Sorry this one took a little longer than expected; it's been a really weird week for me for some reason, and I just wasn't able to make myself write (rip)

Review Replies:

arrowchristian: I love writing the Ninja just being goofy and honestly there's prolly a lot more of that to come lol

WafflesAndLifeProblems: ahhhh thank you! I love seeing fan invent new elements so I thought I'd try my hand lol. As for Pixane and Jaya, I literally don't think I can help myself, I love them so much haha

Here's 4 I guess :)

Lloyd convened the impromptu meeting pretty quickly, thankfully. No one really bothered Eve for the rest of the evening as she went into autopilot for her nightly routine. She skipped dinner without much thought, instead taking a borderline-scalding shower and walking a lap around the monastery.

She thought she caught her name and power whispered at one point as she passed the kitchen, but she couldn't be sure- even so, it didn't bother her much.

She headed to bed early and was mildly surprised at how fast she fell asleep.

Eve panicked for a split second when she woke up the next morning before remembering where she was. She tiredly looked around at her unfamiliar surroundings as yesterday's events came back to her.

She debated trying to fall back asleep or going to find Lloyd; she still needed to talk to him more about this whole "Soul versus Space" thing. She glanced over at the bedside table; the clock on the nightstand read 7 AM, so she slowly nodded to herself and laid back down.

A thud from outside startled her past the point of falling back asleep. She groaned and pulled on her favorite pale yellow hoodie, pulling the hood up to hide her undoubtedly wild curls.

She heard muffled thuds and conversation as she padded down the hallway, the cold of the floor seeping through her socks. She found her way to the front entrance and stretched as she descended the stairs into the courtyard.

Construction had resumed on the incomplete section of the courtyard wall, but that wasn't the source of the thudding. Cole, Kai, and Zane were training on the opposite side of the courtyard. Kai was setting up practice targets, and Cole was testing his Earth abilities by throwing the targets against the wall with them. Zane watched and offered the occasional feedback.

"What's going on?" Eve asked, fighting a yawn.

"Hey, good morning!" Kai said with a grin.

Cole groaned. "Ah, did we wake you up? I'm sorry, I told Kai that we would, but-"

Eve shrugged, determined to avoid the awkwardness she felt the day before. "It's fine. Don't worry about it." She looked around. "Where are the others?"

"Jay is still asleep, I believe," Zane replied. "Nya and Pixal are working on a project, and I do not know where Lloyd or Master Wu are."

She hummed. "What are they working on?"

Kai shrugged. "Dunno. They didn't want any help with whatever it is, though."

"I still gotta talk to Lloyd-" Eve rubbed her eyes.

"Where are your glasses?" Zane asked.

"In my room," she said.

Zane frowned. "You should wear them. Neglecting to wear corrective lenses can lead to increased vision problems."

Kai laughed.

Cole just looked at them funny. "Okay, let's take a food break," he said. "Eve, wanna join?" He glanced at Zane. "I mean, after you get your glasses."

Eve smiled tiredly, appreciating the effort to make her feel welcome. "Sure. I could use some coffee."

Kai fist-pumped. "Yes! A fellow intellectual." He leaned over. "None of them understand the glories and wonders of coffee," he said in a conspiratorial whisper. "I think Wu corrupted them with tea."

Cole rolled his eyes. "Hey, for the record, I like energy drinks more than tea. And I think you're the one that's corrupted. You're the only one who likes coffee."

"Actually, Nya does too. And so does Eve. So ha."

Five minutes later, the four of them were crammed into the small kitchen. Eve poured herself a large mug of strong black coffee and grabbed a yogurt before sitting down in the breakfast nook.

She watched as Kai poured himself a huge mug of coffee, then proceeded to add what could only be described as a load of milk and sugar to it. "Dude."

He looked over. "What?"

She shook her head. "You're a monster. How can you drink it with that much stuff?"

Cole laughed. "He can't handle straight black coffee."

Eve stared Kai down and took a long drink of her coffee. She ignored how her glasses fogged up from the steam and never broke eye contact. "Weak."

Cole practically doubled over in laughter and Zane watched the whole thing in confusion. Kai just shook his head and finished making his breakfast.

Cole practically collapsed onto the bench next to Eve. His bowl of cereal almost spilled, and he freaked out.

Zane quickly put together a tray of food. "I will take this to Nya, then I will be back," he said. "Nobody choke while I am gone."

Which just made Cole laugh harder.

Lloyd found Eve later that morning. She was laying on the guest bed, staring at the ceiling when a knock on the door pulled her from her thoughts.

She hummed in response and her cousin poked his head in. "How'd you sleep?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Alright."

"Have you talked to Aunt Hana at all since you got here?"

Eve sat up and shook her head. "What exactly would I tell her? I still don't fully know what's going on, and I doubt you do either."

He sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I was thinking maybe we could figure some stuff out today though."

She just frowned thoughtfully. "Like what? Really I just want to know why you think the Master of Soul is scared of my powers. What is she planning that she thinks I could mess up?"

Lloyd shrugged. "I'm not sure, but whatever it is, it's probably not good. She knocked over three convenience stores just to get our attention."

"So you've mentioned," Eve grumbled before she could stop herself.

He sat down next to her. "Look, I know you're not thrilled about this. I know your relationship with your powers is kinda iffy. But Eve, this master stalked you enough to pick you out of a crowd and confront you. I'm just trying to find a way to work all this out and make sure you're okay. She's-"

"Dangerous, I know."

He was quiet for a moment. "I talked to the others. Look, maybe you're right, and we can take care of this situation without your help. That's the goal anyway. If Aunt Hana found out that you were working with us, she'd probably kill me. But anyway, even if Soul does leave you alone, what if we helped you train with your powers? That way you wouldn't have to stay here for safety."

