AN: There are so many things in the show that just don't make sense. Traumas happen, and people are just right as rain. THEY NEED TO COPE, LEGO, THEY NEED TO COPE
So, I gave Lloyd a more accurate reaction to the events of Child's Play. Unsurprisingly, it's Kai and Lloyd focused. Again.

The trip back to the Destiny's Bounty that night was thick with tension. No one spoke, but Lloyd could feel Kai's gaze boring into him.

He wished the fire ninja would look at something else. He didn't want to think about what he was looking at.

It had been Lloyd's choice, and he knew it. Not that his range of options had exactly been wide when a huge, ninja-eating monster had been looming over them, but he had made the choice nonetheless.

He just hadn't expected it to be like this.

He had thought that not being a little boy anymore meant he got to become stronger, fight better, and, of course, accompany the ninja on their missions.

But he hadn't thought about the way his legs would become so much longer suddenly, forcing him to concentrate so he wouldn't trip. Or how his hair would dangle too-long in his face, or how the green gi, on which the sleeves and pant legs had been rolled up a ridiculous amount of times, now fit perfectly. Reminding him too much of who he was and what he was meant to do.

Most of all, though, he hadn't expected the gaping ache in his chest, like someone had ripped out his heart. He didn't understand where it came from or what it meant, only that the sparkling display racks in the windows of Doomsday Comix had never felt more distant than they did now.

Their arrival at the monastery couldn't come soon enough, and Lloyd began to dart down the hall, anxious to get away from the prying eyes of the others. Before he could get far, however, a hand snatched his wrist, and he looked back to see Kai staring at him apprehensively.

"Hey, bud. We're here for you. You don't need to go running off on your own."

Lloyd shook his head. "I'm not. I just wanna go take a shower." The voice that came from his throat wasn't his, it was too deep. He didn't even recognize himself anymore.

Lloyd repressed a shiver of dread, realizing Kai was still looking at him expectantly. "I got… there was a lot of rubble and dust when the Grundle caved in the roof, I just wanna get clean. I'm fine."

Kai stared at him for a long moment, and for once Lloyd couldn't read the expression in his eyes. Relenting, he let out his breath, dropping Lloyd's wrist. "You're not. But whatever."

Lloyd merely nodded, realizing that wasn't the most reassuring answer he could give, but being reluctant to hear his own voice again.

Forcing himself to turn away, he headed down the hallway, passing the ninja's cabin and heading towards his room a little way down.

Uncle Wu had cleared out the small storage room for him that first night he had stayed on the Bounty, and it had been his ever since. He had appreciated the gesture, to have his own space away from the others, and it had always been a comforting little place for him.

But now, as he gazed around at it, the room itself wasn't the only thing that was small anymore. The bed in the corner was no longer large enough for him, the mirror mounted on the wall was too low down, the Starfarer comics piled on the nightstand were too juvenile and suddenly much less interesting.

Lloyd sighed, rubbing his hands over his eyes. There was no point lingering here. He might as well go take a shower like he had promised Kai.

But when he pulled open the drawer on his dresser, he paused, gazing down at the clothes.

Everything was too small. Of course it was.

Lloyd took a deep breath, running a hand through his hair as he tried to push down the bubbling panic in his chest.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten.

Letting out his breath again, he grabbed a pair of old, baggy pajama shorts that had always been too big on him anyway, and an undershirt from his gi.

Slipping through the halls, he made it to the bathroom at the end of the ship and quietly pulled the door shut behind him.

As he undressed, all he could focus on was his body, how it was bigger and older and different now. He forcibly shoved the thoughts out of his head before he had a breakdown and stepped into the shower.

Lloyd turned the shower as hot as it would go, barely even noticing as the water scalded his skin. He didn't know how long he stood there, only that the water kept getting colder and colder until his teeth were chattering. Not even bothering to wash his hair, he stepped out of the shower and grabbed a bath towel, pressing his face into it.

He couldn't do this. He had thought he could handle it, but he couldn't. Lloyd was barely clutching on to the last threads of his sanity, and he needed to get out of here.

