She was strong; the strongest of their group, and that fact had never been challenged. Her personality was strong, her character unmoving, and her bending something that was not to be meddled with…she could make your death quick or slow and painful. She mastered metal quickly, her will stronger than the metal's resistance. She was firm; her feet always planted, engraved, into the earth below her and it kept her steady.
She should have known not to tempt fate by dating the airbender, his element was air, meaning he would be light, whimsical, and always moving. She ignored the warning of her conscious, and the jokes from her mom about being with the baby twinkle toes. She lifted her feet off the ground, and for a while she felt like flying, the air keeping her above the ground, and the feeling was exhilarating. And then the air, the wind that had held her up, was gone, and she fell, crashing down to her earth. The little rocks and pebbles she had controlled her whole life dug into her scraped knees, and raw elbows. Her hands were bruised from the very ground she was supported by.
She knew being with the airbender would not end well. She was simply too strong for his peaceful attitude. He even admitted that she was the stronger of the two. After she lost his very own baby, who may or may not have carried on his legacy, she felt, somehow knew, it would never happen. He had a duty, and she would be of no help. The girl stealing him from her was perfect timing, but it did not make the pain lessen any. She was the strong one, but she did not fight to keep him; she knew what was best.
She was the chief, the strongest of the metal benders and earth benders; if there was earth, no matter the size, in any object, she could bend it. No one challenged her authority, no one tried to change her mind, and no one dared to ask her to move, whether physically or mentally. She was firm in her position, in life, in her mind; she would stand tall and unmoving.
Being strong meant making tough decisions, but that was what she did best. And she did not even question, for a second, sacrificing herself for his family. It's not like she had anything to live for anyway; he had always been her only weakness, the only crack in her armor. The crack would now be where the enemy would jab at, leaving her wounded, weak. She only paused to look at him, the only one who would make her reconsider. But with the image of his wife in her peripheral, she jumped. Despite being in the air, she felt her anchor in the metal of the ship.
The mask did not unnerve her, she learned from her mother to see people using the earth. She could feel his body in the vibrations, and it made him more human to her, and so she had no fear; for who could scare the strong. He asked her questions, questions she refused to answer; her will was greater than the masked man's intimidation tactics. She ignored the sudden grip of panic on her heart when he roughly pushed his thumb into her forehead.
She fell straight to the ground, and it was empty. She could not feel its comfort, its malleable surface. And it was like hitting the dirt after the airbender let her fall. This time her broad shoulders took the brunt of the fall. She felt numb with the hard, untouchable cement digging into her body, bruises already forming on her body. She let her eyes close, finally understanding what it must have been like for her mother, blind.
They left her there, frozen on the ground; she knew the airbender would return soon enough. She told herself over and over that she was strong, that this would not defeat her. Despite her inner pep talk, she could not get her limbs to move. Finally her body shuddered from the cold of the rain's constant pouring on her. She took in a deep shuddering breath, and pushed herself up from the ground. She set her feet in a wide stance, looking across the sea, where he had left; he would be back. And when he did, she would be waiting, standing tall and strong. The strong hid the dents and cracks of their armor; let no one see beyond their shields. And she was one of the strong; when he returned there would be no weakness, no cracks, no dents, only strength.