I woke up alone in a room on the bounty. My muscles were aching, and I couldn't recall how I got here. I barely remembered flashes of Lloyd after the battle, seeing the Sons of Garmadon get taken away. At least I knew we had won, and that everyone else was okay.

I shifted in the bed when the door opened, seeing Lloyd peek his head in. He smiled when he saw I was awake. Then the door was pushed open more, revealing a tray in his hands. His steps to the bed were silent, a reminder of his background as a Ninja, but now instead of his gi he wore striped green pajamas.

"Hey." Lloyd murmured as he set the tray down on the side table. "How are you feeling?" He questioned, his voice soft. I hummed, giving a shrug.

"Kind of like shit." I murmured, drawing a huffed laugh from Lloyd. "But at least I'm alive. So, thank you." Lloyd gave a small smile, sitting on the edge of my bed. I could see a few bandages over his face, and even peeking over the neckline of his pajamas.

"Well, if you want, I can help you sit up and I've brought you food and tea which will hopefully help you feel better." I gave a nod, already moving to push myself up. Lloyd slid one hand to my side and the other to my back, offering extra support as I sat up. Once I was settled with my back against the wall, Lloyd pulled away. I didn't have to say anything before the tray was set over my lap. Now I could see there was a bowl of oatmeal, along with water and the tea Lloyd had mentioned.

"Thank you." I said, lifting the spoon, but Lloyd stopped me, a weird look on his face.

"You might want the tea first. Trust me." I furrowed my brow at him, confused, but switched as he said. The tea smelled nice as I lifted it to my mouth, almost a nice mix between mint and something else. Drinking it, however, was a different story. I sputtered as I pulled the mug away, sending him a glare as the most horrible taste settled on my tongue, not tasting like how it smelled at all.

"This tastes awful." I complained with a frown, going to put the mug down. I was intent on not finishing it, but Lloyd shook his head with a grimace.

"I know, it's pretty bad, but it'll help you feel better, I promise. But you have to finish it." Lloyd told me and I groaned. Now I understood why he was having me wait for the oatmeal.

"I think I might die if I finish that." Lloyd sent me a look at that comment.

"You won't die." He replied, then before I could retort, "Please drink it, for your favorite ninja." I shut my mouth, already feeling a blush rise to my cheeks as I turned a glare to him. He only smiled, small fangs poking out as he watched me. Choosing instead to save myself the embarrassement of continuing to talk, I glanced back to the tea. Then I relented, picking up the mug again, then quickly chugging it. Better to get it over with.

When the mug was down again, I gagged, still tasting the tea on my tongue. Lloyd chuckled at my face, handing me the cup of water. When I drank half the glass, still barely washing the taste from my mouth, I began to eat some of the oatmeal. It tasted sweet, and it was way better than the tea. Only after half the bowl did the taste of the tea seem to disappear from my mouth, and after I finished everything, I looked to Lloyd again. He had shifted while I ate to laying across the bed with his head against my legs, while his own legs dangled over the side of the bed.

"I don't remember everything from last night, but I'm pretty sure I didn't tell you my favorite ninja." I spoke up, making Lloyd's eyes turn to me. They sparkled in the sunlight that filtered through the window. Lloyd snickered, shaking his head.

"No, but your expression sure gave you away when I said it. Then you avoided replying by chugging that tea like your life depended on it." He replied as he pushed up, supporting himself with one hand while facing my direction. I pouted at him, but his smile only brightened.

"That was because I figured it would be better to get it done faster than suffer longer." Lloyd nodded, letting out another laugh.

"Yeah, I know. Me and Jay do the same thing." He murmured. "But also, you're fun to tease." He added with a shrug. I kept my pout, crossing my arms.

"Well, I guess I'm going to have to find myself a new favorite ninja since you're such a bully." I said, turning my face to the side. Lloyd moved the tray out of the way to scoot closer to me.

"Aw, (y/n), don't be like that. I was just kiiidddddiiing." Lloyd drew out as he gently poked at me. "I'm sorry." I could see his smile from the corner of my eye, and that made it more difficult to hide my own as I huffed.

"I don't know if I can accept-" I turned my head, looking to Lloyd. My breath caught seeing how close he was. "I- uh..." My eyes flickered over his face taking in his messy hair and the freckles that painted his cheeks. His eyes were a deep green, and now I took note of the golden flecks there too. He lifted a hand, gently brushing his thumb along my jawline.

