Bai ran a long finger along the crystal ball, drawing idle shapes in the reflection, when an image began to come to its surface. She peered curiously down at it, ignoring the old man and instead focused on the two younger people.

"Hmm…" The young man seemed familiar.

"Did something interesting finally show," asked a bored voice.

Bai looked over her shoulder to spy Niulang's plain but boyish face, looking curious over her shoulder only for it to turn into an ugly sneer when he spotted Yue Lao.

"Has he not done enough damage?"

She shrugged, not having the same hatred for the old man as him. "It seems another pair has caught his eye."

At this comment, Niulang's attention drifted to the two others shown in the crystal and was surprised when he laid eyes on the girl. She looked exactly like Chang'e, right down to the style of her hair and the shade of her eyes. Niulang's gaze drifted to the boy and he couldn't help the smirk that rose to his lips. Oh this was rich. He knew of this boy. Many in the other world did. He was famous for being the cause behind the destruction of the moon. And then to pair him with what could be an identical copy of Chang'e? Fate was surely laughing at that combination.

"What are you still doing here?" came another voice from behind him. Hou Yi's heavy footsteps could be heard drawing closer. "Don't you have to be on your way if you want to meet with Zhinu?"

A brief smile fluttered to Niulang's lips at the thought of his beloved. Hou Yi wasn't wrong, he would need to leave tonight if he were to make it to their meeting place on time. The journey would take him the better part of the month but he could spare a few seconds for this.

He reached past Bai and enlarged the image of the boy.

"Good news, Hou Yi! You can finally get your revenge. Bai here has found the source for the destruction of your lover."

Bai shot him a reproachful look that was easily ignored, particularly due to Hou Yi's startled "What?!" as he shoved them both aside to look at the image for himself.

Hou Yi had sworn six years ago he would do whatever it took to get revenge for Chang'e but the man didn't even wear armor! He would be an easy mark. "That's the one? You're sure?"

"I would never lie when it comes to true love." Niulang told Hou Yi seriously, clapping his shoulder. He would never lie but he would certainly do his utmost to destroy it.

o0o

Finding the village chief's house turned out to be even easier than Goku and Chi-Chi could have hoped. Crowded as Kaishi was, the village chief had managed to isolate himself from the rest of the village by residing in the largest—and highest elevated—house in the mountains. It was also the most grandly lit, so much so that even Chi-Chi was able to spot it as darkness descended upon them. However while finding the village chief's home had been easy, gaining access turned out to be a bit more challenging.

"The young master is not accepting visitors at this time," said a snooty woman with an extremely pinched expression.

"You don't understand," Chi-Chi said hastily, gripping the door to keep it from being shut. The maid had already done so once and Chi-Chi wasn't about to let it happen again. "We were sent by Yue Lao."

"That quack? The young master doesn't want anything to do with his sort. Now please leave!"

Goku, who was standing off to the side with both hands behind his head, was getting tired of arguing back and forth with this lady. He shrugged and gestured for Chi-Chi to follow.

"C'mon Chi, if this Gaki fellow doesn't want a cure for his nightmares then we should leave him to it."

He turned and began walking away leaving Chi-Chi and the maid to stare after him in shock.

"B-But what about the Bansho Fan!" Chi-Chi stammered, hurrying to catch up.

Goku only had a second to shoot her a curious look before a "Wait! Please!" rang out behind them. He smirked and then turned back to stare at the maid questioningly, his expression innocent once more. If Chi-Chi hadn't witnessed the brief bit of smugness she would never have believed it.

'Did he plan that?' she wondered in awe, even as the maid rushed them inside. Chi-Chi vaguely registered the maid telling them to wait there but she could hardly pay attention to anything other than the man who never ceased to surprise her.

"What?" Goku asked, noticing her staring. "Do I have something on my face?"

Chi-Chi smiled and shook her head in disbelief. "That was incredible Goku! You sure aren't the goofball I used to know."

"Heh, heh. Rethinkin' your opinion of me, eh?" Goku grinned, pleased that his spur of the moment plan had an unintended benefit, particularly because she was smiling in that way again. The one where her eyes went all sparkly and her cheeks turned an appealing shade of red. He moved closer, unable to help himself, and noticed that her scent had grown thicker as well…sweeter even. Goku swallowed, feeling his eyes grow heavy as his cheeks burned. Chi-Chi smelled really, really good.

