Second Wind
Hello readers :)
I had this idea last month and finally decided to write it. It took me awhile, but I think it turned out pretty cool.
Hope you like it!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Ninjago or any of the characters.
Chapter One
The sun had set. It was cold in the streets of New Ninjago City. Fall was almost over, beginning to give way to the chills of winter.
A hooded figure climbed up the hill towards the local tea store. It seemed familiar to him, though he wasn't sure how or why. The cool wind blew around him, but for some reason, he didn't mind.
He continued to walk up the slope. The windmills creaked as they were moved by the breeze. The moon was bright, lighting up the sky though the earth was consumed in darkness. The man looked up, sighing when he realized there was still quite a distance to go. He pulled his hood further over his dark brown hair, and continued to trudge up the hill.
. . .
"What does this one do?" A red-headed young man asked, holding up a box of tea.
A slightly older black-haired boy took the box from him. "This is Tomorrow's Tea," he answered.
"We stay away from that one," a young blonde remarked, taking the tea out of his friend's hands and climbing up the shelves to place it out of reach.
"Be careful, Lloyd," a red-clad ninja warned. "We can't have our leader falling and hurting himself, now, can we?"
Lloyd jumped down. "I'm the green ninja, Kai," he responded. "I'm pretty sure I can handle a couple of shelves."
Kai ruffled the younger boy's hair. "I know," he said. "I just don't want you to get hurt."
"Hey!" Lloyd smiled before grabbing Kai's hands. "Hey, no one messes up my hair!"
A dark-haired girl entered the shop. "Have you boys finished restocking the tea?" She asked.
The black ninja jumped down from the crate he was standing on. "Just about, Nya," he responded.
"Cole's lying," the redhead told her. "There's a whole 'nother shipment in the back."
Cole rolled his eyes. "For your information, Jay, I didn't know there was more."
"That's because I brought it in when you were in the bathroom," a young man dressed in white spoke up as he strolled into the store. "Taking forever, I might add."
"Ooh! Zane told you!" Jay pointed at Cole and laughed, earning him a glare from the black ninja.
"Anyway," Kai said, "We're almost finished. There's one last set of tea boxes, then we're done."
Nya nodded. "Well, I'll take care of that. You boys can take a break."
"We haven't actually done that much," Kai told her. "You've been carrying boxes all day. You're the one who could use a break, not us."
"Thanks for noticing," she replied. "But I'm good. I know you guys want your video game time. Besides, you've all been training for years to be ninja. I just became one a few months ago. I need the workout."
"Thanks, Nya," Cole said. "If you want any help, just ask."
Nya went to the back of the shop and brought a few boxes out. The five other ninja went to play video games in their brand new game room. It was a small building across from Steep Wisdom, built by all of the ninja so they could have a place to relax when they didn't need to be aboard the Bounty.
The boys sat on the long couch in the game room. Cole turned on the TV and grabbed the four controllers.
"Why are all of our games only four players?" He wondered.
"Seriously," Kai agreed. "There are six of us, not four...anymore."
"I'll sit this one out," Lloyd offered. "I'm pretty tired."
"Thanks," Jay said. "You're so nice!"
Lloyd shrugged. Cole handed a controller to Zane, Jay, and Kai, and kept the last one for himself
"Hey! I wanna be player one!" Jay complained.
"You were last time," Zane reminded him.
Jay sighed but didn't argue. He selected his character, and his friends did the same. Lloyd snuggled up next to Kai and fell asleep almost immediately.
. . .
It had been almost two hours since the ninja had started playing their video game. Lloyd was still asleep, and the others were starting to tire as well. Nya had finished unloading the last of the tea after about thirty minutes, and was watching "LEGO Star Wars" with Skylor in the back of the store.
Sensei Wu and Misako had been out for hours advertising their tea shop, and they had told the ninja that they wouldn't be back for a few days.
The bell on the door rang, alerting the girls that someone had entered Steep Wisdom. Nya paused the movie and stood up.
"Sounds like we have a customer," she remarked.
Skylor raised an eyebrow. "Could it just be the ninja?" She asked.
Nya shook her head. "If it were, we would have heard them talking long before they got inside."
Skylor laughed. "That's true," she remarked. "I remember when we were in my father's Tournament, Kai just wouldn't stop talking. And don't even get me started on Jay."
"He does talk way too much," Nya agreed. "But he's an amazing boyfriend, regardless."
"You two make a good couple," Skylor agreed.
"Thanks," Nya said. She started heading towards the main part of the store, making sure Skylor was following.
They walked out into the front of the shop to see that there was, indeed, a customer. He wore a hooded black robe, and they couldn't tell what he looked like.
"Good evening," Nya greeted. "Welcome to Steep Wisdom." She shot a nervous glance at Skylor.
"How can we help you?" The red-haired girl asked.
The figure spoke up. "I want to buy some tea," he said. He had a deep voice that sounded vaguely familiar to Nya.
"Well, that's what we sell," Nya replied. "What kind do you want?"
"Traveler's Tea," the young man answered.
"Okay," Skylor said. "I'll go get some." She went over to one of the shelves, returning a moment later with a box of the tea. "Here you go." She handed the box to the customer.
"Thank you," he responded. He handed her some money and turned to leave.
At that moment, Lloyd entered the shop. "Hey, Nya -" he paused when he saw the man. "Oh, we have a customer! Sweet!"
The hooded figure stopped for a moment as he seemed to recognize the young ninja. He shook his head in annoyance when he failed to remember.
Lloyd squinted as he tried to identify the man. He caught sight of his shadowed face and dark, shoulder length hair.
He gasped, clamping a hand over his mouth. "What the -?" He breathed. "Morro?"
The man jumped. "How do you know my name?" He asked warily.
Lloyd took off Morro's hood. "H-how are you here?" He questioned. "You died...twice!"
Morro narrowed his eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said. "I don't even know who the heck you are."
"Wait," Lloyd said. "So, you don't remember anything?"
He shook his head. "I've pretty much been on my own for as long as I can remember, which isn't very long at all," he replied. "You seem familiar, though I really don't know how."
Skylor spoke next. "So, you don't remember trying to -"
Lloyd put his index finger to his lips, indicating for her to stop talking. She kept quiet, a puzzled look on her face.
Lloyd bolted over to Skylor and Nya. "If he doesn't remember, don't tell him," he ordered quietly. "Call me crazy, but I think he's telling the truth. If that's the case, he can't find out about his real past.
The others nodded. The green ninja walked back over to the former ghost.
"Do you have a place to stay?" He asked.
Morro shook his head. "I live on the streets," he replied. "I planned to use this Traveler's Tea to visit other realms, in hopes of remembering who I really am."
"Trust me," Lloyd said. "That won't be necessary."
Morro gave him a confused look.
"Uh, anyway, you can stay here if you like," he offered. "Well, not in the shop, but in my room. If you want to."
"Really?" Morro asked. "I mean, I couldn't. I hardly even know you."
"It's fine. Really," Lloyd replied. "I wasn't going to sleep in there tonight anyway. Besides, I actually don't think you're a bad guy."
Morro smiled. "Thank you so much," he said. "That's so nice of you. I promise I won't stay long."
"Hey," Lloyd said. "Everyone deserves a second chance." He realized his mistake immediately. "At life, I mean! Or, whatever."
. . .
Well, that's it for chapter one! Hope you all enjoyed. Just to let you know, I won't be using any OC's in this story, I'm sorry!
Anyway, please review and I'll continue :)