🥺🛹💖:
you me date today
Sent 8.40am

🥺🛹💖:
as in a date not todays date
Sent 8.41am

🥺🛹💖:
im taking u on a date today
Sent 8.41am

"It seems that I now have plans," I said one Saturday morning just after coincidentally lamenting the fact that I had no plans for after Aisling left.
The girl herself lifted her head from where her chin had been snuggled into the crook of her elbow whilst lying on my unoccupied second bed in my lone dorm. Her expression was glazed with exhaustion from the movie marathon we had the night before.
"That's nice," she murmured. Her eyes were hazy and tired. "With who? What time?"
"Lloyd," I answered, and upon the buzz my phone made just that second, I continued; "... he said 'now'..?"
Aisling's eyes sharpened.
"Now-?"
A rapid, precise knock on the window had Aisling falling from her bed with a shriek. Her phone went sliding across the floor. I, being more used to ninja boyfriends announcing their presence while participating in the near-impossibility of scaling buildings instead of using the damn door, approached the beaming blond with far more nonchalance.

Lloyd's fingers regripped the window frame as I swung it open. The chilly autumn air swirled past him and made his blond hair flutter.
"Well, hello, stranger," I greeted while shivering. He lithely slipped inside with a cheerful, chirpy reply before shutting the window behind him. The red-haired girl stumbled quickly to her feet, face flushed and panting.
"H- hhhh- hey, Lloyd," Aisling stammered before cursing herself from under her breath.
"Hey, Ais," Lloyd replied. He crossed his arms with a leisurely smile. "How are things?"
"Good- ahem, yeah, good," Aisling nodded. "Yes. Good. Great. Um. See ya."
Lloyd blinked in confusion as she picked up her bag and turned to scurry from the room. He lifted a hand just before the door could shut.
"See ya."
Lloyd's pleasant smile dropped when his gaze turned back to me. I turned the lock and bunched my hands into the long sleeves of his hoodie I wore.
"So," I began quietly, staring the carpet. "Violet was part of the gang."

Lloyd dropped his head, rubbed his neck, and sighed. I took a seat, perching on the edge of the bed beside him. The subject was still fresh - we'd only talked about it last night (hence the need for a movie marathon with Ais), and even then, it wasn't a thorough chat.
"I didn't want to freak you out," he confessed, still staring at the ground. He seemed as if I caught him breaking a rule in preschool.
"I thought our communication was better, now," I said while I picked at the threads on my large, green hoodie. "We haven't improved one bit." I glanced up at him. "Do you really think that it would've been best to keep me in the dark?"
"No... maybe..." Lloyd dropped his head into his hands with a groan. "I don't know."
I watched him quietly. He lifted his gaze when he realised my silence and continued.
"I just... I have to make the right decisions all the time," Lloyd said, slumping onto the spare bed. "But you're the tough one. If I get one thing wrong, then... I don't want to freak you out."
"Lloyd." I reached forward to rest a hand on his knee. "I'm not a mission. I'm your girlfriend."
"No," he corrected with a dry, guilty smile. "You're both. If I don't keep you safe then you die. That's the hard and fast of it."

I huffed. He had a point.
"Still," I pressed. "I have a right to know things. How long did you know? How long have you been avoiding me? Because we both know that you can't lie to me to save your ass. Not anymore."
Lloyd's amused smile was soft and sad. He lifted a hand to brush against my cheek and hold me, and I found myself sinking into his palm - like every time he'd done it before.
"A couple of weeks," he admitted. "I'm sorry."
I exhaled. Yeah, that seemed right. That, plus his usual missions, would've kept him busy. I glanced up at him and found him fiddling agitatedly with the hem of his shirt. I placed my hand over the one on my cheek. He dropped his cheek to my neck.
"What'd you do when you found out?" I asked.
"Panicked," Lloyd replied instantly. "Panicked a lot. Called all your guardians to make sure that you were still at college and that at least one of them was with you at all times."
Ah, so that's why they tightened their shifts.
"We did a sweep of the city but nothing came up," Lloyd continued with a frustrated sigh. "Just the thought of her being alone with you... living with you..."
His clenched arm was suddenly coated in a thick sheet of ice. Lloyd jumped, taken aback by his own slip, and retreated back in on himself. My cheek felt cold without his palm, my body empty without his embrace. I watched on with worry as he thawed his arm with an annoyed frown.

