Hi! I know that it's been a while again, and I hope that y'all can forgive me for that. I'll have a better explanation at the end of this chapter, so don't forget to read that. I hope you enjoy!
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They should've known that I would interrupt them. Jay and Nya, that is. I mean, what else is a little sister supposed to do? Just sit there while they're all over each other? Yes, I could have chosen a different way to interrupt them, but the look on Jay's face when they got covered in flour was priceless! One thing I noticed before throwing the flour was all the wires and tools scattered around the bridge. That means they must've finished their assignment a while ago.

"So, why flour?" Jay asks me as we walk towards the deck. "Why not, I don't know, water? Ya know, something that's easy to clean up? I'm gonna have flour stuck in my hair for days now." I smirk at him as he shakes some off. Nya has been ruffling her hair since I interrupted them. Zane definitely supplied me with plenty of flour.

  "That was kinda the point. Plus, throwing water on the master of water kinda defeats the purpose. And it was Zane's idea. He took Cole and Melody while Lloyd got Kai and Elisia." On top of our biology lesson, he also gave us a 'science' lesson. Aka we all made supper together. "By the way, supper is ready. We kinda had a bit of extra time on our hands, so we made sure Cole didn't have to worry about that."

"Thank goodness!"

They both head to their rooms to get cleaned up and I see Cole walk out of the boys shared room and Melody was drying her hair in her and Nya's room. We girls would all share a room, but most of the rooms are so small we can only fit one bunk bed in each one. So Elisia and I currently have our own rooms, though when we find the other two kunoichi that will change.

"Let me guess," Cole starts as he closes the door behind him, "you were given Jay and Nya?"

"And I'm guessing Kai is either chasing Lloyd around right now or in the shower complaining about his hair." He smiles knowingly as Melody walks out, French braiding her hair into two braids. One side was already done, and she was just about done with the second.

"Did Kai get floured too?" She asks, giving Cole a kiss on the cheek. We then all made our way to the kitchen and Elisia joined us as we passed her door. "I'm taking you wet hair as a 'yes'."

The two older girls linked arms with me and left Cole on his own behind us. "Of course. Lloyd made sure he got the brunt of it. Or more specifically, Kai's hair."

"Hey, Elisia!" Our head all turn to the sound of Jay's voice, Elisia raising an eyebrow. "Can I use your shower? Kai is just staring at himself in the mirror complaining about how ruined his hair is." Only my brother would do that. At least in this team.

"Of course, but you have to do something for me."

"What would that be?"

"You have to put this," she pulls out a food dye bottle form her pocket. "In Kai's open bottle of hair gel. It won't color his hair, but his hands will be pink for a while." Okay, Zane and Elisia are on top of the pranks today. I'm kinda scared.

"I guess I can do that. But I'm not taking the blame when he gets mad!" He grabs the food dye and heads back to the room to grab his shower stuff while the rest of us resume our walk. We walk in silence -we three girls still arm in arm with Cole walking behind us like a bodyguard- and join Lloyd, Zane, and Sensei Wu in the dining room.

We all sat in our usual seats -leaving room for the other three- and it ends up in a comfortable silence. Sensei is sipping his tea at the head of the table, Cole and Melody sharing a silent conversation on either side of him. Elisia is next to Melody, Zane is next to Cole with enough space for Kai in between them. Lloyd and I are sitting across from each other in such a way for Jay and Nya to do the same. This has kinda been the way we've sat since El joined the team. Guys on one side, girls on the other. Not sure why, but it is.

"So... who had the best reaction?" Lloyd, clearly tired of the quietness, asks Zane and I. "Cause it wasn't Kai, surprisingly. I was hoping he would chase me."

I try not to laugh at his disappointment, and Zane just casually smirks. "Cole shrieked like a little girl then turned into a valley girl." Said 'valley girl' glares at him as the rest of us, Sensei included, try to hide our laughter.

"Yeah, Jay just glared at me while Nya's face was just deadpanned." Well, his face was beet red from getting caught, but that's only for me to know. A chorus of 'aw man' and 'no fun' filled the dining room just as the other three walked in. Kai with pink hands glaring around the table, trying to figure out who did it.

