Well, school is all finished for me this semester, just finished up earlier this week and didn't I promise you guys that I would work on this when I had free time? Ta-da. :3
This is the final chapter. As much as I don't want it to be, this is the last one. I'm really sorry you had to wait such a long time for it though. Credit to my bro, Packerfan95, for his character Lucas and letting me use Lucas in my story. Thanks to silverblade1999 for talking with me and just keeping me company while I wrote a majority of this.
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Towards the Future
Everything seemed so normal now, yet everything felt so different too.
The entire atmosphere of the apartment had grown much lighter and happier, giving everyone a much deserved rest from the stress and anxious turmoil that had been plaguing them for so long. She would wake up in the morning now and not feel threatened. The world continued to spin and, for once, nothing felt like it could stop it. No sign of the Serpentine. No sign of the stone men. No sign of the Overlord. As happy as Laurie felt with life now, she felt a bitter pang of sadness deep within her heart and soul. It was all thanks to Rhea, sacrificing one life for countless more.
She glanced up from the comic that Lloyd had thrust upon her. It was amazing how much time had passed by. Laurie felt as if she had only been reading for a few minutes, but in reality it had been a couple of hours. "Never thought this Starfarer nonsense would be this good," she muttered under her breath, attempting to hide the fact that she was thoroughly enjoying the science fiction story laid out in front of her. It was nice to read about another person's crazy adventures instead of living them. Even if Fritz Donnegan was fictional, sometimes Laurie felt as if the journeys he embarked on could actually happen.
A hand on her shoulder caused the red head to flinch. Instinctually, she grabbed for a pen that someone had left on the table beside her and spun around in her chair. "Be gone, Imperial Sludge, or I'll plunge this through your ectoplasmic heart and throw you out of an air lock!" The writing utensil in her hand quivered as she gazed up into the face of her cousin. A look of both mild fright and amusement was spread across his face as he held his hands up in defeat and laughed. Laurie lowered the pen and threw it back on the table before placing her head in her hands. "I am so sorry, Lucas," she apologized, her voice slightly muffled now. "I just…I was reading and I was thinking and then you touched me and…"
"Reading and thinking at the same time? That sounds dangerous," chuckled Lloyd, watching the event unfold from his bed where he sat with the latest issue of the comic series, reading. His emerald green eyes stared out from behind the colorful pages for a brief moment. "So do you like the comics then, Laurie?" The green ninja watched as his sister peeked out from between her fingers, ice blue eyes staring daggers at him. "I will take that as a 'yes' then," the young boy laughed, returning to his reading. "Don't let it get to your head though, sis. I just got Lucas back and I'd never forgive you if you killed him."
She lowered her hands, feeling the cold chill of humiliation and guilt run through her veins. Opening her mouth to apologize once more, Laurie found that her words seemed to be stuck in her throat. "You don't have to say you're sorry again," Lucas smiled, lowering his hands and stuffing them into the pockets of his jeans. "I mean, I was a very tough villain, once upon a time." The red head just nodded, recalling the stories Lloyd had told her about this family member she did not even know existed. "Do you mind if we talk though, Guardian to Guardian? It'll just take a few minutes and then you can go back to threatening people with pens. I promise."
Rubbing her temples with her hands, Laurie got up from her chair and leaned back against the wooden table. "Yeah, sure, Lucas," she replied slowly, feeling her heartbeat quicken slightly. She had never really spent time alone with her cousin before and she still felt as if she did not really know him. "I won't be threatening you with a pen though. No, I'll train my weapon on my younger brother to get him back for getting me addicted to this stupid comic." She gave Lloyd a small smirk and watched as he lowered the book in his hands just enough to stick is tongue out at her indignantly. "Right then," the Ninja of Wind continued, walking towards the front door of the apartment. She could hear Lucas' footfall right behind her. "Do you mind if we go up to the roof to talk? I kind of like it up there."
Not waiting for a reply, Laurie opened the front door and made her way around to the alley that faced the broken window on the side of the apartment. The rusty and wobbly fire escape still sat adjacent to the fading brick wall and the orange ninja smiled as she hoisted herself onto the low lying platform before taking the stairs quickly. A bright orange glow cast itself upon the empty, tarred roof. Sunset, it was always Laurie's favorite time of the day and she sat down quickly on the edge of the roof, dangling her legs into the empty air. Lucas took a seat next to her, gripping the edge of the roof with his hands. "So, you wanted to talk about something?" the girl asked, tearing her gaze away from the dark silhouette of Ninjago City to face her cousin.
