TW: guns, mention of impalement (non-descriptive), gun shooting (at non-living targets)

"Are you sure this isn't going to be unfair?"

"With these two?" Mum replied to Misako's question while cocking her head to where dad and I were setting ourselves up for paintball. "Unlikely."
I raised my empty gun to dad's chest and faked a shot. Dad pulled a mournful look.
"Against your own father?" he dramatically whined while I giggled. "Who are you, Ben Solo?"
My giggles abruptly died.
"Square man," I whispered under my breath.
Lloyd glanced over from where he was with the team, adjusting his plastic armour. He looked funny in it, especially because of how ill-fitting the cheap thing was. I was far more used to him wearing his own sleek, armoured gi.
He sent a weak smile. I gave my own in return, and then we each turned back to fiddling with our own armour.
"Whoa," Noami whispered as she sidled up beside me. "That was awkward."
"What?" I asked, turning to stare at her in confusion.
"You and Lloyd," she murmured, and we didn't miss how the man in question's gaze shot to us in concern. He was ways across from the group but with his hearing, we may as well have had the conversation with him. "Yeah, I'm talking about you, nimrod."
Lloyd's concerned look dropped into a dry glare at Nomes' jest.

"I don't know what you mean," I said with a frown and a glance in Lloyd's direction.
"You guys have been kinda..." Naomi scrunched her nose to find the word. "Quiet. Since we left, at least. Since- uh, the, um... the whole 'run the monastery' thing."
"Oh..." I mumbled. Lloyd began to make his way over and Cole followed, though he was oblivious to our conversation. "I think it's just reality setting in. Lloyd has this idea that he wants to marry me as soon as possible-"
"A wonderful idea," he jumped in when he reached us. I rolled my eyes.
"But this stuff - languages, etiquette, learning how to run a monastery..." I gave an uncomfortable shrug. "It just makes everything seem a little more real. Like - wow. I'm actually an adult, now."
"I'll admit," Lloyd murmured as his hand edged into mine. "It's made me a little nervous, too."
"Getting cold feet before the wedding?" Cole snickered. Lloyd pulled an anguished look.
"I'd have to actually get her to say yes to an engagement, first." A pointed gaze was sent my way, which I avoided with a smile.
"Losing your charm, Garmaboy?" Naomi teased.
"Like he had any in the first place," Cole grinned as he slung his large arm around Naomi's shoulders.

"Hey!" I shot, cradling Lloyd's cheeks and bringing his amused face close to mine as I glared at the couple. His cheeks smooshed between my palms. "Lloyd is incredibly charming."
"She's just stubborn," he continued.
"It's true," I agreed with a nod.
"Alright!" Dad exclaimed with his authoritarian, Sargent Major voice. He rested the barrel of his gun against his shoulder as he scanned our group - Misako, Wu and mum weren't participating, but dad and Garm had made a bet, so the thousand-year-old man had suited up along side us young whippersnappers. "This plot of forestry is used for military training operations, so please refrain from accidentally terraforming with your little demigod powers. If you do, I'll kick you up the ass and I wear steel cap boots."
Jay actually winced.
"Ow," he whispered under his breath.
"There are teams and I'll list them off only once, so listen closely," dad continued. His stern glare dragged down the line of young ninja and Garm. Jamie's gaze quickly jumped to me. "Me and Y/n verse everyone else GO!"

Upon the command, I swiftly raised my gun and shot both Cole and Kai in the chests of their armour before they could even digest dad's sentence. Naomi, Lloyd, Nya and Zane were the quickest to react, darting off into the trees for cover. Jay immediately fell into a fetal position.
"WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN?!" the lightning master screamed. I laughed as I shot the back of his armour before joining the others into disappearing into the foliage of the paint-stained forest.
While I did know my way around a gun far better than the ninja did, they had the advantage of being, well, ninja. They eluded my piercing gaze, and despite not wearing camouflage, blended perfectly well into the woods. Dad had gone off to pursue his bet against Lloyd's dad, so I had to handle the team on my own.
A paintball whizzed past my ear. I turned and shot Nya in the shoulder. She'd been crouching in the leaves of a thick branch within the canopy.
"What the-!" she blundered, cheeks burning red in embarrassment. "I was totally silent!"
"I followed the trajectory of where the bullet came from. You just made the mistake of missing," I pointed out with a smug grin. She raised her gun towards me once more.
"Say that again," she dared, but my smile only grew wider. Nya lowered the gun with a groan and gracefully leapt to the ground with barely a rustle. "Whatever. Just get the rest of the boys out."

