A/N: Sorry for taking so long again. Here's a randomly really long chapter to make up for it!

*1-2ish years ago*

Harumi's POV

I nervously stand at the door to the Montgomery household, a box of chocolates in my hands as a gift. Even though I've already met both Misako and Garmadon, I don't want to show up empty handed. They are welcoming me into their little family tradition after all.

Their house is absolutely giant. It should be expected considering every single member of their family has been in one of the biggest tv shows ever, but it still catches me off guard every time I see it. With its grand emerald green exterior and golden accents for all of the windowsills and doorways, their signature colors carry over.

I bring my hand to their door, admiring the gold swirls, before knocking with the hand that isn't holding the chocolates. I stand, awkwardly rocking back and forth, before the youngest Montgomery opens the door. Liam stands, his blonde hair messy on the top of his head, before giving me a quick glance over. It looks like he just woke up, and it's already noon.

His eyes wake up at the box in my hand, "Chocolates? Please tell me that those are for all of us to share," he pleads, bringing his hands together and giving me puppy dog eyes.

"Of course. It's a gift to you all for letting me join you today," I tell my boyfriend's 13-year-old brother who lets out a cheer that he quickly tries to conceal.

"Oh, you didn't need to, Harumi. You're always welcome here without a gift," Misako pops out of the doorway of an adjacent room. A bowl of popcorn is in her hands. The strong, salty aroma of freshly popped popcorn follows it, immediately making me hungry.

Last night was the season 8 premier (season 9 will be released in a few months even though we already filmed it), and since they don't let us view the season in advance, the Montgomerys always binge it the day after it comes out. Gathering together, they get a variety of snacks and hunker down to watch their family shine on the screen.

This time, they were kind enough to invite me to join them. It will not only be my first time partaking in any of their traditions, but it will also be my first time watching myself in any major role. They're such a talented family, so I just hope that they aren't appalled by my performance.

"It's definitely appreciated though," Liam happily lightens my load. Once he grabs the box of chocolates, he disappears down the hallway, most likely to their little in-home theater.

"He tries to be quippy, but he's still a kid at heart," Misako shakes her head. "It's great to see you, Harumi. Lloyd is down in the theater getting the projector synced up to his computer. I don't know what we would do without him and his tech skills. Garmadon tried to get the projector set up for over an hour yesterday."

"If it makes him feel any better, I probably wouldn't have done any better," I joke. "Do you need help with anything?"

Misako glances behind her, "Liam was supposed to take the extra bowl of popcorn on the table, but he got a bit distracted once you came. Can you carry it to the theater?"

"Of course," I walk over to the table in the side room, grabbing the bowl and walking back to Misako.

"How did your dad enjoy last night? It was his first time at an event like that, right?" she strikes up a conversation as we make our way down the corridor.

"Yes, it was. He absolutely loved it. He and Hudson actually teared up when they saw my face on the screen. Plus, he really enjoyed meeting you and Garmadon," I share.

Due to Ninjago's popularity, each season always has a big premier as if it was a movie premier. There, in a giant stadium with every seat sold out, the first two episodes are shown up on the big screen several hours before the global premier.

It's a giant event. Before the screening, the stars of the season walk down the red carpet, posing for pictures and answering interview questions. There, Lloyd and I made our "official Hollywood debut" as a couple when we walked down the red carpet together. Then, at the end of it, my dad and brother were waiting for me.

My dad and Hudson are the two people who mean the most to me in the entire world. My dad raised the two of us all by himself, sacrificing so much to let us chase our dreams. Hudson is not only my brother, but he is also my best friend. He's always protected me and taken care of me, so seeing the glimmer in his eyes watching me walk down the red carpet meant the world to me.

Neither of them are very expressive people, so the shifts (albeit minor) in their demeanors just showed how amazed they were. From the people at the event to the luxurious surroundings, my entire family (including me) were swept off of our feet by the bougieness. When we were given unlimited, free service to our private seating area, my dad literally said, "We're allowed to eat as much sushi as we want at no cost? These people are crazy."

Each time I introduced them to anyone new, they were absolutely starstruck (even if a spectator couldn't notice). Whether it was Kai and Skylor (Skylor is Hudson's celebrity crush) or the police commissioner, their eyes were lit up with excitement. Then, when they finally met the Montgomerys (other than Lloyd of course since my dad would never let me go out with a guy he hadn't met), they instantly clicked as if they were all friends. It made me so happy.

