Chapter I

Turning of the Wheel

The winter was the hardest time of the year for the Northern Fortress. The air was always cold and incredibly hard to breathe. And the sun seemed to not be present durning the long winter. The sky was always a dismal grey and life at the top of the world seemed almost non-existent. It was like hope left the north, leaving a shroud of cold and darkness. Everyone slept in their huts waiting for warm to permeate back into the Fortress.

It was also New Year's Eve and for Rahmet, an acolyte of Jaki the Tide Speaker, it was a very important day. He had been personally invited by the Chief to ritually cleanse Hall that served as a public meeting place. The zealous shaman was more than ecstatic to be chosen.

"Rahmet, dear, I am please that Chief Arnook and Shaman Jaki chose you to cleanse the Hall it is a great honor, but taking Tikaani with you is only going to bring you more trouble." Warned his mother, Hanai, who looked less angry and more concerned for she loved her youngest child very much. Rahmet was a miracle and a very spiritual man. Born on the Winter Solstice and a waterbender, Hanai knew her youngest would be a very powerful person. Nevertheless she couldn't help but feel exasperated when Rahmet started going into these tangents when the spirits willed it so. Which was going to happen just about…now.

"Mother. This is not my will, but Tui's. I feel it would honor the Great Ocean if I bring his child to the cleansing. Tikaani would bring good fortune. Besides, you know very well that sage smoke makes him sleepy - most he would do is sit and stare." " Hanai gave a frustrated sigh, Rahmet did have a point. Watching her son get up, his long dreadlocks falling passed his shoulders. Rahmet kissed his mother as he got ready for the ceremony.

What if the gods willed me to raise Tikaani? Is he really stolen by the ocean spirit? Hanai sat on those thoughts, as she kneels to gather her knitting. Agna wanted to return him to the ocean to cleanse her home of Tikaani. But I couldn't let her do that, Tikaani's soul maybe taken by the gods but he is still in human and killing human life is still murder.

She stood up to see if he awoke from his nap, taking her knitting with her.

She stood at the door way of the room where Amana, Hanai's youngest brother and Tikaani slept. Tikaani was curled up in fetal position his face covered by his long hands and long bony arms. He had a puddle of drool on his pillow and Hanai noticed that he took off his clothes again. Naked he laid in the low light of oil lantern. Hanai shook her head as she sat in the corner and took up her knitting and watched Tikaani while he slept.

[i]Agna. Please, let me take him if it is obvious you cannot raise him.

Fine! Be martyr, take this creature away from me! Tui took him anyway! That thing is not my son! [/i]

Hanai wrinkled her nose as she looked up to see Tikaani twitching or jiggling his right leg as he slept. She felt like a hero when she first took Tikaani into her house, she told his story to her husband Maka; who at first was apathetic to the idea of having his much delayed nephew living with them. Maka even supported Tigtuk's decision of 'returning Tikaani.' Even though it would be murder, he rationalized it would be a worse death sentence for a boy like Tikaani to be caged in a body or a mind that didn't respond well in this world. However, Hanai had hoped that Tikaani would have a place with them. After all, Tui protected him in the womb and at birth. He was supposed to be here.

After years of intense work, compassion, patience and love, Tikaani had reached fifteen years and progress was glacially slow. Hanai struggled to help him learn to dress himself, feed himself, and even talk. But Hanai knew that Tikaani could learn, she just had to work with him and keep trying. Her patience paid off when he was eleven and spoke his first words. Since then she had been nothing but encouraging. As time progressed, Tikaani learned to talk and to dress with little assistances. He was almost fully toilet trained, too. He could do anything… she just had to be patient

"Nnnaaah…" Groaned Tikaani as he got up from his nap, and he was pulling on his hair again. Hanai knew that he had a headache.

"You shouldn't have slept naked, so that's your fault." She got him up and noticed his bed mat was dry. She praised him and got him to the chamber pot before dressing him. "Today is very special Tikaani, you're going to see Rahmet."

---

Rahmet sat in a sauna to cleanse his body before gathering his sage, drum, and salt to cleanse the kashiq. His cousin was going to bear witness to the event. What better way to bring in the New Year than have a child of the ocean god witness its birth. However, as wonderful as it sounded, he knew this was going to be a lot of coordination and work. Tikaani was set on a very fixed schedule and disrupting it would send everything into chaos. If he was going to execute this with little disruption he needed to either get him involved in some way or have Tikaani quieted. If he was too agitated or upset he would probably cause chaos. Nonetheless, he had the foresight to warn his teachers that Rahmet was bringing Tikaani. Jaki was upset at first, thinking he would curse the ceremony. But with some persuasion he agreed to either trance Tikaani or allow him to drum. Rahmet was satisfied with this and he walked to the house to pick up his cousin.

