Disclaimer- I do not own avatar the last air bender or any of the characters. I also forgot to say that in the last two chapters so that applies to them as well. Hope you like the chapter. Also I don't know when I can update again because I have all of my tests and assignments coming up in the same week. Really stupid idea, putting them all in one week so you don't have enough time to learn everything.
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Clear Tides
Chapter three
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Hayla Found Master Pakku finishing up with a class and paused. She couldn't go over while he was working with his students so she sat down on an ice block she bended.
The class looked like it was almost over, maybe only 15 minutes left. Hayla could wait and watch. After 5 minutes Pakku noticed her watching and waved her over. As the students soon her they gave her a small bow before getting back to their bending. They weren't going to come over to her for fear of master Pakku.
Pakku's lips curled up into a small smile and he looked at his class.
"Princess Hayla you have come at a good time. I think my class needs a demonstration from another master. Why don't you show them the octopus?" He asked.
"Of course, Master Pakku." She said, smiling. The students crowded together excited at the prospect of seeing the princess water bend.
Hayla drew water from nearby ponds and took a fighting stance. She let the water form a circle around herself with the tentacles coming out around her body, ready to move at a moment's notice.
Pakku nodded at her, signaling that they would start. Hayla drew the tentacles closer to herself. The students watched with wide eyes as Pakku shot ice spears at her. Hayla caught everyone with her tentacles or spun around, deflecting the ice with the tentacles used as a shield. Each one of the eight was in harmony. If one didn't catch the ice then another was there to catch it and throw it away or block with Hayla guiding the water.
Hayla smirked at Pakku. The young students clapped at the show, talking about how awesome princess Hayla was. They were all boys; girls still weren't allowed to learn but instead went to the healing huts.
Two of the boys tried to do the same move that Pakku and Hayla had just demonstrated. Unfortunately they weren't skilled enough yet to pull off the move. Hayla watched as one of them froze some water into a crude spear shape and shot it at the other boy who had managed to make two tentacles of water. The boy was distracted with his octopus, not seeing the spear coming to him got hit on the shoulder.
The boy cried out in pain. Hayla who was standing next to Pakku shock her head, she could have stopped the blow but the boy really needed to start paying more attention.
"Foolish boy. Would you mind healing him? He'll be complaining for a week from that injury and I have him again tomorrow."
"Ok, I'll do that now but I was wondering if I could have I lesson." Hayla said before running off to the crying boy.
Hayla came over to the boy.
"Would you like me to heal that for you." she asked in a gentle voice.
The boy looked up at her.
"Yes please, princess." He replied. He had a soft face with dark brown hair. If Hayla had to guess she thought he was around eleven or twelve.
Hayla pulled some water from the ground and bended it into a small oval shape. She took a deep breath and watched as the water glowed. She moved her hands to the boys exposed shoulder and the angry red mark vanished like it had never been there.
Smiling she asked for the boys name which was Korsan. He thanked her for healing his arm and ran off to his friends.
Hayla loved healing. It felt good to take the pain away from someone and she was very good at it. Hayla had spent a lot of time in the healing huts as a little girl and was the top of her class. Healing, like water bending, came naturally to her and took hardly any effort. Hayla could heal anything from a headache to scars, broken bones and internal bleeding.
"So, you want one last lesson before go on some crazy mission to the southern water tribe." Pakku said coming up to her.
"I want to know what happened to them. We lost contact with them years ago. I don't know why someone hasn't already gone. They are our sister tribe." Hayla said right back.
Pakku said something under his breath that Hayla didn't catch. Glaring at her Master she moved her hands in a sweeping motion, bringing up a stream of water. She moved the water around her body, playing with it.
"You know there isn't much for me to teach you. You're already a master." Pakku said.
"I know that. But I haven't had as much experience in battle as you or lived as long to explore my bending. There is still much more you can teach me." Hayla replied. She had become a master at fourteen. Now Hayla was the youngest water bending master, ever and a girl made it all the more impressive.