Oh, well. What's done is done, right? It's not like Violet ever tried anything with me (I think) and I was still alive.
Lloyd glanced up when I scooched closer beside him and grabbed his chilled hand. He remained still and quiet as I massaged his hands, running my fingers over his knuckles and stroking his tendons. He gave a blissful sigh when I pressed my thumb into his palm. His head leant against my own.
"I'm sorry," he whispered again.
"Keep me in the loop," I murmured, turning to running my thumbs up his forearms, tracing scars and pushing against sinewy, tense muscle. He dug his nose into my hair. "It's all I'm asking for."
Lloyd's head rocked against mine as he nodded. My lips pressed a kiss between his brows.
"You said that we're going on a date?" I reminded, voice muffled against his forehead. He pulled himself back and I was giddy to see a spark return to his crimson eyes. He grinned in earnest.
"Yeah," Lloyd nodded. His hand tightened around my own. "I wanna see what you're up to in your training."

Today was technically my off-day. In fact, it was even my cheat day; a schedule full of junk food and binging shows. But, god, I would do anything for his smile. I would push the moon off its course and swim in the sun.
I found myself nodding eagerly. I was excited to show him just how much I progressed, and training most definitely meant cuddles afterwards.
Lloyd must've found my reaction cute, because his face softened beyond compare and he pressed an equally soft kiss to my lips. My eyes widened at the sincere gentleness that his affection enveloped me in, and I swooned into melting. I missed his kisses. I missed his smile. I missed him. And from the way he was holding me, as carefully, as endearingly, as perfectly as a flower, I could tell that he missed me, too.
Lloyd's lips drifted, pressing chaste kisses to my skin as he followed the curve from my chin to my throat. He buried his nose in the crook and sighed, sinking into a brief stare of relaxation. My fingers gently curled through his soft hair.

"I missed you," he whispered, before kissing my collarbone. The combination of his confession and action had my heart leaping.
"Missed you, too," I murmured back. "But now I wanna kick your ass."
Lloyd pulled himself away with a chuckle. His eyes were nonchalant and amused, holding a gaze so steadily gentle. He stood and offered a hand.

"It would be my pleasure, princess."

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

"Okay," I huffed exhaustedly as I collapsed backwards onto the forest ground. My enthusiasm to show Lloyd my skills had quickly turned into exhausted regret. "I get it - you're a crazy good fighter."

Lloyd, standing triumphantly with not a hair out of place, smirked down at me. It crinkled one of his red eyes, and the expression was so bastardly adorable that I wanted to etch it into the backs of my eyelids.
"It's hard not to be when your core balance is all over the place," Lloyd goaded as he pulled me to my feet. Dry autumn leaves crinkled and shattered in my absence. "Have you been doing those battle exercises I told you?"
"You mean yoga?" I asked dryly as I brushed off my jacket.
"Battle exercises."
"It's literally yoga."
"Semantics." Lloyd waved me off, which was something he'd do when he knew he was beat. "Have you been doing them or not?"
"I have," I agreed stiffly before averting my gaze. Oh, no. Guilt. "On the occasions that I remember."

"Y/n-" Lloyd groaned, but I was quick to cut him off.
"Hey, you don't have to cram to study!" I argued with a pout. "That lets me off the hook."
"You can't let yourself off of the hook I put you on."
"Well," I sniffed. "I just did. What you gonna do about it, team leader?"
"Since you so kindly reminded me that I'm in charge of your training," Lloyd started with a grin, "you can give me fifty burpees."
My eyes widened. "What?"
Lloyd nodded to the ground. His face was serious but his eyes held the intentions of a little shit.
"Go on."
"You can't make me do that," I scoffed. I then immediately regretted my words, as Lloyd grabbed the back of my shirt and swept my feet out from under me. I fell with a squeak, landing in a hovering position just parallel with the ground.
"Arms," Lloyd ordered, so with a detesting grumble, I placed my hands on the moist forest floor. "Good girl."
I shot a glare over my shoulder as Lloyd let go of my weight by my shirt. His grin was smug, so I turned my gaze back to the wet leaves and jumped until my feet landed under my stomach. I straightened and sent him a withering scowl.

