#how many times. do you think he sent his own voice messages to Zane when he died or Nya when she turned into the ocean.

[inkbagel]

Listened to wyldfyres voice notes….

[ramspatula]

Galanthus Nivalis | Zane Julien x fem!reader

I love you, Mr Julien and that’s the problem. Because you’ll never love me. It’s not in your programming.

“There’s nothing here but a load of junk!”

Zane felt an unease fall over him. No. Jay was not correct. There was something here. Something he needed. The military site had been abandoned decades ago when the base suddenly collapsed in itself. It was a secret society in itself. The site hadn’t been found since the survivors left. Many whom are dead now. Zane knelt down. Ignoring how the white of his gi dirtied on the ashy floor beneath him. He moved a piece of rubble to see a chip. He picked it up and analysed it before turning it over and carefully wiping the dirt off the back so he could read what had been labelled on it.

‘Galanthus Nivalis’ - (Snowdrops)

Zane felt his body seize up before he carefully wrapped his hand around the chip and held it to where his heart would be. A distant yell brought him out his daze. Lloyd was trying to round up all the ninja in order to make their way back to the monastery. Zane quickly moved some more rubble and saw a dirtied manual that was now discoloured and had the corner singed from what ever fire had caused the building to collapse. He put both the chip and the manual into his gi’s pocket and made his way back to the group.

“Well that was a waste of time.” Cole said, arms crossed and leaning against the wall of the bounty.

“I totally forgot to give Pearl my laundry as well.” Kai also complained and Lloyd shoved him.

“First of all- Wash your own clothes. Second. We got the call and the coordinates. Clearly we were needed here for something.” Lloyd told him and Zane felt himself frown.

“I did not receive any call… it is not in our voicemail records.” Zane said and Lloyd frowned.

“Well not us- but the military who sent it to the commissioner- who got in contact with us.” Lloyd explained and the others nodded.

“Can I hear this message?” Zane asked and Lloyd shrugged before typing on the Bounty’s control deck.

“I’d have to ask Peach… she’s got the transmitter- it was sent through this old radio thing and the military had only found the thing and got it working the other day… it’s part of the original distress call. It was only recovered the other day.” Lloyd explained as the others listened.

“Holy shit- wait were we just in a burial ground?!” Jay freaked and Kai hit him upside the head.

“It is not clear what happened when the site collapsed but those survivors do not and have not spoke of it since… many were just moved to another site afterwards so it can be assumed that it was just an unfortunate incident.” Zane told him and Jay nodded.

A phone call from the Police commissioner interrupted their conversation.

“Sir?” Lloyd answered and he heard the commissioner sigh.

“Any luck boys?” He asked and Lloyd with his mask on shook his head.

“We’re not quite sure what we’re looking for.” Lloyd admitted and the commission t’sked before there was some rumbling on the line and a new voice could be heard.

“This is colonel Froy. I hope you know I lost many of my men and people I considered family at that site… what you’re looking for is anything of importance. What they were doing there, no one knew about and well, we want to know about it. So have you boys found anything?!” The colonel questioned and Zane felt immediately defensive over the chip in his pocket.

“A couple burnt medals, singed books, a few weapons. All the files are empty. There’s a lot of rubble here though, you’d be best to have an excavation team out here rather than us.” Lloyd told the man who sighed.

“Whatever out there went for them… can surely try again. It’s bear for those more durable than others to look… they were doing some wild shit out there if none of us were allowed to know about it. I don’t think I could bear the thought of someone else finding out before us.” The colonel said and Lloyd was quick to answer.

“Then we’ll make sure that there’s nothing of value here. We’ll let you know once we’re finished here.” The call ended and the rest of the ninja groaned.

“There is literally nothing here!” Jay exclaimed and kicked some storage box on the deck of the bounty aside.

“I don’t think I can bare moving anymore rubble today.” Cole added and the rest nodded.

“I have scanned the area… there is nothing of any significance to the military here.” Zane added to the ninja’s surprise.

“Zane… that’s not very like you.” Lloyd said, suspiciously. “What have you found today?” He asked Zane who stared blankly at him.

“Nothing of any importance to you or the military.” Zane told Lloyd who eyed him weirdly before turning to the others.

“One more search and then we’ll go home.” Lloyd concluded and the ninjas groaned.

“The first thing I go on without Nya in years and now I’m not going to see her till I go to bed!” Jay exclaimed and Kai pushed his shoulder.

“Yeah she needs the time away from you unlike my girl! She’s still just settling into the monastery!” Kai exclaimed and Cole shoved them both off the deck.

“Seriously Lloyd. I’m going to have a deodorant can hurled at my forehead for this. You owe me one.” Cole said to Lloyd who continued typing on the Bounty’s computer.

“My wife isn’t going to be pleased either… it’s just how our jobs work. They get it… Peach has to go on missions too. I get it.” Lloyd explained and Cole frowned.

“Yeah well… Maybe she’d enjoy her husband being home with her more often… Want to help me with some rubble, Zane?” Cole asked and Zane shook his head.

“I will head down shortly.” He said and Cole nodded before jumping off the Bounty. Zane turned to Lloyd who rubbed his temples. “I think it’s right to add that Peach does not react as extreme as Pearl does to these late missions.” Zane added and Lloyd briefly looked back at him.

“Yeah I know… we talk a lot more than they think we do. Cole just hears it all from Pearl it’s not… it’s not that hard for us. Not as it has been.” Lloyd took a deep breath and faced Zane. “You understand, right?” Zane did understand. He understood all the complications that came from loving someone. Even after being separated from each other for a long time and after thinking that they no longer existed. “I mean you and Pixal have been with each other for almost as long as us.” Yes. Him and Pixal.

“Yes, I understand.” Zane nodded and walked away and got off the bounty. He took the chip out his pocket and sighed before clenching his fist around it.

He should leave it here. She wouldn’t want this. She didn’t want this. But there is humanity in a program. A program that he missed dearly.

Whoever said robots couldn’t be selfish were deadly wrong. Zane was proof as he shoved the chip back in his pocket.

“Did you find something?” Cole asked, noticing Zane who sighed.

“It is complicated…” He said and Cole frowned. “I’ve found something significant to me although the true purpose cannot be served anymore which would make it useless but that is so demeaning to what this truly holds.” He said, distress evident in his face as Cole tried to decode what his upset friend meant.

“You really are weird, Zane.” He settled on and went back to hurling rubble.

“You are Zane Julien, and you still have a purpose, mine is long finished. Goodbye, Zane.”

“Someone once gave up their only form of life for me. If I can give them another form, should I do it?” Zane asked and Cole paused.

“Did you find something? Zane?” Cole asked and Zane nodded.

“I did.” He told him and Cole just nodded, walking away.

“They’re your friends Zane, your family, they need you. As I was once needed. A program is only useful if there is a need for it. You are needed.”

“I shouldn’t be alive”

“Neither should I, I am outdated. You are not. And you never will be. That is how you are built.”

He shouldn’t feel guilty. He shouldn’t feel. But he does. And it’s this guilt that leads him to not speak. To keep his silence about the programme in his pocket. He knew all about Galanthus Nivalis. He knew all about Snowdrops. And most importantly, he knew what they were looking for. He knew where she was.

Do you remember me, Mr Julien? I remember you. I remember everything.

“Galanthus Nivalis. That is our mission. What we are here for. What I was made for. We cannot keep quiet much longer. They will find us. I cannot initiate order protocol herbicides. I will not.” Peach sighed as the same message played again. She hit the old communicator slightly and if finally continued. “I do not have a name. I was a program built to help those with low communication and run all demands smoothly. Ensuring a strong connection all around the base whilst being a modern step towards an advanced future. The children called me Snowdrops. But I found that if you arrange the all the main letters of my manual, it spells Y/n. That is my name. What I would like to be remembered as. Not just a programme, if that is possible.”

Peach jumped up, making Pearl tumble in shock.

“Yes! Yes!” She exclaimed and Pearl looked at her dumbfounded.

“What?!” Pearl asked.

“There’s more of the message! I know what they’re looking for! This programme thingy! Pixal what can you tell us about Galanthus Nivalis and Snowdrops or Y/n!” Peach asked and the nindroid looked towards her, she was using her actual body today.

“Nothing.” The nindroid answered and Peach paused before Pearl began laughing.

“What?” Peach asked, perplexed.

“There is no record of Galnthus Nivalis or any programme like anywhere.” The droid said and Peach looked around.

“Oh my god… I’m going to have to start reading books.” She said and Pearl laughed more.

“What’s going on?” Cherry asked, that was not her name, everyone had just talk to calling her a set of different nicknames till they found one that fit. Peach really started a whole thing with having to cover up her name for years.

“The nindroid doesn’t know anything and I have to start searching books! I’m having a horrible day.” Peach vented and stepped over Pearl’s body on the floor.

“I can always check my Dad’s old archive for anything on programmes and military deals. He dealt specific high tech equipment and was shady in doing so… that’s why he ended up where he was.” Cherry asked and Peach nodded.

“Yes, please-! And your Dad’s business wasn’t the reason. It was Harumi and her pathetic need to hurt everyone.” Peach told the girl, offering her an encouraging smile.

“Fuck that hoe.” Pearl said, unceremoniously.

“Exactly that.” Peach said and winked causing Cherry to laugh.

“Made me think my man was dead.” Pearl added and the others turned to her as she vented to the floor. “Had just lost my best friend as well.” She said and Peach shook her head.

“I wasn’t dead, you just thought I was.”

“Because it said you were.” Pixal added and Peach paused.

“Well I wasn’t. Almost. But not.” Peach added and Pearl sat up.

“We’re seriously not talking about this again? It’s 1am girls, what are you still doing up?” Cole asked and swiftly dodged the TV remote that was dashed at his head.

“Waiting for you, dickhead!” Pearl swore and Cole made his way over to her.

“Zane! Just who I wanted to speak to!” Peach said, much to Lloyd’s disappointment, who assumed his wife would be most pleased to see him. “Pixal knows nothing so I need to know what you know about Galanthus Nivalis!” Peach announced and Lloyd frowned. Somehow missing how Zane completely froze up.

“You found out more?!” He asked and she pressed play on the audio log again and it repeated the message.

“Another programme? Like an Ai?” Jay asked and Zane nodded.

“Snowdrop is an advanced program. She was built by someone whose brilliance got her shot before she could expand on Snowdrop. Forever stuck in one model. Never updating.” There was a longing in his voice. Everyone looked at him perplexed.

“You know about this?!” Kai asked and Zane turned around.

“Galanthus Nivalis is something that we should never touch or let others know existed once. It is best to destroy this message and terminate any further action. Galanthus Nivalis was a haven for manslaughter and misguided attempts at furthering knowledge. It is best that can of worms remains closed.” Zane finished before walking away.

“How the hell did he know about that?” Cole questioned.

“Zane knows everything.” Pearl said, from where she laid dormant on the floor.

Zane didn’t sleep. He was a nindroid. But he did overthink. Pixal had sent herself in the samurai-X suit over to the prison to handle some rogue inmates. She likes these lower level jobs and spent every night doing them, meaning Zane was left alone in the monastery at night. Although they shared his heart, they did not feel love. Not anymore. Both had agreed long ago, that they were companions. They were not in a relationship. Pixal had lost many of her emotional response programmes after she merged herself with a body and AI. Borg offered to alter this but Pixal had disagreed and Zane didn’t object to Pixal’s wishes. Even if the loss of their relationship did affect his own emotional response stimulus. He had never told anyone about Snowdrops or snow. However he had mentioned Y/n to Pixal.

“I’ve been able to contact another programme and I believe nindroid! She shares a similar consensus to you, her name is P. I. X. A. L.”

“Pixal?”

“You know this nindroid?”

“Yes, I do. You do not have to do this.”

“By accessing her through my limited network access, I can bypass you through into hers and therefore gain you access to the world hub.”

“Thank you, Y/n, how will I ever repay you?”

“Serve your purpose, Zane.”

They had co-existed as two dead programmes. His short contact with the main power grid of ninjago had widened his access to different networks and data immediately. However, a reserve network that was running off minimal reserve power had absorbed some of his connection and harnessed it. Resulting in his existence in this abyss of old military records and all the files on Galanthus Nivalis. This data base and system didn’t feel as content as his own main frame and control grid had. The codes were different and Y/n existed as a 3D model of a feminine figure with visible codes running down her body. She could’ve easily been confused as human if it wasn’t for her translucent body with codes constantly running down her body.

Zane had been wrong though. Where they were was not some reserve power grid. It was her version of the digiverse. And he had been granted access to it through his brief contact with her. She admitted that she had an empathy function that made it so she felt emotions of longing and his permission was given as a quick response to the hope of not being lonely for longer. Which made him feel even more guilty and gave him the motivation to pick up the chip and march over to control grid of the monastery. He flipped a latch open where there was multiple wires and ports for different outlets. He presses the chip into the correct port without hesitation.

‘Galanthus Nivalis, Project Snowdrop initiated. Please prepare for changes as the system uploads to your server.’ The loading bar on the holoscreen made him even more nervous as it was quick to fill and soon a 3D model of a woman was turning to face him.

‘Mr Julien, do I detect an empathy response and stimuli?” Zane smiled. Y/n always had so much personality, she was built to be loving, a friend, someone people would want in a time of need. She filled more roles than any Ai had ever before.

“Yes, I can feel, I can love, it is in my programme.” He told her and her face lit up.

“It is in mine.” She said before suddenly everything in the monastery shut off except her. “The system is rebooting. I am assessing your security protocols. They are drastically different to mine.” She elaborated and Zane’s eyes widened in shock.

“Y/n- Snow- No!” Alarms suddenly blared, and the monastery began locking down. It turned off almost as quickly as it blared.

