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axicallian · 3 months ago

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Starstruck [Ninjago x Male Reader]-Child's Play

Previous chapter

The ninja were extremely ecstatic to have their beloved Bounty back. The group worked tirelessly to return the ship to its original state, repainting, restyling, ect. Kai, Zane, Cole, and Jay got their room back, which no longer seemed cramped compared to the tiny apartment.

Having their home back gave Zane a sense of ease and normalcy.. until night. He was laying on his back in his bunk bed, just staring up. Something was missing. After some time, he didn't know how long but it felt like forever, he sat up and got out of bed. His light footsteps pattered against the polished wood halls. He came up to M/n's door and just stared. His heart ached to cuddle with the dragon but his mind raced with 'what-ifs'. His hand moved involuntarily and gently turned the handle, pushing it open. He could see the shadow of the hybrid sitting up, not startled but not groggy, almost as if expecting the Nindroid or maybe experiencing the same thing they felt.

"Zane," his angelic voice snapped them back to reality. They were now face to face, soft eyes barely visible in the darkness.

M/n's gentle hands grazed his as he slowly led them back to his bed. The Nindroid climbed in bed after him and they cuddled up together.

"I missed this," the dragon purred contently.

"Me too. You make me feel so.." Zane breathed gently, "alive. I want to stay like this forever.."

M/n rubbed his head against the robot's jaw like a cat. When he brought his head up their faces were close, breaths mixing together.

"Can I.. kiss you?" the hybrid whispered. Zane only nodded in reply.

Their lips met with gentle resolve, warmth blossoming in both their chests. M/n's hand raised to cradle the back of Zane's head while gently playing with the baby hairs on their neck.

The two pull apart with a pant, eyes slowly opening to meet each others' gazes.

"Do that mean my feelings are reciprocated?.." Zane asked in a hushed tone.

M/n's face broke out in a giddy smile, reflecting the warmth he felt inside, "yes." The dragon placed a affectionate kiss on the Nindroid's nose, "now go to bed, Zane," suggested gently, cuddling closer under the blanket.

Lloyd looked out longingly off the side of the Bounty at the children of a village below playing ball. The boys kicked the ball, laughing and tackling each other before finally scoring. The Green Ninja sighed as he grasped the yellow railing.

"Lloyd? Lloyd!" Kai's voice broke through his thoughts, demanding, "Concentrate!"

The blonde boy looked back at the ninja with a frown.

"Now that the Bounty is in our possession again, we can train you more effectively," Zane encouraged, "But you'll have to focus. One more time."

"But we've been training all day," Lloyd complained, throwing his hands in the air.

"It's all to get you ready to face your father. Now, in position," Cole commanded.

The boy deflated with a sigh and an unenthusiastic 'whatever.' He uninterestedly sauntered into the middle of the deck, letting out a dramatic yawn before getting into a lazy fighting position.

The four ninja posed in front of the green one. Kai leapt forward first, going for an obvious kick. The move left him completely open and vulnerable, so Lloyd simply punched him away. The hothead landed roughly on his back, giving a look to his comrades. The Blue and White ninja lunged forward simultaneously; Lloyd spun into a flash a green. He met the two midair and pushed them onto the wood deck. Cole, from behind, knocked the child's feet out from under him and sent him into the air with a surprised yelp.

Instead of crashing back onto deck Lloyd was surprised to find himself floating above the ship. The sound of wings flapping directed everyone's attention upward. M/n flew above deck holding the blonde boy by his underarms giving a concerned look. He gently lowered them back to the floor, setting Lloyd down on his feet.

"Are you alright?" the dragon asked with his hands on the boy's round cheeks. He smiled and nodded, "yeah!"

M/n spun around the face the other ninja, "you're supposed to train him, not kill him!"

Kai stepped forward, "Well you're treating him like a kid."

"He is a kid," M/n sighed.