"I didn't think you would be my cousin," Lucas stated plainly, his hazel grey eyes staring out into the city. As the noise of traffic down below quickly made its presence known, he turned his attention back to Laurie, noticing the confusion upon her freckled face. "It's not what you think though," he laughed lightly, feeling the slightly chilled fall breeze on his bare arms. "I've seen you before, in a vision; a vision that our Grandfather showed me when I was in between life and death. I wanted to know who you were, but Grandfather said that I would find out eventually." He gave a warm smile and watched as Laurie shifted awkwardly under his gaze. "Here you are, just as he predicted. Lloyd's sister, my cousin, the second Guardian of the green ninja."
She raised her eyebrows and let out a long breath. "Well, I don't really know what that means, but I think it's cool that Grandfather knew who I was. I kind of stuck up for him and his decision to split Ninjago in half when the Overlord had me prisoner in a warehouse." Laurie saw her cousin just give a small nod, the wind blowing his shaggy, brown hair in all directions. "Well, I thought Lloyd would have told you all about our 'adventures' already, but if he hasn't then I'd be willing to share them with you sometime. It's a bit of a long story though."
"Well, I have a lot of time to make up for," the grey ninja replied.
Swinging her legs back and forth, Laurie just gave another nod. "Well then, I'm a Guardian, right? I don't really understand how that's any different then what I've been doing since I found Lloyd again. I want to protect him because he's my brother and I don't want anything to ever happen to him." She felt the wind pick up and blow around her gently, almost embracing her. It was a nice change of pace, feeling the comfort of the wind around her instead of anxiously waiting for it to inform her of danger. "I mean, it's only a fancy title, right?" she inquired more, letting out a deep breath. "It really doesn't mean much in the long run, does it?"
Lucas glanced over at his cousin. She was hugging her legs to her chest now, resting her chin in between her knees and watching as the sun dipped farther behind the towering skyscrapers of Ninjago City. "It's more than that, just a title I mean. It's your destiny to protect the green ninja and train him, just as it is my destiny." He watched her tense up slightly at this explanation and he wanted to alleviate any anxiety she had. "The only differences between us and the others are that we can use our abilities without a weapon and that we were specifically chosen for this task." She seemed to be going further inside of herself, retreating into a shell that she had steadily been building up since the day he had come out of his coma. "The biggest difference now is that you don't have to try and do it by yourself." The Ninja of Water rested a hand upon Laurie's shoulder. "We're both in this together now."
There was a tear falling down Laurie's right cheek and she wiped it away defiantly with her forearm, attempting to hide it from Lucas. She still felt a little awkward around him, even though he had been home for weeks now, but she could not deny that he was family. Her family. She pulled him into a quick hug, somewhat startling him in the process. "Thanks, Lucas," she whispered, pulling away just as quickly and giving a slight cough. Well, talk about acting without thinking. He was probably a little freaked out by everything that had just happened. She could feel her cheeks turning red from embarrassment once more. Why was she so stupid sometimes? Laurie still barely knew him.
"Knock knock," came a voice from behind.
Both cousins turned around to see Kai standing back towards the fire escape. His spiky hair standing up fine against the evening breeze and his hands buried deep into the pockets of his red sweatshirt. "Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt anything," the Ninja of Fire stated, slowly approaching the pair. "I mean, it's not often you get to catch up with family you didn't know you had, so I just didn't want to interrupt anything." He glanced around his surroundings before locking his light brown eyes with Laurie. "I came back from the dojo and Lloyd said that you had come up here so I came to check on you. That's all, really." He was about to turn on his heel when Lucas abruptly stood up.
"No need to leave," he answered, walking over to Kai and giving him a pat to the back. "You didn't interrupt anything because we were just finished talking." The red ninja felt a wave of relief wash over him as his brother started heading down the stairs of the fire escape. Metal groaned underneath of his weight before he stopped and turned back towards Kai. "A fair warning though: Laurie might try to kill you with a pen so approach with caution," Lucas laughed before continuing down the stairs.
Raising his notched eyebrow, Kai slowly approached the orange ninja who looked absolutely exasperated. He took a seat beside her, where Lucas had been sitting, and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him. With a small smirk, he opened his mouth to say something, but Laurie quickly interjected. "Don't ask about the pen, okay? It's nothing. I didn't try to kill anyone and I especially wouldn't try to kill you." Her placid expression melted away into a big smile as she leaned her head on Kai's right shoulder and laughed lightly. "I don't think a pen could do much damage anyways; definitely not my weapon of choice."
