Then Jay stood up, looking around as if something, or rather someone, was missing. "Wait, where's my sister?" he asked, the worry creeping into his voice.
Wu and the nindroids exchanged a look, a silent conversation passing between them. Finally, Wu spoke. "She's... back at the monastery."
Jay’s eyes widened, panic flashing across his face. "Is she eating?"
Wu shook his head, and Jay let out a heavy sigh. "Great."
"Well, we might as well go see her now. I mean, we're going back home too, right?" Kai interjected, trying to lighten the mood, but even he couldn’t mask his concern.
They all nodded, silently agreeing as they set off for the monastery. Jay took the lead, his pace quick and determined, his mind racing with thoughts of his little sister.
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As they approached the gates of the monastery, voices drifted on the wind, carried from the courtyard.
"Blackie," Mia’s voice, soft but tinged with frustration, broke the quiet. "Why do some people make decisions that almost drive them out of your life?"
"Like how Jay went into that machine and never came out?" Blackie, her sassy and ever-opinionated cat, replied as he nonchalantly licked his paw.
Mia let out a heavy sigh. "No. I mean, like how Zane saved Wu from Aspheera’s staff, and how the others went after him, even though Master told them not to."
Blackie padded over to her, nudging her leg with his head, his tail flicking in thought. "You miss him, don’t you?" His words cut through the silence, a direct question that lingered in the air.
Mia tried to choke back a cough, but emotion caught up with her. "What do you think?" she muttered, turning away to hide her face. "He's been my legal guardian since I was two. That’s... most of my life. And even before that, we had a special bond. I can’t even remember the last time we fought for real."
Blackie meowed and shook his head, his tone dismissive. "Amateurs," he muttered under his breath.
But then, the sharp-eyed cat caught sight of Jay standing at the entrance of the monastery. His ears perked up, and a sly grin curled at the edges of his whiskers. "Well, maybe your family guardian is here to help with those wishes."
"Fairy guard—what?" Mia turned in confusion, but her eyes locked on Jay, standing right there, alive and whole. She froze for a moment, disbelief washing over her before reality sunk in.
"JAY!" she screamed, her voice breaking as she sprinted toward him, tackling him to the ground in a flurry of tears and laughter. She buried her face in his chest, tears streaming down her cheeks, not of sadness but overwhelming joy.
Jay laughed, struggling to breathe under her weight. "Hey! That’s my job," he teased, his voice light but full of love.
Mia looked up at him, her eyes glinting with mischief, even through the tears. "Well, I just took your job away from you," she declared, smirking as she held on tighter, as though she would never let him go again.
Jay’s smile softened, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her just as tightly. "I missed you too, Mia," he whispered, his voice catching in his throat. "More than you’ll ever know."
