Huh. Maybe I should've made this into an actual book.

On one hand, I do NOT have time for that or the mental stability but on the other hand, this will probably leave off at a cliffhanger if I don't make it into an actual book. Also, I'm just loving to write this!

I have no guarantees I'll make this an official story and to be perfectly honest I probably won't because I have so many projects, ideas, and stories in progress but I'll consider it.

Anywho! This is part three of my We Will Meet Again one-shot I did previously in this book. The titles are from the lyrics of One More Moment by Reinaeiry.
**********

It started as a normal morning.

It was sunny and bright out. A wonderful day for a walk or a play outside. The bright rays shone through the windows and gave enough light to fill the room. The calm natural glow created a peaceful atmosphere.

There was the soft clink of dishes in the kitchen, quiet conversation was held as the kids teased each other and flung cereal across the room. A woman smiled as she dried off a bowl and she glanced down at her pregnant belly fondly. Arms wrapped around her waist, long gentle fingers grazed her stomach. She turned her head to smile at her husband and giggled when he pressed a kiss to her temple.

"Hello," The woman raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

"Kissing you." He replied smoothly, his goatee tickling her neck as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"Hm. I thought you were washing the dishes." She teased, her brown eyes warm as she leaned her head against his.

"I can do both." He said breezily and he reached around her to pluck the bowl from her hands.

The woman huffed, the breath making her dark hair flutter. "You're lucky you're cute."

A loud insistent knocking drew them from the moment, the couple exchanged a worried look. People rarely over, they felt uncomfortable around their family and usually stayed away.

The woman took the bowl and gestured for the children to step behind the kitchen counter, her eyes watching the door warily. The man carefully walked towards the door, he slipped behind it and pressed his index and middle finger to his temple. His eyes widened for a moment before he unlocked the door quickly and flung it open.

The man didn't bother disguising his shock when his gaze set on the blonde-haired boy on his doorstep. Familiar green eyes looked up at him, the usually joyful look in them had been hardened by a serious frown.

"Hey, Neuro," Lloyd said, looking around him at his family. His eyes flicked back to the man standing in the doorway. "We need to talk."

*****

"We were not expecting guests." The woman said tensely as they sat down. She wiped her palms on her shirt and glanced nervously at Lloyd. "Would you like something to eat? Drink?"

"Uh- yes, thank you...?" Lloyd trailed off when he realized he didn't know her name.

"Lloyd, this is my wife Beth." Neuro smiled calmly at her, gently guiding her to sit down after she brought some tea over. "Beth, this is Lloyd. The green ninja."

Beth nodded slowly, her expression resembled a wild cat protecting their cubs. Sharp and distrustful. Lloyd shifted awkwardly in his seat and focused his gaze on the tea in his cup. A small slurping noise cut through the silence.

Neuro raised an eyebrow in amusement at his partner and took her hand. Beth glanced at him and they looked at each other for a moment before she relaxed beside him. Neuro turned back towards the young man and smiled at him.

"As much as I'd love spending the day drinking tea with you I don't believe that's why you are here." Neuro chuckled and looked to him expectantly. 

Lloyd looked confused. "I thought you already knew why I'm here." He gestured vaguely at his head.

Neuro shrugged. "Would you prefer that I do?"

Lloyd hesitated a moment. Neuro's smile faded a little as he looked at the burdened expression on the boy's face. Neuro leaned forward, his eyes fluttered closed as he raised his hands to the sides of his head. Lloyd tried to see if he felt the telepath inside his mind and at first there was nothing. But when he focused he realized there was a very soft brush in the back of his mind as Neuro slipped in.

Lloyd played the scene in his head so Neuro wouldn't dig too deep. His hands trembled slightly as he remembered the dark figures appearing. They had slipped from the shadows like ghosts, overwhelming the ninja in a matter of seconds. Lloyd remembered his vision fading in and out as the shadow pulled the energy from his body. Lloyd's fingers brushed the small talisman on his neck. Echoes of the leaders threatening hiss as they grabbed his mother's limp body wafting into his ears like it was haunting him.

Neuro visibly paled, his hands falling slowly to his lap and he seemed to look through Lloyd. "No." His eyes were wild as he stared at the ninja. "No. She said they were gone. She said they were gone."

Beth sent a fearful look Lloyd's way as she grabbed Neuro's arm, his hand clinging to hers to ground himself. "Neuro? What's going on? What do you see?"

Neuro didn't reply, only shaking his head quickly.

Lloyd met Neuro's eyes, his face determined. "She said to go to you, that you have the answers. I'm sorry but... I need to find my mother." His last sentence turned desperate and soft, his green eyes pleading.

