The Dark Heirs: Ninjago

A Little Odd

A few days passed and Kai frowned as he watched the three Garmadons prepare for the day, feeling shivers across his body as he watched Garmadon's body change from his typical monstrous form into that of a middle-aged man that he would not have given a second glance in any other setting.

Zane had discovered that Garmadon had a lot planned today judging by all the reservations he had made, so Kai had been assigned to follow them in civilian clothes to make sure he did not cause any evil.

***

When they got into Ninjago City, Kai blended in with the crowd, following them to a shop called 'Doomsday Comix'.

"Well, if it isn't Lloyd 'Hemorrhoid' Garmadon." The shop owner greeted

Lloyd approached the counter, "Hi, Mother Doomsday, the new Starfarer came out yesterday, right?

"It did, but I'm sorry to tell you I'm all sold out." Rufus apologized

The blond's face dropped into a frown, "Oh."

"I should be gettin' some more next week, I'll save you a copy if ya'd like?"

"Yeah, I'd like that." Lloyd said

"Well feel free to browse, I just put out a bunch of new arrivals." The store owner said

While Lloyd looked through the shelves, Harumi went up to the counter and said something Kai could not make out.

"It's a bit unorthodox, but I'll make an exception for my favorite gremlins." Rufus said, reaching under the counter and pulling out a comic book, "You can have my copy, Lloyd."

Lloyd's mismatched eyes lit up as he reached out for the comic, "Are you sure, I don't mind waiting?"

"It's alright, I already read it." Mother Doomsday assured, placing it in his hands

Garmadon thanked the man and tried to pay for the comic book, but the owner refused it, saying it was a gift.

The family of three began to head towards the door, Harumi saying, "Come on, dad, I want to go to Clair's next!"

Rufus' face paled as he heard the term of address, realizing he had the Lord of Darkness in his store as he put two and two together.

***

The Master of Fire trailed the family for hours, watching as Garmadon bought whatever the twins asked for, eventually stopping for lunch at a small restaurant -which was one of the places Garmadon had made a reservation for.

It wasn't until the waitress brought out a chocolate lava cake with a sparkler on it and started singing with all the enthusiasm of a minimum wage employee that didn't get paid enough for this that Kai realized what was going on.

It was Lloyd and Harumi's birthday.

That explained all the shopping the three had been doing, why Garmadon was on his best behavior, and all the reservations: it was their yearly special day.

He immediately relayed that information to the others, but they agreed for Kai to keep trailing him to make sure he had no other plans.

***

After lunch, Lloyd and Harumi practically raced each other to the arcade across the street.

They played for a while, competing against one another in every game they played.

"Did you ever play video games with Uncle Wu when you were kids?" Lloyd asked after winning a round of some game, Harumi's nose crinkling at her loss

Garmadon shook his head, "No, I have never played a video game before and I imagine the same for my brother."