7:
Hiro had stopped talking to him what felt like hours ago, and the desperate urge he felt to rip the doors apart to get to his little brother had long since passed. Instead his knees had gone sort of wobbly and weak as he pressed his forehead against the hard surface as he tried calming his breathing.
Behind him the owner had returned to whatever he did behind his desk and if Tadashi was a little less of a person he'd probably turn around and snap at him. Scream and shout until his voice disappeared under all the stress and he had to pant for breathe.
He didn't, though.
He held it all inside as he stood there helplessly, while his brother was out there somewhere. Alone and probably terrified and Tadashi choked back a sob at the thought.
"Tadashi?"
It sounded like Wasabi and when the smaller male turned around he recognized Wasabi's broad shoulders and dark hair that seemed blacker than the night, pulled back in a faded green bandana almost instantly. Tadashi quickly recognized the concern in his friend's eyes, watched as they flickered around the room before recognition struck.
Wasabi has always been smart.
They all were; it was one of- in Tadashi's opinion- their best features.
"Hiro," Wasabi whispered almost too soft to form an actual word with any real meaning yet they seemed to mean everything to Tadashi, and his large shoulders sagged as he continued to gaze at Tadashi with a sympathetic expression he neither wanted nor needed.
What he needed was his brother, safe and at his side where he belonged.
Tadashi glanced away, back pressed tightly against the wood as if Wasabi was cornering him- an absurd thought. Other than Honey Lemon, he was probably the most gentle out of his newfound group of friends.
"Aw man," Wasabi breathed, glancing down at the ground at his side as he seemed to calculate the best sort of action.
Tadashi knew then that he should feel silly.
He was acting ridiculous, pressed against the door like a cornered animal when he knew no one inside meant him any harm. It was his fear for his brother that was making him act so irrational, finding a threat in every little thing, and he wasn't going to lie. If Wasabi tried forcing him back to his bed then the man might end up with a broken nose and black eye.
Tadashi wasn't moving.
Not until morning when the owner finally opened the door and let him out so he could go find his brother- alive, because that was the only acceptable condition Hiro was allowed to be in. If not then he couldn't be responsible for his corresponding actions, and there was a high chance of him burning down half the city in his despair.
He's already lost so much. He just can't lose this too.
"Tadashi," Wasabi said again, looking at him with earnest eyes as he stretched both his arms out looking like he wanted to help.
"I'm not moving," Tadashi spoke, voice surprisingly firm as he straightened his posture and glared at his friend, "Not until morning."
"Alright," Wasabi agreed, hands still stretched in front of him, "If that's what it takes. We can wait together."
"No," Tadashi denied shaking his head and staring unrelentingly in Wasabi's dark gaze, "This is something I've got to do. Alone."
Wasabi swallowed, his head bobbing in agreement.
"Okay man," he agreed not unkindly, "Just don't do anything stupid."
Tadashi nodded, allowing his knees to give out as he slid down the door on the ground where he leaned the back of his head against the wooden surface suddenly very tired.
He'd wait there all night if he had to because- first thing in the morning- he was finding his brother. Whatever it took.
If someone had been around to ask Hiro where he was going, he'd probably lie and pretend like he knew. Thankfully, no one was around so he didn't have to fake anything. Unfortunately, he always seemed to be the worst liar to himself.
"I'm fine," he whispered wrapping both his arms around his thin chest in a gesture that had nothing to do with the outside temperature as he crept down the streets, trying to find a decent place to sleep for the night, "What's that thing GoGo always says? Woman up? Well… I'm not a woman but I suppose the meaning is all the same-"
He was broken off from the sound of something crashing.
He jumped, startled, and twisted so he was staring down an abandoned alleyway. A quick glance around revealed that it was the same alley he heard something in a couple of days ago. When Tadashi bought him that bowl of rice for dinner, something that felt like eternity ago.
