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Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck-
Lloyd dashed through the trees with Kai hot on his heels. In the distance, they could still hear their intended target screaming gibberish after them. What were they thinking, going after the thief that Skylor told them about? They should’ve realized that anyone who would be after Clouse’s abandoned spell books would be bad news. Kai stumbled and Lloyd was quick to put his arm around his shoulders. Reinforcements were already called so all they would have to do is wait for them to show. Then they’d defeat this mystery sorcerer and be home free. Easy! Lloyd tripped, bringing both of them to the ground. Kai dragged him into a hollow tree trunk nearby as the thief made themselves known.
A long, black cloak covered all of their features except for the lips that continued to spout what sounded like nonsense. They looked directly at the trunk and the ninja could feel their gaze on them. The two knew that they should do something, anything but it was as if they were frozen, unable to do anything but stare. When the sorcerer stopped speaking, they realized they must have been the cause. They cooed at the ninja, taking in the way Kai had positioned himself in front of the other. “D’aww. Aren’t you a sweet big brother.” Kai could only whine in protest as they reached out and pinched his cheek before continuing.
“Wouldn’t it be nice for him to return the favor?”
The ninja made alarmed noises from the back of their throats, eyes expressing the rest of their fear. They were hushed gently as the thief ran their hands through their hair. Kai whimpered more as his hair was smoothed down and the hand in his hair moved to cup his cheek. “Shh. Hush now. Poor baby.”
More words that they couldn’t understand slid from their mouth and pain spread through the ninja’s bodies. They kept muttering as they comforted them. Kai passed out immediately after they stopped but Lloyd held on a bit longer. The sorcerer held his jaw carefully as they scrawled a note. “You poor misguided children, playing in adult affairs. Far too young to be fighting.” Slipping the note down the front of his gi, they scolded him gently. “Now you interrupted something very important young man and I’m going to have to make sure you don’t get in the way again. But don’t panic! I don’t kill children. I’m just putting you on the sidelines for now. The spell will wear off in a while, and by then I’ll be long gone.”
They stood up, watching as he curled around his unconscious friend. “Such sweet little boys you two are. You’ll take care of him won’t you?” With a chuckle they disappeared in front of Lloyd’s eyes before they slipped closed.
Lloyd was woken up by movement at his side. He would have ignored it if it wasn’t for the whine that followed. His eyes shot open as he sat up, instantly becoming swamped in his gi. Panic shot through his system as he turned to Kai’s gi to search for him. He cursed when he yanked back the lapels to reveal his brother figure curled up in his undershirt. He was so small that the thing dwarfed him and Lloyd felt his panic rise. Kai stirred before fighting to push himself up. He didn’t get very far before he collapsed and Lloyd was back at his side in an instant. Kai couldn’t be more than half his height, his eyes seeming too big for his head as he stared back at him in shock. “Kai? Can you understand me?”
“Abuh.”
The two froze before Kai tried again, only getting another round of babbles. He looked back at Lloyd and simply nodded to answer his question. Lloyd sat back, hearing the rustle of paper and finding the note. Hi little one! I’m assuming that you are old enough to read but I am not sure if you remember anything. Your name is Lloyd (Luh-oi-duh) Garmadon (Guh-arm-ah-don) and the boy you are with is Kai (Kuh-eye) Smith (S-m-ih-th). You will be like this for at least a week or two. Some friends are coming to take care of you. You must watch over Kai and be his big brother now.
Lloyd flipped the paper over, not finding a signature or any hint to the person’s identity. “We’re so hooped.”
Kai gave a grunt in agreement before trying to curl in on himself more. Lloyd, seeing what he was doing, pulled him into his lap and situated the gis around them. At his content sigh, Lloyd let his mind wander to the others. What would they do when they saw what became of them? Wanting to delay the lecture as long as possible, he thought back to the letter. A smirk spread across his face. He looked down at the baby in his lap. “Hey Kai, what if we pretend like we don’t remember anything past our current ages?” Seeing Kai’s furrowed brow, he added “It would be funny and we could put off a lecture.”
