Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Sometimes, Morro hated Lloyd Garmadon.

“Idiot,” Morro hissed, halfway carrying his baby cousin up his apartment stairs despite his protests. “How many times have I told you—”

“—Don't go through that area alone, I know Morro.”

“So why exactly, did I not only find you there, but—”

“Can we not talk about this right now?” Lloyd looked over with his bleeding lip and cut cheek. His eyes were dark red and tired. “Please?”

If it were anyone else, Morro would have continued, steamrolling over them in annoyance. But Lloyd—

“... Fine.” Morro huffed, trying to ignore the feeling in his gut at the sight of Lloyd bruised and bloody. It happened so often he should be used to it by now, but…

He briefly let go of his cousin to unlock his apartment, Lloyd watching him as he angrily shoved the key into the lock.

“I'm alright, Morro.” Lloyd said in a reassuring tone. He had a comforting expression on his face despite the way he was standing with his arm wrapped around his ribs and stance awkward. “I've had worse.”

Morro was glad there was no one else in the hallway because he just barely stopped himself from yelling. That doesn't make it better, he wanted to shout. This shouldn't have even happened in the first place. 

But he knew Lloyd hated making them upset more than he hated getting beat up. So Morro held his tongue and creaked open the door.

The apartment was the same it had always been, small with that one drafty window, but his nonetheless. It was a good place, close enough to college, but not too far from the Bounty or the warehouse. 

He remembered showing Wu and the relief in his eyes. “Are you sure you would not prefer to live closer to your studies?” he had reluctantly asked.

Morro had just shrugged. “It's close enough. Plus, this way I can pop over if there's an emergency. Win-win.” He said it with indifference, but he was pretty sure Wu saw right through him, gently clasping Morro's hand with shining eyes and a fond smile.

Morro tossed his keys aimlessly and beelined for the washroom, rifling through the cupboards for his big first-aid kit, something that was used more often than he liked. 

Lloyd stood awkwardly in the hall, wanting to help but ultimately deciding to stay put. 

Good, Morro thought. 

Maybe he was overreacting. Lloyd had been hurt worse before, fighting Garmadon or just in general.

But it always felt worse when it was like this, when Lloyd was attacked for no reason except sharing blood with a trigger-happy warlord, and being one of the kindest people Morro has ever known.

“Attachment issues, anger management problems, difficulty trusting, separation anxiety,” he remembered the social worker saying when Wu adopted him and they thought Morro was out of earshot. “That's the tricky part about giving a street kid a home.”

Sue Morro for being worried about his danger magnet of a little cousin. There was only a handful of people he knew were his, so the thought of losing any of them—

“Show me,” Morro said, gently pulling Lloyd to one of his dining chairs in hopes of saving his beat-up sofa from any blood stains.

Lloyd knew by now that there was no fighting Morro when he got hurt, accepting his fate of being fussed over the moment he was found. With a reluctant sigh, he pulled off his hoodie and shirt, revealing a lifetime of scars and ugly mottled bruising across his ribs. His wrist was sitting at a funny angle, and his arm had a rough gash, slightly dripping blood that Morro quickly wiped away.

“You're not staining my chairs this time,” Morro murmured. “Turn.”

Lloyd did, and Morro had to bite his tongue from the amount of scarring and scrapes. Lloyd didn't bruise easy, but he bruised quickly. His back was already a sickly shade of purple from being shoved into the ground repeatedly, skin even breaking from the impact. 

“Legs?”

“Might've scraped my knees, and maybe my ankle.”

Morro hummed, grateful Lloyd didn't try to hide it this time. He inspected his scalp, frowning when he saw a thin trail of blood trickling from underneath his blond hair. “How's your head?”

“I'm alright, Morro.”

“Dizzyness? Loss of memory?”

Lloyd huffed playfully. “Yeah. I forgot you could be worse than Mom.”

Morro rolled his eyes and fished out the small flashlight, checking his pupils. “Don't tell Koko that. She'll be offended if you think anyone could worry about you more than her.”

Morro got the disinfectants and started on his back, Lloyd hissing at him when he grazed over a cut. “You don't have to be so rough with it!”

Morro rolled his eyes and grazed over it again. “Well it's not my fault you decided to be an idiot."

Lloyd grumbled. “This stings more than when they beat me up.”

Morro flicked him on the back of his head (away from his injury of course) and Lloyd yelped in offense.