It wasn't- he knew- though he also knew that it should have been long enough for whatever had been inside it that day to be long gone. But then what-
"Hello?" he asked in a soft whisper, certain that it wasn't a guard and knowing that, logically, he couldn't remain roaming the city like he was.
No response.
Just more shuffling.
"Hello?" he hissed aware that it might not be a guard but could still be something so much worst, "Who's there?"
He crept closer, arms squeezing him tightly as he squinted dark eyes inside the murky darkness to try to get a better look. He couldn't see anything, no matter how hard he looked.
"Okay," he replied turning away, "I'm going to go now."
He never got the chance.
Voices echoed down the empty streets and he cursed his luck because, of course, the Imperial Guard would pick that specific moment to show up and having nowhere else to go he bolted down the alley. He stopped once he was certain he was covered in the shadows, pressing his back against the side wall and sliding down to his rear, pulling his legs to his chest and trying to look as small as possible.
Shouldn't be all that hard. It wasn't like he's ever been that big for his age.
"Hear that?" one of the guards asked, beam of light coming from the object in their hands as they directed it towards Hiro's hiding place.
He stiffened, willing his heart to stop beating so loudly, as he forced himself to remain completely motionless. The light was touching the toes of his shoes now as the guard started down the alleyway, boots clicking against the uneven ground ominously.
Something to Hiro's right moved suddenly, screeching as it bolted from the trash heap it was hiding in. The guard screamed in shock, Hiro biting hard on his lip to prevent him from doing the same. He tasted copper but ignored it.
"What is it?" the guard's partner asked as he ventured deeper in the alley to shine the light on whatever suddenly leapt out at them.
One thing was for certain- it wasn't a cat.
"Just a stupid robot. Probably broken," a guard growled, sounding angry as they moved away, "Stupid thing. Leaping out of nowhere like that…"
Hiro waited until he was certain they were gone before turning his attention to what made all the noise. It was white- a glaring white that seemed to illuminate under the moonlight- and at one time it was obvious to be very large in height and width. Now it was deflated, white vinyl hanging from its frame in small sags.
Upon closer inspection, Hiro deemed it a miracle it had been able to move at all. Most of the inner structure was shattered and useless.
"Hey buddy," Hiro greeted, relieved it had been a broken robot and not a psycho maniac; robots he knew how to deal with.
The robot didn't reply with words, instead it seemed to whirr, a soft sound that reminded Hiro of the noise the fan in his room back at the café would make whenever he would flip it on.
Hiro realized then why it hadn't been discovered until then.
It couldn't move, couldn't speak and was lucky Hiro ever ventured down the alley to begin with. Any longer and who knows how long it could've stayed down there, slowing rusting away. Though it showed no obvious signs of oxidizing.
"Don't worry," Hiro reassured taking in the useless fragments that would acted as the thing's legs, "I'll fix you up. You'll see."
Grabbing onto what Hiro assumed was arms, he dragged the deflated-balloon like figure back against the wall shrouding them in more darkness.
"I'm going to need light so I can see," Hiro spoke before glancing up at the robot and asked, "How good are you at keeping secrets."
Turns out, there was no need to be so drastic.
The inside of the robot suddenly lit up like a light bulb and Hiro blinked in shocked awe.
"I suppose both of us are just full of surprises," he muttered rolling up the sleeves of his jacket and rolling his neck as he took stock on what he had in the alley.
Hours past- he could tell from the position of the moon- and it must have been way past midnight by the time Hiro managed fitting the last of the parts in the robot before he stepped away to regard his work. It wasn't great but it was a definite improvement and he decided the robot looked much better inflated, nice and puffy looking. Almost like the marshmallows Aunt Cass would stow away where he thought he couldn't find or, at least, reach.
She seriously underestimated what he would do for something sugary and sweet.
His good mood he created from tinkering on the robot dropped when he thought of his aunt again. The robot seemed to catch on, humming like robots do.
"Sorry," Hiro apologized with a shrug, "I can only work on robots. I'm not that great at understanding them."
