Darkness from Within #5: Uneasy Trust (A Ninjago Fanfiction)

Chapter 19

Nya sat down at the breakfast table the next morning, yawning. Kai entered the dining room after the girl, watching as Jay went over to her. Furrowing his eyebrows, Kai swept past him and sat next to his sister before the blue ninja could.

Jay halted. "Hey—"

Kai's furious gaze turned toward him. "Back off!" he snarled.

Jay flinched backward in surprise. With a shaky breath, the blue ninja turned and sat at the other end of the table.

Nya stared at her brother. "What was that for?" she asked.

"Jay's getting too close," Kai growled. "And I don't like it."

Nya frowned. "Jay's never bothered you before," she said.

Kai's eyes were blazing. "Yeah? Well, now he is," he huffed. "And he better stay away from my sister if he knows what's best for him."

Nya couldn't believe her ears. I thought Kai liked me and Jay together, she thought. What happened that suddenly made him so protective? Gazing at her brother, she spotted the same grief in his eyes she had noticed last night. She rested her hand on his shoulder. "Kai, do you want to talk?" she murmured.

Kai didn't meet her gaze. "There's nothing to talk about," he grunted before returning to his meal.

From across the table, Zane was holding back from his food. Looking around at everyone else, he felt a thick tension over the family. No one was talking or making eye contact with each other. Beside Zane, Cole was looking down at nothing but the table, his body quivering with the tension. Jay was casting uneasy glances at Kai and Nya, confusion and hurt in his gaze. Nya noticed this and tried to make eye contact, but Kai shifted until they were blocked.

Garmadon's eyes were grief-filled as he gazed across the table at Kai, but if the red ninja noticed, he paid no attention. Even Wu seemed unfocused and deep in thought as he ate.

Zane scratched his head in confusion before glancing at Lloyd, who seemed to be the only one unbothered by the tension. The green ninja shrugged when they made eye contact before casually continuing with breakfast as if nothing unusual was happening.

Zane heaved a sigh, being the only one not caught in the tension. Just another day in our monastery.

* * *

After breakfast, Nya found Jay near his bedroom door and walked over to him. "Jay," she sighed. "Sorry about Kai, I don't know what's gotten into him."

Jay looked at his feet. "It's fine," he mumbled. "I just wasn't expecting it... that's all."

Nya rested her hand on his shoulder. "We can sit together at lunch," she promised.

"I don't know." Jay looked up again. "Kai seemed pretty angry."

"Kai may be my big brother," Nya murmured, "but he can't control me." She gazed at Jay. "He knows you're a good guy, Jay. I think there's something else bothering him."

"I guess," Jay said, a small smile appearing on his face. He glanced over Nya's shoulder as she heard footsteps behind her. "I'll see you around," he added half-distractedly. Then he turned and disappeared into his room.

Nya tugged at her hair, deeply upset about everything.

"He giving you trouble?"

Nya spun around to find Kai behind her. The red ninja's eyebrows were furrowed and his arms were crossed.

"Of course not, Kai," Nya sighed.

Kai stalked around his sister until he was between Jay's door and her. "You just seemed upset," he went on.