Ninjago - One-shots and short Stories

At Your Most Beautiful // Jay x Nya

I've found a way, a way to make you smile
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Jay would never forget the first time her saw her.
He, Cole and Zane had just arrived at the entrance to the Temple of Fire, having lost their Golden Weapons and the Blue Ninja's voice on the way.
They were discussing their rather hopeless situation, when suddenly the temple split open, revealing the impressive form of the Fire Dragon. Cole next to him gave a very unmanly squeak and hid behind a pillar (which he would later insist did not happen that way), but Jay found himself unable to move. Not because he was unimpressed (most certainly not) or frozen with fear (maybe just a little bit), but because he was too focused on the two people on the dragon's neck, in particular on the person at the back.
Sitting behind the Red Ninja was the prettiest girl Jay had ever seen.
She had short raven hair in a bob cut and was wearing a crimson red oriental outfit, the colour of her dress perfectly matching the colour of her lips.
Despite the many differences in their appearances, Jay immediately recognised her as Kai's kidnapped sister, for her chocolate brown eyes displayed the same fire and determination as her brother's amber ones.
Oh, there was so much the talkative inventor wanted to tell her. And there was even more to find out about her – including her name. But Jay knew that this would have to wait until after their mission – when he would hopefully have his voice back – so right now he just had to settle for the most relevant piece of information.
"Oooyoulikebloo?" He croaked and Zane, being the great friend he was, translated for her. "He cannot speak but he wants to know if you like blue."
The girl turned her attention to the Master of Lightning. "It's my favourite colour." She replied, a bright smile on her lovely face.
It was at that very moment that Jay knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. And he was convinced that nothing could ever be more beautiful than this first smile.
-----
It came as quite a surprise to him when, much later, Jay discovered that he had been wrong all along.
After several years of dating, with all its ups and downs, he was finally going to propose to his girlfriend. Jay had chosen the very same location where their actual relationship had begun, so he had taken Nya on a date at the Mega Monster Amusement Park.
While they were waiting in the queue for the rollercoaster, Jay uneasily shifted from one foot to the other. He was glad that Nya was holding his right hand in a firm grip, so he would not be able to run away. His other hand, with a piece of string tied around his wrist like a bracelet to secure the precious ring, was safely hidden in his pocket.
"Are you alright?" The love of his life asked, a worried look on her face. "You haven't said anything in a while. And you look a bit pale."
He swallowed, forcing a little smile. "I-I am f-fine."
I can do this. He thought.
Trying to calm himself down, the Master of Lightning went through the details of his rather ambitious plan in his mind, for the umpteenth time on that day. Putting his idea of proposing to Nya during a rollercoaster ride into action had taken him a lot of preparation and planning and he was not going to waste all that effort. Over the previous few days, he had done a couple of 'practise runs' (the other people on the rollercoaster had looked at him like he was crazy), to get the timing right and have her immediate reaction caught by the camera installed at the ride.
But in the end, it was all worth it.
The expression on Nya's face was a perfect mix of surprise and elation, combined with the thrill from the rollercoaster.
And the photo immediately became Jay's new favourite image of his gorgeous fiancée.
-----
But then, just a few months later, the Master of Lightning had no choice but to change his mind again.
As he watched Kai walking his sister down the aisle, Jay was sure his heart skipped more than just one beat.
Nya was wearing a simple yet elegant bridal gown made from ivory satin. The sleeveless dress with a bateau neckline, the beaded belt and a slim A-line skirt perfectly accentuated her petite curves. The skirt was lightly accented by scattered beading and the same embellishments were present on her waist-length ivory veil.
And when she smiled at him, Jay was completely lost for words. He was so absorbed in her appearance that he didn't even hear the snickering in the congregation when he almost forgot his speech.
"Nya. When we first met, I didn't even know your name. All I knew was that blue was your favourite colour and that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. And every day since then, I have fallen more and more in love with you, the better I have gotten to know you. I promise to love and cherish you for as long as I live, and beyond." He said, meaning every single word of it.