"Will do," I grinned. While Nya turned to head back towards the main base where a bummed Kai, Cole and Jay already waited at, I turned to head deeper into the forest, trusting that I was following the way Zane and Lloyd had fled. I knew that they would be substantially harder than the others, with one having supernatural senses and the other being, well, a nindroid.
It would be a challenge, for sure.
Just as I was trying to look for signs of either boys, a voice behind me made me shriek.
"Whoa!" Lloyd said with an easy-going chuckle as he sauntered through the ferns towards me. "I was just saying hi. I'm not that scary, am I?"
My finger twitched for the trigger of my paintball gun. Lloyd noticed the movement and huffed.
"You really gonna shoot me?" he asked with a chuckle. "When we're in a forest all alone, with no one in hearing range? There's much better things that we could be doing."
I lowered my gun slightly.
"Like what?" I asked. Lloyd grinned a handsomely crooked smile, and a sharp canine caught the illumination of the dappled sunlight that had draped across his cheek. My breath caught and swelled in my throat. Oh.

"Exactly," he murmured before continuing forth. There was a predatory glint in his red eyes that had my hackles rising and heartbeat racing in anticipation. "Back up."
I found myself doing as told before even questioning why. My back hit the trunk of a large tree and Lloyd continued to advance until I was caught between him and the bark.
"My dad's out here somewhere," I reminded in a stressed whisper, despite really liking where this was going. "What if he catches us?"
Lloyd shrugged carelessly.
"It's not as if he doesn't know we're dating, sunshine," he reminded with a charming smirk. "He knows what happens when people date. Besides, it's your birthday!"
I scoffed a laugh and turned my head away, but Lloyd just pressed a gentle thumb against my chin and guided me back towards him. His head tilted closer, lidded eyes watching me as his lips parted. He was asking a question that I desperately wanted to say yes to.
My eyes flickered between his dark red eyes and his waiting lips, battling with myself about whether I control myself, shoot him and go on to track down Zane or let Lloyd make me crumble against a tree.
While I was struggling with a decision, he lifted a hand to rest against my cheek and twirled his fingers through my hair.
And, well. I subsequently shattered.

My fingers hooked the front of his chest plate and I hauled him down. I barely managed to see Lloyd's smirk turn mischievous before I was slipping my eyes shut and capturing my mouth with his.
I was pressed tighter against the tree as Lloyd leant into me. His kiss was fierce and needy, and mine was equal in response. My breath came in short gasps and I could feel my head spinning. It was euphoria - it always is - and it made my stomach feel like it was full of fireworks.
BAM!
I stilled against him. The gunshot rang in my ears. I clenched my still-closed eyes in betrayal.
"You did not."
"Oh, babydoll," Lloyd whispered against my jawline. "I did."
I pulled my head away and glanced down at my chest plate, which was now splattered with green paint. I was out. He killed me.
"Did- did you just seduce me into winning?" I accused furiously as my sharp eyes jumped back to his smug grin. My hands balled in the back of his shirt. "That's not fair!"
Lloyd gave a nonchalant snicker, totally proud of himself. He returned to kissing my neck and despite my indignation at being tricked, I tilted my head to let him.
"Sorry, sweetheart," he said against my collarbone, though he didn't sound very apologetic. "But I'm sure that Morro felt the same when you kissed him just to get his guard down."

I jerked my head back and sent Lloyd a mortified look.
"We agreed to never bring that up again!" I stressed, eyes bulging.
"But teasing you is so fun," he said. "Bye-bye, loser. Enjoy the walk of shame back to the others."
I pushed him away with a competitive huff. He chuckled as he stepped back, amused by my scowl.
"You're on the couch tonight," I grumbled as I shoved his shoulder on the way past. His ringing laugher followed me back to the base. I was met with surprised snorts from Cole, Kai and Jay - all of whom probably prayed that I'd get out due to shooting them all so early on. I shot them glares. Misako and mum chuckled to themselves.
It was now father and son (and Zane) against my father. Naomi was already shot out by Nya, but held no grudge despite her own competitive nature. They each giggled at something on Naomi's phone while they waited for the match to end.
The game ended when my dad came back with a purple blast of paint on his back armour and a pout to match. Garmadon looked extremely pleased with himself.
Lloyd trotted out of the woods with Zane and a proud smirk, both void of paint. I turned my head away and crossed my arms when his eyes jumped to me.

