Wow! I just- wow! Two updated in two days! I really haven't done that in a very long time. And it's all thanks to you guys! You're all so supportive, and it makes me very happy! I am suddenly reminded of why exactly I was so much better about updates way back when. The Mayor of Ninjago City, was it? Wow! I can't believe you came back more than a year later! Your comment especially made me feel a lot better about my writing and helped me to realize that I have actually been able to develop a style of my own. Thank you all, guys! And here's chapter 5!
-LizzyLucky
"A girl?! Why was there a girl in with the serpentine?" Jay asked exasperatedly.
"Like any of the rest of us would know… She was probably the one who screamed outside." Kai said.
"I wouldn't be surprised. Now, you think she's friend or foe?" Cole bent down to inspect her as he talked.
"That doesn't matter. Right now, she needs to be tended to. As a matter of fact, I would like you all tended to. Ready yourselves for the day and eat breakfast. I trust you can tend to your own wounds, should there be any? Or at the very least, each other's." Wu said, turning around and dismissing them.
"Yes, Sensei." Came their answer, along with 5 bows. The ninja turned inward to their room to do as told.
Wu put a hand on Nya's shoulder, however.
"I would like you to help me with this girl." He said simply. Nya nodded silently and picked up the girl. As she did so, she realized that they couldn't have been very distanced in age. Nor from the other ninja. They were all teenagers, just that Nya was the youngest. (Unless you count Lloyd, but rules don't really seem to apply to him, do they?)
Following Wu out, Nya decided she was going to find out more about this girl. It was kind of exciting, really. If she was an enemy, of course, that would be a little harder. But who's to say that they can't change that? There are plenty of bad people who go good. Lots of enemies made friends. And, well, if she wasn't an enemy… the more the merrier, right? Either way, she figured it would probably be really interesting to find out how this girl came to be among the serpentine, even if it was a spur-of-the-moment accident.
"Set her down here." Wu said, gesturing to an old couch in the spare room they usually used for tending wounds. He figured it best to tend to her here, then place her on a regular bed until she woke up.
Nodding, Nya placed the girl gently on the couch.
"I think her leg is broken, Sensei. That or she has incredibly flexible legs. It just didn't seem natural for it to be so… floppy, when I was carrying her." Nya said, placing a gentle hand on the girl's leg.
"It certainly looks that way." He agreed.
"How old do you think she is?"
"Well, my guess would be only as good as yours. She looks to be around your age. Certainly no older than the oldest of our ninja, but not a young child either."
"I thought the same thing." Nya said quietly. She ran her hand along the break in the girl's leg, then walked over to her other side to check for other damage.
"A bruise on the center of her back… but no damage to the spine… She's got a pretty good cut here on her arm, and another smaller one on her face… I think that's about all of it already. Plenty of smaller scrapes, bruises, and stuff, but nothing too major to worry about." She half muttered to herself. It was a bit of a habit. She was by no means a professional, but she's had more than enough experience on similar things with the ninja, who were naturally getting themselves hurt all the time. She would list off injuries she saw as she went, and decide what she needed for them in her head.
Wu, who was right behind her and watching, chuckled lightly to himself. She was a bit of a wonder to see at work.
"Could you get me some bandages and a splint, please? I could do with some antibiotic gel, too." She said, turning her head to look at Wu. He nodded kindly and turned for the cupboards and shelves near the other side of the room.
(Just real quick, I actually have no idea how you're supposed to set or treat a broken bone. The antibiotic gel is what I call the same weird gunk you put on little cuts and raw scrapes at my house, so I just kinda went with it…)
Wu grabbed three bandage rolls, a long splint, and a large tube of the gel Nya had requested before turning around.
"Thank you." She said as she grabbed the items from him and began her work. Just as she got started, footsteps could be heard approaching the room. Wu turned to see Cole and Zane, the latter holding his head.
"Zane." Wu said blankly, not expecting his appearance.
"Is something wrong?" He asked, getting Nya's attention as well. She turned around to look at the two Ninja. Cole almost laughed and tried to smile sympathetically at Zane, who looked very confused as to his amusement.
"Zane, uh… Zane hit his head again." Cole said, pointing at the Nindroid.
"Again? As in he'd already hit it?" Wu said, voicing Nya's thoughts.
"Yeah."
"When I had a nightmare… yesterday morning, I hit my head. On the bunk. And in the evening, I hit it again." Zane said sheepishly.
"I was looking for something and I thought I might have put it on my bed…" He trailed off.
"Then when it wasn't there, he sat up and hit his head again. And in the exact same spot!" Cole finished.
"Maybe we should tape a pillow up there, huh? Three times in two days. I don't even think Jay's done it that bad!" Cole said, having to muffle his laughter again.
"Wow, Zane. Are you alright?" Nya asked.
"I'm fine. I just need a bandage and an icepack." Zane said simply, walking to the cupboard and grabbing a roll of bandages, then to the fridge for an icepack.
"Pfft! Fine. You were crying like a baby!" Cole said teasingly.
"What?! No I wasn't!" Zane said defensively as he began to unroll the bandages. The two turned out the doorway.
"Yes you were!" Cole said, this time even more playfully.
"I absolutely was not! When have I ever cried over anything?" Zane said, sounding almost offended.
