Hello, all! As mentioned in the description, this is a collab I did with browhal1 over on Wattpad for the "Perfect Match" writing challenge, as initiated by JayTeamUltra. We decided to write a cute little oneshot on Pixane, where browhal1 roleplayed as Zane and I as Pixal. So if you like this at all, make sure you go check her out as well because she's got some more great Ninjago stuff for you to read. We hope you enjoy this little fluff piece of ours!

The sun shone brightly on the Ninjago City streets. People bustled to and fro, a sense of normalcy beginning to return just days after the resurrected Garmadon's defeat. Already this section of the city had been cleaned up and several shops held 'now open' signs in their windows.

Two individuals among the crowd stood out. It was unintentional, but not only were they part of the ninja force that took down the newest would-be dictator, they also weren't exactly human.

Zane and Pixal walked hand in hand, enjoying each other's corporal company for the first time in a very, very long time. At one of the shops Zane gently pulled Pixal to a stop.

"Jay mentioned this place in passing a while back. I've read about frozen yogurt stores but haven't been in one myself. Would you like to get something?"

Pixel nodded. "Perhaps we could. I know that bonding over food is common for young couples." She paused, tilting her head. "But we are not like most couples, we have no need for food or desserts. What would be the point?"

Zane gave Pixal a shy smile. "Though we may not have need for them, I think you'll still find it enjoyable. Living with the rest of the ninja has taught me that fun doesn't always have to have a point. Especially if you're doing it with the people you care about."

Pixal laughed with an equally bashful smile. "In that case, I suppose that it will be fun. Besides, I haven't had time to do much with my new body yet, so this will give me a chance to try out new foods and flavors. It will be a fun experiment."

Zane nodded seriously, but the grin spreading across his face broke the façade. "Who am I to stand in the way of research?"

Taking her hand, Zane ushered her inside. Lime green walls decorated with enlarged pictures of fruit and sprinkles greeted them. Toward the back of the store five large froyo dispensers were set up. Several tables lay scattered around the room, about half of them filled with patrons eating happily. A long counter lined the wall that overflowed with toppings varying from chocolate chips to gummy frogs. Behind the counter a chalk menu took up almost the entire wall etched with the variety of food and drinks available.

Pixal smiled as she gazed around. "What a lovely shop! Frozen yogurt, you said? This looks like the place for it." She nudged Zane teasingly. "It's like seeing you and the ninja all standing in a row."

Giving her a sideways glance, Zane raised an eyebrow. "I'm going to take that as a compliment."

While taking in the shop, Pixal happened to see a handful of people looking their direction. They turned away as soon as she saw them, so she tried not to think too much about it as she followed Zane to the counter.

The young woman behind the counter cut her eyes quickly between the two. She gave an awkward smile. "Hi there. How can I help you today?"

Zane looked over the menu. "What would you like to try Pixal?"

Pixal considered the options. Though the shop's primary focus was on frozen yogurt, the menu revealed that they served many other kinds of sweet treats as well. One in particular caught Pixal's eye."Bubble tea? I've never heard of that before. Is the tea carbonated like soda?"

"It's tea that has spherical flavored 'pearls' added for a greater taste and texture experience. Although there is the option to just choose the tea without the 'bubbles' if that sounds more appealing."

"That sounds interesting, I think I'd like to give it a try." Pixal turned back to the cashier. "One coconut bubble tea, please."

"And I'll do a strawberry one."

While they waited for their teas, Pixal gazed around again and saw that more people were watching them. "Is it just me, or do we seem to be attracting a lot of attention?"

"We're highly profiled crime fighters. It would stand to reason we'd be noticed." Zane paused and gazed at the female nindroid, "Besides who couldn't help but notice you?"

Pixal smiled and ducked her head, forgetting about her worries for a moment. "I don't know about that. You're first guess is probably the right one, but I appreciate the sentiment."

The cashier walked back to the pair, holding two cups in her hand. Zane paid and they turned to find an open table. The only available options were in the center of the room. Offering soft 'excuse me's' they settled in to the plastic chairs.

"What do you think?" Zane gestured to Pixal's drink while trying his own.

