cole
There are inexplicable reasons for which people feel pain.
He felt bad for getting angry at his friends, but he was already wound up since dealing with the grief of accidentally killing his mother - indirectly or not, Cole was still responsible. Strangely, he found comfort in reading the pages of his mother's journal, and finding that it not only held details of her personal life, but copies of advice and lessons she said she took from the Archive of Earth.
As far as Cole knew, he hadn't seen any of the borrowed tidbits in the Archive itself, but he was happy going through her journal and finding photos and snippets of her life. Dance actually wasn't going too terribly. His dad, on one hand, was over the moon that he'd finally followed in the Royal Blacksmith's footsteps, and the teasing wasn't too bad. If anything, the concentration they were paying to footwork and technique were actually helping his gameplay for football. He was faster and more agile than most of the team, apart from Kai, who luckily was a natural at the sport.
It was a useful advantage for when they played against other schools they wouldn't expect a hulk of muscle to be fast on his toes. Cole stretched languidly, easing the ache in his muscles as the sun just began to peek over the houses across from them. Finally, he decided that it was safe enough to go downstairs and not be caught by his father for meditating in front of the television with a bowl of cereal balanced on one knee.
To his surprise, Lou Brookstone was shuffling around the kitchen in an apron whilst wielding a spatula covered in runny egg. The last time his father had cooked was...a long time ago. Long enough it was strange to see him flipping the omelettes naturally and waving to Cole cheerily. His mother was a terrible cook, something Cole had inherited, so Lou's cook was exceptional to make up for the lack of skill.
"Sit down boy, don't just stand there gawking." Loud reprimanded him, though his sharp tone had a soft edge to it as he pushed a jug of orange juice over to Cole's plate, plating the first omelette onto with ease.
His legs finally unlocked, urged by a hungry growl of his stomach. Cole sat down cautiously, wary to see what news his father was going to spring on him. But Lou just egged him on to eat, even producing a bowl of cut fruit to go alongside the meal. His appetite took over suspicion, and Cole dug into the cheesy goodness with relish. Lou finished his own and sat down opposite Cole, slicing his knife through the first cut.
"I've been thinking Cole, we should at least try to have breakfast together once a week."
"Hmm?"
"I hardly ever see you in the morning, you're either in your room or you're off to practice early in the morning. It's been a long time since we've had a proper meal together."
Cole swallowed. "I think that's a good idea." He was mildly shocked to find that he agreed with his dad. Ever since he'd taken on dance, gained appreciation for the sport, and told his father, their relationship had been less tenuous to the point where Cole wouldn't mind the extra time spent with Lou.
"Really?" Lou's eyebrows shot up, but the corners of his mouth turned up into a slight smile. "Do you want to watch the news?"
"Sure." Cole adjusted his seat slightly so they could both see the old TV in the kitchen, the screen flickering to life as the NGTV channel came on, Gayle Gossip in studio this time. Unlike a few nights ago, in front of the Mayor's house. Cole shuddered as he recalled the scary words that came from the reporter's mouth, and was glad they decided to have a big sleepover that night.
"Good morning Ninjago! I'm Gayle Gossip from NGTV, bringing you, our loyal citizens and faithful watchers, up to speed with everything Ninjago! This morning, we received meagre information from the Police Commissioner regarding the unfortunate...murders of the Mayor and his wife, Sunday night." Gayle beckoned to the camera shy head of police, who side-stepped into view, coughing into his fist.
"Uh, mornin' Ninjago. I hope everyone is keeping safe and healthy. Now as Miss Gossip here kindly said, the information I have to offer you is not much, however, the magnitude of it will affect all of Ninjago City." There, he wrung his hands. "Effective tomorrow morning, a curfew will be installed. Residents of Ninjago City and the outskirts will only be allowed outside from seven o'clock to eight thirty everyday. This is because Ninjago has seen an unexpected surge in dangerous crime recently, and we want to protect our citizens. If you do not obey...I advise you too."