He nodded his head a couple times before he paused with a thoughtful look. Kai put a finger in his mouth and gurgled, kicking his feet. Lloyd snickered, glad to know he had his back in this. He held him closer as he waited for someone to find them.
Footsteps sounded nearby and the two looked at each other. Kai smirked before dramatically pouting and giving a loud whine. Catching on, Lloyd shushed him loudly and bounced him. As the footsteps got closer, he let tears slip into his eyes. “Guys,” a voice behind the wall of gis asked. “Are you in there?”
Kai whined louder, curling further into Lloyd as the gis began to move. Jay couldn’t believe the scene he discovered and had to stop to collect himself. He reached into the space to help pull them out and Lloyd shuffled backwards. “Who are you?”
“What do you mean ‘who are you’ it’s Jay!”
“I don’t know you.”
“Come on Lloyd, it’s getting late and it’s going to get cold. We need to get you two inside.”
“How do you know my name?”
“I know you! You and Kai!”
“Are you the friends from the paper?”
“What?”
Lloyd shifted slightly and passed Jay the paper, before going back to ‘comfort’ Kai. Reading it over, Jay sighed. “Yeah I’m one of the friends. I’ve got a few other friends with me and we want you two to be safe. Will you come with me?”
“Okay Mister.”
Jay helped Lloyd get out of the hole before taking a good look at the duo. While Kai may have been small, Lloyd was obviously struggling to hold him. Jay reached down and picked Kai up, completely missing the smirk he sent Lloyd. Not even a moment later, Kai gave a shriek, loud enough that Jay nearly dropped him and Lloyd had to cover his ears, before he descended into wails. Lloyd let his own tears gather but didn’t let them fall just yet. A blur of black emerged from the trees, skidding to a stop a few feet away. Cole looked frantic for a moment before he surveyed the scene. He walked over to Jay, slipping one hand under Kai’s head and one under his butt. “You’re holding him wrong. Let me take him.”
Nearly immediately after Cole took him and adjusted him, Kai let his crying fade into whimpers and hiccups. Jay stared in shock for a moment before accepting it; Cole had done well with baby Wu so it would make sense that he’d be able to do the same with Kai. He watched as he shifted their miniature teammate around before turning to Lloyd. Instinctively, the younger shrunk away from him, prompting Cole to lower himself onto one knee. “Hey little buddy! Are you okay?”
“Uh-huh.”
“You’re Lloyd, right? I’m Cole! I’m a friend!”
“Okay Mister Cole!”
“Ha ha! Cole is just fine little buddy! Do you want to come up?”
“Yes please!”
Cole chuckled at Lloyd’s grabby hands and moved Kai to one arm before reaching down to pick him up. After he was placed on Cole’s hip, Lloyd reached over to Kai, pushing his hair out of his face. Kai instantly stopped whining and grabbed at his hand, cooing. Cole smiled at the interaction before catching Jay’s eye and started a discussion on what they were going to do. While the ‘adults’ were distracted, the smaller two shared their own silent conversation. Lloyd was thankful that he knew his brother well enough to read his eyes. Kai flicked his eyes to Jay for a fraction of a second before smirking at Lloyd. Can you believe this guy? He rolled his eyes in response. Thinking about what would really sell the act, Lloyd tapped his thumb to the corner of his mouth. Kai caught on immediately, but instead of sticking his thumb in his mouth, he shot him a sly look, grabbed one of Lloyd’s fingers and stuck it in his mouth. Lloyd yelped, drawing the other two’s attention. Jay was quick to yank Lloyd’s hand away from Kai and was rewarded with an encore of Kai’s ‘crying’. Cole was quick to soothe the distressed kids, putting Kai’s chin on his shoulder so he could rub his back. The two spotted something glint within the trees and Lloyd couldn’t suppress the excited wiggle. “Shiny!”
The ‘shiny’ disappeared and after a moment, Zane walked up from the trees using his cloaking device to appear human. He approached carefully, taking in the two sets of eyes staring at him. “Cole?”
“Yeah bud?”
“Who’s that?”