Lloyd broke the serious air, "M/n! The latest issue of Starfarer just came in at Doomsday Comix! It might sell out though because it's on limited run. I need to know what happens to Fritz Donnegan!"

"The fate of Ninjago rests on your shoulders. As the Green Ninja, you have a giant responsibility to hold," Kai chastised, causing Lloyd to deflate into a pout and hold to M/n for reassurance, "I'm sorry, but you don't have time for such childish things."

"Other kids get to play and have fun. All I ever do is train," the boy complained, still clinging to the dragon.

The ninja glanced at each other before their attention was turned toward Nya who hurried on deck in a panic. M/n scooped the boy up and sat him on his hip now that his comrades were distracted.

"Guys, there's been a break-in at the Ninjago CityMuseum of History and the security cameras picked up you-know-who!" she exclaimed.

"Garmadon!" Cole growled.

"We have to stop him before he uses the Mega Weapon to start another one of the diabolical plots," Jay declared dramatically.

Lloyd turned to M/n with big emerald eyes. The dragon ran his nails through the boy's hair, "We'll go get that comic after we finish dealing with this, okay?" he reassured gently. The Green Ninja only nodded his head and let himself be placed back on his feet to allow M/n join his comrades.

The ninja parked their Bounty in order to dismount the ship and pilot the Sonic Raider. M/n didn't really feel like flying or transforming just to fly into Ninjago City so he and Zane sat in the same compartment, the Nindroid grinned giddily as they chatted between themselves. As Kai entered his seat he turned to his sister looking at him from the deck, "We'll meet up at the Bounty as soon as we're done."

"We'll be waiting for your safe return," Nya waves as the vehicle speeds off.

Lloyd sighed from behind her, "Too old for comic books and too young to fight. When are the ninja gonna make up their minds?"

"Come on, pint size. Show me what you got," Nya encouraged with a competitive smile

That night the ninja and M/n stood on the roof of the museum, the dragon was now clad in a new outfit similar to the ninja gi but it was (colors) and gold embroidery on the sleeves. The outfit was meant to allow him more stealth than his normal outfit.

Jay let a rope hang down from the roof and gripped it, slowing letting himself slide down, Kai next, then Zane, Cole, and finally M/n. The group landed on a ledge outside of a window, waited for the Lightning Master to slide the glass open before gently climbing through. They quietly made their way to the railing that overlooked the main area and crouched down. The group watched as the Serpentine generals slithered through the doors holding their staffs and flashlights.

"Boy, did they get that wrong!" Scales commented loudly as he observed an old art piece depicting anatomically incorrect Serpentine.

"Why would we come to a museum if we weren't going to steal anything from it?" the Venomari complained as the approached a golden sarcophagus.

"Because Master Garmadon," one of Fangtom's heads started and the other finished, "has another plan to destroy the ninja."

"'Master Garmadon?' Ha! He's no master of mine," Scales mocked, "Since his so-called Mega Weapon has failed every time, I don't see why we don't call our own shots."

"Because this time I will not fail," Garmadon's voice echoed causing the Serpentine and ninja to turn their heads toward the noise. Skales flinched and dropped and staff and flashlight which landed perfectly to shine on the oni.

"Yes, Lord Garmadon," The leaders save for Skales chanted before bowing. The Hypnobrai looked around and sighed, reluctantly bowing as well, "Yes, Lord Garmadon.." The four rose and slithered closer to Garmadon with their subordinate snakes following in the background.

"Behold, Dromaeosaurid Theropod Grundalicus," Lord Garmadon announced, motioning to the fossil behind him, "otherwise known as the Grundle." M/n had heard of the Grundle, a vicious apex predator, he worried at what the oni might do with the bones. The Lord of Darkness continued, "Although now extinct, in its time, it was the most feared and dangerous creature in all of Ninjago, with claws that could slice through steel, heightened senses that could detect its prey from miles away. It could track the stealthiest of ninja, and once it had picked up your scent, there was no hiding from it."

