Revised on: June 22, 2018
Water. Earth. Fire. Air.
Long ago, the four nations coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world.
Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he could banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished.
Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. And just as it seemed like things couldn't get any worse… The Fire Nation attacked.
Fifteen years have passed since chaos descended upon Remnant, but now a new Avatar awakens: my daughter, a young airbender named Ruby. And although her airbending skills are great, she still has a lot to learn before she's able to save anyone.
But I believe that Ruby can save the world.
Book Two: Earth
Chapter Eight: Training Grounds
As Ruby and their friends got further west into the Earth Kingdom, the usual lush green lands filled with forestry and bodies of water turned more arid and mountainous. They were almost directly south of Atlas now, and with their map they could tell that if they were to go just a little bit more south, they would find the Shade desert, which expanded halfway to the southern tip of the continent.
So when they came across a little patch of grass and trees, along with a small lake, none of them had to say anything about stopping there. Not a word was shared as they set up camp. Well… mostly.
"You're mounting that tent all wrong," Weiss said, standing behind Jaune while he kneeled on the ground.
"Am I?" Jaune asked. He poked the side of the half-mounted tent, and though it wobbled a bit, it didn't crumble. "Seems fine to me."
"No, no. The base… hmm… that won't work." Weiss shook her head. "Jaune, have you never mounted a tent before?"
"I have! Several times, in fact!"
"Doubtful."
Jaune turned to glare at her. "Maybe you should help, then, since you're such an expert!"
Weiss turned up her nose and walked away. Jaune grumbled under his breath and got back to work.
Meanwhile, Pyrrha had already finished setting up her own tent. She looked around the camp and noticed Jaune. She paused, wondering if she should help him, but it seemed the task had become a tad personal to him, so he would probably turn her away out of pride.
She looked around once again and spotted Ruby on top of a tree, peering at the horizon. Pyrrha walked over to the tree and looked up at her. "See anything interesting, Ruby?"
"Nope. Some funny cactuses, badger-squirrels…" Ruby shrugged. "And no Fire Nation, at least not yet."
"That's great!" Pyrrha said. "Maybe we can finally start on your earthbending training, then?"
Ruby broke into a huge smile and jumped down to the ground. "Yeah! Awesome!" Her expression turned serious all of a sudden, and she raised a finger. "Just wait a second."
Ruby ran over to Weiss, bowing her head slightly as the princess turned to look at her.
"Weiss, can we stop here for a few days so Pyrrha can start teaching me earthbending?" she asked swiftly.
Weiss held her chin thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded. "Sure. A few days won't hurt. But we all must stay alert for Grimm and the Fire Nation."
"Yes! I will check every ten minutes! No, make that five!" Ruby exclaimed eagerly, then rushed back to Pyrrha.
The earthbender looked down at her, then at Weiss. "Do you ask her permission for everything?"
"What? No!" Ruby waved a hand awkwardly. "…Not everything!"
"If you say so…" Pyrrha smiled. "Let's find a good place for earthbending."
Not far at all from camp, they found a small mount, devoid of grass and with plenty of rocks lying about. From there, they could still see Weiss and Jaune, so it made for the ideal training grounds.
Pyrrha was surprised by how Ruby was behaving so far. She could tell Ruby was eager, but despite that she waited patiently while Pyrrha examined their surroundings and prepared herself mentally for what followed.
"Alright. Let's get started," Pyrrha said, then immediately shook her head. "Wait. Before that, do you have any questions?"
"Uhm… no. I guess I'll start having some once we start?" Ruby replied.
"Okay. So, I already showed you the standard earthbending stance for beginners. Can you show it to me?"
Ruby nodded, then closed her eyes, collecting her thoughts. She slowly but surely assumed the stance as best as she remembered, and to her delight, Pyrrha only had to make a couple of slight corrections.
"Alright. That's good…" Pyrrha said. "Now, feel the earth."
"Feel… the earth?" Ruby blinked. "I don't get it."