Quickly changing into the shorts and undershirt, he walked over to the window and carefully pushed it open. Stars twinkled at him from the dark sky, and he glanced down. The bathroom was at the top of the ship, just behind the bridge, so it was about a twenty-foot drop to the ground- easily enough to break a leg.

Biting his lip, he grabbed onto the window frame and pulled himself out, gripping onto the side of the ship as his feet found purchase on the windowsill. As he slowly stood, he accidentally caught sight of his face in the reflection in the window and nearly slipped, gasping sharply as he just barely caught himself from falling.

Get yourself together, Lloyd. You're still yourself, just a little older. Stop being such a crybaby.

Reaching up for the edge of the roof of the bridge, he hauled himself up and crawled back from the edge a bit. Staring out over the trees, the soft glow of the city in the distance, he glanced down at his hands. Fingers too long, palms too rough.

He hadn't known it was going to be like this. All he had done was age up a few years. It was a small sacrifice to make, seeing as the Grundle would've killed them all otherwise. It shouldn't have been that big of a deal. Lloyd shouldn't have been acting so selfishly.

He wrapped his arms around his legs, curling up into a ball.

For the first time that night, Lloyd let himself cry.

Kai paced back and forth across the hallway. "Ugh! Why do I let him leave? I know he always locks himself in his room and never comes back to talk to me!"

Zane frowned. "I know this is difficult and confusing for you, Kai- it is for all of us. But Lloyd's always been much less straightforward than you. Perhaps we should try a less direct approach."

"You're saying I should just let him sulk alone for the rest of the night?"

"What I'm saying is that maybe we should just give him a little time to himself, time to process, before we all go barging in to speak to him."

"Just because Lloyd thinks he wants to be alone doesn't mean he should be. Isolation isn't going to solve anything."

"Kai," Cole sighed, "that's not what we're saying at all. This is just a sensitive situation for Lloyd, and we don't want to provoke him the wrong way."

"A sensitive situation?" Kai barked. "Don't you think I know that? But I'm telling you, he needs someone! Don't you see? That's what he does! He tells us he's fine, but he's not! Of course he's not! And- and I want to help him, but I can't. When he needs me most, I have no idea what to do. Augh, why did I let him come with us? I knew it was too dangerous!"

"Kai," Zane put a cool hand on his shoulder. "Calm down. There's nothing you could've done."

"Nothing I could've done?" Kai blinked up at him through watery eyes. "I was supposed to protect him."

Nya squeezed his hand. "You can't blame yourself for this, Kai. You can't."

"I'm not trying to. It's just… hard. This isn't some small little mishap we can go back and fix. This is big."

"I know, but he's strong. He's going to get through it. I think Zane's right, we should tread lightly. Although," she paused, her brow furrowing, "I am starting to get pretty worried about him. He's been in there a long time."

"Wait," Jay frowned. "In his room?"

"No, the bathroom."

Kai's head snapped towards her. "Wait, what? Did he go in there again?"

Nya shook her head. "I've been watching the door. He never left after he went in the first time."

Cole glanced between them. "How long has he been in there?"

Kai's gaze darted anxiously towards the bathroom door. "He went in there to take a shower nearly an hour ago."

Cole's eyes darkened. "Yeah, that's too long. Let's go."

They hurried over to the bathroom door and the others hovered anxiously behind as Cole rapped his knuckles on the wood, leaning his ear against it. "Lloyd, you okay in there?"

There was no answer.

Cole knocked harder, and Kai could feel the anxiety building. "Lloyd? Bud? We just wanna talk."

"Okay," Nya breathed after a moment, "Lloyd's as stubborn as a mule, but he doesn't purposely worry us like this. Something's wrong."

"Zane," Cole said, the struggle to keep calm evident in his voice. "Can you pick up anything?"

Zane stilled for a moment. "My sensors don't detect any sign of movement."

Kai's heart skipped a beat. "Get me in." Shoving past the others, he lunged for the door handle, yanking on it- but it didn't budge. "He locked it! Why would he lock it?"

"We need a lock pick!" Jay yelped. "Nya, do you have a bobby pin?"

