Oh, I'm such a mess. I wrote this like three months ago but never posted it here...
But I'll keep you waiting a tiny bit longer because I've got a couple of comments first:
- This one shot as well as all the future stories in this book are based off TOTGA.
- I have a few one shots planned already, but I am also happy to take requests. Stories can be set either during (like deleted scenes, for example from the journeys to and from the Dark Island, or a different POV for a particular event) or after the main story. But they have to be in this AU. And I'm slightly paranoid about the whole rule-breaking thing, so please send requests by PM and not in reviews.
- Stories in this book won't be in 'chronological order'.
- Updates will happen very irregularly (i.e. very slowly).
- Harumi will be the main focus of most of these one shots (hence the title) - and yes, there will be some Lloyrumi.
- I do not own Ninjago, or its characters.
- Cover image was drawn by a friend, ninjagofangirl19 on wattpad. She gave me permission to use it.
This one shot was one I've wanted to write since the end of TOTGA. It will also give a few hints for some of the other chapters I have planned to write.
Siblings' Journey
Harumi, dear." Edna Walker's voice called from outside. "Jay is here to take you to your appointment."
With a little sight, the blonde girl closed her scrapbook and put away her colour pencils before she got up from her (or rather the Walkers' son's) old desk. She had just found a quiet moment to continue working on her drawing. For as strange as it may sound, even as a former princess and leader of a criminal organisation, Harumi was finding her new life to be rather busy...
"I'm coming." She replied as she put on the green hoodie – a present she had received from Lloyd on her release from prison – over her skinny black jeans.
On the way outside, the girl briefly checked her reflection in the small mirror. She had stopped wearing any kind of make up, and her previously pale skin now had a light tan from spending a lot of time outside in the desert sun. Harumi tightened the high ponytail her long white hair was now tied back in. It had been a few weeks since she had last bleached it, so the roots had started to grow out in her natural sandy blonde tone. Harumi had briefly considered cutting her hair while Edna had more than once offered to re-dye the bleached tresses. But in the end, the girl had decided not to get rid of the last visible remainder of her former life but to simply let it grow out slowly, just as she was still in the process of adjusting to everything new herself.
When Harumi came outside, the blue Ninja was chatting to his parents. "Nya's coming over later to get the parts for the new Bounty." He told them happily. "Lloyd wouldn't let both of us get out of training early, but we can stay for dinner."
He smiled when he saw the ex-princess walking towards them. "Hey Harumi." He greeted the younger girl. "How are you doing?"
"I am fine, thank you." She replied politely. "How about you?"
"Yeah, all good." He said. "The others say hi. Especially Lloyd." He smirked.
Lloyd. Harumi's heart fluttered just the tiniest a bit upon hearing the Ninja's name. She knew all too well that she would not be here, maybe not even alive, without him. Not only had he given her the chance to make up for her crimes, but he had also been her friend. During her brief stay in prison he had visited her quite regularly, and his support had also been partly responsible for getting her out on probation. Same went for Ed and Edna who had agreed to take her in.
Strangely enough, she hadn't seen Lloyd ever since she had moved out her to the Sea of Sands. Sure, they would talk to each other on the phone quite regularly, but not a single time had he come out here to see her. But maybe he was just too busy. Or maybe not...
"Nya's gonna be here later." Not having waited for her reaction to his teasing, Jay had already moved the conversation forward - or rather back - to his girlfriend. "She's bringing some old clothes of hers that should fit you."
Harumi's own wardrobe had only consisted of either formal princess dresses or the dark outfits she had worn as the Quiet One, neither of which were suitable for living as a civilian on a junkyard, so the Masters of Water and Amber had offered to provide the younger girl with some items of clothing that they had grown out of.
"That's great." Harumi gave him a little smile. She was aware that Jay's girlfriend still didn't really like or even trust her, so she was looking forward to neither having dinner with Nya nor accepting her generosity, but she didn't really have a choice if she wanted to make this whole arrangement work.
"Oh, that's so sweet of her." Edna cried excitedly. "Nya is such a darling, isn't she?"
"Yeah, sure." Harumi nodded, a lot less enthusiastically.
"And don't worry." Edna winked at her son. "We will take good care of her when she arrives while you're in the city with Harumi. And I think the two of you should get going, we don't want you to be late for your appointment, my dear."
"You're right, ma." Jay hugged his parents before he turned to Harumi. "Are you ready?"
"Sure." She shrugged her shoulders. "But how are we getting to the city?" She looked around but couldn't see any vehicle around that the blue Ninja might have arrived with.
Jay grinned. "Watch this." He told her, summoning his Elemental Dragon. Harumi watched in awe as the majestic blue creature materialised in front of them, stretching its wings that were crackling with electricity.