"You're an awful trainer," I grunted.
"Cry me a river, doll," Lloyd snickered, unaffected by my dissatisfaction. "Forty-nine more to go."
I scrunched my face hard as I bit back a groan. I should've told him that I was injured or something. Lloyd may be a devoted boyfriend, but he didn't cut corners when it came to training - I should've known this.
"Hey," I began a couple burpees in. My face was flushed and beginning to visibly sweat. "So, you remember Dylan, right?"
"The guy who has a crush on you, yes," Lloyd answered with a nod. He pressed a fingertip between my shoulder blades and reminded me to 'keep my posture.'
"I mean, you didn't have to add that part on, but whatever," I muttered. "Anyway, his band's doing a performance tonight. It's a party."
"Mm," Lloyd hummed. "Sounds fun."
"This is me asking you to go."
"Sounds less fun," he corrected. "I'm not a very party-kinda person, Y/n. I tend to bring the mood down."
"Fuck the mood," I declared as I turned to face him. "You always put me in a good mood - except for when you force me into doing fifty burpees. Besides, those parties are usually so packed and loud that you can't recognise anyone anyway."

"Alright, let me rephrase," Lloyd continued. He crossed his arms with a sheepish look. "I don't like to drink. I can't be drunk if I suddenly get a mission."
"We don't have to go to get inebriated."
"Ineb-what?"
I shrugged. "I don't really like getting drunk. It was fine the first time, I guess, but it just takes up so much energy. The vibes, though, the vibes are what's good."
Lloyd titled his head as he stared at me. He seemed to be contemplating the implications of my proposal, weighing the pros against the cons. I returned back to my burpees.
"Okay."
My burpees were once again pulled to a jarring halt.
"Okay?" I echoed hopefully. "You'll go?"
"Yeah, why not?" Lloyd sighed. "Mum's always been nagging at me to experience 'normal teenager things-'"
"I hate to break it to you, but you're literally twenty."
"Young adult things, then," Lloyd corrected as he dipped his face close to mine in teasing. "And I'm sure you miss Dylan."

"Don't even joke about that," I warned as I slung my arms around his neck. A few years ago, I would've been worried about grossing him out with the smell of sweat, but I managed to get past that immaturity. It helped that Lloyd would come home from missions smelling like dirt and sweat and just slump over me.
"It's funny." Lloyd grinned in amusement.
"It's better than you getting jealous, I suppose."
"Oh, I am," he said honestly as his arms tightened around my waist. "But only because he gets to see you everyday. I'm jealous of all your friends. I want to be the one to see you everyday."
"Aww." My lips pulled into a bashful smile. "You're adorable."
"The cutest," Lloyd agreed. "Now, finish your training."

My smile dropped.
"Not the cutest," I grumbled.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

I was overjoyed to have Lloyd back after such a long month and a half without him. The evening calls weren't enough to do him justice.

Content with my clinginess (or discretely overjoyed by how much affection he was receiving), Lloyd didn't complain when I'd occasionally trip over my own two feet because of how close I was walking to him. I'd give a startled gasp and tumble into him, and Lloyd would just watch with soft devotion as I'd feverishly scramble upright while spewing apologies.
And then I'd proceed to move not even an inch away when we returned to walking.

"How are your studies going?" Lloyd asked as we broke through the forest and effortlessly slid into the crowd of students milling about on their day off.
"Good!" I replied with a smile. Everything was better when Lloyd was around. "Really good. We've started learning about the old Ninjago Empire back in the Edo Period. That was when Uchū was still alive, but history scholars like to pretend that their accounts were false and that the First Spinjitzu Master didn't exist - which I guess is why the combined class is called History and Mythology. Oh, and in Psychology, we've been learning about how investigators use body language to figure out when someone is lying!"
Lloyd listened intently as I rambled on about my classes, asking questions and expressing great interest in my personal studies. I curled my arm through his, as if we were a young couple back centuries ago, being chaperoned on a date, and spent near-on an hour about how voice infliction could indicate a person's emotions.
"It's just so interesting," I sighed. Lloyd pressed his lips to my forehead in an affection kiss.
"I'm glad you're enjoying it," he said. "Some of these could be handy later on in missions."

