"And you are?" Nya prompted, glaring at the girl.

"Vivi," Gaia lied. She cringed when the words came out of her mouth. Vivi had been one of Gaia's greatest enemies (aka Wu's first girlfriend). She'd been the master of life, able to gift breath to anything but the dead. 

Of course, there were no more masters of life, as Gaia had killed Vivi before she could pass down her elemental powers. 

Gaia didn't even glance at Nya as she spoke; her eyes were fixed on Cole. He blushed and looked down at the wooden floor. 

"The ninja, I presume?" she asked cheerfully, gesturing to the bunch. Everyone but Akita and Misako nodded. 

"I am such a fan!" Gaia squealed, making eye contact with the master of earth. Cole's heart melted. Vania had said the same thing when she first met him. Vania. Cole glanced down at the girl in her arms and mentally slapped himself. He didn't want to forget about Vania. He couldn't fall for Vivi now. 

But he already had. 

Cole hadn't meant to jump into this rabbit hole. Vivi had shown up when his heart was at its weakest, and his vulnerability was showing. Plus, Vivi was so attractive. Her wavy brown hair was in a half-down half-up braid that swished every time she moved. Her eyelashes were long and curly, even more so than Nya's. She had a naturally beautiful face and a slim, curvy body. 

"Vivi," Misako said thoughtfully. "As in Vivi, the first master of life?"

"Yes." Gaia replied curtly, narrowing her eyes at the archaeologist. Cole and Lloyd tensed. They didn't appreciate how she treated Misako. The green ninja took a step forward and decided to show the same attitude.

"And what business do you have living in a tree?" he asked. "Are you the master of birds?" Jay giggled and Zane cracked a smile. 

"No. I'm a descendant of two powerful elemental masters," Gaia lied, her pride getting the best of her. "And my parents were actually beneficial to society. Unlike your father."

The room fell silent. Lloyd fumed and Misako clenched her fists, trying to keep her composure. 

Nya couldn't take it anymore. She dropped Jay's hand, stepped towards Gaia, and punched her in the face.

"Don't you dare speak about Garmadon like that," Nya said sharply as Gaia stumbled backwards. "He sacrificed himself to save Ninjago. Without him, you would be dead. But then again, maybe that's a good thing." 

No one, not even Cole, helped Gaia up. They all knew Nya was right. 

The former goddess sat on the floor, a bruise already forming on her cheek. She stared bullets at Nya, and the master of water shot her own glare back.  

At last, Gaia looked down at the floor.

"Sorry," she muttered. A smile began to form on her lips. "I wasn't myself." Gaia pushed herself off the floor, her dress rising from the ground like a gentle wave. 

"I can bring her back," Gaia said proudly, pointing to Vania.

"No way," Lloyd interjected before Cole could say anything. "If you heard about my father, I think you've learned that resurrection only makes things worse." 

The earth ninja stood up and walked towards Gaia.

"Please," Cole whispered, putting his hands on Gaia's shoulders. "Please, Vivi. Bring her back. I need her. I miss her, more than I could ever tell you. If you can do that, we'll leave and never think about this again."

Gaia stared at Cole indifferently, his features no longer appealing to her. She'd thought that he was a kind soul. She thought his beauty took more forms than one. But he didn't stand up for her when she needed him. He didn't say anything.

Wu had obviously missed the lesson about "treating others like you wanted to be treated." 

So Gaia decided to play substitute teacher. She was about to give them a taste of their own medicine. 

"Fine," she agreed. "Give her to me." 

"No!" Lloyd tackled Cole to the ground before he could pick Vania up.

"Cole, don't you remember what happened to my dad? She won't be Vania when she comes back! She'll be someone else!" Lloyd shoved Cole into a bookcase, and it shook ominously.

"That was with the Oni masks," Cole growled. "Vivi's doing it differently." He tried to push Lloyd off, but failed and ended up hitting his head on the floor.

