Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago, just the original content you don't recognize.

When the world needed it the most, it returned…

Hello again, clearly, it's been a long time again. I'll skip the long story, it's not the first time I personally took a long hiatus, but I've come to terms that this happens to a lot of people who write or create art as a hobby. The main thing is that it makes me happy and ultimately I did this for myself, for others to enjoy it too is a good bonus to my day. I forgot that and slowly abandoned my work. It may not be perfect, especially in the beginning when I first started writing, but I've been recently inspired to write again. It's given me happiness again rather than stress, and trust me, we've had enough of that these past couple years.

So let's give it another go! Hopefully I've improved but still kept the story as enjoyable as you found it on your first read. As always I'm happy to receive criticism and questions, now to anyone who's been waiting for the next chapter, won't you take a trip with me?

(P.S the chapter has been renamed from its placement title in the previous chapter to better fit the story here. Happens to me a lot more than I think, but what can you do?)

Chapter 6: Home Is Where the Threat Is

"We're home!" Jay shouted as he burst through the doors with as much cheer as he could. "Did you miss us?"

"Be quiet, Jay," Kai hissed as he carefully and silently slipped into their house. "You're gonna wake the kid. Besides, who are you talking to?"

"No one, really. I'm just trying to give the place a welcoming energy," he said in a quieter tone, for him at least. "They say it's good to greet your home even if it's empty, it makes everything more warm and inviting after a hard day."

"Could you guys clear the entryway? I think we all want to relax after nearly dying again." From behind them, Cole charged through until he reached the couch in the den. "Made it in one piece," he said as he fell face down on the cushions. "I don't want to leave this spot ever again."

Nya let out a soft chuckle as she walked in, arms full with their new guest, Hanako. "If we wanted to laze around all day, Ninjago City would have to be less of a magnet for trouble than it already is." She kept gently swaying in place hoping to keep the girl asleep for a little longer. "She's out like a light, after all that trouble she caused."

"Come on, Nya, she's just a kid, don't blame her for making Borg Tower a giant water fountain."

"I'm not blaming her," she said, "I'm just surprised she had the power to do that when she's so young. I don't even think I could do something like that and just be a little sleepy."

"Technically our limitations are vastly unknown," Zane added as he, Lloyd and Maria entered the room. "There are certain parameters we have yet to explore when testing the full capabilities of our elemental powers that would include a set of tests. The main factors would include environment, stamina; we have to consider the drawbacks as well after strenuous use of our powers-"

"Zane, that's an interesting idea," Lloyd interrupted, "but where's the story going? Are we focused on the task at hand?"

"My apologies," the nindroid said. "I'll make a note that we attempt this at a later date. But what is the task at hand?"

Lloyd crossed his arms as he let out a sigh. "I…don't know where to start. Let's review: we found Hanako at Borg Tower using her powers, she has half of the gem that should be Nya's, and we don't have the other half or any idea where it could be. I think that sums up how much work we have to do."

They all let out sighs together this time as they felt a cloud of doubt hang over them. There really wasn't a way to make their situation sound any more pleasant in the slightest sense. There wasn't anyone around who could offer some words of wisdom that came from years of living, no guiding hand that reassured them while handing them a cup of freshly brewed tea to soothe their nerves. It had dawned on them all over again that it was the seven of them alone against another evil that threatened their way of life. It was just them, with no Sensei, no Misako, and no welcoming energy that could make the hardships of their long day disappear this time, as much as they wanted otherwise.

With a raised hand, Maria broke the silence. "I've got an idea."

"Oh good, I was wondering when you'd stop being so quiet, Pinky," Jay said. "So what's your big idea?"

"I think it's time to-"

"Fetch! Fetch!" Blue ran frantically across the house, his claws barely able to keep him from sliding across the smooth floorboards until he reached the den. The fūri jumped briefly on and around any of the ninjas that ended up in his erratic path, making them try to settle him down. All while he relentlessly barked - "play fetch, fetch!"- loudly until Hanako woke up.

