TW: Blaming oneself/negative self-talk 

Lyra and Skylor sat across from each other in a cozy little booth, eating their breakfast and watching Jay and Cole argue. 

"I don't know what they're fighting about, but, for two people who are on the same team and are supposed to trust each other with their lives, they certainly don't act like it," Lyra pointed out, drinking the leftover milk from her Cheerios. "They're gonna end up saying something they didn't mean and ruin their friendship if they don't stop soon."

The two ninja were squabbling like siblings. Lyra wondered if they were secretly 7-year-olds in realistic ninja costumes because they were definitely acting like it. She was extremely tempted to walk up to them and force them to sit in opposite corners of the room until they behaved.

"Oh my First Spinjitzu Master!" Skylor gasped. "That's it!"

"What's it?"

Skylor leaned in. "If we tell Father about this, he could use it to his advantage."

Lyra's eyes widened. "You're right."

If he gets them mad enough, they might even damage the team permanently. Sky's a genius.

"Here, you can tell him," Skylor offered. "You were the one who brought it up."

Lyra tried--and failed--to ignore the crushing feeling in her chest as she imagined how her father would react. He'd probably manage to disband the whole ninja force. 

And you want him to destroy the ninja, she reminded herself. Her heart sunk farther down. Because they're evil. Even though they're really good at pretending to be good. Like, they're better at acting than me. 

"But you were the one who actually realized we could use that," Lyra pointed out. "Stop trying to be nice and get me on Father's good side. It just won't happen."

They sat in silence for a moment, both knowing it was true.

Chen's voice broke the quiet--though there wasn't really quiet, because Jay and Cole were yelling at each other. "The Tournament of Elements continues. Fun time! Would the following Masters please make their way to their assigned arena? Speed, Gravity, Smoke, Nature, Mind, oh, and last and hopefully not least...Fire!"

Skylor covered her hand with her mouth, making eye contact with Kai as she did so. 

Lyra's chest felt even heavier as she watched the Fire Ninja process what had just been said. For a moment, he froze. In that small half-second, he seemed absolutely terrified. Lyra just barely managed to refrain from hugging him. Then he grinned and cracked his knuckles, the perfect image of cocky.

"Remember, only one can remain," Chen continued.

"Worried about your boyfriend?" Lyra tried to ease the tension, picking up both of their trays as Skylor stood up.

"Just... whatever." Skylor crossed her arms and looked away.

She must really be worried. 

Lyra regretted her teasing. The way Skylor's face was paling and her hands were shaking showed how nervous she felt for the Fire Ninja.

"I almost hope I lose my bet for his match," Lyra mused. No, she definitely hoped she lost her bet.

A few days earlier, she'd told Skylor that, if Kai--or Fire, as they'd referred to him previously--won the match, she'd paint an elaborate depiction of how awesome Skylor was and would hang it above her own bed. It would totally throw off the "purple" look. In return, if Smoke won, Skylor would create an ice sculpture of Lyra and place it in the center of her room, meaning she'd have to find a different place to train.

"It's not too late to change your mind and bow out of the deal," Skylor smirked. Her hands were still and her face was its regular shade again. 

"Never in a million years," Lyra retorted, placing their trays in a pile by the kitchen.

"H-hi," a voice stuttered.

Lyra glanced up and saw Lloyd standing in front of her. He was looking back at his father, who nodded to him. 

A smile stretched across her face. "Hello."

Lloyd opened his mouth as if to speak, then closed it.

Skylor walked away, sending Lyra a look that totally meant she was going to bring that up later.

Cole, standing beside Garmadon, waved a bit as Lyra caught his eye. She waved back, not missing the tension in his body when Jay started to fidget with his chopsticks.

"We were wondering if you'd like to sit with us," Garmadon said, the hint of a smirk on his face as his eyes shifted to his son. "When we watch the Tournament."

"I would love to." Lyra put on her best "grateful" smile, though it shifted to a real one when she made eye contact with Lloyd.

She was reminded of just how striking his eyes were. They were sparkling like emeralds, a forest of sage and lime and mint and spring and jade and shamrock and seafoam and moss and green.

They're so--wow. No wonder I can't paint them. They're literally the prettiest thing I've ever seen. I really think I'd be perfectly happy to just stare at them all day.
Wait, no, Lyra, she reminded herself. That's creepy. And he's evil. You've gotta help take him down.