"You?" said a nasally, condescending voice. Chi-Chi and Goku both turned to see a sickly young man scoffing at the sight of them.

"You two are the ones who can fix my problem?" He clutched the opening of his robe to his chest and waved them off. "Be gone, I don't have the patience to deal with beggars coming to gawk at how the upper half lives."

Chi-Chi scoffed at the insult. "We're not beggars!" she growled. She'd grown up in a castle after all!

Sensing Chi-Chi's anger, Goku quickly cut in, "Yue Lao sent us."

This got the young man's attention. "Yue Lao? Really? Why would he send you after ignoring my repeated requests to meet?" he demanded.

"To help you in exchange for the Bansho Fan," Chi-Chi answered.

"The Ban—" Gaki's eyes widened. "How did he—nevermind. So he wants the Fan, eh? Fine. You can have it but only after I'm cured. So what do I have to do, hm?" He looked at them expectantly. "Do I have to eat something? Maybe put something under my pillow? Oh I know! I need to make an offering to Kami."

Goku snorted, knowing how much Kami disliked offerings. Something about putting it to better use elsewhere. Chi-Chi shot him a curious look but didn't ask, instead choosing to explain what needed to be done while Goku had a brief moment of wondering what Kami would think of Chi-Chi. He'd have to bring her visit some time.

He turned his attention back to the present just as Chi-Chi finished explaining.

"Dream walking?" Gaki murmured, studying them both carefully. He pursed his lips and then turned and began walking down a long hallway, gesturing for them to follow.

"Fine, I'll allow it but only the girl."

"What? Why?" Chi-Chi asked while Goku's brows narrowed in suspicion. Chi-Chi was strong and would be fine but he didn't see why he couldn't go with.

Gaki ignored them both and instead opened a door, flipping on a light to reveal a large bedroom. "Call it an insurance policy," he shrugged, gesturing them inside. He threw over a dozen pillows to the ground in front of a large mirror and then sat on top of them looking at Goku and Chi-Chi expectantly.

"Alright then, get to it." He said, snapping at them to hurry it up.

Goku and Chi-Chi traded annoyed looks but did as ordered, spreading the salt out around Gaki before handing him the potion to drink.

"This better work," he muttered, downing the concoction in one gulp.

At first nothing happened. Gaki made a face at the taste but everything was otherwise normal. Then his eyes became glazed and hooded, and the mirror behind him began to shimmer until a vast open plain could be seen, half shrouded in darkness.

"Right then," Chi-Chi huffed, pulling her fists in at her sides.

Goku clapped a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "You got this."

She smiled and gave him a sharp nod in return and then stepped through the mirror making it ripple like cool water. It was a stark contrast to the arid dream world she stepped into, as uninviting as the dreamer himself.

Chi-Chi glanced back, relieved to see the portal still there, and then examined her surroundings, which was easy to do given how barren and open the plains were. There was an area not too far off, clearly marked by a wall of shadows and she figured her best bet at finding the Baku was around there.

She made her way over quickly, frowning as she noted the shallow pools of muddy water and the snakes slithering through the grass. Was there anything pleasant about this man? Chi-Chi shook her head just as a harsh wind blew, its haunting howls making her shiver. Only the howls seemed to continue even after the winds died down.

Chi-Chi looked around curiously for the source before realizing it was coming from the shadows! She closed the distance between her and the nightmare world, getting as close as she dared, and scrutinized what lay beyond only to shy away once her eyes finally managed to focus on something. There were ghoulish looking creatures with rotting limbs and dripping eyeballs in there! Some with missing jaws! But all of them were wailing in such agony Chi-Chi couldn't help but pity them. She hoped they weren't real…or at least not really suffering.

A small growl, like that of a lion cub, sounded from her right and Chi-Chi turned to see a large creature around her height with the body of a lion, the head of a wolf and the trunk and tusks of an elephant. It was biting on the shadows, attempting to gnaw on them like a rubber squeak toy, but its trunk kept getting in the way. The creature shoved its tusks through the layers of darkness in an attempt to get closer, but it didn't look like it was helping. Instead it would smack its mouth a few times and then pull away before moving onto the next spot to try again, leaving an inky trail of shadows in its wake that slipped through the holes left behind and tainted everything they touched.

Chi-Chi took a deep breath and then turned to face her opponent head on. She had found the Baku.

o0o

Goku leaned back as he stared at the ceiling from his spot on the floor. He had been able to see Chi-Chi when she'd first stepped through the mirror but she'd quickly disappeared from sight and now he was bored.

