TW: mild sexual content

Garmadon stared in absolute bafflement as he watched the black paint of the prophecy on the cave wall shift and rearrange into something entirely new.

"This is impossible," Misako said in disbelief as she held the flickering flame of the torch higher. The moving prophecy towered above the group, so much so that snake and human alike had to crane their necks back to watch. The ink, slick and dancing from the illuminance of the fire, drew nothing but shock.
"Uchū, what are you doing?" Garmadon murmured to himself, taking in the large cave wall, jagged and dripping in wet ink. Everything here was acting without law, without reason. This was a powerful magic not capable of anyone else.
"He'sss changing the prophecy," Skales said grimly. "There mussst be sssomething terrible on the horizon."
"But that's impossible," Misako repeated, stress dripping from her words like hot tar. "Prophecies don't just change like this. It's not how it works!"
Garmadon narrowed his eyes as he read what was being written while the others fretted.
"Then explain what'sss happening!" Skalidor snapped.
"I don't know!"

"No," Garmadon shook his head as he raised his fingers to whisperingly touch the ink. The group silenced. The Sensei pulled his hand away and set his jaw as nothing short of fear shot straight through his chest. "This is no prophecy. This is a warning."

"A... a warning?" Fangtom echoed incredulously. "For what?" Fangtom's second head finished.
"As long as it's not a giant snake," Pythor muttered under his breath.
"A great evil will return," Garmadon murmured, catching eyes with his wife. "Like something we've never seen before."
"But why isss he changing the prophecy about-" Acidicus began.
"Because it concerns them the most," Misako cut in, brain working fast and eyes scaling the warning faster.
"How much time do we have?" Skales asked.
"Not as much as I would hope for," Garmadon murmured as he scanned the warning another four times to commit it to memory. "We should go. There are things that we need to discuss with Wu."
Misako nodded. "We will continue this meeting at a later date."

The drive back home was tense and silent.

Garmadon made a beeline for the dojo, where he could hear that his son and almost daughter-in-law were fooling around. Their snickers and laughs did nothing to quell his sudden anxiety, but it was nice to hear all the same.
"O- okay, okay," Y/n giggled, wringing her red hands as she and her boyfriend sat cross legged on the tatami flooring before each other. Training had yet to begin and they were wasting time while waiting for the others to arrive. She placed her palms out. "Another round!"
Lloyd shook his head with a snigger as held his hands above hers.
"You're not going to win," he said in amusement. "I'm a ninja and this game is literally called ninja."
"I'm optimistic!"
"You're stubborn."
"Same thing," Y/n sniffed. Garmadon leant against the doorframe, brows pulled tight. Lloyd slapped Y/n's hands before she could even think to move them. Her head was thrown back with a defeated groan. "Again!"

"You never give up, do you?" Lloyd said with a shake of his head.
"Ninja never quit," Y/n chimed. She went to slap Lloyd's hands but he was too quick, once again.
"You're not a ninja," Lloyd pointed out with an amused scoff.
"Yet," Y/n reminded.
Misako touched Garm's arm and they shared a look. Fear passed through them.
"You know that I will do anything to protect our children," Garmadon said in a whisper. "But destiny is something that I simply cannot fight."
"I know, sweetheart," Misako replied in a murmur. "Know that they are strong."
"But Y/n-"
"She is strong, too," Misako insisted as they glanced back at the two playing ninja in the dojo. "Much stronger than what even she may know."
Garmadon swallowed. He didn't want any of his kids to go through more pain and trouble than what they've already had to deal with. This warning all but promised more.
"We have to start her training," the Sensei declared quietly.
Lloyd glanced at his dad, having heard the exchange. Garmadon nodded at his son and Lloyd, weary, nodded back.

"Oh, you're back!" Y/n sat up straight with a beaming smile, unaware of the turmoil that hung before them all.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"You need to cut the garlic into smaller portions."

"If I cut them any smaller, it would be dust, Zane," I stressed as I chopped the small vegetable on the wooden board. He gave a sigh at my apparent incompetence at cutting garlic before ushering me away and placing the wooden ladle into my hand.
"Can you check on the noodles?"
"Yes sir, captain Zane Julien, sir," I said with a salut. The ladle hit my forehead and I yelped in pain.
It was our turn to cook dinner for the monastery and as per usual, it was a monster of a job. I seemed to just be getting in Zane's way - as I was but a mere, clumsy human, and he an advanced, ninja robot with an innate specialty for food.
I rubbed the welt on my forehead as I checked on the egg noodles and gave them a stir to keep them from clumping. Zane expertly chopped the garlic into minuscule pieces.
"How was patrol?" I asked as I tapped the ladle on the side of the pot before checking the chicken. The ninja had only just returned, bruised and battle-scarred but high in spirits.