"Now she really isn't gonna say yes, Lloyd," Kai quipped, having deduced that it was he who got me out.
"I'll win the bet one way or another," Lloyd replied with a unnerved shrug.
"What bet?" my dad obliviously asked as he glanced among us.
"Anyway," I said quickly to divert the topic. I really didn't want to get into that with my father just yet. "That was fun. Round two?"
"Oh, hell yeah!" Nya shouted as she leapt to her feet and grinned boisterously. "No way am I letting Y/n get away with shooting me out so easily!"
"Brilliant," I sighed as I stood and adjusted my armour. "Now I'm going to get hunted down by my boyfriend and Nya."

"What bet?" Jamie asked helplessly as we all dispersed into the forestry.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"And you're sure that you'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine," I insisted with a smile. Chen fretted, wringing his hands anxiously while his boyfriend stood beside him with a disgruntled, reluctant frown. "Go. You guys have been wanting a date night for ages."
"I know, but Vali and Seliel are both out on patrol," Ambrose reminded. "Who's going to protect you?"
"I won't need it!" I reassured. "I've got a couple of exams coming up, so I just plan on spending this evening studying in my dorm, anyway. And if I really need anyone, Kvasir is only a few blocks away."
The couple shared an apprehensive look, so I shoved them out of my room with a grin and a grunt.
"Gooo!" I stressed, kicking them out of my room and leaning against the doorframe. "Have fun, you crazy teens. Don't worry about me."
"But that's my job," Ambrose grumbled.
"You have us on speed dial, yeah?" Chen piped up. I nodded. "Okay. I'm going to check in on you throughout the evening."
I rolled my eyes.
"You really don't have to."
"That gang that's trying to hunt you down tells me otherwise."

"Go!" I yelled. My finger pointed down the hallway towards the exit of Gladys West Hall. "Go on your stupid date, you assholes, before I drag you to your reservation by your ears myself!"
Ambrose clapped his hands over his ears.
"That's not an empty threat, is it?"
I snapped my fingertips together. He squeaked.
When the boys finally made their leave for the Friday evening, I shut the dorm room door and dropped myself onto my bed. My plan wasn't actually to study - as I surprisingly didn't have much to do and wasn't in the mood, either - it was to go for a walk around campus with Ambrose and Chen and whoever else wanted to join before the evenings got too cold. That was before I was informed of their plans, told by a hesitant and sheepish Chen after my lecture.
I rolled onto my side and stared at my slack-curled fingers that were caught in the rolls of my messy duvet. Ambrose and Chen sacrificed so much of their own time just so I wouldn't be reduced to near-permanent house arrest, so I was more than happy to forfeit my Friday evening so that they could finally have time together.

It'd only been two weeks since I returned for my second year of my degree at Borg Institute of Technology, where I was majoring in psychology and minoring in history and mythology. Summer went by fast and uneventful, filled only with days of training and the occasional date.
Compared to my previous two summers with Lloyd, I'd dare say that I found it almost boring. There were no ghostly possessions. No whisking me away to a deserted island to protect me from my ever-present stalkers.
Even the city, which would usually be bustling with criminal activity, was largely quiet. I even got to go on a couple of patrols with the team, but the only thing noteworthy was that one time when we stumbled across an illegal weapons deal in the back allies of downtown.
Part of me thought that it was too quiet, but then I realised that I was just being paranoid. Quiet was good. Quiet meant that Lloyd could spend more time with me, which was something I'd always be more than happy for.

But that evening, I was just bored. There was nothing to occupy myself with other than to lie on my bed and ponder existence.
It was slow, lonely nights like those that really made me miss Violet. As eccentric as she could be at times, at least she got me out of my overthinking head. Grounded me, in a way.
Why must I be so dependent on other people to keep me grounded?
"I'm bored," I declared to the audience of only myself. My stomach growled. "Bored and hungry."
The good thing about being a second year border at BIT was that we got kitchenettes! No more communal kitchen! Third years get their own bathrooms, which was something I was eagerly awaiting. There was nothing worse than having to wait in line for the showers after a morning training session with Seliel and Vali.
Unfortunately, there was nothing to eat in my kitchenette. I'd have to grab something from the vending machine down in the common room.
With a disgruntled and lazy groan, I rolled myself over until I fell onto the floor, and while still groaning, finally stood and grabbed my wallet and taser (you can never be too careful when a gang was after you). With another elongated groan, I left my dorm room and took the stairs down to the bottom floor.

