TW: blood

dingbutt poopy head:
noticed rise in gang activity around ur area. think it might be axon's peeps. we're moving to round the clock surveillance
Sent 10.36am

Me:
o yea. its sleepover time B)

Delivered

dingbutt poopy head:
n o.
Sent 10.37am

Me:B(Delivered

It'd been two weeks since my 'home detention' was cracked down to 24/7 surveillance.
It'd been two weeks since Claire and the others had their memories erased of my powers.

Things were steadily growing worse and worse.

But hey! Progress! Lloyd said hi to me in art!
And then didn't look at me for the rest of the week. So.
Baby steps.
Other than that, things weren't looking so swell. Prom was just around the corner and exams were right after that, which was perfect for my building stress. And that was just school.
I'd found a routine in this sullen little world that had befallen me. It was difficult to get up in the mornings due to my shit sleep that I couldn't fix, no matter how hard I'd tried. Afternoons were spent stuck inside my house while playing charades with Nya across the street as she stood guard. Classes were taken up by me frantically scrawling down the notes that Claire's group would routinely destroy.
It'd hurt me more if she'd just get physical. They knew that I needed to ace these exams.

God dammit. Why did they have to be methodical about destroying me?

Teachers were useless when I made complaints. Seems, like Lloyd, they didn't care if somebody associated with the Garmadon lineage was in distress.
Fuckin' assholes.
I'd punch Claire again if it wouldn't get me expelled before the most important exams of my high school career.
But, oh. It didn't end there.

The serpentine, despite having the majority vote to go through with the peace treaty, were still in the midst of discussing whether it was a good idea or not when Garmadon and I visited the cavern for the next meeting. Things got heated and angry words escalated until Garm and I had to call it quits and return at a later date, hopefully when the generals had calmed down.
And wouldn't stab each other with their staffs.
Raptra was sweet as ever, though. Pythor was still a crusty bitch.
But he was growing on me.

And-
Haha. Ha.
Still couldn't get the image of Lloyd's junk out of my head.
Uchū would be disappointed. Or disgusted.

Or actually, considering how he reacted to Lloyd destroying the old locker room when we made out at school, the first spinjitzu master was probably up in the clouds waving a tiny flag and rooting for me to get laid.
Unfortunately, I didn't have a boyfriend to lay.
So that sucks.
Maybe he was writing up a list of dick jokes to subject me to the next time I saw him. If I was allowed (I'll just hide on the back to Wu's dragon, Benedict, if it comes to that).
On a Sunday afternoon, Zane was trying to teach me Morse code. It was a tactic the ninja would often use while on missions, particularly if they aren't able to speak aloud. I was almost in tears at not being able to understand it.
Having given up, I began putting on my coat and tying my shoe laces. I had an incredibly important errand.

"Hello, babysitter number five," I sniffled into my phone when Zane rang. He softly chuckled. Everything about Zane was soft. But precise, in a way. The man-nindroid mystified me.
"Hello, problem child," he greeted back. I gasped.
"Ouch, Zane," I whined, unlocking the door and letting myself out after giving a quick glance around. "That hurt."
"I know a plentiful ice reserve where you can treat your burns."
"Did Jay turn on your funny switch again?" I said dryly as I relocked the door.
"No," Zane replied from behind me. I yelped, dropping my keys with a metallic clatter.
"JESUS, ZANE," I hissed, clutching at my racing heart. He snickered, picking up my keys. I snatched it from him with a half-hearted frown as I ended the now useless call. "What did we talk about you guys sneaking up on me? I'm too young to be getting heart attacks!"
Zane tilted his head as I checked if I did indeed lock the door, before stuffing my phone and keys into my coat pocket.
"You are not susceptible to a myocardial infarction."
"A what."
"Heart attack," Zane replied, walking beside me as I made my way down my driveway. His voice was muffled by his mask.

"Yeah, Zane," I said shortly, giving another scan of my surroundings. It'd developed into a habit. Maybe I was beginning to grow paranoid. Or crazy. Probably both. Wouldn't be surprised, given the chaos that my life had begun to fall into. "Your IQ is like... way up here-" I lifted my hand over my head. "And my IQ, in comparison, is way down here-" I dropped my hand to my waist. "So, please. Save yourself the effort and just keep things dumb for me."
"You are not dumb."
"You'd be surprised," I snorted, zipping up my coat and digging my chin into the neck. "And when I do have a heart attack, you bet your metal ass that I'll be blaming you."
"Noted," Zane replied before changing the subject. "Where are we headed?"
"I'm going shopping for Jay's present," I murmured. "Cole told me that he really wanted the recent Starfarer video game on the switch."
"Nya has already bought him that."
"Darn," I hissed, frowning in thought. "Uhh. What else would he like? What did you get him, Zane?"

"Jay had been hinting recently that he wants to try out his element on a power generator," the white ninja replied. "So I bought him a power generator."
"I..." I blinked, staring down the empty street as we walked. "Alright, fair enough."
We walked for a little while in silence. It'd began to spit with rain, weak little pitter patters that hit the concrete with tiny bursts. I pulled my hood over my head as I stared at the footpath that was slowly growing wet. My nose welcomed the earthy, fresh smell of petrichor.
Goddammit, why did it have to remind me of Lloyd.
"What have you guys been doing recently?" I asked. "Y'know, aside from Lloyd telling you to babysit me."
"We have been looking into the gang that have been spotted around here," Zane replied, giving a sweep of the scene with his calculating, blue eyes. "But they are frustratingly good at what they do. They are quick and precise - very unusual for gang members. We have found nothing."
"That sucks," I frowned, sharing his frustration - as it were them who made me lose every last bit of my freedom, if they did have ties to Axon. "They must have a pretty good leader, then."

