Darkness from Within #3: Bound for Evil (A Ninjago Fanfiction)

Chapter 4

Lloyd whipped around to face his opponent. His eyes widened in alarm and he staggered backward. It wasn't anyone who he expected it to be. But he thought the young woman looked familiar. She was short—the top of her head probably only reached to his shoulder—with blazing red hair fixed in a braid and dark blue eyes. Her voice echoed in his head again, but he was surprised to hear different words than he had a second ago.

Look, I'm not someone to mess around with, alright? So just back off, you got that?

With a jolt, Lloyd felt a rush of his old memory shoot through him. "Ariana!" he gasped out.

The girl crossed her arms, smirking. "Bet you thought you got rid of me, huh?"

Breathing shakily, Lloyd started backing away, feeling around for his sword. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Ariana replied simply. "You're not any more welcome here than I am."

Finally, Lloyd found his sword and gripped it tightly, bringing it forward to defend himself. "What is that supposed to mean?" he breathed, voice trembling.

Ariana let out a soft chuckle, stalking closer to him. "I think you know the answer to that question," she said lightly. "Since, you know, the... incident a few days ago."

Lloyd froze, speechless for a moment. How does she... Deciding to change the subject, he asked, "How did you get in here, anyway?"

"Easy." Ariana flicked her head toward the open window. "The same way you did."

Lloyd tensed as she came closer to him.

"We think alike, you know," she went on enticingly. "Both slipping through windows... both sneaking around..."

"We are nothing alike," Lloyd protested, finding himself getting closer to the wall. "You're just an angry person wanting to kill the ninja for no reason at all."

Ariana raised an eyebrow. "And you are...?"

"And I'm—" Lloyd opened his mouth, but no words came to him. "I-I'm... I'm..."

"An angry person wanting to kill the ninja for no reason at all?" Ariana pressed, tilting her head.

Lloyd gritted his teeth and looked away. "I don't want to kill the other ninja," he stated. "They're my family."

"Your family?" Ariana echoed. "Because families are supposed to treat you unfairly and kick you out for something you didn't do?" She shook her head and turned around. "Some family."

Lloyd blinked in surprise. Stunned for a moment, he watched as Ariana began to head back over to the window. Halting beside it, she glanced back at him, eyes glittering. "Well then, have fun with your family."

"W-wait!" Lloyd called, taking a step toward her.

A thin smirk appeared on Ariana's face, but she got rid of it before she turned back around. "Caught your interest, did I?" she murmured.

Lloyd shifted on his feet uneasily. "How'd you find out about all this?"

Ariana scoffed as she stalked over to him again. "Stupid ninja," she sighed. "You don't even listen to your poor, old sensei when he mentions 'personal quarrels'. Trust me, if you guys weren't so busy with each other, you'd plainly see that I've been spying on you for weeks now."

"The ninja aren't stupid!" Lloyd exclaimed. "The ninja are... are..." He drew in a shaky breath as he found the word. "Perfect," he murmured dejectedly. "Flawless." He looked at his feet.