A cramp was running up my side, and my legs hurt as we turned another corner. I stumbled over a tree root, but was quickly righted by Harumi as we all continued running forward. We had left the Samurai X mech long ago, after Lloyd left a note on where we were going. Not too long after we ran into the creature that had been making the noises- a dinosaur. Normally, after my childhood phase of dinosaurs, I'd be ecstatic. But the thing about dinosaurs in real life is if it was a carnivore, it was likely to want to eat you. So, now we were running who knows where to try to get rid of it.

Branches cracked under my feet as I tried to keep up with Lloyd and Harumi. I could hear the trees and different plants getting knocked over or crushed as the dinosaur followed us. My breath hurt going back down my throat as I swallowed. I was not in shape for this, especially not after the fiasco of last night. Bigger trees fell, one falling near me and Harumi, sending her to the ground. I grasped at her arm, pulling her up.

"Come on!" Lloyd called as he waved a hand in a different direction. I was quick to copy him, hoping he knew something we didn't. As Lloyd glanced back, though, he slipped over the edge of a short cliff. I wouldn't have even seen it myself if he hadn't fallen first. I tried to slide to a stop, but I was too late and went over the edge with him. My eyes widened as I fell to the ground below us, then tumbled into another crack in the ground. This one was smaller. Harumi landed beside me, her arm hitting my head on the way in.

I let out a pained hiss as Lloyd held a finger over his lips, looking at me and Harumi. I nodded, letting my forehead drop to the ground. Above us, I could hear the dinosaur's soft chattering as it sniffed the air, trying to find us, then eventually it walked off. Lloyd let out a soft sigh of relief. I lifted my head, then rolled onto my back, rubbing at my ribs. The fall here had hurt a lot.

"I swear to God, if one more thing tries to kill us, I'm giving up." I complained as Lloyd helped boost Harumi out of the hole. He quickly came into my line of sight though, and he stood over me, shaking his head.

"No, you're not." Lloyd told me, then he helped me stand before hoisting me out as well. I watched as he climbed up after us, wincing as his right arm held his weight. My brows furrowed as I watched him. He definitely didn't seem to have any problems before.

"Are you alright?" I asked him, a frown pulling at my lips. Lloyd grimaced as he rubbed his arm, but then he smiled at me anyway.

"I'm fine." I scoffed at his answer, then shook my head.

"You're hurt." I argued, reaching forward to touch his shoulder. Lloyd was quick to step away before I could reach him.

"Really, Princess. I'll be okay." Lloyd tried to assure me, but I only shook my head, pointing towards where one of the fallen trees were.

"Sit down and let me look." I told him firmly. Lloyd's brows furrowed as his eyes flickered between me and the tree.

"What if that thing comes back?" He asked, and I stared at him, pointing again to the fallen tree. Lloyd let out a sigh, dropping his head back as he made his way to the tree and sat on it. I followed behind him. Harumi stayed back from us, looking around. Maybe she was watching out for if the dinosaur came back, but I wasn't completely sure. I wasn't feeling keen to ask, now that we were out of dangers way and hadn't had a proper conversation since our argument.

Lloyd wordlessly held his arm out to me, and I gently grabbed it, feeling along and watching his face for different cues. He grimaced as my fingers pressed closer to his shoulder. The air around us was quiet now as I moved down his arm, pressing it and trying not to get it into my head how ripped Lloyd must actually be under the gi.

"It's starting to feel like your feeling up my muscles rather than for an injury." Lloyd murmured, making me quickly pull my hands away from him. He only grinned at me as I felt my cheeks heat up, turning a burning red.

"Very funny. I was trying to pinpoint where your injury was, doofus. I think you pulled something right here in your shoulder, or close to that." I informed him, pointing along the part where his arm and shoulder met. "We can use the map for a sling for now, but other than there's not much I can do unless you need me to kiss it better." I tried to joke, hoping to at least fluster him as he did me. Lloyd's eyes jumped to mine, then he smiled. My heart fluttered at the look he gave me.

"I mean, if you're offering, who am I to say no?" Lloyd tilted his head back, watching as my previous blush came rushing back. I huffed an embarrassed laugh.

"Ahaha. I think just the sling will be fine for you." I replied. Lloyd pouted, but complied in giving me the map. I was careful in folding the map, then putting it under his arm and bringing the one of the ends over his opposite shoulder before tying it. "How's that?" I questioned, my voice quiet. I was hoping it wasn't causing more pain or choking him at all.

"Oh, um, good. Very close." Lloyd glanced to me, then his eyes widened. "I-I-I mean, snuggly. I mean, snug." Lloyd finally sighed out, his cheeks pink. I found myself laughing, but only because it was I who had been embarrassed moments before.

"Are we sure that we're heading the right way?" Harumi called to us. I looked to her, having almost forgotten she was here. The guilt from that thought alone made my smile drop.

"Pretty sure." Lloyd called as he stood. His eyes stared down at the map around his arm as he walked to Harumi. I copied him, going to stand with the two. "If this map is right, there's a river that runs through Primeval's Eye that way. The river leads straight to the hidden Oni Temple that holds the third mask." Lloyd gestured forward. I sighed, shaking my head.

