Avatar: The Warring Earth

Book Two—Air

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.

Tiki's lip was bleeding. She had bit into it so hard that she had broken the skin. Great, another pain of the flesh she had to deal with. It was hard enough for her to keep perfectly still—if she moved at all, she would just jam the needle farther into her skin, as she learned the hard way. Her aunt had not been kidding when she said that it would hurt.

"Do you need me to stop, Tiki?" YinLi asked, frowning in concern as her niece's small frame began to tremble. Tiki took a deep, slow breath, steadying herself and then she jerkily shook her head in the negative, not trusting her own voice. So YinLi continued, pressing the needle full of blue ink into her niece's forearm. "I'm almost done with this arm, Tiki. If you're still feeling up to it, I can do your other arm as well, and then we'll stop for the day."

Tiki nodded, choosing to non-verbalize her answers. She just wanted this over with as soon as possible. It was bad enough that they had to stretch it out for three days—one day for her arms, one day for her legs, and the last day for her neck and forehead. Tiki was still trying to make up her mind on whether she wanted to shave her head or not to make room for the arrow stripe that was supposed to start from the center of her back, go all the way up her neck and down her head to end at her forehead. It was tradition for the arrows to be connected, after all, but Tiki quailed at the thought of having to shave her head.

Seven thousand two hundred seconds later (Tiki counted in an effort to distract herself from the pain), YinLi laid down the tattoo needle and surveyed her work. "Looks good," she approved; thoughtlessly, she traced her finger against the blue markings in the center of Tiki's back.

"Aaah!" Tiki cried, lurching away from her aunt's touch. The sudden movement only hurt worse, however, and she hunched over, biting her bloody lip again and fighting tears.

"Oh, I'm sorry, hun!" YinLi hastily apologized, reaching out to touch Tiki's shoulder. She remembered just in time that physical contact at this moment was a bad idea, so she withdrew her hand. "Do you need me to get you some painkillers? You really should have taken some before we started, I don't know why I didn't think of that earlier—"

"Shun," Tiki cut her aunt off, speaking the giant waterbender's name through clenched teeth. "I need Shun."

"All right, I'll go get him," YinLi promised, rising to her feet. As she climbed the stairs leading to the living room, she fervently hoped that Tiki's friend Shun was already awake. Passing through the dining room and saying good morning to a drowsy-looking Ping, YinLi made her way up the stairs, making sure to be as quiet as possible. She tapped on Shun's door and then pressed her ear to it, listening for any sounds of rousing.

What she did not expect was for the door to swing open and for the larger-than-life waterbender to be standing there, peering curiously down at her.

"Good morning, Li," he greeted, towel-drying his long hair, "may I help you with something?"

"Did you just finish bathing?" YinLi asked, quite aware of the fact that Shun was bare-chested. Shun seemed to realize the problem too, for he went back over to the bed to retrieve a dry shirt from his satchel.

"Not quite—I just returned from swimming," he explained after he had pulled a shirt over his head. "It's kind of a morning routine for me."

"Oh. I see…" YinLi answered, able to focus on Shun's face now that his impressive abdominal muscles were hidden from view. She gave herself a little shake to remind herself she was a married woman. Finally remembering her purpose for seeking Shun out, YinLi said, "If you have free time right now, my niece would like to see you as soon as possible."

Shun frowned, something about that sentence sitting strange with him. "Is she all right?" he wanted to check, ducking under the door frame to stand with YinLi in the hall, who gave him a helpless look.

"In a manner of speaking. This way," YinLi beckoned, turning to head back down the stairs. Shun followed her, pausing only when she stopped in the dining room. "Ping, be a dear and wake the Avatar, please. He should begin his meditation training as soon as possible." Shun noticed that Ping did not particularly look happy about this, but he nonetheless stood from the table obediently.

"Yes, Mother," he replied. YinLi gave him a smile before continuing on to the living room, where the door to the basement still stood open. Ping watched as his mother led the giant waterbender down the stairs, and he sighed. Why was it that he was always stuck with the grunt work? He loved his family, yes, but sometimes he felt as if he was often taken advantage of.

But, he reminded himself, Tiki had specifically asked him to take charge of the Avatar's meditation training until she was well enough to take over. She had asked him, and so Ping would do it to the best of his ability. And maybe, if he did a good enough job, Tiki would praise him and finally realize that she would be lost if not for his help, and that she wanted him to be at her side, always…

Ping shook his head to rid himself of such thoughts. He could not feel this way about her; they were cousins! Sure, they had been promised to each other when they were younger, but Tiki, fifteen at the time, had officially put her foot down on that matter, and the engagement had been broken.

