Avatar: The Warring Earth
Book Three—Water
By Twins of the Pen
Disclaimer: Avatar in itself belongs to Nickelodeon and Bryan Konietzko/Michael DiMartino. The only things that belong to Twins of the Pen are the original characters.
"Too early to be up…" Syaoran grumbled as he yawned again, leaning against an ornate pillar in the hotel lobby. Shun and ZanYi keep them up late, and then ZanYi still makes them get up early in the morning? Two days in a row! The Avatar couldn't wait to be done with the shopping out of the way so he could sleep on Bumi's back the rest of the day.
"You should be used to early by now," ZanYi remarked, catching his mumblings as she walked back over to him and Tiki from turning in their keys at the front desk, boots thudding on the marble floor. Through a cracked eyelid, Syaoran could tell he wasn't the only one who'd opted to keep wearing his clothes from the night before—albeit, this was the first clothes of his own he'd had in a long time, and this hoodie was pretty comfy. ZanYi was still in jeans and her boots, though thankfully she'd dropped the tube top for one of her usual tanks. Despite that they hadn't even left the building yet, she already had on a black leather jacket. Syaoran also noted that Shun's necklace was on full display now, post-clubbing. Her dogtags were nowhere to be seen.
"Can we go yet?" the Avatar asked ZanYi, who simply rolled her eyes.
"Hold on," she halted him, looking back over her shoulder. "Shun, you ready to go yet?"
"Yeah, hang on," Shun replied distractedly, his nose once again buried in his notebook as he read over the list he'd already made. He wanted to be absolutely sure that he had listed everything they needed; a second shopping trip was not an option.
As he stepped next to ZanYi, a drunken call from the nearby bar distracted him. "Hey, sweetheart! Yeah, you with the leather jacket! Why don't you join the party over here? I bet I can show you a better time than that giant you're with can!"
Immediately, Shun wrapped an arm around ZanYi, pulling her close to his side and sending a glare the drunk man's way. He vaguely recognized the man as the DJ from last night, and did not appreciate the fact that he was hitting on ZanYi when he was already intoxicated surrounded by beautiful women. Shun wasn't a jealous man; he just didn't appreciate men like that trying to take advantage of women who were clearly out of his league. And spoken for.
"Somehow I highly doubt that," ZanYi grumbled to herself, letting out an exasperated sound, giving the drunken man a sour look. Seriously, who was that heavily intoxicated that early in the morning? Clearly someone with issues, that's what the lieutenant guessed. It certainly didn't seem to be getting women though, if the harem of ladies around the drunk disc jockey was any indication. Still, it was too early to be getting hit on by drunk men—or even sober ones. And ZanYi was still tired enough underneath that it irked her.
Syaoran's eyes open a bit more to stare at the woman after he heard her utterance. Just what was she implying? The Avatar looked at the protective arm Shun had around ZanYi in a totally different light then. Had the waterbender actually succeeded in getting to the lieutenant? Sure, they were close, but to the extent that they were finally a couple?
But he didn't have much time to fret, because ZanYi had shrugged away that arm, looking at the drunkard with narrow eyes. "Call me sweetheart one more time and I'll make sure to end your 'party'," she told him dangerously. Normally she could just shrug stuff off; normally she was working the scene and therefore couldn't start something.
But this early in the morning? No. It was aggravating and she was going to say so.
The smile dropped from the disk jockey's face; the women surrounding him glared openly at ZanYi. A tense atmosphere suddenly filled the lobby—the bartender took a step back, glancing between the disk jockey and Shun, as if he expected a fight to break out. However, before anything could be done, the glass door to the hotel entrance slammed open. A dark-skinned woman with short, dark hair and blazing ice blue eyes stormed in, heading straight for the drunk DJ. The women around him scattered immediately at the sight of the woman—clearly this was a common occurrence. Tiki squinted at the woman through her blue contact eyes, feeling as if she had seen her before. She kind of looked like the singer from the club last night…
"Jin!" the stranger growled, smacking the DJ upside his head with no small amount of viciousness. "I am getting so sick of you!"
"Ow!" the DJ, Jin, protested, raising his arms to shield himself from the woman's onslaught. "Ease up, Nyla! I'm just trying to have a little fun!"
Tiki was watching this scene, along with everyone else, frowning now as she stared at the pair of them. "Where have I heard those names before…?" she muttered, her thoughts racing to trace them.
ZanYi's temper cooled at the names, a bit of surprise on her face. Immediately her gaze went to Shun, and seeing the look on his face only confirmed what she was thinking. Shun knew where she had heard those names before. In fact, he froze up as soon as the names were uttered, everything else forgotten in the moment except for the two people standing at the bar. There was no way this was happening right now. It was just a coincidence, wasn't it? This couldn't be real… could it?
Could it really be his siblings? After all this time, by a coincidence, had they stumbled upon them?
Syaoran looked at his three comrades in a rather confused manner. All of them seemed to be stiffer for some reason. Which meant he was missing something. "Tiki," he whispered, "what am I missing here?"
The lieutenant touched Shun's hand briefly, giving it some warmth before she turned away to face the two strangers fully. "By any chance, would your last name be 'Jiang'?" the lieutenant called out to them, peering at them with a certain focus.
That made Syaoran stiffen then like the rest of the group. Jiang? As in, Shun's last name? So wait, did this mean the DJ and the new girl and Shun were… related?
Jin and Nyla gave ZanYi sharp looks.
"Aw crap, are you one of those stalker fans we get?" Jin asked, looking put out. "Look, we appreciate that you like our music, but—"
"Shut up, Jin," Nyla cut the drunken disk jockey off, her eyes suddenly intent upon ZanYi—or ZanYi's throat, rather. Stepping closer, she reached out and grabbed the leather cord, inspecting the wolf fang at the end. "This necklace…" Nyla looked up to meet the lieutenant's eyes, her own eyes alive with fire. "Tell me where you got it. Now."
