~ the neighbourhood

'TW: (technical kidnapping) mentions of bad infections, possession, self-degrading, fighting, blood, intense injury, restraints.

I had been here forever. At least, that's what it felt like. Step after step, shiver after shiver, voice after voice and memory after memory.  I'd been walking forever, my body had locked up, trying to preserve heat, my arms wrapped around my torso so tightly. The voice told me to find the heat but had been silence ever since, it being replaced with something more sinister. I knew it was Morro, who else would it be? He was telling me constantly to give up, telling me that my body was so strong and was making him feel so powerful. It disgusted me. Whilst I was inside my own head, unsure on how to front myself like Lloyd had, he was controlling everything. Sometimes I would get what felt like visions but in reality I knew it was glimpses of what he was seeing through my eyes. From what I could figure, I was in a town completely surrounded by water. If this was Ghost central or at least Morro's base, wasn't it a little bit of a liability to be surrounded by water? Whatever, that wasn't my issue, if he wanted to risk it knowing full well that The Water Ninja existed, that was down to him. My focus was trying to find the warmth.

"And then if I put this little cherry on top of the cupcake," Little me stuck her tongue out to place the fruit directly on the middle, "Then it will be better!"

"Exactly," Dad placed his hand on my shoulder, "Can I eat it now though?"

"No Daddy it's not for you" I shook my head violently, "I gotta do one two three four five... five! Five more!"

"Fine," Dad jokingly sounded annoyed, "Let me lick the frosting off the spoon though,"

I fondly smiled at the scene playing out in front of me. I remembered that day. Classes in Ignacia were very small and at one point after The Serpentine tombs were opened many people left the village schools. My birthday was coming up and I wanted to give out cakes to all of my friends, but the next day two of the girls didn't want to eat them and said they looked disgusting. I came home crying.

"You always try so hard for people to like you, don't you?"

I clenched my jaw and continued walking, leaving the memory behind me for it to dissappear into a foggy haze. Leaving that memory made my fingertips regain some feeling. I paused my stride, frowning. Did that mean--? Oh my god there was heat. I was getting closer! I made myself move faster into the direction when another memory appeared from soke shifting clouds.

"I don't really want to leave home Dad," An earlier version of me spoke at the ending of last year, back in November.

Dad sighed, "We have to Sweetheart. I can't support us here anymore,"

"What if I get a job? I can babysit some children, maybe sell fruit on the market?" I suggested desperately, "Ignacia's all I've ever known, I've never even been to a place the size of Ninjago before,"

"Nora, we really can't stay. I'm not letting you get a job yet. It's my responsibility to look after you and in Ninjago I'd have that ability to give you everything you need," Dad looked guilty, but I knew he wasn't going to budge.

"...But I have everything I need here," I mumbled, looking to the ground.

Dad didn't even reply to me, but I knew he heard.
That conversation made me so sad back then, but now I was glad we had moved. My life here was better, I had people who actually cared for me. Sure, the increased crime rate and criminals were jarring, but Ignacia didn't have a Secret Ninja Force looking after it 24/7 unlike Ninjago. I walked passed the memory, watching my figure blend out into the surrounding until nothing was left behind. The more I walked the more feeling came back to my body. I was so eager, I wanted the heat. The voice said that this was me fighting. I was fighting Morro, I had to be.
When the next memory shifted into view, my whole body untensed from the cold. I felt like I was burning.

"Are you gonna cry?" February me asked Lloyd who so obviously was about to.

"No,"

"You're gonna cry," I breathed in with shock.

Within moments it had stepped into him, my arms going up around me. I remembered this hug like it was yesterday and I think that no matter how much time passed that I always would. It was the first time I had ever hugged him. I remembered the way he recoiled at first, then when I didn't let go he sank back into me, his arms raising to wrap around my back. He felt so warm, his presence alone was so comforting. Seeing this memory play out in front of me made me angry. I should be with him right now, I should be assuming him that things were okay and he'd never be hurt again. I should be resting my hands on his limbs and soothing all of the pain inflicted onto his body. At least Morro couldn't hurt him now that he had me. I couldn't find myself to regret that deal.