"You have a puppy!" she squealed as she yanked herself from Nya's hold to pet him on the carpet, where he finally laid down a bit for a belly rub.

"Jay, you gotta train that thing better," Nya told him while giving him a look. "He could have broken something or worse, now Hanako's up."

The little girl turned her head upwards as she continued giving belly rubs to Blue as he became a drooling mess. "It's ok, Ms. Nya, I'm not sleepy anymore. Can I have a snack, please?"

Before she could respond, Lloyd began ushering the team to the kitchen. "That's a good idea, we'll make something to eat and talk a little more while you play. Come on, guys let's clear the room."

There were some halfhearted murmurs of agreement as they filed through to the kitchen area. The majority of them had settled in, Zane, however, had taken the cover seriously and tied up his frilly apron before examining the fridge's contents for a suitable snack.

"I didn't call us here to actually cook," Lloyd said, "that was just to get us out of the room so we can talk more without Hanako overhearing."

The nindroid just gave a blank look in return. "That may be, but she is a guest and it would be rude not to prepare her something since she asked nicely."

"Ok, you handle that then. Maria, go ahead."

"Wha-me?" the Pink Ninja stammered.

"You said you had an idea before the commotion."

"Oh, it's about... the book. Well, actually, what's not in the book." Maria rummaged through her messenger bag until she pulled out the worn leather book. "I've been taking as much free time as possible to read about the gems, but Basil didn't update that much about them, see?" She turned the book towards them and flipped through four pages, each with a simple drawing of a colored gem that remained without a single word to indicate what emotion they connected with or their ability.

"You mean we have to get the book updated every time we get a new gem?" Jay asked. "Why can't it just magically reveal more information instead?"

"Because the book is just a book, not a tsukumogami. Trust me, I tried checking."

"Ok…? Well, that sucks, it all comes back to questioning a little kid that probably doesn't even know she's…not quite living."

"That's something else that's bothering me," Maria continued. "The Hanako I know started off as an urban myth about a girl who died in a school bathroom sometime during the 1950s. Her cause of death varies, from her dying during a game of hide and seek at the same time an air raid hit the school to her dying due to an ignorant parent."

"How the heck did she get all the way from a school bathroom to Borg Tower?" Nya asked.

Maria shrugged. "Beats me. As far as we know, the tower has never been anything but a large office building since the city's construction. I'm also confused about the timeline of her death."

"Maybe we can try to figure that out later. How do we get the gem from her without her freaking out that we're taking away what she considers a good luck charm?"

"Let's just take it. It's not a toy, it's a vital key in stopping Onryō," Cole said.

"You blackhearted brute!" Jay spat at him. "You want to rip the gem away from the traumatized kid, then you're on your own!"

"Fine," he retorted. Cole barely took a step out of the room before he caught a glimpse of Hanako holding Blue in her arms as he licked her face, making her giggle. She noticed him from a distance and gave a small wave that he returned before facing his teammates. "I take it back; I can't hurt that smile."

"Then we ask her," Lloyd deemed. "If there's no other way at the moment then we ask her as much as we can about her and what she knows."

Zane quickly stepped forward, carrying a tray of assorted cut up fruit, yogurt and water he whipped up quickly to be served. "I will approach her first and try to build rapport as I give her snacks. No doubt Hanako clearly feels more connected with Nya, but it's best she can trust us all and be at ease before she talks. By entertaining her we can give her a sense of security that she can tell us anything."

Nya frowned at the idea. "This sounds like an interrogation no matter how you phrase it. What next? Offer her toys and playtime to get her to talk?"

"Ooh, let's give it a codename!" Jay said. "How about Buddy Bonding Time?"

"Ok, ok," the Green Ninja spoke aloud again to get the others' focus back. "Let's stick with this plan since it's the only one we got right now but lay down some ground rules. Main rule is to not push her any more than she's comfortable with just to get answers. The other is we each talk to her separately during our shifts-"

"Buddy Bonding Time," Jay interrupted.

"Whatever you prefer to call," Lloyd continued on, "we don't join in someone else's shift unless Hanako decides otherwise because she's fine with it. Agreed?"

