Ninjago: Where Heroes Come From

Chapter Eight: Scarred

Fiona had lied. The ball, despite what she had promised, had been nothing more than an excuse to make her dress up, stand still, and allow nobles to stare at her. After spending several minutes standing at her sister's side, bored and annoyed, Lexi had demanded that she be allowed to leave. To her surprise, Fiona had no objections to this, and so Lexi ran off down the hall, fleeing from the noise and chaos of the ballroom.

She eventually slowed her pace and walked, dragging a hand along the wall beside her and singing to herself quietly. She looked up at the pictures lining the walls, of her ancestors— Fiona's ancestors, and her parent's ancestors. Not hers. These people weren't her family. This castle wasn't her home.

She eventually reached the portraits of the late king and queen, and she stopped, staring up at them silently. The song she had been singing seemed to die in her throat, and she couldn't force the words back out.

Her mother's eyes looked gentle, even in the painting. All that colour blended on the canvas that shaped her, it was so perfect, just as she had been. Queen Catherine wasn't beautiful, not by human standards, but something inside her had glowed. Lexi placed a hand on the frame of the painting, her fingers itching to touch her mother's face, almost as if she could somehow dive into the painting and immerse herself in it, get lost in the world her parents now lived in, join them in the lifeless bliss.

The song her mother had always sung her sprung to mind suddenly, and she began to sing softly, her eyes closed, her hand still touching the frame. Catherine's voice had always been strong and rich, full of passion and confidence and authority. Lexi's voice was soft and easy to ignore, but whenever she sang, something in her changed, and she felt, as she never could anywhere else, like she was truly powerful.

"Lavenders blue, dilly dilly, lavenders green,

When I am king, dilly dilly, you shall be queen,

Lavenders green, dilly dilly, lavenders blue

I need no more, dilly dilly, for I have you."

The song was meant for weddings and anniversaries, when couples who loved each other dearly could express this love through song. The first part was the man's, and the second the woman's.

"I love to dance, dilly dilly, I love to sing,

When I am queen, dilly dilly, you will be king,

Lavenders green, dilly dilly, lavenders blue,

You must love me, dilly dilly, for I love you."

It told no story, and it had no meaning. It was simply a song to profess love, to ensure love. A man and a woman who loved each other with all they were, singing.

"And I love you, dilly dilly, I love you so,

My love for you, dilly dilly, can only grow,

Lavenders green, dilly dilly, lavenders blue,

You love me so, dilly dilly, for I love you."

That was Lexi's favourite part, when they both sang together. She'd often imagined signing the song one day at her own wedding, although a part of her knew that would probably never happen. It was more likely that she would live out the rest of her days shut up in the castle, yearning for more but never getting it.

"You have a really nice voice," someone said behind her, and she whirled around to see a young boy standing there, his eyes wide.

"Who are you?" She asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes. She'd never seen him before, and from the look on his face, he had never seen her, either.