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.
It was evening before the lieutenant saw Shun again. The rest of the day passed in a lot of silence around the house, several people missing. Ping had been with the children at the dojo; YinLi was missing, as was Tiki and their resident healer. It was a relief for ZanYi when Syaoran had come back from apparently attempting to meditate. Apparently it had been a relief for the Avatar too.
After a long afternoon of firebending forms and practice, they'd gone back for showers. While Syaoran took his, ZanYi padded through the house, almost as if searching for life. And that was when she noticed the promise of food hung in the air, wafting. ZanYi tread over to the kitchen, only to be surprised to find Shun there.
"What are you, a chef now?" she remarked, leaning her side against the doorway.
Shun looked up from the stove, grinning when he noticed ZanYi. "Something like that," he said, turning to reveal the apron he wore, the words 'KISS THE COOK' embroidered in the center, "YinLi's busy with Tiki at the moment, so I told her I'd help out."
It had been a while since Shun had been inside an actual kitchen to cook, but he had not lost his touch. The only regret he had was that Tiki's family was vegetarian: all they had was tofu versions of any possible meat. "Hey, do me a favor and taste this," Shun beckoned, pulling the spoon he was stirring with out of the pot of stew he was making and holding a hand under it, catching the drips of stew from the spoon. "It tastes okay to me, but I like my food mild. I want to know if it has enough flavor without making it too spicy."
"Figures you like your food mild too," ZanYi scoffed, shaking her head at the mild man. But she did step into the kitchen and walk over to him. The lieutenant shot him a look before taking the spoon out of his grasp. "Let's see if you're actually helping by cooking," she snidely said, holding a hand under the spoon as she lifted it to her lips. ZanYi frowned, swallowing the bite. And then she took another snippet of the stew, as if double-checking the taste. The lieutenant turned to Shun with her brow piqued. "This isn't bad," she admitted, handing him the spoon back and leaning her back against the corner. "It's mild, but it has enough for the rest of us. If anything, I'll just add a bit of kick to my bowl later."
Her golden eyes rested on the apron he adorned and she snickered. "Kiss the cook?" she read aloud, amused. ZanYi looked up at Shun, smirking. "So, since I like it, am I supposed to kiss you?"
Shun dropped the spoon; it fell to the floor with a clatter. He moved a hand to cover his blushing face, glancing down at the apron he wore. "It… it was the only one Li had…" he mumbled under his hand, "I didn't want to mess up my clothes…" Why was he blushing like an idiot? She was just teasing him again. It wasn't as if she was actually thinking of kissing him. Shun began to suspect she liked seeing him blush and trip over his own tongue.
"I'm, uh, gonna go set the table," Shun said, deciding that he needed a moment to calm himself down. He turned to get plates from the cabinet YinLi showed him, but then realized that ZanYi was standing in front of it. "Excuse me," he said politely. Technically, his arms were long enough to reach the cabinet over ZanYi, but he didn't think getting that close to her was a good idea. It was a bad idea, really.
ZanYi snickered at his predictable reaction. Shun seemed very easily influenced and swayed by anything of the physical nature, if his reaction to the blonde at the bar taught her anything. The big waterbender had a chink in his armor and she was going to use that to the best of her abilities.
"No," she told him simply. In fact, to illustrate her point further, the lieutenant hopped up on the counter, much more distinctly in his way. ZanYi's lip curled in the corner, mischievous. "So, tell me, Shun," she started, "where did you want that kiss?" ZanYi reached a hand up to his cheek, stroking it a little. "On the cheek again? Or…" she trailed her hand to his lips, allowing her finger to linger on his bottom lip, "were you thinking a bit more bold?"
Shun's face exploded in many shades of red. She was doing this on purpose! What did he do to deserve this? It was like the universe was taunting him, dangling ZanYi right in front of him like a polar bear dog with a bone. It was so unfair.
A low groan sounded in the back of Shun's throat, and he rested his hands on the counter, on either side of ZanYi. His head was bowed, near ZanYi's shoulder, and her scent wafted to him, overwhelming the smell of the stew. He was fighting a war within himself: everything that was tied to his sense of loyalty and morals told Shun to back away, laugh it off and pretend it was nothing. But his heart—and everything that made him a man—was trying to convince him to just kiss her, because he knew he wanted to. Man, did he want to.
In the end, his loyalty to Syaoran and his morals won. Shun would back up… but first, he felt a little warning was in order.
