This story is set after Day of the Departed.

Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.

Scars

It was a beautiful and mild morning on the Ninjagian [is this the correct form?] eastern seaboard, even though it was the beginning of the winter season.

In a slightly secluded bay, a lonely figure was sitting on a rock just off the beach, watching the sun rise over the ocean. From his head to his ankles, he was all dressed in black, even his face and hands were covered. The only parts of his body that were showing were his bare feet that were dangling in the water.

Every morning, since the Destiny's Bounty and her crew had arrived at their current location by the coast a week ago, Cole had snuck out from their shared quarters long before dawn. Still not confident enough to use his elemental dragon, he would use his – newly acquired – Radar Jet to fly to this place, where he would take a stroll along the beach and watch the sunrise, all just on his own with only the sound of the waves and the cries of the seagulls around him. As Sensei Wu had given them a break from their traditional Sunrise Exercise, he would be back at the Destiny's Bounty just before the rest of the team would wake up.

He would have never expected this to happen, but the former ghost was actually still struggling with being human again.

Sure, all in all it was great. Cole didn't have to worry about glitching or fading anymore. There was no need to be afraid of water and he could enjoy a refreshing shower after training. And, most of all, it had always taken his ghostly form a lot of effort to simply feel.

So, even just for moments like this, the feeling of cold sand between his toes or the movement of the ocean around his feet, it was definitely worth it. He removed his mask, to feel the fresh breeze tickle the skin on his face, and inhaled the fresh, clean air.

He still didn't understand how he had never realised how much energy it actually took to make his muscular chest rise and fall with every deep breath.

Yes, Cole was too embarrassed to admit it openly, but… being a ghost had its perks.

The exceptionally strong Master of Earth had just been so tired for the past few weeks, not only because he still had to readjust to carrying the weight of a rather heavy body (it was a lot worse than after returning from the ninja's trip to space), but also because he had to wasn't used to regular sleeping patterns anymore.

He had also acquired quite a few bruises from running against the walls instead of passing through them.

And, worst of all, everything and everyone suddenly was way too overwhelming for his sharpened senses.

Cole occasionally still struggled to tolerate his – admittedly rather noisy – teammates, and from time to time he wished he could just disappear. But he couldn't. Not anymore.

And he still hadn't managed to visit the buzzing capital of Ninjago. Cole couldn't even bear the thought of being surrounded by the noisiness of the city – and especially the thought of people staring at him.

When the ninja had risen to their short-lived fame, Cole had been a ghost – and Dareth had made sure that everyone in Ninjago would know about his 'heroic sacrifice'. The glow-in-the-dark Cole action figures had been their most popular piece of merchandise, very much to Kai's dismay. [Now that the Master of Earth was human again, the model had been discontinued, resulting in a steep increase in the toy's collectors' value.]

Anyway, Cole's Ghost Story had made it on the front cover of pretty much every magazine in Ninjago. So, everywhere he would go, he would see his face. His 'new' face. The one with the scar.

And Cole absolutely hated it.

The ugly green glowing scar covered almost the entire left of his face – at least that was how it felt to him. And its one and only purpose was to always remind him (and everyone else) of what had happened on the recent Day of the Departed.

And it had been a very close call, much closer than he liked to admit. But on those rare occasions that he would manage to actually fall into a deep sleep, Cole would have regular nightmares of the rift closing before he could reach it.

Although… maybe it wouldn't have been that bad to stay a ghost…

All of a sudden, Cole's thoughts were interrupted, when he heard a familiar voice call his name. He turned around to see the familiar blue figure of the elemental lightning dragon approach, with Cole's best friend sitting on his back.

The Master of Earth had no idea how Jay had managed to find him, but he knew for certain that his precious moment of peace and quiet was over now.

Just before he reached the black ninja, Jay stood up on the creature's back. Using his airjitzu, he catapulted himself off the elemental dragon, who immediately dematerialised upon losing the contact to his master. Jay landed safely just at the edge of the beach and grinned widely at his friend.

Cole sighed. His best friend could be such a show-off sometimes.

"Hey." This was an unusually short greeting for the talkative Blue Ninja.

"Hey" Cole replied. "How did you find me?"

