Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Korra or Avatar the Last Airbender. I only own my own characters and ideas
Book three Destiny Chapter Two: The Council and World Leaders
Ren tossed and turned all night, trying to figure out what her flashbacks meant. She sat up and hugged her knees, still thinking about the flashbacks. She knew she should be sleeping for the meeting tomorrow, but she needed to figure out what her great Grandpa Aang was trying to tell her. She knew if she went to ask him he probably wouldn't tell her. She had to figure this one out on her own. She got up and started to pace and Hope looked up at her. Ren had a million things running through her head. Everyone asked her so many questions that night and she couldn't answer any of them.
She soon felt Hope next to her and she smiled. Hope moved her head like she wanted Ren to follow her somewhere so Ren opened their bedroom door. Hope ran out of the room and Ren quickly followed, running into things along the way. Ren quietly told Hope to slow down and to be quiet. The two weren't quiet enough because they ended up waking Tenzin, but he didn't get out of bed right away. The two ran down to the stables where they found Oogie awake for the third time this week. Ren never knew how Hope knew when something was wrong with Oogie, but she was happy that she did. Ren jumped up to the compartment she made and grabbed a blanket, because she knew she was sleeping in Oogie's stable again.
Hope laid down next to Oogie and Ren laid on Hope's shell and began to sing. It didn't take long for the three to fall asleep, but they soon had a guest. Tenzin walked to the stable and saw the three sleeping and smiled. He thought about how Ren was right they do fit in there just fine. Tenzin sat down next to Oogie and placed his hand on his head. A few hours later Ren opened her eyes to see that her grandfather was asleep in the stable with them. She smiled as she slide off of Hope to give Tenzin her blanket. She laid in between Hope and Oogie the rest of the night for warmth.
The next morning Desna and Tonraq came to the island to meet with Tenzin and Ren as planned. When the two didn't show Desna and Tonraq became concerned. They began to ask the air acolytes if they saw them but no one saw them since they went to bed. Tonraq went to look in Ren's room but found it empty and Pema said that Tenzin wasn't in their room either. Meanwhile down at the stables Ren woke up and looked at Oogie. Her head lowered and a tear rolled down her cheek.
"Goodbye Oogie. I'll miss you," she said.
Hope got up and looked at Ren, then Oogie. She licked Ren's face and put her head under Ren's arm. The two slowly walked up to the temple. When they got there they saw Desna and Tonraq looking for her and her grandfather. She then saw Suyin walk up the temple stairs. Ren knew that her Grandpa Tenzin probably wanted some time to say goodbye to Oogie. When the three noticed she was there they all walked over to her. She smiled, but they all looked concerned.
"Where's Tenzin?" Tonraq asked.
"Saying goodbye to Oogie by now. Oogie died sometime last night," Ren said.
"Ren, I'm so sorry. When we get back from the meeting we will all pay our respects to Oogie," Su said.
Ren looked at Su. "This meeting? I don't even know why you go to these meetings because you aren't on the council, or a world leader. You are a representative of the Earth Republic and you didn't do a good job of preventing Jaya from doing what she did, so maybe you should focus on that. I'm starting to think you miss messing up, just like when you were younger. Your mother won't be able to make these problems go away and send you somewhere if you screw up this time," Ren snapped.
Su looked at Ren with a hurt look. "You're right I did mess up with Jaya. You're also right by saying my mother won't be able to make my problems go away anymore. I don't miss screwing up, but I do go to these meetings to try and help everyone understand some of the issues going on in the Earth Republic. I also go to help support the decisions you make, even if everyone else is against you. I guess I won't go anymore if that's how you feel," Su said as she started to walk away.
"Suyin wait, I didn't mean it. Please come back. Please come to the meeting," Ren said.
It was to late Su was already in the temple. Ren slapped herself in the face and groaned. She saw her Grandpa Tenzin walk up to the courtyard and Lin and Sky soon walked up the stairs. She forgot the Beifongs were all eating breakfast here before everyone left for the meeting. She walked into the dining area to see Senna had come with Tonraq. She also saw that Honora and Izumi had stopped by for breakfast, which meant they were in Republic City for a visit. Everyone noticed Su's absence and started to question where she was, which only made Ren feel worse. Ren left the dining area to go look for Su.