As usual, Hanai and Maka had supper made on time and Amana agreed to accompany Tikaani and Rahmet as backup. If there was one thing that was predicable about Tikaani it was that he was unpredictable. It was always good to be prepared. Amana looked at the boy, whose eyes were focused on the fresh tuna that Maka caught on the docks. Tikaani seemed to eat only raw fish or cooked shellfish other than rice and seaweed bread. However, if presented with something new Tikaani would not hesitated to try to bite into it before pushing it away. The only time he ever refused food was when he was feeling ill. Fortunately, he devoured the sashimi and rice without complaint before Rahmet arrived.

"Why isn't he in white? He needs to wear clothes reflecting a pure spirit. Mother you can't just put him in anything you find on the floor!" Hanai frowned and got Tikaani's bowl and spoon. He was rocking back and forth making low hums as he flapped and clapped his hands.

"Yes I can. I am the parent, you're the shaman. Besides he's wearing the ivory choker. That's white." Rahmet gave an irritated sigh and grabbed the bridge of his nose.

"Can you put him in something else?" He whined as his mother got Tikaani up and went to fetch the lead of ribbon used as a wrist-leash.

"No, I am not going to undo what he learned today. He picked it out himself and dressed himself with little help. I just made sure his pants were on right." She said the last part with a giggle as she got the parka. Rahmet knew better than to argue. It was progress and undoing that would be very bad idea. Tikaani wasn't looking at Hanai as she dressed him in a Prussian blue parka and got on his seal skin and fox fur mukluks. Tikaani continued to make the low hum and then he saw Rahmet.

"We go today?" He asked as he got up with help from Hanai. Rahmet showed him the drum, the sage and the salt and let Tikaani touch them explaining to him what was going to happen that night. They had done this before Tikaani took his nap. He prayed that Tikaani understood and would not be so much of a problem at the ceremony. He was relieved when the boy responded.

"New Years! Going with you tonight!" He repeated the last word over and over as he followed Rahmet out of the house.

"Bye Mama!" Rahmet called out with Amana following after kissing his big sister's cheek.

"We'll make sure the ocean doesn't swallow him up, sis!"

---

Four times the wheel has turned since the day the Avatar stripped Ozai's bending and gave the world a new start, and new freedom. Everything seem to move back to the way the world was before Azulon stood up and tried to seize the world in his hands. Even in the death of winter, there was still the stirrings of life. Buffaloyaks pulled men and women on sledges. Fish was being hauled from boats on the docks. Waterbenders fluidly bent the water as the pushed the gondolas down the canals. Everyone in the darkness seem to carry on life their only sources of light was from the oil lanterns and the moon.

The bright moon above was living testimony to Princess Yue's great sacrifice. Tikaani looked up and watched its face, observing him as he followed Rahmet walking and wobbling on his toes. Despite his obvious behaviors, Tikaani understood what was going on. At least to the best of his abilities, he knew tonight he was not going to go to bed but stay up with Rahmet. Where? He wasn't sure, but he knew the drum and the plant that burned and emitted a peculiar scent were indicators. Rahmet was going to be doing some magic, mostly with the water sometimes with his voice. Tikaani seemed a bit relaxed by this. If Rahmet was going to chant it might be worth staying up for.

Three attendants for the main hall of the Kashiq were waiting for Rahmet. Jaki leaned on his drift wood cane as he lead Rahmet and Amana inside with Tikaani following.

"Great Shamans, the Chief will not be present this evening, he is visiting the oasis tonight. However, he will return at the end to meet all of you." Said one of the attendants, Amana squeezed Tikaani's hand reassuring the boy that nothing was going to go wrong. Tikaani who almost never kept eye contact unless he was having one of his staring moments looked straight at Amana as he was made to sit still on the corner of the building. Tikaani looked at the arches and snow colored pillars that made up the great hall. Rahmet and Jaki were going to begin the ceremony when Tikaani, who was always in a state of motion, stood up and headed towards a large totem pole. He was fascinated with one of the heads, but before he got a chance to touch it Amana brought him back to the original spot.

"Nope, we can see those later." Amana said before dragging Tikaani back to his spot. Tikaani of course refused and was struggling to get back to the totem poles when he heard the sound of Rahmet's drum. As if a switch was turned off, Tikaani became fixated on the sound of the drum. Like a resonating heart beat, the pulse of the drum took everyone's attention. It was slow, but steadily it climbed as Rahmet swung the sage at the four points. His voice a litany of praise to the spirits beckoning to turn the wheel and let the next year pass.