They let out a unified "agreed," and began with the only plan they could carry out.

It was late evening after they had long initiated Buddy Bonding Time (Jay kept insisting on the name and it stuck with everyone.) and after all they went through that day alone, they felt like this wouldn't be as hard as they were making it out to be.

Zane kept providing Hanako with nutritious snacks that she devoured happily while politely thanking him and talking about how he was the best cook ever. Jay found an old slipper he used to engage Blue and Hanako in a game of fetch; during this, he talked all about his life back at the junkyard and the inventions he built. He was more than happy to talk further when she asked a million questions about what inventions and junkyards were.

Cole, under the impression no one would peek in on them, managed to get a laugh out of the young girl by doing an old song and dance routine his father taught him, until he caught Kai and Jay recording him when he heard their snickering. After that incident ended with Cole chasing after Jay while Blue chased after both nonsensically, Kai took his shift early. He wasn't sure what to do with his Buddy Bonding Time so he opted for quiet drawing time and got into drawing himself with his magic armor he missed summoning.

Hanako had kept drawing when Maria took her shift and read aloud some child friendly folktales she brought from home. The girl was lost in her own world; she barely noticed Lloyd tapping in to watch her and show her his old Starfarer comics. By the time Nya had come to take over, Hanako had grown sleepy again, and it was decided she would be put to bed in Nya's room immediately.

Though fatigue was catching up to her Nya managed to shuffle over to the den where the others waited to discuss their shifts. "She fell asleep pretty easily," Nya said through a small yawn. "If all kids were like this, I'd be happy to have some one day."

"Agreed, she was also very courteous despite her young age," Zane said. "Although I admit she charmed me so much that I didn't have much time to ask her about her origins."

Cole suddenly sat up straighter from his spot. "Wait, didn't you talk to her about the gem at least? Cause I didn't."

"I didn't ask her anything like that either," Maria squeaked in embarrassment. "But she wasn't really saying much to me when I tagged in."

"Ok, hold on, raise your hand if you asked Hanako anything about her or the gem," Lloyd said. Sadly, no one raised their hands or could look him in the eyes after they realized they had been sidetracked. "Great, so we know nothing more about her than we did when we first met her."

"We were bonding!" Jay cried out. "Wasn't that just as important too? That she trusts us and wants to see us as friends?"

"But we could've asked at least one thing, just one thing to get some information! I mean it's already bad enough that our mission to stop Onryō is being stalled because we can't take the gem from her."

Zane leaned over the coffee table and shuffled through the abandoned drawings Hanako had done. "All is not lost, she may not have said anything with words, but perhaps she said plenty in her artwork." The nindroid held up a drawing he chose at random, but the red scribblings looked familiar enough to them. "Look, she knows about the magic powers of the red gem! She must know about their capabilities!"

"Actually," Kai quickly snatched the art out of Zane's hand, "that one's mine. I got bored watching her draw by herself so I joined in."

"That's it, I'm going to bed." Cole got up and started walking away to his room. "This was all a waste of time."

"Please, I'm certain we could find something in her drawings," Zane pleaded. "I just need some help to look over them."

"Sorry, man, but the only thing I learned is that a six-year-old can draw better than Kai." Jay started walking away, with Blue following him loyally at his side. "We can't stop a demon king with that kind of knowledge." He stopped briefly to give Nya a quick hug goodnight, but paused to talk with her a little more. "Actually, do you want to take my bed since Hanako's sleeping in yours? I can sleep on the floor or bunk with Kai."

"I didn't even offer!" Kai exclaimed.

Nya let out a chuckle. "Thanks, but I think I'll stay up with Zane to do the whole 'exam the child's scribbles' thing. You get some sleep if that's what you really want."

Jay told her "goodnight" once more before continuing to drag himself to his room as much as he could, with a little help from his fūri giving his back legs a push along the way. Eventually, Kai, Lloyd, and Maria also decided it was best to rest for the night and left the room to the two ninja. Nya sat down next to Zane on the couch and hunched over to examine the drawings on the small table.

