*approximately 13.764 miles away from Ninjago Beach, Monastery of Spinjitzu; 8:45 p.m.*
A relatively common scene unfolds as Ninjago's beloved team of protectors trudge inside the monetary after a long day of saving the city.
"Remind me never to underestimate the sheer deadliness of mud ever again," Kai mutters, attempting not to drip all over the hardwood floor.
"At least the bakery was kind enough to let us take the cake to go," Skylor tells him, pulling an especially disgusting glop of goo from his hair. They've been through worse, objectively speaking. Many times.
"And nobody ended up in the emergency room this time," Jay points out.
"Thank goodness for that," says Pixal. The others nod in agreement.
"Speaking of cake," Cole cuts in, "is there any chance you two will share some with the rest of us?"
Kai rolls his eyes and Skylor shoots him a bemused look.
"Sure. I guess we could use a couple more opinions. Mind if we all shower first? I don't know about you guys but I feel like a walking mud pie," Skylor answers with a tired smile. Cole looks like he's about to disagree, but then a fresh stream of mud drips down his face and he thinks better of it.
"Yeah, that's probably for the best," he decides, eventually. When, at last, everyone has removed the grime from their bodies and gorged themselves on cake samples, they sleepily make their way to their rooms and collapse into bed. They'll all be sleeping soundly tonight. So soundly, in fact, that no one notices the little alarm going off in Pixal's lair indicating movement at one of Nya's old Samurai X hideouts.
Nya is home. All the hard work and pain has finally paid off, and yet… it doesn't feel real. The moonlight casts a silvery glow across the mountain top, creating an almost dreamlike atmosphere. She can hear one of Wu's wind chimes clanging in the distance. A frog chirps somewhere on the mountain side. A gentle breeze ruffles her hair.
She shivers slightly, coming to stand before the gate to the monastery. Between regaining her land legs and finding transportation to the top of the mountain – thank the First Spinjitzu Master, Pixal had never changed the security pin to her hideouts – it's grown later than she'd anticipated.
As Nya peers into the darkened courtyard, she realizes she has no concept of what time – or what day – it truly is. The passage of time was virtually nonexistent in the Endless Sea and… all Nyad has told her is that it took months for her to wake up…
She pauses, hesitant. Just how long has she been gone?
"You seem… nervous?" Nyad notes, putting a hand on Nya's shoulder. She flinches slightly at the gesture, still unused to physical contact.
"I just… what if they don't want to see me? What if it's been too long and they've… moved on?" Nya whispers, suddenly confronted with the fears and doubts she's been trying to suppress all day. It had been easier to ignore the uncertainty when she was living in the sea. Was the sea. Everything had been more muted, then. But now her thoughts have become clearer and it's overwhelming her little by little.
"Listen, Nya. Just because my story did not end happily does not mean you should be fearful for your own," says Nyad. Nya knows she's trying to be comforting, but Nyad's past is not something she wants to think about right now. It'll just add to her nerves.
"I know, but-" she begins to point this out when she hears the creaking of the gate behind her.
"Oh dear. The gate seems to have closed behind us," Nyad observes nonchalantly. Nya glares at her.
"You totally did that on purpose."
Nyad merely shrugs.
"Go and see your family, Nya."
Nya stands just inside the doorway. The halls of the monastery are silent. Dim. Has it always been this quiet here at night?
She can only remember it as chaotic and full of life. The calmer, quieter memories are much more hazy.
"Everyone must already be asleep," Nya muses. The distant sound of Cole snoring lends credence to this theory.
"It is rather late," Nyad agrees, "the moon was already past its apex when we arrived at the top of the mountain."
"Maybe I should just… try to get some sleep and… deal with all of this tomorrow," Nya says, not wanting to wake the others up. They've had a long day, too, no doubt, and her return will bring about some difficult conversations. Conversations best had with people who are well rested and less likely to murder her for randomly manifesting in their bedrooms at 2 in the morning. Or whatever time it is.
"Yes. Perhaps that would be for the best," Nyad nods, sensing her regret. A fresh wave of exhaustion hits her.
"O-okay. My room is this way… if they haven't repurposed it into another game room or…" Nya pauses outside of Jay's bedroom. Quietly, she turns the knob on his door and peeks inside. He's asleep, Mr. Cuddlywumps clutched in his arms. Adorable. "oh Jay," she whispers to herself. It's been so long since she's seen him.
Though she just promised herself she wouldn't try to engage with anyone tonight, Nya can't help but quietly wander to the side of Jay's bed. She brushes a stray curl out of his face. "Tomorrow… tomorrow we'll figure this out, okay?" she promises, kissing his forehead. He mumbles something unintelligible in his sleep and she holds back a giggle. Some things really never change.
The next stop Nya makes is at Kai's room. She doesn't stay long. Just looks in on him to reassure herself that her brother hasn't gotten himself killed yet.
Kai sleeps peacefully, buried beneath a pile of blankets. Strangely, Skylor is there, too, fast asleep on Kai's bed. That's new. Nya's rarely seen Skylor spend the night at the monastery. She's usually too busy with her noodle empire.
Next up is Lloyd, who's definitely stolen several of Nya's stuffed animals and added them to his collection. She can see her narwhal peeking out from under the comforter. Traitor.
And Cole, whose snoring clashes slightly with the classical music he forgot to turn off before he fell asleep.
And Zane and Pixal, sleeping with hands clasped together. Always perfectly serene.
With every pit stop, it becomes more difficult to keep herself from yawning. Eventually, Nya allows Nyad to herd her towards her own bedroom. Hesitantly, slowly, she opens her door, half expecting the electric chicken to jump out at her. But all is silent. Everything is as she remembers it. A steak of moonlight illuminates the stain on her blue rug from the time Jay made her laugh so hard she spilled her coffee. An unfinished sketch lays spread out on her desk.
Overcome with emotions, Nya sways on her feet. She's home. And her bed has never looked more inviting.