Tikaani was breathing heavily and rocking in Amana's arms. Arms in constant motion, Amana tried to keep Tikaani steady, but it was having little effect on the boy who seemed captivated by the drumming. Tikaani was watching Jaki drum, keeping the pace as Rahmet continued to smudge and bless the hall with the salt and sage. Half way through the ceremony Amana feel asleep. The sage was making him tired as well as the various other incenses that were being burning. Tikaani noticed Amana's breathing and the way he slumped back and was snoring that it was obvious that his uncle wasn't awake. Tikaani tried hitting him, but to no avail. With his cousin and his mentor in a trance, Tikaani took the opportunity to crawl away from Amana and find some fresh air.

It's smelly and sweaty and loud. Rahmet is a good singer and I know that spirits would like his song. But the smoke is making me sick again, and the drumming is starting to hurt my head…

Tikaani was walking through a smaller hallway to the palace. He looked up at the carving in the ice and began to marvel at the stories embedded in the ice. He showed his appreciation by grunting and slapping at the icy walls. The pictures he saw were depictions of the gods Tui and La as well as minor spirits, including a wolf-spirit who La was petting in one picture. Tikaani slapped the wolf with a hoot. He didn't know of course that it was his namesake as well as his totem. He walked further down keeping his voice silent as he walked farther from the ceremony.

Jaki was to anoint Tikaani and Amana as Rahmet made his third revolution around the hall. When Jaki noticed that Tikaani was gone. The elder frowned at this and more so at Amana who was asleep. He couldn't stop the ceremony, instead he hoped that Tikaani would return. The ceremony was almost over anyway, they would look for him shortly.

"I knew he was going to bring bad luck…"

Tikaani saw some stairs that led up; with another hoot he climbed up repeating some words over and over with his right hand over his head. He stopped when he was on a landing that wall on its right. It had diamond shaped openings that Tikaani could peek through. The whole thing was made of ice and was very slippery and he was having trouble getting up the next flight. Finally he got to his knees and looked down through the openings it was then he saw something he could never forget.

Footsteps echoed in the dark hall as Arnook headed to the main hall for the end of the ceremony. The elder chief had a look of exhaustion on his brow, face drooped in a frown. He was obviously drained. He had been feeling weak all day and even his normal time at the oasis did not revive him.

"Happy New Year, uncle." Whispered a voice from behind him, Arnook whirled around.

"I-I thought you had gon-" Arnook stopped speaking as he fell on his knees clutching his throat. From his neck was a long feathered dart. Arnook shook and laid still. The figure finally emerged from the shadows his face obscured by cloth as he pulled the dart out of Arnook's neck and the water-healed his neck.

"I am sorry uncle but the wheel must turn. You cannot be part of this year's cycle." The figure looked up briefly at the landing where Tikaani was observing. He thought he saw or heard something. "Show yourself. I know someone is-" He heard someone call out.

"TIKAANI! HEY TIKAANI!" The figure turned and ran knowing that people might show up any minute.

Watching all this was something that Tikaani never saw before. He knew it was not good when the man blew something from a tube and made the other man fall down. The look on the other man's face was something Tikaani had seen before. He had seen it on dead turtle-seals and on the faces of dead arctic hens. And once, during the siege of the north, on the face of a fallen comrade. It was the look of death. Tikaani understood death; it was something that made people very upset. It was something terrible; he could understand that someone killed that man. Just as he saw men at the siege fall by the hands of other soldiers. It made Tikaani feel sick, sick that someone could do this and also that he could be the next victim.

---

The bells on his collar rang clearly as Tikaani ran back into the main hall. Rahmet whirled around and grabbed Tikaani and tied the wrist leash back on. Amana looked sheepish but peeved.

"See I told you he would come when you called him." He said in a 'Told-you-so' voice. Rahmet rolled his eyes and retaliated.

"He wouldn't have taken off it you would do your job and watch him or at least keep the leash on!" Tikaani knew by the raised voices that his uncle and cousin where quite cross.

Jaki, who had been talking to the attendants, returned to his apprentice with a worried look on his face.

"Chief Arnook never came to the ceremony they are looking for him now. Rahmet please take your cousin back home. We have to cleanse again for work tomorrow."

Rahmet sighed preparing to leave the building with Tikaani who was pulling at his throat, "Yes, teacher. I will return shortly."

And as Rahmet left Jaki walked back inside to be greeted by an attendant with a horrfied expression:

"Great Shaman! You must not tell anyone, but we have grave news. The Chief is dead!"

Jaki blinked at the words and then slowly he said "H-how?"

"We don't know…but we are getting the Avatar to find out."

AN: Oh geez another OC fic, but wait, there also the Gaang. Maybe it will turn out good after all.....Hmmmmmmm. Read and Review 3