Jay's smile grew even wilder, if that was possible at all, and Cole realised that this was exactly the question Jay had anticipated (and wanted) to hear. They just knew each other too well…

"Ugh, maybe I've installed a little tracking device in the Radar Jet..."

I guess that explains the crumbs and the empty bag of Ninja chips I found in the cockpit.

Cole raised an eyebrow. "I hope that's all you did with my jet."

"Well, I needed to make sure it wouldn't interfere with any of the controls, so I had to take it out for a little test flight, just for your own safety…"

Jay had kept his promise of giving up the jet to Cole and was still slightly upset about losing his favourite toy, so the Black Ninja decided to let it slip this time.

"That was very considerate of you. But why would you spy on me in the first place?"

Jay looked offended. "C'mon. You can't expect to disappear from the ship for an hour or so every single morning without anyone noticing…"

No, he couldn't. The were ninja and trained to stay alert even during their sleep.

"But why didn't y…"

"Because you still tried to hide it." The blue ninja interrupted him harshly. "And I wa… I mean we were getting worried, alright? And you don't want to be mad at me for caring about my best friend, right? Or… do you want me to leave?" He asked, with a disappointed look on his face.

Which was not a fair move at all.

Yes, Cole wanted to be alone. And Jay knew that. But Jay also knew that Cole just couldn't stay mad at him when he pulled the 'caring best friend' card.

But in turn, Cole was aware (because Zane had told him) that the Master of Lightning still felt guilty about not noticing the then-ghost's absence after their visit to the Ninjago Museum of History. So he believed that Jay was genuinely worried.

The black ninja smiled at him in defeat.

"Nah, it's fine." He scooted over to make space on 'his' rock. "Wanna join?"

"Sure." Jay grinned widely. He quickly took off his shoes, before using his airjitzu to fly over the water. He landed on the rock and sat down next to Cole. "Nice spot you've got here."

Cole knew what Jay was thinking. Nya would love it. And Jay would love to show her. But he didn't say anything. So for now, it was their secret.

"So, what's up?" Jay asked.

"Uhm, the sky?" Cole gave their usual answer.

"And don't forget our new home." Jay added. "But I was more wondering what is going on your boulder brain?"

"Probably more than in your little zaptrap." Cole retorted, trying to start one of their usual friendly arguments.

But this time, Jay wouldn't fall for his attempt to change the topic. "Then, will you share some of your profound thoughts with me?"

Cole hesitated, not sure how to explain.

"I also take weird thoughts if you want to keep the others." Jay suggested.

It's probably a mix of both… Cole thought.

He finally spoke. "Being a ghost actually wasn't that bad."

"Okay, that is definitely more weird than profound." Jay commented. "Don't tell me you are looking for a way to get turned back again…"

"N-no, I mean it's great to be me again, and without being scared of fading away. But I just got used to all my new abilities and now it actually feels strange to have an actual body again – it's so… heavy and constricting."

"Yeah, I wouldn't want that body either… you really should cut down on the cake." Jay teased him. But at the same time, the concerned look on his face told Cole to continue.

"I am sure it's just a matter of time. But this makes me feel like a spoilt brat who gets what he wants and still cannot appreciate it. Especially because of him…"

"Him?" Jay raised an eyebrow. "You mean…"

"Yes. In the end, Sensei Yang has sacrificed himself for me. So I kind of owe it to him to make the most of it, right?"

"And you will. But can we please not talk about that creepy ghost? Glad we don't have to worry about him anymore."

"Uhm, sure…"

Cole still hadn't told his friends that the creator of Airjitzu was back living in the old temple with them. He hoped that the old master was not too lonely, now that his students had left and the ninja were away on their holiday.

"Yo know it probably wouldn't be so bad, if I didn't have this constant reminder right on my face." Cole carefully touched his left temple. "Whenever I just start to feel normal and forget about everything that happened, I sooner or later see my reflection or a picture somewhere with this ugly scar."

"If it helps, we can get rid of the mirrors." Jay suggested. "That would also shorten the time Kai needs in the bathroom in the morning."

"But that still won't change anything about the fact that it's there."

"I actually think it's pretty cool." Jay told him. "From my bed, I can see it glow in the dark, you know. It's very comforting."

