Helloooo everyone! In case you're a new reader to my stories, this is the sequel to my other story 'Undercover'. I highly recommend you read that massive story before this one otherwise the starring OC of this series will not make sense to you. I mean I suppose you could start reading without it but it just wouldn't make sense…. Plus if you do read my other story first, don't be discourage by the bad writing style, it gets much better since my writing improved while I wrote that story. Anyway, I'm starting to ramble.

So the very beginning of Underestimated is taken place seven months after Zane's death and the team splitting apart. In other words, this chapter is pretty much what Violet has been doing since the team split. The next chapter is when the Tournament of Elements/Rise of Ancient Evil takes place.

I hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! I extremely appreciate any feedback or constructive criticism even if it's a tad harsh – I won't be offended! I just want to make this story as good as it can be and improve my writing skill to the best it can be. So enjoy :)

Also, big thanks to WowWhatALongUsernameIHave for being my Beta reader! You are amazing and such a big help!

Rating: T for slight use of mild language and minor sexual references that will appear later into the story. Nothing too graphic.

Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago in anyway or make profit from this story. This is written solely for entertainment and enjoyment.

Chapter 1
The Sunrise to Every Beginning

.:Violet:.

The first slither of the sun peeked over the skyline in a radiant, white form. Gradually it raised into a defined circle in a vibrant backdrop. The sun seemed to swell as it fully revealed itself. Soon, hues of orange, pink and purple adorned the sky. Only a few clouds were visible but it was the high crisp clouds that beautifully captured the colours. The ocean below the scene all was liquid gold. It shimmered as the waves gently left the huge body of water to then crashed softly against the sand.

The lone figure's eyes remained closed as she stood at the shore. Her bare feet were firmly planted into the dampened sand. The salty breeze of the beach caressed her skin and made her white, woollen cardigan flap by her side. She really liked it when the gentle wind blew through her brown hair. The girl –no older than twenty years- inhaled the salty scent and allowed her exquisite violet eyes open. Instantly, she was greeted with the beautiful sight that laid right in front of her. To her, waking up most mornings to see this was pure tranquillity. The only thing she could hear was the soft crashes of the waves against the sand. There were no sounds of anything man-made; no construction site, no cars and no noisy neighbours, just the bliss music of nature adoring her ears. When the tides reached up to her toes, she knew she couldn't stay here forever.

With a soft yet content sigh, the girl turned her back onto the beautiful view and began the hour-long walk through the thick foliage of the rain forest and to her hometown. As per usual, her mind was filled with things; to be more specific, memories.

Seven months have passed since the last time she has seen her family and friends however only a couple days ago did she receive a letter – the first form of contact she have had with anyone. Reaching into the cardigan's pocket, her small hand grabbed the neatly folded paper. She opened it and let the early sun light glow upon the messy yet readable script of words on the page.

Dear Violet,

I desperately hope you are living in your old home now. I have tried sending letters everywhere and stupidly realized if there is one place you would be living at, it would be in Cryleas. I know you said we needed a break from each other but there hasn't been a day where you wouldn't cross my mind. I miss everything about you; your scent of strawberries and apples, the sight of your beautiful hair catching the sun rays so that it appears gold, I miss the sound of your voice, the softness of your skin and the taste of your lips… I can just only hope you haven't moved on to find a man that's better than me.

But this isn't why I wrote this letter. I know you want to know how Nya is going as well. Pieces and pieces of her memory is coming back every few days. Even though I think it's great that her memories are returning, she's uncertain. I told her who she used to be and what she has done for the past couple of years but she's afraid she won't like the Nya we knew. She has changed Violet. The Nya we knew used to be so independent and courageous, now she's this little timid person. Sure she still gets sick of my over-protectiveness and is still the little intelligent thing she is but… she's not the same. It's her birthday next week on Friday and I am hoping you can make it. Maybe some time with everyone else will bring back memories. I tried asking the others. Lloyd said he'll come but Jay and Cole replied how they couldn't. I think they're still recovering from the fact that Nya doesn't remember us… And also of the fact that Zane won't be able to cook up a feast like he always would. But if you don't come, I completely understand. I just hope one day we all can be back together again.

Love,
Kai

Violet frowned as her eye wandered off the page. These past couple of days she's been pondering and wondering whether she should go or not. At first she thought it was stupid enough of Kai to not give her the address where he and Nya are living now but then again, it's written on the envelope. A sad smile appeared on her lips as she remembered the little blacksmith shop the siblings owned – where she first met him in disguise. Her undercover mission seemed like a lifetime ago.

