Jay tosses and turns in bed. Goosebumps rise in his skin.

He can feel her.

The way she went through him like a ghost the last time he saw her.

No.

Not through.

Around.

As if he had just fallen into the water.

The last time he saw her. His love went around him. Not wrapping her arms around him. It wasn't a hug. She just. Flowed. Like water.

She was water.

She was the sea.

She was everything. Everywhere.

God, how much of the world is just water?

He feels her presence in his very bones...how much of himself is water again?

It's terrifying.

It's oddly comforting, knowing she's always around.

He doesn't want her to be everywhere and everything though.

He wants her in his arms. Or in her bed, sleeping peacefully. Or at the dinner table. Or in the dojo. Or being teased by her older brother. Or helping himself and Pixal with tech. Or being anywhere but the ocean, doing anything but being the ocean, being anybody but the Endless Sea-

"It's okay, buddy," he hears someone say.

His eyes open to Cole.

Cole stands by his bed.

Cole is looking at him, a softness and tiredness in his eyes.

Cole is holding Jay's shoulder as if he was shaking him awake...or holding him to stop his shaking.

Jay slowly sits up, brushing off his best friend's hand.

"She's still...she's still not..." Jay searches for words, grabbing in the air for something.

"I know, I know," Cole sits on the bed. Awkward silence as they both think about her.

Jay pulls at his blankets, pulling the comforter up, prompting Cole to move just for a moment, before sitting back down as Jay bunches the thick blanket around himself. "It's been one month. To the day."

"Yeah...yeah..." Cole lays across the bed.

This was a routine.

Kai would never come in for these "talks," if one could even call them such. Kai never really talks nowadays though. And if he does, he'll put on a smile and crack as many jokes as possible.

Zane never comes in to help him either. He did once, the first time this happened. While elemental powers have always been tied to emotions, Jay's always had solid emotional control in that regard. He may be very emotional, and he didn't always have great control over his powers, but he never had much of an issue with losing control because of emotions. But recently, that's changed. Poor Zane got struck (and mildly fried, leading to a need for mild repairs) the first night this happened, and since then, he's left it up to the others. Pixal has also been distant for this reason.

Sometimes Lloyd comes in to calm him down, but he's hardly much help, stumbling over his own words and sometimes making Jay feel worse.

Wu...no one knows how he's dealing with it, but he sleeps across the monastery so does he even know? Does he know how Jay is dealing with this?

So here sits Cole. Cole has his hang-ups with the situation too, but as Jay's best friend, he has to be the one to pull through.

Most nights where this happens they just sit in silence, save for a few attempts at talking through their emotions, until someone falls asleep.

On at least one night, Jay cried on his shoulder.

One night, Jay seemed somewhat okay after a moment and they played some video games for a while.

This wasn't any of those nights.

"I miss her. So much." Jay mutters.

Cole stares at the yin-yang necklaces hanging on Jay's wall. "I do too."

"She saw you as a brother."

Cole nods at that statement, cracking the slightest smile. "Then I guess I'm your brother-in-law."

Jay smiles, then puts his head down. "Any idea how Kai's holding up?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Honestly surprised neither of you has burnt the place down yet."

"Yeah, sorry about...that," Jay mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's fine. I think we're all struggling with control just a bit. I think we've all been emotionally...quaked."

Jay cracks a large smile- at least large for him recently- the laughter bleeding into his voice ever so slightly, "That a pun?"

A smirk creeps onto Cole's face. "Maybe."

Jay playfully shoves Cole, "Dad joke!"

Cole starts chuckling and brings an arm around Jay, pressing his fist lightly into Jay's head. "Come here, champ," he says in his best dad voice.

Jay giggles slightly, followed by a squeak of pain.

"Shit," Cole mutters. "Did I hurt you? Being master of Earth does give me extra strength and emotions and-"

"I'm fine," Jay wheezes, being caught by Cole's arms. "Been in pain for a while. Can usually overlook it but that time it just spiked up."

"A while?" Cole asks, mildly concerned.

"Like, the last week."

"What, did you electrocute yourself bad orrr?"