Wu and Nya could hear Cole burst into laughter down the hall and mutter something about how he was only joking, Zane chuckling a little too.
"I'm glad to see how much effort the ninja have made to help Zane. It would seem he is already feeling much better."Wu said, smiling fondly. Nya grinned and nodded.
"Okay, where's my sock!?" Jay groaned, throwing laundry from his dresser all over the floor.
"Like we should know! It's your sock!" Kai said, rolling his eyes.
Lloyd chuckled and flopped to the floor dramatically.
"Oh no! What will ever become of the blue ninja without his sock?! The world will ennnndddd!" He cried out, rolling around. Kai burst out laughing.
"Good one!" He said, clapping hands with Lloyd, who lay on the ground like he was dead.
"Oh, ha, ha! Seriously guys, where is it!?" He threw his hands up and walked frustratedly back to his bed.
Cole and Zane walked back in the room, both laughing.
"I know you didn't, I was only joking!" Cole said, clapping a hand to Zane's back.
"Hey, guys! You good, Zane?" Kai greeted, then gestured to Zane's head.
(In all honesty, that sounds weird to me)
"I'm fine. I just need to bandage it." He said dismissively. Cole patted him once more on the back, then walked over to his bed.
"Jay! Stop leaving your stuff on my bed!" He shouted suddenly. He picked up something on his bed and threw it at Jay.
"My sock! You found it!" He grinned. He danced in his spot and plopped down on the floor to slip on said sock.
"Whatever." Cole rolled his eyes and went to grab a pair of his own socks.
"I'm getting hungry. Maybe we should get some breakfast going." Kai said.
"I can cook if you like." Zane spoke up, eager to find something to do.
"You sure, Zane? You look exhausted." Lloyd said.
Zane scrunched his eyebrows, confused. He walked into the bathroom to check the mirror. He'd need it anyway, to put on the bandage properly. His reflection was the very definition of exhausted. Visually, at least. His eyes were bloodshot and droopy. He was slumped over and he had an absolutely wild bed head look going on. He looked exhausted, and now that he thought about it, he felt exhausted, too. But that didn't matter too much to him. It just meant a sleepy day. He'd get the rest he needed tomorrow and tonight.
"I suppose I am a little tired, but it's fine. I can still focus enough, and I'll make sure I get the sleep I need tomorrow." He said, walking back into their room.
"If you say so." Jay said, somewhat worriedly. But he quickly dismissed it and grinned at Zane.
"Not that Cole didn't do a lot better with breakfast yesterday, but I'm glad it's you cooking instead today!" He exclaimed.
"Hey!" Cole said, whipping his head in the direction of the blue ninja. Jay chuckled nervously. The two of them decided they were done in the room and walked out, quickly followed by Lloyd.
Zane watched them leave the room then turned back to the mirror and tried to start bandaging his head. He held one end of the bandage against his forehead and tried to use the other hand to wrap it around the back of his head. It started okay and he got it around about once before he dropped the roll, which pretty instantly tangled around his legs. The bandage fell from his head as well. He bent over to try to pick it up but began to lose his balance. He stood back up, wobbled a little, then hopped around to try and keep from falling. He hopped out of the bathroom and managed to get the bandage even more tangled around his legs. He reached for the nearest object to keep his balance with, which happened to be a shirt hanging over the edge of the bunk above his bed. As soon as he grabbed it, it slid over the edge and he plummeted face first for the ground with an "Ooph," shirt still in hand.
Kai walked over, having seen the stumble.
"Need some help, Zane?" He asked.
"That would be appreciated…" Zane said quietly, rolling over and sitting up. Kai bent down and the two started to untangle his legs and roll the bandage back up.
"Let's try to keep it so we don't have to go back for more bandages, alright?" He said with a chuckle.
"Good idea." Zane agreed. He stood back up to reattempt bandaging his head, reaching to grab the roll from Kai. Kai, however, didn't loosen his grip.
"How about I bandage it this time?" He said.
Zane nodded sheepishly.
"Here, just sit down on your bed, I got it." Kai gestured.
It had been a long time since Zane had needed someone else to tend to his wounds. He did occasionally need Nya or Jay to replace a broken wire in his systems, but that was a bit different. He supposed that it did count as an injury, and it certainly wasn't a painless process, but it just wasn't the same thing.
Zane sat down on his bed and turned at an angle so Kai could better reach his head. He waited patiently as the bandage was wrapped around the injury, once, twice, thrice, and on. After maybe a minute, his head had been fully wrapped and Kai handed Zane the icepack, which he'd somehow forgotten about.
"Thank you." He said politely
"See, that wasn't so hard." Kai said.
"Easy for you to say." Zane said, standing up.
"Here, let's just go get breakfast." Kai chuckled once more and strode over to the door. Zane followed silently, icepack held to his head.
Okay, yeah, maybe not the greatest spot to end a chapter, but I'm like totally out of time. It was short, too, since I only had my phone for writing, but it'll have to do. I have to leave, and this chapter was kind of satisfying to write, so I figured it's good to leave it there. I just super love the brotherly bonding stuff, so this chapter had a bit of that. Anyway, tell me what you think! I hope you liked it! And I'll have the next chapter out, hopefully, soon. Thanks for reading, guys!
-LizzyLucky