An idea sparked somewhere in the back of his mind and he commanded the robot to be still as he checked what supplied as its mind. Several wires had gone unplugged and it was cracked but still holding itself together.
"Hang on," Hiro muttered standing higher on his toes as he ignited his finger in a mini torch, "I think I can fix this."
The act was tedious and took longer than he was comfortable of bending but when he finished he was rewarded by the robot stuttering out, "M-m-my na-a-ame i-i-is Bay-Bay-Baymax."
"Whoa," Hiro interrupted glancing back at the brain and giving it a slight jolt.
Baymax seemed to exclaim at that, standing up straight as he twirled around in a lazy circle. Little black dots blinked lazily as the robot seemed to regard him. Then it raised a finger much like a teacher would and spoke in a robotic male's voice.
"Scan complete. I was unaware that the Avatar was alive," he spoke in a voice that sounded like it was obvious but jolted something very close to fear inside of Hiro as he rushed forward to shush the thing.
"What are you trying to do?" Hiro demanded in a fierce whisper, "If anyone overheard you then I'd be in deep, deep trouble. Do you understand?"
Another blink as it seemed to take a second for the words to process.
Then another blink and, "I see, so all the Benders are still being rounded up and executed in search of the Avatar. No new Benders have been logged in as prisoners for the last week though so I assumed-"
"Whoa. What?" Hiro asked in shock as he stepped away to blink dumbly, "How could you possibly know that?"
Baymax's belly lit up in a bright rectangle of light and it took Hiro a second to realize what he was looking at.
"How did you do that without getting caught?" Hiro demanded, reaching out to rub his fingers across the video of what looked like an empty cell room. In the corner stamped today's date with the time looking pretty closely to what Hiro estimated it was at that moment.
"I was built to work under the Empire. To be able to detect signs of rogue benders," Baymax informed as the image changed to a video feed of a bright light and faint voices though the auditory wasn't good enough for Hiro to be able to make out what was being said.
"Well, what happened?" Hiro demanded, confused as he pressed his hand further against the cool surface.
"I was shut down," Baymax explained neutrally as the image changed to bright red letters that spelled out PROJECT BAYMAX || TERMINATED || EFFECTIVELY IMMEDIATELY.
"Aw man," Hiro murmured in sympathy, "I'm so sorry, but how did you end up way out here, so far away from the Empire?"
"It was ordered for me to be dismantled instantly," Baymax explained, the screen on his stomach shutting off, "and dropped where I would never be found."
"They practically crushed you," Hiro whimpered, pressing his forehead against the robot's inflated stomach, "and left you out here to rust."
"I am sensing elevated hormones indicating that you are sad," Baymax replied before large arms circled around Hiro and drew him close as he reassured with a slight pat to the head, "There, there. You will be alright."
"It's not me I'm sad about," Hiro explained as he moved out from the robot's grasp to stare earnestly up at him, "I'm sorry you had to become another victim to the Empire."
"I am not a victim," Baymax said, "I am a robot, incapable of being a victim."
"No," Hiro denied, palm splayed across the robot's white stomach as he shook his head and added softly, "I don't think you are."
Hiro kind of wished that he had taken Fred up on his offer to see his home. At least then he'd have some sort of place to go where he and Baymax would be safe.
No such luck and he made a mental note to figure it out as soon as possible.
"Hiro," Baymax spoke in a low voice as he wrapped an arm around Hiro's shoulders, "My sensors indicate that you very stressed and need sleep. Perhaps you should rest until the sun comes up."
"What if more guards show up?" Hiro protested, shaking his head in denial though he felt a yawn threaten to bubble out from his throat.
He hated to admit it but he was tired, practically exhausted.
Sleep was very, very tempting but one thought of Tadashi alone at the shelter undoubtedly stubbornly refusing sleep and he felt obligated to do the same. At least then he could watch out for more guards.