"It would have been more fun to fight the Baku," he pouted before slanting his gaze towards Gaki.

The man hadn't uttered a single word since drinking whatever was in that bottle but he didn't look like he was asleep.

"Hey, you awake?"

Goku waited a moment, sure that Gaki wouldn't answer but then he spoke, his voice thick and heavy, but still with a snobby tone.

"I am."

Goku perked up, pleased for a distraction.

"Great! I was gettin' bored! So how'd ya find the Bansho Fan anyways?"

"I came across it when I went sailing last spring and quickly discovered what it was capable of. When I overheard that dumb tradesman talking about it, it was obvious what I'd found."

"Oh," Goku blinked, scratching his cheek when it was apparent Gaki had nothing further to add. "Well that's lucky." He looked around the room for something else to talk about when his eyes landed back on the mirror. Had Chi-Chi found the Baku yet? He knew this was supposed to be Chi-Chi's journey, so she should be the one fighting anyways, but he still wished he could have gone just to watch.

"Hey, why didn't you want me going with Chi-Chi anyways?"

"Who wants a smelly man walking around their dreams?"

"Wha…?"

That was the reason? But that wasn't a good reason at all!

Goku crossed his arms and pouted, clearly sulking, but he didn't care. He could be with Chi-Chi having fun right now but instead he was stuck here. His gaze drifted back to the annoying Gaki who's foggy gaze didn't look like they were taking anything in. Goku pursed his lips and then stood, hands in his pockets as he strolled around examining the room.

"Sure is a nice place ya got here."

The only reply was a single scoff.

Goku rolled his eyes even as he inched closer to his target.

"That bed looks pretty comfy."

That earned merely a huff this time.

Goku watched him for a minute and when Gaki still didn't move, sidestepped towards his goal and slipped through the mirror into the dream world.

"Huh," he said upon arriving on the other side and looking around. The dream world sure wasn't what he imagined…or maybe it was just boring because that Gaki fellow was boring? Goku shrugged, only a little disappointed. It's not like it was his dreams.

He turned and made his way towards Chi-Chi's familiar ki. It wasn't active like he would have expected, so he figured she hadn't found the Baku yet or at least he thought so, until he finally came across her with her hands on her hips, lecturing a funny looking creature.

"Chi-Chi?"

"Hm?" Chi-Chi looked over her shoulder. "Oh Goku! What are you doing here?" She turned back towards the creature. "No, no, you're still not getting it," Chi-Chi scolded. "You gotta pull it to ya with your trunk. Scoop it up if ya have to!"

The Baku nodded in understanding and then, with a look of determination, leapt to its feet and rushed toward the largest grouping of nightmares that had managed to escape the barrier. It then reared back and swung its trunk, managing to catch a couple but still missing more than he got.

The Baku turned back towards her looking distraught, its ears folded down in failure. Chi-Chi couldn't help but think how cute it looked even in its distress.

"Hey now, you'll get it. I'm sure ya can," she said, scratching behind one of its ears. "Ya just need a little practice."

It was a touching scene but Goku was confused.

"Ain't ya gonna fight it, Chi-Chi?" he asked, even as he moved forward to pet its trunk. The Baku wagged its tail happily, bumping up against his hand.

"How am I supposed to fight somethin' so cute?" she asked, looking up at him with such big, pleading eyes that Goku couldn't help but feel nervous. He didn't think she was gonna start crying but he couldn't help feeling uneasy nonetheless.

"He's just a baby! It's not like he's doing it on purpose. He just needs a little help."

As if to aid its case, the Baku wrapped its trunk around Goku's arm and began purring, making him smile. It was pretty cute.

"So whadda we do instead?" he asked her.

Chi-Chi beamed at him before her smile morphed into a smirk. "Funny you should ask. We gotta teach him to eat, and fast."

Goku grinned. If there was one thing he was good at, it was eating. "Leave it to me! Alright, let's see whatcha got," he said, taking a step back from the Baku to study its technique.

At this command, the Baku turned and leapt into a pile of ghouls who had managed to free themselves from the nightmare world just beyond the wall, shoving its face toward a disembodied hand but failing to snap it up in its jaws.

"What's the matter?" Goku asked it. The hand was right there, why couldn't it do it? He looked at the hand and then looked at the Baku.

