Harumi felt like a deer in the headlights. Like she was about to get hit by a car. She didn't know how to react to this, how to handle this. Even though she had been so careful from the first day on, he still found out.
It was her own fault, really. Because she had betrayed him last time, he knew from the beginning what was going on. Lloyd knew exactly what she had been planning. That she was working with the ninja. That didn't really help her right now.
If she was lucky, she'd be able to distract him long enough until the ninja got into the castle. All she had to do was give him some reason to listen. To make sure he didn't call for the other oni to come and escort her away. Probably to the dungeon.
The glare she was receiving from her first love was unnerving. She had expected him to be furious with her. To lash out and use his powers. But none of that happened. No, he actually looked hurt and confused.
And it gave Harumi time. It allowed her to see that there was still some part of him left that didn't even want any of this. A part that was begging for help. To be released from the oni blood that held his mind captive.
"Lloyd….." she didn't know how to explain it. To explain that nothing had been real except for the love she felt for him.
"I knew I couldn't trust you" he scoffed. "From the second you came in. Did you actually think you could fool me?"
Harumi bit her lip. She thought hard about what she should do next. The chance of escape was slim, and the ninja could be here any second. Sure, she could start running through the castle. But knowing her luck, she'd get caught by one of the oni the moment she left the room.
So, that was out of the question. Maybe she could try to reason with him. Oni weren't soulless and he still had that small part of the dragon inside him, human too. If only she knew how to speak to them.
Harumi was a good actress, she knew it. She had managed to fool them all for days after all. But this was the time for honesty. The time to spill all her secrets and he honest for the first time in forever. To talk some sense into him.
"I'm sorry" she whispered.
Tears made their way down her cheeks. Harumi couldn't hold it in anymore. She didn't want to see him like this. Like one of those things that destroyed what stood in their path.
"I didn't see any other way" she tried to explain.
"Oh please spare me the act" the oni rolled his eyes.
"This is no act!" Harumi yelled, shaking her head furiously. Her hands clenched into fists, nails digging into her skin. She was scared and she knew it. Lloyd scared her in a way that she couldn't even describe.
But that wouldn't stop her from helping him this once. It was all that she could do right now. All she could ever do. And after they had made it, all she can do is beg for forgiveness.
"Is it not? All you have ever done is manipulate the people around you! The emperor, the empress, all the people in the palace. And then there's me" Lloyd hissed, purple eyes narrowing.
Harumi tried not to flinch at that, but she did. "What I have done is unforgivable. But I'm trying to redeem myself" she whispered, looking at the ground in front of her.
The dark marble tiles were smooth, and cold. She hated how cold everything was. How cold her surroundings were. It felt like freezing every day. How cold he had become. Not just his character, but his touch as well.
Harumi noticed it on the first day. Every inch of his skin was as cold as ice and didn't seem to get warm, no matter what she did.
"I'm trying to help you!" she finally yelled.
"Fine, then give me the necklace" he stood up, stepping forward and holding out his free hand.
Harumi held one hand to the pendant of her necklace. The piece of the realm crystal. The one thing that stood in his way. He should've gotten rid of it instead of giving it to her. But if he knew that she had just come to reverse everything, then why had she received it in the first place?
Was it possible that his human part was giving her a chance? That it was his way of begging for help? Because she knew very well that this is what he never wanted. Ruling Ninjago and fighting against the ninja.
A finger brushed over the star-shaped-pendant. "I can't give it to you. I'm helping you, whether you want me to or not" her hand clenched around the pendant.
"In that case" he dropped his hand" I'll just have to take it" and charged at her.
Harumi yelped, jumping back out of pure instinct. Even though she knew hoe to fight, right now everything seemed to have flown out of the window.
Startled sounds left her as she jumped around the room, trying not to fall over her own feet. A small glance at the clock on the wall told her that only five minutes were left. Five minutes until the ninja were supposed to arrive.
All they had to do was sneak through the castle. The plan didn't involve them fighting all of the oni before coming to the throne room.
"Please listen" Harumi yelled desperately, still dodging him.
"I have listened enough!" the oni yelled back in anger. He didn't see any reason to use his powers on her. That was his weak point and they both knew it. As long as the dragon was still alive on the inside, he wouldn't be able to hurt her. Never her.
"It doesn't even matter which side you are on, does it? As long as you can hurt me it doesn't matter!"
Harumi yelped when a dagger sliced her right cheek. The blood running down her face, dropping onto the ground was the first wound he had ever really given her. The only physical wound.
She put a hand over it, hissing at the stinging sensation. It didn't surprise her that he was finally able to hurt her. But what did surprise her was that his eyes turned back to their green color for just a second.
Of course, she realized. It had been the truth when he said he loved her. And that part that loved her would always regret hurting her in any way. Lloyd cared, and that was all she needed. She let her hand fall to her side, allowing the blood to drip down.
The cut was deep, probably enough to scar.
"I thought I could destroy you" she said. "I thought I could change you into someone else. That I could make you do whatever I wanted."