"No, that's something I'm used to." Jay puts up his hands, which have built up many small, circle-shaped scars over the last few years. One long scar across his palm, clearly not from lightning, but rather a cut, seems awfully...vibrant. "It's something else, dunno what. Body just aches."

"Do we need to patch you up? Take you to Wu? Take you to an actual doctor?"

"I don't think so. Think my body just feels like shit because I do?"

"...therapist?"

Jay laughs slightly at that suggestion. "Maybe, but I don't kn-"

He doubles over, wheezing, "Motherfucker," is the only thing Jay can get out. Slowly, he falls over to his side, hissing in pain.

Cole's eyes get big. "Jay?"

"Mhmm?"

"What's up with your hand?"

Jay recomposes himself slightly, "Which one?"

Cole picks up Jay's left hand.

Jay looks over the back of his hand. His eyes widen as they dance over green tinges dancing around his hand. In a panic, he tears his hand away from Cole and inspects his palm.

The one scar, a straight line across his palm. Bright green, as it had been on that one day so many years ago.

He can feel his face going pale.

"Jay?"

The blue ninja stays quiet. His heart thumps hard.

"What's wrong?"

Jay starts taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself. "Get out," he mumbles.

Cole stands up from the bed. "Whatever it is, we can all help you through it."

Sparks start forming around the lightning elemental.

"Oh god oh god oh god," Jay starts rambling. There he is. There's that loud panic.

The sparks flying off of him light the room as he paces around.

Cole stands up and reaches a hand out, trying to calm his friend down. "Jay-"

Words come flooding out of the shorter ninja's mouth. "Mine and...our...it was our...it was an important day, it was years ago, that's what it is, but why-"

As hard as earth, the ninja of that respective element stops his teammate, gripping his shoulders, looking into his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"Remember when I pricked my hand on the Fangpyre skeleton?"

Sunlight shines through the window.

Jay smiles, enjoying the warmth of the light as he sleeps.

Cole's eyes slowly flutter open.

He's soon greeted with a reminder that he fell asleep as a friend vented, as he's sitting up against the wall, a pillow underneath him.

Then he remembers what happened.

Fuck.

"Hey, wake up, we have to get you checked out," Cole says as he shakes Jay awake.

Jay rolls over, yawning, forked tongue flicking out before he swats Cole away, mumbling "Five more minutessss."

The transformation took a lot out of him. And the small breakdown after probably didn't help.

Good god, what the fuck.

Worrying things were happening, but with Jay's emotional state, Cole was more worried about if he'd mentally hold up.

It was all a blur of frantic emotions and what was happening being a reminder of...an important day, as Jay put it. A pivotal day between a ninja and a samurai so long ago.

In hindsight, they should've done something, at least Cole could've run for help, but he was so caught up in comforting Jay first and trying to make sure he was okay at the moment, figure out the rest later. Then they fell asleep.

In hindsight, this was a major fuck up. Is Jay going to be okay? Or is he stuck like this?

Cole gets up, the panic and gravity of the situation sinking in more and more.

He runs out of the room.

Kai enters the threshold of Jay's room. Upon noticing what was in bed, he grits his teeth and lets out a small "Yikes" while jumping back.

"He's not dangerous, I promise," Cole says halfway in jest.

Zane approaches the blue ninja. "Fascinating." He picks up his hand, looking over the scales in a combination of awe and worry. "I thought the Fangpyre venom was gone. Especially considering how many years ago this was, given how long the venom stayed inactive, one would assume he was cured."

Pixal, standing on the opposite side of the bed, inspects him curiously.

"So...what now?" Lloyd asks, leaning against the doorframe.

"Just let me sssleep in," Jay hisses, pulling the comforter over himself, covering most of his body.

Kai tugs at the blue blankets adorning the bed. Jay grips onto them.

"Let him sleep," Cole insists. "He's been through a lot. Physically and emotionally. You of all people should be aware of that, Kai."

Kai cracks a smile. "I'm just playing. Teasing, trying to lighten the mood. Can't be all doom and gloom."

"Now's not the time," Cole says sternly. He's now standing face to face with Kai, staring down.

