Chapter 3: Who are you and what have you done with Lloyd?

Only a week had gone by and the school had been completely transformed. There were trapdoors everywhere, which Chen loved to use whenever someone got on his bad side. I wondered where they led, and little did I realize, I would find out soon. The food in the dining hall had been converted to only serve Mr. Chen's Noodle House, the decorations had changed, the dorms had been converted to look more like their elements, and Clouse had taken over Defense Against the Dark Arts, which was the worst.

"He made us curse another student," I told the others at lunch. "And when I refused, a trapdoor opened up and I got sentenced to detention with Master Chen."

"Yikes," Cole said.

"Clouse doesn't teach us anything in our class," Nya said. "He just made us read about dark magic the whole time."

"He's the worst!" Jay complained. "He gave me a detention because he said I was 'annoying'. Can you guys believe it?"

Lloyd glanced at him for a moment. "Yes."

"Hey!" Jay snapped.

"Honestly, I think you guys are overreacting."

"Incorrect. Clouse is a terrible professor," Zane answered.

Lloyd folded his arms. "He was fine in my class."

"That's your class," Cole snapped.

"Lloyd, you've been acting kind of strange lately. Is everything alright?" Nya asked.

"I'm fine, guys. Just leave me alone."

"He's been like this all summer," a low voice murmured.

I spun around and Garmadon was standing behind me.

"You scared me," I said.

"Yeah, Garmadon," Lloyd sneered. "Don't you have some cleaning to do or something?"

The warlord glared. "For your information, I'm sweeping the library."

I noticed he had a tight grip on his broom. It was a miracle the thing didn't break.

"Well, can you do it someplace else?" Lloyd asked.

"Lloyd, you don't have to be so mean," Nya hissed at him, then she glanced up at Garmadon. "You can stay if you want to."

The former professor grinned, dropped his broom with a thump, and proceeded to sit in our little circle. "Don't mind if I do," he said.

Lloyd huffed.

I glanced at the third year. He wasn't acting like himself at all. "So what were you saying about Lloyd?" I whispered to Garmadon.

"Ever since he was captured, L-loyd's been moody and angry all the time," he replied, not bothering to keep his voice down.

I winced. Lloyd was glowering at his father, but Garmadon either didn't notice or he didn't care. "Not even Koks could cheer him up."

"Koks?" Cole asked with a snigger.

"L-loyd's mom. I went looking for her awhile back, but with the Tri-wizard Tournament, L-loyd hadn't met her yet."

"Why?" Jay asked.

"She abandoned me, that's why," Lloyd snapped.

"She didn't abandon you," Garmadon tried to explain, "She left you with Wu. There's a big difference—"

"And I'd appreciate it if we talked about something else," Lloyd interrupted. Our circle fell quiet. It sounded like they'd had this conversation before.

"Zane, did you get the assignment for DADA?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, I got stuck in a trapdoor after Clouse gave me that detention," Jay jumped in.

The android lifted his head from his book. "Read chapters three through four by tomorrow."

Jay started complaining and I tuned him out. Instead, I leaned over to Garmadon. "Can we talk some other time about Lloyd?"

He opened his mouth, but I cut him off. "In private?"

Garmadon took the hint and stayed quiet. The bell rang and we all left for our classes, leaving the warlord alone to sweep the library by himself.

After class, I started looking for the warlord again. I checked the library, just in case, but I guess he had long since finished sweeping and dusting the shelves. All I found was Zane, who told me to check the shack on the grounds. He said it was the traditional home of the menial laborers, according to some book or another that he'd read.

I didn't even know we had a shack at the school. It wasn't in any courtyard I had ever been in, and it wasn't visible from the entrance, so that left behind the school near the edge of the cliff. I looked outside, but all I could see was a small shack on the very edge of the mountain. That couldn't be it, right?

I walked closer. The place was practically falling apart. The roof was sagging in the middle, the walls were rotting, and the one window was broken. I couldn't imagine anyone living here. I knocked on the door and it swung open with a horrible creak.

