A/N: I was going to wait before I posted this chapter, but I thought I might as well do it now. This is the penultimate chapter guys! Probably not the most exciting, but it serves to address a few things I suppose. Then the next chapter will be the last! More on that later, but for now I hope you enjoy this chapter.
1 Month later:
Katara's POV:
I stare at myself in the mirror. 'Aang was right, the burns did leave scars.' I think to myself as I raise my hand to my collarbone. The skin is ragged and rough and while it might not sting anymore, it has been a source of a lot of nightmares and flashbacks. I cringe at the thought and drop my hand back down.
The rest of my torso is marred with long burn marks. One across my hip, another above my belly button and another at my side. Sokka suggested plastic surgery if it bothered me that much, but it wasn't that I was bothered by the scars per se. I couldn't care less about them to be honest. It was just the memory of getting them and the circumstances surrounding it that bothers me. 'If I ever see Yakone again, he's going to wish he was in prison, rather than dealing with me.' I growl with tightly clenched fists.
The rage in my face almost scares me, but when I remember how long I was stuck in hospital for plus being house bound on my father's orders, it makes me feel that my anger is justified. All those hours of physiotherapy just to walk properly again and even now there's still a slight limp in my gait. They say it will go with time, but it's frustrating to be asked, 'what's wrong' by everyone I meet. A flaw that anyone can see.
I turn my back on the mirror and pick up the shirt on my bed. After putting it on, I rotate to have another glance at the mirror. If you looked, the discoloured skin at my collarbone is obvious. And I can only hope that Yue won't bring it up. 'It's bad enough that she knows what happened from my brother. But I suppose disappearing for over a month warranted some form of an explanation.' I admit to myself begrudgingly.
I sigh and play with my collar until it's obscuring the scar as much as possible, but as I do so, it just reminds me of a moment when I had flattened down Aang's collar after he accidentally dozed off in a lecture.
My hand pauses and as much as I hate to say it, the airbender is playing a big part in my sour mood. '5 weeks and I haven't seen or heard from him.' I shake my head and snatch my shoulder bag and exit my room.
After locking it, I start walking down the corridor, but my feet make an abrupt stop outside Aang's door. I stare at it, wondering where on earth he's gone. 'He just disappeared without a word.' I swallow and stretch out my arm to rest my palm against the wooden door.
After a moment, I hesitantly knock. The silence that follows was expected, but the hurt that accompanies it isn't welcomed. 'How did he leave me like this?' I think thickly as I rest my forehead against the door. 'Couldn't he have said something?' I ask silently, despite knowing I won't get any answer.
"Katara!" My head jerks up at the sound of my name and I turn to my right to find Yue hurrying down the corridor and waving her arm enthusiastically. Despite my anger and hurt, I can't help the smile that splits my face and I rush to meet her halfway. She's crushing me in a tight hug before I can say anything.
"I can't believe you're finally here." She murmurs tearfully. I squeeze her back, not realising how much I missed her.
"It's so good to see you. I'm sorry that I disappeared for so long." I apologise profusely, prompting the girl to pull back until she meets my eyes. Her hands remain on my shoulders as if I'd disappear if she let go of me.
"Hey, none of that now. Besides, I should be the one that's sorry." Yue insists regretfully. I stare at her in bewilderment.
"What do you have to be sorry for?" I ask in disbelief.
"I wasn't there to help you through anything. I desperately wanted to visit you at the hospital, but my father wouldn't let me. Thought it would be too dangerous." The water tribe girl explains while looking clearly miffed. I smile at her softly.
"He's right, they're still tracking down the last of those gangsters. But I appreciate your concern. Honestly your texts are what got me through my boredom." I admit gratefully, making the girl grin.
"Trust me, I know how boring hospitals can be " Yue jokes. I give her a half smile in agreement, but my friend is already giving me a once over. Her features become sombre when her eyes rest briefly on my neckline before they flicker back up to meet mine. Her eyes hold obvious concern as her face softens.
