On this day three years ago, the first chapter of My Best Friend's a Ghost was published. Now, a new story begins. Welcome everyone, to Close the Circle (Find Your Path)!

(Psst. If someone wants to make a better cover for this story, I won't stop you. I know this one kinda sucks. I'm not an artist so I had to use the free Wattpad cover maker)

Some things before we begin:

-This is the sequel to My Best Friend's a Ghost. If you haven't read that first, PLEASE READ IT BEFORE STARTING CLOSE THE CIRCLE! 

-This story is an AU! I know, the first book was one too, but I'm pulling out all the stops on this one. There will be themes, ideas, and characters from both Season 5 and the Day of the Departed special, but I'm NOT following canon! Canon is out the window y'all. You're in my realm now. *cackles*

-This story is rated T for teen. Since this revolves around ghosts and things, there will be lots of mentions of death. The ninja (mostly Kai and Morro) curse, so if strong language isn't your thing, be careful. (I'm not bleeping out the f-word like I did in My Best Friend's a Ghost). You have been warned.

Ok, I thiiiiink that's everything. So sit back, grab a snack, and read! Hope y'all enjoy!

~~~~~~~

Cole could honestly say that he had weird feelings about autumn.

Now don't get him wrong; there were several things to enjoy about fall. He loved seeing the leaves change color before falling in dazzling showers. He also loved all of the sweet treats that came with the season—apple pies were always a staple, and nothing could beat Zane's pumpkin spice muffins on a chilly October day. And of course, fall brought holidays with the goal of bringing together friends and family to celebrate.

But it was one of these holidays that was giving Cole pause.

In four days time, it would be Day of the Departed.

It would also be the anniversary of when Cole's life changed.

Coel sighed and rubbed at his forehead. His scar—gently glowing its signature radioactive green—had begun to ache a few days ago, as if it could sense the coming holiday of the dead. It was slight enough to not really hurt, but enough to generally annoy. If Cole wasn't so used to it, he'd probably be grumbling about it constantly.

Still, in his mind, he couldn't help but think, I kinda hate Day of the Departed....

Close to him, Kai let out a quiet curse. "Spinjitzu damnit," the red ninja grumbled, opening and closing his left hand a few times. "I'd really like it if my palm would quit going numb every five fucking seconds..."

Despite himself, Cole laughed. At least I'm not alone in this anymore...

"Language, Kai," the black ninja scolded his teammate. "And... maybe it'll get better if you put some heat or ice on it?"

Kai's eyes lit up. "Why didn't I think about that sooner?!" Concentrating, the red ninja sighed as his hand burst into carefully controlled flames. "Ahhhhh, that feels sooo much better. Thanks, Brookstone!"

"Heh, no problem Kai."

At that moment, Jay sprinted up to them. "Guys, are you done putting up the decorations yet?" he asked, practically vibrating with excitement. "Nya says we're less than 20 minutes away from Sensei Garmadon's school and the Bounty has to look perfect—er, Kai? Why's your hand on fire?"

"Pain relief," Kai replied, extinguishing his fire. "For, y'know." he clicked his tongue while gesturing vaguely towards his forehead.

Cole punched him in the shoulder for that.

"Ohhhhh, that makes sense! Lucky," Jay said, rubbing at his arm. "I've just been trying to ignore it. Cole, please tell me that it stops being so annoying soon."

Cole sighed and put down the lantern he was trying (and failing—stupid tape kept sticking to his fingers...) to attach to the railing. "It should stop after Day of the Departed. Though, I have to admit...it's usually not this bad."

Kai frowned and crossed his arms. "What's making it so bad this year, you think?"

Jay giggled. "Maybe it's because of you-know-who?"

Cole tensed and quickly scanned the immediate area. When nothing happened, he relaxed slightly. "You're lucky Morro's not back yet," he hissed quietly. "You know he hates when you call him that."

"But it's funny!"

"It won't be funny when he decides to prank you back."

"Well at least I don't have an emotional attachment to my hair products like a certain someone."

"Hey! My hair stuff is expensive!"

Before Kai could get into an argument with Jay, a brisk breeze suddenly blew by. A second later, Jay yelped when a second, much stronger gust, blew at his legs, causing the blue ninja to trip and fall onto his face. "Owwww," he whined in pain.

An echoey voice cackled in response. "That's what you get, Bluebell," Morro said before the ghost made his appearance, riding a current of wind up into the air before settling down a few feet above the ninja's head.

Despite himself, a smile tugged at Cole's lips. It had been almost a month since he had last seen Morro, as the ghost had decided that he liked to travel. He would often either tag along with Lloyd on his 'Ultimate Spinjitzu Master Visits' or would go off on his own and explore by himself. Morro claimed that each trip was 'okay' but Cole could tell that the trips helped to calm the restlessness the ghost had felt post-Final Battle.

Still, it was really nice to see his friend again.

Hey, Mark," Cole greeted, using the ghost's code name in case Sensei Wu decided to sneak up on them. "How was your trip?"

"Didn't you say you were meeting us at Garmadon's place?" Kai asked.

Morro shrugged, flipping upside-down in the air. "Meh, saw you idiots on my way there, figured I'd hitch a ride, save my energy. Also, Ignacia is a lot closer to how I remember it than I thought it would be. Not a lot has changed over there."

Kai puffed up a little at the mention of his hometown. "Yeah, that's Ignacia for you. Very traditional, but still a nice place to grow up in."

"Assuming you ever grew up, Porcupine."

"Hey!"

"Quit it, you two," Cole interrupted, seeing an argument brewing already. "We still have to finish decorating and get our costumes on before we arrive, so no more bickering, okay?"

"He started it..." Kai muttered but complied, resuming his task.

Morro flipped him the bird, but the red ninja didn't notice. "Why do people wear such stupid costumes during this time of the year anyways?" the ghost asked, picking up a lantern and bouncing it in the air. "The ones related to death, I can get, but why all the other stuff?"

"It's mostly for kids, I think," Cole mused. "I guess over time, Day of the Departed became just as much about celebrating those who are gone as it is wearing costumes and having fun."

"And eating lots of candy!" Jay chimed in. "That's the best part!"

"Urgh, I really don't understand your obsession with the stuff...."

"One, I'm not Lloyd, I'm Jay. Two, how can you not like candy?"

"Waaaaay too much sugar. And it's so sweet. Bleh," Morro stuck out his tongue in disgust. "My stomach feels sick just thinking about it!"

Kai rolled his eyes. "Drama queen..."

"You wanna say that to my fucking face, Porcupine?!"

"Guys!"

At that moment, Nya walked onto the deck. "Are you guys almost done?" she asked, placing a hand on her hips. "We're almost there. Oh," she paused, noticing the extra member. "Hey Mark."

"Hey Princess. How's the training going?" The ghost asked. "You get the hang of that water trick you were talking about last time?"

"Spar with me, and I'll show you," Nya bantered back, smiling. "Later though. Come on, we need to get ready!"

"Coming, Nya!" Jay said, racing after his girlfriend. "Come on, guys! I want to be ready when we get there!"

"We're coming, Motor Mouth!" Kai said, laughing. "Come on, Cole, we've put up enough of these, might as well get dressed." He paused then smirked. "Maybe we can find an old bed sheet and Morro can join us."

"Piss off, Porcupine," Morro snapped, flipping the red ninja off again.

Still, as he followed them into the Bounty, the ghost found himself smiling ever so slightly.

As sappy as it sounded....he kinda missed them.

Kinda.