Jay chuckled quietly, "Boy, am I glad we live in an age where we don't have to deal with those things."

"Thanks for the history lesson," Scales spat sarcastically, "but what are we gonna do with a pile of bones?"

"I am going to make it so the beast shall walk again," He declared.

The ninja and M/n glanced at each other with concern when Garmadon confidently turned toward the display and rose his Mega Weapon. "I'm not sure if he can really pull off such a stunt but we need to interfere before he proves if he can," M/n suggested to his comrades.

"Rise, Grundle, and feel the strength of the Mega Weapon! I wish to create the power to make you young. Turn back the clock so that you are no longer extinct," He commanded as lightning formed around his golden staff and dark purple smoke began engulfing the fossil, "but hungry, hungry for the ninja!"

"Damn it," M/n cursed, "I guess he wasn't lying.."

"Oh, no! He's bringing it back!?" Jay cried in a hushed voice.

"Not if we have any say in the matter," Zane reassured as he stood defiantly.

The rest of the ninja followed suit, standing on the rail to reveal themselves and weapons raised. M/n watches in confusion, wondering why they didn't sneak toward the skeleton instead.

"The ninja! Stop them!" Garmadon commanded, continuing to try to turn back time.

The ninja made their was toward the dead Grundle while spears were thrown their way and M/n, annoyed, followed behind.

"Rise, Grundle! Rise!" the oni demanded hastily.

"We can't let him finish. Go!" Cole yelled, not hesitating to leap onto the fossilized spine. Jay and Zane look at each other with a shrug before joining the Earth Master.

"Stop them!" Garmadon bellowed to his useless underlings.

"This is not a solid plan, Cole," Zane points out as the display of bones wobbles and struggles to keep form. The Serpentine poked their javelins at the teetering ninja, causing them to fall into a pile on the museum floor.

Kai and M/n locked eyes before the dragon took off into the air, swiftly grabbing the hothead. The duo avoided thrown weapons and shaking bones in order to get close, close enough to Garmadon for Kai to throw his sword and knock the weapon from the oni's grasp. The weapon discharged the built-up energy and disrupted the spell's process.

"Not again. Not again!" Garmadon shouted childishly.

Skales taunted, "And you said it wouldn't fail."

"Retreat!" he growled in response, picking up the Mega Weapon and facing the ninja, "Curse you, ninjas!" he whined before running off.

"We stopped them," Jay laughed, "Well, I thought we handled that well."

M/n's ears perked at a small scraping noise and whipped around to see the four Serpentine generals lifting the golden sarcophagus, "Hey! Stop!" he demanded, giving chase.

The snakes quickly slithered through the back doors and into the street with M/n hot on their tails. As soon as the dragon felt the cool air on his skin he took to the chill sky. "After them!" he heard Kai exclaim as he exited the building after him. The hybrid continued to fly after the generals but his body felt increasingly heavy and he felt dreary as if he needed a nap. The Serpentine escaped down a manhole before his eyes could process. He landed back on the ground with a small stumble near his friends. He rubbed his eye with a yawn.

"I can't believe we couldn't catch up to them," Jay's unusually squeaky voice cried, "I'm usually faster than that. It's as if my legs were half the size.."

"I don't remember that thing being so big. Did it grow?" Kai wondered, staring at the sarcophagus propped against the building.

"Or did we shrink?" Zane suggested

"Uh, guys?" Kai pointed toward at their reflection in the glass across from them.

"Ahh! We shrunk!!" Jay squealed in terror.

"We're.. we're kids!" Kai exclaimed in surprise, whipping of his mask, the other doing so as well.

The four looked at each other and jumped back with a prolonged scream.

"Oh, oh, oh, this is bad! This is so bad on so many levels!" Jay yelled.

"Oh, it's impossible! We must be dreaming, Zane!" Cole declared, "Tell me we're dreaming!!"