"So, what are we looking for?"

Zane spread the pictures as neatly as he could. "In the case of modern art, we examine the subject of the work as well as the use of color, contrast, and shadows. These are really just a few things that make up the whole message behind the pieces." He picked up one drawing of a few simple flowers that were almost identical aside from their different colors. "Children's art can be direct at times, or it can be an innocent drawing they enjoy making."

Nya combed through a couple pictures; Hanako had drawn mostly standard stuff that could be expected of a six-year-old. There were some flowers, an animal that could be either a cat or a dog depending on how you viewed it, and what looked like a self-portrait of herself smiling happily. "Nothing looks out of place here," Nya muttered under her breath. "If we don't find anything, then we have to talk to her, but who knows if she can open up? Why did this have to be so difficult? It's just crayon scribblings."

"Try to take your time when analyzing this," Zane encouraged. "If she has a pattern of what or how she draws, that can be helpful too." He began to select another drawing to observe before he asked, "Do you empathize with Hanako?"

"Of course," Nya said without missing a beat. "She's a young girl that's lost and just wants her mom back. Who wouldn't empathize with that?"

"That is very noble of you," he said. "I was worried this might bring back unpleasant memories of when you lost your mother."

Nya stopped to better face him with an almost amused look on her face. "Well, why would you think that? I got both my parents back, and knowing they're safe and sound cancels all that out. It's almost like it never happened," she said, trying to ignore the sudden pit that started to grow in her gut.

"I was thinking," Zane glanced down sadly, "when I lost my father, I eventually healed because I had you guys, my family, and Sensei Wu. With him missing, the pain comes back sometimes in ways I cannot foresee, it's as though they're both around me everywhere I go. It's strange, but I feel this sadness more than usual today."

"Zane..."

"You do not have to worry about me." He gave her a quick smile before buckling down to his work. "I think it's therapeutic to feel a touch of sadness at times. It means I came to terms with these feelings in the end, and now we will both work hard to give this same feeling to Hanako."

She wanted to say something, but Nya couldn't find the words after hearing an unexpected yet nice sentiment. Zane was right; it all tied back to Hanako and her wellbeing as the priority, but her stomach felt heavy as she thought about it more, like she'd get sick from a mere thought. Nya pushed it down when it felt like it was suddenly welling up in her throat and making her eyes feel damp. Something about it—thinking about the past and what was lost—felt almost sorrowful, but there wasn't time for that here, nor was it the place.

There were more important things than that right now, and there always would be if she looked hard enough.

It was sometime past his nightmare of being chased by a cake monster and a little after his new dream of competing in the Ninjago City Dance Off began when Cole felt himself being shaken until he woke up. "Uh– g- Grand Jete!" he accidentally muttered as he sat up with half open eyes.

"Cole, can we talk?" the figure before him asked. He had to squint to see the outline of messy hair that exaggerated how tall they really were and hid their nervous expression.

"Maria?" he finally asked. "What are you doing here? And why does it look like you overdid it on the hairspray?"

"I kept tossing in my sleep, and it just got tangled up." Her nervousness faded away and was replaced by a pout as she tried finger-combing her locks. "That's not why I'm here; I need to talk to you about something important," she said.

"Talk to Lloyd, that's his department," Cole said as he buried himself deep in the covers. "I don't get why you didn't just go to him in the first place…" he trailed off as he felt himself drifting back and hopefully continuing his dream.

"I came to you and that's that," Maria pressed on. She fell to her knees and clasped her hands as she kept asking. "Please, just hear me out; you don't have to get out of bed anyways!"

He groaned and slowly rolled over to the other side of the bed to face her better, but he kept himself cocooned against the night's chill. "Ok, but make it quick, I'm this close to winning first place."

"Wha- ok then," his statement threw her off her momentum, but only for a second as she said, "I think it's time we reach out to the Great Elders for help!"

"That's nice," Cole said as he went back to sleep, ready to claim first place in the contest and be known as the greatest dancer in the City, no, in all of Ninjago as soon as he finished his routine…

"YOU WHAT?!"