~~~~~~~

Lloyd frowned, looking at himself critically in the mirror. He fussed with his costume, unwrapping and rewrapping the worn-looking bandages he had wrapped around his wrists. He rubbed at his cheek, which was missing a bit of facepaint. He gave himself one last once over before nodding. "Perfect," he declared, grinning.

A knock sounded before the door opened to his room, his father entering a few moments later. "Ah," Garmadon said, smiling at his son. "I was about to ask if you were ready for tonight's festivities, but I can already see that you are. Nicely done, Lloyd."

"Daaaaaad, I'm not Lloyd," Lloyd complained, before smirking. "I'm a spooooky ghost ninja, oooooo~" He wiggled his fingers and shuffled across the floor. "Ahhhhhhh~, I'm gonna haunt this monastery for all of eternityyyyy~"

Garmadon laughed and gently swatted at Lloyd's head. "Don't let Morro hear you say that," he chided. "Though it is a fine costume, in any case."

Lloyd beamed. "Thanks! The fake blood took ages to dry properly, but it was sooo worth it!"

His dad laughed again, Lloyd quickly joining in. Not for the first time, the green ninja sent up a silent thanks to the First Spinjitzu Master for allowing him and his dad to be together without one of them being evil. These last few months reconnecting have honestly been the best in Lloyd's life.

The only way things could get better is if his friends would hurry up and get here already!