She eventually found the older woman sitting in the attic holding a picture. Ren slowly walked up to her and sat down. Su continued to look at the picture and neither one spoke. Ren waited for Su to say something, but she didn't, she just looked at the photo. Su handed Ren the photo and smiled. Ren looked down at the photo and saw younger versions of the Beifong sisters, Izumi,Honora, her great Aunt Kya, her great Uncle Bumi, and her Grandpa Tenzin. Ren smiled at the photo and thought about how long the photo had to be up in the attic. Ren also wondered how Su found the photo considering she has never seen it when looking through family photos. Ren handed the photo back to Su and smiled.
"That was taken on my seventh birthday. I remember Bumi, Honora, Kya, and I made Aunt Katara so made because she made cake and cookies, but as soon as set them on the table we snuck them off of the table. By the way I called your great grandparents my aunt and uncle. I called Sokka and Zuko my Uncle Sokka and Uncle Zuko. When Aunt Katara found out we were in so much trouble and all ran to Uncle Aang and my mother to help us out. They laughed and mom of course was mad, but got me out of trouble then. She has always made my problems go away, but then she sent me away," Su said.
"Suyin, I am really sorry for what I said. I really didn't mean it and I don't know why I said it. There was absolutely no reason for me to say any of those things. Honestly, it does help when you come to those meetings, because lately all anyone has been doing is arguing. If my assumptions are correct Honora and Izumi are here to go to the meeting as well. I don't know what has been going on lately, but I am happy at least one person is on my side," Ren said.
"Apology accepted. I will help you whenever you need me. I should also warn you that Representative Wu is also going to be at the meeting. President Kana asked two representatives to be there and we just happened to be those two representatives," Su said.
Ren sighed as the two left the attic. Wu has matured a lot since Korra's time, but he still drove her nuts. He actually did know politics, but he got distracted easily. He also talked entirely to much for Ren's liking at times. Ren also thought he was a wimp. Ren started to voice her opinion of Wu and Su laughed. Su could tolerate Wu even as he matured he still acted like a child. He always asked about Mako when she returned from Republic City. She at one point considered telling him that he had gone missing, but thought he would send search parties and harass the poor man. Su told Ren about her idea and Ren held her side laughing, because she though about what Wu's reaction would be. Ren and Su met Desna, Honora, Izumi,Lin, Sky, Tenzin, and Tonraq at the ferry.
As they walked to the ferry Ren told everyone about the picture that Su showed her in the attic. Izumi,Lin and Tenzin laughed remembering as they stood watching Katara chase the children through the house, then the courtyard. Tenzin made a comment about how he doesn't remember ever seeing his mother that mad. Lin agreed and said something about a water whip. Everyone joked and laughed about their past. Sky told the story about how he almost got away from Lin and Tenzin during Hyun and Jun's time of imbalance. Ren told the story of when she helped her great Aunt Kya and Uncle Bumi pull a prank on her Grandpa Tenzin. She told them how she opened part of the ceiling while he was sleeping so her Aunt Kya could drop water on him before she closed it. She then ran downstairs to tell him they were in a false location and her Uncle Bumi hid so he could use his airbending to knock him off the cliff into mud that Ren made. Ren would then bend the sand to make it stick to him and her Uncle Bumi would blow leaves toward him. Her Aunt Kya dropped sticks, and Ren explained how fun this prank was. Everyone laughed while Tenzin crossed his arms. He would never understand why Ren joined in on Bumi and Kya's tricks.
They were soon at the dock, still telling stories of their favorite memories. It wasn't long before they were at City Hall. When they entered the building the presidents were all sitting in their seats peacefully talking. The council was in their usual seats, and Ren had a chair in front of everyone like usual. There were four chair off to the side, but not to far off. Wu was in one of the chairs, which meant those were the representatives chairs. Lin and Sky sat in the bench like usual and everyone took their seat. Ren grabs her head as Ekta hit the gavel off of the table.
"Thank you everyone for being here,again. We all have serious issues we want resolved. We also brought two representative, but it would appear the water tribes decided to ignore the memo," Ekta said. Ren sighed knowing an argue meant was already going to start and she hasn't even been here five minutes.