"It went well," Zane replied. "Lloyd could not wait to get back home."
I huffed a little through my nose. Adorable dork.
"We crashed a drug exchange between gangs," Zane continued. "There is a worryingly amount of gangs in the backstreets of Ninjago City."
"NC is pretty huge," I pointed out in a murmur while grabbing some spinach and throwing it into the pan with the chicken. "Any sightings of Axon's gang?"
Zane was silent. He moved onto the cucumber. His knife was slower than usual.
"No," he finally said. "There has been no sightings of them - a little more spinach please, Y/n - we theorise that they are regrouping after their... failure at the docks."
The gun wound on my thigh started to itch.
"Seems likely," I said quietly.
"They are a very slippery group," Zane continued, voice laced with frustration. "We have found absolutely nothing about them."
"You'll get there," I said, sending the nindroid a smile over my shoulder. "You guys always do."
Zane's own smile passed over his lips. He turned back to the cucumber with renewed passion.

"I appreciate your unwavering faith in the team," he said. "But while we are not prone to failure-"
"Cocky," I murmured to myself.
"- that does not make it an impossibility," Zane finished before sliding the cut vegetables into the pan with the chicken and spinach. "You may take a seat. This part requires only one."
I leant back against the bench and watched Zane do his magic. A small, coy smile pulled at my lips as my eyes jumped to the unsuspecting nindroid's face.
"Have you talked to Pixal recently?" I asked, crossing my arms with a huge grin. Zane's actions jolted and his eyelids flickered in a glitch. I snickered.
"N- n- no," he stammered poorly, hiding his face from mine despite his inability to blush. "W- we haven't had the time- time- time- time-"
I smacked his back. He shook his head, eyes wide.
"Thank you," Zane breathed.
"Welcome," I chirped. He continued stirring the food and I jumped upright, excited by an idea. "What if we do a group date! That way you can see Pixal again!"

Zane paused.
"Yes..." he said slowly before giving me a little smile. "That would be nice."
I grinned at him and just as Zane switched off the heat from the stovetop, a gang of hungry teenagers made their way into the kitchen from after bandaging themselves up. Lloyd was hanging at the back with Kai, jostling each other around as they reenacted the fight with the gangs from earlier. He caught my gaze and handsomely beamed. His clean-on, button up shirt did wonders for him.
"When's dinner?" Jay excitedly buzzed, jumping on balls of his feet. "I'm starving!"
"It's now," I reassured with a giggle, bringing out some plates. Zane began to dish up.
"Yay!"
Lloyd swooped in for a quick kiss before I even realised what had happened. He chuckled at my bewildered expression as he picked up our plates.
"C'mon, sunshine," Lloyd teased, gently kicking the back of my thigh with his foot. "I'm hungry."
"O- okay," I stammered, still taken aback. Kai playfully shoved me with a snicker and I hit him back with a teasing scowl.

Dinner was a hit, as per usual with Zane's cooking. The team were loud and energised from the early end to their patrol and with nothing but free time for the rest of the evening.
"You gonna stay and hang out with us?" Cole asked with a boyish grin when we finished eating. "Or are you two going off to smooch?"
"Hardy-har," Lloyd replied before pausing. He glanced at me. "Are we?"
I shrugged. "I don't mind."
"PlayStation tournament it is!" Jay called before taking my hand and hauling me along to the games room. The rest of the team were quick to follow.
A couple of hours of button mashing (I like to call it buttshing) and Nya yelling into my ear to 'AVOID THOSE MUSHROOMS!!!' and 'GET THE SPEED BOOST GET THE SPEED BOOST!!!' later, I'd stepped out from the riveting tournament to spectate, too tired to continue. Sitting between Lloyd's legs and resting back against his warm chest was far too comfortable to be considered legal. I was even fine with his frantic virtual fighting and the calls of victory in my ear.

So fine, that I began to doze - taking the chance to catch up on lost sleep. The sounds of the team animatedly chattering and laughing and generally having a good time wavered in and out as my conscious did, teetering on the balance beam between sleep and wake. Lloyd shifted and my head dropped to his arm. I was too out of it to reposition myself, so I just settled into my new spot.
Something tickled my nose. I scrunched it. The tickling continued - was it a fly or a phantom itch? With a grumbled whine, I lifted my hand to swipe the possible bug or itch away and got a face full of whipped cream.
Snickering laughter made me slowly peel my tired eyes open. Cole's phone was in my face. Nya couldn't breathe. Lloyd's body was shaking from his chuckles and in his grasp was a can of whipped cream - somebody must've gotten it for him.
"Oh, yeah," I said, trying to hide my own smile; a result of their amusement. "Real mature."
"It was Lloyd's idea!" Kai called. Lloyd threw the can at him and it connected against his head with a clattering bonk.
"I know," I replied before inclining my head to wipe the cream onto his sleeve. He groaned a laugh. "He told me that he'd prank me one day. I was expecting something better."
"Ouch," Lloyd teasingly frowned. I dropped my head back against his chest and stared up at him blankly.

