Chapter Text
Barely four hours ago, Nya had lost the only family she’d ever known.
She hadn’t seen them and the Destiny’s Bounty get destroyed, but she definitely heard it. The deafening crunch that had stolen her father and older brother from her would haunt her for the rest of her days, she was sure. The moment kept playing over and over again in her head; she’d been steering herself and her aunt down a canal when the sound echoed throughout the tall buildings of the city. They’d shared a worried look, but continued their search for Lloyd.
He was quiet when he landed on their little boat, only telling them the news; some giant stone creature had crushed the Destiny’s Bounty, with the other ninja and Wu on it. He stared into the water of the canal, unable to say anything else. Misako stayed quiet at his side for a moment, before suggesting they find a place to hide for the night. Lloyd was still weak, and she was still sore from the fight against Garmadon. They couldn’t risk anything tonight. Nya reluctantly agreed. She wanted to search for the others, but her aunt had a point.
Now the three of them sat in a small warehouse in a relatively quiet part of the city. It had taken quite a while to get here, with all the hiding and sneaking about they’d had to do, and running into Pixal along the way. The Nindroid was currently sitting outside, insistent on keeping watch because unlike them, she did not need sleep.
Nya figured it was a lie to cover up that she probably couldn’t sleep at the moment. She didn’t think she could get to sleep herself, the crunch of the Bounty being destroyed, the scene Lloyd had briefly described still playing in her mind. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t known at the time just what that noise was. Her brother and father dying. The only people in her family she’d known her whole life, gone. Lloyd had only just thrown Wu to the ninja as well… not that Nya blamed Lloyd for her father being there, or being dead . He was only trying to save him after all….
No, the only people to blame for this were Garmadon and Harumi. Her blood boiled at the thought of them. She liked to tease Kai about his temper sometimes, but really, it was a trait she shared as well. She’d always had a difficult relationship with Garmadon, her uncle, but now… she wished he’d stayed dead. Nya could only imagine how poor Lloyd felt; that was his father after all.
Glancing over towards where he was laying in a corner on the opposite side of the room, Nya saw Misako still with him, his head in her lap. Nya had kept her distance from them, wanting space to think about what had happened. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but saw Misako gently running her fingers through Lloyd’s hair, comforting her son. She watched for a bit, thinking of how Wu might comfort her, if he was still here, and also not a toddler. Or how Kai would do it.
How would her other parents comfort her…? They’d only been back in her life for a year now, and she still felt awkward around them, like they were strangers. Up to then, they had been strangers to her, she barely remembered them. Part of her wondered if she’d feel this distraught and awful if it had been them who’d been on the Bounty instead of Wu and Kai. Not even a second after the thought crossed her mind, she pushed it aside, horrified that she’d even think that. Of course she’d still feel awful if they died! She only just got them back, and it wasn’t their fault they’d been gone! She huffed, disgusted with herself, and leaned back against the wall she was sitting in front of. She wasn’t sure when her lip had started trembling, but she was glad Misako was too focused on a half-asleep, weakened Lloyd, to notice, and that Pixal was outside. She’d probably cry if they said anything about it to her, and Nya hated crying.
At some point in the night, she must have dozed off, because she was awoken with a start by a quiet voice beside her a few hours later.
“Nya?”
Opening her eyes, Nya looked to her left to see her aunt crouched beside her, her wrinkled face full of worry. She saw Lloyd asleep on the floor where he’d been laying earlier. Misako’s green bandana wasn’t around her neck; Nya guessed he must be using it and his hood as some kind of makeshift pillow.
“Y-yeah?” Nya asked with a yawn, rubbing her eyes. The back of her neck felt stiff.
“I’m sorry to wake you, dear,” Misako said quietly. “But… that didn’t look comfortable. And I wanted to check on you.”
Nya looked away. How was she supposed to respond to that?
“I know this is difficult.” The girl wanted to scoff at that, but Misako was close to the Ninja, too. And Wu had been her best friend for many years. She did know. “But we should get in contact with Ray and Maya, let them know-”
“Know what?” Nya shot back, not meaning to sound as snappy as she did. She winced. “Sorry, just… what am I supposed to say? That I’m fine, but Kai and Dad are… I… I can’t -” Her voice wavered the more she spoke, so she stopped, squeezing her eyes shut in an attempt to prevent any tears from forming. She knew it, she knew she’d cry, damn it. The sympathetic look Misako gave her only made her feel worse.
“Nya,” her aunt said, sitting down and gently placing a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “I know if I were one of them, I’d be glad to know that at least one of you were alive. It’s still sad and awful, but it’s better than believing everyone to be dead.”
“...How are we going to call them…?” Nya asked, her voice small. She did want to talk to them, hear their voices. Have them comfort her, like Misako had comforted Lloyd. Lloyd had his mother, and Nya… she felt so alone in this grief. She would have really liked one of Ray’s tight, warm hugs, or even Maya’s overbearing methods of cheering her up. She’d probably squeeze her tight, and make her a hot chocolate or cup of tea before she could say no. But they weren’t here. Neither were Wu and Kai. It was just Nya.
“Well…” Misako looked sheepish. “I don’t see a phone in here anywhere, but… I’m sure breaking and entering could be considered acceptable in a situation like this. But, in the morning. I doubt they’re awake at this hour, and you need sleep too.”
“I’m fine.”
Misako gave her a knowing look. “Nya, I was there at that fight. And then you used your powers on the boat. I know helping Lloyd weakened you all. And now… Some proper sleep will do you good. At least try, please.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll get some sleep soon. I’m sorry for not checking up on you sooner. With Garmadon back, and everything that's happened... I didn’t want to leave Lloyd.”
“It’s okay, I get it. Thank you, Aunt Misako.”
“It’s alright. Pixal’s still keeping watch, she said she’ll wake us if anything happens. You don’t have to worry about anything, just try and get some sleep. Even just laying down with your eyes closed can be helpful. Less painful than sleeping against the wall, too."
Nya nodded; she was feeling a bit drowsy now that all the adrenaline from this long and exhausting day had worn off. The floor was hard and cold, but she’d slept in worse conditions. Misako was right, it was much more comfortable than leaning against the wall. She bid her aunt goodnight before removing the top layer of her gi, bundling it up to use as a pillow.
She didn’t get much sleep that night. What little sleep she did manage to get was filled with dreams of her father and brother.