"That is what we are wary of," Zane admitted. He dropped his gaze to me. "I did spot some members watching your house."
A chill ran down my spine. I tried to calm the quiver in my voice. "Yeah?"
"Only once, so far," the ninja reassured, but it did nothing to soothe the spiking of my nerves. My pace subconsciously quickened. He kept up easily. "We are all informed of it."
"I have the protective barrier around my house," I said quietly. "But you guys are out in the open. Just- please, stay safe?"
Zane's blue eyes softened.
"Of course," he replied gently. "I will make sure to pass on the message."
I gave him a fleeting, unsure smile.
"Thanks."
When the streets began to grow busy, Zane disappeared to follow me along the rooftops. We didn't want anyone else finding out about my connection to the ninja, after all. It'd just pose more unwanted question and my god, if I had to answer another unwanted question I am going to slam my head with the refrigerator door.

I dawdled, trying to find a present for the bubbly, yappy boy of a ninja. Why was it so hard to buy for him? I didn't want to get him something lame or just give him money. It needed to be thoughtful. Jay's one of my braincell sharers, after all.
After about an hour of trying to find the perfect present for Jay, I finally had what I needed. Zane had been replaced by Cole, who took over for the next shift.
The black ninja joined me in my walk home once the streets got quieter.
"Hey, Y/n," Cole greeted as he silently landed beside me. I jumped, taken by surprise before my brows unamusedly fell over my eyes. Now they were just doing it on purpose to be annoying.
"Hey," I replied, pulling my hood down tighter to shield my face from the rain that had begun to fall heavier. Cole didn't look uncomfortable by the weather. If anything, he was embracing the rain. I wondered if it was because he missed it when he was a ghost.

"Jay's birthday soon," Cole noted, holding his arms behind his head. "You coming?"
"I don't think Kai gave me a choice," I said, grinning.
"Good," Cole teased. "Now you have to visit us."
I dropped my gaze back to the footpath. The rain fell harder. My smile drifted down to a frown.
"H... how much longer do you think Lloyd's gonna ignore me?" I murmured, crossing my arms tightly over my chest. "It's almost been a month already."
Cole'a demeanour fell into a feeling of sympathy. I kicked a stone, watching it clatter down the path.
"I don't know," Cole replied honestly.
"You think he even wants to get back together?" I mumbled under my breath dejectedly.
"I... don't know."
"I just wish I knew where I stood with him," I said, swallowing sharply. "I'm in limbo."

"Hey," Cole began, placing a large hand on my shoulder. His warm eyes twinkled sweetly. "Take your mind off of it. Let's talk about something else. How are you finding studying?"
I cried to the weeping sky.
"Oooookay," Cole laughed nervously. "That's fair. U- uh. What about Naomi? Have you guys done anything recently?"
I shrugged. "Not much. We've both been so busy lately and there's not a lot we can do without one of you guys tagging along."
"Yeah," Cole sighed sympathetically before scowling at the ground. "This Axon guy's really pissing me off. He's in Kryptarium and is still causing us trouble."
"He's had plenty of years to plan," I murmured. "At least school's a boring routine, everyday's the same. Can count on that."
Cole sent me a look.
"Tomorrow's the start of sports week."

"You have got to BE FU-"

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"There's one good thing about sports week," Kai grinned at the spring sun from behind his tinted glasses, finally warm. "We get to look badass."

"No, we don't," Lloyd muttered as he picked at pieces of grass.
"No, we don't," Kai corrected, smirk unfaltering.
I rolled my eyes amusedly, arms tucked behind my head as I laid back on the bustling field. Sports week was a big deal, according to what Jay told me. It was basically a week-long festival to give students and teachers a break from studying and teaching before hitting exams. Food trucks were set up in the parking lots, banners hung from every block, classrooms were filled with sports equipment and the like. It was homerooms against homerooms in the school-wide tournament.
The weather had even decided to play ball for us, if you'd mind the pun.
I'd enjoy it more if I wasn't so useless.

"How'd you get that welt on your forehead, Y/n?" Naomi teased as she mindlessly plaited a lock of Cole's black hair. I hummed my reply, unbothered as I soaked in the sun's warmth. I'd sorely missed the vitamin D.
"I decided to catch a netball with my face rather than my hands."
"Wait, wait-" Cole snorted, turning his head and ruining Naomi's decorating. She huffed through her nose and started again. "I thought you used to play volleyball?"
"Didn't mean I was good at it," I said.
"I worry for you," Nya sighed.
"We have that in common," Lloyd confessed halfheartedly, leaning back on his arms. I squinted a look at the side of his face just as he narrowed his green eyes. "Chen's coming over here."
I sat up, turning around to send the cheerleader a wave. Like the ninja, he was miles more athletic than I (though, not on the same level as the team). Unlike the ninja, he didn't have to worry about drawing attention with his abilities at full-strength. He didn't have to hold himself back.