Tiki's eyes widened. First, the confirmation of the last name, and now the singer from the club last night recognized Shun's necklace? This was getting unbelievable. "I think," Tiki whispered, turning her disbelieving blue eyes onto Syaoran, "that we accidentally found Shun's family."
Syaoran's gaze fluttered between everyone in the scene playing out before him. Was Tiki serious? Were these two from the club seriously Shun's family? Wouldn't they recognize Shun? Then again, hadn't he mentioned once it had been a very long time since he'd seen his family? Maybe they just didn't recognize each other.
"This is a crazy coincidence, even for us..." he noted back to Tiki, meeting her gaze only briefly before watching again.
Shun, for his part, was frozen in shock. He could not even bring himself to move, not even to breathe. Here were two people he hadn't seen since he was a child, all grown up, healthy and—for the most part—happy. It almost made him feel like crying; tears were gathering in his eyes, in fact. He could not tell whether he was ridiculously happy, or on the brink of breaking down.
ZanYi had to resist narrowing her eyes at the young woman in front of her that was completely encroaching on her personal space. But the lieutenant resisted. This wasn't just some woman. The last name. The necklace.
This was Shun's sister. One he had not seen in fourteen years.
"I got this necklace," ZanYi answered calmly as she tugged it out of Nyla's grasp to let it fall back to her chest, "from the brother I believe you gave it to. Nyla, right?" Looking away from Nyla, the lieutenant glanced at Shun. As it seemed was one of his main functions, he was frozen in place, but this time was more than forgivable. Two of his siblings that he thought he'd lost forever were standing right in front of them. It made the tears collecting in his blue eyes excusable. Family was family. ZanYi knew that…
"It's them," she affirmed to the waterbender, knowing he had to be in disbelief. "It's your family, Shun."
At last, Nyla peered up at the giant looming over ZanYi's shoulder. She was just an inch taller than ZanYi, so she had to crane her neck to look up at him, her own body freezing stiffly in shocked disbelief.
"…Shun?"
The word—the question, really—came not from Nyla, but from Jin, whom had sobered up alarmingly fast. He was taking steady steps towards the giant waterbender, looking up—actually having to look up!—into the face of the younger brother he thought he had lost for life. He was only two inches shorter than Shun, so it was easy for the disk jockey to search Shun's eyes, looking for the same thing his sister was searching for. "Shun… is that really you?"
Shun was tempted to raise a hand to hide his face, to pinch his cheeks—was this real life? How did he know he would not wake up any minute now and find that it was all a dream? As the hand managed to press over his mouth, a spark of recognition flashed through Jin's eyes. "My little brother," he began, his eyes suddenly intense on Shun's face, "always made that gesture when he was embarrassed or unsure. It was his tell, and my older brother and I always teased him about making such an effeminate gesture. We said he was—"
"—'Gentle to a fault.' I remember, JJ," Shun mumbled, moving his hand to speak. The sound of his little brother's childhood nickname for him was enough to convince Jin; with a breathless laugh, he threw his arms around Shun, patting his back heartily.
"I can't believe it: my little brother's not so little anymore!" Jin pulled back to look into Shun's face again, his eyes getting teary as well. "We thought we would never see you again!"
"I… was beginning to think the same thing," Shun admitted, scrubbing his eyes to get rid of the embarrassing tears. Jin and Nyla were here… they were really here. After years of searching, he had finally found them, and just by chance.
Shun was so glad that they had come back to Republic City.
ZanYi let the corner of her mouth lift up for a second. Granted, it was completely by chance and by accident, but they'd found Shun's family. Knowing how Shun felt about having lost them, this was probably a miracle to him. And the waterbender looked so happy…
Glancing back to Nyla, ZanYi moved away from the Jiangs, off to the side with Tiki and Syaoran for once. "Is this really happening?" the Avatar asked her, feeling like this was just too strange to believe. But ZanYi nodded, only watching the reunion as she leaned back against the wall with a cross of her arms. "So," he continued, "what now?"
"We just let them enjoy this," the lieutenant answered, toying with the fang around her neck absentmindedly.
Syaoran watched her out of the corner of his eye. "So… that is Shun's necklace?"
"Not a word, Syaoran."
Tiki giggled.
"The sister—Nyla, right? She didn't seem too happy to see that you had it," the tiny airbender pointed out, her eyes avid on the young woman still staring at Shun. There was a slight tremble to her frame, as if she was trying to suppress some strong emotion. Jin, noticing this, stepped back to let Nyla get closer to Shun herself.
"Don't just stand there, Ny—it's Shun! You were four when you last saw him, remember?" Jin encouraged her with a broad grin. Shun himself turned to Nyla, wanting to ask her where their parents and eldest brother was, and hoping a little for a hug from her as well.
What he did not expect, however, was for the woman his little sister grew up to be to lash out, slapping him hard across the face. Shun heard several gasps sound around him, and Jin's voice exclaim, "Nyla!" Bringing a hand up to massage his stinging cheek, Shun turned a hurt and bewildered expression onto the singer, only to find that she, too, was crying. She was also glaring at him, however, her look severe enough to sear flesh and bone.
"How dare you…!" she growled, her voice dangerously low. She balled her trembling hands into fists and raised them, as if she meant to strike Shun again. Luckily, Jin had already moved behind her, grabbing her upper arms to hold her back from Shun. That did not stop Nyla from thrashing against Jin, though, while she screamed at Shun. "We thought you were DEAD! We've been grieving—grieving for years! And now you dare to show your face after all this time?! You bastard!"
"Nyla, stop it!" Jin commanded, struggling to keep his grip on his thrashing sister. "You're making a scene!" Indeed she was: everyone in the lobby was openly staring, some shaking their heads and sending them looks of judgment. Nyla did not seem to care, however—she still fought against Jin while hurling abuse at Shun.
