Author's Note: It's here! The conclusion you've all been waiting for: "Christmas Day"! I've so enjoyed writing Operation Christmas Lloyd this past monthish. A year ago, I never would have thought I'd get drawn back into the Ninjago Fandom (Thanks Alexa, if you're reading this, my son), or that I'd start writing fanfiction again – 2018 was definitely a year of firsts for me, though. All the support I've received thus far has been so incredibly wonderful; keep doing what you're doing, everyone! So many of you are very gifted authors and it's been a pleasure to work with you. I hope you enjoy this final chapter, and that Lloyd's present lives up to your hype!

Replies to Reviews:

Jbomb217: I had a wonderful (if busy) Christmas! Lloyd loves his family, even if they are the dorkiest of dorks sometimes… Haha. To be honest, I don't even know where that come from, but now I can't get the image of Kai wearing a sleeping mask out of my head. Where's photoshop when you need it?! And yeah, if he's anything like my siblings, you probably don't want to know the sheer number of things he's 'borrowed' from Nya. Oh, please don't cry! Keep those warm fuzzies instead. I think I have a major addiction to writing Jaya now. They're just so adorkable. But I'm so glad to hear that you're enjoying the way o incorporate their moments! Your feedback is a blessing! And, uh, I really, really, hope you like where I went with Garmadons package! Thanks again!

Guest: No problem! It ended up working out perfectly, so thank you for suggesting that! Thank you SO much for leaving me your thoughts. People like you give me a ton of inspiration!

Guest: Aw… Thanks! From my experience, this really is how siblings interact. And theft is better than sticking creepy puppets in each other's beds, which is what mine do… They are super close, because they are so used to being the only family they had. Which means they're very comfortable with doing thins like this. Thank you for your feedback!

Andrea Lundgaard Mller: Hello! I am very glad to hear that you like my story so far! And that I am doing okay with staying true to the character's personalities. No worries on the English! I thought it was fine. Have a wonderful new year!

Spider-Man Super-Fan: No worries on not reading this as soon as it was posted; I totally understand that life is craze. Oh my goodness, yes! I've really loved writing all the Jaya moments – it's so great to hear that someone else is enjoying them! I hope you like where I went with all the presents! And please! Can we keep the Christmas spirit alive as long as possible?! I'm not ready for it to be over… Thanks for your ongoing support! You are a Rockstar.

Lloydskywalkers: It's time for the obligatory 'check your pms' memo! Haha. Someday I'll become more creative with my footnotes… Until then, stay healthy and enjoy this chapter!

/\/\/\/\

The Bounty was still wrapped in a quiet haze of peacefulness when Lloyd woke up. The boy groaned and burrowed back under the covers; ugh, it was too, too early. Why was he even awake? The last thing he remembered was thinking about how comfortable the couch in the TV room was. Someone must have carried him back to his room. Kai or Nya, maybe? That seemed about right, going off of previous experience. The two were always looking out for him. Which was probably a good thing, because he hadn't done such a great job of taking care of himself after he got kicked out of Darkley's boarding school. He was pretty sure that his adoptive older siblings were, like, 50% of his impulse control. And they taught him all sorts of cool things, too. Like Spinjitzu (he was still working on that one) and how to make paper snowflakes and bake cookies! Lloyd loved having a family to spend time with. Especially since he'd never exactly celebrated Christmas before… Speaking of which, hold on a sec… If yesterday was Christmas Eve, that meant… Today was Christmas! He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and forced himself out of bed, suddenly full of energy. There was so much to be done! He grabbed a few small packages, which had been hidden behind his dresser, and made for the door. Dashing down the hall to the TV room, Lloyd looked around for any signs that Santa had visited. The Bounty didn't have a chimney, so really, the entry point could've been anywhere. There was a dark smudge on the floor near the door that lead to the deck – coal perhaps – and a half eaten carrot a little further along. That seemed promising… Upon reaching his destination, the cinnamon roll of a child found even more evidence that someone had in fact visited his home in the darkness of the night. The remains of plate of cookies he vaguely remembered insisting they set out lingered on the coffee table, beside it, an empty glass that had clearly once contained milk. And under the tree… Presents. Piles of them. Santa really had come! Having never received much in the way of presents (they had always somehow involved pranking at school, and the Green Ninja robes didn't count, cause he hadn't wanted them to begin with), Lloyd was very excited to be part of a gift exchange. He just hoped the others liked his own offerings. It had taken a surprisingly limited amount of convincing (mostly just promising to do a few extra chores) to get his uncle to help him find something small for each of the ninja. And now he was really starting to wish that they were awake – they couldn't look at all the awesome stuff the big man in the red coat had brought them if they were all asleep… But who to wake up first? Kai would definitely kill him… Cole was a pretty heavy sleeper; trying to bring him back to consciousness might take awhile… Not to mention, Cole said really weird things while asleep sometimes. Did he really want to risk having to hear the master of earth tell him some earth shattering secret? Zane and Jay would probably be fairly understanding, but if he woke one of them, he'd risk waking the entire room at once, ultimately causing Kai's wrath anyway. Especially since Jay's ability to use his indoor voice could be seriously lacking on occasion. That left Nya. Who wasn't a morning person in the slightest. But hey, if they were partners in crime, she should be cool with helping him get the others out of bed. Probably? It was his best bet. So he wandered back out of the TV room and made his way to the samurai's quarters. He opened the door and quietly edged towards her bed.

