Like Days Off, this is a collection of one-shot stories that revolve around the lives of the previous generation of Elemental Masters. Most stories will take place before Cole, Kai, Jay, Nya, and Lloyd are born, but there might be a tiny bit of overlap. We'll see. A lot (like this one) will take place around the time of the First Serpentine War, but generally, I won't be dealing with any of the actual battles. Again, we'll see. For now, enjoy!

Horatio sighed as he locked the door of the office. After a long day of dealing with his idiot boss, he wanted nothing more than to go home. He debated grabbing dinner at a restaurant on his way home, but eating by himself in public was just sad.

As he walked down the busy sidewalk, he felt someone bump against him. He put a hand on his pocket, expecting to feel his wallet, but instead, he felt nothing. He turned and saw a kid in a hoodie walking swiftly in the other direction. The kid turned around, saw him, and took off running.

"Stop! Thief!" Horatio ran after the kid, but the kid was at an advantage. They knew every back way and alley in the area and made last-second turns in an effort to get Horatio off their tail.

When Horatio was almost within arms reach, the kid reached out and touched a street lamp. The lightbulb exploded and Horatio had to quickly cover his head as fragments of glass rained down on him. A few seconds later, he chased the kid down an alley. The kid easily scaled a chain-link fence but stopped to taunt Horatio. He saw it was a young girl when she turned around.

"Give it back kid," Horatio demanded.

"What are you gonna do about it?" She waved the wallet in the air.

Horatio turned to make sure no one was watching. As the girl started to take off down the alley, he used his powers to make a thin sheet of ice. The girl slipped and fell, which gave him just enough time to climb the fence. As she stood up, he expertly used his powers to slide in front of her and block her path.

"You aren't the only one with powers." He grabbed the wallet back.

The girl tried to run, but he grabbed her arm. She hit and kicked him, but he refused to let go. In the struggle, her hood fell off, revealing a mass of curly blonde hair. She couldn't have been more than nine or ten years old. Her hoodie hung off her thin body.

"What would your parents think if they saw you doing this?" Horatio asked.

"What parents?" The girl tried to escape again, but Horatio had a tight grip on her.

"Tell you what. If I buy you dinner, you tell me what's going on. Deal?"

The girl stared at him for a moment before slowly nodding. There was fear on her face, but the temptation of food and her curiosity were more powerful. Horatio kept his wallet and keys in his jacket pocket with his hand on them as he led the girl to a nearby diner.

The girl devoured her burger and fries. He could tell she wanted to ask him about his powers, but she was too afraid and kept looking around at the other patrons. Her curiosity was the only thing keeping her in the booth. Between bites, he managed to get bits of her story out. Her name was Libby and she ran away from home a few months ago. He couldn't get anything else out of her, but she insisted she wasn't going back.

As they left, Horatio wondered when she was going to run. He didn't want to scare her off, but he wanted answers. He had heard rumors of other people with powers like his but had yet to meet anyone.

"When was the last time you had a real meal?" Horatio asked as they crossed the street.

Libby shrugged. They walked in silence for a while.

"That trick you did with the street light… How did you do that?"

"I don't know. I was upset one day and the next thing I knew, light bulbs were shattering." Libby said.

"Huh."

"And Dad always yelled at me whenever I snuck out during a lightning storm. But it's like the lightning calls to me."

"Sounds like me and blizzards," Horatio chuckled.

"The other kids called me a freak of nature when they saw me."

"Well, that's not very nice. This is my house." Horatio gestured to a yellow townhouse with brown shutters.

"Nice," Libby said.

"You are welcome to stay the night."

"Really? Your family won't mind?"

"I live alone." Horatio unlocked the door and went inside. Libby followed him.

It was very cold inside and Libby pulled her hoodie closer. She sat on the couch and shivered.

"There's a blanket behind you," Horatio said as he went into the kitchen.

"Why is it freezing in here?" Libby asked as she pulled the blanket around her.

"I like it slightly cooler. I'll be right back." Horatio adjusted the thermostat and disappeared upstairs for a while.

Libby sighed and wandered into the kitchen. There wasn't much food in the pantry or fridge.

"Yeah, I need to go grocery shopping," Horatio said as he walked in behind her. Libby jumped and spun around.

"So what are going to do with me?" Libby asked.

"Not sure yet. I need to think about it. Until then, you can stay in the guest room upstairs."

Libby nodded and followed him upstairs. She gasped at the sight of a real bed. Horatio left her alone to get ready for bed. He found a spare toothbrush and toothpaste for her. He knocked on her door, but there wasn't an answer. He opened the door and saw her curled under the covers fast asleep.

Libby had no idea what time it was when she woke up. She didn't want to get up. The bed was super comfortable and she couldn't remember the last time she had slept in a real bed. She eventually forced herself to get up.

As soon as she opened the door, the smell of popcorn hit her. Downstairs, she found Horatio at the stove.

"You're up. And just in time for lunch," Horatio said when he saw her.

Libby clutched her empty stomach and nodded. Horatio put a grilled cheese sandwich and some popcorn on a plate for her, and some tomato soup in a bowl.

Libby was practically done eating by the time Horatio had made himself a sandwich and sat down at the table.

"So what are you gonna do with me?" Libby asked with her mouth full.

"I'm not sure. I should still turn you over to Social Services," Horatio retorted.

"Don't do that! They'll send me back to my parents!"

"You can't live on the streets."