"Nyla—" Shun began softly, reaching out to his little sister, but she stomped hard on Jin's foot—causing her howling older brother to release her—and smacked Shun's hand away.
"Don't touch me!" The tears flowing down Nyla's face were thickening; somehow, this only made her glare harder. "After all these years, after letting us believe you were gone forever and then having the nerve to show your face now, you expect me to welcome you with open arms?! Like hell!"
"Nyla, it wasn't like that!" Shun protested, desperate to get through to the angry woman his sister had apparently grown into. "After I escaped, I tried to find you, all of you! You don't know how hard it was—!"
"Oh, I'm sure we were the only thing on your mind!" Nyla mocked him with a shrill laugh, "We must have meant so much to you, which is exactly why that woman over there is wearing the necklace I gave you!"
Shun winced reflexively as Nyla's hand shot towards him, but she was pointing an accusing finger at ZanYi, where the fanged necklace still hung around her neck in plain sight. And even though Nyla had not hit him again, Shun still felt physical pain over the words she spoke. "It isn't like that…" he insisted quietly, a lump beginning to form in his throat. He was really hurt that Nyla believed that he would abandon them—that he would abandon her. He had traded his life in exchange for hers… how could she believe that he would think to purposefully hurt her that way?
It seemed as if Nyla was done with this conversation, however. With one last scathing look at her long-lost brother, she shoved past Jin and stormed out, deaf to Jin's pleas for her to return. He began to head out after her, but paused and turned to look at Shun, his expression of panic. "Don't go anywhere," he urged the giant waterbender anxiously, "we'll be right back—I know where Nyla's run off to, and if I can calm her down, we'll come back. If not… well, I'll come back. Just… please, stay put, all right?" Jin waited until he received a stiff nod from Shun before rushing out of the lobby after his wayward sister.
Shun, for his part, sank into the nearest chair, staring at nothing. How could such a happy moment go so wrong? Here he was, overjoyed that he had found a portion of his family, only to discover that his sister hated him for being gone so long. Shun wanted to be upset that she felt that way, but he couldn't bring himself to be angry with Nyla. The giant waterbender wasn't so sure that, if he were in her shoes, that he wouldn't be upset for a long-lost relative to suddenly show up out of the blue after believing him dead for years. Such a startling event had to be confusing for poor Nyla. Shun understood that… so why, as he covered his face with his hands, did he feel like his heart was breaking?
Syaoran couldn't believe that had just happened. One minute they were rejoicing, the next Nyla was storming out after hurling insult and hurt onto Shun. "What the heck?" he grumbled, put off by this. Certainly, her feelings were understandable, but did she really think her brother had just gone away and decided to never look back? From the Shun he knew, the waterbender would never do such a thing.
Before he could say another word though, there was a rush of wind going past him. Syaoran looked up to see ZanYi passing by. "Wait here," she ordered them, following the Jiang siblings out of the building. Syaoran looked from Tiki to Shun.
"This isn't good. She had that look in her eye…" And that look Syaoran was talking about meant that nothing good was going to happen. Because ZanYi was ticked and on a mission.
Tiki wasn't concerned about ZanYi at the moment. Instead, she approached Shun, laying a cautious hand on his shoulder. "Shun? You okay…?" What a stupid question—of course he wasn't okay. The sister that he had just been reunited with after fourteen years had hit him, cursed him, and left. Tiki didn't know how that felt, but she knew just by looking at Shun that it was a horrible feeling.
Shun took a breath, his hands still covering his face. "Leave me alone, Tiki. Please."
That was the last thing Tiki wanted to do, but what could she say that would make the situation better? Nothing. Besides, Shun was making an effort to be polite—she should heed his wishes out of respect for him. "All right… but Syaoran and I are just over here, if you need us…" Tiki let her hand slide away from Shun's shoulder, and she returned to Syaoran's side. "This is terrible," she sighed, her concerned gaze never leaving Shun. "This was supposed to be a really happy moment for Shun. Why did Nyla explode like that?"
Tiki just could not understand it: if she had been fortunate enough to have siblings, she would have been overjoyed to find that one she thought was dead was still alive. So what was Nyla's problem?
"I have no idea," Syaoran answered Tiki honestly, with a shrug of his shoulders. But he was far from nonchalant on the matter. The Avatar's face was scrunched up in a frown, not sure whether to be upset or dismayed. "All I know is that whatever she thinks happened is wrong." His gaze went to Shun as well, seeing the large man broken over. It was hard to see the waterbender like this; the only other time Syaoran had seen him this upset was over ZanYi. And this was his own family pushing him away this time, after all those years…
"I'm sure Shun didn't leave them," the Avatar asserted, confident. "And I'm sure that he did try his hardest to find them. That's how Shun is." Syaoran looked to Tiki, conflicted. "This means that right now, it's Shun's turn to need us. Because as of the moment, we're the ones that know Shun best."
Team Avatar was the group of people with Shun day in and day out. They were the ones who knew his character, his personality, his heart. And no one knew it quite as well as ZanYi, which is why Syaoran could only hope she was having luck with Nyla.
Tiki nodded vigorously. She didn't know the whole story, but she did know Shun, and that he would never abandon his family. In fact, the tiny airbender was feeling a little guilty: Shun must have been searching for them the day they met, and she had selfishly begged him to stay with them, uncaring about whatever agenda he had to fulfill. If Team Avatar had allowed Shun to go on about his business after that day, would he have found his family by now?
Tiki shook her head, ending that train of thought. If they had let Shun leave, Team Avatar would not be what it was today. And whether or not Shun would have found his family sooner or later, the fact of the matter was that he found them today. Despite Nyla's outburst, it made Tiki hopeful for the giant waterbender.
"It'll be okay," Tiki told herself, her worried blue gaze focused on Shun. "ZanYi will fix things. If there's a job that needs doing, the lieutenant can get it done."