Neuro drew out a shaky breath. A lump formed in his throat as he tried to push away the anxiety building in his chest.

"It was... a very long time ago." He sighed. "I was very young and new to my abilities. Perhaps if she had come to me now I might have said no or done something different."

Neuro gave a sharp, cold chuckle. His finger moved to tap at his head. "But hearing people's thoughts... it was torture every day. Thousands of voices, each stabbing at my mind like they wanted to rip it apart from the inside."

Neuro closed his eyes."I was so desperate for something! Something good to come from my power because to me it seemed more like a curse. A terrible curse I had to live with every damn day. But then your mother found me..."

*****

Neuro was beyond surprised to find a woman shivering outside his little shack, the rain fell from the roof like a waterfall, coating the wood docks in liquid.

He eyed her carefully through the crack of his door. "Hello," Neuro said softly. "Can I help you?"

As Neuro pushed his door open a little more he got to get a better look at her. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she had been crying. Her hand shakily twisting the wedding ring on her finger. She was as pale as a ghost and Neuro almost thought she was one but she didn't seem bothered by the storm.

"You are the master of mind." Her words were emotionless and faraway. It didn't sound like a question.

Neuro felt his stomach flip and he subconsciously reached for the knife he kept by the door. "Yes." He said slowly. "Why do you want to know?"

Her breath came out ragged and she spoke in short bursts like she was scared if she let herself breathe anymore she would start to sob. "Can you-" the woman squeezed her eyes shut and started again. "Can you wipe someone's memory?"

Neuro felt fear run down his spine. Wiping someone's memory? He could and he had a few times. But the mind was a delicate thing. One day Neuro's inexperienced work had caused a terrible tragedy and he wasn't ready to relive that.

"No. I'm sorry." He said shortly and he started to shut the door.

"No! Please- wait!" The woman lurched forward and grabbed the door, her eyes trying to say something he couldn't understand. "My husband! I need him to forget! He can't remember our son- if he does- He's changing and we can't stop it. I need to protect my family."

Neuro couldn't understand half of what she was saying, his body freezing as she rambled, hiccups erupting from her as she cried. Neuro considered that she had gone crazy and he should probably just abandon her on the front porch.

But something stopped him.

He slides his fingers to his temples. His hands were shaky, he was able to control his powers more but they were unpredictable. Neuro forced himself to relax, taking deep breaths before he allowed the elemental power to spread through his mind. He shut his eyes, dropping his mental shields and slowly opening his head to hers.

One's mental state was considerably different than their physical. It was much more fluid and forever changing, it was very easy to get lost in all the colours, sounds, and images. Neuro wrapped the elemental power around his mental form, keeping it stable as he roamed through her memories.

He had to be careful. Time was odd in someone's brain. Sometimes it seemed like hours had passed when really it had only been seconds. Neuro knew he'd need to move quickly so he didn't risk collapsing her sanity.

Sorting through the memories to find what he needed wasn't too hard. What he was looking for was in the forefront of the woman's mind so he easily was able to dive into the thought.

At first, it was just a collection of various memories. A little blonde boy igniting his palm with shimmering green light, a blonde-haired man talking urgently to a couple, a shadow slowly forming over the picture...

At last, Neuro found what he needed. He carefully separated the other thoughts so he could focus on the image. In a flash, he was plunged inside.

The memory was chaotic, tinged a dark stormy grey that twisted into lighter and darker tones depending on the woman's emotion. Neuro watched as he was suddenly placed in the perspective of his mysterious house guest.

*****

A man sat bowed over in the room. His fingers clawed at his dark hair as he snarled and hissed. His head twitched in an animalistic way, his scarlet eyes flashing.

Neuro was afraid. He was terrified. But he stayed nonetheless. This was the man he loved. He cared for. The one who protected him, nurtured him, and would do anything for him. They've gone through everything together. He wasn't about to back out now.

Neuro grabbed a vial from the cupboard and knelt so he could be eye level with the man.

"Garmadon," Neuro pleaded. "You need to take it."

Garmadon shook his head, pressing his lips together to squash the snark that was about to leave his lips. His hand fell from his scalp, suddenly it was so gentle as it cradled Neuro's.

"It's not working anymore, Misako," Garmadon whispered. "The venom... it cannot be stalled."

Neuro's head jerked up and he stared into Garmadon's eyes, searching for any sort of hope. All he saw was sadness.

"Yes, it can," Neuro said fiercely. He shoved the vial into his bag and stood. "I'll go to Mistaké's, I'll get a new elixir-"

"No." Garmadon's voice was quiet but firm.

