Quick explanation, this is a one-shot request from a reviewer on my Ninjago One-Shots Collection called "Human - One-Shots Collection." Please, go check it out, especially if you like this story! Now, it was originally supposed to much shorter than it is, but it's 27 pages and going in Google docs, and since I like to post these stories on their own as well as in the collection, I figured, might as well just get it going on Fanfiction while I'm still working on it. I would tell you the basis of the story, but... Naw. You can discover for yourselves! Anyway, here's the first part! Enjoy!

-LizzyLucky

This… This wasn't right. It wasn't supposed to happen like this at all.

It started like a regular day. They all got up, ate breakfast, and went to the deck to train, as usual. They sparred with each other and used the equipment for a while. If it weren't a weekend, they would have left Destiny's Bounty and gone to Wu's new school to teach. And, as usual, after two hours of training, they were alerted to the mail's arrival. Their faithful and underpayed mailman had, once again, trecked across the city and several miles into the desert, carrying a stack of a few dozen envelopes for the ninja.

However, he carried one of the envelopes separately, and as he gave the Bounty's door a firm knocking, his expression became grim.

"Mail's here!" Nya opened the door, and called for the ninja. There was a *thump* in the background, followed by the pounding of footsteps and a crash, what sounded like someone launching themself into a door, and then came the glorious view of five rowdy boys stumbling over each other in a race for the door Nya stood at.

The mailman held out the large stack of mail nervously and watched as the ninja grabbed handfuls of the paper until the pile was gone.

"Heh, thanks." Nya thanked.

"Sorry about them." She added apologetically.

"Eh, no worries. Hey, before I go though, I've got a specially addressed letter to Zane." The mailman held out the separate envelope he had, and, seeing as how Zane had already run off with the others, Nya took it.

"Oh. Okay. Thank you, again!"

The mailman nodded and smiled, turning as he waved his goodbye and walked back out into the snow. Nya closed the door and looked down at the letter. Very akin to Zane's personality, the envelope was silver, and had a snowflake design on the front. It didn't have a return address or name.

Walking down the hall, Nya looked back up and walked into the ninjas' shared room.

"Hey, Zane, one more letter for ya." She said, holding up said letter.

"What? Zane got extra fan-mail?" Jay exclaimed.

Each ninja was sat on the floor, sitting around each other in some form of a circle, and their mail already sorted into individual piles for each.

"Jay, you already have more fan-mail than most of us." Kai said pointedly. Jay's pile was a little larger…

"Oh. Right. Heh."

"For me?" Zane asked curiously, standing up. He walked to Nya and calmly took the envelope from her. He studied it front and back, before opening it and pulling out the slip of paper from inside.

"Well, Zane? What's it say?" Jay asked, sitting up as tall as he could.

"I don't know." Zane said.

"Give him a sec, Jay. Jeez." Cole said, rolling his eyes. He picked up one of Jay's envelopes and slapped him in the arm with it.

"Ow…" Jay complained, feigning hurt. Kai snickered at their antics.

Zane had only just begun to read the letter, sitting down as he continued. The other ninja watched him eagerly.

Zane turned his head at the paper, as though responding to something in it. He creased his eyebrows, apparently confused. Then, his eyes widened.

"But he was…" He mumbled. As he read another line or so, his shoulders bounced upward slightly and he grasped onto the paper with both his hands. His expression became more alarmed than confused and his back went rigid.

"Zane? Is everything alright?" Kai asked. Zane shook his head quickly, as though waking himself from a trance, and looked up to Kai, who looked concerned.

"I-" Zane tried. He stopped himself and his arms slowly sank, the paper still held within their grasp.

Lloyd moved to tap Zane on the shoulder and ask what was wrong, but Zane flinched as he lifted his hand. Not giving anyone a chance to say more, Zane very suddenly stood up and ran out of the room.

"Zane!" Kai yelled after him. The remaining ninja stood up and ran out the door, each now just as alarmed as Zane had looked.

Nya moved to follow, but paused to turn around and pick up the dropped letter Zane had been reading.

"Dearest Zane," She read. "We understand your connection with a "Dr. Julien," who has expressed his wishes for us to periodically inform you of his life events. Each letter has been personalized by Dr Julien and are as follows:
"Happy Birthday, Zane!"
"Update for your falcon."
"Treehouse cleanup."
"Celebration of return!"
We have been instructed to hand down to you Dr. Julien's will at the time of his passing, and regret to inform you as such. The lab results conclude the origin of death to be a heart attack, as a result of old age and poor health condition in past years. As a surrogate family member to the White Ninja, we wish to hold both a private funeral and a public memorial in honor of Dr. Julien, should you chose to attend. We await your quick response and will respect your wishes in regards to the suggested events. As a concluding note, Dr. Julien's will has been included in the envelope addressed you, and we encourage you to read through it before presenting it to an official. We are sorry for your loss.
Sincerely,
The Ninjago City Council."