"It is a little weird, I suppose," Pyrrha conceded. "But it's a normal thing that earthbenders do. We feel the vibrations of the earth, or ground, around and below us. That way, we become connected to our element, and it becomes much easier to bend." She paused. "This probably wasn't the explanation you needed. Just… do it with your feet. Focus."
"Okay…"
Ruby raised a foot, then stomped on the ground. Aside from herself shaking a bit, nothing changed. She frowned, then tried again, but this time with gentler movements.
"…Nothing," she said. "Maybe I should take off my shoes?"
Pyrrha looked down at Ruby's thin shoes, then at her own metal boots. "I guess that might help."
Ruby kicked off her shoes, then tapped her feet a few times, getting more violent with each unsuccessful try. She got so frustrated she started to grumble, and that got louder and louder until she was almost shouting.
Pyrrha rushed over to her and pulled her back gently, snapping her out of it. Ruby spun to face her, looking perfectly calm.
"I can't feel the earth," she said.
"That's fine. We'll get back to it later, alright?" Pyrrha sighed. "This isn't essential to earthbending. I've heard about plenty of people who don't or can't do it but are still great earthbenders. Perhaps you're like that."
"Hmm… Maybe…" Ruby jumped a little, her eyes lighting up again. "I know what we should do! Show me an earthbending move, and then I'll mimic it! That's how I started waterbending, by watching Weiss do it."
Pyrrha nodded, then walked away from her. She faced the opposite direction, then moved forward and stomped, raising a boulder from the ground. She held it there for a second, gave Ruby a glance to see if she wasn't going too fast, then thrust out an arm, sending the boulder flying away fast. It went over the edge of the mount and crashed down below, eliciting a high-pitched scream from Jaune.
"That's a very simple move. Just raise a boulder from the ground and throw it," Pyrrha said. "Try it yourself."
Ruby jumped away a safe distance and closed her eyes, focusing deeply. She could hear the wind flowing by around her, could smell the water and the grass from the camp, but aside from that, she didn't feel anything else. She shook that off and opened her eyes.
She walked forward, staying grounded like Pyrrha had, instead of resorting to her usual flighty way of moving. After a couple of steps, she stomped on the ground and thrust her arms forward.
"…That was just your first try," Pyrrha said. "And it should be a little harder without you feeling the earth."
"Feeling the earth is starting to sound very essential, Pyrrha." Ruby rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Actually, I messed up. I used both arms instead of one. That was the problem, right?"
"That's not really a rule, but… I suppose. Try again with one arm."
Ruby followed her suggestion, trying even harder to get the move right, but once again, the earth didn't move, and she didn't feel even the slightest tingle of earthbending power in her.
Pyrrha put her hands on her hips, frowning worriedly. "Perhaps you're moving too fast?"
"Am I?" Ruby sighed, her shoulders slumped. "We're going to be here for a long time, aren't we?"
It was nightfall when they returned to camp, both looking frazzled and frustrated. Weiss and Jaune looked up from their seats around the small campfire they had built.
"Wow, you look like you spent a week up there!" Jaune exclaimed in admiration. "Is Ruby a master already?"
Ruby jumped to the branch of a tree and lied down there, wrapping herself in her cloak. Jaune frowned, looking at Pyrrha for answers.
"It didn't go well," Pyrrha said quietly, looking down at her feet.
"Learning how to bend an element is always tough, even for the Avatar," Weiss pointed out. "In fact, I would imagine it's harder for her, since she has to keep track of four of them."
"I wish it was just tough." Pyrrha shook her head. "I couldn't teach Ruby anything at all."
"Oh." Weiss looked away.
"I'm sure tomorrow's gonna be better!" Jaune said cheerfully. "Come and sit down with us, Pyrrha. We were waiting for you to come back so we could eat. Ruby, you should eat too."
Ruby rolled on her branch, turning her back to them. Jaune's eyes widened. If Ruby was refusing food, things really were serious.
"Actually, I think I'm going to sleep now," Pyrrha said hesitantly. "I'm spent."
"Oh, okay. Good night, then," Jaune replied.
"Good night, Pyrrha," Weiss said.
Pyrrha waved at them, then entered her tent and closed it. Weiss and Jaune looked at each other worriedly.
