Archive of Our Own ^beta

“And I do not mean to doubt you or to keep repeating the point, but you are all sure you do not need our help today?” Pixal asked as they were going out.

“Pix, nooooo,” Nya whined, her hand tightening around Pixal’s as she tried tugging her girlfriend out the door of the monastery. “They’re all big boys, they can take care of themselves!”

Pixal gave her girlfriend a fond smile. “I was merely asking because-”

“We’ll be fine, Pix,” Lloyd assured her from where he was sitting on the step surrounding the training courtyard. “Kai and Zane are on patrol, so if anything happens, they’ll know right away. Jay is down in the garage, working on the new surveillance system, and I think…” 

There was a loud bang followed by increasingly panicked noises coming from the kitchen. Pixal thought she could see the smoke start to filter into the main atrium.

"“Yeah, Cole’s in the kitchen." Lloyd grimaced at them, not even bothering to look back at the chaos behind him. "Run. Save yourselves.” 

Nya snickered behind her. 

“Enjoy the cookies Zane and Kai made for you because the rest of us are probably eating cereal tonight,” Lloyd added, nodding to the picnic basket clutched in Nya’s other hand.

“We will!” Nya said with a smile before glancing at her girlfriend. “But…Pix is right, if you need us-”

“Just go!” Lloyd chuckled, shooing them with his hands. “Have fun!”

The pair of women smiled, first at Lloyd, then at each other, and turned to go down the steps of the monastery, hand in hand, eager to start their date.

“Does this seem like an adequate spot?” Pixal asked, gesturing to a grassy area under a tree with enough shade to keep them cool in the summer heat. From all of her research, and she had done a lot of research for today, it seemed like a good spot to sit and partake in a meal. The Ninjago city park was peaceful today. A few joggers, a couple new parents with their babies, a dog or two… and the sky was crystal blue. They couldn’t have asked for a better day for their date.

“Yeah, it’s perfect,” Nya agreed. “Here, c’mon help me set up…”

Nya let go of her hand to set down the picnic basket and pull out the blanket they’d brought, fluffing it up in the air.

Pixal hesitated for a moment, her hand closing around the now-empty space between her fingers. They didn’t often get to go on official dates like this, despite being in a relationship with each other for a while now. They were both so busy all of the time keeping Ninjago safe that it was simply hard to find the time to devote to romance. When Pixal had confessed her feelings to Nya, she had been worried that the other woman would expect more than she knew how to give.

It was an odd feeling when she was so sure about everything else in her life.

Nya was so cool, so smart, so, so beautiful. Pixal only wanted to give her the best.

Being a good fit for Nya was something she had worried a lot about. But she hadn’t needed to worry at all. Nya was pretty casual about the entire relationship and let her actions speak rather than her words, which was something Pixal could understand. They spent a lot of time together now, moved into each other’s rooms, and even tried making out a few times when they had privacy. (Pixal found she really liked doing that with Nya.) Any dates they went on were small and low-pressure; such a contrast to their action-packed lives. They were both such practical women, it only made sense for their dates to be to both of their tastes. They could be romantic in their own ways, even if they weren't traditional.

“I like that dress on you,” Nya said, looking up at Pixal from where she was trying to get the blanket to behave. Pixal didn’t think she was imagining the blush on Nya’s cheeks. “Purple always was your color.”

Pixal blushed too, looking down at herself and the lilac, flower-printed romper she was wearing. Cole had purchased it for her as an activation-day present, and while she didn’t get a lot of chances to actually wear it, she really did love the way it made her feel.

“Thank you,” she said softly, coming over to help Nya with the blanket. “I think you look lovely too, my dearest. I believe red suits you.”

And it was the truth. Nya looked stunning in her soft red and gold yukata, wrapped around her like she was some kind of goddess of beauty. She had even done her eye makeup to match, and she had worn the scarlet lipstick that Pixal loved so much. (She was pretty sure she would be wearing it later too if the date went well.) 

Nowadays, Nya was usually in some shade of teal or gray, denoting her position as the Master of Water, but as she’d told Pixal in the Samurai X cave that day…red was kind of her thing. 

Nya gave her a small, but satisfied, smile. “Thank you…It’s such a shame Kai stole the color from me,” she chuckled to herself as they finally smoothed out the blanket and Nya placed the basket in the direct center. 

“I don’t believe anyone can steal a color,” Pixal tried to say easily, opening the basket to retrieve their tubs of food. Pixal, of course, did not have to eat, but Zane was slowly converting her to the idea that food was meant to be enjoyable, not necessarily just for fuel for cells. “You should wear what you wish, as long as it makes you happy.” She handed Nya the plastic tub of freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies, which her girlfriend took with sparkling dark eyes.

“I never did ask you…what made you choose blue for Samurai X? I mean there has to be a reason, and please don’t tell me it’s Jay,” she joked.

Pixal halted, her hand still inside the basket. She recognized that she shouldn’t feel shame or embarrassment for the truth. This was her girlfriend after all, the woman she loved. But a part of her, the irrational, creative part, hesitated as the blush receptors in her cheeks turned up.

“Oh my gosh!” Nya gasped with a hysterical smile. “Is it because of Jay?! Should I be jealous?!” She was teasing, but Pixal felt her fans kick on at the fluster.

