Ninjago - Heart of Stone

Chapter Six: Understand Me

The Bounty had never been so silent as it was as Misako stood among the ninja. Wu was determinedly avoiding everyone's gaze, including Misako's herself, and the woman in question seemed to be articulating a speech in her head as she stood silently before the small crowd. The ninja who were not involved in the family business were standing as far away as possible, looking at the ground and trying to hide their discomfort. Lloyd and Lexi were utterly silent, staring at their mother.

It was Lloyd who finally broke the painful silence. "I... I never thought I'd see you again," he said, his voice low and shaky. Misako sighed, scrubbing a hand over her face. Her eyes were shimmering with tears she was furiously holding at bay.

"I'm so sorry," she said at length, "I'm so... I wish I could have gone back for you. Both of you. Every day, since the moment I was forced to... to give you up..."

"What stopped you?" Lexi asked harshly. Her tone was biting and her eyes were dark. She looked like a thundercloud wrapped in flesh. "Why didn't you ever come back for us?"

"I couldn't, Lexi," Misako said pleadingly, "you must understand, you would be in danger if you were with me. I was an outlaw, there were too many people after me, too many enemies that might have re-emerged... I couldn't take any chances. I'd hoped you'd be safer where you were."

"Safer?" Lexi echoed. She glared at her mother, crossing her arms over her chest. "Your sister died, you know. My mother. Because our castle was under siege."

"I know," Misako said softly, and Lexi regretted her words. Perhaps she was being too harsh... after all, Misako was right, she was safer in the castle than with an outlaw...

"And what about me?" Lloyd demanded, bringing Lexi crashing back to reality. "You left me on the doorstep of Darklies Boarding School. You left me- Garmadon's son- in a reformatory for criminals!"

"What?" Misako looked so genuinely shocked and angry that Lexi was taken aback. Lloyd had never gone into great detail about his time at the school, but the way his face darkened at its mention told the story well enough. He'd always assumed that his mother had left him there, but perhaps that hadn't been true.

"Don't play innocent," Lloyd snapped, though he sounded unsure, "I was raised there, until I was eight, when Wu found me."

"I didn't leave you at Darklies," Misako cried, "I left you with a family! I- I made sure they were rich, and I thought- I thought- they should've taken care of you!"

This was apparently all Misako's nerves could handle, because she enunciated her sentence by bursting into tears and collapsing. Wu caught her before she hit the ground and held her upright, looking fixedly at the ceiling as he comforted her awkwardly.

"I'm s-sorry," Misako stuttered, wiping her tears away roughly, "I... I r-really didn't know, Lloyd... if I had... if I had... oh, by the Dragon- Darklies!"

Zane stepped forwards this time, handing Misako a tissue as a fresh wave of sobs rolled through her. She accepted it gratefully, turning away she hastily wiped her face and composed herself. The ninja glanced at each other awkwardly, and Kai shifted towards the door.

"Should we... do you want us to go?" He asked softly, glancing uncertainly at Lexi and Lloyd. Lloyd shook his head. "Stay," he said, sounding rather desperate not to be left alone with his mother.

Misako wiped her face and turned back to face the ninja. Her eyes were still shimmering, but he expression was set in determination. "I understand that you must hate me," she said, "you'd be well within your rights to do so." She grabbed a fistful of her pant leg to stop the nervous twitching. "But I- I need to explain."