"I can't marry Ping!" He remembered Tiki crying out, actually stomping her foot in frustration as she argued with his mother, whom had 'casually' brought up the subject of their betrothal. "He's only twelve, and I'm fifteen! Not to mention the fact that we're blood-related! That's gross! You can't force me to marry someone I don't even love!"

That particular argument had gone down in history as one of the fiercest tantrums Tiki had thrown yet. And Ping remembered that his feelings had been deeply hurt for a number of reasons: one, even today, she still treated him like a child. Tiki was known to act like more of a kid than him, and she was only three years older than him. The age difference wasn't that great. Two, Tiki was a hypocrite: her parents were cousins, too. Things got desperate when they had a whole society to repopulate. And three, Tiki had said she didn't love him. This stung worse than any of the others things she had said, though Ping did not have the guts to say so out loud. It was an emotion he kept locked away deep inside his heart, right next to the forbidden love he felt for his older cousin.

Down in the basement, Shun tended to Tiki, running gentle waters over her arms and back. YinLi had left to go pick up the twins, whom were being watched by a neighbor. She said she would start breakfast as soon as she returned, and Shun could smell something delicious wafting from the kitchen through the vents.

"So this is what you were up to," the giant waterbender noted quietly, speaking for the first time since he had arrived in the basement. He had almost panicked when he found Tiki's unconscious form on the floor, but when he saw the blue markings, he figured that Tiki probably passed out from the pain. It was interesting: he had always wondered how the airbenders received their arrows. Turns out it was not as pleasant as other aspects of being an airbender were.

Tiki turned to look over her shoulder at Shun, a towel clutched to her front to hide her bare chest. Her gray eyes were apologetic. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to say anything until they were done… but I kind of needed your healing expertise."

"I bet you wish we had a female healer right now, huh?" Shun teased, though he was being a perfect gentlemen, keeping his eyes only on his work. A flicker of a smile flashed across Tiki's face.

"Even if we did, I would still want you to heal me, Shun. You're the best," she pointed out. Shun smiled as he bended the water he used back into the pot YinLi had provided; he really needed to stop leaving his canteen back in the rooms he stayed in.

"Your aunt is going to help you with your bandages, right?"

"Yeah. Could you go get her for me?"

"Sure."

Shun started up the steps, but then paused. "What should I tell Syaoran if he asks?" the giant waterbender wanted to know, turning back to Tiki. She looked over her shoulder to look Shun in the eye.

"Tell him I'm undergoing a transformation."

Shun snorted. "You make it sound like you're a caterpillar metamorphosing into a butterfly… Are you sure you want to keep it a secret from him? You're kind of putting me in an awkward position, you know."

Tiki deadpanned a look at Shun. The look was so reminiscent to ZanYi that it made the giant waterbender's heart ache. "You owe me, Shun," Tiki reminded him, as if she knew his thoughts were with ZanYi right now. Shun grimaced at her.

"I suppose I do… all right. It'll be our secret until you're ready to tell Syaoran."

"Thank you, Shun."

Shun nodded and resumed his trek up the stairs. He wasn't exactly sure if Syaoran would ask what Tiki was doing, but he wanted to know what he could and could not tell the Avatar, just in case.

Ping let out a quiet sigh as he marched himself up the stairs and he knocked on the only door that was still closed upstairs, assuming it to be where the Avatar was staying. "Avatar Syaoran? It's time for you to get up. Your meditation lessons start today," Ping called through the door. If it was his responsibility to make sure the Avatar mastered the basics of meditation, he would also make sure that things were done his way. For the moment, Ping was in charge.

When Ping came to the door, Syaoran almost grumbled aloud. Not because he was asleep—no, training with ZanYi had, for the time being, kicked any habit of sleeping past early morning. No, it was because he was not looking forward to these alleged meditations. It was not something that sounded particularly thrilling. He'd seen Tiki's meditations numerous times. Suddenly, ZanYi's active, learn-on-the-go approach seemed much friendlier.

And it was enough to remind him that those days were gone, that the lieutenant was gone. ZanYi had left, and there was nothing Syaoran could do about that, Avatar or not.

"I'm coming," Syaoran said through the door, reluctantly tumbling out of bed. He ruffled his mussed hair, trying to push away everything that reminded him of his former teacher as he dressed. From now on, he was Tiki's student… or, he supposed, for right now he was Ping's student. That also didn't sound appealing, considering the looks the airbending boy had been shooting him all the previous evening.

The Avatar opened the door and found him standing there; he also noted that he was only a bit taller than Ping. "I'm ready to go," Syaoran said, entering the hall and closing the bedroom door behind him.