Kai's height difference with the black ninja isn't as drastic as that of the blue ninja's, but it's definitely enough to be felt in a heated moment. He internally comes up with a million snarky remarks. A million things that'd make him feel like a badass. A million things that can start fights. Maybe that's the kind of steam he needs to let off. A fight. Fire scorching earth and raw fists thrown.

But it isn't the time. So he sighs, "Mkay."

"I can visit the serpentine to see if the Fangpyre have any helpful information," Zane offers.

"And I can search through old texts with my uncle," Lloyd adds.

"I think I'll go with Zane so I can explain what happened," Cole volunteers. "Pixal, we might need you here to help research. Kai can stay here and keep an eye on Jay."

Kai looks around Jay's room. So many things remind him of his sister. Some even unintentionally.

"Why do you get to call the shots?" Kai asks. "Maybe I wanna go help."

"Someone needs to stay here with Jay. Zane can easily store information. I have to go so they can get the full story." Cole explains.

He can feel Kai's glare.

The height difference between the two isn't much. This is true. But it is indeed noticeable in heated moments. Although Kai's temper isn't as bad as that of the presently ill or the recently departed, he knows how to let people know he's pissed off. When that anger is aimed at Cole, it easily feels like he can and will drag the taller ninja down to the underworld if he wants to.

Had this been years prior, this would've been a match of fire versus charcoal. Both are volatile, albeit one must light the other to be so.

But now it's just fire versus stone. Cole isn't catching fire. He's remaining cool, calm, and collected. Maybe there's a side of annoyance, but he's trying to keep it deep down.

"Kai, please."

"Why can't Zane stay? He can probably get info to help Jay stay comfortable, and he can stay with his girlfriend. I mean, why can't I go? We can just write whatever info they give us down-"

"Zane isn't the elemental master of fire, bud."

"And?"

"We've all been a bit unstable. We don't need something getting burned because they struck a chord with you."

"And freezing is the better alternative?"

Cole covers his face. "I'm not having this argument with you."

Kai opens his mouth but Cole turns around and makes his way out of the room.

Zane pulls away from a hug from Pixal and chases after Cole.

Kai looks around.

Lloyd must've left already.

It's just Jay, Kai, and Pixal.

Jay's asleep.

Pixal is busy.

It's just Kai for a few minutes.

Wu seems uncomfortable standing in the blue ninja's room.

He rarely ever enters their rooms. They're usually rather messy.

Still, he peers over his transformed student. Confusion and worry wash over his face. "I don't know if I can do anything about this."

"But you're Master Wu! You always have answers," Kai rambles.

"And what makes you say that?"

"You always have some deus ex machina up your sleeve!"

Wu sighs. "Well, I didn't say I wouldn't look for an answer. Simply I am unsure if I have it."

Lloyd walks in with a teacup and a mug.

The teacup goes to his uncle.

The mug stays in Lloyd's hand as he gently jostles Jay. "Hey, I brought you a nice warm drink. I don't know if that'll-" the green ninja's taken aback as a cold, green hand reaches for the drink.

Jay takes the mug, still laying under the blanket. "Thanksssss." He sits up slightly to take a sip.

All eyes are on him, getting a full view of his face.

His auburn hair was still there, that much was obvious from the way it'd stick out when he was under the blanket. Pointed ears poke out from beneath his hair. The freckles that splatter his cheeks remain, now they're just a handful of discolored scales. While his eyes were visible when he covered up, they're now clearer, carrying the same amount of emotion as before, but with yellow sclera. His irises remain their old dark blue, but his pupils come to slits now, clearly expanding to a rounder shape as he drinks his tea.

After a handful of sips, he yawns, revealing fangs and a forked tongue, then he lays back down, curled around the mug, pulling the blanket back over himself.

"Let's put that on the nightstand before you spill it," Lloyd insists, lifting the blanket slightly to get the cup. Jay swats his hand away, letting out a small hiss.

Wu shakes his head in a tired parent sort of way. "I'll start looking for solutions. Come, Lloyd."

Lloyd drops the blanket, following his uncle. "I'll be back later if you need anything."

Kai nods, glancing at the door, then back at the lump of a person under the blankets.