"This is totally off topic, but can I kiss you?" Lloyd murmured. I gave a nod, brushing my nose to his.

"Yeah, of course." Without further prompting, he brushed his lips to mine. Instantly, I melted against him, one hand coming to hold onto his arm while the other pressed to the bed. This was warmer than our first kiss, softer.

Lloyd came to cup my face as he pulled away, resting his forehead to mine. I smiled as Lloyd's eyes slid open, and I could only imagine that his dazed look mirrored mine.

"I think that kiss trumps our first one." I managed to whisper, and this made Lloyd tear away, a snort escaping him.

"Sorry, I was planning on waiting, but I kind of thought we were going to die." He retorted, shaking his head at me once he calmed his laughing. I let out a mock gasp.

"You said we were going to be fine!" I cried, shoving his arm.

"And we are! See, we're both here." Lloyd argued as picked my hand up, linking our fingers. I hummed, pushing closer to him.

"I guess you're right." I murmured, looking down at our joined hands and brushing my fingers over his knuckles. There were fresh bruises and the skin was split, and I squinted my eyes looking at the injury. I didn't remember it being there when we were first captured.

"I got was really scared last night, when they put you in the glass tube and then we couldn't see you anymore. I tried to get out of that cage. I-" Lloyd cut himself off, biting his lip as he looked away from me. "I'll probably sound crazy, but I feel this tugging to you sometimes. And last night it was going crazy I just needed to get to you." He admitted, cheeks reddening. "But I, uh... anyway, I'm sorry I couldn't get out sooner." Lloyd whispered, eyes returning to me.

"You don't sound crazy. I feel it too. And I don't want you to be sorry because I know you tried your best." I lifted his hand, kissing over his knuckles, then I did the same for his other hand. "But that's all behind us now, right? Cause we're both here, like you said." Lloyd's eyes softened as he looked at me, his cheeks still a pretty red as he nodded.

"Yeah." He agreed, smiling as he nuzzled his nose against mine. "I really like you." Lloyd told me, and I let out a laugh as I nodded, letting his forehead rest on mine. A warmth spread through my chest as I realized the extent of my adoration for the boy in front of me. I was ready to retort with a sassy remark, but when I opened my mouth it wouldn't slip out.

"I really like you too." I replied, and Lloyd huffed at this, nodding. Though, he didn't get to say anything else as someone knocked on the door.

"Lloyd, stop hogging (y/n). Also, we're going to be there soon and I have some clothes for (y/n)." Nya's voice came through the door. Lloyd pulled from me, glaring at the door. Our moment was shattered, but I giggled at his expression nonetheless. Lloyd let out a huff and nodded, though she couldn't see him.

"I'm not hogging her. You can come in if you want." He replied with a roll of his eyes. The door opened, and Nya peeked her head in before fully opening the door. She had folded clothes in her arms and she smiled when she saw me.

"Hey, I'm glad you're okay." Nya said as she approached. She placed the clothes at the end of the bed, then came to give me a hug. "Scared us last night." She murmured. I nodded, returning the hug. I hadn't even asked Lloyd yet everything that had happened besides what he told me about his knuckles. But at Lloyd's grimace at Nya's words, I knew it must've been something bad.

"Yeah. Scared me too. Thank you for the clothes. Though, I guess I'll have to go looking for some of my own soon since... the Palace." I told her with a shrug. The mood of the room shifted with my statement, though it wasn't something that could be helped. While I loved goofing off with Lloyd, all the stuff that had happened in the last week couldn't be ignored.

"So, where are we going?" I quickly asked, trying to avoid the stifling silence that had followed my last comment. "You said we were almost somewhere." I elaborated and Nya nodded.

"It's Laughy's. It's owned by a friend of ours, so we thought it would be nice to go there. Maybe do some karaoke and stuff to relax after this week." I hummed and nodded, recognizing the name from when Cole was captured by the Sons of Garmadon. "I'll leave you guys to get ready. I have to go make sure the others are actually cleaning up from breakfast and not tossing food around." Nya then slid from the room without leaving room for me to reply. I didn't mind though, I was already getting stuck in my head about Harumi and yesterday. Despite her being locked away now, something still clawed at my mind, a silent warning, but I didn't know for what.