"It's just hard for me Nora," He whispered, his voice deep next to my ear, "I wish I could tell you everything,"

I watched my past self look up at him in confusion, "Why can't you? You really can trust me Lloyd,"

"Because it's not safe, for either of us," He admitted, his arms flopping to his sides as he let go of me.

I remembered the disappointment I felt.

"Because of your Father?" I had asked nervously.

"That's one of the reasons, yeah," He nodded, sniffing his emotion away.

"Then what makes the rest of them so different?" I wondered, the questions kept spilling, "Aren't you worried for their safety?"

"Like I said," A small smile grew onto his features, "I wish I could tell you everything,"

"Tomorrow, it needs to happen tomorrow,"

It took me a moment to realize that Morro wasn't speaking to me inside my mind. Oh God was this it? Was I fronting? Could I escape? I shut my eyes and forced myself to focus. Cmon Nora, you had to do this. You just had to.
When I opened them again, I had to hold back my mixed cry of relief and fear. I wasn't in my head anymore. I was staring out into a wide workshop. A counter and till was pushed against the back wall and all of the shelves were filled with some sort of clutter with signs saying everything was a relic and very expensive. This had Ronin's shop written all over it. Across the room stood two floating ghosts. My heart pounded, was I going to give myself away?

"Tomorrow makes sense," A male ghost with a crossbow muttered under his breath, "I doubt they would've all fully recovered,"

"Even so," The woman hissed, her voice sounding very much snake-like, "We have the power to summon her now. Our power will outstrengthen theirs,"

I formed a plan in my head, only speaking when everything made sense, "And what must we assure not to happen to her to cause her downfall?"

I acted like I was testing them. They stared back at me and for a moment I was worried they knew I had fronted, but they replied easily.

"She cannot be subjected underwater," The man replied, "We shall build her up with the surrounding premises,"

"Once we summon more of us with the Crystal, she'll have a shield of protection.

I nodded at them, I was happy had found that out. The more I stayed fronted, the more my head stung. There was so much pressure, I figured he was trying to fight back, take control again. It almost felt easy to fight him, but the longer I did I could feel my strength ooze out. I had to figure out a way to tell the other Ninja. Maybe I could contact Lloyd again? But he was always the one who reached out to me. I wasn't telepathic like him. Maybe I could find phone?

"I'll be back later," I told them, beginning to walk towards the door, "I have something to take care of,"

They let me go without question. Once I left I instantly sighed. That was terrifying. Morro was still inside me, fighting to take control, fighting to take the power of my body away from me. I had to find somewhere quickly. I was unfamiliar with Stiix, I'd read about it in the news but I had no clue where I was going. Having the ability to control myself again, I could feel the pain in my joints and arm flare up again. My tongue felt dry and my stomach was empty. My goal was to reach a phone, but if I could manage to hold him back for longer, then I'd have to find something to eat. It was evident Morro didn't feed Lloyd at all. It was a miracle that he was even alive... if he even made it.

"Excuse me?" I called out to a shopkeeper, "Is there a chance I could borrow your phone? Mines dead,"

It was a small lie, but it worked. She nodded, reaching into her pocket and handed it over. Her beady eyes never left my form. She was looking at me judgementally and I couldn't fully blame her. I must look like some Ninja wannabe that hadn't been able to shower in a bit. My Gi was all dirty and blood was evident on the yellow material. I must look a little crazy. I dialed the first number I knew, Steep Wisdom. It took longer for me to move my fingers. Morro was really trying.

It picked up on the fourth ring, "I'm sorry, Steep Wisdom is temporarily closed. Please call back soon,"

"Wait!" I pleaded, hoping Wu hadn't already hung up.

"...Nora?"

"Yes-- yes it's me don't hang up," I stated quickly, "Look I haven't got long, I'm fighting him and I don't know how much longer I can-- The Preeminent will die if--"

My jaw locked up. I panicked, no no! Not now I was so close.

"If what Nora?" I could hear the worrisome tone in his voice.

I let out a small hiss of hurt as I fought, "Underwater-- tomorrow-- Stiix-- I'm sorry I can't--"

"We're coming to save you," He told calmly despite my wavering voice, "Lloyd is alive, your sacrifice will not be forgotten,"

"Sacrifice? That's what you call it?" Words tumbled out of my mouth, but they weren't mine.