The communal space was empty, both for the fact that it was late and a friday night - so either people were out partying or already heading to bed. It was dark and slightly eerie to be in a place rest usually bustled with activity, so I quickened my pace and hurriedly inputted the code to get two-minute noodles. Borg knew what students wanted (and could afford).
A creak behind me made my back stiffen.
Hairs prickling, I quickly grabbed my taser from my pocket and whipped around. My wide eyes scanned the dark space, jumping over couches and chairs, but finding nothing out of the ordinary.
"You're losing it," I whispered to myself and turned back to the vending machine, only to be met by yellow eyes.
I screamed. My hand with the taser shot forward. The person fell with a metallic 'clunk.'
I dropped my taser and my noodles in shock. The body still twitched and sparked, which was weird, because bodies don't usually spark. Scrambling backwards, I quickly flipped on the lights and-
"Zane?!" I shrieked in disbelief at the nindroid on the ground. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

The robot sat up on shaky arms and attempted to speak, but his voice only came out in short glitches and warbles. My eyes widened further.
"... not-Zane Zane?" I asked in pure befuddlement. He certainly looked like Zane, but also nothing like Zane at all. Whereas Zane's true form was shiny titanium that was kept meticulously clean, the robot in front of me seemed to be made of old parts and to have been only just recovered from a covering of rust. I dropped my hand from the light switch in confusion. "Who are you?"
His large, yellow eyes drifted from my shoes to my face and flickered. He opened his mouth to reply, but only a static-peppered shriek escaped. I winced and he clamped his mouth shut.
"Okay," I sighed with a guilty frown and approached. I held out my hand. "This was my fault, I'm sorry. My name's Y/n."
Not-Zane Zane glanced between my hand and my face in clear confusion. I smiled softly in reassurance.
"In future, you really shouldn't sneak up on someone," I mentioned as his cold hand slid into mine. The resemblance to Zane was absolutely uncanny, and I would've considered them to be doppelgängers - if not twins - if they were human. "Are you related to Zane Julien by chance? I mean, like... well, you know."

Yellow eyes stared back. A nod.
"Wow!" I beamed as I lead Not-Zane Zane towards the entrance of Gladys West Hall. "That's so cool! I never expected to meet one of Zane's family."
I pulled out my phone from my pocket and Not-Zane Zane suddenly grabbed my wrist. His eyes steely regarded me.
"I'm just calling a friend to help you out," I soothed - it was difficult not to be so friendly with this stranger, considering how much he looked like Zane. "It was my fault your wires got on the fritz. He'll fix you right up!"
Not-Zane Zane's grip tightened briefly as he stared, before slowly releasing and pulling his arm away. His elbow gave a considerable creak.
I smiled again and raised my phone to my ear.
Ten minutes later, Not-Zane Zane and I were quickly being ushered into one of the mechanic workshops by Kvasir, who kept glancing over his shoulder to watch out for passerbys. He shut the door behind us and turned to me.
"What the hell."
"It's great to see you, too," I said with a dry smile.
Kvasir ignored my sarcasm and sent a four-eyed stare at Not-Zane Zane. The robot stared back, still and unblinking. It just made me realise how human Zane was when his duplicate was standing next to me like a statue.
"Where did you even find a robot?"

"Erm... it's more like he found me," I corrected. "Which is an equally good question, but he can't speak right now. Which I was hoping you'd help fix..?"
Kvasir sighed and pulled out a toolkit from one of the benches. I beamed.
"Thank you! I'll buy you lunch."
"And dinner," he bargained.
"Deal," I readily agreed. I hopped up and perched on the edge of a bench while Kvasir guided a weary Not-Zane Zane to sit. The venomari started on his voice box, fiddling with a bunch of wires that confused my brain.
"It'sss been ssshort circuited," he noted. I gave a sheepish chuckle.
"My fault," I confessed. "He snuck up on me and I tasered him."
"Everyday I quessstion what goesss on in your head," Kvasir sighed.
"And you are not the only one," I said. We fell into silence, and I found Not-Zane Zane watching me. I offered a smile. He looked away.

"Even if you didn't tassser it, thisss robot wasss on the verge of breaking down anyway," Kvasir muttered with an agitated swipe of his tail. "I'll sssee what I can do to fix it."
Kvasir fiddled a little more with Not-Zane Zane's voice box - rotating this, prodding that - until he finally stepped away and re-placed the panel over his throat.
"That ssshould be good, now."
I scooted forward eagerly while Kvasir went to grab some more tools from out back. Not-Zane Zane began to test the reflexes on his fingers, so I dropped my head in front of his own with a big smile.
"Hi."
His left eye flickered.
"H... hello."
My face pulled into a brief look of surprise at the voice Not-Zane Zane made. It sounded exactly like normal Zane, if it weren't for the crackly static and the disturbances. I went to ask exactly what his relationship was with Zane, but Kvasir returned too quickly. I sat upright, gaze still trained on the robot.
"What's your name?"
"Ech-o."
"Echo," I repeated softly. "That's a lovely name. It's nice to meet you, Echo. I'm Y/n."