ZanYi stormed out of the hotel. Nyla hadn't gotten very far, though Jin was nipping at heels trying to get her to come back. With quick strides, ZanYi made her way over to the woman. Anger over what she did to Shun made the lieutenant want to give her a good hook to the jaw—fire wasn't an option in broad daylight in enemy territory. But self-control and reason stated otherwise.
So ZanYi settled to grab the woman's wrist to stop her in tracks, pulling her back a bit to turn her towards the hotel. "Let's go," she said through grit teeth, eyes narrowed. "You're going to go back in there and talk to Shun. Now."
Nyla wrenched her wrist out of ZanYi's grasp, glaring at her. "Don't you tell me what to do! You don't know me! You're no one to be giving me orders!" Her cold eyes settling on the necklace ZanYi still dared to wear, Nyla grabbed the cord once again and pulled, intending to break it. "And take this off! It doesn't belong to you!"
"Nyla, stop!" Jin asserted, pulling his sister's hands away from the fanged necklace. "You're acting like a child!"
The singer bristled at this insinuation. "Like a—! Jin, he left us! And he didn't bother to show up and let us know he was alive until fourteen years later! Doesn't that make you mad?!"
"No," Jin replied forcefully, frowning at his sister. "Because at least I know he's alive. After they took him, Mom cried for days, remember? We never thought we were going to see him again."
"But he shows up now, out of the blue—!"
"Which you should take as a miracle!"
"Why did he provoke those men in the first place, that day?! Of all the stupid things to do—!"
"He did it to save you!" Jin roared, losing his patience, "Or are you too wrapped up in your own emotions to remember? If so, let me remind you: he was taken to save you, Nyla. No matter what you may think about him, you owe Shun your life. You owe Shun everything… including an apology."
Nyla couldn't believe it: she was being ganged up on by her usually careless brother and a woman she didn't even know. It was enough to make her blood boil. Turning her back on both of them, she resolutely marched on down the street, ignoring the protests of people she bumped into as she passed. Jin let out a huff, running a hand through his shaggy hair. "Sorry about that… Nyla has some rage issues. When she gets like that, it's better to just let her blow off steam," he explained with a shake of his head. With a renewed interest in the lieutenant next to him, Jin offered her a handshake. "I'm Jin, by the way: Jin Jiang, as you guessed, otherwise known as DJ JJ. You're a friend of Shun's, yeah? Mind telling me your name?"
A friend? ZanYi supposed he could say that, though she wasn't about to correct him. It was with great reluctance that she tore her deceptively brown eyes away from where Nyla had just taken off. Looking to Jin, she found some of the familial resemblances, now that she knew he was Shun's brother.
For one thing, the height gave him away. Giant genes must run in the family, though Shun had a bigger built than Jin. And they had the same blue eyes, at least in color. Jin's lacked the warmth and comfort that Shun's had.
Acutely aware of the public space they were in—and the fact that she could almost make out one of her old wanted posters fluttering by—ZanYi took Jin's hand and gave it a firm shake. "We can all do formal introductions later, but just call me Yi for right now," she allowed. "However, I need to drag your sister back. I'm not going back there without her. Talking to Shun is the very least she owes him."
The absolute very least. The lieutenant was not about to let Nyla's pity-party mess Shun up, not after the hell he's gone through to get this far.
The smile disappeared for Jin's face, and he shook his head sadly. "I really don't think that'll help," he regretfully informed the lieutenant. "You saw how she reacted when you tried to tell her what to do—force doesn't work on Nyla. She barely listens to what I have to say. She's kind of a wild ostrich mare: she can't be tamed. But I think I can get her to calm down after a while. If I know my sister, it's the shock that made her react so strongly. We honestly thought that our brother was dead…"
Jin swallowed, apparently becoming choked up. He cleared his throat and forced another smile. "So would you mind waiting for us in the hotel? I don't want Shun to think we hate him and have him disappear again. It's been so long… we have a lot of catching up to do. Would you make sure he stays put for us, please?"
ZanYi could only shake her head with a frown. "If you think he would leave again after he's finally found you all, then you don't know your brother at all," ZanYi told him firmly. "Shun doesn't give up, and it doesn't matter if you push him away. He'll still be there."
She knew that better than anyone else. Coming to the point of realizing that was obnoxious, but that was something she believed again with Shun: he was never going to leave her. Which meant, if he treasured his family the way ZanYi thought he did, then the same effect would carry over. But because she also knew Shun, the lieutenant knew he was probably somehow blaming himself for all of this. Her temper started flare up again at the ignorant sister he seemed to have; thankfully she had the control to keep the heat from her fingertips. Right now, Shun was priority.
"Fine," ZanYi reluctantly agreed. "If you can get her to come talk to Shun, I'll go back to the hotel." But if Nyla didn't come back with Jin, the lieutenant was going after her herself. And while the little sister may not realize what that meant, she would soon learn.
Reluctantly, ZanYi went back into the hotel lobby, still irked by the display Nyla had put on. Upon entering, Syaoran's eyes shot to hers. The lieutenant did not miss the disappointment on his face to find she returned alone. She held up a hand, telling them to stay put and that she had this covered. Then her gaze went to Shun's broken state. With quick strides, the lieutenant crossed the room, sitting down on the edge of the table in front of his chair. "Hey, Shun," ZanYi said, leaning on her elbows. "Look at me."
Shun hesitated at first, his hands tightening over his face, as if he was going to refuse. But it was ZanYi asking, and true to form, the giant waterbender could not refuse her anything. Slowly, he lifted his head from his hands, his eyes rimmed red with tears he did not have the strength to shed. He looked away from ZanYi soon after, however, as if he could not bear to look at her. A hand went to his forehead, supporting it as he stared at the floor in disbelief.
"…My sister hates me."