"I will get you back for this," I said robotically.
"I look forward to it, sweetheart," Lloyd smirked, brushing a thumb against my cheek to scoop up some cream and slip it into his mouth. I continued to stare, unphased. He stared back, amusement growing in his red eyes.
"Are they gonna kiss or is this just a staring competition?" Jay asked Nya in a whisper. She shrugged. Lloyd blinked.
"I win," I said smugly. He rolled his eyes before sending me a soft smile - curse him for making me melt after literally just making a fool of me. I huffed a sigh before slipping from Lloyd's hold and standing, catching a yawn in my hand. "I'm gonna head to bed. I don't trust sleeping here. Night guys."
There was a chorus of farewells, threaded through with laughs. The game was unpaused and the competitive shouts continued. I had no idea how they all still had so much energy - it must be from all the food they eat.
After a shower and changing into my pyjamas (Lloyd's shirt and a pair of my cotton shorts)(at this point, I should just ditch the majority of my own clothes), I slipped into bed and drifted. Kashu leapt up onto the mattress and curled up at the end of the bed. I soaked in the smell of Lloyd.

I must've fallen asleep because I was jolted awake when arms threaded around my waist and I was gently pulled into a chest.
"Sorry for waking you," Lloyd whispered, pressing a kiss to the shell of my ear. I relaxed against his hold, eyelids fluttering shut once more. "I wanted snuggles."
"Never apologise for snuggles," I mumbled, sinking into his arms. "Who won?"
"Jay's team," he muttered bitterly and I snorted a laugh at his put-off tone.
"Karma," I noted airily. He poked my side in retaliation and I barked a squealing laugh, flinching away and he chuckled into my temple. He cuddled more against me and a thought pinged to the forefront of my head. It slipped from my mouth before I could stop it. "Hey, don't you need to mark me again?"
Lloyd tensed. His arms flexed into steel.
"L- let's not-" he said shakily. I frowned, shifting in his arms until I was facing him. His expression was conflicted - the concerned pinch of his eyes, the downturn of his lips, the look in his red eyes. Now I was confused.
"But... the problem last time was that you didn't mark me for ages, right?" I asked quietly, running my hands along his arms soothingly. "If... if we want to avoid that happening again - not that it was a terrible thing, per say-"
"It was," Lloyd said dryly.
"We don't know that," I pointed out. "We don't know why your instincts-"

"What I know," Lloyd stressed, fringe falling between us as he dropped his eyes in frustration. "Is that I hurt you."
My brows pushed together in sympathy at his expression. I wish that he was as carefree about what happened as I was - but it was a different situation for him. While we were in the same place at the same time, experiencing the same slip in control, our resulting point of views took wildly different turns. And the turn Lloyd took wasn't something so easily reversible.
"Lloyd," I whispered, hooking a finger under his chin and bringing him back up to face me. "I'm sorry, but this isn't as easily dismissible. It's not something you can just ignore. You already tried to ignore it and..."
Lloyd's red eyes dropped, squinted in annoyance.
"I... I just don't want to hurt you again," he murmured.
"You won't," I reassured, bringing my other hand up to cup his cheeks. "I trust you."
"You don't know that I won't," he scoffed sourly, pulling away from my hands.
"You'll never know until you try," I said. He paused. I tilted my head in thought before my eyes jumped to his. "You want me to go first?"
"What?" Lloyd asked, shooting me a confused look. I stared at him before pointedly dropping my gaze to his neck and back. His red eyes fell to my lips before returning, wide in shock. An amused, little smile had a corner of my lip curling up. "Oh. But... you can't really mark-"
"Whoever said that is a liar," I said quietly, dipping my face forward to bump my nose against his. "I can damn well try."
Lloyd breathed a choking laugh and it crashed against my chin, making my heart thump hard in response. My hand reached up to tangle in the wavy curls of his blond hair, threading through the soft locks and giving a little tug that had a caught gasp slip from his throat.

"What do you say?" I murmured, brushing my lips against curve of the edge of his mouth. My eyes fluttered up to his and his stare had grown in weight, loaded and heavy as he gazed down at me. "I'll mark you and then we'll regroup. If you still don't wanna, we'll leave it. It's up to you."
Lloyd hummed, eyes hooded as his hands landed on my hips. At some point we'd sat up, but the exact time was lost on me. He slowly reclined back against the headboard and guided me with him.
"I think we can give it a go," he murmured, watching haughtily as I eagerly wetted my dry lips and slipped atop his lap. Lloyd's fingers dug a little harder into the flesh of my hips. "B- but if I start to lose control-"
"Yeah, yeah," I hummed, nuzzling my nose along the line of his jaw. "I'll knee you in the balls or something. Don't worry, I'm a big girl. I can hold my own."
I pulled back to send him a stern look. Hair messed and cheeks red, my chest warmed at the sight of him like this for me. A small smile pulled at my lips at his unsure frown.
"But it won't come down to that," I said seriously. "Right?"
Lloyd's eyes flittered before landing on mine.
"Right," he answered with a small nod.
"You still wanna do this?" I asked again, just to make extra sure. He gave another immediate nod. "Okay."
"Okay," he breathed, pulling me deeper into him by my hips. I slid closer. The covers folded and bunched beneath us.