As if the Fates have heard him, his mom popped her head into the room. "Lloyd," Misako said, smiling. "Are you almost done? Some of the younger students have spotted the Bounty coming."

Lloyd's eyes widened with glee. "They're here!" he cheered before tearing out of the room, amid his parents' laughter.

The students of his dad's new school gasped and laughed as he ran through the halls, some calling out "Hi Lloyd!", "Hi Mr. Green Ninja!" and, in a few cases, "Nice costume!". Lloyd waved a couple of times, but didn't stop until he had reached the courtyard. Concentrating, he summoned his golden dragon and hopped on. "To the Bounty!" he ordered, and the dragon roared before taking off.

It only took a few moments before the flying ship—bigger and better than ever after the Final Battle—came into view. Lloyd laughed when he saw that much of the ship had been decorated in honor of the quickly approaching holiday. He quickly guided his dragon to land on the deck, letting it land before he hopped off and it vanished. Quietly snickering, he raced into the Bounty, towards the bedrooms. "Hi, Uncle!" he greeted as he zipped by Sensei Wu on his way. "Talk to you later!" he called out as he kept running. He was pretty sure his uncle said something in greeting, but he had already turned the corner and was out of hearing.

Finally, he stopped right in front of the bedroom door. He knocked, muffling his giggles.

"One sec!" he heard Jay call out. There was some muffled muttering, then Morro stuck his head through the door. He raised a questioning eyebrow at Lloyd. Lloyd held a finger up to his mouth and mimed jumping out at something. He made a begging face, silently pleading with the ghost to not say anything. Morro sighed, rolled his eyes, and phased back through the door. There were a few more muffled murmurs, and Lloyd tensed.

The door opened and Jay stepped out, decked out in a pirate costume (complete with an eyepatch over his right eye and a fake parrot on his shoulder). "Hi, Sensei—"

"BOO!" Lloyd yelled, jumping and making a scary face.

Jay shrieked and jumped backwards, tripping and falling on his back.

Lloyd cackled, bending over from the force of his laughter. "You—You looked like you wet your pants!" he howled, clutching his stomach. "Hahaha, priceless!"

"Agh! Screw you, Lloyd!" Jay complained shrilly, clutching at his heart. "And Morro! You said it was Sensei!"

"Whoops," the ghost deadpanned, looking bored. "My eyesight must be going. My bad."

"Your mistake for believing him," Kai told Jay, completely unsympathetic. He grinned and walked up to Lloyd. "Good to see you, you little shit," he greeted, hugging his little brother-in-all-but-blood and ruffling his hair. "Nice prank!"

"Language," Cole scolded, but the effect was limited since he was smiling too. "It's nice to see you again, Lloyd!"

"Indeed!" Zane piped up, smiling. "It has been too long!"

"Hey guys!" Lloyd beamed, waving. "It's good to see you too!" He noticed all of them were dressed as pirates and laughed. "I see you guys have a theme going."

"Yeah, we figured we could reuse those old costumes from that thing with the Mega Weapon," Jay said, finally recovered. "And Nya and I came up with something cool for Zane! Show him, Zane."

"Must I?"

"Pleeease?" Jay begged, giving the white ninja the biggest pair of puppy-dog eyes possible.

Zane sighed but relented. "Very well, but only for a bit," he said, opening up the panel on his arm. "Until we get to the party, I am keeping it off."

Lloyd waited as Zane flicked a switch before closing the panel. "Well?" he asked, not seeing anything happen.

"C'mon Zane, say it, say it!" Jay pleaded, jumping with excitement.

Zane sighed. "Arrrrgh, I be First Mate Zane Julien. And me cap'n will be makin' ye walk th' plank, ya scurvy landlubber."

Lloyd burst out laughing. "Oh my god," he wheezed. "That's the most amazing thing ever, holy crap."

"I know right?!" Jay giggled, looking pleased. "It took me ages to convince him to use it."

"And we be in agreement—yargh!" Zane hurriedly switched it off. "We agreed that it's only for tonight. Ugh, I cannot believe pirates talked like that. It is an affront to all languages everywhere."

"Because it's fun," Kai replied, smirking before diving into his own (admittedly poor) pirate impression: "Arrrrr, me hearties. Swab the poop deck, walk the plank! Bar wench, bring me a hearty ale!"

"I heard that!" Nya shouted from across the hall.

"I wasn't talking about you, sheesh!" Kai fired back.

"As the only girl on this ship," his sister said, walking into the room—also dressed as a pirate—and fixing everyone with a glare. "If I hear anyone else say the word 'wench' or something along those lines, expect the offender to get a smack upside the head. That includes you too, ghost boy!"