"It is impossible to dream together. Perhaps Garmadon succeeded in turning back the clock, but instead of reviving the Grundal, it only affected us," The Nindroid suggested calmly.

"Yeah, but Nindroids don't turn into kids. Explain that, genius," Jay snidely replied.

"I've extended my logic parameters, but nothing is coming up. This does not compute!" Zane worried, his eye twitching emitting a spark.

"Guys, where's M/n?" Cole asked, turning circles to find his dragon companion. Kai took a step back and fell back on his ass. Underneath his legs, a lump of sleeping mass, M/n was curled up in a ball. The dragonette slowly raised his head with a yawn.

"M/n, are you alright?" Zane wondered after he helped Kai up.

In response he unfolded into a sitting position and looked up at the Nindroid with sleepy eyelids, giving a small nod. The baby dragon features were exaggerated, small wings and horns paired with a big tail and large, pointed, drooped ears.

"Oh, but I can't be a kid again! I hated being a kid!" Cole cried, memories that he tried so hard to suppress surfacing, turning the corner and walking toward the sarcophagus, "You can't drive, nobody listens to you! Oh, no.. bedtimes!!"

Zane helps the dragonette up to his feet before following his comrades toward the golden sarcophagus with M/n attached to his arm lazily.

"I told Nya we'd meet back at the Bounty. I'm sure Sensei will know what to do," Jay suggested.

Siren wailing echoed from a distance, quickly approaching. The police car came into sight and pulled up directly in front of the mini ninja, coming dangerously close. The headlights glared right into the group's eyes. The ninja shielded their eyes with their hands while M/n just squinted his eyes and wrinkled his nose in discomfort.

Two officers exit the vehicle with condescending laughter. "Well, well, what do we got here? Looks like we've caught our culprits to the museum heist," the officer wearing a hat chortled, "Who would have thought it was just a bunch of brats? What have you got on, Apple Dumpling Gang? Pajamas?" He and his partner cackled unprofessionally.

"These aren't pajamas! We're ninja!" Jay exclaimed.

"Yeah, yeah, and I'm Santa Clause," the other officer jeered.

"Ninja, go!" Kai shouted as he began spinning. Although he produced a few sparks he began to spin out of control and sent his friends, save for M/n who stood tiredly apart from the group, flying against the cop car. "Our Spinjitzu doesn't work! We're too small!"

"Easy, kiddo," the driver seemed relatively calm about watching a child produce sparks. He grabbed Cole, "You're coming with us to the precinct," and coaxed Kai toward the car with his other hand.

"Look officers, this has been a grave misunderstanding. My friends here and I are simply trying to help out," the hothead tried to reason.

"Hey, you can tell all the stories you want when we return to the museum tomorrow to explain why you stole this," the officer replied.

"But we didn't steal it," Kai argued.

"Zip it," the officer ordered.

The hat clad officer also escorted Jay and Zane to the backseat of the vehicle. The two cops look at each other before eyeing a the dragonette curiously. "Strange little guy, isn't he?" one of the officers cocked his head at the droopy-eyed kid. The other officer put his hand on M/n's back to try to direct his to the police car but out of nowhere he whipped around and latched to the cop's hand with his sharp teeth.

"Ow! Fuck!" he yelled, trying to reel his hand back but M/n was latched on. In a panic the other officer rushed to the dragonette and wrapped his arm around his neck and yanked, forcing M/n, coughing and hacking, to come unstuck from the other cop's hand. The injured cop ran to the vehicle trunk to retrieve containment devices while the other held tight against the dragon's trachea. The officers worked in tandem to clad M/n in a muzzle and cuffs and throw him aggressively into the backseat.

"You have your tetanus shot right?" one asked while bandaging the other.

"What?" the bleeding cop asked.

"Your tetanus shot, so that you don't get rabies," he clarified

The other sat in shock before yelling, "Tetanus is what you get from rusted metal you idiot!"

Kai, Jay, and Cole were bowed in front of the museum curator with the officers standing behind and Zane to the side. "We're sorry for stealing!" they chanted as one.

