Chapter Text
Lloyd was a sweet tooth, and the whole world knew that.
No, they don’t. Stop being stupid, Lloyd, he thought bitterly, wrapping his arms tightly around the skin and bones of his body, trembling when the cold rain cascaded down on his overly feverish self.
The loose black shirt he was wearing stuck to his skin like glue, and Lloyd winced at the uncomfortable feeling.
He was stupid. So stupid.
Why did he think he could make it to the supermarket before the storm started?
He grasped on harder to the brittle coin in his hand, holding it to his chest and shivering from behind the dumpster.
The dumb market sign lit up in front of him, a cheesy, pug-faced boy grinning at him and waving a hot pie.
Stupid market. Stupid boy. Stupid rain, Lloyd grumbled and shot the pug-faced boy a glare.
He had no idea what he could get for a dollar in the dairy market, he just wanted something.
Lloyd was starving.
He couldn’t recall the last time he ate, or maybe it was just the rain’s effect on his mind.
He marvelled at his luck of finding the coin inches from where he slept, eyes widening with happiness when he woke up.
Lloyd missed Ronin, and the warmth of the egg rolls he had shared with him. He missed Ronin and the delightful snicker he would let out whenever Lloyd made a joke.
He missed Ronin.
Lloyd shouldn’t have let this hurt though, no one ever stays for too long.
He thought about sleeping his misery away, regretting the moment he would wake up to an empty stomach and bile reaching up through his throat, his brain buzzing unpleasantly.
He tilted his back and looked up at the grey thunderous clouds.
“What did I do to deserve this?” He asked, actually curious.
The rain just ran down harder.
He grumbled to himself, snapping his eyes to the store door, when a plump cheerful woman with curly blonde hair and red lipstick bustled out the doorway, the bell chiming gleefully behind her.
She had a wooden crate in her hand, and she was hauling it towards a white truck that beamed through the rain.
The woman set it inside her car, yelping when a small package fell out, and rolled over to where Lloyd was crouching down.
He shrunk back, glimpsing the small carton before it landed lid down.
The woman smiled and walked over to Lloyd, not even noticing him until he grabbed it from the floor and offered it to her, causing her movements to flinch for a second, before her eye softened and she took the pudding (?).
She knelt down, and Lloyd read the small tag on her shirt.
Bessie. Her name was Bessie.
“Hello there, love,” she said softly, cradling the pudding in her hand. “Where’re yer parents?”
Lloyd looked down, refusing to meet her eyes until he felt something soft drape across his shoulders and a plasticy item being pushed into his hands.
He looked up.
Bessie smiled softly, rubbing his back over the thick woollen blanket she had given him, handing him a wooden spoon and nudging the pudding in his hands.
“Eat up, sugar. Unfortunately this is the best I can do for you now,” she was smiling a lot, Lloyd thought. She had a pretty smile.
He nodded and stuttered out a thanks, and Bessie stood up.
“Things will start to look up, pumpkin, just you wait,” she told him, before waving and walking back to her truck.
Lloyd wrapped his hands around the pudding in his hand, and smiled just as brightly as Bessie
had.
It was only when Bessie arrived home, swinging the door shut with her hip and letting down the huge carton in her arms, wiping her forehead when she felt the small weight in her pocket.
Frowning, she reached into her pocket, fumbling around and eyes widening when she felt something.
Dear old Bessie pulled it out, and looked at the object in her palm.
A small, gold coin.
He watched the rain pitter at his window.
The small little essence of the ocean falling sweetly into their home, arriving with waves and celebrations across everywhere until the entire sea rejoiced.
Lloyd smiled, tilting his head from the window, one hand under his chin and the other holding his stomach.
His own body parts have been betraying him lately, he had never ever been so hungry in his life!
Which was astonishing because he had survived much longer periods of time without food than this.
Maybe it was Zane, and the fact that he made sure Lloyd had eaten, and not melted under the severe intensity of the massive ache in his stomach nicknamed hunger.
The ninja robot was making fruit pastries for dessert, after a fulfilling dinner of roast, where Zane had kept some just for Lloyd, kept secretly in front of his door and leaving Lloyd with a stomach full and chest warm.
He didn’t wanna tell Zane he was allergic to strawberries, he just hoped there might be other ones.
