Request: Morro/Lloyd

Dedicated to: Kendall

Warnings: Yaoi

He had only been back in Ninjago for two weeks, and Morro was still terrified of meeting the Ninja. Sure, he had given them some useful information during the Day of the Departed, and Wu certainly had no qualms with him, but he knew they all still harboured some grudges towards him. Of course, Morro couldn't blame them; even he struggled to forgive himself for what he had done to them, especially to Lloyd.

When his spirit left its respective statue at Ninjago City's museum, he did not return to the Departed Realm. Rather, he held his consciousness and used his powers over wind long enough to propel himself to the rift opened by Master Yang. The effort took more out of him than he cared to admit, and he was certain the high winds he created had caused some issues for the Ninja, but at the time he was happy to be truly alive.

He hid himself away for the next couple of weeks, living off scraps in dumpsters and finding shelter in abandoned houses, until he realized he was essentially living his first life over again. After surviving all of that, he returned to the formerly Haunted Temple, where the Ninja now lived.

Master Wu was the first, and only, person to greet him. Though he was gracious towards Morro and allowed him to live at the temple for as long as he wished in a vacant room of his own, Morro knew he still had to prove he was trustworthy.

So, the next day - quite early in the morning, to be exact - he found Lloyd in the kitchen, poking through the fridge for food.

Morro bit his lip as he made sure to stay out of Lloyd's line of sight. He doubted he would get a very positive reaction if he started speaking to him out of the blue. It appeared as if the blond had only just woken up, with his mussed hair, sluggish movements and constant yawning.

He's...kinda cute like this... he thought, blushing a little. Morro quietly groaned and shook his head. You're here to make amends, not ask him out on a date...

Steeling himself, he quietly slipped behind Lloyd, standing back a bit. As Lloyd straightened up, Morro cleared his throat to offer some sort of indication he was there. Lloyd stiffened at the sound, and slowly turned around to face Morro.

"Um... Hey, Lloyd."

He had no time to react when Lloyd punched him square in the face.

Howling in pain, Morro's hands instinctively flew to his nose, a burning pain spreading through it as he felt the blood spilling out. He looked up at Lloyd in anger, which immediately turned to fear when he noticed Lloyd had picked up a knife and was glaring at him. This was a mistake, he thought.

"Why are you here?!" Lloyd demanded, red eyes blazing. "Aren't you supposed to be in the Departed Realm?"

"I would answer that, but thanks to you I'm pretty sure my nose is broken, and I can hardly talk without anything hurting!" Morro winced, blood dripping between his fingers and onto the floor. "So until I get some ice and a tissue or two, I'm not saying another word!"

After throwing a bag of ice at him, cleaning up the blood, getting him medication to deal with the pain and swelling, and getting him settled on the couch, Lloyd was ready to listen to what Morro had to say. Which, of course, was difficult with a swollen nose and a bag of ice on his face.

"To make a long story short, I managed to make it through the rift that Master Yang created on the Day of the Departed," Morro explained. "I didn't want to go to you all at first, because I knew you wouldn't accept me. But eventually, I had no choice. So I came here, and Wu gave me a spare room that you guys somehow didn't notice."

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "Right. So you didn't sneak in here to kill me or something."

"No, I didn't," he said firmly. "Was me giving Wu the Realm Crystal, and telling you about the rift Yang opened, not enough for you?"

"To be honest, no. For starters, you possessed me because you wanted to be the Green Ninja, attempted to kill my friends and family, and tried to leave me stranded in a different realm." Lloyd glared. "So, everything you've done up to this point? Not enough to convince me that you're on our side now."

Morro was about to retort, until he met Lloyd's gaze. Beneath the anger burning in Lloyd's ruby eyes, he could see the glimmering of fear. He sighed. No matter how much he wanted Lloyd to simply forget what happened, he knew it would be impossible. Morro had hurt him, in more ways than one. There was no forgiving that.

"I'm so...so sorry, Lloyd," he murmured. "That's what I came here to say. I'm sorry for possessing you, for making you hurt your friends and family, for torturing you... Everything." He lowered the bag of ice so that he was looking Lloyd in the eyes. "You don't have to forgive me at all. Honestly, you're free to punch me in the face again, if that's what it takes. What I did was wrong...and I know it. I just want you to know that I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you... Even if that means simply leaving and never coming back."

Lloyd's expression was unreadable, his gaze cast down at his lap, his mouth a tight line. Morro gulped. Getting yelled at would have been bad enough, but not knowing what the blond was thinking was even worse.