“Emergency response time is low. That isn’t good. Your security protocols are not as strict as one would hope.” She said and multiple others came tumbling into the room.

“Who decided an emergency drill was necessary right now?!” Jay’s voice whined out. His sleeping mask on his forehead. Cole stood next to him, matching mask on his forehead too.

“This better be good, Pearl shot up like a light and summoned my grandma in her fear!” Cole added, a lethargic Pearl appeared next to him.

“I know so many facts about carnations! Number one, they don’t fucking squeal in the dead of the morning!” Pearl yelled and Peach shoved her.

“Zane, talk to us. What’s going on?” Peach said and Zane stayed frozen as the 3D figure became life sized and walked to the ninjas.

“I am Y/n. Or Snowdrop! The first AI reality model. I offer humanity and I am designed to make your life easier!” The Ai introduced herself but the others froze. Peach specifically.

“Y/n?” Peach said, matter of fact. “Snowdrops? Like- like that thing we’ve been talking about all day-“

“Yeah, yeah- whatever Peach is saying. Did she just say that she’s designed to make our life easier? Like she’s actually going to a part of it easier? Who is this again?” Kai asked, Cherry following in behind him.

“What Y/n means is that she will run the monastery. She was designed for more domestic purposes but can learn different purposes. Y/n would be able to take over all security protocols and make sure the monastery is protected whilst we’re not here along with her companionship protocols. She can teach the monks their academic classes, this would lessen the stress on the older monks.” Zane elaborated.

“That’s great, really, but- why was now the time you decided to boot her up and have her take over our home?” Lloyd asked. Kai nodded, Cherry leaned on him, trying to stay awake.

“It is- I- the emergency drill was not intended to happen.” Zane tried to explain himself.

“You’re security protocols are mundane at best for high profile beings and place. In an event of another attack, it would not hold up against the kind of targets you expect.” Y/n told them.

“I, along with Pixal, made those security protocols.” Nya defended and Y/n nodded in her direction.

“I’m sorry if I have offended you but I was taught that it always better to be safe than sorry.” Y/n told her and Nya’s face dropped.

“Taught? Or programmed?” She asked and Zane’s face morphed into disappointment.

“Taught. Do you believe those of us who are encrypted with programming cannot learn?” Zane asked and Nya’s face dropped.

“No- I just meant-!” Nya tried to cover herself.

“It is alright. I understand the pre-conceived notion that all programs and intelligence systems do not have sentience or internal processes similar to internal cognitive ones.” Y/n spoke up and Zane shook his head.

“That’s not what I think- I’m just…” Nya sighed and rubbed her face.

“I think we should all head back to bed and regroup about this in the morning. Sound good?” Lloyd asked and everyone around nodded.

“Whatever gets me back in bed.” Cole told him as Pearl trailed behind him.

“-no! Your hair is not going to be crimped. We bought those silk pillow cases for that reason!” Kai could be heard telling Cherry who was clutching her heatless curls band.

“Zane can I quickly have a word?” Lloyd asked and Zane nodded. Peach stopped herself from leaving to stay with him only for Lloyd to shake his head and kiss her cheek before sending her off with the promise that he’d be back in bed soon.

Lloyd waited until the others were all gone before turning to the nindroid in question.

“Okay, who is Snowdrop and why has she took over our systems?” Lloyd asked and Zane looked away, shyly.

“Snowdrop is an artificial-“ Zane began but Lloyd shook his head.

“No. Who is she, Zane? Who is she to you and what made you decide to bring her here?” Lloyd specified and Zane looked up at him for a moment before back at Y/n who nodded.

“Back when I destroyed myself in defeating the overlord, a piece of my hardware had been kept in a reserve store. I didn’t place it there, I had brief contact when we had gone to the power plant and Y/n, detecting my brief presence, acted quickly and redirected a part of my consciousness to be stored in the reserve store where her program was being kept originally. It was hidden and unknown. She had been there for almost 20 years.” Zane explained and Lloyd nodded, telling him to continue. “We spend months just existing together and re-piecing my program together and my memory before Y/n was able to detect Pixal and the reminent of my body and original hardware. She was able to create a direct link into Borg’s systems where I made contact with Pixal again and later transferred myself back into my body. It took a while for the full transition and my memory pieces together over time but my elemental power was still strong within me until Chen’s island and all of that happened.” Zane said and Lloyd frowned.

“And what happened to Snow? That was almost a decade ago, Zane.” Lloyd asked and Zane looked down, ashamed.

“I went to go find her again but the location we had been in, hidden and unknown… was gone. The link to it was gone and to her too. And then I was occupied on Chen’s island and I searched afterwards with no luck. And then I found the last record of her program amongst all the rubble, it called out to me and I knew I had to bring her back, to be with her again. Now that I am able to.” Zane told him and Lloyd nodded.

“I get that, I really do Zane but Y/n doesn’t belong with us. Especially if the military is after her. She is obviously needed for another purpose.” Lloyd told her. “She is a part of Galanthus Nivalis is she not?” He asked and Zane frowned.

“They intend to destroy her! She had no purpose with them but she does with us! I can’t let them do that, Lloyd.” Zane defended and Lloyd placed a hand on his shoulder.

“With you, Zane. You care for her. Enough to take her program and enough to install it into our home just to see her again. Now, I’m going to go back to bed and I’ll talk to you first thing when I wake up. But we really need to consider our options here.” Lloyd told him before making his way out the room.

Zane turned back to Y/n who stared at him. He sighed and looked into her eyes that met him perfectly. He couldn’t give her up or send her away or let her be completely destroyed especially after he had finally got her back.

“I won’t let them take you.” He declared and she smiled.

“I’m afraid your friend is right.” Y/n told him and he frowned. “I don’t belong here. I am outdated and like you said, I have no purpose. A program is only useful-“ Y/n began but was cut off.

“-if it is needed. I know.” Zane sighed and looked at her again. “You are needed. You can have a new purpose, with us and the monastery. You say you are outdated yet within the first few minutes you detected that there were issues with our security. A couple updates here and there can solve any outdated concerns.” Zane told Y/n who smiled.

“You do care for me, Mr Julien.” Y/n stated and Zane smiled.

“Of course, it’s in my programming.” He told her and she smiled.

[m-aster-of-spinjitzu]

error 404: answer not found

Akita and Zane talk after the battle in 'Awakenings'. The conversation... doesn't go as either of them expect.

Prompt: memories, from @ninjago-bingo​‘s warm board:D

Trigger warnings: implied self harm (one or two characters dig their fingernails into their hands), discussion and introspection about most of the crimes the 'Emperor' committed, a lot of talk and introspection about murder.

Word count: 4682 (I've literally been writing this for like a month lol, kinda disappointed it ended up fairly short:/)

"We have to talk."

The girl with red markings on her face - Akita, he heard Lloyd call her - unsheathes her short dagger, eyes narrowed to slits.

He glances around the throne room, hands pressed to his head. The memories were still trickling through; strange islands and a forest of snow, a dungeon and... a noodle factory?

"Alright," he says quietly. She bears the same red marks of the bear he can remember Vex convincing him was a criminal, many winters ago. That could only mean-

It wasn't you, he reminds himself. It was the scroll, and the actions of a power hungry traitor.

You gave the order, his now infallible memory supplies, and, honestly, he has no rebuttal for that.

"Alright," he echoes meekly, trying to muster some emotion into his voice. "I know-"

"No," she cuts him off roughly, her eyes scanning the room. It is just the two of them now - the samurai had fled once they had recovered from the strange trance he had put them in. Vex had been locked in the dungeon by Lloyd, who was helping any of the samurai who could not quite remember their old lives.

He had ruled for sixty years. Some of their families might dead, some by their own hands.

They know this. He knows this.

Irrationally, he wishes there was some way to fix this. A spell, or a way to turn back the clock; some way to yell at a younger Zane to just scout the cave-

There is no way backward; only forward, out of this winter - and, possibly, into another one.

He stares at the girl in front of him, taking in her tattered clothing, the ease with which she holds her weapon. She's not afraid to fight.

"I don't owe you an explanation, Emperor," Akita says definitely, forcing out the words. "But you will give me one, or you shall never see the light of day again. My brother-"

His heart lurches, eyes widening. Brother.

"Knows that the dungeon has many empty cells," she finishes sharply, barely contained anger flashing in her eyes.

He keeps the facts brief, concise. Once this is all over, he can dwell on them - agonize over what he should have done; use it to be better next time. Atone for his mistakes, even if he can never truly make up for them.

"A snake capable of sorcery used a magic scepter to blast me and a vehicle to this realm. I was sent here sixty years into the past, which is why it took my friends so long to find me. I was also holding a similar magic scepter - one which amplifies the holder's power, but if held for too long, it corrupts one's mind."

"I know what happens next."

How-

"I watched your message to your friends," she replies curtly, by way of explanation. "I did not know that you and the Emperor were one and the same. Continue."

"Vex interrupted a process I was using to try and fix a- vehicle, which caused me to lose my memories. He told me that I was ill. He said that he was a great friend of mine, and that this realm belonged to me. He convinced me that Formlings were warmongers, and that the rightful king had overthrown me. Just before he almost killed Lloyd, he said something that caused my memories to return."

She frowns. "I do not understand. How does one lose their memories so easily?"

Akita stares at his metal skin, her eyes widening as if noticing it for the first time.

"I am not quite like you-"

"I know," she interjects, eyes brimming with anger. "I am not a murderer."

"I was... created," he replies, quietly. "Out of extra materials. I can act like others, but I do not always understand emotions in the same way."

Akita frowns again, raising her dagger. Her voice grows a dangerous edge; sharp and cold. "You never realized that your actions were wrong?"

They're entering dangerous territory. Some part of him wants to derail the conversation; stick to the facts and leave his emotions out of this.

But he owes her an explanation - he owes everyone an explanation. He owes them so much more, if only he could give it to them; erase the past and leave their quiet realm in peace.

"Before I came here, I would never have done such things - if I had my memories, I would never have done such things. Vex convinced me that they were the only way I could defend my throne. I did not know that they were wrong. The moment I realized what I had done, I tried to help your side. The right side," he finishes, ignoring the temptation to stare down at the floor instead of into her blazing eyes.

An indecipherable expression crosses her face. "You never talked to another? One of your... army, perhaps?" "Vex gave all the orders. He just asked me for approval. I never left this room." "And you approved them," she muttered, but it seemed to serve more as a reminder to herself than it did to him.

"What was your life like, before you entered our world?" Akita asks suddenly, suspicion still coating her voice. He blinks, the question unexpected.

"My friends and I can control and create different elements," he began, hesitantly. Carefully. "We were taught to fight. We protect our city from those-" "You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

"Those who cannot protect themselves," Zane finishes, guilt making his vision hazy.

He quickly blinks away the tears, all too aware of her persistent gaze.

"Two more questions," she says quickly, glancing behind her. "This room makes me uncomfortable. And so do you." The accusation is clear, but her eyes are not quite as cold as they had been earlier.

"What do you feel now?" Akita asks roughly, taking a step back. "You mentioned earlier that you do not feel emotions the same way that we do. Explain."

I could lie, he thinks, fleetingly. What if my feelings convince her that I am the Emperor even more than I am Zane? A voice at the back of his mind points out that he is - was - the Emperor.

He knows this.

He knows that he will have to acknowledge it once they are back home.

He knows that he cannot dwell on it now, or the winter will go on - inside his mind instead of outside it.

"I feel... guilt," he begins. "For the terrible crimes I have committed. Horror, at my own actions. Anger, towards that traitor. Relief - that I am no longer under his influence." An eyebrow touches her forehead, ever so slightly.

"How guilty?" It is almost a challenge, her voice rising in pitch threateningly.

"I will spend the rest of my life working to atone for my mistakes," Zane answers sincerely, resisting the irrational urge to squeeze his eyes shut. "However, I know that nothing I can do will ever undo them. But I can help others from people who- who... seek to manipulate them," he finishes quietly, a remorseful sigh punctuating the confession.

Akita says nothing; lips pressed in a hard line. Her blank, steadfast gaze meets his. The dagger clatters to the ground.

He draws in a breath sharply.

Picking it up, she squares her shoulders defiantly. "My people will know that... that there were two prisoners within these walls," she sighs, the weariness in her voice all too evident.

Yet he does not miss her glare; a barely contained anger that lurks just beneath the surface.

Akita straightens her spine, frowning menacingly as her hand tightens on the dagger.

He resists the irrational urge to take a step back.

"My brother and I will never forgive you," she snarls.

You do not have to, he would like to say. But he suspects that she already knows this.

"Come near either of us again, and I will make you long for death."

She shifts to her wolf form, baring her teeth - but when she stalks closer, he does not back away.

Suddenly, he is all-too-aware of the fact that the throne room is currently empty - bar the two of them.

He does not move.

It is not as if she could harm him - titanium is not easily damaged (yet, some part of him wonders if that is a blessing or curse), but they have faced enough villains for him to know how it works.

The villains die at the end; rightfully so.

Why should this be any different?

"You will pay for your crimes," Akita growls, shifting between her forms as if it is second nature. It probably is. "Emperor."

Her dagger clatters to the ground once again.

He does not move.

Why should this be any different?

---

"What's taking her so long?"

"Who?" The Samurai asks, the confusion on his face only amplifying.

"No- nothing," he mumbles, wincing. The adrenaline is wearing off - and with it, the fleeting distraction from the pain coursing through his chest.

Broken ribs? Probably. But he's got bigger problems to worry about - his minor injuries don't really matter when there's a warrior (because after all that she's been through, he thinks that she deserves the title - even if it's one she would never have wanted) seeking vengeance, someone who could tear apart this castle, brick by brick if she wanted to, alone with his brother.