"I will keep watch," Baymax just replied, setting a large hand against his skull and gently pushing him on his stomach, "Sleep. I will wake you when morning arrives."
Hiro wanted to fight it- he really did- but Baymax's stomach was just so comfortable and he was just so tired that he found himself drifting off. The next time he woke up, it was morning and Baymax was still blinking at the alley's entrance as if watching for trouble.
"Morning buddy," Hiro yawned, rubbing his tired eyes as he sat up and stretched.
He hated to admit it, but that was the best night's sleep he's had in what felt like centuries.
"Good morning," Baymax greeted turning to stare black eyes at him, "I hope that you have slept well."
"Yeah buddy," Hiro agreed with a slight hum as he stood up, yanking Baymax with him, "What about you? You got a charger I need to plug you in or something?"
Baymax blinked once before saying, "No. I am powered by the sunlight though I have not gotten much light in a while now."
"Right," Hiro agreed realizing the alleyway would've blocked most of the sun out, "Then let's go on a walk."
He reached out, clasping small hands against the robot's large wrist and jerked him after him. Baymax stumbled at first, unaccustomed to his new legs, but he adjusted surprisingly well. Much better than anything Hiro would've been able to put together with a bunch of scraps.
"How's that?" Hiro asked as the sun's warmth struck him as he slowed to a stop and relished in the familiar warmth it created.
Another blink.
"Fine."
Baymax, Hiro was quickly starting to learn, was a robot of very few words.
He waited a moment before urging Baymax to follow him as he explained, "You've got to meet the others. Tadashi will be so shocked."
As were everyone they passed, heads snapping to the sides as the dirty scrawny kid led a large white robot down the middle of the sidewalk like it was a normal occurrence. Hiro paid them no heed as they finally made it to the shelter, the doors still closed which meant no one had requested for them to be opened.
"Perfect," Hiro gasped as he rushed over to bang on the surface and called, "Tadashi!"
There was a slight jerking noise and Hiro suspected his brother had somehow managed to nod off. Good, at least now he knew his brother got some sort of sleep in over the night.
"Hiro?" his brother called, voice a little too hopeful as he shuffled from the other side.
"Uh huh," Hiro affirmed before glancing back at Baymax, watching with what he assumed to be a neutral expression, "Open up. I've got a surprise for you."
"I swear Hiro," his brother growled as he called for the owner to open the doors, "If its fleas then I'm leaving you out there to dry."
Empty words that conveyed how worried his brother had really been.
The doors creaked open, Hiro stumbling back so they won't strike him. Baymax remained where he was, watching with emotionless eyes. Then Hiro caught sight of his brother and everything else disappeared, his focused narrowed on his red eyed older brother who still looked tense and worried and scared.
That last one was the worst.
"Hiro," the elder brother breathed, all his muscles relaxing at once and it was amazing he managed to stay upright as he rushed over to his little brother to examine him for injuries. He twisted his face in an uncomfortable angle as he fussed over him.
Then he caught sight of Baymax.
"Uh, Hiro," Tadashi asked in that weird way of his as he jerked him behind him protectively, "What is that?"
"This is Baymax," Hiro explained as he wiggled free and gestured towards the still motionless robot with his arm, "He, uh, kind of saved me from getting busted last night."
"Uh huh," Tadashi replied simply, staring like he was still yet uncomprehending.
Behind them, in the shelter, there was a commotion and Hiro turned to catch sight of Hiro's friends rushing over with relieved expressions pressed across their faces. They- like Tadashi- looked like they hadn't slept very much that night.
Hiro bowed his head, suddenly ashamed in making everyone worry.
It only got worse when Honey Lemon reached him, hands gripping his shoulders tightly as she demanded, "Hiro, what happened? Was it that water bender?"
Hiro tensed, aware of everyone's stunned expressions as Honey Lemon stopped to look sheepish, before he demanded in a low growl, "What part of 'don't mention this to Tadashi' don't you understand?"