"I'm glad. Both him and your brother seemed so nice. You should bring them over for dinner sometime when we're all here," she suggests.

"I'm sure they would love that. Hudson is an EMT, so he works weird hours sometimes, but I'm sure we could make it work."

"Once season 9 releases, they should join us to watch it. I'm sure they would enjoy..."

"Dad is gonna be pissed if you eat all of the dark chocolates, you know," Lloyd's voice warns from inside the theater. Misako stops talking to listen, a little smile on her face as we almost turn into the room.

"Hey, all types of chocolate are equal opportunity in my eyes. White, milk, dark, it doesn't matter. If I'm eating all of the dark chocolates, I'm eating all of the chocolates, period," Liam defends himself. When we walk in, we see that he's already comfortable. He lounges back in his chair, bundled in a blanket with his hands resting behind his bed and his feet propped on the seat in front of him. The box of chocolate sits on his lap.

"Well, well, well, Harumi said that gift was for everyone, didn't she?" Misako shakes her head, setting down the popcorn on a table to the side that is already covered in snacks.

The room is as if a movie theater was scaled down to half size and thrown into a house. The seats are fancier than movie theater seats, each a recliner with a seat warmer. They even have the little lights lining the walkway. With the paychecks they're getting from the show, it shouldn't be surprising, but it's still astonishing that anyone could have this in their house.

"Rumi! I'm so glad you could make it. I got your seat set up," Lloyd cheers, sitting in the row in front of Liam, patting the seat next to him. "My dad is in the bathroom. When he gets back, we can get started. Oh, and don't say any spoilers while watching. We decided it'd be funnier to watch Liam's reaction since he's the only one that doesn't know what's gonna happen."

"If you two make out on screen, I'm gonna puke, so give me a warning. I don't want to throw up these bad boys," he gestures at the chocolates.

"We don't, but mom and dad do," Lloyd teases his younger brother who squirms in his seat.

"Don't even put that image in my head."

"You don't stop loving someone once you get older, Liam," Misako decides to jump in on the fun, making Lloyd laugh at Liam's discomfort.

"This conversation is officially over. Now, where did we leave off last night? The palace just got blown up, right? The Emperor, Empress, and Hutchins all died, and Harumi is with the Ninja," Liam verifies, and Lloyd nods. Just after he says that, Garmadon walks into the room.

"Well, it looks like everyone is ready. Let's start the show."

---

"Wow, that cinematography was beautiful," Misako vocalizes once the screen fades at the last scene of "Dead Man's Squall".

"I'm convinced the Quiet One is the Overlord," Liam announces. "He wants to resurrect the ultimate vessel, and since Lloyd is even more attached to his dad now, it would be even harder for him to defeat him."

"I like that idea," Garmadon replies. "Should we start the next one, or should we take a break?"

"I'm in a serious need for a bathroom run, so I think we should wait until after that," Lloyd removes his arm from around my shoulder, taking off his side of the blanket that we're sharing and standing up.

"Don't take too long, or we'll start without you. If I don't figure out who the Quiet One is, I'm gonna explode," Liam warns as Lloyd walks out of the room.

"I'm going to go stretch my legs," Garmadon announces, standing up, and Misako follows, the two deciding to walk around the house.

"Stretching is for the weak, isn't it Harumi?" Liam jokes, snuggling lower into his blanket. "I stayed up til like 5 last night, so I'm gonna take a quick nap. Don't mind me." Slowly, he closes his eyelids, resting his head on the pillow he brought with him. Within a minute, gentle snores come out of his mouth. The speed at which he fell asleep is something I can only envy.

With nothing else to do, I pull out my phone. Smiling at the photo I took with Lloyd and my family that I put as my screensaver, I type in my password before being instantly bombarded by thousands of notifications on my social media and text messages, the notifications far above what I usually have.

I start with my text messages. Even though I have hundreds of messages, I start with the ones actually sent to me by my contacts. All of them are pretty much different versions of the same "I watched you on my tv today, and I'm so proud of you", but I take time to respond to all of them as if they were all completely different. These are the people who cared about me before I was on the show, so they deserve the same care now. They're my real family and friends.