Was Jay even fully aware of what was going on? He had to be, he was conscious enough to know to sit up for his tea. Yet at the same time, he feels so out of it.

Kai walks over to where Lloyd was a moment ago. He doesn't try reaching out for the mug. He just stands there. "Jay, we should put the tea on the nightstand."

"But it'ssss warm. Feelssss nice."

Kai gets an idea. "You want warmth? Like a heating pad?"

Jay shrugs, already half asleep.

Kai takes that as a yes.

Mistakes were made.

Kai couldn't find a heating pad, so he tried to the best of his ability to simply warm up some blankets.

Nothing caught fire, so that was cool.

He got Jay to put the mug on the nightstand in favor of enjoying some warm blankets.

Jay took some time to rearrange the blankets. He woke up.

He really woke up and became aware of everything happening. No longer stuck in the blur of half asleep. He had to be aware of the way he arranged his blankets, which brought him more awareness of the situation, which then prompted the question of "What am I even doing right now?"

Which then prompted him to look down at his hands as he arranged the blankets. And that prompted him to realize what was wrong.

And that's how Kai ended up sitting outside the bathroom door as Jay screams and mutters "No, no no nononono."

Water starts running.

It runs for a while.

Kai listens to the hysteria going on within the bathroom.

Finally, he sighs and opens the door.

Jay jumps slightly at the sight of the red ninja in the mirror. He scrambles to turn off the water, tail swishing behind him.

Kai doesn't say a thing, unsure of how to approach anything right now. Instead, he just leans against the wall, giving a worried look.

Jay leans over the sink still.

"Don't call me a reptile expert or anything, but isn't it bad for your scales to be playing in the water like that? That a thing? Why do I feel like that's a thing? It isn't a thing, is it?"

Jay stays quiet, staring at the water going down the drain.

Kai comes over and puts a hand on Jay's shoulder.

Jay shoves him away with a hiss. He puts a hand over his mouth as he starts backing away further into the bathroom, almost tripping over the tub as he steps inside of it, gripping the shower curtain.

"Hey, you're okay. I'm not gonna hurt you," Kai says calmly.

"It's not about getting hurt," Jay seems to have control over his speech, avoiding the drawn-out S sound serpentine are known for. "I don't want anyone to see me like this."

Kai bites his lip. "Bit too late for that. Everyone's seen you. I've been watching you for the last hour. Cole was with you when it happened."

Jay lets go of the curtain. He slowly creeps out from behind it.

"See? You're fine. Nothing scary about you."

"You think this is about me thinking I'm scary?" Jay asks as he sits down against the side of the tub.

Kai sits on the floor against the tub. The two ninjas sit back to back. "I mean...yeah. If I woke up as a snake man I'd be shitting myself. I wouldn't wanna see the light of day. Imagine how many potential dates I'd scare off."

"Aren't you and Skyl-"

"It's complicated, I don't wanna talk about it."

Jay cracks a smile, rolling his eyes. Then his smile fades as he returns to the subject. "Anyways, no, I've had enough time to think oh wow, if I ever end up in this situation again I'm embracing it."

"You what."

"Yeah! I mean, most serpentine aren't evil, I've grown up, I realize this. Imagine how much this can make me stand out. This could've been kinda cool."

"Why would you..."

"Dunno. Not like I actually expected this to happen again. Was just a thought. Like in the timeline where I was never cured, I could've tried to make the best of it. Aaand here I am now I guess. Make the best of it."

"So what didn't you want us to see then?"

Jay curls into himself further. "It's less about...this-" he gestures over himself- "and more about what this represents. Like yeah, I had that thought but I didn't think that Nya would be..." He pokes at the new limb protruding out of his lower back. "This...it...it reminds me of our first date."

Kai goes incredibly quiet.

"Sometimes being near water makes me feel closer to her. Just watch that water run and listen to her voice," Jay murmurs. "Do you ever feel like that?"

"Sometimes, yeah." Kai plays with tiny sparks in his hands. It's something to focus on that isn't recent events. Then he lets that statement sink in, eyes growing big. "Wait, you do that too?"

"That's literally what I just-" Jay's eyes get big. "Holy fuck. Do you think she's actually communicating with us?"

