AN: a small update-i fixed some things that I didn't like abt the first chapter and made Kei non-binary. i think it flows better with their character. new chapter will be up soon
Keiko's teachers taught them that air is the element of freedom.
Their black wind blown cropped hair cover their mastery tattoos when Keiko goes into Earth Kingdom markets to trade on behalf of their people—that is not freedom. Kei has never felt true freedom.
The truth of the matter is that there is no freedom in genocide and systematic oppression. Go figure.
Keiko is part of the fifteen percent of the population that was not completely decimated a hundred years ago. They are also part of the ten percent that are airbenders.
Their life goes as such, Keiko lives with the largest tribe of Air Nomads—their existence disguised by claiming to be nomads to anyone too curious, but people these days are not curious. They cannot afford to be. They grow out their hair -their symbols are hidden under Earth Kingdom clothes, their airbending confined to the eyes of tribe only.
They pretends that they never existed as Charlie, an angry girl who played in street corners for extra cash and made dinner for her parents on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She had a cat named Toph after Their favorite character from Avatar the Last Airbender.
Keiko is different than Charlie. Keiko lives with a hard won kindness in their heart, and a lightness in their chest. Keiko sings to the children of the tribe with songs of love and heartbreak—Charlie's songs. Keiko goes into free Earth Kingdom towns to trade with the people there-they're kind, tired souls, who have lost more than they have loved. Most of the traders in the market know them by name. Some of them call them Kei, and some of them call them "child".
Their life does not continue as such. Keiko's sixteen when the world stills for a moment—the creatures quiet and even the most rambunctious child stills, a voice, whispering across the winds carried to each and every person throughout the nations—whether they choose to listen or not is up to them.
"The Avatar is alive."
Keiko cannot hide anymore.
The news of the Avatars continued (debatable) existence sends their tribe spiraling into turmoil—an airbender, one of them, who believes he is the last, there are cries for seeking him, to tell him he is not alone.
There are also cries of anger, he abandoned us in our time of need they shout, why should we help him in his?
Keiko wants to hold it against him, the death of so many of their kin, but Kei is realistic, not even the Avatar could have prevented the destruction of all four Air Temples. He was only a boy. Younger than they are. Keiko knows that there is no more guilt that they can thrust upon him than he already does himself.
It's a few weeks after when a decision is finally met.
The mandolin Kei bought so long ago hums through the tent and the children around them hum along with to their favorite tunes. Kei grins a thoughtless smile around the lyrics of a song they heard so long ago and just barely manage to keep alive through a made up series of chords.
The children watch with wide eyes, some singing along others playing with each other. They whisper among themselves and Kei eyes them with suspicion. Kei senses an insurrection coming. The children get to their feet, faces hard before Xiaochen starts them off with a war cry. Collectively, the children charge in what might be the most coordinated attempt yet to take Kei down. With a sigh, Kei lets them tackle them to the floor, before they stand-wrestling grubby hands from their hair and tickling whoever they can get their hands on.
"Excuse me? Master Keiko?" Kei stills, children hanging off of them and little Xiaochen wheezing, trying to catch his breath in their arms. Keiko cringes, recognizing Rin's voice without having to look. Keiko feels a blush rising involuntarily when they see their crush of about three years now smiling a soft smile, her normally long brown hair shaved to proudly display her newly acquired mastery tattoos.
Kei feels their face get even redder.
"The Council needs you, Master Keiko—" she eyes her company suspiciously and continues only when Kei nods, "it's about the Avatar."
Kei stills. "I see." They give a bright smile to the boy in their arms and the children around them. "Well kiddos it seems it's time for your punishment to end—" Kei airbends their glider into their hand with a quick motion, "Rin will watch you guys until I get back, okay?"
There's a series of complaints and grumbles and finally a resounding "'Kay…"
Kei gently grabs Rin's shoulder to guide her outside, "hey I don't know if I ever told you congratulations for completing your training!" They grin, "you don't have to call me master anymore too, not that you ever had to, but now you really don't have to!"
"I know but, you've always been so far ahead of me—" Rin blushes, "the way you bend—not even the Monks from the temples ever looked like you."
"That's because they were ancient by the time we came around Rin-they can't move like they used to-and besides, we're the same now—"
"Don't." Rin says, her face hard.
"What?" Kei asks somewhat desperately, their smile fading.
"Don't patronize me. We're not the same level," her hard face turns into a playful grin, "but if you don't watch out, we will be someday and I'll kick your ass all the way to the North Pole."
