"Pythor has two of the Fangblades, but we only need one to stop him. So the question is, where are they?" Nya said, thoughtfully. Jay put an arm around his girlfriend, smiling. "Is anyone else just blown away by the fact that Nya was the mysterious Samurai? Huh?" Jay asked.

Hikari was sitting on the table as Kai snapped, with a disgruntled tone to his voice, "We're over that. Can we move on?"

"Ooh, looks like someone's a little hot under the collar!" Jay said, grinning at Kai. Kai's mouth was small as he showed his teeth in a slight growl.

"It appears the source of Kai's impatience is that he has not found his true potential, like you and I have, Jay," Zane responded evenly. Kai crossed his arms petulantly, like a small child. "Nice observation, Mr. Roboto, but Cole hasn't found it either!" Hikari smiled slightly. Right. Very mature, Kai.

Cole chose the PERFECT moment to suddenly shout, throwing up his arms in excitement, "I've GOT it!"

"You've unlocked it?! Ohhh why am I the only one?!" Kai complained, but Cole cut him off. "No, not that- I realized where I recognized the Fangblade!" Cole said, running out of the control room, "I have a picture of it!"

Kai relaxed. "Oh. Is that it. Oh, good."

Hikari shook her head in amusement. "Kai, you're a good at least EIGHT years older than me, yet I think I'm still more mature than you are," she said, cheerfully. "Especially her language," Zane added.

Kai glared at her jokingly as Cole returned with a photo album. He set it down on the table and flipped it open, whereupon Jay snatched it to take a look. "Oh- THAT'S IT!" he yelled. Hikari hopped off the table and went over to where everyone was gathering, barely able to peep over at the picture.

"Back where I grew up, there's this BIG competition, where every year, the winner gets the Blade Cup," Cole said with a big smile on his face. "My dad's won it multiple times."

"You never told us your father was an accomplished athlete," said Zane mildly. "What sport?"

"Oh, he's an uh, blacksmith," Cole said, suddenly seeming uncomfortable. Kai shrugged, not seeing why Cole was so uncomfortable. Hikari was frustrated from not being able to see it, so she actually climbed up onto the table to look at it as Kai spoke. "Nothing wrong with that; my father was a blacksmith too. But I've never heard of a competition-"

"That's because he's not a, blacksmith blacksmith, he's a... Royal, Blacksmith," Cole interjected, getting up and turning the page to show a man with a small mustache and graying hair holding the Blade Cup. Several snickers from the guys as Jay sniggered, "That's your dad?"

Kai had a funny look on his face as he turned to ask Cole, "But how did the Fangblade become a trophy?"

Cole shrugged. "Supposedly, the Blade Cup was made by this guy who collected priceless artifacts. His name was something like, uh... Dutch... no, Clutch! Clutch Powers," he said, before walking off a bit. "Anyway, it get passed on to this year's winner."

"So who has it now?" asked Zane pleasantly. Cole looked uncomfortable again. "I dunno. I haven't talked to my father in years."

"Well, then we'll call him up," said Kai, just as Cole burst out, "YOU CAN'T! He, uh... thinks I'm in Ninjago City, training at the Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts."

He took ahold of the steering wheel, shifting his weight as he spoke, no longer facing them. "He wanted me to follow in his footsteps... but when I couldn't sing or dance, I ran away. When he sees I can't dance, he'll know I'll be lying in all the letters I've been sending him."

"He doesn't know you're a ninja?" Zane inquired. Cole whipped back to them, looking irritated. "What, you gonna crack some joke about how my old man wears a tutu?"

"No," Kai responded, going over and putting a hand on his friend's shoulder, "but if we're going to have any chance of getting that Fangblade before they do, we'd better get our own act in tune!"

x

Nya was heading back to her room when she heard faint music... coming from her room? It was sung by one of the clearest, sweetest voices Nya'd ever heard.

"I've been watching your kindness
keep a lonely company
Look at the fire
and think of me..."

Nya liked it, but she was pretty sure she hadn't left the radio on or anything. Although, to be honest she couldn't hear any background music. Maybe it was an acapella cover or something?

"I've been watching you creep around
my wandering feet
trying for years
to flee..."

Nya frowned as she opened the door, her slightly puzzled expression turning into a wide-eyed one. She was kinda glad the ship was still flying and all the ninja were preoccupied.

It was Hikari. Hikari was singing very softly, but her head was nodding around as she sang.

"I need not one thing more
oh wrap the ground around
your gentle winding mind
oh guard the pounding sound..."

Nya stood there, completely enraptured in the singing.

Breathe in your fiery air
oh wrap the ground around
give back an hungrier stare
oh guard the pounding sound...

