#get the beast out <- jay ninjago

[kotowatee]

Not fat but we now have a wolf Jay, does that work?🥺

I FORGOT ABOUT WOLF JAY HOW DID I FORGET ABT THAT ANIMAL I LITERALLY LOVE WOLVES OML I FW HIM SO HEAVY also we can have both. fat wolves get behind me

[ratinthebins]

there’s a lot of debate of which ninja is the most traumatized and I honestly can’t decide, so I’m gonna list all the trauma I remember. Feel free to add anymore I missed.

Kai

Parentless

raised his sister by himself and had to run a blacksmith shop as a teen to make ends meet

his sister got kidnapped

Got hit with snake venom and was high for awhile

got stuck in a collapsing volcano

the whole birthday human piñata thing

saw his brother explode (rip Zane)

ends up falling in love with a villain

loses his powers

gets tricked by said villain and almost destroys Lloyd with the power staff

gf turned into a snake

got teased about what happened to his parents

(still parentless)

fails to protect his possessed brother

is forced to fight said possessed brother

nearly drowns

gets swarmed by psycho fangirls (s6)

finds out his parents may be traitors

truly believes his parents are traitors and tries to stab them

father gets hit my the time punch

is forced to go back in time and watches Master Wu be lost to time

watches his best friend fall off the bounty and “die” (and literally can’t do a thing)

loses his powers (again)

gets thrown into a bunch of walls

literally has to summon his fire or everyone will DIE

watches everyone get turned to ice sculptures

Loses powers and gets turned into a cube o7

gets pelted with rocks

sister turns into the sea

gets in a car crash

turns into a Crystal zombie

oh, and he gets hit by a giant blast and thrown into the distance, then nearly gets killed by dragons.

Jay

Turns into a snake man

Gets tied up and nearly hit by a train

has a pointless love triangle where he breaks up with his best friend

literally resents him the whole time but is secretly sad

said best friend sacrifices himself and Jay has to watch him be thrown into the pit below rip

is adopted

Bio dad is dead (dead as hell)

bio mom is gone (who knows where)

he’s just motherless

Spider tries to eat him

literally gets tortured by a bunch of pirates

loses his ex gf to a super hot djinn

watches Nya die

is traumatized by even the mention of time travel (s7)

adoptive mom gets kidnapped

is so traumatized that he just becomes emotionally depleted and is okay with a dragon eating him???

watches best friend literally fall into a cloud of darkness and can’t even do anything

almost falls into lava

watches his whole family and gf get cubed

gets sacrificed to a sea beast (which isn’t technically real but still)

almost drowns

literally almost dies because water in lungs

gf turns into the sea

is depressed for awhile

grows a beard

Gets turned into a Crystal zombie

‼️‼️SPOILER‼️‼️amnesia

Cole

Mother died when he was a child

Which lead to a bad relationship with his father

ran away and climbed a mountain in his grief

nearly got killed by a dragon

got mind controlled and was forced to fight his friends/ninja brothers

had a weird love triangle

lost powers

sacrificed himself for Jay

turned into a ghosty boi

got kidnapped by the sons of Garmadon

falls off the bounty and nearly gets frozen in the oni cloud

feels so responsible for losing the travelers tea that he literally climbs up a snowy mountain without sleeves-

gets cubed in a video game

is attacked by a creature wearing his moms locket

no one believes him

despite all the crazy things that have happened

gets thrown to the bottom of the mountain

Gets in a car crash

crystal Zombie time

Zane

Fatherless

wandered for like 10 years-

had amnesia

everyone calls him “weird”

is actually a nindroid

bird robot dies several times

btw his dad is actually alive

falls in love with a robot girl

literally gives her half of his heart

sacrifices himself to protect those he loves and all of ninjago

is rebuilt only to be kidnapped

gf is scrapped and now lives in his head

dies again because smartphones aren’t real (s7)

nearly dies from being thrown off the cliff by someone who was essentially supposed to be himself

Had visions about his literal banishment

gets banished to the never realm

loses memories and is manipulated

commits mass genocide

nearly assassinated

Gets electric shocked and hooked up to power a giant machine

turns off emotions because of Nya becoming a mermaid

crystal zombie

literally locked in a imperium temple for years (but doesn’t remember a thing???)

Nya

Lost both her parents at a young age

was kidnapped

becomes samurai X because she wanted to help and the others wouldn’t let her

im not even going to talk about s3

gets hunted down by Chen’ forces

is actually the water ninja

unlocks her true potential before everyone can die

is forced to deal with misogyny at every turn because she’s the “girl ninja”

gets possessed by the spirit of Delara

dies

someone steals her samurai suit

her parents are alive

she watches her family and bf die

has to deal with survivors guilt when Cole “dies”

is forced to confront her powers once again in s12

gets cubed

watches her bf get flirted with and he doesn’t do anything

Becomes a Queen despite not wanting to???

watches bf get sacrificed

Misses her mom but she’s been gone so long things have changed

sacrifices herself to save Jay

turns into the sea

amnesia

is alive again but is separated from Jay once again (merge)

Lloyd

Mom left him at a boarding school as a baby

dad is evil

Is mistreated and opens a serpentine tomb

gets gatekeeped, gaslight and girlbossed by a purple snake

kidnapped

nearly dies because he’s forced to retrieve a fang blade

almost dies in a volcano

Hes destined to defeat his father btw

and fight him

Son vs father

loses his childhood to save his friends

mother is alive

has to fight his father and destroy the overlord

friend group breaks up after Zane dies

Recently redeemed father dies because Lloyd has to banish him to the cursed realm

gets possessed by his cousin

gets thrown into a river and nearly drowns

says a final goodbye to his father

gets really old

isnt old anymore

is forced into a leadership role and no one cares

falls in love with this really pretty, nice girl

oops

shes evil

she beats him up and brings his father back from the dead (only the evil part)

his father beats him up and leaves him for dead

watches family be crushed

is forced top into leadership again and confronts loss

fights his father one last time and defeats him narrowly

Is forced to work with and babysit his evil dad

is so traumatized by Harumi that his trust issues are heightened

distrusts a Wolf girl but works with her

she kisses him and then he leaves (for good?)

Is forced to fight video game Harumi and they kill each other (poetic but cruel)

is cubed

sneaks into Cole’s bedroom just to tell him how much he distrusts the new princess

sister gets turned into the sea

works at Starbucks?

his ex gf is alive and pissed

dad loves a plant more than him

father plays dead and Lloyd turns into a demon goat man

Gets separated from his whole family in the merge

gets a vision of his family’s grave

gets high, beats the shit out of some bad guys and passes out

probably traumatized after that

[talekinesis]

I'm usually not big on cross-overs, but I'm actually a huge fan of combining Ninjago with LoZ

Like in my head they're in the same universe, but Ninjago and Hyrule are just different areas

I wanna see Lloyd interact with Rito and Zora, because why are there snake people but not bird people or fish people?

There are, they just live in different regions

Humans live in Ninjago and Hylians live in Hyrule

The people of Hyrule have never seen a human before, so when Lloyd and the other ninja travel to Hyrule, everyone is amazed at these new tall folk (Hylians tend to be around 4-5 feet tall, and I'm convinced Cole is like 6'5" or something)

Due to their ninja appearance, everyone mistakes them for being part of the Yiga Clan at first

Headcanons Below

Kai is the only one who can walk freely in Goron City without fire protection

Cole is very welcomed in Goron City because he can very easily help the Gorons find gems

Nya prefers Zora's Domain and it's surprisingly common for some of the people there to compare her to Mipha

I feel like Link and Lloyd don't get along, and it's partially because the people around them compare them to each other a LOT more than they'd like

"I'm literally the chosen one of Ninjago, I should lead-" "I'm the hylian champion and hero of Hyrule, and I know this area better than you, I should lead going into this-" "I fought my own father and defeated the Overloard, the manifestation of pure evil." "I defeated four different versions of Ganon to take back the Divine Beasts-" "Do you even know what an 'Oni' is?" "Have you ever encountered a Lynel!?"

Link and Lloyd are the same height, they're both tiny

The Gerudo fucking love Nya?? They're all so impressed by her intelligence, fighting skills, and elemental power

The boys really dislike not being allowed into Gerudo Town, and instead having to stay at Kara Kara Bazaar

Kai waits outside the walls of Gerudo Town to wait for her because he's really protective and doesn't like her being somewhere he can't get access to

Link helping them get inside Gerudo Town because he's done this before???

The Ninja all dressed as women just walking through Gerudo Town and they're all super anxious they're gonna be found out and tossed back over the wall or something

"Jay, you know you can take that outfit off now right? We've got Nya." "I kinda like it, it's breathable. And I was definitely a prettier girl than any of you were :) "

The ninja explaining the Serpentine to Link, and Link in turn introduces them to the Rito because animal-people

Zane fucking thrives up in the mountains

Guardians terrify Jay, he hates how much they look like spiders, and the fact that they lock onto you also freaks him out

Both Jay and Zane are fucking delighted to collect the Guardian parts though when they defeat one

I feel like Zane takes the Sheikah technology back to Julien for him to study and make use of

Omg, the Ninja helping take back the Divine Beasts, each of them partnering with Link based on their Element

Like Kai and Cole accompany him into Vah Rudania, Nya into Vah Rutah, Jay into Vah Naboris, and Zane into Vah Medoh just because he's the only one that can handle the cold up there, and I feel like Lloyd and Link would have to set aside their differences and face Calamity Ganon together

As you can see, I have thought about this a lot lol

[impulsivefanwriter]

Ninjago Fic Rec Week — Day 2: Movieverse, AUs, &/or Jay

Movieverse

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28136997/chapters/68942907 — Same People But Not Really (SPBNR)

Top-tier fic right here by the glorious @kittydemon9000 (go shower them in positive comments!) with a great Discord, this fantastic fic features our beloved show Kai (Smith) finding himself in the movieverse after Garmadon blasts him with the Megaweapon. Full of fluff, angst, hurt/comfort, and damn good writing, one of my favourite fics of all time :D

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34723405 — Divided for Keeps

A brilliantly written one-shot based on an AU for SPBNR (the above fic) where Smith lands in the movieverse without his memories and is adopted by Garmadon. All he has is his phone with photos of his family- but when his phone gets smashed by some of the Dorksquad for fear their identities will be revealed to Garmadon, he decides to never again let friends into his heart. Perhaps a certain overheard conversation can change his mind...

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38467489/chapters/96140524 — Keep Your Secrets Near

Another SPBNR inspired fic, this time a pre-curser to Smith's arrival. In this AU, movie!Kai is too injured to become a ninja, and finds his siblings' increasingly concerning behaviour suspicious.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38652201 — The Venomari Venom Incident

Yet another fantastic SPBNR inspired fic, this time featuring so much hilarious shenanigans. When a prank against movie!Lloyd (Green) goes wrong, Smith is doused in venomari venom. Naturally, things go wrong immediately.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/40019130/chapters/100220688 — SPBNR pero ahora Smith es un gato :D (Spanish)

And yet ANOTHER amazing SPBNR inspired fic, this time featuring Cat!Smith :D This one is in Spanish!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37665907?view_full_work=true — Ninjago University: A Tale of Idiots Who Are Just Trying Their Best at This Point, Okay?