“No!” Pixal said, perhaps a little too quickly, her systems flooding with error messages. “I…It was because the color reminded me of you,” she murmured quietly, finally taking the kimchi out of the basket. “All of it was a tribute…a tribute to you, and your time as Samurai X. You inspired me. You always inspire me.”

When she chanced a look over at Nya, the other woman’s eyebrows curved up, surprised but not displeased. Touched, maybe.

“You were the water ninja already at that point and…in taking that new role, you adopted blue as well. I had planned to keep Samurai X red for many reasons, but when you suggested another color. The answer was obvious. You were everything I wanted to be as a hero. You built yourself from the base up, determined to help the people you care about. That was all I wanted to do. Make my own life for myself and be of help to your mission…I’ve…well, I’ve admired you for a long time, Nya. Long before we had a chance to truly meet and become friends.” Pixal’s lips curved up into a smile.

“Oh, Pix…” Nya said softly before reaching across and grasping her girlfriend’s hand. “You don’t have to be me to be Samurai X. You’ve taken what I created and made it so much more than it ever was. You are Samurai X now. You are the hero everyone looks up to. You help us so much, and you still have enough energy to protect the people of Ninjago. You’re amazing, Pixal…”

“Thank you,” Pixal’s smile softened. “I do know that though Samurai X may be your creation but it is my identity to shape now that I have taken on the mantle. I have spent some time in the role, and I believe, now that I am not hiding who I am, it is time to truly make the role my own. I actually have a purple suit I am developing right now if you are curious to see the work when we get back to the monastery.”

Nya’s eyes lit up and she squeezed Pixal’s hand. “I would love to, Pix. What are you using to make it? Just reinforced metal for the armor or…”

“The underlying suit is nylon and cotton, but the armor is a new synthetic material my father developed. It is just a prototype for now, but I think the compounds are promising.” She grinned at her girlfriend who hung onto every word she spoke. 

Becoming the de-facto engineer in a group full of inventors and machinists made sense for Pixal. She had the knowledge and the resources to create anything they could possibly need… but it was also nice to be able to talk with someone else about her interests. 

Zane understood certain things, but his own hobbies leant more towards nature and cooking than tinkering. If he knew anything about machines it was mostly out of necessity so he could fix himself mid-fight or tell them if something was amiss with his body. 

Jay was…creative, but he lacked a certain kind of organization and focus that Pixal found essential to efficiency. He was more of a whirlwind in the garage, even if Pixal had to give him credit for more than a few seemingly-impossible but brilliant designs.

But Nya…

Nya understood her like no one else. Not as a Nindroid assistant, but as a person. They could bond over their shared passion for engineering. Nya would come to her with ideas they could work on together. They both strove for perfection and exceptionalism. They both had the same sense of justice. They wanted to help not only the ninja, but the people of Ninjago.

Nya was special to her like no one else was. Nya was her best friend and her lover, wrapped up into one person, and Pixal counted herself lucky that they had been fortunate enough to find each other in this life…

She loved Nya…so much.

Pixal opened her mouth to tell her girlfriend just that, but was interrupted by a BOOM that shook the ground they were sitting on. 

They, and all the people in the park around them, paused what they were doing and looked in the direction the sound had come from. Much like their kitchen, plumes of smoke were starting to drift into the air from a few streets down. Around them, people started to murmur, voicing their concern and fear. 

Pixal looked up towards the tops of the buildings, and thought she saw a flash of red and white jump from one of the roofs to another skyscraper, headed in the direction of whatever was going on.

“Nya, I know you wanted to go on a picnic, but should we…?” Pixal asked, turning to her girlfriend.

Nya sighed, a rueful smile playing on her lips as she gazed at the smoke. “Yeah, probably…Can you call the mech?”

Pixal sent a message to her suit, putting it on autopilot and locking it into their location. “It’s on the way, along with your gi.”

Nya spitefully grabbed one of Zane’s cookies and shoved it into her mouth, chewing angrily. “Can’t bad guys take a break? I’m busy!”

Pixal chuckled. “I’m afraid not, Dearest.”

“Can I at least get my end of date kiss?” Nya asked with a smirk, wiping the crumbs off of her face.

Pixal looked down the street to where she could start to see flames and chunks of ice spilling into view. She smiled knowingly. “I think they can handle it for a little while longer…”

Nya didn’t need to be told twice apparently, and leant over into Pixal’s space, taking her girlfriend’s face into her hands, and kissed her enthusiastically.

Pixal smiled into the kiss, her arms wrapping around Nya’s waist and pulling her closer as Nya’s lips explored the familiar territory of her own mouth, pressing and caressing in equal measures. She was so soft…she smelled so nice… Pixal ran her fingers through Nya’s hair, let down out of its usual ponytail, and Nya hummed happily. Pixal sighed softly into Nya's mouth when Nya's thumb caressed her cheek.

People around them still sounded concerned, but they were both in their own little world for the moment, wrapped in each other’s arms…until a second BOOM reverberated through the city.

They both pulled back, and Nya looked a little annoyed but resigned. “We should probably go, huh…?”

“I think that would be wise, yes.”