flumptober day two : hiking

i know that this oneshot is rather belated, but as i'm sure you know things have been very crazy these last few months. yes, i know october is over, but i am planning on continuing this challenge throughout the month of november (and probably december too at the rate i'm currently posting), as these are such amazing prompts and i would like to finish them. i am aware that i have probably lost potential readers because of the late entries, but i am fine with that.

fortunately, this oneshot is nowhere near as long as the previous one! it should be an easier read as a result, so feel free to give this one a try if the previous entry was a little too daunting. i have had weddings on my brain a lot as of late, which is the reason that this prompt came to be what it is. i am hopeful that you will all enjoy it!

trigger warnings : none- unless the tooth-rotting jaya fluff will cause you distress because your heart cannot handle how cute the two of them are.

universe : technically from the same universe as my 'balance of light and darkness' trilogy, but no prior knowledge of those fics is needed because this is quite canon compliant. the only thing that's different is some miniscule changes to the timeline, and anything that might spoil future plot points or things for those fics has been redacted. for reference, this oneshot takes place after season 10, and there are no explicit spoilers from those episodes.

words : 2,801

dedication : to all of the jaya fans out there! thank you for joining me in your love and devotion to this incredible ship that has been such a rollercoaster of a ride these past 10 years.

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[ wait for the colors to turn to gold ]

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( title taken from the fall by imagine dragons )

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"On a scale of one to ten- how do you feel about nachos right now?"

Nya blinked, glancing up from her stacks of papers, messy notes, and her laptop to see the beaming face of her Yin- who was currently leaning on his elbows on the corner of the table and smiling at her.

"Nachos? Seriously?" the raven-haired woman questioned, unable to decide whether she was annoyed or amused by his inquiry.

"Can't you see I'm in the middle of something important?"

Jay grinned like an idiot, dancing around in a small circle as he did what looked like an odd, clumsy version of a jig.

"I finally got you to look up! I don't even care about the nachos- not really. Though. . . now that you mention it, they do sound kinda good- I was literally just saying a bunch of stuff to try and get you to notice me. And the nachos worked!"

She found herself grinning too, despite everything. "You're like a big puppy, you know that, right?"

"A very cute puppy," he countered, giving her one of his most impressive pouty expressions (complete with innocently fluttering eyelashes), which made her laugh.

"I have been paying attention to you. We had lunch together, remember?" She reclined in her chair to take a sip of whatever was in the mug beside her- which turned out to be a big mistake because it was awful.

Jay pouted again, this time for real, returning to his original position and resting his elbows on the table. "You mean I brought you lunch, and we made awkward small talk while you not-so-discreetly went over your notes again while you thought I wasn't looking."

She cringed, a soft blush of embarrassment dusting her cheeks. "Was I really that bad?"

"Yeah, you were." Jay paused to blow a bubble in his 'blue ninja flavored' bubblegum, popping it loudly before he resumed his chewing and fixed his gaze on Nya with a hopeful smile.

"Wanna go on a hike or something?"

She frowned, instinctively glancing in the direction of her laptop. "I was kind of in the middle of picking out some color schemes- maybe later?"

"But that's what you said last time I asked. There's plenty of time for wedding planning later- can't we just live in the moment and have fun together?"

The Water Ninja smiled at this request- so innocent and sweet- just like the Jay she knew and loved.

"As much as I want to, weddings don't plan themselves," she said, with some reluctance. "There's a lot of work that goes into everything."

"I know, but you also need to rest sometimes- otherwise you'll overdo it and stress yourself out," Jay replied, straightening up so that he could grab Nya's hand and pull her out of her seat.

"Besides- it's absolutely beautiful outside!"

Now that she was standing up, Nya could catch a glimpse of the view outside the monastery window; finally noticing the colorful sky and soft breeze that was stirring up some stray autumn leaves.

"I guess you're right," she finally caved. "It has been a while since I went for a walk. I guess I'll go with you."

"Yes!" Jay exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air in triumph, his blue eyes lighting up. "It's going to be so much fun! I promise you won't regret this!"

She smiled, pressing a gentle kiss to one of his freckled cheeks before she closed her laptop and arranged her stuff in what she hoped was a somewhat less messy pile.

"Yeah, well- don't jinx it."

Sturdy shoes and several warmer layers later, the two were finally off on their adventure, leaving the monastery behind in favor of the sunlit path and crisp autumn breeze ahead of them.

It was weird to think that only a few months ago, they'd had their final showdown on this same path. Fought for not only the future of Ninjago, but their own futures as well.

While the memories of that day had been difficult to process through, some of them harder than others, today the bad memories couldn't be further from their minds- swept away like stray leaves in the wind.

As they walked, Nya tilted her face up toward the sunshine, reveling in the warmth and comfort it gave her. Eyes fluttering closed, a content smile began to form on her face.

Jay, ever observant- even as he was kicking his way through some of the leaves on the path- noticed her happy state.