"Desna and I are capable of representing our tribes ourselves Ekta. We are two small tribes, not large republics." Tonraq said.
"Tonraq, we all agreed on bringing two representative, which you both have failed to do so. We all understand the water tribes are small compared to the republics, but that is not the point," Ryuu said.
"None of you are making a valid point compared to why we are suppose to be here. We are suppose to be here to fix the issues going on in the world. The issues you want me to fix, but I can't do that with you arguing about representatives," Ren said.
Everyone looked at the annoyed Avatar. Ren already had a headache and she wasn't in the mood for pointless arguments. She stood up and paced back and forth. She was concerned about the problems the world leaders had, but she was also concerned about the moon and ocean spirit. These people had no clue what would happen to them if Ren didn't focus on protecting the spirits. Ren soon ran into the table, throwing some of the papers in the floor. Ekta jumped up from her chair and Kanan and Ryuu started to pick up a few of the papers. Ren tried to smile as she grabbed a handful of papers and placed them in the table.
"Ren, you seem a bit…distracted. Is everything alright?" Tonraq asked.
"No, we need to protect the moon and ocean spirits they are in danger. That or someone is going to attack the water tribes. There is also a chance or a war, I'm not quite sure yet. My flashbacks are very confusing right now. I'm going to need to meditate on them, but I have narrowed it down to those three," Ren said.
Everyone looked at Ren who smiled and laughed a little to lighten the mood. She didn't know what else to say to the world leaders. If someone declared war it affected all of them. The spirits affected the world as well, and Ren would always protect them. She knew Desna and Tonraq were worried about their tribes now. Ren let her worry get in the way of fixing the other problems, now she created new ones. Ren started to feel lightheaded and she fell to the ground.
She saw her great Grandpa Aang fighting Fire Nation soldiers. She saw warriors dressed like Avatar Kyoshi. She saw a young version of Lord Zuko before she felt a hand on her shoulder. " Ren, you need to hurry. They need you. You need to help them," Aang said.
Ren sat up and realized she was still in City Hall. She didn't think this was about the water tribes anymore. She knew the spirits could be in danger, even if it was more than the moon and ocean spirit. She wondered who would want to hurt the spirits. She didn't get it though, her great grandfather could give her any flashbacks, but he chose those flashbacks. He was talking in riddles all the time. She knew where Korra picked up on the habit now. Kyoshi Island had to have some meaning to this whole thing, but Ren couldn't put her finger on it. She knew she could always travel to the island to find the meaning of her flashback.
Ren knew that she would be welcomed, being the reincarnation of Avatar Kyoshi. She wondered who needed her though. No one said there was major problems that would cause an imbalance, only minor ones. Everyone watched as the Avatar was caught up in her own thoughts. Ren felt someone tap on her shoulder, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see Su crouched down next to her.
"What did you see?" Su asked.
"Kyoshi Island during the Hundred Year War. Suyin I'm scared. I know that the spirits could still be involved, but that doesn't make it any easier. Now I know what great Grandpa Aang went through, only he knew his threat. I feel like a failure as the Avatar," Ren said.
"Here we will play a little game, I hope it makes you feel better. I will pretend I am my mother and you are Aang. Shape up Twinkletoes. How are you going to save the world that way? You are being all whinny," Su said.
"If that was suppose to make me feel better you failed miserably. While your mother would say all of those things to me, I would probably go hide in a corner and cry if she was still alive. To think of it if any of them were still alive I would cry myself to sleep. They would all ask me what these flashbacks mean all the time," Ren said.
Ren laid down and looked at the ceiling of City Hall. She took a deep breath before she screamed out her great grandfather's name she didn't get why he couldn't make these flashbacks easier to understand. She slammed her feet on the ground and used her seismic sense and could feel everyone's heart beat. She slammed her fist on the ground and sat up. She walked over to her chair and everyone thought she was going to sit down. She kicked the chair and everyone watched the chair fly across the room before it smashed into pieces.
"Okay old man are you going to help me? I am so sick of these stupid games, and I am already losing my patience with the people who are alive. If you want me to prevent a serious issue you need to tell me, not play games. I swear to the spirits if I have to come to the Spirit World I will not be happy with you. I am sick of being the Avatar and putting up with these people, I just want to be normal. You should know what that feels like, so why aren't you helping me? I mean helping me is what you're suppose to do," Ren said.
