Roots of Earth ~ A Ninjago Fanfiction

Chapter 25: A Storm of Emotion

Someone skid down the hillside, and she envied the gracefulness of their footsteps compared to her own tottering ones. She scarcely recognized the weight of the body through the hiss of the rain before Cole's voice sounded above her head. "Need some help?"

Liana clenched her jaw defiantly. "No."

Cole took her hand, but she yanked it away. "I can do it myself!"

She heard him take a couple of steps back as she staggered wearily to her feet. Breathing heavily, she wiped at her face and tried to get her dripping bangs out of her eyes.

She gritted her teeth and hated. She hated feeling helpless. She hated showing weakness. She hated that Cole was there to see her helplessness and her weakness. Feelings of frustration and bitterness rumbled in turbulent waves in her heart, but she was determined to suck it up and show them that she wasn't such a damsel in distress as they might think. She was proud, defiant, and stubborn.

Then Cole said gently through the rain, "There's no shame in asking for help, you know."

With a grunt, Liana proceeded to ignore him. She began to scale the slippery slope once more. With a sigh Cole followed. She felt his gaze on her, but she refused to let him help.

Again she struggled up the hill. It got so steep that she found herself on her hands and knees. She could hear Cole following close behind her. Streams of dirty water trickled between the fingers of her gloves and soaked through, and rain trailed down her cheeks. She could hear everyone else up ahead, presumably nearly, if not already, at the top of the hill, and she quickened her pace.

In her haste, she again slipped in the mud and fell. Before she could tumble down the slope, though, Cole reached over and and grabbed her by the arms.

For a second her weight threatened to drag both of them down, but then Cole steadied his position and held fast to his grasp.

Liana froze in his arms, wary of falling again. Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt her face burn. Then she squirmed. "Let go of me."

"Liana, you're crawling in a mud slide," he grunted. "You're just going to slip again."

"No, I won't."

"Yes, you will."

"No I won't."

"Yes you will."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Nya slid down and joined them, saying curtly, "Here, Liana, just grab my hand. Cole, help me out."

Nya took Liana's hand in her own. With a gentle—though slightly grudging—boost from Cole, Nya helped Liana up the hill and led her to the top, where the others were trying catching their breath.

"I know how you feel," Nya murmured as they fought through the mud together. "I used to feel like everyone was patronizing me and underestimating me not too long ago."

Liana was surprised. "But you're the water ninja! An Elemental Master! How could anybody think any less of you?"

"I think it was because this team had always been a boy-band before, and I was the only girl who only recently discovered her power." Nya glanced around warily to make sure that nobody was listening. "The media never took me seriously when we went public. They only used me as romance-gossip about my relationships with Jay and Cole, and usually referred to me as the "girl ninja". Everybody saw what I was to them, not what I am to myself or to my team."