His brother - who'd taken hers; encased her village in a tomb of ice, leaving behind no one but a teenager consumed with blinding anger - rightfully so, he admits, a bit wearily.

What happened to you, Zane?

Are you even... there? The person who used to stay awake with me when all I saw was the building crumbling before my eyes, night after night? The one who swore to protect those who couldn't protect themselves?

Are you still there?

"Can I, er, go inside?" he asks no one, trying not to breathe too hard. The Ice Samurai he'd been trying to help had vanished, most probably to try and get answers from someone else.

He owes it to these people to help them - if he'd just been faster, stronger, better, Aspheera could never have-

Not now, Lloyd!

He should probably open the doors - try and diffuse whatever fight they'd gotten into. Akita reminds him of Kai; both of them fiercely protective of those whom they care about, yet sometimes clouded by rage so thick they can barely see out of it.

But he's hesitating - there's always the possibility that her anger; prison of its own, might extend to him.

Not that he even has the right to condemn her for it, though.

Unwillingly, a fleeting thought presses itself to the forefront of his mind; beautiful white hair, a soft voice coated in honey-

Broken ribs, he reminds himself stubbornly, grimacing at the flare of pain as he draws in a breath sharply. She's gone, she's gone, and it's-

He bites his lip until the tang of iron fills his mouth, eyes fixed determinedly on the floor.

Not now, Lloyd!

Slowly, carefully, he pushes the door open. It creaks softly - but he doesn't think anyone hears it.

Oh, no.

---

"Akita?" a voice questions, hesitantly. He's half-leaning against the door, blonde hair almost completely hiding wary eyes all but squeezed shut in pain.

She stiffens, ignoring the part of her that learns to hunt, murder, the- the monster-

Blinking, quickly, she allows her mind to embrace the sharp, cold air on her fur, and her harsh, ragged breathing - until she can almost feel the shift in her heart, trading instinct for a different type of clarity, white fur for skin and hair.

Grabbing her dagger, she halfheartedly swipes it at the boy who makes her cheeks redder than they usually are, the boy who travelled across the ice seeking a murderer-

Well. He is in no condition to help anyone - they both know this.

But he does not have the right to interfere with this conversation - her feelings do not matter when his friend is-

"Leave us," she snarls, fingers digging into the hilt of her dagger. "What makes you think you have the right?"

Her voice grows colder, but she can't quite keep the tremor out of it.

"You did not find your village half-dead, or spend months mourning your brother," Akita snaps, frustration seeping into the words. Why does he always have to make everything so complicated?

"I know," he replies, hesitantly, eyes flitting between the room and the door. "But... this isn't the right thing to do, Akita."

"Do you think it was right for your friend to seize power from our rightful ruler? Do you think he was right when he imprisoned an innocent child for so many years?"

She doesn't bother to keep the venom out of her voice, ignoring the fact that the light brown of her skin has almost faded to white where she grips her weapon.

Taking a step closer, she bites her lip.

If he will make this his fight, so will she.

"The girl I told you about," Lloyd interjects. "H- Harumi." He forces out the name, as if the very mention of it ails him.

She raises her eyebrows. "What are you going to do? Distract me with stories about your girlfriend while he," Akita glares at the Emperor with a sigh, "escapes?"

"No," he replies softly. Brushing the hair out of his eyes, she doesn't miss his poorly concealed wince.

This is the friend he seeks?

There's a fragile silence, one of which she refuses to shatter. Nothing he can say will erase the horrific actions of this- this power-hungry ruler who has abused the gift he has been given; persecuted their lands, and forced innocents into lives ruled by fear and hatred.

"I- er-" Lloyd starts, visibly uncomfortable with saying... whatever it is he is trying to say.

She does not interrupt, but does not take her eyes off the Emperor, either. He has not moved or even contributed to their exchange yet.

Good, she thinks fervently. She does not need to force herself to try and feel sympathy for a man she has hated for so many long winters, one who has taken a piece of her heart and locked it away in a tiny prison cell.

"Did I ever tell you that- that... I watched her die?" he asks, aiming for a casual tone.

The hurt subconsciously laced into it makes something in her heart twist, as if it had been pierced by a shard of glass.

Outwardly, she does nothing more than raise an eyebrow.

For all the days they have spent trekking across the ice together, it suddenly dawns on her how little she actually knows about him.

"No," she replies carefully, dragging out the word. "Why?" "She-"

Akita can almost see his internal struggle - anger and fear and indecision and something she can't quite place her finger on meshing into another thing entirely.

"She- tried to murder," Lloyd flinches at the word, nails digging into his palms, "my friends. And I was forced to watch, helpless," he whispers, so softly that she has to strain to hear it.

"But when she- she died in a crumbling building, I- was... the one who caused it to fall."

"Your point?" she snaps; voice as sharp as her blade. He is the only thing standing between her and the Emperor; between the growing hatred she had allowed to fester for all this time, because one day she would finally make him pay-

Her friend visibly winces.

Too late does she realize her mistake, a fact that leaves her a bit sick to the stomach.

That's nothing compared to the bout of nausea that accompanies another realization, juts a second later.

How could I let my anger hurt another - one who did not deserve to receive it? Am I truly any better than the one whom I have condemned?

Well. The logical side of her mind points out that it is her choice to forgive, for such unforgivable acts; that the anger that had doused everything in its hue, every day, was to be expected-

"I apologize... for my conduct," she says quickly, forcing herself to meet his eyes. "You have never hurt me. I did not mean to hurt you." "It's okay- this- this isn't my fight anyway," Lloyd replies quickly, fingers wrapped around the door handle - but she doesn't even think he's aware of the fact. "I just- I just wanted to share something with you, something I wish someone would've shared with me, because-" He's rambling, words practically coated in a jumble of shaky nerves. "What is it?" Akita asks softly, losing a little of the stiffness in her tone.

"Murder- it isn't right," he repeats, hands pressed to his forehead. "But... it'll hurt you more than it will anyone else. I can't go a week without seeing her fall in my dreams, over and over again. I should've been glad, I guess... she'd hurt my friends and I so many times. But- but I'm the one with the nightmares, and all this- guilt. And I care- I care you, Akita. I know that I'll never understand how you've been hurt by- by the Emperor... just, think about how it'll affect you." Akita's eyes widen incredulously, but he's not done. "Just- don't let someone else make you hurt yourself." His voice is about a pitch higher than normal, but neither of them really register it. "Sometimes, the best kind of revenge is refusing..." Lloyd trails off, his eyes squeezed shut (a second later, he opens them again, blinking profusely), "to let anyone... make you hurt them."

Irrationally, she wants to break something.

That advice offers... an entirely new perspective. One that she had never thought of.

One that is- is unwanted, she insists fervently.

And now his fingers are pressing into his hands again, so tightly that she almost wants to yell - stop it, idiot, you're hurting yourself! - at him. "Because... it might haunt you lot more. And if they- they- really want to hurt you?" Both of them ignore the erratic, painful looking way his breathing starts to hitch just then.

"Don't give them... the satisfaction of it - by- your own hands."

Her mouth drops open.

No words come out.

What?

Out of the corner of her eye, she watches Lloyd slowly - a bit too carefully - push the door shut behind him. It creaks softly, but neither of the two left standing in the room really hear it.

She squeezes her eyes shut, far too many emotions almost crashing through her mind.

"You seek to rescue your friend. I seek revenge."

Blinking the world back into focus, her mind whirls and whirls; the storm unrelenting.

"I seek revenge."

What exactly did that mean to her?

She...

She did not quite know the answer now.

---

Akita does not speak for some time, her thoughtful expression plainly clashing with one of anger.

He does not speak, either, although it is for a different reason.

Lloyd's words have forced him to face the reality he has been avoiding ever since he smashed his scepter on the ground - ever since the decade-long winter had ended.

"And if they really want to hurt you? Don't give them the satisfaction of it - by your own hands."

"If they really want to hurt you."

There is only one whom Lloyd could have been referring to.

"You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

Somewhere within his mind, he is aware of the fact that the second his memories returned, the staff lay in pieces on the floor; all of that corrupted ice shattering into nothing.

He is also aware of the fact that sixty years of tyranny will leave behind much more than an altered climate.

If they even get back to Ninjago, what will have become of his city? It took his friends decades to find him - what could have happened during all that time?

Friends. Does he even have a right to call them that?

He is not quite sure - or even sure if all of them will be as forgiving as Lloyd.

The Green Ninja had always strived to find the best in people - to believe that anyone could make up for their mistakes, that they would want to. It had been to his friend's detriment, once - yet Lloyd had never quite given up on the world, in the same way that many of them had. Maybe it was some sort of childish naivety - or maybe it was just in his nature to hope, even after all they had been through, that everyone had some good inside them.

Yet, he had never met anyone who shared his friend's mindset - or at least to that extent.

Kai knows what it is like to have a sibling kidnapped, taken from them for no rhyme or reason - other than the fact that a cruel ruler who seeks power and exploits those around them for it will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Cole knows what it is like to die (well, almost, his logic points out) - to be imprisoned within yourself; a husk of a person, unable to live your life to the fullest.

His mind flashes to the thousands of innocent villagers he had frozen in icy prisons, practically caskets-

Irrationally, his hands begin to shake.

He chooses not to focus on that.

Nya used to hunt down those who hurt others, he recalls - and then squeezes his eyes shut.

Is she not quite similar to Akita in that regard?

The realization leaves him more gutted than he thought was possible. Had he really become the very person his friends worked so hard to stop?

He clenches his fists, the titanium covering his fingers grating together.

At least I am no longer holding the scroll, he thinks, fervently. Before long, the memory of a clear, quiet night pulls itself to the forefront of his mind.

The echo of a whispered confession; a brief explanation mixed with tears and shaking hands. A voice usually so bright, silenced to the shaky murmur of "I watched her die, Zane, and it was all my fault, it's all my fault-"

It was then when he had learned of- of an alternate timeline, his processor had inputted seamlessly. Another reality, wiped from their minds and the press of time. One that only existed in the memories of two of his best friends.

One that resulted in poorly concealed winces, seemingly arbitrary flinches, Nya throwing out any dresses she owned and Jay practically shaking with fear when he was asked to do certain chores. One that resulted in scars that ran far deeper than those of venom or sword. His memories had been useless then, too, his mind points out. How could he have let two of his best friends suffer for weeks on end, when he was able to upgrade or encrypt his memory drive at any time? When he was a n- robot, and should be able to recover memories that had been deleted or erased? The others could never be afforded that opportunity - yet, he had let the team down when it mattered most. If he could not be there for others, try to help them protect them from a force unable to ever be completely defeated, would he ever even halfway fulfill his purpose? He had pondered all of those questions - had ignored the pang in his heart when many pieces of the figurative puzzle clicked into place, for many weeks afterward. He had almost immediately vowed to be better - to ensure that his purpose did not go unfulfilled.

His purpose, he thought bitterly, as he squeezed his eyes shut. What had become of it now?

Another question to ponder, he supposed. And the realization that Jay - one of his brothers, one who was always equipped with a weapon and a joke too - would forever know what it was like to be kidnapped, held hostage, simply because a power-hungry figure cared less for another than anyone ever should.

Akita's brother had been scarcely less than a child - after his imprisonment. How could he have strayed so far from his original goals - how could he have strayed so far from what he had supposedly fervently stood for?

---

Lloyd's words still ring in her ears, his weary tone not quite matching their crazy implications.

She rubs her temples, frustrated. This was definitely not what she had come here for! She had come for vengeance - vengeance for the terrible crimes the Ice Emperor had committed, against her village, her brother, even her-

But what was the point of revenge if she was the one left scarred? a small voice in the back of her mind points out, doing nothing but adding to her indecision.

I cannot do this, she insists fervently, thinking of her brother's worn face - and the years he had spent imprisoned; a lone figure silently mourning a sister he did not know still trekked the ice.

Just as she had been mourning him, she thinks sadly. The pang in her heart may have lessened since she had realized that he was still alive, but it was still horrifying to think that he had lost decades of his life - she had lost decades of hers, too, in a different way, she muses - saddened, alone, imprisoned.

But is this what he would have wanted? For her?

He had always been the calmer, logic-based one. She was always running into fights, the one fueled by emotion and anger.

Well. She spares a moment for the future.

The Emperor would leave their world - possibly, to haunt another. She would remain here - with her brother and her village, the woods and the towering peaks of the mountains.

I only have this one chance, she reminds herself firmly. She fixes her eyes on the strange blue ones of the Emperor, and sees a future ruled by that one decision.

Her gaze flits towards the doorway, and she sees a future there, too.

She sighs, dropping her eyes to the ground.

But Katuru would want me to- to-

Be happy, she realizes, jarringly.

Taking a deep breath, she bites her lip.

"Will taking your life make me happy? Will it make up for the years of pain we have endured at your hands?"

Her voice rings out, hesitant yet determined.

"I wish it were so," she confesses wearily, ignoring the ache in her hands. She's been gripping the hilt of her dagger for so long, the blade's almost pierced her skin. "Alas, it is not."

The Emperor meets her gaze, but not completely - out of guilt? Fear? Anger?

She does not have the time to ponder meaningless questions.

"I despise you with every fiber of my being, you coward," Akita snarls, some of the anger she has become so accustomed to bleeding its way into her words. "But I will not tarnish my hands on someone as worthless as you, when you presently pose no threat to me."

The words spill from her mouth, but she almost wants to stuff them back inside at that very second.

This isn't why I came here! This isn't what I was supposed to do-

Another voice cuts through the one in her head, a weary confession from someone she knew nothing and everything about.

"Don't give them the satisfaction of it - by your own hands.

The next words she utter fill the room - steady, unwavering.

"Leave our world, and never return. Never. You have treated my people as if you are a monster, yet you say that you are sorry. As if you could ever care - after everything you have done to us!"