"Well, then… It's just the two of us," Jaune said. "I guess it's a date, then! Haha…"
Weiss glared at him. Jaune gulped, seeing the lake behind her start to waver rapidly.
The next morning, Ruby woke to the scent of something warm and delicious. She sat up immediately, freeing herself of her cloak, and looked down at the camp.
Jaune and Weiss were sitting around the campfire again, watching as Pyrrha stirred a pot above it. The tall redhead seemed very engrossed in her task, with sweat on her brow and her arms shaking slightly.
"Yo, what's up?" Ruby asked excitedly, jumping off her tree.
"Ruby! I'm glad you're awake!" Pyrrha exclaimed, looking away from the pot to smile at her. "Seeing as how we both didn't eat last night, I took it upon myself to cook us a nice, hearty meal."
"Pyrrha! You didn't have to do that!" Ruby said, although she couldn't be happier about this surprise.
"It's my pleasure," Pyrrha assured. "Besides, this might help you with our session today. My mother always said, a full earthbender is a happy earthbender!"
"Did she really?" Jaune asked.
"No," Pyrrha admitted grudgingly. "I just thought that sounded nice."
Ruby sat down, looking like she was about to explode from how excited she was. After a few more minutes, the meal was ready, and the group took their bowls and offered them to Pyrrha – Ruby stealing Jaune's momentarily so she could get two servings at once, much to his dismay.
True to its smell, the stew was delicious. Pyrrha had used a lot of the ingredients she had taken with her from Mistral, and that paid off grandiosely. Ruby and Weiss were happy to learn it was very much meat-free, and Jaune couldn't even complain about it on account of how good it was.
After eating half of the stew by herself, Ruby couldn't bring herself to take any more, as much as she wanted to. Unfortunately, being the Avatar did not mean having a bottomless stomach, despite what her friends would argue.
"That… was… awesome…" Ruby moaned, falling backwards out of her seat.
"You shouldn't have eaten so much," Weiss chided. "Now you won't be able to move for an hour. That's precious time you could be spending with Pyrrha, training your earthbending."
"Take that back!" Ruby shouted, jumping to her feet. "I am one hundred percent ready! Meet you up top, Pyrrha!"
She took her staff and jumped, flying to the top of the training mount. From there, she waved to the camp cheerfully.
Pyrrha lowered her bowl, smiling hesitantly. "She seems more than ready to me…"
"Ignore her," Weiss advised. "You just started eating. It's her fault if she has to wait until you're ready to join her."
"I don't know, I kind of want to go right now," Pyrrha said. "I have a good feeling about today."
They spent just as much time training as the day before, but nothing came of it. The strength and the satisfaction from the meal carried them through the first couple hours, but after that, they fell into the same struggle as before.
It wasn't from a lack of trying from both of them that Ruby couldn't earthbend. Pyrrha went through every basic technique she knew several times, bringing them down to the most basic level, and still that was useless. She even showed a few advanced techniques, in the hope that by some freak reason Ruby would be able to mimic those, but that didn't work either.
When Pyrrha's resources met an end, they began trying to apply what Ruby knew of airbending and waterbending, from stances to moves to mentality. That ended up only leaving Ruby embarrassed as she flew arms and legs at thin air to no result.
By the end of the day's session, they were even more frustrated than the last. They went back to camp, but this time, they didn't share a word with their companions, and neither did Jaune nor Weiss try to get them to talk.
It was halfway through the third day's afternoon that Weiss spotted Ruby flying down from the training grounds. The redhead landed on the camp and walked to her, her steps uncharacteristically heavy.
"Ruby? You should be training with Pyrrha right now. What happened?" Weiss asked.
"I cut our session short," Ruby replied brusquely.
"You did what?!" Weiss grabbed her by the shoulder. "Ruby, that is so disrespectful! Pyrrha joined us just so she could teach you. She left her village unprotected because of it! And you're going to dismiss her like that just because earthbending is being a little difficult?"
"It's not just a little difficult, okay?!" Ruby stepped back, pushing her hand away. "And it's not like that. Pyrrha needed a break too. We came to an agreement!"