Cole turned around, bouncing both boys as he did so. “Hey, that’s Zane! He’s another pal of ours! Can you two say hi?”
Embarrassed by the baby voice directed at them, Kai squirmed and Lloyd feigned being shy. “Hi Mister Zane.”
“Hello to you too. Are you alright?”
“Mm-hmm! I’m just a lil hungry.”
“That can be easily fixed. I will ask our other friend to make something for you.”
“‘Kay! Thank you Mister Zane!”
“You are very welcome, Lloyd. And just Zane is fine.”
“Zane? How’d you know my name?”
Zane opened his mouth to speak, but paused. His gaze flew between the two boys before softening. “I guess you could say,” he started as he strolled into Kai’s line of vision as well, dropping his disguise. “I have a little magic in me.”
Lloyd’s eyes dilated in excitement. “Shiny!”
“Yes, I am indeed shiny. Now I am going to go make that call, alright?”
“Okay!”
Zane chuckled as he wandered away to touch base with the Bounty. Cole took that as an opportunity to wander himself, bringing his miniature teammates with him. Jay followed and Lloyd half-listened to the conversation they picked up; something about how, if they had to resort to them, Jay would bring Lloyd back on his dragon and Cole would bring Kai on his. Kai started dozing again, and Lloyd decided it was as good a time as any to join him.
Lloyd was awoken by another one of Kai’s shrieks. He fought back the covers he was under and nearly fell out of the bed. A large hand caught the back of his shirt and Cole was quick to sit him back down on the bed. “Woah, woah, woah! Where’s the fire, kiddo?”
“Kai! Where’s Kai?”
“He’s off with his sister getting changed. He fought her on it last night too but not like this.”
Seeing the boy physically relax, he ruffled his hair. “Now, you slept through dinner and I think it’s about time for breakfast.”
“Okay!”
When Cole stood up, Lloyd shot the room a critical gaze. He was bunking with Cole, and was probably going to be doing so the rest of the curse. Faking being a little kid was going to be harder than he thought. Fighting back a sigh, he watched Cole approach him with a couple sets of clothes. “I didn’t know which one you’d want to wear so I figured I’d let you pick!”
Lloyd was quick to grab the skeleton shirt, pulling it over his head and down his torso in seconds. He made grabby hands for the pants and Cole passed them, along with some children’s underwear. A blush spread across his cheeks as he realized that the only thing between him and the bed was the long shirt he was in. Cole saved him from most of the embarrassment by turning away, choosing to go grab the younger some socks and shoes. Lloyd was quick to dress himself and ran after him. Halfway there, an idea sprung into his mind and he sprinted past Cole. “Hey! Where’re you going?”
“No socks! No shoes!”
He could hear Cole chuckle from behind him as he dashed through the monastery. Hearing footsteps behind him, he turned to check how far behind he was. Almost immediately after, a set of hands grabbed him by the armpits and swung him around, before settling him on their owner’s hip. Lloyd turned and gave a toothy smile. “Zane!”
“Good morning Lloyd. Are you causing trouble this early in the morning?”
“Nope!”
“I see. Would you like some breakfast?”
“Yes please!”
“Good job with the manners, bud!”
The two turn to look at Cole who was walking towards them with his hands behind his back. He smiled at them before presenting Lloyd with a pair of sandals. “I used to hate socks as a kid. Figured it’d be a good idea to have a pair of these just in case.”
“Thank you!”
“You’re very welcome.”
Cole dropped to a knee and set to work on dressing the bare feet. When he finished, Lloyd swung his feet a bit to get a feeling for them. “Now let’s finally get you some breakfast. Do you want to walk to the kitchen, do you want me to carry you, or do you want Zane to keep carrying you?”
“Zane!”
“Alright. Can you ask him if it’s okay?”
“Please, Zane?”
“Of course Lloyd. Let’s go get some food in you.”
Nya came in when Lloyd was halfway through his cereal, Kai nestled in her arms. The small fire elemental was grouchy if his pout was anything to go by. He was set in the high chair next to Lloyd’s booster seat and whined. Lloyd ran his fingers through his hair, taking advantage of it being down. Kai swatted at his hand but a smile played at his lips. Chuckling, he retracted his hand before waving at Nya. “Are you his sister? Cole said he had a sister.”