The rest of the messages make me sigh. All of the "Hi, this is (insert name here) from back in middle school! I've really missed you" and messages along those lines make me sick. People who have left me out of their lives for years, some of them who tormented me in school, suddenly want to talk to me now that they see that I'm not "flopping at acting" like they predicted. I delete all of their messages.

Then, I open Twitter, and my trending page immediately calls out at me. I haven't looked at Twitter since mid-day yesterday, but the Ninjago community has definitely had a field day since then. All of the ninja's names, my name, Jaya, Pixane, Llorumi, and Ninjago are all dominating the trends. Not being able to help myself, I click on my name.

I'm instantly met with a variety of tweets, photos, and videos all with my name somewhere in them.

Just finished the second episode of this season and Lloyd and Harumi are so precious. Like I didn't expect to get this attached so quick but they're so cute - the_green_fangirl

Yeah, I know she was deceiving them all the whole time, but we NEED more Harumi and Nya content like that friendship was so iconic - ninjaboy12983

Above pictures from the scene where I reveal my true intentions to Lloyd, someone posted

I don't care what anyone says THIS SCENE WAS A MASTERPIECE!!! The betrayal on Lloyd's face, the hatred in Harumi's eyes, GIVE THEM BOTH AWARDS PLEASE - master_of_jade

However, the more I scroll, the worse the comments get.

You know how they make the characters based off of the actors? @Lloyd_Montgomery better get running if he's getting all cuddled up to Harumi - ninjalover222

Harumi is the definition of "go girl, give us nothing" - hydroflame9

Every time I see Harumi on screen I throw up a little in my mouth WHY did they think it's believable to make HER Lloyd's love interest - greengal

Above photos of Lloyd and I from last night, someone else posted

Lloyd hunny you had so many girls in your dm's AND THIS IS WHO YOU END UP WITH? HARUMI IS STALER THAN OLD POTATO CHIPS - destinys_master

As I scroll to see more, my phone is plucked out of my hands, "No you don't."

"Lloyd, give me my phone back," I groan, but he tucks it in his left pocket, sitting on my left side and moving the blanket back over himself.

"I watched Skylor and Pixie get eaten alive by people online baselessly hating on them. I'm not gonna let the same thing happen to you," he tells me with conviction, and I know I'm not getting my phone back anytime soon.

"Do you think I was the right fit for the role? Be honest with me," I ask him, their words still knotting up the pit of my stomach.

"You were the only fit for the role. No one else could've played the jade princess like you," he tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Even with the sweet gesture, I can't help but let their words infect my mind. What is someone like me doing with one of THE most amazing guys in the world? He surely has thousands of girls way better than me trying to get with him. "What else did they say? I can tell it's upsetting you." I keep my gaze down, not budging. "Rumi..."

"They said that I'm not pretty enough or good enough to be with you and that you could do so much better. They also said that I'm gonna hurt you just like show Harumi did," I mumble, and I'm immediately pulled into Lloyd's strong arms, my face pressed up against his pecs.

"They don't know you. Their words are empty," he runs his hand through the end of my ponytail. "The moment I saw you, my breath was taken away, and it still hasn't come back. You're stunning, and kind, and funny, so don't ever let their words get to you because you're the one that's out of my league," his comforting thaws their icy words, and I let myself melt into his touch, the stress dripping out of me. When his soft lips place a kiss on my forehead, my lips are pulled upwards. "You, Harumi Swanson, are one of a kind. I'm never going to let them hurt you."

---

Nya's POV

I walk into the studio with my head hanging low, sunglasses covering my eyes. The past several days have been rough to say the least. After waking up in Jay's bed confused and concerned, he explained the situation to me. It explained why I felt so crappy, and even though I was devastated that I relapsed, I couldn't take time to give it attention. A video of the night before where I felt up Jay, threw up on Jay, and tried to fight Tessa for being around "my Jay" was trending, and I could only think about rushing home to Gabe in an attempt to mitigate the damage.

All of the work I'd been putting in to try to rebuild his trust in me was instantly torn down. When I walked into our apartment, his slouched shoulders and red eyes told only a fraction of the story. Not only was he beyond pissed ("I let you out one time without me, and this is what happens!), but he was also heartbroken to see me that worked up over another guy. I spent the rest of the week by his side to prove that he's my priority, shutting out the rest of the world. I only ever left the apartment for work reasons.