His stare was unrelenting. I shuffled closer to the edge while Kvasir began welding some loose circuitry on his elbow back together.
"I'm really sorry for tasering you," I apologised. "How are you feeling?"
"Why are you asssking that?" Kvasir asked as he fiddled with his elbow. "It'sss jussst a robot."
"I-" I hesitated. I couldn't exactly say that my brother was a nindroid and was perfectly human while being so. That would raise unwanted questions and Kvasir would never stop badgering me until he got to meet Zane, which would blow his carefully-crafted cover. "I d- I don't know."
Echo tilted his head.
"Where did you come from, Echo?" I asked. "What were you doing in my hall?"
He didn't answer.
"You think he'sss from the roboticsss block?" Kvasir asked. He paused before peering closely at Echo's face. "Doessn't he kind of look like Zane-?"
"Really? I don't see it," I quickly blurted. "I'm sure it's just a coincidence."
Kvasir sent me a dumbfounded, annoyed look. I sheepishly grinned before swiftly leaping to the ground.

"I should head back," I said. "Studying. You know how it is. Are you done with Echo?"
"Not yet," Kvasir murmured as he pawed through his toolbox. Echo was still staring at me with his unblinking yellow eyes. "But it would be bessst for the robot to remain here for the night. It'sss got a lot of damage."
"Alright," I replied. "I'll see you later, then."
"Sssee ya," the serpentine said offhandedly.
"Bye," Echo quietly mumbled.

That night, I awoke to the feeling of someone being in my room.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"For someone so puny, you sure do pack a lot of strength."

"Wow," I said, unwrapping the gauze from my hand. "Thanks so much, Seliel."
Seliel shrugged. "I only speak the truth, hombre."
I glanced up at the girl with auburn hair and rolled my eyes at her smirk. Vali snickered, slinging an arm around my shoulders and flicking away their long, black plait.
"Stop bullying our child, Se-Se," Vali teasingly accused. "She's smol and fragile."
"I am not," I shot, despite realising that in truth, I was. Seliel laughed and rubbed my head as she passed.
"I'll see you same time tomorrow," she said before shoving her gi mask on. Vali copied, and after watching from the rooftops until I returned to my hall, disappeared off into the city for patrol.
Morning trainings usually ran from five 'till seven and always left me sore and achy. After saying my hellos to the handful of people actually awake and in the common room at the hour, I head upstairs to shower and prepare for the day.

And, when the clock hit eight, Lloyd and I began our usual morning routine;

🛹🥺💖:
hey!!! missions done are u free to call??? :D ❤️❤️
Sent 8.02am

Me:
aye yes pls call me up 👈😎👈
Delivered

🛹🥺💖:
👉😎👉
Sent 8.02am

Me:
👈😳👈
Delivered

🛹🥺💖:
👉🥴👉
Sent 8.03am

Me:
👈😱👈
Delivered

🛹🥺💖:
👉🤤👉
Sent 8.03am

Me:
👈🥵👈
Delivered

Me:
we are so fuckin cute
Delivered

🛹🥺💖:
damn right we are
Sent 8.03am

"Good morning, my sleepless sergeant," I greeted with a smile when Lloyd picked up the call. "Shouldn't you be resting? You just spent all night on a mission."
"Nah," Lloyd waved off, even though he sounded incredibly weary. "I can sleep when we finish. I wanted to hear your voice."
"Well," I replied, cheeks flushed. "Here's my voice."
"And what a lovely one it is," he sighed. I had to pause in the middle of my room to calm my racing heart. It certainly was a wonder that he could still make me feel so fluttery and warm, even after all this time.
"There's so much I want to catch you up on," I said as I perched on the edge of my bed. "I've been getting way better in my training! Seliel makes less jokes about me being weak now, so that's a clear indicator in itself. And I managed to pin Vali down in less than a minute when we sparred this morning. Seliel's band's gonna be performing soon, so I was wondering if you wanted to come down to Nom to see. Y'know. With me. As a date."
A tired yawn from Lloyd. My smile turned sweet. He was such a sleepy boy.
"That sounds wonderful, sunshine," Lloyd murmured. "I'll make sure to be there."

