I remained hidden for another week, sneaking in and out of Korra's room but mostly hiding inside it. Whenever somebody came I'd hide in her wardrobe and stay there until they were gone. Korra would request extra portions for food and to eat alone in her room so that I'd have something to eat, and if we wanted anything in particular, I'd find a way to get it. Of course, when the time came for Jinora's anointment to become the newest Air Bending Master in a generation, I had to attend. I watched from a distance, smiling proudly and brushing the tears from my eye as I observed the ceremony in secret.
By this point I'd been gone so long that Lin had resumed the search for me, having all of her officers on the lookout for me and I could tell my mom was getting worried. Part of me wanted to go to her, but I was saving it until the last minute, the last night where I would say goodbye to those I cared about. When Korra's dad came for her with a tribe ship, everyone said their goodbyes before they departed, leaving me on the island but I had already arranged with Korra that I would catch up. I went to see the children first, all asleep in their beds by the time I went looking for them.
I left a letter with Jinora for her to read to her younger siblings when she woke up, then lightly kissed her forehead where her new air bending arrow lay. Then I did the same for Ikki and Meelo in their rooms, tucking in that little rascal as he'd kicked off all his blankets and moved Poki off his head as his tail had covered Meelo's mouth before I then went looking for Bumi. Out of everybody, I knew I could trust him to keep quiet, so when I tapped on his window, he sleepily opened it up and blinked. "Who's there?" Reaching up I grabbed him, making him yelp but I quickly covered his mouth as he recognised me, mumbling my name loudly against my palm.
"Sh! I'm not supposed to be here, but I came to say goodbye Uncle Bumi." The spirit Bum-Ju woke up at that point, fluttering out the window with a light squeak before landing on my shoulder.
"Kanna! Where have you been? We were all so worried about you, we didn't know where you were, whether you were able to find food or shelter…don't ever make me worry for you so much ever again!" Bringing me into a bone crushing hug, I embraced my uncle tearfully as I felt his familiar hug bring down my walls.
"I'm sorry uncle, I just needed to stay away for a while, and after I leave tonight, you probably won't see me again for a while." I told him, holding him for a while longer before pulling back. "I'm going with Korra to the south to help oversee her recovery in secret, then…well I'll get to that part when I come to it."
"Kanna, you shouldn't have run away. We're your family, you're meant to talk to us." Bumi said to me as he brushed at my hair and held my face, clearly loving me as much as he would his own kid and it made my heart warm.
"Tenzin made it clear I wasn't welcome here anymore."
"It doesn't matter what Tenzin says, you're our Kanna and you belong with us." Bumi told me firmly, giving me a slight shake to emphasise his point. "And my brother was just stuck in his own 'Tenzin world' where everything is rigid and by the book. He really worries about you, he's been helping search the city for you ever since you left." I looked away, unsure how to feel about it. "I know we can sort all of this out, just come home Kanna. I won't let anything happen to you, and neither will your mom."
"How…how was she?" I asked with hesitant concern, wondering how mom dealt with me leaving and coming to terms with me being a blood bender.
"She gave Tenzin a good what for after you went, beating him up like she used to when we were all kids and I didn't lift a finger to stop her. Kya told him he was stubborn and old fashioned and that if he ever talked to you that way again, she would turn him into fish food." Wow, that does sound like mom and I wouldn't put it past her. "But then she worried too when you didn't come back. She wanted to go after you, but she thought you'd just run away from her."
"I probably would have." I admitted, shrugging my shoulders slightly. "Did you talk to her about the things I said?" Bumi stiffened and became awkward, laughing uneasily as he struggled to meet my gaze.
"Maybe…I don't know…I can't quite remember, the old memory isn't as sharp as it used to be." He excused but I just smiled at him.
"I'm going after Korra now, and I'll talk with mom before I leave for good after seeing Korra back home. Maybe I'll travel for a while. There's a lot of unrest in the Earth Kingdom, maybe I'll travel around there and see how I can help. There's also the remnants of the Red Lotus…there's a lot that needs to be done."
"Now don't you be going doing anything dangerous on your own! What if something happened to you and we never heard from you again? Your mother would never forgive herself." Bumi warned me sternly so I put my hand on his shoulder to reassure him.
"I'll keep in touch. If I don't send letters, you can always send Bum-Ju with a message for me. I've gotten really good at communicating with spirits lately, haven't I Bum-Ju?" I asked and the little spirit twittered at me, the impressions and meaning of his answer becoming apparent in my mind. "He'll always be able to find me, and I'll get word to you if I'm in trouble. I promise Uncle Bumi." Knowing that he wouldn't be able to stop me, Bumi just sighed and nodded his head acceptingly. I hugged him one final time, smiling peacefully as he held me close. "I love you uncle. You know, I always believed your stories."
"Well some of them may have been slightly exaggerated."
"I know, but I believed them anyway." He hugged me tighter.
"Take care of yourself, sweet muffin. I love you more than you could ever know." But I did know, because Bumi showed me how much he loved me every day we were together. He was always on my side, always found ways to cheer me up when I was sad, dropped everything after he heard my father had passed on in order to give me hugs and kisses in his place, becoming the prominent fatherly role in my life. If I didn't have Bumi, I don't know how I would have managed to keep on going.
"You're the best of Aang's children Bumi. I hope you know that." I said to him before letting go, seeing tears in his eyes as he tried his best to smile at me, but couldn't bring himself to be happy at letting me go. "I already said goodbye to the kids whilst they were sleeping and I left a letter for Jinora explaining everything. I'll be in touch soon, let you know how my adventures are going. Thank Pema for me, give Rohan a kiss and tell Tenzin…tell him I'm sorry I let him down."
"Kanna…" Bumi started but I shook my head, struggling to keep it all together. Kissing his cheek warmly I then got up, walking away from the temple in order to head out to see, though I looked back one last time at my uncle in order to smile at him, lifting my hand to wave before I jumped. I heard him squeak and rush after me to look down, making sure that I wouldn't get hurt but I slid down the cliff side then pushed off it towards the water, bendign an ice float which I then sent flying forwards in order to catch up to Korra's ship, leaving Air Temple Island behind me and as I got further out to sea, I looked back.
I could see the island and the temple backlit from the city lights, everything twinkling in the distance with the giant statue of my grandfather standing on his memorial island. I said goodbye inwardly, as well as a sorry for leaving before I turned and didn't look back again, knowing that there was nothing left for me there. Not right now. Maybe not ever.