The words cut deep, Shun's jaw clenching to keep himself together. "I… I don't know what to do. How am I supposed to fix this when I don't even know who she is anymore…?" The sweet little girl his sister used to be was gone, replaced by this bitter woman he had no idea how to handle. Fourteen years had made Shun bigger, but it was apparently Nyla who had changed the most.
Now ZanYi was getting even more irked by Nyla—which was bad since she probably hadn't even known the girl more than ten minutes. But her selfish behavior was inexcusable to the lieutenant. She may have thought her brother dead, but he's back now and wants to be with them. Not many would get a chance with their brother again…
ZanYi reached forward and grabbed his chin, willing him to look at her whether he wanted to or not. "Now listen to me, Shun," the lieutenant ordered in a low voice, making it clear that there was no other option but to listen. "There is nothing here for you to fix. This is not your fault. You were only a child and you risked everything for her, lived in hell in her place. You have done all you could; this bridge is hers to mend." The strict edge to her voice was then softened in her following words, but still serious so as to make Shun listen and believe. "Jin is going to bring her back, you two are going to talk, and everything will be fixed. It's your family, Shun. Despite everything families do to one another, you still forgive them because it's your family and you love them. Nyla can only be mad at you like this because she loves you; if she hated you, she wouldn't have given you the time of day."
Shun wanted to believe ZanYi, he really did. But considering the fact that he now knew nothing about his own sister, he did not want to get his hopes up.
"I didn't mean to make her mad," he mumbled, his tone pleading, as if ZanYi herself was accusing him. "I was trying to keep her safe. I didn't mean to…"
The guilt overwhelmed his tongue, and he dipped his head again, grasping ZanYi's wrist to move her hand from his chin. This was horrible—why was he being punished for what he believed to be the right thing? All he wanted was to protect his sister. Was that so wrong? He hadn't meant to take so long to find them, either. In the nine years after his escape from that place, he searched desperately for them, chasing any hint or lead he could find. He never intended to keep Nyla waiting… he never meant to break her heart that way… How could he apologize for something like this?
Tiki found herself searching for Syaoran's hand, biting her lip as she fought against her own tears. It pained her to see Shun so upset; this was even worse than when ZanYi was distancing herself from him. His own flesh and blood had rejected him in such a hostile manner—if Tiki had been in his shoes, she would not know what to do with herself either.
Syaoran squeezed her hand tight, knowing how hard this was to watch. Shun was usually the most consistent member of their team; he never faltered, never gave up. So to see him falling and cracking was rough, especially as a fellow man, a big brother himself.
As much as his sister Sora could drive him nuts, if she ever pushed him away like that, the Avatar wouldn't know what to do. He'd probably lose it. But here was Shun, taking it all on himself when apparently all he'd done was try to help her.
ZanYi frowned further at Shun, her anger at Nyla building, and a pain inside at having to see Shun like this. No one should make Shun look like this. No one.
"You know, I get where she's coming from," she said reluctantly, and a bit bitterly. "I know you did the right thing, but she probably doesn't care about that right now. All she's wanted was her big brother back."
ZanYi took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. It was aggravating and exasperating to realize she understood where Nyla was standing right now, but perhaps she could use that to give Shun hope.
"I know Zaron was just trying to look after me when he got hit by the blast," the lieutenant continued more quietly, keeping this between her and Shun. "He was always protective and I have no doubt that's all he was thinking when he pushed me out of the way. But now I have to live without him, go through this pain without him, when it would be him I would go to lean on to get through." ZanYi opened her eyes and used her other hand to make Shun look at her again, gaze somber and serious. "If he showed up after all of this, I would be livid for making me go through this alone, even when I know and understand why he did it. I'd probably try to kill him myself. But…" and this was big, so she bore her eyes into Shun's, willing him to believe her words, "…I could only get that out if he was alive. And despite all of that, I know I'd eventually forgive him. Because he's my brother and I just want him back more than anything."
Tilting her head, she peered at Shun, trying to make him see the hope. "Nyla will come around because deep down, all she wants is her brother back. Now you are. So stop worrying about it and let it fix itself."
Let it fix itself? How could Shun, when Nyla was furious with him? How could he just sit there and do nothing?
But ZanYi's logic was beginning to reach him: Nyla was forced to live without Shun for fourteen long years. Shun, if he tried, could understand how upset she would be, having a ghost from her childhood past suddenly show up again. Through ZanYi's explanation, the giant waterbender was able to gain some insight on why Nyla reacted the way she did. He began to believe that Nyla was just angry because she missed him… she was glaring with all her might as she screamed at him, but there were tears there as well… Shun dared to hope that they were tears of joy rather than tears of pain.
Shun pulled ZanYi to him, holding her in a tight embrace. He knew she did not like public displays of affection, but he could not help himself—he needed some form of comfort, and she was the most effective comfort to him. "I'm sorry," he ended up apologizing to her anyway, his eyes squeezing shut as he held her. "I just… need a moment."
ZanYi was not necessarily pleased with this course of action, but was not going to act on that. Shun seemed to need this right now, and for all of the times he was there for her and supported her, he'd only asked for her support in return. The lieutenant was going to give it to him, no matter what.
"Don't worry about it," she told him. "Just take the time you need."
Granted, she didn't want to look at Tiki or Syaoran right now, but their secret was going to come out eventually anyway. No time like the present to make the nature of their relationship painfully clear.
This sight made Tiki want to turn away. To have Shun, so strong and reliable, needing to lean on ZanYi, who was as equally strong and reliable, had the tiny airbender feeling as if she was intruding upon something personal. She suddenly felt awkward holding Syaoran's hand, and she let go, her gaze going to the floor. She did not want to know what the Avatar was thinking, seeing another man hold the woman he was trying to get over. Tiki did not want to feel jealous over ZanYi; it was too petty.