"Nya?" He called softly. A pillow flew towards his face.

"Mnooo…Wannasleep…" Nya rolled over and covered her head with the remaining pillow. "Fivemoreminutes…" Lloyd climbed up onto the bed, and tugged at it.

"Pleeaase, Nya? It's Christmas…"

"Christmas, you say?" She perked up a little, letting him remove the pillow. That gave him a little bit of leeway, she supposed. She shouldn't have stayed up so late with Jay. As much as she loved spending time with him without the overbearing presence of Kai, she was exhausted.

"Uhuh. C'mon, you hafta see what Santa left!"

"Okay, you win" The girl rubbed her eyes as she sat up, "Are the others awake yet?"

"Dunno. Figured I'd come get you first. Cause, you're the least likely to, you know, try to get back at me for disrupting your sleep. Cause I'm your baby bro and stuff." Lloyd explained. He tried his hardest to look innocent and loveable.

"Well, you got' that right, green bean…" Replied Nya, smirking. This kid was gonna be the death of her. She fought her way out from beneath the thick pile of blankets that lived on her bed, flinching slightly as the cold air hit her. Clearly the thermostat needed some serious adjustments. She and Jay could take a look at it later. It was going to be hard to find alone time, anyway.

"Well, let's go wake the hibernating bears, then."

"When you put it like that, maybe we shouldn't-" Lloyd protested, suddenly a bit more concerned about what the consequences of getting everyone up so early might be.

"Oh no you don't. You already woke me up – I refuse to be the only victim of your alarm clock impersonations. Besides, they can't stay mad at you-us for long, since it is, as you already pointed out, Christmas. It'll be fine." Nya insisted, grabbing the boy's arm and dragging him along with her. Well now he was doomed for sure. Together, they crept down the hall to the boys' bedroom and slipped inside. The scene they walked in in was much the same as any other time the two had been party to their brothers' sleeping habits.

"That's… Special." Lloyd whispered, pointing to Jay, who was snuggling aggressively with his pillow – it was easy to see how the alleged pillow kissing incident might have occurred. Weirdo. The samurai bit back a laugh. Her boyfriend did look ridiculous. It was a shame she hadn't thought to grab her phone. This would've been great for blackmail. Not that she would ever do that. Cause, it would be mean, or something like that. Kai was completely buried under numerous blankets, clearly sharing his sister's aversion to the cold. Or maybe he was just trying to drown out Cole's snoring. Probably both on second thought. It was hard to tell for sure.

"Let's do this." Nya declared quietly.

"Okay, but how do we-" Asked Lloyd, nervously.

"I'll take care of Kai. Go jump on Cole's bed, or something. The racket should rouse Jay and Zane." She replied. He nodded.

"O-okay. I can do that…"

"Kai!" Nya called loudly as she yanked back the mountain of sheets. No response.

"There's an army of elves and gingerbread men and they're attacking the Bounty!" This dramatic line was enough to launch her brother from his bed.

"Wha? Where?!" He cried before realizing what had happened.

"Really, Nya? Was that really necessary?" She shrugged as Cole became lucid enough to shove Lloyd from his perch. The boy's training had really paid off; he managed to land uninjured despite flying through the air for several feet.

"Two down, two to go."

"You people are crazy." He commented with a yawn.

"Maybe, but what does that make you?" Retorted Nya. The ninja of earth rolled his eyes at her, but was unable to reply before Zane entered the conversation.

"What on earth is going on?" The nindroid inquired. Noticing the extra people in the room he added a polite, "Oh, good morning, Nya, Lloyd. Merry Christmas!"

"Christmas?! Oh my gosh, it is Christmas!" A suddenly very much awake Jay nearly shouted. And, just like that, Lloyd and Nya had succeeded in waking all of their brothers. Now for the presents.