"You aren't still scared of the dark, are you? I remember how you used to sleep with your golden nunchucks."

Jay blushed. "Maybe just a little bit. But it's also very nice to know that you are there. Unless you disappear in the middle of the night to sit on a rock by the beach…"

"I will try to remember to put a nightlight in my bed, next time I leave the bunkroom."

"Thanks. But you know that the scar makes you look older and wiser. And we can make our own cool-guys-with-scars-club, you, Kai and me."

"Not a bad idea. But what about the others? Definitely Zane." Cole replied.

Jay shook his head. "Nah, titanium is way too strong, he doesn't have a single scratch or dent."

"C'mon, he has lost half of his face and even his complete body, I think that should count."

"You're right." Jay agreed. "I just like to forget about that time…"

"And I think Lloyd has enough emotional scars. That leaves only Nya..."

And we should definitely make the same old mistake of excluding her, even if it's just for a stupid club made-up with the sole purpose of cheering me up.

Jay flinched. Obviously it caused him a lot of pain to even think about Nya getting hurt obviously caused him a lot of pain. While Cole himself had no memories of it, Jay still remembered too well seeing the love of his life die in the altered timeline.

But he quickly recovered from this memory. "She does have a tiny scar on her right wrist though. As a young girl, she burnt herself at the blacksmith shop. That's why she got her bracelet to cover it."

"Oh, I didn't know that."

"Well, please don't let her know I told you."

"Talking about scars, how did you get yours?" Cole enquired. Jay had never talked about it, unusual enough for the motormouth of a ninja.

Jay blushed. "Let's just say it was a less heroic situation than for yours. I was definitely not saving Ninjago at that time."

But Cole didn't feel like letting it slip. "Oh, c'mon. Best friends really should have no secrets from each other." Now he could could play that game, too. "Was it one of your inventions blowing off?"

"Something like that…" Jay mumbled.

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Alright. If you have to know… I was thirteen and going through a massive growth spurt, meaning I was very tired, uncoordinated and clumsy. One morning, I was late for class again and, still half asleep, didn't realise that one of my shoelaces was open. So I tripped and fell head-first against a locker. By lunch, the whole school knew and laughed about it."

"Yeah, I'd rather keep my heroic scar then." Cole laughed.

"Ususally people believe it was a failed invention and I prefer that over the truth, so I'll really appreciate it if you don't tell the others. Or the press. Or anyone."

"No problem, it will be our secret."

Cole stood up and stretched his arms, looking at the sun over the ocean.

"I think it's time to go home now, if we don't want to get into trouble with Sensei Wu."

"Good idea. Don't want to let the others wait too much longer."

"Why wait?"

"Ugh, maybe there's a surprise for you back at the Bounty…"

Cole grinned. "Any chance that surprise has cake?"

Jay nodded. "Yep. We are having a rebirthday party for you. Which mean you will get cake twice a year from now on."

Maybe getting turned into a ghost and back isn't too bad after all.

"Then, what are we waiting for?"

They flew back onto the beach and walked towards the Radar Jet. When they stopped, Jay embraced Cole in a firm hug. "I am glad you are back, you know?"

"Me too… I think. Thanks."

Cole felt a lot better now and he wanted to do something nice for his friend in return.

"It is such a nice morning. I just wish I had taken my dragon to come here. Now I'l be stuck inside the radar jet flying home…"

"If you really want to take the dragon, I could fly the jet for you." Jay offered carefully.

"That's a great idea. If you don't mind…"

"Not at all. Race ya home."

Cole watched with a smile as Jay excitedly ran to the jet and jumped in. Maybe he would have a few more quiet minutes before their return at their mobile headquarters.

But those hopes were crushed as soon as the blue ninja started the motor and took off, singing You've got a friend in me over the com system.

At first, Cole tried to be annoyed, but in the end he joined in.

Yeah, he would get used to everything again and he wouldn't have to do it alone.

And maybe not every bit of noise was that bad. Especially certain noisy people weren't bad at all.

I wrote the first draft for this story about three months ago, but then I watched the Ninjago Movie trailer and got really annoyed… in the movie, Cole doesn't have a scar (okay, that one makes sense), Jay doesn't have a scar either, and Kai's scar is larger and on the wrong side…