He darted off quickly as Gayle stepped back into focus. "Thank you Commissioner, and citizens, I beg you to take heed of his warnings. Despite the fact that we are avoiding it, someone must say these fateful words. Ninjago City is no longer safe with a murderer on the loose, and we must all be careful. Since the Mayor is incapcitated, his Deputy will be standing in for him until the elections. That said, the Old Ninjago party will not be running anymore. The Deputy has expressed her need to take a break from politics given all the recent drama. That's all for now, and I hope your day is as good as ours!"
Lou switched the channel to some nature documentary as they continued to eat, the only sound the scraping against the plate. Cole offered to wash everything up, and Lou dried the dishes after him.
"I'll pick you up from school today, after football practice. I don't want you walking home or using the bus while that criminal is on the loose. Probably from the Sons of Garmadon." His father shuddered. "Please keep safe, Cole. Ninjago City is dangerous at the moment, and you...having what you have, might attract some unwanted attention."
"Right." he mumbled. They hadn't talked about his elemental powers since Lou had given him his mother's journal. Now, he felt guilty about keeping it to himself, never once considering that his father would have wanted to read it. A selfish part of him that he disliked argued that his father had spent much more time with Lily than he had. "You know, when mum died...was it because of me?"
The cane in Lou's hand slipped from his grasp. "No! Of course not Cole, why would you ever think that?"
"Just, in her journal she mentioned that after she gave birth to me, she got sick. It's kind of obvious I gave her some disease or infection or something." The tears brimming in his eyes were full of salty regret and guilt.
Lou guided him to the living room gently. "Cole, your mother was an incredibly strong woman. Her gift gave her a strong immune system, but she was diagnosed with stage one lung cancer shortly after you were born. You had nothing to do with it, Cole. Elemental masters heal very quickly, but even that couldn't stop her from dying. We just delayed it for as long as possible. She wanted to give you time."
Cole stared at the ground. So that was why she coughed so much. He stood up shakily, brushing away the tears with a sniffle. "Thanks for telling me, dad. I'm going to...yeah."
"I love you, Cole."
"Love you too dad."
And I love you too, mum.
skylor
Meditation was relaxing, especially after Liam chewed her ear off for something she didn't remember doing.
The little room behind the lockers was a mess, but Skylor was far too tired to bother cleaning things up as her terrible headache was pounding at her head. She sipped at her water, checking the time on her phone. She'd have to hurry and leave now to get to class on time, but it hardly mattered since Dareth was filling in for the Politics section of their History class and they'd probably be watching a movie
True to her thoughts, Dareth ambled in ten minutes late, but with some form of lesson plan he drew up on the board.
"Today, wee kids, we're covering the murder of the Mayor and his wife, as well as the impact it will have on Ninjago." Dareth looked grimly at all of them. "I'm also required to teach you safety measures and protection skills. This class would have been taught by that Vance guy, but, he's dead, so there's that. Trust me, I'd rather show you all a movie but the school is concerned, and yaddah yaddah, here we are."
The class stared at the usually uncomposed man. Dareth stared back, and then brought out a milkshake from behind him.
"I'll give this to anyone who can tell me when the crime occured, what motives and suspects the police provided and so on."
A girl named Hannah cleared her throat nervously, and Nya, from across the room, shot Zane and Skylor concerned looks which she reciprocated.
"They were, um, found, at seven thirtyish by their daughter, Harumi. And uh, because the elections were so close it might be a way to get rid of them?" Hannah's voice quirked up at the end, and the class went silent as Dareth passed her the milkshake.
"Terrible, terrible news. Anything else?"
"The police found a Sons of Garmadon card and a Serpentine scale, which leads to the gang. They might be trying to interfere with the election or something." Nya said, grimacing at the floor.
"Very good uh, assumption Miss Smith!" Dareth tossed her a squished mint and Skylor rolled her eyes. He obviously had come into the lesson with one question, a few treats and nothing else. "Now we don't really have much information, which makes this mystery all the more...ahem, mysterious. Now, in the unlikely case you're in danger, does anyone know some self-defence moves to get you out of a tricky situation?"
"Mr Dareth, didn't you say you were a martial arts champion when you were younger?" called out Jareth.
"Well yes, but," Dareth stammered, flustered and patting at his pockets. "That was a long time ago. Anyone?"
The class was silent, until a hoarse voice said "I can."
Dareth took a double take at the role. "Who are you?"