"Hey, Chen," Kai greeted, sliding back his glasses and winking at Maggie. She scrunched her nose, turning her head away. I hid a snort in my hand.
"Hey, guys," Chen replied with a grin. "I have to go around and make sure people know about the crepe truck over by the old gym."
"Did a teacher tell you to?" Naomi asked, brow furrowing. "Usually it's the student reps who do that."
"No," Chen shook his head. "The crepes are just that good."
I snickered at the dead-serious look in his brown eyes. Lloyd's homeroom was up soon for the swimming part of the tournament and I really wanted to get some food beforehand so I could watch unbothered.
To be supportive.
Not because he'd be shirtless.
"Well, that convinces me," I confessed, standing up and dusting myself off as Chen and his little group of sheep went to bother some more students. "Who else wants one? My shout."
Everybody raised their hands. I blinked in surprise, looking down at my own hands. Yep, just like before. Only two of 'em. Born and raised, two hands.
I'd need help.

"I can assist in bringing them back over," Zane offered, standing. "But, Y/n. Your homeroom is scheduled to play football against R11 in forty minutes. Should you not be heading over to the gym to start warm up?"
"Ughhhh," I groaned, slapping my forehead with one of my two hands. "I totally forgot."
"That's alright!" Jay chirped, shifting forward onto his arms with a beaming smile. "We can all grab some food after your game! That way we can watch you, too!"
"Oh, god," I began, blanching as I stared at the team of highly-trained ninjitzu machines (aside from Naomi - but she played football for the school, so she still counts). "Oh, no, please. Please, don't watch."
"Why not?" Kai asked.
"Need I remind you the last time I played?" I pointed out, raising a brow embarrassedly. "The football hit Lloyd in the face. I am a walking disaster."
"Well, now we have to go," Cole teased.
"Nooooooo," I whined before brightening. "Hey, doesn't Lloyd need to get to the pool?"
"Oh, yeah!" Naomi nodded, glancing at the shoddily printed schedule that she'd plucked from Kai's grasp. "He's on in fifteen."
"Lost track of time," Lloyd sighed, standing up and grabbing his bag. The others began to gather their things and stand, too. Following the quiet leader to the pool.

"Y/n, you really should be going to warm up yourself," Zane insisted. I waved him off with a simple smile.
"Thanks, Zane, but I really don't need forty minutes to warm up for a game where nobody's going to even pass to me. Everyone in my homeroom hates me."
"Alright, then," Zane said, frowning slightly. "If you are content with that."
"I am," I reassured, bumping his arm with my shoulder. "Don't worry about me."
We entered the pool, turning left towards the bleachers while Lloyd turned right for the changing room.
"Don't look now," Nya muttered, sliding back to mutter to me and Naomi. The water mistress was glaring at a group of people on the bleachers. "The vultures are here."
Naomi snorted, glancing at Claire and her lackeys. "The dung beetles."
I paused, staring at the group. A familiar feeling of dread swelled in my stomach and I turned, intent on leaving the building before them realising I was there in the first place.
"Nope," Kai said, grabbing my arm and denying me my sweet release of freedom. "We're here with you. What are they going to do, anyway? There's teachers everywhere."
"Besides," Cole added. "We've dealt with worse."

Yes, but I haven't.
I reluctantly and worriedly held my tongue as Kai tugged me with the team to find a spot on the bleachers. I kept glancing back at Claire's group, praying that none of them would glance up and find me. It might just be the end of me if they did.
"What are they even doing here?" I whispered to Naomi as I took my seat and shielded my body behind Zane.
"Nathan's homeroom is the other one competing," Naomi replied, just as hushed. I frowned.
"I thought they broke up?"
"They're together again, apparently," Naomi shrugged just as students in swim clothes began flooding from the changing rooms. "I can never keep up with them - wait what why is Lloyd wearing a swim shirt?"
"Huh?" I turned my head down to the group before the pool. Lloyd, indeed, wore a swim shirt. Despite the loss, it still hugged his body in all the right ways and oh, god. I'm so glad he hadn't learnt Neuro's powers yet.
People were staring at him.
"He looks like a dork," Naomi hissed, which made Kai loudly snort before he could catch himself and I was pulled back into the here and now. "Seriously, I get that you guys need to be more on the down low during this week, but oh my god! He's worked hard for that body, at least let him have the chance to show off."

"Oh, my god, Naomi," Nya giggled while I dropped my head into my hands.
"Are you going to swim shirtless?" Naomi asked sternly, ruthlessly nudging Cole.
"Uh, yeah."
"Oh, good," she replied, satisfied. She turned back to the pool, where the first wave of swimmers were lining up to start. "That's good."
"You have absolutely no tact," I snickered, shaking my head at my friend. Cole was smugly grinning beside her.
"Maybe so," Naomi shrugged. "But it means I get to see this guy without a shirt on, so really, I win."
"He's probably wearing a shirt because of his scar," I reasoned, watching as Lloyd stood up to the edge of the water. He could probably hear us. I decided that I no longer cared what he heard or didn't.
"Scar?" Naomi asked, frowning. She lost her teasing attitude. "What scar?"
"Lloyd has this huge scar on his torso," Jay piped up, bringing his finger to the right and dragging it down from his collarbone to his opposite hip. "Right across."
"He's self-conscious about it," Kai murmured, discarding his sunglasses into his bag. Naomi's frown saddened.
"Oh," she hummed.