Another flicker
"But you were right. This isn't what I wanted. What I see isn't someone that can love and care for someone. You love me, I know that."
Lloyd studied her as they circled each other in the large room. He was angry and confused at the same time. Something an oni shouldn't feel. They didn't feel remorse or doubt. They knew what they wanted, always. She hadn't changed.
"But it isn't the kind of love I need. I had enough time to think in prison. I want to settle down, have a family" Harumi bit her lip. She had no right to ask him of those things.
When it had been her who wanted to destroy his family. Destroy his life. Now she was asking for forgiveness. For something she didn't even deserve.
His eyes kept flickering from purple to green and back. His inner dragon was fighting. The oni venom he had received was being fought. Harumi knew very well that Lloyd never wanted to be like this. To be the bad guy.
Before she could react, he tackled her to the ground. Her head hit the stone hard, making her feel a bit dizzy. He leaned down.
All of her thoughts seemed to fade when she felt him lick her still bleeding cheek.
"You know I haven't tasted you before" he said.
Harumi heard the promise in his voice. The desire. It was almost tempting to her. To take it as a punishment for what she had done. All of this happened because of her. This was what she deserved.
But another part of her, the saner part, told her to fight back. So she did. Kicking him back and standing back up again. A headache began to form in the back of her head. Harumi forced herself to ignore it.
"I love you" she admitted. "I think I always have, but I need you to give me the crystal. Let me fix my mistakes" she held out her hand.
The oni studied her. For once, he couldn't see any lies in her actions. She truly believed she could fix this.
"Harumi…." He trailed off.
The door burst open, the ninja rushing inside. All six of them. While four of the elemental master were holding the golden weapons, Nya and Morro had gone into defensive position.
Lloyd hissed and backed away at the sight of the golden weapon. Of course it would hurt him. Harumi already regretted having to do this. But she quickly jumped into action, trying to grab the crystal pieces from her love.
She wrestles Lloyd to the ground, rolling on the ground and trying to stay on top of him. If he gained the upper hand, she would lose. But with the golden weapons in the room his powers would shrink. Oni's were weakened at the presence of light and creation. And that is exactly what those weapons were.
She noticed though, that even under these circumstances, Lloyd was still strong. Strong enough to throw her off sooner or later.
"A little help" she yelled at the ninja.
They quickly jumped into action. While Jay, Zane, Kai and Cole kept their distance, trying to only get their weapons closer to Lloyd, Nya and Morro began to wrestle with the oni as well.
"God damn it, when did he get this strong?" Morro complained, trying to wrench the crystal pieces out of the others hand.
"I don't know. Is this some oni thing?" Nya asked. She yelped when she was thrown back, right into a wall.
"That is a logical possibility" Zane retorted. He inched a bit closer, hoping that the power of the golden weapons would soon tire their friend out.
Oni hated light. It made them weak and could even destroy them, if strong enough. They were death and destruction.
"We don't have time for this. The other oni may be knocked out now but it wont last forever. Morro move" Cole said, moving closer.
When the wind master got up, Cole shoved his weapon into his hand, using his super strength to finally pin Lloyd to the ground. The oni grunted and growled in frustration, unable to free himself from the grip of the earth master.
Harumi moved. She reached for the bag in his hands, trying to take them out of his hands. She ripped the cloth until it eventually slipped from his grasp. She gasped, panting heavily from the fight.
It wasn't like they had fought long or hard but wrestling on the ground was harder than she had expected it to be. And trying to rip the bad out of his hand wasn't a piece of cake either.
"Lloyd stop it" Cole said, tightening his grip.
"I don't take orders from you" the oni spat back and all of them flinched.
It didn't sound like the kid they had practically raised. Who they picked up when left alone and betrayed by everyone else. The kid they had protected and who had protected them from enemies.
"Let's get this over with. Harumi, where is the last piece?" Kai asked.
"Right here" she tapped the pendant of her necklace. She handed the bag to Nya, slipping the necklace off her neck. She opened it, revealing the bright blue piece inside.
"Traitor" Lloyd hissed. She decided to ignore him for now. He would thank her for this later. At least she hoped so.
"What now? Do we treat the crystal like a puzzle?" Jay asked.
"No" Zane shook his head. "All we have to do is make sure all the pieces are connected. The order does not matter. The realm crystal will do that itself" he explained.
"Well, lets try then" Harumi took the crystal piece out.
"Make sure that the light actually hits Lloyd" Cole reminded. Nya nodded, carefully dropping the pieces of the realm crystal onto a neat pile on the ground.
Harumi placed the last piece onto the pile. For a second nothing happened. Then a bright flash of light dilled the room, blinding everyone. While most of them felt nothing from the light coming from the crystal, they knew it was their friend who felt otherwise.
When the light faded, Harumi blinked a couple of times to adjust her vision again. Lloyd was unconscious on the ground. Something about this felt too easy for her. But she wouldn't complain.
"Okay, time to go to the island" Morro said.
Indeed it was.