Avatar: The Warring Earth

Book Two—Air

By Twins of the Pen

Disclaimer: Avatar in itself belongs to Nickelodeon and Bryan Konietzko/Michael DiMartino. The only things that belong to Twins of the Pen are the original characters.

Tiki stared at Syaoran, trying to absorb his words. Did he say… that he had just seen Avatar Aang? Something welled up in the tiny airbender's chest, an indescribable feeling that she couldn't quite explain, but one that made her want to laugh and cry at the same time. "Oh," she sighed, her hands going over her heart. "You met my great-great-grandfather… well, sort of."

Syaoran wrinkled his nose a little bit. More like he kind of was her great-great-grandfather… but he was going to leave that one unsaid. That was just too weird.

"I guess," he replied with a shrug. "It was kind of weird. Last time I had contact with an Avatar, I actually got to talk to her…"

Now the airbender's eyes nearly popped out of her skull. "Her? Do you mean Avatar Korra?! Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?!" She couldn't believe it! How could Syaoran not tell her that he had made contact with the life that directly preceded his? This was a very vital piece of information!

The current Avatar winced as Tiki's voice grew a decibel or two. He'd thought for sure he'd told her… or maybe he'd thought about it. Whoops. Apparently he had not told his new teacher that he'd already had previous-Avatar-contact.

"Sorry," he grunted, hoping to be spared from the look on Tiki's face, "I thought about telling you, I just kind of… forgot about it. Things have been a little crazy the past couple days."

Tiki made a noise of disgust, but she supposed she could not hold it against Syaoran. Things had been out of control lately. But even so, Syaoran should have told her. It was a big deal that he had spoken to Avatar Korra, had seen Avatar Aang…

Huh. That was a strange thought: Avatar Aang was one of Syaoran's past lives. Tiki wondered if that made her and Syaoran related, in a strange way. Well, he did like to boss her around from time to time as if he were her father…

"It's odd, isn't it?" she asked, beaming at the Avatar. "What were the chances that I would meet the man who was my ancestor in a past life? It must have been fate that brought us together that day in the forest."

Syaoran wanted to quirk a brow and call her ridiculous, fate being a silly notion. A couple months ago, he would have done just that. But considering he had just come out of mystical state of mind after having some kind of vision or dream of being his predecessor, Syaoran couldn't do it. Nothing quite like being the latest in a line of reincarnated beings to shift a man's reason.

"I guess fate could be a reason," he hesitantly allowed, as if it were still an outlandish notion. Syaoran had never believed in fate. But he had also never believed that he would be the next Avatar and be able to bend more than earth. His hands were tied. "It could also be Neo-Equalists chasing after you for a piece of cabbage," Syaoran pointed out. "That's always an option."

Tiki sucked her teeth. Stingy old man… would it have killed him to allow her to have one cabbage? She had to eat, didn't she?

"The NEs were chasing me way before I even thought about touching that cabbage," Tiki pointed out, getting to her feet. "Adding theft to my wanted charge was just convenient for them. Anyway, get up. I already sent the class outside, so we'll have to continue training out there: once they're out, it's impossible to get them back in."

Tiki wanted to allow Syaoran to continue to meditate, to see what else he could experience in the Avatar state… but she was not solely responsible for him today. And his airbending forms could not be neglected either. So the tiny airbender resigned herself to resuming today's training out in the courtyard with the children. She could always have Syaoran try again tomorrow, if he was up to it.

Syaoran rose to his feet as well, dusting off his backside from the dojo floor. He frowned a little at the thought of doing his forms alongside all of the children—Tiki had enough problems with his forms in private. He shuddered to think what they would look like in comparison to the small children.

But he had just gone into the Avatar state during group meditation and not even realized it. That had to count for progress. And Syaoran just couldn't forget the feeling that had welled inside him in the dream. The lightness of the air, the feeling of being free. It was not something he was used to, firmly planted on the ground. Maybe if he held onto that thought, maybe he would finally get somewhere with his training? Syaoran was kind of hoping this was a nudge from Avatar Aang to get a move on, a helping hand. So he walked outside of the dojo into the courtyard… and then stopped in his tracks.

"Uh, Tiki?" he called back, staring at the children. "Why are they looking at me like that?"

Tiki, who had been following after Syaoran, slowed to a stop as well, taking in the looks the children were giving her friend. Every face spoke volumes of fear, wariness… and yet they had all immediately loved Kei a couple days before. Tiki sucked her teeth, drawing level with Syaoran. "Oh, that. You… kind of freaked them out, what with the glowing eyes and all…" Tiki cleared her throat and addressed the children. "It's all right, everyone! Syaoran is our friend, remember? He's not going to hurt anyone—he's on our side."

