Due to the long commute between the Airjitzu Temple and New Ninjago City, Magpie decided to take emergency leave from her veterinary job so she could stay and watch over her brother. Wu was only too happy to host Phoenix's sister – she was more familiar with his regeneration cycle than anyone – and Nya kindly offered to put Magpie up in her room. Well, Lloyd was the first to offer, but Wu felt it was inappropriate; Lloyd later complained to Jay that it wasn't inappropriate when Kai offered to take in Kiku, why was it different for himself and Magpie? Jay quipped 'Kiku's a droid, nothing indecent could come of it, but Magpie's human, and one baby in the temple is gonna be hard enough without the risk of another one', and Lloyd practically imploded from embarrassment.
Kai was secretly very happy about Magpie sharing a room with Nya – he suspected that there might have been some night-time activity going on between her and Jay, but any sneaking around they might have attempted now came with the possibility of being caught by Magpie. He didn't object to their relationship – far from it – but knowing his teammate was potentially involved with his sister 'that way' made him feel dirty. Meanwhile, Pixal had become incredibly protective of the fire opal egg that contained the baby form of Phoenix, to the point that she literally refused to let anyone other than Magpie touch it or try to take it from her lap. She enthusiastically volunteered to help care for little Phoenix once he had hatched and Zane agreed to help as well. Magpie offered to run them through some important information, once she got back from picking up supplies from home.
Cole had relayed the day's events to Jasper over the phone, and Jasper's initial reaction was disbelief, until she realised that the ninja had been through much stranger things, like Cole being turned into a ghost, or Wu being made part cyborg by the Overlord, or Lloyd's dad sending himself to the Cursed Realm. Her second reaction was one of concern – the photoshoot for the men's pinup calendar was due to happen in a couple of weeks, with the women's one being the week after – however, she was able to reschedule the men's photoshoot to occur after the women's photoshoot. It meant they'd happen in the same week, and she had to contact all the male elemental masters to inform them of the change, but it gave Phoenix an extra week to get back to 'normal'. Now that it had been established that Phoenix was an elemental master, they could hardly proceed without him.
Currently, Lloyd was standing outside Phoenix's home, waiting for Magpie. He was most surprised when he and Magpie first touched down – having ridden to the city on the back of his dragon, Mori – and he saw the large, gated building. At first, he thought it was a condo, until Magpie corrected him, saying it was a family home that Phoenix inherited from their parents.
Once he got over the initial shock of such a sprawling property being in the middle of a built-up city like New Ninjago, he offered to wait outside while she went in and collected some essentials for her stay at the temple. While he gave Mori some gentle scritches, Lloyd became aware of someone entering the front gate.
A girl in her late teens was walking up the grand path towards him, but she was looking at her phone and hadn't noticed him at all, even when he waved at her. She was wearing dark purple sunglasses, a white hoodie and a grey pleated mini skirt, complete with black ankle boots that showed off her long, slender legs. Hanging from her shoulder was a heart-shaped messenger bag, and her short, spiky hair was mostly white, but with black on the tips of her spiked strands. She looked up from her phone as she approached the front door and soon noticed Lloyd, grinning at him with glistening pale rose lips. She tilted her sunglasses up onto the top of her head and he was momentarily startled by her bright aqua eyes, framed with feathery black lashes and sunset eyeshadow.
"Uh, h-hey," Lloyd smiled. "are you here to see Magpie?"
"No, this is where I live," She responded. "is Magz home already?"
"Oh, you must be Sagittarius," Lloyd realised, holding out his hand. "I'm Lloyd, nice to meet you!"
She glanced at him and smirked, then took his hand and firmly gripped it.
"'Sup, Blondie," She vigorously shook his hand. "good to meet you too."
"I like your feathers," He complimented as he gestured to the small orange contour feathers on her cheeks. "are you into burlesque as well?"
"Not exactly…" Sagittarius quickly retreated her hand and held the strap of her shoulder bag anxiously.
Before Lloyd could ask about them further, Magpie soon came out with a large purple backpack.
"I'm ready!" She sang, almost bumping into Sagittarius as she pulled the door shut. "Oops, sorry Sage, I didn't see you there."
"No worries – listen, have you heard anything from Phoenix? He wasn't at the student's guild, and I can't get hold of him; his phone must be switched off."
"He's gone into regen," Magpie explained. "he was at the temple doing the posing class for the ninja and he imploded this morning."