"Shouldn't be," I sighed despondently, dropping my chin onto my palm. "But if he did show it off, it'd raise unwanted questions. Still, he shouldn't have to be self-conscious about it."
Nevertheless. That shirt leaves little to the imagination.
"You okay?" Nya grinned shamelessly as she gently bonked the top of my head with her knuckles. I tore my eyes from Lloyd and sent her a questioning stare. "You look like you're having trouble holding yourself back."
My stare dropped into a glare. I was going to recriminate but then the horn sounded and the race began.
It was weird watching Lloyd force himself to lag when his lifestyle made him more athletic than the rest of the students he was racing against combined. It was weird pretending to cheer with the others for him to win when he was purposefully going slow.
But then my mind went blank when he got out of the pool, having finished halfway through the pack and taking Chen's high-five with a smile. His blond hair was heavy with water, and slicked back from his hand pushing it from his face. Even from the bleachers, I could see the droplets running down his face.
And how the hell did his shirt stick even more to his body-

"Stop drooling, Y/n," Kai smirked. I panicked, all but punting myself in the mouth with my palm. I paused before sending him a scathing look.
"Hey, I'm not drooling!"
"You may as well have been," Zane chuckled. I scowled, shoving the nindroid's shoulder.
"Shut up!"
"Wait, is Jas flirting with Lloyd?" Jay asked, making us redirect our attention. The brunette girl was indeed talking to Lloyd, leaning in close.
"She's not flirting," I denied, shaking my head. But then Jas giggled and Lloyd cluelessly grinned. My stomach clenched with nausea as Jas gently touched his shoulder and chimed a 'well done.'
"I think she's flirting," Naomi corrected quietly.
"I have to get ready for my game," I said quickly as I shot to my feet and grabbed my bag.
"Wait, Y/n-"
"I'm fine," I soothed, faking a smile at Kai's worried face. "It's fine, everything's fine!"

"He doesn't know any better," Cole said. "Lloyd's oblivious as a rock when it comes to girls."
"I don't care," I insisted, words coming out faster than I intended. I began walking backwards down the line of seats, going to flee. "Seriously, it's fine-!"
I stumbled over the foot of a student.
"Hey!"
"Sorry!" I squeaked, sending the annoyed boy an apologetic, frazzled smile before glancing back up at the team and ignoring the sympathetic looks they sent me. "I'll see you guys later. Crepes on me, right!"
My cheer was ineffective. I swiftly turned around and padded down the stairs, smile instantly dropping. I tried my best not to look at Lloyd as I turned towards my escape. Footsteps fast and swift and-
A tug on my gut had me faltering in my stride. I pushed on. It pulled harder and I shoved it down until it became a war, my stride slowing.
With everything that happened, I forgot about Claire.

A body shoved past me. Mindless, thoughtless. I was pushed aside by the momentum, but initially paid it no mind - occupied by the insistent, annoying tugging that was forcing me to turn back to Lloyd. I'd been shoved aside so many times that it didn't bother me anymore. Sure, I'd trip on my own foot and fall because of it, but that's fine. I was used to humiliation. It didn't bother me anymore.
Except there was no solid floor for me to land on.
Only the cold, crisp, chlorinated water of the swimming pool.
I barely had enough time to scold myself for falling for such a cliché before I'd landed in the pool. My ankle smacked the tiled corner and pain smashed across my bone, spiking up my leg. I grimaced through the bubbles. The world above erupted into chaos, but the world of the water was nothing but a calm silence.
Part of me wished to stay down below forever. But a need for air existed.
Pulling myself up to the edge, I coughed and pushed back my hair in annoyance. Why couldn't I have been in my togs when they did that? At least had given me that little win.
But no. Of course not.

"Really?" I hissed, bringing up my dipping bag and dropping it onto the floor as I glared up at Henry, one of the guys from the group. I hadn't even spoken a word to him and he pushed me into the pool? The immaturity of it all was astounding. "Are you a toddler?"
Henry didn't get a chance to answer, as his smirk turned into a surprised choke when Lloyd grabbed him by the front of his shirt, either appearing out of nowhere or moving faster than a blink of an eye.
"Are you fucking insane?!" Lloyd shouted, dragging the boy back a few paces. The ninja were the first to react, already lithely throwing themselves down the bleacher stairs. "She could've hit her head!"
I stared, stunned, before remembering where I was and pulling myself out of the pool. The building was silent. Teachers were approaching. Kai was the first to tug Lloyd off of Henry while Nya quietly checked if I was okay, helping me stand on my hurt ankle. Nathan held back his friend.
"And?" Henry spat from around Nathan. "What do you care? You're the one who dumped her sorry ass!"

"Lloyd," Cole hissed when the blond growled a warning so low and fierce that it reminded me of a lion about to pounce. Lloyd about to attack. "She's fine. You can't make a scene."
"Take her to the nurse's office," Jay urged, pulling Lloyd back a couple of steps. "She's bleeding. We'll sort this out with the teachers."
I was bleeding? I glanced down at my ankle, which had begun leaking blood from a gash. Huh. Guess I was bleeding.
"They won't do anything," Lloyd snapped, finally tearing his death-inducing glare from Henry. Nathan began pulling him away, sending me an apologetic wave.
"And what are you going to do?" Zane questioned quietly. "Be reasonable, Lloyd."
"Hey, can you boys stop bickering?" Naomi asked, glancing at the approaching teacher nervously. "Mr. Strathum's coming over - who looks pissed, by the way - and Y/n's bleeding. Can we do something?"
"Fine," Lloyd snarled, shrugging Kai's hand off. "You guys deal with this. I'll take her to the nurse's office."
"Wait, huh?" I said dumbly just as Lloyd scooped me up, the move as natural and familiar as breathing. "Oh."
Haha. Suck it, Jas.
No wait that's mean.
Sorry, Jas.