I held his face and gave a long, releasing sigh at the gorgeous sight, dropping my forehead to his.
"I'm so lucky to have you," I murmured. Lloyd went to reply but was silenced when, heart hammering and hormones a rush, I inclined to brush my lips against the tip of his nose before dragging them down to whisper against his cheek. Tracing his jaw, tracking his cheekbones, colouring his forehead in kitten kisses. There wasn't a spot I left unkissed.
Lloyd gave a charming little giggle at the ticklish feeling. My elation soared at his mood.
"What are you doing?" he grinned, finding my eyes.
"Destressing," I replied before landing a big, hard, loving kiss to his cheek with a loud 'mwah!' He snickered again. "Is it working?"
Lloyd nodded, face red and happy. With a triumphant smile, I cupped his cheeks and pressed my lips to his in a pretty little peck.
Lloyd reciprocated not a beat later, pulling up into the gentle kiss with a sheathed sigh, his hands sliding around to hug my waist.
Twisting and chasing and breaths mingling. My chest was bursting at the seams, overloading with heated energy and infatuation and need. These feelings slipped through the the stretching hem and flooded from my lips unto his until the kiss had shifted from innocent pecks to a flashing, bruising, burning mould of one another - egged on by the singing in our hearts and the waves in our ears. It had my stomach surging with leashed, thrashing, delightful butterflies and head swimming in intoxication.
His grip was bruising. Fingers tangled in his hair. We were coming undone together.

My lips dragged down his chin and latched kisses alongside the under curve of his jaw, tugging, pinching, nuzzling his skin. Lloyd exhaled a shuddering breath, tipping his head back. A heating lust had me seeking more, tracing my teeth down his neck and my hands brushing down to his shoulders. I found one of the buttons of his shirt and I slowly popped it, lithely guiding the material open while my fingers coerced the plastic away.
Lloyd hissed a breath through his teeth when I snuggled my cheek against the crook of his neck before pressing an open-mouthed kiss to his heated skin. My hands continued their own journey, tracing patterns and butterflying my fingers across his jagged, scarred chest. Holding his heart and brushing against his old wounds.

Lloyd lurched with a strangled, gorgeous moan when I sunk my teeth into his skin. Gently pulling, nibbling, I left my proof of a claim. Him, oversensitive to the sweet sensation, the burning trepidation of a nameless desire, could barely catch his breath. Failing to find a rhythm, to find a calm in the storm of euphoria.
"Feel good?" I purred, taking a gentle nip of his ear. Lloyd sighed a shaky, stuttering reply of affirmation. "How you doing?"
"Good," he breathed, head thrown back against the wall as a look of pure bliss had him closing his eyes. His hands ran along my thighs, as if the rhythmic motions were the only thing keeping him grounded to reality. "Great."
I smiled against his cheek before sitting back on his stomach, fingers still brushing against his chest. When he swallowed, my eyes followed the dip of his Adams's apple. From there, my sight followed the glorious curves of his clavicles, to his heaving pecs, down to his half-hidden abs. And then back up, to the impressive sized hickey on his neck that had a smug, prideful grin pulling across my face.
"That was fun," I announced, patting his chest. Lloyd peeked his red eyes open. "What's next? It's up to you."

He exhaled long, reaching up a hand to hold my cheek. I dropped my head into his hold with a warm smile and let him guide me forward into a soft kiss. The jitters along my skin had me soaring from the contact, the sweetest of kisses, the most affectionate of nuzzles. Lloyd had a way of making me feel so loved that it could reduce me to tears. I hoped he felt as loved back - because I give him every bit of love that I can hold in my body and I fully intend on continuing that until my dying days.
Then I was pushed against the bed so fast that my stomach was left behind.
I squeaked in surprise, eyes shooting wide as Lloyd readjusted our position. Still breathing hard, he held himself above me and we stared.
I barely got to whisper just how much I loved him before Lloyd pounced, capturing my lips with his and showing me just how much he wanted this. It left my fingers curling through his hair, lashes fluttering, stomach twisting in heat. My head tilted backwards with a needy groan and Lloyd chased the kiss, shifting with me as we played a dance with no choreography, a game with no rules. Nothing else existed aside the warmth that built and swirled and swayed between us.
A growl into my ear had me tightening my grip around him, bringing him closer. I just needed him closer, pressing against me. I needed his warmth and his words and his laughs. I just needed to spend an eternity with him this close. Closer, even. Eventually.

