Nya was fidgeting in her seat all throughout lunch, her stormy eyes flickering from her plate of chicken stir-fry to my warning gaze and back again. Her knees bounced. She kept running her fingers through her black locks. She gnawed her lips. Jay was sending her odd, worried glances.
Maybe telling her was a bad idea...
"Ready for school next week?" Garmadon asked cheerfully, contrasting against our response; a chorus of unwilling groans and mumbled curses. Wu chuckled lightly.
"Can't we just be home schooled?" Kai asked, almost begging already. "I can't count how many times somebody's sprayed my hair with water. You know I'm terrified of water."
I raised my eyebrows a little at that. Huh, he is?Store that under important information for later... just in case...

"No," Miskao replied as she began picking up the empty plates and piling them on top of each other. "Social interaction with peers outside of your group is important to cognitive growth."
"I didn't realise that cognitive growth had something to do with name-calling and exclusion," mumbled Cole as he stabbed a piece of chicken with his fork.
"Hear, hear," replied a grumbling Jay. Nya pursed her lips in unspoken agreement as she stared heavily at her dish.
Zane and Lloyd remained silent, the former contemplating the existence of lesser human beings than he (presumably - that was my take on it, anyway). Lloyd had a look of being deep in thought etched on his face.

I nudged his arm with my elbow gently, pulling him through the recesses of his mind and sending him a concerned frown. Lloyd, shaken back into reality, only sent me a timid smile in return.
My frown deepened as his gaze dropped to the table again, green eyes flashing a million different thoughts and emotions.
"What about you, Y/n?" asked Garmadon, jolting me back into the conversation. I shook my head, confused.
"Sorry?"
"School," Miskao continued as she reentered the room again. "Are you excited to start at Ninjago High?"
I blinked, taken aback. Was I? My eyes slid along the row of downcast teenagers and I felt my stomach slightly dip. Their expressions weren't all that encouraging.
"Uh... sure..?" I replied uncertainly, lifting my shoulders up and grimacing.

"Rightwellthiswasfunbye!" Lloyd hurriedly slurred, grabbing my arm and unceremoniously hoisting me to my feet. I yelped in surprise as he clutched my hand and began to frantically lead me to the garden.
"What are- what are you doing, Lloyd?" I asked as I tried to righten myself so I wouldn't topple over onto the flat-top stones that made the pathway. I had a feeling that the garden was Lloyd's favourite place.
He remained quiet, though whether it was an angry silence or a frustrated silence or even just a sad silence, I didn't know.
We ventured into the garden further than we'd gone before, following the pathway as cherry blossom trees began to wilt around us, serving as a reminder of the approaching autumn. The pastel pink flowers were browning around the edges as they laid on the ground, shrivelling and curling.

"Lloyd, seriously," I said, bringing him to a stop by pulling my hand back. He continued on for a few steps, his feet shuffling through the sticks and leaves, before running a hand through his hair and leaning back against a tree trunk.
"I- just- I can't-" he shook his head, eyes distraught and staring straight ahead. "That place is horrible, Y/n. I don't want you to get hurt because of me- again."
My shoulders dropped.
"Lloyd, I'm not going to get hurt," I said softly, taking a step forward. "It wasn't your fault. It's never your fault. Stop blaming yourself."
"You almost died!" he burst, snapping his head to me. I flinched. "Because of me!"
"If I didn't jump into that river, you would've died!" I argued, throwing an arm out. "I don't think you realise just how much you mean to me."
"I'm not worth your life-!"
"You're worth everything to me!" I caught him off, fingers curling into fists. "I'm hopelessly, irrevocably, madly in love with you and I would give up everything if it meant that I got to stay by your side."

Lloyd paused. I froze. Wait shit did I seriously just say that?
He laughed a little, breathless. My cheeks burnt.
"Why are you laughing?"
He began to cry.
"Why are you crying?" I asked, beginning to panic.
"God," Lloyd said as he placed his hand over his face. He was smiling, but tears were running down his cheeks. "We're both going to end up dead someday because we're too stubborn to save our own lives."
I confusedly giggled a tiny little bit, baffled and embarrassed.
"I- I'm sorry," Lloyd began, wiping his tears and smiling a little in embarrassment. "I just- you're the best thing in my life. I want to protect you."

