A/N: This is a scene compliant with The Rise of One, the sequel to The Black Games. It's sort of a bonus scene, written for April Fool's. While it won't be in the final version of Chapter 23, I didn't want to delete it completely. So, I decided to post it here. :)

011 Heal

"You know I can't heal." I can't stop the helplessness from my voice, or the painful memories from entering my mind, reminding me of how I failed, over and over.

"I know you can't if you never try." Bowen's green eyes are uncharacteristically serious. "You can't give up because you failed a few times, Kat."

"I failed when it mattered most," I say, hating the way my voice breaks, the tears starting to well up in my eyes. I blink them away quickly before he can notice.

"I fail my mom every day by not finding a cure," he says quietly. "You were the one who said not to give up on her, and she's more of a lost cause than you are. You can't hang on to past failures, Kat, or you'll stay trapped there forever." He nudges me under the chin with the token. "Go on, try. You have nothing to lose."

I look back at his wound, and the healer in me wants to help. All my life I've felt a strong desire to heal when I see someone hurt. Not even necessarily with Waterbending, but any way I can. I just hate seeing someone in pain when there might be something I can do to help.

There is a glass of water on his nightstand. Not enough to heal the wound completely, but enough to help. I take the token hesitantly and run my fingers over it. "I shouldn't take this from you though."

"We're following the rules this way," says Bowen. "You might need it more than me anyway."

I glance up with a smile. "For some reason you don't seem like the type of person who cares about following rules."

"I'm working on that, trying to lead an honest life and all that." I don't really believe him, but I'm amused all the same. "Now, come on. Heal me."

"It's not that simple."

"You brought someone back to life, Kat. I have complete faith that you can heal a flesh wound."

"That was different," I protest. "The water was blessed, sacred. And Zuko…"

A pause. "Pretend I'm him then," he says.

"I don't think it works like that," I say sadly. "I loved Sokka more than almost anyone in this world and I couldn't…I couldn't save him."

"Would he want you to give up, or keep trying?"

I say nothing, but the answer is obvious. Sokka always believed in me, believed I could do anything if I put my mind to it. Even if I failed nine times out of ten, he'd never want me to stop trying. Not even if he was involved with one of those nine times.

"Okay," I say finally, pocketing the gold token. "I'll try." I reach down and grab the basin. My hands start to shake. "What will happen if a real healer walks in?"

"Nothing. My assigned healer is in fact Lady Rina, and I know enough of her secrets for her not to question mine. And technically, the rules state that a gold token pays for a Waterbender. It doesn't specify healer."

I wonder how many secrets Bowen has hidden, locked away in his mind. "I think healer of the Capital is implied."

"In my experience an implied message can be a very dangerous thing."

"Shh, I'm trying to concentrate." I pour the cup of water and feel the usual tug in my naval as it hits my hand, the way summoning water often feels like. "Straighten your back."

I press the water to his wound. He flinches a little at the coldness. Closing my eyes, I try to ignore all the voices shouting about my failures in my head. I think of water in it's true form, how it adapts and changes. I think of Zuko, how I did something no one else has ever done by bringing him back to life with water. I think of Bowen's words, of his belief in me that I can do this. And I think of Sokka. I can almost see him smiling in the back of my mind, a knowing sort of smile, like the ones I used to see growing up whenever I did something he knew I could do all along.

"Kat, look," Bowen whispers through a sharp breath.

I do, and nearly jump back in alarm. My hand glows bright blue, not quite as bright as it did when I healed Zuko, but a healer's bright. Slowly, I move my hand over the wound. It's a strange feeling, like part of my being is not necessarily being leaked from me, but shared. When I finish, I pull my hand back and drop the water back into the cup. The brightness fades back to clear.

"You did it," Bowen breaths. He looks at me in awe, his lips parted slightly. He's tall enough that we're at eye level, even with him sitting down. I don't realize how close we are until this moment. My hands drop awkwardly at my side.

"Yeah, I guess I did." He reaches up and taps my necklace with a finger thoughtfully. My heart stops. "What are you doing?" I whisper.

His hand moves, and his fingers wrap around the back of my neck. "I don't know. Something stupid," he says, and then he pulls me forward until I taste his exhale, his lips meeting mine.

A/N: Thanks for reading!