You'll be the moon
I'll be the earth
and when we burst
start over
oh darling
begin again
begin again
begin again..."

The moment Hikari's voice stopped, Nya stepped into the room and applauded. Hikari literally jumped three inches into the air as she turned around. "Oh, hi Nya!" she said, looking wide-eyed.

"You're really good at this, Hikari!" Nya said with a lopsided grin. "Maybe you could go to the competition with the ninja; I'm sure they'd let you come along!"

Hikari frowned slightly, shuffling her feet. "... but I've never sung in public before..."

"C'mon! It'll be fine. Plus, nothing could go wrong there!"

Hikari shuffled her feet again before finally sighing. "Okay, but only because you said so..."

x

The ninja all landed in the middle of the town, Hikari's arms wrapped around Cole's waist. She and Nya had easily convinced the guys that she could come with them; since there didn't seem to be any problem. "All right, hand 'em over," said Cole, holding up what looked like an instrument case but really was to hold all four of the Golden Weapons.

"Ah-ah, but no mortal shall possess all four," teased Jay, sticking his nunchucks in anyways.

"Very funny," said Cole as Hikari clambered down. Kai smirked as he stuck his sword in. "Remind me again why we can't have our weapons?"

Cole shut the instrument case. "I told you- my dad can't find out I'm a ninja! And I don't feel like making up excuses for why I'm carrying a giant scythe around." He walked up to his dad's house and knocked on the door. The door opened a moment later to show Cole's father standing there. Hikari smiled with this mildly frightened expression and straightened up to her full height (which was not very impressive, and she was especially short for even an eight year old).

"Hey, dad!" Cole said, smiling and setting down the case. "How long has it been?"

Cole's dad just scowled a bit. "What? You too good for the doorbell?"

He then slammed the door. Hikari winced but then had to giggle at all the ninja's expression. She then reached forward and pushed the doorbell. What sounded like a quartet sang the word 'Welcome' before the door opened. Cole's dad looked rather amused as he reached out his cane. "Haha, come on in son! It's been forever!" He hugged Cole before regarding the three boys behind him. "What did you bring, a quartet?" He then paused when he saw Hikari. "Oh, who's this, son?"

Everyone glanced at each other- they were not entirely sure how to explain Hikari's presence, but then Hikari started forward with a bright smile and a sparkle in her silvery gray eyes. "Hi Mr. Brookstone!" she chirped. "I actually was admitted to the Marty Oppenheimer School for Performing Arts a few weeks ago, and Cole's the guy who's helping me around! He sometimes takes me to my singing class! When he said he was visiting his dad I really wanted to come along with him!"

Cole's dad smiled again. "Oh, I see, but aren't you a little young?"

"Yeah, but my parents say I'm a music prod-prod-prodigy," Hikari said, stumbling over the word, "so they sent me there!"

Cole's father nodded approvingly. "I see. Well, good to see you're helping out the future generation of music, Cole. C'mon in, I've got a kettle of lemon-honey tea on the stove."

The inside of the house had a couch centered right next to a piano, a phonograph, and various posters and pictures plastered on the wall. Everyone looked around curiously, except for Hikari, who was concentrating more on the tea.

"Did my son tell you I broke my foot?" Mr. Brookstone asked, tapping said foot with his cane. "It was the cha-cha, but I swear the percussionist had it in for me," Mr. Brookstone said, jabbing his cane in an accusing manner. "Don't see why; you seem like a nice guy!" Hikari responded, blowing on her hot cup of tea to cool it down a bit.

Cole sighed, looking a bit vexed. "No, dad, I didn't tell them your silly stories."

"What he meant was," Kai burst out, trying to keep Mr. Brookstone from getting too angry or indignant, "We've been so busy training at the... um..."

"The Martha Oppenheimer!" said Jay quickly. A bit too quickly, unfortunately; the record that was playing scratched as Mr. Brookstone turned to face them, a suspicious look on his face. "The, Martha, Oppenheimer?"

"What he is trying to say," Zane interrupted, shooting Jay a quick glare, "is the Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts."

"We're doing a project on the history of Ninjago talent," Hikari quickly interrupted, so that the four stuttering boys weren't just sitting there scrambling for material, "and Cole wanted to ask you how we could get our hands on the Blade Cup."

"You're talking about getting your hands on the Blade Cup," said Mr. Brookstone sternly, pointing at his poster of it. "The most prized and heavily guarded award in all of Ninjago. The symbol of excellence, harmony, and grace. You can't just get it. You must earn have to exhibit style, perfect pitch, push the boundaries of artistic license, and... win this year's Ninjago talent show!"