“Yup! My name is Nya.”
“Hi Miss Nya!”
She cooed at him, before grabbing herself a granola bar and nudging Cole. “Your boyfriend’s sulking. You might want to check up on him.”
“He is? I’ll go see what’s up. I’ll be back, kids!”
Lloyd grabbed Kai’s hand and made him wave to Cole, making everyone laugh. Zane passed Nya a bottle, silently asking her to feed her brother. The green ninja caught on, bouncing in his seat. “Is that for Kai? Can I feed him?”
He pointedly ignored the barely hidden glare his companion shot him as Nya passed him the bottle. Taking the container, he held it to Kai’s lips, reveling in the look of betrayal he received. Kai drank nonetheless, and was carried off by Nya to be cleaned up after he finished. Lloyd took his bowl and brought it to where the sink was. Finding he was too short to place it in, he turned to Zane with pleading eyes. Zane chuckled, taking the bowl and placing it in the sink for later. He then took his hand and led him back to Cole’s room, letting him knock on the door. “Who is it?”
“It’s me!”
“Me? Me who?”
“Me! Lloyd!”
“Oh! Lloyd! Come on in!”
Zane opened the door for the smaller, who dashed into Cole’s arms. As he hugged Lloyd, he mouthed a “thank you” to Zane before he slipped back out and closed the door. Waiting a moment for the younger to settle, Cole lifted him onto the bed, next to an abnormally silent Jay. Lloyd tilted his head in confusion before waving at him. Jay’s shoulders relaxed before he gave his own wave and smiled. “Hi, buddy! Sorry we got off on the wrong foot before. I’m Jay.”
“It’s okay! The tree was scary! Thank you for res’suing us!”
Cole settled on Lloyd’s other side, chuckling at his pronunciation. “Rescuing, bud.”
“Rescuing!”
“There you go.”
Noticing the other’s longing look, Lloyd crawled across the bed into Jay’s lap. He slid his arms as far around his waist as they could go, wrapping him in a comforting hug. Cole cooed before pulling the two into his lap, effectively turning it into a group hug. A few moments later, Nya knocked on the door, opening it to show her once again holding Kai. “Pixal just showed up. You wanna come out and say hi?”
“Who’s Pixal?”
“She’s another friend of ours. Wanna go meet her?”
“Okay!”
Jay rushed to snatch Lloyd up, grinning as he squealed with excitement. He placed him on his hip before smiling up at his boyfriend, who smiled back. “See? I told you that you just needed to give them time to warm up to you.”
Pixal had migrated to the living room by the time the trio had left the room. She was watching Kai play around with a toy key ring with a critical eye as he purposefully remained turned away from her. Her attention was similarly caught by Lloyd when he came in, forcing him to double down on the act. Once again, he squirmed and pointed at the reflective material. “Shiny!”
“Yeah Bud, Pixal is shiny too. Say hi!”
“Hi!”
“Hello Lloyd.”
Lloyd wiggled to be put down and ran to Kai once he was set down. After he agreed to play nicely with him, the ‘adults’ went off to the other room to talk. Once they were out of earshot both boys dropped the act. Kai glared at Lloyd with the power of a thousand suns. “Don’t get pissy with me. This morning was revenge for you practically eating one of my fingers last night.”
“...”
“Don’t give me that look. You knew that was disgusting.”
“...”
“Yeah, you better feel guilty. And on the subject of guilt, lay off of Jay will ya? I saw him earlier and he looked like he’d been crying.”
“...”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me! I know he cries a lot when he’s upset but he specifically brought us liking him up.”
“...”
“Hey, hey. Don’t tear up. The others are gonna freak.”
“...”
“Oh. You wanna get up. C’mere. Let’s find the others.”
“...”
“Yeah yeah, you’re welcome. And at least try to look at Pixal from time to time, okay? I know it’s embarrassing for her to see you like this but I think she’s onto us.”