The problem was, he just didn't seem evil. He didn't look or act anything but kind. Heroic, even, with how he let her take that Jade Blade for herself.

 Not to mention how Lyra's brain seemed to tilt sideways every time she even thought of betraying him. It felt like even her instincts--which were almost never wrong--were telling her to trust the team.

Maybe they put me under a spell. Like a love potion, but instead of love I just can't fathom them being bad people. That'd make a lot of sense, actually.

"Lloyd?" Cole asked, Jay snickering behind him.

Lyra felt her cheeks warm, realizing she'd been staring for way too long. She grabbed the silver aglets on her blue-violet hoodie and began to twist the strings together.

"Um, right, the Tournament," Lloyd said, looking anywhere but at Lyra. "We should probably go to that."

Lyra nodded, unable to speak loud enough for them to hear at the moment. 

Jay, still laughing, poked Lloyd in the side. The blonde simply sighed and walked away. The other ninja--plus Lyra--followed him.

~*~

"Griffen, Master of Speed, versus Gravis, Master of Gravity," Chen announced. He didn't need a microphone, as his voice was loud enough to be heard across the entire island. "Fight!"

"Who do you think's gonna win?" Jay asked.

They were sitting on rows of stone bleachers, a few feet away from the fight. The Jade Blade was at the top of a sakura tree Lyra and Skylor had planted when they were younger. Lyra hoped the poor tree didn't get destroyed in the battle, as it was really pretty and one of the only colourful things on the northern part of the island.

"Gravis, of course," Cole answered. "I mean, it's in a high place. All he's gotta do is float up there and get it."

"Do not underestimate the Master of Speed," Garmadon warned. "His grandfather was one of the most powerful warriors I've ever seen."

"I agree. Griffen can just run up the branches." Lloyd turned to Lyra. "What about you?"

Lyra thought about it for a moment. "I think Griffen will win. Not because of his power, because it seems evenly matched with Gravis in this situation, but because he acts pretty competitive. Meanwhile, Gravis doesn't care enough to put 100% of his effort into this."

"Really?" Jay asked. "Wow, if that's true, I'm terrible at reading people."

Of course, Lyra only knew that because of her extensive research on each competitor. She couldn't exactly say that, though, so she just shrugged and fidgeted with her aglets again.

Griffen better win. I am not in the mood for Skylor to tell me how I lost the bet and how I have to let her use my studio for her training for a week.

The group watched as Griffen almost made it to the Blade, only to be smacked in the face by a tree branch. A few cherry blossoms fell, landing in his hair.

"That's gotta hurt," Cole winced.

Lyra blinked, and the Master of Speed suddenly held the Jade Blade in his hand. "Huh? What happened?"

She absent-mindedly watched as Chen and Clouse discussed what had just happened. They both seemed surprised, as if they hadn't expected that.

"That's called a Speed Burst," Garmadon explained. "It's what made his grandfather so powerful. He gathered all of his power in his core, then basically made it explode and it all released at once. It made him approximately the speed of sound. All Elemental Masters can do something similar. We call it a Power Discharge."

Jay nodded. "It's supposed to be super cool when I get mine. I got so close to getting it the other day!"

"What does yours do?" Lyra asked.

"Mine's supposed to call a bolt of lightning down from the sky," Jay explained. He was talking so fast, Lyra could barely keep up. "It's called the Lightning Strike. Unoriginal name, right? Cole's is the Earth Cleave, which is a much cooler name, and Kai's--"

"Should you be telling me this?" Lyra interrupted. "Isn't that something I could use against you if I ever end up fighting you?"

Lyra didn't want to know more information about the group. She already knew too much, and she'd probably end up telling her father all of it, which was, for some reason, the exact opposite of what she wanted.

Although, now that she thought about it, her father probably already knew about Power Discharges. Why didn't he tell her about them? She could've ended up facing one of those in battle and ultimately losing because of it. Unless he didn't know about them...

Her eyes drifted over to Chen and Clouse, who were still discussing the match, small frowns on their faces. The winner hadn't even been announced yet.

What's my Power Discharge, then? Lyra wondered, smiling dryly. If I focus hard enough, will my music put people to sleep for three seconds? Will my paintings blind them? Such a dumb power, oh my goodness. Of all the elements, I got the lamest one. Like, the person beside me controls energy, and I'm stuck here making things pretty.

