Work Text:
Kai felt like he was in some sort of wild fever dream, or maybe this was one of his nightmares. He actually never considered this being a really vivid nightmare that he would probably never wake up from...ever. Whatever it was, Kai wanted to deny it, because there was no way in the real world would Lloyd ever doーthatーwhatever it is that he’s doing.
Lloyd wasn’t on the Destiny’s Bounty when he first got up out of bed, nor was he hiding in any of his usual hiding places Lloyd would be hiding in. Weird because Lloyd would be hiding if he had a nightmare, assuming he had one, it’s a coping mechanism Kai had figured out after a few months with the kid around. Lloyd was always such a weird kid. The boy was sitting on the edge of a cliff, legs dangling off of the sides. Kai hoped that he wouldn’t fall, unlessー
“What’re you doing out here, bud?” Kai shifted his feet uncomfortably, letting his tense body be ready to catch him if he did fall. “It’s early.”
Lloyd didn’t turn around to look at him but Kai saw a sad smile.
“I’m waiting for someone to save me,” Lloyd answered. A fall from that height could probably kill someone on impact. Kai didn’t want to think of the possibilities if that were to happen, he should just stay and keep the young Green Ninja safe. Just in case.
“And who would that be?” Kai sat down slowly, being careful not to cause more stress than what they already had.
“Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman, or maybe Ironman,” Lloyd hummed, his shoulders were up. Kai came to the conclusion that he’s tense. “Or, it could be Star-Lord, or Fritz Donnegan traveling a million miles from space to rescue me.”
“I don’t think that this would be a great way to go, Green Machine. I mean, who else is going to be the Green Ninja?” The Fire Ninja laughed bitterly. Kai still denied his longing for the title of the savior of Ninjago, and he knows it, but there was no chance that he was telling the kid that. On what terms would he want to break his heart even more?
In a sense, Lloyd started laughing, but it more quiet and painful than his usual obnoxious and mischievous one, Kai felt that one. Lloyd is a tough kid, when he wants to be, of course, he has seen things that no one at ten years should have never seen in their entire lives. Lloyd just happened to be one of the unlucky ones. There was nothing funny about this, it was a life or death situation. Lloyd’s shaky breath and hiccups told him otherwise.
Lloyd never cried in front of anyone, and if he did, it was a rare sight for sore eyes.
“I wasn’t even thinking about whatever you’re thinking I was going to do. I just want someone to save me from falling or something like Princess Leia or Lois Lane, or Jane from that one Thor movie.” Lloyd’s red eyes were puffy like he had been crying several times before Kai even showed up. There were scrapes from where Lloyd had most likely tripped trying to get here. “Saving the world is stupid. It sounds much easier just sit and wait for some knight in shining armor to rescue you instead.”
Oh...oh no. Lloyd hasn’t even been on a single mission yet (because he’s only a child, duh, they aren’t that crazy.) and he’s already acting as if he doesn’t want this burden on him already. Well, yeah, Kai could understand that part of him, having to kill your own father because your grandfather who is also basically the god of Ninjago wrote a scroll saying that you have to in order to restore peace. Ah, right, right, right, Lloyd’s life is definitely not a fun one.
“This whole ninja business isn’t easy if anything, I’d want a handsome knight to sweep me away from danger too. But to be fair, I kinda like this life more than just standing off in the sidelines, I’m actually doing something rather than letting bad things happen all the time. Like I used to.” Then he added softly, “And I think that you should get away from the ledge.”
Lloyd didn’t move, he sniffed instead, fiddling at his small fingers. Kai wasn’t the best at talking people out of really dumb decisions, he was literally the definition of dumb decisions himself. This was the real world, there were no such things as superheroes or men (and women) in tights to save damsels in distress. ‘Well, look who’s talking, you literally live in a world where you save people from humanoid snakes, pirates, evil doppelgangers, and even the dark lord from time to time. Cut the kid some slack.’ he told himself.
The death of the Green Ninja would be traumatizing, not only to him but to the others who hear about it. Then he would have to face the wrath of an angry father with powers that could rival his sensei’s. Lloyd had no sense of self-preservation whatsoever.
“One time at Darkley’s, we were on a trip to Glacier Barrens to learn about the type environments that certain villains can use as their hideouts and we camped out in one of the igloos there. At night, a bunch of so-called friends and I snuck out to the woods and then they told me that if I took off my coat, hat, scarf, and boots and hung them all on a tree, that I would be protected from a made-up beast. They left me when I closed my eyes because I thought that they would do the same, the teachers found me half an hour later almost frozen solid. They got mad at me because I could have died if they hadn't found me, they need me alive anyways, or dad would’ve had their heads. ” Lloyd’s eyes reverted back to the ledge. “It’s like every time I have those experiences, someone always comes to my rescue, just like you did when we almost died in the volcano.”