"So, you've got your dragons back?" She asked, relieved that another one of her mistakes had been rectified.
"Yes, all of us have." Jay replied as he hopped onto his dragon. "Now, shall we?" He held out his hand.
"Uhm..." Harumi slowly approached the Lightning Dragon. "Are you sure the dragon is okay with letting me ride on it?"
"Oh, of course." Jay said. "It's an extension of my mind, so as long as you don't annoy me..."
"You know what I mean." She stated. "It's still a dragon. What if it can smell that I have used one of the Oni masks?"
"It will still trust you because I do." He reassured her. "C'mon."
"Remind me to never fly with Nya then..." Harumi mumbled as she let the Lightning Master help her climb onto the dragon. She sat behind him, holding onto his waist.
"You ready?" He asked, looking over his shoulder.
Not really. She thought. "I am." She said.
As they were flying over the desert, the dragon showing no sign of objection to her, Harumi's worries slowly started to dissipate. And, as she slowly relaxed, she even started to enjoy the journey.
"Wow, this is amazing." She finally laughed.
"It totally is." Jay joined in. "Riding a dragon for the first time is something you are bound to remember for the rest of your life. Mine was definitely unforgettable."
"You were going to the Underworld, right?" Before losing her parents in the Great Devourer incident, Harumi used to be a huge fan of the Ninja, so she knew everything about their early adventures.
"Yeah, that was a very special day..." Even though he had his back turned to, Harumi could see that Jay was smiling fondly at the memory. "It was the same day that I first met Nya."
"And you already knew back then that she was the one for you?" Harumi wanted to know.
"I actually knew the moment that Kai first mentioned her." He said. "I have no idea why, but I just did."
"And you never gave up hope when things became... uhm... difficult between you?"
"I almost did." He admitted. "But then I realised that I just couldn't give up on her and that I would everything," he chuckled, "including some really stupid stuff that luckily nobody else remembers, to make us happen again."
Harumi was still astonished how serious and mature the usually cheerful and careless Master of Lightning was when it came to his relationship with the Water Ninja. "I am really happy for you." And she truly meant it, even though she and Nya weren't the best of friends.
And maybe Jay could give her some advice? "Jay, ca-can I ask you something? Like something personal?"
"I thought this was kinda personal already." He joked. "But sure, go ahead."
"Is Lloyd upset with me?" She wondered.
"No, why should that be?" Jay sounded surprised.
"I don't know." She shrugged. "It's just... he's visited me a few times when I was in prison, but not a single time since I've got out. And now I'm a bit worried that he doesn't want to see me anymore."
"Harumi." Jay said softly. "Lloyd couldn't even give up on you when you were evil and working for his father. He surely wouldn't abandon you nowthat you are trying to make up for your crimes."
"He and your parents were the only ones who were really willing to give me another chance back then..." She remarked.
"And now you're afraid they're all going to turn on you sooner or later?"
Harumi gulped. "Yes."
"Not gonna happen." He vehemently shook his head. "I know my parents, and I know Lloyd. And it's more like the opposite, you've made quite a few more friends since then, you know?"
"Not Nya though..."
"Ah, she's as stubborn as she is beautiful and strong." Jay chuckled. "It takes a while to win her heart. But she's worth it... and I am sure Lloyd thinks that so are you. We've just been really busy these days, with all the... uhm... Ninja stuff." He blushed.
Harumi understood. "Still sorting out all the mess I've made?"
"Hey, that's our job." He claimed. "Without all those villains trying to take over Ninjago, we'd be unemployed. Not that I'm trying to encourage you to get back into that business..." He was quick to add.
"Not planning to." She reassured him.
"Good." He sighed in relief. "I have a bit of a habit of saying stupid stuff; my mouth sometimes works faster than my brain..."
"Yeah, I've noticed that." She teased the other.
"Hey, you should show some respect to older people." He protested jokingly. "But anyway, what I was trying to say is that it was probably easier for Lloyd to see you when you were in the city and he simply may not have found the time to come out here."
"He has invited me to visit you guys, but I didn't want to ask your parents to take me." Harumi was banned from driving (or riding or flying or whatever) any kind of vehicle until she turned 21. "I feel bad enough for them having to drive me to all my appointments in the city."
"Don't worry." Jay said. "They really like doing that for you. It was part of the deal to get you out of prison early."
"I've applied for a petrol allowance." She informed him. "Ed said it's fine but I don't want him and Edna to waste their hard earned money on me."
She still couldn't call them mum and dad, and luckily, they didn't expect her to.