"Astra Harlow. I switched from Art to History."
"Right. Take it away!" Dareth cheered.
"Yeah, with whatever you learnt from a Google article!" laughed Jake, slapping his friends on the back.
"You think you can do better?" the new girl crossed her arms. Skylor wanted to call out and tell her this was a very bad idea. She was obviously injured with a knee brace supporting her left leg, and she was the same stick build Skylor had. Not useful for fighting. Additionally, Jake was on the football team and worked out three times a week (or so he claimed), and had a background of kickboxing (again, a claim that seemed pretty solid).
"Yeah." he shrugged. "I'll fight you to prove it."
"Woah, woah!" Dareth laughed nervously. "No need for that...or is there?" the entertainer and showman inside of him awoke and Skylor groaned internally. She was pitying the poor girl already.
The class whooped excitedly, with the exception of Nya and Zane, who probably were preparing themselves for the worst along with her.
"Outside, wee ones!" ushered Dareth, a terrible role model and example of a teacher. Still, the class was hungry for entertainment and distraction from the outside world and pushed and shoved to get outside to the courtyard. It was a square area of grass near the back of the school that didn't have enough room to turn into a classroom, and students mostly came back there for privacy, or to make out.
The girl and Jake walked to the centre of the courtyard, the latter working up the crowd with jumps and cheers, the former pulled aside by a blonde kid and a girl with shiny black hair. They both looked like they were telling Astra off, but the girl ignored them and laughed quietly at whatever they were saying, flipping the ends of her two braids over her shoulder. Nya and Zane shuffled to Skylor's side as everyone got ready, settling on the stone steps around the yard.
"She's going to get smashed." Nya whispered.
Zane said nothing, and watched with intelligent eyes.
Dareth paraded around the square once, and then strode to the middle. "I don't want any bad, um, stuff, you know? Just show what you'd do in your situation. Astra, you can be the attacker, Jake you can be the defender."
"But aren't girls more likely to get attacked? I should be the attacker, right boys?" Jake smirked to the crowd.
"That's true," Astra countered. "The chances are low, but never zero. Hands up, idiot."
Jake took a bit longer than needed to process this, and Astra's hand shot out, aiming for his nose. He barely managed to get the back of his forearm up to deflect the blow.
"Lucky shot." someone muttered next to her. Skylor hated to agree with them as Jake launched a flurry of blows towards the poor girl. Her reflexes were even faster than his as she ducked and weaved out of the way, a thin smile on her face as she dropped to the ground in a relaxed squat. Jake laughed and prepared his next attack when she tumbled forwards naturally, dived for his right ankle with her hands and whilst on her back, she used her momentum to flip them both over in a corkscrew movement. Jake lay there on the ground for several seconds, panting and heavily winded while Astra got to her feet, brushing off her hands.
The crowd gasped as Jake scrambled to his feet. "Oh, you are so in for it you bitch."
Astra laughed and ducked his next wild punches easily. While avoiding his attacks, she dictated loudly, "Focus on the vulnerable areas. Eyes, nose, groin, and throat—" she stepped into a side kick delivered at the last area, but Jake swept her legs away and threw her to the floor.
"I must admit, it was a surprise you're somewhat passable," Jake panted, cracking his neck.
Astra's eyes narrowed as he stalked away, focused on something inked on the back of his ankle. Skylor tried to look at it closer, but the girl got to her feet and tossed back her braids.
"Don't aim for the chest." She said, and promptly did so, smacking her elbow into Jake's chest. He cockily laughed as he deflected her next attacks, counter striking efficiently.
"How are they both..." Nya trailed off.
Skylor was equally confused. She'd seen the popular boys rough house before and Jake had never shown this amount of expertise. Dareth was fully enjoying himself when Skylor was pretty sure he should be putting a stop to the fight. She watched as Astra threw two pathetic punches, gauging Jake's counters before repeating the same movement. Again, and again, she punched the same way, until Jake finally got riled up, growling and winding back his fist. She struck, spinning into a back hook kick that launched him a good few metres back.
"Not bad," the girl grudgingly complimented. "But kind of bad, since I beat you."
"Whatever." Jake grunted, stemming the flow from his nose with his shirt. "But a real life situation wouldn't go like that."
