A. N. : In both Greek and Roman ancient times, most people wouldn't get to eat meat, except on the days of public sacrifices. That was the human's share of the deal, as counterpart for the bone smoke the gods had. So that's one reading of today's title. Another would be, well, the sharing of something related to flesh - to the body - such as pain. Lots of pain in this chapter, with pretty extensive depictions of injuries and the suffering engendered by such injuries. Once again, if you prefer to skip this one, I'll understand, and will provide a summary in the notes of next chapter.

Suki thinks that man is dead.

If he isn't, he has to be the luckiest person alive – she used the platform to her advantage, pushed him over with all her weight, both of them crashing down right as lightning – lightning ? In this weather it could only be the Princess, and Suki shudders to think about what she did with that – struck close enough that she felt the air blow up, and if his neck didn't snap from the shock, then his skull must be in a pretty bad shape anyway, with the same end result.

Her shoulder took the brunt of the impact, and she's glad her own brain is still shaken enough to not process what that looks like when her eyes fall on it. She feels like she's going to throw up. Not – not sure if from the fall and the scrambled mind, or from the pain in her dislocated shoulder.

She needs these shackles off.

Crawling away from the guard's body, she slowly tries to rise to her knees, take in what's happening around her. To her right, the unnatural shape of her arm jutting out of its socket, and on the ground, the dead guard.

To her left, an unconscious earthbender with an arm that looks like it got crushed in a millstone. Another one is fighting some wild dual hookswords user, looking – furious ? livid ? shaken ? – looking over his shoulder from time to time, in Suki's direction.

Shoulder hurts.

Aang emerges in front of her from the earth, blows some air to her right, to another earthbender past the dead guard – there's another one slumped against a wall farther away too. That makes four. Half of the earthbenders.

Suki tries to move, and her vision whites out in pain. She doubts Aang knows how to fix a shoulder, so she only answers his hey Suki ! you alright ? with a broken yes, and tries to breathe and count and slowly rise up – foot on the ground, the vibration shakes her upper body and she whimpers, swallows –

Breathe. In – one, two, three – hold – one, two, three – out – one, two, three.

Lightning, again, without the tremors in the earth that came with it earlier. The change can't be good. If someone died because of her, for her –

She grits her teeth. Her eyes sting. She pretends it's from her dislocated shoulder.

A bird – forest dove, she thinks, but it doesn't quite sound like the ones at home – cries behind her. Hookswords calls to Aang, who blows his earthbender away against a wall, before bending water from a pouch into ice manacles, trapping the earthbender, and then retreating.

Maybe the bird was a signal of some kind.

Earth shakes, but Suki can't see who's responsible for – Toph. Toph is stomping to her, metal shackles circling one of her arms like bracelets for some reason, a feral grin on her face. She steps over the unconscious earthbender on the ground, crouches next to Suki – gimme those hands, Princess – and while the nickname brings a smile to Suki's lips, having her arm moved does not – the world goes – white – sound does not – exist – anymore – there's – nothing – but pain – she's going to pass out fuck –

Being freed from her bounds would make things worse, if that was even possible.

Suki's forehead hits the ground – right, the ground, the ground still exists – and she tries to focus on that, on bringing Toph's voice closer to her than the islands away it seems to be – what's wrong ? hey, what's up with your arm ? – focuses on breathing and letting air pass through her throat and –

I need you – Suki chokes on the words, on the pain, swallows – need you to fix my shoulder.

Toph listens to the instructions – right arm, dislocated shoulder, gotta pull on the arm slowly until it pops – then she gets up, walks around Suki, crouches again and gently puts one hand on Suki's back, while the other reaches for Suki's arm. This position is probably far from ideal to do this, but if Suki has to move any more, she will actually faint.

She feels Toph's knee against her side, close to her armpit, the hand that was on her back goes to join the other on her bicep – Toph has small hands, she realizes, hopes this won't be an issue to grab on and – pull –

The pain leaves, suddenly, leaving only a wave of cold washing over Suki's right side, with little relief.

She breathes. Thanks Toph, rises up slowly, looks around farther away than she could before – Aang and Katara are on Appa's back already, on the other side of the courtyard, the old man is hurrying along with some black-haired guy, pushing back the few earthbenders left, and on the platform –

Hey, where's Snoozles ?

Suki doesn't answer – why is he on his knees – climbs the stage hurriedly, not caring about the residual pain in her arm – why is he not moving – scrambles to Sokka – the sword is keeping him pinned upwards, it didn't go through anything but his arm – there's blood, there's so much blood – there's a headless body next to him, that has to be the reason – is he breathing – please be breathing – please be alive – please –

He shivers when she touches him and it's all she needs to find her voice again and call for help. She can't move him on her own, not with the sword like that – not when pulling it out could make him bleed out.

Her heart beats thirty nine times before Hookswords arrives – oh, fuck – and then it's an eternity to move Sokka down from the platform – to walk from the stage to Appa, Hookswords carrying most of Sokka's weight, while Suki keeps the sword in place – to wait for Toph to raise the ground to Appa's level –

It hits Suki that lightning didn't strike at all since they started their retreat. Hits her that she doesn't know how many times it even struck, or how many steps it took to carry Sokka to Appa, or – she breathes – numbers don't – wouldn't – Sokka got hurt because of her – because she didn't – because she is –

She took ten breaths since Appa left the ground.

She crumbles.