Ping appraised the Avatar once again, his eyes critical.

He had imagined Syaoran taller… much taller. He had some muscle to him, though, which meant he could probably take Ping in a fight… not that they would be fighting. It was just a thought.

"This way," Ping finally spoke, turning and leading the Avatar down the stairs and out the door of his home. A few airbending children were out at play today in the bright morning sun, and they waved to Ping as he passed while openly gawking at Syaoran. Some children even began to follow after them until Ping shooed them away. "Not now, guys: this is important training for the Avatar only. You'll have your lessons later," Ping announced, earning many 'awwws' and pouts from the dispersing children. Glad that being the second-oldest gave him a lot of authority, Ping continued on his way through the fair weather, leading Syaoran to a gazebo near the airbending dojo. He sat down in the center of this structure, gesturing for Syaoran to do the same in front of him.

"Now… meditation," Ping began, closing his eyes as he summoned the speech of meditation he recited to his younger students from memory. "Meditation is not a feat to be underestimated; very few people can accomplish it, and even a few airbenders struggle with it from time to time. The trick is to empty your mind of any and all thought, giving way for peace and tranquility to set in. Only when you do that will you be able to focus your mind enough to strengthen your bond with the spirits, or even sense chi flow…" Ping opened one eye to peek at the Avatar. "You got all that?" he wanted to make sure before he continued.

Syaoran sat across from Ping in the gazebo, mimicking his posture and the way he sat. He was listening to the airbender, sure. But the earthbender didn't like what he heard. First was emptying his head. Why on earth should he empty his head? Is that what had made Tiki such an airhead? Constant meditation? Syaoran liked to focus, and all firebending had been was self-control and using every passion inside of him to make his flame.

Now he was being told to let it all go so he could sense peace, tranquility, and chi.

Syaoran decided he disliked airbending already.

"Yeah, I got all of that," Syaoran eventually answered Ping, hoping he didn't sound as disgruntled as he felt. Surely that was not going to help him at all, and he had to master the elements, whether he liked it or not. He couldn't stand by and continue to do nothing. He couldn't let Tiki's hopes down again.

The Avatar sighed deeply and then put on his most focused stare at Ping. "Please continue."

Ping nodded, pleased. The Avatar was making an effort to pay attention, at least.

"The second most important part of meditation is your breathing," he continued, closing his eye once more. He demonstrated a deep, slow breath before he continued with his explanation. "You cannot simply inhale and exhale—you must breathe from the very core of your being. Like so." Ping took another deep breath, held it, and then let it out slowly.

"This calms the heart and clears the mind. If you ever find yourself struggling to clear your mind, that means you aren't breathing right." Ping opened his eyes and folded his hands in his lap. "That's pretty much all there is to it. Why don't you try it now? I'll observe you, and correct you when you do something wrong." Ping had meant to say 'if', but the word 'when' slipped out instead. He contemplated taking it back before he realized that technically he was not wrong: it was very difficult to get meditation right on the first try. Unless you were Tiki, that is.

Syaoran noticed the distinction, but he found it a reasonable assumption as well. ZanYi had never wasted a moment to tell him when he was doing something wrong—which had been often enough. But if there was one thing he'd learned from the lieutenant, it was to control his breathing.

"Just got to breathe," he muttered to himself. Giving himself at least the hope that he might get this somewhat right, Syaoran straightened his back a little and closed his eyes. Then he started to breath. The air would go in slowly, and then released even slower.

…And it would only make him think even more about the one who had taught him that. ZanYi's piercing gaze every time he messed up. Her curled lip that she wore when he was onto something. Even the way her stray hairs would constantly fall into her face, and how agitated she would get when they did.

And it made his heart pain a bit.

"Stop," Ping said almost immediately after Syaoran had made his first attempt. "Your shoulders are tense, which means you are not relaxed. You have to clear your mind, Avatar. Without a clear mind, you'll get nowhere. So whatever it is you're thinking about, stop it." Ping considered Syaoran. The Avatar's brow was furrowed, suggesting that he was thinking on something unpleasant. Those thoughts certainly were not doing him any favors. "Try again," the airbender commanded.

Syaoran almost gave him a narrowed look, but for the sake of retaining good relations with the airbenders, he decided against it. Somehow he didn't think Tiki would like Syaoran attempting to intimidate her cousin. It couldn't be worse than dealing with Zaron, but the Avatar was not about to find out. So he frowned for a brief moment, then did his best to let it go. Let her go. Syaoran, with every breath, tried to push ZanYi away from his thoughts. And he felt like it was working a little, her face getting farther and farther from his thoughts. But instead, it reminded him of her retreat that night, the way her back had gone farther and farther away…

It made Syaoran only grip onto those thoughts harder, as if they would leave him too. He wasn't even conscious of how his hands were tightening, how there were sparks of fire beginning to rise from them.