Ren walked to the table and sat down on the floor. President Ekta went to talk, but Ren held her hand up as she went into lotus position. Honora, Izumi, Lin, Su, and Tenzin's eyes all went wide. They thought they knew what Ren was doing, but they weren't sure. They were all scared to ask, but someone felt like they had to.
"Ren, you aren't really going to go into the Spirit World to comfort my father are you?" Tenzin asked.
"Spirits, no. That could end pretty badly. I'm trying to mediate to calm myself, so that City Hall doesn't have to be rebuilt again," Ren said.
Tenzin was relived to find out that Ren wasn't going to confront his father. He was very impressed at the fact she was meditating to calm herself. He wish she would have stayed calm the whole time so they could have discussed issues with the world leaders. He watched as Ren slowly centered herself and she finally opened her eyes. Ren used her earthbending to make a seat for herself. Ren smiled at everyone and waited for the first move, which was a mistake on her part. The world leaders instantly started to argue amongst each other. The council then started to argue about how to get the world leaders to stop arguing. Ren looked over at the representatives and they seemed to fine at the moment. She looked back at Lin and Sky who seemed to be amused at the Ren's new problem. Ren yelled, but no one seemed other hear, or they didn't care. Ren really didn't want to use her bending, but the world leaders and council left her no choice. She pulled herself into a ball and made a strong gust of air and before she stood up quickly. She knocked everyone to the ground, and she nodded. As everyone picked themselves up off of the ground she had to laugh at the fact she caught everyone off guard. When everyone was finally situated they all looked at Ren.
"Now that I have your attention you will listen to me, quietly. You will tell me your issues one at at time, and I will fix them based on their severity. If there are two problems of equal severity I will send part of my team to fix it, while the other part of my team and I fix the other problem. If anyone has a problem with this plan their problems will be fixed last. The order of the people to speak is President Ekta, President Kanan, Tonraq, President Ryuu, then Desna. When they are done the representatives and council members will speak, one at a time to give more feedback. If anyone interrupts I will put a metal strip over your mouth to silence you, and don't think I'm bluffing. You all say you want these issues resolved, but you argue every meeting and I have no clue what these issues are because of it," Ren said.
Everyone nodded signaling they understood what Ren had said. Ren made a small platform, and she rested her elbow on it. She closed her eyes, but heard a click so she opened them. She found a cup of tea sitting in front of her and looked up to see the page for City Hall. The middle-aged woman smiled at her and Ren nodded and thanked her. Ren listened as Ekta told her about the two mystery people that managed to flee police. Ren and Sky started to laugh, making Ekta stare them down. Ekta then explained that their was an arson spree. Ren shook her head and looked back at Lin who put a hand up. Ren looked over at the page and asked if there was any sake in the building. Kanan explained how he felt a few of his representatives weren't stepping up to par. He explained how he isn't always informed about the issues in each district. Ren mumbled under breath about not wanting to hear about these problems that could easily be fixed. Tonraq then spoke and what he said caught her attention.
"Ren, I believe the spirits are growing angry again. I tried to enter the Spirit World a few weeks ago, but was attacked at the spirit portal. They refused to let me enter the portal, so I left," Tonraq said.
"Ren, I do not mean to disturb the order, but I had the same problem at the northern portal," Desna said.
Ren sat up and looked at the two Chiefs. The spirits attacking people at the portals in the water tribes was not brought to her attention until now. She wondered if the spirit portal in Republic City was being protected by spirits. She knew if it was no one would know, because there was no one around the portal that often. She wondered what was making the spirits protect the portals. She had found the problem she was going to start with, and it didn't matter what anyone else thought. This was probably what her great grandfather was warning her about, but why not Korra? She knew she should check out the portal In Republic City before she left.
"I know I haven't heard all of the problems, but I know what problem I need to start with. I need to see why the spirits are protecting the portals in the water tribes. I will check the portal in Republic City first, but the spirits are attacking people for a reason. I feel they are trying to keep people out because they feel they are in danger. If I can't talk to the spirits and find out why, and they won't let me into the Spirit World I will meditate my way in" Ren said.
