Hidden Away || Ninjago AU

S:2; Ch:4

"Three days ago, a strange fire accident occurred at the recently privatized Newton Cross High School, formerly known as Ninjago City High School. The Secret Ninja Force, organized by the brothers Sensei Wu and Sensei Garmadon, in hand with the firefighters' association, took care of the situation as expected. As a result, there were no tragic losses. The cause of the incident is still unknown, even after three days of investigation. The police force has decided to hand this case over to the Secret Ninja force due to the-"

It became silent all too quickly at room A, home to the E-club, as they call it. The student council's direct subsidiary group's members turned to the cause of this.

Kai Smith, considered the school's Mr. Popular, sat spinning the TV remote control on his finger. He soon realized he was being stared at by his two colleagues, Zane and Jay.

"I was watching that," Zane said. He took back the remote from Kai and turned the TV back on.

"Do you have to?" Kai complained. He lay lazily on the couch in the clubroom while snacking on chips. "My sister watched it all night yesterday. And the day before. She might even watch it again today."

"Well, that's your problem," Jay said, walking into the club with a stack of papers.

"Oh, come on," Kai groaned. The hotheaded teen sat with his head tilted back. He stuffed an arm into his jacket pocket and grabbed the chips with the other. Then he stood up to leave.

"Where are you going?" Jay asked. He put down the papers on a desk and folded his arms, staring at Kai with a questioning look. "We have things to do."

"I'm right outside," Kai held the door open. "When Nya and Cole get here, I'll get back in."

Zane and Jay eyed Kai suspiciously. Kai was fond of disappearing on them during meetings despite his role as Club Vice President.

"I'm sure you're fully aware that Cole's absent today," Zane stated. His bright mechanical eyes stared coldly at the runaway in front of him. "I also don't think I need to tell you that your sister's busy with the counselor. Not that I needed to mention but wasn't that part of your job description as VP?"

An innocent smile popped up on Zane's face, contradicting his cold words. "But of course, you're free to wait outside for the other two members who may not show up while Jay and I do all the work."

A bead of sweat ran down Kai's face. He was well aware of how negligent he had been with club activities. To go against Zane's statement would be impossible without seeming like a bad friend. He heaved a sigh in defeat and shut the door.

"So, what are we doing today?"

"We have two students transferring into our grade," Jay said as he turned towards the stack of papers. He picked up the first few papers.

"We have Ash," He continued, "No last name. Moved to Ninjago City recently and transferred here."

"No last name?" Kai asked. He walked over to Jay and leaned in to see the paper. The paper confirmed what Jay had said. He then noticed something.

"He's elemental?!"

Zane stood up and walked over to them, his face calm as ever. "Where does it say that?"

Jay pointed towards a stamp at the edge of the paper.

"It's not shocking that it stated that Ash is an elemental," Kai said in thought, "I'm just surprised that they would put the information so clearly on the paper. Is the student council fine with being this careless?"

"Kai's not wrong," Zane said as he took the papers from Jay. He held his chin and stared at the document intensely.

They heard a soft knock on the club door, interrupting their thoughts. The three boys turned their heads toward the door.

Another knock followed, and the door opened a little. A head peeked through the opening and spotted the three looking at him. He cleared his throat and opened the door properly.

"Is this Ash?" Kai asked, whispering to Jay. The curly-haired brunette flipped through the papers in his hands before nodding.

"Hello," The person greeted with a shoulder bow. He stood up straight, observing the people in the room. "My name is Ash. The counselor sent me here."

Jay and Zane had grave expressions on their faces. They almost seemed hesitant to be near this new person. Kai noticed this, confusion washing over his face. He wasn't sure what was wrong but understood that these two were not too excited to see this student. Kai decided to take the reins.

"I'm Kai, the vice president of this club. The president has been ill for a while and can't be here to meet you."

"That's fine," Ash said, his hand rubbing the back of his head. "Did you say club? I'm not really interested in joining a club at this time."

"You've misunderstood," Kai said. He led Ash into the room and sat him down on the couch. "We're a club that deals with helping get students acquainted with the school. By students, we mean new and transfers. We also hold yearly and private tours for prospective students."

"So, you plan to help me become familiar with NCHS?" Ash asked. "Is there a need? I'm just about done with senior year."

"That's more of a reason if you ask me," Kai said. He picked up a handful of chips from the bag of chips he'd been holding since and stuffed some in his mouth.

"Plus, you're a... well, you know," Kai said between chewing. Jay and Zane, who had gone to look through the rest of the documents, looked at their vice president in disbelief.

"I want to hit him on the head," Jay said, clenching his fists.

"This is no cause for violence, Jay," Zane said as he placed an arm on his friend's shoulder. "Let's focus on what we're doing."

"I should've handled Ash," Jay said regretfully. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I shouldn't have left it with him."

"What's done is done," Zane said. "Plus, it's not that bad. At least he's not spitting on them."

Jay sighed. "Anyway, that's the same person, right?" He gestured toward the grey-haired teen talking with Kai.

"Yes," Zane stated, "I didn't notice at first, but he matches perfectly with the person from three days ago."

Jay frowned and put the papers down. "The kid's lucky he's not the one who hurt Cole. Although, he does take some fault. I don't know if I'll be comfortable dealing with this."

"Hmm, I think I know why they put that stamp," Zane thought aloud.

"Isn't it obvious? The student council's vice president knew Cole wouldn't be here, so there would be no reason to come down here and tell us."

"So you figured it out."

Zane sighed. He sat down on a chair and let out another sigh. Jay took another seat and had it rotate.

"I can't wait to graduate..."