There's a shriek inside the tent of Rin said a naughty word! Rin blushes a gorgeous red and Kei laughs involuntarily, partly out of relief of not having angered their crush. Waving a hand behind them as Kei turns away from the tent full of screaming children and an overwhelmed Rin, and heads for the Council's tent.
The Council's tent, while large to accommodate the number of people, looks exactly like everyone else's tent, a tan color in a hexagonal shape, held up by sticks and twine. Their tribe stays sedentary for the most part, moving only when their people in the Earth Kingdom villages around them alert them to Fire Nation movement in the area.
The last time they had to move was about ten years ago when the Fire Nation attacked the town near them. They lost many people that night.
The flap to the tent opens easily and Kei slips inside, the Monks are arguing, only three of them are airbenders while the other six are nonbenders, all of them old as dirt, two of them having actually been in the temples the night the Fire Nation attacked a century ago.
Kei places a fist against their palm and bows low, clearing their throat a bit to gain their attention. "Council," Kei begins, "you've called for me?"
"Yes, Master Keiko," Councilwoman Mei begins, her long silvery hair swishing as she turns their blank stare to Kei, "it concerns the Avatar. The Council has decided that you be sent after him, to guide him in his journey, and to show him he is not alone."
"We have decided no such thing Councilwoman Mei! Master Kei is in no way shape or form capable of striking out on such a dangerous endeavor! Kei is but a child, woman!" Councilman Chang seethes, spit flying from his wrinkly lips, his flabby gullet oscillating with his dramatic head movements.
"Pardon me, Councilman Chang, but you would have to be blind and a fool to not see that Kei is the most capable airbender of their time," Mei narrows her unseeing eyes in his general direction, "might I remind you it was you who insisted that Kei would guard and care for the children? Insisting that anywhere that Kei was would be the safest area in the camp? Or have you lost your memory to old age?"
"Thank you, Councilwoman Mei," Kei says, their voice light in attempt to cut the building tension, "but I wouldn't be anywhere if it weren't for your teachings."
There is silence for a moment, Mei sends them a soft smile and a nod, before the room explodes into action again, voices steadily getting louder and louder until Kei can't even hear themself think.
Each member of the council represents a faction of the tribe, Trading/Relations, Agriculture, Child Care, Textiles/Jewelry, Airbenders, and those incapable of bending. Each member of the Council is equally important, so each member thinks it's their right to shove their opinions down everyone's throats. Their own airbending teacher, Councilwoman Mei, is probably the worst about it. In Council meetings, not much really gets done, and so most of the time the issue is taken to the people and the members of the tribe get to hear each manner of proceeding before voting on it lage scale to finally get what they will do.
Kei suspects that their fear has made them stagnant in a way that the Councils of the Air Temples never were, and wonders if this is why Charlie had never seen their tribe mentioned in canon, as they weren't exactly the way that Air Nomads traditionally were.
A powerful gust of air that sends Kei's hair whipping around their face silences the group and they all turn to the offender—one of the survivors of The Raid, spared by a merciful Fire Nation soldier who found her in a closet that night, and shut the door tight.
(There are a lot of stories like that—most were gone that night, as staying in the Temples were only for children, teachers, and priests—but there are a lot of Fire Nation soldiers who couldn't stomach the killings, and many owe their lives to a gentle soldier.)
"Children! All of you!" Councilwoman Ming says, her head bald and proud (and also quite a bit wrinkly), "this is why I wished to retire."
"And this," Chang quips, lips quirking, "is why we wouldn't let you."
Ming rolls her eyes before directing her piercing stare to Kei, who would honestly like it to be anywhere but looking at them. "Master Keiko leaves tomorrow morning at dawn, the Avatar needs to know that he has a place to return to." She turns her stare to all of them, "a home. Shame on you for forgetting he is one of our own, and should be treated as such regardless of whether or not he could have prevented The Raid or if he will only bring trouble. And to anyone testing Master Keiko's ability, they have far outpaced many of us, including myself, if anyone doubts their ability, they doubt mine."
"And mine," Mei adds, her face solemn.
"Thank you, Councilwoman." Kei bows low, straightening to meet the Council's resolved faces.
"Well what are you waiting for?" Ming's eyes twinkle with a bit of mischief, "get packed. There's a long journey ahead of you."
an omake of sorts:
The Southern Air Temple is unlike any place that Kei has ever been. The wind howls through the empty hallways, blowing torn and weathered tapestries that scrape across the ruined stone. If you lean close enough to the skeletons of those passed, you can hear their whispers—pleas for help. For rest.
They've been here for far too long.
wc: 1971