the good, the bad, and the dirty | jay, kai, and lloyd

15 - blast from the past

*yes we got anotha audio 😼 i'll let you knowwwz!

***

"sire!"

"why, hello there, wadley. i assume your presence here means everything went according to plan?"

"i-i'm afraid not, s-sire."

"what?! why not?"

"the n-ninja came in and captured everyone, e-even tusk. but g-get this! the ninja that stopped the bomb from detonating was a void creator."

"a void creator?! but that's impossible! are you absolutely sure?"

"yes, i-i saw it with my own eyes! she made a portal that sucked the bomb right inside!"

"a girl, you say?"

"y-yes sire! she's the newest addition to the team. she was the gray ninja."

"the gray ninja...? hmm...i see. wadley, do me a favor and round up the others! at once!"

"right away, sire!"

"i'm afraid it's time i put a new plan in order..."

***

the ninja happily celebrated their victory that night. they feasted upon pot roast, courtesy of zane's keen desire to cook. misako took the liberty to squeeze a couple lemons and produce a refreshing lemonade as the beverage. of course, knowing sensei wu would be skipping out on it, she whipped him up his own teapot full of his favorite tea. even cole and kai spent time in the kitchen, helping zane make dessert: a delicious-looking, neapolitan flavored cake. the rest of ninja seemed very delighted that the treat was not only surprisingly edible, but quite sweet and flavorful.

laughter and joy swam through the light air as they dined together. sensei congratulated them for displaying excellent teamwork with the new elemental master among them. so naturally, once more, y/n was effortlessly the center of attention—as she had been the main reason the explosion was unsuccessful. as much as she would have liked to fully reel in all those comments, her mind was simply elsewhere.

the ninja were having a wonderful time, merely oblivious to the fact that these men were more than just thieves. well, everyone but the very own gray ninja.

and the blue ninja.

jay—in between carrying on his usual role as the jokester by keeping the atmosphere effervescent—watched as y/n feigned her laughter, and unfortunately, her appetite. he stole glances at her, studying how her eyes fell slave to deep thought, and her smile wiped clean off her lips after she was addressed. she was her fork's puppet master, playing with her half eaten pot roast in front of her. he noticed how she squirmed in her seat, her teeth gripping the sides of her cheeks in pure nerves. she definitely wasn't there, consciously.

jay silently wished that y/n would just look up, so she could be the greeted with his soft smile. if smiles could talk, it would tell her that everything was going to be okay.

after dinner ended, y/n volunteered to wash the dishes. the sudden offer triggered chuckles from her teammates, leaving her baffled.

"do you really think we're gonna let you wash dishes on your first mission?" cole cackled with kai. "no way, jose!"

"princess, don't worry about the dishes," kai added, then his gaze fell towards his sister, who was talking to sensei. "i volunteer nya as tribute though."