Akita sheathes her dagger, indecision still weighing heavily on her mind.

"I hope that you are as haunted by your time here as we all are," she spits, walking towards the door. She does not look behind her, but packs as much bitterness as she can into the last word she utters before the door closes behind her.

"Emperor."

---

A/N - I know this wasn't great, but honestly, it was really interesting to write and challenged me to think about certain things quite a bit. If you did read it, thank you so much!:D

[rosiehunterwolf]

@fabro-de-omres HOLD UP BESTIE, I GOT ONE LAST FIC FOR YOUR LIST-

Star-Ninja!

Prompts: Siblings and Competition

Word Count: 5,884

Characters: The ninja

Timeline: Snapshots throughout the series

Trigger Warnings: None

Summary: What happens when the loveable gremlin the ninja adopted off of the streets introduces them to Starfarer comics?

Chaos ensues, of course.

Read on FFN.net

Read on Ao3

Tumblr work under the cut

“Take that! And that! Oh, yeah-” Jay leaped to his feet, grinning. “Die, lava zombies, die!”

Level complete. The words flashed across the screen, and Jay whooped. Only one more level and he would beat Zane’s high score.

“You could’ve beaten it faster if you had taken out the little guys first.”

Jay whipped around to see the little wispy-haired kid draped over the arm of the couch, staring at the TV screen with a glazed, listless look in his eyes.

“What are you doing here?” Jay snapped.

“I’m borrrred,” he whined, kicking his legs against the couch. “Can I play with you?”

“No.”

“Can I use the training course?”

“No, you’re not a ninja.”

“Then what am I supposed to do?”

“It’s not our job to entertain you, kid.”

“I didn’t ask to be kidnapped by you,” Lloyd snapped.

Jay felt his face flush. “So you’d rather still be with the Serpentine?”

“Well no, I just wanna have a choice!”

Jay stared at him for a moment. I don’t know his whole story. He’s a kid who’s been dealt a bad hand in life. He exhaled slowly. “Look, Lloyd, you’re just a kid. I know it’s hard for you to understand- but you’ve caused a lot of trouble. The Serpentine are dangerous, and you don’t know enough to deal with them. You just gotta trust us, okay?”

Lloyd sighed dramatically, sliding off of the couch and onto the floor. “Yeah, whatever.”

Jay rolled his eyes. “Can’t you find something to do for a little while? Please? I’ll talk with Sensei about what we’re going to do with you as soon as he gets back.”

To his surprise, Lloyd actually left him alone, and Jay turned back to his game. He knew it wasn’t a very responsible move, but he had never agreed to babysit the kid. Besides, they were going hunting for Serpentine again tomorrow, so it would likely be Jay’s last chance to have some downtime for an entire week.

By the time Jay had finally beaten the top score, his fingers were sore from playing. Flopping onto the couch, he glanced up at the clock. It had been an hour since he had sent Lloyd off, and he hadn’t heard so much as a peep from the kid.

Jay had only known him for a couple of days, but already that seemed like suspicious behavior.

He headed into the storage room that Sensei had scrapped together into a makeshift bedroom for his nephew. Lloyd was sprawled across his mattress, reading a book.

I guess he’s not up to anything. I shouldn’t have been so quick to judge him. Jay turned to leave before stopping suddenly and whirling back around.

“Hey!” he yanked the book out of Lloyd’s hands. “Is this a Starfarer comic? Have you been snooping around in my room?”

“No! I haven’t touched your stupid stuff. Figures, the one time I actually didn’t do anything wrong, you blame me.”

“Have you not heard of The Boy who Cried Wolf?” “What?”

“Nevermind.” Jay examined the comic. It was an old edition, but not one he owned. Besides, the cover was wrinkled and there were dog ears on several pages. Jay would never treat his comics so harshly. “If it’s not mine, then whose is it?”

“It’s mine. Is it so hard to believe that I don’t steal everything?’

“No, I mean, you like Starfarer?”

“Of cou- I, uh, I mean, Starfarer’s for babies, ha. I’m only reading this because it’s the only book I have and you wouldn’t give me anything else to do.”

“Oh, that’s too bad. I guess I’ll have to go enjoy my Starfarer comic collection on my own, then. Since it’s too babyish for big kids like you.”

“Your what?” Lloyd was suddenly sticking to him like a barnacle. “You collect Starfarer comics?”

“Not just comics.” He grinned as he watched Lloyd’s eyes widen. “Movies, posters, action figures- you name it.”

“No way! Can I see? Please, please? Just for a second-” Jay put a hand on his shoulder, holding him back. “Hang on, kiddo. I thought Starfarer was for babies?”

Lloyd shifted on his feet. “Well, I didn’t really mean that, I just- I was just testing you!”

Jay raised an eyebrow, smothering a laugh. “Uh huh. If you’re such a master, why aren’t you reading the new comics?”

Lloyd looked down, shuffling his feet. “I… this is the newest one I have. We didn’t really get many opportunities to buy what we wanted at Darkley’s. Especially not a book about superheroes. Because we were super busy being evil and stuff, heh.”

Jay felt his heart twist. Am I really pitying Lloyd Garmadon right now just because of some comics?

Although, when he looked at Lloyd now, he didn’t see the annoying, mischievous son of a villain. He saw a wide-eyed, naive kid looking at Jay with such hope that it was hard not to feel a strong urge to protect him from the burdens of the world.

Jay crouched down next to him. “Y’know what? I’ll show you my newer comics. You can even keep some, if you like.”

“Really? You’re not messing with me?”

“As long as you promise not to treat them like that.” Jay gestured towards the wrinkled comic. “Seriously, dude, you better go wash your grubby little hands before I even let you within five feet of my stuff.”

Jay didn’t think he’d ever seen Lloyd be in such a hurry to do anything.

---

“What’s this do?”

Nya snatched Lloyd’s hand away from the control panel. “Don’t touch that!”

“But what about-”

“Or that! Just-” She took a deep breath, running her fingers through her hair. “Don’t touch anything unless I specifically tell you to, okay?”

“Well, then what am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, find something. I’m not here to babysit you, Lloyd, I’m managing the comms. It’s important to make sure we stay in touch with the guys when they are on their mission.”

“I don’t need a babysitter,” he huffed. “Why couldn’t they take me with them? I am a ninja now. I could’ve bashed in some Serpentine heads!”

Nya glanced at him, glaring defiantly in his oversized gi. “I’d hardly call you a ninja, squirt. You haven’t even grown into that gi yet.”

“Yes, I have! See, it fits me perfectly!”

“...Lloyd, those pant legs almost completely cover your shoes.”

“They do not! Uncle Wu said I was a ninja.”

“A ninja in training, at best,” Nya corrected.

“What’s the use of being the green ninja if I don’t get anything fun out of it?”

“One day, green machine. You just have to be patient.”

He groaned loudly, flopping onto the chair. “I hate being patient.”

“No! You? Impatient? Who would’ve guessed?”

“Can’t you at least show me how to turn on the alarms?”

“No. Alarms are for emergencies only.”

“It is an emergency! I’m going to die of boredom!”

“Fine,” Nya relented. “What do I have to do to get you to leave me alone- and stay out of trouble? Can I rent you a movie?”

“Ooh, can I watch Zombies: Back for Revenge? Or Ghost Story? Or Dawn of Destruction?”

“Nope, nope, and nope. Too scary, too mature, too violent. Pick something more family-friendly, Lloyd.”

He pouted. “Kai got to watch those movies.”

“Yeah, well, Kai’s older than you and is responsible for his own actions. If you watch those, you’ll be up all night with nightmares and Sensei will never trust me again.”

“I won’t have nightmares! He’ll never know! Please, Nya.”

“No. End of discussion. Pick something else or nothing at all. Remember, it’s my money paying for the movie here. What about those… space wars movies you love?”

“It’s Starfarer,” Lloyd snapped, although his expression looked considerably lighter. “There’s one I haven’t seen yet…”

After Lloyd showed her the movie and she paid for it, Nya turned back to the control panel and checked for messages from the guys. Still nothing.

She really hated when they left her in the dark like that.

There were sounds of explosions from behind her, and a cheer from Lloyd- she glanced over her shoulder to see him grinning gleefully at the screen as the main characters blew something up. She shook her head- what was it with young boys and explosions?- but she couldn’t stop a smile from creeping onto her face. Glancing over at the comms, she double-checked that no one had said anything.

The guys obviously weren’t taking the effort to communicate with her. It wouldn’t hurt to take a quick break.

Sitting down next to Lloyd, she focused her attention on the movie. It seemed nonsensical and boring at first, but after a bit, Lloyd started explaining things to her, and, to her surprise, she found herself happy to listen. As it got later, his talking slowed, and at some point- Nya couldn’t quite identify when- Lloyd was leaning against her side, snuggling with their shared blanket.

Nya watched him carefully. She hadn’t cuddled with anyone like this since she had been younger, with Kai- but then, she had been the younger one, the one being protected. Now, she was experiencing what she imagined Kai must’ve felt, and despite how annoying he could be, Nya felt a strong urge to pull him close and never let him go.

She understood their reluctance to let Lloyd fight fully now. She didn’t want to ever send him off into battle, especially not the Final Battle.

How could this sweet, stubborn little wisp of a child be the green ninja?

Many hours and three movies later, Nya was afraid to even look at the clock. Rubbing Lloyd’s head, she murmured, “It’s way past your bedtime, kiddo.”

“‘m not tired,'” he mumbled in an obviously tired voice.

“I already let you stay up way later than you should be.”

“Just one more movie!” “Lloyd! These things are two hours long!”

“I promise I’ll go right to bed after!”

“That’s what you said after the last one.”

“Well, I really mean it this time.”

“No way.”

“Please?” Lloyd suddenly looked a lot more nervous, twisting his hands together. “Just… just until we hear something. From the ninja.”

“Oh, Lloyd.” She put a hand on his back. “It’s okay. They’re okay. Most likely, they just forgot to report back. They do that all the time.”

“But we don’t know that.”

“...Yeah. You’re right. We don’t.”

“Is it always this scary? Waiting for them to talk to you, not knowing what’s going on?”

Nya nodded slowly. “Yeah, a lot of the time it is, bud. But eventually, you learn to trust them. There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t worry about their safety, but I know they are strong and capable and can take care of themselves.” Lloyd nodded. “That makes sense.”

He still didn’t look quite content with her answer, though. Nya leaned in, murmuring to him.

“Tell you what. What if we watch half of one more movie?”

Man, she was turning into such a disgustingly gross softie for this kid so fast, wasn’t she.

But the wide, genuine smile that split across his face made it worth it.

---

Kai stood in front of the long expanse of bookshelves, stacked with dozens and dozens of comics.

“Excuse me,” Kai gestured to the nearest bookstore employee, and he walked over. “Which part is the Starfarer section?”

The employee blinked at him. “You’re already in it. This entire wall is Starfarer.”

Kai gawked at the wall in utter amazement. There had to be at least a hundred books there. How were these many Starfarer comics even possible?

“Which one is the best one?” he asked the employee.

The man pushed his glasses up his nose, looking increasingly annoyed with Kai’s lack of Starfarer knowledge. “That’s hardly a straightforward question. Starfarer is our most popular franchise, they’re all popular. It’s impossible to pick one book. If you’re looking for our most popular selling comics of all time, that would be volumes 1, 32, 45, and 79. As for comics trending right now, that, of course, would be the most recent ones, 273 through 282. Although volume 13 has seen a sudden influx in readership. If you are looking for those with the best ratings-”

How do I say, ‘which comic is best for my little brother who was just aged up several years, without warning, and I want to help him regain his sense of childhood?’

Deciding this wasn’t going to be helpful, Kai gently dismissed the employee and began looking on his own. He tried to pick out ones with interesting covers, but ended up throwing many of them back after skimming the summaries on the back.

That wasn’t working very well either, and Kai was just about to throw the towel in and grab some random comics and hope for the best- or worse, call Jay and ask for help- when he decided to open one comic to skim it.

This quickly turned into a mistake, because before Kai knew it, five minutes had turned into an hour, and he had completely finished the comic. One comic turned into two, then five. He only was able to yank himself from his reading when he got a text from Zane asking where he was and that dinner was going to be ready soon.

Gathering up a large handful of the comics he had liked, Kai headed back towards the Bounty on his motorbike.

He found Lloyd on his bed, staring up at the ceiling with earbuds in. He pulled them out when he saw Kai, his gaze darting curiously towards the stack of comics.

“I got you these,” Kai said, setting them down next to him. “I know things are… different now, with you being older, but you’re always going to be my little brother. And I wanted you to know that just because you’re physically older doesn’t mean you have to stop doing the things you love. So if you still want to make doodles for our fridge, or make your food into shapes on your plate, or read Starfarer comics, no one’s going to judge you.”

Lloyd picked up a comic, slowly leafing through it. He was quiet for so long that Kai began to worry that he had completely messed something up. But when he finally spoke, he simply said, “You read it.”

“I… what?”

A smile spread across Lloyd’s face. “You read these before you bought them. Didn’t you?”

Kai spluttered. “I- what? That doesn’t make any sense! You have no proof!”

“The pages are creased over here. You always crease back the pages when you have a book. And there’s a slight depression here that shows the presence of fingers. Too big to be Jay’s or Nya’s, and too small to be Zane’s or Cole’s.”

Kai blinked at him. “You pay way too much attention to people, don’t you?”

“Hey, I paid attention during training, y’know!”

“More than we give you credit for, apparently.”

“I just can’t believe I spent all those months trying to pressure you to read Starfarer and you suddenly pick it up when I’m not even forcing you.”

“Shut up.” Kai shoved him gently. “It was a one-time thing. I was only doing it so I could find a comic you would like,”

“Yeah, so it makes sense you would look at them for five hours.”