"I see." Weiss frowned. "I'm sorry. That was an overreaction."
Ruby nodded. "It's okay. Can we just practice some waterbending, please? At least that I can do."
Weiss looked around. It seemed Pyrrha had stayed at the training grounds. If that weren't the case, she would have denied Ruby's request. She didn't want Pyrrha to see them and feel even worse about how her lessons were going.
"Alright, but you must promise you won't make a show out of it. Understood?"
Ruby nodded solemnly. "I promise."
Later that night, as Weiss settled down to sleep, she noticed a silhouette standing in front of her tent. As she watched, whoever it was crouched and reached for the opening, but stopped suddenly and started to turn around.
Weiss stood up and opened the tent. "Jaune, I swear if you're trying to – oh, hi, Pyrrha."
"Hello," Pyrrha said awkwardly. "…What were you saying about Jaune?"
"Nothing, actually. I'm very paranoid," Weiss replied flatly. "Did you want something?"
"I was hoping we could talk, but it seems like you were going to sleep, so…" Pyrrha trailed off.
"Never mind that. Come in."
Weiss entered the tent and sat down on her sleeping bag, then threw a cushion for Pyrrha to use. The redhead caught it, closed the tent, then sat down beside her.
"So, what is it you wanted to talk about?" Weiss asked. "Ruby, I presume?"
"Exactly," Pyrrha nodded. "I could have asked Jaune, but I believe you should be able to answer me better, seeing as how you're her waterbending teacher."
"Yes. I suppose he might be better suited to answering other questions regarding her…" Weiss said. "Although, I did study a lot about the Avatar back when we were on the North Pole. And he only has to deal with her when she's in a good mood. I have to take care of her all the time. I swear, she would have fallen of a cliff by now if it weren't for me."
Weiss looked away, and Pyrrha couldn't tell whether she was more fond or tired of Ruby. After a few seconds of silence, Pyrrha cleared her throat.
"Sorry. This isn't about me," Weiss said, flustered. "Just ask your questions."
"Well, you already know we've been having a lot of difficulty with our training sessions. To be honest, she hasn't been able to earthbend at all…" Pyrrha said. "I think I might be at fault for that. I've never taught anyone before."
"That shouldn't be much of an issue," Weiss noted. "Ruby was also my first student, and she's a great waterbender now."
"Yes. But you had training beforehand, didn't you? At the North Pole?" Pyrrha asked.
"As a child, yes. But I was only taught he basics. I was a rather… troublesome student when it came to anything past that," Weiss said. "It wasn't right for me, I'm afraid. But I suppose the experience did help me when I began teaching Ruby."
"Well, there's the problem…" Pyrrha lowered her head. "I was never taught earthbending."
Weiss blinked a few times, trying to understand what Pyrrha had just said. Bending without having been taught… It sounded impossible to her. She remembered trying to waterbend when she was very young. She had never been able to, until her sister gave her some pointers, and then her father arranged masters to teach her formally.
"You mean… you didn't have any teachers? None at all?" Weiss asked.
"Not entirely. My parents tried getting a few to teach me when I was a child, but by that point they had nothing to teach me that I didn't already excel at," Pyrrha said.
"How old were you exactly?" Weiss asked suspiciously.
"Five, maybe?" Pyrrha replied hesitantly. "My mother says I was earthbending before I could even walk. I'm sure she exaggerates, but I can't remember a time when I couldn't. It's just… natural to me."
"So in your eyes, it's like you're trying to teach Ruby how to walk, but she simply isn't getting it. She's not even lifting a foot," Weiss said. "That sounds very frustrating."
"Yes, but she seems even more frustrated than me," Pyrrha said. "Is there anything you think might help me?"
Weiss held in a sigh. She had had her troubles teaching Ruby, but those seemed superficial now. Dealing with her becoming grumpy after failing a technique a tad too many times or becoming distracted often wasn't that big a deal. She knew both Ruby and Pyrrha were dedicating themselves fully to their sessions, but nothing was coming of it… and that, she couldn't help with.
"I'm sorry," Weiss said softly. "Just… let her do her thing? She doesn't respond well to being directed strictly."