"So. . . Are you glad you decided to tag along with me after all?"

She laughed quietly, turning to look at him. "I am. It's been a while since I've been out here, I had no idea that it was so beautiful. I've always loved the transition from summer to autumn out here."

"What you're really acknowledging is that you've spent too much time on wedding stuff, right? It's so bad you haven't even seen the outdoors!"

"You're exaggerating, you know that, right?"

Jay smiled, looking pleased with himself. "Yeah, I know. But there's some truth to it, I guess."

She raised an eyebrow. "There's still so much that needs done- the wedding is literally like next month. Besides, I didn't see you offering to help with any of the planning."

"That's because I suck at that kinda stuff, and you know it. I get so distracted- and I hate sitting still and looking at a screen for that long anyways."

"What about videogames?" was her immediate response.

He waved her off, a mischievous grin settling on his face once more. "That's different. The real question is: why haven't you just taken my advice and asked [Redacted] and [Redacted] for help? They have been through it before."

She sighed, shoving her hands into the pockets of her jeans in an attempt to keep them warm.

"I don't know. . . They've just been so busy lately with ninja stuff and everything else they've got going on, plus their circumstances and wedding were both so different than what I had always envisioned for the two of us."

"Y'know," Jay began, his unusually serious tone catching her off guard. "If you're getting stuck on all the planning stuff, we could just skip all of that. I'd be happy to marry you right here- right now."

She smiled, her eyes suddenly watery at this statement. "I would too, Jay- honestly. We've been through so much together, and I love you, I wouldn't be opposed to that. But-"

"Perfect!" Jay interrupted, stopping to grab her hands in his as he gazed into her eyes in adoration. "Let's forget all of that stuff and have our own ceremony or something!"

Nya laughed, interlacing her fingers with his as she gazed back at him. Time seemed to slow for a moment as she gazed into his electric blue eyes, and she couldn't help but remember all the times they had stood together like this.

"As much as I would like that," she finally began, somewhat breathless. "How would you like to tell your parents that we eloped? Or tell Kai that he got ordained to officiate our wedding for nothing?"

Jay cringed visibly- none of these were good options. "Maybe you're right. . ." he conceded. "I guess we can stick to what we had planned after all."

She smiled, untangling one of her hands from his so they could walk side-by-side again, while still holding his other hand in a gentle grip.

"See- I am right about things once in a while," the raven-haired woman teased.

He made a dismissive noise, leaning in to kiss her forehead. "You're almost always right. That's one of the things I appreciate about you- you give great advice."

She laughed softly, eyes shimmering with warmth and amusement. "You know, for someone who appreciates great advice; you don't always follow it."

"Needing and following great advice are two totally different things," he replied with a small smirk. "And you're one of the few people that I actually listen to most of the time."

"As touching as that is- I can think of many, many times that you have refused to listen to me."

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, well- just because I didn't follow your advice doesn't mean I didn't listen to it. You're usually the voice of reason when it comes to the two of us. I've learned that the hard way."

"It only took you [redacted] years to figure that out," Nya joked, a thoughtful expression soon settling on her face.

"Wow. I can't believe it's been that long."

"Me either," Jay replied, looking suddenly nostalgic himself as his grip on her hand tightened ever so slightly.

"It's been a long couple of years- too long if you ask me- and we've been through so much. I don't know what I'd imagined for our future back then, but I'm glad to be here with you now."

She smiled, blinking back the tears that had begun to gather in her eyes. "I am too, Jay. It's so crazy to think how much we've changed. We were just little kids back then."

"What's weirder is how I love you even more than I did then- which I didn't think was possible," he said, his voice oddly quiet in the autumn air, yet Nya could still hear him; much like she always had.

She laughed shakily, wiping away the stray tears that had slipped down her cheeks. "It's funny how that works, isn't it?"

"It really is funny." Jay paused to help her over a fallen tree that was blocking their path, ever the gentleman when it came to her.

"But I guess that's how love works- the better you know someone and fight alongside them, the more you care about and respect and appreciate them than you did when the two of you started out on your journey."

"That's. . . oddly beautiful, Jay. And strangely poetic for you- no offense."

He smiled sheepishly. "None taken- and you're right. I may have paraphrased a bit, but that's just [Redacted] talking."

Nya blinked in disbelief. "Wait- for real? [Redacted] is the one who said that?"

Jay laughed at the look on her face. "Yep, he's the one who said that. We may have had a heart-to-heart of sorts the other night when I couldn't sleep and was stressing out about wedding stuff."

"That's really sweet," she replied, touched by the endearing mental image of the two men sitting down together for that discussion.

"I wouldn't have expected it from him- he wouldn't have been my first guess, but I suppose it makes sense. They were in a similar boat not that long ago."

He wrinkled his nose, tugging at the long scarf currently wound around his neck. "Nah- maybe he just wanted to rub it in that they got married before us like no one expected them to- how he's the superior 'family man' and all that."