My stunned gaze shot to Lloyd.
"You're actually letting me be on the team?" I gasped.
"I'm considering it," he said.
"That's a total yes!" I gushed.
"Considering."
But I was too excited to hear his exasperated correction. My body felt like it was buzzing.
"I seriously thought that I was just going to have to win the bet to get a place on the team!" I rushed, wide eyes staring at the cobblestone ground as my pace quickened. "I mean, bet or no bet, I still want to graduate before I even begin to think about marriage, but this is an added bonus-!"
A body bumping into Lloyd made us stumble back. I shot up to needlessly apologise, when a dark scowl stopped me in my tracks.
The boy who smacked into Lloyd didn't bother to apologise. He didn't even bother to stop. Head bowed and hidden by a dark wave of hair, the student shoved his hands in his pockets and scoffed.

"Disgusting devil," he sneered just loud enough for us to hear.
My body prickled with enraged heat as I glared after the stranger. I went to take a tense step after him, but Lloyd's grip around my arm kept me from advancing. I glanced up at him, fury still written as clear as day on my face.
But Lloyd had dealt with this kind of treatment for far longer, and still, what greeted me was a sweet smile. The serene look on his face instantly melted away my anger.
"Tell me about your professors," Lloyd suggested.

So, with one last glance over my shoulder, we continued on to my dorm.

🍃🍂🍁🍂🍃

Dylan's band was playing in the gymnasium. They took to a large makeshift stage at one end, and the rest of the courts became one giant mosh pit.

Lloyd awkwardly stood out like a sore thumb. Not because of who he is, but quite simply because of his inexperience at massive parties like this. He leant against the wall and twiddled his thumbs while Dylan's band played loud songs that reverberated through my very bones.
There were very few ways to get lost in music other than in a mosh pit, experiencing it along with a bunch of other, just as influenced, people.
The venue was packed. The ground was shaking from the bass and the amount of dancing feet. Seliel was pulling Aisling and I around like dolls to dance with, and Vali was somewhere up in the rafters eating corn chips. Chen and Ambrose were no where to be seen.
"Are you doing okay?" I asked Lloyd for the millionth time when I was able to escape my iron-gripped captor. I was panting, having just made an escape through the thick throng of dancing people.
"I'm doing fine," Lloyd reassured with a small smile, and I didn't buy a lick of it.
His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his green hoodie, but that didn't stop me from grabbing his sleeve and yanking his arm out so I could snatch his hand. He watched with subdued amusement as I hauled him to a more secluded section - just outside the girl's bathroom.

"You're bored," I declared when we pulled to a stop.
"This just isn't my scene," Lloyd waved off with a shrug. "Don't worry about me, sunshine. I'm entrained enough by watching you dance."
"Oh. Uh... was that a diss or a compliment?" I asked. Lloyd just grinned. My eyes narrowed.
A drunken person stumbled past, making my scrutinising glare snap away from Lloyd. He brought me in by his arms around my waist and my attention immediately sought him again.
"We can leave," I offered.
"Y/n-"
"I hardly get to see you," I insisted - my infliction was bordering on begging. "If you don't want to be here then we can totally do something else! I don't care what we do, I just want to spend time with you."
Lloyd sighed, dropping his forehead on mine. My eyes closed, allowing myself to soak in his presence.
"We can... we can go back, put on Twilight-"
"No," Lloyd cut my whisper off with a whisper of his own. I frowned. "But-" one of his hands slid down to my waist, while the other found my own hand "-we can dance out here, if you'd like."