But other problems are always arising for her and at this point of time, she knows she won't be able to make it to Nya's birthday party. Yesterday she received a call from Ninjago's Foster Homes about a little girl who adamantly refuses to be fostered since her parents have recently been involved in a serious car accident and are in intensive care. The caretakers normally won't ask her to foster children since she's now a ninja going by a low profile. She'd already accomplished this by dying her hair brown. She didn't mind taking in a child to look after. She has only been an emergency foster parent for six months and during those six months she only got to look after two kids - both boys - for a week each. The temporarily-retired kunoichi was hoping to look after more kids, but the organisation said they didn't want to bother her.

She became an emergency foster parent for a reason…

But Violet could only sigh. She remembered how cold the other kids were at the orphanage to her and she couldn't dream of letting any other poor child experience that. She knew she couldn't adopt any young soul since she was only twenty years old but when she heard news of the Foster Centre needing someone to be an emergency foster parent, she immediately signed up. She knew it would be more appropriate for someone her age to be an emergency foster parent; someone who looks after a child for a short period of time until their parents are able to look after them. Sometimes the parents deal with financial issues, marriage issues or been in an accident and with no one else being able to look after their own children, the children are placed into foster care. However, she still needed a job so she has taken up culinary. At first she found it was difficult to work around food since most of time, Zane would cook while the team was together but Violet thought of it as a way to connect to something Zane loved to do passionately.

Soon, the sound of gushing water met her ears and the girl couldn't believe she was lost in her thoughts for a whole hour. Looking up at the sky and the way the shadows fell against the ground she knew she have in fact been walking for an hour. But pushing aside the last bit of greenery, Violet smiled as home came into view.

Cryleas was in a small circular gorge. The noble walls that formed the gorge stood tall and were draped with thick greenery. The rain forest she just walked through grew on top of these mighty walls but over a section of the gorge, water plummeted into the lake below. The waterfall was famously known as the Crystal Falls. Where the water crashed below, crystals of many sizes protruded through the earth and natural stone. Each crystal captured the light of the morning sun, illuminating the whole village that was built on top of the water and partly on the land. The cobblestone platform of the entire town remained firm and strong as the water that rippled from the waterfall softly crashed against it. The houses that were built were two stories high and were made of marble – every single one of them. Each were built with great design with verandas, balconies, columns, grand windows and doors to express the luxury this town can provide to the richest. Despite the fact the town was built on top of the cobblestone platform which was on top of the lake, the gardens each house had were magnificent and grand. Hedges were trimmed on a weekly or daily basis and flowers were always tended to.

Smiling at the sight, Violet allowed the wind to carry her down to the town. As her feet touched the ground, her eyes were firmly planted onto the view of her home. Unlike the other houses, this one was bigger. It was the mansion that once belonged to Megan and Christian Emerson; Ninjago's famous and well-known jewel crafter and NPD chief. Violet had to admit the house was way too big for her to live in by herself but she couldn't sell it; this is one of the only places where she has spent with her parents as a young child. When she came here after she gave back the ring (which still saddens her to this day) most of her neighbours kindly helped her to restore the house's grand beauty to it. Dust no longer roamed inside and the garden have been tended to although it wasn't as grand as the others. It was just grass spread out with one of her mother's sculptors out in display. It's weird to think how she wounded up poor on the streets in Ninjago City.

So much have changed: she winded up into the care of Sensei Wu and became a ninja, then into her undercover mission and the many more battles she had with the team… Until that dreaded day. Immediately, the image of Zane's dying body swarmed her mind but the female forced herself to get it out of her mind. She refused to think of Zane like that. She only wanted to remember him by the good times they had together and nothing else.

But other than that, her back made a full recovery which is probably due to the fact she haven't been doing any more ninja activities. The first month since that day, her nightmares consisted of Zane's death. It was a constant replay; to see his body shaking uncontrollably in the Overlord's clutches. His pained and strained voice would always be trying to say his last words: the importance of family. Although the event still pained Violet, she knew Zane wanted to have them all safe. Fortunately for the purple-eyed girl was that after those nightmares subdued, the nightmares of drowning and Vincent didn't ever come back to haunt her.

With quick strides, Violet closed the gap between her current position and the massive and impressive height of the mansion that was in front of her. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about those things.

.::.

