Chapter by: LillaSmolBean
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Nighttime, that was the time of day when the white haired girl sprung out of bed with a little whimper at the sound of a noise. She didn't know what it was but the thought of it scared her, she just needed to open her eyes.

Groaning slightly at the pain still inflicted all across her body, she looked around in sight for comfort. Whenever she freaked herself out through the nights, the puppy would always make her way over to her bed to reassure her that everything was alright. Speaking of, Harumi glanced at the doggy bed, Cloud was not there.

"Cloud?" She whispered, slipping away from the covers and almost outright hissing in pain as she searched around her room. Under the desks, under the bed and even her wardrobe. No, the puppy wasn't there. As if on instinct, the princess glanced at the window. But it was closed, where could she possibly be?

Had she ran off somewhere during the night, did something happen to the dog? Despite her bandaged up wounds striking at her like a missile at the moment, she'll never forgive herself if she just sat around while Cloud was potentially hurt. She needed to find her puppy before it's too late. So Harumi exited her room without much effort and began her little search.

She, of course, had morals and wouldn't want to barge into any rooms that she knew the ninjas or resistance members were staying by. She didn't have enough courage to peer into Garmadon, Mistaké, Misako nor Wu's rooms, so she avoided those as well. That narrowed down her options and left her with only rooms like the kitchen, control room or armoury. In whom, she disappointed and worried herself even more when finding nothing.

Allowing herself to walk towards the desk, Harumi sighed and lowered her head to stare at the planks. "Oh Cloud..where are you?" She muttered. She just wanted to see her puppy again, to find that she was alright and safe and happy...it made it even harder for her to search since it was night. But she promised that she would keep looking, no doubt about it.

But a sudden realization clicked. 'No it can't be..' she thought in her mind as she walked towards the railings of the ship. Her eyes staring at the rooftop right below them, where the trusty Bounty was hovering above. Only one thought processed through her mind as her eyes widened. "The oni couldn't have possibly took her?!" She snapped, perhaps a bit too loudly.

Biting her lips to practically oblige herself to stay silent next time, she continued to stare at the bottom of Ninjago city. It was one possibly though, if the Oni really took Cloud, it would be pointless to search the Bounty. "I can't possibly go out in the middle of the night with these injuries though...Garmadon would be angry at me." She needed to remember that the man was the one who saved her the previous night from one terrifying experience.

No, she needed to go out there, she needed to find Cloud. She knew how dangerous it would be, but if she gave herself a few hours of search, she'd be able to make it back without anybody suspecting a thing, right? Therefore, she decided and climbed on top of the railings. She took one look back at the hallway before finding the rope keeping the Bounty from crashing into the city and began to climb down. The girl lightly hissed at the rope burn.
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Practically one rooftop away from the Bounty, a dark-brown haired girl with soft swirly pigtails sighed in absolute boredom. Truth be told, she's never stayed here in Ninjago city more than two years, she's always been on the move ever since...hm? She spotted someone going down from the Bounty's rope and sprinted towards the inside of the building to exit it at a safe height.

"Cloud? Hey Cloud, where are you?" She heard that same stranger calling out a name, that she couldn't quite make out from her distance, out onto the streets.

Mirage lifted a brow and changed her posture a little where she found herself standing up and looking down at the lurking stranger. "Hmmm, how interesting. This could be fun." She hummed neutrally before jumping down from the rooftop and landing on the ground a few metres away from the desperate white haired girl.

A bit startled at the thud of someone landing behind her, Harumi jumped and found her eyes staring into a stranger's amethyst ones. "W-Who are you..?" She trembled, not wanting to fall in the wrong hands again. But upon noticing that the stranger was completely human, she gave it a rest and sighed.

"Yo, saw you out here and you've got me curious." Mirage raised a hand with three fingers out and began to slowly walked over to Harumi. The white haired girl bit her lips, not knowing whether or not to trust whatever this stranger had to say.
Though, she found herself walking along thin ice when deciding to continue speaking to her.

"What are you so curious about..?" She wondered, in which she received an immediate response along with a laugh.
Mirage puffed and brought a hand to lay on her hip for a second. "You being out here so late, obviously. By the way, name's Mirage. That or Mira, don't mind any." She introduced herself a bit more calmly and directly than when she first spoke to Lloyd.

She didn't say anything about Lloyd of course. She knew that Harumi most likely knew him from the way she came down from the same boat he needed to go back to. She didn't know exactly what their relationship was, friends, siblings? Never did she consider former lovers though.

Harumi nodded, bringing herself to smile at that. Okay, alright, progress it seems. If Mirage was willing to get to know her and seem to pose less of a threat, Harumi could try trusting her..right? Taking a deep breath, Harumi stretched out her hand for the dark-brown haired girl to take.
"My Name is Harumi, nice to meet you."
She replied, a little less hesitant.