“How did you- I mean, I didn’t go to the bookstore right away! I was doing other things! I only went there a few minutes before I came home!”

“Oh, yeah?” Lloyd raised an eyebrow. “What ‘other things?’”

“Uh, very important ninja business, like, um… patrol?”

“Cole returned from patrol two hours ago.”

“Well, this was a super-secret different patrol that Cole doesn’t even know about.”

“Really. Does Sensei know?”

“Nope. Just me.”

Lloyd elbowed him playfully. “You’re gonna have to watch all the movies with me now, y’know.”

“No way. Aren’t there like, fifty of those?”

“Twenty-seven.”

“No, thanks.”

“You have to! It’s part of the experience. Wait until I tell Jay you’re into it now.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“You bet I would!” Lloyd looked over at the pile of comics again, examining them more closely. “Nice, these are some good ones. Which ones did you read?”

“Um. The ones I bought?”

Lloyd looked up at him, his grin fading. “But like… not just these, right? You read others? In between them?”

“No… is this supposed to be some sort of poke at me being a slow reader-”

“No! I just can’t believe you read them in this order! Seriously, you couldn’t have gotten it any more wrong! You’ve ruined the whole series for yourself!”

“Oh, that’s such a shame, guess you better not tell Jay, then-”

“Oh, no way, you’re still getting into the fandom. We’re going to fix this. Come look at my comics. We’re going to read them together, and I’m gonna show you how to do it right.”

“Oh, is that Zane calling for dinner-”

“Nice try,” Lloyd smirked. “But you’ve entered the Starfarer fandom now. You’re in it, good and deep. There’s no coming back from this, Kai.”

“Glad to see your psychotic gremlin tendencies weren’t lost in the tea,” Kai grumbled. “Probably the one thing I could’ve gone without.”

---

“Are you out of your mind? The movie adaptions of Starfarer are way better.”

“Okay, there is clearly no hope left for you, Lloyd. The show is far superior to any of the movies.”

“Are you kidding? The budget for the show was so much lower! They just used a bunch of cheap, corny special effects, the movies were much smoother!”

“Visuals aren’t the most important thing, Lloyd. The show had a smaller storyboard team, meaning their ideas were more consistent and developed. The plot is overall much more in-depth in the show, and the extended time also gives them more space to do what they want.”

“It also leaves a lot of space for pointless filler! The movies are more direct. Every scene is important. Whereas I can name half a dozen episodes from the show- and that’s just on the top of my head- that were completely useless and would not change the plot at all if discarded.”

“You’re insane, every filler episode had importance! Some just showed it in smaller ways than others.”

“They could’ve fit the minor details into the other episodes!”

“Yeah, but filler is nice sometimes. Getting some more chill episodes between all the action is good.”

“No way, they’re boring and ruin the pacing. The movies have you on the edge of your seat throughout the whole thing.”

Zane sighed, glancing over at Jay and Lloyd. Their argument was getting increasingly more physical, with each boy attempting to tower over the other- not an easy task, considering they were both short.

“Can you two please be quiet? Or at least take this somewhere else? I’m trying to watch the news to make sure there aren’t any danger reports in Ninjago City.”

Jay suddenly whirled on him. “Zane! That’s it!”

“...What’s it?”

“Zane should decide! Which is better? The Starfarer movies, or the show?” Turning to Lloyd, he added, “Since he’s a nindroid, he’ll be the least biased of all of us.”

“One problem,” Lloyd said. “Zane hasn’t watched either.”

“Well, then, he’ll have to watch them,” Jay shrugged.

Zane glanced back and forth between them. “You want me to watch twenty-seven movies. And all seven seasons of the TV show. Just to help you win a disagreement.”

“It’s actually eight seasons,” Lloyd corrected.

“Exactly!” Jay beamed. “You’ll do great. Get back to us when you’ve watched them all and have formed an opinion. The sooner the better, so that I can prove Lloyd wrong as quickly as possible.”

“Hey! If anything, I’m going to prove you wrong!” “No way! The show-”

“Okay, okay, I’ll do it!” Zane stood up suddenly, putting his hands between them before another argument could break out. “Just stop fighting. Please.”

“You got yourself a deal,” Jay winked.

Two weeks and over a hundred hours of content later, Jay and Lloyd were staring at him expectantly over the dinner table.

“Well? What’s the verdict?”

Zane blinked at them with glassy eyes. “They were both very good. I enjoyed them. However, I feel like I never want to watch a minute of Starfarer ever again.”

“Seriously?” Lloyd fumed. “We waited all this time for him to not even properly answer the question?”

“Who cares about the question?” Cole grumbled. “Zane was so tired from watching your guys’ dumb Starfarer stuff, he messed up the gumbo.” Cole drew a spoon listlessly through the stew. “This is my favorite meal. I’m never forgiving you guys for messing it up.”

“Starfarer isn’t stupid,” Jay and Lloyd cried at once. They blinked at each other, surprised, and Kai and Nya laughed.

“I think that’s the first thing they’ve agreed on all week,” Nya grinned.

“It won’t last,” Kai murmured to her as the green and blue ninja set on Cole for his statement on Starfarer. “I give them two days to find something else to bicker about.”

---

“Hurry, Nya, he’s almost at the navigation!”

“I’m trying!” Nya bit her lip, an iron grip on her video game controller. “He’s sabotaged the security system!”

“No-”

Game over flashed across the screen, and Jay leaped to his feet, cheering. Nya rolled her eyes, tossing down her controller, while Zane, Lloyd, and Kai watched with disappointment.

“I can’t believe he won again,” Kai huffed. “How is he still undefeated? We’ve been playing this game for weeks.”

“I thought you were supposed to be good at this, Lloyd,” Nya grumbled. “You’re the Starfarer expert. You’ve got so many hours logged on here.”

“I’d like to point out that I’ve gotten closer to beating him than any of you have,” he snapped. “The last time I was only seconds away from winning.”

“Yeah, well, close isn’t good enough,” Kai said. “We need to beat him. Otherwise, it will get to his head.”

“Clearly none of us are going to be winning any time soon,” Nya groaned.

“There is someone who hasn’t played against him yet,” Zane mused. “Someone who has a track record of beating Jay’s top scores in games.”

Five gazes drifted towards the chair on the other side of the room. Cole looked up from his book when he realized the others were looking at him. “What do you want this time?”

“You gotta beat Jay in Starfarer: Alien Invasion 3,” Lloyd insisted, at his side immediately. “He’s undefeated. You know how unbearable he gets when he’s cocky.”

Cole blinked slowly up at them. “I don’t know the first thing about Starfarer.”

“I can teach you,” Lloyd begged. “Just do it. Please. Since when have you passed up an opportunity to beat Jay in something?”

Jay grinned. “Admit it, guys, I’ve defeated you. There’s no way Cole will ever win against me.”

Cole stood up abruptly. “Oh yeah? We’ll see about that. Lloyd, give me that controller. Jay’s about to get a serving of humility.”

For what appeared to be just another mundane rendition of a classic monster-fighter game, it surprised Cole to find it was actually much more complex and engaging.

It would’ve actually been really fun, had Jay not been so ridiculously goated at the game.

“What? Your character is invulnerable to the imperial sludge? How is that fair?”

Jay scoffed. “If you had read the Aliens Strike Back arc of Starfarer comics, you would’ve known that.”

“This totally isn’t fair. You have a bunch of background knowledge on Starfarer that I don’t.”

“It’s not our fault you’re the only one who hasn’t read or watched any Starfarer,” Lloyd said.

“Oh no,” Cole groaned. “You guys are dragging me into this too, aren’t you?”

---

“Where’s my copy of issue 117 of Starfarer?”

Jay looked up from the counter, where he was munching on crackers. “Like I would know, Lloyd. It’s not my responsibility to keep track of where you put your stuff.”

“I know exactly where I put it. But it’s gone now! I left it on my nightstand last night, right next to my bed. I haven’t touched it since.”

“Well, evidently, you have, since it’s not there now.”

“No, I didn’t touch it! Someone must’ve moved it!”

“And? I don’t see how this is my problem.”

“Everyone knows you’re the biggest Starfarer fanboy on the team apart from me, and I happen to be aware that you don’t own that particular comic.”

“I didn’t steal your comic, Lloyd.”

“Oh yeah? Then what happened to it?”

“Don’t ask me!” “You know that’s my favorite issue, Jay.”

“So? You think I’d take it just to spite you?”

“I think you’d-”

He cut off as Kai meandered into the kitchen, eating crackers and reading a comic.

Lloyd’s eyes widened. “Hey! That’s my missing comic!”

Kai glanced up at him. “You said I could borrow it.” “I did not! And give it to me, before you get cracker crumbs all over it!”

Kai rolled his eyes as Lloyd snatched it from him. “Alright, fine, take your dumb comic.”

Jay crossed his arms. “I think you owe me an apology, Lloyd.”

Lloyd stuck his tongue out at him, and Jay returned the gesture.

“Hey!” They turned to see Nya strolling into the room behind Kai, elbowing her brother sharply. “You said I could have that comic once you finished it.”

“Seriously, Kai? You can’t go around giving my comic to people without asking.”

“I wasn’t going to give it to her! She’s lying!” “Excuse me? You literally just said that like ten minutes ago-”

Zane and Cole joined them not long after, glancing around. “Guys! What’s with all the racket?”

“Kai promised me his Starfarer comic after he was done-”

“It’s not Kai’s, it’s mine! And he took it from me without asking and just auctioned it off to Nya!” “I didn’t auction off anything, it’s not like she paid me for it. Although, that's honestly not a bad idea…”

“What is this, a monopoly?” Jay asked. “We’re not paying for comics we already own, that’s dumb.”

“Yeah,” Lloyd agreed, “especially when they were mine in the first place.”

“Liar! Most of them were mine!” Jay insisted. “I should get dominion over my own comics!”

“Just because you own the most doesn’t mean you own all of them,” Lloyd countered. “You may have more comics by sheer number, but I have more rare comics than you and, overall, my comics have a higher value.”

“I’m sick of you two always deciding everything about Starfarer,” Cole said. “Why can’t one of us regulate the comics?”

“Whoever gets control over the comics is just going to have bias and distribute them to their advantage.”

“I think I would be the most responsible man for the job-”

“Stop lying to yourself, dirtclod, I’d obviously be better-”

“Better than Kai, yeah, if you’re trying to set the bar low.”

“Excuse me?”

“Guys,” Lloyd interrupted, slamming his fists down on the table. “There’s only one solution to settle this. We have a competition. Winner gets control over the Starfarer comics for… let’s say, the next six months.”

Kai cracked his knuckles, grinning. “You had me at competition.”

---

“When you said, ‘competition,’ somehow I was expecting something a little more grandiose than this.”

The ninja had gathered around the kitchen table, glancing down at the box Lloyd had dropped there. Starfarer: Galaxy Wars, it read.

“Yeah, Lloyd,” Cole agreed. “A board game? Seriously?”

“Not just any board game. The most popular, most difficult, most fun game out there. It is truly for the Starfarer master. Part roleplay, part strategy, part trivia- it puts your Starfarer knowledge to the test. That way, we know whoever wins this didn’t just get the win out of chance, but actually deserves it.”

Nya raised an eyebrow. “I mean, I guess. But you better not be an expert at this game.”

Lloyd shook his head. “I’ve only played it a few times, I promise.”

“Okay then,” Kai said. “May the best ninja win.”

As usual, that lasted about five minutes until they were all yelling at each other.

“Oh, come on!” Cole threw down his card. “I got stuck in the Imperial Sludge Swamp again?”

“Ha!” Jay leaned forward, moving his piece across the board, jumping over Cole’s pawn. “Next time you know to pick a character with better environmental perks.”

“Cole’s character is more well-rounded, though,” Zane pointed out. “If you are unable to gather enough energy before the end, it is likely the aliens will take you out.”

“Quit your yapping and let me take my turn.” Kai snatched the dice from Jay’s hand and tossed them- landing a perfect 12.

“You’re cheating!” Nya snapped. “That’s the third turn in a row you’ve rolled higher than a ten. Are you using weighted dice or something?”

“He’s using the exact same dice I just used, Nya.”

“It’s called skill,” Kai scoffed. “Maybe someday, you can be as good as me.”

“Rolling dice is completely based on chance! If the best skill you can boast is being able to roll high numbers, I think I’m doing pretty well.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see how useless it is once I win this thing and get total control over all the Starfarer comics.”

“Fat chance,” Nya huffed as Kai moved his piece.

“Oh, look at that, I found a pile of scrap metal! I get to roll again!”

“Are. You. Kidding me!”

“Wait,” Zane put a hand on Nya’s shoulder. “He’s right by the alien spaceship. If he gets an 11 or less, he’ll be on their turf and they’ll shoot him down, kidnap him, or confront him, depending on his stats. The only way he could possibly get through this without negative consequences is by rolling a 12.”

“There’s no way he’ll do it again,” Cole agreed. “Nya, this is your chance to overtake him.”

“Let’s see.” Kai grabbed the two dice and shook up his hands. He shook and shook, stopped to blow on the dice, then shook some more-

“Just roll the stupid dice,” Cole snapped.

Kai dropped the dice, and time seemed to move in slow motion. Lloyd held his breath, leaning forward-

And watched as the dice rolled one six, then another.

A perfect roll.

“Cheating!” Nya cried. “Cheating, I tell you! There’s no way this is possible.”

“We can’t let him win,” Jay groaned. “He won’t share any comics with us.” “Not true! I’ll let Lloyd have one.”

“Only one?” “That’s better than none at all,” Jay snapped. “At least he’s giving you something.”

“He’s not going to be giving me anything, because he’s not going to win.”

