I think Lloyd's mischievousness is rubbing off on Nalia.
Nya are finally giving Nalia the talk about love.
We are getting some fluff. >:3
____________________________________________________________
Nalia looked over the railing with Lloyd and watched some kids playing together in Jamanakai Village.
Lloyd sighed, causing Nalia to look at him, wondering what was on his mind.
"Lloyd? Lloyd! Concentrate!" Lloyd just looks at Kai.
"Now that the Bounty is in our possession again, we can train you more effectively. But you'll have to focus—one more time," said Zane.
"Oh, but we've been training all day," said Lloyd.
"Come on, guys, let him have a break," said Nalia.
Cole looks over at Nalia, shaking his head. "It's all to get you ready to face your father. Now, in position."
"Well, this is a pain in the ass." said Nalia, getting in position.
"Language, Lia." said the ninjas.
"Sorry." said Nalia.
Lloyd sighed as he came up to the middle of the deck as the ninjas put their hoods on and yawned before posing as they did so as well.
Lloyd sighs. "Whatever."
Kai charges at Lloyd first, but he punches him, knocking him back, and yawns again. Zane, Nalia, and Jay soon come at him from the air.
"Ninja, go!" Lloyd does Spinjitzu, knocking all three of them down.
As Lloyd lands, Cole comes up to him from behind and slide-kicks him, knocking him into the air. As he spins, Lloyd lands facedown as the others take off their hoods in concern.
"That was fun. Are we done?" Lloyd asked, not in the mood for anymore training.
"Oh, come on. You're better than this. What's on your mind?" said Jay.
Nalia walks over and holds out her hand.
Lloyd takes her hand and gets up. "Well... The latest issue of Starfarer just came in at Doomsday Comix, and it's a limited run, so if I don't go out and get it, it will sell out. The Imperial Sludge surrounded the last they left off, intergalactic rogue Fritz Donnegan, and if I don't find out if he gets out alright, I think I might have my doomsday."
"The fate of Ninjago rests on your shoulders. As the Green Ninja, you have a giant responsibility to hold. I'm sorry, but you don't have time for such childish things." said Kai.
"Other kids get to play and have fun. All I ever do is train," said Lloyd.
Nalia followed him over to the railing as she gently took his hand. "I get how you feel; I've lived in a cave most of my life. So I never had anyone my age to play and have fun with."
Nya comes up from below deck. "Guys, there's been a break-in at the Ninjago City Museum of History and the security cameras picked up you-know-who."
"Garmadon!" said Cole.
"We have to stop him before he uses the Mega Weapon to start another one of the dilogicbal plots." said Jay.
Lloyd and Nalia approach them, hoping to come, but they look at both of them, causing them to sigh.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I can't go and it's safer if I stay here and train." said Lloyd.
"Yeah, yeah. I need to stay here and protect Lloyd and keep him safe from any danger," said Nalia, rolling her eyes.
They nod, causing Lloyd and Nalia to fold their arms in disappointment.
Lloyd sighs. "Too old for comic books and too young to fight. When are they gonna make up their minds?"
"I don't know, Lloyd." said Nalia, shaking her head.
"Come on, pint size. Show me what you got," said Nya, but Lloyd yawned before walking away, with Nalia following him.
"Do you want to play some video games or maybe read some comics?" Nalia suggested, hoping to lift his mood. "I know where they are hiding the candy, " she whispered.
A smile grew on Lloyd's face as he looked at her. "You get the candy; I get the comics."
"You got it, greenie." Nalia giggled as she ran to where the guys were hiding the candy.
After getting some candy, Nalia met up with Lloyd, who was already busy reading one of the comics. So she went to sit next to him with the candy. "Mission done, I got the candy." She picked up one of the comics and began reading.
"Nice going, starlight. I had every faith in you returning from your mission," said Lloyd, grabbing some of the candy and eating it before going back to reading his comic.
Nalia grabbed some candy while reading her comic, but she didn't notice until her hand touched Lloyd's.
They both looked up from their comics and looked at where those hands were.