His scream nearly woke the whole house up, and it would've too if Maria didn't quickly shush him while covering his mouth to prevent that from happening. "You want to reach out to the Great Elders?" is what he would've said if his voice wasn't muffled by her hand, but Maria knew his question anyway.

"Yes, I want to talk to them. All of them; Cliona, Basil, and Nikos, but one at a time." Slowly and quietly, she uncovered his mouth. "Please, don't shout like that again."

"Well, don't drop a bombshell on me like that again!" Cole hissed as he scrambled to sit up and face her better. "Where is all this coming from?"

Maria shrugged her shoulders and kept her face neutral. "It's just an idea that's been lingering for a while in my head. Also I think I should talk to the rest of you guys more instead of relying on Lloyd all the time."

"And that's it?"

"That's it," she said with a small smile. "I'm gonna tell him and everyone else anyway, you're the lucky one to hear my crazy idea first."

"You're absolutely sure you don't have a real reason to tell me this?" Cole pressed on.

"Yes," Maria said a little too quickly as she started getting up to leave. "That's all it is. So, I'll leave you to your 'first place' dream."

Cole fully got out of bed this time, unsatisfied with her weak response. "No, no hang on, kid. I want a real an-!"

Splash!

Both of them paused in a state of confusion and, oddly enough, fear. Maria lifted her foot up to see it drip with water; that alone didn't frighten them. It was witnessing the water suddenly pool in more until the sounds of it rushing in waves caused the wooden door to creak under pressure.

"We're being flooded!" they shouted in unison as the door broke before they could take a breath from being submerged.

A few minutes earlier…

"It was all for a noble cause."

"Again, yes, it was, Zane," Nya tiredly said while giving him a pat on the shoulder. "And before you say sorry again, I forgive you."

After all their hard work, there wasn't a single thing that they could gather from Hanako's drawings. No self portrait of herself looking sad, she didn't draw herself distant from anyone or smaller than anyone, no picture of people fighting. The drawing method had failed them.

"We're going to have to talk to her about some hard stuff, aren't we?" Nya asked no one in particular as she leaned back onto the couch. "We're going to torment her by prying about this."

"Maybe, but if we need answers from her then we have to be prepared in case it gets emotional." Zane stretched as he stood and carried a crestfallen look. "Perhaps we will try again tomorrow. Thank you again, Nya."

She gave him a reassuring look as she tied up the mess. Nya knelt down to the table and stacked all the drawings nicely, taking care to not crumple up the precious works of art. As she shifted herself to stand up, Nya felt the slip of a paper beneath her bent knee. Sure enough a forgotten piece was half under her knee and half hidden under the couch.

"Oh, I think I wrinkled it," she said to herself as she picked it up. Maybe Hanako wouldn't notice the damage and hopefully her feelings would remain unhurt. Maybe she'd hang it up on the fridge along with all the her other draw-

"Nya, what is wrong?" Zane asked as he noticed her face flushed pale.

She forced down the lump in her drying throat as she was unable to tear away from the drawing.

Blood.

The whole paper was scribbled with an entire red crayon's worth to the farthest corner. Then came the bodies. Simple stick figures but bodies just the same floating around in the pool of red. Some whole, some dismembered into pieces until they were tiny scraps of black. In the end, all the fragments swirled to one figure that was easily identified by the hairstyle and white and red outfit it wore.

Hanako- Hanako hid this. They never saw this drawing once during the whole hour they took to better understand her mind and what she struggled to tell them. She knew what she was doing hiding one like this, didn't she?

"Nya, let me see." Zane's pleading finally broke her out of her fearful trance as he grabbed the sketch from her and had fear grow in him as well. "She…she drew this? Hanako drew this?"

"What does it mean?"

Breaking out of his cold sweat, Zane gathered himself. "It's quite troubling to say the least. The heavy use of dark colors for the background alone is troubling. The people she drew, other than herself of course, lack any sort of detail so we can assume they are not connected to her personally."

