This interlude has been sitting (completed!) in my drafts for several months now, and I've finally been given the chance to release it to you all at long last! :,) I actually wrote the whole thing in just a couple of days because I was very excited to show this aspect of the story, and to fully introduce this sweet character to all of you. I know that you will love her, and it is such a bittersweet thing to have written this while also knowing what is ahead for her. I only hope that I can do her justice.

This is my 2023 Christmas gift to all of you! Originally I had planned to post it a week or two from now, but figured that I would release it early as a treat. <3 I greatly appreciate your support for 'connection', and it has been so crazy to see how far this little project of mine has come already and just how invested you all have become in this story- even though Lloyd and Reader haven't (officially) met yet! I'm so grateful to have you all along for the ride, and I hope that you enjoy my attempt at giving you some sort of gift in return.

Have a wonderful rest of your Christmas holiday and a happy new year! I love you all! <33

trigger warning for difficult family situations, absent parents, brief references to parents fighting, as well as kids being prejudiced against Lloyd (and also just being unkind in general).

( chapter title taken from : "This Side of Paradise" by Coyote Theory )

{ 🍃 • 🐉 • 🍃 }

» – - about ten years ago - – «

( lizzy )

"Are you still feeling a little nervous about your first day of high school?"

Ophelia, already successfully graduated and now starting her freshman year at college, attempted to calm my nerves between bites of her blueberry bagel with cream cheese.

I chewed on my bottom lip, scrubbing at the hardened egg on my plate with a sponge and wishing that all of my worries would just wash down the drain right along with the bubbles and swirling dirty water.

"Yeah, I guess I am. I don't know. . . there's just so much that could go wrong. What if I'm late for classes? What if Zoey finds cooler friends to hang out with and leaves me behind? What if I get lost on the way to lunch or something? What if-"

"Hey, take a deep breath."

My sister gave me a comforting smile, succeeding in her attempts to stop my never-ending stream of 'what-ifs' and anxious thoughts.

"You're gonna be fine- I know it. You've got a good head on your shoulders, and you're way more mature than I was at your age. Sure, it'll be tough at times, I'm not gonna lie; but these are some of the most important years of your life.

"Don't be afraid to be the kid that you are. Make friends. Fall in love with whoever you want to. Inevitably get your heart broken. Do dumb stuff. Experiment with makeup and with the way that you dress. Figure out who you are as a person. Do things that make you happy. Live a little, for crying out loud! It's high school!"

I laughed at Ophelia's speech, some of my anxiety melting away as she spoke. 

Tears of gratitude pricked at my eyes, and I attempted to hide this visible display of my emotions as I focused on drying my plate with a towel.

"Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it."

"Of course," my sister murmured, hopping up from where she was seated on the kitchen counter and walking to the sink so that she could give me a gentle, one-armed hug.

Neither of us said so, but I knew that she felt the same way as I did. 

We wished that either one of our parents would give us the same sort of encouragement that we often gave each other; attempting to fill in for them as best we could.

Brushing these thoughts aside, I set my plate down so that I could give Ophelia a full hug. The two of us remained locked in our embrace for several moments, both of us far from eager to let each other go.

"And above all else, don't forget to be true to yourself," my sister said quietly. 

"Don't change who you are for anybody. Always be safe and always be smart when it comes to interacting with people. Some of them are jerks; unfortunately that's just the way it is. If you ever feel unsafe or just need someone to talk to, text me. I'll drop everything and come and get you if need be- no matter what. I promise."

"Thanks, Lia. For everything," I replied, attempting a cheerful smile as my breath caught painfully in my throat and more tears threatened to fall.

"I love you."

"Love you too, Beth," she hummed, her own eyes watery as she released me and took a step back to examine my appearance.

"And you're sure you don't want me to drop you off at school? I can run you in with plenty of time to start my classes."

I shook my head, and this time my smile was genuine. "Thanks for the offer, but I'll be fine. I promise. I want to ride the bus with the other kids. Y'know- normal teenager stuff."

Ophelia's smile mirrored my own: bright and optimistic; cautiously hopeful when it came to imagining the future that lay ahead of us. 