Lloyd's face was turning red like a tomato and he quickly pulled his hand back. "Y-you take first."
A slight blush grew on Nalia's face, and she wasn't sure what this feeling was. She had been holding his hand many times without any thought about it. But this time, it felt a little different. "O-okay." She took some candy and got back to reading her comic.
They stayed quiet after that and kept reading their comics until they heard Nya's and Wu's voices, catching their attention. They looked at each other before giving a slight nod and then got up and snuck over to the door so they could listen.
"Oh, they should be back by now." said Nya.
"Oh, I fear something horrible has happened to them." Wu turns to Lloyd and Nalia, who is eavesdropping. "Lloyd, Nalia," Lloyd gasps before quickly grabbing Nalia's hand, pulling her over to the comics, and having them switch their comic books for lesson books. "You two are in charge of the Bounty while Nya and I have a look around town."
"Okay, we can do that," said Nalia, acting like she was reading her book.
"Uh, yeah. Sure thing," said Lloyd before Wu walked away and returned to the comic book. "Okay, Fritz Donnegan, looks like it's just gonna be you, me, Lia, and the Imperial Sludge."
Nalia giggled softly as she dropped her lesson book. "I can't believe you made me do that."
"What? It wasn't lying, so there shouldn't be any problems." said Lloyd.
"I know that, but I'm starting to think you're a bad influence on me." joked Nalia.
Lloyd looked up at her with a smirk on his face. "Oh, really now."
"Yeah, being all mischievous," said Nalia, smiling at him.
Lloyd chuckles at that. "Nothing wrong about being mischievous at times, it can be very useful at times."
"Like what times?" Nalia asked, putting down her comic and raising an eyebrow.
"Hmmm, like... now." Lloyd jumped at her and began tickling her.
Nalia started laughing out loud and tried pushing him away, but he wasn't letting her, so she tickled him back, making them laugh until they lay on the floor, breathing heavily.
"You're the worst." Nalia giggles ever too slightly.
"And yet, you still see me as your friend." chuckles Lloyd.
Nalia rolled her eyes playfully before sitting up. "Wanna take a break from the comics and play video games?"
"Sure, we do have the whole ship for ourselves." Lloyd took up and offered her a hand that she gladly took.
"Loser does the dishes for a week," said Nalia.
"Oh, you're on, starlight." said Lloyd.
"Bring it, greenie," said Nalia.
*Sometime later, on the Bounty, Lloyd and Nalia are playing a video game on the console when a nearby phone rings. Lloyd struggles to answer it while still playing the game, trying not to lose to Nalia, before he manages to grab the phone but drops it.*
"Whoa!" Lloyd puts the phone on speaker while resuming his game. "Destiny's Bounty."
"What's your order?" Added Nalia, causing Lloyd to hold back a snicker.
"Lloyd, Nalia, it's Jay! Let me talk to Sensei!" Jay said over the phone.
"Jay? Where are you? Why haven't you returned? Sensei's out looking for you." said Lloyd.
Jay groans. "Apparently, you need parental permission to take the bus and we can't seem to get out of the city!"
"What?" Nalia looked over at Lloyd, confused.
"Uh, what?" said Lloyd, looking at Nalia confused.
"Oh, never mind, it's a bit complicated. Just meet us at Buddy's Pizza in ten minutes. And bring our weapons." said Jay.
"Weapons?" Lloyd falls off the seat and loses in the game.
"Well, we now know who does the dishes for a week," said Nalia, turning off the game and TV.
"Okay, maybe I am a terrible influence." Chuckles Lloyd, getting up.
Nalia giggles, taking his hand as they went to get the weapons.
*At Buddy's Pizza, Lloyd and Nalia head inside and look around for their friends, noticing a guy with a gopher mask approaching the counter.*
"Really? Of all places we could meet, you pick this place?" said Cole.
"What? I like their pizza." said Jay.
Nalia looked around curiously, while following close behind Lloyd until they heard someone whispering to them.
Kai whispered. "Psst, Lloyd, Nalia." Lloyd and Nalia turns to him.
Nalia raised an eyebrow until she noticed the faint elemental aura around those four kids.