"ZanYi," Shun began, his voice husky, "I may have a lot of patience, but that doesn't mean you should tease me like this." He looked up at her, their foreheads almost touching, his blue-eyed gaze serious. "Don't tempt me."
Patient, he was. Uninterested? Far from it. ZanYi may not realize it, but she was playing a very dangerous game, one that they would both lose if she kept at it. Shun was not really interested in learning just how much teasing he could take before he snapped.
ZanYi's smirk slipped away, her brow furrowing at Shun. "Don't try to intimidate me, Shun," she responded lowly, never breaking their stare. It was a valiant effort on his part, sure, but not enough. And yet, his voice made her hair stand on end, despite that. "It's not going to work." Her back straightened a little, bristling. "So don't try to tell me what I can and can't do. If I want to tease you, I can," she told him indignantly. Despite the close proximity they were already in, ZanYi moved her face even closer, never looking away from Shun's ocean-deep eyes. Her lips were only a breath away from his as she continued, hushed, "And if I want talk real close like this, I can, Shun."
A fiery spark lit inside her eyes, burning and boring into his. For a brief second, she let the smirk play on her lips again, but the mischief and mirth were gone. Pulling back, the lieutenant pushed the large man aside and slipped off the counter. "I'm going to go take my shower. Syaoran should be out by now," ZanYi informed him, without a glance back. But then she did pause in the doorframe of the kitchen, able to really snicker this time as she looked back at him. "By the way," she smirked, "your stew is burning." And then ZanYi left Shun to his own devices as she trotted up the steps to clean up.
Despite the fact that he smelled the burning stew, Shun could not help but watch ZanYi walk out the room. How had that conversation turned into him trying to intimidate her? He was being serious! And still, she continued to tease him!
Shun spun around and turned off the stove, cursing as he waved away the smoke over the pot. He fished out another spoon and stirred the stew, attempting to salvage it. But this task was only keeping his hands busy; inevitably, his thoughts wandered back to ZanYi. Why hadn't she taken him seriously? Did she really think he could endure forever? Because he didn't think he could. Or maybe she just didn't see him as a threat because she didn't consider him a man who would be interested in her? Shun was starting to understand a little how Syaoran felt.
The giant waterbender put a lid over the stew and sighed. The damage wasn't too bad; the stew was only burnt at the bottom. If he served everyone else first, he could save the burnt stew for himself so no one else had to suffer through it. But burnt stew was the least of his problems: if Shun was understanding ZanYi correctly, she was going to continue to push his buttons until he broke. His embarrassment was her amusement, which was the perfect equation for trouble. Love or not, Shun just hoped he wouldn't end up doing anything he regretted.
With a shake of his head, Shun pushed those thoughts away, re-focusing on the task at hand just in time for Ping to stride in the kitchen, his siblings in tow. The airbender looked surprised to see their waterbender guest in the kitchen.
"Uh," Ping began, uncertain, "where's—?"
"She's in the basement with Tiki," Shun answered before Ping could finish, ridding himself of the apron as he pulled down bowls from the cabinet at last, "Her tattoos are finished."
Ping's eyes widened. "Really?" he asked, pitching his voice low, as if he were afraid of being eavesdropped on. Shun nodded as he stacked bowls in his grasp. Seeing that his hands were full of china, Ping took the dishes. "Don't be silly: you made dinner. I'll set the table. It smells good, by the way."
"Thanks," Shun replied to both the help and the compliment as Ping left the kitchen and headed into the dining room. Without anything else to do, Shun passed through the dining room to the living room, opening the door that led to the basement.
"Li, Tiki: dinner's ready."
"We'll be right up!" called YinLi's voice. Shun shut the door and turned to head up the stairs to the second floor. Thankful that he could avoid ZanYi for a little while, the giant waterbender tapped on Syaoran's closed door.
"Dinner's ready, Syaoran."
Syaoran, however, did not come out of the bedroom. Instead, he emerged from the bathroom, fresh, clean, and clothed. He was rubbing a towel over his wet hair, drying it mildly. "Thanks, Shun," Syaoran said to the man, crossing over to his bedroom long enough to drop the towel in there. Then the Avatar walked over to ZanYi's closed door and knocked. "I'm out, ZanYi," he informed her through the door.
The door swung open to reveal ZanYi, towel and fresh pair of clothes in hand. The lieutenant stepped out into the hall, showing that she was wearing only the top and shorts from under her uniform. "Took long enough in there," ZanYi commented, closing the bedroom door behind her. Confidently, she strode over to the hall bathroom. Syaoran had to avert his eyes, a flush creeping across his cheeks as he realized he was staring at her.