I could almost feel myself start to fizz in excitement.
"Really? Thank you!" I gushed, before reeling myself back in. "Oh, I met this robot a couple of days ago called Echo. It's weird - he looks exactly like Zane. I was wondering if you could ask him if his father ever created him a brother?"
No response. My brows raised.
"... Lloyd?"
A quiet snore. I had to bite my lip to keep me from chuckling. A massive part of me yearned to kiss him on his forehead and make sure that a duvet was pulled up to his chin, but we were seven hundred miles apart and the distance felt like a gaping hole in my stomach.
My smile turned sad.
"Good night, Lloyd," I whispered.

"Uh oh," Chen said when I arrived at the entrance of my hall to get chaperoned to class. "What's wrong?"
I furrowed my brow in confusion as I closed the door behind me.
"What?"
"You're wearing Lloyd's hoodie," Chen pointed out, glancing down at the green pullover while we began walking. I followed his gaze. "You only wear it if you're feeling vulnerable. C'mon, spill it for Chen."
I pulled a face. "Never say it like that again." He sent a pointed look, so I sighed and began to confess. "I don't know. I'm just having an off day. I miss my boyfriend, that's all."
"Are you going to have a cry session while wearing it like last year?"
"We agreed to never speak of that."
"Didn't it last an entire month?"
"I was in a bad place, okay!" I defended. "Gee. Strike me while I'm down, why don't ya?"
Chen only merrily shrugged.
"Go bother your boyfriend," I scorned when we arrived at my lecture theatre. "At least you have one to annoy."

"Can't," Chen sighed, as if the notion was the most incredibly worse thing to have ever happened to him, ever. "I gotta stick by your side. Lloyd's orders."
My gaze shot to my friend.
"You've spoken with Lloyd?"
Chen's expression was slow and calculated in its confusion. He stopped in the hallway outside the theatre.
"Are you implying that you haven't?" He suddenly gasped. "Is that why you're wearing your sad boyfriend hoodie? Oh, Y/n, why didn't tell me you and Lloyd were having issues!"
I pulled a face.
"We're not having issues."
"Ah, denial, the first stage of grief-"
"We're not!" I insisted, but then I suddenly couldn't hold his brown, sympathetic gaze. "He's just... busy."
Chen's brows furrowed. "How often does he talk to you?"
I shrugged. "He calls once or twice a week. Texts every other day."
His worried expression deepens. "He texts me every evening just to check up on you."
I opened my mouth to say something, but my lips slowly close. He texted Chen every evening to check up on me? Why couldn't he just ask me? He didn't even text me every evening - which, you know, I wouldn't complain about if he wasn't texting Chen just to see how I was going.

"Huh," was all I could manage.

That afternoon, I dragged Kvasir and Ambrose along to the local shooting range to vent the stress that had built over the previous hours.
"Pretty dope that you have free access to this place," Ambrose mentioned as I grabbed a handgun from the rack and tested its weight.
"Mhm," I mumbled.
"Ugh, you're doing it again." Ambrose turned to the serpentine beside him. "She's doing it again. Check this out - hey, Y/n."
"Hmm..."
"Banana sandwich."
"... yep," I muttered.
"Your shirt's on fire and Borg himself is redacting your scholarship."
"... that's cool..."
Kvasir sent a giddy Ambrose an unimpressed frown. The elemental master missed his friend's disapproval as he continued to tease.
"Watch this," he snickered. "Lloyd."
"What?" I asked, glancing to the boys. "Did you guys say something?"
Ambrose threw his head back with a loud laugh while I stared on in bleak confusion. Kvasir just shook his head - the universal expression reassuring me to not read into Amby's actions and instead focus on what I was doing.

