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~This horse is too slow
We're always this close
Almost, almost, we're a freak show

Right, right when I'm near
It's like you disappear
Where'd you go, Mr. Houdini you're a freak show~

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"So the Green Ninja really is in love with the princess," Harumi muttered to herself in the mirror as she ran the remover back and forth across her painted face. She smiled villainously at her reflection, a sinister chuckle escaping her dark red lips. "How romantic. This makes my plan all too easy. And even more effective!"

Harumi always had a habit of talking to herself. She didn't nearly confide in actual companions as much as she confided in her own reflections and shadows. It felt so much safer. It felt like talking to a person who understood you perfectly without a single hint of ambiguity.

That person could never turn their back on you. They could never disclose your secrets or interrupt you or even scold you for speaking irrationally. You could vent about any thing in any way you desired and they will never raise a finger on it.

And so Harumi spat out every word with a venomous rage about how she hated Lloyd Garmadon. How she loathed him and would do anything to make him suffer the way she did. But fate was kind to her this time.

The same boy she had targeted her entire life was now in love with her. So much that he would risk his duties just to see her smile and hear her laugh. And if all she wanted was to break Lloyd beyond repair then what was more calamitous than a blow to the heart?

She had her suspicions about Lloyd's feelings for her when they first met at the time of the Emperor's speech. But after today's conversation, the way he acted and looked at her, there was no doubt about it.

Lloyd Garmadon had it bad.

He kept calling her 'Rumi' even though he knew he wasn't supposed to regardless of the princess's permission to do so. He even had the boldness to make a move and invite her out to spend some time alone with him. Exposing a royal to danger was definitely not what an escort was supposed to do.

That were three major rules broken considering him leaving his post at the palace as well! And the Green Ninja was no rule-breaker. Love really did make you do stupid things you never thought you'd do.

Harumi twisted her snow-hued hair into a bun, fastening it up once she was done with wiping her face clean. The twinkle of evil never left her blue eyes as she spun around in a circle, laughing at the easiness of the game which she had initially thought to be difficult. She was more than excited about her scheme having higher chances of success.

"Just imagine," she mused, playing with the net curtains hanging about her king-sized four poster bed. "Dear Lloyd Garmadon is gonna be so heartbroken once he finds out his royal sweetheart is actually the Quiet One."

Another spiteful giggle, this one ending with a thoughtful sigh. "Father was right. Lloyd shouldn't have let his heart interfere."

'And neither should've you.'

Harumi frowned at the aggravating thought that buzzed through her mind everytime she recalled those vibrant emerald eyes and infatuated smile. She would usually shrug it off as observance of insignificant value but slowly it became too hard to neglect.

'Of course it's difficult to ignore! Who wouldn't notice those shiny green irises and hair literally looking like it was spun out of gold–'

Harumi grumbled, not wanting to think on it anymore. Such thoughts were the only things she had not yet gained control of. Because they were connected to the heart and keeping one's heart caged up took a lot of strength. It was as hard as it was easy to keep quiet.

Her thoughts would always put up quite a fight and the girl would tire out by the time she'd manage to tame them. They were louder than her voice could ever be.

'Why are you really happy to find out he likes you, huh?'

"Because I want to break him," she whispered to the empty room.

'I know your desire to break him is just an excuse to hide how much you have feelings for him.'

"No, no, Rumi," she muttered in response, massaging her temples and pacing back and forth. "You mustn't think that way."

Rumi.

She didn't really like calling herself that but it was a part of who she used to be. Rumi was gone but the princess believed her inner voice to be the ghost of that girl who died at the horrifying reality of her situation back when the Devourer had attacked.

Daddy and Mommy's little Rumi was the one who would scream through her mind every once in a while. Telling her this was wrong. This would cause even more destruction. But Harumi would get scared of the girl and simply term it as her foolish "thoughts".

The princess glanced at the clock. It struck six-thirty. Only two and a half hours till show time. Tonight was the night the Mask of Deception would finally be snatched from under the Jades' noses and she would rid herself of this royal title.

The Ninja won't know what hit them. Hopefully one of them would even die in the harness.

'The Jades? What wrong have they done? They've fed you, clothed you, loved you like a daughter. Why must you yearn to break everyone who loves you, princess?'

Lloyd.

'And the Ninja have sacrificed themselves time and time again to save your home. Their home. They're human too. They make mistakes. He made mistakes just like you're doing right now. Remember what Daddy said? You must learn to forgive the man behind the arrow . . .'

Lloyd.

It all kept coming back to Lloyd. Because Lloyd was the problem. He was always the problem and he always will be.

Harumi shook her head, trying to clear her mind of that terrifying voice of the past. She wanted revenge and she wanted it now. Whether she liked it or not, the palace would go down tonight. The plan would be set in motion and soon Garmadon would finally rise to act on her command.

"Better to entertain the Green Ninja in the mean time," Harumi mumbled, her excitement somewhat dimming now. She moved closer to the window leading to her bedroom's personal balcony. Pushing open the glass doors, the girl stepped outside and glanced upwards at the canopy.