Kai grinned, gesturing at the dice. “Sure, be my guest. See if you can beat me.”

Lloyd rolled, earning a seven.

Jay hissed between his teeth. “Tough luck, green bean- you get injured and robbed by aliens.”

“Actually,” Lloyd said, slipping a card from his pile and slamming it down on the middle of the table. “I don’t, because I play this special ability card, allowing me to pick the number of spaces I travel. I choose 10, landing myself on the abandoned spacecraft. Then I use my character’s high level mechanics skills and use this card-” he slammed down another card that showed scrap metal reserves- “to instantly fix the ship. Then I spend my energy points to get another turn, use the gas from my generator to fuel the ship, and then am able to fly the ship back to the base and restore the artifacts. According to the manual, it would take three days from my location, and Kai, the closest, would take five days in his slower spacecraft, meaning it is impossible for anyone to beat me back, and I win the game.”

For a moment, they were silent, gaping at him.

“How?” Cole murmured. “Dude, how did you do that?”

“He just crossed half the board in one turn,” Kai spluttered. “And I was about to win! That shouldn’t even be possible!”

“How many moves were you planning ahead?” Zane shook his head. “Your strategy appears to be far more complex than any of us were anticipating for this kind of game.”

“I knew something was up when he kept stashing his ability cards,” Jay groaned. “We were all using ours, but he hardly used any- he was saving them up to use them all in a big power move and catch us off guard, the little rascal!”

“You liar,” Nya hissed. “You said you only played this game a few times! This was way too complicated of a plan for a novice player.”

“Technically, that’s true,” Lloyd grinned. “I have only played a few times. But I never said how long I played for each time.”

“You conniving little gremlin.”

“Now, Nya,” Lloyd scolded in a sagely voice, barely able to suppress his laughter, “I’d be careful how you speak to me from now on. If you’re rude, I may not give you any Starfarer.”

“Yeah, this is going to get old, very quickly.”

“I can’t believe it,” Jay sighed. “You never share comics with us.”

Lloyd gawked at him. “Are you kidding? It’s because of my sharing that you guys are even into Starfarer in the first place! Jay was the only one who knew about it before I came, but even he didn’t tell anyone else he was a fanboy and kept stuff hidden in boxes. When I showed interest, do you remember how excited you got? You took everything out, just for me.”

Zane shook his head, smiling. “I still can’t believe you got me to binge the entire series.”

“Or how I spent hours investing in that game and tracking down all that information in the comics just to beat Jay’s high score? Which I crushed, by the way.”

Jay scowled. “For the last time, you beat me by five points! You didn’t crush anyone.”

Cole scoffed. “Someone’s just jealous. If it weren’t for Lloyd, I would’ve never beat you.”

“You showed us all something we love, huh, squirt?” Kai ruffled his hair, and Lloyd pulled away, like usual, but grinned at him, bumping his shoulder gently.

“Remember when you used to get all upset at me for slacking off and reading Starfarer comics during training?”

Kai reddened. “That was different! We were preparing you for the Final Battle, there was a lot to be done.”

“Hypocrites,” Lloyd whispered, giggling as he ducked a swing from Kai.

“Well, what are you going to do now, ‘master of the comics?’” Jay asked. “Hoard all the books to yourself? Read in front of us to taunt us?” “Tempting,” Lloyd said, “but I think first, I want to play another round of the Starfarer board game.”

Cole blinked. “Lloyd, it’s seven pm. And this took us like five hours to get through the first time.”

The ninja blinked at each other.

“Oh, it’s on!”

[jeffwittekcuts]

I Don’t Wanna Waste My Time (J.W)

Or where Jeff and Yn are friends with benefits , but Yn want something serious. (Part One)

 “Oh my fucking God, Jeff!” Yn moaned

“Tell me what you want baby girl” he said leaving kisses on neck

“Fuck me Jeff, just fuck me”  she said, hands clenching the sheets into fists

“Mmm that's a good girl” Jeff moaned as he thrusted into her harder and deeper

The sound of a phone ringing, abruptly woke him up from his dream, it was David.

“What?” he said annoyed

“Jeez, why so angry?

“It's the middle of the night and you woke me take a guess”

“Well just wanted to tell you Zane, Carly, Yn, Natalie, Matt and I are going out and I was wondering if you'd like to tag along” David asked

“I’ll think about it”

“Well if you do come, were going to Karma”

“Okay”

“Okay bye.”

Rolling back to bed, he could feel the boner between his legs. His hand slowly made its way down to the elastic of his boxers, slipping right in he took his cock and started stroking it, closing his eyes as he started thinking about her, Yn. He imagined her on her knees taking him all in as he throws his head back in pleasure, grabbing a fist of her hair, fucking her mouth, her pink lips turning a shade darker. He feels himself getting close. Stroking faster, he finally cums, making a mess of his boxers. For some reason he felt like a teen that could not control his urges. He proceeded to take a cold shower to lower his body heat. He wanted yn, and not only in his dreams. Making his way to his closet, Jeff decided he was going out and getting what he wanted.

“Shots!” Zane yelled as soon as they got to the club. Yn felt Zane grab her and Natalie's hand leading them to the bar area. By the time they had downed their first tequila of the night, David, Matt and Carly had found their way to them. As the night went on, Yn began isolating herself from the group, occasionally dancing with some guys or a random group of girls. At this point, she was swaying her hips to some JBalvin song on her own, really feeling herself, letting loose from everything that was on her mind.

After what felt like forever Jeff finally arrived at the club, he first spotted a very drunk Zane busting his ass off, he then saw Matt and Carly near Zane, making sure he didn’t do anything stupid. As he kept walking toward the small group, he also saw Natalie and David chatting in a table but no sign of Yn. She always did this, she’d get lost and when it was about time to leave she’d magically appear again. Usually this wouldn’t bother Jeff since most of the times she’d get “lost” he would be fucking her in some random place, but now he actually had to look for her. After making conversation with David and Natalie, trying to raise no suspicions about what he was there for, he excused himself to go to the bathroom, but really he was looking for Yn.

“Hey doll, you dropped your phone.” Snapping out of her trance, Yn noticed a brunette boy handing her back her phone, which in fact had slipped off her skirt. He had called her doll, only Jeff really ever called her that did not matter right now.

“Oh thank you so much, I didn't even notice,” she said taking back her phone, not before flashing a cute smile to the boy.

“Im Sebastian by the way” 

“Yn”

“It fits you”

“How so?”

“Pretty name for a pretty girl”

“God, you're cheesy,” she giggled

“I've been told”

“I like it, it’s cute”

“I know we just met, but would you like to dance?”

“I'd love to”

After what felt like forever, Jeff was finally able to spot Yn with some guy he didn't know. She was looking very good tonight, a small red crop top contrasting with her skin and making her boobs pop, her black jean skirt hugging her hips and some black vans to finish the look. The way she was dancing with that guy made him want her even more. He almost wished he was him, having her all over his body, but soon enough she would be. Pulling his phone out he texted her a quick hey, in hopes of getting her attention.

Now surrounded by a small crowd, Sebastian and Yn were enjoying themselves, getting closer and closer by the second. Yn decided to make the first move and kiss him, he was surprised at first but he kissed her back. The kiss was smooth, very different from her other experiences, and while standing there she was able to feel her phone ring multiple times. She excused herself to check her phone, thinking it might be david letting her know they would leave soon. It was Jeff. She read the messages he had sent in the past few minutes.

“Hey”

“Doll,are you ignoring me?”

“I need you babygirl”

“Ditch that guy and lets go to my place”

She read the texts over and over again. She was really enjoying sebastian's company, but she really wanted to go over to Jeff’s. Her poor judgement decided she'd leave with Jeff. 

“Hold on, meet me in the hallway” she quickly texted back. Shortly after, a voice made her snap back to reality.

“Is everything okay?” Sebastian asked.

“Yeah, my friend was just letting me know we're leaving soon,” she said sadly.

“Oh”

“Yeah, I was really having a good time”

“Well if you'd like a better time let me take you out”

“Like on a date?”

“Yeah, on a date”

“Then it's a date”

“Here I’ll give you my phone and you give me yours and let's exchange numbers” As they exchanged numbers, yn heard her phone ring 

“Umm Jeff can't wait to see you” he said dryly 

“What?”

“Is he your boyfriend?”

“No, he's my friend, he was out of town and its been awhile since we've seen each other” she lied

“Oh, I'm sorry I just didn't want to get in the middle of anything”

“You're fine, trust me Jeff is just my friend”

“Well here you go” he said handing Yn her phone. “Text you later?”

“I'll look forward to it,” she said as she waved goodbye and left sebastian.

Making her way through the crowd, she finally got to the hallway. There he was, leaning against a wall in his white shirt and black pants, looking at his phone. For some reason he was looking particularly good tonight, his hair was messy, his arms looked more toned than usually, this whole sight was making her horny for him. Yn could feel herself getting wet by the as she approached him, god he looked better upfront.

“Hey,” she said catching his attention. Looking up from his phone,  was beautiful Yn. before he even said anything he grabbed her face and just started kissing her. The kissing got heated by the second. Jeff  stopped kissing her mouth after a while, and made his way to her sweet neck. Leaving soft wet kisses on it, he then whispered “let's get out of here” giving Yn goosebumps as he grabbed her hand leading them out. “Wait,” she said. “I came with david,”  Jeff thought for a second about what they should do until he said: “Okay follow my lead.” Redirecting their path, Jeff carried her in his arms as he looked for were the group was.

“Hey guys, Yn here is very sleepy, so I'm giving her a ride home ”Jeff lied to the group

“Baby, where have you been” drunk Zane said

“Having too many drinks, now I'm sleepy” she answered 

“Okay , I’ll see you tomorrow for brunch then”

“Bye guys” both Jeff and Yn said and left.

When they got to Jeff's car, they kissed again before getting in. Since this was going to be a long ride, Yn decided to have some fun. First, she was going to tease Jeff and then make her way to his dick. Feeling it get hard under her touch, she kept rubbing it. Earning a moan from Jeff, she proceeded to unbutton his pants and keep rubbing him through his boxers.

“Fuck Yn, stop that Im driving”

“So keep driving an let me do my thing,” she whispered as she bit his earlobe and made her way to his dick. Taking his cock out of his boxers, she took him all in her mouth and she immediately felt herself gag from how big Jeff was, but still continued to blow him. She could hear him curse under his breath as he was about to cum, and a few minutes later he came all over her mouth as he took a grip of her hair. She gladly swallowed it and just as she was getting herself together she noticed they had reached Jeff’s apartment. They kissed some more on the elevator as jeff pushed her against the wall and carried her to his door. When he finally managed to open it, he put her down and they both started undressing themselves leaving them just in their underwear.

Once they reached the bedroom, Yn layed on top of Jeff, kissing his neck as he played with her boobs. She was grinding against him, and she then felt Jeff flip them leaving her exposed in front of him. His hand travelled down to her panties, slowly massaging her clit and then inserting two of his long fingers into her, God did she loved his fingers.

“Oh fuck Jeff”

“You like that doll?”

“Oh fuck yeah”

“Tell me how much you like it” he said as he gained speed

“I fucking love your fingers so much, Oh fuck I’m so close”

“Cum for me Doll” he said as he felt her clenching her walls around his fingers. 

Jeff grabbed a condom from his nightstand drawer on put it on, he knew Yn was on the pill, but better safe than sorry. He was about to position himself on top of Yn when she pushed him back, deciding she would rather ride him. She was so fucking hot. Yn rode Jeff, and as she leaned to kiss him, she could feel herself getting close. Jeff threw his head back meaning he was very close as well. Jeff grabbed Yn’s hips moving them faster, and within minutes, both had managed to cum. Yn got off Jeff and layed next to him on the bed and for a moment, all that could be heard was their heavy breathing . 

“That was amazing” Jeff said as he left a kiss on her cheek

“Yeah it was” She said very pleased

“You ready for round two” He asked with a cheeky smile

“No I think I'm just going to head home”

“Why? You usually stay”

“Yeah but I want to get some sleep before the bruch

“Are you bringing anyone

Ï think i might invite sebastian , he's really sweet”

“The guy from the club? You hardly know him”

“So? He won't try to do anything if im with all my friends”

“Well im taking Kelsey”

“Cool , anyways I'm gonna go now”she said “see you at brunch”

The group had decided to meet up at Urth Cafe for brunch, Yn was running late like she did most of the time , but at least she was not going to be the only one late , since Sebastian was coming with her. When they got there she was laughing at something Sebastian has said , she then presented him to the group and sat next to Zane and in front of Jeff and Kelsey. 

“Baby , you finally got yourself a man” Zane whispered to her , she giggled and nodded in response , the brunch was going great , except for some backhanded comment from Jeff towards Sebastian , usually she would not think much of it , but she was sensing some of this comments weren't jokes at all, when Yn had enough she spoke 

“Hey Jeff would you mind taking a pic with me real quick”

“Yeah sure” he said as she led him to a more private area to confront him.

“What the hell is up with you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Stop playing stupid , why are you giving sebastian such a hard time?’” 

“I'm not,  im just teasing him”

“Jeff , I know when your teasing and that aint it” she spoke sternly

“Why are you being so weird about it?”

“Because I really like him’” 

“What?”

“Look Jeff what you and I have is great but I want something serious and I think this guy could be the one, so please cut the shit”

“Wait so what about us?”

“Its over Jeff , why dont you just fuck Kelsey instead, look Jeff I love you, youre one of the greastest guys I know but , youve said it yourself you dont want anything long term , so what am saying is when can still be friends okay?” She said as she left as kiss on his cheek

“Yeah , just friends then , no sex?” He asked 

“No sex” she said “Now lets go I dont want to keep Sebastian waiting”

“I'll be there in a minute I'm just going to the bathroom”

“Okay”

Standing there Jeff felt watched Yn go back to the table , he felt sad for some reason as if they had broken up or something even though they didn't date , he had mixed feeling about the whole situation  , he decided to shrug it off , and return to the table , but when he did, he could not help but be angry at  Sebastian making Yn so happy , almost wishing it was him .

