Chapter 21: The Truth

i am a sentimental man

He walked into the Wizard's main room, back hunched over, with dark circles under his eyes. Hou-Ting and the Wizard were sitting at the foot of the mechanical face, talking.

"I don't see why you're so disappointed with yourself," Hou-Ting said, "they seemed perfectly happy with their hearts and courage and whatever else. And offering a hot air balloon ride to the girl was a marvelous idea."

The Wizard grunted in agreement, looking exhausted himself. He took a swig of that same green bottle Kai had seen earlier, and then it clicked.

"Oh! Captain," Hou-Ting exclaimed. They couldn't exactly chuck him in prison after he had killed the witch, successfully completing Jinora's last act of protection. "I thought you'd be out…celebrating." She gave him a simpering smile.

"Not funny," Kai snapped. He walked over to the Wizard. "I've seen that bottle before. Three years ago."

The Wizard looked up at him.

"You knew Jinora's mother." It wasn't a question. "She had that same bottle. And the rumours,Governor Tenzin could never quite put them to rest. That his wife had committed an indiscretion in her youth, a few months before they met. That there was a reason for their shotgun wedding. That his firstborn child wasn't even his own." His fists were trembling at his sides, but he glared down the Wizard with all the power and authority he could muster. "She was yours. And you… you still killed her."

"There was never… any certainty," the Wizard said, uncomfortably. "I was never sure."

"She had to be," Hou-Ting said. "That would explain why she was so powerful; why she could read the Grimmerie with such ease. She was a child of two worlds."

The Wizard looked at the bottle, and seemed almost sorry, his brown eyes growing watery. "I'd always longed to be a father…"

"Now, as the most beloved person in Oz," Kai said, his voice dangerously calm, "I suggest you take a leave of absence. Indefinitely. I'll make the announcement myself: that the strains of wizardship became too much for you in your old age."

The Wizard swallowed, and he looked genuinely remorseful as he nodded. "Alright."

Kai crossed his arms. "You better get ready to join Dorothy on that hot air balloon."

The Wizard pocketed his bottle, and left.

"Wait, wait," cried Madame Hou-Ting. "You - you can't-" she spluttered.

"But I'm the most powerful and influential figure in Oz," Kai reminded her. "So I can."

"Kai, I know we've had our… miniscule differences in the past, but-"

"Guards!" he called, ignoring her. As they entered, he turned back to Hou-Ting. "Madame, have you ever considered how you'd fare in captivity?"

The former press secretary blinked at him. "I beg your pardon?"

Kai enunciated each syllable. "Cap-tiv-i-ty. Prison!" He couldn't keep the self-satisfied smirk from spreading across his face. "Personally, I don't think you'll hold up very well. My professional opinion," he said, now mimicking her lofty tone of voice, "is that you do not have what it takes. I hope you prove me wrong." Kai laughed at the look of horror on her face. "I doubt you will." He gestured to the guards. "Take her away!"

As wrong as everything had gone, Kai couldn't help but enjoy that moment, the sound of Hou-Ting's desperate protests like music to his ears.

Now that he was in charge, he figured he should pay a visit to Munchkinland. He needed to appoint someone to be the new governor or governess, and figured Opal and Bolin would take good care of them.

As for who would look after Oz, he thought Korra and Asami would do the best job. And Mako could finally take the place he deserved in the force as the new Captain of the Guard, without the fear of working under any more corruption. Kai didn't want people to look to him anymore; he was tired. For once in his life, he wanted some peace, and some privacy, to mourn Jinora as she deserved to be.

who always longed to be a father

When Tenzin had retired in a small, lazy river town near Kiamo Ko, he'd vowed to himself to no longer involve himself in politics. He was so, so tired, and his eldest daughter leaving to take a stand against the Wizard had weakened his already flimsy influence. Ikki had insisted on taking over for him, reassuring him that she'd be the iron backbone that Munchkinland needed in his absence. Though he had been reluctant, he allowed her, in part so she could feel like he had faith in her abilities. He'd regretted his decision once he'd heard news of Ikki's death, and had tried to go to the Emerald City before the witch hunt could get out of hand. But it was too late when he had arrived; the streets were exploding with celebration, all for his eldest daughter's death.

Every light in his life had now been snuffed out.

He now walked through the halls of the simple, yet elegant apartment complex near the Wizard's palace, and stopped at the door number he'd been looking for. He rapped harshly on the wooden surface, and glared into the face of the man who opened it.

"…Governor Tenzin."

"Kai."

They both stared at each other for a moment, angry grey eyes boring into sad green ones. It surprised him to see just how tired the boy was, too.

"Governor Tenzin, whatever you want to do to me, just do it," Kai said, stepping aside to let him in. "Oz knows I deserve it. Just let me keep a promise I made to someone before you either kill me or discredit me. Or both."

Tenzin stepped inside, somewhat taken aback at the young man's remorse. "It's just Tenzin now," he said softly, "and I'm not going to kill you. Or hurt you. Jinora must have told you of our family's stance of pacifism." His voice wavered as he uttered his eldest daughter's name.

"Yeah, I just thought…" Kai looked at Tenzin with such a broken expression that he almost felt pity for the boy. "Why are you here, then?"

"Initially, I came to see if I could stop the…witch hunt. Or at least, slow it down. But I'm an old man with no real power anymore. I came too late." His voice grew thick, and it took everything in him to maintain his composure. "So I decided that if I had failed in saving both of my children, than I could at least seek out answers. So please, be honest with me." His voice grew steely and cold. "Why did you kill my daughter?"

