Piper felt as if her heart had dropped into her stomach. The Fire Lord?! It was one thing being told something you've never heard of before, but having to go to the Capital because of it? That couldn't be possible.
Crossing her arms over her chest almost defensively, Piper looked at the Sages with narrowing eyes. Having them tell her she's something she's never heard of confused her, which in turn got her a bit peeved. Everyone knew about the Avatar—it'd be weird meeting someone who hasn't—but that...Guardian crap they were spewing out? Piper couldn't understand it.
"What makes you think I'm going to the Capital?" she snapped defensively.
"Because you're the Guardian," the Sage closest to her exclaimed, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
Giving a slight scoff, Piper pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't believe it," she exclaimed. "You can't honestly believe that's true. You haven't given me any kind of proof."
"The Guardian can't be so easily picked out as the Avatar can," one of the other Sages explained. "With the Avatar, it's whatever items they pick out, showing everyone they're still connected to their past lives. The Guardian could be anyone. There are no items for them to choose from, and since the Guardian's reincarnation cycle is so random, it's difficult to tell where they'll end up next."
"There have been instances where the Avatar's Guardian was reincarnated twice in the Water Tribes," the Sage closer to Piper said, "then was reborn into the Air Temples, then back to the Water Tribes, then the Earth Kingdom..."
"There is one thing that was very obvious," another Sage added, "was that the Guardian was not only a bender, but one who was dedicated to strengthening their element."
"Strengthening?" Piper squeaked.
"They'd practice relentlessly." Another Sage approached her. "Yes, benders tend to practice frequently in hopes of becoming a Master, or maybe in hopes that they don't get out of practice, but the Avatar's Guardian practices twice the amount of time as any other bender out there. They need to be the best there is if they're going to travel with the Avatar. They have to face whatever troubles are happening without being taken down before the battle even began."
"So you just find whoever's practicing the hardest and take them?" Piper snapped. "What if they weren't the Guardian? What if you took some random person and they risked their life, maybe even died, because they believed they were something they weren't?"
"Typically, the Guardian would meet their Avatar before starting their journey," another Sage said. "The spiritual connection between the two isn't established until they meet face-to-face."
"That's another way to determine if someone's the Guardian."
Piper buried her face in her hands. "This isn't possible," she mumbled. "The Avatar could be anywhere. There's no telling if I'm supposed to this Guardian—yeah, I want to do better in my Firebending, but that doesn't mean I'm going to risk my life for someone I don't even know."
"The Avatar now is supposed to be the last Airbender," one of the Sages closer to her said. "Anyone born to the Air Nomads were destined to be Airbenders, and if I am correct, Airbenders were the most spiritually advanced people."
"Uhm, s-sorry to interrupt." Rei took a hesitant step forward, looking between the Fire Sages anxiously. "W-Would it be possible if I spoke to my daughter privately?"
The Sages looked at each other, having a silent conversation before leaving, stating they'd be waiting outside.
Rei waited until they were gone before quietly shutting the door behind them. Looking at Piper, Rei swallowed thickly. "Piper, I know this doesn't make any sense," she whispered.
"No it doesn't," Piper hissed. "They can't be serious! I'm not someone's Guardian! They've been spewing out nonsense since they came here."
Rei's face hardened slightly. "Why don't you think over what they've been telling you?" she suggested.
"What, that I'm some reborn protector of the Avatar?" Piper spat. "The Avatar hasn't been seen in a hundred years. No one's ever mentioned this Guardian stuff until the Avatar returned. I am not buying it."
"Piper...," Rei started.
"No." Piper shook her head. "I cannot believe this. And they want to take me to see the Fire Lord? For something they can't give actual proof of?" Piper ran a hand through her hair. "They're actually thinking I'll buy all this nonsense," she mumbled. "They only pick out someone who's practicing their bending harder than anyone else? There are other people out there who do that! It could honestly be anyone!"
"I know, Piper." Rei buried her face in her hands. "I know this doesn't make sense, I don't know what to think either."
"Maybe ask the Fire Sages to think it over?" Rei and Piper turned and saw Imani standing there, looking anxious and frightened. "They can't just drag you to the Capital, can they?"
Piper and Rei shared a look.
"I don't think so," Piper said. "Not without hard proof. I'd imagine the Fire Lord wouldn't be too pleased if they brought back the wrong person."
But, the way Piper saw it, she still couldn't understand why the Fire Lord would need to see her.
(A/N):
Heya, everyone! Sorry for this chapter's delay. I just got back from vacation not too long ago, so if this chapter is, by any chance, confusing and/or makes no sense, I'll try and do a quick little explanation on it. Sorry about that.
I own nothing in the ATLA universe. All I own are my characters and the tan I got from my vacation.
Explanation time: the Guardian's reincarnation cycle is randomized, unlike the Avatar's; the Guardian is known to be harder to find than the Avatar; the Avatar and their Guardian have a spiritual connection, which forms when they officially meet; the Guardian needs to be very experienced in their bending in order to help the Avatar on their journey, so the Guardian trains twice as hard to become stronger. I don't know if that makes any sense. Maybe it cleared the chapter up a little? I don't know.
Let me know if there's anything I can improve on.
Many blessings,
Indigo Callahan