Pixal took a sip. "Interesting texture, but not unpleasant. I like it! How is yours?"

"The texture does take some getting used to," He laughed, "but I agree the flavor is quite good."

Movement caught Pixal's eye and she glanced over to see a couple sitting nearby. They kept glancing sideways at them, leaning over to whisper to each other. "Zane . . . do you think we could go outside? I don't feel very comfortable here."

Surveying the room, Zane found the eyes of almost all the patrons fixed on the two of them. "Of course. There's a park down the road. Would you like to take our beverages there?"

"Yes, I think that would be better." Pixal hastily stood and led the way out.

The door closed loudly behind them.

After walking a couple blocks in silence Zane asked, "If I may, what about their stares upset you?"

Pixal was quiet for a moment before answering, "I guess I'm still not totally used to having my own body. As Samurai X, people have always admired me, but they also assume I'm human. However, when I'm just myself . . . they can't help but notice how different I am."

Zane's hand drifted toward his chest. The button he used for altering his appearance suddenly seemed to grow hot beneath his hand. "And that makes you feel like you don't belong?" Though it came out more of a statement than a question.

"Well, I've always felt like I belong with you, and with our friends. But it's hard to ignore when we're surrounded by people who think us strange."

"True." Zane paused for a moment."Did that factor into choosing to hide your identity- and the fact you had a body back- for so long?"

She glanced away, staring down at her feet. "I guess you could say that's part of the reason . . ."

"Only part?"

"Well . . ." She fiddled with the straw of her drink. But instead of answering, she said, "You know, I don't think I've ever been to this park you mentioned. Do you go there often?"

Deciding not to comment on the change of topic, Zane shook his head. "Not anymore, but when Lloyd was younger we would bring him here for some fresh air. He could spend time with kids his own age who weren't trying to take over the world."

Pixal smiled in amusement. "I'm sure that did him some good."

"Indeed. He had very few opportunities to simply be a child. We also found that this was a good spot to talk through things that might be troubling him."

Her smile faded as she slowed to a stop. "Oh."

They had arrived at the park. A handful of people could be seen jogging or reading or playing with their pets. It was mostly wide open, dotted with a few copses of trees and a lake in the distance. There was a playground nearby, and Zane and Pixal could faintly hear the chatter of children.

"Pixal, I won't force anything from you," Zane led her to a bench, "but just know I ask because I care for you very much."

She was quiet for a few moments. Then she sighed. "I know, and I care for you as well. I'm sorry for keeping secrets from you for so long. I wanted to say something sooner, but . . . I was afraid of what would happen . . ."

Zane studied her, waiting patiently.

Pixal hesitated again, trying to find the right words. "I just don't want you to think that I don't like being around you, or that anything has changed between us." She finally looked him in the eye again. "I'm afraid that if I'm honest, I'll end up hurting you."

"Pixal, I would rather you be honest and open with me, and that you feel you can be, than try to spare my feelings. After all we've been through together there's nothing you can say that will make me think less of you."

She nodded to herself, hoping she wouldn't regret what she was about to say. "Alright then. I guess I should start from the beginning. You see, although I wasn't able to get my body back after we defeated Master Chen, I didn't mind being in your head, at least not at first. I was glad I could help on your missions, and more than that, I was so happy to spend time with you. I thought that, even if I couldn't have my autonomy back, that had to be the next best thing because we were still together."

Zane internally grimaced at the thought of all that happened on Chen's island to the two of them, but he stayed silent, letting Pixal continue.

"But after a while I started to realize that I missed being my own person, going where I wanted, making my own decisions, and even just having the chance to be on my own. All these things were starting to bother me, but you never seemed to have a problem with it, so I thought that I was somehow wrong. I told myself that I should be grateful to be able to spend so much time with you, especially after we had been separated so many times before.

"So when you were damaged and I found my way into Nya's Samurai X server, I was overjoyed to be able to get my own body again. I thought about telling you . . . but I knew that you would want to spend more time with me. And I wanted so badly to be with you too, to go out and do things like a normal couple, like we are now. But I was also worried that we would go back to the way things were."

"Ah . . . I see."