"How far back did he go?" Sage asked.
"All the way back…" Magpie lamented as Sage shook her head. "I'm going to stay at the temple to help once he hatches."
"Why not just bring him home?" Sage raised an eyebrow.
"She would if she could," Lloyd interjected. "but my teammates wife won't let go of the egg, she's obsessed with it."
"Pfft, sounds like someone's broody," Sage teased, looking at Magpie. "are you gonna be gone until he's back to normal?"
"Yeah, pretty much, he hadn't finished tutoring the ninja and I might need to step in," Magpie nodded. "will you be okay on your own?"
"I can take care of myself, Magz, I don't need you to babysit me." Sage assured in a deeply unimpressed tone.
"I'm only a phone call away, Sage, if you need anything." Magpie smiled at her cheeky little sister.
Sage waved at her dismissively. Mori tilted his body so Magpie could climb up into the saddle, and Lloyd followed after her. As the two settled in place – with Magpie placing the backpack between herself and the handle, and Lloyd sitting snugly behind her – he jostled the reins, Mori flapped his massive wings and gently took off into the sky. Soon, they were making headway back towards the temple.
This was nothing like the panicked pace of Inferno, who was frantically trying to get her to Phoenix as fast as he could; this was a much more leisurely dragon ride. Magpie enjoyed the cool breeze as it stroked her face, and the stunning view of the landmass as they flew over various smaller towns, but more than anything, she secretly liked the near proximity of Lloyd as he sat so close that she could feel his body heat on her back. His arms were around her, holding the reins, and the fabric of his uniform was thin enough that she became aware of his muscles flexing with every movement – it was rather thrilling.
Lloyd did notice that Magpie seemed more relaxed going back to the temple than going to New Ninjago, and he figured perhaps she was just anxious to get back to her brother. He wondered what she'd put into her backpack that made the saddle such a tight squeeze to sit in, but then he also decided that he didn't particularly care. As her body was all but huddled against his, he could practically sense her heartbeat pounding against him, and the silkiness of her bare arms brushed on his forearms as he moved the reins.
Flying on a dragon was not tremendously exciting for Lloyd, he'd done it many times, but Magpie clearly hadn't ever been this high up before. Well, obviously she had, given that she rode Phoenix's dragon to the temple, but the focus of that journey was speed; she wouldn't have had time to enjoy the scenery like she was now. Magpie was fully admiring the world beneath her with fresh eyes, and she alternated looking over the top of each of Mori's wings. Unfortunately, her constant moving around – while sitting so close to him – was making his temperature rise.
"Having fun?" He asked as casually as he could manage.
"Oh yes, this is just wonderful," She purred. "I haven't been this high up for ages, I didn't realise how much I missed it."
"Did Phoenix bring you up here on his dragon?"
"No, I used to fly all the time," She hesitated, debating whether or not to tell him, but ultimately deciding not to. "I mean, Phoenix used to take me flying when I was little."
"It must've been a shock when you first found out how old Phoenix was." He baited.
"Kind of, I knew he'd been around for a while, but when he told me his true age, I didn't believe him," She paused. "then I saw him regenerate, and I was floored by it."
"it wasn't the most fun thing to see." Lloyd admitted.
"Yeah, the smell of burning made me physically sick the first time," Magpie instinctively touched her stomach at the memory of it. "the second time was easier to deal with though."
"How often does he go through the cycle?"
"Every 50 years usually." She explained.
"So… do you mind if I ask how old you are?" He asked.
Magpie froze, as she realised that she'd slipped up. She sat perfectly still and slowly turned her head until she could see him in her peripheral vision. Lloyd looked at her with a calm smile as her cheeks turned pink.
"Surely you know it's rude to ask a lady her age?" She stammered.
"You don't have to answer, I'm just curious," He politely insisted. "because while he was fighting the regeneration, Phoenix said you were once a normal magpie that he brought back to life."
"He was probably taken over by delirium," She deflected. "my poor brother is vulnerable to mental deterioration as he regenerates."
Lloyd was still curious but sensed that it was something she didn't want to talk about, so he dropped the subject for now. Magpie continued to appear nervous for a time, until the prolonged silence made her realise that he was no longer interested in prying into her history. She relaxed soon after and leaned against the left side of his chest, rolling her shoulders and sighing somewhat alluringly. He tensed up as she deliberately pressed her body into his, and the breath of her sigh purred in his ear. His heart started beating faster, his temperature continued to rise, and the overheated expression on his face didn't go unnoticed.
