The Djinn Princess

Chapter fourteen

"Well, that's peculiar", Wu said after hearing everything the ninja had done. He stroked his beard and looked like he was deep in thought.

"Which part of the story are you referring to?" Zane asked. They were still in Djinjago, but everyone had gathered in front of the palace. Wu had been happy to see the ninja alive and well, but after hearing their story his smile had faded.

"I just didn't know a djinn can be trapped into the sword of souls. I assumed that since they are such heartless creatures, they don't even have souls", Wu explained.

"But... in that case, how was Nadakhan trapped into that teapot in the first place?" Cole asked. Wu was confusing them again.

"He was forced into that teapot back then while being weak. Now it almost seems like he went into the sword willingly", Wu said.

"But why the heck would he do that? He had just killed me and fought Nya and Kai, surely he didn't want to help us!" Jay said with widened eyes.

"It does seem odd, doesn't it", Wu said more to himself than anyone else.

"But does it matter how it's possible? It worked, right? We got Jay back and haven't heard from Nadakhan for a while now!" Cole said and looked at everyone.

"I think I understand what Wu means. What if Nadakhan's plan is to make us believe we defeated him, and one day he just appears out of nowhere and we're completely unprepared!" Lloyd explained.

"Yes, Lloyd. I will look into this with Misako. You have to watch the sword closely until then. And don't take it out of Djinjago, or I'm afraid it will fall down and crush Ninjago. The djinn power is in the sword right now, and Djinjago doesn't float without it", Wu said.

"So at least one of us has to be here all the time?" Kai said, not sounding very keen on the idea.

"I mean, we can take turns. And if at least two of us always stays, no one has to be alone. Some of us should return to Ninja town, though, to inform the citicens", Cole said.

Nya looked at Jay. Maybe this would be their chance to get some time alone?

"I can stay if Jay stays with me", she said and smiled at Jay. Jay realized what she meant and smiled back.

"I don't really want to stay here but with you I'm okay with it", he answered. Nya's smile widened.

"Okay. You two stay here with the sword. And be careful if a djinn suddenly pops out of it", Kai said and winked at them. The others nodded their heads and flew back to Ninja Town with their dragons.

Nya and Jay were left alone, just the two of them. If there were some people left in Djinjago they were nowhere to be seen. After a few minutes of comfortable silence Jay opened his mouth:

"Nya, I know this might be a tough subject for you to talk about, but... I would really like to know what happened to you while you were here. All of it". 

Nya sighed. She understood that Jay was probably confused by everything that had happened. He deserved to know, even though Nya didn't really want to go over everything that had happened.

"Okay. So, after Nadakhan threw you away from here, he convinced me that you were dead. I experienced a small emotional meltdown and believed Nadakhan, when he said that he was my only chance to have a happy life. So I stayed here, but started regretting it almost instantly. I tried to stay strong and figure a way out of here by myself, but... little by little, I started falling into Nadakhan's manipulation. And then, when I finally had a chance to escape, I had became so weak that he was able to change my memories with a wish, at least I think so. He made me believe that I loved him and he had saved me, while you had abandoned me", Nya explained quickly. She needed to breathe for a while before continuing.

"Take your time", Jay said warmly. Nya took a couple of deep breaths.

"I'm so sorry, Jay. He managed to manipulate me even though I tried to stay strong for you. And when I believed that we were in love... I slept next to him. And I let him kiss me", Nya said quietly.

"WHAT?" Jay screamed. It definitely didn't make Nya feel any better. Jay noticed Nya's expression and chuckled nervously and a bit embarrassed from his reaction.

"I'm sorry, Nya. It just makes me so furious that he did it to you! But it was not your fault and I'm not mad at you", Jay said quickly and wrapped his arm around Nya. 

"I know that. I still feel bad about it, though. But seeing you... dead on the floor made the wish fade away or something. I remembered everything correctly again", Nya said.

"I'm glad to hear that. I mean, not about me dying... you get what I mean, okay?" Jay said and chuckled.

"I do", Nya said. They both went quiet again for a minute. Nya took a few deep breaths again. She had to get the words out. Expressing fondness for someone was just really hard for her.

"Jay, I want you to know how much I missed you while I was here. You... mean so much to me. And while I so, so much don't want Nadakhan to come out of that blade ever again, I have to thank him for making me realize the way I felt about you", Nya said. She turned her gaze to Jay's eyes that were so full of emotion. His smile was the most genuine thing Nya had ever seen.

"I know, Nya. I love you too", he said and wrapped both his arms around Nya. Nya's eyes widened and her heart started beating faster. She hugged Jay back tightly and let her chin rest on his shoulder. They stayed there for a while.

"So... does this mean we're together now?" Jay asked.

"I suppose. But we'll see if we will even have time to go on dates since we're in mortal danger all the damn time!" Nya chuckled. 

"Hey! That sounded like one of my jokes!" Jay said with a happy smile.

"You've had an influence on me", Nya said.

...

After a couple of hours Cole and Kai came to Djinjago and Jay and Nya got to leave. When Jay flew away from there on his dragon, it felt like a giant rock fell out of his chest. Even though there was a chance it was not over yet, it felt more than relieving to fly away from Djinjago with Nya.

Lloyd, Zane and Wu seemed to still be in the middle of an intense thinking session when Jay and Nya arrived.

"What's going on here?" Jay asked. Lloyd turned around to look at him, with a confused and maybe even a bit... disgusted face.

"What's with that face? I'm not that ugly!" Jay said and raised one of his eyebrows.

"It's just..." Lloyd said, but Wu interrupted:

"Based on the information we just found, it's not really possible to trap a djinn into the djinn blade by striking him with it. So, something must have turned Nadakhan into... well, not a djinn anymore. And here, it says that the only way that can happen is if the djinn..." Wu looked at Nya with an apologetic expression.

"If the djinn what?" Nya asked curiously.

"...Falls in love", said Zane.