"You alright?" Lloyd asked, his voice quiet as he stroked his thumb over my knuckles. I gave a nod, mustering my best smile.

"Yeah, just thinking is all." I whispered. Lloyd stared down at my hand, tapping a certain pattern over my fingers.

"Would you like to shower? The rest of us were able to last night, but you were passed out, so we let you sleep." I let out a groan, realizing he was right. I had all of the past few days' grime still on me, as well as the torn clothes from Nya. I huffed, shaking my head at myself.

"Yeah, I definitely do. I didn't even think about that." My expression shifted as I stared at his amused smile."Oh, my God. I must smell so bad and you've been kissing and cuddling on me." I whined as my cheeks heat in embarrassment. Lloyd tilted his head, finally letting his eyes drift to mine again.

"I've definitely smelled worse. A few times from myself too, so you're not alone. Here, I'll lead you to where the shower is." Lloyd pushed off the bed, holding a hand out to me. I pushed off the blankets before gladly taking his hand in mine. I slid off of the bed, and my knee ached once my feet met the ground. I stumbled, but Lloyd helped stabilize me before grabbing the clothes for me and leading me from the room. I didn't have the heart to tell him I knew exactly where the shower was because I had used it before. I had a feeling, though, that he probably knew that. Once we came to the door of the bathroom, Lloyd paused, hesitating.

"I'll be back soon. Take as long as you need, though, we're in no rush." Lloyd said. Before I could reply, he lifted my hand, pressing a kiss to the back of it. I felt my cheeks heat again as he smirked at my frozen expression. "Don't sit there with your mouth open all day, Princess. You might catch flies." He told me, then he was down the hall in a blink of an eye as I called his name in annoyance.

I waited for a few moments after Lloyd left before pushing into the bathroom. Carefully, I took off my clothes, brushing my fingers over the new cuts and scabs of my latest adventure. Then my hands went to my hair, brushing over the new white strands. It was new to me, having not realized the hair there was different until now. I knew it was from whatever happened last night, but I'd have to ask Lloyd more on it later. For now, my current goal was a shower to scrub off everything, if only temporarily, before I would have to face the world again.

I sat at the counter, slowly turning my cup of boba that Dareth had given me. I had only drank half of it, feeling less enthusastic the longer I was awake. I couldn't stop thinking about Harumi, and then what her destruction had caused. I knew once the Palace was rebuilt, I would have to take over. It was a burden I hadn't even fully learned to carry, and now I'd be stumbling under the weight of it.

I'd also gotten the brief overview of the fight from last night, my powers being used, the impact the overexertion did and likely would have in the coming weeks, if not months. So, to sum up, my family was gone, sister off her rocker, and I had powers I didn't know about or could readily control. Sounds like my whole life is a joke told by an eight year old, except the punchline got messed up somewhere and now I'm trying to make sense of what's left.

"(y/n)?" Lloyd murmured my name as he brushed a hand over my arm. "What are you thinking about?" He asked once he had my attention. I gave a small shrug, half listening to the cracking voices of the other Ninja as they sang. This morning they all showed equal relief in my being alive as they all greeted me with a hug. They had helped Lloyd's storytelling, though I didn't miss the grimaces and silence that overcame the team when discussing the state of after the fight.

"Everything is gonna change now, even with Harumi in prison. She turned my whole world upside down is only a week." I drug a hand over my face, shaking my head. "My parents are gone, I was supposed to die but also I have powers- which I can't even control- my mom could be alive, and it goes on. But I don't get time to process. The Palace will be rebuilt, and once it is, I will have to step up as new Empress." I slid my finger around the rim of my cup as Lloyd scoot closer to me. He pushed aside our abandoned party hats to instead rest his arm on the counter.

"You won't be alone, though. We're all here for you." He gestured to himself, then around the bar. I glanced around at the others, as they jumped on stage, Pixal and Misako watching them and baby Wu dancing.

"I know." I whispered, clenching my hands around the glass. Lloyd lent forward, gently kissing my temple. I turned my eyes to him, feeling a smile grace my lips despite all that was on my mind.