"Out here?" I asked, glancing to the girl's bathroom where somebody was audibly eviscerating their insides. Lloyd grimaced.
"Inside is... loud," he murmured. His face was downturned when my gaze turned back to him, finding him subtly wincing, eye twitching in discomfort. It clicked.
"Your hearing?" I asked, eyes wide. "Is it too loud? Does it hurt?" The noise of the live band hurt my ears, and I didn't even have supernatural hearing.
"It's bearable out here," he confessed before spinning me out and pulling me back against his chest. His head rested against my neck. The warmth from his body heat sent tingles up my spine. "I just try to focus on hearing other things."
"Oh?" I queried, a little breathless from how tenderly and affectionately Lloyd was holding me. "Wh- what are you listening to?"
"Hmm," Lloyd mumbled, digging his nose against my neck. "You."
"Huh," I said. My heart rate was positively vibrating in my chest.
"Your heartbeat," he whispered against my skin. "Your breathing. The way your hair shifts when you move. The sound of your footsteps. The sound of you being alive. It'll always be my favourite song."

Holy fuck. I clasped my hands over his, clenched with fluster. I could feel my cheeks burning so ferociously that I was surprised they didn't melt right off my face.
"Alright," I managed to croak out. "When did you start reading my romance novels?"
"Poetry, actually," Lloyd answered. He began to sway us from side to side, which clashed terribly with the rock song Dylan's band was currently belting, but I couldn't find myself caring. "I was digging up stuff on the old elemental masters. Did you know that the previous Master of Ice was a poet?"
"That makes sense," I said. "Romance poetry, then, huh? Is it my birthday already?"
Lloyd chuckled, and the vibrations travelled through his body and into my very bones.
"Everyday for you, princess," he quietly pledged.
That was the last straw. I snapped; I spun myself in his arms and hectically threw my arms around his shoulders, hauling him down to my height so I could press a feverish kiss to his lips.

He seemed to have been waiting for my lapse in self-control, as his hands smoothly found their way around my waist and he returned the kiss without a falter when I moved. It was electrifying, it always was, and I felt static zip down my arms and shatter through my body, causing a subatomic explosion of splintered heat and yearning.
It had my mind reeling. Teetering. I was enthralled by this development. His kisses always sent me to heaven and back.
An entire shudder ran through my body when he gently bit my bottom lip and tugged it as he pulled back. My eyes were still shut, revelling in the blissful aftermath. It was like a drug that I couldn't get enough of. What did Lloyd say that first year we were dating? My very own brand of heroine.
"Glad to see that campus life hasn't gotten you immune to my charms."
My eyes were still closed. I didn't dare open them, the peace was too tranquil. It would be a pity to leave it.
"Oh, Lloyd," I sighed with a serene smile. I felt my hands drop to the front of his shirt and clutch it in loose fists. "I'll never be immune to your charms."

A kiss was pressed to my nose.
"Good to know."
I finally slid my eyes open just as the last song of the night drew to a close. People were leaving, spilling out of the gymnasium like water from a leak, intent on finding the locations of the numerous after parties that would undoubtedly dot the campus.
Lloyd lifted a hand to pull a piece of streamer from my hair. I watched him toss it to the ground with a bemused smile.
"There you are!" Seliel's loud voice drew my attention. She was peeking over the crowd with a frustrated frown. "You promised me that you'd dance!"
"I did dance," I said. "Out here. With Lloyd."
"With me, jackass!" Seliel accused as she shoved her way through the retreating crowd. "You can dance with your boyfriend anytime you want - you'll probably get married and have like, ten children or something!"
Lloyd and I pulled a bewildered look.
"Oh, don't look so surprised," she grumbled. "Anybody with eyes can tell that you guys will get married. Within the year is my bet."
"Really?" Lloyd teased with raised eyebrows. His gaze met my own, terribly amused. I was not. "That's my bet, too."