"I'm sorry?" Tadashi asked unamused as he turned to stare at his brother with a hard expression, "What?"
"Nothing," Hiro reassured lightly shoving Honey Lemon's hands away to look away, "It's nothing."
"Yeah," Honey Lemon agreed as she flushed, "It's silly anyways."
With Tadashi, nothing was silly.
"Honey Lemon, Hiro spill. Now," he commanded and Hiro was an expert at dodging his brother but Honey Lemon wasn't and she already looked sorry about letting anything slip to begin with so he sucked in a breath and explained in as few words as he could about what happened after his brother left him.
Tadashi's mood only seemed to worsen as the other three teens turned sharp eyes towards him; Baymax remained in the back, silent and expressionless. He was quickly becoming Hiro's favorite.
"It's not a big deal," Hiro rushed as quickly as he could, "She was just angry because she lost the fight with Tadashi. She's probably already found another sucker to leech from."
"She tried killing you," Tadashi growled sensibly enough, "How is that not a big deal?"
It wouldn't need to be if Hiro's insanely protective brother didn't find a reason for it to be. Unfortunately for him, Tadashi found plenty of reasons, and Hiro would've struck himself if he dared.
"Scan complete. My sensors indicate that Hiro is currently undergoing increased amounts of stress. An end to this current conversation would be optimal," Baymax suddenly spoke up and Hiro seriously needed to have a talk about the robot's scanning Hiro problem.
"I'm fine," he repeated as he inched away from his brother, "Chances are we won't see her again anyways."
He was wrong.
Oh, he was so wrong.
"Hey!" someone screamed and he tensed because of course she would appear at that exact moment; Tadashi's entire face darkened in something well passed furious and a lot closer to psycho.
"My life," Hiro grumbled as he threw his hands in the air before turning to confront the newest threat.
The woman was glaring at them through furious eyes, obviously too dumb to live if she approached him yet again after her last attempt of stealing his brother and killing him. All around him, Tadashi's friends tensed as Tadashi shoved himself in the front.
When he spoke, it was low and dangerous.
"I'm giving you exactly three seconds to disappear from my sight forever," Tadashi growled and Hiro thought he had seen him mad when the woman had interrupted their conversation two days prior.
He realized that it was nothing compared to now.
She frowned, cocking her head to the side, before replying, "I don't think so."
She flicked her wrist and the next moment Tadashi was sent careening to the side as what resembled a water whip disappeared back from view.
She was bending in public.
Definitely too dumb to live.
"Water bender!" Wasabi immediately cried as he cupped his hands around his mouth and practically bellowed, "Help! Water bender!"
"Hiro!"
Hiro turned towards his brother's voice, a split second too late as the water found him and wrapped itself around his neck. Squeezing. Choking. Strangling.
He gasped, flashing back to that day that started everything and how then he'd nearly drowned from a water bender too. Now seemed so much worst. At least then his brother hadn't been around to see it.
He gagged, legs buckling out from underneath him as he ended up on the ground, hands twisting at the water at his throat but they were unable to get a good enough grasp. It just tightened as he blinked rapidly up at the sky, wishing for it all to be over.
That was about when the world exploded around him.
Wasabi turned around about the same time Tadashi's entire frame exploded in a display of orange and yellow, an inhuman scream escaping from the older brother's lips.
It was frightening to say the least.
Though perhaps not as frightening as Hiro on the ground, withering as the life was literally choked from him.
"Hiro," he gasped, rushing over to bend beside Honey Lemon and GoGo, who were trying to assess the situation and help him.
Hiro choked the same time the water bender screamed, Tadashi practically scorching her flesh with his flame and it frightened him by how deranged the elder brother now seemed. Fueled by something way past fear and anger.
He was going to kill the water bender for hurting Hiro, which was still murder no matter where one looked at it.
The water was unrelenting, though, continuing to squeeze and no matter what any of them tried it wouldn't budge.
