Chapter 16: Another Year Wiser

When Miyani had finally decided to be open about her emotions, she had tried to prepare herself for a lot of stressful situations. She had expected the world to throw her some surprises anyway, but the exact situations she found herself in still caught her off guard. At the moment she was at the center of a very heated debate over pork.

"Don't do it Miyani, It's not worth it," Sen cautioned.

"Don't listen to him, it isn't that bad," Suda countered.

They were at Hakajima's restaurant as part of Suda's ongoing birthday celebration. Miyani was seated between two different camps; Sen and Ada, who were begging her not to eat the Spicy Pork, and Suda and Nura, who were goading her into trying it. She held a single piece of the heavily contested meat in front of her as the two sides presented their case.

"I tried it once, it's awful. You won't be able to feel your tongue for hours."

"Think of dessert, Miyani. There's cake. If you want to actually enjoy the cake, you won't eat the pork," Ada pleaded.

"Come on, she might like spicy stuff," Suda argued. "She's got to try it at least once."

"Not everyone's as much of a wimp as you two," Nura said. She ate a bite of Spicy Pork to emphasize how easy it was to deal with.

Miyani toyed with the plate in front of her for several minutes as the opposing sides engaged in the debate of the century over whether or not she should eat a piece of pork. After several moments of heated verbal conflict, Miyani held up her hand, and silence fell between the warring parties.

"I've spent too much time being afraid," Miyani said, staring down the Spicy Pork.

"Miyani, no!"

Sen's desperate pleas were ignored. Miyani took the bite.

For a brief moment there was naught but silence, at least among the five party-goers. The other hundred people in the restaurant had no idea of the epic confrontation that had just been brought to an end by Miyani's decisive moment of courage. Their idle chitchat continued as Miyani began her personal duel against Hakajima's Spicy Pork.

Her face seemed as calm and serene as the day Sen had first met her. Slowly, gradually, she turned to look at Sen, who had begged her not to eat the pork. Miyani looked deeply into her friend's eyes.

"I'm going to die."

Tears of agony began to stream down Miyani's face. She collapsed onto Hakajima's table in a sobbing mess as the inferno overwhelmed her.

"Dibs on the rest of her pork," Suda said.

The rest of the group resumed normal conversation as Sen wrapped his arm around Miyani's shoulder and tried to ease her pain. She was completely disconsolate.

"I'm so sorry," She sobbed. "I should have listened."

It was difficult for her to talk through the intense pain that coursed through every nerve of her mouth, and she was eventually reduced to a choking whine as the agony overwhelmed her. Sen gave her an awkward yet comforting pat on the back.

"You'll be okay, I promise," He assured her.

Miyani let out a low groan of pain. She started to say something, but quickly stopped herself when a waitress dropped off a drink in front of her. Miyani immediately banished any thought but that of cold water and selfishly gulped down the drink. That would also turn out to be a mistake. After a few seconds of chugging her brain connected the necessary nerves to make her realize what she was drinking was not water. She gagged heavily and started to choke. Whatever she was drinking, it was sour beyond belief.

"What the heck did you give her?"

"Lemon juice," the waitress said. "Sour cancels out spicy."

Miyani was dealing with the troubling aftereffects of intense sour now, but she seemed to be handling it better than the Spicy Pork. She'd stopped crying, at least. People were still staring. She had attracted attention from the moment she'd entered the restaurant, but her dramatic outbursts had drawn even more eyes to her. She was trying not to care. It was actually pretty easy, with Sen at her side.

"How come I didn't get any of that when I had the pork," Sen asked the waitress.

"Because you didn't spend fifteen minutes talking about it first, sweetheart," The waitress explained. She quickly returned to the kitchen, no doubt to laugh about this incident with her coworkers.

After a few minutes of recovery, Miyani was ready to get back into the conversation. Suda and Nura gave her a hard time for her dramatic reaction to the Spicy Pork, but as Sen and Ada were still on her side, Miyani won any argument about it. Eventually the topic shifted away from Miyani completely and moved towards Ada.

"So, no more bandages, I see," Nura said. She gave Miyani a quick glance. Miyani didn't react in the slightest.

Ada held up her hand. The scar from Sorikami's stab was still plainly visible, but the wound had mostly healed. She was not ready to go back to dual-wielding just yet, but she could use her arm more easily now. It helped that she had always been right-handed. She didn't use her left hand for much anyway.

"It's a pretty neat scar, at least," Suda said.

