Chapter Text
They’d been walking for hourssss… at least, according to Arin, who had complained for the third time that minute.
“Arin, I told you,” Lloyd sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We’re probably almost to a stopping point, but for now we need to keep moving through the foliage for our own safety.”
“‘Probably’ and ‘almost’ are the two words I need to hear to know that we are NOT stopping any time soon. My feet are on fire, Lloyd.” Arin threw his head back and groaned again, which only received an eyeroll from the Green Ninja.
This kid COULD NOT be serious.
Arin had fought giant dragons, ran off on his own with an evil manipulator, and survived living by himself for years, but he couldn’t handle walking through the forest. Kids these days are so ungrateful. When Lloyd was a kid, he… Hey, Lloyd thought, this is a good point.
“You’re starting to sound like someone I know when they were younger.” Lloyd continued the slash at the trees with his sword, only occasionally glancing back to see Arin's pouty antics.
“Who’s that?” Arin asked, scrunching his nose. “Kai? Jay, maybe?”
“No,” Lloyd turned to face his student. “Me. You remind me of me.”
Arin frowned at this. “That’s not very nice. You were a little brat as a kid.”
The ex “little brat” was about to get defensive before he realized his student, for the first time in a while, was right.
So, he shrugged as he turned back towards the greenery. “It’s true, Arin. I was pretty whiney before I knew I was the Green Ninja.” He could make another point out of this. “So, my point is, quit being whiney and persevere.” He pointed a finger at him exhaustedly.
Arin crossed his arms dramatically and turned up his nose. He was quiet for a moment, scanning his memory to find any sort of dirt on his master he could use to get under his skin. “At least I didn’t get hung by my hood on top of a fountain after trying to steal candy…”
Arin muttered, but Lloyd heard loud and clear.
A sharp inhale came from the now “legendary Green Ninja” and he stopped dead in his tracks, turning slowly towards his student. “Who told you about that?” He asked through gritted teeth.
Said student let out a hearty laugh as he watched Lloyds face turn pink with embarrassment. “You should totally see your face right now! If you think that's bad, Kai told me about the time you-”
“Kai’s been saying things about me?!” Lloyd sheathed his sword and rubbed his face in his hands, pondering how to absolutely beat up his brother later. “He’s so dead when I see him again…” He grumbled, turning on his heel and storming away from Arin, who quickly started following him in fear of getting lost.
He wasn’t upset that people were sharing embarrassing stories about him, it was moreso the fact that his old life was being talked about, without him there to justify it. Its hard to believe that the now tranquil green ninja freed the Serphentine and wanted to be just like his father at some point.
They continued through the woods for a little while in silence, only occasionally interrupted by Arin’s snorts and giggles and Lloyd's powerful glares. The sun was creeping below the treetops, leaving the two shrouded by the dim canopy as the sky blended into orange.
It wasn't long before Arin started belly laughing again.
“Oh! My favorite story of you was the time-”
“Arin, be quiet.”
“No way! This is hilarious-”
“I’m serious.” Lloyd was hardly whispering as he grabbed his student, ushering him behind a bush.
Arin quickly shut his mouth.
In front of them, not too far away, was a wide open area, occupied by a make-shift shelter of logs and a small campfire pit. There was a bag, presumably full of food, tied up in a tree, and jugs full of water hidden poorly behind some foliage. Off to the left of the camp was a cliffside, heading a few hundred feet down into the forest below. Lloyd removed his sword from the sheath on his back and carefully crept into the clearing, Arin starting behind him.
“No! Stay there!” Lloyd mouthed to his student.
“Heck no! I’m going with you!” Arin voiced, continuing to take steps towards his master.
Lloyd violently gestured for him to stay back, but Arin didn’t listen.
Again, this kid could not be serious.
Lloyd marched back towards him.
“Let me check it out first.” Lloyd gave a slight tug on Arin’s gi, pulling him back behind the bush. “If it's a trap and you get hurt, I’m not forgiving myself.”
Arin pressed his lips together and tapped his foot, giving Lloyd an annoyed stare. “But what if YOU get hurt, and I just stand and watch it happen?”
Lloyd grunted in frustration, placing his hands over his eyes and reeling his head back. “Okay, look. I’ll go out there and check it out, and then I’ll give you the signal if everything is clear. If it is, then we try to camp out there for the night. Sound good?”
No response.
“Arin?” Lloyd opened his eyes.
His student was not there.
The Green Ninja spun around, facing the camp, where Arin was now standing in the center of, hands on his hips with his head cocked sassily, and a dumb grin plastered on his face.
“Get back here!” Lloyd mouthed again, waving frantically for his student to come back.
Arin took a step away.
Lloyd just about lost his mind.
“Nobody is here! I’m fine!”