"Perhaps there is an... easier way," Zane suggested.

Hikari snorted into her teacup, trying desperately to tamp down her giggling as Cole's father continued monologuing dramatically. When she finally was paying attention again, Cole's father was saying, "And we can enter Hikari as well; it's a perfect chance to show that age doesn't affect performance!"

"Um, we actually weren't planning-" Cole began, but Hikari spoke up. "Um, sure! That would be nice."

"Excellent! Now boys, let me hear the sweet, sweet sound of harmony!"

All four boys exchanged a look until Jay stood up and started singing, "Harmony," Zane joined in rather hesitantly, and Kai reluctantly jumped in.

The end result was absolutely horrible, I can tell you.

Hikari covered her ears, and cringed away until it stopped. "Um, they're only really any good at solos, so we were thinking... you could... train them!" Hikari said, hesitantly. Cole's dad sniffled, touched. "My son, following in my footsteps... I'm so proud!"

x

"I'm proud of who I am," Cole said, putting his hands on his dad's shoulders. "And... I want you to be proud of me, too." He'd changed back into his ninja gi, while Hikari had changed into a little white dress. She had a bow in her hair and had on pink shoes and she looked really cutesy and pretty.

Mr. Brookstone backed away, a look of disgust on his face. "I can't be proud of any son who thinks stealing is right. And I'm not staying to see you make a mockery of our family's legacy." And he turned and walked away.

Hikari winced. Ouch. That was harsh. "Dad, I-!" Cole burst out.

Too late. He was already out the double doors.

Cole looked down at the floor, his dark brown eyes filling with tears.

Hikari hugged him, but then she looked over his shoulder. "Um, guys!" she gasped. Everyone turned to see some Serpentine walking over to the stage wearing very bad wigs. "Treble Makers? What are THEY doing here?!" Jay asked, harshly.

Kai was at the curtain, seeming to be listening. Hikari went over and managed a glimpse of purple scales, pink eyes, and black and blue before he stepped back and let the heavy curtain to look at them. "Uh, guys? Pythor's here. And the Blade Cup is out. We should grab it and go-"

"No," Cole said, his eyes hardening. "The way I see it, either Hikari or we have to win to get the Blade Cup, so we have double the chance. We're going to win this competition. But we're gonna do it our way."

x

"And next up... Hikari!" the announcer... erm, announced, before backing away as the curtain opened on Hikari. Who swallowed nervously and swallowed hard, before taking a deep breath and starting her song. Her clear voice rang out in the auditorium.

Backstage, the watching ninja's mouths dropped open. Kai's eyes widened as she sang, Cole's eyebrows shot up, the scar on Jay's eyes stretched quite a bit, and Zane's expression turned into a more shocked one.

"Let's go in the garden
you'll find something waiting
right there where you left it
lying upside down

When you finally find it
you'll see how it's faded
the underside is lighter
when you turn it around

Everything stays
right where you left it
everything stays
but it still changes
ever so slightly
daily and nightly
in little ways
when everything stays..."

Hikari took a deep breath as the audience applauded. The song was short but sweet, and the judges held up their scores. 10, 9... 7. From Pythor. So overall, out of thirty, Hikari got a grand total of 26. Not bad for her first time. She curtsied, smiled brightly, and skipped offstage. The ninja all high fived her, but there wasn't much time to celebrate.

"And now, the Royal- oh, hang on, there's a slight change, folks. Ladies and gentlemen, Spin Harmony!"

The ninja all got onstage, and Hikari leaned forward to watch. They were actually quite good; especially considering since Hikari hadn't really done anything except sing. Halfway through the performance, Cole jumped onto a Fangpyre's head, punched the next one's head, and headsmashed the last one before landing on the stage. Hikari's eyes widened. She didn't know much about dancing or performing, but even she knew that move. "The Triple Tiger Sashay!" she gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

The ninja all went to hug Cole, and two of the judges held up perfect 10s. Just as Hikari had expected. She turned to Pythor, who was giving them... a zero?!

"HEY!" she yelled, stomping onstage and crossing her arms even as the crowd booed. "That's not fair, they did terrifically and you know it! Give them a fair score, why don't you?!" Another thought occurred to her and she added, "Plus you're not allowed to give a zero!"

Pythor suddenly gagged, and an arm stuck out of Pythor's mouth to write a single, shaky one next to the zero. "IT'S A PERFECT SCORE!" yelled the announcer. "SPIN HARMONY WINS THE BLADE CUP!"

Hikari hugged Cole. He grinned down at her, but then looked off to the side. Hikari twisted to see an empty chair, where Cole's dad would've sat. His eyes went slightly misty, and Hikari hugged him tightly in return. As though that could make up for his dad not being there.