Lloyd placed Kai’s head on his shoulder and carried him the same way he had seen Cole do the night prior. When Kai fisted his shirt, he trudged into the kitchen. Peeking in, he let himself go back to acting. “Found you!”
“Hey Buddy! What’re you doing here? I thought we left you in the living room.”
“Mmm-hmm! But the baby was getting fussy and I think he wants to be held.”
“Pass him over. We’ll see who he wants.”
Cole gently took Kai from his arms and moved next to Nya, assuming he would want his sister. Instead, he reached across the table for Zane, who accepted the honor with a smile. After he placed him in Zane’s lap, he moved to leave the room, going to grab something to keep Kai occupied. A small hand snatched his ankle and he paused to see Lloyd under the table. He dropped down to look at him. “What’s up?”
“Where’re you going?”
“I’m just gonna grab some toys for you two. Keep you entertained, alright?”
“I don’t have toys.”
“We got you a few. I’ll bring them all and let you pick okay?”
“Okay! Thank you!”
With his ankle freed, Cole went off to get the toys. The table shook with barely restrained laughter from most of his occupants. “He really is a dad, huh?”
“Oh definitely. What would that make me?”
“His himbo boyfriend who can’t be left alone with the kids.”
“Zane!”
Lloyd was thankful he was under the table; it made it all the easier to hide his reaction. The hands over his mouth barely stopped the giggles that wanted to come out. Kai, on the other hand, was open with his laughter, covering it by trying to throw himself out of Zane’s lap. Zane, having seen other children try this, caught him easily and kept a hand on his upper torso. Jay huffed at him indignantly. “Okay wise guy. Who are you then?”
“I’m the fun uncle of course! Right Kai?”
Zane bounced Kai in his lap, making him laugh and throw his hands up. “See? He agrees.”
Jay scoffed and peeked under the table at Lloyd. “You think I’m fun, right Lloyd?”
“Uh-huh! And good for hugs!”
Jay smiled back at Zane smugly as the other continued to bounce the teammate in his lap. Pixal, who was watching the interaction carefully, turned to Nya and asked her a question quiet enough that Lloyd couldn’t hear. Before he could get closer, movement caught his attention. A small green car zipped under the table, stopping suddenly in front of him. Lloyd gaped at it for a moment before picking it up and crawling out from under the table. Cole was sitting about a foot from the table with a controller in his hand and a smile on his face. Lloyd held up the car and he motioned for him to put it down. When the wheels touched down, Cole drove the car around the kid, stopping to drive donuts or pop a wheelie. He stopped the car in front of himself before motioning Lloyd closer. When the boy was close enough, he settled him into his lap and handed him the controller. “You drive.”
The rest of the morning was spent in the kitchen, Cole playing with Lloyd as Kai and his fire Mario plush were passed around the table at his request. Lunch was uneventful except for Jay burning his mouth and Kai nearly choking from laughing at him. The de-aged ninja were sentenced to an after-lunch nap, which neither protested. Nya woke them up a couple hours later, taking Kai to clean up and leaving Lloyd with his toys. He could hear the shower starting a few doors down and wondered who was showering at the moment. Shaking off the thought, he organized Kai’s toys for him to have for later. He had felt something rough when Kai stuck his finger in his mouth so he put a teething ring on a blanket next to the firefighter squishmallow that he had fallen asleep with. Lloyd himself had been gifted one too, named Dexter if he remembered correctly. He was startled out of his sorting by a yell. “SH- SHOOT! ZANE CAN YOU TAKE KAI AND LLOYD TO YOUR ROOM FOR A MINUTE?”
“Alright! What for?”
The nindroid knocked before opening the door. Lloyd grabbed the teething ring, the squishmallows and his car before following after him. Nya was in the hall with Pixel and Kai, apparently having been on her way to drop him off. They passed by the bathroom on the way. “Cole? Are you alright?”
“Uh, yeah. I just have to…”
“Cole?”
“Walk of shame man.”