"Morro," He whispered gravely at the quick realisation, "This isn't you, you still have the chance to stop all of this,"

"Not a chance old man," I sneered, the action uncomfortable, "She's powerful, I never expected how much mental strength she had. Don't expect her to come back with the same power though-- if I even decide to give her back that is-- fighting against me rewards her with a punishment. Why'd you think Lloyd's so fucked up?"

"Your actions do not make you The Green Ninja. The Green Ninja would never do this," Sensei still tried to reason with him.

"Oh no. How am I ever going to live with myself for being this way?" He muttered sarcastically, "Good job I'm not alive,"

Then my hand crushed over the end call button and slammed the phone back on the counter. My legs moved away, he didn't even say thank you to the woman who had let me use her phone.

"You're in deep shit Nora," He snarled under his breath, "No one does that to me. How did you manage to fight me for that long?"

I didn't answer him, not even mentally. It wasn't because I was being stubborn, though that played a factor, but I genuinely didn't know. If Lloyd could hold off for that Lloyd then how could I? It felt impossible yet here I was being forced back into my head after about 15 minutes of fighting him. It wasn't long before my vision started to fade out and I was fully trapped inside my mind again. I hated it. I hated it all. My strength didn't return to me. I was back in the icy depths of my brain, struggling to continue forward.

"Your powers are the key,"

I looked around for the voice again, it wasn't Morro, it was the one who told me about the warmth. Why was she back now? Why did she leave me alone for so long to wander and watch my memories by myself? Who was she?

"My powers? What does that mean?" I spat angrily, trudging through the grass.

See, this is what confused me. My body was so cold, almost numbing, yet everything around me, the scenery showed no signs of it being the wintertime. In fact, it was the complete opposite. The grass was a vibrant green, the sky was a clear blue. Why was it so cold?

"That's why you fought him for so long. You're The Elemental Master of Healing, whilst fronting you were healing your body and it gave you strength to fight back," The voice explained.

I guess that did make sense, but if I could only do it for such a short amount of time, why couldn't I do it for longer? What use was that? I didn't reply back to the voice and she didn't speak to me again.

💫

My body convulsed, jumping in a way that was all wrong as Morro withdrew his possession. My body lurched, all of my limbs aching as I slumped onto the harsh floor. Oh God... this feeling was disgusting. My body was shuddering and flinching around on the floor, I whined in protest to it. After not being in control of my own body for so long, going back to controlling it felt strange. It was like my reflexes had slowed down and the messages my brain sent to my body were failing. Trying to move my arms, I realized I was chained to the wall, both hands over my head. I clenched my jaw, my heart starting to beat faster.

"We have plans to make and we can't make them with you around," Morro glared at me, kneeling onto one knee, "You're a liability,"

I pressed myself to the wall, it wasn't a massive difference away from him, but it was a lot to me, "Scared I'll be able to control you instead again?"

His hand reached out way too quick for me to dodge, he gripped my hair and tugged my throat backwards. I gasped, choking in the breath that was almost impossible to pull.

"I'm not scared of someone so pathetic like you," He sneered, face too close to mine, "You're nothing all by yourself,"

"That's not true," I clenched my jaw, "I managed to take the sword away from you by myself in the First--"

His hand pulled down more on my hair, my head feeling like it would snap, "You got lucky, though you still needed your friends to get me away from you,"

"I would've thought of something," I stared back at him, not a chance in he'll I'd let him think he intimidated me.

"Sure," He chuckled, letting my head go resulting in a big gasp from me, "Because you always do right?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" I glared, chest rising rapidly.

"Nothing..." He grinned, "It's just funny to me that you still think they're coming to save you,"

"Why wouldn't I? They don't give up," I retorted, my eyes watching him ebb towards the door.

"You keep believing in that," He nodded, staring at me one last time before opening the door and shutting it tight, locking it for extra measure.