"Yes, I've figured that out already." Pyrrha sighed. She stood up. "Thanks anyway, Weiss."
"It was nothing. I'm always willing to help," Weiss replied. "Good luck! Hopefully you'll have a breakthrough tomorrow."
"Yeah…" Pyrrha muttered. "Hopefully."
She exited the tent, leaving Weiss alone inside of it. The princess lied down, wondering if the conversation had done more harm than good.
"I don't get it. There must be something I'm doing wrong."
Ruby dropped to the ground. She hugged her legs and rested her head on her knees, glaring at a boulder as if it were her mortal enemy.
Pyrrha circled around her once, looking down at her with pity. Sighing, she bent the rock away from their sight, then sat where it had been, facing Ruby.
"Listen, Ruby. We are both too frustrated to do anything productive," Pyrrha said. "We can't keep bashing our heads against this problem, hoping it goes away. Patience is the key to everything, not just earthbending."
"I guess you're right…" Ruby took a deep breath. "What do we do, then?"
"I don't know. It's a beautiful day."
Ruby looked up at the sky. It was sunny, not a cloud in sight. The breeze carried a pleasant smell that lingered wherever it passed. On days like these, it was easy to forget the Earth Kingdom was being invaded by the Fire Nation.
Ruby shook her head. Not a good thought. She was supposed to be relaxing, not worrying about the world. She looked at Pyrrha, hoping to find something to spark a conversation.
The sun was directly above them, its light reflecting off of Pyrrha's shield. Ruby glanced away, wincing. And just like that, came the spark.
"Pyrrha, how come you can metalbend?"
Pyrrha took out her shield and laid it down between them. "I haven't always been able to do it. That would just be crazy," she said. "I discovered it when I was twelve, if I remember correctly, and even then it took a long time to get a proper grasp on the technique. I'm still learning more about it to this day."
"Oh, so there is something that's tricky for you to do. That's good to know." Ruby giggled. "But how does it work?"
"Think of it like this: metal is just a different type of earth. It's more refined, but it's still earth. All I have to do is sense the earth in it, and I can bend it," Pyrrha explained. "It can be very difficult sometimes, but it's easier with objects I'm familiar with, like my shield."
"Do you think there's a chance I can metalbend?" Ruby asked doubtfully.
Pyrrha shrugged, then gestured at the shield. Ruby closed her eyes, then slowly lowered a hand to touch the shield. She focused on the texture of the metal, then pressed a little, trying to find the earth Pyrrha had talked about.
After what felt like an eternity of searching, Ruby pulled back and opened her eyes, at the same time releasing her breath. "Nothing."
"It was a far shot," Pyrrha said. "I would have been surprised if you were able to do it."
Ruby's face closed up. Pyrrha raised her hands, alarmed.
"I-I didn't mean it like that!" she exclaimed.
"I know. But you wouldn't be wrong anyway. I can't earthbend." Ruby stood up. "Sorry, Pyrrha, but I give up."
Pyrrha jumped to her feet and reached for Ruby, but the younger girl had already turned and ran away, leaping off the training grounds. Pyrrha looked down the edge of the mount, only to see Ruby soar past the camp and disappear behind another mount in the distance.
"Ruby!" Jaune called out, cupping his hands around his mouth so his voice would spread further through the field of the Earth Kingdom. "Ruby, where are you?!"
He sped up his steps, going up a hill to get a better view of his surroundings. He was hoping Ruby hadn't gone too far, but with her being able to fly, that was unlikely. She was pretty adept at hiding when she wanted to be alone…
And when she didn't want to be, she was also very good at making that known. Jaune sighed in relief, at last spotting his best friend sitting on top of another hill in front on him, her staff stuck vertically on the ground like a signpost. He ran over to her as fast as he could, losing his breath along the way.
"R-Ruby…" he gasped, leaning on his knees tiredly. "I'm so glad I found you…"
"Hey, Jaune," Ruby said quietly. "Sorry I ran so far."
"It's okay. You must have had a good reason." Jaune sat down beside her. "What's up?"