"Avatar," Ping spoke up sharply after a moment, "you are not trying hard enough. If anything, you're as tense as ever. What's the problem?"

Ping was starting to feel a bit resentful over this task. Surely it was not that difficult for the Avatar to clear his mind? He appeared more brawny than brainy anyway… Reminding himself that those thoughts were unkind, Ping cleared his throat, beckoning his patience back. Tiki would be unhappy if he abandoned the Avatar after only a couple minutes of attempting to teach him… but if Syaoran did not make a serious effort, Ping was going to be seriously irked.

Syaoran opened his eyes in a flash this time, and the flames in his hands growing as he did so. He realized at that point that he was firebending again and quickly extinguished the flames. As long as it had taken him to stop thinking like an earthbender and be like a firebender, Syaoran knew it was going to be even harder to be like an airbender.

However, what he did not appreciate was Ping's tone. And it only served to irritate the Avatar further. "I am trying," he said evenly, however through grit teeth. This guy was rather agitating for a bender from a community that was supposed to be revered in wisdom. Then again, Syaoran supposed Tiki had already broken the typical mold for an airbender. "Why I'm having trouble is none of your business."

Ping watched the pyrotechnics around Syaoran's hands with a raised eyebrow before the Avatar dismissed them. So he truly was the Avatar and this wasn't some elaborate prank of Tiki's? Well, Ping could dream, couldn't he?

"If it is interfering with you learning how to clear your mind properly, it is my business," Ping contradicted, completely calm. But the fact that the Avatar had become so defensive made Ping believe he knew what the trouble was. "You're thinking about that woman, aren't you? The one who left last night? Just what kind of hold did she have on the two of you? The huge man from the Water Tribe looked like he was dying when she left."

Ping wasn't snooping; it was just an observation. And he had observed the hug the Avatar had forced upon the lieutenant woman and the expression on the giant waterbender's face as she left them behind and never looked back. It would be an understatement to say that there were some unrequited feelings flowing around this group. And Ping knew a lot about unrequited feelings.

Syaoran was on his feet before he even knew it, and he was looking pretty darkly at the other young man. Was it Ping's job to infuriate him? Even when learning firebending, ZanYi had only used that trick on him once, and that was because he needed the kick to get him started. Somehow the Avatar had a feeling that getting him all fired up was not a technique for airbending. Just a thought.

ZanYi was gone. He cared about her and she had left. That hurt enough in its own right, especially when what Ping was asking of him reminded him of his former teacher. But to go and bring in Shun, to bring back the very insecurities that Syaoran had already held about the waterbender's relationship with the lieutenant was too much.

There was increased heat in his hands and Syaoran had to do his best to dim them, knowing self-control was the foremost concern of firebending. "I don't care if you're Tiki's cousin or if you're trying to help her by teaching me. I'm going to try my best because its what I've got to do. But don't you dare bring ZanYi or Shun into this," Syaoran growled, frowning down at Ping.

Ping frowned back. So he wanted to fight after all, did he? Fine with Ping.

"You brought her into this," the airbender asserted, rising to his feet and meeting Syaoran's fiery stare with his own heated gaze, "when you refused to empty her from your mind. I already told you that you can't meditate properly if you don't have a clear mind. It's not my fault she left, so don't go getting snippy with me. You may be the Avatar, but you're only here because of my cousin, so don't you assume—"

"Ping."

Ping froze, his eyes widening. He would know that voice anywhere… but for once, he was regretting that he had to hear it now. Craning his neck to see around the Avatar, Ping's worst fears were confirmed: Tiki stood on the steps of the gazebo, a bandaged hand—barely noticeable because of the long sleeves of her peasant top—resting on the rail. She was gazing at Ping as if she had never seen him before. The airbender swallowed, knowing that he was in trouble now.

"I came to see how you were doing…" Tiki trailed off, letting the silence speak the rest of her thoughts: she had not been expecting this. "What's going on?"

"Ti—Sifu," Ping rushed to correct himself, stepping around Syaoran to face up to Tiki, "We—I…" As Ping struggled for words, words along the lines of the argument being the Avatar's fault because he was not focusing hard enough, Tiki stared at him expectantly, with an emotion in her eyes Ping had never seen directed at him before. It was a look of disappointment.

Ping hung his head, looking guilty. "…I'm sorry, Sifu," he apologized, his voice filled with regret, "I… I cannot teach the Avatar meditation after all."