She frowned. "How would you do that? None of you really know much about Space, no offense."

He chuckled slightly. "Most elemental training has similar foundational techniques and instruction that could work. Just… give it a few days?"

She sighed. "Alright. I guess it couldn't hurt." She paused. "And look, it's not that I don't like it here, it's good to see you, of course. I just don't want to be in the way or impose. You guys have a whole life here that I don't want to get in the way of; I don't belong here, and I'm okay with that. I have my own life to get back to. So if training a bit will help me get out of your guys' hair, I'll do it."

He nodded. "I get it. You're not imposing by any means, everyone's pretty chill about you being here, but I get it. We'll help you out as much as we can." He paused, laughing slightly. "Okay, so we both know I'm your favorite cousin-"

"You're my only cousin, Lloyd."

"Hey shut up and let me enjoy my status as favorite." He laughed. "Anyway, why don't we do a baseline test really quick? Just me, your favorite cousin, you don't have to have an audience or anything. Show me where you're at."

She nodded. "Alright."

"Awesome." He led the way out through the courtyard and stopped under the cherry blossom tree outside the wall. "This should work, right?" She nodded for him to continue. "Alright, let's start with a shield. I'll… here, I'll toss this at you." He held up a small pebble.

She nodded, widening her stance slightly.

He counted down. "Alright, three, two, one-"

He tossed the pebble, and Eve whipped her arm up. The space right in front of her flickered a pale yellow, briefly swirling in the air, before vanishing. The pebble hit her on the forearm.

Lloyd nodded. "Alright, not bad. I could actually see the shield forming. Again." He tossed a twig.

She whipped her arm up again, and the shield held for a second longer. It snapped out at the impact of the twig.

"Okay, one more," Lloyd said. He found a slightly larger rock.

She concentrated hard as she threw a shield up. It didn't flicker this time but it broke on impact. The rock smacked her in the thigh.

Lloyd grimaced. "Sorry."

She shrugged. "Now what?"

"Portal next?"

She swallowed.

"Why don't you just try one back to the guest room? That's not too far."

Eve relaxed, envisioning her room in the monastery. She called to mind every detail she could remember. Then she brought her hands up, palms together.

She felt Lloyd's stare as she closed her eyes and drew her palms apart, telling the Space between her and her bed to shorten. Her hands tingled, and she opened her eyes.

A tiny, yellow-rimmed portal, about the size of an envelope, hovered in the air between her hands. She stretched her arms wider, and the portal grew the smallest bit. Eve could see her window through it, but the second she noticed, the portal wavered and blinked out.

Lloyd clapped. "That was good! Okay, now what I guess would be the hardest one- teleporting."

She shook her head. "I've never teleported. My grandpa never had time to show me how. He was barely able to teach me the other stuff."

Lloyd shrugged. "That's okay. That was good for a first run, though. I'll talk to some of the others about working more with you. I think you could learn from any one of the team, in different ways."

She smiled, already feeling drained from her efforts. "Thanks."

He gestured back at the monastery. "Coming?"

She shook her head, suddenly hit with a wave of solid determination. "I think I'm gonna practice some more. I'll catch you later."

She waited until he was back inside the courtyard before taking up her stance again. She zeroed in on the guest bedroom, concentrating on the details. She pulled her hands apart as she commanded the Space to shorten once more. She opened her eyes to another small portal, but as soon as she did, her hold on the Space began to weaken. The portal trembled, and she gritted her teeth.

"Not happening again," she hissed, arms shaking.

She didn't try to grow the portal; instead, she focused her energy on stabilizing it. She reinforced the door in Space, pouring her power into keeping it open.

It stopped shaking and came to a steady, glowing standstill. Eve tentatively dropped her hands and reached through the small opening. She knew enough about her power to know that touching the border could potentially burn, so she cautiously reached in. She picked up her water bottle, which was sitting on her dresser, and slowly drew it back through the portal to her.

The moment her arm was clear, the portal blinked out. She yanked her hand back.

She took a drink and set her water down. Her arms and hands ached, and she was quickly tiring, but she set to figuring out a way to test her shields on her own anyway.

Eve was met with tense energy as she went back inside a while later; shouted conversation and the clatter of gear bombarded her as the Ninja hurried around. Jay ran past her, calling out something about his nunchucks. "What's going on?" she asked.

Zane paused as he passed. "We have received a call; Lloyd wants all hands on deck."

She headed through the monastery in utter confusion. "What call? Lloyd?"

Her cousin poked his head out of his room as he fastened his sword scabbard across his back. "The police called in; there's another robbery in progress, same MO; it's gotta be the Master of Soul. This one's at Ninjago United Bank."

Her blood ran cold. "Lloyd, that-"

He nodded. "I know. We've got to check it out though." He shut the door behind him and pulled on his mask. "It's just the six of us going, Pixal and Master Wu are staying behind to coordinate. Are you gonna be okay?"

She nodded. "Dude, don't worry about me, you've got bigger things. Be careful."

He hesitated, then gave her a determined nod. He high-fived her as he passed, calling for the rest of the Ninja to meet on the Bounty. She watched as the six of them boarded the flying ship, Pixal coming to stand behind her.

"They will be alright," Pix said reassuringly. "A bank robbery is a relatively simple mission when compared to many of their past missions."

Eve glanced back at her. "Then why are you geared up with Samurai X stuff?"

"I am merely backup in the small chance they require my assistance."

Eve nodded, feeling a bit uneasy. "Alright…"

Oh boy- the number of times this chapter made me want to straight up yeet my laptop out the window for literally no reason is not okay. (Curse you, executive dysfunction)

ughhh anyway hope you enjoyed, leave a review if ya want and I'll try and have 5 up a lot quicker.