Syaoran, however, also looked away. This was a little hard to watch. Never had he seen ZanYi like this, and despite the fact that he'd told Shun to go for it, it was still a little uncomfortable. And when Tiki's hand left his, it became even more evident. So Syaoran still averted his eyes to the personal scene unfolding in front of them, but he moved his hand quick to snatch Tiki's back.
Tiki glanced up in surprise when Syaoran grabbed her hand again, but he was not looking at her, so she focused her gaze elsewhere again. She could not determine his purpose for wanting to hold her hand—didn't this kind of stuff usually annoy him? Why was he so adamant about it now?
Tiki did not know, nor did she dare to ask. If Syaoran needed to hold her hand, she would let him. He had given her comfort and support so many times before, so she was by no means afraid to return the favor.
Mid-morning had arrived, and with it, more people coming and going, checking in and checking out. Team Avatar was still waiting in the hotel lobby, much to the displeasure of one of the hotel clerks. The sun was shining brightly through one of the nearby windows, so even though the lobby was air-conditioned, Shun had shrugged out of his jacket, too hot to wear it anymore. He was pouring over his list once again, tapping his pen on the table. They were way behind schedule: the unexpected appearance of his apparently musical siblings had thrown a monkey wrench into his perfectly laid-out plan. He glanced up every time the door opened, only to be disappointed again and again when it was not Jin and Nyla that strode through the door. The giant waterbender's patience was beginning to thin, and his hope was beginning to wane… How much longer could he wait here before he insisted that they forget the whole thing, go on their shopping trip, and take off for the South Pole?
...A lot longer, actually. Realistically, no matter how impatient he might become, Shun just could not leave. He had spent such a long time trying to find his family… he wasn't going to give it all up now.
And everyone else understood that, though waiting wasn't exactly fantastic. In fact, it was incredibly boring. Syaoran had tried just about every single possible way to fall asleep in the lobby. Despite the incredibly nice beds they had, the lobby could have afforded to get some softer chairs.
"Syaoran, if you groan about the chair one more time, I will not hesitate to introduce you to the floor," ZanYi warned him from across, sitting in one of the other chairs around the low table. Syaoran gave her a sour look. Easy for her to say: she had laid out a set of cards and been playing solitaire the whole morning.
Or at least, since Shun had released her from that tight hold. Thankfully, it seemed most heavy emotions had died down by this point.
As the day was growing, it was getting warmer in the lobby, sun pouring down on them. Without even thinking twice, ZanYi slipped out of the leather jacket she wore and pulled her hair back like she normally had it, then continued to play cards after cooling herself down.
And that's when Syaoran's jaw dropped a little bit. "Uh, ZanYi?" he asked, almost wary and afraid of the answer. "What did you do to your neck?"
Tiki looked up from where she sat, braiding and re-braiding her hair into one big braid in her boredom. ZanYi seemed mildly perplexed at the question, and Tiki was too, since the firebender's neck seemed fine… and then her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of a few dark spots that had been hidden by hair previously. No way… did Shun really…?
As her gaze went to the giant waterbender, Tiki found that he had dropped his pen at the question, his eyes staring determinedly at his journal, but his face becoming redder by the second. Tiki had to cover her mouth to keep from openly laughing. Yes, yes he did.
"Wow, ZanYi," Tiki spoke up, keeping her eyes on Shun the whole time, "those are some marks. What happened? Did you have a vacuum accident? If so, that's some really good suction…"
"Tiki," Shun groaned, a hand over his eyes. "Please stop." Tiki grinned openly this time.
"Well, since no other explanation is being provided—"
"I did it," Shun admitted, dropping his hand to frown at Tiki, his eyes half-defiant and half-ashamed. Clearly while he was groggy this morning, he'd missed clearing up a couple of the bruises on ZanYi's neck. Now she was walking around with hickeys. Crap. "Happy?"
"Ohh, that makes much more sense."
Syaoran could only gape. Shun did that? To ZanYi? Somehow the reason for Shun's restlessness last night was making more and more sense. And he only felt a bit awkward about it. The Avatar took that as a good thing, because if Shun was sucking on the lieutenant's neck that hard—and she was letting him!—then that meant something.
"So…" he started, looking from ZanYi to Shun, back and forth, "what's the deal with you two then? Dating, friends with benefits, bed buddies—?"
"Together," the lieutenant answered simply, continuing her game of solitaire. "We're together."
Personally, ZanYi thought they were having too much fun with this, especially Tiki. But looking over at Shun and seeing his expression, it was difficult not to smirk, even if she was the one sporting the results of his mistake. "Don't do the crime if you can't pay the time, Big Guy."
Tiki giggled, the look on Shun's face priceless. It was kind of hard not to laugh at him, when he looked like a kid who was just caught stealing from the cookie jar.
"Well, it's about time," she said, nodding in approval. "And you're welcome for throwing you out of your own room last night, by the way."
Shun vaguely remembered wanting to thank Tiki for such an action. Now, however, he was finding such a simple action difficult… especially when she was smirking at him in such a fashion. It was very embarrassing, and he immediately regretted wanting to tell Tiki and Syaoran, since he was the only one who was flustered about it—ZanYi was cool and collected, as always. Did nothing fluster her?
The opening of the hotel door had Shun glancing up once again, the action not in vain this time around: Jin was yanking on an arm as he stepped into the lobby, pulling his sister through the doors. They were glaring at each other and exchanging words Shun could not hear, but Jin seemed to be winning the argument—Nyla's expression became more and more resigned by the minute. She seemed to heave a sigh before nodding, and Jin turned to scan the hotel lobby for them.
"They're back," Shun mumbled, standing up so Jin would immediately catch sight of him. Shun's heart began to pound a little harder, still having trouble believing that this whole thing was real. And Jin had made good on his promise. Would Nyla really forgive Shun, though? After the anger she displayed earlier, he began to worry again. ZanYi said that Nyla did love him, deep down… could he put his faith in those words and trust them to be true? It looked as if he was about to find out for sure.