"Yes, I can. I've been on my own for years."

"Years?"

"Yeah."

Horatio sighed and rubbed his temple. He was silent for the rest of the meal. After lunch, he went into his office area and started reading a file. Libby came in a while later.

"What are you doing?" Libby asked.

"I'm working," Horatio replied.

"Working? What do you do?"

"I'm a CPA lawyer. Someone tried to commit tax fraud, and that's my area of expertise."

"It is?"

"Yep."

"So you do nothing but tax fraud?"

"They're the bulk of my cases. I also take on clients who need help navigating estate stuff after a loved one has passed."

"That sounds boring."

"I wouldn't call it boring."

"Whatever. Can I take a shower?"

"Yes, you may. I can throw your clothes into the washing machine if you want." Horatio got up to get her a towel.

"You have a washing machine?!" Libby had heard of such things, but she didn't think anyone actually owned one.

"Yes."

"Wow."

After Libby took her first shower since she had run away, she dressed in one of Horatio's shirts and watched him load her clothes into the washing machine. There was a little window in the front, so she sat on the floor and watched the machine work. It was fascinating. He did not own a dryer or a wringer, so she had to wait overnight for her clothes to dry.

The next day, Horatio went to work, leaving her home alone. There wasn't much to do except to read. There were a lot of books to choose from, but at least half of them were about tax law. She did find an interesting detective book to read. She was in the middle of it when Horatio returned.

"Libby, please come here," Horatio said as he sat down at the kitchen table."

Libby gulped and sat down across from him.

"I called Social Services today," Horatio started.

"I told you not to do that!" Libby whined.

"Let me finish!"

Libby crossed her arms and pouted.

"I called Social Services and explained your situation to them. They looked into it and agreed that you cannot live on the streets," Horatio continued.

"Yes, I can. They're just going to send me back to that place!" Libby argued.

"Actually, they aren't. You ran away almost two years ago and your parents failed to report you as missing. They want to put you in a group home, however, they are willing to let me be your legal guardian. If you would like to stay here, that is."

"I can stay?" Libby couldn't believe what she was hearing. She thought for sure he was going to kick her out. Why would he want a little kid around the house?

"You may stay."

"Would I have to call you 'Horatio?' That's such a weird name."

"Yeah, I hate it too. What would you call me?"

"Um… Ice?"

"Ice? Because of my power?"

"No, because you're cool like ice."

"... Okay," Horatio chuckled.

Libby loved living with Ice. He could be strict at times, but he wasn't mean. And unlike her parents, he did let her experiment with her powers. He always made sure she had clothes and shoes that fit her and there was always food in the house so she never had to go hungry again.

Years passed, and Libby grew into a beautiful young woman. Boys fawned over her, but, luckily for Ice, she was never interested in any of them.

"Libby, are you going out today?" Ice asked one day.

"I wasn't planning on it, why?"

"I have a client coming over."

Libby groaned. She hated when Ice had clients over to the house because she either had to be really quiet or she had to leave for a few hours.

"Someone need help with their taxes?" Libby asked as she looked for her shoes.

"No. Someone's mother died and he needs help navigating her estate and bank accounts."

"Got it. I'm leaving. Can I have some money?"

Ice gave her some money and sent her on her way. She wandered around the mall for a few hours and bought a new outfit before heading home. She did not spend enough time out, though, since she could hear Ice and the client talking when she opened the front door. She tried to run upstairs but when she rounded the corner she literally ran into the client, who happened to be a really cute young man.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there," Libby said.

"No, it's my fault." He picked up the bag she had dropped and handed it to her.

"Thanks… I'm Libby, by the way."

"Cliff."

Libby didn't often find herself at a loss for words, but as she stared into the face of this cute guy, she didn't know what to do besides awkwardly grin at him. It was only after Ice cleared his throat that either one of them moved. She slowly went upstairs and kept turning around to look at him. A few minutes later, Ice knocked on her bedroom door.

"Libby, do I need to make a rule about you not dating my clients?" Ice asked.

"Um…"

"I'm serious, it's extremely unprofessional and could negatively impact my job."

"Okay. I mean, I doubt I'll ever see him again."

Except she did. The next week, she was walking past a restaurant when she happened to glance inside and saw Cliff waiting tables. He caught sight of her through the window and stared. She rushed inside.

"Hi," Libby said.

"Hi," Cliff said.

It wasn't busy that night, so he was able to sit down with her and talk between tables. When he got off, they talked some more. He told her how he wanted to move to Ninjago City one day and be a famous actor. He was currently working for a small theater company and waiting tables to help pay the bills. Libby told him how she wanted to go on a grand adventure one day.

Libby learned his schedule and would often meet him after his shifts at the restaurant. They grew very close. Ice wasn't very comfortable with the idea of Libby dating anyone, but he knew short of turning her into a human popsicle, there wasn't much he could do to stop her. It was less than two years before he was walking her down the aisle to Cliff.

The honeymoon had to be delayed, and the wedding was rushed. An old man came to visit Ice and Libby one evening shortly after Cliff proposed. He told a tale of Serpentine, an evil sorcerer, and other Elemental Masters.

"My brother and I need all the help we can get to defeat this threat to Ninjago."

Ice agreed to help, but Libby said she would only go if she got to marry Cliff first. So she did. It was a small ceremony, but Libby and Cliff didn't need a bunch of people around. They had each other and their loved ones, and that was enough for them.