"Tadashi!" GoGo screamed as Tadashi practically tossed the water bender across the street, fire circling him like a deranged dragon.
Hiro choked one last time before his eyes flew open, less wild then before, as the water seemed to stop and stiffen. Very slowly, it rose away from him and when he broke out in a fit of coughing it seemed to dissipate instantly, raining on the ground beside them.
"Impossible," the water bender gasped, catching Tadashi's attention as he turned to stare, the flames dying around him.
"Hiro, no," he pleaded only to be struck again for his momentarily lapse in concentration.
The flames seemed to intensify, brightening and practically bursting as he raised a hand towards her- ready for the kill.
"Tadashi, no!" Hiro screamed, scrambling to his knees as he held both his hands out in front of him and squeezed his eyes shut.
The flames around Tadashi seemed to quiver once before being drawn over to Hiro, sinking into him like a sponge.
Horror struck Wasabi at realization, not so much that Hiro was the Avatar but because the sweet little kid whom he's grown quite fond of just revealed it in front of everyone. Including the guards that had decided then would be a perfect time to show up.
"No!" the woman scream, water bursting around her and surging directly towards Hiro who looked too weak to counter.
Tadashi appeared then, water striking his chest and sending him on top of his brother. They both went down in a heap of tangled limbs.
The guards finally reached the woman, jabbing her in the side and following her collapse towards the ground. Wasabi would've probably enjoyed it some if it wasn't for the fact that he knew his new two friends would be next.
"Hiro," Tadashi breathed as he rolled over to check on his brother.
Hiro's head lolled to the side, unconscious.
Wasabi saw the tension and worry rise in the older brother's face as the woman finally collapsed and the guards turned their attention towards them. It was now or never.
"Come on," GoGo growled obviously thinking along the same lines as him as she bent over to haul Tadashi to his feet, "We've got to go."
"Here," the older brother grumbled, lifting Hiro up and setting him in Wasabi's arms, "Take care of him. I mean it."
"What?" Honey Lemon demanded in horror as Tadashi bent over to plant a firm kiss against Hiro's pale features.
"Forgive me, little brother," Tadashi mumbled softly, touching their foreheads together briefly before he pulled away and turned towards the guards.
"Hey!" he exclaimed, fire sprouting around him like a vortex, "You want me? Come get me!"
Wasabi could only stare in shock before GoGo touched his arm, urging him to follow. Her face was tense, dark eyes momentarily passing over Hiro's still limp form before up at him.
"We need to go," she informed and they started running though not before she spun and shouted, "Stay alive Tadashi Hamada! We'll find you!"
And, of course, that was the exact moment Hiro decided to stir in his arms.
He grumbled, blinking bleary eyes only for them to snap open when he realized it wasn't his brother who was carrying him. He twisted within Wasabi's strong hold, gazing over his shoulder as he shouted and struggled.
"No! Put me down! We can't leave him!" he screamed, trying in vain to break free.
It broke Wasabi's heart, shattering it in a million different fragments as Hiro choked on a sob, still trying to break free.
Wasabi knew the exact moment Tadashi had been overcome and captured. It was the exact moment Hiro stopped struggling and just made a sad broken noise that sounded so young and fragile he never wanted to release the younger boy again.
He schooled his expression, though, keeping careful stride with the girls as he realized they didn't have anywhere to go. All they knew was the shelter and now that Hiro had been discovered as the Avatar there would be no more shelter.
Not for any of them since they aided in his escape.
"Why?" Hiro just sobbed in his arms before he cupped both hands over his mouth and screamed despite Tadashi no longer being able to hear him, "Stay alive, big brother! I'll find you wherever they take you! I promise!"
Wasabi swore another part of him shattered at the words, of the way they were screamed with such conviction and he knew then he made the right choice.
No matter what happened now, he'd make sure Hiro stayed safe.
"Come on!" GoGo called, jerking them towards an alleyway and they hurried along the decidedly less sanitary road as they ran like their lives were at stake.