"But we didn't. I don't understand," the Nindroid said, confused.

Kai hissed, "Shh! The quicker we get out of here, the faster we can figure out how to return our bodies back to normal"

Zane realized the plan and dropped to his knees as well, "I'm sorry for stealing, too."

One of the cops spoke up to the curator, "I don't think you'll be getting an apology from him," motioning to the restrained dragon sat on a nearby bench.

"Thank you, little boys, for returning the sarcophagus," the old man smiled, "You did the right thing. But, what about the bones?"

Jay rose and sat on his knees, "What bones? We didn't steal any bones."

"The Grundal bones," the curator replied, pointing toward the empty display.

"The Grundal bones?" Jay parroted and turned toward the barren display, the ninja getting up to observe too, "They're gone! You don't think...?"

Kai finished, "It just walked out of here?.."

"Theoretically, it is possible that if Garmadon successfully reversed the years on us, he reversed the years on the Grundle and brought it back to life," Zane stated nervously

The mini Lightning Ninja whipped around toward the adults, "You guys have to believe us! The Grundle's been brought back to life and it's on the loose! It's sole existence is to hunt ninja, and as long as we're here, everyone's at risk!" he yelled and waved his arms erratically.

Laughing, the cops sat the four kids on the bench next to M/n, "Well, we'll keep a good look out for anything that goes bump in the night, okay?" they jeered. "Now, you five sit still until we call your parents to come pick you up." The officers left, chuckling among each other.

"We've gotta get out of here, right now," Cole commanded.

The group's eyes followed a horde of school children on a field trip. "Follow my lead, boys," Kai suggested under his breath, keeping an eye on the adults. The ninja and dragon hopped off the bench and follow the kids down the hall. The mini ninja looked through the students' bags for a change of clothes, they put the shirts and pants over their ninja gis in order to blend in.

"Oh, this is so humiliating," Jay whined, looking down at the butterfly shirt he acquired.

"I'm afraid if we can't use our Spinjitzu, we'll be no match for the Grundle," Zane worried.

"We have to get back to the Bounty," Kai demanded.

M/n let out a small squeak, nudging the Nindroid with the muzzle strapped to his face. Zane gave an empathetic look before unclicking the strap and removed the device. The dragonette purred happily and gave a spit of fire to melt the cuffs on his wrists.

Jay grunted as he reached for the telephone, he wobbled as he clicked numbers into the contraptions, begging, "Collect call, please." He put his ear to the phone and hissed to Kai and Cole who were holding him up to the telephone, "Hold me steady." Zane stood on lookout for passing adults or possibly the Grundle. M/n, on the other hand, was standing and staring at the others through the glass with his tail in his arms.

The phone continued to emit a ringing sound until—click "Destiny's Bounty," Lloyd's voice played through the phone.

"Lloyd, it's Jay! Let me talk to Sensei!" Jay exclaimed urgently.

"Jay? Where are you? Why haven't you returned?" the boy inquired, "Sensei's out looking for you."

"Apparently, you need parental permission to take the bus and we can't seem to get out of the city!" the Lightning Ninja squeaked.

"What about M/n?" Lloyd suggested.

"Ugh it's complicated," Jay groaned, "Just meet us at Buddy's Pizza in ten minutes. And bring our weapons."

"Weapons?" the boy parroted before a faint crash rung through the phone and Jay hung up.

The ninja sat at a booth, atmosphere filled with video game noises, kids giggling, and people chattering. Everytime the door opened they turned to see if it was Lloyd. The group talked amongst themselves as they waited for the blonde boy, "Really? Of all places we could meet, you pick this place?" Cole exasperated.

"What? I like their pizza," Jay shrugged.

Lloyd unknowingly walked past them and Kai whipped around to hiss at him, "Psst, Lloyd."