After what felt like an eternity, Lloyd finally spoke. "I don't forgive you," he said. He looked up. "But I will accept your apology. And maybe I will eventually forgive you if you stay."

Morro's eyes widened. "You don't want me to leave?"

"Oh, I'd be happier if you left, believe me. But..." Lloyd shrugged. "I know you feel sorry. So, I want to give you the chance to show that you really feel that way, and letting you stay here and live with us is the best way to do that, I think."

"There's gotta be something more you want me to do," Morro insisted. "It can't be enough for me to just hang around and do nothing. What's the catch?"

"No catch. But you could always train with us, or just spend time with us, so that we can all get to know you more. In time, I'll be able to think more about whether I want to forgive you or not."

"A-all of you?" Morro squeaked. "Can't I spend time just with you?" He didn't even want to imagine what everyone else's reactions to him being alive would be. They nearly ganged up on him the last time he met them, but for them to know that Lloyd was purposely letting Morro live with them would get him attacked in an instant.

"I just said that I don't forgive you yet," Lloyd replied with a half-hearted chuckle. "And I don't exactly trust you, either. So by staying with the others when I spend time with you, I'll feel a lot safer."

He was about to retort, but the serious look had returned to Lloyd's face, and he decided it was best not to argue. "Fine, fine." He put the ice back on the bridge of his nose, wincing. "So...are you guys doing anything today?"

Lloyd leaned back in his armchair. "Jay wanted to see the new Starfarer movie, so we'll be going to the theatre today." For the first time since Morro had seen him that morning, Lloyd smiled. "Do you wanna come?"

Morro bit his lip, then nodded reluctantly. "Sure."

~o~o~o~o~

Several months had passed. Morro gradually became a permanent member of the temple's household, even if it took a very long time to gain everyone's trust. Even Lloyd came around, soon choosing to spend time alone with Morro, rather than keeping the others around whenever they went somewhere.

Lloyd would take Morro out for coffee, show him around New Ninjago City, and introduced him to many of their friends and allies. He said it was the best thing to do, just in case a situation with a new villain ever got too severe.

Morro rather enjoyed having alone time with him as well, especially once Lloyd became more talkative around him. Sure, he already saw nearly all of his thoughts when he possessed him, but it was nice to have a real conversation with him.

However, Morro was beginning to get suspicious. In the past month, Lloyd had also been taking him out for lunch, and would always take the time to get to know Morro better. During these lunches, the former ghost had a very strange combination of feelings; his heart beating quicker in his chest, getting completely lost in Lloyd's appearance, and even stammering whenever he talked to Lloyd.

He continuously got distracted by Lloyd's nice features; soft skin, light golden hair, bright red eyes that no longer looked threatening, but rather enthralling... Not to mention how much Lloyd had warmed up to him, making it seem as if he was an entirely different person now.

He knew it couldn't be a natural way to be behaving around Lloyd. Some outside factor was without a doubt at work.

The only logical explanation is that he's poisoned my food, Morro eventually concluded. It would make sense. Surely Lloyd was getting revenge for how he mistreated him in the past. However, that only brought on another horrible thought. What if the next time I go to lunch with him, and he poisons my food again, and I die?!

He was supposed to go out with Lloyd again that day, and Morro couldn't believe it would be his last. He knew he had to somehow convince Lloyd that he could do better to earn forgiveness, but how? There was no way he could get out alive if he accused Lloyd of attempted murder.

Suddenly, Lloyd peeked into his room. Upon looking at him, Morro felt his heart thud in his chest again. That poison was stronger than he originally though.

"Hey, Morro!" he greeted, smiling. "Ready to go? There's a new burger place downtown, and I think you might like it!"

"U-um... About that..." Morro began, fidgeting. "M-maybe we could stop going out for food? I mean, I keep, um...gaining weight! Yeah, I wanna go on a diet, and getting lunch in town isn't healthy."

Lloyd chuckled. "You were really skinny when you first arrived here, thanks to living on garbage scraps before then. You remember that, right? Obviously gaining some weight is good for you right now."

Morro had to think fast, otherwise he'd be dead at the Green Ninja's hands. He gave up on making excuses. "Look, I know you've been poisoning my food!" he snapped. "You're not going to poison me again!"

His happy grin was immediately replaced with a look of confusion. "Wh-what are you talking about? I haven't been poisoning you."

"Oh please! Why is it that every time I go out for lunch with you, I always lose focus, my heart starts beating really quickly, and I can barely talk without messing up my words?" He narrowed his eyes. "It's because you're poisoning everything I eat. And today, you're going to end up killing me as revenge for everything I did to you!"