He figured, they were.
"You can set me down now," Hiro protested them, squirming as he continued looking over Wasabi's shoulder.
Wasabi obliged then regretted it when Hiro made a bolt past him.
"Hiro!" he protested but stopped when he saw the youth sprint up to the large white robot that was trailing behind them slowly, Hiro reaching out to grasp the thing's wrist.
"Baymax, come on," Hiro urged hurrying the robot to run a little faster as he sprinted in the direction the girls ran off to.
"I am not fast," the robot replied in a monotone sort of voice and Hiro sounded on the verge of hysteria when he spoke next.
"No kidding," he screeched sarcastically and Wasabi waited until both of them passed before following in the rear.
He'd protect him.
They all would, he knew. No matter what.
GoGo stopped at the end of the alley, eyes narrowed. Wasabi went to stand beside her as Hiro bent over and gasped for breath still gripping his robot tightly.
"What's wrong?" Wasabi asked in a soft whisper but the shorter girl just shushed him, gesturing towards the street.
He squinted, recognizing Fred's lanky form.
"Should we involve him in this?" Honey Lemon asked, coming up to stand beside them with a reluctant expression.
"What choice do we have?" GoGo demanded, eyes guarded as she snarled, "They'll find a way to link him to us and then probably torture him for information. Ugh. I hate the Empire."
They all did.
Honey Lemon reached out to pat the back of her friend comfortingly as Wasabi slipped past both of them to rush to Fred as quickly as he could. The lanky teen blinked in surprise upon seeing his friend this far away from the shelter.
"Wasabi?" he asked and Wasabi quickly shushed him as he urged for him to follow.
Behind him, the girls were watching carefully- making sure to stay as a protective barrier in front of Hiro though Wasabi seriously doubted the boy would need it when push came to shove. They were just all reluctant for it to go that far ever again.
"Uh…" Fred trailed off dumbly as his larger friend started jerking him towards the alley and Wasabi knew that if it had been anyone other than Fred they'd have another crisis on their hands, "Is this a game? Am I getting robbed?"
"No. Nothing like that," Wasabi reassured as they made it back to the alley, the girls staring at them both expectantly while Hiro was leaning against the robot though Wasabi expected not entirely from exhaustion.
"Guys?" Fred asked before locking eyes with GoGo and corrected, "And gals. What's going on?"
"They took Tadashi," Hiro explained, surprising all of them as he straightened his short frame and locking serious eyes on his friend- looking dwarfed by Baymax still standing beside him.
"Who?" and Fred was sounding increasingly distressed, eyes fluttering from all of his friends' faces for any signs of an explanation.
"The Imperial Guard," GoGo practically spat, "You'll never believe it, but he fire bended."
"What?!" and he shouted it a little too loud for comfort.
The three of them instantly shushed him as Hiro pushed his way towards the front, face grim and serious as he locked eyes with Fred's.
"That's not all," the younger boy continued with a slight edge in his voice, "He hasn't been the one they've been searching for."
"Because of the Avatar, right?" Fred asked surprisingly piecing everything together well- far better than Wasabi would've ever expected.
Honey Lemon nodded, hands clasped in front of her chest in the way she does whenever she's overly excited or anxious. Wasabi ventured a guess and would say that she wasn't feeling excited at the moment.
"You'll never guess who the Avatar is though," Wasabi spoke, urging the reveal to happen quicker so they could deal with the consequences.
Fred frowned, confused, though his eyes still twinkled with curiosity. That was the thing about his pale friend, no matter the situation he was able to find some part of it to excite over.
Wasabi figured that wasn't about to last.
"They found them?" Fred demanded, voice thin with barely concealed excitement and Wasabi remembered a conversation they had shortly after first arriving at the shelter, and how Fred seemed certain the Avatar would turn out to be a good guy.
They had to with how rotten the Empire was.