"I've never felt more alive!" Zane exclaimed as they walked offstage. Jay cheered, a cheeky grin on his face. "HAHA! We did it!"

"No; Cole did it! Because of you, Ninjago will sleep safely tonight," said Kai, grinning at Cole. Cole sighed slightly, handing the trophy over to the other ninja. "Thanks, but go on and celebrate without me," he was saying. Hikari was standing a bit further back, so she noticed the figure entering the backstage area again. Her silvery eyes widened, and she ran and yanked on Cole's gi to get his attention. "Winning doesn't feel the same without my dad- Not right now, Hikari, I-"

"Cole!" said a familiar voice. Cole looked up, and his eyes widened. "Dad?!"

Cole ran to him, as his father approached with a smile. "I saw it all, son." The two of them hugged tightly, Hikari beaming like a beam of sunlight as the two of them spoke. "You saw me dance?"

"More importantly- I saw you fight. Those Serpentine were up to no good, and I saw you stand up for what is right."

Hikari smiled, in a relieved manner. Whew! Everything was going well.

Wait, she'd probably just jinxed it.

"Sorry to interrupt your little family reunion," Pythor drawled. Yep, she'd jinxed it. "but did you know..." he took off the fake beard. "It's me? Pythor."

Hikari didn't move. She just facepalmed as the ninja all approached him. "I didn't want you to miss our big shhhowstopper!"

Several things happened all at once: Several crates suddenly started moving, screeching loudly against the metal tracks before hitting the stage equipment, knocking it down- on top of Cole's dad-!

"DAD!" yelled Cole, and he jumped on top of his father as the equipment came crashing down.

Hikari gasped and ran to the equipment. "Cole!" she screamed as Jay hacked, a moment later, "He took the Fangblade!"

"Never mind that- what about Cole?!"

They all ran over, but then Kai stopped. Hikari turned to see the Scythe of Quakes... glowing?

"He found his true potential!" Zane exclaimed. The stage equipment started glowing, spheres of light encircling it as it all lifted up, held up by a glowing Cole- his eyes glowing pure blue. Hikari's eyes widened, but then something happened.

The image she'd been trying to get to- the one that had been blurry- a layer of black tore away, showing it even more clearly. The only thing left was a pure, red film, covering the image with a cloudy, eddying substance.

Cole threw the equipment away and helped his father up. Mr. Brookstone said, shakily, "How did we survive that?" Before looking at Cole with a shocked expression. "... son?"

Cole looked down at himself, before holding out his arms and allowing himself to rise into the air a bit. "Cole found his true potential! His relationship with his father must've been holding him back!"

"Great," Kai sighed, "so now I really am the only one!"

Something suddenly occurred to Hikari; something she had never actually thought of before.

When Zane had found his true potential, the picture had grown clearer. When Jay had, it had become even clearer, and the blue film had been removed. And now, Cole found his. And it was almost perfectly clear.

So perhaps when Kai found his true potential..

Maybe it would be clear to her then.

x

"It might not be the Fangblade," Mr. Brookstone said, placing a framed picture on the wall, "but it sure will look good on my wall."

Everyone was hugging or cheering in the picture as Cole held up the Blade Cup, and all the ninja expressed their approval. Hikari beamed and applauded slightly, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.

"As far as I'm concerned, you're all family now," Mr. Brookstone said proudly. Hikari smiled slightly, smiling secretly at the floor. It was nice to have a family again...

Mr. Brookstone let go again and said, heading to the kitchen, "I'm going to go get some more tea!"

The moment the door closed, the whole room changed. Hikari was standing and hugging someone's legs, in a vague, slightly blurry image. It changed to her hugging who seemed to be Lloyd. Then the room changed to Hikari facing something, shadowy and indistinct, before changing back to Hikari and the ninja, standing in the room.

"It happened again," mumbled Cole softly in surprise.

Hikari tightened her grip on Kai's sleeve.

She didn't know WHAT to expect anymore.

A/N: Whew! One of my longest chapters ever.

Responses to commenters!

Dream lighting (both): Glad you like it x)

Trumpet player (Quotev): Glad you liked it! This is actually a fun story; I can't believe I didn't edit it for a while.

Ninja kitten (Quotev): Woah! xD Nice, I'm glad to see you liked it!

FictionDreamer (Quotev): yep, she's pretty cool.

MissKitty2004: Haha, yep

GamerGirl597: Yes, but can you guess from when? 0_0

MMM: I didn't remember the exact episode lines so thanks for telling me; and as for the rest... we shall see.

danadanone50: Wow, really? I'm flattered :) Thanks!

x.X. A.L. X.x