"This is so good!" Cole said between munches as he scarfed down the food in front of him. "Do you have any cake?"
"Chocolate, vanilla, devil's food, red velvet or confetti?" Cap asked.
"All of them!" Cole said happily as he continued to eat.
"Sure thing boss!" Cap agreed with a nod before heading back into the kitchen to start cooking.
"This stuff's pretty good." Kai agreed as he ate his dinner. "Does Cap really make all of it himself?"
"Indeed." Cyrus informed them. "Cap's father was a well known chef, but Cap wanted to be in charge of a cargo ship or something similar instead of following in his father's footsteps. His father wasn't too eager on the idea, but with some convincing, Cap was able to go from port to port selling and trading goods to those who needed it."
"When did he come in possession of the Destiny's Bounty?" Zane inquired.
"It was around four years ago." Cyrus decided.
"I was the one that allowed him to use it." Nya added. "Something unexpected happened in this time line that made me want to keep the Bounty close and within my reach. But Cap proved to me he could keep it safe."
"But why would you just give the Bounty up?" Jay spoke up, using a rather hurt tone, "It's practically our home!"
"Who said I gave it up?" Nya snapped at him, albeit unintentionally. Jay shrunk a little from her outburst, but seeing she had scared him, Nya had felt some remorse and recoiled a bit. With a heavy sigh, she continued; "You five don't understand- something really, really bad happened in this time line sixteen years ago. There were riots, false Overlord sightings, and gas prices shot up like a rocket- nearly everyone in Ninjago was in a serious state of panic that no one could calm down, the Elemental Masters combined couldn't keep the mass public down. Even now people still talk about what happened as if it occurred yesterday, and with other events that have happened recently... it doesn't look very good."
On that heavy note, everyone went silent and slowly ate their dinner in silence. Until Cap came back out with cake, unto which Cole happily began to devour the moist delights and everyone soon went back to having a good mood.
"So Montgomery," Jay spoke up, "What's your dad like? I'm sure your love of machines and amazing prowess on building them came from your father, right?"
"No way!" Cole interjected, knowing what Jay was doing, "I bet Monty got his good looks from his own handsome father! Didn't you Monty?"
For a moment, Montgomery wasn't sure how to answer.
"I do believe that I can not tell you anything about the subject." the teen said as he adjusted his glasses a bit. "Mother, what do you think?"
Cole and Jay snapped their heads around to look at Nya. The woman looking as if she had been waiting for the moment to pop up, gave a smile that looked as mysterious as it was mischievous.
"Let's just say," Nya started, unable to hide her smile, "When you two get back, you'll have about ten years to figure it out before the announcements are made."
Jay and Cole looked at each other and snarled at the other. Nya took all that she could to not laugh at them while Montgomery gave her a wary glance.
"Mother, you do realize that this could effect the space time continuum, don't you?" Montgomery asked in a low tone so Jay and Cole could not hear.
"I know." Nya admitted. "But the time stream's already corrupted enough because of this plot- I figure we might as well get some fun out of it while we can. Besides, I know who did their laundry that week."
Montgomery raised an eyebrow at his mother's secret plotting, but shrugged it off. From across the way, Lloyd ate in silence as everyone else decided to engage in idle chatter to keep their minds off the true situation at hand. Cyrus noticed that Lloyd appeared to be deep in thought. Eventually, Lloyd could feel the look Cyrus was giving him and looked up at the old ally to realize he could ask what he was thinking.
"Isn't Mina going to have dinner?" Lloyd asked Cyrus. The old man shook his head.
"Mina has undergone much stress over the past few days." Cyrus told Lloyd in a lowered tone. "Like Nya mentioned earlier, the events in this time line are not quite ideal. It can take a lot out of someone who is directly effected to it like Mina is. It's not your fault that she is taking out the stress she feels on you- you remind her of someone she once knew, someone that holds a great influence in her life, so when she sees you she becomes confused. Mina just... needs some time alone. That's all."
Lloyd looked at Cyrus, feeling rather unsure but he nodded to show he understood.