"Or it's a grief-induced hallucination...but sure."

"What's this about hallucinations?" Pixal asks, peeking into the bathroom.

"Nothing, just some jokes," Jay brushes off.

Pixal nods. "Well, I am currently in contact with Zane. He and Cole have arrived in the Serpentine Village."

Cole and Zane sit down in the serpentine library.

They wait.

They were looking for Fangtom, but Acidicus has the library. Both admittedly seemed like good resources.

So Acidicus went out to look for Fangtom.

"Seems you called awfully early," Pixal remarks over the holo message.

"It's difficult to get reception down here," Zane answers. "We wanted to check on Jay before we start talking."

Pixal turns the camera over to the currently afflicted. Still sitting in the tub.

Cole raises an eyebrow. "What happened?"

"Long story," Jay says quickly, putting his hands up. "Nothing to worry about."

Cole glances at Kai, who's still on the floor. "I can vouch for him," the red ninja answers.

"Hello there." a thickly accented voice is heard saying.

Fangtom and Acidicus are here.

Fangtom looks the ninjas up and down. They never had many positive interactions, but to be fair, Acidicus was probably the most ninja allied snake down there.

"Which one of you was bitten?" one of the heads asks.

Cole points to Zane's holo screen.

"Ah...you didn't consider bringing him here?"

"He was quite weak after the transformation," Zane answers. "We left him home for his own wellbeing."

One head nods and the other looks annoyed. "You might've endangered his wellbeing further," Fangtom states. "I take it you want the antivenom?"

Cole rubs the back of his head. "Kinda? More we want answers. He wasn't recently bitten. Jay, you wanna explain?"

One of the heads turns to the screen.

Jay nervously twiddles his thumbs. "It was a few years ago, um," he pulls his hands apart and starts speaking faster, "I pricked my hand on a Fangpyre skeleton. We didn't have any antivenom but I was cured by a kiss. It rose my heart rate and um-"

Acidicus facepalms.

"What?"

"You can't get rid of Fangpyre venom without antivenom. Raising one's heart rate can weaken and dilute it to a point that the effects will be nullified as if it was never there, but it's still in your system. It usually leads to some sort of premature death and health complications." Acidicus chuckles slightly as if he's reminiscing over past instances of this happening. "The heart rate trick is a desperate man's game."

Jay frowns, staring at the floor. "So why was mine reactivated? Also, am I gonna die early orrr?"

Acidicus shrugs. "To my knowledge, there have been no recorded instances of relapses like this. I cannot answer either question."

Fangtom nudges his fellow general aside. "I remember a few cases like you. It happened if the afflicted cured themselves by raising their heart rates and later fell into deep sadness. Something about the body chemistry of an incredibly sad person's blood would cause the venom to regain its potency. Those who relapsed would often seek out our tribe for help and acceptance once they realized..." he trails off. "Well, you're not dying young, not by human standards anyways."

"What are you getting at?" Cole asks.

"There is no cure once this happens. Granted, we've never caught it early enough to try given that the transformation is accelerated in such an instance."

Jay nods as if it was a no-brainer. "Okay, I kinda expected that considering I became this-" he gestures to his whole body- "in like thirty minutes. And what about the dying part?"

"You'll die awfully young by our standards, but if my math is right, slightly above average for that of a human."

Jay nods. "Okay. Uh. Any special care that I'll need?"

"Depends on what kind of serpentine you are. General rules, do not pick during shedding time. It is very tempting, but don't do it. That can get very bloody."

Jay lets out a groan of disgust. "Got it." He looks over the back of his hand. Everything's so scaley. Yeesh.

"You said depending on what kind of serpentine he is?" Cole asks. "I kinda assumed a Fangpyre bite created...well, more Fangpyres."

"Well, Jay is green, not red," Zane notes. "I'm quite fascinated."

One of Fangtom's heads nods. The other one speaks. "Yesss, it's by random chance. Sometimes our victims are Fangpyre, but plenty of times they turn out as another tribe. We tend to care for the turned as if they were our own, regardless."

"Good to know," Jay mumbles. "So this makes me a what? Venomari?"