You guessed it, another great SPBNR inspired fic. This one features a merged show and movieverse and our two favourite groups of ninja university students interacting with hilarious shenanigans and pining

https://archiveofourown.org/works/41063274/chapters/102920622 — Find My Place

What if S11 Zane got zapped to the movieverse instead of the Neverrealm? Why, he becomes a substitute teacher, obviously! Go show this great fic some love!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/44418760/chapters/111722089 — Shogun: Becoming

(also inspired by SPBNR) What if instead of Zane, S11 Kai got zapped to the movieverse instead of the Neverrealm? Struggling with missing his family, the temptation of the staff, and his weakened powers, Kai must figure out how to get home while befriending this universe's ninja-- a struggle all of its own

https://archiveofourown.org/series/1441819 — The Grass is Always Greener (Series)

A fantastic series by the extremely talented @sunnylighter (go shower their blog in love) featuring a crossover between the show and movie with many amazing instalments (and a great Monkie Kid crossover fic too) that includes elements from S2-S4 and a ton of great head canons, jokes, moments to laugh or cry, and an overall great time

https://archiveofourown.org/series/2107311 The Ninja Legacy Whip (Series)

Oh gosh, where do I even start with this one? It's absolutely brilliant, one of my all-time favourites, that merge the events of the show with the world of the movie so perfectly with amazing lore, expansion on beloved show scenes by making them even cooler, and introducing some concepts that still make me go feral to this day (outbursts and surprise are still the two coolest things EVER!!!). Every character gets a chance to shine, and shine they do. Go shower the super talented @weekend-whip with positivity, they deserve it with this beast of a series I love rereading

https://archiveofourown.org/works/44770108/chapters/112641901 — Ninjas and Demons — Movieverse Crossover + Monkie Kid

When the threat of an ancient demon reawakens in Ninjago, Wu sends the ninja away to a distant realm. Turns out, another world's Wu had the same idea with his ninja, and now both teams find themselves in the world of the Monkey King and his successor

https://archiveofourown.org/works/26303986?view_full_work=true — Those Linked By Destiny

A very great fic about how the Dorksquad first met (one of my personal favourites of this variety), one by one by one, and became the ironclad friend group we all know and love

https://archiveofourown.org/series/2178393 — Green Empathy (Series)

Love movieverse Lloyd and think he's a sad little meow meow? Then this series featuring him with empathy powers is perfect for you!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27586439/chapters/67483652 — That's Ninja Swag (it's nothing new)

A very intriguing AU where the Dorksquad are reincarnations of the original show ninja and slowly remember their past

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20742584 — Oh, haven't you heard?

A fantastically hilarious movieverse fic featuring our beloved (secretly) son of a warlord vs. the crack of Buzzfeed Unsolved

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29490180 — Home Is Where You Are

Movieverse Lloyd gets stabbed and his cousin Morro wants to stab people as a result

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30888539 — Who’s the New Guy? He Looks Awfully Green

Even more Movieverse Lloyd being a sad little meow meow, this time with him finally finding friends and hoping to his grandfather they don't find out he's the Lloyd Garmadon

https://archiveofourown.org/works/26722576 — Kind

A bawler in the most wholesome way; a movieverse fic featuring the "words people think about you appear on your skin" AU, staring Lloyd Garmadon, AKA the second most hated person in the city. Seriously, this one shot fic is amazing and is so worth the read

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12748683/1/Dork-Squad-Assemble — Dork Squad, Assemble

Another fantastically written fic of how the Dorksquad met and formed, and the trials and tribulations that followed

https://www.tumblr.com/angeldrawsstuffs/722519952725262336/its-not-easy-being-chen?source=share — It’s Not Easy Being Chen(?)

A fun one-shot featuring a mean, ruthless, cheerleading bully... or is he?

https://www.tumblr.com/angeldrawsstuffs/711788606697701377/the-letter?source=share — The Letter

show!Kai, trapped in a Pixie Hollow Movieverse, receives a... short letter from his little brother.

https://www.tumblr.com/angeldrawsstuffs/707259828912996352/a-lost-father?source=share — A Lost Father

movie!Zane's Papa Whint goes out one day to buy milk.

AUs

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28298904/chapters/69342846 — From a Laboratory

In which Zane is an digital AI that suddenly finds himself uploaded to a physical body and must unwind a spiralling conspiracy of hidden experiments

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28112301 — Observational Astronomy

A soft one-shot of a "platonic soulmates appear as a constellation of stars on your skin called a cluster" variety

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30933857/chapters/76392629 — One Hell of a Summer Job

After a fight with a bully on school grounds, Kai finds himself exiled to manual labour on a farm. He despises everything about the job... except the three cute young farmhands working there

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23239126/chapters/55643689 — Ruler From Another Realm 

Ice Emperor Zane... but not a manipulated genocidal evil villain :D

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24110224/chapters/58039936 — Time Break

During the fight with the Time Twins, the ninja find themselves sent back in time... to the middle of the Elemental Alliance

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31642349/chapters/78306116 — history doesn't repeat itself (but it often rhymes)

A fun AU filled with magic, mystery, and mystical accessories (and perhaps a hidden underground cave system or two)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12732393/chapters/29033811 — Pretty Penny Tavern

A classic fic for a good reason; the owner of the Pretty Penny Tavern is a very suspicious shady character named Ronin who pays well to keep their noses out of his buisness, but that doesn't stop his young tavern workers from trying to uncover his secrets

https://archiveofourown.org/works/25156273/chapters/60957967 — Sit Still, Look Pretty

A Detroit: Become Human style AU where newly built Zane is 'gifted' to the ninja... who begin to suspect there may be more to the android than meets the eye

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38299120/chapters/95698927 — So A Traumatized Teen And Two Dragons Get Sent Back In Time

Kai finds himself back in the events of the pilots with no memory of how he got there along with two small amnesiac dragons he can suddenly understand (pssst- this one was also written by @kittydemon9000! Go shower their ask box with positivity!)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/42440016/chapters/106583067 — No Wu AU

In an world where Wu doesn't seek out the ninja (or at least, was successful at finding them) until later, the group bonds over trying to learn about their powers and staying alive

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37437592/chapters/93429598 — Ignitus

During the reign of Emperor Chen, Elemental Masters are outlawed. Morro escapes from an experimental facility but finds himself handcuffed to Kai, who failed to capture him again. When Morro reveals that the ninja don't know the whole story, the two go on the run and build a team of elemental masters to take down Chen for good

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13626984/1/The-Idiots-Guide-to-Not-Despising-Your-Cousin — The Idiots’ Guide to Not Despising Your Cousin

Lloyd takes his reformed 'cousin' Morro on a road trip of hell to recreate the scene from Sharknado. Hilarious shenanigans and begrudging cousin bonding ensues, complete with an emotional shouting match, a rocket launcher, and a stolen shark

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29928969/chapters/73666074 — The Call of Magic

Another great magic AU filled with learning new powers (and hiding said powers), stopping hidden enemies trying to kill them, and combating an ancient prophecy

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23449558/chapters/56209675 — Caught Red-Handed

A hitman Kai AU full of angst and some hilarious crack as he finesses his way through a labyrinth of underground criminals... and falls for three good-guys along the way who could screw up everything (or even save his life); this great fic was written by the extremely talented @fanfalc-616 who you can go shower in positive comments

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27799876/chapters/68058064 — Time for Amnesia

Another amazingly written fic by @fanfalc-616, this time featuring an amnesiac Kai being utterly (and angrily) baffled by the ninja, some of which (a freaking robot that's totally evil, an annoying idiot, and a kinda scary stick in the mud) claiming to be his boyfriends while another claims to be his younger brother.

Jay

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28612956/chapters/70128354 — When your love rival is a frog

This one. This one right here is gold (and a personal comfort fic). Movie Kai has had a crush on Jay since, well, forever- but the one thing getting in his way of flat-out proposing is a slimy green frog named Kyle. Brilliantly written and stitches-inducing hilarity ensues.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33701395 — I'll chase you to the moon and back

A cute one-shot of movie Jay feeling insecure about his place in the team... and his teammates doing something about it

https://archiveofourown.org/works/13854819?view_full_work=true — Earbuds

In a world where the ninja don't know each other's civilian identities, Kai finds out the identity of his crush, Jay. A fantastic plasma story filled with pining, an oblivious electric boy, and a smashed window or two

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36058093?view_full_work=true — Like Looking In a Digital Mirror

Movie Jay stumbles into Prime Empire and meets... himself?

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37798150/chapters/94374718 — Would You Like To Enter Stardust?

An absolutely heart-wrenching "everything is terrible" angst-fest of a Prime Empire fic for all you SRJ angst-lovers :D

https://archiveofourown.org/works/15404622/chapters/35752608 — Lost in the Void

In which Jay discovers a secret new power to his element and everything goes great(?) from there

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24324337/chapters/58644697 — Cold Nights

Snake jay content my beloved

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36920599/chapters/92111470 — Changes

More snake jay content my beloved

https://archiveofourown.org/works/46263796 — Play to Win

A beautifully written fic that makes me go feral of Nadakhan forcing Jay and Cole into a Scrap n' Tap match... against each other

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32716111/chapters/81165256 — Habits of Home(lessness)

A "5 times + 1" fic about Jay being incredibly concerned and confused by the mysterious habits of his team

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27700081/chapters/67792351 — Your Mistakes Are Yours to Keep (BEING REWRITTEN)

Post Skybound angst my beloved

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19375495?view_full_work=true — The Woodsman And The Wizard

Oh, this one is fun (I say, as if the rest aren't just as great)- A Beauty and the Beast styled AU where Cole wanders into the woods and finds a mysterious castle with a powerful wizard who may not be as brave or arrogant as he tries to appear

https://archiveofourown.org/series/3557314 — Overload (Series)

Jay goes missing, and an investigation into a nearby power plant leads to... so much terrible trouble

https://archiveofourown.org/works/39091860/chapters/97792278 — Walk a Mile

A fun bodyswap fic featuring Kai & Jay learning to tolerate each other

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49508392/chapters/124953220 - Blue Goes Boom

An angsty fic that explores the S4 mech explosion and aftermath in more detail. Jay gives poor Kai several heart-attacks

https://archiveofourown.org/works/48647455?view_full_work=true - Survivors

REALLY GOOD FIC HERE- Lloyd struggling with survivor's guilt post s9 and Jay's the one to talk with him about it (and then the others take care of Jay <3) The Jay characterization is ON POINT

https://archiveofourown.org/works/47798566?view_full_work=true - Would You Like To Enter Prime Empire?

ANOTHER REALLY GOOD FIC HERE- a re-write of Prime Empire with more emphasis on Jay (written by the above fic author so you know it's got peak Jay characterization and some really cool lightning power headcanons)

[spinchip]

Never the Dark

Chapter 9

Read on Ao3

Prologue - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8

warnings: body horror, mentioned death of non-major character, threats of death

I RESENTED THE CONTENTMENT OF THE FIELD.// WHY MUST WE PRACTICE THIS SURRENDER?

“So,” Jay begins, “Nice weather we’re having, eh?”

The woman next to him gives him an incredulous look, “...What?” She makes a face, the bat slung over her shoulder swaying with each step.

“It was a joke. Like I said, ‘nice weather,’ but it’s funny because the weather isn’t nice at all.” He explains, motioning to the rolling clouds and gloom. A beat passes, “It’s funny.” he repeats.

She stares at him with all two and a half of her eyes, “Are these the type of jokes that get laughs where you’re from?”

“Nope.” Cole cuts in, “He strikes out at home too.”

“Hey!” Jay whips around to shoot Cole a dirty look, “I’ll have you know my mom thinks I’m hilarious!”

They trek through thick red woods while Jay shoots off a few more jokes, trying to prove his prowess as a comedian that all fall flat. The tension in the air is too thick to be cut with a good joke, let alone one of Jay's bad ones. The warriors from Oasis had formed a circle around them, boxing them in and guiding them along the treacherous ground-it isn’t long before the trees thin and the group steps out into tall grass. The grass is thick around as their fingers and grows up to Kai’s waist, thin spindly looking black plants lined with flower petals poke up sporadically through the grass. The grass is alive with movement, each tendril blindly attempting to wrap around the party's legs and trap them in place.

Birdy makes a rushing motion at Nya when she slows down to stare at the plants, and she catches on to why when she has to use more force than she thought to be able to shake off the snares. If they moved quickly, the flora couldn't encase them.

What catches Lloyd’s attention the most, however, is the massive beasts floating gently in the sky.

“What is that?” he breathes.

Wox glances back at him with a furrow in his brow, “...How long’ve you lot been here?” He squints.

“They’re Jellies.” Birdy starts before the Ninja can answer his question, “Named after Jellyfish on Ninjago. Can you see the resemblance?”

Kai doesn’t respond, studying the massive monster aimlessly drifting above them. It does look like a jellyfish, with long luminescent hanging bulbs on the ends of its tentacles to lure in prey. Its bell is a translucent white, and its arms- it makes Kai’s stomach turn. It looks as if someone had taken the guts out of someone and tossed a sheet on top. It’s dripping with a fluorescent pink liquid that nearly mimics blood.

“Never seen a jellyfish like that before.” Nya comments, looking away.

They pass through the pasture and reach the city limits.

Nya whistles low, “Wow.” She speaks what they’re all thinking as the town comes into view.