"You are neglecting your duties to the rest of the world. You are putting those spirits before the rest of the world. You are also putting the water tribes before everyone else. I have a feeling it is because they were once your family in another life," Kanan snapped.
Everyone looked at President Kanan who was standing with his hands on the table. The all looked at Ren who now placed her tea on the platform. Ren stood up and walked over to the table. Kanan backed away from the table as Ren glared at him. Ren jumped on the table and followed Kanan until she was standing within arms length. She quickly grabbed him and slammed him into the wall, lifting him slightly. No one dared to stop Ren from holding Kanan against the wall.
"You listen to me, and you listen good. They are still my family and they always will be. I am not neglecting the world by putting the spirits first and you better realize that now. The spirits are attacking people when they want enter the Spirit World and that is a serious issue. I am the bridge between both worlds and I need to keep both worlds happy. If the spirits aren't happy none of us will be happy and their attacks won't stop at the portals. I want you to retain everything I said. Stop being such an earthbender or I'll shove my foot so far up your ass I'll need a Beifong to pull it out. I will also have to send you to the greatest healer the world has ever known, but she is dead, so you'll have a problem. Now sit down and do us all a favor and shut up," Ren said.
Ren threw Kanan on the ground and he sat there. The page returned with more tea and Ren thanked her again. Ren started to walk away and Sky looked at her and Ren realized she still had the teacup. She walked to the main room where the page's desk was and sat the teacup down. Everyone except for President Kanan walked out to Ren and she gestured for them to follow her. Sky nudged her and she pointed at the spirit portal and smiled.
"Do you remember when you and I went to the Spirit World when you were twelve?" Sky asked.
"Of course I do. That was after I beat Vikram," Ren said.
"Ren, I mean do you remember everything?" Sky asked.
"Sky, I am a busy Avatar I can't possibly remember a trip to the Spirit World from when I was twelve," Ren said.
"I do and I'm giving some Avatar advice, sorta. Iroh told you that not everything is what it may appear to be. When you asked him if you were missing something because you weren't looking hard enough he said perhaps, but that you had to find that answer on your own. Maybe this situation isn't what it appears to be, but something else is wrong. Maybe. You are missing smaller details in your flashbacks that could tell you what the true imbalance could be," Sky said.
Ren looked at Sky for a minute and thought about what he said. She wasn't mad about what he said, because it was really good advice. Maybe she was overthinking the situation all together. Ren could only be patient and let the events unfold as she tried to figure them out. She thanked Sky for his advice as they approached the portal. Ren saw spirits protecting the portal and they didn't seem happy that they were there. The spirits started to try to attack and the group tried to defend themselves. Ren ran after them to try and stop them when she noticed a spirit from lifetimes ago. Ren felt like Wan at the moment when she saw the spirits and her friends fight. She jumped in the middle of the fight and went into the Avatar state.
She sent air blast at the spirits and knocked a few back. She made multiple earth pillars and started to kick them as fast as she could at her own group. She made fire whips and started to back the spirits up slowly. She pulled water out of thin air and made ice shards, sending them toward her group. When she saw that the two groups finally decided to stop she left the Avatar state. A spirit walked over to her and the two smiled at each other.
"Stinky, its been to long," the spirit said. "Long enough for you to become an earthbending Avatar in fact."
"Yea I guess it has been pretty long. Why are the spirits protecting the portal? Why aren't they letting anyone into the Spirit World?" Ren asked.
"Something is coming, something big and we are protecting ourselves. We don't need another Unalaq situation. While Vaatu is no longer in the Spirit World we must protect ourselves for what is about to come," the spirit said.
"Aye-Aye what are you talking about? What is coming? What do you know?" Ren asked.
"I don't know those answers. We only know that we are in danger," Aye-Aye said.
"Will you allow us to go into the Spirit World?" Ren asked.
"You can. They can't," Aye-Aye said pointing at the group.
"I know you hate humans so make sure not to kill them. You guys make sure not to attack them. How about you guys just avoid each other until I get back," Ren said.