"Are you okay Lloyd? You seem a little tense," Magpie spoke in a soft tone and touched his right cheek with her hand. "I'm sorry if I came across as snappy when you asked about my age…"
"I'm fine," Lloyd tried to insist, as his voice wavered slightly. "I just hope I didn't offend you."
"I was a little startled, nothing more," She nodded.
Lloyd made the mistake of glancing at Magpie's face, and immediately felt his heart jump as her heterochromatic eyes were gleaming in the sunlight. The dazzling blue and silver, framed by black, velvety lashes, shone brightly and pierced into his wide verdant eyes with corvid-like sharpness. The longer he observed her innocent expression, the faster he got lost in the bottomless pools staring demurely back at him. It was only an errant roar from his dragon that snapped him out of it, and he realised that the temple was just up ahead.
He gently pulled the reins toward him, encouraging Mori to come down with equal deftness. In contrast to Inferno's restless landing earlier on, Magpie was treated to the feather-soft descent of Mori, who – at the hands of Lloyd – reached the ground with little more than a delicate bump. The obedient dragon tilted his body again and stretched out his wings so his passengers could disembark safely. Lloyd leapt down first, then reached up with open arms to help Magpie. She passed down her backpack, which he placed on the ground beside him, and she nervously attempted to climb down.
It was obvious she didn't travel this way very much; the ninja were so accustomed to it that they were able to just jump from the saddle, but Magpie looked very uncomfortable trying to get down from Mori's back, even though he was as close to the floor as he could get.
"Just jump, it's easier," Lloyd insisted, gesturing with his hands. "honestly, it's not as far as it looks."
"I don't want to fall…" Magpie mumbled.
"I'm right here, I'll catch you, I promise." Lloyd vowed.
He wondered how she was able to be so high up in the sky and not have a problem with it, only to be skittish about a drop barely taller than himself. He continued waving his hands to silently encourage her to just go for it, and eventually, she obliged – and slipped. True to his word, Lloyd caught Magpie as she came down, and she clung to him like her life depended on it. She was a little shaky, and her eyes were tightly closed as she whimpered.
"There, there, you're okay, calm down…" He murmured, stroking her hair. "…you've got feathers on your shoulders."
Magpie quickly brushed the black and white feathers away.
"Thank you for catching me…" She stammered as a blush took over her face.
"You're welcome." He smiled.
Again, he was captured by her eyes, drawn to them like a bee to honey. Her delicate, blushing skin, her shy little half-smile, the shine of the gloss on her lips… He placed his hand on one of her flushed cheeks and stroked the smooth, hot skin with his thumb. The light in her eyes danced as she gazed at him, and he briefly bit his lip as a chill ran up his spine.
"Lloyd…" Magpie whispered. "I-is there something you want?"
"Maybe," Lloyd murmured back, her face now so close to his that he could feel her breath as she spoke. "I just don't want to be too forward…"
"But what if, I also wanted something?" She nervously mumbled.
It was like the cover of a romance novel; the sun was shining brightly, there was a golden glow everywhere, Lloyd and Magpie were standing so close that a kiss was all but imminent. They dotingly observed each other's eyes, examining every speck of colour within them, and Lloyd's heart jumped when Magpie deftly licked her lips. This was it, his chance to lean in for a smooch from this gorgeous girl…
"What's taking so long?" Nya shouted from the front door.
Lloyd sighed heavily.
"Be there in a minute!" Lloyd shouted back.
He reluctantly pulled away from her and picked up her bag. She gave a somewhat disappointed smile, her face still red as a cherry.
"Come on, let's get you settled in Nya's room." He smiled back, as they both headed toward the temple entrance.
"She's been sitting there all day," Kiku lamented, leaning against the door frame. "do you think she's alright?"
"I'm sure she's fine," Nya assured. "Pixal's fascination with the regen cycle is pretty standard for someone as curious as she is."
"I guess…"
"I've noticed you're fairly pre-occupied with the egg too." Nya stated.
"Pfft, no way!" Kiku deflected.
"I'm serious! Sure, Pixal has been the one protecting it like it's her own, but you've been staring at it on and off all day."
Kiku paused. She watched her sister as she was quietly hugging the egg and leaning into Zane, who had his arms around her. The two of them were just happily sitting together, seemingly asleep as their eyes were closed and they hadn't moved in a while. Kiku smiled, but it soon fell as she recalled all too vividly the swift deterioration that took hold of Phoenix before he reverted to egg form.