The stars high above the city were beginning to twinkle as night steadily fell. "Oh and I'm sure your staff would be a much better weapon, right?" the Ninja of Fire teased, feeling as Laurie playfully punched him in the chest. There seemed to be warmth radiating off of her, something Kai had never felt before. "So," the brunet started awkwardly, feeling Laurie's hair tickle his neck, "everything is okay with you? Is your ankle feeling better and stuff?" He could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he waited for an answer.
"If by 'my ankle' you mean 'my memories' then, yes, it's feeling better and stuff," Laurie answered, feeling Kai tense up with her words. "There's nothing to worry about, Kai. They're all back, like they never left in the first place." She made a fist and lightly knocked on the side of her head with her knuckles. "Everything that you've ever done with me is stuck in my brain and you're just going to have to deal with…" but she was cut off as Kai planted his lips on hers. She closed her eyes and felt herself blush the brightest shade of red before throwing her arms around Kai and pulling him closer. Her heart beat quickened and she felt butterflies flutter deep within her stomach.
She was not sure how long it had lasted, but when she pulled apart her breathing was slightly labored. The constant warmth that emanated from his body seemed to have enveloped her and she just leaned back on her hands, gazing out at the neon lights of the city. "So, do you remember that?" Kai asked tentatively, entwining his fingers with Laurie's. She shot him a look that just caused him to laugh. "Yeah, I know, stupid question. I just don't want either of us to have to go through anything like that ever again. Call me paranoid."
Laurie took the hand that Kai was currently holding and maneuvered her fingers around until she gripped his hand tightly. "Hello, Paranoid," she smiled, shaking Kai's hand vigorously. "I'm Laurie; it's really nice to meet you. I don't know if you've heard, but I'm a maniacal murderer. My weapon of choice is the pen." Kai released her hand before running his own through his spiky hair. "Careful, don't let your guard down. I strike without notice."
She was caught in a tight embrace that she quickly returned. The material of his sweatshirt was warm and she buried her face into it. Inhaling deeply, Laurie recognized the familiar scent of his clothing: a mixture of pine trees and ash. Pulling information from her memories, the orange ninja was realizing how much she missed this; how much she had missed Kai. Tears began to well up in her eyes as Kai cupped the back of her head with a hand. "I can tell you're crying," he whispered gently, slowly breaking the hug. The thin streams that ran down Laurie's face were brightly illuminated in the moonlight. "What's wrong?"
"It was my fault," the Ninja of Wind sniffed. "I gave up my own memories willingly so I could save you. I finally remembered and I'm just…I'm sorry that I put you through so much." Kai's eyes widened slightly as he watched Laurie just stare at him. As much as he felt hurt by this sudden information, he could not be mad with Laurie. She had done it to save him, most likely from his coma. It was selfish at the same time it was selfless. He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder and gave a light squeeze. "I-I'm so sorry," the red head repeated again, averting her gaze to the ground.
"You know, that took some guts," Kai stated sincerely, placing his other hand underneath Laurie's chin and tilting it up slightly. She looked so small and sad, but he just gave her a warm smile. "I don't want to try and be philosophical or anything, that's Sensei's job, but maybe the prophecy in the scroll was about you after all." Laurie shook her head back and forth, but Kai spoke before she could attempt a protest. "I know that you think it was about Rhea and maybe it was. She did sacrifice her life for Lloyd's, but you sacrificed something too. If I remember correctly, the prophecy said 'the prophecised ninja will sacrifice themselves' and, if you really think about it, you did just that. You sacrificed part of what made you who you are."
Laurie could not accept that though. It had to be about Rhea, it just had to be. Otherwise it felt like her death meant absolutely nothing. Without realizing it, Kai pulled her to her feet and brought her body close to his. "Now, I know I tried this once before and it didn't go over very well, but would you want to dance?" The Ninja of Fire shifted his left hand down to Laurie's lower back while waiting for a response.
"Okay, but I have to warn you that I have two left feet," she chuckled, laying her right hand on Kai's shoulder as he started moving them both around in a square. Laurie stared at the ground, making sure that she would not step on either of Kai's feet and ruin the moment, but he only pulled her closer to him. "I love you," she whispered softly, feeling the red ninja kiss the top of her head. The two swayed back and forth to the music of city traffic as the minutes ticked onward. The orange ninja closed her eyes and just let Kai lead her in the dance. She would not have minded if the night lasted forever, but she knew that it was impossible. Besides, it was always more important to look towards the future.
At this moment in time, Laurie's future never looked brighter.
Hope it wasn't a total disappointment. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much for reading this and the rest of my series. It's been over a year since I started writing for Ninjago and joined FF. I never thought I would make such great friends or develop so much more as a writer and it's honestly all thanks to you guys. *hug*
Have a great holiday. :,)