/\/\/\/\/\/\

A few hours later, the floor was littered with wrapping paper. A variety of brightly colored bows adorned the heads of several individuals – including Lloyd – because, at one point, Nya had insisted that it wouldn't be Christmas without people wearing the wrappings of their gifts. And, of course, they humored her, since it was Christmas, and Cole, their self proclaimed photographer, was too distracted by the holiday to take any more embarrassing pictures of them. Everyone seemed quite impressed with their scores, each having obtained a small pile of items to add to their belongings. Among the most notable gifts so far were: The 100 Exotic Tea Flavors sampler for Sensei Wu (compliments of Zane), a rather elaborate nutcracker figurine gifted to Cole - from Jay-something about the master of earth's brief stint as a ballerina, during which time he'd unwillingly carried the titular role in the aforementioned ballet, though how his best friend had even found out about that, since it was a well guarded secret (even now that he'd started supplementing Lloyd's training with a bit of dance technique), was a rabbit hole in and of itself-, as well as a gift card for Master Chen's Noodle House (from Kai and Nya), a new cookbook/floral apron for Zane (which Lloyd had selected with help from his uncle), and the Fist-To-Face expansion pack Jay purchased for Kai (Figuring that he'd be more likely to approve of the teens relationship with his sister if he got him an impressive gift). Predictably Jay and Nya's favorite things were those they had given each other. Although they had actually exchanged said gifts the previous night, they had made sure to share them with the others. The two had also appreciated a new toolbox for Nya, from her brother, and Jay's new Star-Crossed Lovers poster, courtesy of his best friend. Lloyd was still on the fence about which gift he loved the most, from the action figure Kai had given him, to the new hoodie his uncle had found him (he was incredibly attached to his old one-they'd been through a lot together—but, eventually, he knew he'd no longer fit in it, a horrible thought, honestly) , figuring he'd probably have changed his mind once everything had been opened, anyway.

"No need to thank me!" Cole said in a self satisfied manner as Sensei Wu unwrapped the present he had given him.

"While this is a wonderful picture, I am not sure I understand the sudden obsession with mustaches…" The old man commented with a wry smile. It looked like he'd be adding another photograph to the collection of pictures that had begun to fill up empty spaces on the walls. This particular image appeared to have been taken when his students took Lloyd to see Santa. The original picture was probably quite heartwarming, but someone had photoshopped mustaches onto all of their faces.

"It's a long story." Nya informed him.

"Ah. Well… Why don't you see what's in that box Ed and Edna sent everyone, now?" He suggested awkwardly, not wishing to involve himself in whatever nonsense had occurred here. Jay frowned slightly at this. He wasn't really interested in dying from embarrassment on Christmas of all days.

"We really don't have to open it right now. You know, maybe it's time for breakfast? I'm craving some of Zane's pancakes right about now."

"Don't be such a crybaby, Jay. I'm sure whatever your parents gifted us can't be any worse than that time they showed everyone your baby pictures…" Kai told him. The comment was not in any way comforting to the teen, but he gave in with a sigh.

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you." He lugged the large package to the center of the room, where everyone would be able to access it. It didn't take long for the lid to come off, and for the contents to be distributed among the group of pajama clad ninja.

"Uh… So, explanation time, my mom goes through phases where she's addicted to knitting, which results in her making everyone she knows a Christmas sweater… and uh, she likes to thing each of them really captures the essence of the person wearing it. And yeah? That's all I got…" Jay stated, cheeks slightly rosier than usual.

"Aw… How sweet!" Exclaimed Nya. Well, at least one person appreciated his mother's efforts.

"Okay. I can see how Wu's sweater might 'represent his essence', and even Cole's… But I'm just not seeing it with mine?" Kai stated, holding up a bright red sweater emblazoned with a creature that strongly resembled a hedgehog. Laughter burst forth from his siblings.

"You really don't get it?" Lloyd wanted to know.

"Well I - "

"I-its-" Started Jay.

"The hair." Nya finished, gasping for air. So now they were finishing each other's sentences?

"What?"

"Hate to break it to you, Kai, but your hair does look kinda like a hedgehog sometimes…" Cole informed the ninja of fire.

"It's so spiky!" Added Lloyd, reaching out to touch his adoptive brothers hair. Kai slapped his hand away.

"It does not! And no one touches my hair, green bean. You know that."

"Just admit it, bro. You secretly love it." His sister said, leaning against him affectionately.

"Okay. Maybe it's not a completely terrible comparison, but that all you're getting out of me." Kai admitted. Then, he reached over and started tickling Nya.

"Ahahah! Stop that!" She wriggled away before he could continue his attack. And then, she winked.

"There's still one more present..."