"Try that, Princess. I fucking dare you."

"Didn't she punch you in the face when you—"

"Shut the fuck up, Porcupine or I'll make you!"

"Oh no, the emo ghost threatened me, I'm so scared—"

Morro abruptly tackled Kai, causing the red ninja to cut himself off with a yelp. Lloyd and Jay laughed as Cole and Zane tried to separate the fighting ninja.

"Guys, stop laughing and help!" Cole ordered.

"No way, this is too funny!" Jay replied, giggling. "Get him, Kai!"

"Go Morro!" Lloyd cheered.

"Ow! Quit pulling my hair, you asshole! You're ruining my costume!"

"Like you can tell the difference—ACK! Let go of my cape, you dick!"

"You let go first!"

"Guys!"

"Sensei's coming!" Nya suddenly hissed. "Stop being idiots and act natural!"

That got everyone's attention. Kai and Morro let go of each other, the ghost floating up and hovering in the corner of the room while the red ninja got up and started fussing with his hair and costume. Lloyd quickly pulled Jay into a conversation about what the best kind of Halloween candy was, while Cole asked Nya and Zane's opinion on whether he should wear a captain's hat or a simple red-and-white bandana.

A few seconds later, the familiar sounds of Sensei Wu's staff could be heard and soon, their teacher poked his head into the room. "Ah," he said, smiling. "There you are, nephew. You ran past me so fast, I could have mistaken you for the wind."

"As if," Morro quietly scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Lloyd's lips twitched as he went to hug his uncle. "Sorry Uncle. I just wanted to surprise the others!"

"He sure surprised the pants off of Jay!" Kai added, smirking.

Jay punched him in the shoulder for that. "Screw you!"

Lloyd laughed. "Okay, maybe I just wanted to prank them," he admitted, smiling sheepishly.

Sensei just laughed. "Ah, on this night of tricks and treats, I am not terribly surprised that you chose to do the former," he chuckled. "Though, I'm sure there will be plenty of the latter at the party."

Lloyd's eyes lit up. "Oh right! We should be close to landing right?! Let's hurry up and get down there before all the good stuff is gone!"

"Alright, alright, Shorty," Kai teased, making one last adjustment to his costume. "We're coming!"

Everyone started to file out of the room. Cole, halfway through tying up his hair, was the last one in the room. "One sec guys," he called out around a black scrunchie. "I've gotta put on my hat!"

"Hurry up, slowpoke!" Kai heckled back.

Rolling his eyes, Cole quickly tied up his hair, and grabbed his black captain's hat. "You coming too?" he asked Morro, turning to face the ghost as he put it on.

Morro yawned and flipped himself upside-down, looking bored. "Ehhh, go on without me," he said. "There's nothing really for me to do down there. I'll catch up with you guys later."

Cole frowned, a little hesitant. "If you're sure..."

"Go." Morro flapped a hand on him. "Shoo. Be gone. Go fill your stomach with an ungodly amount of sugar. I'll see you later, I promise."

Still frowning, Cole nonetheless took the hint and left, throwing a quiet "See you later" over his shoulder as he closed the door.

Morro waited a few seconds to make sure he was actually gone before letting his shoulders slump a little. Lying to Brookstone wasn't nearly as fun as it used to be. Even if he was only telling a small fib, an uncomfortable weight settled into his stomach almost the minute he started talking.

The ghost groaned and banged the back of his head against the wall. "It's not like I'm wrong," he muttered. "If I go, I'll only be able to interact with them, and it'll look too suspicious. Besides, Wu's gonna be there and I am NOT staying in his presence longer than I have to....aaaaaaand I'm talking to myself. Fuck."

Morro banged his head against the wall a few more times (it didn't really hurt, which was a bit of an upside) before sighing heavily. He flipped himself right-side-up, intent on floating around the halls to stall the boredom when something white caught the corner of his eye.

Morro stared at it, something Porcupine had said earlier returning to his mind. He tried to shove it away, deeming it stupid, but it kept popping back up. He weighed the pros and cons in his head, trying to talk himself out of what seemed to be a really bad idea, but...

The ghost groaned, boredom finally winning him over. "I can't believe I'm about to do this," he muttered.

~~~~~~

Ooooo, I wonder what Morro's planning to do? 

This is a bit of a setting-the-stage chapter, but I hope you guys still enjoyed! Next chapter will be up on Halloween! See you then! :D