At first, Lloyd said nothing, and Morro couldn't help but feel smug. He knew he was right about Lloyd's plan. Then, a grin made its way onto Lloyd's face, and the blond suddenly burst out laughing.

"Wh-what? What's so funny?!"

"Morro, when would I have the time or chance to put poison in your food?" Lloyd asked, still snickering. "And of course I don't wanna kill you! I know it took me a long time to trust you, but not once did I consider doing anything like that!"

"Th-that doesn't explain why I keep feeling so weird around you, though," he protested.

Lloyd looked up in thought. "You said your heart races, you lose focus..." He tapped his chin, pursing his lips. Then he snorted, and laughed again. "Morro, you're in love!"

He froze, green eyes wide. "In love...? But that's impossible! You're my former enemy!"

"Well, you're obviously feeling something for me, since you said you only feel this way when we go out together." Lloyd giggled. "To be honest, all those times we went out for lunch together did feel like dates..."

"B-but I can't be in love with you! You haven't even forgiven me for everything I did to you! And besides, you can't just date someone who spent such a long time treating you horribly-!"

He stopped talking when Lloyd put a hand on his shoulder, an earnest smile on his face. "Morro, I do forgive you. In fact, I was going to tell you that today during lunch. Like I've said, I know you regret what you've done. Now, you've shown me that you really do feel sorry. So...I've chosen to forgive you."

"R-really?" Morro smiled, but then he bit his lip. "Wait, so what about me being in love with you? Is that okay...?"

Lloyd laughed. "It's more than okay. In fact..." He came closer, cupping Morro's cheek. "I've started to feel the same way about you... Now that I've gotten to know you, anyway." With that, he gave Morro a quick peck on the cheek. He immediately jumped.

"What was that?" Morro asked.

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "A kiss, silly." He shook his head. "If we're gonna make this work, I'm gonna have to teach you about love. Which will be difficult, since I've only been in one relationship..."

"Wait, so it's okay if we're dating?" he said, his eyes brightening. "It doesn't make you feel uncomfortable?"

"Of course I'm okay with it. I mean... I know we had a really, really rocky start, but now that we know each other more, and now that I feel like I can trust you... I think we can make it work."

Morro grinned, immediately throwing his arms around Lloyd in a tight hug. "I swear, I'll make sure that this relationship works! I'll do whatever you tell me to, I'll get you whatever you want-" He was interrupted when Lloyd squirmed, his protesting voice muffled in his shoulder. Morro let him go with a sheepish grin. "Sorry."

"It's okay." Lloyd rubbed his arms. "But I now know that I'll really have to teach you how a relationship should work." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, now that we've gotten all that out of the way..." He smiled up at Morro. "Do you wanna go out on a date with me? An official one this time?"

Breathing deeply, Morro took Lloyd's hand, squeezing it gently. "Absolutely."

You guys are probably wondering who Kendall is, aren't you? Well, you see, they are my significant other (that's basically boyfriend/girlfriend, but gender neutral~). They really wanted to read a Morro/Lloyd oneshot, so I wrote this one~

Kendall, this had been an amazing two years together, and if it hadn't been for you, I probably would've never written these oneshots, let alone accepted the fact that I was bisexual. Thank you for everything. I love you more than you'll ever know.

As for everyone else, thank you so much for sticking around this long. I've loved writing these oneshots as much as I'm sure you've enjoyed reading them.

Sadly, this is indeed the last of them, as this is the last oneshot collection I'll be writing. So basically, requests are closed forever now.

Please don't take it as me not enjoying writing them, though! I've written exactly 150 oneshots for these collections, and it's not like I won't come back to post some shippy oneshots! I'll just be putting my focus elsewhere.

With that, I'd like to end my final oneshot collection with this: Just ship whatever you want. If someone ships something you don't like and they post a lot of stuff about it, ignore it and look for the ships you do like. If someone doesn't ship something you ship, then that's okay. If someone constantly posts ship hate that makes you uncomfortable, then block them. Trust me, arguing will do nothing.

Basically, just stop treating each other badly over ships, okay? Please. Ship what you want, and let other people ship what they want.

ANYWAY, thank you everyone who took the time to read my oneshots! Thank you everyone who sent in requests for me! Also, to all the people whose requests I never got to write, I AM SO SORRY HONESTLY

Also... I'm happy to announce I have two HUGE Ninjago fanfics I'll be writing after this. So, keep your eyes out, everyone. My long-awaited Coraline AU, Stitched Wishes, is coming soon ;3

Thank you for reading the Ninjago Oneshot Trilogy! Happy shipping and, as always...

Stay tuned~!