"I wasn't ready to do that. I wanted to spend some time on my own first, to be an individual again. In the past year, I've come to realize that's what a healthy relationship is really about, that both parties can function individually as much as they do together. But it's still so hard . . . it's so hard to tell someone I care so much about that I don't want to spend as much time with them as they do with me."

Zane gently took her hand in his. "Thank you for telling me. I'm sorry I never considered what it was like for you to be stuck in my head and then in our computer for so long. Will you forgive me for that?"

Pixel nodded. "Of course! I couldn't have expected you to understand without telling you. But will you forgive me for not being honest with you sooner?"

"I forgive you. And if I may say, I much prefer you this way too." Zane gave her a shy smile.

"So do I. I really did miss being able to spend time with you like this." She squeezed his hand. "I hope you didn't have too much trouble functioning without me after I left."

"It did scare me when we couldn't find you after Krux and Acronix's attack. I knew without examining mine and the computer's servers I shouldn't jump to conclusions, but that didn't stop various possibilities from coming to mind. Fighting the Vermillion Warriors without you showed me how dependent I had become on your input and presence. I had forgotten what it was like for the two of us to be separate entities. Now I'm so thankful you chose to merge with the Samurai armor's interface."

"I'm relieved to hear you say that," Pixal said, relaxing a bit. "I admit, I had noticed the dependency a little bit as well. That's why I was concerned you would be upset if I told you the truth. I'm just glad that, despite the challenges, it turned out alright."

"Agreed. I didn't realize how much I missed this," He gestured between the two of them.

"I feel the same way. In fact, this has made me think that, in spite of what others may think about us, I'm grateful just to be with you." She smiled slightly. "Even if you are a member of a villainous biker gang."

"Well, former member." Zane laughed and shook his head. "I don't think Cole's completely forgiven me for being the reason he was captured. Though it's probably mostly due to the headache I had to give him." He grinned sheepishly.

Pixal laughed as well. "I can't say I blame him. You were pretty committed to that role. What did you call yourself? Snake-something-or-other?"

"Snake Jaguar. Though that came from Cole's 'creativity' rather than my own. Yet if it weren't for that stint we might not have found Wu otherwise." The smile faded and Zane's tone grew serious. "His help and presence were greatly needed in the First Realm."

"I'm glad you all were finally able to find him, and at just the right time, it sounds like. I know you told me a little about what happened in the First Realm, but what was it like there? I almost wish I could have seen it for myself."

"It was . . . not as I expected." Searching his memory banks, Zane projected an image of the desert. "The land is dry. Whatever resources it used to possess have been squandered by the inhabitants who live there. The Hunters then started exploiting the dragons for their elemental properties and for meat. Fear dominated the people- fear the Iron Baron used to keep people in line." Images of the shantytown and the inhabitants rolled by in rapid succession. "However, after discovering the Oni were gone, some of the Hunters rebelled." He flipped to a picture of Faith, Jetjack and the others who'd been there right before the ninja returned home. "The Iron Baron met his demise at the hands- or fire rather- of Firstborn; the Mother of all dragons. They now have a chance to live anew, without fear or cruelty."

Pixel watched the images with equal parts fascination and sympathy. "I suppose there are power-hungry tyrants in every realm. I'm glad the Hunters could find the same freedom we did. Still, it must have been a fascinating world to explore. Better than a prison cell."

Zane frowned, more unpleasant memories surfacing. "Maybe, but we did get to experience the Hunter's convoluted version of prison. Some of them captured us thinking we were Oni. I honestly don't know if the Iron Baron actually thought we were Oni or just went along with it to continue playing the part, but he had us thrown into an arena.

"Inside an earth dragon was goaded into attacking us. It came to the point where we had to reveal our elemental abilities so as to stay alive. When that happened we became a different type of pawn in the Baron's game. The First Realm had a metal comparable to vengestone that the Hunters kept us caged in unless they needed us for labor." His face twisted in disgust. "Part of that included forcing us to generate an elemental reaction to attract more dragons for them."

Pixal laid a hand on Zane's arm. "That's terrible! I'm so sorry for what you must have gone through. Clearly the Baron had no respect for any life but his own."