A strangled gasp scorned through my throat when a fang brushed the sensitive skin of my neck. Lloyd abruptly stopped, jolting to a disastrous pause before he pulled himself away. My eyes opened at the unneeded distance, ready to whine before it died on my lips from the look in his face.
"Lloyd," I murmured but I didn't get to finish my reassurance as he hid his fangs from my sight.
"I- I'm sorry," he choked, inclining his head away.
"What for?" I asked gently, brushing circles over his cheeks with my thumbs. "You haven't done anything wrong. It's all been perfect, as far as I'm aware."
"I sh- I shouldn't keep my fangs- I let them- I'm sorry-"
Oh. Oh. No, Lloyd, please don't hate your appearance again. Not when it's simply so you. Not when it's part of the endearing, intriguing mystery of yourself. Not when I love you so.
I guided his head back to face me and I regarded the struggle in his expression as he tried to pull back his fangs. I lifted my head up and pressed a small, delicate kiss to one sharp tooth and sent the softest, most encouraging smile I could.

"You're perfect," I said serenely, brushing a hand over his forehead and bringing it through his soft, messy hair. "And I love every single part of you, Lloyd. Fangs and all."
"But-"
"Every single part," I repeated in emphasis, caressing a fang with my thumb. "Please don't hide from me. I want to know every bit of the man I'm madly, wholly, irrevocably in love with."
Lloyd's expression melted and my smile grew. I rose for another kiss and this time, he pressed back into it. His hands draped over my sides and caressed my body in a way that had me shivering. His lips drifted across my cheek and down my neck. He went no further than a couple of gentle, quick pecks and dragging his cheek along my skin before pulling away with a relieved sigh. I kissed the soft locks of blond hair behind his ear and he fell onto the mattress beside me.
"Is that better?" I murmured, watching as his red eyes fluttered, landing on me. I ran my fingers over the planes of his face and he relaxed deeper into the pillow.
"Mmm. Yeah," Lloyd sighed. I slipped my fingers from him and poked his nose.
"Tell me what I want to hear."

Lloyd's eyes opened wide in confusion.
"Uh... you're super gorgeous?"
"Flattering, but not even close."
He frowned, struggling. I raised a brow.
"Y- you're the light of my life?"
"Nuh-uh."
He scrunched his face in thought.
"I... you..." he caught sight of the smug glint in my eyes and his own eyes narrowed. "You were right."
I sighed in bliss, closing my eyes as I soaked those precious, lovely words in.
"Victory has never tasted quite as sweet as this," I hummed before slumping myself over him with a snicker. Lloyd rolled his eyes in amusement. "I told you it would work."
"I know," he groaned. I pressed a kiss to his chin before snuggling in deeper. He pulled the duvet up. It was surely a few hours deep into night. "... thank you."
"For what?"
Lloyd stared at the ceiling. I readjusted my position so I could watch him watch the wood.
"For always having faith in me," he murmured after a brief hit of silence. I kissed his shirt before resettling against my makeshift human pillow.

"Always for you," I hummed, threading my fingers through his. "Nighty-night. Love you."
His hand stroked through my hair.
"Love you," Lloyd sleepily murmured his reply. "Sweet dreams."
I was silent for ten minutes, waiting for his hand to pause and then for his breathing to even out. Then I waited another ten minutes, just to make sure.
I slowly slipped from his hold, as comfortable and tempting as it was, and regarded his slumbering face. So serene, so peaceful. It was so nice to see him like this, especially with how full on his day-to-day was.
"You're so pretty," I sighed, tracing his sleeping face with a whispering finger.

My soft smile curled into a smirk and I reached into my pocket, pulling out a sharpie. "Let's make you even prettier, jerk."

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

Lloyd wasn't aware of why the team was snickering over their breakfast at the dining room the next morning.

"What's with you guys?" he asked with a frown as he handed me my bowl. I thanked him with a poker-faced, pleasant smile while trying my hardest not to catch Jay's gaze. It'd be all over if that were to happen. The lightning master was already holding back tears.
"Gee, Lloyd," Kai snorted, holding a hand over his mouth in case he choked on his cereal. "That's some m- mark."
"Oh, yeah, har-har, laugh it up," Lloyd said, unaware of the black marker-drawn glasses around his eyes, a crudely drawn poop emoji on his cheek and the word 'dragon boy' on his forehead. It matched well with the small gathering of hickeys on his neck. "Sorry that I have a girlfriend that I'm intimate with."
"Uh-huh," Nya nodded, biting her lip to keep from bursting into a volley of snickers.
Zane furrowed his brows and parted his lips to say something - only to have a spoonful of cereal shoved into his mouth. At that I did giggle before frantically trying to control myself.
Lloyd's confused expression deepened.
"Is there something on my face?"

"Oh, noooooo," Cole replied. "Nothing. Zilch. Zero."
"Y/n?" Lloyd turned to me.
"Uh-uh," I shook my head. "Not that I can see of."
He frowned more before letting it go and lifting his spoon of cereal. His green eyes jumped down to the silverware and he paused.
"Sunshine," Lloyd said slowly.
"Yeeeeeees, Lloydie?" I replied sweetly, taking a mouthful of breakfast.
His eyes drifted to mine. I smiled innocently at him.
"Did you do this to my face?"
"Why, I have no idea what you mean," I shrugged before glancing amongst the team. "Do you guys?"
A chorus of denies had Lloyd pulling a low-brow at his team and I.
"Alright, hilarious," he said before dramatically shoving a spoonful of cereal into his mouth. "I'll let you know that I'm still the best looking one here."