"Don't hold your breath, honeydew." I turned back to Seliel. "Next party, I'll dance with you. Promise."
"I'll hold you to that," she said with a raised finger as she began to head back inside the gym - probably to search for Vali. "I'll hold you to that so bad, just watch me."
"I believe you," I snorted.
Ambrose, Chen and Aisling were all inside, helping Dylan's band disassemble their kit from the stage. Dylan glanced up as we approached.
"Great," I managed to hear him mutter to himself as he wiped his hands off, staring at the drum kit he was standing over. "Loverboy's here."
Lloyd's lidded, amused glance sent me sighing. Boys.
"Lloyd!" Aisling greeted from the stage with a giant beam and a massive wave. "I- I saw the video of you taking on that-"
"Watch it, Ais," June hissed as the guitarist placed her hand over Aisling's mouth. "We're not alone, here."
Aisling squeaked an apology from behind June's palm.
"Do you need any help?" Lloyd offered. Elijah, with his glasses askew and drumsticks sticking out of his back pocket, bolted upright.
"Yes!" he cried, just as Dylan grumbled a "no."

Lloyd squeezed my waist before advancing to the stage to help a squabbling June and Aiden with taking apart the drum set and loading it onto a trolly to be hauled back to the music department. Dylan glanced at me from the corner of his eyes.
If anybody changed the least in their demeanour towards Lloyd after finding out who he was, it was Dylan. The others had stars in their eyes whenever Lloyd was around, as if he were still wearing his gi and just saved a bunch of kittens from a burning building. Dylan didn't, however, and his distaste only seemed to grow stronger.
It didn't help that he still had a crush on me.
He trotted down the steps from the stage with a frown and shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. A backpack was slung over his shoulders.
"Can I talk to you?" he murmured when he got close.
"Uh... yeah, sure." I nodded, and he began for the exit. I glanced at Lloyd, who gave a questioning thumbs up as if to say 'are you okay?'
I gave my own in response. I'd be fine. Elijah said something funny and the others laughed, drawing Lloyd's attention.
I bit my lip and followed after Dylan. The sullen boy stopped just outside the exit and scuffed the top of his vans against the concrete step.

"Are you okay?" I asked. The late evening chill had me zipping up my jacket.
"M' fine," Dylan muttered. He impatiently pushed his dark hair back and held out his backpack. "Here."
Puzzled, I took the bag from his grasp. I sent him a quizzical glance.
"It's books," he said with a sigh. "I found some in my great aunt's basement."
Growing ever the more confused, I slowly unzipped his bag before finding a bunch of old, leather books tied together with fraying twine. My eyes widened.
"Are these-?"
"Yeah," Dylan replied. "They are."
I slowly brought the pile of books out of the bag, being extra pretentious in handling them with care. Dylan's grumpy mood seemed to have simmered into something less harsh. A smile even seemed to pull at his lips.
"My great aunt studied history, too," he continued. "She collected a few of the old journals the elemental masters kept."
I gingerly held the books with a stunned look. It was like cradling the past itself - these were two-hundred, three-hundred years old at the least. They held secrets that could've very easily have fallen into the wrong hands.

"Dyl, this is- you're incredible!" I gushed. My gaze turned to his face, pink and sheepish. "Thank you. Thank you."
Suddenly bashful, Dylan turned away and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Just- just don't say I never did anything for you," he joked quietly. Overjoyed, I placed the books down and impulsively jumped into a hug. He stiffened.
"S- sorry, thank you, sorry," I stammered as I quickly pulled myself back. I dropped back to the ground and picked up the books with starry eyes. The leather was soft and giving under my touch, and the page edges were velvety with age. I wondered who else had run their hands over the overs, brushed their thumb down the spine, flipped through the pages. I wondered who wrote them, who spilled their life in ink.
I wondered about the volatile secrets they contained, and was thankful that they couldn't get into the wrong hands.
"This is seriously amazing, Dylan, thank you," I murmured with a small smile. I turned my head up to him, only to find him already gone. He'd gone back to his band. Even from across the gymnasium, I could feel Lloyd's stare.

I hugged the books to my chest and sighed.