What Hayla really wanted was tips on fighting fire benders. She had never fought anyone in a real battle which scared her. As the fire benders were the most threat to her she wanted something that would help her. A new move or strategy that would gain an advantage on a fire bender.
"Oh, so you want battle advise."
"Maybe, I've never been in a battle before."
For the next hour Pakku drilled her about battle moves and fighting a fire bender, earth bender or a non bender. It was interesting but also an eye opener for her. Hayla would most likely encounter someone that wanted to fight.
After the lesson Hayla felt better about going into a world at she hadn't been in before. She had never been to a forest or a beach. She was looking forward to the change of scenery even if the North Pole was a beautiful place.
There was still two and a half hours before the feast was going to start so Hayla walked slowly back to her room at the top of the city.
As she was walking a she heard a familiar flapping noise. Looking up Hayla saw a beautiful bird soaring towards her. The bird landed on her out stretched arm. She scratched the birds neck where she knew was the bird's favorite spot.
The bird, Airlia, was more than Hayla's pet. She had found Airlia as a chick outside of the city where the animals lived. Airlia parents had been killed by a predator while they were hunting. Hayla had been alarmed when she had heard a cheeping coming from a nest of snow and had found the little bird hungry and alone. Hayla had kept the bird and had raised her.
Airlia was a snowy osprey, (Snowy owl cross osprey if you didn't figure it out). Airlia had beautiful white feathers with dark bits doted along the bottom and grey eyes. She also had a slim body that was built for flying hard. She was about 50cm tall and was a dangerous animal when she wanted to be. With a sharp beak and talons she could do some damage. Hayla had trained Airlia so that when she whistled Airlia would come to her. Airlia was never far from her so she always heard the noise and was a good hunter so she could find Hayla very quickly.
Airlia hoped onto her shoulder and cooed into her ear.
When Hayla entered her room Airlia flew to the bed where she perched, preening herself.
Hayla took a bath in the heated bathing room and got dressed in her normal attire. She wore a little makeup. Eyeliner was the only makeup she would wear; she didn't really need any with her smooth skin.
Redoing her hair she looked into the mirror, admiring herself. Hayla loved her snow white hair; it was so different from anything else in the world where people had black and brown hair. Hayla looked just like a princess, poise and graceful and full of confidence.
She walked into the room next to hers which was Yue's.
Yue was wearing the same thing as her; they looked like the same person except for their hair.
"Are you ready? I think the feast is about to start." Hayla said to her sister.
It wasn't far to walk to the feast which was located just outside the temple where her father throne room was.
They found their father already seated on the raised platform and sat on each side of him. Master Pakku came and sat next to her and gave her a smile. As the strongest master in the tribe Pakku sat with the royal family.
As the feast was only for family and friends there wasn't many people which suited Hayla just fine. She didn't want a big display about her going away. So basically in was everyone that was important and some friends and water benders from her classes, both healing and fighting.
Before the feast began Chief Arnook stood, everyone stopped talking and looked at her father.
"I would like to say that I wish you luck Hayla and may the moon and ocean spirits watch over you on your journey. I hope that you will come back safe."
"Thank you father." She replied.
After that everyone one went over to the food that had been brought out. All of Hayla's favorite foods were there. Steamed crab with seaweed, seaweed bread and sweet arctic fruit pastries.
Hayla took some food on a plate and sat on one of the chairs that lined the area. Her eyes scanned the place, looking at all the people talking in groups, eating or just taking in the crowd like herself.
Throughout the night family and friends came to wish her a safe journey or give their blessing. Most knew that what she was doing was important and would anxiously await her return whenever it would be.
The party was almost over when Hayla decided to go for a walk. It was beautiful at night, with the moon shining down, bouncing off the water.
The water was too cold to go for a swim, like every other day unless she wanted to heat the water up but Hayla took off her shoes and dipped her feet into the water way. No one was here to scold her for such bad manners. She bended the water to make it warmer around her feet, loving the feeling.
