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"Please! Call me Rumi!"
~ Harumi

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"Who are you?"

It was strange. Lloyd would've thought some horror would come from the words, some shock- some sadness. He thought about when he'd first heard Harumi was alive, how the world had seemed to slow down, how it all seemed to crumble. And yet, all he felt now was disbelief. It must've been some kind of joke. There was no way that Harumi had forgotten him- had forgotten the love, the pain, the fear, the betrayal. Lloyd didn't care if she looked at him with with relief, or with disgust- as long as that blank expression disappeared from her face. Suddenly, it felt a little hard to stand, his legs shook and his hands trembled. This swirling vortex that had been his mind for the last few days had come to a sudden pause. It hadn't stopped- it rarely stopped- but it was frozen, the chaos still there, but it was like someone had hit the pause button on a remote and his mind obeyed.

"What do you mean?" Lloyd's voice sounded far away. His eyes flicked to Kai, who had insisted on coming with him. Lloyd hoped he was hearing things- that it was all a part of his imagination- but sure enough, the fire ninja had an equal look of bewilderment.

It must've been some sort of trick- some screwed-up manipulation tactic Harumi cooked up. She was convincing, the tremble of her lip, the shakiness of her body, but she'd been just as convincing before. Lloyd often laid awake at night, wondering- questioning if any of it had been real. It all seemed so true. Her admiration for the ninja, how her eyes seemed to be full of starlight. Her grief for her parents, how she shook and wailed and sobbed. Her love for him, the way she'd seemed to tender and caring. Yet, so much of it was a lie. It left a sour taste in Lloyd's mouth and sent a shiver up his spine. Even so, he would've preferred lies over the blankness in Harumi's face.

"What's going on?" Harumi struggled to sit up. She was still deathly pale, knotted hair flying everywhere as she looked around fearfully. "W-where am I?"

Lloyd struggled to speak. It was like his throat was closing up, his lungs were burning- crying for air but nothing was functioning, nothing was working the way it should. He tried to force out something- anything- but when he opened his mouth all that came out was a tiny rasping gasp.

Thankfully, Nurse Stevenson stepped in. "You're alright," he said soothingly to Harumi. He stepped around Kai to come up beside her. He didn't touch her, simply bending down to her level and talking to her calmly. "You're at the Ninjago City Hospital right now. My name is Adam and I am a nurse. I'm here to help you."

"I don't- I can't-" Harumi's breathing began to quicken and her hands flew to grip her roots as she looked around.

"I know this is scary," Adam said, voice even despite the intensity of the situation. Harumi was hyperventilating, Lloyd completely forgot about breathing, and Kai was more wound up than a yarn ball. "But you are safe. I know it is hard right now but I need you to try to take a deep breath for me. Can you do that?" Harumi stared for a moment, eyes darting frantically around, chest heaving with ragged inhales before she finally nodded. Adam guided her through it, doing an exaggerated breath in, before counting, and then exhaling. Then he instructed her to do the same.

Lloyd felt a hand on his shoulder and recognized the unnatural amount of heat it exuded. It wasn't burning in any way but it was toasty, comforting. He felt something in him release and he too, let out the air he'd left trapped in his lungs. The green ninja turned to his brother, fear evident in his eyes. Kai pulled him in close, just for a second, tucking him into his side and pressing his face against Lloyd's head. The pressure was good, the warmth was soothing. It helped ground him, it helped settle the restlessness that buzzed in his nerves- the anxiety, though it still gripped him.

"We'll figure it out," Kai murmured, voice a bit muffled in Lloyd's hair. "I promise."

Kai released him after that. Not because he didn't want to show affection towards Lloyd but because they needed to stay professional, especially in moments like these. Lloyd appreciated that Kai had taken the time to assure him despite that. The green ninja heaved one more deep breath, taking a moment to gather in all his emotions before he took a step forward.

"Harumi," Lloyd said after a moment. She looked up at him. "Do you remember who I am?"

She shook her head slowly, eyes flicking to Adam unsurely as the nurse pulled out his pager. "I'm going to check how you're doing, alright? And then a very nice doctor named Dr. Williams will come to see you." He explained carefully.

"What's going on?" She whispered. Her voice was soft and sweet. Lloyd had forgotten how it had sounded, before the oni masks, before everything had happened, before she'd only looked at him with hatred.

Lloyd also looked to Adam, unsure of what to do. The nurse smiled at Lloyd reassuringly and then turned back to Harumi. "You just came out of a coma," he told her. "We're trying to see how you are health-wise and then we'll go from there."