"I heard," Lloyd said when we finally left the gymnasium after saying our farewells to our friends. He glanced at the stack of books in my arms with an indifferent, calculated look. "That was... nice of him."
"Don't hurt yourself, sweetheart," I snorted. Lloyd rolled his eyes. I stared at the books as we strolled, taking in the aged leather. They'd seen history - they'd lived through it. These books were most likely centuries older than me. "I wonder who wrote them. Whose life has been recorded down on these pages. It's so... surreal."
Lloyd smiled down at me as I stared at the books in awe. I couldn't comprehend it - the weight of something this important. Secrets, woes, battles, rivalries, love. These could hold somebody's entire story in it. And there were five of them.
"We can have a flick through them when we get back to your dorm, if you want?" Lloyd suggested. I sent him a hesitant glance.
"I... I shouldn't," I murmured with a reluctant shake of my head. "These are too important. I'm not even an elemental master." It was like I wasn't part of a club.
"Don't be silly," Lloyd chastised lightly. "You're as much an elemental master as the next one."

"No, I'm not," I disagreed with a deep frown. "Even Uchū doesn't know where my powers came from. I don't know what I am. Nobody does."
Lloyd's smile faded at the frustrated look on my face. Not understanding a thing about myself was beyond annoying - it was debilitating at times.
Where did my powers stem from? How did they originate? Did they emerge in my lineage before or after Uchū created Ninjago? Were they always intended to protect Lloyd, or did they have a darker destiny when they first appeared?
And even the all-knowing First Spinjitzu Master hadn't a clue.
"An honorary member, then," Lloyd bargained as he dipped to press a kiss to my temple. "You have permission to flick through those books to your heart's content. Besides, you're my wife. You're part of the family whether you like it or not."
That pulled an amused smile out of me. Lloyd brightened - that seemed to be his goal. It always was.
"Wife?" I echoed teasingly. "Did I blackout during the imaginary wedding?"
"You must have, because we definitely absolutely got married," Lloyd supplied. "See?"

After taking a brief glance around the empty grass field, he bent down to the ground and, after a short rumble, a plain-looking rock landed in his palm. With a proud smile, Lloyd glanced up at me. I raised a brow. He held out a finger, telling me to wait, before tapping the rock.
It split down the middle with a simple and quiet crack and popped open. Inside was a geode crystal formation, jagged and rocky, coloured an exquisite emerald.
My jaw dropped. He held out the geode for me.
"I got you a shiny rock and everything," Lloyd said smugly.
"What the shit," I said monotonously as I let him slip one half into my hand that wasn't holding the books. He laughed. "You planted this."
"Nope."
"You did," I insisted, turning my stunned gaze to Lloyd. "You definitely did."
"I swear on my soul that I didn't plant that geode just to make a joke about you blacking out during our wedding," Lloyd solemnly vowed. He broke into a stunning grin. "I've been training a lot, sunshine, just to give you pretty presents. This place just so happens to be filled with lots of limestone."
Bewildered, I stared at him harder.
"I'm in a coma," I announced, making him suddenly snort. "I have to be in a coma or dead. Maybe I'm dead. There's no way that you, Lloyd Garmadon, are real."

Lloyd shrugged, thoroughly amused by my disbelief. My attention turned to a different matter at hand.
"You don't need to keep giving me gifts, you know," I said as I touched the geode to Lloyd's half, as if to mimic it becoming whole again. He frowned.
"I like giving you gifts," he huffed as he stared at the geode halves. "All the time. You deserve it."
"You know, you could sell this for like, two-hundred dollars or something," I said. He shook his head.
"I want you to have it."
"You've already given me so much. I- I don't have any money or the time to make you something in return."
Lloyd was steadfast. "I don't care. You give me you, that's more than enough."
"And you're enough for me," I said, turning his words against him. Even under no light aside from the moon, I saw his cheeks turn a deep pink. He turned away to hide from my gaze. "Okay. Just this once, I'll keep the rock."
Lloyd spun back around and beamed. He was seriously too adorable.

"Yay!" he chirped, and I felt my serotonin shoot through the moon. "This won't be the last."
I dropped my head back with a groan.
"Let's just get back," I huffed, pulling Lloyd by his arm. He giddily followed.
The first thing I did when we got back to my dorm was change into my pyjamas. Lloyd flicked through the first of the books as he waited, and when I had brushed my teeth and washed my face, I crawled onto the bed beside him.
"Interesting?" I asked as I dropped my cheek onto his shoulder. He hummed.
"It's a recount of the Master of Light's early years," Lloyd said. "It's just training and training. Helpful for me, I guess, but kinda boring."
"Not everyone can live a life where they're doing something interesting everyday, I suppose," I sighed. I picked up a second book and flicked the cover open. I paused upon locating the name of the owner.