She was just putting her shoes back on when she heard someone coming. Hayla turned around slowly, not wanted to know who it was. Unfortunately it was the one person that she didn't want to see
Karh had decided to slither over to her. He was alone, his 'friends' probably annoying some other girl.
Smirking as if he'd won a prize, he strutted over.
"What do you want Karh?"She asked, not so polite.
"Just wanted to wish you well on your trip, we are so close after all." Karh replied, smiling.
"Yes we are aren't we? Now if you're done I have to get back to the party."Hayla walked around him, almost afraid that he would try to stop her but he didn't, he just stood there smiling. Something was up and she wouldn't stick around to find out what it was. She expanded her senses, trying to hear or sense with the water if anything was coming but she felt nothing.
Hayla signed relief; she really needed to get over her paranoia. Everything was fine. For now at least.
She made her way back to Yue and her father and sat down. After a while she excused herself because she was getting tired and made her way back to the palace.
Walking over one of the bridges Hayla knew that she was being watched and that she wasn't paranoid. The shard of ice that was coming towards her proved that. She had just enough time to move out of the direct path of the ice before it slammed into her side, throwing her against the wall of the bridge. She fell to the ground and groaned in pain. The side of her stomach was bruised and bleeding.
Using her weak arms she half pushed herself up when someone held her up and pressed her against the wall. Hayla cried out in pain as her injured side hit the hard ice.
Her eyes opened in shock and pain at what just happened and she saw who was holding her.
"What are you doing?" Hayla cried as Karh came closer to her. His warm breath blew around her face as he pushed himself right up against her.
"Taking what's mine" He whispered. The pain faded as she realized what he meant.
She was the Northern water tribe princess; she wouldn't be treated like this. Her pride and anger mixed together and water started to rock in fast, jerking waves. He was stupid to think that he could beat her, a master water bender. She had seen him in water bending class and knew that he was no match for her.
Bringing her right arm up, she used her elbow to hit him in the gut, which both freed her from his grasp and gave her space to bend.
Her arms rose up in, bringing water up from the water way. With graceful, sweeping motions her arms gathering the water. She directed all of it into one long stream and pulled forwards, successfully making contact with Karh and hurled him across the bridge, into the path way.
Tears ran down her face as she tried to control herself. Water benders needed to stay calm and focused and never lost control. She slowly calmed her breath and watched in satisfaction as Karh moaned in pain. Hayla wasn't a master for nothing.
"Hayla!" Someone shouted. The voice seemed so far away that she didn't really register it. The person came up to her and gently shook her. Hayla looked up into the gentle face of master Pakku. Without another work she flung herself into his arms and cried into his shoulder.
Pakku muttered comforting words into her ear that calmed her down. She was safe now with someone she trusted.
Once her tears dried Pakku turned to Karh who was trapped in ice cage that Pakku had created.
"Really, Pakku." Hayla laughed and cried at the same time as she saw the spikes in the cage that made it impossible for Karh to move or bend himself out without being cut by the ice.
"His actions against the water tribe princess go against everything a bender holds. He will be taken to the holding cells where he will then face chief Arnook." Hayla didn't question him as his serious face revealed that what he was saying was true.
"Thank you. Could you maybe not tell father or Yue until after I leave? Father will make me stay." She asked softly, looking down at her feet. She felt so humiliated. She should have been more alert and strong. But Hayla hadn't expected for something like this to happen. It wasn't everyday that the princess of the northern water tribe was hurt by one of their own and in there close tied society.
Pakku sighed, "Fine but when you come back you'll be explaining to your father."
"Thank you." Hayla said again.
Pakku walked her back to her room and made sure that she was alright before going back to where Karh was still in his ice cage. The thought of him there put a smile on her face, even if it was only a small one.
Hayla flopped down onto her pillow. She needed to get over this. Tomorrow she would be starting her adventure, in a new place where the rivers were warm and tress grew. She wouldn't have to worry about Karh outside the walls or see him. That's what she needed to focus on.
After repacking her bag and making sure she had everything she changed into her night cloths and went to bed, knowing that tomorrow would be a better day.