"Hey, we were enjoying our time together after finishing our task." He and Elisia share a look that everyone but Kai sees as they all sit down. "And you got flour all over our tools. Plus all the supplies that we had yet to put away. You know how long it's gonna take to clean all that up?"

Sensei Wu hold up his hand to silence up and then prayed for our meal. We all pile food on our plates and get into a friendly argument about the best technique for cooking potatoes. Because that's something that everyone argues about, right? Cole, Sensei, and I are the only ones not in this argument, after Cole was told he can't even make a bowl of cereal right. Who puts the milk in before the cereal? It splashes everywhere!

Everything was civil and relaxed until the one subject that had been avoided this morning got brought up. I froze as Lloyd as the question is been dreading all day.

"What happened last night?" They all look at me, then Nya, then Kai. I put my fork down -we had made chicken and rice- and just sat there, staring at the table. I know I can't avoid this forever, they need to know. But I hate talking about this. It brings up so many horrible memories.

"It was just a night terror. An extreme nightmare. Nothing to worry about." I know they can tell I'm lying, but how can I tell them that it's always the same dream. That I was diagnosed with PTSD at ten. What I went through wasn't even traumatic enough to cause it. I don't want them to treat me like I could crumble at any second. "I promise."

Kai and Nya look at me, begging me to tell them the truth. Everyone else accepts that answer for now, but I know they don't believe me. We all go back to eating, but this time its an uncomfortable silence. No one knows what to say, and I don't feel like talking. I'm not even hungry anymore, so ask to be excused and take my plate to the kitchen. Instead of heading to the game room like I usually do, I just go to my room. I just want to be alone right now, maybe even get some extra sleep in.

You know what, that sounds good. I'm gonna close my eyes for a bit. Maybe I'll feel up to talking once I've gotten some actual rest. Yeah right, Alex, actual rest doesn't exist here. Well, I might as well try.

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I'm on top of a mountain, and I can see Ninjago City in the distance. But not the Ninjago City that we know. There's a darkness surrounding it, you can barely see the top of the towers. One in particular is standing above the rest, with someone on top of it.

Turning, I'm temporarily blinded by the light coming from this building-a temple, by the looks of it- and I can hear voices inside. Lloyd's is the only one I can make out, but I don't know what he's saying. The light gets brighter and then the scene changes.

Now I'm at the top of a tower, with Lloyd and a dragon lookin thing. I can't control myself, and something is aimed at Lloyd. I try to tell him to run, but before whatever is aimed at him gets released, everything goes black.
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I wake up with a start, panting heavily. That was not one of my usual dreams, yet it felt so real. And judging by the fact that no one has burst in here, I'm guessing that I didn't scream this time. So I calm myself down and try to figure out what that dream was.

Usually I would write my dream in my journal if I remembered it, so I decide to do just that. Sitting at my desk, I go to pull my journal out but instead I suddenly grab one of the scrolls Sensei gave me to examine. And that's where i realize that it wasn't just a dream.

It was a clue.

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That actually ended sooner than I had planned, but it was just too good of an ending to pass up.

But as to why updates aren't really coming out, I really only have one thing.

I'm growing up.
Now, you probably think 'aren't we all.' Or something similar, but that's not really what I mean. I'm growing out of fanfiction, growing out of this story. I still love Ninjago (my heart is aching for Kirby Morrow's friends and family.) but I'm starting to lose interest in this side of it. I'm now engaged, planning to start a family shortly after getting married, and I won't have much time for this anyway. I won't abandon this story, I have too much inspiration for it. But once I'm done writing this and a few of the stories I'm currently reading are over, I'm most likely going to leave this site.

I won't be deleting the account, o want people to be able to keep reading this if they want, but I won't be active. This show literally grew up with me, had a part in making me who I am, but it's time for me to let some of it go.

It's been a great time with all of you, and it's not quite over yet. I hope you all understand, and hopefully I can get a few more chapters out before the end of the year. You all are my crazy family, and I love you all for that.

Bye, my fwiens!