As soon as he disappeared I began to struggle, twisting my wrists in the shackles in any way they would go. I needed to get out of here, I just needed to. I thought he needed my body? Why was he leaving me? I rose to my knees, taking an unsteady step onto my foot before my legs gave out and I dropped back down. Though unable to stand currently, at least I knew there was enough room for me to be upright.
He left me in there for four hours alone. My arm throbbed and felt all hot, the tell tail signs of a growing infection, if I didn't get out of here soon then I'd contract a fever and then beyond that, sepsis. I couldn't risk it. Why couldn't I use my power on myself? It was so frustrating. Was it because I hadn't mentally learned how to control it yet? Did that even play a factor?
I stuck my tongue out to wet my dry lips, but that didn't even help, my tongue felt like sandpaper. When a small tinge of green came through the door, I tensed, pressing myself up against the wall again. It was the woman ghost and the man with the crossbow.

"Please," I hated that I was subcoming to the punishment of begging, "Please I need water,"

"Not a chance," The male ghost laughed right in my face, "Why would we give you something so deadly to us?"

"I won't I swear," I promised, though I hadn't exactly decided if I would or not, "I need to drink,"

"And we need you to shut up," The girl hissed, her voice gravely.

Before I could reply in the same snarky tone, she reached over, pulling some tape off of the cabinet and ripped some off. I tried to turn my head but she gripped my jaw and pressed the tape tightly against my lips. My protests stopped suddenly when both ghosts turned their attention to the door. I froze, was it Morro? Was he back? Was he going to possess me again? I trembled in fear before tensing my muscles, I didn't want them to see anything. I was strong, they couldn't see how vulnerable I really felt.

"You hear that Bansh?" The man grinned at her.

"Sure do Arch," She snaked towards the door.

My heart pounded. I had to remind myself, in for three, out for three. What was out there?
Then the door shuddered. Someone was trying to break it down. That meant it wasn't Morro, he could shift right through it and he had the key. Was it the Ninja!? Were they coming to save me? My hopes were lifted with each bang on the door but slowly deflated the longer it took. If it was the Ninja then surely the door would've been shattered with the first hit. Cole had his powers back now. Could it be Ronin? Was he coming back for his shop? I watched as the ghosts Bansh and Arch moved either side of the door. I watched anxiously until it was kicked open.
Lloyd Garmadon stumbled inside, clearly not expecting that to work. He groaned, clutching his side painfully. My heart dropped in my chest. Cuts and bruises scattered his face, he had two deep black eyes and a cut on his chin. His hair was still invaded with dirt, blood and grime, his eyes were wild as he examined the room, widening when he saw me tucked into the corner, chained to the wall. No no no what was he doing here!? He was too weak, where were the others? I cried out to him, shaking my head and thrashing about. Tears flooded out of my eyes immediately, trying to cry out to him, to warn him about the unseen danger behind him.

"Noor I'm here," He gulped, stepping shakily towards me.

I screamed through the tape when the ghosts lurched forward, violently sobbing when they easily took him down. Lloyd hit the floor without a sound, it was like his body just gave up. My wrists were throbbing against the restraints from how hard I was trying to pull away with no avail. Muffled cries and pleads repeated like a mantra through my mouth. They didn't even seem to care.
He shouldn't be here, he couldn't even fight back against them. What was he doing? Did the others even know? Where were they? Wu said they were coming to save me but they wouldn't have brought Lloyd... would they? How stupid did they have to be to do that!?
I knew for a fact his body had led him to unconsciousness again when Arch dragged him by his hands to the other corner of the room from me and he didn't fight back. Bansh grabbed two chains with claw like shapes at the end, similar to what were on my wrists, and dug them into his. They tied him up to the wall. Lloyd's body slumped uncomfortably against the wood.
Tears soaked down my cheeks when I tried to blink them away, wanting to look at him clearly. Where were the others? Were they even coming? Had Lloyd come alone? The thoughts were endless. I just had to hope that he would wake up and Morro wouldn't come back before then.
What a stupid boy. What a stupid, lovesick boy.

🐉

The chapters are shorter since I'm fluctuating between Nora and Lloyd and I can't say more in one because it will have spoilers for when the other takes over.

Soz lmao but also not sorryyyy coz I don't wanna give my secrets away.

Memes!