"If you're asking that question, Lyra," Garmadon said, "you won't be using it against us."

"So not every Elemental Master knows about their Elemental Discharge?" Lloyd confirmed. "Huh."

"I don't know much about my element at all," Lyra admitted. "I wouldn't be surprised if everyone but me knows about them."

"They're mostly kept as secret weapons, a kind of last resort," Garmadon told his son. "Not everyone knows them by name, or even about them at all. It depends on if their relatives trained them or not."

"So, what's your element?" Cole asked Lyra. "Maybe Sensei knows what Element Discharge you can do."

"Winner!" Chen saved Lyra from answering, pointing to Griffen. Then he pointed to Gravis. "Loser!"

He pressed another button, and a trapdoor opened beneath the Master of Gravity. It did nothing, though, because he was floating. Gravis smirked, only for Clouse to point at him and temporarily render him unconscious.

Gravis immediately fell, his arm catching the floor with a sickening thump before he disappeared under the ground.

"Whoa, how many buttons does that man have?" Griffen asked no one in particular.

Lyra didn't even know, and she'd been living with him for the past 15 years.

"Master of Speed moves on." Chen moved Griffen's picture farther into his bracket, snapping Gravis's in the process.

Lyra made eye contact with Skylor and grinned, knowing her sister owed her a favour because she lost the bet.

~*~

"Neuro, Master of Mind, versus Bolobo, Master of Nature," Chen leered. "Fight!"

The arena was shrouded in darkness. There was a single boulder in the centre, and the Jade Blade rested at the very top.

Neuro looked straight at Bolobo, putting his hands to his head in concentration. Bolobo raised his staff. Nothing happened.

"Ugh, they call this a fight?" Lloyd complained.

"Wait for it," Garmadon said.

Suddenly, Neuro jumped straight up. Vines appeared under him, ready to grab his feet, but he leapt away, making it halfway up the boulder. 

Bolobo yelled and struck the ground with his staff. Immediately, a vine grew and lifted him to Neuro's spot on the boulder. He grabbed him with a few leaves, only for Neuro to leap away and use his power to give Bolobo what was surely a nasty headache.

"'Never underestimate the power of the mind,'" Lyra quoted softly.

Bolobo managed to break free of Neuro's powers and dodged him as he tried to punch him. He wrapped the vines around Neuro's arms and legs like chains, tightening them enough to make him yell in pain.

"I--didn't--see that--coming," he gasped, a few tears rolling down his face. Then he closed his eyes and visibly relaxed, seemingly giving up.

Lyra's stomach felt sick. He must be so upset right now.

Bolobo laughed, knowing Neuro couldn't do anything. He stretched a tendril out to grab the Jade Blade, only to scream in agony and fall to the ground. 

Neuro grinned and easily rid himself of the vines, then climbed up one and grabbed the Jade Blade.

"Was that another Power Discharge?" Lyra asked.

"It definitely looked as if it was, though his aunt's Mind Blast affected people a bit differently," Garmadon replied.

"How so?" Jay questioned.

"It temporarily made people go insane," he stated bluntly. "Neuro's appears to merely give terrible headaches."

"That's insane," Cole joked. "Ha! Get it? Because...because..."

"That wasn't good, Cole." Jay rolled his eyes. "How did Nya ever consider you?"

Nya? Lyra wondered. Are they fighting over a girl? What's even the point in fighting over her? It's her decision whether she chooses either of them, right?

Lyra was aware she didn't know much about the situation, but from her perspective, it seemed pointless.

"I could ask you the same question, Bluebell." Cole glared at Jay.

Garmadon sighed. "That's enough. Stop it, or we'll miss Kai's fight, and it'll be all your fault."

They shut up pretty quickly after that.

~*~

"Kai, Master of Fire, versus Ash, Master of Smoke. Fight!"

Lyra blinked slowly, fighting the sleep that was trying to take over. The heat of the literal volcano they were in was getting to her, and she was tired. Some of the spectators were dozing off. In fact, Lyra, Skylor, and the ninja appeared to be the only ones who wanted to watch the fight.

She watched as Kai and Ash both dashed toward the middle of the rickety old wooden bridge they were on, trying to get to the Jade Blade.

Kai, don't lose, she pleaded. Then she frowned. Actually, Ash shouldn't lose, either, because I don't want to lose my bet. 