As Nya finished reading, she lowered the page.

"Oh no. Zane…" She said quietly. Her heart had practically ripped in two.

Shaking her head quickly, the way Zane had done earlier, she gripped the paper and ran out of the room, dashing down the hallways and in the direction she'd heard the ninja running. She quickly wiped at her eye, the start to a tear she didn't want to fall as she ran. Half way down the hallway, she crashed into someone stepping out of a doorway.

"Woah!" She yelped, stumbling backwards and just barely keeping her balance. She caught the color white and immediately assumed she'd bumped into Zane. Looking up, she instead saw Sensei Wu.

"Sensei! Forgive me." She said, bowing her head respectfully.

"Is something wrong?" Wu asked, nodding his acknowledgement to her apology.

"Something is very wrong, Sensei. Zane-" She cut herself off, not sure how to continue. Was she intruding by reading the letter? Was she going too far by telling Sensei Wu?

"Zane, what?" Wu asked turning his head at her.

"Zane- I think Zane needs our help." She said quietly.

Wu, seeming to understand on some level, nodded and didn't prod. Turning around, he calmly walked down the hallway the direction Nya had been running.

The two made their way down the hallway, Nya more anxious than Wu, and eventually made it to the deck. There was no one there.

"Where'd they all go?" Nya asked, running out to the middle of the deck.

"Were they here?" Wu asked curiously, turning his head back and forth as he looked.

"Well… I didn't see them here, but they were running in this direction. Maybe they went to the kitchen or something?" She pondered, creasing her brow in concentration.

Though he didn't say anything, Wu already had an idea of where they'd gone. If Zane was bothered by something, he often would go to the Birchwood forest. The ninja were likely to follow.

That and, well, the footprints in the snow were fairly indicative.

Without saying a word, Wu walked to the edge of the deck and turned around to watch Nya. She'd begun pacing and listing ideas to herself, working into a frenzy.

After a moment of pacing, she noticed Wu watching her and stopped, in the middle of counting on her fingers.

"Sensei?" She asked.

"Follow me, please." He said calmly.

Dropping her arms, Nya walked over to Wu as he jumped up on top of the rail and then down to the ground. Imitating his actions, she leapt to the ground beside him and finally caught sight of the footprints, a mental "Oh!" going off in her head. She trailed them with her eyes and saw them disappear into the Birchwood forest.

"The Birchwood forest?" She cocked her head, pointing.

"Yes. You implied that Zane was distressed, and he often retreats to the safety of his childhood home during such times."

"Oh. Yeah. That makes sense. Why didn't I think of that?" She facepalmed. Wu chuckled lightly.

As they began to walk down the trail of footprints, it started to lightly snow. Nya relaxed her shoulders and looked up into the sky, which was entirely white and gray. She grinned.

"I always liked the snow. It's so pretty and calming. Days like these are so nice for any kind of mood." She said euphorically.
"Yet another reason Zane's element of ice fits him so well. Though ice and snow are not the same thing, they work hand in hand." Wu commented.

"Yeah. He's kind of like the snow. He's gentle and kind and just a pleasant person to be around."

"Agreed."

A moment of silence passed by and Nya's grin faded.

"I hope he's okay." She said sadly.

"What happened?" Wu asked. He had a very fatherly manner about him, something that, while he didn't always show it, became a key part of his personality, and a reason the other ninja had grown closer to him over the years. He and the ninja, and Nya, had really become like a family, and they cared for each other like it. They called each other brothers and sister.
For the moment, Nya had frowned at his question, unsure how to answer.

"I don't know if it's my place to tell you. I already feel like I may have been intruding by reading through his letter." She said, placing a hand on her chin in thought.

"Understandable. But I cannot help Zane if I do not know what ails him." Wu said, looking at Nya. She thought for a moment, eyes scanning back and forth over something invisible, then nodding decisively.

"Okay." She said. "He received a letter earlier that- that said- That Dr. Julien passed away…" She trailed off uncomfortably and felt her heart lurch.

Wu remained silent and looked down at the ground as they walked.

"Oh, dear…" He said.

Interesting start, yeah? Hope you like it, stick around for the second chapter if you do! And tell me what you think!

Here's another note, too. In my one-shots collection, you can request one-shots! The rules? You have to request either by PMing me or leaving it in your review for the collection. NOT here, but in the collection itself! It's called "Human - One-Shots Collection." Go check it out, read and review the content in it, and leave a request! Please!

Anyway, see you next chapter!

-LizzyLucky