It's been on my mind for a bit, but haven't found the right way to do it until now. It's darker than my usual stuff but it just felt good to write.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except Steven, Jack's father (Get me a shotgun!), and the idea for the name Angela for Jack's mother.

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I, Chase Young, am a lot of things, but curious about Jack Spicer's life is not one of them. That's why it came as a shock to see Jack, bruised and bloody, knock pitifully on my door. I opened the door, ready to let the pathetic young man have it when he passed out at my feet. Mildly concerned I bent and checked his pulse. Barely there. Wondering if the monks had beaten him to a bloody pulp, that thought was immediately dismissed as I took a closer look at the bruises on Spicer. Boot prints, larger than any of the Monks feet, even the cowboy. It was then that it struck me what happened. Jack had been beaten by a stranger. Sighing in disgust, knowing I should at least give him a place to rest before he returned home. I picked up the youth, being careful of his bruises and a couch appeared at my thought. I laid the teen down and covered him with a blanket, he flinched as my hand accidentally touched his arm too hard. He whimpered at the simple act of pulling the blanket over him, the fatherly gesture any child would appreciate. At least most children. It started to make sense, if only a little bit. Jack was abused by his father. I'm evil, cruel, ruthless and vindictive. I freely admit and relish in these facts. But if there is one thing that I do not, will never and can never tolerate is abusive parents. True I had never experienced that, my parents had loved me and it had been hard for them to send me to the Xiaolin Temple, but after 1500 years, it was hard not to hear of child abuse. I felt a brief amount of sympathy and pity for the boy and let him sleep peacefully for now.

-------------3 Hours Later----------

I must have dozed off with a book because when I woke up, Jack was screaming in terror and begging someone to stop. Not caring what my cats or anyone who saw me thought, I jumped to my feet and ran to where Jack was asleep. Emphasis on 'was'.

"Jack. Jack! Spicer!" I growled quietly, I knew that was the tone he heard the most from me and I figured that would calm him, it did to an extent. He stopped screaming and only whimpered. I carefully took hold of his shoulders and squeezed gently, trying not to hit any of the bruises. Jack shot straight up, looking confused and frightened. He saw me and flushed.

"Chase. I..I'm sorry I'll go now..." He started to rise and fell back with a hiss of pain. I felt a smirk flit across my face, but Jack hadn't noticed.

"Jack, I know. At least I suspect. I want you to answer me truthfully. Is your father abusing you?" I asked as gently as possible. Jack paled even more than usual and quickly shook his head.

"No, he's not." Jack whispered hurriedly. I knew he was lying, but decided not to press the issue.

"Let me show you where you can get cleaned up and treat those bruises." I said and helped him up. Jack looked surprised and slightly suspicious, but said nothing. Taking him into the area where I treated my own bruises and cuts from our battles and my sparing with my cats, I politely left the room while Jack pulled off his clothing and treated his wounds. There are something's that I would really rather not see. Jack with few clothes was top on the list, with Wuya with few clothes right behind it. The thought made me convulse and fight down a wave of nausea. Most definitely not. Jack returned from the room, his clothes back on and limping slightly. He could walk on his own. I kept my own pace slow as we descended the stairs.

"Why are you helping me?" he demanded suddenly, suspiciously. I sighed and turned to face Jack, who was a single step above me.

"I can't tolerate people who abuse their children. I'm evil in every sense of the word, but even I wouldn't stoop that low. That just...That is wrong, Jack. No one, no matter how powerful or who they are, should do that." I said truthfully. There was no reason to keep that a secret. Even Hannibal hated them and he had sent me on a mission to wipe out a few of them. That was something we agreed on. The only thing actually. Jack sat down heavily and I walked up to join him on the step. He placed his head in hands and breathed deeply.

"When I was young, Dad would beat both Mom and I. She got enough courage to leave him and took me with her. Mom was rich before she married Dad and her parents gave us plenty of money to start new lives, which is why I'm here. The guy that sent me Wuya is my stepdad, he's the one that helped raise me. Dad, my biological one, wouldn't stop looking for us in the states so we came here to China and got away from him where Mom met my current Dad, Steven. We were happy until Dad found us last year and tried to Blackmail us. Mom told him to buzz off and I used my Bots to make sure he left. He came back last night while Mom and Steven were gone and did this to me. My bots chased him off and I wrote a quick note to Mom and Steve telling them I'm going to a friends and that the Bots were programmed to listen to her. I barely made it here. Thank you, for letting me rest here and clean up." Jack said quietly. I forced a smile and put his arm around the younger mans shoulder, being careful of the bruises. Jack looked at me in surprise and saw a genuine feeling of liking for him. Platonically of course.

"You want something to eat, Jack?" I asked, Jack smiled gratefully and I took him to the kitchen and let him assemble a sandwich, declining any offer of a sandwich for myself. As I watched him eat and down a can of Pepsi, I found myself coming to like this teenager who could be such a pain sometimes. I swore, right then and there that the man who had hurt him would pay very dearly for hurting so innocent a young man.

-------------------Unknown Location, Third person POV---------------

Jack's biological father walked into his house, well apartment, after having failed to get any money from his obnoxious brat of a kid. The idiots robots had chased him off with lasers and bombs. Unknown to the seething man, a cold, deadly figure lurked in the dark corners of the room, waiting for his chance. Jack's father slumped into a chair and turned on his TV only to find that the picture was gray squiggly lines across the screen with static in between. Getting up to fiddle with the reception, he presented the perfect target, which the figure took advantage of. A strangled gasp came from the man as the figure grabbed him by the throat.

"I'm a friend of Jack Spicer's. His Guardian Angel you might say. Or rather Guardian Demon. What you did was unforgivable. I'm going to make sure you never do it again. Ever again." the dark figure snarled and snapped his neck in a single movement. Stepping out of the shadows as the body dropped, Chase kicked the limp body once and disappeared. The next day, the landlady with two cops pounded on the door until one of police officers had to kick the door down. They found Jared MacKenzie lying with his neck snapped and a single reptile scale in the room. The Forensics swore up and down that the reptile scale belonged to a snake and the was cause of death, but only one person knew for sure and he wasn't exactly talking.

----------------Jack's house, the morning after----------------

Jack's mother, Angela, ran into her sons room and woke the boy up with the news that his father was murdered. But it didn't matter how he died, all they cared was that he was dead. Angela and Steven were taking Jack to breakfast to spend the day together. Jack knew exactly who had killed his biological father, but had no intention of saying anything. Besides, who would believe that a 1500 year old half-human, half-reptile had killed him because of what he did? Before leaving the house, Jack sent a wordless thought of thanks to the one person he knew would be listening.

"You're welcome, Jack. Besides, what are Guardian Demons for?" I smirked and vanished...

Finished

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