Ruby lowered her head in shame, her chin quivering noticeably. "I can't earthbend."
"That sounds like an overreaction," Jaune said carefully. "You're just having a tough time learning. That's all."
"No! Pyrrha's an awesome teacher. I understand everything she teaches me, I'm getting the moves right… but nothing happens!" Ruby groaned. "You don't get it, Jaune. It's like if you were trying to walk, and you're telling your legs to move and they just won't do it."
Jaune rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He really had no idea how bending felt like, but he could imagine how it would feel to suddenly lose the ability for it.
"Jaune, I think might be the worst Avatar ever," Ruby said, covering her face with her hands.
"Come on, Ruby, you know that's not true…" Jaune said. "You've had trouble learning before. Back in the North Pole, with Winter."
"That was different," Ruby shook her head. "I could waterbend just fine then. The problem was the way I was being taught. Pyrrha's more than great."
"I guess… But there must have been a time you couldn't bend at all, right?" Jaune asked. "How did you learn to airbend?"
"My mom taught me. It was super easy, and we had tons of fun. But air is my natural element, so of course it would be that way."
Jaune nodded, agreeing with her. Slowly, however, he went over her words again and started to have another idea.
"Wait. So it was easy to learn from your mother, and from Weiss… but not from Winter," he said. "Ruby, maybe it's not about how you are taught, but who your teachers are, and how you feel about them."
"What?" Ruby looked at him as if he were crazy. "That makes no sense. How would my feelings about my teachers affect how I bend?"
"I don't know. I'm not a bender." Jaune raised his hands helplessly. "I'm just saying. Your mother was, well, your mother. You're super close to Weiss, and there's that thing I'm not supposed to mention about you and her too." He shrugged. "Pyrrha, on the other hand…"
"But I like Pyrrha! I like her a lot! She's like, super awesome!" Ruby protested.
"But we barely know her. You probably aren't super comfortable around her yet," Jaune said. "I mean, for one, I haven't caught you goofing around during her lessons yet, like it always happens with Weiss. And you haven't stolen any food from her either." His eyes narrowed. "That's how we can tell you've really lost all respect for someone."
Ruby frowned, and now Jaune could see she was actually considering his idea. Maybe it was farfetched, but what other explanation was there? That Ruby was the first Avatar to not be able to bend all four elements?
Before the redhead could reach a conclusion, they heard someone else's steps approaching them fast. They got up, and a few seconds later, Weiss appeared, sliding to a halt before them.
"Ruby! You have to get back to camp, fast!" the princess shouted.
"Why? What's going on?!" Ruby asked, panic rising in her throat.
"It's Pyrrha… She's leaving!"
Pyrrha slung her bag over her shoulder and checked its weight. It felt like everything she owned was there, aside from the select things she was leaving behind for the others, like food and some of her money.
Night would be coming soon, but if she moved fast, she could reach a village and get her bearing from there. Her best plan was to learn where her parents had ended up fleeing to and go join them, but she was willing to change it up as needed.
But before she got going, she needed to refill her canteen. She bent down at the edge of the lake and got to it, doing her best to ignore the nagging doubts that were imploring her to change her mind. Leaving would hurt a lot, and not only her… but she knew it was the right thing to do.
Once her canteen was filled, Pyrrha stood up and began walking out of the camp. Right as she crossed its limits, she heard a commotion behind her and turned to look. Ruby had landed hastily on the dry wood of the campfire, knocking the pile over and stumbling.
"Pyrrha!" Ruby screamed. "Don't go!"
Pyrrha turned hesitantly. She could just ignore her, but she was certain Ruby would stop her if she tried that. She needed to reason with her, get her to understand why she was doing this.
"I'm sorry, Ruby," Pyrrha said. "It's not about you. Please understand that. It's just… I need to leave." She looked away guiltily. "The only reason I left my village was so I could teach you. And if I can't do that, then… Well, there's no reason for me to stick around."
"But there is!" Ruby shouted. "We're friends!"
"That's not enough. Not when my people are in danger."
Jaune and Weiss arrived at the camp running at full speed. They stopped behind Ruby, staring apprehensively at Pyrrha. The earthbender held back a sigh. Now that everyone was there, it made leaving even harder.