"Yay, towards the danger we go." I muttered. Lloyd sent me a look, slightly shaking his head. Before he could speak, though, I cut him off. "Lead the way, oh valiant Green Ninja." Lloyd waved his hand at me.

"Yeah, yeah." He grabbed his sword and started forward, cutting at the leaves in front of us. Harumi and I followed behind him. The two of us were side-by-side, which was new. Until now, Harumi hadn't even seemed interested in being within five feet of me.

"I want to say I'm sorry for how I treated you yesterday." Harumi suddenly spoke, her voice low. I looked to her, surprised. "If I'm honest, I haven't been handling all this very well. You just seem to get along with everyone else better, and part of me blames myself for what happened. I know that's silly, but..." She shrugged, her hazel eyes turning to me. "It made me feel frustrated, like losing my real parents. Now, there's all of this happening and... I shouldn't have lashed out on you, especially not like that." Harumi whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. I quickly shook my head, though I felt a relief in her words.

"No, Harumi, you're not the only one who should be apologizing. I should've been there more for you this past week. You shouldn't be blaming yourself for our parents, or Hutchins, or even the Palace. There's no way you could be at fault for any of that. Some days I feel frustrated too, so I understand. I accept your apology, but I want you to know I'll always be here when you need it." I smiled at Harumi, and she returned it.

"Thank you, (y/n)." She replied. Her smile made me feel like a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. The whole time I had been doubting her, and it was as everyone had told me. Harumi was just working through her grief. But now she had opened up to me, even if just a little. That was progress.

"I notice you and Lloyd are getting closer." Harumi noted. I briefly turned my eyes to Lloyd, watching as he slashed through some more leaves. He glanced back at us, and his lips turned up to mirror mine before he continued clearing the path.

"Only a little." I admitted, knowing I could lie to Nya about it, but never Harumi. She laughed at my reply.

"A little? I think this is a huge improvement from when you could barely say a word in the throne room." Harumi said, nudging my shoulder. I huffed, shaking my head.

"I was a little star struck at the time." I told her.

"You still are." Harumi replied, and then only laughed again as I hit my shoulder against hers. It felt nice to fall back into rhythm with her. It was something I had missed.

"Shut up." I hissed out, though I soon joined her laughing.

"You're totally head over heels, (y/n). You almost don't see more than Lloyd sometimes." I huffed, crossing my arms.

"That's not true. It's a small crush, if anything." I objected. Harumi raised her brows at me, then smirked.

"Want to bet?" I frowned, furrowing my brow at her.

"What?" I breathed out, confused, but she didn't reply to me. Harumi looked forward.

"Hey, Lloyd, why don't you rest for a while? I can use the sword to help clear the way for a bit." Harumi suddenly called, sending a wink my way. My jaw dropped at her as Lloyd turned around. He looked unsure as his eyes went to her, then me.

"Are you sure? I don't know if-" Harumi didn't let him finish as she had walked to him, quickly taking his sword and beginning to cut through the greenery. "Oh, okay." Lloyd said softly, watching her for a moment, then he turned back to me. It took me a second to realize he was waiting for me. I rushed forward, letting Lloyd fall into step with me as we walked along the path Harumi was making. I felt a tugging in my gut- something I hadn't felt since the day the Palace was destroyed. I looked to Lloyd, curious about the feeling, but I found him already staring at me.

"Stuck in a palace all your life, did you ever imagine you'd be in a place like this?" Lloyd questioned. I shrugged, looking around. Of course there were things I would avoid if I could, like the different bugs buzzing in the air, or how I was beginning to sweat as we walked. My knee was aching more after running, and later our fall. But there were upsides, like how pretty the sun looked as it filtered through the tree, or the way it lit up Lloyd's hair a gorgeous gold. How bright his green eyes were as they stared at me, and his lip curled in a half smile as we walked.

"Short answer, no. I might've dreamed of going somewhere as a kid, you know, as all kids do. But especially as I got older, I realized I wouldn't be able to do that. As the oldest, I was the priority in being trained how to take over for the Palace, at least until the beginning of this year when my parents thought of switching it around. But either way, I was prepared to live within those walls the rest of my life." I fiddled with my hands as we walked. "I never thought something like this would happen, or that I'd meet the Ninja, or even that I'd be watching my sister hack through Primeval's Eye while I talked to you. I mean, I definitely hoped for it, partly, I guess." I answered. Lloyd hummed.

"Which parts did you hope for?" He pushed further. Somewhere in the trees, a bird whistled low.

"At least the Ninja part, though I'll admit that spending time with you is a bonus." I replied, choosing not to look at him.

"Oh? Is it cause I'm your favorite Ninja?" Lloyd asked, a reference to our first conversation on the Bounty. I scoffed, shaking my head at him.

"You're still on about that?" I questioned, risking a peek at his face. Lloyd nodded.

"Well, yeah. I told you it'd be one of the biggest accomplishments I could make. I've been dying to know." Lloyd said as he nudged close to my side. I huffed, shaking my head.

"I'll tell you if we get out of here, alright?" I replied. Lloyd frowned, letting out a whine.