Lloyd didn't recognize Kai while holding the ninja's weapons. "Beat it, brat! we're on a mission." He goes to move again, but Nalia quickly grabs his hand.
"Lloyd, it is them. I can see their auras," said Nalia.
Lloyd raised an eyebrow at her before turning his head and looking closer to see their friends, all as young as them, and gasps, dropping their weapons. "Whoa. What happened? You're, uh, uh, small!"
*Everyone in the restaurant turns to look at them.*
Kai whispered. Keep it down. We're trying to lay low." He turned back to a normal kid's voice. "Your father's Mega Weapon not only turned us into kids but unleashed a creature whose sole purpose is to hunt down ninjas."
"Oh, I thought it might have been something else." said Nalia.
"Typical Garmadon." said Cole.
"And now, every time we try to tell someone," Lloyd and Nalia picks up their weapons. "they won't believe us, 'cause we're kids." said Jay.
Lloyd and Nalia laughs.
"What's so funny?" Kai asked.
"Well, I guess you now know what it feels like to be treated differently." Lloyd and Nalia throw their weapons onto the table.
"Look, this is serious. If we don't turn big to use our Spinjitzu, we don't stand a chance against the Grundle," said Zane.
"Grundle? I don't think I've read about that one," said Nalia.
"Well, what about me and Lia? We know Spinjitzu," said Lloyd.
"Yeah, but you don't know the Grundle. We all need to be at full strength. What we need to do first is find someone who might know more about defeating one of those things, " said Kai as Lloyd noticed a kid reading a "Starfarer" comic.
"Lloyd, focus." said Cole.
"I am. I think I know just the guy." said Lloyd.
Nalia raised an eyebrow at him. "Who else does he know?"
*They come up to Doomsday Comix and enter it.*
"You brought us to a comic book store?" Cole questioned.
Nalia looked around with sparkly eyes; seeing so many comic books caught her attention. "Whoa, so much."
A smile grew on Lloyd's face, reflected by Nalia's reaction to the store before focusing on the mission. "Trust me. If there's anyone who knows how to defeat a monster that doesn't exist, I know just the person to talk to." They start walking along the store.
Kai stops Lloyd. "We're not coming to pick out your stupid comic, Lloyd! This is serious business."
Jay grabs a comic book, gasping. "Oh, look. A first edition "Daffy Dale." I used to love that nut growing up." He laughs before he soon clears his throat. "So juvenile."
Lloyd guides his embarrassed friends and Nalia to the register, where a man with a ponytail and beard sits.
"Fellas, meet Rufus McCallister, AKA Mother Doomsday." said Lloyd.
"Well, if it isn't Lloyd "Hemorrhoid" Garmadon." said Rufus as Jay catches up with the others. "Sorry if you came looking for the latest "Starfarer," I'm all sold out."
"Wh—Sold out?" Lloyd screams, causing everyone to look at him. "Oh, actually, Mother Doomsday, we need help."
"That's why he wanted to go here." Nalia thought confused.
"Well, color me intrigued." said Rufus.
"We have a problem. There's a Grundle on the loose and we need to know how to deal with it." said Lloyd.
"Oh, a theoretical question." said Rufus misunderstanding it.
"Yeah, theoretical. Can you help?" Lloyd questioned.
Rufus lowers his seat, gets off and comes out from behind the register.
"Dromaeosaurid Theropod Grundalicus. Phew! Although extinct, there has been a plethora of film, television and comics exploring the mythology around the primordial predator." Rufus grabs a nearby comic, showing the Grundle. "Supposedly, they always get their prey."
"Sounds like he knows his stuff." said Kai.
"Sounds very interesting." said Nalia.
The ninjas looked at her.
"For the info, we need help," said Nalia with a small smile. "Lloyd is so rubbing off on me."
Lloyd pushes through Zane and Kai. "Can it be stopped?"
"First thing you need to know is its thick shell-like hide is invincible to swords, scythes, nunchucks, staffs and throwing stars. So your cheap imitations will do nothing to slow him down." said Rufus.