If she was being honest, though, she definitely wanted Ash to fall down because of his old age and just lose right then and there. Which was bewildering, because Lyra knew she should hope Kai lost so her father could easily get rid of the ninja. 

Of course, the battle couldn't end easily. Ash, knowing he was slower than the Fire Ninja, shook the bridge, causing the Blade to fall and wedge itself into a piece of rock below.

Kai jumped off the side of the bridge and grabbed onto the bottom, climbing it like monkey bars.

The floor is lava, Lyra thought, almost grinning at the dumb joke. Her blood raced through her entire body as if Kai would win if it went fast enough. It was mildly unnerving. Can't touch the ground. Except literally.

Kai swung up behind Ash, punching the smokeball he sent hurtling towards his face. He tried to punch the Master of Smoke, only for him to disappear and reappear directly behind Kai. Ash kicked him, and he kicked back. They wove around each other, neither of them being able to do much to the other.

Lyra tilted her head to the side, noticing the difference in their battle styles. While Kai had a practiced, easy rhythm, Ash was more unpredictable. He disappeared and reappeared on a whim, though, whenever the wind blew, he temporarily lost control. 

Then Ash disappeared for longer than usual. When he reappeared, he sent a cloud of thick black smoke towards Kai. It went directly into his nostrils, and he fell to the ground and started hacking and wheezing. Tears streamed down his eyes as he twitched on the floor.

Skylor put a hand to her mouth, her eyes wide. Lyra copied her actions. With her other hand, she clenched the bottom of the bench she was on, preventing herself from racing toward the fight and helping the poor boy.

"The Smoke Mask," Garmadon murmured. "Kai must do something quickly before he can't anymore."

Lyra shuddered. Her grip on the bench tightened. Beside her, Lloyd was doing the same thing. She could tell he also wanted to assist his friend.

Kai recovered a moment later but Ash had already leapt towards the Jade Blade. When he was within two feet, a small burst of wind hit him, causing him to be set off course. He missed the rock it was on and had to turn into smoke to avoid falling into the lava.

"Does the Mask only work for a few seconds?" Lloyd asked. He was leaning forward and had an iron grip on the bench.

"No. It usually renders the target defenseless for a few minutes. Many fall unconscious because of it," Garmadon said. "Kai's power must've helped him combat it."

Kai rolled off the bridge and landed on the rock beside the one with the Jade Blade. Ash was on the opposite side of the arena. He tried to reappear closer but a slight breeze blew him off course, so he landed farther away. He could do nothing but watch as Kai took the Blade.

"Winner!" Chen yelled, not looking impressed. Lyra knew he'd been hoping all the ninja would be taken out in their first rounds. "Loser! Master of Fire moves on."

Lloyd and Skylor, who were on either side of Lyra, stood up and cheered, leaving her to feel short and small (and, as a 5'9"/175cm tall girl, she wasn't used to that). She quickly joined them, smiling in true happiness as Kai raised the Jade Blade in the air.

Lyra smirked at Skylor, who was staring at Kai with a small smile on her face. The smirk was wiped off when she realized she'd lost the bet, though.

~*~

"Hello, Skylor," Chen greeted. "Lyra."

They'd just snuck into his bedroom, making sure the door was shut behind them. Lyra's eyes already hurt. The entire room was covered in gold, from the pillars to the bedsheets. It felt as if the light shining on the aurified walls had a vendetta against her ability to see.

That wasn't her only problem, though. Lyra's hands were sweating bullets, to the point where she'd tried to open the doorknob and her hand just slipped off. Her legs were shaking, and her blood was racing again. All she wanted to do was run in the opposite direction of the room. She wanted to be with the ninja, ignorant (mostly) of what was happening. Her head felt like it'd been pierced by a Jade Blade, and it wasn't because of the bright lights.

As strange as it seemed, she almost felt as if she were going against the entire point of her existence.

"Father," Skylor began, "we found a weakness in the ninja's team."

Lyra's heart pounded so hard, she was sure her father could hear it.

"Oh, really?" Chen raised an eyebrow. "And what might that be?"

"The Lightning Ninja, Jay, and the Earth Ninja, Cole, fight with each other often," Skylor said, smirking.

"Do they now?" Chen mirrored his eldest daughter's facial expression. "How unfortunate for them. I'll have to arrange for that to be fixed. Thank you, my dear."