"It's honestly rather comparable to what we've dealt with in the past, but, as you said, tyrants can rise anywhere. That's the hardest part- watching people suffer needlessly. I'm sure you saw much of that here while we were gone."

Pixel closed her eyes briefly, remembering the chaos left in Garmadon's wake. "Indeed, we did. After Garmadon took the city, we spent days in hiding trying to come up with a plan, waiting for Lloyd's powers to come back, just trying to hold onto hope. But we were powerless to stop the chaos that the Sons of Garmadon were creating. It was hard to just sit there and let it happen, biding our time until we could strike. Not to mention . . . when we thought you all were really gone . . ." She shook her head. "That was probably the longest week of my short life."

Zane gently squeezed Pixal's hand. "I'm so sorry you had to think that. Wu saved us by reminding Jay about the traveler's tea. For a minute we all assumed we were going to be crushed. But I realized if that happened I'd never see you again and that hurt more than anything Garmadon was attempting to do to us."

"We eventually found the scattered tea leaves and only half of the Bounty. We realized then that there was hope, and that we just needed to hold on until you returned. That thought gave me the strength to keep fighting even when things continued to get worse. But truthfully, we didn't know how long that would take."

"We didn't either." The feelings of hopelessness and helplessness from the First Realm came easily to Zane's mind. "Somehow though, Jay heard Lloyd's broadcast and that only solidified our resolve to figure out how to return as quickly as we could. It was hard not knowing how you were faring after Garmadon's attack. We had no idea the extent of the damage or takeover, but given his Colossus, the odds of how bad it could be did not make waiting to find a way back easy."

Pixal had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. "Yes, it was a handful, to say the least. At one point when the Sons of Garmadon attacked our base, I sacrificed myself to let Lloyd and some of the others escape from Garmadon and his Colossus. But then I was thrown in Kryptarium and the waiting got a lot harder. They didn't exactly give us updates on how our friends were doing, and I felt useless not being able to do anything to help." She sighed. "I guess we all had to have a lot of patience for this fight."

Zane nodded. "I'm thankful it paid off. Though if Lord Garmadon is correct about the Oni coming, we're playing another waiting game."

"Do you think he was telling the truth? Or was he just making idle threats to try and scare us?"

"I'm not sure." Frowning in thought, Zane analyzed several years' worth of data. "Though Lord Garmadon has been many things in his years of evil, an outright liar has not been one of them. He couldn't expect us to give him his freedom even with that pronouncement, so what would he have to gain from the warning?"

"Who knows?" Pixal said with a shrug. "I suppose you're right though, we'll just have to wait and see, and be prepared to face whatever threat may come next. Let's just hope that this time we'll be able to do it as a team."

"That would be a welcome change of pace. Though I suppose we did work together against the Iron Doom-" Zane gave a self depreciating grin "-even if most of us didn't realize it."

She laughed. "That we did. You're lucky I came, too, because as far as I could tell, you four were already losing on your own."

"Nya and Kai were working it from a different angle but, admittedly, we did not have the situation under control. Time travel is a formidable opponent that we've had the misfortune of fighting too many times now."

Pixal wore a grave expression as she said, "Time travel is a science best left untouched. Although I think the experience has inspired some curiosity in my father, I've encouraged him to keep his musings purely theoretical. The last thing we need right now is more time anomalies."

"You could say that again." Zane leaned back against the bench. "There are many other anomalies we've encountered as Ninjago's protectors, time is best left alone."

"And we're bound to encounter many more, whether it's these mysterious Oni or something else. Ninjago is full of many powerful and dangerous things, not to mention the rest of the sixteen realms. We've got our hands full as is already."

"And that makes our life what it is. I can't say I'd have it any other way- though," Zane gazed at the children and families playing around them, "perhaps with less risk of life for the civilians."

"If only our adversaries could get the memo," Pixal said with a slight smile. "You're right, though. In some ways, our lives are better for all the danger and excitement. After all, we may not have met otherwise."

"Strange how one choice by an aging master I never knew would lead to all of this, but I have to say this," He squeezed Pixal's hand, "is definitely worth it."

She grinned and leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek. "It definitely is."