, which made her grin. "You should consider yourself very lucky. Before you, I have only fallen in love once."

"Wait. You do love me? Like really?"

The girl rubbed the back of her neck. "Well…yes. Don't act so surprised."

He grinned back at her now. "No, I mean. I'm really happy to hear that you love me. It would be weird if I loved you and you didn't love me. Uh…I mean…"

She stretched her arms over her head and sighed. "That is what we call 'unrequited love'. I assure you, I'm quite familiar with the concept." The girl tilted her head when Jack gave her a curious look. "What?"

"When you said 'we wounded him'. Who helped you?"

"Hm…it was a team effort. Me, Raimundo, and Wuya. We all attacked him at once."

"But Wuya's powers are still locked, aren't they? So-"

Jiayi held up a hand. "Don't. Please. I don't want to talk about it." She leaned back in her seat, closing her sharp amber eyes. Her mind was wandering from the memory of Chase's body against hers to the memory of what had taken place before leaving the lair. It made her shiver. Surveillance cameras or not, I need to be vigilant. I won't sleep tonight. I might not sleep tomorrow night. I can't risk something happening to Jack again.

"Sorry about getting stuck in that sphere. I shouldn't have gone with him," Jack finally said. He hated to admit that he had willingly gone with Chase Young, especially after everything that Jiayi went through to free him. There were still parts of the story that he did not know and he was not sure that he wanted to know about them.

"It's fine. But out of curiosity…why did you go with him? Did he offer you candy?"

He stuck out his tongue and she snickered. "No! He said that he was going to show me something. I knew pretty soon that it was a trap!" Jack frowned down at his ramen. "I mean, it took me a while. I didn't realize until we got to the Land of Nowhere."

Curiosity made her half-grin. "What did he promise to show you?"

"It's not like that!" His face turned as red as his hair and he dropped his fork. "Don't jump to conclusions! He said he found something related to you and I thought it might…" This part shamed him the most. "I thought it might be that guy. The one you turned evil for."

"He's gone. Forever. And I…don't care anymore." Jiayi met Jack's gaze with a steady look of determination. "Even if he suddenly appeared before me…with open arms and ready to forgive me…offering me love…I wouldn't care. He no longer means something to me."

"Are you sure? It's okay if you're not over him."

"It's fine. I'm…fine. Don't worry about it." She glanced out the window, feeling a bit uneasy. If he comes here, what am I going to do? Can I fight him alone? What will happen if he defeats me?

Jack continued to eat his meal and went down to the basement after a while, leaving her to sit alone in silence and stare out the window. He sat with his shen-gon-wu chart and felt as though he was being watched. Shivering, he looked over his shoulder to find that he was alone in the basement. Suddenly, he began to wonder if Jiayi was more worried about Chase or Raimundo attacking.