Harumi didn't reply, simply staring with wide eyes at all the people in the room. Her gaze swept over Adam to Kai, who stood with his arms crossed behind Lloyd. The fire ninja kept his face blank, not betraying any emotion, unfortunately, when Kai let his expression rest he looked like he could kill someone so that didn't seem to help Harumi calm down. Lloyd was disappointed when her eyes moved over him easily, not too fast or too slow. Just another person in the room. Adam had taken out a stethoscope and was checking her breathing and heart, talking her through it the entire time. He noticed her stares and took off the instrument, looking behind him with an apologetic look.

"It might be best if you two stepped out for a moment." He said.

Kai and Lloyd exchanged looks. "Are you sure about that?" Kai asked carefully.

"I-I'd like to stay," Lloyd added.

"I know," The nurse stood and gently steered them out the door. "But I don't think you're presence is currently improving the situation. It might be better to have fewer people in the room. Given your history, I also feel you could complicate things- just until we figure out what is going on."

Lloyd pressed his lips together. He didn't like this. He didn't know what to expect or what the next step would be once he left his room. He was still reeling and the only thing that his mind was able to do was focus on Harumi. But he also knew that he wouldn't be any help. He wasn't sure how he'd react once the strange, numb, feeling that was creeping over his nerves faded away. Lloyd was scared of what would happen if he snapped. So, when Kai nodded in agreement, he didn't protest.

"I'll send in Officer Lin," Kai told Nurse Stevenson, leaving no room for argument. "And we'll let Officer Morton know about what is happening." He said the last part a little reluctantly as if it physically pained him to say it.

"Alright." Adam nodded, before turning to return to Harumi's bed. Kai gently tugged Lloyd by the sleeve, keeping an eye on Harumi the entire time as they slipped out the door. She didn't move from her spot, didn't make a break for it or anything else suspicious. She sat still as Nurse Adam began to shine a light in her eyes, answering any questions he had. Lloyd watched her the entire time, a horrible sinking feeling in his stomach, even when the door closed before him.

Kai moved his grip from Lloyd's sleeve to over his shoulders, briefly instructing Officer Lin to enter the room, before he pulled Lloyd to a seat in the hallway. He sat Lloyd down (more like pushed) and then kneeled in front of him so that they were at eye level. He took the blonde's hands, rubbing at his knuckles carefully. It was supposed to be a comforting motion, the repetitive movements were to pull Lloyd back into himself.

"Hey buddy," Kai whispered softly. His voice was barely heard over the noises of the hospital around them. "You with me?"

Lloyd blinked rapidly, trying to focus on Kai's fingers around his- trying to stop the freezing in his head. It was an old coping mechanism. He used to disassociate all the time at Darkley's, ignoring the taunts and the yells and the crashes. He'd lay in bed at night and float away, burying the grief and the loneliness in his heart. It wasn't helpful now. He needed to be present and alert and there. He needed to get everything together so he could figure out what was happening- why she didn't remember him, if it was a trick or not. Lloyd could feel himself trembling as he tried to force himself out of it, tried to push aside the clouds that made his movements slow and his emotions feel far away.

"It's okay." Kai rubbed at Lloyd's shoulders. "Take your time." 

"She's awake," Lloyd murmured. "She- she's awake."

"Yeah," Kai gave a small grimace, brushing the blonde strands from his friend's face. "She is."

"And she... she says that she doesn't remember me." Lloyd licked his lips. They were dry and cracked- the tang of blood stinging his tongue. He'd been ignoring a lot of basic needs such as hydration and lip balm.

Kai locked his jaw. It was clear that he was also having trouble processing. The fire ninja had never had anyone to teach him how to properly work through his emotions and so he often defaulted to anger. It was something he was working on, especially when he realized how much the aggressiveness he displayed would affect Lloyd. One particular outburst still haunted him. Kai'd gotten upset, raised his voice and slammed some things around and Lloyd had jumped out of his skin. He'd never forgotten how scared those green eyes had looked. How they almost seemed disturbingly resigned at the same time. Kai swore after that to get himself under control. The brunette visibly took a deep breath, trying to calm himself- despite how the hands around Lloyd's were shaking with bottled-up anger, the heat was increasing ever-so-slightly. But Kai managed to keep it in check.

"What are you thinking right now, green bean?" Kai prompted at last.

Lloyd let out a cold laugh. "I don't know."

"That's fair." Kai sighed, running a hand through his hair. It was much messier than it was normally and Lloyd felt a pain of guilt at the stress his brother was displaying, a lot of it being his doing.

"I don't know... what to do," Lloyd said honestly.