"It was really Lyra who figured it--" Skylor started.

It's all my fault all my fault all my fault all my fault, Lyra's mind chanted.

"I appreciate you trying to be honourable, Skylor, but we all know who really figured it out."

Lyra pursed her lips as her head began to pound as much as her heart. She hated the difference in how he acted with Skylor compared to her. She understood that Skylor was more powerful, but that didn't mean Lyra was just a doormat. The point of her existence wasn't just to be stepped on.

That being said, she wanted to be anywhere but in that room. She wanted to be with her new friends. 

What are you talking about? she questioned herself. This is a good thing. They're evil.

 "Now, do you know what they're fighting about?"

"Lyra does. Right, Lyra?" Skylor prompted.

Chen turned to Lyra, a spark of interest in his eye.

Of course, Lyra knew their fight was about the girl, Nya. She knew it would probably even make her father proud of her for once. She forced her mouth open, ready to tell him everything she knew.

An image of Lloyd's eyes popped into her mind. Lyra found it changing her words into something else. "No, I don't."

Her racing heart calmed a tad. Her blood slowed with it, and even her head stopped hurting.

I'm an absolute idiot, and my feelings are exact opposites.

Skylor frowned. "But I thought you said you knew, and you'd tell me late--"

"You must've heard wrong." Lyra shrugged. "After all, my voice is very quiet."

Skylor dropped it, though Lyra knew she was going to be interrogated by her sister later. "I guess so."

"Is that all?" Chen asked. He didn't look surprised that Lyra had let him down.

Bitch, Lyra found herself thinking. Wait, that's you, Lyra. You just betrayed your own father.

Skylor and Lyra nodded.

"Then you are dismissed."

Lyra waited for her gut to twist as she thought of her betrayal. She waited for her heart to sink.

The only betrayal that hurt her, however, was the betrayal of the ninja.

~*~

Lyra and Skylor walked into the Palace Arena, having just gotten back from their father's room. Lyra's head was spinning. She couldn't stop thinking of her father's expression when they handed him a way to take down the ninja on a silver platter. It was one of mad glee, like he couldn't wait to wreck their lives.

It didn't sit right with Lyra, even though the ninja had wrecked plenty of lives themselves. Probably.

The room was blurry. The more she thought about her actions against the ninja, the less she could see. Lyra didn't even question it. It was just another weird thing that happened because of the ninja. She was beginning to get used to any and all abnormal occurrences.

 There was a crowd of people muttering, and the ninja were in the very middle of it, by the tournament bracket.

"Why does it say I have to fight Cole? It didn't say that before. I'm not ready to fight!" Jay yelled.

"I tried to warn you, but you never listen," Cole pointed out. "Talk? Yes. Listen? Not so much."

"What's going on?" Lyra asked. No one heard her, because she was so quiet. Probably because her voice was shaking, too.

How much do you wanna bet this is my fault?

 She sighed and pushed her way to the front, Skylor right behind her. She tapped Lloyd on the shoulder. 

He turned. "Hey." His facial features were tight.

"What's going on?" she asked again, her voice shakier than before.

Seeing the ninja after just jeopardizing their safety made Lyra's gut twist even more. She wanted to rip it out and throw it into the ocean, along with herself.

"You'll never believe it. Chen changed the brackets! Now Jay and Cole have to fight each other!"

Lyra gasped. "He can't do that! That's so unfair!"

You know what else is unfair? Gaining the ninja's trust and then absolutely crushing them. Because this is all your fault, Lyra.

"That's what I said!" Kai threw his hands up in the air.

"Is there a problem, ninja?" Clouse asked. The crowd--including Skylor--backed away, leaving just the ninja and Lyra by the statue. 

"You cheated!" Cole accused, pointing at the brackets. "You changed them!"

"Oopsie," Clouse deadpanned, putting a hand to his mouth and walking away. A servant laughed and followed him.

Lyra was tempted to throw something--maybe a speaker--at his head. 

Garmadon stepped closer to his son.

"What do we do? They can't fight each other!" Lloyd pursed his lips tightly. His hands were balled in fists. "We came here to become whole, not fall further apart."

They came here to become whole? How does a tournament do that? Didn't Father just trick them into believing they could get all the glory of winning? Lyra wondered. Though, now that I think about it, none of them really seem to care about glory. Not even Kai.

