Inspired by a true event.

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Kai groaned, massaging his neck as he unceremoniously fell back onto the couch. He let out a deep sigh, his fatigued arms loosening the tight straps on his gi that held his accessory weapons in place.

"Rough day?" came a gentle, kind voice from his right.

Glancing in the said direction, he nodded drowsly at Misako. The old woman sat there, file papers and documents littered all around her.

"What happened?" she asked, stacking up old, yellowed photographs of ancient relics that she had been examining earlier.

"Nothing," Kai mumbled tiredly, rubbing his aching biceps. "Just had a little run in with some bad guys while on patrol. Trouble makers turned out to be stronger than we anticipated."

He paused to remove his sweaty gloves off his hands, discarding them onto his lap. "Gave 'em all we got. Cole's a bit injured but Nya and Zane are looking him over. Lloyd's fine though, so you have nothing to worry about."

Kai closed his eyes as his little rant ended. His sixth sense indicated that he had missed something so he proceeded to open them again. The brunet raised an eyebrow when he noticed Misako regarding him with an unimpressed look.

"What?" he muttered.

Misako observed him a little longer before taking up Kai's gloves and placing them neatly on the coffee table. "I would appreciate it if you inform me of everyone's well-being and not just specifically of my son."

Kai pretended to be shocked, widening his eyes and making a face. "I didn't know unbiasedness was a mother's thing."

"And why is that?"

The red ninja shrugged. "I dunno. I always thought that mothers favoured their children over everything else."

The woman looked slightly offended at that statement. She humphed, picking up a staple gun and pinning together various papers. "If I were to favour Lloyd over everything else, I never would've left him at that school."

Kai bit his lip, mentally slapping himself for expressing his apparently wrong opinion on the matter. "Sheesh, sorry. Didn't mean to offend you or anything."

"It's alright," Misako said quietly, much more occupied with her paperwork. "You should rest."

Grateful at being let off easily without a lecture, the young man respired deeply, relaxing his muscles, before resting his head back against the soft cushions.

And soon enough, he drifted off into dreamland.

. . .

Maya's motherly fragrance comforted him. Her loving embrace protected him. Her soothing voice washed away every aspect of tiredness from his body as he lay in bed with her.

Kai buried his face into her chest, his short arm stretched around her in a hug. Maya ran her hand through his hair, humming a familiar tune that lulled him to sleep.

His baby sister's faint snores issued out of her crib. Nya, who had been fussing a few minutes ago, was now hushed by her mother's sweet, melodious voice.

Their father's consoling presence was made known by the familiar clanking and banging of the hammer and anvil coming from the forge. The fire from his workplace would warm the whole house, keeping the freezing cold out.

Kai glanced up at his mother's face but it was vague and unclear. He couldn't properly remember her. But her beautiful voice and her sheltering hug would always linger in his memories.

And maybe one day, he would be able to experience them again in reality.

. . .

Kai smiled in his sleep.

The warmth and softness that enveloped him was too blissful and cozy to part with. He never wanted to leave the protectiveness he felt at the moment. He never wanted to return to the cruel world that lay outside, ready to devour him.

He wanted to stay here forever.

Kai could still feel her hands caressing his hair, making him unable to want to open his eyes. However, something felt different. It was relaxing, placating and pacifying but still strangely odd. He needed to know why.

He groggily cracked open an eye and tried to make sense of his surroundings.

His heart skipped a bit.

"Oh my Dragon!" he exclaimed, scrambling to get up. Amused laughter made him turn about and he saw Misako smiling at him merrily.

'First Spinjitzu Master!' he rebuked himself mentally, blush creeping up onto his cheeks. 'Did I just fall asleep on Misako's lap?!'

The brunet quickly made an attempt to shift away from the woman, wondering if he had forever lost his dignity in her eyes. He should've been more careful. What was he thinking?

"I am so sorry," he copped out, not really acknowledging the kind smile on the woman's face. "I have no idea how I ended up that way. You should've woken me up."

"And interrupt your rest?" Misako drew out, shaking her head. "Not acceptable."

"N-no, I feel awful."

He halted in his stammering when he felt a considerate hand on his knee. His eyes met Misako's, no longer sure on what to say next.

"Did it feel nice?"

The fire master hesitated, not keen on confessing the truth. However, the gentle way with which Lloyd's mother spoke compelled him to let go. He could admit that it felt wonderful, that he felt relieved of all the stresses of the world.

"I-It felt . . ." he began, unable to rightly express what he had felt. Safety, love, happiness; these were elements one could not explain in words.

"It felt like I was back with my mother." Kai stared at his hands, his fingers fidgeting with one another. "I dreamt of how she used to hold me in her arms when I was afraid and sing to me till I fell asleep."

The hand on his knee now moved to lift his chin up and he obliged. Misako's sympathetic gaze met his. It was a special type of look only understanding mothers could give.

"I'm glad I could make you remember your mother, Kai," she whispered, moving to straighten the boy's spikes that had become disheveled. "All mothers share a bond, caring for every child with an exceptional kind of love. Some just have a closer connection to certain children."

At that moment, Cole's painful yells rang throughout the monastery. "Ow ow ow ow! Zane, it stings!"

Kai cringed, hoping Zane and his sister could help Cole recover without him hollering out every pain laced sentence that formed in his mind. He heard a sigh and turned to see Misako standing up.

"I better go see to Cole," she elucidated, tucking in her loose strands of grey hair. Before she proceeded out of the room, she bent down and positioned a hand on Kai's cheek.

"If you need anything or want to talk about something, I'll be right here." Misako's green eyes shone with expectancy through her glasses as she waited for an answer.

Kai responded with a half smile. "Sure thing, Mo– uh, Misako."

Satisfied, the woman made her way out of the living room. But not without passing by Lloyd. Kai saw him too. He put on an unimpeachable expression as the Green Ninja regarded him with a suspicious glare.

"Dude, that's my mom," the blonde said, a hint of playfulness in the tone of his voice.

Kai glanced innocently at the archaeological documents left behind by Misako before asking, "Um, how long have you been standing there?"

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This happened with me once. My mom suddenly got super sick so we had to admit her to the hospital. Seeing my mom on a bed surrounded by tubes and wires shook me to the bone and I used to have horrible nightmares.

My mother's sister visited us with her kids to take care of me and my brother while my dad went to check on my mom in the ICU.

While everyone slept, I stayed up late with my aunt, unable to sleep because of stress. At some point, I fell asleep and woke up to find myself snoozing with my head on my aunt's lap.

I was so embarrassed!!! But then she hugged me and said that she didn't mind, assuring me that she would always be my mother whenever I needed her.

I had started crying 😅😌.

Anyway, I hope you liked it!