"Hmm…" Goku stretched both arms out in front of him, mimicking the Baku's trunk. "Oh I get it! You can't see!"

The Baku tilted its head curiously and then shook it as if to say no.

"Is there a way for you to keep an eye on it and eat it at the same time?"

Again the Baku tilted its head, blinking a few times as it thought. After a moment, the Baku adjusted his head a little more and then placed one eye as close to the diseased looking hand as it could before munching on air.

Both Chi-Chi and Goku frowned.

"No good, huh…" Goku mumbled, sidestepping a crawling ghoul missing its lower half. He frowned as he traced its path backwards. The nightmares were starting to get bigger. He turned to check on Chi-Chi and noticed one such creature limping up behind her.

"Chi-Chi!"

Goku yanked her into his arms just before the nightmare could touch her, his heart hammering at how close that was.

"Pay attention!" He scolded. "Who knows what will happen if that stuff touches you."

"R-Right…" Chi-Chi blushed, embarrassed to have been caught unaware but also ridiculously flustered to be pressed up against Goku. It was all she could do to keep her hands from wandering over his firm chest. She gulped and tried to pull away, but Goku—who was keeping his eyes on their surroundings—had his arm around her so tight she couldn't budge, making Chi-Chi blush even more.

Curious as to what his new friends were doing, the Baku bounded up to them and began sniffing them over until it reached Chi-Chi's long hair which tickled its nose. It sucked in once…twice…three times so strongly Chi-Chi and Goku struggled to remain upright until it finally sneezed out in one large burst, bowling them and everything else in its path over.

Chi-Chi groaned into Goku's chest, having been cushioned by him when they went flying.

"You alright?" he asked her, helping her sit up as he looked to see the damage. Unfortunately the Baku had been facing the wall of nightmares when it sneezed, opening up the largest hole yet. What had once been a drop, was now a steady stream of nightmarish creatures crawling out of the darkness' depths. The boring arid plains of Gaki's dreams began to rapidly shrivel and darken as quickly as an incoming storm.

Goku scooped Chi-Chi up and leapt up into the air, holding her tight. They wouldn't be able to hang around much longer. Fortunately he had an idea.

"Hey Baku!"

The Baku turned its sniffling head upward.

"Try suckin' em up with your trunk!" Goku mimed taking a deep breath and then shoved his hand towards his face, chewing in an exaggerated fashion so the Baku could understand.

The Baku nodded eagerly and this time when it tried, it was more successful. It sucked in once and then twice, immediately catching the ghouls closest to him and knocking over the rest. Confident from this accomplishment, the Baku quickly twisted its trunk around and shoved the creatures into its mouth, munching away. Chew, chew, swallow. Chew, chew, swallow.

It did another round of sucking, followed by another round of chewing and soon Goku noticed the darkness that had begun to spread seemed to flake away as if it were simply dust, leaving behind the yellow grass it had once been.

Chew, chew, swallow. Chew, chew, swallow.

Goku lowered them slowly to the ground as the darkness began to recede. Soon all that remained began to flee back into the shadows as the Baku eagerly nipped at their dripping heels, growling at the chase.

It took Chi-Chi and Goku a moment to realize the Baku wasn't the only thing growling.

"Ehehe…" Goku laughed, one hand behind his head. "I guess my stomach's jealous."

Chi-Chi smiled and patted his belly. "Well I think our job here is done, don't you? Why don't we head back, collect the Fan, and getcha somethin' to eat?"

"Sounds good to me, Chi!"

Goku and Chi-Chi waved goodbye to the Baku, who failed to notice—busy as it was now that it could finally eat—and made their way back to the portal. As soon as they were on the other side the portal reverted to a normal mirror and Gaki seemed to come out of his daze.

He looked a little healthier, the dark shadows under his eyes lessening somewhat, but he still made a face upon spotting them.

"Well? Did you do it?"

"We did," Chi-Chi told him, sticking out her hand. "Now pay up."

Gaki immediately scoffed. "How do I know it even worked? No, you'll have to come back for the Fan later."

Maybe if he was one of the people from her kingdom, Chi-Chi would have agreed, but she highly doubted the haughty Gaki would hand over the Fan if he didn't do so right then. Thinking quickly, she decided to take a page out of Goku's book and turned away. "Alright, if you're willing to have something worse than the Baku come along, then by all means keep it."