Even without a tiara in her raven black hair, Jay thought that his bride looked exactly like a princess from a fairy tale. And he made another, silent, vow to himself, to always treat her like one.
And then, just as they were about to kiss, Nya gave him the most beautiful smile he had ever seen, full of adoration and of hopes for their shared future. Their faces were already very close together, so it was for his eyes only and even Jay saw it only for a very short moment before they both closed their eyes.
But he would never forget this perfect smile for the rest of his life.
-----
"This is all your fault." Nya screamed at him. "You did this to me. I hate you."
No, right now, she was not smiling. She was not looking like a princess. And she was definitely not acting like one.
The former Samurai X was giving birth to their first child and she was dealing with the pains of labour like a true warrior, namely by insulting her enemy (or her husband, for that matter).
Jay simply responded by silently wiping her sweat-covered forehead with a moist cloth.
"You are doing really well, Mrs Walker." The midwife told his wife, completely unimpressed by the mother-to-be's latest outbreak. "Believe me, I've heard much worse." She had told Jay earlier. He wasn't sure he had though.
He put the cloth away, and gently took Nya's hand, only to have it crushed by his wife's strong grip as another contraction overtook her body.
"Ouch." Jay winced but when he saw his wife shooting him a glare, he immediately stopped and ignored the pains in his hand
"K-keep going, y-you are doing great." The usually very talkative man really didn't know how what to say to Nya at that moment, so he simply repeated what he had heard the hospital staff tell her earlier.
"I am not doing great and you are going to sleep on the couch for the rest of your life." She hissed through gritted teeth.
"Don't worry. That's what they all say." The midwife mouthed.
-----
Nya's features softened immediately again, when the midwife finally placed their newborn baby on her chest and carefully covered them both with a clean blanket.
"Congratulations, it's a healthy and beautiful baby girl." She told the new parents. "We will give the three of you some time to rest and get used to each other before we move you to your own room, okay? If you need any help, you can just call me." The midwife then turned to Jay. "Would you like an icepack for your hand?"
"N-no, thanks. I-I think it's fine." He shook his head, not wanting to be the one complaining about pains. And right now, he didn't care about his hand anyway.
But his wife gave him an embarrassed look. "I am sorry for hurting your hand. And for shouting at you and calling you... things."
Jay fondly smiled at her. "It's fine. As long as it helped you. Although I was surprised you actually knew all these words..."
Nya laughed. "What else do you expect from someone who has spent years living with five young men on a small ship, one of them being a former Darkley's student..."
She gently stroked her daughter's tiny ear with her index finger. "If you've heard anything that mummy said earlier, you'd better forget it straight away. I never want to hear those words from your cute little mouth."
They studied their daughter's features with affection and curiosity. "Except for your eyes, she looks a lot like Kai on his baby pictures." Nya stated. "She definitely has the same mouth and nose."
"Let's hope she won't get his hair." Jay laughed. "But I just think she is as beautiful as her mum. Thank you." He carefully stroke over his daughter's head.
"Why don't you get some rest while I quickly go outside to call my parents and your brother, they must be dying for some news." He suggested. "Is there anything you would like from the coffee shop?"
"I don't need anything." Nya replied. "Well, except for a shower and some sleep. And for you to come back soon."
"I'll try to keep it short, but you know my parents..." Jay got up and placed a loving kiss on Nya's lips, while carefully moving his hand over the fuzz of brown hair on the baby's head. "I love you."
"I love you too."
Before he left the room, Jay briefly turned around to take another look at his wife and infant daughter.
Nya was watching the child who had started to wake up and was lightly stirring on her chest. Her sweaty hair was plastered to her head and the exhaustion was clearly visible on her – slightly fuller – face.
When she felt his eyes on them, Nya looked up and gave her husband a tired yet overjoyed smile.
And she had never looked more beautiful to him.
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This one-shot was a request for two readers on FF, BeatitudeGirl and Johnathen. The title and the lyrics (first line in italics) are from the wonderful R.E.M. song 'At My Most Beautiful'.