Chapter Text
Harumi was feared.
She was the Quiet One. She had taken her rage and stuffed it into a small little box, for a time, becoming the mild-mannered Jade Princess, behaving for the spotlight, even keeping on her mask when she blew up the palace with her adopted family in it. But all the while pretending to be harmless little Harumi, she was the leader of a criminal gang who terrorized the city under the name the Sons of Garmadon. Of course, under the command of the infamous, cunning, ruthless villain– the Quiet One.
Harumi had earned Lloyd’s trust, betrayed him, and united all the Oni Masks. She had resurrected Lord Garmadon, her greatest feat yet. She had been his daughter. Somewhere she truly belonged.
Then a small slip-up, and Harumi was back to being a child watching a building collapse. Except this time she was in it.
Her death hadn’t hurt too much; a ceiling beam had fallen and nailed her head. Instant. But what had hurt was waking up in the Departed Realm, recognizing that once and for all she was gone. No more Harumi.
When the Crystal King brought her back, she had seized the chance at life. Back to being evil– her thing. But oh, the wicked Lord Garmadon was a goody-goody now? What had happened there?
That was when she had realized that if her idol, Garmadon himself, was capable of goodness… she didn’t have to obey the one who had resurrected her. She could switch sides too. And maybe, possibly, she had been fighting for the wrong one.
So Harumi, the infamous Quiet One, became a hero. Saved people from her master. Saved Lloyd.
And what good did it do her?
None.
Not a single ounce of good. She had thought that she could be friends with the ninja. But the monastery gates were closed to her. Lloyd, though happy that she was all good now, was still wary and mostly ignored Harumi. Forgot her! Just like that! The QUIET ONE!
When the ninja didn’t take her in, she looked to the citizens of Ninjago City. They forgave grudges in an instant! Surely they were willing to befriend her?
But while they were exceedingly polite about it, everyone was wary of her. All the people she met turned down her offer to hang out or be friends, or they were ridiculously busy. “Good people” of Ninjago City indeed.
Sure, maybe that didn’t work out, but there was a whole continent waiting to be explored. Harumi’s whole life, she had mostly seen Ninjago City. First living there for the Great Devourer attack, then put in an orphanage in New Ninjago City, then becoming the Jade Princess and living in the palace, then resurrecting Garmadon, then dying under a fallen building, then being resurrected and helping the Crystal King take over what else? Ninjago City. Maybe a scenery change was in order.
But if anything, the villagers and other cities were even more resentful towards Harumi. Hello? She HELPED the good guys in their time of great need! But everyone rejected her. Cast her out. Even when she put on her best Jade Princess smile and asked to stay just one night, because she had nowhere else to go.
Exhausted of goodness (it was TIRING), Harumi made a decision. The world hadn’t cared that she changed. It treated her the same. So why should she have changed at all? The way the people saw it, there was no difference between Old Harumi and New Harumi. So why should there be? If they saw her as a villain, they could have her as a villain. Even though Harumi had plenty of practice at wearing fake personalities, they still drained energy. Why use them at all if they did no good?
Lloyd had forgotten about her, moved on. Ninjago City politely declined her. Ninjago didn’t want Good Harumi. They all rejected her and her reformed self.
So it was time to get Evil Harumi back.