Lloyd continued to make idle conversation and complain, the mindless chatter easing the knot in Morro's stomach even though he knew for a fact it was all for show. 

Lloyd used to not say anything when Morro would patch him up. He'd barely flinch, still and compliant, taking stitches, antiseptic, whatever was necessary with a straight face.

“You're allowed to be a bitch about it y'know,” Morro said once, anxiety building from Lloyd's unresponsiveness. His voice wavered against his will and he still remembered the way Lloyd, his weird, little, overly empathetic cousin, looked at Morro like he could see right through him, gaze softening in understanding.

From then on, if Lloyd was complaining, it meant that they were going to be just fine.

“... Hey Morro?” Lloyd piped up after his nose was set back into place and bandaged. They were just about done, most of his cuts patched up with care. Morro turned to him, questioning, and Lloyd gave him a small smile. “Thank you.”

Morro paused, caught unexpectedly by the sincerity in his voice. He swallowed. “... Anytime, kid.”

It hurt, knowing his sunshine cousin was the target of so much misplaced cruelty. That to him, basic human decency was something rare and precious. He looked at Lloyd, at the bags under his eyes, bruises, cuts, and how despite all that, there was still an innocent glimmer in his expression that said everything's going to be okay.

He finished cleaning and wrapping the last of Lloyd's injuries and handed him a bag of frozen peas from the freezer. “How about this?” Morro said, newfound determination taking root. “You call Wu and your fruitloops of friendship, and say you're not coming to training today—”

“But—”

“—No buts, or First Master, I will rebreak your nose.” Morro deadpanned and Lloyd grumbled. “Call Wu, then I'll go get those candies you like from the vending machine downstairs, and we can boot up the new gaming system I got from the pawnshop.”

Lloyd's eyes lit up, anticipation radiating from him. “Seriously? Are you sure?” His voice was brimming with excitement, and Morro could almost forget he was wiping up his blood mere moments ago.

Morro smirked and ruffled his hair, fondness spreading warmly through his chest. “Yeah, squirt. I don't have a lotta work right now and… it's been awhile.”

Lloyd beamed and even if Morro did have work, it would have been worth it just for that.

“Stay put, you hear me?” Morro called behind him before closing the apartment door with a smile. He headed down to the lobby, change in his pocket. He would have brought Lloyd down with him if he wasn't injured, or if they weren't worried about him being harassed. Lloyd was adamant about not interacting with Morro that much in public, wanting to make sure no one knew they were related. As much as Morro hated it, wanting to shout and tell the world about his baby cousin with pride, he understood. 

(Lloyd getting ganged up on by kids, even adults twice his size for some twisted attempt at revenge—)

Morro was standing by the vending machine, counting quarters in his hands when the building started shaking. 

“What the—” 

The lady at the front desk screamed, and he could hear distant shouting coming from outside. The building shook again, almost knocking Morro to the floor and a siren went off, a siren he knew all too well. 

“Garmadon attack. Garmadon attack. Please take immediate shelter and—”

The building rumbled as a dark shadow passed over the lobby windows. 

Shit, Morro thought desperately, change forgotten.

Lloyd. 

He hurried up the stairs, a few steps at a time. All the ease from before vanished, replaced with a cold anxiety. His heart was beating fast as he bounded up floor by floor, grabbing onto the railing and stumbling when the building shook. He just prayed to FSM that his little cousin wouldn't—

He ripped open the door to the apartment, dread sinking in his gut. There was screaming outside, heard through the window left open and—

Lloyd was nowhere to be seen.

Chapter Text

Lloyd had every intention of staying put.

But of course, when did anything ever decide to go his way?

He was still grinning ear-to-ear after Morro shut the door, slipping on his shirt and hoodie over his bandages. Even though he felt bad about missing training, it had been awhile since just him and Morro had hung out, no strings attached. He tucked the tried and true frozen peas against his ribs, and drummed on his thigh in excitement.

Getting beat up sucked royally, but there was also something about realizing over and over again that Morro, his family, his teammates, really did care about him, that couldn't help but make him feel warm inside.

Then his phone rang. 

His stomach immediately dropped from the familiar siren ringtone, blaring and making the phone screen glow red.

Garmadon attack.

He knew he shouldn't. He was injured, and Morro—

Someone screamed outside, and he could hear the rest of the alarms sounding off. He heard a deep crashing in the distance, like thunder. 

Like Garmadon.