"You can't undo what's been done," Garmadon instructed. "My only advice is to be at peace with it."

"Peace?" Jay pushed past Lloyd and Kai to stand in front of Garmadon. "Uh, in case you haven't realized, one of us has to lose! Oh, my goodness, it's totally gonna be me. He's got super strength, and what do I have? Quick, tell me, WHATDOIHAVE?"

"Don't listen to my dad," Lloyd said. "We find Zane, then none of us have to battle."

Find the white ninja? Lyra wondered. The ice one? Didn't he die? Yeah, he did, and then the traveller Father found had stolen his power, so Father took it. 

"Your fight isn't until tonight, so we still have time to figure out what Chen's up to and stop this," Lloyd continued.

"Um, am I supposed to still be here?" Lyra wondered aloud. But alas, she was ignored.

"I think I know just the person who can help, and I think he already knows." Kai grinned,

"To answer your question, Lyra," Garmadon started, "you're fine."

"Yeah, I--we trust you," Lloyd added. "We know you're not just gonna go around telling people about our business."

Well isn't that just a punch in the gut? Lyra wondered. It took all of her self-control not to wince. She wanted to disappear into a trapdoor in the ground.

She smiled and grabbed her sweater aglets again. "Thank you."

I definitely don't deserve their trust.
Wait, no, they're evil. They're trying to take over the world...or something. Father wasn't so clear about how exactly they're evil. They just are. Though...they don't seem like it. Especially Lloyd's eyes. That kindness in them...really doesn't seem to be fake.

The room blurred more, though everything came back into focus when Jay waved a hand in front of her face. "Earth to Lyra?"

Lyra blinked. "Oh, sorry. What did you say?"

"We said we didn't hear what you said earlier," Cole explained.

"Oh, I just thanked you."

"For what?" Kai asked.

"Trusting me," Lyra replied.

No, you should never have done that you should all leave me right now before I end up killing you.

"Hey, why is it you're always so quiet, anyway?" Lloyd asked.

Lyra blushed. "I don't want to damage my vocal cords in any way."

"Why?" Jay asked. "I talk all the time, yet mine don't hurt or anything."

The truth was too embarrassing to reveal. Lyra really didn't want to tell them that, while they all had extremely cool elements, she had Art, and didn't want to chance messing up her singing voice. It was pathetic, really.

Lyra shrugged. The ninja dropped the subject, though Lloyd would sneak glances at her from time to time, as if that would help him figure her out.

~*~

Lyra didn't even realize they'd started walking until they stopped in the courtyard, where Neuro was sitting in the darkness, meditating.

The stars were shining. The moon was big and bright, only a few days away from being full. It gave everyone a clear view of the yard's bushes, stone walls, and short grass.

"We need your help, Neuro," Lloyd pleaded.

"You think I can get close enough to Chen to read his mind, so you can find your robotic friend and not have to fight. You still need to know what Chen's up to because he's hiding something."

"That's really impressive, Nerdo," Jay complimented.

Lyra stifled a snort.

"It's Neuro, Master of the Mind." Neuro turned around, hands on his hips. "And Cole thinks Jay won't last long in a fight."

Neuro, if you're reading my mind right now, are the ninja evil? Lyra asked. Please, I need to know. 

"You think that?" Jay frowned. 

"Well, you just said it yourself!"

"Yeah, but you didn't have to believe it!"

"Don't be offended, Cole. Jay here thinks you're the least valuable ninja."

"You don't say." Cole hit Jay.

"We wanted you to help, Neuro, not make things worse," Lloyd said.

"But why would I help? You're competition," Neuro pointed out. "The sooner you're out, the better for me."

"If you want what's best for you," Lyra hesitated, wondering what she was about to get herself into, then continued, "look into my head. You'll see what the tournament is all about."

She rushed to hide her thoughts about spying, pretending they were painted over in beige, the most boring, inconspicuous colour ever.

"How do you know?" Kai asked. "You weren't there when we snuck in."

"News travels fast," Lyra said. "Plus, your room isn't the only one whose room has a secret passageway."

"How do you know ours has one?" Jay asked, looking away from Cole for a second and being punched in the face for doing so.

Shoot. Good point. 

"Because I watched you. Oh wait, that sounds creepy. But I was there, hiding and also watching the ceremony."