The spirits moved so Ren could walk into the portal. Ren looked back at everyone before entering the portal. When Ren entered the portal Aang, Korra, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko were all standing in front of her. She told them to follow her to the Tree of Time, because she had an idea. When they arrived at the tree everyone climbed into the tree, and Ren made a ramp for Sokka. They all stood there as Ren's memories appeared in the tree, but Ren focused on certain memories. She focused on the ones that had the world leaders and the spirits. She was looking for anything that seemed off about any of her memories.
"Badgermole what are we doing here?" Toph asked.
"Tonraq told me at the meeting that the spirits were protecting the spirit portal in the south. I tried to come here with a group and we were attacked. I asked why they were protecting the portal and they said something big is coming, but they don't know what it is. I know great Grandpa Aang knows what it is, but I'm sure he won't tell me. He keeps giving me flashbacks, and I am currently confused by them, and I am sure you all know what it is. I came to look at my memories of the world leaders and the spirits to see if there is something off about them," Ren said. "Where is everyone else, like why did you guys meet me?"
"We're your past lives. Sokka was a councilman or technically a chief. Toph was the chief of police. Zuko was the Fire Lord. You're also right in saying I'm not telling you what the flashbacks mean. Ren you're very wise and I know you can figure it out," Aang said.
"I knew you would say that. I'm not sure who I'm suppose to save and you are driving me nuts with these flashbacks. There it is. It seems every meeting President Kanan is the one to point out one of my flaws. He has brought up that I hid from the world, and the Vikram issue. He has even brought up that I didn't know about Jaya and let her die. He only gets like this during the meeting when things don't go his way and when I put the Earth Republic to the side. I've had to ignore them for awhile because their issues aren't as important as the other republics," Ren said.
Ren thought about how President Kanan's behavior has changed in the last couple months. He could go from a very nice man to screaming in her face the next. Lin has offered to intervene a few times, but Ren has quickly diffused the situations many times. She didn't like when she had to get rough with the world leaders or council, but she had to with Kanan on more than one occasion. She thought back to a few weeks ago when he got so mad he threw a large rock at her. Ren easily avoided on before she slammed him into the ground and told him if he thought about it again he wouldn't be able to bend for the rest of his life. She also noticed that President Kanan didn't come with to the spirit portal. She wondered what he was doing this minute.
"Ren are you alright?" Zuko asked.
"Yes I'm going to pay the president of the Earth Republic a visit. He has been acting a tad odd lately. He attacked me at a meeting and I don't like his behavior," Ren said.
"Well how long has he been president?" Korra asked.
"He was re-elected when I was fourteen. That doesn't really mean anything considering Ekta has been President since I was six. I guess she managed to keep the people happy. Ryuu has been in office quite awhile as well, I'm going to say the same amount of time. The presidents can run again and can be re-elected as many times as the people want them in office. I think we should change that, because it defeats the whole purpose of not having the same person in charge," Ren said.
Everyone jumped out of the tree and Ren smiled at them. She didn't realize how lucky she was to have a family in both the material world and the Spirit World that she could rely on. As they walked to the portal Ren told them about the world leaders and their stupid problems. Korra laughed and said how she would never have dealt with those world leaders. Ren laughed and told Korra how she has expressed that to the world leaders many times. When they got to the portal Ren was about to walk through before Sokka stopped her.
"Ren, I know I wasn't alive at the same time as you, but I want you to be careful. Also if it's okay with you when you have some time I'd like to get to know you a bit better. I only know what Katara and Toph have told me. Make sure you protect them all Ren," Sokka said hugging her.
Ren hugged him and then she processed what he said. " I would like that and I will," Ren said.
After Ren walked through the spirit portal Sokka turned to Aang. "Do you think she got the hint?" Sokka asked.
"I think she will figure it out with time," Aang said.
When Ren final exited the portal she finally processed what Sokka said. He had said something very similar to her great grandfather, which meant he was giving her a hint. She would think about it back at the island. She noticed that everyone was keeping their distance except three people. Her Grandpa Tenzin, Sky and Aye-Aye were talking. She raised an eyebrow and wondered if Aye-Aye changed his opinions on humans. She laughed as she walked over to the group. She heard the three talking about Avatar Wan.
"I see you have changed your views on humans. I like to see that everyone is in one piece, but we need to go. I think President Kanan and I need to talk," Ren said.