My lips pulled up into a minuscule smile as I slowly shuffled closer to him.
"Hey, I may not be a- whatever you are, some kind of Demi-god or something-"
Lloyd snorted.
"- but I can hold my own," I reassured him. He softly smiled down at me.
"I'm certain that you can, considering you kicked me in the balls when I was possessed."
I snickered.
"I'm still proud of that moment," I said smugly.
"You're terrifying," he stated. I grinned.
"Kai said that, too."
Lloyd chuckled, stepping closer to me so he could wrap his arms around my waist.

"Did you mean it?" he asked, suddenly serious, as he brushed a lock of my hair behind my ear. "That you're hopelessly, irrevocably, madly in love with me?"
My entire face went red. Ohgodohfuck-
His smile happily grew at my unspoken response.
"Well, that's a good thing, because I'm hopelessly, irrevocably, madly in love with you, too."
Was it possible for your entire bloodstream to redirect itself to your cheeks? Because I was certain that that's what was happening, with how hot they felt.

He lifted a hand and pressed his fingers under my ear, at the curve of my jaw, and pushed my face up to his. His touch was delicate and whispering, the green of his half-lidded eyes dark and emotional. His exhale escaped through his parted lips and was warm against my skin, sending pleasant tingles up my spine and forcing my breath out in a rush of air. Petals fell around us. My hands crawled up his chest. Birds tittered in the air above us. I could smell wood and leaves and petals. I could smell the scent of bubbling streams and paddocks of lush grass and wet rocks and damp soil. Forest. Life. Lloyd. Me. Him. Us.

There was something different in the way we coiled around each other, our arms snaking and encasing each other in a soft embrace. His hair feathered against my forehead. His nose pressed against mine. His lips brushed my lips.
I don't think I could ever get over the adrenaline-pumping, dream-like sensation of kissing Lloyd. It was like being on cloud nine while also being in so much internal pain because of his perfectness that it made my head spin. His hands pinched my waist gently. He was just so careful and loving and god- how on earth could he be mine?
Lloyd tilted his head into the kiss, embracing me tighter in an effort to hold me closer against him. I didn't mind, bunching his shirt in my hands as I held his shoulders, arching my back into his torso and closing my eyes and just relishing in the fact that he was Lloyd.

His lips were soft, though I could feel a small bump - probably where he had bitten it before. Yeah, there was something different about this kiss. It felt more meaningful. It felt blissful. It was like I could feel Lloyd's emotions through his actions - love, happiness, contentment. His teeth tugged on my bottom lip, making me giggle and tighten my arms around him. Possibly also mischievous. He was smiling. So was I.

We stayed in a kiss for a long time, parting only to breathe and then reseal. It was soft and pure and pink petals falling around us? Perfectly perfect. The pastel ambience made my stomach swirl with warm love.
But then Lloyd sighed through his nose and the feeling of perfectness began to drain away. The emotional high I was on floated me back down to earth. He was thinking about something unsatisfactory.
Lloyd then stepped back, his hands resting on my shoulder. His fingers slightly tensed.
"There's something I need to tell you," he began quietly, cautiously. I should've paid more attention to his scared tone but my senses were still wound up from the kiss. My eyes had yet to open. I hummed my reply for him to continue.
"Y/n... I'm not actually eighteen."

Has there ever been a time in your life when everything was crystal clear and perfectly set, kind of like the ending of a novel? The hardships had been and passed and all that was left was a perfect future, comfort and love and those two definitely set in stone, you were sure of it.
And then, has there ever been a time in your life when that all crashes around you and you can physically feel control over your future slipping from your grasp.

That was then.