"Yeah, but it's waaay back under all those branches… I'm sure not going be able to reach it. Who do we know who's small enough to fit under there…" A sly grin crossed Kai's face. Lloyd's face brightened.

"I-I can totally fit. Here," The boy assured them, diving under the tree. He wrestled a box wrapped precariously in green paper from its depths. It was finally time.

"Who is it for?" Zane prompted. Lloyd glanced at the tag.

"To Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon, care of Ninjago City's finest ninja," He read, "Wait- I'm Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon!"

"Yes. Yes, you are!" Nya giggled, "So, are you gonna open it, or are you waiting for us to die from suspense?"

"OH. Yeah. That would probably be good, huh?" Lloyd carefully removed the paper – something told him this gift was special, in spite of its rough appearance. The first thing he noticed was the card sitting at the top.

"Hey! This… This is from my dad!"

"My dear son,

You have know idea how much I wish I could be there to celebrate Christmas with you, but, unfortunately, that cannot be. I wanted you to have something from me, even if I am unable to give it to you in person, so enclosed in this box is my gift to you – I promise, all of it was obtained legally. I also wanted to inform you that, thanks to a visit from a few of Santa's helpers, that I will be postponing my life's goal of reshaping Ninjago in my image until after the new year has arrived. This small break, this time of peace, will allow you to spend time with the family who can be there for you. Use it wisely. I love you more than you can possibly imagine. Merry Christmas,

Your father."

"Wow! Santa really did come through!" He exclaimed enthusiastically, after stumbling through the letter. The others shared a smile, happy that the boy was getting some small amount of closure for the holiday. He reached into the box and pulled out the first thing he came in contact with; The latest edition of Starfarers? Signed by Cliff Gordon himself?

"Score!"

"Lloyd, you lucky duck! Can I read that when you're finished?" Asked Jay. He was a little envious. Autographs from celebrities did not come cheap.

"We'll see." Lloyd pulled out the remaining item. A photo album?

"Lloyd's First Christmas? Huh." He leafed through the (very beat up) booklet. He'd never seen his baby pictures before. Slightly embarrassing, but still… And was that his father?

"I've always wondered what he looked like before…" Nya leaned over to get a better look.

"You were an adorable baby. You're starting to look just like him, now though…" She told him softly, ruffling his hair.

"I-I… Where did he get these…?"

"I don't know, Lloyd. He's probably had them for a long time…" Zane observed. The boy didn't seem to hear him. He continued staring at the pictures for several minutes. It was like he'd unlocked some forgotten piece of history he didn't know he had. Tiny him stared up from the pages, as if all was right with the world. He clearly didn't know about the questionable life choices his parents would make. Not that that was a surprise, since he was a baby, after all. Still, it was nice to know that his childhood hadn't been completely rotten… The bright spots showed through, now. And the past few weeks had definitely demonstrated that his life had changed for the better once he'd joined the crew of the Bounty. All the new traditions, listening as they patiently explained things he'd never experienced before, the laughter and tears they had shared? And then, being able to give and actually mean it, for the first time. His days had been full of magic, and in that moment, he knew he had found what family truly felt like. Lloyd was home. He had been for quite awhile now.

"Guys," He said shakily, "This Christmas? Everything? It's all been so amazing and I… I'm so grateful for everything you did to make sure I got to see what it was really like… To spend the holidays with family. A-and not mopping around some dorm room waiting for the next prank. I-I… Just thank you. So much!" Lloyd threw himself at the nearest person – Nya and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. Less then a second later, they were all piling on top of each other in some weird group hug, giggling until tears rolled down their cheeks. The warmth and comradery that it radiated lit up Sensei Wu's face. This was more than he could possibly have hoped for when he'd sought out each of his students – and later, when he'd brought his nephew into his home.

"Aw… Buddy, you know we'd do anything for you…"

"Yeah. Merry Christmas pipsqueek."

"M-merry Christmas, everyone!"

All was as it should be. Unending joy. A moment of peace. And the sound of someone softly singing a carol as Zane left to start breakfast. Christmas had come, and they were all the better for it.

/\/\/\/\/\/\

Thank you So much to all of my readers! I hope you enjoyed the final chapter of Operation Christmas Lloyd. Feel free to leave feedback, as always! And kudos to anyone who can figure out why Cole got the gift he did from Jay, because it's a neat piece of trivia in my opinion. The next chapter of Of Milk and Cookies should be up within the next week or so, and after that? I have several ideas, ranging from a season 9 au, to Lloyd trying to hide Nya's double life from her brothers. We'll just have to wait and see! Have a fantabulous new year full of adventures, everyone!

~GwenBrightly