Black with a Hint of Silver [ 1 ] | Lloyd Garmadon

07 | SEVEN

7 | PEACE BE WITH THOSE WHO ARE LOST

KNEELING IN FRONT OF A STONE IN THE CENTER OF THE TOWN CEMETERY WAS NOT HOW EMMA ENVISIONED SPENDING HER WEEKEND. A week ago she would have told anyone that asked that she planned to turn the music to full blast in the dance studio and sing along to whatever was playing while purposefully screeching out words off-key. But this week wasn't going how Emma planned at all, so after her vigorous training regimen and discovery of the truth of her mother's departure, Emma needed to sit in silence in the place she felt closest to her mother.

That meant telling Cole she would be in town collecting Sensei Wu's chamomile tea and attending a dance seminar for her students so he wouldn't worry. She didn't need her brother to know she was scared and confused. It had been only days since finding out there was no fire that took her mother's life, and one week since learning that like her brother, Emma was expected to rise to the challenge of becoming a fearless master of earth and harness her elemental abilities. 

So as she stared at the fresh cut grass beneath her knees and held a single flower that she brought to her mother's grave, Emma focused on the sound of her own breathing and sat in silence just thinking about her new life.

But for Emma, silence and peace didn't last as the decade-old stone in front of her seemed to be mocking the young brunette and forced her to reminisce in the lies she had been told as a child. It forced her to ponder how she came to the cemetery to be close with her mother, but her mother wasn't even there. They buried an empty casket nearly ten years ago as according to her father and brother, the fire had burned May Brookstone into ash, and the water from the firemen's hoses swept it away. Emma knew that was a lie because there was no fire, and the reason they buried an empty casket was because whoever took her mother didn't leave any trace behind. 

Lou preferred the empty casket anyways, so the police stopped searching for his wife after a month. He preferred the empty casket because he didn't want to look at the woman he loved when she was lifeless. He slept better at night with the hope that maybe she was alive, and even if she wasn't, the last image he had of her was when she was smiling and with her children, the place she was happiest. 

So even as Emma thought about even the grave being a lie, she couldn't stop herself from talking to the woman that wasn't even there. She told the cement stone everything that was changing. How she had found peace with Cole, how she had left home, how there was a new danger, how she had powers, how she was changing, she told May Brookstone every small detail and it lifted a weight off of her chest. 

By the time Emma had finished debriefing her life, it had grown dark outside and it was time for her to head back to the tea shop. And since she had walked, Emma had an hour to listen to the crickets in the trees and think about what the ninja might be doing. In no way, shape, or form were her bets on them going to sleep early. She would've bet that Kai could stay away from his hair gel for a week before she bet that the ninja were already preparing for bed. 

It was only further proof that the next day was going to be the start of sunrise exercises.

•••

Walking into a quiet tea shop was not only strange but kind of spooky. Until Emma dropped the bag of tea off in the kitchen, she hadn't seen anyone. But then she felt more comfortable after watching Sensei Wu, Misako, and Sensei Garmadon in a heated game of Go Fish. 

Nonetheless, Emma was tired. She was ready to lay down and fall right asleep but knowing her brother, that wouldn't be happening. Especially since when she entered the room after changing into her pajamas, Emma noticed a white envelope on her sheets. 

The ninja were all sitting in their beds while talking amongst each other but when Emma lifted the envelope, all conversations died down. It had been Cole who first cleared his throat after seeing the confusion on his sister's face and spoke up to answer her questions. "Sensei Wu was digging through his boxes that still need to be unpacked and he found a letter from mom addressed to you," he explained.

"I don't know what it is, or what it's about, but since you went to the cemetery today, I figured it would be a good time to give it to you."

The teenager sat on her bed, placing the letter on her dresser and looking at her brother. "How'd you know I went to the cemetery?" she wondered, slipping on her socks and finishing her nightly routine. "He called your father and found out you didn't have a seminar today," Jay answered, earning a glare of annoyance from Cole. 

"Yeah, and where else would I be, right? It's not like a had a life before I came here or anything of the sorts," Emma sassed, rolling her eyes at the automatic assumption she went to the graveyard. Sure, she did go, but unless Cole was following her, she didn't know how he just guessed that's where she was. She hadn't been to the graveyard in four months before today, so it's not like she visited it regularly. 

Cole smirked, "It was probable cause, Em."

"So, you going to open it?" Lloyd jumped in, eyeing the untouched letter that rested a foot away from Emma. She turned her head to stare at it before shrugging and pulling back her covers. "One day I will, but tonight I think I got all the answers I need."

"You were gone a while," Zane jumped in. "Nya almost went out looking for you," Kai continued, gesturing across the hall where his sister was passed out on her bed. "I feel honored to have caught the attention of a samurai," Emma joked. 

Jay smirked and threw the blanket over his head, letting his eyes close. One by one, all the ninja rested their heads on their pillows and drifted into almost an immediate sleep. But Emma stared at the ceiling for nearly twenty minutes before even trying to fall into a slumber.

And when she did finally let sleep win, she fell asleep with a blank mind and a dream that assured her that her mother was in fact with her, and always would be, regardless if she heard her daughter that day or not.

so, i realized while reading the chapters ahead that most of them are absolute trash. haha, yeah, they suck, badly. i've come to the conclusion that a lot of the chapters are either too short, or irrelevant with excess drama so they will be cut out. the chapters that are too short will combine with others to make them longer, like this chapter is actually seven and ten. also, the chapters where emma runs back into the woods, yeah, those are changing drastically. so, heads up, and sowwy:(