Now, I have to face the other half of the problem. Not only do I have to face Jay - who hopefully will act like nothing's wrong -, but I also have to face Tessa. The thought of her rubbing all up on Jay, getting all close to him, still makes me sick. She gives me bad vibes, but I have no reason to reprimand her, so I'm just going to have to poke around until I can find what she's doing that is setting off these red flags. Then, I can protect Jay.

She clearly just wants him superficially. Whether it's for his looks or his fame, I'm not sure, but there's no way I'm going to let her get away with this. I'll make sure Jay knows who she truly is, so he doesn't fall into her trap.

I don't realize that I've navigated the maze of hallways until I look up and see that I'm already at the room for the table read. Sighing, I push open the doors to reveal a series of tables creating a circle around the room. All eyes turn to me when the door opens, and from a quick glance, I can tell that I'm the last one to arrive. Every set is filled except for the one between Lloyd and Jay.

"Nya, what a pleasure for you to finally join us 45 minutes late," Mr. Chamber's annoyance echoes through his tone, but he has no one to blame for this other than his own nephew.

"Gabe..."

"I don't care. Sit down," he points over between Jay and Lloyd where my seat obviously is. I oblige, walking over, when I see who's sitting on the other side of Jay. I try to keep my grimace in when I walk past her and pull out my chair.

"So, now that Nya decided to join us, we can get back to where we were. Let's read through the arrival again," I quickly pull out my script and flip to the scene where the ninja first meet Vania.

"It is with great honor, King Vangelis, that I present the famed ninja of Ninjago," a man that I don't recognize opens, his voice grand.

"Welcome! Welcome! I am most pleased that you were able to accept our invitation. It is an honor to be before you," an older man with long, black hair that I am assuming is the king, reads off in a gentle, excited tone.

"The honor is ours," Wu replies, humbly, before pausing to give space for when we'll bow. "Shintaro is beyond anything we imagined. Your hard work has paid off."

"I am only a mere figurehead. The citizens of our proud city are the heart of Shintaro," the king pats where his heart is

"Oh, they're here!" a beautiful blonde cheers from several sets down, next to Cole.

"And please, meet my heart, her royal princess Vania," the man playing the king reads with love.

"I am such a fan. I've read all about your adventures. It was my idea to invite you to my birthday. I'm so honored that you all came," the girl, Vania, reads with enthusiasm.

"Well, it's an honor to be here, princess," Cole bashfully responds

"So, is it true that you've been to Hiroshi's Labyrinth?" Vania's energy stays up.

"Affirmative," Zane says with his signature intonations.

"Competed in the tournament of elements?"

"Ooooooh, do we have stories for you?" Kai talks with confidence, as usual.

After she gasps, Vania states, "I need to hear. them. all."

"Where should we begin?" Cole softly takes over.

The king chuckles before saying, "You can begin by following me. Tomorrow will be a very busy day for all of us, so I want to show you all Shintaro has to offer while I can."

Then, everyone is supposed to start walking out of the castle to go explore Shintaro. The next scene is in the market.

"Here, we have our lovely marketplace where we sell everything our citizens could desire..."

"Are those wings? Can I really get a pair of wings? That's so cool!" Jay interrupts the king with enthusiasm.

"I'm sure Hailmar would love to teach you all how to fly tomorrow, right Hailmar?" Vania asks.

The first man who talked earlier replies. "If it is your wish..."

---

"What is this stuff we're mining for? It looks familiar," Lloyd says as if he's examining an object.

"Hmmm...it's vengestone! That's why our powers failed," I answer. Then, one of the skeletons whips a "mino" before Cole looks at them.

"Hey! Leave him alone you big...." Cole starts, mimicking true anger when the door to the room flies open.

"We brought donuts!" Seliel cheers, a stack of two boxes in her hands. Behind her, both Harumi and Skylor are also carrying boxes.

"What are you three doing here?" Mr. Chambers sighs, looking up at them. "This is a restricted area with confidential information all over the place."

"Bringing donuts, duh," Seliel holds up the boxes.

"You always draw these things out for way too long without a break. We decided to force one with a little surprise," Skylor walks over to his table, setting her boxes down right next to the master script he has in front of him. "Besides, we brought you an old fashioned glazed."

When she says that, he glances at the box, temptation all over his face. "Fine. Ten minute donut break, everyone, but not one minute more," he reaches into the box and pulls out his donut.