The children still eyed Syaoran uncertainly, but seeing that he was no longer glowing must have been some small comfort, for they gathered around Tiki obediently. She smiled approvingly at their little faces. "Good. See? Not scary," she demonstrated, poking Syaoran's cheek. Some of the kids giggled, and Tiki's smile brightened. "Okay, now that that's taken care of, it's time to practice our airbending forms! We'll start with the basic set, and then work our way up! Sound good?"

"Yes, Sifu Tiki!"

"Good! Get into your positions!" Tiki instructed, and the children dispersed into equal spacings around the courtyard, waiting for Tiki to give the go ahead. Before that, however, the tiny airbender turned to Syaoran. "You can practice with them for the basic and intermediate sets, but you can have a break when they start the advance set, since I haven't taught you those yet," she told him. "And then, after I dismiss the class, we'll practice on our own. Sound good?"

Syaoran nodded, thinking that the plan sounded feasible. In theory, at least. After all, the execution was going to be a bit rougher. To spare some of his pride, he took his place in the back again, hoping that it would reduce the amount of him that the children would see. Besides, a lot of them seemed pretty wary of him still.

Note: Avatar State is not kid-friendly, apparently.

"It's not like I meant for it to happen…" Syaoran grumbled under his breath. But nonetheless, he got into his beginning stance just like the rest of them, doing his best to ignore the few stares he was still getting from some of the children.

Tiki sent Syaoran a pitying glance before loudly clapping to get the children's attention. "Okay, let's focus, everyone. You all remember how we start, correct?"

"Yes, Sifu Tiki!" the class chorused, eager to please. Tiki nodded.

"All right then, all together now: begin!" Tiki led the class in their movements, watching out of the corner of her gray eyes. Their movements were flawless, and it caused her to swell with pride. Ping really had been teaching them well. Even Syaoran was more languid than usual: perhaps it was the encounter he'd had with one of his past lives.

"Okay, follow through: no one blast anyone away!" Tiki scolded before she led the children to their last position, palms facing upwards. A gust of air was expelled from Tiki's hands, greatly rivaling the puffs and bursts of air from her students. But that was fine: they were still learning. Tiki had had years to perfect her technique.

Syaoran, however, was grateful to be in the back. He felt looser, he felt more able. He even felt like he was doing a decent job at keeping up with the children. But as good as he felt like he was doing, when it came to the end, nothing happened.

There was no air. There was no gust to finish out his forms. Just… his hands. Stretched outward. Doing nothing. Well, this was certainly a damper on things. "Great," he mumbled, already starting to feel miffed again.

Tiki could see the impatience beginning to grow on Syaoran's face. She bit her lip, willing his thin patience to hold out just a little longer. The kids were already scared of him—there was no need to go shifting any more tectonic plates underneath the island. "All right, let's move on to the intermediate set," she called with some trepidation: while she was proud of the children for being so skilled, she sort of wished one of them would stumble or something, just to make Syaoran feel better. He was becoming surlier by the minute. "This time I'll walk around and help you if you're struggling, so don't be afraid to ask for help, okay? First positions… and begin!"

Tiki strode around the courtyard, watching as her pupils performed each motion fluidly and perfectly. Only Syaoran was struggling at this point, and it stuck out. Luckily, the children were too focused on their task to pay him any mind, moving as one as they completed the set. They finished with a spinning kick, a couple of them thrown a little off-balance by the move. Tiki managed to catch a little airbending girl before she fell; the girl giggled and shrugged it off. Tiki wondered why Syaoran couldn't be like that: he had just made a phenomenal breakthrough! There was no need to go right back into grouchy-pants mode.

"Very good! Ping has been taking very good care of you all!" Tiki gushed, beaming at them all. The children smiled back, looking pleased with themselves. "What do you all think: are we ready for the advanced set?"

"Yes, Sifu Tiki!"

"Let's give it a go, then!" Tiki cheered, and the children at once went into first position. Before she gave them the order to begin, however, Tiki beckoned to Syaoran. "Take a seat, Syaoran. There's a water fountain inside if you're thirsty," she offered before turning her attention back to her pupils. "Okay guys, show me what you've got! Begin!"

Here was where the class sort of fell apart. There were one or two students who followed through successfully, but most of the children halted after only a few movements, looking around in confusion. Had Ping not taught them the advance set yet? Tiki frowned at this, wondering why on earth her cousin had not completed the children's training.

"What's the matter? Why don't any of you know what to do?" Tiki wanted to know, beginning to believe that it may have been a lack of attention on the kids' part rather than a lack of teaching skill on Ping'. One of the smallest airbender boys looked up at Tiki, appearing confused.