The blonde boy turns to the group of children with a confused look, not a spark of recognition in his eyes, "Beat it, brat, I'm on a mission," he retorted.

"It's me, Kai," the mini hothead growled back.

Lloyd took a second look at the younger kids claiming to be his comrades. When he recognized the hair and faces to truly be his friends he gasped and dropped the weapons in surprise with a loud crash. "What happened? You're small!" he yelled, causing everyone to stop and stare.

"Keep it down. We're trying to lay low," Kai whispered in return, "Your father's Mega Weapon not only to turn us into kids, but unleashed a creature whose sole purpose is to hunt down ninja."

"Typical Garmadon," Cole scoffed.

"And now, every time we try to tell someone they won't believe us, 'cause we're kids," Jay whined as Lloyd retrieved the weapons from the ground. The blonde boy chuckled, escalating into loud laughter.

"What's so funny?" Kai demanded, leaning toward Lloyd.

"Well, I guess you now know what it feels like to be treated differently because of your age," he commented and placed the weapons on the table in front of the boys, "speaking of you guys, where's M/n?"

"Under the table," Zane stated, causing Lloyd to raise a brow and look under the table to find a sleeping M/n curled up underneath.

Cole redirected the conversation, "Look, this is serious. If we don't turn big so that we can use our Spinjitzu, we don't stand a chance against the Grundle."

"Well, what about me? I know Spinjitzu," the Green Ninja suggested.

"Yeah, but you don't know the Grundle. We all need to be at full strength. What we need to do first is to find someone who might know more about how to defeat one of those things," Kai stressed but Lloyd was noticing something else, a kid reading a Starfarer comic.

"Lloyd, focus," Cole chastised.

"I am. I think I know just the guy," Lloyd replied, leading the group out of the pizza diner.

Sleepy M/n had a hold of Zane's equally small hand to guide his groggy steps as they followed Lloyd through the streets of Ninjago City. The group followed the boy down stairs into a book store, Doomsday Comix. The boys look around confused, "You brought us to a comic book store?" Cole wondered.

"Trust me. If there's anyone who knows how to defeat a monster that shouldn't exist, I know just the person to talk to," Lloyd announced.

Kai grabbed the blonde's shoulder quite aggressively, "We're not coming to pick out your stupid comic, Lloyd! This is serious business."

M/n detached himself from the Nindroid and got between the hothead and Lloyd, giving the latter a hug and looked back at the former with distain. Even as a dragonette smaller than Lloyd, he still tried to defend him. Kai gave a small scoff and continued to follow the oldest boy.

They walked up to the front counter where a man with a brown slick back ponytail stood behind the counter, "Fellas, meet Rufus McCallister, AKA Mother Doomsday," Lloyd introduced.

"Well, if it isn't Lloyd 'Hemorrhoid' Garmadon," Rufus greeted with a smirk, "Sorry if you came looking for the lates 'Starfarer,' I'm all sold out."

"Wh—Sold out?!" he exclaimed, causing other customers to stop and stare before he recomposed himself, "Oh, actually, Mother Doomsday, we need help."

"Well, color me intrigued." (his voice is so hot btw)

"We have a problem. There's a Grundle on the loose and we need to know how to deal with it," Lloyd explained.

"Oh, a theoretical question," the storeowner presumed.

"Yeah, theoretical. Can you help?" the blonde agreed quickly, not wanting to draw suspicion.

Mother Doomsday lowered the high sitting chair he was on and hopped off to converse more with the group of boys, "Dromaeosaurid Theropod Grundalicus. Phew! Although extinct, there has been a plethora of film, television and comics exploring the mythology around the primordial predator." He walked over to a nearby bookshelf and picked up aa comic with the cover depicting the Grundle, "Supposedly, they always get their prey."

"Sounds like he knows his stuff," Kai commented.

"Can it be stopped?" Lloyd inquired.

"First thing you need to know is its thick shell-like hide is invincible to swords, scythes, nunchucks, bows, and throwing stars. So your cheap imitations will do nothing to slow him down." Rufus noted, motioning to their in-fact real weapons.