"That's a lie," Nya pointed out. Jay puffed out his chest proudly. "Kashu's the best looking one here."
Kashu, who had made Kai's lap his bed, perked his head up at his name. Jay wilted in disappointment. The team's watches beeped in synchronisation and it was my turn to slump disappointedly.
"Alright, boys," Nya piped up, shoving the rest of her breakfast into her mouth. "Let's move."
"You're very funny, you know that?" Lloyd said, leaning forward and pushing his face into mine while the others scampered from the room. I sniggered.
"I know," I replied amusedly, pressing a kiss to the rim of his drawn glasses. "You look very handsome, if I do say so myself. My best piece of work yet."
Lloyd sarcastically 'ha-ha'd' before catching me in a quick kiss and then stepping away to get ready. "I'll see you later."
"I'll be waiting," I murmured. I grabbed his hand before he could disappear and he glanced back, brows raised. "Please be safe."
Lloyd softened at the look on my face before bringing my knuckles to his mouth for a quick kiss. Despite my worry, it was just- it was just so funny to see him kiss my hand like that when he had drawings all over his face in black markers.
"Always am, sunshine," he said with a quick grin before swiftly slipping from the room.

And then, as if in the blink of an eye, the room was quiet and I was alone.
Almost alone. Kashu padded over and slumped onto my lap.
That's much better.
Relaxing into the abrupt silence, I was peacefully patting Kashu's head while scrolling through conversations I'd missed in a group chat that consisted of Naomi, Chen, Ambrose, the ninja and I. The three non-ninja has decided to make most of the warm, spring day to go to the park. Too bad I couldn't go because of that damn Axon.
Man, screw him. What a doorknob.
I reclined back onto the floor, phone held aloft as I lamented my inability to join them. It'd seem that I'd be stuck inside the monastery until the team gets back unleeessss-

"Hey! Wanna come to the park?" I called, poking my head into the scroll room, where Garmadon, Misako and Wu seemed to be in the middle of some deep investigation. Scrolls had been strewn all across the room. My face slowly fell in shock at the mess. "... if you're free."
"I'm not really sure-"
Garmadon was elbowed by Wu.
"I- I mean, yes," the Sensei corrected himself with a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. He suddenly looked as older than usual, as if he'd aged another century in the span of a morning. Garmadon was clearly stressed about something. "We would love to accompany you to the park. Will we be taking Kashu?"
I nodded, still a little taken aback by the sullen mood of the room.
"We'll just be a second," Misako said with another smile that seemed to be forced.
Maybe it had something to do with the rewritten prophecy from yesterday at the Serpentine tombs.

"You are meeting up with Ambrose, correct?" Wu asked. While Misako drove. I nodded. "Have you considered the possibility of him being another escort candidate? He's certainly more than capable."
"Really?" I asked.
"Ambrose has fought beside us a handful of times, despite his age," Garmadon spoke up from shotgun. I wanted to pull a look. 'Despite his age'? The dude's over a century old - he could be my great-grandpa.
Somehow I couldn't picture Ambrose as my great-grandpa. I was grateful for that 'somehow.'
And if they considered Ambrose to be young, then what did they consider me? The team? As total babies? I mean, sure, I do consider myself babey but this is a different kind of baby.
Then again, teenagers compared to over a thousand years old... yeah, alright then, we're literal babies. Wow.
"I'll let him know," I said as the car was pulled into a park. Having Ambrose as another babysitter would certainly spice things up a little. From what little I knew about the master of physics, there generally wasn't a calm moment when he was around.

"We'll head off on our own once you've met up with the others," Misako said with a teasing grin. "Don't want to intrude on you youngsters."
I huffed in amusement, sending a grateful smile in return.
"Thank you," I replied as we stepped out of the car. It was locked with a beep and a bark from Kashu, whose lead was being held by Garm. "I haven't gotten to see the others that much. It'll be nice to see them again."
Ambrose was the first to spot us approach the bench he, Chen and Naomi were lounging on. The elemental master raised his hand high into the sky and gave it a frantic jostle. I snickered, returning the wave; though mine was far more subdued in energy.
The adults split off to do their own thing - from the grim expressions they were failing to hide, I chalked it up to something to do with prophecies or powers or anything general in the need-to-know category. I was not a need-to-know person.

