[Meeting With The Principal]

The mood in the whole monastery was very hard to comprehend. No one was happy with what Kai just read out loud. Everyone had their own thoughts, some spoken out loud, some not.

"There's no way we can do this!" Lloyd exclaimed.

"I do not understand why Pixal and I have to attend school, we're highly classified Nindroids, for goodness' sake!" Zane squeaked out of frustration.

"We can't do this for a whole year!" Nya said calmly, staring at the wall.

"This is bad," Kai said while pacing around and nibbling on his fingernails. "This is so bad!"

"Why are they contacting us now? Isn't it a bit too late to attend school now?!" Cole asked while eating his chocolate cake in frustration while staring into nothingness.

Master Wu couldn't take it anymore. "Alright, students. Maybe this isn't as bad as it sounds. We could-"

"Not as bad? Not as bad?! Have you ever experienced school in your life?!" Nya screamed. It was only rare for the Water Ninja to scream at her Master, that was why everyone in the room looked at her shocked, stopping whatever they were doing. After she looked at her friends and their shocked expressions, she rethought her words. "Sorry, didn't mean to yell there."

"It's fine." Wu forgave Nya's outburst. Then he turned to the others. "As much as we don't like it, I do not think we have a choice."

"So we'll actually go to school?!" Jay yelled.

Wu nodded. "It's better for you to get some sleep. Sunday's tomorrow after all, and we want to make a good first impression now, don't we?" He tried to make it sound as cheerful as possible.

~ the next day ~

"Everyone, get up!" Master Wu shouted while knocking aggressively on each Ninja's door. "We've overslept!"

Indeed, it was almost 7:30 am, and apparently no one was up yet. It was a miracle that the lightning chicken woke Wu up by gently placing herself on top of his face to cut out his breathing for a short while. Of course, waking up due to breathing problems and feathers in his mouth wasn't the way Wu would have wanted it, but it was sufficient in the end.

Hearing a door opening behind him, Wu turned around to be met with a certain hothead. "Why are you screaming at the top of your lungs, old man? It's 7:30!" He exclaimed lazily while scratching his neck calmly.

"We've all overslept, Kai! We're gonna be late!" Wu yelled back, panicking.

Kai looked at him suspiciously. "Late for what?" He apparently forgot as to what their plan was for the morning.

At that, Master Wu came running up to Kai to shake his shoulders furiously. "We have to meet your soon-to-be principal, child! We have to be there by eight!"

Kai's eyes widened. "What?! How did we oversleep?" He yelled back, panicking just as much as his master.

"I don't know. Now go and wake the others up! I'll go make something for us to eat on the way." Then Wu released Kai from his grip and took off, leaving a both shocked, and confused Kai behind.

Then Kai started to sprint in the different direction and quickly woke the others up. After only a matter of minutes, all of the Ninja, including Pixal, walked into the kitchen together.

Just as Master Wu heard the footsteps behind him, he turned around, shocked at what he saw. "Have you lost your minds?! We're going to school, not on a mission!" He screamed.

"What?" Lloyd asked, still half asleep.

Then Wu just gestured towards the ninjas' gi's with the butter knife in his hand. At that, they all first looked at themselves, then at the others. As their eyes widened simultaneously, they sprinted out of the kitchen in a hurry, not speaking a single word during the entire process.

Master Wu sighed and went back to finishing off the last bits of everyone's ham sandwiches. After only a few minutes later, again, he heard footsteps approaching... again. He turned around, sighing in relief.

"Here." He handed each person their sandwich. "Now get to the Bounty, fast! You can eat during the flight." He commanded.

They all nodded and walked out of the monastery together with their master.

~ oOoOoOo ~

After arriving at the gigantic school, the Ninjas' eyes widened. After some 'wow's and 'I can't believe this's, they walked through the seemingly newly painted, white, huge doors in the entrance. When they all were inside, they gasped almost at the same time. They were greeted by a hallway which was covered in yellow, body length lockers on both their left and right.

"Where do we have to go?" Lloyd asked, still looking around.

Kai took out the letter from his front pocket and was trying to find out the location, when Zane yanked it out his hands. "It says room 202." He answered coolly, handing the letter back to Kai who glared at him for a short while before stuffing the letter back into his pocket.