ZanYi watched as Jin dragged Nyla across the room over to them, temporarily satisfied. It was good that Jin had followed through on his part; Nyla would have liked it even less if the lieutenant had come after her. Lingering on that thought, ZanYi tugged her ponytail to let her hair back down, covering the marks on her neck. If Shun's sister had blown up over ZanYi wearing the necklace, somehow the lieutenant didn't think it was a good time for his siblings to know about her and Shun's intimacy. She shot a look at both Tiki and Syaoran and held a finger to her lips, warning them to keep quiet on it too.
Syaoran, for his part, understood perfectly and was quite content keeping his mouth shut. After all, Nyla had just gotten dragged back here. For Shun's sake, the Avatar didn't want to do anything that would antagonize the situation again.
The lieutenant stood up and leaned against the arm of her chair, close enough to Shun that he would know she was there, but far enough not to make Nyla go off on her. As much as the little sister was aggravating ZanYi, she was Shun's little sister and therefore ZanYi was going to at least play nice for now.
"It's okay, Shun," she muttered to him with a nod of assurance. "Just breathe."
Shun did as ZanYi suggested, breathing deep. It was okay, it was okay, it was okay...
"Shun," Jin greeted again, smiling to reassure his brother, "Nyla has something she wants to say to you." With a nudge, Jin forced his sister in front of Shun. "Go on, Ny. Tell him what you have to say."
Nyla would not look at Shun, her expression threatening mutiny, her arms crossed over her chest. Despite what Jin said, it seemed as if the singer had no interest in saying anything to Shun. But when Jin cleared his throat meaningfully, she let out a huff. "…I'm sorry for hitting you," she said finally, glancing up at Shun and then away.
"And?" Jin prompted, folding his arms as well.
"…And for the things I said," Nyla grumbled.
"Because?"
"Because…" Nyla huffed forcefully and met Shun's eyes, "Look, when they took you, I was four. I didn't know what was going on: all I knew was that you made them mad and they took you. And you never came back."
"Nyla-!"
The singer sent Jin a piercing look. "Let me finish," she told him forcefully. Jin gave her a warning look, but he nonetheless nodded. Nyla turned her gaze back to her long-lost brother, appearing to be chewing on her next words. "I didn't understand why you had to leave. I felt like you abandoned me. Everyone tried to explain it to me when I got older, and I thought I was getting it, but when I saw you this morning, all that anger just came rushing back…"
She took a deep breath, steadying herself. "The point is," she continued, looking Shun in the eye, "I'm sorry for yelling at you like that. It wasn't fair, and I know you did it to save me. I'm grateful for that. Thank you, Shun."
A tremulous smile began to spread across Shun's face. He was glad she began to speak plainly to him—her apology in the beginning sounded scripted. And though Shun felt he no longer knew his sister as well as he once did, this seemed more like her. He held out a hand for her to shake, feeling as if a hug would be too much to hope for. Her face coloring slightly, Nyla accepted the handshake. She let go soon after, however, fixing Shun with a stern look.
"Don't get me wrong: I've forgiven you for the past. But I'm still mad at you for that." Nyla jabbed a finger at ZanYi once again, Shun's necklace still on full display. Turning her back before Shun could say anything else, Nyla brushed past Jin, heading straight for the bar. "I need a drink."
"Nyla, you're only eighteen," Jin reminded her with a frown. She sent him a deadpan look over her shoulder.
"As if that's stopped me before. Besides, I'll just tell the bartender to add it to your tab—he won't care either way."
As Nyla took a seat at the bar, Shun turned his bewildered gaze onto his older brother. "What happened to her?"
Jin turned to meet Shun's gaze, his own saddening. "Life," he replied simply. When Shun continued to look confused, Jin sighed, turning to stare at their sister's back. "Did you happen to see the engagement choker around her neck?"
Shun gaped, his gaze flashing back to her in an attempt to glance at this elusive detail. "Nyla's engaged?"
"She was." A dark look crossed Jin's features, and he lowered his voice. "Her fiancé was part of the Resistance, and he died a week after proposing to her. Nyla hasn't been the same ever since."
Syaoran looked over at Nyla again, seeing her a bit differently. Through the past couple months—or years, to be honest—the Avatar had seen a lot of what could happen to a person when this war touched them. This was another example. And it hurt to see that it was affecting Shun's family in such a way.
"ZanYi," he caught her attention, "any way you would know him?"
The lieutenant nodded. "It's possible," she considered; being in the Resistance since thirteen, she'd come across a wide variety of people before her most recent post in the past few years with the AKs. ZanYi looked to Jin then. "Do you have a name or name of his commanding officer?"
Jin opened his mouth to respond, but after a perplexed look, he shook his head. "I've forgotten the name of his commanding officer—this happened two years ago. And Nyla flinches every time his name comes up in conversation, so I've kind of been conditioned not to say it around her… sorry."
"Poor Nyla," Tiki sighed, her concerned gaze going to the angry woman drinking at the bar. "I can't imagine what she's going through…" And Tiki never wanted to know that pain. She had lost her parents to the war, but Nyla's pain was a bit different, something Tiki knew nothing about. If anything happened to Syaoran, Tiki had no idea what she would do, and they were nowhere near engaged.
When she finally tore her gaze away from Nyla, Tiki was surprised to find that Jin was staring at her, a searching look on his face. "…What?" she asked, his gaze unnerving. Did she have something on her face?
"…Where do I know you from?" Jin asked after a moment, leaning over to inspect Tiki's face closer; she consequently leaned away in surprise. "You look so familiar… did we spend a night together?"
This caused Tiki's face to explode with red. "No!" she protested, the insinuation embarrassing her. As if she was that kind of girl!
Jin frowned. "Really? You look so familiar..."