It was about two hours past mid-day when Violet finally arrived at the Foster Home Centre and was immediately greeted by the two caretakers: Mary and Rose or as Violet sometimes refer the two as 'Rosemary'.

"We are so sorry to be a burden your schedule Miss Emerson but she refuses to be with any foster parent we try introducing her to," Rose spoke softly. She was much younger than Mary. Her strawberry blonde hair was placed into a messy bun that sat onto her of narrow face with her thin facial features. Her dull brown eyes were hidden behind the lens of her glasses.

"Please, just call me Violet and it's truly not a bother. If it was I wouldn't have signed up. Although, if you don't mind me asking, how do we know she won't reject me too?"

"That was what I thought until we realized that whenever your name among with the other ninja's names gets mentioned, she's no longer a stoic little girl but she listens so intently," Mary immediately answered as she led them down one of the grey corridors which rooms for children are located.

"What's her name?" Violet asked as she looked at Mary. The middle aged woman was the same height as the brunette. Mary had black hair which was cut into a low bob cut with a fringe pinned back by her glasses. Her hazel were eyes staring firmly in front of her.

"Mabel Adams," Mary answered quickly. Immediately, it was like a light bulb lightened in her head.

"Mabel? A little girl with pale green eyes and blonde hair?"

"You know her?" Rose questioned.

"I've only seen her twice though." Violet could remember how she saved the little girl from the collapsing building when the Stone Warriors attacked Ninjago City and then how she wasn't affected by the Dark Matter at all…

"Well, she's in this room." Upon the door Mary pointed at, Violet opened the door and saw a nine-year old girl lying on her bed to only sit up upon her arrival. "Mabel, this is Violet. She wishes to take care of you while your parents recover."

"V-Violet?" The small girl asked.

The said ninja smiled softly as she walked over to the side of the bed and crouched down so she could be eye level with the little girl.

"Hi Mabel, remember me?" She asked softly and chuckled when the girl's pale green eyes widened.

"O-Of course! You saved me from the building!" And the little girl flung her arms around her neck and as a natural response, Violet closed her arms around the little girl, knowing she needed some comforting. "Y-You also helped me find my parents… My parents are hurt."

"I have heard and I am so sorry to hear," she muttered into the girl's blonde hair. "But if you want, you can come and stay with me while your parents are recovering. What do you say?"

"Okay!"

.::.

Unlike to the two boys Violet fostered earlier who were always nervous around her, Mabel warmed up to her quickly. It has been a month since Mabel has been in her care and not a day have been dull. The young girl was so kind yet silly, always finding a way to make the brunette laugh. To the ninja's surprise, Mabel is a three year winning champion for figure skating. Unfortunately, since Cryleas didn't have any ice rinks Mabel couldn't practice her ice skating however there was a roller skating rink. Violet was personally glad for this since the ice rink would just make her remember Zane's death and how all of Ninjago City was covered in sheets of ice and snow.

Smiling gently, Violet watched as Mabel's little figure gracefully spun on the rink with her skirt flaring out around her as her feet stepped in a complex routine. To conclude her dance routine, Violet watched the blonde girl finish with an elegant pose before swiftly skating over to where the ninja was leaning over the rails to watch her.

"What do you think?" She asked in her usual chirpy voice with a bright smile presented on her little lips.

"It was perfect Mabel," Violet replied with a smile of her own but that smile fell short when she saw mischief twinkling in the girl's eyes. "Okay, what's that look for?"

"Oh nothing," she answered sweetly before skating out of the rink and going into her bag. Violet watched the girl with a careful eye, trying to figure out what she's up to. When she saw the younger girl pull out a pair of skates much bigger than the girl's feet. "Maybe you would like to learn?"

"Me? Skating? I'll probably kill myself."

"Don't be silly Violet!" The young girl giggled as she quickly skated up to the brunette and presented the white skates. "I'll teach you."

"Fine."

Although, ten minutes into it Violet was ready to call quits. Her butt was aching more than it has ever have before. Mabel kept trying to coax her to let go of the rails but as soon as she let go she loses balance, thrashes and fall hard on her butt.

"I ready to go home, you?" Violet asked sheepishly but the girl only giggled as she tried to get Violet back onto her feet.

"What?! No, we can't go home until you stop falling on your tooshie!"

So what do you all think? I know Mabel's time with Violet seemed rushed but this chapter just gives and insight to Violet's time while the others and her have been separated. So we'll see everyone else in the next chapter! I really appreciate feedback!

Xoxo – ZaneLoverFan88