"And Rapunzel is finally allowed out of her tower," Chen said with a smirk as he flicked his brown hair back. I gave a grin and a roll of my eyes at his comment. "Where's your Eugene?"
"On a mission," I replied amusedly. "And don't you start about the babysitting - I get enough crap from Naomi as it is."
Naomi shrugged.
"If I don't annoy you, can I really be considered your best friend?"
"A valid point was made," Ambrose piped up before he leapt up onto the chair and sat on top of the backrest. "Alright, homies, what's the plan?"
My brow furrowed slightly.
"For what?" I asked, confused.
"Amby seemed convinced that there's a fight about to go down on the other side of the park," Chen grumbled, crossing his arms. I raised my eyebrows curiously as my gaze shifted to Ambrose. He gave a smug smile and a shrug.

"I'm not just the master of physics," he purred, lip curling over his sharp teeth into a wicked smile before he brought out his phone. "I also follow this one dude's twitter who follows another person, who follows this girl, who follows a bot for some reason, but the bot follows this-"
"Ambrose," Chen sighed.
"Right!" he chirped and shoved his phone back into his pocket with a tiger grin. "TLDR, the villain made a rookie mistake - the dumbie was smug enough to announce her plan to social media."
I stared.
"Wow," I said with a shake of my head. "That's just sloppy."
"I know, right?!" Ambrose laughed. "I want front row seats, so let's head over!"
Ah, yes, let's walk into danger. If any of the team were here, they'd wring Ambrose's neck simply for suggesting something as chaotic and stupid as that.

But they weren't here, and the team was like... ninety-eight percent of my impulse control - so I followed Ambrose and the others without a second to doubt the intelligence of such a decision.
We wandered over to the specific spot, mindlessly chattering to one another and picking up some ice cream treats along the way. The spring sun was particularly hot that day, so we wisely stuck to the shadows. A crowd was beginning to form - it felt as if it were a planned outdoor concert rather than a silly villain's master plan.
One lone lady stood in the middle of the clearing. I shared a look with the others while we waited for something to happen. Maybe Ambrose could restrain her once she starts to do her villainous deeds (which I was still drawing blanks to, by the way). She looked relatively normal.

"What do you think she's gonna do?" Jay asked in a whisper from beside me.
"I don't kn-" I stopped myself short and glanced at the ninja, masked blue eyes trained on the figure. My eyes widened. "What are you doing?"
"Scouting," Jay replied before slipping some nunchucks from his belt and giving a confident swing. I flinched away from the weapon. "Hey, aren't you meant to be at home?"
I shrugged. "I'm with Ambrose. Also the Senseis and Misako are somewhere around the park."
"Huh. Neat."
Then the villain started to do some villainous things. Like screaming threats to the bystanders.
"You guys should probably leave," Jay suggested while elemental dragons flew into the scene.
"Probably," Naomi replied.
We did not move.
"Righto," Jay said as he began to make his way into the commencing battle. "See ya, don't die!"
"Same to you," Chen farewelled with a salut.

"Do you think we should leave?" I asked as the ninja easily took down the villain. Maybe it wasn't a villain and more so an angry adult taking it out in an unhealthy way. Would make sense with the whole Twitter thing. Lady should get some therapy. "Oh, wait, never mind. They've finished. Well done."
"That was so anti-climatic," Ambrose whined in disappointment. "I wanted more action, more peril!"
"I'm happy that it was as easy as this," I said, brightening when I caught Lloyd's eyes. He had to do a double take. "At least they're all unharmed."

"Boring," Ambrose groaned over the cheering crowd. I sent him a look and he plastered on a bright grin. "I mean great! Hey - what's that on green man's face?"
I glanced back over at Lloyd before my grin grew wider. The mask couldn't hide the marker-drawn glasses. I wondered what stan twitter would make of this.
"That's my handiwork," I snickered lowly, proudly crossing my arms.
"Niiiice," Chen grinned and held his hand up for a fist bump. The police arrived on the scene to take the lady back to the station and do their police-y stuff, then the elemental dragons burst back into existence, much to the excitement of the screaming crowd - now it really did feel like a concert.

"You forget how much people love them," Naomi murmured, eyes trained on Cole. "It feels totally normal hanging out with them and then you see something like this... damn, it makes me feel small."
"... yeah," I said quietly, eyes scanning the growing crowd. "But at least we get to know them in a way nobody else really does."
Naomi sent me a confused look.

"What do you mean 'nobody else'?"
I wiggled my eyebrows.
"What?"
I wiggled my eyebrows harder.

It clicked in Naomi's head and she snorted, face growing red.
"Shut up," she chided within a laugh and shoved my arm. I giggled, stabilising myself as I stumbled. A dragon roar had our attention snapping to the ninja as their elemental beasts began to take off from the ground. Bentley had his forked tongue hanging from his mouth like a puppy as he stared back at me. The team began to fly off and Lloyd leant down a little in the saddle to send me a teasing wink. My face went red.
"He winked at me!" gushed the guy to my left. Naomi nudged me with her elbow and a secretive smile.
"Shaddup," I said, but I couldn't hide my dopey grin. The herd of dragons disappeared deeper into the city, flying low for look out.
"Could he be any more obvious?" Chen snickered with a shake of his head when the crowd began to disperse. I went to playfully reply when two girls passed in front of us, hunched together.