"We were at your club last night," Shun supplied helpfully, clamping a hand on his brother's shoulder to pull him back from Tiki—the giant waterbender was learning that Jin was a bit of a shameless flirt. Shun also wanted to avoid the revelation of Tiki's face being posted on wanted posters all over the city. "Though you probably didn't see us—"
"Oh yeah!" Jin replied immediately, turning a grin onto Tiki. "You were that little dancer near the platform at one point! I was watching you most of the night. You should give me a lesson sometime."
Tiki merely stared at Jin, unsure of what to make of his suggestion. She raised her eyebrows at Shun, as if to ask if he was really related to this man. Shun, for his part, was embarrassed for his brother. "Uh, Jin… where is Kohaku? Where are our parents?" Shun wanted to know, but he was also attempting to distract his flirty brother from the women in Team Avatar. It worked. Jin turned a sheepish look onto his younger brother.
"Ah, right. We have a lot of catching up to do, don't we?" Jin threw a glance around, as if he was suddenly suspicious of the people in the hotel lobby. "Not here, though… come back to our place. It's not far from here, and we can talk there."
Shun turned to the team. "Is that all right with you three?" he asked, his expression becoming apologetic. This was not how their day was supposed to go at all, and he was regretful about that fact. He hoped they could remain patient as he tried to figure out his family situation. Syaoran gave Jin a wary look, and he got up and moved closer to Tiki, standing behind her. Seriously, how could this guy be related to Shun? Their resident healer was a total mess around women—especially ZanYi. And yet his brother seemed completely adept at flirting with any female with a pulse.
But, despite the minor awkwardness created there, Syaoran nodded. "It's fine by me, Shun," the Avatar consented with great ease. The man had just been reunited with his family; Syaoran understood that notion perfectly, and he had only been separated from his for a few months since his Avatar training started. He couldn't even imagine how long it had been for the Jiangs.
ZanYi gave a look over at the drinking Nyla, knowing that she was not going to be welcomed by the sister. After all, she seemed highly offended that Shun had given ZanYi the necklace. Somehow, from the way Jin was describing the situation of her fiancé, the lieutenant guessed she might not take kindly to finding out ZanYi was a member of the Resistance either.
But none of this was about Nyla, contrary to what she may think. This was about Shun finally finding his family. ZanYi was not going to allow anyone mess with that, including his own sister. Turning back to Shun, she nodded to the waterbender. "We can go, we'll just have to adjust the plans later," ZanYi told Shun, nodding to him.
Shun nodded in response, and then turned to his brother. "Lead the way."
A/N from DJ: Heeeeeeey~ So, sorry no update. See, what had happened was DJ, the editor and holder of the chappies, just got back from a trip to Greece. Yeah, you read that right: Greece. And while I was gallivanting abroad, I was gone for a few weekends and I was not about to edit while on my trip. Noooope. So, I hope this surprise makes up for the absence; we should be back to normal now! Acknowledgment time!
ANewButOldGuest: It really was too good an opportunity not to put Hua in again. We couldn't help ourselves! Hope that you enjoyed that saucy chappie! A bit of a gift to our ShunYi fans xD As for mischief... well, only time will tell from here!
MassEffect321: I hope the reactions in this chappie were all that you had wished for! xD TiRan is a bit blind, but that's okay. Instead of Sweet and Sour, we like to think of our canon pairings as Sweet and Spicy. TiRan is that sweet, adorable couple that just grows on you, like diabetes. ShunYi... well, after last chappie, I don't believe that needs more explanation xD
No. XIII: One - we're not big on spoilers. In respect to the readers, we are very careful with what we do and don't reveal about the future of the series, because the development throughout the story is, while long, worth waiting for. It has ups and downs; drama and comedy; heartache and joy. I'm glad you're enjoying the series so far, because it makes us happy to know we actually have readers who care! But we won't be answering those questions, because we want to leave as much as we can up to surprise, for those who read patiently up to that point :]
Ozai37: First off, it was awesome to see you on dA! I personally love interacting with readers over there as well, since that's where all the art for the series is posted! Second, we're so glad that you love our couples! Each one has its own flavor; a little something for everybody! And we like to show that, unlike fairy tales, the story doesn't end when a couple gets together. Many times, the story is only just beginning. As for your question... I shall refrain! xD Sorry! But thanks for the author alert as well!
WritingBrick: We're so happy you're still back with us! It's so nice to keep hearing from familiar names, and I'm glad you feel like it always flows. I always hate when you read or watch something and it totally doesn't even sound like a legitimate conversation xD As for the length of the series... well, I won't lie: it's looooong xD It's all written already! But it is five books worth. At least we're in Book Three now! But trust me when I say this: some of the biggest stuff to happen is in those last two books. I think it's worth the read :3 Glad to know the content is still good for you!
Guest: Thanks so much for your reviews in Air! I'm so glad you enjoyed them, and I hope you've continued to read through and enjoy Water, and that we'll get to hear more from you!
Guest 2.0: Yes, Book Two has a very bittersweet ending. We're kind of fond of that xP And congratulations for being the 100th review for Air! Seriously, that's just... awesome. We never thought that it would happen for us to hit a triple digit. Thank-you!
EnterprisingSmoo: Yes, sweet friend - that was indeed quite hot. What happens when you put a waterbender and firebender together? It gets... steamy~ xD Hope you continue to read and enjoy! I know you will ;D
Also! A special reply to Neoaquamadoor90, a reader from dA: Again, I'm so glad you've enjoyed the series so far! It means so much to us to know you think so highly of the series, especially in terms of its development and quality. Even if by chance that you found the series, we're happy that you stuck through it!
WOO! And that's everything! xP So many to go through. Anyways, now the story will be back on track and I hope you guys continue to read and enjoy! We'll be waiting to hear how you handle the new developments! Ciao for now, y'all! Till next week!