A/N! Hello readers, welcome back to another twisted adventure of A New Life! So, some notes!
- Thesis is going well! I'm getting ready to defend!
- I'm sorry it's been so long, but I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations!
- This also was written for the ProBending Circuit, so it may read a little differently than normal. Part of that is me trying out a slightly different style, and another part of that is to make this almost like a one-shot within an established story - meaning, the judges who read this can understand most of the relevant plot without having read the last three chapters. I hope I succeeded!
- Thank you all, again, for your continued support of this story. I'm glad it's so far been well received, and I'm super excited to keep it going! Drop me a line sometime (review?), reminds me and keeps me motivated! :D
Prompts:
- (quote) "On the other side of every fear is freedom" - Marilyn Ferguson
- (dialogue) "Just because you say so, doesn't make it true!"
- (smell) vanilla
- Someone else discovers your character's fear.
Firebender, Mo Ce Mongoose Lizards.
- got permission to make this a oneshot within an established story from Alys.
Word Count: 2335
** Please be aware, this chapter deals with mentions of self-injury. Nothing explicitly is stated or particularly gory, but it is mentioned.**
Please R&R! CC is welcomed!
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A New Life – Chapter 4 – Scars and Bandages Part 2
It's funny, really, when your bed feels comfier and you don't want to move because the day seems so daunting. That was the feeling that was cascading over the young eight year old Kuvira, who closed her eyes tighter to try and avoid thinking about the day's responsibilities. And most importantly, how to avoid her guardian, Chief Lin Beifong. It had only been about a month since she found herself in the Chief's office, with her now "aunt" Su in tow, begging her sister to mentor and raise the young girl who had nowhere else to go.
Today, Saturday, was the first day that Lin had taken off voluntarily in years. Even though Kuvira hadn't been with the Chief long, she knew Lin was married to her job. This meant something big was going to happen; unfortunately, she had an inkling what that "something" was going to be.
A full week had passed since Lin had walked in while Kuvira was changing her bandages, and with each successive day, her heart raced at the thought of the inevitable confrontation. She knew the Chief would ask, and Kuvira still didn't feel ready to let down her walls and reveal her darkest secret, which subsequently would expose her deepest fear.
It was already hard enough to talk to Su, when she had asked after she graciously took the young girl into her home. It felt good to get some of that heaviness off of her chest, but still, she still didn't feel ready to talk to Lin.
Lin would push harder than Su had even tried. The Chief would demand answers.
Kuvira debated about lying to save her skin with the Chief, but she realized early on that lying to Su, and to Lin, was impossible. The master metalbenders could sense a lie before a poor soul even had the courage to speak it aloud, and with the Chief being a police officer, she was an expert on body language and interrogation. Luckily, Lin hadn't asked yet.
The girl snuggled tighter into her blanket cocoon, even though she could hear the chief already moving around and getting ready for the day. Lin told her the night before to be ready by 9 am the next morning, and it was already 8:45. Fuck.
The Chief wasn't one to ignore a problem, especially when the problem directly affected her. A week came and went after she had accidentally walked in on Kuvira changing her bandages, and yet, she couldn't bring herself to ask.
Today was the day. Today was the day she had planned to talk to Kuvira about it.
How can I bring this up with the kid? She isn't exactly an open book…
The metalbender paced as she deliberated. The clicking of her metal boots against the ground made a harsh sound – she wouldn't have cared if she were still alone, but Kuvira was only in the next room. She decided to bend them off and pace barefoot, muffling the sound to allow the young bender a few more minutes of precious sleep. Something about being in direct contact with the earth beneath her, even if that earth was tile, sent waves of comfort through her.
She could hear the girls heartbeat quicken, signaling that she was now almost awake. Time was running out for her to deliberate this.
Would she have to tell her own stories to reveal the truth behind the matter?
But still, the fact she had injuries wasn't the problem. Suyin had mentioned that her parents beat the young child, which was enough to explain away most of the injuries.
It didn't explain them all. Especially the new ones.
The eldest metalbender sighed, troubled by her thoughts. She would have to talk to Kuvira about it – today – she could avoid it no longer for both her own sanity as well as Kuvira's wellbeing.