"Are you doing ok?" She asks delicately as her hands move down to hold my biceps lightly. I try to give her a reassuring smile, but I can feel my mask cracking. 'Being strong for both my father and brother has taken more of a toll on me than I had realised.' I think as I drop my head to stare at the ground.
"Not really." I croak. At my answer I find myself being engulfed in another strong embrace.
"Spirits I'm so sorry. Going through that must've been so traumatising. If I ever see the man who did this to you, I swear that I'll whack him so hard that he won't even remember what day of the week it is!" Yue vows in the most serious sounding tone I've ever heard her speak in. I release a choked chuckle and pat her on the back in gratitude.
"T-Thanks Yue." I hiccup as treacherous tears prick at the backs of my eyes. 'I thought I had cried all the tears I had left.' I think in horror as a tear drops on the girl's shoulder. I feel Yue pause before pulling back to gaze at me with deeply furrowed eyebrows.
"Oh gosh K, have you had the chance to talk to anyone about it? You look like you've just been keeping it all bottled up." My friend asks worriedly while rubbing my arms up and down in a soothing manner. A dry chuckle escapes me at her new nickname.
"K?" I echo back with a teasing eyebrow, prompting a cheeky grin from the water tribe girl.
"I had to give you some type of nickname. And that was the first that came to mind!" Yue defends bashfully. I snort and shake my head.
"I think you've been spending too much time with Toph." I joke dryly which widens the girl's grin.
"Maybe." Yue sings with a wink. Another laugh escapes me as I rub at my eyes. Her face falls as she wraps an arm around my shoulders.
"It's not just about what happened that day, is it?" She whispers as she glances briefly to Aang's closed door. A vacant room. I follow her gaze, but when my heart seizes up, I tear my eyes away.
"He just disappeared." I croak back with hunched shoulders.
"He's a jerk that's what." A deep masculine voice rings out. We both look up to find Zuko standing a few paces away with arms crossed over his chest and indignation written in his face. My lips part in surprise. 'I haven't seen him since he rescued me.' I think to myself as he crosses the distance between us. Yue's eyes snap back and forth between me and him in obvious confusion.
"I haven't see you since..." I trail off with a half-hearted shrug as I zone in on what looks like faded yellow bruising around his jaw. He returns my shrug in kind.
"Dad's in prison, my Mum's back and I've had to run a company, so it's been a little chaotic." The firebender replies bluntly. My eyes widen.
"Your mum's back?" I echo back in surprise as a rush of happiness for him washes over me. His lips twitches into a half smile, a rarity for the firebender.
"She is. I bumped into her over a month ago and she's been living with us since. We're still... adjusting. I don't think Azula is quite over some stuff, but it's a relief to have her back." Zuko says and although he's still his rigid self, I notice a change in his demeanour. It takes me a moment to place it, but when I do I almost smile. 'Relaxed. He's relaxed.' I think to myself. "Sorry I didn't visit you at the hospital, but you look better." Zuko voices with a nod to me.
His amber eyes stay a beat longer on my neckline before lifting to my face. I cringe at what he must've saw and subconsciously pull at my collar. But then I remember that he's got a huge scar of his own and I start to feel guilty for being ashamed of it. Before I can dwell on it more, I spot Yue snapping her head back and forth in utter confusion before raising a hand.
"Hold on, the last time I saw you, you hated him, but now you two are sharing a chilled conversation?!" Yue asks with bulging eyes. I blink twice.
"I thought Sokka told you everything?" I echo back in surprise, prompting the girl to cross her arms.
"Apparently he missed some stuff out." The water tribe girl replies, looking clearly displeased. I furrow my eyebrows in thought before finally catching on. 'Sokka must've given her the very brief, shortened version to protect Aang's identity.' I silently guess as I glance briefly to Zuko who seems to understand my meaning as he slightly tilts his head forward in understanding.
"I suppose, he thought maybe this was something that I should be telling you. But Zuko..." I trail off, realising if I say that he helped me escape then Yue will just ask how did I get hurt then. I bite my lip, but thankfully the scarred man comes to my rescue.
"I just gave her the keys to her hand cuffs." The man shrugs, as if it wasn't a big deal. I frown and look up at him.