. . .
Sometime after dinner, Cyrus took the ninja to a temporary place for them to stay while he adjusted the Time Window to bring them back into the past. Kass, Nya with Montgomery, and Cap all headed for home while Alice bid farewell to the group for the night as well.
"You have apartments in this building too?!" Cole exclaimed when Cyrus showed them the room they were going to stay in. The room was almost like a mini apartment itself with five separate doors going into separate bedrooms, a living room area with a wide plasma screen TV, and a space large enough for the ninja to train in. It was safe to say that all five of them had their jaws dropped in awe.
"Not all of my rooms have to be filled to the brim with gadgets and advanced technology." Cyrus joked, letting out a chuckle. "Although in all honestly, I did not have much need for apartments within the facility until recently; Mina is the only one who consistently spends the night. Not that she has much of a choice..."
"Where does she sleep?" Lloyd inquired curiously as the others walked around their living quarters.
"Across the hall from my own room." Cyrus informed Lloyd without a second thought. "It's much smaller than the one you ninja will be staying in, but it suits her and her needs quite splendidly. I've spoiled her quite a bit since she came into my care- just don't tell anyone I've said that though."
Lloyd gave Cyrus a nod to show he understood as he let out a little chuckle at Cyrus's attempt to avoid conflict.
Just give her some time, then she'll open up. Maybe...
. . .
It was well past midnight when Mina decided that insomnia was the reason why she wasn't going to sleep. There wasn't much to do in the massive building when everyone else was fast asleep, so Mina picked a book out from her bookshelf and started to read it as she paced back and forth to keep her mind off of the true reason why she wasn't sleeping.
"But how do we find a home when we are lost in the world?" Mina read as if giving dictation, "Why do we fight for something when we can not say we believe in it? Who would we fight for if we had the chance; a friend? A brother? A wife? A son? A grandchild? We keep them close, but for what reason? What purpose do they serve us when all they cause is heartbreak and disappointment?
"More often times than none, we come to the same conclusion every time, although we are afraid to admit it; we need them more than they need us. And how true this statement is when the one you love no longer loves you, or when you look back and realize that you could have done so much more to keep them happy. Maybe you could have kept them longer- maybe your life would have been completely different. Only one thing sticks in your mind that is the one thing no one can take away from you; the impression they made within you."
Mina stopped reading to think about what she had read. Out of curiosity, she looked at the clock. The bland red numbers informed her that it was only half past twelve. Her mind suddenly switched to auto pilot as Mina found herself going down the hallway to the room where the ninja were staying. Quietly, acting like a ninja in her own right, Mina opened the door and quickly located the room where Kai was sleeping. From there, she walked over to his bed and just stared at him like an empty ghost... or a stalker.
A part of her wanted to crawl in bed with him, just like she used to do with the Kai she knew when she was only a few feet high. What a bad idea that would have been, but the urge to regress in age and hope this Kai would understand her distress was stronger than any call to addiction. Heart heavy, and in desperate need to be hugged, Mina slowly walked out of his room and sat on the sofa the ninjas' guest room had. Little did she know she wasn't the only one awake, nor the only one being a stalker at the moment, but that didn't stop her from curling herself up into a ball and holding the book close to her for protection.
"What are you reading?" a calm voice asked her from behind. Surprised, Mina let out a squeak of terror as she held the book up in front of her face as an act of protection. Getting herself together, Mina cautiously looked up and saw Zane looking at her inquisitively. Mina looked at the book, then turned around to give it to Zane- who then proceeded to read the cover title.
"Dark Lord to Sensei, Banishment to Freedom; the Memoirs of Elemental Master Garmadon." Zane read slowly. He then looked at Mina, giving a rather gentle smile. "Is it your favorite?"
Unsure of whether she should speak or not, Mina nodded her head. To her horror, Zane took it as a cue to sit down next to her.
"Would you mind telling me about it?" he then asked.
Yes, she would mind. But he wasn't going to leave any time soon either, so really, she didn't have much of a choice...
