Breeze
Chapter One
Doggie Pile
"Oof, oww, Mako, you're stepping on my foot…!"
"Then get Pabu under control, we're guest here…!"
"You guys, someone's at the door…!"
As soon as the door opened, the three teenagers stumbled, and landed face down to the floor. Kana blinked. What was a fire ferret doing on the top of her head?
"H-hello...!" Kana managed to speak.
She glanced at the three strangers on the ground. A boy dressed in green, one in red; and a girl who was dressed in water tribe clothes. She must be... the Avatar?
Her mother did say that the monks were training her. Even though Air Temple Island was claimed to be a serene, quiet place, it can get hectic, what with the White Lotus and the vigorous training. Though, what were these rowdy teenagers doing here on such a sacred island?
"I am so sorry..." the boy in green got up and helped Kana get the fire ferret off of her head. "The kids got overly excited and scared Pabu, and we heard the doorbell rang."
"It's alright, it's alright..." Kana smiled, straightening back her hair.
He gave her a laid back smile, trying to act as if he hadn't tripped.
"My name's Bolin," the youth said. "Earthbender extraordinaire and pro-bending champ, at your service...! This is my brother Mako, and that's Korra, the Avatar."
"Pleasure to meet you all, especially you Avatar," the young girl smiled, shaking their hands. "My name's Kana... I'm Tenzin's-"
"Kana...!" smiled Tenzin, walking out through the doorway.
The young girl smiled. How many years was it the last time she saw him? His mustache grew thicker than before. He even looked a little bit older.
"Uncle Tenzin...!" Kana beamed, the two entering into an embrace. "I'm so happy to see you...!"
"Look at you, all grown up...!" smiled the airbender. "You look more and more like your mother. How's your brother?"
Kana chuckled. "I'll take that as a compliment. My skin's not as dark as hers, though personally, I think I look more like dad. And Sokka's doing fine. He's enjoying himself at Ba Sing Se University."
"Glad to hear about Sokka," Tenzin smiled. "Your father may not be from the water tribe, but you do have her eyes."
The smile still couldn't come off her face. Her uncle could get serious now and then, though he wasted no time teasing his niece. Perhaps it was because her mother was her uncle's elder sister, and he sought revenge through Kana.
"Everyone," began Tenzin. "This is my niece, Kana. As I told you at dinner, she will be staying with us for a while on Air Temple Island. I assume you all introduced yourselves?"
"I've met everyone, including Pabu," said Kana, remembering the dramatic landing the ferret made on her head. "They made quiet an impression."
Pema then walked through the doorway and waved at Kana. Walking up to her aunt, she smiled and embraced her aunt. When Kana heard the news that a new cousin was on the way, she couldn't be more happier for them.
"You must be tired from the ride, let me help you with your bag," Bolin reached for Kana's suitcase.
"Oh, no it's alright, I can carry it, it's fine-"
"Kana!"
A wave of boisterous cries and gust of air made Kana land on her palms. She found herself on the ground with her cousins. She could hardly recognize them before the obvious hints who they were.
"Jinora, Ikki, Meelo...!" Kana half winced, half smiled. "My goodness, you've all grown."
She saw Tenzin smiling at them, Bolin with her luggage. Before they both disappeared into the house, Kana saw her uncle give Bolin a firm finger, leaving the youth trembling at his knees.
"You're here, you're here...!" Ikki jumped up and down. "We've got so much to tell you, daddy had part of the island renovated, Korra's staying with us, and I grew at least two inches...!"
"That's very exciting to hear..." Kana rubbed her shoulders, nodding towards Ikki.
Out of all her younger cousins, Ikki was by far the most energetic of them all. Keeping up with her while she spoke was a talent in itself.
Meelo suddenly began to look weary, his knees bending inward.
Uh-oh... That does not look good.
She picked up Meelo and rushed him into the house.
"Aunt Pema...! Meelo needs to use the restroom!"
She collapsed on the couch, exhausted from the trip over to Republic City. It was a long way from Ba Sing Se, and she didn't have much rest along the way. With Air Temple Island's easy breeze and relaxing atmosphere, resting from the long hours would be no problem.
Jinora sat beside her, book in her hands.
"So, how long are you going to stay?"
"For about a week," began Kana. "Your Aunt Kya thought if I were around to help while your mom's having the baby would make things easier for her."
Jinora smiled. "I'm glad you decided to come over and stay. You've got to show us your bending while you're here."
Her insides just about flipped.
"Yeah... my bending."
"How's Aunt Lin doing?" asked Kana, sipping her tea. "I would like to see her while I'm here."
The evening sun was about to set into the horizon. Kana and Tenzin were sitting on the terrace, pouring tea while catching up on what was happening in Ba Sing Se and Gran Gran back in the North Pole.
"She is busy, though I think she'll make time for you," said Tenzin. "She and your mother were quite close when they were little girls, so there's no doubt she'd want to see you again."
Kana smiled. Even though her uncle wasn't a school boy anymore, she knew of her uncle and Lin's past relationship. She was tempted to tease him, though she respected Aunt Lin a lot, she didn't want to reopen old scars. She then looked into her tea cup.
"Gran Gran's so lonely... I wish there was more we could do for her," said Kana.
"The North Pole was and will always be her home," said Tenzin. "I've talked her into moving in with us in Air Temple Island, though I think it will take a while for her to leave where she was brought up."
The sun sank lower and lower into the horizon, the sky was almost lighting up with stars.
Being a grandchild of the former Avatar left quite a legacy on Kana's shoulders. When people found out Avatar Aang was her grandfather, they always gave her special treatment, though it wasn't exactly full on twenty-four hour fame. Her mother told her Aang held her when she was a baby before he passed away. Gran Gran told her he was never more happy to have such a wonderful granddaughter.
She heard all the stories of how her grandparents, great uncle and friends stopped the Fire Nation, and practically knew them all word by word. They were big shoes to fill, and Kana always thought people were never going to see who she really was, besides that of being an Avatar's granddaughter. Her mother told her it was alright to be her own person, and she should never let anyone define who she was.
"About your letter," Tezin began. "I'm glad that you came to stay for a while to help us, though you also said you wanted to talk to me about something. What was it about?"
"About that..."
Kana breathed. Her insides began to flutter. She never told anyone this. There was no going back once the secret was out, but she had to talk to someone. And who better to talk to than her uncle?
"Remember how Uncle Bumi teased me about being a late boomer?"
"Yes," Tenzin nodded.
"Well... mom was always keen on having at least me or Sokka to be a waterbender, though he turned out to be a nonbender like dad."
"So, are you a bender or not?"
"I... I am a bender, it's just..."
"Is this about expectations, Kana? You know your mother will always love you, no matter what you do, and it doesn't have to involve being the best waterbender in the world. Is that why you haven't bended at all for all this time?"
"No, it's not that...! Mom's a great waterbender, Gran Gran was also a great waterbender and could heal as well. Apart from being the former Avatar's granddaughter, do you know how it makes me feel to also fill in the shoes of the two most prestigious waterbenders? Gran Gran saved the world...!"
She breathed. If her grip was any stronger, the tea cup in her hand would shatter into tiny little pieces. Two generations of waterbenders, and she had to be the dud in the chain.
"Don't you think I don't know how you feel? Your grandfather was my father, I know a thing or two about being under a parent's shadow."
"It's not about that...!"
She couldn't spell it out. She had to show him. She turned towards the courtyard and raised two hands. A gust of wind left out of the palms of her hands, and blew against a near by tree.
This was who she was all along. And she finally reveled it after all this time. She turned back to her uncle. Words couldn't describe the look on his face.
"I'm an Airbender."