"I'm worried about Fireball," Kiku admitted. "it was scary, seeing him so sick."
"This is how he heals; he'll be okay once he's back."
Nya and Kiku looked behind them to see Magpie smiling softly.
"Are they still asleep?" She asked.
"I think so," Nya giggled. "they haven't left that spot since this morning."
"Oh my gods, they're so damn cute!" Magpie squeaked, clenching her hands. "How do you get anything done with these two lovebirds here, being so adorable all the time?"
"You like cute things, huh?" Kiku surmised.
"I adore cute things!" Magpie purred. "It seems such a shame to wake them, but I said I'd give them more information about Phoenix when I got back."
"Finished setting up in my room?" Nya wondered.
"Yes, thanks again for taking me into your personal space," Magpie smiled.
"It's no trouble, honestly, I just hope you'll sleep okay; I know Lloyd wanted you with him," Nya teased. "and you two seem to get on very well."
"It was very sweet of him to offer…" Magpie blushed.
"It's probably for the best that you don't share a room with Lloyd," Kiku smirked. "one look at you in that pearl trim burlesque outfit you wear on a Saturday night, and he'd explode!"
"Ooh, I'd love to see that!" Nya excitedly said. "Did you bring it with you?"
"Actually, I did," Magpie sheepishly confessed. "I need to re-affix some of the pearls and thought 'I can do that while I'm waiting for Phoenix to hatch'."
Nya and Kiku exchanged an interesting glance, complete with raised eyebrows and a cheeky smirk, while Magpie approached the droids who were sleeping on the couch. But before she could touch them to jostle them awake:
"Hello Magpie." Zane stated without opening his eyes.
"Hey Zane, I'm back from my brief visit home and I thought now would be a good time to go over a few things with you both." Magpie asserted as she knelt down in front of them.
"Of course," He replied, eyes now open and glowing icy blue. "Pixal, darling…"
"I'm awake," Pixal insisted as she sat up. "hello Magpie."
"Hey Pixal, thanks for watching my brother while I was gone, how's he doing?"
Without a word, Pixal placed her hands flat on the egg's surface, and once again, a heartbeat loudly echoed out from the speakers behind her ears. A wide smile crossed her lips.
"He's gotten bigger," Pixal declared. "and his heart is strong."
"That's great news," Magpie grinned. "you've really taken to him, haven't you?"
Pixal merely hugged the egg in response.
"She's enamoured of the whole process." Zane chuckled.
"Okay, so-."
"Wait for us!" Jay insisted as he, Cole, Kai and Lloyd suddenly rushed into the living room.
"Oh, I didn't think anyone else would be interested in this…" Magpie tilted her head.
"We're a team, we do everything as a unit," Lloyd explained. "Zane and Pixal are taking on most of it, but we want to help too."
"How very public spirited of you all," Magpie admired. "there's quite a lot to go over, so it would be worth sitting down for the time being."
The ninja did as Magpie suggested and got comfortable to hear what she had to say. Kiku sat to the left of Pixal, Nya sat by Magpie with a notebook and a pen, Jay and Cole sat on the other couch, but Kai and Lloyd sat on the floor with the ladies. With everyone settled, Magpie smiled and began to speak.
"If anyone has any questions, just ask, and I'll answer as we go; this is no doubt an unusual experience for everyone," She mentioned. "but before I start, do any of you have familiarity with babies or children?"
"I mean, I know the basics of caring for a baby, no real-world experience though," Nya mentioned. "and Kai looked after me from a young age, so he'll have some knowledge."
"Not to mention Lloyd," Cole added, pointing at the green ninja. "he wasn't the same age as us when he came to the team, so we've all got some understanding of little kids."
"Oh? How old was he?" Magpie asked curiously.
"Like, 10 years old, and he was a pain in the butt sometimes." Jay laughed as Lloyd covered his face in embarrassment.
"He aged up after an incident with something called-."
"Tomorrow Tea," Magpie interrupted with a nod. "I'm familiar with its effects."
"I haven't got a clue when it comes to babies, or little kids," Kiku held up her hands, before cracking her knuckles. "but I know how to deal with teenagers…"
"So, generally speaking, no hands-on experience with babies?" Magpie said, seeking confirmation.
She was met with shaking heads in response.