He curled up against the window, his hands rubbing circles on his stomach, shivering.
Lloyd didn’t have his jumper (his uncle had to wrangle it out of his hands because it had to be washed), and he was positively freezing.
He was just about to disappear in his bed when the smell of sugary pastry wafted into his room.
His stomach growled and punched him square in the gut, and Lloyd doubled over, gritting his teeth.
A knock on the door distracted him from the heart-wrenching pain in his stomach.
Kai opened the door, not waiting for a reply or an invitation and Lloyd sat back up quickly.
Hell be it if any of them saw his pain.
Kai just sweeped his eyes across the room in displeasure, letting them settle on Lloyd, before his face curled into a look of utmost disgust that made Lloyd want to scream.
“Zane said come out and eat some-,” he broke off with a frown before turning his head outwards.
“Jay! What did Zane make again!?” He yelled out before a familiar voice yelled back.
“Fruit pastries!”
Kai turned back around, and rolled his eyes.
“Fruit pastries. Come on.”
Lloyd stumbled nervously to his feet, watching Kai warily.
He ducked under Kai’s arms and ran towards the kitchen, bursting in through the door and instantly slamming into someone’s stomach.
He heard a ‘watch it lloyd!’ before he tried to get away, only achieving in bumping someone else, and then someone else, and then someone else.
His heart thudded in his chest and he slammed himself against a wall, sighing.
Lloyd looked up and wilted.
Everyone was looking at him. Everyone was looking at him annoyed.
He hated being annoying.
Nya sighed and rubbed her forehead.
“Go back to your room Lloyd, goodness me. I’ll bring you a pastry if you’re that hungry.”
Lloyd felt his stomach twist.
Nonetheless, he stalked back into his room, ignoring Kai who sticks his tongue out at him.
Twisting himself in his blanket, Lloyd sits on the bed facing the closed door.
And waits.
And waits.
And waits.
And waits.
But the pastry never comes.
And Lloyd wanted to throw up.
Nya’s hand was a pleasant cool against the warmth of his own palm.
They walk through the marketplace and Nya reads out the groceries from a small piece of paper in her hand.
Lloyd’s arm strains from the heavy bag he’s holding, but he doesn’t say anything and continues on with her through the bustling market.
His eyes are everywhere, at the people, at the food, at the sky, at the birds.
He wanted to capture everything and anything.
(Everything and anything except the hateful glares he gets from the people).
The pebbles looked so smooth, the smell in the air smelled so good, the fruits look fresh, the music sounds so-
Music?
He twisted his head towards the sound, his eyes sparkling at the sight of an brightly coloured ice cream truck, letting out cheery sweet tinkling music.
Lloyd gasped in excitement.
“Don’t even think about it,” Nya said, her eyes looking everywhere except him. “You’re lucky we’re letting you stay with us. We don’t need you wasting our money as well.”
Oh.
Lloyd shoved his fingers into his gut, willing the pain to go away.
Nya licked her ice cream cone.
The sun was scorching, and Lloyd felt like he was dying.
Jay groaned beside him, and Kai squeezed his hand.
A mission gone wrong had all of them (Lloyd, Jay, Kai and Zane) stuck in the desert, awaiting Nya and Pixal’s assistance.
Unfortunately, the girls did not know of their location and the nearest gas station was approximately 15 kilometres away (according to Zane).
Which would lead them into the night, and Lloyd couldn’t wait.
He lied he wished it was hot again.
Lloyd shivered near the fire, bringing his hands closer.
Kai and Zane were trying to make a meal out of what they had left, some meat, some vegetables. Soup?
Lloyd was starving.
The smell was getting stronger in the wind, and his stomach growled.
He smiled at the opportunity of getting something to eat after days of not.
The little Garmadon didn’t want to seem too desperate though.
But he frowned after hearing Jay’s complaints of being ‘starved’ and the hopes of getting a good meal.
Lloyd looked around at the number of people and winced, before standing up and huffing to where Zane was preparing the bowls.
“Here,” he murmured, smiling when Zane did. “Let me.”
The metal man nodded and set on working on the fire.
Lloyd waited until they all were busy, before slowly and carefully splitting his portion into equal portions for the others.
He didn’t need it, and besides the Ninja needed the extra energy.
Lloyd just hoped he could last a little longer.