"It was more than that. You rescued me." I point out before running my fingers through my hair. "Thank you for that by the way. Things would've been worse if you didn't." I utter gratefully. He nods his head in acknowledgment.
"I think I owed you for being a jerk before." He mutters with a shrug. I give him a smile, touched by his indirect way of an apology.
"Well, I owe you an apology for being so quick to judge before." I say shamefully, but he simply waves it off.
"Considering I gave you nothing else to judge, I suppose it was a typical assessment of me." Zuko utters with a quirked eyebrow and suddenly I feel bashful.
"Well, that was wrong. People should get to know you before jumping to conclusions." I defend strongly, which takes the man off guard. But before he can reply, Yue jumps in.
"You know if I wasn't still rooting for you and Aang so badly, I'd almost say you guys were compatible." The white-haired girl muses. My jaw drops as I stare at her. Subconsciously, I find myself scooting away from the man who in turn takes a step back.
"Yue!" I hiss in mortification while the firebender shoots daggers at the white head who simply raises her hands defensively.
"What? Can't a girl joke? Well, the last part was a joke at least." Yue beams with a wide grin. I don't even know what to say to that as my thoughts tangle together from how flustered I feel.
"Thank Agni, because I was only just starting to tolerate you." Zuko voices with a relieved sigh. I fire him a glare.
"Hey!" I interject, but then his lips twitch upwards and I realise that this is his way of joking. I cross my arms with a 'humph' and turn my head to the side with a displeased grumble.
"Anyway, what are you even doing here? You don't live on campus." I finally ask. The firebender juts his chin towards one of the closed doors at the end.
"I was planning to visit Mai until I saw your miserable face." Zuko explains bluntly and before I can throw back a retort, his gaze deviates towards Aang's closed door. "You do know he moved out of there, right?" He adds with a level gaze. I sag my shoulders.
"I had a hunch when I kept watch of his room for the past week with no sight of him, but I had hoped he had just gone on a break." I semi-lie. 'If I told him that I entered the empty room using my ice pick then he might think I've lost it. Maybe I have.' I kick at the ground before lifting my eyes up. "How do you even know that?" I ask with furrowed eyebrows. The scarred man shrugs.
"Heard him talk about it at the funeral." He says with a wave of his hand. I balk.
"You went with him to Roku's funeral?" I echo back in shock to which he nods. Before I can grill him with questions, the white head pipes up.
"Who's Roku?" At her question, I freeze. 'Shoot, I should be careful with what I say. Even if Roku's...dead, the less said about him the better.'
"Aang's guardian. It's probably the main reason why he's been absent." Zuko replies for me, sparing me a sidelong glance before looking back at Yue who's face falls.
"Oh spirits yes, Sokka told me about that. Poor guy, he's been through a lot." The water tribe girl murmurs with sad eyes. I drop my head and clutch my elbow, suddenly feeling guilty. 'Here I am upset that Aang disappeared, when's he's probably still dealing with Roku. And his death must be bringing up memories of both his parents and the orphanage. Spirits, he's probably in a really bad place now.' My fingers dig into my skin at the thought of what he might be doing to himself right now.
"Do you know where he is?" I question, but at his head shake my heart drops.
"I don't. Sorry." He answers, but his words are halted and for a moment he deliberated on saying something else before shaking his head. I narrow my eyes at him.
"Are you sure?" I inquire sharply as I take a step towards him. He quirks an eyebrow at me.
"I'm sure. I think he's being ridiculous for leaving. And even more so for not telling you." At his words I find myself frowning.
"You mean, you knew he was going to move out? Why didn't you tell me? I could've stopped him!" I ask tightly. The firebender crosses his arms defiantly.
"If I recall correctly, you were still bed bound in the hospital. Telling you wouldn't have done anything except make you feel more miserable than you already were." Zuko points out a matter-of-factly. I snap my jaws closed and glare at the ground.
"At least tell me how he was when you saw him. Was he ok? Did he look like he was sleeping enough? And eating properly?" I ask desperately as thoughts of his self-harm starts weighing heavily on my mind. Even Yue is frowning at me, probably from how unhinged I must appear. The scarred man stares at me weirdly.