The main fixture in town is right smack dab in the center. A massive spire of stone spears the sky, the horizon a jagged line where brown and ruddy red split purple down the middle. It’s the size of two mansions stacked and three times as wide, with stone walkways dug out into the hard earth lining the outside and dark arches for doorways leading deeper inside the structure. It’s old enough to have been refined, with stone railings and decorative architectural choices thrown in. The lower parts of the hollow mound are covered in doorways and windows, things that grow more sparse the higher up the dirt climbs. Lights flicker through some of the doorways and windows, definite signs of life. The lower level spaces are taken up by shops and occasional homes- a blacksmith, several stalls selling strange looking foods and unnaturally colored breads, skeins of cloth and thread on display in another shop, and more.

In a massive sprawling collection of blankets piled with trinkets and essentials, the people of the Realm of Madness have set up shop just outside the largest entrance into the cave system. It’s a market with temporary vendors who are displaying all different kinds of wears- Filler fruit, strange colored gems, swathes of fabric that shimmers like silk but as thick as wool, and a thousand and one other things to poke and peruse. Several horses lounge next to pull carts, resting as their owners sell their goods. People are sitting or meandering through, the sounds of laughing and bartering and chatting flooding the air as they near.

Birdy slows to the point where he's next to Jay, “Take your watch off.” He says shortly, voice clipped and urgent, “It is painting a target on your back. Technology is few and far between, and it is incredibly valuable. It is the type of thing people here would kill over.”

Jay slides the watch off and tucks it into his backpack with a nervous nod.

Cole nearly jumps out of his skin when a trundling bag of bones materializes next to him.

“Hullo there might I interest you in some fine craftsmanship? Some excellent jewelry? All handmade, all natural, all materials ethically sourced! Fine jewelry, excellent craftsmanship!” He jangles along, the skulkins' skull bobbing and bouncing with each step as if his head wasn’t quite screwed on right.

“Is it really ethically sourced?” Kai asks skeptically.

“All handmade, all natural, and all definitely sourced.” The skulkin says with an enthusiastic nod.

With a flourish, he whips his draping black cape back, revealing the mutated bones underneath. Instead of legs and hips, he’s made up of several arms scuttling along beneath him, a few of them too small or deformed to offer any proper support with his steps. The arms lead into his spine which lead into an open rib cage, sternum split down the center and his ribs curled open and spread apart just perfectly enough to loop fancy looking necklaces and bangles and bracelets. The smaller lower ribs are studded with rings and the occasional set of earrings too, those same strange looking gemstones curled behind wire as added flair.

Cole's eyebrows raise, “Is that gold?”

“Is that gold- is that gold!? My dear boy it's something very SIMILAR to gold! Who cares to have boring old gold when you could have something completely unique and slightly worse? Very similar to gold indeed!” He drags his knuckles down his rib cage for emphasis, which sounds like a perfectly tuned xylophone scale. “My name is Tauto and every piece I offer is one of a kind! Excellent fine Craftsmanship! What can I wrap up for you? Maybe wrap up something for the ol’ lady?” If he had eyebrows, Tauto would be waggling them, glancing meaningfully at Nya who's walking by Cole's side.

Cole glances at Nya in surprise and she immediately turns away, pressing a hand to her mouth to stifle her laughter. He swallows his down painfully, “Uh, yeah, no thank you. Good luck on your endeavors.”

Cole doesn’t get the chance to finish his goodbye before Tauto has reequipped his cloak and is walking away, greeting a multi-headed snake who’s already picking out several pieces.

Birdy is walking in the center of them all, seemingly trying to keep a low profile in spite of how the market is growing considerably quieter, all eyes turning to the interlopers in their midst. Murmurs break out, people talking amongst themselves and a few of them getting up to trail the party, more invested in the interesting drama than guarding their meager shops.

“Butcher Bird’s back!” Someone cries, and the murmurs get louder.

“Welcome home!” Someone else shouts sarcastically.

“Nice of you to grace us with your presence, butcher!”

Similar jeers crop up, but surprisingly there's no real heat behind it.

“Butcher?” Kai whispers, turning hard eyes on Birdy.

“My mask was gifted to me by another realm of madness convict.” Birdy murmurs, “Many believe she would not have parted with it by choice.” The implication is, of course, that everyone here believes Birdy murdered and looted for his gear. Great. There was… something else there too, Lloyd was sure. Something Birdy wasn’t saying.

And interestingly enough, despite the jeers, no one dares approach. The shouts only come from indistinguishable spots in the crowd that grow silent when Birdy comes close enough. Those they pass lower their eyes.

Why?

Wox seems to walk slower so that everyone really has the chance to toss out a cruel jab before they step inside the cavern. It’s cooler inside, enough where Cole shivers in surprise. The hall is dark, torches studding the walls few and far between to the point where the midpoint between two is only three shades from pitch black. They pass by several off-shooting halls without pause, trudging through large atrium's and up sloping stone and stairs until the sounds of talking comes muffled down the hall. It feels like they’ve been walking for ages before finally rounding the last curve, walking into a massive cavern filled with people.

The room is lined with tables along the edges and one massive red wood table in the center that is bare of any occupants. The rest of the seats are nearly fully taken, warriors sharing stories, eating, or maintaining their weapons. Cups clink and blades on whetstone shhhk in the space between words.

All the tables are aligned in a way that leads the eye up to a raised dais where two people sit. Off to the corner tucked away with a little desk is a man with horn-rimmed glasses and a pristine white lab coat writing away in an ancient looking journal, completely unassuming.

In the very center is an ornate chair made of dark red wood with curling legs and an intricately carved back. Deep red upholstery cushions the chair, giving it a luxurious and plush appearance in stark contrast to everyone else's plain stools. Sitting in the chair is an older woman with salt and pepper black hair. She's wearing black boots and gray pants that sit high on her waist, her legs relaxed and spread wide as she lounges on the chair. She's wearing a red and gold bodice over a black turtleneck, slumped over bored enough to pillow her cheek on one hand and rest her elbow on the arm rest. In contrast to everyone else in the room- and in the realm at large- her clothes are perfectly maintained other than a few purposeful tears. No patch marks or obvious stitches from mending. Her long purple claws on her left hand poke at a dagger stuck in the arm of the chair idly, wigging it in the gouge she’d made just because she wanted to.

The most jarring thing about her isn’t her wild hair or the patches of purple-blue scales crawling up her left side, but the multitude of eyes that block out half her face. The right side is mostly normal, one blue eye and perfectly manicured brow. The left side, however, is marred with at least four different eyes all crowding into each other. The main eye is filled with several irises and pupils, all of them randomly expanding and contracting regardless of the light. Places where her sweater is torn reveals more eyes, suggesting that the entire left half of her body is broken up by her mutation.

She looks up as Wox and his party enter the room and her eyes light up at something to break the monotony- and then even more so when she realizes who’s at the center of it all.

“My my!” She drawls, sitting up properly in her chair, “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes.” She grins and it's all teeth.

Birdy inclines his head, “Samira.” he greets.

“Now with a tone like that I might think you’re mad at me. And what's with the voice? You have a cold or something?” She hums idly, sitting back and letting her eyes roam the newcomers. Cole suddenly feels like a bug under a magnifying glass, “What's the meaning of these visitors, Wox?” She asks bluntly.

Lloyd steps forward, “My name is Lloyd,” He begins, and Birdy- who wasn’t fast enough to stop him, places his hand on his forehead like he’s fighting a headache. Wox lets out an indignant chuff at Lloyd speaking over him, “And these are my friends Kai, Nya, Cole, and Jay.” he introduces, “We were just passing through.”

They were both in similar positions, him and Samira. Leaders. He just needed to talk to her on her level, to control the situation. He could get them out of this.

Samira looks at him for a long moment, “I’ve never seen you before. You’re new, aren’t you?” She looks relaxed, but her eyes are sharp, “Brand new.”

“We came here just a few days ago.”

Birdy jerks as if struck, but there’s no way to snatch that tidbit of information back from the air.

Samira tilts her head, her hair falling gracefully down her shoulder, “Interesting.” She says and doesn’t press for more, which makes Birdy relax a fraction, “You’ve never been here before, but your guide most certainly knows the rules. You cannot just ‘pass through’ Oasis, as I’m sure my patrol has informed you.”

Lloyd hesitates, glancing at Birdy.

Samira sighs and rests her elbows on the arms of her chair, “You must offer something as payment for access though my territory.” Her eyes flick over them, eyeing their empty hands and hopelessly flat bags, “I can assume you have not brought anything. That was very foolish of you, Birdy.” She steeples her fingers, “You know I am obligated to take care of trespassers.”

He steps forward, “You owe me.” He says simply.

The quiet chatter stops completely, a silence descending over the room that's so thick Lloyd feels like he can't move. Samira is stone still, but her eyes have widened a fraction where they’re trained on Birdy. The intensity in her eyes would make even the strongest men waver, but Birdy doesn’t look away. Or maybe he does. It’s kinda hard to tell with the mask.

“As I recall,” Each word is measured out in tense control, “I owe you one favor. Not five.”

Neither of them speak.

Lloyd notices Cole slowly and calmly reaches out and clamps a hand over Jay's mouth, just in case he tries to break the tense silence with another stellar joke.

Birdy raises his staff, bladed end pointing out. Half the room scrambles to their feet, but Samira holds up a hand and everyone freezes. Sweeping his staff backwards, Birdy holds it in front of the ninja like a protective shield. The staff ends up pressed against Lloyds stomach, firm and unwavering. Birdy is telling Samira in no uncertain terms that he will protect the Ninja from her and this makes the whole room break out into murmuring, a shockwave of commotion at the action. Birdys defense has weight to it. His presence and opinions is something these people take extremely seriously.

Lloyd follows the staff up to look at Birdy, staring at the smooth side of his mask. Who are you?

Samiras expression sparks with shock before a deep interest overtakes her face. She grins, leaning forward to really study them all. “I’ve been a poor host, haven't I?” She says, the strange tenseness of the room not fading but the energy changing somehow, “This is no way to welcome our newcomers to Oasis. Why don’t we discuss payment over dinner?”

All because Birdy threw his lot in with the Ninja? Instead of killing them, she was inviting them to dinner?

Wox looks flabbergasted, “Lady Samira-” He starts.

She stands, grabbing the back of her chair and dragging it down the dais stairs thunk after thunk, “Wox, would you have Elizal prepare a meal for my friends and I? And please, send someone to set the table.” Her chair legs screech as she hauls it across the stone floor, “The rest of you? Get out.”

Wox tightens his jaw but doesn’t object, nodding is assent.

Samira swings her chair around to settle at the head of the table as everyone else immediately rushes out, Cole huddling into the group as they’re suddenly surrounded by warriors beating a hasty retreat. In all of about thirty seconds the room is empty save Samira and the man still up on the dias writing in his notebook.

“Will you be joining us, Barath?” She speaks without looking at him.

“Shh,” He says, “You’ll make me lose my train of thought!”

She takes no offense at being shushed, turning her eyes on the ragtag group in front of her, “Sit.” She orders, “Please.” She adds.

Birdy moves first, sitting to Samiras right. The ninja, after exchanging a collective worried look, fill in the rest of the seats. The other seat next to Samira remains empty. As they sit, a woman carrying a large tray walks into the room. She sets the tray down and starts handing out silverware and handmade clay pots filled with the realms equivalent of water using the tentacles sprouting from her belly. She delivers Samiras by hand. Cole does his best not to stare because that's impolite.

“Thank you, Ila.” Birdy says quietly when the others are too nervous to remember their manners.

“Sweet as the day I met you,” Ila tuts, “This place ain’t changed you a bit.”

She brushes her hand along his shoulders as she passes, and then they’re alone again.

The table is made out of the same red wood as Samiras chair, and the seat they’re sitting on are too. They’re less fancy than hers is, but they also have a cushioned seat. A welcome reprieve to the stone and grass they’d been lounging on during their trip.

Birdy turns towards Samira, who hasn’t bothered looking at him, instead studying the gaggle of ninja seated at her table, “What do you have in mind for payment?”

She flaps her clawed hand dismissively, “Business can wait! I’d like to get to know the trespassers,” She says trespassers like a term of endearment. “How did you all wind up here?”

Birdy shifts his grip on his staff nervously and Cole picks up what he’s signaling out- they must be very careful with what information they piece out to her, “Well, it all started when my Mom met my Dad-” He begins.

“I mean the Realm of Madness.” Samira has no issue interrupting him, a spark of amusement in her eyes as she fights a smile.