Lyra was so thankful the Performing aspect of her power made her good at lying. Without it, she was pretty sure she'd be dead. Though the power didn't even stop the twist in her gut she felt when she lied, which was beginning to feel pretty painful. 

She didn't even know when the change had happened, because she'd rarely felt bad when she was dishonest before. It was happening more and more often now.

"Weird. I never saw you," Kai muttered.

"Because I was hiding. Now, Neuro, can you look into my head?"

Neuro, please tell me if the ninja really are evil or not. I'd do literally anything if you told me. I need to know.

Neuro frowned. "I'm trying. It won't work."

"What do you mean it doesn't work?" Lloyd frowned. "Isn't that, like, your whole thing? Reading minds?"

"I've tried every way I know how, yet all I see is a mess of colours and sounds and designs and words. I can't make it to her thoughts," Neuro explained. "This has never happened to me before."

Oh my First Spinjitzu Master, my power did something for the first time in my whole life, yet it's the one situation where I don't want it to.

"Why did you do that?" Neuro gasped suddenly, glaring at Lyra. His hands were balled into fists and he formed an almost fighting stance.

"Do what?" Lloyd asked, moving a step in front of Lyra.

"All the colours and words and everything just...surrounded me. It felt like...a tornado, almost. I barely escaped!" His eyes were wide. He looked...frightened.

New discovery: I can create tornadoes that hurt only Masters of Mind and no one else. Also, I have no control over them and he probably hates me now and the ninja will also hate me because I made Neuro hate them. 

"How am I supposed to know?" Lyra threw her hands into the air. "Can you look into Lloyd's head or something? See that we're telling the truth about F--Chen?" She quickly corrected herself, looking around to make sure no one noticed her slip-up.

"Oh, I already did. I want to know how you did that, though." He crossed his arms. "I won't help until you tell me."

"I don't know!" Lyra tugged on her aglet. "I really don't."

Lloyd moved fully between her and Neuro, facing the black-and-white-haired man. "Look, you know Chen's evil."

Lyra winced. Of course, she knew about him taking the Elemental Masters' powers, but that didn't make him absolutely evil. Just...power-hungry.

"Yeah, so just help us!" Cole agreed. He and Jay had stopped fighting and were now watching the scene.

"It's only a matter of time before Chen steals your powers," Lloyd reasoned. "Unless you want that to happen, you should try to stop him."

"Not until she tells me how she did that!" Neuro pointed a finger at Lyra, though it was more at Lloyd, since he was in front of her. "I could've been hurt!"

Really hurt? Lyra wondered. How did I manage to do that without realizing?

"Just calm down, okay?" Lloyd said. "I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for this."

"Uh, Lyra?" Kai asked when no one spoke for a while. "This is the part where you give a reasonable explanation."

"Um...maybe it was my power?" she suggested. 

"What even is your element?" Jay stepped up. "Is it, like, forcefields or something? Did you place one around your mind?"

Lyra tugged on her aglets. "It's just...like...Sound, basically."

She technically wasn't lying. Music was a part of it. Her stomach didn't stop with the stabbing pains, though.

"Like Jacob?" Cole frowned.

"Yes, just...weaker," Lyra explained.

That also wasn't a lie; Jacob's power was definitely stronger than hers, and that was saying something, because he hadn't even reached his true potential yet and was very weak, according to Lyra's research.

"Why would Chen include two Masters of Sound in the Tournament?" Kai wondered.

"Probably to balance the tournament, I don't know." Lyra wanted to run into the forest. "Now, Neuro, will you help?"

Neuro sighed. "I still don't get how you evaded my powers, but, through my years of experience, I've learned that each mind is different. Maybe it was a subconscious defense mechanism. Regardless, I have decided I'll help you."

"Thank you, Neuro." Lloyd smiled.

"You're welcome." 

As they exited the courtyard, Lyra felt his eyes bore holes through the back of her head.

Thoughts? Opinions? Was this chapter too long? Too short? Perfect length?

Word count: 5.5k

QOTD: If you had to transform into any animal (excluding humans), what would you choose?

A: Probably a Peregrine falcon (they can FLY and go SO FAST) or a house cat (they get spoiled and can laze around all day without being judged for it)

Please do comment and vote because, once again, it helps with motivation and motivation=writing often

Remember to drink water, eat food, and get an appropriate amount of sleep for your age please<3

~Aspen