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/n: So this is Part 1 of the mini series “Butterfly Effect” , I really hope you guys like it , I know I’m having a blast writing it. Huge shoutout to @emobrock for always helping me , gracias perrita.

[dobrikswriting]

Basically Strangers PT 2

Sorry this took so long!

Here’s part one!

I laid down in my bed the second I got back to my hotel. I glanced over at the clock.

5 AM.

I hadn't been to bed yet, I almost felt like the whole night I hadn't even been awake. I felt bad about leaving David while he was sleeping I just felt like it might be awkward in the morning. I feel like he's going to wake up and regret everything and I really didn't want to see that look on his face. I sent Zane a quick text telling him to call me the second he woke up and then I stripped down to just my bra and underwear before I laid down and finally rest my eyes.

"Y/N?" I heard as I felt a hand gently shake me awake. I blinked my eyes, my brain not able to process anything as I saw Zane standing in front of me. I sat there staring at him for a couple second before I finally realized that Zane and, by the sound of chatter, a few other people were in my room right now.

"Woah." I said softly sitting up looking around the room, seeing Matt, Carly, and Erin sitting on the couch in my room. "Hey? How did yo-"

"I pretended to be your husband and got an extra key." Zane said cutting you off.

"That's .... unsettling." I replied sleepily looking over to see the time. 11 AM, 6 hours of sleep would have to do.

"That's what I said!" Matt said, agreeing with me. "No way should it be that easy I'm going to do something about that. I'm writing a letter to someone." Matt said matter of factually.

"Okay sure, can we go get some food now." I heard a voice say, a voice I hadn't previously known was in the room. I leaned forward in the bed more and looked around the corner into the open hallway to see David leaning up against the door frame, looking at his phone. He looked up at me and smiled.

 "Nice hickies y/n. You ditched us to go have fun last night huh?" David teased, I felt heat rush to my cheeks knowing my face had to be bright red. I looked down and quickly remembered I had stripped down to basically nothing before I had fallen asleep, I quickly grabbed the blanket and pulled it up to my neck covering myself up.

"A bra is basically a bikini you're fine." Zane joked sitting on the edge of my bed. "We're getting breakfast get dressed." He said, not asking more demanding. 

David walked more into the room throwing me the robe that the hotel had left hanging in the bathroom.

"We'll wait for you to shower if you want." He added before sitting in a chair at the opposite end of the room. I could tell by the way Zane wasn't joking around and wasn't giving me shit, that David hadn't said anything about last night. I was thankful but I guess I had also expected that, David didn't seem like the type of guy to do that without talking to me first.

I smiled at him as I put the robe on and quickly went into the bathroom to shower and get ready.

--

I had gotten ready in record time and we were all on our way down to the car to get food. Zane walked up beside me, "Sorry I went too hard last night I was looking forward to having fun with you and I passed out so early." He said looking at me with puppy dog eyes.

"It's okay really, I still had fun." I replied genuinely, even aside from spending time with David I really did have a fun time with everyone last night. I was excited to see what the rest of the week would hold.

"Yeah I can see that." Zane said, referring to the light hickies on my neck. "Who did those you don't even know anyone here."

"I'm on vacation, let me live." I said brushing him off, not wanting to lie but not wanting to tell him the truth. He just gave me a look smiling and then walked up to say some comment to annoy Matt. We got out to David's tesla and all got in, I was surprised to see everyone getting in the back leaving the only open spot being the front seat. I slid in the seat, I could feel my heart beating extremely fast. I was nervous but also excited I felt like I was 14 and had just seen my crush in the hall or something. David made me feel different. I tried to pretend I was looking at something on my phone as I heard him get into the car and we started to drive.

"Why'd you leave last night?" He asked me softly, the music was loud enough that the others couldn't hear it while they were caught up in their own conversation. I looked over at him to see he was looking intently at the road, I had never seen a more beautiful side profile. His hair was messy but still perfect, and the way his mouth sat ever so slightly open with his tongue resting against his bottom lip, I felt like I should pinch myself because no way was this guy in any way interested in me.

"I just didn't want the morning to be awkward, if you..." I stopped for a moment wanting to word it correctly. "I mean I know you were drunk and I just wanted to give you a clean escape you know." I replied back quietly, changing my gaze to match his, watching the road go past.

"I don't want one." He said and I could see him look at me and smile out of the corner of my eye. I smiled but I kept looking forward, before Zane popped his head between us and had some remark to say about how hungry he was and David wasn't going fast enough. We rolled our eyes and continued the drive in conversation with everyone else.

After we had eaten we hung out at David's for a while. I was shocked at how included I felt, I felt like I had been friends with everyone for years. I was happy that things weren't weird between me and David. I knew nothing would come of the two of us, I was only going to be in California for a few more days then I would go back to my life as normal but I was so excited to even be able to experience a glimpse of this life, with these people. It made me wish I had moved out here when Zane did.

After a few hours at David's everyone was about to split up and do their own things, David had to get some footage for a brand deal, Carly and Erin were going to shoot a video with Jason and, Zane and Matt were going to film the podcast with Heath and Mariah. "Do you wanna come and film with us?" Zane asked not wanting to leave me alone for the afternoon.

"I was kinda thinking about doing something touristy." I said laughing at how lame I sounded. "Who knows when I'll be able to come back here." I added. Zane nodded and looked in thought hopefully thinking of a good place for me to go.

"Do you wanna come with me?" David asked overhearing me. "My brand deal is with universal studios, I have to go ride a new ride they're coming out with but we can definitely make a day of it. Amusement parks are good content." He said smiling at me.

"That's perfect thank you!" I said thankfully back to him. "You sure I wouldn't be intruding?" I asked. David immediately shook his head.

"I was supposed to take Jonah but he just ditched me last second so you're doing me a favor actually." He replied. I smiled back at him and gave Zane a quick hug as we all went on our separate ways.

I slid back into the passenger seat of the tesla and tried to contain my smile, I was excited to spend time alone with David. I knew from the vlogs that he was fun but actually being around him is a totally different story. He was so fun and nice and just a good person that wanted to do anything he could to make other people laugh. It was a nice vibe to be around. We started driving and I was a little nervous how to start conversation with him, so I was glad when he broke the silence.

"I hope nothing is awkward between us because of last night." He said looking over at me.

"Not at all. At least for me. I really enjoyed myself." I said smiling at him. He nodded and smiled at me.

"I have to be really careful about what I do and who I do it with. I have this image and if anything comes out of me actually acting like a 23 year old, the world goes crazy." He said running a hand through his brown his. "It was very off brand of me to do that but it felt really nice, like freeing." He said opening up to me. I hadn't realized how much pressure was on David to always do the right things and be the perfect guy, I couldn't imagine not getting to just do whatever I wanted and always having to worry about people taking things the wrong way.

"Well I'm happy I could help." I replied laughing. "It feels really good to be here. In LA, with all you guys. You are all so inviting and I feel like I'm apart of the group."

"You fit in really well, your personality is a good match. I bet by the end of the week everyone is going to be begging for you to stay." He said winking at me.

"Everyone?" I teased, making it a point to look him in the eyes so he knew I was talking about him directly. David just smiled back at me and laughed but I could see a blush creeping up on his cheeks. David then put the camera up on his dashboard and filmed us driving the rest of way, just jamming out to music and David filming a couple stupid dad joke puns from random billboards we went past.

I had never been to universal studios but I had been to multiple other theme parks and it was pretty standard to the rest. David and I filmed us riding the new ride, he introduced me as Zane's home town best friend and he was putting me through the test to see if I could make it in the vlog squad. We finished riding that ride and then rode a could more, on any ride that had a big drop or upside down turn David would grab my hand and hold on for dear life and I could my whole stomach fill with butterflies. We were both eating a churro and David was taking some pictures with fans when I finally glanced down at my phone, I was shocked to see so many notifications.

I opened up my messages to see multiple texts from my friends back home and one from Zane tell me to call him right away. I told David I would be right back and stepped into a quieter area to call him.

"Hey!" Zane picked up immediately.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Have you seen the pictures?" Zane asked.

"Huh?" Is all I said back in confusion.

"Look at my texts." He stated I quickly opened up my messages app and went to Zanes, he had sent me a picture of David and I standing in line at one of the rides. "Thats a little weird that someone took that buts what's the big deal?" I asked.

"The way he's looking at you." Zane said. I opened up the picture more and I could see that David was looking at me, I don’t know if it was in my head but there was something more there. I don’t think I had ever seen anyone look at me quite the same even if I couldn’t explain it. We just looked really happy and comfortable together.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I replied back though not wanting to make it a big deal.

"Yes you do. You know what I'm talking about and so will David when he sees that. It's a big deal because David can have some crazy fans and their really running with this one y/n. Most of the fans either don't want David with anyone or they want him with Liza, and this picture with him looking at you like that and those hickies on your neck it won't be long before they come for you." He said worried.

"I think you're reading too deep into it. We're just friends hanging out.”

"I'm not dumb. You didn't leave last night you hooked up with David. I heard you guys talking in the car." He said back, I felt bad that Zane knew I was lying to him, it just didn't feel like my place to tell David's business like that.

"I'm sorry." Was all I could reply.

"It's okay just be careful please, some of the fans can be ruthless." Zane said. I thanked him before getting off the phone, I looked through a couple of my messages, seeing they all had to do with the picture, people asking me what David was like and if I could have him follow them on stuff. I didn't reply to anything and I walked back over to David who was sitting signing something for a fan. He looked up at me and could tell something was off.

"What's wrong?" He asked after the fan had walked away.

"I'm just really hot do you wanna head out?" I asked. David just looked at me and nodded and we headed back to the car in silence.

We didn't say much the whole ride back to my hotel. David pulled up in a parking spot and turned to me. "Did something happen?" He asked me.

"You have to know about the picture." I said turning my body to face him as well.

"Yeah. I mean it's not a big deal it'll blow over." He replied. I unlocked my phone and slid it over to him as the notification kept popping up on my screen, follow requests and random DM's.

 "Maybe but it's a lot right now." I said. He looked over a couple of the DM's most of them were harmless but I could see him get uncomfortable when a negative one would pop up on the screen. I was surprised they had found all my social media accounts so quickly.

"I'm sorry." David said handing me back my phone.

"It's not your fault I'm just not used to this. I'm pretty unremarkable so my phone is never this popping." I said joking back.

"No seriously I should of never taken you there I knew it wasn't a good idea. I just wanted to. Last night I felt so free and good to just do what I wanted and not worry about what anyone else would think. It felt so good. And I wanted to do it again but that was way too public." He said staring at his hand. I felt my heart get tight, I had so much fun with David I didn't want whatever weird friendship we had to stop because of this.

"David I barely know you, but there is something about you that just makes me want to be around you and get to know you. I don't care about what other people think. I get it's a big part of your job, so if you want me to keep my distance to help you out I totally understand." I said, know he would agree and that would be the end to this thing that had barely even started.

"I feel the same way about you. Y/N when I said I don't do the having sex with strangers and bringing them home thing I meant that. I don't do that but there is just something about you where I feel like I can be myself." He said looking up at me. "I don't want you to keep your distance. We just can't be too extra about it but I do want to get to know you better." He added, we had slowly been leaning in towards each other and David leaned in more pushing his lips against mine. I kissed him back, I can't describe the feeling that rushed through my veins. He pulled back and smiled at me.

"Do you wanna come up?" I asked, wanting to continue spending time with him.

"I gotta go edit for the vlog tomorrow but I do want to see you, do you wanna come over later, everyone will probably be there you can meet the rest of the gang?" He replied.

I nodded and went to get out of the car, David placed a hand on the back of my neck and pulled me in for another kiss, this one deeper and more passionate as his tongue found its way into my mouth. He pulled away and I felt breathless.

"I'll text you." I said trying to make it seem like I wasn't as giddy as a little school girl I said as I smiled back at David and got out of the car.

I couldn't help but do a little dance freak out as I got back to my room. I couldn't believe that David had any interest in me at all, I would never think someone like him would like me. It felt so good. I laid back on my bed as I was facetimed Zane to tell him what happened and have him help me decide how to handle the new found popularity I had.

[ninjagoruinedmylife]

Shadowhunters au: chapter two

Ooooooh my goooosh here it is finally it’s late at night so sorry for any mistakes i’ll fix them tomorrow

I hope you’ll enjoy this crap

***

It surely wasn’t their most glorious runaway. To be honest - they just qucikly exited through the door that led them out, leaving terrified blonde boy in a club.

Streets were very quiet, it was a middle of the night, after all. Only a few cars passed a group of wounded, tired teenagers. They were heading back to Institute by foot, even though it wasn’t that close. They felt safer this way: nobody could stop them and ask uncomfortable questions. Besides, they needed fresh air after this incident.

This time wasn’t very different from the other moments when they were heading back home from mission. Nya and Kai talked about the fight, Cole and Jay were arguing about something, Zane was walking first with his head in the clouds… They just all acted more quiet. They faced only one demon and still he managed to give them some wounds. They had a big preponderance after all, but because of this strange boy they absolutely lost control over this combat. Nya blamed herself for that. She had to cover up her brother and Cole, she stood between them and the monster, and if only she hadn’t been shocked so much to take a step back they wouldn’t even get touched but this creature…

Girl sighed. She failed and now felt like if she was the worst, but she had to remind herself that now this event was in the past. The next time she will do better for sure.