"I can get one, I'll be right back!"

"Lloyd!" Cole yelled, banging on the door. "Open the door! Don't do anything dumb!"

"Talk to us, bud!" Kai cried. "Please!"

"I'm back," Nya huffed, skidding across the floor and holding out the pin. Jay snatched it from her hand and jiggled it in the lock, gritting his teeth. The others waited apprehensively as the seconds ticked by.

Jay pulled back with a sigh. "It's not working."

"Lloyd," Kai moaned, "Open up!"

Cole glanced at them. "Should I break the door?"

Zane hesitated, then nodded. "Do it. We can always replace it later. Lloyd is more important."

Everyone except for Cole stepped away from the door. The earth ninja held up his fists, and they glowed amber, the light spreading down his forearms.

"Stand back, Lloyd! I'm coming in!" Cole lunged forward, punching in the door and sending splinters of wood flying.

Kai darted to his side and stared into the bathroom, his breath caught in his throat.

Jay stepped around them, pulling back the shower curtain. Empty.

Just like the rest of the room.

"He's not here?" Cole asked. "I just destroyed the door for nothing?"

"That's impossible!" Nya yelped. "I saw him go in, and he never left! I'm positive."

Kai's eyes lingered on the far wall. "I know where he went."

The others followed his gaze towards the open window, and Jay's eyes widened. "He went out the window? That fall could seriously injure him!"

Kai shook his head. "He didn't go down, he went up." Glancing back at the others, he added, "Perhaps Zane had a point about the whole subtlety thing. Let me go talk to him first."

The others exchanged reluctant glances, but stepped back.

Kai pulled himself out the window, balancing carefully as his fingers found the edge of the roof's shingles. A chilly breeze hit him in the face, but he ignored it, hauling himself the rest of the way up with a soft grunt.

Lloyd was sitting a few feet away, curled in on himself as he stared off into the distance. Kai slowly eased his way over to him and the two sat in silence for a while.

Kai forced himself to look at the boy and felt a tug on his heartstrings. The way he sat there, so quiet and still, was as unlike Lloyd as his new appearance.

Kai shook his head. He couldn't allow himself to think like that. No doubt Lloyd already had enough of those thoughts going through his head. This was still the same person. He was still Lloyd. He was still his little brother.

Kai leaned closer, allowing his shoulder to lightly bump against Lloyd's. The green ninja gasped suddenly, as if just realizing he was there, and quickly scrubbed at his eyes. The action made him seem more like the young child that had been left behind. That, and the fact that he was shivering.

"Dude, you're freezing!" He glanced down to see Lloyd was only wearing a pair of baggy shorts and a light tank top. "Why aren't you wearing any proper clothes?"

Lloyd's cheeks flushed, and he dipped his head, muttering under his breath.

"What?"

"I don't have any proper clothes, okay?" More quietly, he added, "Nothing fits me anymore."

Oh, Lloyd. "Hey, why didn't you come to me? Y'know I've got way more clothes than I'll ever wear, me and the guys would be more than willing to share stuff with you. And we'll take you shopping, too, so you can pick out some stuff of your own. How does that sound?"

Lloyd sniffed, wiping an arm across his face. "Yeah, that sounds… that sounds good."

"Here." Kai slipped his sweatshirt off and draped it over Lloyd's shoulders. "It's not exactly warm out. Don't make yourself sick."

"Thanks." Lloyd pulled the sweatshirt tighter around his shoulders, and Kai felt a small swell of relief as he noticed it was still a little big on him. So his little brother hadn't grown up completely yet.

"Bud," he said gently, "it's fine if you come up here, but tell us before you do next time, okay? We were worried about you."

Lloyd looked down, still refusing to meet his gaze. "Sorry. I just… didn't really want anyone to follow me."

"I know, but you can't be alone forever. It's not going to fix anything."

"Being together isn't going to fix this, either."

Kai winced. "Not physically, no. But we'll be here for you emotionally. We'll help you heal."

"But I can't-" Lloyd stopped, sighing. "Sorry. I'm being selfish."