Tiki took a moment to take this in, her gaze switching between Ping and Syaoran. Finally, she said, "Then please attend to the children in the dojo. It's about time for their lessons, and I am not well enough to teach them today, so you'll have to do… if you're calm enough, that is."

Tiki had not outright rebuked him, but the small, implied suggestions that she expected more from him were worse. "Yes, Sifu," Ping answered heavily as he bowed to her, displaying his sincere regret with the gesture. Tiki watched him hurry off to the dojo without looking at her again, confusion strong in her gaze. Finally, she turned to Syaoran.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, still appearing confused above all else, "I only heard a little of what was going on, but… I don't understand. He's usually a really sweet kid." Shaking her head, Tiki crossed her arms, wincing as she did so. "So, I'm guessing your lesson didn't go that well," she suggested mildly with a straight face. There was nothing funny about the situation to her. Really, what had come over Ping?

"That would be a good guess," Syaoran put bluntly, frowning still. The embers of his hands had ceased, and his temper had stopped flaring. However, it had put him a bad mood that was not going to go away easily. It didn't matter what Tiki thought: her cousin Ping not a really sweet kid. "All I can say is that your cousin, meditation, and I don't have a great relationship." Finally cooling, he looked at Tiki and continued to frown, only now a bit perplexed instead of upset. "Just what happened to you though?" he asked her. Syaoran eyed her bandages, wondering what she possibly could have done to hurt herself already. They had just arrived the night before. There wasn't much time for risky behavior since then. "Whatever you did," the Avatar continued, crossing his arms a bit, "you should get Shun to look at it."

Tiki looked up at him, confused for a second. But when she looked down and saw that her bandages were visible, she mentally kicked herself.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it," she said evasively, moving her arms behind her back and cringing a little as she did so. To distract Syaoran, she asked, "Do you want to attempt meditation with me, then? Or…" Tiki took a moment to observe Syaoran's expression before she finished, "you look like you're done for the day."

What had Ping said to put Syaoran in such a bad mood? Tiki had only been present when her cousin had been snarling at the Avatar, saying something about bringing 'her' into this and how it was not Ping's fault that she left… Tiki had formed an idea of whom they were discussing, but she did not dare to bring it up. Either way, Ping was wrong to say all those things when he should have been helping Syaoran relax.

"…Well, if you're hungry, my aunt just finished making breakfast," Tiki announced, wondering if the promise of food would bring Syaoran out of his funk. But then, he and Shun seemed to be under the same raincloud as of late. And Tiki was sad because there wasn't anything she could do about it: she had her own storms to fight off.

Syaoran eyed the airbender suspiciously. She was acting shifty and not in the way that would have made her start grinning devilishly. Tiki was hiding something, and she didn't want him to know about it. And if she didn't want him to know, then he was going to leave that alone. Tiki had enough things to worry about right now without him badgering her. "I'm down for breakfast," he relented. Starting forward, he walked by Tiki and knocked her head in the way he sometimes would do when he ruffled her hair. "Come on, let's go eat. We didn't eat well last night," Syaoran elaborated. Maybe if they ate, their moods would improve. Syaoran doubted it, but it would at least keep them healthy.

He passed by the dojo, and shot it a dirty look, thinking about Ping. Hopefully the airbender had meant it when he said he could not teach the Avatar how to meditate. The last thing Syaoran wanted was to deal with him again. And it was certainly going to make their stay on the island rockier the longer they were put in each other's presence.

Tiki did not notice his dirty look; she had a hand to her head, almost smiling. Gestures like that made her thankful that Syaoran seemed a little awkward when it came to expressing emotions of fondness. Being with him was easy because there was no over-attachment. He was the kind of guy that Tiki could probably say goodbye to for a year and then come back to later, feeling like no time had passed between them at all. Tiki was thankful for his presence: somehow, being with Syaoran didn't feel lonely. And right now, that was a blessing in its own right.

A/N from Eva: Whew, 'nother chapter down! This one's a little shorter, but still just as important~ :3 Syaoran's not doing well with airbending so far...let's hope he gets better when Tiki finally gets around to teaching him!

the-new-avatar: We had no idea about that day! DJ and I promptly hugged upon reading your review, ha ha. I hope this chapter answered your question! Thanks, as always, for your feedback! :)

writingbrick: Wow, thank you! We're so honored that you like our story, and we appreciate your feedback even more! We hope you continue to enjoy the story!

halfaLeader: Thanks for the alert! We're glad to see that you're still following the story! :)

That's all for this week. Enjoy the chapter! Have a good weekend~!