"Pyrrha, I'm sorry I couldn't earthbend. It really wasn't your fault," Ruby said. "It's mine. But if we keep at it, I promise it will work out. It's like you said… patience is the key to everything."
"I was lying, then. Sometimes you have to give up when there are more urgent things at stake," Pyrrha said. "There are plenty of skilled earthbenders around. I'm sure you'll find a teacher for you if you search hard enough." She paused, measuring her next words carefully. "The truth is, you guys were doing just fine before I came along. You don't need me."
"But… but…" Ruby clenched her fists, frustration welling up inside her.
Pyrrha raised a hand to Jaune and Weiss, bidding them farewell. Weiss replied in form, and after a moment of hesitation, so did Jaune. Smiling bitterly, Pyrrha turned around and took a step forward.
"No!"
Pyrrha yelped, stumbling back as a rocky spire burst from the ground in front of her. She flicked a hand, burying the spire back down, wondering how she had done that without even thinking about it… and realized she hadn't done it at all.
"Ruby!" Weiss exclaimed. "You did it! Congratulations!"
"Did I?" Ruby blinked, lowering her arms. "I did! Woohoo!"
Pyrrha turned around, flabbergasted. Ruby raised a foot and brought it down forcefully. Her eyes widened, and she went stumbling around the camp, as if she were sleepwalking.
"Wooow…" Ruby said. "That's so weeeird… It's like I'm seeing through the ground…"
"Yes!" Pyrrha clasped her hands joyfully. "That's exactly how it feels!"
"I feel the earth…" Ruby continued, stopping to stomp on the ground again. "Wooow that's so weeeeird…"
Jaune backed away from Ruby, more than a little weirded out, and looked at Weiss for help. The princess answered his look with a shrug.
Ruby snapped from her trance, straightening up and turning to face Pyrrha. Her eyes straightened, and she slid forward, bringing her leg up in a mighty kick. A boulder burst from the ground, aimed directly at Pyrrha, who demolished it easily.
"I can earthbend!" Ruby yelled. "I told you! Now you can't leave, you have to teach me!"
"I… have to?" Pyrrha looked down at her bag. "I'm not so sure about that…"
"Yes, you do!" Ruby growled. "If you try to leave, I will bury you so deep underground you'll never see the light of day again!"
Pyrrha blinked, taken aback by the ferocity of the response. "I was just kidding."
"…Right!" Ruby laughed nervously. "So was I."
Pyrrha shook her head and walked back into the camp, dropping her bag on the ground. She was feeling very awkward after her stunt, and she was sure that wouldn't change soon, if at all. But when she looked up again, she found Weiss had already started bickering Jaune about something, while Ruby was staring expectantly at her.
"We're starting real training right now," Ruby decided, leaving no room for argument.
"Okay. If that's what you want," Pyrrha said. "But before we go, tell me something. Why can you earthbend now? Did something click when you ran away? Did it just… happen?"
"No, it's just…" Ruby smiled sheepishly, then closed the distance between them and hugged her. "I didn't want you to leave."
Pyrrha stood frozen for a second, not knowing how to respond. It had been a long time since she had been hugged by anyone other than her parents.
"That's… that's nice," she said, shutting her eyes. She returned the hug, resting her chin on Ruby's head. "I'll never leave. I promise."
Awwn. Friendship truly is the best ship. (after Monochrome which doesn't exist in this setting so, yeah, friendship is the best ship)
Just to be clear, because I am sure you attentive readers and fans of AtLA will point out... The whole opposite-element-difficulty thing Aang had with learning earthbending is also at play here, but it wasn't the major factor with Ruby. So, yeah, there's that question preemptively answered. Cheers!
Aside from that, I don't have much to say. This was just a nice little chapter. After the last chapters, and what's coming next, I think that was very needed.
As always, thank you for reading and giving feedback! Love ya'll! Next chapter is going to be wild! (and that's not a play on the subject matter, it's just a cool adjective. Like, wow, how wild! ...I'm lame sometimes)
-Zeroan