“It’s nothing special,” Lloyd shrugs, “We were in a fight.” He studies the room surreptitiously, hoping to find more leverage, something he can use to turn this conversation in their favor. The room was frustratingly bare, and it was increasingly apparent that the people of the realm only cared about reputation- of which the ninja were severely lacking. And after Birdy's warning, Lloyd knew he couldn’t throw around his status as the green ninja to earn any respect. Samira smiles at him like he's a particularly curious piece of lint and nothing more. There is no equal ground for them to find, so Lloyd will keep his mouth shut.

“But it is special,” Steepling her hands together, Samira leans forward to examine them carefully, “You see, Banishment to the Dark Realm is an archaic Practice. You’re the only newcomers in nearly 30 years, barring Birdy.”

“I am sure that would be willing to explain their origin if you were to share yours first,” Birdy suggests. An attempt to stall, probably, pr a diversion.

Samira thinks on that before sitting back with a thoughtful humm, “Well, what is there to tell? My story is the same as most of the others here.”

“I was a seamstress first, before a warlord. My home was the Cloud Kingdom.” She starts.

Nya looks confused, “But I thought everyone in the Cloud Kingdom was a scribe?”

Samira gives her a patient look, “Where do you suppose the robes on a Scribes back come from? The food they eat? The very ink and paper they write with? These worlds are larger than you think, with a thousand and one moving parts, and I was a cog in the machine. I was happy, until I wasn't anymore. Then I burned it all to the ground.” She sighs and it's a put upon thing, “They didn’t like that, and bam- I was sent here. Simple as.”

Samira picks up her cup and sips from it, “There, is that enough of a rapport? Now tell me, what realm did you come from?”

“Ninjago.” Jay says helpfully.

Before anything else can be said, two people enter the room carrying several of the big trays from before. One of them is Ila again, who once more serves the food with her tentacles until her trays are empty. The man with her waits for her to be done so she can help him with his burden, doling out green bread and soup until the table is full. The ninja thank the two as they leave.

“What’s in this?” Kai asks, scooping up a bit of the viscous jelly before letting it plop right back in the bowl.

“It’s a favorite of mine.” Samira tears a piece of bread off her roll, “Filler fruit sliced and reduced in fizz fruit concentrate. It makes the broth savory and thick. Then the normal soup fixins: vegetales, tubers, and meat. Don’t ask what type.”

Cole takes a whiff of the soup and it smells vaguely like lavender. Whatever ingredients included seemed to cancel out each other's smell into this light floral scent.

There’s a lull in conversation as they eat. Barath doesn’t come down from the dais to eat, his bowl cooling on the table. Birdy picks up his spoon and they all expect him to do the same number he had before when he’d eaten in front of them, lifting his mask just enough to wedge his utensils under it without revealing his face.

Instead, to their great shock, he pulls his mask off to the side and angles it so the ninja can’t see his face, but Samira can. This doesn’t phase her at all.

“So she can see your face, but we can’t?” Kai comments with a pout.

“We are very close,” Samira explains, “We’re nearly best friends.”

“No we are not.” Birdy shuts that down immediately, “She has seen my face before- by circumstance not by choice.” He corrects.

“You wound me! And here I am, one of the only people in this realm who welcomes you.” She tuts, “You’ve made quite a choice in your guide so i must ask, why Butcher bird of all people?”

“He saved us from an ambush.” It’s Nya this time who chimes in.

Samira smiles at her with an unreadable expression, “How sweet of him.” She looks at Birdy's bare face, searching for something that he doesn’t give her. Her lips purse into a thin line. There's a moment where they eat in silence, “You say you're passing through. Where are you heading? It seems you have a destination in mind.”

There's an uncertain silence as they grapple with how to answer that.

“If you’re going somewhere specific, you’ll be on a tight schedule. The evershift waits for no one- so tell me, and I can ensure you end your journey on time.” She smiles pretty, and it's all teeth.

“There’s no rush.” Lloyd says stoically.

Samiras smile dims, and she seems to sense she won't get anything out of them on that topic. She pivots, “You’re from Ninjago, yes? Interesting. I had no idea they still practiced this type of punishment. What do you do to get sent here?”

“We told you earlier, we just got into a fight.” Kai reminds her, “Simple as.” He parrots with a grin.

Samira narrows her eyes at him, “So you all just stood still while your opponent brewed the travelers potion? I see my initial judgment of you as warriors was false.”

“Hey! We are warriors! We’re ninjas!” Jay defended, “She didn’t brew anything- she used a gauntlet!”

Samira, who’d been lounging back in her chair with a smirk on her face, sits up straight at that. Her eyes widen a pinch, “A gauntlet?” She clarifies, “Was it blue?”

Her sudden interest surprises even Birdy, who sets his spoon down to dedicate his full attention to the conversation.

“Er, yeah. Teal and dark blue with like, little metal claws-”

She barks out a laugh, “That gauntlet was supposed to have been destroyed! Do you know just how unlucky it is that you got blasted with it?” She pauses, “And how dangerous it is that it’s been found?”

The room grows tense, “What do you mean?”

“That gauntlet is a piece of The Armor of Utano.” Samira explains before her face pinches and she glares at the table, searching for a piece of information in her mind, “Oh what did they call it in Ninjago… something stupid…” She snaps her finger, “You should know it as a piece of the Allied Armor of Azul.”

“Azure.” Birdy corrects.

“Same thing.”

“I’ve never heard it called that.” Lloyd commented, “Even Uncle Wu has only called it the allied armor.”

Samiras eyes flash as if she's learned a particularly interesting fact, “It's quite the weapon... I could tell you more, but I’m afraid it won’t be free.”

Bird speaks up, “That won't be necessary. I know of the armor, and I will inform them.”

“Fine, be my guest.” She says sitting back, feigning nonchalance.

Birdy turns towards them and clears his throat, “How do I start… ummm… there was once- No, uh. A long time ago in Ninjago-”

“No! Shut up, you aren’t telling it right.” Samira immediately interjects irritably, “You know what? This is a Cloud Kingdom story. It should be a Cloud Kingdom native who tells it.”

Nodding, he inclines his head, “You’re right. Please, the floor is yours.”

One of Samiras eyes gives him a dirty look before she starts, “The first thing you need to know is that there are places in every realm where the Ethereal divide is thin enough to cross over, and the second thing you need to know is that every realm has its own artifact with the ability to easily cross the Realms of Creation. In Ninjago, that would be the Realm Crystal.”

Lloyd frowns, “But I thought the Realm Crystal was created by the First Spinjitzu Master to escape the first realm?”

“The First Spinjitzu Master found it in the First realm,” Samira corrects, “It was lost when the great serpent Wojiras' wrath tore open those thin spots between Ninjago and the divide. Much of Ninjagos history was scattered this way. In the Cloud Kingdom, our realm key was a ball of pure metal imbued with the essence of the other realms. Before time had a name, a man from the Cloud Kingdom fell in love with a man from Ninjago. He heard him singing through one of those thin spots in the realm, and they began to meet in secret. You see, It is forbidden for a cloud kingdom native to fraternize with any other realm inhabitant- as the writers of destiny, we were meant to stay completely impartial. He was breaking the most sacred law of our land.”

Samira picks up her cup and sips from it, “They only kept it secret for so long- they could not hide the pregnancy. Once they were discovered, The Grand Scribe ordered the dimensional portal sealed and forbade Daichi from returning- but he did return. With the Realm Sphere. The Cloud Kingdom could not stand for this and warriors were sent to retrieve him. He hid his husband and his daughter from the kingdom's eyes, left them the Realm Sphere, and was imprisoned until his death.

“His husband passed not long after Daichi was taken, and their daughter Utano was alone. The loss and hardship of her life poisoned her, and she took the realm sphere to a smith and had it forged into a powerful set of armor imbued with the powers of each realm of creation. Her helmet granted her future vision and she allowed it to inflate her ego. She gained money, power, and prestige. She amassed an army. She believed herself to be judge, jury, and executioner and called upon the powers of the 16 realms to become a revered warlord… In the end, she was defeated by the elemental masters of creation, and her armor was split apart and destroyed. Or, if your story is true, mostly destroyed.”

“Except the gauntlet that leads here?” Lloyd grin wryly.

“Apparently.” Samira hums. “This gauntlet not only opens portals to this place, but it has the ability to change its shape to whatever the wielder desires. Utano felled many men with this ability, by the blade of a sword, the flat of a hammer, or the claws of a dragon. Whatever enemy you have made was merciful in their decision to banish you rather than cut you to pieces.”

She gulps down the last of her soup and  surveys the room and sighs, “It seems dinner is over. I feel like I'm the only one who did the talking here.” She narrows her eyes at Birdy for a moment before looking back at the ninja, “As much as I’d love to pick you all apart, it’s time for the boring part- business.”

They grow tense, stiffening under her eyes as her expression changes from relaxed to closed off in an instant.

“Well?” Kai challenges when the silence goes on too long.

“One of you will stay and serve me, and the rest may go on.” She says instantly.

The ninja erupt into protests, “No way!” and “We can’t leave anyone behind!” filling the room.

“Okay, fine, keep Birdy.” Kai says with a frown, motioning at the man.

“He is ineligible for this particular offer.” Samira says apologetically, “It must be one of you color coded trespassers.”

“I understand your responsibilities as a leader, I really do, but that gauntlet is dangerous and I have a duty to the people of Ninjago to protect them. That is my responsibility. There has to be some other way.” Lloyd insists.

“None.” Samira says stiffly. “This is the way it must be. I have a reputation to uphold, and an expectation from those who I punished before you to maintain consistency-”

“Three funeral flowers.” Birdy announces into the air, staring at Samira. It’s an offer, and a serious one if her sudden silence is anything to go by.

“Do not interrupt me again,” She says quietly, “I’ll allow it this once because that is quite an offer, Butcher.”

“Three funeral flowers is more than enough to allow all of us safe passage through Oasis.” He seems unphased by her chastising him, “If we fail… you may kill us.”

“What?” Kai demands, jumping to his feet.

“There is no other way.” Birdy doesn’t look away from Samira.

She studies him just as hard, “I assume you’ll leave now?” he nods. She takes a tense moment to think, “I can’t allow you all to leave for this journey. I must have leverage to ensure you complete your part of the bargain… but you’re already planning on leaving alone.” another nod.

“You’re going to just leave us here?” Cole asks, surprised at how much that stings.

Birdy immediately turns to him, “I will come back.” He says firmly, hearing the betrayed hurt in Cole's words, “I will not abandon you.” And Cole finds he believes him.

“Anyone else, and I would be convinced they were lying. I’d be certain they’d never look back once they got off Oasis’s land… But I know you well enough to know you’re telling the truth. You’re a man of your word.” She leans forward and examines them all again, “And for some reason… These people are special to you.”

“They are good people.” Birdy says weakly.

“I accept your offer, but you aren't going alone.” She looks around the room for a heartbeat before pointing at Lloyd randomly, “Blondie will join you. The rest will stay here.”

“No way!” Kai sputters, affronted.

Reaching out to place a reassuring hand on Kais shoulder, Lloyd offers Kai a confident grin, “Kai, I’ll be fine. I mean, we’re just going to pick a few flowers, right? how dangerous could it be?”

Samira cringes, and she and Birdy share a look that means one thing. This wasn’t going to be as simple as a walk in a meadow.

What did we get ourselves into?

[katfiers]

Ninjago Were dragon au

— — — — — — — — — — — — —

This is my Halloween post :-)

— — — — — — — — — — — — —

One dark night on the bounty Jay gets woken up at the sound of dragon noises and scratching and goes to the deck and looks out of the door leading to the deck

And sees a strangely shaped dragon staring at him…then it charges at Jay

Jay thankfully slammed the door letting the strange dragon smack its face against the door

Jay yells out to everyone get to the deck right now

When everyone gets up Cole notices Kai isn't in bed and notices claw marks on the wooden wall of the bunk of Kai's bed

When everyone gets to the door to the deck peek out the port hole and see the dragon, sniffing and scratching the deck

The gang forces Cole to get the strange dragon

When Cole approaches the dragon he releases it is human shaped and has a human face

it's Kai's

[It's kinda a beast from beauty & the beast and eda's owl beast from the owl house, shape situation]

Cole kinda like shit Kai is some kind of weird dragon thing, while just standing there just petting Kai, Kai is purring

Cole does get everyone out on the deck and tells everyone that Kai is some kind of were dragon thing and something may set it off

Kai not even aggressive, poor baby is hungry and in pain

Zane goes and make some food for Kai while Cole, Jay, Nya and Lloyd continue to pet and comfort Kai while Wu and Pixal dig around for anything to help Kai and finger out what why Kai is a weredragon and why it's happened now

Kai, Cole, Nya, Jay and Lloyd end up in a cuddle pile on the deck and Kai gets to eat the food Zane made them and he eats slow, gentle and with manners, savoring Zane's food, while Zane goes up to the upper deck to plot the bounty back to the monastery

Wu and Pixal came back and tells the gang that Kai maybe had been cut or scratch by a weredragon when he, Jay, Wu, Zane and Cole was in the first realm and why it's happening now is because of their age, current diet, not being in danger for one, environment and current physical health

Kai is unaware what is going on but loves the attention they are getting

When the sun rises and Kai is back to "normal" there hair is very fluffy and kinda a mane shape, his clothes are a little bit damaged, big floppy dragon ears and horns

Kai is very confused about about what happened

When the others tell him about what happened Kai is concerned

[Kai roughly double his height in were dragon form]

[Kai's were dragon form is based off lung dragons (Chinese dragons) and kirins (horse shaped dragons), so Kai has no wings and his horns branch and yes Kai has whiskers]

[quibbs126]

Thoughts on the legendary cookies?

