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Lloyd entered the monastery humming happily, he lightly tapped the pockets of his jacket, feeling the corners of the little box he just picked from the store. He smiled and made his way to the wooden planks of the hallways in his home—he sat down, the roof now giving him shade from the burning rays of the sun.
He got the small white package out of his pocket and stared at it, his hands fidgeting it, as he inspected its exterior for the 20th time today. He is planning on asking for your hand in marriage, you've been together for a while and after being through so much with him—he wanted to finally be able to call you his bride, his...wife.
The mere idea of that scared the hell out of him but he knew there wasn't anybody else who he'd rather be with. He smiled as he opened the small box and saw the ring he had chosen, a delicate diamond ring. It shined brighter with the daylight hitting the small stone in the middle, he kept moving the box side to side almost as if to examine the ring even though he already knew that was the correct one.
He closed the small box with a snap, and as he put it back in his pocket—the monastery doors opened loudly. His head whipped at the sound, seeing his brothers yet no sign of neither Nya nor you. Zane was the first to notice the blond sitting outside and smiled at him. In seconds, the others noticed him as well and immediately went to bother the poor man.
"Hey Greenie! Enjoying the sun?" Kai asked playfully as he sat down next to him and put his arm around his shoulders, Lloyd rolled his eyes but couldn't help the smile that formed in his face.
"Sorry for missing patrol today" Lloyd said looking at all his brothers, "Nothing bad happened?"
"No, everything was actually quite calm" Zane responded with a nod
"Typical criminals, no overpowered ones just yet" Cole added as he crossed his arms
"Don't say that! You'll jinx us" Jay laughed as he lightly nudged the earth ninja
"But anyway, where were you dude? Is everything okay?" Kai asked, his tone concerned
"Yes, everything's fine but..." Lloyd hesitated as he felt the box in his hand inside the pocket, "Actually I want you guys's opinion on something"
Everybody stared at the green ninja curiously as he got the box out and showed them. Their faces turned from curiosity into surprise,
"Is that a—" before Zane could finish his question the other three jumped in,
"A WEDDING RING?!" the others shouted in shock
Lloyd's cheeks flushed as he whisper shouted "Not so loud!"
"Don't worry, she's not here anyway—she's with my sister" Kai smirked, his hand rubbing his younger brother's shoulder
"Let us see the ring!" Jay added excitedly, the others nodding with him
He opened the small package, the others gazed at the ring that sat in the middle, "It's beautiful, Lloyd" Zane assured with a smile
"Our little boy is growing up" Kai said dramatically as he hugged Lloyd, still sitting down. Causing the others to laugh at the scene that kept unfolding, "One day he's obsessing over candy and the next he's gonna propose" the brunet haired man continued as Lloyd kept laughing and trying to pry himself away from the hug.
"But in all seriousness, we’re happy for you dude" Cole chimed
"Yeah! When are you planning on proposing?" Jay asked, Kai finally letting go of his brother to let him answer
"I'm not sure yet, I was thinking of asking her on our anniversary next month" he replied as he snapped the box shut; the others simply nodded in support of the idea.
"Well, I hope you can keep this secret that long" Zane chuckled
"Don't go spilling the beans" Kai teased as he poked his brother's cheek
"I won't" Lloyd laughed as he lightly slapped his brother's hand away and put the box back in his pocket
"Spill the beans about what?" You asked, everybody's eyes turned to both Nya and you
"Uhhh—when did you get here?" Cole asked, perplexed as he nor did the others hear neither of you enter the monastery
"Like about a few seconds ago" Nya replied shrugging as she walked over to Jay to give him a kiss in the cheek
"Did you enjoy the new coffee place?" Zane inquired with a smile, both you and Nya excitedly smiled back
"Oh absolutely, you all should go when you get the chance, it was really good" You stated happily
"Why do you both have bags?" Jay asked staring at his girlfriend's hand and at yours that held a small black plastic bag
"We just did a small stop" Nya winked at you, making you chuckle—as she saw the confused look in Jay's face she just shrugged "Just girl things"
"So...what were you guys talking about?" You asked, the others shifted uncomfortably while they thought on what to say
You stared at all of them confused as they all looked at each other, there was an unexpected pause of silence and unspoken panic in their faces.
"We uhh..." Kai started "We were talking about..." he looked at the others to chime in and help him
"Wu! Yeah, we were talking about Wu!" Jay beamed, a few sweat droplets falling from his forehead
Both Nya and you stared at the others in a dumbfounded manner as Jay shrugged and Kai stared daggers onto him.