"Swell," Cole groaned

"Second of all, it's nocturnal and will only hunt at night," Mother Doomsday stated.

"Oh, good. It's still daylight, so we can relax for a bit," Jay sighed. The comic store owner gave him a strange look before he added, "Uh, I meant theoretically."

"The only way to defeat it is with light," he put the Grundle comic down, "Like a vampire, with enough of it, it could potentially destroy him." He walked up to a display of strange weapons, "If I had my weapons of choice, may I recommend the Illuma-Sword?" Rufus opened the case to reveal swords that has light as the sharp metal of the sword. "These are authentic replicas that would come in handy were you to live long enough to actually face a Grundal. And if swords are your thing," he pointed to another display case which housed a red, white, blue, and black gi and M/n's outfit from the final battle with the Great Devourer, "maybe I can interest you in an authentic ninja gi signed by the very ninja that saved the city."

"Uh, we'll just take the light swords," Kai approached the open display before Rufus stopped him, saying, "Not so fast. This 'Starfarer' combo pack can only be won in the Fritz Donnegan Trivia Battle Royale." He challenged Lloyd, "You have what it takes to be the best?"

"You can do this, Lloyd," Jay encouraged.

The blonde boy gave a smile and demanded, "Sign me up."

The competition commenced with many of the kids who entered being quickly eliminated. The only two left were Lloyd and another fan dressed in 'Starfarer' merchandise. "It's down to the final two. This question is for Lloyd," Mother Doomsday announced. The crowd, especially the boys, cheered Lloyd's name loudly.

"What is Fritz Donnegan's famous catchphrase," Rufus inquired dramatically.

"'Fear? Fear is not a word from where I come from.'" Lloyd answered, striking a pose.

"Correct! We're all tied up!" the storeowner cheered, the crowd's yells growing louder. Zane glanced out the door nervously, "It's getting dark. The Grundal will be on the prowl soon." M/n attached himself to the Nindroid to comfort him.

"We should've just taken the Illumi-Swords," Kai grumbled before turning to Jay to eye him for loudly eat his cotton candy, "Is this really the best time to be eating cotton candy?"

Jay retorted, "It makes me feel young. Deal with it."

"Final question. The first person to answer this will win," McCallister announced, "In the latest issue of 'Starfarer,' how did Fritz Donnegan escape the Imperial Sludge?"

Lloyd panicked, "But I haven't read the latest issue!"

"By reversing the polarity of the ship's gravity transducer," the other competitor answered.

"We have a winner!" Mother Doomsday shouted.

The boys looked around disappointed but felt a pit open in their stomachs when the lights flickered off with a distant rumble. The boys huddled together, feeling hopeless. M/n's tail wrapped around his friends, his protective nature always showing through.

"Who turned out the lights?" Rufus wondered, searching for the light switch on the wall.

The sign above the front of the store crackled with electricity before going dark and falling off the building. "It's here," Kai's shaking, quiet voice called through the dark room.

"What's here?" the storeowner inquired cautiously.

Jay chuckled nervously, "You know that theoretical discussion we had earlier?"

Thuds rang out from the glass roof, everyone's head snapped up to see the deep red claws of the Grundle walking across, leave sharp shatters in the glass and dripping toxic green saliva.

"Not the... Grundle!" Rufus exclaimed.

Zane exclaimed, "We've got to get out of here!" The kids began screaming and yelling, the mini ninja ran towards the door only to find it blocked by the debris. Zane tried to open the door but to no avail, "The door is jammed, we can't get out."

"Look! It's coming!" Jay pointed at the giant lizard walking past the other citizens toward them.

The glass panels shattered under its weight and the supporting metal gave way, letting the Grundle drop into the store behind the boys. M/n, who was in the back of the pack, turned around and put his effort into turning into a dragon. The dragonette was only able to manage to turn into the size of a large horse. The dinosaur-esque creature squared up with M/n, slicking its tail and breaking the display of the ninja outfits.

