I changed some things around (like in this story the ninja stay at Dareth's) so if you're picky about the details, sorry. I hope you like it! Oh, and if the characters are ooc, sorry!

Ever since Lord Garmadon stole all the golden weapons I'd been off my game, my mind foggy. When Sensei Wu gave us non-magical versions of our previous weapons the scythe in my hand didn't feel right and the mist in my head increased.

The others didn't have any trouble with their transition like I did. They continued to move swiftly and fluidly while my movements were sluggish and slow. When we fought I could hardly land a hit. My opponents kept getting the better of me, even the daft ones.

Often times I found that I needed saving; and more than anyone else, Kai was the one that came to my aid. Those moments felt so surreal I almost couldn't believe they were happening.

Moments like right now.

Kai is standing in front of me, swinging his sword with such skill that holding off the serpentine is no problem at all. Once the humanoid snake was down for the count Kai turned around to face me.

"You okay?" Kai asks, giving me a concerned look

"I'm fine," I reply and I averted my gaze to the floor.

"Here," he offers, holding his hand out to help me up.

When I took it, Kai hoisted me to my feet. Slinging his arm around my shoulder Kai gave me a smile, but when his smile wasn't returned a light frown took its place. "Don't feel so down. We all have our days." He assured.

"Well then tell me when this slump is going to end. It's been going on ever since Garmadon stole our weapons." I sigh as I look at the ground.

"Keep your head up, Cole!" Kai tells me as he tilts my chin up, "And have a positive outlook. You'll soon be as good as you were before, just cheer up!"

"Thanks, Kai," I say, a light smile making its way onto my face. "I really appreciate it."

"No problem. I'll always be here for you."

Kai removes his arm from my shoulder and we walk over to the others. The conversation they were having ceased when Sensei walked by. If I were talking I would have shut up too. The look on Sensei's face made it clear that he meant business.

"Cole, I have something to tell you." He announced.

"Yes Sensei?"

"I think it'd be best if you sat out the next fight."

I just gawked at him as several cries of disbelief rang through the air.

"What?"

"Are you serious?"

"You're kidding right!"

"But… why?" I asked, my voice rising in pitch slightly. I felt as though I had just shattered and I'm sure that it was portrayed on my face.

"As you know you haven't been doing your best. It'd be better if you just stayed behind and trained." Sensei explained. There were a few shouts of protests.

"What do you think about this, Cole?" Kai asked. Everyone turned to face me.

"Yeah, doesn't it bother you?" It was Jay this time.

"It's okay guys," I insisted. I couldn't bear to look them in the eye, though. I didn't deserve to. I could no longer fend for myself. I'm not good enough anymore. That hurt far more than any physical wound. "I'll just go back to the dojo," a lump began to rise in my throat, "It's not a problem," the words were strained, "Really, it's not."

As I turned to walk away my vision blurred. Stay strong. I told myself. Stay strong, stay strong. I let out a breath I wasn't aware that I was holding and a tear leaked out one of my eyes. When I inhaled the action was very jagged and it racked my body.

"Are you alright Cole?" I hear Kai ask from behind me.

I would have replied, but if I did it would probably come out as nothing more than a squeak and I would just lose it. So instead I kept walking. The dojo wasn't too far away and I wouldn't have to worry about anything there. As I turned a corner I felt a hand rest on my shoulder.

"Cole?" It's Kai again. I don't look at him. I couldn't.

"Hey man, talk to me." He sounds so concerned and it's killing me. I bit lip to try and prevent more tears from spilling over. It doesn't work. My breath comes out in long shaky blows and when I suck in it's very ragged.

Kai put his arm around my shoulder and he began to guide me through the crowded street. People are staring but Kai doesn't seem to notice. "Deep breaths," he instructs, "take deep breaths."

I nod and start to breathe deeply. It only takes a minute for my intake of air to become regular, but there is still the occasionally hiccup. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand and sniffed.

When we passed the dojo I gave Kai a questioning look. "Where are we going?" I asked, yawning as a wave of tiredness washed over me.

"You'll see!" Kai replied cheerily.

Kai pulls me into a small store and as soon as we enter the smell of baked goods wraps itself around me. Cinnamon raisin bread, lemon squares, doughnuts, and even cake. I see all that and more in the glass paned counter.

"Sit at a table and I'll get something to eat." Kai told be before he walked up to the counter.

I walked over to a near-by table and a sat down and stared at the table. Without anything to distract me I thought back to what Sensei had told me. I wasn't doing my best. But he really meant that I was putting everyone else at risk because I couldn't do anything.

What if I don't get better and can't fight with them every again. What if Sensei won't let me fight with them? I gritted my teeth and squeezed my eyes shut. Why was I so useless at everything?

"Cole,"

My head snapped up to see Kai standing in front of me, holding a small circular cake covered in vanilla icing and chocolate shavings. "You've got cake." I said excitedly, my face lighting up at the sight of the dessert.

Kai smiled as he sat down across from me. "Well when we went to that school you seemed pretty excited about getting cake. So I figured 'why not'?" Taking a piece of the pre-sliced dessert, he put it on a paper plate and slid it over to me.

I took a bite out of the cake which I now knew was chocolate. It was moist and cool, as though it had just came out a freezer. But that made it taste even better.

When I was halfway done with my second piece of cake I just stopped and stared at it. A sigh escaped my lips and I twirled my fork around my fingers.

"What's wrong?" Kai asked

"Huh? Nothing," I assured, taking another bite of the cake. I had forgotten that Kai was here.

"What's wrong?" he asked again, although this time his tone told me that he wanted an answer.

I jabbed another piece of my cake with my fork and stuck it in my mouth. "Ahm nah goo ema." I mumbled.

"What?"

"Ahm-"Kai leaned forward and took the fork out of my mouth, "I'm not good enough." I repeated.

He looked absolutely shocked at my answer and I just continued to eat the cake. "T-that's not true," he stammered, "If you weren't good enough you wouldn't have been chosen by Sensei. You deserve to be here."

"Yeah, well it doesn't feel like it. I'm just deadweight now. No one wants that."

"Hey!" Kai slammed his hands on the table and for a second I thought he was going to make it tip over. "Don't ever think like that! You deserve to be here! We all want you here! I want you here! So don't you ever think you're not good enough, got it!" His eyes were blazing and his shouting had attracted the attention of the other customers there.

It was my turn to be surprised. I was absolutely speechless, and it took me a while to think of something to say. "You really think that?" I asked. I sounded so pathetic.

Kai smiled, "Of course!" He said, "And I can even help you train when we have time. You'll be better than ever in no time!"

Kai's enthusiasm was contagious and I soon found that I was smiling with him. But that didn't last long since Zane came in saying that they needed Kai to fight off some pirates.

"I'll be there in a moment!" Kai replied as he got up, and I felt my grin fade. "And Cole," he kissed me on my cheek and my eyes widened while a cherry colored blush spread across my face, "cheer up. I'll always be here for you."

He then left the pastry shop and I softly touched my cheek. My heart fluttered in my chest and the corners of my mouth curved up slightly. I was starting to feel better.