"Did you see that?" I heard one whisper to her friend. "The green ninja had a ring on his finger!"
My throat went dry.
"His finger?" the friend echoed in surprise. "What happened to the necklace? Didn't he say in that interview that he wasn't seeing anyone?"
The first girl shook her head, clearly bewildered.
"Dunno."
I hid my hand with the promise ring in my pocket. Ambrose and Naomi shared a look, having overheard their conversation, too.
"Probably not," I muttered my response to Chen, eyeing the thinning crowd suspiciously. "Let's get out of here."
"Good idea," Ambrose nodded. My phone buzzed and I flinched in surprise.

🛹🥺💖:
look behind u :)
Sent 9.54am

I raised my brows before turning my head to glance over my shoulder. Nothing.
My phone buzzed again.

🛹🥺💖:
look h ar der
Sent 9.55am

Me:
i a M.
Delivered

🛹🥺💖:
in the tREES
Sent 9.55am

I squinted my eyes before finding a dark shape on a branch, hidden by the leaves. I blinked.

Me:
oh
Delivered

"Hey, I'll catch up in a second," I said, touching Naomi's shoulder. She nodded.
"There's a taco food truck across the park," Chen spoke up. "We'll meet you there."
I gave a thumbs up before making my way towards the tree. Stopping at the base of the trunk, I placed my hands on my hips and looked up.
"Wouldja look at that?" I said with a playful grin. Lloyd's red eyes stared back down at me, leisurely lounging in the branches. The broken sunlight dappled him in warm gold. "I found the green ninja in his natural habitat."
"And he's succeeded in luring his mate," Lloyd continued with a startling accurate take on David Attenborough. "C'mon up, sunshine. There's room for two."
"Dork," I rolled my eyes but began clambering up the branches, anyway. Lloyd held out a hand when I got close enough and helped me onto the branch beside him. My eyes caught sight of his promise ring, sat over the glove. I softly touched the metal with a fingertip. "Why is this out?"

Lloyd shrugged. "Just wanted people to work out that I'm in a happy relationship. They've already seen the ring before, what's a little show n' tell now?"
I sighed and pressed a kiss to the bridge of his nose. His mask brushed against my chin.
"As much as I find that adorable," I said quietly. "That's also really dumb."
"Yeah, I know," Lloyd said as he dropped his head back against the wood of the trunk. "I don't know why I felt that I needed to. I think I just wanted to show off for once."
"You show off all the time," I pointed out with a chuckle. His red eyes dropped to me and he leant forward. I was caught in his heavy gaze.
"I meant that I don't get to show you off," he murmured, gloved hand tracing the curve of my jaw in a soft touch that had goosebumps prickling my skin. "I want to show the world that I'm so lucky to have you. This was the only way I could do that, I guess. It was impulsive, I know. And stupid."

"And cute," I hushed, resting my hands over his. My eyes dropped to the promise rings, glinting in the drop of sun that covered our fingers. "I don't mind. I just worry because you get worried. You always have so much resting on your shoulders. I don't want to be another burden."
Lloyd's red eyes softened. He tapped his masked mouth to my forehead before he pulled me onto his lap. I blinked in surprise.
"You are a gift worth the world's weight in gold," he breathed, capturing my cheeks in his gentle hands. "You could never be a burden."
I bit my lips as my heart doubled over and beat its fist against the ground in emotional, overwhelmed, adoring frustration.
"I love you so much," I rushed a soft gasp before shoving the bottom of his mask up to press a hurried, infatuated kiss to his lips. It only took him a second to work past his surprise and kiss me back.

"Oh," I said with wide eyes as I pulled back. Lloyd leant forward with me, disappointedly groaning when I detached. "The others want to do a movie night. I made the mistake of saying that I haven't seen the dark knight trilogy."
"The what?" Lloyd asked. I blinked.
"The- the- batman, Lloyd," I said with wide eyes. "Ambrose and Chen are making me watch Batman. I thought you were a huge batman fan?!"
"I have a busy life!" he squeaked. "I can't see them all. Do you know how many movies there are? Besides, I prefer the cartoon series."
I couldn't argue with that.
"Fair enough," I said, readjusting his mask so it'd sit correctly over his face. I hid an amused grin at the drawings on his face. "Anyway, do you want to come? It's tonight. Naomi was going to join us but she and Cole are celebrating their six months."
"Six months already?" Lloyd said in surprise. "That went fast. What were doing on our six month anniversary?"
"Probably somethin' stupid," I replied with a nonchalant shrug. He snickered.
"Probably. Sure, I'll come," he answered before setting a teasing scowl on me. "Right after I wash off my face."

"I dunno," I giggled, tracing the sharpie. "I think it's a good look for you."
"You're lucky I love you," Lloyd said dryly.

"I know," I sighed, grinning unashamedly.