"What do you think, Princess?" Lloyd gestured to the group again as they hopped around on and off stage. For a moment, I thought he was asking my opinion on the performance. "Think you should have the next song?" He continued. I let out a laugh, shaking my head.

"No. But I do think you'll have to find a new nickname if I won't be Princess soon." I replied. Lloyd hummed, tilting his head in thought.

"I don't know. It could be our little thing." He suggested, his smile pulling at his lips. His hand came to find mine on the counter, and I let him lace our fingers together. I gave a shrug, looking to the side.

"Hm, I dunno." I drew out with a smile, though it dropped when my eyes caught the TV. I straightened, not looking at Lloyd anymore. "Hey, Dareth, can you cut the music?" Dareth did as I asked, leaving the Ninja's singing to cut off into a series of complaints.

"(y/n)? What's wrong?" Lloyd asked, concern filling his features as he followed my line of sight. On the TV was the news, showing a reporter with several police behind her. But the scrolling headline is what had caught my attention.

"It's always good to see my beautiful Gayle Gossip." Dareth sighed out as he turned up the volume.

"-where an assailant rammed a stolen garbage truck into the front of it. I'm hearing word it was a jail break." Gayle continued as she pressed a finger to her ear. I could hear the others approach behind us. "A prisoner was freed from custody."

"Okay, maybe not always good." Dareth admitted. "Hey didn't you just put the other princess in jail? You don't think it's her, do you?" Dareth asked as he looked to the Ninja. I let out a shaky breath, standing as I leaned closer to the TV.

"Okay, I'm getting verification the prisoner that was freed was the recently apprehended Jade Princess, Princess Harumi. Security footage caught the two on video." The image switched from Gayle to show Harumi running across the screen. Following her was a figure I'd only ever got to hear about, Lord Garmadon. At the sight of them both, I shook my head, clamping a hand over my mouth as I stared. This couldn't be real... Lloyd said they stopped the ceremony, they all did.

"Holy cow. That looks like-" Dareth cut himself off with a gasp. Lloyd's hand squeezed mine, and I couldn't even imagine what would be going through his mind either. That was his dad brought back to life. Except different from what he knew him as.

"That... that's impossible." Lloyd finally managed to get out, holding his free hand to his head as he stared down. Any playful manner had disappeared completely.

"Could be anyone." Kai offered, trying to draw us away from making assumptions. But this one was pretty clear. There was no mistaking it.

"But he has four arms." Zane argued back. Kai hit him on the shoulder in retaliation.

"So does Mr. E." Jay exclaimed. "Who doesn't have four arms these days?" He added with a nervous laugh, eyes flickering over all of us.

"We stopped the ceremony, didn't we?" Lloyd questioned, looking to his mom, Misako, for confirmation. Misako froze, looking just as surprised as the rest of us.

"I'm telling you, that's not him." Jay objected, shaking his head. "If that's Lord Garmadon, I'm Lord of the Jig." He cried out as he threw his arms down. I bit my lip, shaking my head as I looked back to the screen.

"That-That's when she said 'Kneel before Lord Garmadon.'" One of the officers Gayle was interviewed spoke, his hand shaking. His other was in a sling, already bandaged up. Jay sighed.

"Okay. That's definitely him." Jay relented, disappointed and worried like the rest of us.

"You better start jiggin'." Cole replied. Beside them, Nya picked up little Wu.

"Misako, (y/n), can you find a place to keep Wu safe somewhere else?" Nya glanced between us. Misako took Wu with no argument. He laughed in her arms.

"I have a corner pad on the east side." Dareth spoke up with a shrug. "You three can make it your own. Just don't mind the underwear lying around." Dareth trailed off with an awkward laugh.

"We'll take him there now." Misako agreed with a nod, but I quickly shook my head.

"Wait, you guys aren't leaving me to sit this out. This is as much of my issue as it is yours." I protested, glancing around to the others. A conflicted look came across their faces as they looked to Lloyd. I turned to the boy myself.

"It'll be safer for you to be with mom and Wu." He informed me, but I only shook my head again.

"I've seen you all go out again and again over the last week and a half risking your lives to protect me. But Harumi is my issue. She should've never been your problem to begin with. None of this should be. And if I can fix one thing, I'd hope it would be that." I explained to him. Lloyd sighed, squeezing my hand.