Nya and Zane hid their snickers well enough, Cole probably wouldn’t have heard them. Kai, on the other hand, launched into a loud round of giggles, breaking Lloyd’s composure as well. Unknown to them, Pixal narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Zane led the group to his room, taking Kai and ushering Lloyd in. He called over to Cole to let him know that the coast was clear before turning his attention back to the boys. Watching Lloyd pass Kai the ring, he raised an eyebrow. “Is he teething already?”
“I dunno. He put my finger in his mouth and part of his mouth was harder than the rest.”
“Really? Kai, ahh.”
“Ahh?”
“Hmm. Yes I can see them starting to come in. Good work Lloyd!”
“Thank you!”
Zane took a small section of the teether between his fingers, cooling it a bit. Kai automatically adjusted it to soothe the barely there pain on his gums. The two watched Lloyd situate his plush on the car before driving it around the room. Kai grabbed towards his and Zane was quick to pass it to him. He watched over the two for a couple more minutes before there was a knock at his door. Leaning back to open it, he found Cole waiting. His hair was still dripping, and Zane found himself silently thankful that Lloyd ran to him first. Cole was quick to scoop him up and nuzzle into his hair, enjoying the peals of laughter that left him. Zane picked up the remaining toys and brought the group over to the living room to hang out while he started dinner. Cole dangled Kai’s plush toy for him to swat at and let Lloyd drive his car in circles around him. About half an hour later, when Kai curled into his chest and Lloyd was perfecting his donuts, Pixal walked in. She offered to take over, as Jay and Nya were asking for him to test out some of their new training equipment. As Cole left the room, her demeanor changed, making her seem almost unimpressed. Lloyd gave her a smile and waved. “Cut the crap.”
The two boys flinched at the phrase. Lloyd’s smile because one filled with nerves as he tilted his head. “What’re you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that you are faking being mentally children.”
“What?”
“You are pretending. You remember everything.”
“Nuh-uh! I’m only little!”
“Have you nothing to say about this matter, Kai?”
“Ehh?”
“That is all the proof I need. Most of Kai’s behavior suggests that he is four to five months old, but recognition of his name should not occur until at least six.”
The two dropped the act, not seeing a reason to keep it up. Lloyd left his car on the floor as he moved to sit on the couch, motioning for Pixal to sit next to him. When she sat, he dragged Kai over to his lap, letting him look at her with him. “Yeah you caught us. We were trying to put off a lecture so don’t tell the others.”
“I would never dream of it. This is far too entertaining.”
“What?”
“Ah?”
“It is quite amusing seeing Kai enjoy being held. Perhaps I will make a note to do so more often?”
“Hmph!”
“And Lloyd, I’ve heard stories of your childhood and frankly, it is adorable how much of your childlike wonder remains.”
“...Thank you?”
“Besides, this experience seems to be beneficial to both of you. Your acting skills are being tested and, without my extensive knowledge and keen eye, I am sure that I would not have realized.”
“Way to stay modest.”
“I figured it out before Zane and he lives with you. I am allowed to gloat.”
“I guess. What’s the point in bringing it up to us?”
“I would like to use this to my advantage.”
“Of course.”
“Let me finish. I would enjoy having a chance to interact with you. Of course I spend a lot of time with Kai, but I have not had a chance to spend as much time with you as I would have liked.”
“As nice as that is, I feel like there’s something else.”
“...I would also enjoy seeing the others happy. Zane and I are close, but I have never seen him happier than when he was playing with Kai. While I do not know Cole as well, I assume that it is the same with him.”
“I can see what you mean. He always seems happier around kids.”
“And I enjoy seeing you two happy. Your reactions to the situation suggest that the paternal roles your friends have taken would be helpful overall. Perhaps you should let them continue to watch over you.”
Lloyd hummed in thought as he dropped his head onto Kai’s, much to the smaller’s displeasure. He ignored the little hands swinging at his face and regarded the android in front of him. “Promise you won’t tell?”
“As long as I can use babysitting as an out of training.”
“Deal!”