"Who's there?" A gruff voice asked.

"Garmadon? It's me, Kai. You said we could talk later?" I called.

Something stirred in the back, but it was so dark I could hardly see anything. Finally, Garmadon came to the front.

"Come on in," he said. I walked further into the hut, but I tripped over a chair leg.

"Sorry," Garmadon said. "This place is a mess." He snapped his fingers and summoned a small flame that danced across his fingers and lit some candles.

"I didn't know you were in the Fire House," I said.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," Garmadon answered.

"Yeah." What else was I going to say? The warlord and I didn't have much in common.

Finally, after a long, awkward silence, I finally spoke up. "So, you were saying Lloyd was acting strange this summer?"

Garmadon nodded. "L-loyd was grouchy, didn't want anything to do with me, or Koko for that matter."

"You sure it wasn't just that he was uncomfortable around you?" I asked, trying to get my facts straight.

"No," Garmadon said. "At the end of the Tri-wizard tournament we were getting along just fine."

"Do you think it has something to do with him getting kidnapped by the Overlord?"

The warlord sighed and dropped his gaze to the flickering candle on the table. "Probably, but to be honest, L-loyd hasn't said a word about what happened during the third task."

I nodded and stood up. The shack was drafty and I didn't want to stay longer than I had to. "Thanks for you time, but I should be going now."

"Sure," Garmadon said. "Say hi to L-loyd for me."

I left his hut as quick as I could and ran back into the school. I needed to talk to Lloyd. I don't know how, but I needed him to tell me what happened with the Overlord. Something was wrong with my friend, and I was going to help him. I sprinted up the Fire Dorm stairs two at a time, slowing only as I was approaching Lloyd's landing.

"Lloyd!" I called. I poked my head in the dorm room. "Lloyd?" I called again, "Lloyd!"

My friend's head popped from out from under the covers. "Kai, be quiet!" he snapped at me. "What are you doing here anyways? Can't you see I'm trying to rest?"

Man, Lloyd was prickly. All the more reason to get to the bottom of this. "Look, I just want to talk," I said.

His eyes narrowed and grew almost pitch black. "About what?"

I swallowed. "You've been acting strange."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, ever since the third task, you've been distant and moody. I'm worried about you."

"So?"

I curled my fists and took a deep breath. Why was Lloyd always being so difficult? First it was his father and now this. It was really grating on my nerves.

"So, did something happen when the Overlord kidnapped you? Something you're not telling everyone?"

Lloyd glared. "I'm feeling tired," he replied flatly. "Goodnight, Kai."

Well, that was a lie. It wasn't even dinnertime yet. "Don't ignore me! Answer my question!" I demanded.

Lloyd slunk back under the covers and deliberately turned his back toward me. I waited a minute, but he stayed silent.

"What's wrong with you?!" I snapped. He still didn't answer.

"Fine!" I yelled and stomped down the stairs. I went to the commons to grab some food. I snapped my chopsticks apart, stabbed my fish, and shoved it my mouth. I couldn't believe Lloyd. All I ever wanted to do was help, and how did he thank me? By pushing me and everyone else away.

"What'd that fish ever do to you?" I glanced up at Cole who was staring wide-eyed at my plate. I looked back at my fish Oh. I got so angry, flames burned the poor thing to a charred crisp.

I sighed. "I tried to talking to Lloyd," I said.

Cole nodded. "Oh." Then, after stuffing a slice of cake in his mouth, he added, "He's been a real pain lately."

"Garmadon thinks it has something to do with the third task at the tournament."

Cole grabbed another piece and chewed thoughtfully. "That makes sense."

I sighed again. "The problem is Lloyd won't talk about it."

Cole swallowed and stood up. "Then we'll just have to make him."

AN: Do you think they can get Lloyd to talk? Or will they just make things worse? Find out next time! Thanks for all the support and reviews!