This one-shot is a request for bear2710 (and I got the idea from one of her drawings 😄)!
I don't know if I'll be around here much for the next couple of days. I'm in Germany for mid-term and can't spend too much time on my phone/tablet without getting into serious trouble with my mum... Hope I'll still be able to finish and post the Valentine's story on time!
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Big Brother, Little Sister
Something was definitely off about Kai today, Ray was sure about that.
Usually, when the blacksmith or his wife collected their three-year old son from his playgroup, Kai would excitedly tell them about his morning with his friends, happily bouncing at his parent's hand on their short walk home. And the proud big brother would never forget to enquire about 'Ny-ny', his baby sister.
But none of this had happened on this particular day.
What's the matter with Kai? Ray wondered. I hope he's not getting sick...
"Are you feeling alright, son?" He asked worriedly.
"Yeah, all fine." The spiky-haired boy mumbled.
"Did you fight with your friends?" He guessed. But had Kai gotten into any trouble at playgroup, the teacher would have probably told the father.
"No." Was the answer. And that was all that Ray would get his son to say for the rest of the way.
When they arrived at the Four Weapons, Kai's mother Maya and sister Nya were playing in front of the blacksmith shop.
As soon as she saw the two spiky-haired males approaching, the thirteen-months old girl toddled towards them.
"Kai, did you have a nice morning?" Maya asked.
"Hmm." Kai nodded, but the frown on his face suggested otherwise.
"Nya has a surprise for you, she has learned a new word." She pointed at herself. "Who am I?"
"Ma-ma." The black-haired girl replied. Kai huffed, that was nothing new.
"Who's that?" Maya pointed at her husband.
"Da-da."
"And who's that handsome fella?"
"K'aiii." The little girl squealed.
"Well done, Nya." Ray was very proud of his daughter, who looked expectantly at her older brother and big hero.
But Kai was not impressed. "An' who 'r you?" He asked.
"N-n..." Nya started.
"Thought so." Kai stated. "You don' 'now. 'cause you stoopid sista." And he stomped into the house.
While Nya was too little to fully understand his words, she could tell from the sharp tone in his voice that she had done something wrong. Her big brown eyes started pooling with tears, as she plopped down on her padded bottom.
"No, baby girl. Don't cry." Ray scooped her up into his arms. "You did very well, Nya." He tried to comfort the upset girl.
During lunch, Kai kept glaring at his little sister, who was being spoon fed by their mother. "Stoopid sista." He occasionally hissed.
While Ray cleared up the table after their meal, Maya took her daughter upstairs to change the girl and put her down for a nap. When he returned to family's main room, he found Kai lying on the floor on his tummy, colouring some pictures in his favourite colour.
"That's a very beautiful red dragon." Ray admired the picture. But then the tone in his voice changed. "Kai, that was not very nice of you." He told his son, sitting down next to him. "You little sister was very upset."
"Sista stoopid." Kai repeated. "Bwian say bwosa much better."
Ray sighed. Of course, his son's bad mood had to have something to do with Brian, the five-year old self proclaimed 'king of the kindergarten'. Unfortunately, Kai was one of the older boy's biggest fans and would listen to every word - no matter how 'stoopid' - Brians said.
"Why would he say that?" Ray asked. "Why is having a brother better than having an adorable little sister."
"Bwian's bwosa sho' him how to wide a bike." Kai explained, sitting up and snuggling against his father. "Ny-ny can't do that, she can't ev'n walk."
"Maybe that's because his brother is older than Brian?" The Master of Fire suggested.
"He's ten." Kai confirmed. "Big bwosa."
"That explains a lot. But do you know what is even better than having a big brother?"
"No." Kai shook his head and looked expectantly at his father.
"It's being a big brother." Ray said. "When Nya is about your age, you can help her learn how to ride her bike."
Kai's amber eyes lit up for a brief moment, before his expression turned somber again.
"But Ny-ny's a girl." He muttered. "Bwian say girls are bowing."
And Brian is an idiot. Ray thought. "Do you want me to tell you a story?" Kai nodded eagerly, assuming that his father had accepted his claim. But Ray had a plan.
"Once upon a time, there was a young blacksmith. His name was Ray."
"Like you, daddy."
"Yes, but this man was special. He could control the element of fire."
"Wow." Kai gasped. "I wanna do that too."
"And he wasn't the only one." Ray continued. "His friends had special powers as well. There was a Master of Earth, a Master of Form, Ice, Lightning, Water, and so on."
"Fiwa is the best."
"I know that, son." Ray smiled. "But everyone was an equally important member of their team."
"Team? What that?"
"A team is a group of friends who work together to reach a goal. And this team fought together against evil snakes and some other very bad guys to protect Ninjago."
"I gonna pway team wi' my fwiends."
"Yes, but in Ray's team, they weren't just boys, you know?"
"Bwian say girls can't fight."
"Oh, yes. They can." His father informed him. "One of the girls, the Master of Lightning, was probably the fastest person Ray had ever met - both on her feet and with her mouth. And then, there was the Master of Water. She was the most beautiful woman in all of Ninjago..."
"Mo' bootiful than mummy?"
"Just as beautiful as your mother. And not only that, she was also an amazing blacksmith and a very skilled warrior."
"Weally?"
"Yes, you should have seen her." The blacksmith sighed dreamily. "Elegant and fearsome at the same time. And then came one particularly fierce battle, where Ray was cornered by a couple of Anacondrai, and she was the one to save our hero's life."
"So... girls can fight." Kai concluded. "And Bwian is stoopid."
"Yes." Ray replied, not clarifying which of the statements he agreed with.
"You think Ny-ny can fight?" The boy asked. "She can be on my team."
"She's maybe still too small to fight, but I am sure she will be an amazing fighter when she is older." Ray said proudly. "Especially if she has a big brother to help her."
"That me." Kai boasted, standing up.
"Yes, that's you." His father confirmed. He quietly followed his son, as the boy climbed up the stairs and tiptoed into his sister's room. He stopped in front of he cot and looked at the fast asleep little girl, who was tightly clutching her blue dragon plushie.
"Sowwy, Ny-ny." Kai mumbled. "You not stoopid. An' when you older, I sho' you to wide a bike. An' to fight. Then you can be on my team, I pwomise."