Lloyd only talked about Darkley’s with someone he trusted, and that was usually Nya or Sensei Wu, just Lloyd talking about something so personal to him, that was the biggest step-up from a “big-headed loser with an ugly face who smells like a stinky trash bag and baby powder”. Huh, that meant that Lloyd really trusted him.
Kai needed to be the superhero that Lloyd needed.
“I’ll save you, Lloyd.” Kai tried to sound as convincing as possible, holding out his hand in reassurance. On the contrary, he’s scared. He didn’t know what to say after that, Lloyd said that he wanted someone to save him from falling, and that’s what Kai was going to do, hopefully. Lloyd grabbed his handーalmost.
“No!” Lloyd protested, pulling his hand back. “That’s not how this works! Superheroes only save someone when they’re in danger! And...I gotta be in danger.”
Kai had to resist the urge to pull Lloyd’s body forcefully towards him because he wasn’t seeing the situation in the entirety. Really. This was the last place Kai wanted to confront the Green Ninja.
In second place, was the nightmare he had just woke up from, covered in sweat and drool.
“So sitting on the edge of a cliff that will most likely fall beneath you will alert a superhero, who, mind you, is totally not sitting in front of you to save you from your certain doom?” The spiky-haired ninja cocked his head a bit, trying to make sense of it all. “And what if you fall and no one comes to your rescue?”
“I don’t want to be the Green Ninja anymore, Kai,” Lloyd said after a long pause. “In fact, I don’t want to do anything anymore. The fighting, the snakes, my dad, the green colors, it’s pointless! My whole life is basically drawn like the main character in a comic book and I can’t change it because the author of the story already created me as his original character. I want to be the background character, the one that nobody wants dead or has the entire world on his shoulders. You can have my destiny, I don’t want it.”
Up ahead, the sun was rising, the colors of orange, green, and yellow clashed together. Jeez, the others were probably going to wake up right now, confused as to why the red and green ninja wasn’t there at home. Home. Right, they really needed to be getting home and they both needed to beat the life out of a punching bag too.
Kai could feel tears down his eyes, was he...crying? Whatever, it didn’t matter. Lloyd’s sad, so he’s sad, Lloyd’s angry, so he’s angry. Gah, all of this hurt. He couldn’t lose Lloyd again, no, not like last time. Kai swore to protect him.
“You got possessed by a ghost who was mad at your uncle for not making him the Green Ninja, the guys and I tried to stop him from hurting you, but we couldn’t no matter how hard we tried, alright?.” Lloyd stared at him like he had two heads. “Lloyd, you almost died because he threw you into a river to drown, and I dove in after to save you. I can’t even swim but I saved you. Look, whatever you’re dealing with right now, I can’t save you from, and I don’t think I ever can either. I have no idea what I’d do if you just suddenlyー” Kai stopped himself for a bit. “Your destiny is yours and yours alone, and forgive me, but your grandfather is a total jerkwad for putting this all on you at once. It's not fair.”
Lloyd snorted a little at that.
“For Ninjago’s sake, you’re only like what? Five?” Kai wiped a falling tear from his own eyes.
“I’m ten,” Lloyd smiled faintly.
Alright, that was enough of being sad and angsty for today, he could already hear the entire Bounty freaking out because they weren’t there. Kai decided that he couldn't save him from his destiny, but, he couldn’t save him from one thing. Falling to his death.
“Fear not, Prince Skywalker! I, Sir Buttkiss, am here to save you!” Kai stood up and beamed.
“Save me?” Lloyd repeated softly.
“Yes, ‘save you’. It’s my job as your personal knight to save you from the evils as known as Tiredness and Loneliness! Dangerous twin villains, I have fought within the past, those little cretins!” That got Lloyd to laugh hard and take his hand. Good. Kai mentally sighed a breath of relief. “Would you like a piggyback ride? It’s a special offer just for you.”
As soon as Kai finished, Lloyd engulfed him in a hug, the action startled Kai out of his train of thought.
“Thanks for saving me, Kai. You’re the best.” Lloyd’s muffled praise pulled Kai in a bigger smile than what he already had. Lloyd actually boosted his self-esteem without even trying. The old man was right, talking things out really did help a lot.
“That’s Sir Buttkiss to you, my young Padawan,” Kai ruffled Lloyd’s hair and let him get on his back. Lloyd giggled. “You have been saved once again by a handsome devil of a knight.”
“Yeah, ‘cause it’s better than anything else in the world right now!” Lloyd grinned.
‘Yeah,’. Kai thought to himself. ‘Because everything is better thanー’. He took a glance at the cliff again. ‘That.’
Kai turned his head once more and kept on forward, there was no need to save anyone else today. He’s completed his mission and all that’s left is to bring Lloyd home. And that was it.