"Uhhh...why were you guys talking about Sensei Wu?" Nya's tone displaying confusion
"And why 'spill the beans'?" You asked, putting the sentence in air quotes
"We wanted to try Sensei's tea, the one he always drinks!" Zane chirped, in an attempt to save themselves from digging a deeper hole
"Yeah, so we grabbed a package but he doesn't know" Lloyd added, he felt his heart was going to leap out as he tried to go along with the lie
Nya and you looked at each other still confused by the situation but decided to drop it, "Okay" you dragged the word, "Glad your 'Tea Heist' was successful" you teased, the others relaxed their shoulders as you both half-believed the lie
"Well I'm gonna go and put this down" Nya said, shaking a bit the bag she carried and nodding to the door as she looked at you. You went alongside her and kept walking together to your respective rooms, the others stared at the two of you until you vanished from hearing range and eyesight.
"That was a little too close" Lloyd sighed
"Yeah" Kai started, he pat his shoulder "Good luck preparing Wu's tea" Kai snickered, just to earn a nudge to his side from the blond and laughter from everyone else
...
The days passed quickly, and the date for Lloyd's proposal kept getting closer and closer. It was hard for him to hide his excitement and there were a few close calls to you seeing the ring but thankfully it didn't happen.
He thought everything was going to be smooth sailing until that day, but of course even on days when there is peace in Ninjago, there's always something bound to go sideways.
· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·
Lloyd ruffled around his bag, nothing
"Where is it?" He muttered to himself as his search became more frantic, it got to the point he just opened the bag fully, flipped it and shook it so it would empty itself and all the stuff inside would fall on his bed.
He moved and stared at all the stuff on top of his blanket: notebook, pencils, gloves from his ninja gi, random receipts he doesn't even remember getting, a few coins, gum, headphones—everything except...fuck.
"It's not here" he whispered as he stepped back, he whipped around and expanded his search onto his desk, looking thoroughly in every drawer, moving everything out of the way to find that damn box.
"It's not here either" his tone was more exasperated, he quickly turned into his closet, maybe he left it in one of his jacket pockets?
He pat every single pocket and still, nothing
He stepped back and stood in the middle of his room, rubbing his temple as he tried to retrace his steps on where he could have put it. As he tries to remember, his door swings open, his eyes shoot to the culprit and there Jay stood.
"Hey—Whoa, what the hell happened here?" Jay asked as he stared at the mess that laid on top of his bed and his desk, he even saw a green jacket lying on the ground. Lloyd made his way to him, he quickly took a peek outside and because he didn't see anyone in the hallway—he grabbed Jay, pulled him inside his room and closed the door.
"I need your help, it's important" he urged the blue ninja as he held his shoulders, a panicked look on the blond's face
"Uhh yeah of course, what's wrong? You okay?" His tone worried, Lloyd swallowed
"I lost it" He said as his head hung low, Jay became even more confused
"It?" Jay inquired poking at his sentence
"The ring!" He whisper-shouted as he lightly shook his brother's shoulders, "I thought it was in my bag but it's not there, I checked everywhere!" His hands flew to his face, as he became increasingly frustrated
A small 'Oh' was the only thing Jay could muster but he became determined to help Lloyd out. "Don't worry, I'll help you out" he pat sympathetically on his younger brother's shoulder.
And so the Operation: Find The Missing Ring began.
Jay and Lloyd basically recruited the rest of their siblings and went on a hunt for the wedding ring. They had to ask Pixal for her help to convince you to go out so they could check every single room thoroughly, thankfully you agreed and you went on a 'girls date'.
Now they just have the mission to find the ring,
how hard can it be?
...
It didn't take long for the ninja's search inside the monastery to become a frenzy with every single one searching every nook and cranny of the place. Kai had taken the courtyard/training area, searching under the wooden planks and the places where they kept the training equipment. Cole volunteered and helped check the lounge, he would throw the couch cushions over his head and get on the floor to see under the sofa.
Zane went to examine the kitchen, opening every single cupboard, seeing nothing more than food, he even rummaged inside the fridge and the oven because you never know. Jay went down the elevator to the hangar bay to see if maybe Lloyd had left the box inside one of the vehicle compartments for some reason. Nya frantically ran searching for the ring inside each of the ninja's bedrooms, including Sensei Wu's room, thankfully he wasn't home at that moment so he didn't have to see her comb through his stuff.