Okay, this has been in my inbox for a while, I might as well answer this now

I’m just gonna focus on the elemental Ovenbreak Legendaries, since that’s what I was thinking of. I’ll put my thoughts on the others at the end, but it probably won’t be as in depth

Fire Spirit Cookie:

So I got this ask back before Flames of Longing was announced, and I was going to to say that I don’t really care for Fire Spirit, as I know basically nothing about him, but then Flames of Longing came out, and I quite like him there. Yeah he’s a bit of a prideful bastard, but he’s got a heart, and I can’t help but like him.

His Cookie Trial is ass though, I’m so bad at it

Moonlight Cookie:

I also quite like Moonlight Cookie. Granted, I haven’t gotten close to getting through Episodes 15-16, as I’m stuck at the beginning, but from what I have seen from cutscenes and Crunchy Dreams, she seems neat. Hopefully with her (I think) joining the fight against Dark Enchantress Cookie, we’ll be able to see more of her. I’m curious what interactions between her and the Ancients would be like. Also I haven’t finished Odyssey so I don’t know how we got to the Gingerbrave group looking for Moonlight, but I can’t help but imagine Gingerbrave going up to the Ancients and being like “hey guys, I was able to recruit the powerful moon lady! Oh, and her ocean wife!” (I assume that Sea Fairy would probably join if Moonlight was there) while they’re just like “wait how”

But let me tell you, until I got her for myself, I feared her in Arena

Sea Fairy Cookie:

Now, I actually quite like Sea Fairy Cookie, she seems like a nice lady. I just wish I knew more about her. I mean yeah, I know stuff about her, like the Sugarteara stuff and her relationship with Moonlight, but my thing with her is that we don’t know much about her herself, or at least things that don’t relate to Moonlight

I like seamoon, it’s cute, but I feel like it’s one of those ships/relationships where while one of the characters is allowed to have arcs outside of the relationship and about them themselves, but the other is stuck having basically all of their character moments having to do with their relationship, like Jay/Nya from Ninjago and Moxxie/Millie from Helluva Boss. The things about Sea Fairy that we’ve seen, like the Tower of Frozen Waves and the Sacred Pearl, seem to all have to do with her longing for Moonlight Cookie, and it feels like this relationship just defines Sea Fairy. Which sucks because I want to know about Sea Fairy all on her own. She’s the only elemental legendary we’ve met where we don’t know their origin, and sure we know she’s cursed, but we know nothing about that curse. I want to know about her lore, but right now we just don’t have it. But I hope we get it at some point, and Sea Fairy isn’t just relegated to “pining for Moonlight”

Wind Archer Cookie:

I also like Wind Archer well enough, but I also feel like I don’t know much about him. From what I’ve seen (pretty much just he Sherbet story and Truth of the City), I like him, I just haven’t seen enough with him in it. Hopefully that gets rectified in Kingdom, at least assuming he doesn’t show up with Millennial Tree Cookie. Personally I’d like to see him show up in Beast Yeast and become a traveling companion of the Gingerbrave group. That’d be neat to see

Millennial Tree Cookie:

I quite like Millie, he seems very interesting. I feel like I don’t have much to say on him, but I am very curious to find out more about his lore, which I imagine we’ll get. Also I personally like to think that White Lily Cookie comes from his forest, so if that turns out to be true, we’d get some interesting interactions between him and Dark Enchantress. And possibly he could be a reason for White Lily existing outside of Dark Enchantresses, since I mean he is an ancient powerful being

Also I love his trial theme, it’s very relaxing to listen to

Also a random tidbit, but I keep thinking his voice sounds like the voice Charriii5 gave the N’rrgal leader in his EWW Sonic Chronicles video. I don’t know why

I was gonna just talk about the Ovenbreak elementals, but might as well mention Frost Queen too

Frost Queen Cookie:

I like her. I’ve heard people think she’s evil because of how she treats Sherbet’s fate, but like, it’s just a fact of life for her, it’s something she knows is inevitable, why wouldn’t she act like that? Also personally I see the Legendaries as not really being the same as normal Cookies, since they’re like higher beings, so you could see her apathy as having to do with her no longer being a “normal Cookie”, so to speak. And besides, she tells Cotton of a way to possibly save Sherbet, or at least prolong their time together.

But regardless, she seems cool.

Might as well include the other legendary Cookies

Dark Enchantress Cookie is probably my favorite legendary, if only because of her story and character in Kingdom. Her being White Lily really adds interesting depth to her character and I’m very interested to see how they conclude her story

Timekeeper is fine. Personally I don’t think I get the hype. I mean yeah, I know why the hype’s there, but I don’t think I personally feel it. Maybe I’d get it more if I watched their story

Similar feelings towards Black Pearl, where I like her well enough, I just don’t know much about her to really give thoughts, since I haven’t watched her story. Though my feeling towards her are also elevated probably because she’s been an integral part of my team in Kingdom

I like the dragons, though I don’t really know much about Ananas. Did they have a story segment? Because I haven’t seen it. I think in Ovenbreak, Pitaya is my favorite, though in Kingdom I don’t think I like them as much. Maybe it’s because in Ovenbreak they seem more amicable to Cookies, at least from what I’ve seen. But I’d say Longan is second place. I’m curious if they’ll ever add any more dragons (like the North and South Dragons), and if they do, maybe ones with a different theming. Like how the five we have are supposed to be tropical fruits, maybe we could have other dragons that have a different shared base. Though I wouldn’t mind more tropical fruit dragons

Anyways, yeah I think that’s about it

[chellyore]

Screw it. Ninjago monster au. I got bored and well since I'm pumping out writing more than I should. Here. Also I might create artwork of the monster designs or mythical designs. I'm debating, but yeah enjoy my brainrot.

I'll give you all chapter one here though, cuz I'm crazy. Enjoy and who knows, maybe artwork will come of this, because I like drawing dragons, vampires, etc.

The sun shone bright orange along the golden doors of an ancient building. Nearly blinding the three underneath the gold archway. 

“Nya, are you ready?” An elderly lady asked as the water ninja came up. 

“Yep, and Pixel is coming too.” 

“That is fantastic.” A nindroid beams as his blue eyes lit up upon seeing the female Android. 

“I don't get to come out too much.” Pixel says as she then gets onto the boat. 

“Did you bring Samurai X?” Pixel beams down at Nya. She then turned to a group of four ninja, currently waving off their Master. 

“Alright, you boys know how to run the Monastery while we're away?” 

“Of course we do, sis.” The red ninja Kai, smiled with his head tilting back. 

“Yeah, sweep, clean, do dishes.” Jay, the blue ninja counted. 

“Oh, and to mention the cooking.” The black ninja, Cole, grabbed his mouth. 

“We got it under control.”  The last ninja, Lloyd, the legendary Green ninja beamed. The woman shook her head, and smiled. 

“I was curious about the computer, do you know how to call from it?” Jay shoved Cole's hand away. 

“Yep, I got it and I can do any repairs if needed.” Nya giggles at her boyfriend and both then share a hug. 

“Nya.” 

“Well, Master Wu is calling me. Bye guys, and don't ya know.. .burn down the Monastery.” 

“When have we ever- oh yeah.” The boys groan at the fire ninja. 

“Seriously Kai, out of all us you're more prone to.” 

“I forgot, but-” He watches the Bounty taking off and turns back to his brothers. Cole smiled widely beside Jay, and Lloyd just started walking to the door. 

“Well, come on. We deserve a break.” Everyone gave gleams as soon they reached a room, with a massive TV and sofa. Cole went to grab snacks, Jay played with the cords for a second and plugs them in, and Kai and Lloyd were just guessing who would win the game. Cole swings the door open with his legs and places down bowls of chips, chocolates, popcorn, really anything that could be considered a snack. 

“Are you all ready for me to beat you all?” Kai gripped a controller. 

“Yeah, right Jay, I'm gonna be the one to beat you.” Suddenly the game started and Lloyd gave a knowing side smirk as he immediately began slamming buttons. 

“HEY!” 

“Should pay attention better!” Everyone quickly began moving buttons as a certain green character was taking the lead.  

They played for hours, eating, drinking, occasional breaks to use the restroom, but kept playing. 

“I WIN!” Kai jumped up as he proudly stood on the sofa. Jay eyed his controller. 

“Take that Lloyd!” 

“Good game, but we should get more snacks.” Cole looked at the empty bowls. 

“Yeah, I need to stretch my legs.” Lloyd yawns, popping his neck. 

“Alright, time for a break.” Kai giggled as he jumped off the couch. 

“Aww, but I was so close!” Jay frowned, and Kai gleamed. 

“Maybe next time, but my eyes hurt from staring.” 

“I just need more snacks and I can go again.” Jay looks over at Cole. 

“You're on, Cole!” Lloyd yawns again and Kai went up to him. 

“I'm gonna head to bed.” Kai nodded and the green ninja left the room, heads to the restroom. He uses the shower quickly and gets on his pjas. He then shivers through the hall till he makes it to his room. He curls up into the green blankets, and sighs as his hair was still wet. 

“Have to wait.” He muttered and went over to his closet. He dug around for a moment, digging up old swords, Gis, and he stopped for a second. 

A small black hood, with faded bone shapes and a number 5 in green. Lloyd lifts it and gives a slight gleam, folds it, and places it away. His eyes then see the pages of color and space. 

“There it is!” He scooped it right up, and silently curled up into his bed and pillows. 

He reads it till eventually his eyes close. And like that everyone was asleep. Kai in his room, with his fifty blankets, and Cole and Jay in the same room they played games in. Cole deep in slumber on the couch, and Jay in the chair, curled up like a burrito. 

“How long do you think they will sleep?” 

“Hopefully long enough for this.” 

*creek* 

The glass reflected their hood and their floating arrival. One looked down at Cole and Jay. 

“Now?” The bigger hood shook. 

“We must find their master's room.” 

“Huh?” The beings flew straight down to the back of the couch, where they heard springs move as the male sat up. 

“What was that?” His voice muffled with a hint of dryness. 

“Now?” The little being asks and suddenly Cole jumps over the sofa. 

“WHO ARE YOU!?” The two creatures flew up. 

“AAA!” They glance at a terrified  auburn-haired man. 

“COLE!” 

“GET THE OTHERS, JAY!” Jay shakes his head, and feels his legs stiffen upon seeing the two sets of red eyes. 

“KAI, LLOYD!” 

*SWOOSH* 

“AAAAAAAAA” 

Lloyd lifts himself right up. 

“JAY!” He jumps himself onto his feet and grabs the sword by his bed. 

“I'M COMING!” Lloyd watches Kai sprint before him and immediately clutches his sword. 

“IN HERE!” Kai slams the door right open and Lloyd rushes to his two friends, laying on the floor. 

“What happened?” Cole clenched his jaw, showing his teeth, and Lloyd watched as his eyes began to water. 

“Cole?” 

“COME BACK HERE YOU FUCKER!” Lloyd lifts his head at Kai's yelling and grips his sword. Jay stood up, though still with a little help from the chair. 

“That was weird, right?” He glances at a curled up Cole, who only stares up at him in tears. 

Lloyd brings his sword right to his face, and stares up at a bright purple ball. 

Cole shook as the blue ninja picked him up. 

“AAAAA!” 

“FUCK!” 

Jay listens to Lloyd and Kai's screams and shakes his head as two figures fly above him. 

“Sorry, Cole.” He places the pained man against the chair. 