"I respect that. Your lunch is packed? And you also remembered to bring some snacks, right? The cafeteria food is sketchy- or at least it was when I was there- so you'll want to be prepared."

"Yes, and yes," I replied, holding up the carefully packed paper bag that contained my lunch in one hand; in the other balancing the colorful plastic tote that housed a small selection of my gluten and dairy free snack stash.

"Epic. Look at you go, you're already crushing this. Am I safe to assume that you have everything else that you need? I'm not going to waste time going down a list and pestering you about every individual thing."

I stifled a laugh as I stuffed my food into the maroon backpack that I'd placed on a kitchen chair nearby; ignoring the pained protests of the zippers as I somehow managed to close the rather full bag.

"I already made a list, and I think I have everything I need and plenty of things that I don't need. I'm gonna be late for the bus if I don't leave soon, so this is where we say goodbye."

With some effort, I slung my backpack over my shoulders and ran to give Ophelia one last hug.

"Love you lots. Have a good day!"

"Love you more, Beth. Have a great first day- I'll be rooting for you!" she promised, embracing me tightly before we finally parted and I went to grab my keys, phone, and shoes.

Out of habit, I blew a kiss in the direction of our mum's room even though she was still sound asleep and hadn't come to say goodbye; being too exhausted after another long day at work followed by yet another long night that had been filled with bickering between her and dad.

Sadly enough, I was used to this by now; so her absence didn't bother me. Ophelia was supportive as always, and having her here to send me off for my first day was all that mattered to me.

After my shoes were on and I was sure that I had all of my stuff, I hurried out of the house and jogged to the bus stop, where several kids were already there waiting.

Some of my confidence and excitement melted away as I spotted the other teenagers, and I ducked my head shyly as I began to fidget with the rings on my hands so that I didn't have to see their curious faces.

As I twirled the silver bands around my fingers in soothing motions, my mind started to wander again; all of the what ifs creeping back in.

What if the other kids figure out my secret?

What if I slip up and use my powers in front of everyone? I'm still doing research and trying to figure stuff out- I don't know how to control them! Who knows when they could just randomly appear!

Will the other kids or the teachers think I'm a freak? 

What if they kick me out of school? Turn their backs on me forever? 

What if I end up ostracized and picked on like Lloyd Garmadon? 

We're just kids! We haven't done anything wrong!

A terrible, horrible sound of metal grating and being dragged across the asphalt startled me out of my thoughts; effectively stopping my anxious ponderings. 

I resisted the urge to cover my ears, my body violently protesting that awful sound as I glanced up to see that the bus was finally arriving.

It was with great annoyance that I surveyed the vehicle that would be my ride to school. The sunshiny yellow bus appeared to be in good enough condition; except for the fact that the entire left side was tilted and sagging low enough to trail and scrape along the road quite noisily. 

Just my luck that I ended up with the broken, quirky little school bus complete with a driver who looked like she hated all children (or maybe she had just eaten something spoiled and rotting for breakfast).

Determined not to let either the other kids or the driver ruin my own mood, I attempted my most optimistic smile and boarded the bus; doing my best not to shrink away under their gazes. 

Relax, Lizzy. 

It's the other freshman's first day at school too. 

Everyone is nervous, you're not the only one.

As I entered the vehicle, I was surprised to find that it wasn't actually the bus that was quirky and broken. It was the kids. 

Everyone was piled on the left side, practically sitting on top of each other or on the seat backs (or floor) in an attempt to make up for the severely limited seating for a group of that size as a result of their stupid decision to all sit on one side of the bus.

Confused because the bus had appeared to be structurally sound (at least from the outside), I turned to try and find the source of their predicament and found myself staring straight into the face of Lloyd Garmadon himself.

Oh. That explains it.

I had never actually seen Garmadon's son in person, but I recognized him from the many, many pictures I'd seen on the news and from my parent's less than generous descriptions of and warnings about him.