"We don't know the full advanced set," he admitted, "Ping said you never taught him the whole set."

Tiki's face colored. Come to think of it, she had been in the middle of training Ping when the raid sirens had gone off all those years ago. In her panic, she had fled from the island after extracting a hasty promise from her cousin that he would take over her dojo for her. After she left, there was no one else to teach Ping the advance set… oops.

"Okay, everyone watch me carefully, because I'm only going to do this once," Tiki claimed, though she smiled to show she was joking. Closing her eyes, the tiny airbender breathed slowly, in and out. She allowed her body to move, her limbs remembering the advance set more than her brain did, her eyes closed as she focused on breathing. When it came time for her to finish, she opened her eyes then, not wanting to accidentally hit anyone. With a series of cartwheels and back-flips, Tiki moved to the edge of the courtyard before starting forward with a series of air blasts and kicks, too focused to notice the looks of awe her pupils wore. A couple of front flips later, Tiki sucked in a deep breath and expelled air from her lungs, blasting her tiny body into the air. The children 'oohed' and 'aahed' as Tiki wrapped herself into a ball, flipped three times, and then dive-bombed back to the ground, feet first. Just before she hit the ground, however, Tiki blasted air from her hands, allowing herself to float gently to the ground. Tiki put her hands together, closed her eyes and breathed slowly once more, signaling the end of the set.

A tumultuous applause sounded, and Tiki opened her eyes and smiled, performing a couple mock curtsies for the students' amusement. "Now, don't be discouraged if you don't pick it up right away," Tiki began sagely, "it took me a while to perfect the advance set, so if you don't get it on your first try, it's perfectly—"

"WAHOOO!" Pai cheered as he flipped through the air, landing carefully on his feet just a moment later. In fact, the courtyard was now full of airbending children back flipping, front flipping, air punching and kicking, expelling giant gusts of air from their mouths… they were disorganized, but they were nailing those moves. Tiki shook her head good-naturedly and sat down on the steps of the dojo, next to Syaoran.

"They're like sponges at that age," she said, smirking. That was why it was best to teach benders young: they picked it up easier.

"Clearly," he said, watching the children gust around as he wore what only could be described as a pout. There was no way he was going to be able to do that. He was about as inflexible as the earth that was most natural to him. All of those aerial flips and maneuvers just weren't possible with his body. Syaoran let out a groan of exasperation, bowing his head as he scratched at it with both hands. "I just can't get it right!" he growled, frustrated. "Little kids can pick this stuff up like nobody's business, and I can't even meditate right most of the time."

He was successful today, maybe, if success was measured by entering the Avatar state for no apparent reason. "I don't get it. And I thought Avatar Aang was trying to help me out or something…"

Tiki frowned, feeling Syaoran's pain. She had been so excited for him… feeling like he was set back must be frustrating for him. "Maybe he was," she encouraged, moving to sit in front of Syaoran so she could see his face better. "Think for a minute: how did you feel while you were Avatar Aang? How did airbending feel to you? Natural, right? As easy as breathing? If so, you need to take those feelings and channel them into your bending."

When Syaoran still looked frustrated, Tiki let out a sigh and moved behind him, her pixie hands immediately going to his tense shoulders. "You really are doing a good job, Syaoran," she told him, though it might be stretching the truth just a tad. "Today you made a big breakthrough. A lot of this won't come naturally to you because you're an earthbender by birth. But if you can channel the feelings of airbending from my great-great-grandpa, I think you'd do really well. Just try to keep your patience."

Tiki felt as if she had to remind him of this every day for the past month. But the tiny airbender was beginning to wonder if it was actually her that was having the trouble instead of Syaoran…

"…Am I doing okay, Syaoran?" she ventured to ask, now frowning in concern. "As a teacher, I mean. It's easy to teach kids, because they're more malleable… and they were born airbenders. I'm just starting to wonder if you're having trouble because my teaching style isn't really suited for you. Is there anything I need to improve on to help you?"

Syaoran shook his head though, waving away Tiki's concerns. "I don't think it's you, Tiki," he assured her honestly. Tiki was doing her best to teach him, and her well of patience with him for the past month had been ridiculous. "It's me and airbending. It just… doesn't compute." It was flowy. And gentle. And smooth. Earthbending was rough, strict, and rigid, unyielding. Even learning firebending with ZanYi had been fairly strict, just had an emphasis on using his emotions and passions. Airbending was none of those things. "When I was Avatar Aang," he continued, trying to think about it, "I felt really light, and it was easy going. I felt like I was getting swept away, but I was supposed to, so it was okay."

