TW: mild sexual content, body piercing
The first thing Garmadon did after Lloyd kissed me goodbye was delve into the most embarrassing stories of his son that he could think of.
It had me snorting and crying with laughter by the time we made it to the serpentine tombs that sat underneath the city. The sight of the large, bolted boulder-esque door immediately sobered me up and I stood, hovering unsurely. Laughter faded fast.
"Ready?" Garmadon asked, placing a reassuring hand on the top of my head.
"Not really," I admitted with a nervous, breathy laugh. "Every sense of control over my life feels like it's been ripped from my hands. B- but it's okay. It's fine."
"We never truly have any control over our fates," Garmadon said in a gentle hum as he folded his arms behind his back, the gold of his sensei robes glinting softly in the darkness. "Life is just riding the waves. We must adapt to it, much like how water must adapt to its surroundings, and fire must adapt to how much oxygen it is exposed to."
"What would energy have to adapt to?" I asked shakily as I stared at the door. Garmadon sent me a smile that held a million stories.
"Love," he replied.
"I see where he gets his cheesiness from," I murmured, wringing my hands. "Being a hopeless romantic must run in the family."
Garmadon chuckled.
"It does."
The doors were opened by a large constricti, who glared suspiciously at me with dark yellow eyes. I shivered at the biting stare, averting my gaze. His biceps were the size of my head. He could crush me with a pinky.
"Thank you," Garmadon said in a pleasant voice with a respectful bow of his head. I clumsily copied with a stammering "th- thanks."
The snake grunted in reply. The doors shut behind us and between the heavily bolted door, the moody lighting and the lack of sun, I genuinely felt prisoned.
I'm definitely getting these guys out of here.
"How is school?" Garmadon asked, making small talk while we walked down more long, cavernous tunnels. The constricti slithered beside us, keeping an eye. I could still feel his glare.
"It's okay," I sighed, hugging my arms at the chill. Some rats scampered down the shadows and I shivered. "I mean, everybody thinks I'm cheating on Lloyd with the green ninja from that one photo in the hospital a few months back and the more recent one with the promise ring definitely doesn't help, but it's okay."
Garmadon raised a brow.
"It sucks," I caved, my facade shattering with one simple look from the Sensei. "It really sucks. I can't wait to get out of high school."
He gave an amused, although sympathetic smile.
"Only a few more months," Garmadon reassured. "And then it will be summer again. You'll have your one-year anniversary with Lloyd then as well, correct?"
"Oh," I said, blinking in surprise. "Oh, shoot. You're right."
"The year went by fast," Garmadon said. "But it's not over yet."
"Yeah," I agreed with a heavy groan. "Exams."
He chuckled softly, watching as the constricti slithered on ahead while he slowed. I matched Garmadon's pace, confused.
"I want to thank you for the other week," he said quietly, voice hushed. "When you met my father. You handled it exceptionally well."
"Really?" I said, surprised. "I- I mean, you're welcome. But I was having a total mental breakdown. My brain was doing some hardcore gymnastics to keep up with what was happening."
"You still did better than expected. Misako fainted the first time she met him," Garmadon said with a snicker. "She couldn't handle the overload of information."
I stared at him, baffled by the revelation.
"B- but Misako's a badass," I said, taken aback and speaking without thinking once again. He laughed at my words, anyway.
"Indeed she is," Garmadon said with a snickering grin. "But she still couldn't keep up with it. We think that you managed to handle it because of your specific powers."
"Ah, yes," I hummed dryly, brows dipping over my eyes in displeasure. "The powers I'm not allowed to know about. I- I still don't quite understand how he's still... alive."
"It's his soul," Garmadon replied. "He's not truly alive, not in the sense that you and I are alive. But his soul still exists, and with it his memories and god-awful jokes."
I laughed loudly at the unintentional pun. It echoed down the cavern and I grimaced at the volume. Garmadon didn't look pleased that his slip up amused me so.
"It's his soul and his powers," Garmadon continued while I struggled to keep my stupid grin in check. "A culmination of both. His abilities were split between Wu and I, but everything were combined back into Lloyd due to the prophecies he's had to be in and the ones yet to come."