"Would actual stars and meteors work on it?" Nalia wondered.
"Swell." said Cole.
"Second of all, it's nocturnal and will only hunt at night." said Rufus.
"Oh, good. It's still daylight, so we can relax for a bit." They look outside a window before Rufus looks at Jay, suspiciously before Kai clears his throat. "Uh, I meant theoretically."
"And the only way to defeat it is with light." Rufus puts the comic back. "Like a vampire, with enough of it, it could potentially destroy him." He comes up to a display. "If I had my weapons of choice, may I recommend the Illuma-Sword?" He opens the display case, revealing four purple bladed Illuma-Swords. "These are authentic replicas that would come in handy were you to live long enough to actually face a Grundal. And if swords are your thing," He points to another case. "maybe I can interest you in an authentic ninja gi," The display has Kai, Zane, Jay, and Cole's ZX Gi inside. "signed by the very ninjas that saved the city."
"Okay, why am I left out of this." Nalia narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, not finding it fair.
"Uh, we'll just take the light swords." Kai goes up to the fake Illuma-Swords and is about to grab one before Rufus stops him.
"Not so fast. This "Starfarer" combo pack can only be won in the Fritz Donnegan Trivia Battle Royale." Rufus points to a fan, dressed like Fritz Donnegan, talking to some cosplayers. "You have what it takes to be the best?"
"You can do this, Lloyd." said Jay.
"Sign me up." said Lloyd.
"I know you can do it Lloyd." said Nalia smiling at him.
"Looks like you've already got yourself a fangirl, Lloyd." said Rufus, going on to sign him up.
A small blush grew on Lloyd's face as he cleared his throat. "This is gonna be a piece of cake."
*Later at night time, at Doomsday Comix, Lloyd and the fan are on a stand. Jay is eating cotton candy with Nalia, who is busy reading comic books.*
"It's down to the final two. This question is for Lloyd." said Rufus.
"Lloyd! Lloyd! Lloyd!" the crowd chanted.
Nalia looked up from the comic she was reading, and smiled at him. "Go! Lloyd!"
"What is Fritz Donnegan's famous catchphrase?" Rufus questioned.
"Fear? Fear is not a word from where I come from." Lloyd answered.
"Correct! We're all tied up." said Rufus.
The crowd and Nalia cheered as the fan looked at Lloyd, who smirked at him. As they keep celebrating, Zane looks out the window.
"It's getting dark. The Grundal will be on the prowl soon." said Zane, turning to Cole.
"Don't worry. I got faith Lloyd can win those Illuma-Swords." said Kai, until they soon hear slurping and turn to Jay, who is eating some cotton candy with Nalia. "Is this really the best time to be eating cotton candy?"
"It makes me feel young. Deal with it." said Jay.
"I haven't had this before, so Jay offered me some. It's very sweet," said Nalia, smiling, as she finished the twentieth comic she had been reading.
"How did you read so many comics, in such a short time?" Cole asked.
"I like reading, and these comics were very interesting." Nalia shrugged.
"Final question. The first person to answer this will win." Rufus turns to the competitors. "In the latest issue of "Starfarer," how did Fritz Donnegan escape the Imperial Sludge?"
Lloyd struggles to find the answer. "But I haven't read the latest issue!"
"By reversing the polarity of the ship's gravity transducer." answered the fan.
"We have a winner!" said Rufus.
"Well, that's bullshit." said Nalia.
"Language, Lia." said the ninjas.
"Sorry." said Nalia.
Lloyd looks to see the ninjas are disappointed while the rest of the crowd cheers. Pretty soon, the lights shake before the power goes out.
"What just happened?" Nalia asked.
"Who shut off the power?" Rufus asked.
Everyone looks up at the sound of the disturbance as the sign falls off.
"It's here." said Kai.
"What's here?" Rufus asked confused.
"You know that theoretical discussion we had earlier?" Jay chuckles.
*The Grundle appears on the glass roof.*
"Not the..." The Grundal steps on the glass, cracking it before looking down. "Grundle!" said Rufus.