They shook on it before Pixal turned on the tv for them. The moment came to an end hours later with Zane’s call to dinner, after which the two smallest ninja were quickly prepared for and sent to bed. The routine continued in a similar manner for the next two weeks, with only a few major road bumps. In the end though, when they felt the same pain from weeks prior, the two were pleased with how the weeks had gone. Lloyd smiled as Cole smoothed his hair down, humming softly in the hope of soothing his pain. As guilty as should probably feel for playing his friends like he had, he couldn’t bring himself to care. Yawning, he felt Cole’s lips press to his temple. “Sleep well baby bro.”
“‘M not a baby.”
“Sure thing bud.”
Cole ruffled his hair one last time before leaving their leader to sleep. Lloyd glanced at the bottom of the bed before grabbing Minty, his new Thin Mint themed bear, and bringing her to his chest. She smelled just like the advertised cookies and that was what he needed at the moment. Squeezing her tighter, he let his head drop to his pillow and his eyes close.
Morning came like any other morning. Except it was strangely cold. Opening his eyes, Lloyd surveyed his surroundings. He was in his room, which was something that hadn’t happened in a while. The fading headache suggested that the transformation had been finished for a while, so why- Lloyd’s ears turned red as he pulled his comforter up to his chin. Right, he’d gone to bed nude to keep from stretching their clothes. He dislodged the blanket from where it was tucked, pulling it on like the cloak of a traveler on a quest to find some damn boxers. After finding a set of clothes for the day, Lloyd grabbed Minty and trudged out of the room; he and Kai were planning on saying they remembered what happened during the transformation, but didn’t know what was happening at the time.
Tucking Minty under his arm, he turned the corner to find Cole and Jay curled up together on the couch. It wasn’t that much of an uncommon occurrence, so Lloyd wouldn’t feel any remorse for ruining it. “Well well well, if it isn’t Dad and his himbo boyfriend.”
The two spun around, spotting their leader standing in the doorway. “Lloyd!”
“That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”
Cole was quick to pull him in for a hug, holding Lloyd against his side after letting up a bit. “How’re you feeling?”
“Just a little groggy. Could’ve slept for longer but the sun’s up and the blinds were open.”
“Feel that one. Do you remember anything?”
“Bits and pieces right now, but more’s coming back to me.”
“Alright then. I’m gonna check if Zane’s up. This calls for a celebration!”
The remaining ninja chuckled, watching Cole saunter out of the room as he thought with his stomach. Jay watched him fondly, before turning back to Lloyd. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he gestures to Minty. “You know how I am with Mister Cuddlywomp. No one’s gonna judge you for her.”
“I know. Thanks Jay.”
“Good morning Jay, Lloyd.”
Pixal walked past them, clearly having a destination in mind. Lloyd decided to follow her while Jay went to catch up with Cole. She walked up to Kai’s door, opening it enough to slip in. Knowing that Kai had fallen asleep in a similar state to him, he decided not to add this to his growing list of traumas and go elsewhere. He found himself in the kitchen with Cole, Jay and Zane, all of whom had decided to bring out their stuffed animals in a show of support. He had just placed Minty down between Buck, Cole’s gorilla plush, and Uncia, Zane’s snow leopard plush, when a door slammed further in the monastery. Before anyone could say anything, Pixal flew down the hall and out the door, with Kai a handful of steps behind her. While he hadn’t had the foresight to put on underwear before coming out, he at least had a blanket wrapped around his waist, albeit dangerously low. He yelled after Pixal before stomping back to his room, presumably to get changed. Nya had joined in and they were about halfway through their breakfast before Kai came back in, wearing a hoodie and sweatpants and burying his face in his raptor doll. She made room next to her shark, Jaws, for him to put them down, but he pulled them close and boxed them in with his knees. “What happened to you?”
“Pix happened.”
“What? You embarrassed your little girlfriend came to visit and got an eyeful?”
“Are you jealous yours didn’t?”
“As if I trust you enough to bring her here!”
The rest of the table watched the argument play out, refusing to let such good entertainment pass them by. The scene was normal, a constant occurrence, “Besides, my blankets were around my waist. She wouldn’t have seen much anyway.”
“Ooh bro. Your wording for that was just perfect.”
“What? What’d you mea- Nya!”
Yeah. Everything was back to normal.