"Don't get me started," Miyani said. She had to point out her barely-visible scars to Nura, who hadn't realized they were there.

"Your collection is very impressive, Miyani, but you're clearly a professional. We amateur scar enthusiasts have a long way to go before we catch up with you."

Suda often casually joked about Miyani's scars and bandages. Miyani didn't seem to mind. Suda's charisma made him seem inoffensive even when talking about sensitive topics. Only he and Sen ever brought her physical differences up in conversation. Other than a brief conversation about how much taller she was than Ada, of course. Ada could walk right under her arms without having to duck.

"I'd feel better about it if I'd left a scar on her too," Ada jabbed. Her only regret from her duel with Sorikami was not getting in any attacks of her own. Suda shook his head.

"Don't worry, little lady, you'll get plenty of chances to stab people. I mean, look at the mark you left on me."

Suda pulled aside the neckline of his shirt and exposed the scar from his first meeting with Ada. It was around four inches of blackened skin and rough tissue. Sen winced slightly. He'd never really seen the wound before.

"I can't exactly be proud of that one," Ada sighed.

"You absolutely can. I mean, this thing is huge! And the way its black, that just makes it look extra tough, am I right?"

"It is not cool!"

"Yes it is!"

Suda and Ada began to argue over the scar. Sen chuckled slightly to himself. Miyani asked him what he thought was so funny.

"Those two used to argue about that cut all the time," Sen explained. "It's completely backwards now, though."

Suda and Ada had switched sides on the argument. Suda now seemed to support Ada's decision to stab him, while Ada felt guilty about it. Sen laughed again.

"Hanjo would never believe this," He muttered to himself. Sen wasn't sure he believed it. It had been months, almost a year, but all those petty arguments seemed like they had been only days ago. He could remember those early days with surprising clarity.

Miyani flipped over the menu that had been left on the table. Since she clearly wasn't eating the Spicy Pork today, she'd have to find something else for dinner.

"Sen, what's the best thing you've tried," She asked.

"The best dinner I've ever had here is the one we caught ourselves, Miyani," Sen said. Ada and Suda groaned, earning Nura's curiosity.

"Wait, I don't get it," Nura said. "What was the dinner?"

"A live iguanadile," Miyani bragged.

"Well obviously it wasn't live when we ate it," Sen said. "It was very much dead."

"Oh," Nura said. She seemed surprisingly unfazed by the fact that Sen and Miyani had eaten a vicious predator.

"Does that not bother you," Ada asked.

"What? No. Iguanadiles are crazy common here, people eat them now and then. Heck, Hakajima might have some lying around in the kitchen right now."

Sen and Miyani immediately raised their arms and flagged down a waitress.

*LINE BREAK HERE*

After Miyani and Sen's sudden change of menu and a suitable amount of birthday cake, the party had retreated from the restaurant and tried to find a new venue for their celebrations. They were avoiding the beach, so as not to risk Miyani or Nura having to introduce themselves to Gun, so they headed to a park on the opposite end of town. They found a small circle of benches and sat down.

There were no stars to be seen so close to the lights of such a big city. Sen hadn't seen starlight in quite some time. It was obscured by the lights of the city here, and by the fog on Hayao's island. Whenever he ended up leaving, he would be glad to see the real night sky again.

"There's not even any balloons here," Suda observed. "Not a very good spot for a party."

"This has been kind of a mediocre party," Nura said. "We didn't even get you any presents."

Nura's first attempt at shopping had ended with her in debt to a crime lord, so she hadn't bothered making a second try. Ada and the rest were too short on funds to afford anything worthwhile, so they had settled on a nice dinner.

"Not true," Sen said. "I brought Miyani."

"Miyani's not a present," Ada scoffed.

"Then explain my wrapping paper," Miyani said, pointing to the bandages on her head. She and Sen giggled together. They'd been planning that joke for days.

"Nah, it's great," Suda said. "I'm having a lot of fun."

While he wasn't sharing this information, for fear of dragging down the mood, he hadn't had a real birthday party since he was eleven. That was the last year that his mother had remembered his birthday. Since then he'd been waiting to find people who cared about him enough to bother celebrating his birthday. Now that he had those people around him, even the simplest party would be enough.

Sen could feel the peace in Suda's heart, and he felt a little guilty. Suda was happy here in Gai Zhu, just when Sen had finally made up his mind to leave.