After many twists and turns, and getting lost easily and often, they finally stood in front of the office.

The door seemed to be in good shape. It was a white door with small windows at the top which were covered in those blurry window stickers which prevent you from looking inside.

Wu looked at his watch. "7:59, just in time." He sighed in relief. Then he looked at his students. "What are you waiting for? One of you, knock!"

"What? You're the adult, so you get to knock!" Jay sassed back, earning some nods from his friends.

Wu rolled his eyes and stepped forward. He took a deep breath and knocked twice. They all waited in anticipation before they heard a faint 'come in' from the other side.

Wu put his hand at the doorknob, twisted it, and opened it slowly. All the other teens were behind him, peeking inside through all the free spaces.

"Oh, come in. Don't be shy!" They heard a quite sweet voice call out to them. Then they all entered the room and looked at their surroundings.

The office was a bit smaller than they had thought. There was a big desk in the middle with a middle aged woman sitting behind it. She wore a high bun and had big, black glasses on her nose. She had feeble make up on and wore a light blue blouse. On the desk, there were many papers with a brown, average pencil case right at the edge. The desk had many closed drawers on the principal's side. On the front of the desk was a name card with 'Sandra Hughes' written in all capitals.

There were many plants in the room, some on the desk, some on the floor in corners of the room. There was also a huge shelf with lots of folders in various colors.

"Welcome. It's so lovely to meet you all here. And thank you for coming." She greeted everyone.

Everyone only waved and smiled, no one, not even Wu, was ready to say anything. They didn't know how to respond.

The principal seemed to understand. "I know it was a little rushed and it may have surprised you, but I believe it will only do you a favor. But please, I'm open for any questions."

Lloyd stepped forward. "Mrs Hughes, I don't mean any disrespect, but do you really think we have to attend high school? I mean, we're the protectors of our city, we can't possibly waste our time at school."

Hughes gave an understanding look and intertwined her own fingers on the desk. "I can completely understand. But I think all of you kind of miss the whole point." She stated, taking a small pause. Then she continued when she saw the questioning looks of the Ninja. "What I'm implying is that no matter how talented fighters you are, no matter how many times you were able to save Ninjago and made our days, you're missing the most important point. You, my Ninja and Samurai, you're still in your late teens. Now, I don't mean any disrespect, but I assume you can't really do any normal activities as teens as you're supposed to, can you? I know you're our protectors, but you're also teenagers, and by inviting you to participate in high school, I'm trying to give you an opportunity to do something all the other people in your age do on a regular basis. Even if it is only for a year, I want you to experience it."

Cole looked at his friends and saw their equally torn faces. He took a deep breath. "So you're saying you just want to give us the chance to experience what it's like to be teens like everyone else?" At that, the principal nodded. "But what if there's a criminal taking advantage of our absence?" After asking this, Lloyd gave him a proud smile. It indicated that Cole and Lloyd thought pretty much the same, with Cole being the one to spill out his thoughts.

"We've already thought about that. And by we, I mean the entire teacher staff and the entire police staff. We all really wanted you all to be here, so we came up with the conclusion that if you're willing to accept this offer, you all will get a special type of bracelet." She reached inside one of the drawers and pulled out said item and showed it to the Ninja. "This is a special bracelet which is made of vengestone to prevent your powers. And before you ask, let me explain. All six of you are gifted with an elemental power. However, we don't know how our other students would see you as walking power rods. So the Commissioner came up with this idea. Cyrus Borg himself volunteered to make these more advanced. He installed a little mechanism which will automatically release the bracelet if there's an emergency in which you have to be present. All of your teachers and I will also have a spare key in case you have to take off in the middle of a lesson without the Commissioner knowing. And if you spend an entire school day without anything happening, you'll come to my office when school's over to get your bracelets off."

All of the Ninja simultaneously looked at Master Wu who immediately understood what they wanted. "Mrs Hughes, is it okay if we discuss this privately for a few minutes?" He asked politely.

"Of course." She stated. Then all of the Ninja, Pixal, and Master Wu walked back outside to ponder.