"He was as fine as someone that's grieving would be. You on the other hand, not so much. What's with you? You're acting like some overly protective mother hen." Zuko jeers with a squint. I press my lips tightly together just as Yue rests her hand on my arm.
"Hey what's up? You look really worried about him." The white head queries gently with furrowed eyebrows. I close my eyes and turn my head away from them.
"Nothing. I'm just...worried is all." I mutter. A sturdy hand on my shoulder almost has me looking back, but I refrain from doing so in case something on my face gives me away.
"Do you have a reason to be?" Zuko asks, his voice low. I struggle with my next words, especially knowing that it's not my place to share anything so private and personal to the airbender.
"I don't know. It's just...he must be at the end of his rope. I need to see him. To make sure he's ok." I mumble as I dig my fingers into my palm. The pair share a glance before returning their gaze to me.
"Are you worried about him or is it that you just want to see him?" Zuko questions as he drops his hand from my shoulder. I furrow my eyebrows at him.
"What is that supposed to mean?" I ask in confusion, just as the white head shifts from one foot to the other.
"Well, we both know how much you care about Aang and your feelings for him are pretty obvious. So, are you worried that he's not ok or are you worried that you'll never see him again?" Yue asks quietly. The question is like a sucker punch to the gut and I find myself struggling to breathe.
"You think I'm being dramatic?" I croak dryly which immediately has the girl shaking her head vigorously.
"Not at all! But Katara, you can't torture yourself over this. If Aang wants to disappear, then...then maybe it's best you let go of him." Yue advises carefully, but I'm already taking a sharp step away from her.
"You don't understand. He needs someone! He's been alone and hurt for so long. I can't just leave him like that!" I retort angrily with clenched fists. Yue's face falls slightly, but Zuko swiftly steps in front of her to stare me down.
"Why does that someone have to be you?" He asks bluntly. I open my mouth, ready to argue, only to find that I don't have the words. I scrunch up my nose and jerk my head to the side.
"Who else will it be?" I utter harshly.
"His new guardian." The firebender answers simply. My eyes widen and I snap my head back to him.
"His what? When did he...?" I trail off, feeling painfully out of the loop. 'How does Zuko know so much about what's going on in Aang's life and I know nothing? Wasn't I meant to be his first real friend?'
"You don't expect a teenager to be left alone without a guardian, did you?" The man voices as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. I bite the flesh of my cheek hard.
"Do you know who?" I croak, but the man shakes his head in refusal.
"Even if I did know, you know I couldn't tell you in case it puts Aang's life or yours in danger. Your friend is right, it's best you just forget about him." Zuko suggests with a shrug of his shoulders. I stare at him as if he lost his mind.
"I can't!" I shout, my voice cracking on the second word. The firebender's eyes hardens.
"You're letting your emotions and feelings get in the way of doing what's reasonable." The scarred man growls with annoyance. I shoot him a scalding glare just as Yue tries to get between us in an attempt to mediate peace.
"Coming from someone who just shuts off his own emotions! Did you get burnt so badly that you forgot what it's like to feel?!" I yell. The clap of silence that follows is like the sound of a raging storm and when I realise what I've just said I slap a hand over my mouth in shame. "Shoot, I'm sorry I shouldn't have..." I start with an outstretched hand, but the man pulls away from me with a blank face.
"If you want to wallow in your misery, then fine. What does the guy that doesn't feel anything know, right?" He utters coolly and walks around me. I kick myself and immediately go to grab his sleeve.
"Wait. I was being stupid. Of course you feel. I'm really sorry." I apologise profusely with my head bowed. He doesn't move for several moments. Then after a quiet sigh he turns to look at me.
"You weren't completely wrong. I can't feel much on this side of my face." Zuko admits with a small smile as he reaches to press his fingertips to his marred skin. My breathing catches as even more shame envelops me and when I look up, I find myself scanning the man's face.