"First of all, that sounds absolutely nothing like [Redacted]," she replied with a laugh. "And second, things were a little different when it came to their wedding. It really wouldn't have really worked out any other way."

"True, but that didn't stop the fans from losing their marbles over it. All the wackadoodle theories and stuff drove me insane. Remember when it was all over the news that we'd eloped somewhere together?"

"Oh my goodness- I had totally forgotten about that! Kai was absolutely furious!"

Jay lost it, devolving into a fit of laughter. "Because we were on that mini mission thingy together when that happened- he totally thought we'd actually gone through with it!"

"He was so mad at me for so long, even after I managed to convince him that we were telling the truth- not the people in those articles or wherever he heard it from."

"There's a good memory," he sighed, wiping away tears of laughter.

Nya smiled, gazing out at the path ahead of them as the wind started to pick up, causing her to shiver ever so slightly.

"Do you think we should head back now? It'll be getting dark before too much longer, and I don't want to be all the way out here when the sun goes down."

"Aww come on! Where's your sense of adventure?" Jay teased, swinging their joined hands ever so slightly.

She poked his side, earning a laugh, and rolled her eyes. "No offense, but I'm kinda tired of adventure by now. I'd rather have some peace and quiet, and enjoy the autumn view from somewhere warmer."

"Fair enough. I guess it has been a while since we left the monastery. Maybe we should head back before everyone starts talking."

"Just like I was saying."

The two walked in content silence for a while, though if both of them were being honest, they were studying the person at their side far more often and much more intently than they were observing the beautiful landscape around them.

As the fading light filtered through the colorful trees like sunshine through a stained-glass window, another chilly breeze sent Nya closer to Jay's side, leaning into him for warmth.

He smiled and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close as they continued walking down the path toward the monastery.

"Hey Nya?" he questioned out of the blue, his voice soft and contemplative.

She glanced up at him, noting the slight furrowing of his brow and the constellations of freckles scattered across his cheeks. "What's up?"

"When we get married, we'll still do stuff like this, right? Things aren't going to change or get weird or different between the two of us after that- when we have to act like adults at least some of the time?"

She chuckled, a small smile forming on her lips. "Of course we'll still do stuff like this, silly. Just because I gain the title of your wife doesn't mean I'll stop being your teammate and best friend and everything else that I am right now.

We'll still have adventures and stuff and goof around together, same as we always have. And who said anything about having to act like adults? We can be whoever we want to be, and we'll figure out who that is together. Think of it as a brand new chapter of our lives instead of the end of an era, or our childhood, or whatever it is that you're worried about."

"When you put it that way. . ." Jay grinned, absentmindedly tracing the curved edge of his Yin medallion with a fingertip. "I guess it does kinda make sense. [Redacted] actually said some stuff that was kind of along those same lines."

"Maybe that's because I was the one who told him that when he had a mini mental breakdown the morning of their wedding."

"Oof- I totally forgot about that. The poor guy was such a wreck, even his dad had a hard time calming him down. I was scared his powers would go haywire and he'd wreck something- it's happened before."

"Like you've been any different so far."

"Heyyyy," he whined indignantly. "This is totally different! Sure, I've had my moments, but I haven't gotten to that level of a mess!"

"At least not yet," she countered, giving him a playful shove, to which he responded by immediately shoving her back.

"Oh yeah? At least I haven't begun the nightmarish transformation into Bridezilla," he joked, yelping as she gave his scarf a strong tug in retaliation.

"Ha! I dare you to call me Bridezilla again!" she challenged, her brown eyes flashing with amusement.

He smirked, meeting her intense gaze unflinchingly. "You're a very cute Bridezilla."

Nya laughed in spite of herself, placing her hands on her hips. "You're not going to get away with it that easily!"

She dove in to steal his scarf, unwinding it from around his neck as he began to laugh, then playfully tickled her sides which caused her to drop the scarf and deteriorate into a fit of giggles.

"Jay! Stop!" she exclaimed with a smile, trying to catch her breath and step back and away from him. "You win!"

He released her, pumping his fist in the air and looking way too pleased with himself. "Yes!"

While he was distracted by his victory, however, Nya snatched his scarf from the ground and started running up the path, pausing only briefly to glance back over her shoulder at him.

"Last one there has to clean the leaf litter out of this scarf!"

"You're on!" He replied with a grin, starting to run after her as she dashed off the path and through an obstacle course of trees, logs, and slippery fallen leaves.

No longer chilly, Nya was all smiles as they continued their race to the monastery, her sides aching from laughter just as much as the exercise.

She wondered if there was some significance between the changing of the seasons here in Ninjago and the changing of the seasons in her own life, and came to the conclusion that this change was a beautiful thing, just like the autumn landscape around her.

Whatever happened next, whatever changes occurred as this new season started, she would be forever grateful for someone to run through the leaves with and enjoy these changes with her.