“HEY!” The figures turn to Jay, which is when Jay notices something shiny in their hands. He jumps onto the sofa, and tucks his legs. 

“Bye” 

*snap* 

*Thud* 

Jay lifts his head from the floor and breathes out. 

“NOW THEY CAN TELEPORT!” He tugged at his eyelids. 

“Jay.” The man turned, where he only saw Cole's hand on the chair. Or what he hopes is him, because the hand was fully black and had pieces of ripped sofa stuck to the longing claws.  

[duskys-dreams]

I was a ninja along with the rest of the party (it was a mix between Ninjago and DND) but I didn’t have powers. I was jealous toward my companions for their abilities, one of which was a different class called “selective ranger” which was basically just OP.

We were planning to take down a huge creature in the mountains by the sea. It was massive, vaguely canine-shaped, and a bit like a tortoise too. I wasn’t being very cooperative with the team, because that’s just who I was.

When we were very close to the lair, Jay wandered off to look at a specific cave. Suspicious, I followed him. It revealed a room with his ninja symbol and had all the information about him, including stuff he didn’t know. I wanted to find mine, because I wanted to learn what my powers were, so I took off.

I found my room quickly, but Jay followed me. I led him into the room right next to it that was basically a random abandoned bedroom. We poked around for a bit, then Jay suggested that we should leave. We did. Somehow, he didn’t notice the massive cave behind him inscribed with my ninja symbol.

As soon as he was gone, I snuck away and went into my room. It told me that my powers were that I was not affected by the plot at all, while the other ninja were. This also meant I didn’t have any plot armour, while they did. It also told me that I’m a rogue, but I already knew as much.

I left the room and found the ninja, sneaking up on the sleeping beast from all sides. Jay called out that he found something cool, and that startled the beast into waking, ruining the plan. Now the ninja had to fight normally, leaping around with their powers and trying not to get hit by the massive paws. They were never struck.

I dove in too, attacking with my blades. They did absolutely no damage to its thick hide, and it swatted me away. I died, but then I respawned a short ways away. I attacked again, rinse and repeat.

I finally realized that this wasn’t working. Not just what I was doing, but the entire team. It took barely any damage, and the Ninja were only barely dodging its attacks. Plot armour, I realized.

I flew down and shouted for everyone to stop. I then led the beast back into its lair, then they used their powers to seal the door. Mission accomplished, I guess. Strange how they attacked the beast when it wasn’t doing anything bad, just sleeping. In fact, why were we attacking it?

As the ninja were celebrating their win, I slipped inside the lair, which resembled my living room, and looked down at the beast. It looked... really sad.

Knowing it was probably a stupid idea, I flew down to the beast’s level and gave it a little pet. It liked it, and pushed against me for more pets. I continued petting, and the beast shrank until it was about the size of my dog, Clover. It slept in my lap as I continued petting.

The other ninja finally figured out what I was doing. They slipped through the rocks and demanded to know what was going on. I explained that the beast just wanted some company, it was lonely. They still got mad, because they were supposed to be killing it, not befriending it.

I refused and told them to go away, the beast was harmless now. Kai laughed in my face and asked me what I would do about it, the one with no powers. I told them that I am outside of the plot, and can mess it up as I pleased. As an example, I took out a dagger and stabbed Kai in the chest. He had only been bluffing, and was absolutely not expecting me to attack him. This was never supposed to happen.

In response to being injured, Kai’s powers went haywire, turning the entire area into an actual fiery hell. I hid under a dirt hill as fire and hellish monsters spewed everywhere.

We were in Terraria now.

I wanted the big and really cool dragon statue high above me, but there was a problem. At the top of the map, these skeletons that rode on phones would drop down and zip all over the top of the map. Getting the statue would be near-impossible.

Didn’t stop me from trying. The first time I was killed by monsters before I even got to the top. I respawned in a normal-looking area to the left, where Marcel was. We talked for a bit (don’t remember what it was about) and I went back into hell to retrieve my statue. This time, predictably, I was killed by the phone-riding skeletons.

I kept trying, to no avail. Eventually, I was forced to give up and wait in the normal area with all the other people.

Eventually, we started walking down the road, a massive collection of students. I got to talk to Rowan and Alex, which was awesome.

We entered a church, and a nun started a presentation with a projector. I didn’t care about it, and just started sneaking around looking for things to steal.

[twigs-sprigs]

an au in which.. well different outfits that the ninja have had are actually just who they are

okay so i have much to explain so STRAP IN

so i came up with this idea really suddenly like ten million thoughts just hit me in the head, but the main concept is that

the world is actually a post apocalyptic style scenario, there's an "above" new ninjago city, that was built on top of the old overgrown and kind of abandoned old ninjago city (i imagine it having like glowy mushrooms and stuff and having some sort of a pretty factor to it)

i also see this whole world being full of like a multitude of different species with all sorts of wacky features (this is all kinda like years and years after the disaster that destroyed the og ninjago, so it has very cyberpunk-y and modern elements)

let's call it the (PA au. just post apocalyptic for short)

(this has been compared to that one show called arcane before. i. ive never watched arcane. /gen.. so yeah. i know its similar. its a coincidence. i promise. )

now, our characters consist of

kai - aka. the red shogun. (the outfit is prime empire kai, kind of combined with the red shogun outfit from season 4) a villain turned superhero vigilante, who's just doing his gosh darn best, and has a whole team who keeps his back safe! lloyd - aka. GB (prime empire lloyd) a trained mercenary and the leader of a gang that does everything from trading substances, weapons and machines in the black market, to simply bounty hunting. he's an untrustworthy, quiet but sly and feared leader, whos really just a sad and lost kid at heart. people say he takes after his father, but he wouldnt admit that. jay - aka. superstar rockin' jay!! (prime empire jay, ofc) he's a celebrity rockstar both in the above world AND in the undercity. though he mostly spends his time up above. he's still part of kai's vigilante team! nya- aka. THE FREAKIN SEA (seabound nya) she's a part of the sea that decided "fuck it!! we ball!!" and left to see what life on land is all about! she met kai and quickly became really close with him and they became siblings! shes the first member of his team! and she's kind of confused but she's DEFINITELY got the spirit! zane- aka. snake jaguar (the outfit from sons of garmadon) just like kai he's a vigilante, a wielder of ice. he goes undercover in lloyds gang and becomes his right hand man, but gives crucial information to his team, so they can take down lloyd's operation. cole- ROCKY FREAKIN DANGERBUFF, yet ANOTHER member of kai's team, he's from the dangerbuff clan! one of the groups of people who live their lives in the undercity. he's a dancer and a beast hunter, but also a kick ass hero just like the rest of the team! pixal- samurai x!! she's also a hero, that kind of rivals red shogun and kind of doesnt like him at all, but she does get kind of close to one of his team members... if you know what i mean

i will say that ALL the members of the squad still have their elemental powers, i havent yet properly fully thought that part out but i know for sure that they do.

SO YEAH. lloyd is actually kind of the villian for a large part of this au. i tried my best to not change his personality in a way that wouldnt be natural for his character to progress. in my head he grew up kind of sheltered from the outside world entirely. he's not really a... person? he's his role and thats that. he was never really loved by anyone therefore doesnt really know...emotion. all that well. he may act like a bratty teenager from time to time when he's taunting his enemies, but that's just... a character that he's playing up. he really just has no clue what hes doing.

(everything im not saying here is in the little notes i left on the drawings, though they may not be canon since i wrote down concepts and ideas there too)

his dad, garmadon, also is a little different in this au. basically "good" garmadon isnt really a thing (hes basically JUST the version from the oni trillogy). he was the previous gang leader BEFORE lloyd but he vanished and supposedly died. so lloyd had to take his place.

the ACTUAL. REAL VILLAIN of this au is harumi. who, fr. is still just herself. she's also kind of the second in command to lloyd. and she betrays him. and kind of takes the gang all to herself. leaving lloyd to help out the heroes...and finally find a family in the process.

its very emotional in my head and i am so scrambled right now these are the only semi-coherent thoughts.

i would LOVE to talk more about this au. if you have any questions or ideas or ANYTHING really.. do send asks about it... im in such deep brainrot for it and rambling on tumblr is apparently a thing that i do! (who wouldve thunk!)

this au was also made with the help of @shadesofvermillionvoid as USUAL.. so you can send asks there too!!! give kai all the love ever ash deserve it!!

... and to whoever bothered to read all this. wow. thank you! :D i feel very seen

[miqotepotatoe]

Okay so basis of this Ninjago Amphibia crossover swap AU, the plot loosly follows the plot of Amphibia but with the Dumbass Trio in the place of the Calamity Girls. The Calamity Box was a relic in the Explorer's Club that a theif tried to steal before the Ninja stopped them. Lloyd told everyone not to touch the box but Jay got really curious, convincing Kai and Cole to take a look with him in the dead of night. No malicious intentions, just idiotic curiousity.

Cole replaces Anne, he gets zapped to Frog Valley and is taken in by the Plantars, quickly gains Wartwood's trust by defending them against the tax collector toads. He spends most of his time there aiding the townsfolk fighting off beasts while trying to figure out how to make the Calamity Box work again. The overprotective big brother to Sprig and Polly, still gets dragged into their hyjinks. Has accidently called Hop-Pop "gramps" a few times.

Kai replaces Sasha, gets zapped to Toad Tower, puts up a fight against the toads but is quickly overwhelmed and taken prisoner. Grime recognises that Kai is a powerful fighter and offers a deal, aid the toads and Grime will help Kai find his friends. Kai reluctently accepts the deal, just wanting to find Cole and Jay and return to Ninjago. He's more of a common footsoldier then a lieutenant.

Jay replaces Marcy, gets zapped to Newtopia, panics cuz he's no longer in Ninjago (causing him to fall down a flight of stairs and breaking his leg), meets Lady Olivia and Andrias and joins the Night Guard so he can venture out to find Cole and Kai. He has fun going out on adventures, but he can't help but worry about his friends and the others still in Ninjago. He vents out his worries and insecurities to Andrias over a game of Flipwart (Jay lost, but Andrias got blackmail materiel on the boy to use for emotional manipulation, sadly it still doesn't change what the Core has in store for him).

Season 1

- Plays out pretty much the same, Cole and the Plantars have various wacky adventures as he tries to find Kai and Jay and figure out how to get home.

- Kai is released earlier due to the deal he and Grime made, the herons that attack Toad Tower are scared away imedietly by Kai's fire. Grime is impressed, but both are using each other as a means to an end. Grime wants to use Kai to keep the frogs under check, Kai wants to find Cole and Jay and go home.

- Toad Tax happens. Cole imedietly notices the toad tax collectors are simply just stealing from the frogs so he fights them back. His eyes also flash blue for a moment. The tax collectors flee to Toad Tower and inform Grime of the situation. Grime plans on sending the entire army at the tower to Wartwood to teach the frogs a lesson, but Kai overhears and volunteirs to give the frogs a warning message.

- Cole and Kai reunite. Kai warns Cole about Grime and the Toads and the boys stage a plan to teach the toads a lesson on why you don't mess with the ninja. Kai returns to Toad Tower and tells Grime of a plan to "execute" Hop-Pop as his recent campaign against Toadstool has begun inspiring frogs to rise up, and executing the face of frog revolution will teach them a lesson.

- The events of Reunion stay mostly the same. The toads invite all of Wartwood to Toad Tower for a "peaceful celebration" to exectute Hop-Pop, meanwhile the boys begin to put their plan into motion. Kai stops Grime from exectuting Hop-Pop (ELEMENT OF SURPRISE!), and the big final fight is Cole & Kai vs Grime.

- The boys have Grime cornered, but just as he's about to admit defeat Toad Tower begins to explode and crumble due to Wally planting boom-shrooms. One explosion knocks Kai over the edge, Cole tries to pull him up but the ground beneath him is crumbling. Kai lets go of Cole's hand in an attempt to sacrifice himself so his friend can survive and find Jay, but Grime catches Kai midfall. The toads retreat into the woods, Kai once again their prisoner.

Season 2

- Cole and the Plantars leave to Newtopia to see if the newts know anything on how to get Cole home to Ninjago. When they arrive at the capitol city, they are attacked by barbariants, but are saved by Jay. They have an emotional reunion, drive out the barbariants and Jay takes them into Newtopia. Cole tells Jay about how he found Kai but the toads took him away so who knows where he is. Jay is releived to learn Kai is alright.