Then, it's a free for all. The boxes are instantly swarmed, everyone rushing to try to claim the donut of their choice. I just sit here though. I'll get whatever is left over. I don't mind.

I lay my head on the table and close my eyes. I've slept horribly the past several nights, so a quick nap won't hurt, even if all of my friends are here right now. They'll understand...

"Nya," at the sound of Jay's voice, I sigh, opening my eyes and turning my head. I'm afraid that he's going to mention something about the party, but he sticks a glazed donut in front of me instead. "I grabbed the last one for you. I know they're your favorite."

My heart is warmed by the gesture. "Thank you." I sit up and take a nice, big bite out of the donut, the heavenly sweetness melting on my tongue. I glance over at his, "Chocolate with sprinkles? I shouldn't be surprised."

"It makes me feel young. Besides, it would be a crime to switch it up now," he shrugs, shoving the whole thing into his mouth at once.

I shake my head, "You're a monster."

Once he swallows it down, he winks at me, "No, I'm just skilled."

"That's one..."

"Hi, sorry to interrupt..." at the sound of her posh, British accent, the smile is wiped off my face, "but can I talk to Nya for a minute?"

"I'm fine with it," I mentally curse out Jay as the words leave his mouth. On the bright side, at least she's not trying to talk to him. "I'll go chat up Cole and Seliel or something..." he stands up, wiping the chocolate off of his face, before shooting Tessa a little smile and walking off.

She takes the seat he was sitting in, facing me. "Sorry if that came off as rude. I really just wanted to clear the air between us. I know the internet has been pitting us against each other, but I'm really hoping that we can be friends and forget everything. I've been a fan of yours for forever, and it would be a shame to ruin a potential friendship off of a misunderstanding. Oh, I'm Tessa, by the way. I don't believe I ever introduced myself."

I catch Jay glancing at us in my peripherals. "I'm Nya, but you know that," I say the only thing that comes to mind. "Yeah, let's put it all behind us." I agree. The faster everyone forgets about the party, the better.

"Great," she smiles, and damn, does she have a good smile. "Oh, and also, do you and Jay have a thing going on? I know you have a boyfriend, but if you and Jay are still seeing each other I won't judge..."

"Nope, Jay and I are just friends," I force a smile as I say it. Her eyes light up a bit at my words. "I just get a bit protective over him. Why?"

"We're hanging out this weekend, and if you two were together I was going to invite more people, so he wouldn't just be alone with a girl cause I know how that looks," her words make my stomach churn. She's trying to go in for the kill, but she wants to make sure she won't get killed doing it.

"What are you two doing?" I ask nonchalantly, trying to pry and get more info. I take a bite of my donut to be casual.

"He's showing me around the city. Kai was going to, but he accidentally scheduled lunch with his dad over it, so Jay offered to take me. He said he'd happily do it. He's really nice. You all are, actually. I'm honestly a bit surprised because I assumed that at least one of you had to secretly be a jerk, but everyone is really cool," she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear as she talks. "I haven't really had a chance to talk with Harumi or Seliel, but both of them seem really cool too."

"Yeah, I love them. The ten of us make up a nice, solid little group," I finish off my donut, desperately hoping that this whole thing will start back up soon so this awkward conversation will be over.

I glance around the room, my eyes stopping on several different scenes. First, Kai just booped Skylor's nose with frosting on his finger, leaving a brown smudge on her nose that she's trying to get him back for by ruffling his hair. Rumi and Lloyd are sitting with Zane and Pix, quietly and civilly enjoying their donuts while also watching the Kailor show go down. On the other side of the room, Jay and Cole are laughing over something that most likely isn't even funny but hey, if it makes them happy, they can laugh over it. Finally, as Seliel is walking around, picking up the donut boxes, Vania stops her and starts to talk to her, something Seliel looks less than thrilled about. That puts two of us in conversations we don't want to be in.

"I'm going to bring my napkin to the garbage. Do you want me to bring yours?" Tessa asks, and seeing an opportunity to get rid of her, I give her the first real smile I've given her all day.

"Yes please," I hand over my napkin, and of course she goes to the trash can that's farther away because Jay is over there and starts talking to him and Cole.

I let out a sigh. This is going to be a long season.

A/N: Yeah, the little flashback portion was longer than usual, but I decided to leave it because I felt like it

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