"I just don't get it," I stressed as I reloaded the magazine after I spent a whole round barreling the bullets into the furthest target the shooting range had to offer while yelling my rants over the sound of gunfire. "If he wanted to check if I was alive everyday, why not just text me himself?"
"I dunno," Kvasir sighed, sounding like a broken record as he listened to my vent. "Why don't you asssk him yourssself?"
"I would, if he wasn't so damn busy being the stupid green ninja!" I seethed. Kvasir watched with tired eyes as another volley of bullets pierced the target through.
"Literally jussst text."
"I did!"
"What did you sssay?"
"I said hi," I replied. My back hit the wall of the box as I slumped and Kvasir sent me a narrowed look.
"That'sss it?"
"Yes?" I answered with a frown. "Lloyd will text me when he's free and I'll ask then. He's busy. You know. Being the stupid green ninja."
"You don't actually think it's stupid that he's the green ninja, right?" Ambrose piped up from where he was mindlessly tearing apart a pair of ear muffs. "'Cause I'm getting mixed signals."
"No," I sighed, slumping even further. "But I need something to project my frustration onto and that seems the easiest one to do."
Ambrose pointed a piece of foam at me.
"Extremely valid."
"I think you're overreacting," Kvasir admitted.
"Oh, me too," I agreed as I lifted my refilled gun and fired a shot. The weight felt right in my hands - it was home to me. Certainly a different kind of home than usual, but home all the same. "But that doesn't stop my anxiety." I suddenly dropped my hands and turned to my boys with a frightened look. "What if he doesn't want to do long-distance anymore?"
"You kidding?" snorted Ambrose. "The man adores you. It would take way more than a seven hour drive to put Lloyd off."
"I don't think he can be put off," Kvasir said.
"True," Ambrose agreed. "He's very honourable. Like Captain America, except green."
I chuckled. "Somehow, I can't see Lloyd wielding a shield. Too clunky and in-the-way."
Ambrose shrugged. "To each their own. I'm gonna find something to eat."
He ducked out of the box, leaving Kvasir and I in comfortable silence. I fired off another couple of rounds and frowned at the ease of still targets. I almost wished that I was a little more rusty, so I could actually focus on refining my skills instead of worrying about Lloyd.

"Remember when I told you that I'd only fallen in love once?"

I lifted my gaze from the target and found Kvasir watching me intently. My brows furrowed as I tried to recall it, before suddenly resurfacing the memory - it was almost a year ago, around the beginning of our first year at BiT.
"Yeah." I nodded slowly. "You never mentioned it again. I figured that you didn't want to talk about it." Also, I forgot.
"I want to talk about it now," he said. His four eyes fell away and a forlorn look stretched across his face. "I fell in love with a girl. A human one."
I dropped the gun.
"... a human?" I asked in quiet disbelief after quickly retrieving the gun and flicking it on safety, trying to reel in my flabbergasted expression.
"Yesss," he sombrely hissed. "Her name wasss Nayia. I'd ssneak out of the tomb and we'd met every week. Nayia wasss the one who taught me about mechanicsss. I eventually developed my love for both it and her."
I was sensing a sad ending.
"What happened?"
"Ssshe moved," he answered with a shrug, though I could tell that he was more affected by it than he was letting on. "I wasss to inssecure to attempt a relationssship and the dissstance put me off even more. Haven't heard from her sssince."

My gaze fell to the ground.
"The point isss," Kvasir continued while I fiddled with my nails. I glanced back up at him. "What you and Lloyd ssshare iss preciouss. Don't let inssecuritiess hinder what you have with Lloyd. You've done that once already."
My face flushed. So he knew about the behemoth fight we had two years prior.
"When he'sss free, call him," Kvasir advised just as Ambrose returned with an armful of goodies from a vending machine. "Don't text. Just talk."
I swallowed as I let his story sink in. I gave a silent nod in agreement.

Ambrose, aware of the sudden somber atmosphere but unaware of the cause, looked between us in confusion.

It was late in the evening when I finally got a response from Lloyd. Kai was actually the first to text me, cryptically informing me of the fact that whatever the news would say the next day - it was not as bad as it sounded. When I went to ask what on earth he was talking about, Lloyd had replied, and my priorities were swift to shift.
"Hey." He sounded so so tired when he picked up the call. I immediately felt concerned, then guilty that I requested we called.
"Hi," I replied quietly, nervously shifting in my bed. It was late, I should've been asleep, but I don't think I would've been able to even if Lloyd was available to talk to. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," he sighed, but there was a hesitation that had me biting my lip in worry. "You okay?"
"Yeah," I whispered. "I mean-" I broke off to share my own sigh. "Not really."
Quiet.
"What happened?" Lloyd finally asked when it was clear I wasn't yet going to elaborate.
"You first," I bargained. "Kai sent me a really cryptic message to not trust what the news says tomorrow and now I'm antsy to know. What happened?"

Lloyd hummed, contemplating. I waited patiently.
"There was a bomb," he finally confessed. "My calf might have gotten impaled."
My heart rose to my throat as I immediately sat up in horror. I clutched my phone with both hands.
"What?!" I gasped. Horrified tears welled in my eyes at the mere thought of him being in pain. "Oh my god, Lloyd! Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, princess, really," Lloyd insisted. "I've had all the teas n' stuff. It's just the matter of waiting for it to heal. Team will have to do a couple of missions without me, but they'll be okay."
I dropped my head backwards with a stressed exhale. I bumped against the wall with a thump.
"You're probably really tired," I guessed. "... we can talk later-"
"No, no," Lloyd reassured, but I could hear the effort he put into making his voice sound normal. "I'm totally fine. What's bothering you?"