"You don't need to do anything right now." A new voice caused them both to look up. Doctor Williams smiled down at them. "I'll go and take a look at her and see what we're dealing with, okay? Then I'll talk to you as soon as I can."

"I should call someone to pick you up," Kai said to Lloyd, reaching to press a hand to his communicator.

"No!" Lloyd exclaimed. Kai paused. "I want to stay here."

Kai hesitated, unsure. "Lloyd-"

"Please." It was small, desperate, and so, so pleading. Lloyd couldn't leave. Despite the exhaustion that was pulling at his limbs, the weakness that was creeping into his muscles and bones, the fear that lay beneath the surface- struggling to be free- he couldn't leave. He needed to know if it was true, he would not be able to move an inch away from the hospital without more answers. The only reason Lloyd was still able to operate was denial but that could only get him so far.

Kai must've seen it all in his eyes, knowing the stubbornness that he wouldn't able to fight, and groaned a loud, frustrated sound. Despite his annoyance, the fire ninja let his hands drop. "Okay, fine! But as soon as I'm done talking to Officer Morton the Meanie we're going to the crummy cafeteria and getting you some food."

Lloyd could not possibly even think of stomaching anything but he didn't tell Kai that, knowing a good compromise when he saw one. He looked to Doctor Williams. "You'd be able to tell, right? If she was faking it?"

Doctor Williams frowned. "Well, I can't promise you anything until I have a look. We're dealing with a lot of possibilities here."

"Right." Lloyd had known this but he'd still hoped. "Thank you, doctor. For all your help."

She patted him gently on the back. "Of course." Then she moved past them to Harumi's room, nodding once to the officer standing guard outside, before entering.

"You stay here," Kai commanded, rising to a stand. "While I talk to Morton."

"No, Kai- I can't let you do all the work-" Lloyd protested, moving to get up as well.

"You-" Kai grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him back down. "Stay here. While I talk to Morton."

Lloyd pouted. A full-on childish, puppy-dog-eyed, pout. Kai didn't budge though, simply glaring back until the green ninja relented. "Fine," Lloyd grumbled. He probably wouldn't be able to walk that far anyway. The minuscule amount of food he'd had at breakfast was long gone.

"Good." Kai's shoulders slumped with relief, barely betraying the anxiety that was truly underneath his mask, before he pasted on a smile and walked down the hall, quickly towards Dr. Williams' office.

Lloyd also let himself crumple, folding in on himself as the appearance of not-really-fine collapsed into a-goddamn-wreck. His body shuddered for a moment, the swell of confusing emotions like a storm at the bottom of his ribs as he struggled to get it under control.

Harumi is awake.

Harumi is alive.

Harumi doesn't remember him.

A small sob escaped as Lloyd clamped a hand over his mouth and finally felt the pain take over. Her words echoed over and over in his head.

"Who are you?"

Off to the side, tucked by a gurney left in the hallway, a tall figure stood watching. They didn't look like anything out of the ordinary, wearing simple civilian clothes and plain colours. The mysterious person wasn't cloaked in shadow or hiding out behind a wall, they were simply standing there like most visitors did when they were waiting to see a patient, waiting for paperwork, or any other normal thing. So it wasn't a surprise that no one really batted an eye at the figure, not even Officer Tammy Yu- the woman standing guard who'd thought Lloyd suspicious. The person waited a moment, seemingly looking idly at something in the wall, but if someone had really focused they would've seen the eyes flicking to the side to watch the green ninja. They didn't do anything for awhile. They stood still when the fire ninja returned, they stood still when the two traipsed off for some food, and continued to stand still even after Dr. Williams exited the room. They were patient, careful. They didn't take any chances

It wasn't until the nurse stepped out and started talking to the officer that they made their move. Swiftly, almost briskly, they strolled past the room. They stumbled a moment, seemingly tripping over an untied shoelace. Neither the nurse nor the officer paid them any mind as they bent down near the door to tie it. As the two continued to whisper to themselves, the person pressed a hand to a locket around their neck. With a dark, greyish glow the locket unfurled like a flower- more specifically a lotus. With a few soft words, barely even spoken- practically breathed- the locket hummed and the light, shadowy glow slipped below the door. Not wanting to be caught, the figure tied their shoes and strolled calmly back down the hall. They left the hospital with no problems, walking straight out the doors with a small wave at the receptionists.

Strangely enough, despite actively saying farewell, when Catherine's co-worker asks about the person she will not recall him leaving, nor even seeing him.

NOTE****
I did proofread but it was around 2:00 am when I did so no promises that it's perfect.

Hope you enjoy!

LuckyBugBooks 🐞