My heart skipped a beat, anxiety and fear briefly invading my mind even despite my best efforts to stop it. I'd heard so many terrible things about Lloyd that I knew couldn't be true, but I was still powerless to stop the shamefully human response and the prejudice that they had unknowingly stirred up inside of me. Frozen as a result of my internal torment, I could only gaze down at the boy's face; his sorrowful emerald eyes piercing my soul.

He looked so sad, so hurt, so alone. Just as I often felt myself.

At least I had Ophelia, who supported and loved me. He had no siblings, and a father who was even worse than our parents (so, so much worse).

His face, dotted with freckles and half hidden by his messy blonde hair reflected my own swirling emotions back at me, and that's when I realized that maybe we weren't so different after all.

I saw myself in him- which scared me and made me sad all at once.

Before I even realized what I was doing, I had crossed the gap between us and taken the empty spot on the seat just beside him.

All of the other kids gasped. 

There was silence for only a heartbeat, but to me it seemed so much longer. Then the whispering and the not-so-subtle glares started.

Lloyd, who was scrunched up in the corner of his seat next to the window stared at me like I had two heads; his mouth slightly open and his pretty green eyes betraying just how hopeful he really felt.

Feeling self-conscious and vulnerable under everyone's stares, my shoulders stiffened, and I wished that I could make myself invisible. I managed a tiny smile for Lloyd, licking my dry lips before I attempted to speak; surprised by my sudden boldness.

"I guess I should have asked before I took your seat. I promise I don't bite- if you don't mind sharing your spot, that is."

Lloyd blinked once in confusion, the corner of his mouth quirking up into a shy little smile of his own as he studied me in disbelief.

"O-oh- sure! I mean- that's totally alright!" the blonde boy stammered; his pale cheeks dusted with faint pink. "I wasn't trying to be rude by staring, I was just surprised that you wanted to sit with. . . me."

My heart absolutely melted at the sight of this sweet, soft boy who was nothing like everyone said he was. I regretted ever being afraid of or nervous around him. 

Maybe he just needed one person to believe in him. And I vowed to be that person.

I smiled brightly, slipping my backpack off of my shoulders and onto my lap to keep it safe and clean; off of the floors at least for this first day of school.

"You looked like you needed some company, that's all. Just like me. I'm Elizabeth by the way, but no one ever calls me that- most people just call me Lizzy. My sister calls me Beth sometimes."

"It's nice to meet you," Lloyd whispered, gazing down at the hand that I held out to him as if afraid that it would attack him, but eventually he accepted it and shook my hand with a grip that was somehow both gentle and firm all at the same time. 

His hands were more calloused than I would have expected, sprinkled with scars and a few tiny freckles. There was a little dragon doodled messily on the inside of his wrist, and now that we were closer together, I could catch a faint whiff of the spearmint gum he chewed with great care so as not to catch it on his braces; the silver wires and green ligature ties a pretty contrast to white teeth that I envied.

"I'm Lloyd. Lloyd Garmadon."

Encouraged by the genuine smile forming on his face, the vast shift in mood from when I had first noticed him, and the quiet, newfound confidence and determination behind this declaration of his full name; my own mood lifted even further and most of my nervousness regarding the day melted away.

"It's nice to meet you too, Lloyd."

The two of us, though awkwardly at first, made quiet conversation amongst ourselves; completely absorbed in each other's company. We talked about random things, silly things; a quiet bond beginning to form between us.

Even though the other kids whispered about us and glared at us, we didn't notice. For a brief moment at least, we had both had found an oasis to take shelter in from the cruelty of the outside world.

To be honest, I barely noticed or cared about the other students on the bus; or their reactions to seeing the two of us sitting together.

I knew deep down the implications that my beginnings of a potential friendship with Lloyd held. I knew that I'd be treated unfairly as a result. I knew that my parents wouldn't approve. I knew that it was far too late to turn back now.

But I wasn't going to give up on Lloyd. 

Something was different about this boy that I had only just met. Perhaps I needed a friend just as much as he did. We were both lonely; maybe we could be lonely together. 

This could be the beginning of something terrible- or something wonderful. I had no idea which. Maybe it would be a little bit of both. 

Only time would tell.