It had not been a quick decision or an easy one, but his victory over Druk had convinced Sen that he'd learned all he needed to know about firebending. It was time for him to move on, to learn airbending. He'd like nothing more than to stay here with his friends, but he had a world that he needed to save. That he wanted to save. All over the world there were people like Hanjo, Miyani, Nura, Suda, and Ada; good people who deserved the chance to live their lives in peace. Every day the Energybender roamed unchecked was a day he threatened those innocent people.

Miyani noticed how intense Sen became and quickly tried to bring him out of it. She didn't know how parties worked, but she was fairly certain they were meant to be happy.

"So, Sen, I've been thinking," She said. "I'm still technically your master, right?"

"I suppose," Sen agreed. "We both know I'm better than you, though."

Miyani's firebending had not advanced in any way since she'd become friends with Sen. Sen was actually slightly concerned about that, but not concerned enough to avoid joking about it. Miyani laughed slightly, but did nothing else. She had been restraining herself around Sen's friends, showing she wasn't fully comfortable around them.

"Yeah, well, put you in the water and we'll see who's really better."

"Hey, you're the one who's supposed to be giving me swimming lessons," Sen retorted.

"You don't know how to swim? Didn't your parents ever teach you?" Nura asked.

"I never knew my parents," Sen said.

"That's the saddest thing I ever heard get said," Nura replied. Miyani got them back on topic.

"Well, swimming and orphans aside, we were talking about firebending. I think it's time you graduated. Officially."

"Yeah, ceremonies," Suda said excitedly. "Does he get a fancy hat?"

"No. At least, I'm not sure. I actually have no idea what to do."

Miyani had not thought this plan through very well. Her face turned red as she shrugged at Sen.

"Suda, you're the birthday boy. Any ideas for a graduation ceremony," Sen asked.

"Well, if it was up to me you'd be doing some awesome sparring," Suda said. "We should probably ask someone else. I doubt you two want to fight."

Miyani jokingly threw up her fists in a mock combat stance. Sen backed away, his hands help up in surrender. They both laughed and stepped closer to one another again.

"Ada, you know things like this. What do graduating firebenders do?"

"I have no idea about things like this," Ada said. She had studied a lot of bending arts, but not the ceremonies associated with them. "Well, there was a mover I saw once…"

"Mover? Bolin never did anything like this," Suda said.

"There are other movers in the world besides Bolin's," Ada said. "It was one of Kaizo Uehara's."

"Kaizo? That pretty boy? He's barely an actor!"

Kaizo Uehara was the new leading man of the film industry. Suda thought very little of him. Kaizo did little more than look pretty while a camera was rolling. He had no real talent, no passion for drama. All his films were cheesy romances, which was exactly why Ada and Canto had always watched them on date night.

"Okay, not the point," Nura said. She had suggested going to see a mover earlier, and Suda had gone on a very long rant after finding out the only films available were Kaizo features. She had no desire to sit through another tirade on Kaizo's failings as an actor. "Ada, what was the thing you were talking about?"

"Oh, just some tacky mover finale kind of thing. The master holds a ball of fire in his hand, then the apprentice takes it from him."

Miyani and Sen nodded. It was a little simplistic, but it was suitably symbolic at the same time. Miyani held out small spark, and Sen carefully took hold of the flame and pulled it towards his own hand. The small light illuminated both their faces in the darkness for a while. For some reason, neither of the two firebenders could look the other in the eye.

"So, you're officially a firebending master now," Suda said. "What are you going to do next?"

"Go to sleep, probably," Sen said. He was starting to get a little tired.

"Oh yeah, Miyani, would you like to spend the night here? It'd be a pain to go back to the island at this hour."

"Oh, I shouldn't," Miyani said. "I wouldn't want to be a bother."

"I don't think it would be a problem," Sen said. "Suda can sleep over at Nura's again-"

"No," Ada declared. She didn't mind the two of them being in a relationship, but there were certain boundaries that should be respected. Suda and Nura rolled their eyes at her.

"You know, I still don't know what's going on there," Sen said angrily.

"Don't look at me," Suda said.

"Nope," said Nura.

"It's a sensitive subject," Ada mumbled.

As a last resort, Sen turned to look at Miyani.

"I'm confused too," She said.

Sen sighed. This was exactly why he hated mysteries. He resigned himself to not getting an answer and decided to drop the issue.

"Me and Miyani can go back to the island tonight, it's not a big deal. We have a boat anyway."

"Well, you should leave whenever," Suda said. He got off the bench. "I'm officially calling it a wrap. Excellent party, everyone. I liked the part where Miyani cried."