The morning sun was scorching and a constant burden upon their shoulders.
Lloyd huffed and puffed and ignored the black spots bouncing in his vision.
Only when did it all go black for a moment did he stumble to a pause.
His stomach was eating itself and Lloyd reckoned if he didn’t swallow something soon, it would start eating his heart too.
“Z-Zane..?” He spoke up, his voice cracking.
The ninja turned around wearily, and gulped.
“What’s the matter, Lloyd?”
Lloyd eyed the other ninja who all glared daggers at him.
He swallowed his fear.
“Do you have something to eat..?”
Zane frowned, and Jay rolled his eyes, leaning over to whisper something in Kai’s ears.
Lloyd felt bile reach into his throat.
“Here..”
Zane reached his hand out with a crisp apple between his fingers.
“You can have this okay?”
Lloyd nodded thankfully and took it with trembling hands.
He figured this would last him a couple of days, and moved to take a bite.
Greedy, Jay whispered.
Greedy, Kai whispered.
Greedy, Lloyd whispered.
The apple stayed uneaten in his pocket and he trudged onwards.
When they made it to the gas station, both Jay and Kai had run up inside, looking frantically for the other ninja.
Nya was at the counter on her laptop, eyes furrowed but lightening up when Jay all but fell into her arms.
“Jaybird!” She laughed and kissed his sweaty head, before conjuring out like ten water bottles out of nowhere, and chucking them to all the others.
Kai was sweating profusely (him being the fire elemental had major heat problems on his body), and getting lightheaded but he twisted his head back and forth to find Cole.
His vision swam and he felt his knees buckle.
Cole stumbled out of the room behind the cash register, eyes fixated on a map he was attempting to decode.
There were major bags under his eyes and his face looked too drawn out and frail.
But one look at Kai had him abandoning all work and sprinting.
He caught the fire elemental when he fell, and pressed kiss after kiss on his face.
“Darling, you’re burning up too much!” He looked desperately around, his eyes glazing over Lloyd.
“Nya, water?”
Nya shook her head with a frown, she didn’t have any left.
Cole stared down at the boy in his arms, who panted gently.
Suddenly, a cold bottle was pressed into his hand and he flinched.
Lloyd gave him a small worn out smile.
Cole sighed and took it, using the water inside to wash Kai’s face.
Lloyd backed away, using his fingernails to cut into his stomach.
They were going home, so he could eat something later.
At least, he thought they were going home.
Nobody predicted the attack.
It wasn’t their best either, the Serpentine had taken them entirely by surprise.
Kai was down, Jay was recovering and Lloyd wasn’t helping at all.
By miracle they were able to make it out before anything terrible happened, but now they were back at the start.
Pixal would get here in the morning, so that meant they had to survive the night.
But without rations?
Zane had only distributed the rations for a certain number of nights, and the number had run out already.
And now there were MORE of them.
Nobody was complaining, but Lloyd could tell.
Kai needed food if he wanted to survive, but there was nothing to give him.
Well, almost nothing.
“Zane..” Lloyd tugged on Zane’s sleeve.
The metal man looked down tiredly, one hand resting on Kai’s forehead in replacement of a cloth.
The fire elemental’s brow was furrowed, pain reciting its name in all of his features.
Lloyd bit his lip, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the apple.
Zane’s eyes widened.
“Lloyd, you didn’t eat it?” He asked, demanded.
Lloyd shook his head, then placed it in Zane’s hand.
“Maybe you could split it..? Or..or give it to K-Kai?”
Zane’s gaze flickered between him, the apple and the boy in his arms.
He pursed his lips.
“Lloyd.. You know you haven’t eaten anything right? Don’t think I didn’t see you sharing your portion of the soup to the others.”
The little ninja froze like a deer in headlights.
He didn’t think Zane would’ve seen.
Don’t get him wrong, Lloyd was starving like an animal.
But he didn’t need it, and it was wrong of him to ask for it in the first place.
“I’m okay, Zane,” he whispered.
“But Kai isn’t.”
Zane shut his eyes and sighed.
Then he took the apple.
And as Lloyd watched the people around him take little bites of the apple he had saved, a warm feeling grew in his stomach and cut off the aching hunger that never left.
Lloyd was happy. But he was also dying.
He just hoped that maybe this time,
he could die happy.