"It might," shrugged Astra, turning to the crowd. "But remember, eys, throat, groin and neck. Don't go for the chest, use what you have on hand. If anything, you should avoid going to shifty areas where gangs like the Serpentine can attack you." Her gaze shifted to Jake at those words as she wiped away the blood at her lip. "Work on your temper. It's easy to get you mad like a bull."
Then she walked away as the bell rang, her two friends dashing after her. Skylor cocked her head, but the drama was broken up and everyone headed to class. Eyes, throat, groin and neck, she told herself, walking to the cafeteria for break. She mimed punching those areas on an imaginary figure who looked a bit like Liam, and grabbed her snack, wondering if she could dare sit with her friends today. But Liam was beckoning to her, and she felt bad for Harumi, who was sitting silently at the end of their table, her hair twisted into a low bun, her face free of makeup and her hands stuck to her phone.
*tw:sexual assault*
"Sky!" Liam grinned, pulling her close. Skylor hid the shiver that crawled down her back at such sudden contact and tried to put some distance between them, but Liam held on, shooting her a tense smile.
Skylor ignored him as his hand wrapped around her waist tighter. She was eating her apple, keeping up the small talk with the rest of the table when his hand went up her skirt. Skylor froze and snapped her head to look at Liam, but he was busy talking to Chad, Jake and Kai. Her heart beat faster the longer his hand stayed there, doing things that should not be done, especially in the cafeteria. It was when he dared to try and flick the band of her underwear when she tried to stand up, but he forced her down with a smile and continued talking.
Skylor knew she had to get out of there, but there was no easy way to overthrow a freaking football player.
Eyes, nose, throat and groin.
Her eyes crossed to the half eaten apple, or the heavy napkin dispenser, and Skylor knew what to do. Trembling as his hand continued, Skylor faked reaching for a napkin, instead bringing the whole dispenser closer. Her left hand held the apple, her right the dispenser. She counted down quickly, and in a flash Skylor threw the apple as hard as she could at Liam's throat, and chucked the dispenser at his groin, satisfied as he yelped and his hand withdrew from her skirt.
Sensing the cafeteria had eyes on them, Liam scowled, holding his throat with one hand.
"Sit. Down."
"No thanks." she muttered, fisting her hand. "We're done."
"What?"
"I said we're done, dickhead." Skylor called louder.
"YES! You go queen!" someone yelled from across the room.
She didn't feel like a queen right now, just a scared girl who needed to run.
Liam rose from his seat, but was stopped when Kai forced him down by the shoulders. Skylor took the opportunity to flee the scene, gathering her books as she fled for the toilets, unable to stop sobbing in fear and panic as she locked herself into a stall. Her hair fell loose from the braid and formed a safe curtain around her as her body shook with tears, ruining her makeup, but it was ruining the makeup she'd never liked anyway.
Skylor gagged as she touched her own skin, changing out of the outfit Liam had chosen for her into Chen's merch, and a pair of tracksuit pants, hiccuping and blinking through the tears.It hadn't been the first time. He'd gone too far, far enough that she knew it was so wrong of him, and she couldn't stand it anymore. Being his little plaything, showing up to parties and school dolled up and by his side, having every aspect of her life controlled by him.
At first it had been small signs she'd ignored, red flags she brushed aside because she actually felt she liked him. And then he started advising her on what to wear, what to look like, how to talk, act, and walk. He didn't let her go anywhere without him, except that brief, wonderful holiday at the monastery when she was free of him. He got jealous when she so much as spoke with other guys, holding her hand so tight she bruised the next day.
Everything was too muddled right now to think properly, but Skylor knew one thing.
The next time she was ready to see Liam, his face would resemble a six year old's drawing.
When she was ready.
A/N: Please check out
for more information on sexual assault. I am always here if you need to talk. As I've said before, this book has some pretty mature topics in it, but that's pretty much as far as it will go. Nothing detailed. Iit isn't very detailed or explicit, just the simple doings. Being honest, i have seen a lot of unwarned content on wattpad which i think is a lot more detailed than this, and i hope i've written it appropriately with the research and resources i had. If you want me to take out/redo this chapter please pm me!
-dommie out