The angry red scar remains as a permanent fixture on his left side. But the faded yellow bruising I had noticed earlier peppers the underside of his jaw. Without another thought, I bend the water from the air and go to press my palm against his mandible. It glows briefly before fading back to its usual transparent colour. When I pull my hand away the bruises are gone and the scarred man simply stares at me. With a blink, he moves his hand to rub at his jaw and is surprised to find it's no longer tender.
"Is that your way of an apology?" He asks, his voice bordering on amusement. Feeling bashful, I shrug.
"I was a jerk, but those bruises were bugging me." I answer nonchalantly, making the man roll his eyes.
"Courtesy of my Dad when I visited him in prison. Should've known even he would be able to land a punch on me through those prison bars." Zuko mutters to himself. My eyes widen as I feel even more guilty for what I said.
"Spirits, I'm really sorry." I voice, feeling aghast. 'I can't even imagine what having an abusive father must feel like. My Dad has never once laid a hand on me, even when I went through my rebellious teen years.' I think to myself as Zuko shrugs, but when I glance at Yue her eyes are filling up with tears.
"Your Dad beats you?" She whispers with shock. The firebender blinks at the sudden emotion in her voice and becomes uneasy.
"It doesn't matter now, he's in prison and I don't have to deal with his grief anymore." Zuko reassures, but I can see that the painful memories still plague him. I open my mouth to comment, but when I notice the pulsing vein at his jaw, I quickly change my mind. "So, you're still worried about Aang?" He asks in an attempt to change the subject. My lips part as I eye the ground.
"I am, but...maybe you're right and I should just forget about him." I mumble, the lie tastes bitter on my tongue. Yue purses her lips and shakes her head.
"You don't have to forget about him. Just, don't let him be a source of pain for you." The white head advises lightly. I give her a half smile.
"That's easier said than done." I voice dryly.
"Well, you're going to have to move on whether you like it or not because you probably will never see him again." The firebender points out bluntly. Yue elbows the man hard in the ribs when I inhale sharply.
"Zuko." She hisses, but I give her a weak smile.
"No, it's ok. He's right. I...I'm going to head down to the library." I excuse myself.
"Wait, I'll join you!" The white head offers, but I shake my head.
"I think I need to be alone for a bit. I'll see you for the afternoon lecture though." I bid with a half-hearted wave. As I walk away, I can hear the pair's snatched arguments.
"That's was very insensitive!" Yue whispers loudly.
"She needs to wake up and stop moping. If I had to be blunt for that to happen then I will." The firebender snorts back.
I wrap my arms around myself as their voices begin to fade the further down the corridor I walk. When I reach the lift to go downstairs, it suddenly opens to reveal a student I've never seen before on my floor. In his hands are several boxes stacked on top of each other and it's a miracle that he's somehow able to balance them without any issue. When he notices me watching, he tips his head forward in greeting.
"Do you live on this floor?" He asks directly without offering any pleasantries. I blink and nod my head.
"I do. By the looks of it you're moving in?" I ask, nodding to his boxes. He shifts his hands slightly to get a better grip. "Do you need any help?" I add, before he can answer my first question. He shakes his head.
"Nah, I'm good. And yeah, I'm moving into room 412. I was lucky, they said I'd probably have to wait till the end of the year for a room, but one magically opened up." The male student explains with a triumphant grin.
The hand that was reaching out to take the first box from his pile, immediately drops to my side. 'Aang's room. He's taking Aang's room.' I realise numbly. My stomach twists at the thought. It's as if a knife is digging it's way further into my organs as the reality of Aang being gone sets in even more.
"You alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." The man queries with furrowed eyebrows. I take in a deep breath to get a control of emotions and wave my hand in reassurance.
"Totally fine. I'm sorry, but I don't believe I caught your name?" I ask in an attempt to distract myself.
"Oh yeah. I'm Ghashiun. I come from the Sandbender district. It was a long commute so I've been wanting a room for months. What about you?" Ghashiun introduces. I tilt my head to the side in interest.
"Wow, I've never met someone from the Sandbender district before. It's usually so far away in the desert." I voice in surprise. The tanned man shrugs.