Acidicus nods and smiles. "You can stay down here with us if you would like. We can help you get adjusted to the changes. You can seek solace here."

"Can I just visit a few times? Take some afternoons to teach me things. I prefer living here. With my family."

Fangtom seems intrigued. "Seems you have a good support system there. Most of our victims are quickly ostracized from society, rejected by their families."

Zane nods. "In more recent years, Ninjago City has been far more accepting of serpentine."

"We've noticed," Acidicus responds. "Every week Skales Junior comes down here with a new toy. Heard he's real chummy with a toy shop owner up there. The other young envy him."

Cole cracks a smile. "That's nice to hear."

"It is," Acidicus coos. "I personally am not a fan of humans," his tone goes somber, "they've hurt us in so many ways," then his tone picks back up to say, "but it is...a hopeful future. One where our children mustn't hide."

Fangtom's heads smile. "I recall back before the war. We wouldn't turn people to gain warriors. We would do it to extend the lives of the ill, to heal and save people. Usually. And sometimes they could go back home with few issues, be reaccepted into society...other times they'd have to seek refugee with us."

"That seems kinda sweet, actually," Jay says quietly. "I mean, I don't think I could ever bring myself to bite someone but that could be nea-"

"Oh, be glad you aren't a Fangpyre. We crave blood sometimes. Most of us have control over such an urge, but every once and a while the antivenom had to be used for a reason."

Jay stares at the screen, eyes dancing between which one of Fangtom's heads to look at. "Should I worry about that when I go over there?"

"Possibly, the turned do often remain smelling very human, but you should register as enough of a snake that this should not be an issue. We usually only thirst for human blood. Usually."

"Shouldn't be? Usually?" Jay stands up in the tub, taking a breath. "Oh god. Shit. This is where my life is headed."

Kai gets up off the floor. "Hey, you're gonna be okay." He puts out a hand but quickly retracts it as Jay almost slips trying to pace in the small tub.

Jay catches himself on the wall. He looks down at his pajama pants. They sag slightly as his tail pushes them down, bringing the bottom of the pant legs to the floor.

He bends over and rolls up the bottom of his pant legs.

He steps out of the tub, pushing past Kai.

"Hey sorry about that, he's going through things," Kai says nervously, coming into view on the camera. He brushes up against the shower curtain. It catches fire.

The camera turns to Pixal. "I should go. There are issues."

Zane nods. "See you for dinner."

"We don't eat."

He smiles. "We can pretend."

"Why would we need to do that?"

Zane shrugs.

Jay can be heard screaming from another room. "If I'm eaten by a Fangpyre, I'm suing!"

Pixal rolls her eyes, smiling slightly before hanging up.

While she almost always had some degree of emotion, and it always felt real, he's amazed every day with how far she's come, falling in love just a little bit more as she seems even more expressive.

Fangtom's heads peak between Zane and Cole, throwing the Nindroid off from his moment of admiration. "Any other questions?"

Both ninjas sit still for a moment, thinking on it.

"Why have you not been providing our library with information on your tribe?" Acidicus asks from a shelf.

The Fangpyre backs away from the ninjas. "What can I say, we don't like to air out all our secrets."

"You are writing down everything you just told them once they leave. There is no reason for us to be lacking this information."

"It's not very important, we haven't turned anyone since being locked down here."

Acidicus throws an empty notebook on the table. "Write it down."

One of the heads mouths 'write it down' mockingly while the other groans and rolls its eyes.

Cole and Zane exchange looks. "Can we stay a bit longer? In case there's anything else," Cole asks.

"This would be quite interesting information to have on hand, yes," Zane follows.

Jay lays in bed.

It's barely the afternoon.

The sun doesn't shine as aggressively through the window, but it is bright out and it is warm.

He curls back up under the blanket.

He took the time forever ago to repair Mr. Cuddlywomp, who had a nice little home on the chair across from his bed. So here he is, having removed Cuddlywomp from his chair, gripping the plush tightly.

Closing his eyes, he lets himself relax, letting out a hiss of contentment.

He bites his tongue to make it stop.

Footsteps.

He retreats further under the blanket.