"Lloyd..."
He glanced over and stilled.
"... Dad?" he noted quietly and pulled the old book into his lap. "This was my father's..."
I watched Lloyd's face as he slowly flicked through the first few pages. It wore an array of emotions as he scanned the faded handwriting, but soon he was lifting his red eyes to mine in shock.
"This was about his transformation," he breathed. "He... he was trying so hard to resist the Great Devourer's poison. L- listen to this;"
Lloyd cleared his throat and tucked his legs under himself as he prepared to read out the page he was currently on.
"'June twelfth, thirteen-fifty-two,'" Lloyd began. "'Every morning, I wake up less of the man I was the day before. I can see it in my reflection. I can see it when I look at Misako. The poison is demanding me to let go, to become one with it, and with every waking moment, I refuse it's temptations, but I fear that I cannot ignore it for much longer. It grows stronger, and my resolve weakens. I am losing myself..."

Garmadon placed his brush to the side of his journal and read back over the dark ink that bleed through the paper. His characters were jaunted and haggard, driven so by the ache in his head.
The seething hisses he heard made it difficult to work out what he was truly hearing or what the poison was inflicting on him. The repeated the same words; let go. Let go. Let go.
The brush snapped under his hand and Garmadon jolted, staring at the splintered utensil in melancholy disdain. Writing in his journal, a usual favoured pastime, was becoming more difficult. The breathing techniques his father had taught him before he passed were rapidly losing effectiveness. The rage was licking at his heels, waiting for a single slip to reach up and submerge him whole.
Garmadon placed the snapped utensil down and rose from his desk, adjusting his slackened kimono as he stumbled to the rice door. He looked a mess and he knew it, but with the voices and the empty rage and the ache, he couldn't care less.
The only people who would care - truly care - were Misako and Wu.

Both of whom, he couldn't stand to face.

Garmadon moved through the quiet monastery in subdued misery. It was empty, aside from the occasional monk, who'd send him a look of subtle disdain. He knew that not many welcomed him - his outbursts, his anger, his short temper made him lose many friends and gain many enemies. The rest of the elemental masters looked upon him with pity and contempt. Him, the son of the First Spinjitzu Master!
His fist launched into the rice paper wall with a sharp yell. His fury vanished just as quickly as it appeared, and he swiftly pulled his hand from the hole with a meek glance around the hall. Nobody was there to witness him lose his cool, but the property damage was irrefutably caused by him.
With a stressed roll of his shoulders, Garmadon continued down the hallway. The garden usually eased the voices and put his emotions at bay. If only that affect lasted.
He took his usual seat on the rock by the pond and stared at the unnatural, red eyes that found his in the reflection of the silver pond.
That was where Misako found him.

"Garm."
The brown-haired man barely grunted in reply. He heard Misako sigh and her footsteps approach, until she too, took a seat on the rock. Her back was pressed to his.
"I... I couldn't find anything today."
Garmadon closed his eyes. He cradled his own hands as if they were turning to dust before him. With how he felt as if he were disintegrating, they may as well have been.
"Yes."
"I'll find a cure."
"I know."
Misako turned sharply. He heard her crouch before him and felt her hands lift his chin. His eyes fluttered open. Misako didn't flinch. She never did.
"You're going to get better," she pledged with a determined glower. "You will."
The smile that pulled at Garmadon's lips was weak. He wanted to believe her, he really did, but it all just felt useless at that point.
"I know."
"You're going to fight through this. I know you are," she said. "I married a fighter. A good man."

Oh, how wistful. How wonderful.
How naive.
"A good man," Garmadon echoed with a sigh.
"A great one," Misako reiterated. She rose and pressed a kiss to his cheek, and Garmadon felt the rage disappear for that brief second. "The best of them all."

Garmadon's red eyes closed in wistful longing.
"The best of them all..."