Void - Ninjago x Female Reader

Chapter 16: Fragments of the past

Hearing Dart let out a yelp of warning, you looked down at the sink to find it start to overflow with boiling water and your hands were plunged right into its depths. Letting out an instinctive hiss, you closed the tap and shoved your hand underwater, pulling out the sink plug. Though the hot liquid should have left a nasty burn scar, you found your hands to be perfectly fine even though thick tendrils of steam wafted from the water.

...How... odd... you thought as you stacked the clean dishes on the drying rack just as you heard Lloyd call out "I'm done!"

Pretending that nothing was wrong, you replied "Alright! I'll get you a spare change of clothes while I put yours in the wash!" Climbing up a drop-down ladder that lead to your bedroom, you opened the closet and began looking for a change of clothes for the child that was staying in your home. I don't have anything suitable for a small boy... you thought rummaging through what little outfits you owned. You didn't need many different sets of clothes anyway, not when you had the ones gifted to you by your sensei.

Hands stopping over the drawers that housed your teacher's clothes that haven't been touched in nearly a year, you hesitantly pulled it open, going over the contents inside. Seeing the various sets of garments that your mentor had worn, you felt a sentimental longing wash over you against your wishes. You didn't have time to reminisce over bygone times, not when you needed to focus on the future. Yet with each passing moment, you felt your heart grow heavier at the clothing that was gathering dust in the drawers. A part of you was certain that was the way they were going to be for the rest of time, untouched and a mere relic of simpler times, but you didn't want to listen.

Swallowing the feelings of protest as you picked out a robe for Lloyd to wear while you washed his current outfit, you were about to shut the wardrobe when a soft tinkling of bells caught your attention. As curiosity took hold of you, you pulled out a familiar icy-blue bell that was attached to a thin metal hook, you recognised it as the chime you found in Kusho Sensei's room the day your shared home got destroyed. The pad of your thumb running over the groves that were etched onto the arctic-blue metal in the shape of a lotus, you felt a lump well up in the back of your throat. You haven't put on the earring since that time you lost the cave to the explosion as the charm wasn't suitable for battle and made sneaking around harder. Plus, it was a little uncomfortable to sleep with as the thin tassel would tickle your neck as you lay down.

Hooking the ornament on your left earlobe, you felt a sense of comfort wash over you, clearing your mind and bringing peace to your thoughts. It was therapeutic, to say the least as if the storm clouds that were your raging thoughts began to quell, turning into calm clouds that overlooked you. It's like... a clarity bell or something... you thought, deciding to keep the chime on as it helped you focus, Plus, Sensei's aura seems to radiate off from it...

Taking the robe to the bathroom, you gently knocked on the door, not wanting to disturb Lloyd if he was still showering, though the lack of rushing water seemed to disprove your theory. "Here's a change of clothes," you announced, opening the door by a fraction and handing the cloak to him while looking in the other direction in case he wanted some privacy. "Can you hand me your clothes? I want to wash them if that's alright with you."

"Alright. Thank you, (y/n)," the kid replied, placing a rough cloth in your hand that was still sticking through the doorway before you retracted the limb.

"I'll lead you to a separate bed once you're done changing," you speak through the door before walking away to the washing machine that was done cleaning your outfit. Taking the wet clothes and placing them in the dryer, you turned it on as you placed Lloyd's in the washer and turned that on too.

Walking to the bookshelf that stood in the corridor between the kitchen and the bathroom, you ran a hand down the spines of the various books you had ordered by authors in alphabetical order. The sight of the classics Sensei read you made nostalgia wash over you again, your mind spinning as if you were in a tumble-dryer in place of your clothes. Letting out a sigh, you wondered whether you should place the texts back into your pocket dimension with the rest, only to be unable to make a decision.