Finally, Lloyd was left the task to search the room of scrolls, he knew putting each scroll back in its respective place was going to be hell but the mission of finding the ring is more important.
As Kai laid on the ground, a small fire in one of his fingers serving as a light, he heard the monastery doors open. His eyes shot to the entrance and saw Sensei Wu walking inside, they made eye contact making the older man twist his face into confusion as he saw his student laying on the cold hard ground, definitely not an exercise he taught him.
"Hey Sensei!" Kai stood up, shaking his hands on top of his clothes from any dust that may have clang onto him
"What are you doing?" He inquired as his student came closer
"We're on a search mission" the fire ninja responded, "Lloyd misplaced the wedding ring, I was actually wondering if maybe you had seen it" he asked, hopeful that maybe this hunt will end
"Oh, I'm afraid I haven't seen it" he shook his head side to side apologetically making his student sigh defeatedly "Are the others also searching?" He asked as he looked around seeing nobody else out here
"Yeah, all of us are helping Lloyd in this mission" he replied rubbing the back of his neck, the bearded man pat on his shoulder and gave a sympathetic smile
"Good luck on the search" he wished before walking off to his room
"Thanks, we're gonna need it" he said exasperatedly,
"Now where the hell did this ring go?" He muttered to himself as he made his way to check the 'hiding spots' for the third time
· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·
"We've checked everywhere!" Jay tiredly exclaimed as he laid on top of the wooden planks, his hand wiping sweat off his forehead, Zane offered cold water bottles to everyone which they took immediately.
"There's clearly something we're missing" Zane sighed, Lloyd's finger tapping on the water bottle in thought
"You sure you don't remember anything?" Kai asked the man who kept pacing back and forth, still in a panic. Lloyd shook his head in a 'no', making everybody sigh tiredly at the prospect of this mission not being over.
"I only remember that I moved it when she was close to finding it but I don't remember where I put it" Lloyd rubbed his temple, silently cursing himself for his sudden amnesia.
"At this point we might have to call Neuro" Nya joked as she sipped from her water bottle. Kai, Jay and Lloyd looked at her in a 'that's not a bad idea'
"Isn't he far from here?" Cole asked as he scrunched his nose
"Yes, he's also spending time with his family so it's best not to bother him" Zane answered as he crossed his arms, his finger tapping on his arm in thought
As the others fell into silence, thinking and theorizing on places the ring could be found in—the monastery doors opened. Pixal and you walked inside side by side, laughing about something the others didn't quite catch.
"Hey!—Woah what happened to you guys?" As you stared at them, they all looked as if they had fought battles in your absence, and who knows maybe they have.
They all stared at you and at each other, Nya was the first to answer "We were training" she shrugged
"Oh, thought you might have relaxed today considering it's you guys's day off" you answered surprised, typically all they do these kinds of days is just play video games or go into the jacuzzi
"Yeah well, good never rests" Kai answered, flexing one of his arms
"Yeah yeah, but take it easy" you shake your head with a smile
"Did you both have fun?" Zane asked, smiling as he sees his lover
"We had a great time, we should do it more often" Pixal puts her hand on your shoulder as she smiles. Chuckling, you nod whilst returning the smile.
"Well I'm gonna go and take a shower" you put your hand on your lover's shoulder and kiss him on the cheek, as you walk away the others are left wondering how the hell are they gonna search for this ring now?
"You still haven't found it?" Pixal asked, looking at the others. They all groan simultaneously and sign 'no' with their heads.
"She's bound to get suspicious if we search now" Cole pointed out
"Yeah, but we have to find it" Nya answered
"Is there anywhere else we forgot to check?" Kai asked Zane who was keeping tabs on who was checking what
"Well we searched in the courtyard, lounge, kitchen, hangar bay, bedrooms and the room of scrolls. And unless the monastery has a secret room we don't know about, we're not missing anywhere else" Zane replied,
"At this point I'm beginning to believe the ring grew legs and walked out" Jay half joked, considering all the weird stuff that happens in Ninjago that's not a crazy theory
There was a pause, nobody knew what to say regarding the missing ring. Perhaps because none of them had the most remote idea on where it could be. There was a question on everybody's mind but they didn't want to say it out loud, 'What if it wasn't even in the monastery?' That alone would crush the optimism of the green ninja.