When they were on their own, there was a weird silence occurring. To break the silence, Wu spoke up. "So, what do you say?"

"I don't know..." Jay started, but couldn't finish.

"I actually like it." Cole said, scratching his neck sheepishly. After he realized they all looked at him, he started to explain. "I know what y'all are thinking, but I think it in fact is a good opportunity for us to take a break, y'know."

Kai hummed. "Maybe this is a good idea? I've always wondered what it's like to beat everyone in PE. I bet we could rule this school with our skills." He said quite excitedly, imagining himself beating everyone in every possible sport.

"But won't it be a bit weird with all of our possible fans in every class? We're well known, you know." Jay asked weirdly.

"That's even better." Kai cheered quietly.

"So you two," Lloyd pointed at Kai and Cole. "You want to accept the offer?" He asked again for formal confirmation.

"Yeah."

"Hell yeah!"

"Alright." Lloyd added.

Jay looked at Lloyd. "How about you, Greenie?"

Said Greenie looked back. "I don't actually know. The only experience I have is from when I was at Darkley's and I think y'all know how that ended." He sighed. "Though I don't even think that counts as a school."

Kai side-hugged his little brother. "I'm sure you're gonna do great. There's nothing to worry about."

"How do you know?" Zane asked.

Kai started to think. "Because we're not only ninja, but also a family. We'll stick together no matter what. And we'll always be there for one another."

Lloyd looked at Kai with wide eyes. "Damn." He whispered under his breath. He was quite shocked with what had escaped the usually cocky hothead's mouth. "If you all are in, then I'm too."

So now it was three convinced people.

Pixal stepped forwards. "I think I'm in as well. I do not really know why, but my processors don't detect anything bad about this, so I'm open for a new adventure."

Zane smiled proudly. "I agree with Pixal, count me in!"

Jay started to laugh. "Well, this was settled faster than I thought. I'm in, too." He nodded at Wu.

Master Wu nodded at his students. "Very well, then let's go and tell-"

"Wait!" Jay exclaimed. He turned his gaze towards his quiet girlfriend next to him. "Nya, you haven't said anything yet. What do you say?"

"Yeah, are you in?" Cole asked.

Nya kept her gaze on the floor, successfully avoiding eye contact with everyone. All she did was nodding. At that, all of the others shared worried and confused glances. "Nya, are you sure you want to do it?" Master Wu stepped right in front of her and put his hand on her shoulder.

Then she lifted her head up and looked at the old man. "Yeah." She said shortly, smiling. Wu could sense her uncertainty, but felt that the others would help her with whatever was on her mind. He nodded at her and stepped away. Then he knocked at the principal's door once again.

"Come in!"

Wu opened the door and stepped right in, followed by his now excited students.

"So, what do you say?" The principal asked.

After sharing one last glance with his team, and them nodding, Lloyd spoke up. "We're in."

This put a smile on Mrs Hughes' face. "Alright. Then I'd like to tell you a bit about our school, if you don't mind. Starting off, school will start at 7:45 am and end at 15:30 pm every week day for the rest of the year unless there are exceptions. You will be able to choose your subjects in favor, just as you will be participating in mandatory subjects such as Maths, English, etc. You will also be able to choose clubs you want to join."

"Is there a football team?" Kai asked quickly. He'd always seen many stereotypical high school movies in which there were football teams which he had always dreamed to be a part of.

Mrs Hughes chuckled. "Yes, we do have our own football team, the Dragons. Although I have to tell you that if any of you wants to join it, has to firstly prove his," She then smiled at Nya and Pixal. "Or her strength and worth to the team captain and the team itself. But of course, the title of the captain can always be passed onto another person every school year."

Kai thanked her and leaned back. "Easy." He whispered to no one in particular.

"Our clubs vary in a lot of categories. There are the sporty ones like the football team, the dance club, or the cheerleader squad. Then we've got the educational ones like the book club and the chess club. We also have a cooking class, and a robotics club." Seeing the amazed faces of the young people in front of her, she herself lit up. "These were of course only some of the many more we have. I'll give you a piece of paper with all of them listed later."

"That is very generous of you." Wu remarked. "Could you also please tell us something about the teachers, the teaching, and students as well?"