"These humans intrigue me. I think I will keep them. This one wanted to be a spiritual leader and he knows quite a lot for a human. This one is about being selfless, he might protect the spirits as well," Aye-Aye said.
"You're not keeping my boyfriend or my grandfather. I will protect the spirits I promise, but I need to find out what this big thing is. Please protect the portal for a few days, and I will try and have some answers by then," Ren said.
"I trust you Stinky," Aye-Aye said.
Ren shook her head as she hugged the spirit. They walked back to City Hall and Ren wondered if Kanan was even there. All of the world leaders had an office at City Hall. When they arrived at City Hall Ren walked toward the offices in City Hall and found the council members were gone. She was soon in the hall where the world leaders offices were located. She walked to President Kanan's office and opened the door to find it was empty. She walked in and started to dig through his papers to see if she could find out where he could have gone. She threw the papers on the the floor after she searched the desk. As she walked out of the office she slammed the door. She walked down the hall into her grandfather's office and sat down before grabbing the phone to call the island. Once she got ahold of some she asked if they could send Hope to City Hall to search for Kanan. Once she explained what was going on she hung up and walked downstairs to find the remaining world leaders in their seats.
She saw the representatives in their seats as well. She sighed and walked over to the table and sat down in President Kanan's chair. Ren listened to everyone complain about Kanan's absence from the meeting and Ren sighed. She listened to them complain about their problems within their territory, but her mind was somewhere else. She was relived when Hope smash her way through the doors. Ren ran over to Hope and jumped on her back, and pulled on her shell to make her leave the room. Ren was about to exit the room, just as President Kanan appeared. She pulled back on Hope's shell to make her stop, and the large cat stopped right before she hit the man. Everyone stood as President Kanan entered the room and Ren turned Hope around to follow him.
"Where have you been if you don't mind me asking?" Ren asked.
"I was preparing the gala in your honor as well as Assistant Chief Biefong's. The world leaders and the council would like to throw you this gala as a distraction for the press. It would appear that you two are very big news right now and we want to keep it that way. No one here wants the press to know what goes on in this building," Kanan said.
"Not a gala. Desna, Grandpa Tenzin, Tonraq, you guys know I hate galas. They are dumb, annoying, and dumb," Ren said.
"Ren, you already said dumb," Sky said.
"That's because I wanted to put extra emphasis on how dumb I think they are. I will go with a few conditions, and that is you all go and act civil. You also have to act civil at the meetings, and let me handle the problems accordingly. I promise I will get to them as fast as I can. I need everyone to keep people away from the spirit portals for the time being. Desna, I also need you to protect the spirit oasis. Those are my conditions," Ren said.
"Fine. We will continue the meeting now. I will agree to let Avatar Ren take care of the problems in the Fire Republic before the problems in the United Republic. I have talked with President Ryuu and it would appear the Fire Republic has far worse problems. They have had people disappear and a few of the representatives have been threatened, but no one knows by who," Ekta said.
The other world leaders quickly agreed that the Fire Republic was the first place Ren should go. Ren started to massage her forehead and thought about how at least they were being civil. She looked at Hope and then the world leaders and nodded. She had agreed that they would go to the gala in two days and the day after that there would be another meeting to smooth out all the details. The meeting had ended and everyone talked peacefully in the room. Sky and Ren were talking as Hope sat next to them. President Kanan walked over to Hope to try and pet her, but Hope bared her teeth and growled at him before she roared. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at the two. Hope still had her teeth bared and was growling. Ren saw Hope's fur start to stand up before she roared again. Ren had never seen Hope act like this before, so it confused her.
"Hey girl it's okay. Calm down it's only President Kanan. Hope, we are safe I need you to calm down," Ren said as she tried to calm Hope down. Hope continued to growl and bare her teeth. Ren crouched in front of her and Hope finally stopped growling. "Hey, calm down already. I told you we are fine, and it's only President Kanan. He is only trying to pet you and we all know you love when people pet you. I really need you to stay calm though," she said.