Mirage smiled and brought her hand over to shake hers. "Yeah, it's a real pleasure to meet you, Harumi." She added, earning the white haired girl to smile a little more. It seems like today is her free-day, her break from constantly getting captured by the Oni, finally.

"So Harumi, if I may ask, why are you out here so late? I don't see many girls wandering alone here often, meeting someone?" Mirage half-joked with a little wink and snicker.

However, the girl shook her head and narrowed her eyes, not really liking the opportunity used to make such a rash comment. She hadn't seen Lloyd in forever nor did she succeed in rescuing Collin. "No, Cloud is missing, my Pomeranian pup." She corrected, pushing away the mild frustration she initially had.

Mirage frowned a little, ah so that's what it was. She gave a little thought before nodding to herself. "Okay, guess there's nothing to do so I might as well help you!" She offered to help the girl look for her lost pet. Not replying in a form of words, Harumi's smile only grew bigger as she nodded happily, glad to have some help.

From there, the two girls began their proper search. They walked along the streets of Ninjago and called out for Cloud.

The pigtail-wearing girl, noticing Harumi walking ahead of her, snickered and tried to catch up. Plus, they've just been desperately calling for the puppy, there wasn't much conversation going on between them and Mirage thought she could fix it that.

"So any occupations?" She asked Harumi a big quietly but still kept the playful act that a typical teenager would have when talking to a friend, that is, if Harumi considered Mirage as a friend by now.
The white haired girl raised a brow, not seeming to understand the context of the question. "Occupations?"

"You know, any real jobs? For instance, I don't really have one, just drive around in a noodle truck and minding my own business." She explained, thus revealing to the girl what she has been really up to in that noodle truck—briefly. The princess' eyes widened as she learned more about her new acquaintance, she seemed interested to know more. "Really?"

Mirage had noticed this curiosity of hers and giggled in response. "Well yeah, but I guess we can say I lurk around these streets." She explained, allowing Harumi just a little bit more access to her job around here in Ninjago. It seems that the white haired girl didn't quite understand the limitations that Mirage was willing to give and asked once more.

"Why's that?" Harumi wondered, giving Mirage wide and interested eyes. But to her disappointment, Mirage only shook her head. "Can't reveal that just yet, sorry!" She chimed and laughed at the girl.

She kept her mouth shut about a certain topic however, the green ninja in whom she met the other day. As much as she wanted to ask about him to Rumi, she gambled her chances and decided to ask her another time.

Puffing, Rumi crossed her arms. She didn't seem seriously mad though, she understood. Even if a part of her wanted to dive deeper into the question and try searching for an answer herself. She always liked getting to the bottom of things. But, due to Mirage's kindness for trusting her with these things, she figured she could say a few things about herself.

"I used to be the Quiet One for instance. If that counts." She told Mirage, not seeming too bothered about this whole ordeal. Everyone knew and everyone has their opinions. Harumi deeply regretted her actions of course, but she couldn't jump back to the past to fix her mistakes.

What was surprising however, was Mirage having no idea what the "Quiet One" or the stories of her crimes were. She gave a questionable look and waited for Harumi to explain what it was. "What's that?" She inquired. Harumi sighed, honestly wishing she didn't need to go into too much detail. But again, everyone already knew. She's changed for the better though and that's good. "Second Command to Lord Garmadon. As well as Leader of the SOG."

What surprised the princess on the other hand was when the purple-wearing girl let out an almost inaudible gasp and turned to her with wide eyes. "Garmadon?" She questioned, as if having already heard his name being spoken of more than once. The white haired girl nodded, continuing to walk a bit quickly. "You know him?" She shot back, only to receive a little hint of hesitation from the dark-brown pigtailed girl.

"I...what, no? I just heard of him everywhere, you know?" She muttered, too quietly for her acquaintance to hear her. Harumi had not recognized any words coming out from Mirage's lips so she assumed it was the wind or something. She quickly changed the topic without knowing Mirage said anything.

"Oh, I don't see Cloud anywhere! What if the Oni took her, what then? Do I need to go save her?" She stopped walking and frowned, small whimpers of worry escaping the owner's lips. She just wanted her pet back home safe and sound.

Mirage shook her head and even brought a hand to place on Harumi's shoulder. "Nah, don't think like that! Whosever Cloud is, I bet she's strong! She'll hold on and wait for you, alright?" Mirage reassured her before bringing her head to look at the darkened skies. She gave a soft growl.

"It's getting pretty late though. Let's end the search for tonight and look tomorrow, what do you say?" She offered. It was strange to why Mirage suddenly wanted to end their search like they had some curfew, but she appreciated the concern. She did need some sleep and rest after all if she wanted to be in top-shape tomorrow. "Sure thing." She agreed with a little smile.