"You really still have to learn a lot about my parents. If they say it's fine, then it is." He told her. "They are very happy that you've agreed to live with them. And they want to make you feel at home."
Harumi smiled. "Even only after a few weeks, I already feel more at home than during all those years at the palace."
"Well, that's a relief." Jay sighed. "So you're not going to... uhm..."
"Just say it." Harumi said sharply. "No, I'm not going to blow up your parents."
"Sorry." He apologised. "Motormouth has done it again..."
"I guess I deserve it." She said regretfully. "But I really like living at the junkyard, even though Edna and Ed can sometimes be a bit..." She was searching for the right word.
"Annoying? Embarrassing? Loud?" Jay suggested.
"Overwhelming." Harumi said. "It's hard to have a quiet moment just to myself."
"Yes, I remember that..." Jay agreed. "You simply have to tell them when you want to be left alone. They will understand – even though you may need to remind them of this once in a while."
"But... I don't want to appear ungrateful. They're doing so much for me."
"Harumi." Jay turned his head to look her in the eyes. "They love you, and they want to help you. And so do we. If you don't want to bother my parents with stuff like, let's say driving you somewhere, you can always ask us, you know?" He actually sounded a tad offended. "When I talked to my ma this morning about Nya and I coming over to the junkyard for some spare parts, she briefly mentioned that you have to get to the city this afternoon. And believe it or not, it was actually Nya's idea that I take you to your appointment today and we get to spend some time together."
"Really?" Harumi was more than just a bit surprised. "I-I'd assumed your mother made you because Nya needed their help today."
"Nobody has made me do this. As I've said before, I'm your friends - and you're sort of my little sister now. So, don't hesitate to ask me or one of the others if you're not sure about someone or need anything." He repeated. "By the way, have you ever invited Lloyd over to visit?"
"No. Why?" He had simply always turned up before, even back then when she hadn't wanted to see him at all.
"Maybe he should let him know that you want to see him." Jay suggested. "And that you want him to see you like this."
"He's seen me in jail. Why should I have a problem with him seeing me living with your parents?"
Jay blushed, as Harumi could tell from the pink ears. "It could be my fault." He admitted. "When I was younger, I was a bit of an idiot. I didn't want my teammates to find out that I'd grown up in a junkyard. And I didn't want them to meet my parents because they, well, you know... they can be a bit loud and embarrassing."
Harumi raised an eyebrow. "Let me get things straight - at a time when Kai and Nya had no idea what happened to their parents, Zane didn't know who he was at all, and Cole had only his father who back then didn't even accept him for who he was, you were embarrassed to have two loving parents who adored you?"
"Yes." His ears were now as red as Kai's gi.
"You are right, you were an idiot." She gently punched his shoulder. "And you might also be right about that I should tell him..."
"Do that." He nodded. "So, we're almost over Ninjago City. Where do we need to go? Probation Officer?"
"No." Harumi shook her head. "Therapy."
"How's it going?" Jay enquired.
Harumi shrugged. "Not too bad."
"That's all?" Jay was obviously expecting a bit more information.
The former Quiet One sighed. She wasn't used to giving long replies. In her old life, her two persona were either expected to give short and obedient answers or brief and blunt orders. But that just didn't work with the talkative Walker family.
"She says I'm making progress." She still didn't want to go into too much detail. "Like I'm already looking a lot healthier and happier."
"Seriously?" He laughed. "That's what you have to go here for twice a week?" He asked incredulously. "Everyone can see that."
"Uhm, thanks?" She blushed.
"I mean it." He said softly. "You look great."
"Don't let Nya hear that."
"Hey, I'm just complimenting my little sister." Jay protested. "And if I or anyone else was hitting on you, I'd be worried about getting into trouble with Master Lloyd."
"I can still defend myself." Harumi claimed. "But talking to my therapist really helps me a lot. It's easier to open up to a stranger about some things..."
"I believe you." He said understandingly. "But she's not the only person you can talk to, okay? And I promise we won't judge you if that's what you're afraid of."
"I-I know." She said. "And I promise I will try. Thanks. Also for the ride."
"No problem." He chuckled. "Apparently, that's what big brothers are for."
Harumi gave him a little hug from behind. "I wouldn't know anything about that, but it sounds good to me."
"We're here now." Jay said as he landed his dragon on the green opposite the white brick building. "I'll pick you up here after your session."
"Yes, see you in an hour." Harumi climbed off the dragon and walked across the street. Jay waited until she had safely crossed the road before he took off.
Harumi pressed the bell. When she heard the buzzer, she opened the door and walked inside, closing the door behind her. Through the milky glass, she could see the blue dragon and its rider flying away.
And it was a very comforting feeling to know that they would soon come back for her.