Well, now my issue just seemed extremely silly. I bit my lip.
"It's nothing, really," I murmured.
"Y/n," Lloyd warned. "You're doing that thing where you're deflecting your issues again."
I scrunched my lips in frustration. He was right, of course he was, but now I was regretting even bringing it up at all.
"It's stupid," I sighed, and continued on before Lloyd could berate me again on keeping things bottled up. "You text Chen every night to make sure I'm okay. Why don't you just text me yourself? I miss you."
Lloyd didn't respond for a couple of belated seconds. I held my breath, waiting for his reply, but soon I was wondering if he actually ended up falling asleep mid-call again. His stressed sigh answered my unspoken question.
"What's going on?" I gently probed. He still didn't reply, and then suddenly every thought that was running through my head had my stomach twisting. "If- if you can't do long distance, I-"
"No!" Lloyd jumped in. "No. It's not... it's not that."
"Then what is it?" I whimpered. "I can't read minds, Lloyd. You're confusing me."
"I don't want to stress you out even more. I don't want to frighten you," he admitted quietly. I blinked.
"How could you frighten me?"
"Not me," he sighed. "What I'm about to tell you."
"What?"

"Zane made a break through about Violet," Lloyd finally said. I felt my chest swell something unpleasant. "She's part of Axon's gang. The Sons of Garmadon."

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

- 24 hours prior -

"Okay," Kvasir said with a pat to Echo's shoulder. "You're all done."

Echo gave a jolted nod and watched as Kvasir packed up his tools.
It was late - very late - probably bordering on morning than anything else, and Echo never felt better. His joints were oiled, loose wires tied, exposed cables welded. He felt as good as new, better than new. He felt, for once, that he wasn't just a bot made out of excess scrap.
Kvasir was still rummaging around the room, placing things back in their home location.
Echo, with his new, squeak-less joints, slipped from the room without alerting the serpent. He would've said thanks, but unlike his brother, he had no desire for building acquaintances with common courtesy.
He was there for a job, and he, unlike Violet, was going to follow it through.

Take out the Green Ninja's Achilles heel.
Kill Y/n L/n.

He had no knowledge of why exactly he was required to murder this girl, only that he listened to one person only, and they, for some unknown reason, worked with a man who was locked up in Kryptarium Prison. It was that man's desire for her blood.
One thing Echo did know of was that he was good at following orders.
Especially to those who stumbled across his island and rescued him from an eternity of solitude, cursed to remain alone after his creator had left without him. Echo didn't have many feelings, but being intentionally forgotten left a bitter, twisting, vicious feeling in him.
He slipped across the dark, empty campus, deserted for the time of night. It was a weekday, and at a time in the semester where assignments were starting to be due, so most students were asleep or studying - which was perfect, because it meant that on-the-go-constantly, overworked and perpetually exhausted Y/n L/n would be sleeping, too.
Most likely.
A slumbering target was an easy one. Echo liked the easy targets. No mess, no fighting. Just pull the trigger and leave.

And this time, he wouldn't miss.

Sneaking into the girl's dorm was easier than he expected, but raising the gun and actually pulling it, usually a movement so easy and fluid, he seemed to begin to struggle.
Echo wasn't sure of many things, and he was content with this. He had no moral code, or need to abide by 'the greater good' of things. He had no care beyond his own functioning, and the Sons of Garmadon assisted his frequent needs. Do their jobs and he gets to continue exisiting smoothly.
So hesitating was a completely foreign concept.
The gun wavered. All he had to do was pull the trigger, but the gun wavered. The target was slumbering, sprawled under thing sheets, barely a foot away, but the gun wavered.
Why did the gun waver?

A warmth was enveloping Echo. As strange and alien as it was, he could feel himself accepting it beyond his own control. It seeped through him, soaked him, cocooning him in a sense of subdued tranquility that had him double-guessing himself.
Echo's arm dropped away.
He couldn't do it. As much as he wanted to - it as much as he was resigned to do - he couldn't. Not because he was suddenly having a moral dilemma or a change of heart, he genuinely couldn't bring himself to.
Now, he understood what Ultra Violet was spilling to him in a frenzied flush of words when she arrived back after failing her mission. The warmth, she claimed. The warmth was what stopped her. Controlled her. It forced her into thinking things she didn't initially, feeling emotions she didn't want to.
It made her worry about the girl she was brought in to kill. It made her care.

A parasite, Violet had said. The girl was a parasite, and Echo himself could feel him buckling under the effects.