"We sandbenders prefer to stick to ourselves. But I thought I had to at least see what life is like for the average person and here I am." He explains before pausing to eye me up and down. "From your clothes I'd say you're a Water Tribe citizen." He correctly deduces. I flush in embarrassment when I realise I haven't yet introduced myself.
"Yes, sorry. I'm Katara from the Water Tribe." I introduce with a bow. The man tips his head down again.
"Cool name. Well, nice to meet you Katara. I better go and dump these boxes in my room before my arms go numb, but I'm sure I'll see you around." Ghashiun voices politely before moving past me.
"Sure." I utter as I watch him walk down the corridor. I shake my head and press the down button on the lift.
I chew my lip as conflicted feelings rise up within me. On the one hand having an occupied room might help distract me from the young airbender's absence. On the other hand, it really does mean that I'll never see Aang again and the thought just makes me want to hurl.
But I suppose the question that has been tormenting me ever since I woke up in the hospital is: 'Why doesn't he want to see me?' I close my eyes to try and compose myself, but even I can't fool myself when a single tear drop slides down my cheek.
3 months later:
I lock the door of my room and hoist my bag over my shoulder. My eyes automatically fall on what used to be the airbender's door as I walk past the room. It turned into an annoying habit ever since I returned to uni. Always glancing at the door as if half expecting Aang to pop out from behind it.
At first, I used to stop and stare. Sometimes it would be so long that to my embarrassment Ghashiun would notice. After the first few attempts of me shutting down his questions, he gave up and left me to stare at the door for as long as I wanted. But as the days turned into weeks and weeks into months, I stopped staring and stopping outside the room.
Now, it's just a quick flicker of my eyes as I pass by the door. The ache is still there, but not quite as prominent as it used to be. I suppose I just accepted that Aang was simply a person I met during my first few months at uni and that's all it was.
My nightmares are better too. I barely get them now. The only thing that reminds me of the trauma are the burn marks. But I'd take those over the nightmares any day. Even my limp is gone. No one could tell what I've been through as long as I wear the right clothes. My Dad and Sokka are the only ones who got a glimpse of my PTSD in those first few weeks when I woke up screaming at home. I can tell they're still worried, but they've let up with their constant check ins which I'm thankful for, because it's hard to get better when people treat you like glass.
Lectures have been hard. I missed out on over a month worth of content. I had to spend every waking moment studying just to catch up so I wouldn't have to repeat the year. With exams approaching I'm admittedly more anxious for them than I've ever been for an exam.
Fortunately, Yue has kindly allowed me to share her notes. In fact, she's been at my side constantly since I came back which I'm grateful for. I think I needed someone to distract me without looking at me with sympathy like my brother and Dad have been doing.
I suppose the strangest thing that came out of all of this is that Zuko now sits with us during lunch. Sokka was so laughably awkward when he offered him a seat and the firebender has been sitting with us ever since. It was something I never imagined would happen and I especially never thought I'd call him my friend one day after our initial few meetings and his dad being responsible for my mother's death. But his friendship is something I've grown to appreciate and even treasure.
Even his sister stopped tormenting the other students, but she still keeps to herself. Only ever associating with Mai and her other friend. She never talks to Zuko when we're around which surprised me at first, I had assumed she'd want to taunt her older brother. She doesn't even talk to me.
Sometimes I catch her looking at me, but she always abruptly casts her eyes elsewhere when I meet her gaze. When I asked Zuko about it, he simply shrugged, saying that his sister's mind is impossible for anyone to understand. The closest thing he could say was that maybe she admires me. But that can't be right. Azula isn't the type of person to admire anyone but herself. Still, maybe I'll ask her one day. She saved me from Yon Rha, so perhaps she's not as bad as I think she is. I mean, I was wrong about Zuko, so I could be wrong about her too.
I suppose it's funny how friendship circles change over time. Before, Yue, Teo & Aang were the closest friends I had at uni. But now? Aang's gone and instead there's Zuko & Ghashiun. Speaking of the sandbender, that's exactly who I collide into on my way down the stairs.