Kai's gaze dropped to the floor, and Tenzin almost yelled when he didn't say anything.

"Answer me," he said through gritted teeth. "A few weeks before winter break, when you were both still in school, you defended my daughter from an attack. I saw the way you treated her and knew you loved her. So tell me, why would you kill her?"

Tears began streaming down the young man's cheeks, and it was in that moment that Tenzin noticed how old his eyes looked in his young face, how the light he'd seen in them back when he was a student had faded.

"I'm so sorry," Kai cried. "She…she didn't see another way out, so she handed me the bucket and told me to…" He put a hand against the wall for support, as if his knees would give out any moment. "I shouldn't have listened to her. I should have tried harder to convince her to stay, no matter how stubborn she was, I should've tried harder. But I didn't, and I killed her, just like she asked, and…" A strangled sob came out of Kai's throat. "Sir, I know that you have a stance against killing, but I'd honestly thank you if you did it after I try to keep a few more promises to Jinora, because I don't know how I'm going to live with myself."

Tenzin watched in shock as the boy seemed to crumple in on himself, burying his face in his hands and barely holding it together. Kai's body was shaking. "It should have been me," he choked out, suppressing a sob. Never mind that it didn't make sense, that it hadn't been an option. It would have been better than this.

"Kai," Tenzin began gently, hesitantly approaching the shaking man.

"Tenzin, please. If we're not discussing the funeral arrangements…Just - just go." Kai looked up at him, looking so broken that Tenzin didn't protest.

As Tenzin walked down the stairs of the apartment building, the walls he'd built up for so long began to crumble, and he couldn't help it as he slumped down onto one of the stairs and buried his hands in his face, weeping. His wife, the kindest soul he had known, taken from him too soon because he'd been too careless to stop her from chewing those milkflowers. His youngest daughter, her bright smile crushed under the foot of a political game that, in the end, no one could protect her from. And his eldest daughter, with her strong spirit, willfully taken from him, killed by the only other man besides him that would rather die than lay anything but a loving hand on her.

She'd asked to be killed. She hadn't seen any other way out, and had asked Kai to kill her. She must've known that his name would be cleared if he did it. She couldn't have realized the cost, how she'd be leaving such a broken man behind.

As Tenzin felt himself crumble to nothing, he couldn't help but also feel sorry for Kai. To know that he'd had a direct hand in the death of the woman he loved…suddenly, their shared love for Jinora was no longer the only thing uniting them. At the very least, Tenzin had had two daughters to help him pick himself back up.

Kai…Kai had no one.

no one cries they won't return

"Well, it depends on what you mean by friend. I did know her. That is, our paths did cross. At school. We were both young back then. We were different." He paused to swallow back the lump that was threatening to form in his throat, before he continued. "I understand your concern. We've been through a frightening time. And there will be other things that frighten us. But, if you'll let them, there are some people I trust very much that can take care of you. They're my good friends, Opal and Bolin BeiFong."

The pair smiled and bowed modestly, and Kai was happy for their attention to be diverted to Opal and Bolin. He watched them as they gave a speech, striking hope into the hearts of their new citizens.

Once they had finished, the people clapped politely and then dispersed as Kai led Opal and Bolin down to the City Hall.

"How are you doing?" Opal said softly.

Kai stiffened. "As well as can be expected," he said shortly.

Opal placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"Yeah," Kai said, his voice sounding hollow even to himself. "Everybody always is. But thank you, Opal, Bolin. Really."

Bolin, tears pooling at his eyes, drew Kai into a hug. Once he pulled away, Bolin took a photo out of his pocket. "We thought you'd like to have this." He handed Kai the picture.

Kai gasped sharply, holding back a sob when he saw it was him and Jinora, the photo they had taken. Our family portrait. Kai hastily wiped his eyes. "T-thank you," he managed, his voice shaking. "Thank you."

Bolin smiled. "If you need someone to talk to, we're here for you."

Kai sniffled, not quite managing a smile. "I know."

no one lays a lily on their grave

Kai hadn't been back to Shiz since his graduation day, and it was strange to be back at his old school. Students walked past, some waving at him, some too busy with their friends to notice the visit of their prestigious alumnus. He didn't mind. It was nice to not have so much attention drawn to him now.

He walked across the campus to the residence hall where he'd stayed for two years. Where he'd met his best friend. Where his life had changed forever.

He walked up the stairs and paused at the door to the room, chuckling softly. There had been many nights he and Jinora had just made it back to their room in time to avoid getting caught by the caretaker after a night of exploring the school, barely able to breathe from running but laughing all the same. The room had been left untouched and had never housed another pair of students. Everyone knew this was the Wicked Witch of the West's room, too terrified to even look at it, let alone occupy it.

He took hold of the knob and paused, memories flooding back to him. He never completely closed the door back then. Jinora always had to close it for him. When they had become friends, she never let him forget it. She'd normally get up from her bed, go across the room (and throw a pillow at his face while she did it) to close the door. He smiled softly at the memory.

Slowly, he opened the door. The room was empty, the desks clear and the beds without any sheets. The only thing in the room was a figure in a hooded gray cloak. He stepped back in surprise.

"Oh. Sorry," he said, standing in the doorway. "I, er, didn't realize anyone would be in here."

The cloaked person immediately got up and tried to speed past him. Their face was concealed.

"Hey, wait! I didn't mean to scare you," he said, grabbing for the person's shoulder. He instead ended up grabbing the hood, revealing the person's face.

A familiar, green, brown-eyed face stared back at him, mirroring the same shock in his eyes. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of him.

"…Jinora?"