Zane amid the screaming kids "We've got to get out of here." They run up to the door, but it is blocked by the fallen down sign. "The door is jammed, we can't get out."
"Let me try," said Nalia, walking over as she rolled her shoulder, getting ready for a punch.
"Lia, don't, we can't risk you breaking down the whole building." said Kai.
"If I can punch, then I'll just bite through it." said Nalia.
"Even with your strong bites, it will take too long to get through," said Cole.
They look up to see the Grundle move along the roof.
"Look! It's coming!" said Jay.
The Grundle breaks through the glass roof, landing in the store.
"Agh! We're doomed!" Jay screamed.
"Doomed as Britts Subskian in Phoenix War page 15." said Rufus.
The Grundle swings its tail at Rufus and the kids, making them dodge as they scream. As it looks at them, the Grundle's tail breaks the glass on the display case to the ninja's ZX gis.
Nalia went on to make a sand shield around Rufus and the other kids. That way, as long as she could keep her focus, they wouldn't be in any danger.
"Quick! This way!" They run down a nearby section as the Grundle returns to where the ninjas originally were. Jay grabs Kai's gi as Zane and Kai grab some Illuma-Swords, and they immediately glow.
"Hey, McNasty, I thought ninja were on your menu!" said Cole.
Nalia pulled over her hood, and stood closer to the ninjas.
The Grundle turns to the ninjas, wearing their gis while holding the Illuma-Swords. They wave them in front of the Grundle, who backs away a bit.
"It's working!" said Jay.
They start moving forward, waving the Illuma-Swords as they do so before Jay jumps at it and strikes it, but his Illuma-Sword immediately breaks and stops glowing as he slides back. Kai jumps at the Grundal next and strikes, but his Illuma-Sword also breaks and stops glowing.
"Stupid toy." Kai strikes the Grundle at its leg.
Zane jumps onto the Grundle and hits it with his Illuma-Sword, but it breaks and stops glowing as he lands near the others.
"Argh! Uh-oh!" shouted Zane.
"Oh. We got a problem, guys." said Jay.
The Grundle knocks them into the register as Kai, Jay, and Zane drop their broken Illuma-Swords. The Grundal approaches them as it growls and opens its mouth, causing them to scream.
"Hey! Ugly!" shouted Nalia, getting its attention as she held her staff, ready to fight.
"Lia! What are you doing? Did you forget normal weapons don't work on it!" shouted Jay.
"Then how about I give it some light!" Nalia took a deep breath, focusing on summoning a few stars around her staff that were glowing brightly. "Now, you back off from my friends. Before I decide to get serious."
The Grundle began backing away from them as Nalia swung around her glowing staff. But she wasn't sure how long she could keep this up since she had never summoned ten stars at once. Only four so far.
She ran at it and swung her staff, hitting its leg and causing it to stumble back into some shelves.
"Go! Nalia!" the ninjas cheered.
Nalia was already breathing heavily from that swing as she noticed she was now down to six glowing stars on her staff. "Well, this isn't good. Better try and finish this quickly."
"Ninja! Go!" Nalia used spinjitzu while swinging around her staff as she attacked the Grundle. Knocking it over, but not enough to beat it. She looked at her staff and noticed only two stars left. "Shit."
"Nalia! Watch out!" shouted the ninjas.
"What?" Nalia looked up for a second only to be knocked back against the registering counter by the Grundle using its tail.
"Lia!?" The ninjas rushed over to check on her and saw that she had lost consciousness.
"We are so doomed!" screamed Jay.
Lloyd raised the seat behind the register. "Not to worry, I'll take care of this."
"Lloyd!"
Lloyd summons his Energy power, the light affecting the Grundle as it backs away. The others cheer, but the Grundle soon uses its tail to knock Lloyd down.
"Oh, gross!" said Kai.
"This is the end, isn't it?" said Cole.
The front door soon opens, revealing Nya, who kicks it, and Wu as the ninjas turn to them.
"Everyone out!" shouted Nya to the crowd.
The crowd, sans Rufus, run out the door as Wu holds up a jar of tea.