"Okay, good, you won't really need it; although my brother has returned to baby age, obviously he'll be very different to a regular baby," Magpie began. "the first thing I should warn you about are his scars – he will be born with the scars you saw before the regen."
"Shouldn't they heal though?" Nya queried. "I mean, he's regenerating, doesn't that imply that he can fix them?"
"The eye scar happened when he was new to his powers; he wasn't sure how to fix it and accidentally made it worse," Magpie elaborated. "the one on his collar bone happened at a time when he was vulnerable – or more specifically, he regenerated to a young age around people he thought he could trust… that turned out not to be the case."
"Poor baby…" Pixal sniffled, holding the egg closer.
"Second thing; he will be born with his milk teeth, but he should avoid solids for the first 12 hours, and he will be hungry a lot, because his metabolism is ridiculously high, – but on that note, he uses everything he eats, so there's no 'waste' as it were – or as Sage puts it, he's 'all cute, no mess'."
"So, no poop?" Cole tilted his head in confusion.
"Nope, he also won't be sick, or spit up," Magpie shook her head. "but he might cough up blood sometimes; I have no idea why, he's never told me the reason, just don't panic if it does happen."
"I think I'd rather deal with poop than blood…" Kai noted, looking a little pale as he remembered the amount of blood Phoenix coughed up during the regeneration.
"Oh please, blood is way easier to cope with." Nya stated.
"Spoken like a true woman," Magpie quipped. "Phoenix will obviously cry when he's hungry, but if he needs anything else, he'll screech like a hawk until his vocal cords allow for him to speak."
"This is just bizarre… next you'll be telling us he doesn't need to learn how to do that!" Jay laughed, before looking at Magpie's sheepish expression and being utterly floored. "You've gotta be kidding me…"
"He retains his memories of past lives, right up to the point of regeneration, so doesn't need to learn how to walk, or speak, or read, or write," Magpie shook her head again. "he just needs to wait for those parts of his body to be developed enough to use those skills."
"At this rate he hardly needs watching, you could just wait for him to hatch and then leave him to get on with it!" Kai chuckled.
Pixal and Magpie both glared at Kai viciously, and he immediately regretted opening his mouth. For the first time in hours, Pixal removed the egg from her lap and passed it to Zane, then she stood up and stormed over to Kai with burning red eyes. Kai began to shuffle backwards until he could get on his feet, at which point he had backed into a wall. Pixal got right up in Kai's face and growled. Her dainty, sharp fingernails began to glow, and she raised her hand, preparing to strike him.
"Pixal." Zane sharply said.
She abruptly turned to look at Zane, who held the egg to his chest.
"Not in front of the baby…" He shook his head disapprovingly.
Turning back to Kai, Pixal's eyes returned to their usual green, and she scowled at him.
"I'm sorry, Pix, it was just a joke…" Kai apologised.
"Stay away from my little ho-oh…" She warned, prodding him roughly in the chest.
Pixal returned to her seat, and Zane handed over the egg to once again rest in her lap, while Kai also returned to where he was sitting. She glowered at him and curled her arms around the egg protectively. Magpie too took a moment to stare at him contemptuously, before clearing her throat and continued speaking.
"The initial 48 hours are the most important," Magpie stated loudly. "the 72 hours following that are also key; you've got to keep an eye on him to ensure he's developing socially, after that, you need to watch out for signs of recurring trauma – nightmares, hallucinations, paranoia – that may come to the surface."
"Is that because of the stuff that led to him getting his scars?" Jay questioned.
"Unfortunately, yes: that final stage is where he'll need lots of love and reassurance that he's safe," Magpie replied. "he's been in therapy to deal with it, but the regeneration temporarily brings back the fear and uncertainty – once he's past that, he's fine to be left to his own devices."
"Can two droids really raise an elemental master?" Pixal quietly asked, as her own uncertainty emerged. "What if I mess it up?"
"As long as we are together, we can handle anything," Zane gently smiled at her. "we won't 'mess it up', because we will be working together."
"And I'll be here to help, naturally," Magpie beamed reassuringly. "I gave you all this information so you wouldn't be caught off-guard, but I'm not going home until Phoenix is back to himself."
"You can lean on us too, remember; the whole team, even that doofus there-" Lloyd offered, pointing at Kai, who bashfully waved. "-will be helping out where we can."
Ho-oh (or 鳳凰) is the Japanese word for phoenix; this is also why the legendary bird Pokémon is called Ho-oh