"I'm getting that you're not very optimistic." Lloyd told me and I shook my head.

"I'm plenty optimistic when I don't keep having near death experiences." I retorted. "Are we still going the right way?" Lloyd glanced to the map and nodded.

"Yeah. According to this, we're almost to the Black River. We just have to get past this part that reads 'Strangler's Path.'" Lloyd said, squinting his eyes as he read the small print.

"Did you say Strangler's Path?" Harumi asked, joining the conversation as she paused in cutting through the brush. "That's cheery. Why is it called that?" Harumi questioned out loud, though I doubt she expected an actual answer.

"Places like these always have colorful names. Half the time it doesn't mean anything." Lloyd answered with a shrug. "The Caves of Despair, Blind Man's Eye, Hiroshi's Labyrinth." Lloyd listed examples. As he did, I felt something slide over my shoe. I didn't look, though, assuming it was a bug or a small creature. "Probably just some bored mapmaker with a wild-" I didn't get to hear the rest of what Lloyd had to say as something tightened over my leg, then yanked on it. I fell to the ground, then was being pulled along quicker than what I could process. The ground and scenery around me melded to a quick blur of green.

"(y/n)?" Lloyd and Harumi called after me. I heard them chase after me, but couldn't reply as I was tugged around a sharp corner, then through underbrush. Branches scratched at my arms and face as I turned myself onto my back. I could see I was being now I was being brought to a tree, and at the bottom there was an opening. It clamped open and closed as the vine around my ankle brought me close.

"You have got to be shitting me." I hissed out as I looked back, even more desperate to find something to hold onto, but my palms met smooth ground. Above me, something glinted in the light, then I came to a stop. Without questioning it, I scrambled away from the tree, only to be lifted up by Lloyd. "What the hell was that?" I cried out, looking up to Lloyd, then Harumi. Neither answered my question.

"Where did you learn to throw a sword like that?" Lloyd asked Harumi. I looked to her as well, unsure for a moment what he meant until I looked to see his sword was sticking out of the ground in front of the tree.

"I-I don't know. (y/n) was gonna be eaten. I-I-I got lucky, I guess." Harumi stuttered out. I glanced back to her as Lloyd's grip tightened on me a little. I could see his concern. I couldn't remember if she ever got the chance to train with weapons like I did with Hutchins. Even if she had, he would have never taught her with a sword first, it was too dangerous. I tried to swallow that coming doubt. I just got her to talk to me again and it felt nice, I didn't want to ruin that.

"Luck? You were clear over here." Lloyd pointed over to where the two had come from. Harumi bit her lip, then dropped her eyes to me.

"Oh. I think (y/n) is bleeding." She noted, her brows pulling down in concern. Lloyd shifted, pulling away from me only so he could come stand in front of me. He gently grabbed my face, turning it to face him.

"Oh, no." Lloyd murmured with a frown. He brought his face close to mine, eyes dragging over the side of my face.

"At least we know why it's called Strangler's Path." I said, trying to ignore how close Lloyd was as I shrugged. I only earned a stern look from Lloyd. He gently wiped a finger over my cheek bone.

"It looks like you got scratched pretty bad, though." Lloyd murmured. I sighed, placing my hand over his.

"I think I'm okay. I don't even feel it." I told him, feeling flustered as he tilted my face to the side. Lloyd hummed in reply, his face twisting. "Honestly, Lloyd. Besides, I'd like to get out of here before another tree tries to eat me." This is what made Lloyd nod as he slipped away from me.

"Okay, yeah. But I think I'll patch it up when we get back to the others." I nodded, though I doubted it would need that by the time we actually got to the Bounty again.

"Deal." I agreed as I stepped further away from him. "Also, I'll take the sword for a spin now. See, added protection and you both get a break." Lloyd nodded, grabbing the sword and holding it out to me. I took it with a smile, trying not to ogle the tree as it shifted behind him. "Which way, captain?" Lloyd huffed, shaking his head as he looked down at his arm.

"We go back that way," Lloyd pointed the way we had came, "and then continue going straight. We should get to the river like that, then it's home free." I nodded, starting forward. I listened as Lloyd and Harumi followed behind me. Soon, I reached where we had been before I was taken, and I started clearing the path ahead of us as Harumi had done before.

I listened to the small talk Lloyd and Harumi traded, with the few birds or other creatures that seemed to chime in as we walked along. Despite what should be making this a good mood, though, the stuff about Harumi was bugging me again. I couldn't exactly ignore the signs that pointed to something else going on, though I wanted to badly. Maybe it had nothing to do with the Sons of Garmadon, but Lloyd was right in his observation on her throwing the sword. A month ago she couldn't have done that, let alone hold a sword correctly. She was never interested when Hutchins would teach us those things. Instead, she had wandered while I got those lessons, and even then I couldn't even throw a sword like she had.

I glanced back as Lloyd let out a laugh. He was pulling the arm sling off as they walked. I bit my lip, then shook my head as we walked forward. I hoped I was wrong in my thinking something was going on, but I knew Harumi and she was behaving different. I wasn't sure what to make of it.