Nya hurried along beside us after picking up my bag. I stared blankly at my fingers while goosebumps dotted my skin. A chill began to settle over me as Lloyd stepped out into the little lot behind hall E.
"You need to calm down," Nya insisted, placing a hand on Lloyd's shoulder and forcing him to halt. "Your eyes are red."
My gaze jumped up to his eyes. The usual green had been replaced by the now equally usual (to me) red. He was gritting in teeth in frustration. His canines were begging to be fully unsheathed.
"It was just a stupid boy being mean," Nya pressed. "It's nothing. Boys are stupid all the time - hell, I'd know. I'm surrounded by you guys."
I giggled, making Nya's grey eyes drop to me with a warm smile. She drew out all the chlorinated water from my skin and clothes, leaving me as dry as I was before I fell in. Warmer, too. God bless Nya.
"But Naomi's right," the water mistress began, attention jumping back to Lloyd - who'd begun to breathe low and slowly with his eyes closed. Standing meditation? Meditation-to-go? "You do look like a dork in that swim shirt. I'll go grab your hoody."

Nya left. Lloyd leant against the wall of the pool building as he flash meditated (if that's a thing).
"Uh, you can put me d-"
He shook his head. Held me tighter. I couldn't ignore the elated twist my stomach did at his unspoken answer.
"If you insist," I murmured, digging my head into his chest and basking in his warmth and the smell of forests and spring days. Water and wet rocks. I traced the scars on Lloyd's chest through the shirt with soft fingers, some guessing the placements, others I knew like the back of my hand. His tension relaxed under my touch, long breaths not as forced, grip not as stoic.
"I don't think Nya's coming back," I whispered after two minutes had passed. A drop of my blood fell to the concrete and the sound of it must've reminded him of my injury.
"Okay," Lloyd murmured, eyes back to green. He ignored my stare, pushing off from the wall and starting on the way towards the nurse's office.

People stared. Of course they did. Who wouldn't stare when somebody was carrying someone else bridal style down the halls of a high school? Who wouldn't stare if it was Lloyd Garmadon?
Lloyd ducked into the nurse's office and helped me onto the gurney. He left to find the nurse after handing me a paper towel to stop the bleeding and I sat there, wondering when the hell I became the main protagonist in an anime.
More pressing, wondering what the hell Lloyd was thinking when it came to us.
I needed an answer. Just one.
"He must be out on the field," Lloyd murmured as he returned. He shuffled through some cabinets before finding the needed equipment and pulled a chair closer. He patted his thigh and I obeyed the unspoken offer, slipping my leg onto his knees.
I watched him as he tended to my injury - wincing when the pain lashed, biting my lip when his gentle touch went agonisingly close to the gash. The silence was deafening.

"She was flirting with you, you know."
"Who, Jas?" Lloyd asked, sending me a brief glance as he dabbed my cut with disinfectant to make sure all the chlorine was out. I hissed through my teeth. "She was flirting with me?"
"You couldn't tell?" I said incredulously.
"No?"
I stared at his face as he pulled away, dropping the small cotton bud to the side so he could wipe clean the wound before applying the bandage. The corner of his lip was curled upright. My brow furrowed in disbelief.
"Then why do you look so smug."
"Are you jealous?" he chimed, smirk growing as he answered my question with another question. I cluelessly fell for the bait.
"What pfft! No I'm not jealous why would I be jealous you're not even my boyfriend anymore-"
"You're not jealous?" He tilted his head, placing his chilled palm over the bandage.
"No way am I jealous!" I scoffed. "You can date whoever you want, I don't care."
"So I could even date Claire?" Lloyd asked amusedly, raising a brow. I had to run that sentence through my head a couple of times before my expression dropped into a scowl. I stared at him dryly.

"If you date Claire, I'll run you through with your own sword."
He laughed. Genuinely laughed. It was the first time I heard his laugh in a month (aside from the little videos I had stored on my phone, but they didn't hold a candle to the real thing). I missed it. I missed his laugh.
"If I dated Claire, I'd want you to run me through with my own sword," he snorted, thoughtlessly stroking my skin with his thumb. "So, Jas was flirting with me, huh? Couldn't tell with all the eye-fluttering and shoulder touches."
My dry expression remained.
"I'm kidding," Lloyd reassured with a snicker. "Besides, you're better at it."
"Did you just compliment my flirting skills?" I asked and he nodded, checking the redness on my ankle again. "Funny, considering you're the only one I've ever flirted with. I haven't had much experience."
"Oh, thank god," he sighed. "I don't know how I'd go on knowing that you flirted with somebody other than me."
I rolled my eyes. "Dork. It sucks because I can't blame Jas for flirting with you. Why wouldn't she? You're, like... the perfect guy."

"Sure," Lloyd huffed through his nose. "Except that I'm a Garmadon."
"Like that ever deterred me."
"You're the only one," he hummed. My ankle felt fine, now. In fact, the ice hardly did any work anymore. But I kept quiet, in hopes of having him stay this close for longer.
"Well," I intercepted with a shrug. "Now me and Jas."
"Okay, then you're the only one who's genuine," Lloyd corrected with a grin, teeth playing with the piercing on his tongue. I'd forgotten he even had it. "Jas only likes me for my body."
"Me oh my, who can blame her?"
"What?"
"I can see your abs through your shirt," I pointed out. "It's super unfair. You wear that and expect me to function normally? You're cruel, Lloyd Garmadon."
"You exist and expect me to function normally?" Lloyd countered with a teasing smile. "Who's the cruel one?"
I stilled in surprise, staring at him with a bewildered expression as my face slowly turned bright red with embarrassed heat. Lloyd's red eyes dropped back to his task, ears a pretty pink.