My eyes had opened, revealing my utter confusion. He wasn't... eighteen? Then what? Was he a really young-looking twenty-five year old? Was he actually sixteen but wanted to be a year older rather than a year younger than me? He wasn't eighteen?
I was baffled. I was completely, utterly taken aback. He wasn't eighteen? That was a weird thing to say, especially considering that he told my mother that he was eighteen. Lloyd didn't seem like one to lie.

But the absolutely terrified look in his green eyes, the regret and reluctance, as if he wanted to take it all back, that wasn't fake. It was no prank. He was scared. He was terrified. He was staring right at me. Was it me making him scared? What did I do? Everything was a confusing mess.
I had tilted my head with a knitted brow.
"What?" I asked, still really, truly confused out of my mind. Did I imagine it? No... did I? No, I couldn't of. Did I?
"I'm not eighteen," Lloyd repeated, voice shaking an alarming amount. His fingers released my shoulders as he stepped back. "I'm... I'm not..."
"Wait," I began, closing my eyes and holding my palms up, trying to clarify what the hell was happening. How did it go from being so perfect to being so - messed up? "Wait, hold on- you're not eighteen? Then how old are you?"

Lloyd sucked his lips into his mouth. My bewildered expression dropped as he stalled.
"Lloyd," I said seriously. "Answer me."
His green eyes darted to the ground, closely resembling a scolded puppy.
"Uh-"
"You're stalling," I noted. Lloyd grimaced.
"I'm... I'm fourteen."
I blinked.
"I- I'm sorry, what?"
He winced.
"... fourteen."
I looked him up and down.
"... you're just screwing with me," I shook my head. He honestly couldn't of been fourteen. His body structure, his mental state... that was all suggesting to an adult, not a child.
"Y/n," he said in the most broken tone he's ever used. "Please-"
"Is this some kind of joke?" I asked, shaking my head. "Because, uh, sorry, but it's not really funny."

Lloyd sighed.
"You honestly don't believe me?" he asked. My eyebrows knitted together tighter as I slowly shook my head.
"Fine," he said, body stance, expression, tone of voice, all a mixing pot of different, dangerous emotions. "I'll take you to someone you will believe."
Before I could ask or talk or do anything, Lloyd had taken off back down the path towards the Monastery. His lips pursed into a regretful, angry pout. His hands shoved into his pockets.
I wanted to call out to him, to get him to stop the silly game but something prevented me from speaking, as if my own voice refused me. I followed silently, head brewing a million different thoughts a second.
Lloyd led me through the Monastery, passing a few bare-headed monks and a confused-looking Zane. He was probably confused by the confused look on my face, because confusion is contagious, clearly.

Lloyd stopped at a door I had never seen, on the other side of the Monastery, by the dojos and weapons rooms. He softly rapped his knuckles on the soft wood and an old voice inside granted us access.
"Uncle," greeted Lloyd as we entered the heavily stylised room, all teapots and staffs and scrolls and parchment drawings - prophecies. My gaze caught an old sketch of a figure in green surrounded by figures in blue, white, silver, red and black. At his head was a figure drawn in a golden-peach. I frowned. Interesting.

"What brings you two to my door?" Wu asked as he filled a cup with tea and handed it to me. I took to wait a grateful smile and a 'thank you.'
Lloyd gulped as he grabbed the next mug Wu filled.
"I need you to tell her about Tomorrow's Tea."
Wu dropped the mug he just pulled out of his cupboard. It clattered to the ground, thankfully staying intact.
"Are you sure both of you are ready?" Wu asked, worried, glancing at us.
Lloyd sheepishly shrugged.
"Well, I already told her that I'm fourteen."
I gnawed on my lip awkwardly. Wu sighed and rubbed his face in exasperation.
"You are too impulsive for your own good," he grumbled as he bent to pick up the mug and fill it. "I thought you said you were going to wait longer?"
Lloyd slouched.
"The longer I wait, the less chance there would've been of me actually telling her," he mumbled. Wu sent him an unimpressed glare.