"Of course. All I can tell you about my teacher colleagues is that they are very nice teachers and people. Of course, that sight of them can differ from every perspective, so I can only give you the advice to meet them in person and to get your own first impression of them without any previous knowledge." There was a lot to tell, so she tried to speak faster without it getting boring. "Also, I can only advise you to show up on time in every lesson. I think we all know why. We have a cafeteria in which you will get your lunch and sit with your friends. Our lunch break is at 1 pm every day and lasts for exactly one hour."

Cole hesitated to ask the burning question on his mind, but couldn't take it anymore. "Umm, do you happen to have... cake?" He smiled awkwardly.

At that, Jay slapped his head lightly. "You and your cake addiction." He whispered. Cole only glared at him in response.

The principal laughed whole heartedly at the best friends' behavior. "Yes, we do serve cake as a dessert almost every day."

"Thank you." Cole almost drooled at the thought of being able to eat cake every day. It wasn't that he wasn't allowed to eat cake at home, but he didn't really like all the complaints about his friends' missing cake slices. And they certainly didn't believe him when he told them dramatically that Thunder, their lightning chicken, ate them instead of him.

"Do you have any other questions?" Mrs Hughes asked.

Zane raised his hand. "About the bracelets. Do we take them home with us and put them on every morning, or how does this work?"

"Not really, you six will come to my office with another elemental master before school starts and put them on, just like you'll come to me when school ends. The bracelets will stay here."

"Another elemental master?" Jay frowned. "Who?"

Mrs Hughes pulled out a piece of paper and looked at it, full-on concentrated. "Wait a sec, let me just... ah, here. Her name is Skylor Che-"

"Skylor?!" Kai's face lit up. "She's gonna attend school, too?" He asked.

"Seems like you already know her." Mrs Hughes laughed at the boy's reaction.

"Yeah, she's a good friend of ours." Lloyd mentioned.

"That is good to hear." She answered.

"This year's gonna be perfect." Kai cheered. It wasn't anything usual for him to act that way, but everyone pretty much knew why.

Cole put a hand on Kai's shoulder. "And you're gonna have a whole year with her to finally confess to her." He teased.

Kai tensed up and wiggled his hand off of his his shoulder. "I don't know what you're talking about." He scoffed and looked away, his arms folded.

"Oh please, you always say that 'you're waiting for the perfect time', yet that time apparently never came." Jay teased him. "I wonder why." He smirked.

"Don't 'oh please' me, you were the one to propose in the middle of an attack."

"First, we all thought that was gonna be our end. Second, at least I asked my girlfriend to be my Yang before you even had your first relationship. And third, she said yes, so everything's perfect in my life." Jay smiled proudly.

"You just got burned hard, brother." Lloyd put his hand on Kai's shoulder, who only sighed.

Zane created some ice in his hand and showed it to the Fire Ninja next to him. "You need some ice for your burns?" He asked coolly. He really did switch his humor switch for the better because everyone in the room, including the principal, started to laugh. Of course everyone except for Kai, that is.

Said boy sighed, defeated. "Zane, I liked you better with your horrible puns."

"Why? Are you trying to prevent me, the elemental Master of Ice, from burning you, the elemental Master of Fire?" Zane smirked.

"Alright, that's it Zane, thank you!" Kai snapped at him.

After all the laughter died down, everyone looked back at the principal.

She smiled, eyeing all of them individually. "I believe it's best if you all go home now and enjoy the rest of your day. Tomorrow's your first day, as you know. Here is your list of all of the subjects and clubs." She handed Wu the paper. "And please, after you all chose what you want to participate in, email it to me so that I can create your schedules and give them to you tomorrow."

"We'll do that, thanks." Lloyd smiled gratefully.

"Oh, and please don't hesitate to ask any of the teachers any questions. I'm positive they'll be ready to help with anything." She told them just as they were about to leave.

Wu turned back after all of the others had left the room. "Thank you. For everything, I mean. I'm sure my students will like this offer and appreciate it even more once they get into the feeling." Wu smiled.

Mrs Hughes smiled back. "I'm glad to be of help. Goodbye." She waved at him who waved back and closed the door with a happy sigh.