Hello! This is just a funky little headcanon that I don't quite fully believe, but I think it's cute. Also, after writing this, I have such a respect for authors who can write nonbinary characters easily, as it seems to prove more difficult for me. Set in the middle of season two.

Cole and Zane were enjoying a nice time on the roof of the Bounty, a light breeze tousling their hair. Cole was incredibly relaxed, no training or bad guys making him worry. Zane, however, couldn't stop fidgeting out of nerves, gaze lingering on Cole, the subtle hint that he had something to say. It took the Earth Ninja a long time, but he finally picked up on the cues.

"Everything alright?" He asked softly, not wanting to disturb the mostly peaceful environment.

Zane didn't answer right away, his eyes not meeting the Earth Ninja. "Cole, what does being male mean?"

"Um," The noirette furrowed his eyebrows, not quite sure how to answer. "Well, usually people are born male, but it's not always the case, like if they're transgender or something. It's different for everyone, I guess. For me, I like the aesthetic of being a dude, y'know? Like the stubble and the pecs and stuff."

Zane didn't respond, thinking. Cole decided that maybe more explanation was required.

"I know it's a little bit stereotypical, but I also like the feeling of being the strongman, I guess. The muscles and the ladies falling at your feet and everything. There's really no way to fully explain what it means, Zane. That's what makes it so hard."

"Well," The Ice Ninja shifted slightly uncomfortably. "I don't know if I fully embrace the term 'male'. I don't dislike my physical appearance in that way, it just feels... wrong. What is most unsettling to me is that I can't explain why. It's an anomaly."

"Do you feel more female?" Cole asked curiously, making sure any surprise he felt didn't bleed into his tone.

"Not more so than male, no," Zane rested his head on his hand, relieved that the confession went over smoothly. "Like I previously stated, I can't quite explain why or how I feel this way. I don't really expect you to be able to help me much, really. I am unsure if this is a problem in my code, so perhaps I should have spoken to Jay."

"I don't think this is an error in your code, bud. There are humans that feel like this too."

"There are?" Zane seemed stunned, eyes wide.

"Yeah, sure. You say that you don't feel male, but you don't feel female either?"

"That would be an approximate description, yes."

"If you don't mind me asking," Cole shifted to face the Ice Ninja more, making sure to keep his voice down as not to alert the other residents of the Bounty. "What makes you feel like you're not male?"

"I suppose the best way to describe it would be through examples. For instance, I feel not quite comfortable in my own skin when someone refers to me as 'manly', or any term with a usually masculine connotation."

Cole thought for a moment before he spoke, Zane's expression of anxiousness making his gut twist.

"Do you know what the word nonbinary means in the context of gender stuff?"

The Ice Ninja slowly shook his head, although he had a vague idea.

"I am aware of the original meaning, however. It is an adjective describing something not defined to a binary category, hence the prefix 'non'."

"Yeah, that sums it up. It means you don't feel male or female, or maybe you're somewhere in-between. I had a friend back home that goes by 'they', but you don't have to."

"I could use other pronouns beside than my current ones?" Zane suddenly felt stupid, inept in that Cole was having to explain these foundational parts of human psychology to him. He really should have done more research before bringing this topic up.

"If you want to. Could even change your name, if you feel that Zane's too masculine."

"No, I like my name. But it was a nice suggestion, thank you. I also apologize for being so uneducated in this topic, my intent wasn't for you to educate me."

"Don't be sorry, I'm glad you got some positive feedback before stumbling across some not nice corners of the internet trying to research it yourself," Cole grimaced, but suddenly realized that he was assuming that Zane wanted to go by the term. "No pressure to chose a label though. You don't have to change your pronouns, if you don't want to, or even call yourself nonbinary in the first place. It's all about how you feel."

"I do believe I identify as nonbinary," Zane smiled for the first time in this whole conversation, a sense of calm washing over him along with a jittery sense. "And if it's not too much trouble, I would like to try out using 'they' as a pronoun."

"No problemo," Cole slung an arm around his friend's shoulder. "Maybe we should all just call each other siblings instead of brothers. Includes you and Nya."

"I don't know if you understand how much this all means," Zane felt warm, like they were being hugged by a thousand little Kais. "I'm afraid I don't know how to articulate my emotions as of right now, but thank you."

"Really, no trouble. You alright if I still call you dude? Don't know if it's too gendered for you."

"I have no issue with the term."

"Great. Now, you wanna tell the others? Once again, no pressure, but I have a feeling they'll react pretty much how I did."

"If you believe as much, then I have no qualms."

Just as Cole predicted, the others hugged Zane with croons of familial affection and agreed immediately, and the Ice Ninja felt like they could have cried from how relaxed everyone's reaction was. Jay and Nya offered to help Zane with making their appearance more androgynous, which they accepted.

"So, what do you want?" Jay asked, pulling out a pencil and paper as Zane sat on his workbench, legs swinging.

"Is there a way to grow my hair out? If it is possible, I would like to be able to put it in a low ponytail, as the hairstyle is called." They explained, a little excitement leaking into their tone.

"I'm sure we could find a way. What else?" Nya nodded, and Jay jot it down on the paper.

"As a whole, I am actually fairly comfortable with my appearance, so the hair should be sufficient. Thank you," They smiled, and the two others responded with ones of their own.

"Alrighty, let's get started," Jay set down the paper, and he and Nya got to work.

When they were done, Zane couldn't stop playing with their hair. They immediately fastened it into a low style, and happily ran their fingers through it as they lounged around, reading and playing video games as normal.

Surrounded by their friends, Zane couldn't fathom what they had done in their life to deserve the luxury of such supportive siblings, but was immensely grateful for them anyway, and never looked back on the feelings of displacement, instead replacing it with the affection of a team that supported them no matter what.