"Right, the roof," she said uncertainly, wondering how she was even going to get up there without attracting the attention of the guards below. She gasped and ducked lower when she spotted the red ninja scouting ahead on the catwalk by the palace gates.

Settling on acting casual in case she was seen, Harumi stood up, slowly rising above the level of the banister. That's when something swung down from above and those familiar pair of eyes made contact with hers.

Harumi gave a short scream at the sudden appearance and stumbled back. She clutched at her heart as the ninja frantically waved at her to not freak out. He was dangling upside down by a rope that was hooked someplace above the canopy.

"Relax, it's me," came the muffled voice from under the green hood concealing the entirety of the face with the exception of the eyes. The hood was then pulled down from the nose and lips to reveal Lloyd's apologetic expression.

The princess let go of her breath she didn't realize she was holding and let her shoulders sag. "You scared me," she gasped out, stepping close now that there was no danger.

Lloyd spread his lips in a flustered grin and chuckled. "I guess we're really good at surprising each other."

'You have no idea,' Harumi mentally hissed while smiling sweetly on the outside.

Noticing something, she reached up and tugged down on Lloyd's hood to once more cover up his face. "So, is this a confidential outing or are your friends in on the secret?" she asked with a hint of playful innocence.

Lloyd's silence indicated his confusion which ended when Harumi nodded at something behind him. He twisted around and the princess pointed out Kai waving at them from the catwalk across the courtyard.

The Green Ninja turned around momentarily. "Uh, yeah. They are actually. They're gonna make sure we escape the premises without getting caught." With this, Lloyd gestured at the other Ninja hiding all around them.

Zane was nodding reassuringly from the left turret while Nya winked from the verandah on the adjacent part of the main palace building. Cole gave a thumbs up where he was crouching on the landing of the top floor while Jay rested on the slanting roof above him.

The blue ninja made a heart with his fingers and aimed it at them. He was so busy cheering Lloyd on that he lost his footing and went slipping down the structure onto Cole's back. The earth ninja got knocked off the edge and so he ended up holding on for dear life.

Cole scrambled to get back up, and with Jay's help, he was pulled up to safety before he could lose his hold. However, Jay, in his adrenaline rush, tugged Cole up too soon and resulted in him tumbling over the side. Cole acted quickly and grabbed Jay just above the ankles, leaving him hanging in a way similar to Lloyd's but less skillfully. 

Harumi could make out Kai shaking his head and face-palming in the background. This made her question her younger self's obsessive interest in the Ninja.

Lloyd rolled his eyes at the chaos going on at Cole and Jay's side. He winced when Jay yelled out to Cole that he should pull him up soon because his pants were about to slip off. Cheeks flushed red due to the embarrassment (and maybe even the blood rushing to his head from hanging upside down), Lloyd straightened up and lowered himself down in front of Harumi.

"Uh, forget them," he muttered, trying to ignore the ruckus behind him. He fiddled with something on his accessory belt, glancing momentarily up at the girl. "Anyway, you're good with grappling hooks, right?" His tone seemed joking and Harumi could tell he was smirking under the mask. But it still sounded inquisitive all the same.

Despite being the daring head of a criminal motorbike syndicate, Harumi really wasn't skilled with grappling hooks. She never had the need to be. At least here, she could be truthful and shake her head in the negative.

"Should I be?" she questioned curiously, eyeing the gun-like item in Lloyd's hand. All of a sudden, she wasn't so sure of this little adventure on the rooftops.

"Not really," the Green Ninja shrugged, checking over the hook stuck on the front of the gun. "Just asking to make sure you don't have a problem with it."

"As long as I'm with you, I'm sure I won't," the princess smiled. She made to sound chill and laid back as if she hadn't tried to make a flirtatious statement just to trap the boy even further. But she had never expected something inside her to flutter involuntarily at the flustered reaction of the ninja. 

Harumi stamped it out by hissing internally at the "ghost". She watched with a forced smile as Lloyd leaned over the balcony rail and shot the grappling hook straight up. She assumed the hook had got stuck somewhere on the roof and was okay enough to provide a hold.

The Green Ninja tugged on it to check and the princess saw his eyes crinkle, indicating that he was grinning. "Alright, we're ready to go."

"Is it safe?" the princess asked, actually feeling nauseous at the thought of the dangerous drop below if the rope betrayed them.

Lloyd simply extended a gloved hand towards her, the warmth of his green eyes contradicting her cold blue ones.

"Do you trust me?"

Harumi scrutinized the boy's hand for a few seconds. Did she trust him? Was she even willing to do so? Memories echoed through her mind in that fleeting moment. She had hoped he would come. He never came. The monster arrived and took everything from her.

"We'll see you when we get down. I promise!"

Harumi smiled sweetly up at the ninja. Then, she intertwined her fingers with his.

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I had to add the Aladdin reference, okay? *Pouts*

Anyways, have some candy!

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