"Use this!" Wu throws it to them.
"What is it?" Jay asked, catching it.
"It'll turn forward the hands of time, turning you old and reducing the Grundal back to dust and bones." They jump onto the fallen register. "But be careful, there's no turning back." said Wu.
"Grundal, prepare to be extinct!" said Jay, holding up the Tomorrow's Tea.
Cole stops him. "No, wait." He holds his Illuma-Sword at the Grundal. "What will happen to Lloyd and Nalia?" They looked at Lloyd and then at Nalia, who was still unconscious against the counter. "They'll grow old, too."
"Just do it." said Lloyd.
"Both of you will miss out on the rest of your childhood, dude," Jay said.
"We can't do that to you two. It's not fair!" said Kai.
The Grundal strikes the last Illuma-Sword, knocking it out of Cole's hand.
"Oh, no!" said Cole.
The Grundal chomps at them, making them fall as the Tomorrow's Tea soon lands on Lloyd as the Grundal comes closer.
"Fair? Fair isn't a word from where I come from." Lloyd gets up and throws the tea at the Grundal.
The Grundle growls as Wu and Nya are shocked.
"He used it!" said Wu.
The Grundle spins as its skin dissolves away.
"And it's working!" said Nya.
The Grundle is again a skeleton as it soon comes apart. Kai, Cole, Jay, and Zane soon stand up, removing their hoods and returning to their original ages.
"What happened? We're not kids anymore." said Cole, now back to his normal voice.
"It worked!" said Nya.
"They are the real ninjas." said Rufus surprised.
Wu gasps. "But what about Lloyd and Nalia?" Everyone is concerned.
Lloyd stands up, now as old as his friends with more hair, and he and the others are shocked, deep-voiced. "I'm... older." He looks at himself.
"The time for the Green Ninja to face his destiny has grown nearer." said Wu.
The other ninjas come up to Lloyd as he smiles.
"I'm ready." said Lloyd.
But then they heard a sneeze and turned around, seeing a blue fire sneeze coming out of some of the rubble.
"Oww, that hurt," said Nalia, slowly getting up but unable to see anything. "Okay, who turn off the lights? I can't see anything."
(A minor side effect from the tea, since she lived in a cave that stopped her from aging, her bird nest of hair grew too long.)
(image)
Nalia tried taking a step but stumbled forward into someone. "W-who's there?" She asked.
"Wow, Lia, what happened to your hair?" asked Lloyd, though his voice was a little deeper, so she couldn't tell.
"Huh?" Nalia moved some of her hair to the side so she could see. When she saw the person standing in front of her was a bit taller than her, with blonde hair. She narrowed her eyes at him as she leaned closer towards him, staring right into his eyes.
"Ummm, Lia, w-what are you doing?" Lloyd asked, blushing ever so slightly by how close her face was to his.
"Interesting," said Nalia as she noticed a faint green color in his eyes slowly growing.
"W-what?" Lloyd questioned, now very confused.
Nalia snapped out of staring at his eyes and only now noticed how close their faces were to each other. She quickly moved away as her face started turning red for some reason. "S-sorry." She said before letting out another fire sneeze.
"Great, I'm sick again." She complained and only now noticed her skin was itching.
The others laughed watching the two.
"How about I help fix your hair, Lia, after we've returned to the Bounty." Nya offered, walking over to them.
Nalia looked over at Nya before her bangs fell over her eyes again. "That would be nice; I don't like I can't see anything."
They prepare to leave the ruined building as Rufus stops Lloyd while holding a comic book.
"Here you go, Lloyd. You can have my copy of Starfarer." Rufus sniffles a bit. "You deserve it."
"That's okay." Lloyd lowers it. "I already know how it ends." He leaves to catch up with the others.
*Later, on the Bounty.*
"Are we soon done, Nya? I've been sitting here for hours, and while I love being lazy, I don't like sitting like this for hours." Nalia complained while sitting in their shared bedroom and getting her hair trimmed.
"Almost, just one sec, and there we go. All done," said Nya, as she grabbed a mirror and gave it to Nalia so she could see what Nya had done with her hair.