Kai leads Lloyd and Wu into the room. Pixal enters last, a tablet in hand.

Wu keeps a distance, staying in the doorway.

Lloyd crouches next to the bed.

"Hey, we're not done researching, but we might have a lead," he says gently.

Jay hums in curiosity from under the blanket, not even bothering to move.

"There are no exact cures for a completed Fangpyre bite but there are transformation teas and scrolls, just need to figure out which is the best course of action and what we need to return you, well, you."

"I am me, I'm just a mildly fucked up me right now," Jay responds, muffled by blanket and plush. "That is cool though."

"Yeah sorry, after your little freak out I thought it might cheer you up to see if Lloyd and Wu had any updates for you," Kai says.

A small "Thanks," comes from under the blanket.

Wu exits the room, seemingly maintaining a distance.

Hours have passed.

Jay took the time to process things. As much as he was okay with being a serpentine in and of itself, it never dawned on him that he would have to make lifestyle adjustments.

While everyone else was insistent that he could eat dinner in his room if he wanted to, he wanted to eat around his family. He wanted to feel normal.

First off, he hadn't realized how hungry he was- he hadn't eaten all day! He took a good few cold sandwiches.

Secondly, he was disappointed that Zane didn't make dinner, but he was understanding. He and Cole apparently spent a fair amount of extra time watching serpentine generals bicker like salty old men while also having to provide information and gain information. It's pretty nifty that now there are medical documents based on Cole's observations of Jay in the Serpentine library though.

Thirdly, he was kinda uplifted by some of the things he was given. Zane and Cole came home with lists of Do's and Don't's, both to control his new abilities and to take care of his new body. Pixal found an anonymous website for serpentine to communicate, which was both amusing due to some of the things he read, and comforting as he realized just how many of them there were down there and even moving into the city.

And lastly, he noticed his mentor's discomfort.

After eating, he gave the elder man a hug. At first, Wu was on guard, thinking this was a trick, but once Jay started rambling about how nothing will change, then somehow moved off-topic to video games, he knew that this was still his pupil.

Maybe a snake can be a ninja. Maybe an old master can learn to undo his biases.

So here is the elemental master of lightning. Back on his feet, cleaning up the kitchen.

At some point over dinner, it was agreed that they would go down to visit the Endless Sea after cleaning up.

Jay picks out a hoodie from his closet. It's a bit worn out, but that's kinda what he needs right now. Old and comforting.

He looks around his room for something to take down there.

He grabs the yin-yang necklaces.

He stuffs them into his pocket as he runs out of his room.

Cole greets him in the hallway. "Hey there, electric eel," he teases.

Jay smiles. Everything's gonna be okay. For the time being, anyway.

By the time they arrived at the edge of the shore, it was already pretty dark out.

That discouraged none of the ninjas. They promised Wu they'd be back by midnight, but even if they weren't, who cares right now?

They all stood on the edge.

Jay sits down.

He places his hands in the water, both yin and yang in his hands.

He closes his eyes.

He swears he can feel hands brush over his gently. Fingers lovingly dancing over scales, letting him know he's still loved.

"Hi, Nya," he whispers, letting out a happy little hiss.

Kai hesitantly crouches down, gazing over the water. "Miss you, little sis."

Kai's hand slowly drifts towards the water, grazing the surface. Bubbles start forming as if the water was boiling. As if someone was guiding his hand, his hand is pulled further into the sea. Then the water goes calm. Kai smiles slightly as if he too has been greeted by his sister.

Soon the other three ninjas are greeting the water too.

She's with them in some capacity.

Would it be better if she was still able to head home with them? Absolutely. But she's still here in some way.

Things are ever-changing.

Jay literally is not the same as he was twenty-four hours ago.

Maybe he'll never return to normal, maybe he'll return to normal tomorrow, but it's alright either way. Roll with the punches. He is who he is in the moment.

Things happened. But he's here. He's more or less whole. Maybe one day Nya can return to them somehow. But for now, she's with him, loving him even in this form, as he does her.

Strangely, this chaotic day might've brought everyone a bit closer together. Or at least closed some emotional distances caused by recent events.

Changes are hard to adjust to, but not impossible.