It was almost a weird relief to hear that. If she didn't give her people any characteristics other than herself, then that had to mean Hanako had no intention to harm them or ever harm anyone on purpose. Nya, on the other hand, couldn't stop the trembling in her bones. It was a red flag to something more sinister than they wanted to admit. They saw what Hanako could do; she heard her terrifying wails when she brought her to the 100th floor of Borg Tower and saw the torment in the victims trapped there as well.

"We need to check under the couch." Nya dropped to the floor to peek under the couch, dust bunnies and clumps of dirt were all she could see on the dark floorboards. "She hid that, Zane, she must have more."

"Please we must think rationally-"

"Rationally? Zane, she drew bloody water with dead bodies that are in pieces! Is that grounds to think rationally if any kid drew stuff like this?!"

"I think it might be the only one of its kind," he said as he knelt beside her. "Think about it, we switched out quickly between shifts, when would she have time to make more than one?"

Nya sat up and took a deep breath in. "You're right," she said.

But she was scared of a little girl that they swore to help and protect. Not long ago, she felt sympathy and an instinct to honor that very seriously. Nya now felt nothing but fear that danger was close by in their home, which they had invited in. "Rationally" couldn't really ease or explain much of what was racing through her thoughts now.

"Should we still go to bed?"

"I don't think I can sleep after seeing this, Zane. This is too much, I-"

Splash!

Being a Master of Water, Nya was very familiar with her element's characteristics, from the sounds it makes to the very cool touch it has, as she had stepped back into the unfamiliar puddle that grew to become a rushing stream.

"Hanako," she said and without another word, she ran.

Her eyes darted as she rushed through the water as it pooled through any cracks in the floorboard or doors; by now, her teammates might as well have realized the danger they were in. The water kept rising up to her waist, sloshing and sloshing with each step down the seemingly growing corridor. As Nya finally reached her room, the door flung open, and the force alone almost took her back to where she started.

Nya's fingers gripped the doorframe as they tried to fight the rushing currents. She felt her skin being scratched up by the intensity—she didn't even feel strong enough to raise her head to the surface. By some miracle, she pushed back and caught a raspy breath as her head surfaced. Nya tried to collect herself before she used her own powers as best she could to raise her hand to split the water. The more she pushed, the harder it pushed back, defying her control and inflicting pain in her arm that felt like it would break in two.

"Mommy, it hurts, Mommy," Hanako whimpered barely above a whisper, but it was louder than any raging wave to Nya. "Why... why is it all red, Mommy?"

Nya strained her eyes as hard as she could to catch a glimpse of the girl floating just above the bed as water swirled around and under her tiny form. Hanako's eyes were tightly shut, yet a few tears slipped out and fed the raging waves little by little as she cried. Was she having a bad dream? No, a nightmare sent her into this state of terror, a state where she accidentally activated her powers.

"Hanako!" Nya shouted as she tried to swim closer into her room. "Hanako, you need to stop! You'll flood the whole temple!"

If she heard her amidst the noise, Hanako didn't show any sign of it. The water level grew even higher and higher until it was getting closer to the ceiling within a matter of seconds. Nya knew the safest spot was right with Hanako on the impossibly dry bed, but it might as well be the deadliest too.

"Hanako, please wake up!" Nya begged as she unwillingly inhaled water. Her lungs felt ready to burst with all the pressure, and the exposed skin on her face started prickling terribly. It felt like it was burning her, boiling her to her blood. She could hardly keep her breath in any longer as it started bubbling from her mouth, leaving her feeling groggy. She was going to d-

"Mommy, don't leave me again!"

Nya snapped back to attention. Her eyes focused again on Hanako after hearing her piercing cry. A blue light shone from within the chaos of the current—it had to be the gem the girl kept, but it didn't matter to her. She wasn't withstanding this just to get the gem. Nya did it for the girl who trusted her when she had no one else in this world. She'd do it for Hanako and Hanako alone.