"Oof sorry about that." I apologise in embarrassment, but he simply waves me off.
"Don't worry about it. I was actually coming to find you. Was thinking we could grab lunch together." The man suggests as he walks me down the stairs, but I find myself shaking my head at his request.
"I'm sorry I can't. My lecturer kindly offered to catch me up with some of the stuff I've missed in preparation for the exams." I say with regret, but the man doesn't appear deflated and continues to walk by my side.
"That's alright. Maybe some other time." He voices breezily with a causal wave of his hand. I nod my head and we fall into a steady silence while we walk. But just before I reach my seminar room, the sandbender opens his mouth again. "I've been meaning to ask you something." He starts, but his eyes remain fixed ahead of him. I furrow my eyebrows.
"Oh yeah and what's that?" I say, beckoning him to continue. He stalls for a moment before coming to an abrupt stop and turns to face me fully. His eyes linger on my neck before they rise to meet my gaze.
"I've always wondered about that scar on your collarbone." Ghashiun utters a matter-of-factly. My hand immediately flies to the exposed part of my collarbone. 'It was the only scar I found it hard to hide no matter what I wore. But no one ever had the courage to ask me about it directly, not even Yue.' I swallow as I try to collect my thoughts.
"Should I be concerned that you've been paying a little too much attention to me?" The words exit my mouth before I can think them through and I almost cringe at my implication. Surprisingly, the sandbender isn't as flustered as I thought he would be and simply shrugs.
"You spend an awful lot of time staring at my door, so it's a bit hard not to notice things about you. We've known each other for a few months now, so I thought I warranted the right to at least ask." Ghashiun utters with that slightly inflated ego of his that I picked up on during our initial encounters. Usually, I welcome it because it meant he couldn't be more different than Aang, but sometimes it does get a bit too much.
"Sometimes there are things you shouldn't ask." I mutter as I drop my hand back to my side. He seems to consider this for a moment before shrugging again.
"Sometimes people are too mysterious that it's impossible not to ask. Seems like you've got a lot of trauma or something." Ghashiun observes curiously, but I abruptly turn my head away from him.
"It's not something I want to talk about." I voice stiffly. The sandbender exhales heavily.
"Alright then. I won't delay you any longer. Have fun learning." The man utters with a nod before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking away. I bite my lip, wondering if I was perhaps a little too rash with the student, but he always has a bad habit of being a little too curious for his own good.
My fingers move to play with my mother's necklace. A trinket I started wearing after Dad gave it to me during my long stay at home. Touching it always gives me a sense of comfort when the anxiety becomes too much. 'Maybe because this is the closest I'll ever be able to get to her.'
I sigh and shake my head. 'Right, I need to focus on acing my exams.' I tell myself stubbornly and go to push open the door to the seminar room.
A/N: Ngl I spent agggges trying to figure out which character should be the one to move into Aang's room. I always knew someone had to move in, but I didn't want to make up some random character and by this point I've already used up all the well known characters in their age bracket so I was really stuck. Ended up combing through each episode in my mind and bang the sandbender fit the bill. Not only does he fit the age range, he's opposite to Aang in practically every way, plus it felt a fitting parallel to the show. He stole Appa in the show and here he, well he doesn't technically steal Aang's room, but I suppose to Katara that's probably what she feels.
I thought the parallel to ember islands when Zuko & Katara scootched away from each other would be funny, so I inserted it in as one of the last parallels I'm making with the show. Wasn't meant to mean anything, it's just for laughs XD
So, we're nearly there now guys. There's only one last chapter left which I finished writing yesterday and I'll try to post it next week and then we're done. I'm purposely leaving a few loose ends to pick up in the sequel, but most things will be tied up in the last chapter. Dang, it feels weird to say that. I might not have spent as much time on this fic as others, but I've definitely felt the most invested in it so it feels sad to say goodbye and I can't imagine the sequel will be very long tbh, but who knows.
Anyway, thank you to everyone for sticking through it this long! Please leave your thoughts, I always appreciate hearing them. Until next time!
22/7/22