"Selfish? How is any of this selfish?"

"Because! You guys were risking your lives, and I made the decision that saved you, yet I'm regretting I did!"
"First of all, you're not regretting you saved us, you're regretting the other consequences that came out of the choice. Second, it wasn't much of a choice at all. The Grundle backed you into a corner- literally- and that was the only logical solution at the time. It's not fair. It shouldn't have been you. You shouldn't have been there. You shouldn't have been forced to make a decision like that. But you were. So you have every right to be upset, every right to complain. That is not selfish."

Lloyd finally turned to look at him, a helpless, floundering expression on his face.

Kai took pity on him, putting an arm around him. "Lloyd, I'm here. Whether you wanna talk, or scream, or cry, or just need someone to lean on, I'm here."

"I… I don't know what to do, Kai. I don't feel like myself anymore."

"You are. You're still the same Lloyd, still our friend, our little brother, our charge. This changes nothing between us. We're gonna take care of you, okay?"

Lloyd sniffed, putting his hands over his face, and Kai elbowed him gently. "It's okay to cry, y'know. No one's gonna judge you for it."

"But I… I'm not a little kid anymore."

"So? Everyone cries! It's natural, and it doesn't matter how old you are! I've cried, I've seen Cole cry, Jay cry, I've definitely seen Nya cry, and Zane- well, actually, I haven't seen Zane cry. But that's only because he's a nindroid and physically can't cry. He still gets upset sometimes, though."

"I know, but… I just feel like I should be able to handle things better."

"Are you crazy? I'd go insane if I suddenly just aged several years in the span of seconds. Compared to me, you're handling it like a champ."

Lloyd didn't look at him. "Not really. I feel like a wreck right now." His last words caught on a sob, and Kai glanced over at him, apprehension budding in his chest.

"Are you okay?"

Lloyd blinked rapidly, trying and failing to stop the tears spilling from his eyes. "Not really."

"Can I hug you?"

Lloyd hesitated but nodded, and Kai wasted no time in wrapping his arms around Lloyd's shoulders, pulling him close.

Kai didn't know how long they sat there, but it was a while before Lloyd broke the silence. "Do you think the Final Battle is coming sooner, now that I'm older?"

"I don't know. But whenever it is, I'm gonna be there. Even if that means I have to kick Garmadon's ass for you." He bit his lip, grinning sheepishly. "Shoot, I didn't mean to say that in front of you."

Lloyd snorted. "I already know that word."

"Wait, who taught you that? Was it Nya? I bet it was Nya."
"It wasn't any of you. I grew up at Darkley's, what do you expect? That isn't the only choice word I know."

Kai's eyes widened. "Don't you dare tell Zane, he'll have a fit."

A brief smile flickered across Lloyd's face, the first once Kai had seen all night.

"Hey, if I'm grown up now, I should at least get to use some bad words once in a while."

"Not happenin', bro," Kai grinned. "You're not that grown up yet."

"I could be fifty and you'd still say that."

"What can I say, you've got a baby face," Kai smirked, putting his hands on either side of Lloyd's head.

"Stop that," Lloyd grumbled, pushing him away. "'M not a baby."

"You are, and no dumb tea can change that."

Lloyd bit his lip, trying to look away, but Kai forced his head to turn, looking him in the eye.

"Lloyd. It's okay. You don't have to pretend like it's all fine. Let it out."

Lloyd gasped, half falling into his lap, and Kai gripped him tight. It's gonna be okay, he told himself. He's going to be okay. We all are.

Lloyd's path had been difficult from the beginning. It wasn't fair that all this had been thrown on him- he was just a kid, even now. But it had been, and Kai had an awful feeling that this wouldn't be the worst hardship his youngest teammate would have to endure.

But next time he would do better. He was one of the four elemental masters of the elements of creation. It was his job to protect Lloyd, to keep him safe.

It made his heart break to see Lloyd, usually so spunky, so unshakable, like this, and he was going to do everything in his power to make sure it didn't happen again.

But for now, he just hugged the green ninja.

He hoped, with time, it would be enough to heal him.