"Quick! This way!" Jay shouted, running from behind M/n towards the outfits and Illumi-Swords. They changed into their proper outfits and clad themselves with the glowing weapons. "Hey, McNasty, I thought ninja were on your menu!" Cole jeered.

The Grundle turned to the mini ninja who wave the light swords in its face, causing it to back away and squeal uncomfortably. "It's working!" Jay cheered. They back it towards the door, waving the glowsticks. Jay leapt towards the monster and tried to strike it on the face but it swatted him away. Kai swiped next successfully hitting hitting it on the side of the snout. Cole slashed the hind leg and Zane struck the top of the head. When the boys regrouped all but Cole's sword had broken.

"Stupid toy!" Kai growled.

"We got a problem, guys," Jay worried.

The reptile slashed the boys into the register counter brutally before M/n leapt onto its back from behind. The dragonette did very little to damage it but gave the boys a distraction to regain themselves. Lloyd dramatically rose on the tall chair behind the counter, "Not to worry, I'll take care of this." He manifested his energy, producing bright light that irritated the Grundle who threw M/n from his back, smashing the desk to wooden splinters and knocked Lloyd onto the dragon. It approached the ninja as if approaching prey before M/n stood between them emitting a pathetic growl.

"This is the end, isn't it?" Cole whined, covering his eyes.

The door opened with a slam to reveal Nya with Master Wu following suit. "Everyone out!" she demanded, the citizens rushing out the door.

"Use this!" Wu commanded, throwing a bottle of purple substance into Jay's grasp.

"What is it?" Jay asked.

"It'll turn forward the hands of time, turning you old and reducing the Grundal back to dust and bones," Wu described and warned, "But be careful, there's no turning back."

The reptile grew impatient with the human babbling and aggressively roared at M/n who only returned a growl and swipe of his claws. "Grundal, prepare to be extinct!" Jay exclaimed, ready to use the tea.

Cole stopped him, "What will happen to Lloyd? He'll grow old, too."

"Just do it," Lloyd assured.

"You'll miss out on the rest of your childhood, dude," Jay countered.

"We can't do that to you. It's not fair!" Kai affirmed.

The Grundle struck M/n, making yelp and back up against the cornered ninja protectively. The dragon's hide bumped Jay's hand which dropped the mixture into Lloyd's lap. "'Fair? Fair isn't a word from where I come from.'" he quoted before hurling it toward the creature.

"He used it!" Wu gasped.

Purple mist began swirling the destroyed store and the Grundle could be seen returning to bones, blood and flesh evaporating, while it shrieked and the dragon growing to take up the entire store.

"And it's working!" Nya exclaimed.

The ninja arise, confused, each regaining their balance. "What happened? We're not kids anymore," Cole observed from their well-fitting suits. M/n lifted his head to notice he was sticking out of the broken glass roof.

"There's a dragon in my store," Rufus marveled before noticing, "They are the real ninja."

"What about Lloyd?" Wu worried.

M/n nudged the Green Ninja who stood up to reveal that he was now a similar age and height to the ninja. "I'm... older," he observed with his voice noticeably deeper.

"The time for the Green Ninja to face his destiny has grown nearer," Wu warned.

"I'm ready," Lloyd smiled.

M/n reverted into his human form with a sigh. He looked at the older blonde with watery eyes before embracing him and whispering, "I'm sorry." He would still protect him no matter what.

"It's okay, M/n," Lloyd insisted and joked, "I still wish I got the latest 'Starfarer' though"

The dragon approached the storeowner, "You have one on hold under 'M/n', right?"

Rufus laughed, "sure do!" and quickly retrieved it from the back. He handed it off to M/n who gifted it to Lloyd. "Don't worry, I'm looking out for you," the dragon grinned.

@sir-aadiboii new chapt aadi :3

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