The silence stretched more and more as time went on, "Well we're not going to find it sitting here" Cole said as he stood up and stretched his arms and torso "Who's up for round two?" He smiled
The others nodded and followed in his footsteps, "Ninja never quit" Jay stated as he stood up as well, more energetic than before
"Thank you guys, don't know what I'd do without you all" Lloyd said with a soft smile
"Leave the sappy stuff after we find the ring" Kai teased his brother by pulling his cheek a bit
And so the mission was resumed, though the search escalated to near absurdity as every ninja scoured every place mentioned before, they didn't want to leave anything to chance.
After your shower, you went into the hallway and saw Nya and Jay running into different bedrooms, rooms that aren't even theirs in a frenzy. You're confused by that but you decide to continue walking to the courtyard, not wanting to distract them on whatever they're doing—you learned it's better not to get roped into things like this. You walked out and heard things being thrown in the lounge, you peeked in and saw Kai moving the sofa and Cole checking around the TV and behind all the video games they have on display.
"What the hell is going on?" You whisper to yourself confused at the spectacle in that room.
You continue your walk into the kitchen, making you almost collide into a startled Lloyd as he rounded the corner whilst exiting the room.
"Uhh are you okay? You and the others have been acting a little...off" you said as you grabbed his arm, steading him from falling
He froze in his place and stared at you not knowing what to say; he can't have you know the plan, this is supposed to be a surprise.
He simply put on his best soft fake smile and nodded, "I'm good, there's no need to worry"
That didn't help you, it only caused your brows to furrow in concern at how not just your lover was acting, but also everybody else. Hell, even Pixal was acting a little off today in your outing. You thought maybe it was your imagination, but clearly this thing that's happening is not just your mind playing tricks—there's something going on.
"Lloyd" your tone stern but your face failing to hide its worry "What's going on?" Your grip on his arm becoming firmer
His mind raced as he tried to think of an excuse to give you without revealing the full truth. Then he did the only other thing he could think of that didn't involve the plan going up in flames.
He grabbed you by the waist and kissed you. It was passionate, deeper and more intense, it caught you off guard at first but in the matter of a second you melted into his lips. Your hand let go of his arm and wrapped around his head; his thumbs slowly massaging your clothed hips as he drew you in closer to him.
When you both finally pulled apart you were breathless, whilst still holding his hair "What was this for?" You asked as your nose scrunched and cheeks flushed.
He faltered when he saw your eyes, "That was...to prove I'm fine and that you don't need to worry" he cleared his throat and let you go.
You gazed into his eyes, he was lying, you knew it but decided to let it go for now; if it was anything bad, Sensei Wu would have already scolded them anyway.
"Fine, keep your secrets sunshine" you pat his chest and make your way into the kitchen, closing the door behind you.
He licked his lips, still feeling the ghost of your mouth against his, the warmth of your breath caressing his skin and your hands still tangled in his hair. Lloyd looked down the hallway and saw Kai and Cole staring at him, he made his way to them.
"What was that about?" Kai asked, a teasing tone in his voice, a few chuckles escaped the earth ninja as the blond's face became redder
Lloyd shook his head and shrugged, "Distraction" is the only thing he could answer "We have a mission to do anyways, come on" Lloyd said passing both of them to step into the hallway
· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·
It was Sensei Wu, out of all people, who ended up finding the ring, somehow it ended up in his previous teapot. He had to order a new identical one due to the old one having a piece of it missing at its side so all the tea would just leak out. Now he just keeps it more for its sentimental value, considering it has been with him for a long time.
"How did it even end up there?" Lloyd asked perplexed as he held the ring box in his hand—the others shrugged, also wondering how it landed in there.
"Well good thing we found it" Kai pat his brother's shoulder
"So, what now?" Jay asked
"Now I keep this in a place that it's safe until my anniversary" Lloyd stated opening the box and seeing the diamond ring that he was already mentally preparing for it to be lost forever.
"In a place you'll remember" Zane added, all of them laughing at the mission that took them hours to complete.
...
Lloyd went into his desk, opened one of the drawers and put the small white box inside, he reminisced how not even an hour ago he and his team must have been going slowly insane looking for it.
He saw one of the pictures he had in there of you and him on one of your first dates, he smiled softly as he held the picture in his hand.
"Soon" he muttered to himself, putting the photo down next to the box with the ring and finally closing the drawer.