“We don't know that!” Lloyd growled, eyes darting around the trees and small camp. “Arin, get over here this INSTANT young man!”
The young man took another step back. That didn’t work.
“ARIN.”
He stuck out his tongue in response. He was having way too much fun with this. “Come on in, the water is fine. Nothing's going to happen.” He raised his hands up, glancing around the clearing.
Lloyd waited a few moments, sword unsheathed, pounce position ready, and eyes still searching the camp. When he was almost certain Arin was… right… he slowly stepped towards his student, still not entirely in the camp.
Arin laughed. “See? Told you!”
“Don’t rub it in.” Lloyd rolled his eyes as he put his sword away, still searching the trees for something. Someone.
He still had a terrible feeling they weren't alone.
“Nothing to worry about, Lloyd. We should be o-ACK!”
And suddenly, Arin was tackled by something flying past them.
Lloyd flinched. He could already hear his uncle's disapproving voice in his head.
He watched as Arin and the figure went tumbling down the cliffside beside the campsite.
Scaling a mountain wasn’t particularly what he wanted to do that day. He was, also, very frustrated with Arin, and thought maybe he could save himself.
But that wasn’t a very master-ly way to think, so he found himself racing down the side of the mountain as well.
The guy wrestling Arin had a black mask and cloak over his head, but other than that, he couldn’t get a good look at him. He seemed to be winning the quarrel, as far as Lloyd could tell. Eventually, the three of them stumbled onto a small plateau, where the attacker had swiftly planted themselves on top of Arin. They made sure to pin one of Arin's arms underneath him, and grabbed the other one, holding it down by his head. Before Arin could kick them off, the figure ripped a pocket knife out of the harness on their thigh.
“Nonono!” Arin screamed as they raised the knife.
Lloyd thought okay, now may be a great time to step in.
He snatched the attacker right off Arin as if they weighed nothing, pulling them into his chest. He positioned his sword inches from their neck and moved closer to the edge of the plateau. He felt the attacker struggle against his tight grip (but seemingly changed their mind upon seeing how close they were to the edge).
Arin rocketed to his feet, panting as he rubbed his arm. “What’s your problem?” He hissed at the attacker, who didn’t even glance in his general direction. Instead, they attempted to throw their knife back into Lloyds thigh and missed by a few feet, sending it flying into the mountain.
Arin laughed at the mistake, and only then did the attacker glare at him. “Thanks, Lloyd. You saved my bacon.”
“Don’t mention it.” Lloyd removed himself from them, now that they were unarmed. “Just a random thug, probably.”
The body language of the mysterious mountain-tackling man shifted entirely.
“Wait, Lloyd?!”
They were, in fact, not a man at all. And definitely not “just a thug”.
As they ripped off their hood and mask, snow white hair in long braids fell down to her waist, and red amber eyes immediately darted to Lloyd’s, which seemed to shine being surrounded by the forest. Her pale skin reflected beautifully off the few rays left in the sky, and a smile curled onto her deep scarlet lips.
Lloyd gasped as he met the eyes of the woman he’d longed to see the most after the Merge. “No way…”
Harumi launched herself at Lloyd, wrapping her legs around his torso and burying her face into his shoulder, squealing in delight. The Green Ninja was mimicking this delight, holding her close and spinning in a few circles before leaning back, admiring her once again.
“Wait,” Arin put his hands up and shook his head. “How do you two know each other?”
Lloyd and Harumi then shared a passionate kiss.
“Oh.”
Arin still had a lot to learn about Lloyd’s past. He knew things about Garmadon, Darkly’s Boarding School, and the Golden Ninja, but nothing about a girl.
“It’s so amazing to see you,” Lloyd finally pulled away after many seconds of making Arin very uncomfortable. “Harumi.”
Wait a minute.
“Harumi?” Arin squinted.
She didn’t respond. Her and Lloyd spoke to each other like auctioneers, trying to explain everything and how much they missed each other. They did not acknowledge Arin.
The one who just got shoved down a mountain and was almost stabbed.
“AHEM.” He decided to grab their attention. The lovebirds turned towards him. “Harumi?” He asked again, pointing at her.
She smiled as she dismounted from Lloyd, but linked her arm around his. Arin almost threw up in his mouth. “Yes,” She nodded. “I’m sorry for, um, tackling you.” She laughed, but Arin didn’t find it humorous in the slightest. “I assumed you were trying to steal my things.”
“That camp up there is yours?” Lloyd asked, astonished.
“Yes! I learned to hunt for food and find my own fresh water and-”
Arin could only watch as the two launched into another fast-paced conversation. Completely helpless and shut out. After being the victim. It wouldn’t be the first time Harumi had caused him suffering.