- The next day Jay introduces Cole and the Plantars to King Andrias. They talk the music box, Andrias suggests that Cole and the Plantars explore the city while he and Jay do some reaserch on the Calamity Box.

- Cole and Sprig bond over dead moms.

- Durring his research, Jay discovers some stuff about overworldy creatures and the prophecy surrounding the stones in the box. He decides to keep this to himself, thinking it to be seemingly unimportant. Little does he know, the Core is watching.

- Meanwhile Kai is being an absolute menace to Grime, and has driven away almost the entriety of the Toad Tower troops. Yunan eventually tracks them down as Grime is wanted by Newtopia due to what happened at Toad Tower. Kai initially uses this oppertunity to escape, but goes back to save Grime cuz ninja honor. Reveling in the victory, Grime begins to build a new toad army to take over Newtopia, Kai only helping so he can find away back to Ninjago.

- Andrias and Jay learn about how to recharge the stones using the three temples. The Plantars decide to return to Wartwood to get the music box from Hop-Pop's "scholarly contact," but Cole decides to go with them. While Jay is upset he understands the fondness his friend has for his frog found family and allows it.

- Durring his preperations for the temple quests, Jay discovers some more stuff about the box, what it does and what the ancient newts did. Jay is horrified at the aspect that Ninjago could be invaded if they charged the box. The Core threatens Andrias to deal with Jay before he learns too much, so Andrias lies to Jay saying that the newts have moved on from their conqureing lifestyle. Jay is willing to trust Andrias as he's been nothing but honest and kind to him, but he still has a little cautious suspision.

- The temple arc plays out the same, Jay charges the green stone of Wit, Cole partially charges the blue stone of Heart, Kai reunites with the boys and charges the pink stone of Strength.

- After the boys spend some time together, they head to Newtopia to return home. But then the toad rebellion happens and everyone tries to stop it, except Jay. Jay tries to stop Cole from closing the gates, trying to warn his friend about what the ancient newts did and his fears that Andrias might try to invade Ninjago, but Cole insists that Jay is just being paranoid and panicy as he usually is. This results in a fight that Cole wins.

- Andrias reveals his true colours and his plans to invade and conqure Ninjago. The three ninja fight him off and his frobots, but he drops Sprig out to his supposed death which causes Cole to fully resonate with the blue stone and unlock his Cole-amity Powers (I'm sorry for the awful pun), mixed in with his earth element abilities and Andrias gets destroyed, but Cole passes out. Jay manages to save Sprig and opens a portal back to Ninjago, Kai and Grime try to hold Andrias back, Cole and the Plantars make it to the portal, but Jay is impailed by Andiras's giant flaming sword. Everything is white and Cole finds himself in the monastery's courtyard with the Plantars, but no Calamity Box, no Kai or Jay

Season 3

- Lloyd, Zane, Nya, Wu and Pixal have an emotional reunion with Cole, and ask questions about what happened, where are Kai and Jay, who're the giant talking frogs? Cole tells them everything, about Amphibia, Andrias, the strange powers, what happened to Jay. After hearing his story, everyone at the monastery is determinded to figure out a way back to Amphiba so they can stop Andrias, get Kai and Jay back and return the Plantars home. Until then the frog family stays at the monastery.

- Back in Amphibia, Kai and Grime managed to escape Newtopia and flee to Wartwood. They unite together the people of the valley into a resistance, using Wartwood as a base.

- Jay is placed in a rejuvination tank to recover from his wound. Andrias sends out a cloakbot to hunt down Cole, but it was extremly unprepared for the full might of the ninja. Olivia and Yunan try to rescue Jay, but fail. The Core reveals itself and intends to make Jay it's host. While it would've prefered someone who could beat Andrias at flipwart, Jay was good enough to do. And thus "Day" is born (a stupid name but it's just like how Darcy was named, being a combo of "Dark Jay")

- After a lot of time and effort, the ninja make a portal back to Amphibia using a mix of highly potent Traveller's Tea and Cole's Calamity Powers. Nya insists on joining Cole and the Plantars back to Amphibia because she isn't going to stand by while her brother and boyfriend are still stuck in this world while a giant newt is preparing to conqure Ninjago. And so Cole, Nya and the Plantars return to Amphibia while Lloyd, Zane, Pixal and Wu make preparations to defend Ninjago for when Andrias invades.

- Emotional Smith sibling reunion, Kai introduces them to the Resistance and inform them that Jay is alive but taken prisoner. The Resistance increase their numbers while the ninja and Plantars go to learn of the stone's prophecy from Mother Olm (Nya is a little jelous that the boys get cool anime powers).

- Final battle time. Pt1, Begining of the End. Basing their plan on a Fritz Donigan movie, the Resistance fight off the frobot army and Andrias while Cole, Kai, Nya, the Plantars and Grime sneak into the castle to get the Calamity Box and rescue Jay. One Lava vs Yulivia dance fight later and they make it to the box, but it's a trap and everyone is captured by Day. Day calls the ninja out on how they've treated Jay; calling him expendable, the least valuble ninja, not taking his fears and worries seriously. Once the Resistance flees upon seeing their leaders captured the invasion of Ninjago begins.

- Pt2, All In. Lloyd has gathered an army of friends and foes to defend Ninjago from the overworldy invading forces. The Amphibia team manage to escape the castle, regroup with the rest of the ninja and make a plan to stop the invasion. Kai, Nya and Grime disable the sheild surrounding the castle while everyone else fights off the frobots. Andrias challenges Cole to a fight to decide the fate of Ninjago, while Kai and Nya fight Day (Grime distracting some frobots). Durring the fight, Nya protects Kai from a lethal blow, resulting in her getting "dis-armed." The two fights play off the same as normal, Cole being reinvigorated with rock instead of k-pop, Sprig bringing Andrias to his senses with Leif's letter, Day getting distracted by controlling Andrias allowing Kai to free Jay from the hivemind by cutting the helmet's cord.

- Speaking of Jay, the Core tries to lull him into staying with a world akin to Prime Empire and fake versions of the ninja. Eventually Jay sees through the Core's lies and stands up to it. He is able to be saved before the Core could fully assimilate him. Emotional reunion between the dumbass trio.

- Pt3, The Hardest Thing. The boys return to Amphibia to finish some little things, Nya stays in Ninjago to get her wound checked out. The moon then begins to fall and the boys unlock their true Calamity Forms as they fight off the Core with their calamity and elemental powers, but Kai and Jay quickly begin to tire out as this is they're not used to the powers unlike Cole. Having no other choice, Cole calls upon the powers of all three stones, destroying the Core but dying in the process. He then meets the stones creator who offers him a chance to become guardian of the multiverse, which he declines. The guardian brings Cole back to life and the boys say their goodbyes to Amphibia, returning to Ninjago at long last.

- All six ninja finally reunite. Jay builds Nya a cool robo prostetic, feeling guilty about being the one to cause her to loose an arm but Nya reassures him it wasn't his fault, it was Core. Cole talks to Lloyd about the whole dying and meeting the stones creators and them offering him the oppertunity to become guardian of the multiverse, to which Lloyd gets some de ja vu from the time he died after stopping the oni, meeting the FSM and getting offered a chance to join him. Zane makes records on Amphibia based on the stores Kai Jay and Cole have told everyone. Things quickly go back to some form of peacful normal, until another villain decides to attack the city. Just another day in Ninjago as they say

[swampythesweetsketch]

Cult of The Dragon AU

A Ninjago and Cult of The Lamb AU

The Main Six

Lloyd - Green - The New Deity of Destruction

The last dragon among the living and son of the previous Deity of Destrcution, Garmadon. When he hatched, years have passed and his father's soul (in the form of his crown) leads him on his journey to accumulate his own cult. His journey brings him among friends and enemies, some of which he must decide who is trustworthy.

Jay - Blue - Unwilling Beast of Hunger

A octopus once set on the chopping block in a fish market, Jay was saved by a nice dog couple Ed and Edna. As time passed in his home, The Sea of Sand, a new cult leader Pythor had taken over the brutal terrain and turn his cult members into cannibalistic monsters who snatch the dwindling non-cult population for their meals. Jay and his parents were unlucky enough to be taken in, but with Jay bearing resemblance to a once great desert monster, Pythor has changed him with black magic into a being not even his poor parents recognize.

Kai - Red - Swordsmith of Ignacia

Once part of a renowned family of fighters and swordsmiths, Kai lived in a remote village in Ignacia with his baby sister Nya and their parents. When their parents, the strongest fighters in the village, were killed off by Samukai's cult; The rest of the village split up and ran to save themselves, only to be picked off and killed. Leaving Kai and Nya the only real survivors of the village. While Kai may of not learned the whole ropes of smithing before his home fell apart, he well makes up for it by making wild and enchanted weapons for fighters to buy.

Nya - Cyan - The Executioner

Her first memories were of her small village being torn apart by cultists and her older brother, Kai, carrying her to safety. As she began to grow up, Nya vowed to kill any cultists she finds. Which in her early years of battling have given her a little too close encounter with death. She improved, and now seen as the Executioner to many. But not all journeys are without peril, and Nya gets captured by Samukai's cult to be sacrificed to their Deity, Garmadon! She hopes that she can break free. If not, then it's up to Kai and Lloyd to rescue her...

Cole - Black - Wayward Trader and Semi-Thief

A lone ram that travels to forget his past, Cole has been traversing the mountains, valleys, and cities of Ninjago as a independent seller. He doesn't hate cults, but he knows the dangers that come from being sucked into one, yet stills does business with them once in a while. As he and Lloyd meet, Cole is on his way to his favorite bazaar when they discover Master Chen taking his fellow traders as prisoners on his island. Even if he doesn't want to, Cole joins Lloyd as they journey to Tournament Island to save his buddies and maybe steal some cool stuff along the way?

Zane - White - The dethroned Deity of Home Found as a little owlet with promising powers to protects and elongate live and prosperity by his "father" Dr. Jullien, Zane was a mortal promoted to deity in the Cult of Birchwood. Until a new figure came into power shortly after his father's death and being casted out. Now forced to watch his old home fall apart under a new deity's power, Zane has changed his ways to become a resource trader. Happilly marries to his crow wife Pixal, and father to several babies with his youngest Gidgette on his head at all times. He seeks Lloyd out for help as his home is now on the cusp of death as the new deity, the Overlord, vows to consume the cult's lifeforce and use his vessel to find another cult once done ruining the current.

[sadisthetic]

Dude your Jaya hanahakai au is everything. If you're not gonna write that uhhhh can I???? 'Cause it's so creative and intricate. Utter genius bro

Also I really love the unrequited/stay friends ending and the requieted ending. They're both just so good and so well thought out (i also dont want jay to die lmao). Also YES!!! GIVING NYA AGENCY!! You put so much consideration into her feelings and it's making me bark like a feral little dog. Like the worst thing about skybound is how it treats Nya as a character and I just shhdjdjd. This is driving me insane. Ninjago's writing makes me ill but yours has me on my knees.

THANK YOU.............. DRAMATICALLY FALLS TO MY HANDS AND KNEES..... SWEET FEEDBACK AND BOOST TO MY EGO.... i was insane while writing that entire au too.