"Um, Shun says dinner is ready," Syaoran told her, relaying the information in what he hoped sounded like an even tone.
But ZanYi already knew that bit. She stopped in the doorway of the bathroom and looked at the two men and nodded. "Save whatever's left for me. I'll take the leftovers," she said. Gazing resting on Shun for a brief moment, she snickered and smirked. Then she closed the door behind her, and soon Syaoran could hear the water kick in for the shower soon after.
The Avatar looked at Shun with a bit of contempt, his worries returning to the forefront, despite the happy endorphins that coursed through him from working out with ZanYi all afternoon. "Let's go, Shun," he managed to say, moving towards the stairs, but ceasing there. Syaoran waited at the top of the steps, as if waiting to make sure Shun was going to go downstairs as well.
Shun frowned at the bathroom door. So she was treating him like a joke. That did not please him at all. "That woman's going to give me an ulcer," the giant waterbender grumbled in discontent, rubbing his forehead as he turned and moved past Syaoran down the stairs. Ping was already seated at the set table, along with Pai and Sho, so Shun entered the kitchen and retrieved the pot of stew.
"We should wait for everyone else," Ping said as soon as Shun began to spoon out stew.
"ZanYi won't be joining us," Shun replied, but he did pause. "But Li and Tiki—"
"—are right here."
Shun looked up: YinLi was striding into the dining room, beaming in satisfaction. "Everyone," she began proudly, "allow me to introduce you to the new Tiki Chouko." YinLi moved aside to reveal the tiny form that was Tiki. She was wearing capris and a short-sleeved shirt, so the blue stripes on her arms and legs was very visible. Her bangs were parted to either side of her face, displaying the arrow that took shape on her forehead. She offered a half-smile, but Shun could see her fingers fidgeting.
"They look great, Tiki," he complimented with a smile. Tiki's smile grew by an inch.
"Thanks for all your help," she replied. "I don't think I'd be conscious right now if it weren't for you."
Shun shook his head at this. "You could have just waited one more day."
"I didn't want to," Tiki retorted, crossing her arms, "Any more bandages and people would start to think I was being abused." Shun chuckled, though the thought did not really amuse him. He was just happy that Tiki was starting to sound like her old self.
"They really do look great, Tiki," Ping spoke up, "The children at the dojo will be so excited to see them."
"You look like a real airbender, Tiki!" Pai piped up, his sister nodding vigorously in agreement. Tiki began to relax a little at this praise. She had been afraid that the sudden appearance of blue tattoos on her body would be strange, but everyone seemed to be taking it in stride. Her confidence restored, she took a seat next to Syaoran. Her limbs were still sore, but she could deal. At least everyone could see why she was so sore now.
Syaoran, however, was still staring at Tiki, even as she sat down next to him. "Well, that certainly explains the bandages for the past couple of days," he noted, jade eyes peering over her arrows, "Though, you really didn't need to be so secretive about it."
The blue peeked out from beneath the folds of her clothes, and he followed the trails to the arrowed tips. Syaoran thought there was some bit of advice that said that people shouldn't make large decisions after life-altering events. But, clearly it had already happened, and hopefully Tiki wouldn't regret her arrows. So instead, he just nodded to her.
"They do make you look like a real airbender," the Avatar agreed, meeting her eyes then, "Who knew it was possible?" But that last bit was muttered, more as a joke than anything. Tiki had already proved she was quite the airbender. Just like he had a volcanic eruption on his record, she had a whirling tornado on hers.
Much in his own style, Tiki then knocked her fist against Syaoran's head.
"It's not polite to insult your airbending teacher, Syaoran," she said loftily, but Tiki was smiling. It wasn't like she got the arrows because she felt like she had something to prove to the world—that insecurity could be dealt with in other ways. She chose to get her arrows so she would never lose sight of who she was again; it was hard to forget if the truth was engraved in her skin. And they would be easy enough to hide if she ever needed to: all she would need was long sleeves, jeans, and her bangs could hide the arrow on her forehead. This was probably the best decision Tiki had ever made.
Syaoran gave Tiki a cross look. "I'm pretty sure it's not polite to hit your students either," he argued, rubbing a hand against where her fist had bopped him in the head. It hadn't hurt; not in the least bit. But he still frowned at her nonetheless.