"Wha..what do you mean," Gaki demanded, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Just that by keeping the Fan, you're bringing on more bad karma. It's what drew the Baku to you in the first place," Chi-Chi shrugged, making her way to the door. "But if you're fine with tha—"

"No, no, no! You can have it!" He threw open a closet and fiddled around in there for a moment before pulling out a large painted bamboo fan with a long red feather on top and a matching tassel tied to the bottom. He shoved it into Chi-Chi's hands and motioned for them to leave. "Now go! You've got what you wanted and I need my beauty sleep."

"You'll need a lot more than sleep to help with that," Goku smiled, waving goodbye. "See ya!"

Chi-Chi rushed them out of the room and then the building, away from the string of curses that were being unleashed behind them.

"Geez, he really needs that nap," Goku grimaced, rubbing an aching ear. He hadn't known a human could even reach that high of a note.

Chi-Chi, meanwhile, was ready to burst. "I can't believe you said that!" she laughed, as soon as they'd made it outside. "I thought his head was gonna explode!"

"What'd I say?"

"Oh no," Chi-Chi said, shaking her head. She didn't believe his innocent expression for a second. "Ya can't fool me now. I saw you earlier. Ya know exactly what you said."

"If you say so," Goku grinned, throwing his hands behind his head. "Let's get somethin' to eat. I'm hungry."

"Why don't we see if there are any shops still open? I'll make us something extra good to celebrate!" Maybe she'd even make those pies she had planned on making a few nights ago.

Goku's eyes lit up at the possibilities. "Really?! Well, whadda we waitin' for!"

…

The small fox waited until the young couple was out of sight before popping out from the bushes and making its way back towards camp. It was easy to navigate the village when one was small enough to go wherever one wanted, and it arrived at its destination soon after.

"Ah, Hushen, there you are," smiled the old fortune teller as he placed several crystals in various spots across a board of sand. "Good news to report I hope?"

The fox huffed and then morphed into a thin girl with pale blonde hair and sharp eyes.

"You'll be pleased to know they succeeded, although I'm sure you already knew that," she sighed, taking a seat across from Yue Lao and pulling out a long pipe. She lit one end and then sucked on the other, before breathing out a ring of smoke.

Yue Lao frowned and waved the smoke away from his work. "You know my visions are not so precise. How many promising couples have failed through outside intervention? Even the power of love can only overcome so much."

"The world would be distressed to hear the God of Love say such things." She blew another smoke ring, this time away from Yue Lao and he nodded in thanks for her consideration.

"I speak only the truth," he told her. "But I think, this time, we will finally see success."

Hushen tilted her head curiously. "You really think they're that promising? They both seem a bit…innocent to me. Chang'e and Hou Yi seemed more capable and look at how they failed."

Yue Lao waved his hand dismissively and then took one of his crystals and placed it with another. "Those two were headstrong and jaded from the start, these two are more like Zhinu and Niulang but are unlikely to be intimidated like they were."

"The boy maybe, but the girl?" Hushen shrugged and went back to smoking her pipe. "No doubt it'll be a repeat of what happened between Xu Xian and Lady Bai."

"No, I am telling you, those two will make it." He moved another crystal just so and beamed when the board lit up. "You see? A more positive reading I have never had."

Hushen leaned over to examine the board but remained doubtful. "If you say so."

"I do, but this time I want you to follow them."

"What?" She sat up angrily, "Why? You get nothing out of this, so what does it matter if they succeed or fail?"

"You really cannot guess?" Yue Lao murmured, moving to take a seat beside her. "You have been by my side for some time now, surely you must have figured out why I ask this?"

She had, of course. Yue Lao may have been around long before her time but he had once been young at heart. Witnessing true love fail time and again would take its toll on anyone, god or no.

Hushen sighed, knowing she would do as he asked.

Yue Lao leaned over and patted her hand. "Cheer up, my dear. It is not as if you get nothing from doing this."

"Are you sure you want that?" she asked, raising a brow. "You'll miss me once I'm gone."

"As if you could ever walk a path I could not follow," the old man laughed. "No, no. It is time. You were always destined to leave me at some point."

"Very well, but know that I'm not happy about it," Hushen told him.

"I know, I know. Thank you, Hushen."

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! If you're wondering about these newest additions, well all I can say is keeping reading to find out! Next time we'll finally arrive at the first of Chi-Chi and Goku's trials.