Miyani scrunched up her face in indignation. Sen and Miyani decided to stay a while, and Suda roped them into a conversation about why Kaizo Uehara was a terrible actor. With Suda occupied by ranting, Ada drew Nura aside for a more private conversation.

"I hope you don't think I'm being too mean," Ada said. She did like Nura, just not the nature of her and Suda's relationship.

"I get it, Ada. Don't worry about it."

"He really does like you, a lot," Ada assured Nura.

"Well, yeah, but he's going to leave soon right? Sen's the whole reason you were here, and now he's done."

Ada sighed. Leaving was going to be difficult. For her, leaving Gai Zhu just meant she was one step closer to going home to Zaofu, to Canto and her family, but Suda and Sen had gotten attached to this place. The two earthbenders had never really had a home to call their own; Gai Zhu had been the closest thing they'd ever known to a home.

The two stood side by side by side in silence for a while. No specific plans had been made yet, but Sen and the rest were definitely going to be leaving before too long. They were running on nine months spent in Gai Zhu.

"When we leave, what are you going to do?"

"What I did before," Nura said with a shrug. "Suda's a great guy…but I always knew this wasn't forever."

Sen and Miyani quickly grew tired of Suda's rambling diatribe about why Flames of Passion was the worst mover in history, and they excused themselves. They talked over the days events, going back and forth over everything that had occurred at the party. As they approached the beach, they started to walk slower, realizing that reaching the beach would put an end to their conversation.

"Ada really did give us the perfect set up for that joke, though," Miyani said.

"Yeah, our version was a little more forced," Sen agreed. The "gift wrap" joke they'd made about Miyani's bandages earlier had gone much better than expected. Nobody but the two of them had laughed, but they had been too busy laughing to realize that. Just thinking about it set them both chuckling again. Miyani's laugh slowly faded as they approached the beachfront. She could see the water now.

"So, now that Suda's birthday party is over…"

"We'll have to start making plans to leave," Sen said. He'd known from the moment she'd opened her mouth what she was going to say. There was sadness in her heart, but there was a steady resolve as well.

"So, a few more days, then," She said. Sen nodded. They weren't out of time yet. Miyani's smile returned and her pace quickened again.

"I am going to give you an absolute earful when you're on your way out, but I'll spare you tonight. Prepare yourself, though, because I've got a lot to say."

"I'll buy some earplugs, then," Sen joked. Miyani walloped him on the shoulder. He laughed but recoiled from the pain.

"Ow! Why do you punch me so much," Sen asked.

"Eh, I got a taste for it after that first time."

Miyani demonstrated her point by pounding on Sen's shoulder casually. Sen somehow managed to endure her limp-wristed blows. They were even weaker than the first time Miyani had punched him. She wasn't really trying anymore.

"You're just so darned punchable!"

"I'm leaving tomorrow, I can't handle this," Sen joked. Miyani immediately withdrew her hand and tucked it in her pocket. Darkness obscured her expression, but Sen could feel the heat rush to her face as she blushed.

"I'm not actually going to leave tomorrow," Sen assured her.

Miyani nodded, but her mood hardly improved. Sen could see her running the complete range of her nervous ticks; poking at her bandages, tapping her fingers, and clenching her fists. Clearly she was thinking about something stressful.

"Are you going back to Tunuk Bay when you leave," She finally asked.

"Ah, no," Sen said. He had no reason to return to Tunuk Bay, but Miyani didn't know that. She was still under the impression that he had been born and raised there. Sen felt a wave of guilt was over him as he realized that despite their friendship, most of what Miyani knew about him was a lie. "I'm not sure where I'm going to go."

He hadn't decided on an exact course yet. Republic City was the most likely option, but there were other possibilities. The only thing certain was that he had to leave Gai Zhu. That meant leaving Miyani. Though not if she had anything to say about.

"Sen, I've been thinking, and I know it's stupid but I have to ask," She said, stumbling over her words. "When you leave, I want to come with you."

"You- Are you sure?"

"Yes. I mean, sort of. I mean, leaving, it'll be hard, and kind of confusing probably, but I just- I feel like I'll be happier, being where you are. You're my friend. I don't want to say goodbye."

Sen could not bring himself to look her in the eye. He knew exactly how she felt. He was reluctant to leave her here all alone, but it seemed from his perspective that it was inevitable. He couldn't just refuse her outright, though. It would break her heart.