“Here you go.” Nya finally ended bandaging her brother’s arm. She sent him a big smile. “Don’t worry, it’s not so bad.”

“But what’s with your dress?” Kai looked at girl’s scattered cloth - she used a fragment of it for a patch. “Mum wouldn’t be happy if she saw this.”

“Who said she will see this? I have-”

“Dear Angel, Jay, I’m fine! You’ll do your work when we’ll be back home!” Cole yelled with a frustration, interupting Nya’s explanation.

Siblings looked behind them - Jay tried to draw a healing mark on Cole. He surely needed it, because demon’s claws made a deep cut at his chest. His own marks protected him from the lose of blood for now. However, Jay didn’t wanted to give up.

“If you’re fine, then I’m queen of Britain!” Jay answered with a cracking voice. “Just stay still for a moment, you stubborn…”

“I don’t need your help, blueberry!” Cole seemed really irritated, which was pretty rare for him. “You think that you are so special because you quickly learned how to use marks and now you want to show everyone your incredible skills? For now, you are just pain in the ass.”

‘Well, it was rare before Jay joined the team.’ Nya corrected her own toughts and shook her head with disapporval.

“Oh my God, yes! Maybe this is it! Maybe I just lack attention! Thank you!” Jay muttered under his breath. “Right now, I just don’t want you dead, but I’m slowly starting to change my mind about it.”

“I won’t die from it, it’s just a scratch!”

“Scratch?! You’ll have a scar through all of your chest!”

“Well, I had worse wounds, you patetic nurse.”

“And you know what I think about it? I think that it means that you just go into every battle like a moron and…”

“Can’t they get of each other’s throats for a moment?” Nya rolled her eyes. She liked both of the boys, but their fights started to get on her nerves lately.

“As some say, squabbels are the way of life, sis.” Kai answered with a smirk.

She looked around - Zane left them behind, he was one street ahead them. Even though, it was so quiet in this neighbuorhood, that they could’ve heard all of his cold words.

“We are here, so it would be nice if you two stopped arguing for a moment!” Blonde, tall boy didn’t even granted the others a look before entracing the gates of the old church.

“Yeah, Wu won’t be very happy when he’ll hear your cute yelling at 3 in the morning. What am I saying, he will be furious!” Nya started running towards the Institute with a wide smile on her face. “But if you really want to test him this much..!”

“Okay, I’d rather believe her.” She overheard Jay’s nervous giggle.

She came into the old building and finally felt like home. She walked towards a small elevator in the right corner of the main nave, right behind the altar, and then she rode to the third floor.

Wu was already there, with a cup of his famous, refreshing tea. He granted it to the young female, and then led her to the library.

“Zane just came.” Old teacher said when they were crossing the halls. “He looked… troubled, and so do you. Did something unexpected happened?”

“A little. Kai and Cole are wounded. But we traced something that might intetest you.”

After a moment they heard loud talks that could only mean one thing - boys catched up after her and also arrived at Institute.

“So I guess it will be a long night.” Their teacher sighed.

***

Lloyd tried his best to forget about this whole night.

He tried was doing parkour with Nelson, he read as many comics as he could, he learnt to the moment when he started falling asleep, he even helped his mother with house chores. All this to somehow erease a memory of this strange monster and bleeding teenagers.

He still couldn’t believe they just left him without any word. They should tell him something, explain what happened… But, instead, they ran away like cowards. Lloyd had to use all of his strength to move from the saff room and stop looking at the floor covered in a slick, black blood. After this, he found Brad and took his protesting friend out of the club. Anytime he tried to bring up a topic of ‘Pandemonium’, Lloyd ignored him or came up with another activity.

He didn’t wanted his only friends (or even worse - his mother!) to think that he became crazy.

“I’m back, mum!” Boy yelled when he entered their flat.

It was in one of scuffy tenament houses, but he really liked it. It had an atmosphere, as some would say - old sofa, armchairs and shelves bought in antique shop gave the feeling like if the time has stopped 100 years ago, books where laying everywhere around, on the walls there were hanging many undetailed drawings and messy notes.

Misako could be only a tourist guide, but history was surely her passion.

“Oh, hi. I returned five minutes ago, I swear.” His mother was already standing in little kitchen, against an open fridge. He walked to her and gave her a quick kiss on a cheek, and then sat at the table to do his homework. “Those guests today were so interested…”

“It’s okay, mum. You don’t have to make excuses for me.” Lloyd sent her a big smile.

“I know, I know. I’m just bad at myself that I haven’t tought about our dinner…” She took a milk and eggs from the fridge. “Pancakes?”

“Pancakes sound awesome.”

They spent nearly three hours talking and doing Lloyd’s math exercises. When they were going to turn on the TV and watch some dumb cartoons together, Misako’s phone started ringing. Woman took it and silently listened to the person on the other side, nodded and hung up. She looked at her son; he noticed how worried she seemed.

“I’m sorry Lloyd, but Ronin really needs my help in his shop. We’ll watch something when I’ll be back home, okay?” She hugged him tightly and then nearly ran through the door. “I love you!”

“Uh… yeah. Love you too, mum.” Lloyd sighed sadly and slowly walked towards his little room. It appeared to be just another evening in his life - he spent some time with his mother, she had to do something important the moment when he gained enough courage to tell her about this monster he saw, and for the rest of his free time he was going to read comics. Truly amazing.

He lied on his bed and started staring blankly at the other wall, but then he saw that someone sent him a message. He grabbed his phone and frowned. On the screen, there was a photo of Brad and Nelson, laughing and holding three tickets. The text under it said: 'Leave your house finally you nerd, we’re waiting for you downstairs and you won’t believe what we’ve got! >:3"

He felt a little bad, disobeying the main rule in his family: don’t leave home without any word. Still, he wrote his mother a note and left it on a table, so she would know where he went. In the end, they had telephones, right? Ignoring strange feeling in his stomach, boy went to see what his friends planned for him this time. It surely wasn’t going to be something ordinary. As always.

When he finally got all things that would be useful (like phone, a bottle of water or a first aid kit) he came down and Brad waved three scraps of paper right in front of his face.

“Three tickets for The Royal Blacksmiths concert?! How-” Lloyd gave his friends a concerned look. “Tell me you two didn’t steal it.”

“I’m clean! It was Brad!” Nelson yelled at the top of his lungs. His arm was broken again.

“I didn’t stole it, idiots,” Brad grinned. “I’m just using my family connections.”

“Okay, so this time nothing illegal.” Lloyd felt very relieved after this words.

“So, what are we waiting for?!” Nelson seemed so excited that both boys couldn’t help but smile. Even though this guy had a bad luck, he still managed to somehow stay happy and full of energy. “Let’s go!”

This evening was sure going to be fun.

***

Not everyone was thinking about this concert the same way as Lloyd, Brad and Nelson. To be absolutely honest, Cole was quite furious that he decided to go and see The Royal Blacksmiths.

He mostly didn’t took any decision on an impulse, but this time… When he saw that his father and his band are coming back after a long tour, he knew he had to meet him. Cole ran away from his house nearly five years ago - and since then, he never seen Lou again. The only member of boy’s family was traveling around the world, singing and dancing, but in reality he was just trying to forget what happened to his wife. Cole didn’t wanted to admit it, but he still held some grudge inside him. Why his father couldn’t be normal and stay with him? Why couldn’t he help him in this tough time?

In reality, it wasn’t Cole who left. It was Lou.

Anyways, he told everyone that he needs to go somewhere. Of course, they had to follow him - they were all very curious what made Cole, calm and rational guy, to suddenly come out of Institute to do something that wasn’t connected with haunting demons.

After a while of being just irritated with their company, he started feeling thankful that they were with him now. Their appereance made it look like if it was just another mission.

And Jay was, as always, rambling as fast as lightning.

“Your father is a leader of The Royal Blacksmiths? Wow, Cole, you sure are one hell of a mistery-”

“Slow down, motor mouth, slow down.” Cole shook his head. “This way I won’t understand a thing.”

Actually, he heard him perfectly - messing with Jay was just his way to cover up a stress. For now it worked.

“Like, this is so crazy, man! Why haven’t you told me? And,” Jay gasped dramatically when he realised something. “Why I never heard you sing?”

Cole didn’t answer, he only started walking faster.

“Jay, this topic isn’t really easy for Cole.” He could’ve heard Zane’s quiet words. “I guess it would be better it you would stop for a moment.”

“Oh- Yeah, yeah. I mean, this is just exciting, so-”

“Shut up!” Kai yelled. “It is such a peaceful evening, don’t ruin it for everyone in this town.”

“Kai, we are living in New York, he can’t destroy everyone’s evening, there are way too many people.” Nya interrupted her brother with a sleazy smile.

“That’s not the point!” Kai threw his hands into the air. “Just…”

“Everything’s okay?” Zane finally catched up to Cole.

“Yes, I guess so.” Cole mumbled under his breath.

“I know it must be hard, but remember that you have us.” His parabatai patted him on his back. “Maybe we are not a big help right now, but… We are with you.”

“Thanks.” Cole smiled blankly. After this little talk he really started feeling better.

He had to clear up the atmosphere between him and his father. To this moment, he was afraid that Lou would be mad at him or that he wouldn’t want to talk at all, but now Cole realised that he didn’t needed his father so much. He gained a new family. It was a strange slice of different people - an old teacher, siblings with fiery personalities, cold and calculative guy out of nowhere, enthusiastic boy from a junkyard, and him. Still, they all somehow fit togheter.

What could have gone wrong as long as they had each other?

***

Lloyd really enjoyed this concert, even tough it wasn’t his favourite kind of music. He liked spending time with his friends in any form - for a long time he had no one, so he felt that he shouldn’t be really picky when it came to this subject.

Everything started getting complicated when he spotted a group of familiar teenagers in a crowd.

“I’m… I’m going to toilet! I’ll be right back!” He yelled towards jumping Nelson and Brad and suddenly felt guilty. He wasn’t a good liar at all.

“What?!” Brad probably didn’t heard him.

“Okay, okay, go!” Nelson answered for both of them, trying to scream over the loud music and excited fans.

Lloyd walked towards the monster hunters (that’s how he called them in his head) and followed them when they came beside a stage, between the trees of a nearby park.

“I can’t do it, I can’t! What in the name of Angel was I thinking about?! They won’t even let me close to him, so it’s absolutely pointless!” He overheard a deep, nervous voice rambling.

“I think that it’s still worth a try.” A female voice answered.

“Yeah, there might be no more chances-” Somebody else said in a tone that was kinda similiar to the one before.

“You’re probably not helping!” One of the boys yelled in a high pitched voice. “Is he helping? I think he is not.”

“He is not.”

“See?!”

Lloyd was slowly getting closer to them. He tried to make no sound and remain unseen. His heart was beating like crazy.

“Hey, if you don’t want to do this, we can go back to Institute.” A new one joined - this time it was calm, mature voice lacking emotions.

Lloyd frowned. What kind if 'institute’ were they talking about?

“I think…” The first voice started. “That we are not alone here.”

And they all looked directly at Lloyd.

Girl got out her knives, but then the guy with a messy hair standing next to her stopped her.

“Wait! I think we know him.”

“Is it the one from 'Pandemonium’?” Boy all dressed in blue gave him a pretentious look.

“Indeed.” The one who stood the closest to Lloyd (he recognised him as the nerd) nodded his head.

“Ha! I knew it!”

“What do you want?” Guy who started the previous conversation, dark-skinned and dark-haired, asked in a strangely calm voice.

“I-” Lloyd’s voice cracked. “I have some questions. I mean, many questions. About… what happened in this club.”

All of them remained silent.

“Who are you?” Lloyd tried again. “My name is Lloyd, by the way.”

Teenagers looked all at one another, then nodded in a wordless agreement.

“Nya.” Girl started staring at her shoes.

“Kai.” Guy with messy hair tried to make it up.

“Zane.” Nerd smiled at him lightly.

“Cole.” Tall one rolled his eyes.

“And Jay!” Blue boy waved at him.

Okay, so they had this point behind them.

“What was this… creature that you… destroyed?” For some reason, word 'killed’ couldn’t escape his mouth.

“You- you saw it? In its demon form?” Kai seemed very impressed.

“Does it mean-” Cole frowned.

“Yes, it does.” Zane agreed.

“A new Shadowhunter?” Jay smiled wide.

“A new what?” Lloyd asked with an unmasked suprise.

“Uh, we are probably not the best people out there to have this talk with you.” Nya walked towards him. “But, if you want, of course, we can take you to someone who will explain this.”

“You really saw it?” Kai still couldn’t gather himself. “Tail, fangs, claws? Black blood and all?”

“Uh, yeah?” Lloyd scratched his nose. “What is so strange about that? I bet everyone would see it.”

“That’s not correct.” Zane shook his head. “Actually, Downworlders are not able to see demons. Only us, Shadowhunters, and other magical species perceive them.”

“Look, I don’t know what any of this means…”

In this moment, his phone started ringing. Lloyd sighed in frustration and took it out of his backpack. He gave screen a short look: 23 calls from his mother, and she was also the one who called him now.

Shit.

“H-hi mum, I can explain-”

“Lloyd? Thanks God, you answered!” Misako’s breath was fast and he could’ve heard that she was running. “No matter what- Ah!”

“Mum?!” Lloyd froze when his mother screamed and probably fell. “Are you there? What is happening?!”

“Lloyd, listen to me. No matter what, don’t come back home!” Signal started cutting, was it a sound of breaking glass? “Go to Ronin, he will know what to do.”

“Mum, I don’t understand-”

“I love you, son.” On the other side something crashed and the call ended.

Lloyd looked blankly at his phone.

“Hey, is something wrong?” Nya asked him in a soft tone.

“No- yes, I… I think someone- something… attacked my mother.”