Princess Charming was, as everyone suspected, the charmingest.

When she swung herself off a steam-powered locomotive, she looked every inch a fairytale princess – clever, industrious, dignified. In other words, two things Jay wanted to be, and one thing that he never could be.

"Your Highness, Princess Pixal Charming, it is an honour to have you visit our humble kingdom," said the footman.

"Thank you." Her voice was soft and careful, sounding like a general planning an attack. "I'm honoured to be here, amongst the Walkers, in a kingdom most appreciative towards my father, King Cyrus' technology."

Pixal walked as if she stood on a tightrope. Her methodical steps were slower than most people. Whatever emotions turned within her, she was masked with a face of confidence and pride. Here, was a princess self-aware and composed. The guards bowed deeper to her than any other person, even members of their own royal family. The princess commanded respect like the moon commanded tides. It was a frighteningly, almost godlike, power.

Jay was, in all respects, impressed by his friend. "Isn't she amazing?" he whispered to Lloyd.

"Hmmm," Lloyd replied, in a tone that indicated nothing. "She doesn't seem as cool as the papers make her out to be. I'm kinda disappointed." He looked at the princess, and frowned deeply. She was supposed to be naturally stunning, but Lloyd could obviously tell she was wearing makeup. "She's so high maintenance, look at her. Her face's caked with foundation."

"So what?" Jay said. "It's her face. Girls and their faces don't live to please irresponsible princes and irrelevant servant boys."

Lloyd turned away from the prince, crossing his arms in defense. Irrelevant servant boys. The three words echoed in his mind. He pretended that the words didn't hurt. After six years, he should have been used to them. Lloyd couldn't blame Jay – the poor prince didn't know that one of this most loyal servants used to be so much more than an irrelevant servant boy.

Jay ignored him, obviously. Instead, he flounced off, over to Pixal, rambling about the latest technological developments and asking her something about when her father could start implementing a high-speed wire throughout the country.

The two royals walked together, side-by-side, trading recent anecdotes and potential new ideas. Jay introduced Pixal to his father, who welcomed Pixal warmly, but when her back was turned, frowned at Jay, evidently annoyed that their relationship was still platonic.

Then there was the garden, where Jay handed his friend the wildflowers. Pixal's face fell.

"Don't you like them?" asked Jay, wondering if he did anything wrong.

"… they're very colourful," Pixal murmured. Although she hugged the bouquet, Pixal looked disappointed.

Jay nervously added, "wildflowers have a stronger smell," remembering what Lloyd told him. They had two hours of straight conversation already, and Jay didn't want their friendship to end because of disappointing flowers.

"I don't have a sense of smell," she said.

A frowned crossed the prince's face. "Well, then, I guess I'll have to get to something else! To the cherry blossoms!" Grabbing onto Pixal's hand, Jay led her to a small grove of Sakura trees in the courtyard. The pink petal covered the floor so thickly that the ground was hardly visible.

Pixel's crestfallen face turned into a smile. "Now, that is stunning."

"We got the trees from the king of a neighbouring island," Jay said, proudly. "He's so cool! Apparently he's so generous, he sends gifts to people all the time."

"Was this the king who sent the Middle Kingdom a gold and bronze replica of their beloved nightingale?" asked Pixal.

Jay nodded. "And it was glorious! The mechanics behind it, it was so great… I just wish I could have gotten the blueprint behind it or something. And… and… using steampowdered pneumatics in the wings… seriously, work of pure engineering brilliance…"

As Lloyd came over, to lead Pixal and Jay to the greenhouse, he took a long look at the two. They were perfect, he thought as he observed their banter and their stance.

He watched them – Jay's hand on Pixal's arm – as their conversation progressed, their words becoming increasingly technical.

Lloyd thought about when Jay said that he never felt anything romantic towards Pixal, no matter how many people expected him to. He thought about how Pixal seemed to feel the same way. For some reason, their platonic alliance meant something to him. Lloyd felt validated, but he didn't know why.

When Lloyd was positive that Pixal and Jay were fine by themselves and the colourful flowers nearby, he turned and left, advancing towards the forest.

"Pythor? You there?" Lloyd moved through the trees, peering around for any signs of purple. He paused, before breaking out into a sprint. The trees disappeared behind him, and the emptiness of the forest surrounded him like mist. Lloyd breathed heavily, his arms swinging by his side. Once again, he stood and peered. "Pythor?"

"By your side as always, Lloyd. What is your problem this time?" Huddled behind a hood, stood a tall, towering man. A glint of a smile shone beneath his cloak.

"Pythor!" Lloyd said, pulling the man into a hug. "Don't worry about my problems – how have you been?"

"Fine," he replied curtly. "Guarding the forest, moving from place to place, preventing people from touching my pond like you did. My problems are few, and those that I'm burdened with can be solved with time."

Lloyd cringed. "Ouch, that sounds terrible, Pythor. How can I help you?"

"Lloyd, child," said the man. He removed his hood, the soft fabric falling down across his shoulders. His face, now covered in dark purple scales, had been attractive once. Pythor narrowed his snake-slit eyes down at Lloyd. "Do not bother helping me. Think of helping yourself. I am your benefactor, and I should be the one helping you."

