Can we go back, this is the moment
Tonight is the night, we'll fight till it's over
So we put our hands up like the ceiling can't hold us
Like the ceiling can't hold us

-Can't Hold Us; Macklemore

Haori let out a soft groan as she stretched her body. Her arms were extended as far as they could possibly go, stiff above her head. The fourteen year old relished in the relief she felt when her joints popped. The discomfort she was initially feeling faded away, but there were still a few dull aches here and there.

"You can take a break if you want." Looking down for a moment, Haori met the exhausted gaze of her brother, Kaito. He was two and a half years older than her, but in light of current events, he looked much older than he appeared. Needless to say, it broke Haori's heart seeing him in such a state. Kaito's exhaustion mixed in with the shame and depression he found himself in, something that lingered in the Xiong household. The family itself tried to look at the brighter side of things, but with the way things were going in the village, optimism would get them nowhere. "You don't need to stay by my side all the time," Kaito rasped.

"Mama said I had to," Haori said. "I need to keep your wounds clean and change your bandages every couple hours."

"I can do it myself." The stubborn glint in Kaito's eyes made the fourteen year old scowl at him. He only backed off a little when seeing that look.

"And risk reopening your wounds?" Haori shook her head. "Not risking it. Not to mention Mama probably did the best stitch job she could possibly do for you."

Letting out a heavy sigh, Kaito closed his eyes, a deep frown spreading across his face. "I feel so useless," he murmured. "I should be helping, but instead I'm. . ."

"It's not a big deal." Standing from where she sat, the fourteen year old paced around her brother's room, organizing little things to keep herself busy. She'd done what she could in regards to changing bandages and cleaning wounds. The last actual inspection and change was only half an hour earlier, but Haori chose to stick around to keep an eye on Kaito. "We're not holding anything against you."

"If those damn soldiers hadn't come by here," Kaito growled, a whimper underlining his words, "none of this would've happened."

"Kaito, please." There was an obvious desperation in Haori's words. She didn't like hearing her brother talk like that; it made her feel guilty. It made her feel equally responsible for what happened. While in actuality, neither of the Xiong siblings were at fault for what happened, they couldn't bring themselves to believe it. Their whole lives, they've been brought up to believe they should be submissive to the soldiers, to the ones who've brought nothing but pain and devastation to the world. They were told to believe that they were nothing but scum, ungrateful and filthy. It infuriated Haori, knowing there were people out there thinking they were better than everyone else. But she had to keep her mouth shut, she didn't know who to trust outside her family.

Sighing softly, Kaito gave a brief nod. Swallowing thickly, he tried moving himself as carefully as possible to get in a more comfortable position. The lumpiness of his too-small bed was making his body ache and his wounds hurt more.

"Mama should be coming back from the market soon," Haori murmured. "She should be getting some new herbs and remedies for you."

"How are we going to make up for all the money we're spending?"

It was a good question, one the fourteen year old couldn't answer. The village she and her family lived in were in the slums of the Earth Kingdom, the bottom of the totem pole in terms of importance. The Earth King himself barely acknowledged the village's existence on a good day, so it became apparent the village's citizens had to fend for themselves. But because of the apparent abandonment from the Earth King, because no other Earth Kingdom citizen would want to step foot in Haori's hometown, that meant the soldiers had free reign to do whatever they pleased. Which meant they could be as violent and greedy as they wanted. Taxes in Haori's village were more than anyone could afford, and those who couldn't pay in full on collection day were either severely punished, or forced to fight in the front lines.

"I could get a job," the fourteen year old suggested, "just to get a little more before the soldiers come back for collection day."

"I'm not letting you go out there by yourself." The firmness in Kaito's voice was a bit weak, but it was there nonetheless. Haori couldn't help but give her brother a look. He was a firm believer in not having his baby sister walk the streets of their village alone. A lot of the other villagers were less than friendly, and the last thing Kaito wanted was for Haori to get hurt.

"Last I checked, I'm more than capable of going out by myself."

"You're my little sister."

"And you're injured." Haori crossed her arms over her chest, her brows furrowed as she regarded her brother. "I appreciate your concern, Kaito, but I can handle myself. I've been practicing my Earthbending, I'll be able to tough it out."

"This village is full of other Earthbenders." Kaito rolled his eyes at his sister's statement. "I hope you're not forgetting that I'm still a Firebender."

"That's not something to be proud of," Haori stated. "Besides, the whole village probably knows by now."

"That could make it difficult for you to get a job."

"I'll do what I can. The soldiers hopefully won't be back for a while. That should give me enough time to get enough money saved up."

A brief silence fell over the siblings. They were both trying to process everything. Not a damn thing seemed to make an ounce of sense, and that was probably the only thing that made sense nowadays. They had to make things work in a world that would rather see them dead. They had to figure out ways to survive when everything seemed to be against them. And damn it, they were going to do everything in their power to make it, no matter what was thrown at them.

(A/N):

First off, sorry for the wait on the chapter. Hopefully it's decent enough for you guys. If you've got any constructive criticism, don't hesitate to let me know, okay? I'd really appreciate it.

Do I own anything in this fandom? No. No I don't. All I own are my OCs, my subplots, and the socks on my feet. If you've got ideas for OCs or subplots, be sure to PM me or leave a review. I'll add them in as soon as possible.

Be sure to leave a random fact in the reviews if you want. It can be on something old or on something new. It's up to you guys.

Peace out!

Natali Joanne