"Have you even seen my room yet? Since coming here?"
Garmadon shook his head. "I don't think so…"
Lloyd glanced at him. "Okay. Makes sense, I guess." He paused at a door, sliding it open, and walked inside.
He looked inside.
Lloyd gestured to the room, turning to face him. "Not too impressive, and it probably hasn't changed much since the last time you were here, but here it is."
Garmadon glanced around. It was medium-sized, with a bed, dresser, nightstand, and a shelf. A closet was in the far right corner. The walls were plain, unpainted, and a window sat at the far wall. The bed had a green blanket, and the pillow was also green. White sheets stuck out from beneath. There was a small lamp on the nightstand, a clock, a photograph of the ninja, Wu, and P.I.X.A.L., and a phone charger. The top of the dresser had a few items on it, Starfarer figurines, another photograph—this one of just the ninja, and a small green dragon statue. The shelf, to the left of the room by the end of the bed, held more Starfarer figurines. There were a couple more photographs, one of Kai and Lloyd and one of the ninja and the other elemental masters. It looked like it'd been taken…probably after he'd been defeated. It was the resistance. Dareth was in it too, along with Wu, Misako, and P.I.X.A.L. The shelf also held lots of comic books, and there were square fabric drawers on the bottom shelf, some half hanging out. Inside were more comics, and in another one were some comics, figurines, and an assortment of things he couldn't make out.
"Whaddya think?"
He looked at Lloyd, who stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. "It's nice."
Lloyd smiled a little. "Thanks. You can come in too, you know…"
Garmadon blinked, then stepped in hesitantly. "Oh." He glanced around. "Yes…it's not too different."
"Yeah…uh." Lloyd looked around, shifting. "So…how's therapy been going?"
He tensed slightly, staying near the doorway for now. "Fine." It was a privilege he was even aloud in here. Kai would probably kill him, though.
"What do you do there? Just talk?"
"Mostly…and play Jenga, apparently."
Lloyd rose an eyebrow. "Why?"
Garmadon shrugged. "How many comics do you have?"
"Lots. I haven't counted in a while…but maybe about fifty?"
"You collect them, then?"
"Yup. All the Starfarer comics. Of course, the monastery gets burned down a lot and stuff, but somehow I've managed to hang onto them. I even have some from when I was a kid." He grinned proudly.
Garmadon smiled a little. "That's nice."
"Oh! And, there's actually another reason I wanted to bring you here."
He blinked, suddenly nervous. "And that is…?"
Lloyd walked to the closet, sliding it open, and started digging around.
He waited, shifting, and fiddled with his sleeve. He sort of wished Ochre had come, but the dog had gone to beg from Zane for scraps. He was glad Zane knew what Ochre could and couldn't have—unlike Cole. He didn't like to hold grudges, but…chocolate? What had the ninja been thinking?Ochre was a dog for Ninjago's sake! Honestly, sometimes he wondered how these fools had defeated him.
Lloyd pulled out a box halfway from the closet, and slid the flaps open.
"What's that?" He took a step further into the room, trying to see inside.
"It's…just some stuff." His son straightened, taking something out. It looked like clothing.
Garmadon watched, folding his hands behind his back to hide his anxious fiddling.
Lloyd walked back over, looking at him. He paused for a second, staring at him.
"What…?"
"Uh…nothing. Sorry. You just…never mind." Lloyd partially unfolded the fabric, revealing…Garmadon's old gi?
His eye widened.
It was black, with gold lining and a teal gi underneath. It had a green belt that tied around the middle, with a gold medallion in the center. A small green rope would hold the gi fastened. It had white sleeves, and gold lettering on the front.
Garmadon looked at Lloyd. "You still have this…?" He would have assumed, after everything that had happened…his son wouldn't have wanted to keep it.
Lloyd shrugged, staring at the floor. "Yeah." He suddenly looked at him, handing him the gi. "It's yours. You should have it back."
He blinked. "I…no." He pushed it gently back towards Lloyd. "It's yours, now. It was a gift, remember?"
His son shook his head. "No. You were going to die, remember? But you're back now. You should have it."
"I can't take it, Lloyd." He smiled a little. "Just because I'm back doesn't mean I need it. It was a gift. It's yours. Keep it."
Lloyd frowned, watching him. Then he stepped back with the gi. "Okay…" He smiled briefly. "Thanks…Dad."
Dad. Garmadon smiled, feeling a sudden burst of happiness in his chest.
Lloyd walked back over to the closet, but paused. He unfolded the gi fully, looking it over. "You…sure you don't want it?"
"Yes."
"Okay…" He folded it up carefully, then stared at it. He ran a hand down the fabric, biting his lip, and then set it back in the box, slipping the flaps closed. He straightened, looking at Garmadon. "Why is it you're still wearing black? Don't you have anything else, like…another of your old gi's?"
Garmadon shrugged, frowning a little. "Yes, but…I guess I like this fine."
"Oh."
"Why? Is it bad…?"
"No, no. It's just…you usually wear black when you're evil. I guess I'm just not used to seeing you wear it when you're not."
"Oh. Sorry…"
"It's fine. Really, it's not bad." Lloyd put the box back into the closet, then shut the door. "So…um…want to see anything in here? Or do something?"
"Well…you could show me your Starfarer collection. Seems like you've collected quite a bit."
Lloyd grinned, eyes lighting up similarly to Misako's. "Sure!"
He smirked amusedly.