Oh, god. I hadn't even realised we were casually having a conversation that felt... normal. Like everything was fine. Pretending felt so nice that I fell head-first into the lie.
Seems Lloyd did, too.

"Well," I began, clearing my throat and glancing away as I tried to keep the conversation going. "Doesn't even matter, right? Your dad is amazing. He's so... dad, y'know?"
"Well," Lloyd said as he stared at my ankle. "He is a dad."
"I know that," I stressed, picking at the plain white sheets with my nails. "I meant that he encompasses every dad vibe. He vibes dad. His vibes are dad. With a pinch of Sensei and a dash of godliness."
Lloyd's green eyes jumped up to find my face. His smile was small. But genuine.
"You really rate him."
"Uh, yeah," I murmured, my gaze bouncing from Lloyd's to stare out the window. "I guess I do. M... maybe it's because my dad doesn't get to stay around that much because of his job? I- I don't know-"
"You think of Garm as your second dad?"
I faltered. Did I?
"Probably?" I said unsurely, dropping my head to the side in thought.
Actually, scratch that. I totally did. It was a surprise I hadn't accidentally called him dad yet.

"You know, if you call Garm 'dad,' he might just burst into tears."
I snickered, gaze turning to Lloyd. "Really?"
"Oh, yeah," Lloyd smiled. "That old man's been rooting for you to join the family since day one. Already calls you his daughter-in-law."
"Aww, Garmadad," I gushed at the ceiling. "I'll have to give calling him dad a try the next time I see him. I miss him."
Lloyd frowned.
"Then why did you say that about him?"
My eyes jumped to him, red eyes staring hard at the bandage. I parted my lips to ask what he meant before it hit me - the fight.
'It was all your fault! Not mine! It's your fault that my friends dropped me like hot garbage, it's your dad's fault for being an maniacal overlord, it's my fault for thinking that I should've been seen with you in the first place!'
And that was only part of it.
I wilted in suffocating shame. It swelled in my throat and left me choking on air.
"I- I said a lot of stupid things," I agreed, eyes dropping to my thumbs. "B- but I never meant them, not then, not now, not in a million years. I was an emotional mess and it just slipped out-"

"You never would have said it if you didn't believe it. At least a little bit. A little thought just floating in the back of your brain," Lloyd muttered quietly and I felt every breath of air leave my lungs. I was left gaping like a dying fish, panic trembling in my fins, oxygen refusing to slip past my gils and cease my suffering. "Situations like those - the ugly truths always emerge."
I stared.
"So you're saying that you meant it when you said you should've let Axon kill me?" I asked hollowly.

Lloyd tensed, hands slipping from my ankle. I surveyed the emotions that crossed his face.
"Of course I didn't," he said quietly. "Why would you say that?"
"Why would you?"
"Because it's the truth!" Lloyd burst, standing. My foot hit the floor and the flash of pain made me flinch. It didn't deter me.
"And the truth doesn't apply to you?" I pointed out.
"That's different."
"Of course it is," I caved tiredly, rubbing my stinging eyes. "Of course it's different for you."
He stilled. A heavy silence settled between us. I pulled up my knees to hug them to my chest (and to hide my tears from him, because god forbid he sees my cry again).
"I'm going to find the nurse."
He left the room. A few minutes later, the nurse returned.

Lloyd didn't.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"Y/n cried to me about Lloyd again today."

Lloyd stilled at the entrance to the hallway. It was Nya's quiet voice, coming from her room at the other end of the wing of the monastery. He knew eavesdropping was hardly honourable, but he couldn't help it. It wasn't as if he was trying to listen to Nya stress to Jay while they were wearing facial masks and watching Star Wars - their weekly Friday night date, it seemed - his heightened hearing didn't give him a choice.
"Poor girl," Jay murmured and Lloyd frowned, leaning against the wall beside the laundry. "I know that it was... her fault with Lloyd-"
"Okay, but that wouldn't have happened if Claire and the others didn't make her doubt him after talking shit," Nya pointed out. "God, their messages were so horrible."
"I know," Jay mumbled. Lloyd's frown deepened. Messages? What messages? Doubt? How did Claire make Y/n doubt him?
"And it's ridiculous," Nya stressed. "They're having this break and it's tearing the team apart - for what? Because they each said stupid things? Big deal, we say stupid things all the time!"

A click of the space bar on the laptop keyboard. Lloyd stared at the ceiling as he heard the movie pause in the middle of Luke's line.
"I don't think it's as simple as that," Jay said quietly.
"Simple or not, it's a waste of time," Nya pressed with a huff. "They're going to get back together, anyway!"
"What, because of the prophecies?" Jay asked. "But those don't always stay on course. We know this."
"No, Jay. I'm talking about the future visions. You know, in the tomb?"
In the tomb. The first spinjitzu master's tomb. Morro hadn't bothered dawdling, so Lloyd didn't get to catch a glimpse of his future in the walls of the ice maze.
"So Y/n saw her and Lloyd together?" Jay asked. "Well, okay. But maybe they just become friends?"
"Friends don't get married, Jay," Nya corrected seriously.

The first shot to Lloyd's chest.

"And friends don't have a kid together, either."

And the second.