With all the strength she thought had escaped her, Nya used both her hands to push the water around her. She bobbed back at first but managed to remain stagnant among it all. She parted the water, her arms shaking as it split, and she felt the dry air hit her face. In a final effort, she flung her arms back and launched herself from a geyser. Nya fell flat on her bed and nearly landed on Hanako.

Nya barely tried to catch her breath as she scrambled to hold the girl with equal amounts of fierceness and gentleness. By a miracle, Hanako stirred awake, and the water suddenly stopped raging and simply dropped like a giant bucket had been dumped inside. It all dwindled down until it reached only past their ankles and was quieter than a hum.

"Ms. Nya," Hanako said as she opened her teary eyes and hugged her back tighter. "I made a mess again, didn't I?"

"It's ok, you were having a nightmare," she said while rubbing comforting circles on her back. "I heard you crying, and I know it was an accident."

Hanako shook her head furiously on Nya's shoulder. "No, I hurt people," the girl cried between gasping sobs, "and I-I make them all red and blue until they break! Just like mommy!"

"Wha-what are you saying, Hanako?" Nya felt a chill and had to keep her arms steady so as not to jerk them away and drop Hanako. However, her racing heart screamed that she should flee. "You lost your mother, remember? That's why we're trying to help you."

"No, you can't." Hanako's voice suddenly dropped to a calm whisper. "I turn people into red soup. They get all hot and bubbly until they break. That's why mommy left me."

Hanako's grip tightened on Nya's gi as she raised her little head up. She had stopped crying, but her eyes were huge white orbs that bore into Nya's soul. Tear stains ran white streaks down what should be her rosy cheeks, now paler than a corpse's, all the way to her deep frown. The need to protect was fading as Nya could practically feel death gripping her the longer she held this ghost child.

"That does it, where's the kid?!"

"Kai, please be calm."

"I think the book is ruined! We'll have to dry it out!"

"This is all toilet water! We have infections and possibly rabies because of this!"

"Blue, stop gargling the water!"

Nya snapped out of her trance as she heard the others clamoring down the hallways to her room. She finally set Hanako down on the bed and walked to the door as her teammates, soaked to the bone, piled into the room. "Before you say anything, you have to know this was all an accident again," she said.

"Forget that. We nearly drowned!" Jay screamed.

"Please, hear her out," Zane calmly said as he pushed his way towards the front. "Nya and I have found something of importance we should discuss away from our guest."

"We nearly died," Lloyd said. "We have had the longest day ever, and I for one can't take it." The young leader turned to Nya with one of the most serious looks on his face he had ever had. "Nya, take the gem away from her."

If she wasn't so divided on the matter, Nya would've complied right then and there. However, it was too complicated for her to follow through, and she shook her head no. "I can't," she said through a rising sob. "Don't make me, Lloyd, because I just can't."

"Nya-"

"It's ok," Hanako's little voice said as she appeared right by Nya's side. She held her hand up with the broken gem piece toward Lloyd. "I'll give it to you if you let me go to sleep now. I'm really tired."

Without a word, Lloyd took it carefully and thanked the girl just the same. "You did the right thing, Hanako. This gem is very important to us; you can go right back to sleep."

Hanako nodded as the Ninja filed out grumbling about the clean-up process for the temple, when Nya felt a tug at her hand. She turned to see Hanako struggling to keep her eyes open and letting out a small yawn as she held her head up. "Ms. Nya, please be careful," she yawned.

"Be careful? Be careful about what?"

"Me."

Her tiny voice carried enough strength to stop the Ninja in their tracks, a cold chill running down their necks.

"I promise, I'll try hard, Ms. Nya," Hanako muttered. "I don't want to kill you or your friends; you're very nice. But please be careful." The girl started to close the groaning door as her piercing eyes peeked out for the last time while she gave her warning.

"Be careful… in case I turn you all into red soup."

And cut!

What a rush for me! I honestly missed this so much! Like you ever have the idea of this scene that plays in your head, and you can hear the sounds and the music to the point of it being so vivid? That's how I've been feeling as I dusted off this unfinished story and got to work. Hope to see you all again next time on Ninjago: Legend Undone!

Next time…

Separation