ALSO ITS FUNNY... I WROTE SO MUCH ABOUT NYAS FEELINGS IN THIS AU BECAUSE IT WAS ENTIRELY NECESSARY. LIKE. I HAD TO. especially for requited end. i knew when i got to that point in the story where i had to address i knew it in my heart that this was like. the most important part. nyas feelings are so important in this au.... and i knew without proper explanation/justification of nyas feelings of why she falls in love with jay again the au Simply Would Not Work. all that consideration is me doing the intense relationship math (math? i dunno. its a process of some sort.) TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO MAKE THEM WORK. because if anything. jaya should is a relationship that requires work. not effortless in the slightest.

i love jaya. its technically a terrible romance. fucking absolutely wretched and tormented by obligatory heterosexual writing. it only exists because straight writers Have to write het tax into their shows for some goddamn reason. but also. its the ship of all time. its because im delusional and have thought about it so much and put so much thought into how their relationship should BE and also wrote so much meta and shit to fill in the massive gaps in their relationship that canon doesnt address or skips over. YOU SEE JAYA IS ACTUALLY SO FUCKING INTERESTING AS A RELATIONSHIP. ITS SO INTERESTING BECAUSE ITS A FUCKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THEY ACTUALLY HAVE VERY LITTLE CHEMISTRY AS COUPLE. AND YET AND YET AND YET. THEY LOVE EACH OTHER. THEY GET TOGETHER ON SUPERFICIAL TERMS. THEY BREAK UP. THEY GET TOGETHER AGAIN. BECAUSE THEY LOVE EACH OTHER. in my eyes they arent a perfect match for each other. actually. thats literally canon. jay isnt nyas perfect match (god i think about s3 so fucking much i hate it) but they love each other anyways and end up together in the end despite the things theyve gone through. i think theres something real about that. love that is mismatched and tried but they Work through it anyways. thats romance baby. theres something very romantic about love that takes effort (is the guy who is putting all the effort into the ship) (very delusional) (but very self aware about it)

jaya is like. a brain teaser. its like a fun puzzle for my brain to solve (fix) because its such a travesty in canon. the gordians knot of ninjago ships. i love thinking about it so much. i thought about it so much ive tricked myself into becoming a massive shipper who screams whenever they do something cute together

oh fuck im sorry i forgot to answer your question bc i got so fucking heated about jaya. its because im insane about them. it just happened. fuck. jaya............................ i love divorce...... anyways

YES you can write my au. because i certainly dont have the stamina to do it myself. i would like if you credited me for the idea tho if youre gonna use my plot beats. but otherwise? Feel Free. go nuts. i love fanfiction. i always think of my stories as fanfic anyways and man i sure do wish i could read my own au as a fic. but i lack the capacity to write this beast of an au in full. so like. someone else might as well. if you do. have fun

[marv3l-drag0ns]

someone's probably already done this math but fuck it its impressive.

So Cole (Ninjago), in S1E7, lifts a very large amount of weight as well as Nya and Jay above his head.

the two bigger weights on the bar are probably 45lbs each, adding to 90 on each side. The smaller ones might be 25lbs each, adding to 50 on each side, for a total of 280 on the bar alone. The bar itself should weigh around 45 lbs, which brings us to a total of 325.

The average man weighs around 180lbs- women probably weigh lighter but theyre also both young, so 180 for jay and nya each seems reasonable. Lets say the turkey weighs 20lbs. Those weights are probably 20lbs each, so 60+180+180. This adds to 340 lbs- impressive by itself, you'd think.

However, the type of lift changes things. One of the lifts that can get the most weight are deadlifts- lifting from the ground up to around your midsection. The current world record is around 1104lbs as of 2021. There are also squat lifts, which also have an astounding amount of weight at around 1069lbs. Squat lifts are preformed with the bar on the shoulders, and then squatting down before coming back up.

Neither of these lifts lift the bar over the head- while the lift preformed in the show does not match the usual snatch-lift form, that is one of the only lifts that bring the bar over the head. The current record for snatch lifts is 496 pounds in the highest weightclass of 240 lbs.

Cole ends up lifting around 665 lbs at very basic weight calculations. There is one weight on the right side that is bigger than the other, probably to balance out the weight of nya being a) probably lighter than jay and b) the fact that jay is holding an extra 20 lbs. This could increase his weight lifted by around 20-30lbs for an even lift.

In summary: Cole is a beast. Don't challenge him to a lift competition, and probably also an arm wrestling competition just in case.

[sicksucculentz]

More feral Zane au head canons

- He listens to Nya more than the boys. He can be a bit onery, a pain in the ass.

- He gets the zoomies at exactly 5am almost every night. Sometimes he leaves the monastery, sometimes he annoys his brothers by staying inside and zipping around making noise.

- He stomps his feet as warnings. Not both at the same time but just one, hard into the ground, and evenly spaced in timing. It is a warning to stay back, go away or he's going to attack. He doesn't allow himself to be backed into a corner. He holds his ground right away and takes care of the threat as it appears.

- He builds stick forts. He's really good at it. Not only do they hold up very well they also look amazing.

- Very very very light sleeper. Lloyd's hearing is around the same so the both of them can hear things before the rest of the team can. Zane always perks up when he hears something suspicious, this always scares the team when he does this because he never tells them what he can hear. He snaps awake at the slightest sound and due to being a robot he doesn't have to deal with grogginess.

- He can make this startling sharp yet deep sounding snorts. The snorts are really more of a sharp exhale of breath, but it sounds like a beast. He only does this when he's angry or play fighting. He knows it's play fighting when it comes to his team and will not seriously hurt his team mates, just a lot of pushing, shoving, yanking around, that kind of stuff.

- Zane, Lloyd, and Pixal all sun bathe when it’s nice out. They just lay out on the ground or in the grass soaking up the sun. Lloyd uses Pixal or Zane as a pillow most of the time.

- When the team was just Jay, Cole, and Zane and they were just getting to know Zane they decided they wanted to test how feral/intelligent he is. They also just wanted a laugh so they did that goofy prank you do on pets when you drop the blanket and run behind the wall so it looks like you vanished. Zane just started eating Cole’s candy he had left near Zane as fast he could.

- Due to news spreading that Zane was raised by tree horns the once forgotten species was dragged back into the light. Zane helped publish more research on these creatures sense he was the only one that could interact with them. For Zane he is doing this to preserve the species, to try and protect them.

- The team was a little worried when a thunder storm hit during one occasion because it was the first thunderstorm with Zane. They thought he was going to freak out. Turns out it was Cole that was freaking out and Zane was just as calm as always.

- Kai and Nya had the worst first impression of him when they joined. They ended up accidentally meeting him first. He was shirtless, covered in dirt, and digging around. The paused, stared at them over his shoulder, then darted away.

- Wu was PISSED when he found out the team got Zane hooked on pizza and video games. Ooooh he was mad.

- for someone that grew up with wild animals he’s shockingly organized and clean. He picks up after himself, organizes things, and even picks up after others.

- Slept in the same tree house his father built. Samiki had already kidnapped his father so as far as he knew he had just found the tree house. He’s feral but he’s smart, he knows sleeping out in the open would get him killed.

- Zane and Lloyd did not connect or really interact with eachother until Lloyd was older. At that point Zane had died and come back in a new body. The loss of Zane made Lloyd appreciate Zane as a friend and he started doing things with Zane .

- It's warmer in ninjago then the snowy birch forest he came from. He can't really handle warmer temperatures but he doesn't complain. He always takes his gi top off and leave it off all day all night when they are not on missions or fighting. His ribs do show but that's just because he has a slightly wider built ribcage like structure.

- He can speak the language of tree horn. It’s really all about body language and the tone in witch you make noise that conveys points. You could yell and scream aggressive compliments at tree horns but all they know is that your yelling in an aggressive manor and take it as a threat, a challenge, or even think they have done something wrong. Tree horns can be affectionate with those of the same species and show affection towards one another for encouragement or a type of “misunderstanding” signal to one another when messages go misread. Zane displays this behavior with his team, an interesting look for them into what Zane used to deal with.

- He always could speak, always understood what people were saying to him he just couldn’t really bring himself to speak with so many people watching and counting on him.

- Borg was actually a little nervous about having Pixal and Zane dating each other. As a father he worried for his daughter, worried that Zane would become unstable and hurt his daughter. All this worry was based on Zane’s feral state. He approved of Zane after he found out Zane have up half his heart to his daughter. He gave him his blessing right away, beating himself up over judging Zane like that. After Zane died…He cried for days. He felt as if he had lost a son. When Zane was found alive Borg hugged that boy so tight, tight enough he was hurting himself.

- He makes little whimpers, sighs, squeaks, and little hums in his sleep. All of them are very brief and don’t happen a lot. The noises can be hard to hear.

- Sometimes he sleeps under his bed. He takes a pillow and a blanket, crawls under the bed, curls up, and goes right to sleep. He used to do this because he wasn’t used to the surroundings and the new people, now he just does it when it’s too bright or just for the hell of it.

- Dareth shockingly never got kicked! He seemed to perfectly understand Zane. They hang out together and eat snacks. They spar together sometimes.

- The first signal that Zane was starting to come around and bond with his team was taking food given to him. He dosent eat anything from people he dosent know unless it’s a restaurant. He first took food from Jay. Jay was also the first to become closer with him. He still gently pets Zane’s head like he did when they were awkward aqauintences.

- Cole nearly squealed when he woke up from a nap on the sofa to find Zane using his stomach as a pillow. He really had to pee but Zane looked so peaceful! He was stuck there for an hour.

- Kai wasn’t going to let Nya and Zane be alone together. He was worried Zane would bite her or something. He later found out Zane is more scared of Nya then Nya is of him.

- He digs. He’s seriously good at tunneling! He gets the depth just right so the tunnel dosent collapse. He has a sandbox that Cole and Jay made him. Different team members will randomly burry things in the sandbox for him to find later, mostly wrapped candies or other wrapped foods. He loves it. The team calls it “his diggies” it’s very cute. Zane later has to share his sandbox with Benthomarr witch he was fine with.

- His friends hold him by the back of his neck to keep him from walking away. Just a gentle hold. Pixal holds him by a loose handful of hair. She’s not pulling his hair just gently holding it, it dosent hurt him at all.

- He’s scared of spiders and snakes. He will get on top of something and repeat the name of creature until someone else takes care of it. He will kick the shit out of an oni but he freaks out over a little spider.

- He brings different team members different things but he only brings Pixal feathers and flowers. Those two things are reserved for romance in his mind. The fancier the feather the more significance.

- Friendship items he gives to those that are not romanticly involved with him would be: cool rocks, interesting shaped sticks, wood carvings, sometimes money he finds,

[miakwat]

@lady-eclipse3 this took me a lot longer than I originally thought but 👁👁

Teen Titans/Ninjago crossover time

Intro:

-The ninja (and maybe PIXAL) end up in the Teen Titans’ Realm through some Tomorrow’s Tea/Realm Crystal hijinks (depending on when you want this to take place) (Leaning towards post MoTO though)

-Maybe they’re not quite able to communicate with anybody because I headcanon they speak a mixture of different Chinese dialects and Japanese (so even if they did manage to find somebody who spoke any of those languages it’d seem to messy to properly grasp)

-They eventually end up in jump and run into the Titans, maybe through them attempting to stop a break in?

-Cole uses his element and for a split second Beast Boy thinks Terra’s back

-Zane remains disguised throughout most of their time trying to figure out where they are

-Starfire ends up being their main translator at that point, but she has to learn their language first since she can only pick up bits of Japanese from them (no romantic subplot, probably just whoever she kissed getting really flustered)

(Maybe Robin can also pick up bits of Mandarin and Cantonese, but like Starfire, can’t really get the main point of what any of them have to say)

-They’re all taken back to the tower, and maybe Raven figures out a translation spell some time after (thinking something like Miss Martian’s mind link translation from YJ)

-Zane (and PIXAL) could also download English into his database

-Later on Raven also finds that dimension travel spell she used in that one tie in comic, but maybe some in story conflict comes up that postpones it?

Extra:

-When Zane’s revealed to be a Nindroid Cyborg‘s just shocked

Like he doesn’t know what to do for a second before

- Jay and Nya are also rather interested in how Cyborg works and I’d imagine he’d get pulled to the side by Jay, Nya, and Zane a lot

-Lloyd notices really quickly how similar Robin and Kai are

Hot headed teens with spiky hair who always put family before themselves and have unhealthily obsessed over mysteries? Lloyd didn’t think there could be more than one Kai (again) but here they are

-Raven notices the slight demonic presence coming from Lloyd and keeps an eye on him

Of course, nothing happens, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful

- Maybe Raven confronts them about it and Lloyd’s like “lmao yeah I’m part oni and dragon” and then gives no context whatsoever

-Beast Boy (and sometimes the others) gets uneasy whenever Cole uses his element and when the ninja ask them about it they dodge the question

- Maybe eventually they cave and tell them about Terra

“My girlfriend turned into the element she used to control”

“Aw Sorry man. It’d suck if Nya turned into water, so I feel you :(“

-Maybe the Terra explanation turns into the two teams sharing their experiences and they see some similarities?

- Lloyd and Raven both prevented apocalypses and fulfilled prophecies

- Kai and Robin both had an antagonist take an interest in them and give them offers to join their side

- They’ve all encountered schools literally designed to train villains?

“Your world just... Let a school for evil people be built?”

“Was H.I.V.E. Academy not legally funded???”

-At one point they realize how similar their slogans are (ie. “Titans go!” “Ninja go!”)

-Robin learns spinjitzu send tweet

Oh my god that was so long oops 🏃

Anyways it’s eleven where I am so I apologize if any of this is confusing, but thank you for sitting through my late night ramblings 😌