Neuro shook his head frantically as Garmadon gently pulled her back towards him.

"Koko," Garmadon murmured, taking him by his shoulders. Neuro resisted, his emotions spiralling. Garmadon forced him to stay still so that he could look at her.

"It's taking over me."

Those words.

Garmadon had been so confident. He had believed that they could conquer anything. Neuro had believed him. He was strong. His faith had boosted hers. Every time he spoke he sounded so sure of himself.

Now?

Now they were cracked with emotion as the man bent forward, shoulders shaking with barely contained sobs. Neuro just stood there, stunned. It always had felt so far away. Yet the future had come up behind them like a hunter stalking its prey. It had pounced and sunk its teeth into their perfect little life.

"Misako?" Garmadon sounded so... small.

"Yes?" Neuro swallowed back the lump in his throat and bent to cup the man's face in his hands.

He was so beautiful. Even with the purple veins crawling up his neck. Even as his once fair skin turning a black tone. Even as the fangs curling over his bottom lip... he was still so pretty. Like an angel in his eyes. Neuro blinked as tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Lloyd," Garmadon gripped his wrists like a lifeline. "I know about Lloyd. I can't- I can't-"

There was a crash as something screeched. Neuro felt his blood run cold as the shadow attacked their window, hissing and grinning at them before it slipped away. Another smash sounded as the creatures tried to break the protective wall Garmadon had cast.

Garmadon looked up and let it a stuttering breath. "We need a new plan," Garmadon whispered. "I know what he is... the dark side of knows. Eventually, I won't be able to stop myself from-" he broke himself off.

"What do we do?" Neuro whispered.

There was a beat of silence.

Garmadon had an answer. Neuro knew that. He had that look in his eye where he knew exactly what they had to do but he didn't want to. That's what scared Neuro the most.

"Erase my memory," Garmadon told him. "Wipe it all. Wipe out everything I know about Lloyd being the green ninja." His words were slow as he closed his eyes.

Neuro's brow furrowed and he shook his head, his mind couldn't quite grasp the situation.

"But what if Lloyd slips? What if you see him use his powers again?"

Garmadon pressed his lips together. "Koko... I think... I think it's time for us to stop running from destiny."

"What are you saying?" Neuro was afraid to ask.

"I'm saying I'm going to have to leave." Garmadon's eyes glistened in the candlelight.

"No." Neuro protested. "We need you. Lloyd isn't safe. I can't take care of him by myself. I need you! We need you! We can talk to Wu or we could go with you or-"

"Take him to Darkley's," Garmadon told her, his tone was desperate.

The word echoed in his mind.

Take him to Darkley's.

****

Neuro yanked himself into the physical world, his eyes wide as he stared at her. "Your son is the green ninja." He breathed.

Misako nodded, her body trembling. "And I need you to erase the knowledge from him... from both of them. It's not safe."

"What about you?" Neuro asked, he suddenly felt like a little boy again, lost and confused.

So, so confused.

Misako shook her head. "I can't place the burden on you. I need to know so that I can research the prophecy. I need to stop them before it's too late. I can't watch my son and my husband tear each other apart- I can't."

Neuro hesitated, the weight of the world was pressing down on his shoulders. This was the green ninja. He was the world's hope. If he messed up...

He couldn't do that again.

"Please," Misako begged him. "I know it's hard but you are my only option."

No.

His head told himself.

It's too risky.

It's always too risky.

But she stared at him with those eyes... those sweet, pleading eyes. They were desperate for something to help salvage this crumbling world.

Neuro had always seen his powers as something bad.

But maybe at last he could make it something good.

"It's tricky business," Neuro warned her. "There are a lot of risks. I could wipe everything with just one slip."

Misako took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I know but the risk is worth it." She gave the same sad smile the man in the memories had.

"We're out of time."

authors note****

Am I leaving this all on a cliffhanger?

Uh... I have absolutely no idea.

I'm still debating whether or not to finish it since I made this a series on Ao3 and I feel bad. So I will consider finishing up this story so that you can find out what happens to Misako.

So I fixed that plot hole explaining why Lloyd and Garmadon both didn't know he was the green ninja. 😂

This is my second last one-shot in this book because we're nearing 40 parts and I feel like this is a good time to stop.

Don't worry I'm still doing one-shots! I already have my next Ninjago one-shot book Serendipity ready to go!

It looks very similar to this one just pink. 😂 I'll make an official announcement at the end.

I have lots of one-shots planned, your requests are going to be finished I promise! Thank you for requesting by the way! I LOVED all your ideas!

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it!

LuckyBugBooks 🐞