The water she had placed on the stove had started to whistle, beckoning her away from her thoughts momentarily. The Chief went to grab the handle and quickly pulled away as she felt her skin burn. No good pot makers, not thinking about insulation – of course someone would burn themselves without a good mitt – who would want to burn themselves on a-?
A thought crossed her – what if Kuvira was doing this to herself? It would explain the precision, the consistency…
Lin flinched as she registered the last part. The Chief hadn't realized how she was already growing very protective of her charge. The very thought that someone had hurt the young girl, or that she was hurting herself, frightened the usually stoic officer.
She grew uncharacteristically puzzled about the situation- how can I do this… her face scrunched as she searched for the correct word… right? Did Kuvira trust her enough to tell her the truth? She smirked, the kid had better know by now she can't lie to me.
A smile reached her lips as she watched the young bender exit her bedroom to join her in the kitchen. She sat across from the woman, reaching out to grab the extra cup to pour herself a cup of tea.
"Good morning, sleepy head."
Kuvira groaned, "Hey Chief."
Although her hair was braided to perfection, her other features told another story. The girl's eyes were dark, and her movements were slow. Obviously she hadn't slept much. Lin joked, "Long night?"
She tried to brush the comment off, "You could say that."
"Well, get ready, we're going out to train."
The chief had decided they were going out to bend something special today. They were going to bend virgin earth.
Lin pulled out a few pieces of fresh ore and placed them between the two. Kuvira quickly shut her eyes and sensed the new material, eager to be the first earthbender to manipulate its form.
She quickly decided she would make a cube, and decided to add another side each time, making her way up to an octagon.
The elder bender laughed, and started to bend her piece into little figurines, starting with a mini-Kuvira and making it walk to her pupil.
Kuvira sat back and watched in awe of the elder woman's skills, watching as she barely moved her finger to create this amazingly elaborate figurine and even made it come alive! She started to get excited about the possibilities that might follow and exclaimed, "You have GOT to show me how to do that!"
They had been bending for hours before Lin finally decided to rest, choosing to sit against a wall off to the side. She patted the ground, signaling Kuvira to join, and she plopped down beside the Chief.
"That was some great bending you were doing out there, kid, keep practicing like this and you'll be a half as good as me."
She muttered a quiet, "thanks," and Lin lightly punched the girl's arms, and was surprised to feel her hand become wet. Both winced as they saw the red on her knuckles, and starting to pool more around the young metalbender's bandages.
"Goddamnit kid, we're going to Kya."
Kya had returned from her most recent adventure abroad and was currently staying on Air Temple Island with Tenzin and Uncle Aang.
Kya wasn't surprised to see Lin, having treated her injuries from time to time when the force or Su insisted. What she wasn't prepared to see was a small bleeding child.
Lin held up her hand, "Don't ask, we'll talk later. Kid, this is Kya, she'll take care of you, I need a moment."
Kya watched, wanting to comfort her longtime friend and companion-in-crime, but said nothing as the Chief exited the room. Kuvira laid down on the table, trying to relax. She knew the drill, even though she hadn't been healed by a waterbender before, she had read about it.
Kya continued to walk around the room, gathering a bowl of water and some new bandages. She lit candles and soon the subtle scent of vanilla filled the air, creating a calming atmosphere.
"You're going to have to take those off," Kya said, matter-of-factly to the young girl, motioning to her clothes and bandages, "so I can see what I'm healing," she finished.
"But-"
"No buts young lady, I'll help you shear them," Kya started to grab some scissors, but Kuvira had already bent a previously unnoticed metal cuff from her wrist into a knife.
The girl stripped to her undershirt and shorts, leaving herself exposed and vulnerable, partially trying to cover herself with her hands.
"You'll get used to it, really, it's not a big deal-"
"I'm so… messed up though."
"I've seen worse," she smiled, thinking of Lin's injuries and scars that littered her body, "try to ignore your fear of being seen, it'll only make things harder for us both. Once you get used to it, you'll be free."
"Huh?"