Any second thoughts were gone as he pocketed his phone and grabbed his gi from his school bag, ignoring the twinge in his ribs. Video games and candy forgotten, he opened the window, determined.

He could begin to see the shape of Garmadon's mech in the distance, people already running through the streets in panic.

He paused, before turning around to face the apartment door.

“... Sorry, Morro,” he whispered regretfully.

He jumped out of the window.

The wind whistled by his ears as he repelled down the side of the apartment, swinging through the bars the fire escape, albeit with much less grace than usual.

He hit the ground hard, almost toppling over when his ankle gave out. He grabbed onto the brick wall and winced, trying his best to ignore the pounding in his head.

He changed into his gi as fast he could, already winded from the short descent, ribs aching with every sudden movement.

He took a steadying breath and shook it off. His team needed him, the city needed him. He could already see the silhouettes of the army in the distance, swarming in numbers. Garmadon hadn't attacked in a while, so this time he could see that they were ready to hit hard.

“Come on, adrenaline,” he muttered to himself.

He exhaled before pulling on his mask, and taking off into the mayhem.

***

“Oh, that was a rough one,” Nya groaned, sliding out of her mech.

The others chorused their agreements, rolling their shoulders gingerly. Jay lost a chunk of his jet mid-battle, one of the thrusters crashing into the street below. Kai's flamethrower took heavy damage, Cole had to abandon ship for a minute, and all of them sustained some level of bruising—on the mechs, and on them.

“I can't feel my hands,” Kai groaned, sprawling onto the sofa, Zane and Cole beside him.

Jay was laying down on the beanbags, arms and legs apart like a starfish, staring up at the warehouse ceiling, and Nya went to go crash beside him.

“Good work guys,” Lloyd said, standing by his mech, hand gripping one of the dragon scales.

Zane frowned, watching him. “Are you alright, Lloyd?” Their leader's weight was shifted to one side and he was panting hard. 

Lloyd nodded blearily. “Yeah. Adrenaline just crashed all at once.”

“Hear hear!”

Cole hummed in understanding. Lloyd shook his head as if waking himself up. “I'm going to go grab some tea from Wu.” He lumbered off to Master Wu's room, leaving them all laying in the sitting area.

For a while, no one said anything, the only sound being the quiet buzzing of the warehouse lights and their deep breathing.

“... We should probably check in with Master Wu, right?”

Jay sighed, shoulders sagging against the bean bag and Cole sat up, stretching. “I could go for some of that tea.”

One by one, they all reluctantly pried themselves from their comfort, groaning as they stood up and stretched. 

“I haven't felt this sore since Master Wu made us do those core training drills last month.”

Nya chuckled, rolling her neck. “We sure gave Garmadon—”

“Where the hell is he?”

As if he came from thin air, a man stood at the entrance to the warehouse. 

Like a switch was flipped, they yanked on their masks, exhaustion vanishing. They immediately changed into defensive stances, shifting into formation, tense and alert.

The man's long black hair was pulled up halfway into a ponytail, sleek, with a viscous green streak running through it. He had dark clothes, and a black leather jacket, but the most noticeable thing about him was the sheer intensity in his eyes.

“I won't ask you multicolored jokes again.” His fists were clenched and gaze burning. “Where the hell is Lloyd?”

At the name of their leader, their eyes hardened and they pulled out their weapons, never once looking away from the intruder.

“Listen man, I don't know who you think you are—” Kai raised his sword, menacing. “But if you think you just waltz in here, ask questions, and threaten us, then you've got another thing coming.”

The man growled, every muscle tense. “I don't have time for this. Where—”

“Oh, shit.”

They all turned, surprised to see Lloyd coming through the door to Wu's room. His eyes were wide with a patch over his cheek, bruising on his chin. He paled as he caught sight of their intruder.

The man stared at Lloyd, expression unreadable. “Oh, shit is right, dumbass.” 

The stranger started forward and everyone tensed, not fast enough to stop him from lunging towards Lloyd, reaching—

You could barely see the green of Lloyd's gi from underneath the man's arms, a tight hug enveloping their leader, holding him close.

“You're dead. You hear me?” The man said, still not letting go.

Lloyd's eyes, previously wide, softened and he gently hugged the man back. “... I'm alright, Morro.”

It took all of the ninja’s effort to stop their mouths from hanging open, defensive stances dissolving. Zane's eyes widened as he recognized the name, and he put away his weapon. The rest of them hesitantly followed suit, but were still unable to take their eyes off of the scene in front of them. 