"More like revealed himself in front of everyone back at the shelter," GoGo groaned, rubbing the back of her neck and Wasabi assumed she was willing herself to wake up from this nightmare.
He felt much the same.
"What? Who was it?" Fred asked in confusion, eyes fluttering back around all of them before landing on Hiro who was the only one who didn't look even a little freaked out.
"Fred," Hiro said in a calmer voice Wasabi would've ever managed, "It's me. I'm the Avatar."
Fred's jaw dropped, blue eyes widening in barely concealed amazement as his brain struggled to process everything he had just been told. Hiro stared up at him, eyes firm yet gentle as he awaited for a reaction.
Wasabi was suddenly very afraid on how his friend would react.
"It's true," Honey Lemon chimed in, "We all saw it. Freddy, the guards saw it."
Fred sucked in a breath, glancing at her before back at a steely looking Hiro and asked, "That conversation we had? About the Avatar? You knew."
"Of course," Hiro agreed with a dip of his head before turning away and admitting, "I wanted to see which side you were on. Tadashi and my aunt would say that you could never be too careful. I could never be too careful."
"Ah geez," Fred hissed before exclaiming, "How cool is all of this?"
"What?" GoGo demanded, voice made of ice as the others turned surprised looks at their friend, "Tadashi was just taken by the Empire and all of us just became wanted criminals. How is any of that cool?"
She sounded angry but, then again, she always sounded angry when it came to Fred. The boy just seemed to have a way of trying her patience and- Wasabi wasn't going to lie- sometimes he wished his friend would smack Fred across the face- he could get that annoying.
"I mean it's terrifying, obviously," Fred agreed with a nod though his eyes never left Hiro's as he added, "But how cool? One of our friends turned out to be the Avatar."
"Meaning that you're not going to turn me in?" Hiro asked and Wasabi knew that if Fred had, for whatever reason, wanted to do that then he'd have to go through the three of them to do it. Four if Baymax was on their side.
Fred blinked in utter astonishment and Wasabi knew that they wouldn't have to worry about that particular thing as his friend shook his head and reassured, "Of course not, little dude. Tadashi would kill me."
Hiro flinched at his brother's name, hiding his expression under his bangs.
"Great going," GoGo reprimanded as she punched Fred's arm before adding in a low hiss, "Idiot."
"Ow," Fred complained, jumping slightly before rubbing the hurt spot on his arm. His expression had dropped back onto Hiro as he quickly apologized, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad."
"No, no," Hiro reassured swallowing and shaking his head as he glanced back up to stare at each of them with a conviction that frightened Wasabi, "It's quite alright. After all, I'm going to get my brother back with or without you four."
Remember when I said that I made some BIG changes. Yeah now you know what I meant. Good news, Baymax is in it now. I do enjoy his and Hiro's relationship and am SUPER excited to write about him. Hope you guys feel much the same way
SPECIAL NOTES:
- Baymax had been created to hunt down benders, having been able to detect them through his scanner which he uses on Hiro much to the youth's annoyance, but had been shut down when he started to grow more compassionate towards the benders. Always asking if they were okay and if they needed anything. Instead of destroying him, though, they left him in the alley where he would (eventually) rot away.
- Tadashi's a SUPER powerful fire bender but hates bending since it was a big part of their parents' deaths and actually killed Aunt Cass. He hates peopled hurting his brother more and well... you know.
- Hiro's a powerful Avatar, pretty much already a master of all four elements. The thing is, he always practiced in secret and never in self defense so in a fight he would have to resort to instinct: what he's tried out, what he's seen, etc. He's also brilliant and would much prefer tinkering than bending, mostly because of the environment he's grown up in.
For those concerned that this is the last we'll see Tadashi- fear not. He's still a major character and plays an important role. Now, rather or not he (or any of the really) is going to survive well... I guess you'll just have to wait to see.
Hope you enjoyed and- hopefully- I can keep up this pace of updating. Seriously, two updates in one week. Someone call the police and firemen because I am on fire (not really).