"Can- can somebody just tell me what the hell is going on, please?" I asked, worried. Wu pulled his lips together into a tight line while Lloyd sighed and took a seat on the floor by a small table. He was fidgeting with his mug, staring into the steaming liquid with a guarded expression.
Wu retrieved something from his bedside table before sliding it across the table for us to to see.  Lloyd's eyes flickered up to it before dropping back down to his tea.
I stared at the object, frowning skeptically. It was a picture frame, the photo showing a group shot of the ninja. Their faces were little more rounder by the cheeks, their gis were less professional, Jay's hair wasn't curly. Cole's hair was shorter, as was Kai's. Zane looked... the same, as nindroids usually did. Nya had her hair in a bob. Huh.

I was about to ask what the point of this was to the discussion when my gaze caught on a small figure standing next to a sitting down Wu (who also looked like he hadn't changed at all), donned in green, blonde hair chopped haphazardly into a bowl cut. He was grinning goofily. He was so young. But his green eyes...
My gaze jumped to Lloyd's eyes... they were the same.
I released a heavy breath as the beginnings of a migraine spiked at the crown of my forehead. It was too much. What the fuck???
"What..." I whispered, dropping my gaze back to the photo. That was definitely of Lloyd, but he looked so young compared to the others! Nobody could just grow two feet in what I assumed was three years. My head was swimming.
"Lloyd was born fourteen years ago," Wu began, staring at the picture heavily. "That photo was taken two years ago."

He paused, probably giving me time to take it all in, but my brain was in too much of a rush for me to process anything.
"He was twelve when we realised he was the Green Ninja and began his training. He was twelve when we took this picture."
I glanced up at Lloyd with wide eyes. My chest began to squeeze with unprecedented panic.
"It was during the time when we were battling my father," Lloyd took over, his voice quiet and not daring to lift his gaze from his mug. "He had a powerful staff, a combination of the golden weapons, called the Megaweapon. He used it to turn back time and make the bones of the Grundle come back to life and, well, Cole, Kai, Zane and Jay got turned into little kids."
"I remember the Grundle being on the news," I mumbled. I was fifteen and so glad that I wasn't living in Ninjago City.

"I found some tea that would return the ninja to their correct ages and the Grundle to bones," Wu continued, voice laden with sorrow. "Lloyd sacrificed the rest of his childhood to save his team and Ninjago."
I dropped my gaze to my hands. That's... so sad. But why didn't he tell me before? Why did he wait this long?
For a couple of minutes we did nothing but stare at the photo. Everyone looked so happy and carefree. Lloyd looked like nothing could go wrong in his life. I glanced up at him, noting how his eyes had a hint of discourage and sorrow. It's because of me. He's scared.
But so am I. How could he? Did trust mean nothing to him?

I got to my feet and left the room.
I need to take a minute to think.

Lloyd dropped his head to the table and groaned.
"I messed up, Sensei," he grumbled, voice muffled by the table. "I didn't want to keep secrets from her, but now she's..."
Wu smiled softly at his nephew and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Y/n just needs time," he said in a soothing tone. "It is a lot for her to process. Give her space. She'll be back when she is ready."
Lloyd lifted his gaze up to his uncle and rested his chin on the table.
"Do you really think that?" he asked quietly. "Or are you just saying what I want to hear?"
Wu sat back, humour and care in his wise eyes.
"Lloyd, what you and Y/n have goes beyond the material realm. You and her are spiritually bound to one another, you must feel that, correct?"
Lloyd paused.
"Uh... what do you mean?"

"You saw something up in the Cloud Kingdom, did you not?" Wu asked with a raised eyebrow.
Lloyd sat back in surprise.
"How did you know?"
Wu just smiled and tapped the side of his nose.
"It... it was a prophecy, but it had no words," Lloyd explained. "It was-"
"That?" Wu asked, nodding to the parchment hanging on the wall of the figures surrounding the one in green. Lloyd's eyes widened.
"... yeah," he replied daintily. "How did you..?"
"You forget," Wu chuckled airily. "My visions come straight from the Cloud Kingdom. Why do you think this concerns Y/n?"
Lloyd furrowed his eyebrows.
"Because when she leapt into the river at the tomb to save me, her... her eyes were that other figure's colour, just for a split second... I thought I was crazy but, seeing it again..."
Lloyd lifted his gaze to his uncle's, who were knowing and all the more wiser.
"She's more important than she thinks," Wu finished.