“What were you thinking?” The man— Morro, growled, finally pulling away from the hug, but still keeping one hand on Lloyd. “I told you to stay put, but instead, you went like an idiot—”

“Garmadon was attacking! I'm a ninja, Morro.”

“You're injured, that's what you are.”

Lloyd sighed, sounding resigned. “It's my job.”

Morro scowled, crossing his arms. “No, your job was to stay put! And It's my job to make sure you don't get yourself into shit, which becomes a lot harder when you pull a disappearing act like that!”

Lloyd ran a tender hand through his hair, suddenly looking exhausted. “... I know. I know, I'm sorry.”

Morro looked at Lloyd's slumped posture and his anger deflated slightly. Morro huffed. “I called you. I called Wu. No one picked up.”

The rest of the ninja’s eyes widened at the name of their master, dropped casually in the already startling conversation, and as if summoned, Wu appeared beside Lloyd, closing the door behind him.

“Master Wu!” 

Lloyd turned to face his uncle, and Morro's eyes hardened, anger returning at the sight of their master.

Master Wu nodded. “Students, Nephew.” He turned to face the strange man, eyes crinkling. “Morro.”

Morro stepped around Lloyd to face Master Wu, looking down angrily at him and the others tensed.

“I can't believe you!” Morro exclaimed, clenching his fist and startling the ninja. “Did you know? Did you know your Green Ninja was being sent into battle like this?”

“Morro,” Lloyd pleaded, trying to get him to calm down, eyes darting between the man and his teammates.

Morro paid him no mind. “He was practically on the ground when I found him! I had to clean up his blood and bruises and sprains, just for you to send him into battle the second I left the room!” 

The ninja all paled, eyes wide. Not only had they never heard anyone dare to talk to Master Wu that way, but Green was injured, before the attack? And badly, from the sound of it.

“It wasn't even his fault” Lloyd exclaimed, before Master Wu raised his hand, cutting Lloyd off and sending a clear message.

“What if something happened?” Morro asked, borderline hysterical, arms gesturing. “What if—”

“Morro.” Master Wu cut him off, gently reaching to grab Morro's wrists. Surprisingly, the man let him, but he was still panting heavily in anger, eyes wide.

“Breathe,” Master Wu murmured with a tenderness they had never heard from him before. Wu paused for a minute, waiting until Morro's breaths evened out before he continued. 

“I did not know until after the battle, which we will—” Master Wu gave Lloyd a look and Lloyd's eyes widened guiltily. “—Be discussing later. But you are correct. Lloyd's safety was my responsibility, and therefore it was also my responsibility to know the status of his welfare.”

Master Wu's eyes softened. “But the important part is everyone returned from the battle in one piece.” He gave Morro's wrists a comforting squeeze. “Everyone is safe, Morro.”

“I—” Morro deflated slightly. “Yeah.” He swallowed, gently removing his hands from Master Wu's grasp and tucking them into his pockets. His eyes darted to Lloyd. “... Yeah.” For a second, his expression looked almost raw, before it was gone and he turned to their leader, eyes narrowing. “But don't you dare ever do that again.”

Sensing the change in atmosphere, Lloyd shifted closer, smiling. “I'll try my best. But—” Lloyd's eyes glimmered mischievously, and they could see a small fang peeking out behind his lip. “Did you happen to get those candies?”

Morro could only gape at him, balancing. “The— What do you think?” Lloyd just grinned. “You scared the living shit out of me, and you're worried about the candy?”

Lloyd pouted and draped his arm over his head dramatically, leaning against the man. “Oh, but Morro. I am so, so injured and candy—”

Morro groaned and buried his face in his hands. “I swear to FSM kid, you're going to be the reason my hair turns grey.”

“So then you can match Uncle Wu!”

“Hey!”

“Excuse you, Nephew.” Master Wu raised an eyebrow. “I am far above grey thanks to the two of you.” Master Wu stroked his white beard and Lloyd giggled.

Morro rolled his eyes, a hint of a smile on his face, and shoulders relaxing. “Yeah, right old man. Like you haven't always been ancient.”

Wu's eyes glimmered and that comment was enough to shake the ninja out of their stupor, previously too stunned to speak.

“Um, guys?” Cole spoke up, causing Lloyd, Morro, and Wu to turn to them as if they just remembered they weren't alone. “As much as I'm happy everyone seems to be getting along—”

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?”