Hope rammed her head into Ren's and Ren laughed. Ren couldn't shake the feeling that Hope growled at Kanan because she knew something. Ren got up and Hope walked over to Kanan and started to growl again. Ren walked over to her and started to pull on her shell and Sky tried to help her. Everyone watched as the large cat acted out. No one had seen Hope act like this. Kanan smiled as if he was amused at Hope's behavior. Hope swung a paw at Kanan and Lin made a barrier, which Hope easily crushed.
"Hope will you calm down already. Seriously he isn't much of a threat. Please, I am begging you to calm down," Ren said as she and Sky continued to pull on Hope's shell.
Ren stomped her foot and a large rock flew out of the ground. Ren quickly caught it and tried to hit Hope in the head, but it didn't phase her. Ren thought about her other options and knew that there was one that would work. Ren let go of Hope's shell and told Sky to do the same. Hope ran for Kanan and Ren sprinted and hoped that she could get in front of Hope. Ren managed to get in front of Hope right before she jumped on Kanan. Hope jumped and landed on Ren, and Ren felt her head smash against the ground. She soon felt blood on the ground and looked at Hope. Ren started to close her eyes until she felt a wet tongue on her face. Ren started to feel very lightheaded so she started to close her eyes.
Ren saw the council sitting at the table. She saw her great grandfather and Lord Zuko sitting next to each other as the council argued. Ren laughed as her great Grandpa Aang massaged his temples. She thought about how she was grateful she wasn't the only Avatar to have problems with the council. She then noticed the Sokka sitting next to Zuko laughing. She walked over to the council and tried figure out what they were arguing about. She heard them say how her great grandfather was ignoring some small threat to go do stupid things. Ren laughed and thought about how that sounded familiar. Ren walked over to the small group and sat down. An image of her great grandfather appeared next to her.
"Remember your destiny as the Avatar," Aang said.
"I know what my destiny is. I am suppose to keep balance and restore balance if needed. I should also kick butt, mainly Lin's" Ren said.
"She's fine," Lin said.
Ren sat up and noticed President Kanan wasn't in the room. She saw the other world leaders, but he seemed to be missing, again. She had problems with the world leader, but he would be the biggest problem it appeared. Even though Ren was still mad at Hope she stood up and grabbed onto the armadillo lion. Everyone else soon noticed Kanan's absence and looked at Ren. Ren made Hope lay down and she climbed on her back. She quickly received protest, but she didn't care. Hope stood up and Ren made her run out of the room. Ren didn't know how long President Kanan had been gone, so he could have gone anywhere. After they got of of City Hall Ren started to quickly look around. She saw President Kanan two blocks down. She made Hope follow Kanan, but she stayed a couple feet behind him. Whenever she thought Kanan was going to look back she made Hope run into the closest alley. Ren wondered where the Earth Republic president was going in such a hurry. When he reached his destination Ren jumped off of Hope's back and followed him into the building.
When she entered the building Ren saw President Kanan walk up the stairs with a man. She tried to blend in with the crowd to avoid being seen. She walked up the stairs slowly, hoping Kanan didn't see her. As she got to the top of the stairs she saw Kanan walk through a door. She quickly walked to the door and placed her ear against it. She heard President Kanan tell the man everything that happened at the meeting. She heard the man ask what the next course of action would be. President Kanan said that he would wait until after the gala to let the man know, but that he should be prepared for anything. The man said he would be ready at a moments notice. President Kanan thanked the man for coming to meet with him. Ren pulled away from the door and ran for the closest window and jumped. She used her airbending to land on the ground safely before she called Hope.
Hope ran next to her and she jumped on her back, quickly taking off. Ren made Hope run as fast as she could toward City Hall. Once they were at City Hall Ren made Hope run in the building as she used her airbending to open the doors. When the were in the main room Hope slid to a stop and Ren jumped off of her back. Ren started to pet Hope's head as everyone gathered around them.
"President Kanan is up to something," Ren said.
(Author's Note: okay so yes Oogie died. As you can see the president of the Earth Republic president is up to something. As you can see Ren has been having trouble with the world leaders and council. Hope is not to fond of the president of the Earth Republic. Ren is also tired of people telling her she is neglecting her duty to the world, if she doesn't help them at that exact moment. You will see more of the world leaders arguing later on. Yes Ren also met the spirit that saved Wan(Aye-Aye).That's all for now. Thanks for reading and reviews are welcome.)