"Coolio, guess we'll meet in the same spot as we met then." The purple-eyed girl waved farewell to Harumi for now and making sure she did so, she began to walk off in the opposite direction. However, the white haired girl wasn't quite sure of one thing. She patted Mirage on the back to try and get her attention again before she left for good. "Hey Mirage?" She called.

Surprised that their conversation didn't end quite yet, the noodle-truck driver raised a brow. "What is it?" She wanted to head what Harumi's question was. The white haired girl didn't hesitate in forming her words and she inquired: "Why did you decide that you want to help me?" It earned a reaction from the other girl, that's for sure. Mirage laughed.

"Why? Because you seem like a pretty cool gal and it really sucks to lose something, you know? So I want to help you!" Positive and cheerful as ever, the girl replied. Even if Cloud may not be here with her, Harumi smiled back. Just by hearing those words, she knew that they'll find her. They just needed to wait for tomorrow to come.
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Later that night, after agreeing to look for Cloud together on another day, Harumi found herself laying back down on her bed. She couldn't stop thinking about the puppy and where was...if only she came home. Seconds too early had she been pulled out of her thoughts. There was a light knock before the door opened.

It was the Oni Lord, he peered inside of the room and spotted the white haired girl still awake. A bit glad that she was awake, he didn't feel like he was stalking her. Therefore, he allowed himself inside and shut the door lightly. "Hello Harumi...I wanted to stop by to check on your injuries. How are you feeling?"He asked.

The princes stiffened and brought her pillow closer to her face as if to cover it from the light coming from her window. She gave a little pout before answering: "They still hurt..." very brief and she refused eye contact with him. In the man's eyes, that only meant one thing that could have happened. He clenched his fists and sat down at the edge of the bed.

"Did the Oni try and take you again? Oh when I see them again, I promise I'll protect you-" he was already getting into assumptions, even pretending that the already closed window was opened—Harumi shook her head, sitting up and looking at Garmadon with a sad look.
Ah, he figured it out. When Harumi was upset, the first one to tackle her down and cheer her up was Cloud.

He shifted his eyes to the doggy bed, a ghost of a frown beginning to form on his own lips. That's right, Cloud was missing.
The man opened his arms, waiting for the white haired girl to accept this hug of his.
"Do you know where Cloud went?" He whispered, not wanting to seem too insensitive with the question. Sadly, Harumi had muttered a soft 'no'.

She pushed away the bedsheets and crawled closer to the man before allowing her small body to collapse on his, hugging him in return. "It's okay...we'll find her, alright? Cloud will come home." He reassured her as he felt the quietest and softest of sobs on his shoulder.

She was just so worried, where could the puppy had gone? What if it was too late? He allowed her some time to cry, but never would he let her go in the first minutes of the storm.

But as the sobs came to a close, he pulled away from the hug and patted her pillow, gesturing her to lay back down on the bed. "You don't need to cry anymore, Harumi, I'll find her." He assured her and began making his way to the door only to have Harumi screech in confusion. "W-Where are you going?" She pulled the bedsheets to her chin once more but kept her eyes open, she wanted to know where he was off to.

Opening the door, Garmadon gave a fiant smile. "I'm gonna bring back Cloud, okay?" With that, he left the room and shut the door. Next mission of his is to try and find a lead to Cloud's whereabouts. If he found Harumi in the Borg Tower yesterday, he could find the puppy.

Stepping onto the deck, his senses were much stronger considering he isn't included in such a small room. He shut his eyes and waited for any of his six senses to trace something....his blood red eyes shot open as an unusual smell entered. "Concrete, it's wet." He concluded, making his way over to the railings to look down onto the city.

An oni's senses like smell and sight were much enhanced than a mortal's. Thus, Garmadon saw things that Harumi initially saw when she first came down from the Bounty. The Oni found little prints on the wet concrete, pawprints to be exact. Bingo, he had found his clues...so easily too. Was Cloud being reckless again?

The Oni lord wasted no time and didn't use the rope to climb down from the Bounty. Instead, he just jumped off from the bounty and landed on the rooftop. His feet stung a little from the landing but he quickly recovered and made another leap, this time, landing on the ground. He approached the pawprints and glared at them. "These are definitely Cloud's." He told himself mainly as validation.

"What are you up to this time, little puppy? Where the heck did you run off to and why did you leave?" He muttered, beginning to follow the little paw prints in the concrete.
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A/N: Heya, Lilla here and thanks a bunch for reading chapter 99 of Reconciled Hearts!(Ah, so close to 100 chapters, aren't we?) Things are out for go down and will Harumi, Mirage and Garmadon ever find Cloud? Just wait and see for that!

(Oh and, Chapter 97 and Chapter 99's chapter names are referenced off of "108", which is OST from my favourite anime/manga series, just thought I'd slide that in.)