~....Not The Same....~

Chapter 3

Late that night, Wu sat on the deck surrounding the inner perimeter of the monastery, cup of tea in hand. He sleepily sipped it, watching the gate with watchful eyes. He yawned, and leaned his head against a post, his eyes heavy. Stay awake, Wu.....He chided to himself. You have to make it up to Garmadon.... He looked over at the clock on the wall near the door, and sighed when he was it was one in the morning. He yawned once more, placing his tea on the deck next to where he sat, and pulling his blanket closer around him. Where are you, brother?

***

As the sky began turning from black to dark blue, Garmadon slowly opened the gate, and slipped into the monastery's safe walls. He walked across the courtyard, and went to get his staff from where he had left it that morning, to see it missing.

" No, no, no...." He mumbled, looking around frantically, when he saw his brother, fast asleep on the deck. Garmadon sighed, and stepped up onto the deck, the thoughts of his missing staff a distant memory. He shook his head, a smile forming. Brothers....He stood his brother up, putting his arm around his neck.

" Getting too old to be carried, little brother...." He said quietly, pushing open the paper door with his foot. He half-carried half-dragged Wu back to his room, and put him on his bed. He went back out, and got the tea cup. After leaving the half empty cup in the kitchen, Garmadon retreated to his bedroom, where he found his staff leaning against the wall at the end of his bed. Wu... A smile crept onto his lips, as he laid down to try to get some sleep.

***

Wu woke up the next morning, fatigue trying to draw him back into bed for a few more hours. He got to stretching, and then the events from the day before replayed in his mind. The fight. Waiting up for his brother to return safely. He quickly ran out of his room, and looked into his brother's room. His heart fell, as he saw it in the same condition as last night when he placed Garmadon's staff in his room. He sighed, not knowing if his brother came back at all...If his brother was safe, or for that matter, even alive...It was Ninjago.

He quickly grabbed his staff, and ran out the door of the monastery. He skidded to a stop on the deck, as he saw his brother sweeping the cobblestone courtyard. He looked up, and stopped sweeping.

" I didn't know you had returned...." Wu said quietly.

" How else did you get into your bed last night? When I came back, you were sound asleep on the deck." The slightest hint of a smile curled the corners of Garmadon's lips up. " Think things through, brother, if you ever want to be a sensei."

" Yeah...." Wu mumbled, leaning against the wall of the monastery. Garmadon continued sweeping, and no words were exchanged for what seemed like an enternity.

" I'm sorry....For, yesterday..." Wu said quietly. The sweeping stopped.

" Yeah, I guess we both acted wrong...." Garmadon sighed, running a hand through his hair. " But, we both learned something through it..."

" That we are stubborn?" Wu offered, raising an eyebrow. Garmadon chuckled, rolling his eyes.

" No, you fool...That we easily forgive..." Wu nodded.

" Right..That too.." They both laughed, and the bond between the brothers that was shattered was on the way to being mended.

" Wu...Never forget this past day..." Garmadon said. " This lesson will prove useful in the future...." I can't tell him ever....He reminded himself, He must NEVER know....For not even this experience can remind him to forgive me for what I've done.

****

The following months passed as if they hadn't even happened. Garmadon and Misako got married, and she moved into the monastery with the two brothers. Wu still admired her. Her love of the history of Ninjago was comemerable, and her research was breath-taking. It was so detailed, and convered every topic. Wu sat out on the deck of the monastery, reading over a scroll about the Green Ninja, when the monastery door opened. Misako carried out a few more scrolls, and a pot of tea, and placed them on the deck next to Wu.

" Thought you'd enjoy some tea....And I brought you the next few scrolls." She said, brushing a piece of hair out of her eyes. Wu nodded, not looking up from his scroll. Misako sighed. " How's it going with the research?"

" Fine." Wu said coldly, rolling up the scroll.

" Did I do something wrong?" She asked. He shook his head no. " Is it because I chose-"

" I'm not petty, Misako." He snapped, unrolling the next scroll. " I'm not hung up on that anymore. " She bit her lower lip and nodded.

" Alright...." She said quietly. " I'll see you later, ok?" She turned to leave.

" I'm sorry, Misako..." Wu sighed. She looked over her shoulder, and gave him her attention. " It's a long story why I'm not like my usual self right now, but, I promise, it's nothing against you..."

" Then what is it?" She asked, genuinly intrieged. He sighed.

" It's my brother....He isn't doing well....'

" What do you mean?"

" I mean..." Wu began. " The venom from the Devourer. We don't know what that can do to one...He has always been irritable, and easily angered, but....I don't know..."

" He'll be fine..." Misako said, giving him a reasuring smile. " He's your brother. If you two are anything alike, he'll come out alright....You two will have a dojo together, and train students together....You'll be the best of friends.." Wu chuckled.

" You sounded just like my mother there..." He smiled. Misako sat down next to him on the deck.

" Neither of you have ever spoken about your mother...." She said.

   " Well, no..." Wu said, looking down at his lap. " She passed when we were very young...."

" Can you talk about her?" She asked. Wu sighed, clasping his hands together.

" She had long, brown hair, like Garmadon's...She had the prettiest gray eyes, and was....Amazing..." A smile crept onto his lips as he thought about her. " She'd always put us into bed at night, and sing us a lullaby...Her voice was so pretty, time itself seemed to freeze, and all the animals outside fell silent. Every morning, when she'd wake us up, she'd always tickle us until we were completely awake, and then give us a kiss on the forehead. She'd dress us, feed us, and bring us to this peaceful meadow at the base of the mountain to play while our Father worked on Ninjago...."

" What was your mother's name?" She asked.

" I don't remember..." Wu said quietly. " I was only five when...." He stopped, and looked down at the stone ground.

" You don't have to tell me..." Misako said, trying to be comforting.

" No, it's fine..." Wu replied. " One night, the Overlord broke into the monastery....My mom quickly found Garmadon and I, and hid us in her room. Then, there was a scream....And silence...We waited for hours, huddling together behind the bed, when my father found us. He told us that our mother had been killedby the Overlord, in an attempt to get back at my Father for trying to banish him. It was shortly after that when Ninjago was split into two islands...."

" I'm so sorry...." Misako sighed. " I didn't know it has been that long...How old are you now, if I may ask?" Wu chuckled.

" * Thirty-eight." He smiled. " How old are you, since we are going to intrude on each others' personal life?"

" Forty." She smiled, going inside to find Garmadon. Wu smiled, and was about to return to studying the scrolls, when a scream erupted from the monastery.

* Author's Note- Yes, I decided to give them actual ages, and there's a reason why- we all know that Lloyd was around when Garmadon was banished, but when Lloyd becomes the Green Ninja, Wu, Misako, and Garmadon are all OLD. Well, I had a theory that might connect things a bit better- Maybe they weren't young when they met.. Maybe older. So, why not? :p It's just my theory, so don't start fighting now.. :/