“Holdonholdonholdon,” Arin interrupted. “You’re Harumi. The ex-Jade Princess.”
The princess all of the sudden became very uncomfortable. She nodded, smile faltering, as she tightened her grip on Lloyd's arm. He noticed this, and immediately jumped to her side.
“Uh, y-yes!” He stuttered out. “Yes she is! It’s- ah - a shame what happened to the palace and the rest of the… uh, your parents.”
“Oh, yeah. Yeah, y’know, it sucks. Orphaned again!” She shook her fist.
“Ahah, yeah. Sucks real bad.”
Harumi made an explosion noise with her mouth and chuckled anxiously.
Arin was dumbfounded.
“I’m not stupid!” He cried out. “I was old enough to know the kind of hell you brought to Ninjago. Do you know the amount of people you killed?!”
His voice shook the jungle around them. Harumi's mouth fell open, and Lloyd felt her begin to shudder against him. After a few moments she smiled again, shaking her head. “I, ah…”
Arin mimicked her antics insultingly and then quickly shifted it to a disapproving stare. “I can’t believe this…” He muttered before hiking back up the mountain.
Well.
“That didn't go well.” Lloyd huffed to himself.
“Um,” Harumi backed away from him, staring out off the cliff. “Who… who was that?”
Lloyd watched Arin climb until he saw him pull himself on top of the mountain. “My student. His name is Arin.”
“Arin.” She nodded. “Arin.”
“Yeah.”
Harumi bit her lip hard, trying not to shed any tears. “Y-you have a student, now?”
Lloyd grinned, placing a hand on her shoulder for comfort. “Students, plural. I guess you could call me a master.”
Harumi attempted to laugh, but it came out as a disappointing sigh. “Thats great, Lloyd. I’m happy for you.”
There was silence again. Lloyd carefully removed his hand.
Harumi wanted to run into his arms again and sob, but she had to hold herself together. Truth be told, she had been struggling on her own for the five years since the Merge. She had no answers as to why anything happened, and was left in a state of confusion to fend for herself. He wanted to ask Lloyd a thousand questions, but the words could never form on her mouth. Despite living in fear, she knew that Arin was right about her still.
“Lloyd, he’s right.” She whipped around abruptly, making Lloyd flinch. “You guys should probably just get out of here and leave me be. Pretend you never saw me. I’ve only made things worse.”
The Green Ninja frowned and crossed his arms, but it looked more like he was hugging himself. “Rumi-”
“I don't want to hurt you more than I already have. You need to go…” Her gaze shifted to the floor. “And forget this ever happened.”
He honestly didn't know what to say. Arin had reacted similarly to Lloyd's brothers when he first told them that Harumi was on “their side”. Who were they? Goodness. He was stupid. When told that the man you look up to most has romantic relations with a literal terrorist, it's not easy news. Nor is hearing that said terrorist can apparently be redeemed.
Lloyd always had that strange habit of forgiving people, no matter who they were.
“Are you gone?” Harumi broke the silence.
“No.”
“Damn.”
“I'm not leaving you, Rumi. All we have to do is talk to Arin about everything and then-”
“And then what?” She let out an exasperated laugh. “And then what, Lloyd? He’ll just say, 'Oh, okay, I forgive her!’ and that's that? People aren't as kind and forgiving as you are. I took advantage of your kindness too much, and I can't do it again.”
“You won't."
“We can't be sure of that. Who knows what I’ll do to you again?!” Harumi cried, throwing her arms down, looking as if she wanted to jump off of the plateau and take away all of the problems.
Lloyd stared at her, watching the wind whip her long twin braids to and fro. Shining tears streamed down her porcelain colored skin, making her look straight out a movie.
Lloyd was so in love with her.
But not in the way he originally thought.
He reached forward, grabbing both her hands. “Hey,” He tried to prevent his own tears from tumbling down his cheeks, but what could he do? “You might be scared you could hurt me, but I know that you have the goodness in your heart to, well, not do that.” He laughed.
Harumi wasn't amused.
“You can tell me to leave all you want,” He continued. “But I’m always going to be with you. I can redeem you. Show others your light.” He smiled.
Harumi did not.
"We can be together. You can fight the good fight with us. Give into me, Harumi. Let me help you." He placed his forehead to hers, and the two stood still in the silence. After few moments, Harumi looked up, locking her amber eyes to Lloyds jade.
She only shook her head. “I can’t.” She mouthed.
He had a feeling she would say that.
Lloyd released her hands and gave her a small peck on the cheek, to which she didn't move a muscle to.
“If you change your mind,” Lloyd turned away from her, staring up the mountain. “I’ll be waiting, Rumi. I always have been, and always will be.”
And just like that, he scaled up the mountain, leaving the woman he admired most to watch him leave.