"On the other side of every fear is freedom, little one." She motioned for the young bender to relax.
Kuvira leaned back again, processing the waterbender's claim, and Kya started to heal the cuts and bruises forming. The healer said nothing… The similarities in the child's and Lin's personalities was almost humorous. She tried to remain neutral, but the look of sadness never left her caring eyes. She cataloged every injury in her head, to talk to Lin about later.
The harsh cold quickly was replaced with a soothing heat as Kya healed the child as best as she could. She would have to remember to come to Kya when things got bad, she was not a wimp by any stretch of the imagination, but some injuries are better to be treated sooner rather than later. She thanked the older woman, and Kya told her to sit back and rest as she got Lin.
Kya found Lin sitting outside, cradling her head in her hands. She lightly touched the Chief's shoulder, and the woman looked up.
Lin knew Kuvira was fine, but the headache from the adrenaline had started to settle in.
She stood, and hugged Kya, thanking her. She lingered there for a second before saying, "We'll talk about it later, I'm glad you're back though." The usually direct woman looked away, and let go of the other woman before entering the room with her charge.
The girl looked tired, but sat up when Lin entered. She leaned down on one knee to be at eye level with the young metalbender.
"You wanna tell me what's going on?" she asked.
"No."
The Chief pulled up a chair, and sat back, "Take a shot at it kid, I have all day."
"I don't know what you're talking about." She rubbed her arms, absentmindedly.
"I'm not stupid, 'Vira."
"Don't call me that. My parents called me that… and then Su thought it was some kind of pet name. My name is Kuvira."
"Got it, kid," the girl smiled at the way Lin addressed her, curt but with love, "But enough about that. Why do you-" She took a deep breath and spoke again, "Before I ask - you know I like you kid. You're a Beifong, deep down. You've got the spirit of us and all that crap. Anyway, Beifongs are proud people. We surrender to no one, and we fight to the end. We owe nothing to anyone, and fear fears us! We are free people, freer than the airbenders, because we have no fears – and if we do, we face them head on. And we help each other out," She briefly thought back to when her mother helped get Su out of the city, "We care about each other."
"I know, it's just…" She trailed off.
The chief leaned forward, locking eyes with the girl, "Don't bullshit me, Kuvira. What are all those injuries from?"
Kuvira knew a losing battle, even at this young age. She centered herself, trying to control her heart, which was threatening to jump into her throat at any moment.
"Most were from my parents. And then… I did some too. It- It made me feel better."
Lin tried not to flinch as Kuvira confirmed her deepest fear, but tried to get the girl to continue.
"What are you really afraid of?"
"Promise you won't tell anyone?"
She smiled, "Swear it, kid."
"I think I'm broken."
"Why's that?"
"I can't ever feel… okay. I don't feel okay. I've never felt okay. I'm happy here, but I still feel… not okay."
Lin struggled to find the right words. Emotions were not her forte… "Well, you're not broken… Just, sad, I think."
"But I am broken! I'm all messed up and no one likes me and- and-" She started to tear up, and Lin did what she felt was most appropriate: she pulled the young girl into an uncharacteristic hug. Lin was stiff and awkward at first, but as Kuvira snuggled into her, she relaxed.
"You're not broken, little badgermole." She started to rub the girl's back.
"Just because you said so doesn't make it true."
"Well if you're broken, I'm shattered." Kuvira looked up at her guardian.
She didn't know much about the woman's past, but it was obvious to anyone who met the Chief that she'd been through some rough times. You don't just become that bitter for no reason. The girl made a mental note to ask later, when she felt like she wasn't going to continue sobbing.
"You just need some help, is all. And I'm not going to let anyone hurt my little badgermole, even if it's herself." Kuvira smiled at the new term of endearment.
"Are you going to send me back?" She asked the thing bothering her the most: her biggest fear in all of this.
The Chief looked at her, and cocked her head, puzzled, "I said you were mine, didn't I?"
"But-"
"Nothing's going to change that, even your thick skull." She heard Kya laugh in the background, but ignored it. Relaxing again, she held Lin tighter.
Maybe she would be okay.