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“Are you stupid? You could have died!”
”Oh, come on, like you are any better.”
”…?” There was a small wrinkle on Lloyd’s eyebrows. It seemed that he tried to look at least a little menacing, but that failed spectacularly. Because he looked like an annoyed kitten more than anything.
”… Didn’t expect you to just drop the formality at times like this,” The blonde prince said quietly, pouting while at it. “I’m still a royalty, you know.”
”With all due respect, Your Royal Highness.” Morro deliberately replied, watching the way Lloyd pouted harder, he tried to stop himself from laughing openly. “Your life was kind of in danger when you were taken by the flying mech that tried to kill us all. So of course as a ninja, I-“
“-Should have focused on your mission and abandon a dead weight like me.”
Lloyd quickly intervened with his explanation, saying things so casually like it was the truth.
Morro, however, did not like the conclusion the prince had come up with.
“I beg to differ, Your Highness.” He started, Lloyd looked at him with both of his hands folded defensively, but his eyes shine at Morro challenging him to continue. To which Morro gladly did. “What's the use of The Green Ninja if I can’t even protect you?”
”Say that, but now that you broke your hand, we are just as helpless, no?”
That’s… an actual good point, Morro was trying to rack his brain for a good retort. But before he could speak up, Lloyd just casually shed a layer of his clothes, something that immediately took Morro by surprise.
Lloyd use it to wrap up Morro’s right arm, making sure he wouldn’t hurt it while they move around.
”… Thanks?” After all that complaining about being saved, Lloyd is surprisingly cooperative. Which was great. They really can’t afford wasting more time now that The Son of Garmadon probably was searching for them.
Lloyd just sighed, there was a genuine smile there, something that Morro began to familiarize himself with, something that might be affecting him more than he could admit.
The prince quickly turns that genuine smile into something more cheeky, while gracefully taking the sword out of his hand.
”Well, now that The Green Ninja has been injured for rescuing me, let’s make it count and show you that I could be useful too.” The blonde prince said, testing his sword a little before settling on holding it tight.
…
…
…
The bad news about stranding on an island alone with one broken arm is well, exactly like how it sounded.
The good news about stranding alone together with someone that he might or might not be interested in is that they ended up bonding more than he could ever hope for in normal settings.
Lloyd was surprisingly great with sword, his center of gravitation is well adjusted and his stance is also perfect. Something that Morro could not help but note, now that his role was reduced into the map reader. Lloyd apparently enjoyed sword lessons he had in the palace and has been occasionally sparring with Hutschin whenever he has spare time. Which isn’t much, but that seemingly did not diminish his talent at all.
“You think so, Morro? Then, maybe we could have spar sometimes.” Lloyd said, grinning at Morro so easily after he just slashed through another path of greeneries.
For a moment, Morro imagined the two of them sparring. Lloyd holding a wooden sword and parried his attack and he would block Lloyd incoming attack as well, they will move in rhythm, trying to find an opening on the others form and seize in the chance to get them to lose their balance.
He found himself really didn’t oppose to the idea at all.
Maybe, just maybe, If Lloyd is up for it, Morro could even try to teach him the spinjitzu.
Totally not because he wanted to impress the prince at all. More self defence courses wouldn’t hurt, surely.
That when he saw the way some tree roots movement were just a little bit off.
Because roots should move at all.
And it was aiming at them.
”Watch out-!”
Morro quickly went in front of the prince, blocking the incoming assault using his own green powers. Some of the moving roots were neutralized, they disperse into the ground, but there just too much of them from many directions that using only one available hand could not really stopped them from grabbing one of them.
So Morro pushes Lloyd back, his feet being dragged by the moving plantations into some sort of dark opening on one of the biggest trees right just in front of them.
”Morro, grab on something, quick! Slow them down!”
Lloyd shouted, Morro followed it almost instantly and grabbed a nearby stick and forcibly plunged it to the ground, making the root stop due to the resistance.
The prince was fast on his feet to jump and slashed the roots that were holding Morro’s feet.
Morro was about to thank him when the prince grabbed him by his collar.
”Stop doing that!”
For a moment, all he could see was Lloyd’s facial expression seemingly so off that he almost could not recognize him.
“No.” Morro replied, just as serious. His hand holding onto Lloyd’s arm.
Lloyd looked… troubled. So much so that Morro could feel something twisted on his chest.
“But you could have been taken, and we don’t even know what might happen if you did.” Lloyd argued. “Should have let me be the bait while you use your power from afar or something!”
”And let you get hurt?”
“Obviously! Look, you already broke an arm, do you want to break your leg as well?”
“I don’t mind.” Morro said, and before Lloyd could protest even further, he moved closer and put his working hand on Lloyd’s shoulder. “Honestly, I don’t care what you might think of yourself, or how important this mission is for you. But I’m here to protect you, and that’s all that mattered to me.”
For a moment, Lloyd was completely silent. There were storms clouding his usually bright green eyes. Morro, now knowing the red hidden inside of those fake irises, imagines how Lloyd’s real eyes would look when he’s troubled like this.
He imagined it would be more colorful, more truthful than what he saw right now.
He kind of likes the idea of watching it for how it is.
Finally, Lloyd seems like he relent. “… Understood. But please let me help just a little?”
That got a chuckle out of him, “A little? Your sword fighting is great. If it were up to me, you would already be invited to the ninja team, if you aren’t busy with … well, handling Ninjago’s politics. Maybe?”
Lloyd let out a small laugh for that, and Morro counted it as a win.