(image)
"Wow, this looks great!" Nalia smiled, liking her new look. She even noticed she had gotten golden freckles, but if she looked closer, tiny golden scales formed into them.
"Just wait until Lloyd sees you. I'm sure he won't be able to take his eyes off you," said Nya.
"W-what?" Nalia's face started turning red.
"Come on, girl, we all know you both have a crush on each other," said Nya.
"A crush?" Nalia tilted her head in confusion.
"Oh, boy. This might take longer than I thought it would," said Nya, placing her hands on her hips.
"What?" Nalia became more confused.
"Alright, Lia, time for some serious talk about boys, crushes, love, and feelings," said Nya.
"Can't I take a break and stretch my legs first? I've been sitting here for so long." Nalia groans.
"No, you aren't moving until we talk, not since you both are older now," said Nya.
Nalia let out an annoyed groan. "She is worse than the old man."
*5 hours later.*
"And that's what those feelings mean, now do you understand? Or do I need to repeat myself 51 times?" said Nya, looking exhausted and slightly annoyed at how long a tiny, simple explanation took five hours.
Nalia let out a yawn, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "I think so."
"You think so? Or do you know so? Do I have to explain it again?" Nya asked.
"Oh, mangos, I wish I had the old man here instead of Nya. He would have at least stopped after the tenth time." Nalia thought to herself. "No, no, I've got it now."
"Good *yawns* because I'm going to bed now, and *yawns* it's almost 2 am," said Nya, going to her bed.
Nalia nodded before getting out of bed. "I'm going to get myself some tea for my sickness before I go to bed." She walked out of the room and headed to the kitchen.
"It's so strange being older, " she said, going into the kitchen and beginning to make her tea. Then she heard footsteps coming into the kitchen.
"Oh, Lia, I didn't think you were still u—" said Lloyd, but cut off his sentence when he got a better look at her, and he couldn't help but stare at her.
Nalia raised an eyebrow, looking at him. "I should ask you the same thing." She said.
Lloyd rubbed the back of his neck as he started blushing. "Couldn't sleep, so I decided to get something to drink." He walked over and sat down on the kitchen counter.
Nalia giggled ever so softly. "Nya wouldn't let me leave the room until she was done with my hair and then giving me an ooooh, so long a lesson. I swear she is worse than Sensei."
Lloyd couldn't help but laugh at her annoyance; it was rare to see her like this. It was probably because they were now older, so their emotions would be everywhere.
Nalia finished making her tea and began drinking it, feeling slightly better.
"I like your new look; you look good with long hair," said Lloyd, smiling at her.
Nalia couldn't help but blush at his compliment; she still wasn't used to these feelings, even with her long talk with Nya. She wasn't entirely sure about her feelings about Lloyd and whether they were more than just friends.
"T-thanks. You don't look too bad yourself," said Nalia, looking down at her tea. She was unable to look at him as her face was turning all red.
Lloyd was taken aback by what she said as he fell off the counter and down on the floor.
Nalia couldn't help but start laughing at his fall and held her hand for him to take.
Lloyd chuckled, taking her hand, and easily got back up, but he didn't stop holding her hand as he stared into her golden eyes.
Nalia couldn't take her eyes off him for some reason, and her face turned red again.
A soft smile grew on Lloyd's face as he noticed her face turning red; he was not used to seeing her like this.
Nalia wanted to say something but wasn't sure what, so when she tried to speak, she let out a fire sneeze, scaring them both as they let go of each other's hand.
It was silence at first until they both started laughing.
"I should probably head to bed; it's already very late," said Nalia, quickly finishing her tea.
"Yeah, I also have training tomorrow," said Lloyd, getting himself a glass of water.
"Hopefully, we can get used to having older bodies. I'm still trying not to trip over my legs," said Nalia before walking to the door. "Goodnight, Lloydie." She smiled at him before leaving and returning to Nya's room and her room.
"Night, Lia," said Lloyd, watching her leave with a soft smile until she was finally gone, and he splashed himself in the face with water. "What the fuck just happened there?"