His son went over to the shelf on the left side of the room, gesturing to the comics. "Here's part of my collection. I've got stuff in these three bins, too." He pointed to the square fabric drawers.
Garmadon walked over, nodding. "Do you have all of them yet? I remember you said that was your goal someday."
Lloyd smiled. "Oh. Yeah. I forgot about that… I don't have them all yet, but I'm working on it."
"That's neat. How much money do you spend on it all?"
He smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Probably more than Master Wu would approve of."
"Heh. Probably."
Lloyd sat down, pulling open the drawer with the stack of comics. "Here's some more of them." He started taking them out, pointing to each one and saying it's name and number in the series.
Garmadon sat down by him, watching and nodding. "You've read them all?"
"Yup." He paused, digging towards the bottom. "I have some specials, too. I hide them at the bottom here so Jay or Kai don't take them. Especially since a few are signed."
"Hmm. Signed by who?" Garmadon opened one of the fabric drawers a little, peering in. It was the one filled with come comics, figurines, and other things. It seemed like a random drawer.
"Cliff Gordon, of course. A.K.A, Fritz Donnegan. And some are signed by the producers, too."
"Oh. I should have guessed. What do you like about Fritz?" Garmadon started looking through the drawer, peering under things curiously.
"He's…a hero, I guess. He fights the bad guys. Funny how I liked Fritz when I was still at Darkley's and wanted to be a villain…"
"Yeah."
"Probably destiny, since I became the Green Ninja and a hero, just like Fritz. And you know what's funny?"
"Hmm?" Garmadon paused, squinting at something in the bin.
"Darkley's is supposed to teach someone how to be a villain, but every villain I've seen is different from what they're teaching. Probably why I've never seen a villain from Darkley's. They've got trashy teachers. How'd you learn villain stuff, anyway…?"
"Uh…Chen, mostly. I picked stuff up along the way." He moved some items, blinking at the hidden picture frame beneath. He pulled it out, revealing cracked glass and a broken wood frame.
It was a photo of Lloyd and him—taken sometime during the Tournament of Elements, it looked like. Or maybe before that. They were both smiling, happy. Lloyd looked younger, with more child-like features. His hair matched Garmadon's style, with the swept-back look. His son wore civilian clothing, and Garmadon wore the gi Lloyd had just shown him.
He frowned. He hadn't realized Lloyd had kept this.
His eyes traveled to the cracked frame and glass again.
"Who is that?" Garmadon picked up the picture frame, studying the two people in it. One was of Lloyd. The other…he didn't recognize.
"That's you." Lloyd smiled, staring at the photo. Then he frowned, looking at him. "Don't you remember?"
Garmadon also frowned, studying it. He turned, putting one of his hands to his chin, thinking. Then his eyes narrowed for a moment, a spark of—
NO. He tossed the frame behind him, folded his hands behind his back, and walked away.
"Hey!"
Garmadon ignored Lloyd."Sentimentality is a weakness. If you wish to defeat the oni, you would do well to banish such feelings." He reached the door, walking out.
"Fine," he heard Lloyd mutter behind him. "I didn't like that picture anyway…"
Heheaded down the hall.
"Hey, Dad?"
Garmadon frowned, blinking. He still stared at the photo.
He heard Lloyd scoot over to him, his son looking at the picture too. The one Garmadon had broken.
"Oh…I forgot I put that there…" Lloyd said quietly.
Garmadon handed it to him, biting his lip. "Sorry."
"For what?" His son accepted the picture frame, studying it.
"For breaking it."
"…Oh." Lloyd frowned.
"I…didn't mean what I said then." His gaze went to the floor. "I was the fool, not you."
Lloyd didn't say anything for a moment. Then he faintly leaned against his shoulder, barely touching him. "It's okay…I know it wasn't you. Besides, I broke it too once…." He winced.
"You did? Why?"
"I…uh. Was kinda mad…"
"Oh."
"After you left again. After the Overlord returned the last time." Lloyd rubbed the wood frame with his thumb, frowning. "But anyway. It's kinda beat up, but maybe I'll fix it someday."
"Okay…"
Lloyd stood, setting the photo on the top of the shelf where it could be seen. He wiped some if the loose glass away, tucking it into his hand, and then threw it away.
Garmadon stared at the photo. "Why did you have it in this bin?"
"Because…I didn't want to see it. And be reminded of you all the time." Lloyd shrugged, walking back over. "But I guess it can go back up now…" He stared at the photo, frowning a little. "Now that you're back."
"Yeah…" He winced, reminded of how much he must have hurt his son.
Lloyd sat by him again, opening a comic. "Have you ever read the first Starfarer comic?"
"Possibly…"
"Want to read it with me?"
"Sure."
Lloyd smiled, then started reading, making the sounds of the ships and blasts of guns, and emulating the voices of the characters.
Garmadon smiled a little, looking at the pictures as Lloyd pointed them out. They sat like that for a while, Lloyd continuing to read comics to him and ramble about the characters—especially Fritz.
He sounded like a kid again.
It was like after the Final Battle again.
It was like everything was okay, that nothing had happened between them and that things were as they should be.
Garmadon knew that wasn't true, but he was content to believe it for just this once. And just this once, maybe feel okay again, before the Great Devourer's venom had altered his life. Maybe be okay again, like after the Final Battle, when the danger and terror had passed and everyone was okay in the end.
He smiled, relaxing, leaning slightly against Lloyd's shoulder. He knew to cherish moments like these, that came so rarely and passed so quickly.
Maybe right now, everything was okay.