"You're so kind, Pythor," Lloyd said down on the grassy floor, removing his hat. His golden hair spilled out, glistening in the sunlight. "I didn't do anything to deserve this."

"You rescued me, Lloyd. In return, I'm going to rescue you."

"War is coming," Pixal looked towards the sky, a nervous smile toying on her face. "The treaty signed by nearby kingdoms are starting to tie up with each other, and I'm afraid that even the smallest incident could set off a country-wide war. I'm concerned for my kingdom's safety, and I need your expertise."

"My expertise?" said Jay. "I don't have any expertise."

Pixal laughed. "Oh, yes you do. Don't be so modest. You're clever, you're resourceful. I understand that marriage scares you, and I respect that decision. But, if you're ever up for it, how about a political alliance? We would get any nagging parents off our backs, and even better, it would be the finest combination of my ambition and your inventive mind."

Jay's eyes lit up. Spending his life with the coolest princess ever, his best and only friend, and not one of those princesses who never returned his love letters, sounded amazing. And working together just as he wanted to – even better.

"Pixal?"

"Yes, Jay?"

Jay shifted his weight from his left foot to his right nervously. "I'm being exiled in three days. You do know about that, right?" he asked, scratching the back of his neck.

Pixal nodded solemnly, not raising her head to face Jay, but keeping her glance on the lily in her hand. "It's a common thing amongst parents today, isn't it?" she asked. "Tower exile doesn't seem like much of a punishment, more of a blessing."

"I guess it would be nice to get away from all the media attention," Jay said, thinking aloud.

"Do you happen to know the company that arranged your tower, though? I'm sure that each tower would have some way of escaping it, even if you don't end up being rescued. And I'm equally sure each company would have their own quirks and ways of doing so."

Jay frowned, trying to recall it. "Gothel Industries, I think?"

"What a foreign name," replied Pixal.

"I think it's Russian."

"German."

"Huh?"

"It's actually German," Pixal finally raised her head to face Jay with a smirk across her face. "Although, given our general limited knowledge about the Western side of things, I wouldn't be surprised that you thought Russian. I mean, what is a German company doing, trying to sell its products here?"

Jay nodded as if to say that he knew what Pixal was talking about, even if he did not. "It's cool that my tower is foreign and such, but when I'm locked inside, are you going to rescue me or anything? I am a prince, afterall, and I am in distr–"

"No."

Jay looked insulted. "No?"

"You're my partner, not my prince. I'm not a hero dashing to your rescue," Pixal sighed in the same way irritable tutors did.

"Oh."

"– and if you're going to prove yourself worthy to work with me – which, by the way, you are –, you should try to endure some tower life."

A frown crossed the young prince's face. "What does solitary confinement even prove?"

Pixel plucked a forget-me-not from a nearby bush, placing it delicately behind her air. "Patience," she said, her words falling out from her mouth in the same way that feathers glide down from the sky. "Tenacity. Endurance."

"So, basically a bunch of three-syllable words?"

"Patience has two syllables," Pixal corrected. "You're probably aware of that already, but it never hurts to point it out." The two had approached a vine of morning glories, and Pixal paused to admire their vibrant purple. "Obviously, if you survive your ordeal, you prove that you're determined and persistent. However–"

Jay thought, why is there always a however?

"–However," Pixal continued. "You could always try rescuing yourself."

Jay stopped stroking the petal of one of the morning glories, and looked up, bewildered. "Rescue myself? What's the point of that? I'll just be a rebel, and rescuing myself isn't princely or proper decorum. No one rescues themselves – princesses and princes all get rescued by their baes, right?"

Pixal rolled her eyes sharply at Jay's use of the word bae. It was one of those slang terms that she never felt comfortable with. "Jay. Listen. I told you before – war is approaching. You know what happens in a war?"

"People die and the countryside gets destroyed?"

"Think more socially!"

"Economical benefits?"

"I was thinking more about how social expectations change, how new ideals emerge and in order to advance in this socially novel world, you need to rebel against what had been the mainstream."

Jay nodded. He really didn't understand what Pixal was talking about, but it sounded clever so it had to be something insightful. "So, I need to do something different because life is going to change?"

Pixal nodded. "That's the gist of it, yes."

"I guess I'll consider it," Jay said, looking wistfully at the horizon. "Rescuing myself… escaping from the tower and being left in the forest with no map, directions or food." The idea of rescuing himself was far too terrifying. No wonder why it wasn't proper for a young prince to do so.

"You do that," said Pixal softly. "I trust you."

AN: Alright, how long has it been since I updated this? Far. Too. Long.

But recently, I felt prompted to write this thing up again, and even though I'm not into Ninjago that much anymore, I am very much attached to this fanfiction, and I will be continuing and hopefully finishing this.

Anyway: will Pixal and Jay ever reunite after his exile? Why is Pythor so amicable and protective of Lloyd? What is the real reason for Lloyd to care so much about Pixal's and Jay's platonic relationship?