"Good," Tiki approved with a nod. "That's exactly what airbending is. If you use that, maybe you'll understand airbending a lot better. It's important not to think so much and just go with the flow." Which is probably why Tiki had a reputation for being an airhead, but digressing…

"Okay, everyone!" she called as she stood up, earning the children's attention. They quit goofing around and gave the tiny airbender their full attention—Sifu Tiki was scary when she had to discipline inattentive children. "Excellent work today, you guys. Now that you know all the motions of the advanced set, you'll make more progress tomorrow. I will come again to make sure you're practicing… and to make sure Ping knows what he's doing. Sound good?"

"Yes, Sifu Tiki!" the children chanted.

"Goodie. Now, unless the sun is in the wrong position in the sky, I believe it's lunchtime. You're all dismissed!" Immediately the children dispersed, chatting and laughing as they headed home to their mothers and the promise of a good meal. Tiki watched them go for a moment, a smile of fondness gracing her features, before she turned to Syaoran.

"I really do like kids," she said, "and those kids are angels. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad to have a couple of my own, when I'm ready…" Tiki paused to think, and then added, "Though, I may like kids a lot now because I get to give them back around noon: I don't have to keep them all day." Tiki imagined, for a brief moment, having to deal with a bunch of crying, screaming kids twenty-four hours a day, and her expression soured. "I wonder if Aunt Li would ex-communicate me if I refused to have children," Tiki mumbled to herself, tugging on a strand of hair.

Syaoran rolled his eyes. "Whether you have kids or not is your decision, not your aunt's," he reminded her none too gently. "Your aunt doesn't have to deal with the consequences of them, and she's not the one who has to deal with the consequences of marrying someone you don't love." He stood up and walked over to Tiki, an eyebrow lifted. "Remember that before you keep letting her plant ideas in your head. Because if Kei's any indication, she doesn't always have the best ideas of what you do with your life."

As grumpy as he was feeling at the moment, Syaoran still reached out to ruffle the girl's hair. He knew he didn't like the idea of Tiki having to make such life-changing decisions just because of someone's expectations. For an airbender, that seemed rather confining—he figured they would know better, in desperate need of repopulation or not.

"I'm going on inside," Syaoran told Tiki, starting for the house. He supposed both ZanYi and Shun would be missing for lunch probably. Come to think of it, the Avatar had hardly thought of the lieutenant all day and, coincidentally, their friend who was in love with her. He let out a dismayed breath. The only breakthrough in his airbending so far, and Syaoran really had had to forget about the issue. Was this just another sign that he needed to give up on ZanYi? It was the feeling he was getting in his stomach, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to follow through. Not yet.

Entering the house, he wasn't surprised to find the other two members of their team missing. Despite his better judgment, Syaoran crept up the stairs, moving to the ajar door to Tiki's room. The pillow was still there from where the lieutenant had probably slept that night, but she was not there.

Following the inkling in his stomach, the Avatar then stepped to the other side of the hall. Carefully and quietly, Syaoran turned the knob and glanced into the room they had originally been sharing. Sure enough, through the crack he'd opened, he saw ZanYi sleeping peacefully on the bed, bundled up in a ton of blankets. Not far at all from her side, Shun was seated on the floor, resting against the bed as he read a book, quite the smile on his face.

Looking back to the slumbering lieutenant, Syaoran could almost make out a small tilt to her lips, one unlike he'd ever seen on her. Disheartened, the Avatar closed the door back without a word, leaning against it after.

Shun really loved her. He was still getting over being sick himself, and the waterbender was at ZanYi's side, taking care of her in illness. If it were Syaoran, the lieutenant wouldn't have even let him linger near her probably, let alone take care of her.

A frown on his face, Syaoran knew the truth. The game was over. He didn't have a chance, and even if he did, the Avatar knew he shouldn't take it. ZanYi was a difficult woman, made for conflict. And it was the lack of conflict in his head that had made the day's breakthroughs possible. If he was going to be the Avatar, he couldn't be with ZanYi.

He didn't like the decision between the two, but it wasn't a hard one to make. Syaoran had to be the Avatar. It was time to let go of his chances.

Walking away without a word, he started downstairs, hoping that lunch would be enough to fill the small hole in his stomach.

A/N from Eva: Awww, Syaoran. :( DJ and I really like our Avatar, we promise! It's just that his happy ending isn't necessarily what he thinks he wants. :P Let's hope that he figures it out soon!

The-new-avatar: We're glad we could make you smile, even if your sister was looking at you strangely! XD Thank you for your support as always, and we hope you enjoy this equally short chapter as well!

halfaLeader: Oh my goodness, thank you so much! Such high praise...I don't even know what to do with myself right now! Thank you for continuing to support us!

That's all for this week. DJ and I still enjoy to watch our characters grow, and we hope you all will continue to do so as well. Have a great weekend! See you next week!