Lloyd stared at the ceiling, wide-eyed. He hadn't been bothered about missing out on his future vision, but now he was kicking himself for not investigating further. Y/n saw a child in their future? And she kept it from him since summer?
O- oh, my god. He's going to have a child. Lloyd's going to be a dad one day, and the revelation made his knees weak in shock and excitement. Of course, he always wanted to eventually have a kid, but with the life he lead, nothing could be certain.
But this- this he could be certain of.
Now! Now he just needs to-

Talk-

Talk... to Y/n.

This was going to be tough.
Blocking out Jay's squealing, Lloyd left to return to the dojo, where he was just training with his uncle. He needed some wisdom.
"H- hey, uncle?" Lloyd asked, hovering at the entrance while Wu polished some of the training blades with a handful of monks. "I... I need some advice."
"Oh?" Wu said, before gesturing for his nephew to come sit. Lloyd was handed a rag and a sword and he swiftly got into work mode. "What troubles you?"
"O- okay, so," Lloyd began, pretending to pay really close attention to a spot on the silver blade. "I- I have this friend who's called, uh... Floyd! Totally not me..."
Wu blinked. Lloyd cleared his throat.
"A- anyway, so Floyd's having trouble with his girlfriend. Like, uh. Trust issues, I think? B- but not bad trust issues - they're both loyal and-"
"Lloyd," Wu stressed.
"Okay it's about me, Floyd is me," Lloyd confessed quickly. "Sensei, what do I do? I don't want to believe that she thinks badly of us, but-"

"I don't know."

Lloyd stared at his uncle.
"What?"
"I don't know," Wu shrugged, going back to polishing blades. "Why are you asking me for advice for a girl you know better than you know yourself?"
"I- I-"
"Lloyd," Wu said seriously, turning to his nephew. "The best thing you can do right now is communicate. It will not fix your relationship overnight, but it's a big step forward in the right direction."
"I don't know how to talk to her without getting angry," Lloyd murmured. And he really wanted to talk to her about this kid. Their kid. He felt an excited shiver run up his spine at their.
Their kid. Their kid. T h e i r k i d.
"Then you learn," Wu said simply. "Floyd, you have always had trouble with communicating at the deeper level. This deeper level is required for successful relationships-"

"Hold on, did you just call me Floyd?"

"No, I said Lloyd. Obviously," Wu lied. "Pay attention! If you can't talk to her about something like this, how on earth do you expect to be in a relationship later on? When you're married? If you find this difficult, then how do you expect to deal with the domestic stress of running a household? Being a Sensei, leading the team, being a father-?"
"Father?! F- fath- who said anything about me being a father-?"
"I did," Wu said blankly. "Just talk, Lloyd. It's easier than what you make it out to be."

That night, Lloyd had trouble falling asleep.
His uncle's advice floated around his head, mixed in with memories of Y/n and thoughts of his future.
Because surely... surely if they end up having a kid together, that must mean that she doesn't believe what she said to him, right?
He was so confused. He slipped into a fitful sleep, until it settled into a dream. No- no, this was a memory. Dreaming a memory? Strange.
He knew this place. It was the park. He knew the trees and the bushes and the large pond with the swans that would hiss if you got too close without an offering of food on hand.
Everything was smaller. His body was smaller, voice smaller, brain younger. This was years ago. This was just after learning that he was the green ninja.

"I saw that."

Little Lloyd glanced up at the girl's voice. Auburn hair and blue eyes. Her jersey was purple and tattered and covered in autumn leaves. She must've been play fighting with a friend, but where's her friend?
"Saw what?" Lloyd asked, young voice squeaky.
"That thing you did," the girl answered, holding up her hands and wiggling her fingers. "Where your hands glowed green."
"N- no," Lloyd denied, shaking his head. "You're seeing things."
The girl frowned, looking the younger boy up and down.
"How old are you?"
"I'm sixteen," Lloyd replied, but apparently the girl wasn't easily fooled. She just shook her head.
"No, you're not."
Lloyd's face fell into a small scowl. He tugged his dark cloak closer around his body. "I'm eleven."
"I'm fourteen," the girl replied. "I'm Naomi."
"Lloyd," the small blond replied before shifting nervously. "Y... you won't say anything about me, right?"

"Not a word," Naomi promised with a smile before a distant call of her name made them both glance around. "Oh. I've gotta get back to my friend."
Lloyd couldn't take his eyes off of her.
"What's her name?"
"That's ̴͉̝̽̃͋ ̷̛͎͑ ̶͎̗̖̒͝͝ ̷̱̒͠ ̴̮̔̓͂ ̸̢̠̠́ ̸̡̪̬̊͌̌ ̵͇̇ ̴͕̽̀ ̸̬̲̄̏̉ ̵̫͚͘ ̶̬͂̀͜."
"Pretty," he murmured to himself as the young girl became more and more comprehensible to him - eyes glowing peach and hair floating. She smiled at his stare. Waved. Lloyd waved back.
Something in the back of his head flicked as the second girl walked towards them, footsteps in time with his heartbeat. The feeling in his chest grew sweetly heavy at her approach. She came closer, eyes trained on Lloyd curiously. She could feel it, too - the tugging in their guts that guided the two kids towards each other like magnets.