"Oh yeah? And how do you this way won't turn her into a complete monster? This is for your own good! She's gonna break your heart! Resurrection is never a good thing."

Cole couldn't respond to that. He simply kicked Lloyd in the shin and rolled away from him.

"Harumi was the monster," Cole said coldly. "She wanted your father to come out that way. But you're still madly in love with her." He stood up.

"Besides, you should get it. You know what it's like to care for someone. You jumped off the Bounty for Harumi. I'd do the same for Vania. Don't tell me it's for my own good." 

While Lloyd held his shin and gaped at the master of earth, Cole picked Vania up and pecked her on the forehead. 

"I'll see you soon," he whispered. He handed her over to Gaia and sat down on the floor, not daring to turn around and see Misako's expression. 

Misako wasn't mad, exactly. She was disappointed. And scared. But this was Cole's decision. If he wanted Vania this badly, well, then he should get to see her. 

But he would never be whole again.

Nya slipped her right hand into Misako's and grasped it tightly. The two women closed their eyes and prayed the First Spinjitzu Master would return Vania to them in her normal state. 

Gaia raised her hands and began to chant:

"Ahsumai milnage osaht meney..."

But Gaia didn't want to bring Vania back. She just needed to raise Cole's hopes and then dash them to pieces. She needed to mess up so that the spell wouldn't work... but where? Perhaps at the end...

The real spell ended like this: asou delaq neheeya ruhmey name.

Gaia intended to change "ruhmey" to "rumee" and get rid of Vania's name, though she stumbled on the words and had to repeat them:"Asou delaq neheeya ruhmey- rumee!"

A portal appeared by the door and Gaia's eyes widened. That wasn't supposed to happen! Whoever was coming through that portal wasn't Vania, she knew that.... but who was it?

A blinding light sent everyone stumbling backwards. Dust swept down from the tops of bookshelves, forming a curtain in front of the portal. A moment later, light faded away and the sound of footsteps filled the silence.

Everyone looked up.

It wasn't Vania. It was Harumi.

Rumi gasped, air filling her lungs for the first time in a long while. She fell onto the floor, her chest rising and falling unsteadily.

"Ha-Harumi?" Lloyd asked breathlessly. The girl raised her head to look at Lloyd. Her eyes flew opened and she stopped breathing. 

"L-l-Lloyd?" she asked, just as breathless. "Is it really you?"

"It is," he whispered, tears already spilling down his cheeks. "Are you- my Rumi?"

"I was never yours," she said, her voice cracking. "And you were never mine." Lloyd sank down to his knees and Harumi threw herself into his arms, sobbing. 

"I'm sorry," she wailed. "I'm so sorry. You don't- you- you don't have to forgive me. Just let me stay here for- for a minute, and then I'll go back. I promise." She wiped her tears away and stared at the green ninja, sniffling.

Before anyone could stop her, Harumi kissed Lloyd. On the lips.

That was the last straw for all the girls in the room. Akita backflipped and attacked Rumi in her wolf form, howling furiously. Nya screamed and shot balls of water at the deranged princess, hitting her repeatedly in the chest. Misako kicked Harumi in the stomach as she tried to avoid Gaia's punch. 

Everyone else just backed away. Even Lloyd.

He couldn't bring himself to help the girl who had broken his heart and destroyed his city. He turned away, wincing at the sound of Rumi's cries. No. He wasn't going to interfere. Harumi had it coming.

Lloyd wiped his mouth, trying his best not to think about how much he loved Rumi's kiss. It lingered on his lips, and to make matters worse, the smell of her lime perfume danced in his nose. It reminded him of the time he had peeked into Harumi's room while she was doing makeup...

But that was a memory from the old Lloyd. The young and naive Lloyd. He had learned his lesson now, even if Cole hadn't. 

Resurrection is never a good thing. 

*A/N Sorry for not updating sooner :) I hope you enjoyed this dramatic chapter.*