"I can't decide that on my own," Sen said hastily. "And, not so quickly. I need- let me think about it, and talk to Ada and Suda. I mean, I'd like to, but this is a big deal…"

"I understand yeah, take your time, think it over," Miyani said awkwardly. She had been hoping for a different answer, and Sen could easily sense her disappointment. Despite that, she accepted Sen's excuse. Their discussion came to an abrupt halt as they found the small boat that would carry them back to Hayao's island.

He didn't know what to make of the situation. If he were in any other situation, he'd be glad to bring Miyani along. But he was the Avatar, and he had to face certain realities. Miyani was a very distinctive character, which made travelling stealthily difficult, and she was not a skilled firebender, which made it hard for her to face the dangers that travelling with the Avatar entailed. All in all, it would be very difficult to make travelling with her work. Sen bit his lip as they began the long boat ride home.

Naturally, he would have to refuse her request. He couldn't bring her along on a dangerous mission. That part of the decision was fairly easy. The hard part would be making Miyani understand why. If he simply told her that she could not come, Miyani might just think Sen was trying to get rid of her. He couldn't live with that.

The duo arrived on the island, and Miyani bid him a hesitant goodnight. Sen stayed awake for a while longer. There was only one solution to this problem. He stormed into the chamber at the center of the island. Hayao rested prone as he ever did.

"Why can't I tell her I'm the Avatar?"

"Pardon," Hayao asked. He had not been expecting such a sudden intrusion.

"When I started here, you gave me two rules. I couldn't see my friends, and I couldn't tell Miyani I am the Avatar. The first rule was just a trick, so what about the second? Why shouldn't I tell Miyani I'm the Avatar?"

"Are you looking for a reason to tell her, or a reason not to?"

"It doesn't matter," Sen shouted. He was not in the mood for any kind of philosophical logic right now. He just wanted a straight answer. "Just tell me."

"Alright," Hayao said. He took a deep breath. Sen nodded. He was glad to finally be talking sensibly.

"I ordered you not to tell her so that you would tell her on your own terms," Hayao said. "If you decided not to, the order would be pointless. If you decided to, it would be for your own reasons, not anyone else's."

Sen shrugged. That was an honest answer, but not exactly what he was looking for.

"Is that it? Do you know how she'll react?"

"I cannot say," Hayao said. "You know her better than I do."

"But you've known her for years-"

"I was her master," Hayao said. "You are her friend."

Sen hung his head. Hayao saw his uncertainty. He could see a certain inevitability in the Avatar's heart, though. One way or another, Miyani would learn the truth. The only question was the terms on which she learned it.

"I know you are afraid, Sen," Hayao advised. "There is no certainty to be found here, no matter how hard you look. It is possible that Miyani will reject your friendship once you reveal your identity. It is also possible that she will not."

"But why can't I know?" Sen said. "There has to be some way to-"

"You cannot always ask questions, Sen," Hayao said. "Sometimes you must make the answers yourself."

Sen looked away from the cloaked master. His words felt empowering, as if they were completing a part of Sen he'd never realized was missing. Sen nodded to himself.

He had given Miyani no reason to hate him. They were friends. He knew her well enough to trust in that. Sen set his course. He needed some time to rest, time to think about how to say it, but he knew for certain that he was going to tell Miyani he was the Avatar. Hayao watched Sen's sudden surge of determination with silent approval. Miyani would know Sen was the Avatar by this time tomorrow.

The lights of Gai Zhu were almost beautiful. The Harrier turned his back on them. The chain of bird skulls he wore clattered around his neck.

"We're certain," He said into a radio. "Master Sorikami was involved in an incident here, and a group of teenagers matching their descriptions has been spotted several times."

"I want confirmation," The radio responded. The crackle of a long-distance radio did nothing to diminish the power in the Energybender's voice. "No mistakes this time, Harrier."

"You have my word," The Harrier assured him. The radio snapped to silence. Harrier turned to his Imperfects, and their backup. Three squads of four footsoldiers already had their back. Forty-eight more troops would join them by nightfall tomorrow.

"The Avatar will recognize our uniforms and our vehicles," The Harrier explained. "We go in silently and undercover. We do nothing until we have visual on the Avatar or his immediate allies. Do not intimidate civilians or harass them in an attempt to gain information. We do nothing that would tip off the Avatar to our presence and give him a chance to run."

The four Imperfects nodded. The Harrier legitimately believed the stealth approach was the best option, but he also wanted to keep the brutal Imperfects in check. They would be all too glad to wound civilians if they thought it was necessary.

"Do this right, and the Avatar is ours by this time tomorrow."