But then his vision flickered, and suddenly he was staring at a parchment scroll in his hands. His own voice was distantly watery but a faint "what's this?" could be heard and then a horrified gasp from his uncle. The prophecy was torn from his hands and Lloyd gave a surprised cry.
Glowing eyes. The girl.
The prophecy.
His uncle was scanning the scroll frantically. His mother dropped a hand over her mouth in shock. Lloyd was confused. He just wanted to read one of the prophecies - that wasn't so bad, was it?

He was taken back to the park. Little Naomi stood before him, the girl with the floating hair having joined them. Her smile was small and kind and Lloyd felt himself fall into a hole that he could never crawl out of.
But it was soft. It encompassed him in warmth and fluffy winter blankets. It was a feeling of peace and comfort unparalleled. He never wanted to leave the tranquility the girl brought him.
But then she erased from existence before him. The dream faded once more into memory.

"I'm Naomi."
"Lloyd," the small blond replied before shifting nervously. "Y... you won't say anything about me, right?"
"Not a word," Naomi promised with a smile before a distant call of her name made them both glance around. "Oh. I've gotta get back to my Mum."
"Oh. Okay," Lloyd said, a little disappointed about his new friend leaving so soon. "Bye."
"Bye, Lloyd."
Standing in the park, Lloyd waited for something. For what? He didn't know.
But it felt like something was missing-

Lloyd woke with a start, wide eyes touching the ceiling. He swallowed dryly. The green energy faded from his body and the room went dark once more.
That- that was-
What would've been. If he hadn't looked at the scroll.
Was that a prophetic dream? But don't they usually show things of the future, not the past? Certainly not alternate versions of the past.
So why did his first prophetic dream decide to subject him to that? The biggest mistake of his life?
Lloyd dropped his arms over his head.
"Idiot," he hissed to himself as he wracked his brain. There's a reason - there's always a reason. Cryptic, maybe, but it should be there. Think, Lloyd. Think-
His eyes shot open and irises flooded a panicked red.

Lloyd was never one to go running to his parents in the middle of the night, but this was an emergency and he needed answers now. If it had anything to do with Y/n, his sunshine, if it had anything to do with his future child (who he was already hopelessly in love with), his sunflower (yes, he was also already thinking of nicknames), then he had to know. Sleep be damned, this was more important.
"Mom!" Lloyd yelled as he slammed open the door to his parents' room, never minding the fact that it was one in the morning and everyone in the monastery was dead asleep. "Mom! Mom mom mom mom mom-"
"Wh- what, Lloyd?" Misako mumbled, blearily blinking her eyes as her son crouched before her. "It's the middle of the night."
"Do I have a kid in a prophecy?" he asked, words fast and exhilarated, running on adrenaline. "Is there a prophecy where I have a kid?!"
Misako stared at him, blurry eyed. "Uh... yes."
Lloyd cursed as he stood and ran back down to his room. He prayed that this time would be different and he sure it was, but he had to be one hundred percent certain - and this prophetic dream was definitely not easing his nerves.

His closet doors were tossed open as he grabbed a hoody and shoved it on. He had a trip to make.
His foot touched paper and Lloyd glanced down, staring in surprise.

But first it seemed a pit stop was in order.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"Aren't you tired?" Naomi asked as she sat upside down on the couch.

"No," I said, putting on the next episode of whatever it was that Naomi randomly suggested. I couldn't even remember the storyline.
"But aren't you meeting Lloyd tomorrow morning?" Naomi mumbled, tired eyes closing slowly.
Yes, Lloyd asked me to meet at the park on Saturday morning. Number finally unblocked, it seemed. I agreed immediately. Just to get out of this limbo.

It was also why I was refusing to go to sleep. Because sleeping is just pressing fast forward on life and I would rather not skip forward to the next morning.
"It's only two."
"Exactly-"
The doorbell rang.
We both stilled, sharing a hesitant look. Who in their right minds would ring the bell at this hour?
"Ruffians?" Naomi whispered. "Gang members? What if it's Axon?"
I stood, slowly walking towards the front door. Naomi hissed for me to stop.
"It's fine," I reassured. "We've got the protective barrier around the house. Nobody can come inside."
Naomi silenced reluctantly, watching as I approached the door cautiously. I unlocked and opened it, poking my head out to find-

Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.

I frowned in annoyance, going to shut the door once more and tell Naomi that our 'ruffians' were probably just a bunch of bored tween boys on sugar highs, when something caught my eye.
At the doorstep sat a bundle of papers tied with twine.
Frowning in confusion, I picked up the small bundle and gave another look around the neighbourhood. Nothing.
Weird.
"Who was it?" Naomi asked as I reentered the living room, bundle in hand. "What's that?"
"I don't know and I don't know," I replied, taking a seat on the floor and carefully untying the twine. Naomi took a seat across from me and watched curiously. She helped me spread the papers out and-

"Oh," Naomi said.
"Oh," I said.

Because they were drawings.
Drawings of Kashu and the monastery's garden and landscapes and dragons but most noticeably...
me.
I recognised that art style. I recognised that artsmanship.
"... Lloyd?" I shook my head. "But..."
"Oh, my," Naomi gushed, picking out a profile drawing. My eyes widened. "Now, who is this? She's truly heartbreakingly gorgeous."
My lips parted in soft surprise, gently taking the paper from her to stare at the drawn replica of me. He made me look so pretty.
"That's when you're supposed to say 'it's me, dickwad.'"
"Why did he..?" I shook my head. "I- I thought he..."
"Maybe it's an apology," Naomi murmured, slinging her arms around my shoulders and showing off another few pieces that focused on me. "I didn't realise he was such a good artist."

"I did," I breathed.