Lloyd clutched above his heart absentmindedly.
"More than she already is."

Misako found me sitting in the desolated training yard, leaning against a charred wooden post. The concrete was cracked. Remnants of lightning strikes tattooed the ground.
She took a seat next to me just as I was wiping tears away - the watery product of overwhelmed confusion and fear and even more confusion.
"I heard about what happened," she said softly, ever maternally protective as she wrapped her arm around my shoulders and pulled me against her side. "Are you okay, dear?"

I inhaled a shuddering breath. Not really, I wanted to say. My head hurts, I can't stop crying for some stupid reason and I just found out that the love of my life is fourteen when he said that he was eighteen. But he was twelve when he grew up? And his mental state is??? Everything is a mess and I couldn't keep up with what the hell was going on so here I am, crying because I'm too confused and sore to process everything.
"I'm fine," I choked out.
Misako didn't believe me.
"I'm actually really sad for Lloyd?" I tilted my head in my own bafflement. Misako raised her eyebrows.
"Oh?"
"He had to give up so much to save Ninjago, and he still gets bullied. And he's been through so much! He's been possessed and he's just... young... ger. It's... a lot to take in. And I feel bad because he's practically a child and oh, god, does that make me a pedophile?" I cried, running my hands through my hair. "Everything is a confusing mess and my head hurts."

"Oh, Y/n," Misako coed softly, letting me sink into her motherly embrace. "It will all work itself out, I promise."
"I'm just so confused," I whispered as I blinked through my tears.
"It's still Lloyd, and he still loves you," Miskao reminded me gently. "Do you still love him?"
"... yeah," I replied, absolutely sure of it.
"Then what has really changed?" she asked. "Nothing. You're just that little bit wiser. You still love Lloyd and Lloyd still loves you. You two were meant to be."
I sat up, sniffling.
"What should I do?"
"Talk to him," Misako said in emphasis. "He's going through so much all the time. He rarely gets a break. The best we can do is remind him that we're here to stay by his side and help him in times of need. The best you can do is reassure him that you're not leaving. I'm sure he's scared."

My gaze dropped.
"Probably," I murmured, picking at the hem of my shirt. "But... what do we talk about?"
"Anything at all," Miskao replied. "Whatever comes to your mind. Just... be there for him. He needs you."
I need him, too.
"Okay," I said quietly as I stood and wiped my remaining tears away. Sure, I was confused, but Lloyd must be so scared about my reaction. He deserves closure. He deserves all the good things in the world. "Thanks, Misako."
She smiled gently as she joined me in standing.
"I'm always here if you ever need to talk," she vowed. "This world can be scary and confusing, but nobody is ever alone. We're all here for you, all the time, whenever you need. That's what family is for."
I swallowed thickly before hugging her tightly.
"Thank you," I mumbled.

I don't think I'd ever been so hesitant to speak to Lloyd before. I was waiting outside his half-closed bedroom door, trying for the life of me to scrape up enough confidence to face him, but every drop of courage had all but disappeared. So I hovered for a few minutes, battling silently with myself and probably looking like a complete weirdo.
Nothing really changed. He's still Lloyd. I'm still me. Why am I so afraid?

Fucking- dammit, Y/n, you're making it worse than it already is.
I inhaled deeply before pushing open the half-closed door and stepping meekly into his room.
Lloyd was lying on top of his bed, a pillow over his face. He was quiet.
Frowning softly, I sat on the edge of his mattress. If Lloyd was awake, he didn't say anything.
I laid back, crossing my arms over my stomach as my head settled into his pillow. Movement beside me caused me to turn my gaze.
Lloyd had pushed the pillow off. Our eyes caught.
For a split second, we did nothing but stare. Then, as if it was routine, we both slowly turned our gazes up to the ceiling.

Silently.