"Dinner is served," Shun finally announced, spooning stew out into everyone's bowls, "Sorry if it's a little burned: I was distracted for a moment while I was cooking." Shun couldn't say specifically what had distracted him without raising more suspicion. Dang, ZanYi: she was going to be the death of him.
Syaoran went to his stew, stirring it a little since it was plenty hot. "You made this, Shun?" he asked, surprised. Then again, it seemed that YinLi had been with Tiki, so it was possible he was just trying to help out. Taking a spoonful, Syaoran swallowed the stew. "Tastes fine to me," he commented, continuing to eat, "though it's a bit mild."
And it was missing meat. That was one thing he missed from Roku's Island already. It was all far better than slop, but Syaoran had gotten a bit pampered while they were there. Meat was good. Tofu was only okay in comparison.
The loud clank of a bottle being set down next to him distracted Syaoran from his lament. "Hot sauce," Shun announced, settling back into his seat on the other side of Syaoran, "I like my food mild, so I made sure to bring out some seasoning just in case someone wanted to spice up their bowl a bit."
"It's delicious, Shun," YinLi praised, turning a fond smile on Shun, "You'll make a lovely husband one day."
Shun, who had been taking a sip of water, gulped a little too much and coughed. His thoughts strayed to ZanYi, and his face reddened. "Well… we'll see about that," he spoke modestly. True, it was a long shot that he and ZanYi would ever get married… but the giant waterbender could dream.
"Speaking of marriage…" YinLi began, her gaze shifting to her niece. Tiki recognized that look, and she immediately jumped on the defensive.
"Auntie, I don't want to talk about this—"
"—All I was going to say, Tiki, was that you're not getting any younger. You turn twenty tomorrow, and that was the same age your mother gave birth to you. I just think it's about time you think about your future."
Though this conversation must have been embarrassing for Tiki, Shun could not help but ask in a surprised tone, "Your birthday is tomorrow? Why didn't you tell us?"
Tiki stood up from the table. Her bangs fell forward, hiding her eyes, but her tiny hands balled into fists. "…because I don't care that it's my birthday tomorrow," she muttered, "The people who gave birth to me aren't here anymore, so why should I celebrate?"
"Tiki," YinLi began, her face reflecting the heartbreak in Tiki's voice. She stood up as well, but Tiki had already fled up the stairs. A second later, the slamming of a door was heard. "Oh no…" YinLi sighed, putting a hand over her face, "Me and my big mouth."
"It was just bad timing, Mother," Ping tried to console her, but she shook her head at him. Turning to Shun and Syaoran, she smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry: you just got here and you're already seeing us at our worst. Forgive us," she apologized formally. One's family should not behave in such a manner when they had guests, after all.
"Don't worry about it, ma'am," Syaoran requested of her, "Besides, our group has been all over the place since we've arrived here."
There was a series of steps that entered the room, and Syaoran looked over to find ZanYi, hair damp and dripping down her shoulders. "What did you do to Tiki?" she asked Syaoran, frowning as she walked over to the table. Syaoran raised his hands up in surrender, dropping his spoon into his bowl.
"I didn't do anything this time!" he denied, hoping ZanYi wouldn't attack.
She gave him a speculative look, doubtful. "Well, the girl didn't just fly by me and slam her door for no reason."
"But it wasn't my fault…" Syaoran's gaze sobered as he explained, "Tomorrow's her birthday apparently. But she didn't say anything since she doesn't want to celebrate because—"
"I know why, Syaoran," ZanYi cut him off, exasperated. But she was serious as well, and the lieutenant looked to the stairs for a moment, considering them. Looking back to the table and her bowl of stew, ZanYi sighed a little. "Let me talk to her," she suggested, and before they could say anything, the woman climbed the stairs back up.
Uneasy, Syaoran looked to Shun. "Is that a smart idea?" he asked.
Shun watched ZanYi disappear back upstairs before his gaze returned to Syaoran, his eyebrows raised. "I guess we're going to find out," he said, spooning himself another bowl full of stew.
"Are Tiki and the lady lieutenant close?" Ping wanted to know, his eyes on the stairs.
Shun paused, trying to figure out how best to answer this question without giving the people at the table too much information. "Not especially… but ZanYi's been through and seen a lot of things. She just might be able to help Tiki."
"I hope so," YinLi prayed, looking crestfallen. "Since the only thing I seem to be able to do is put my foot in my mouth, I hope ZanYi can be a positive female influence on my poor niece."
"Don't worry so much, Li," Shun said with a smile, "Tiki's in good hands."
ZanYi had knocked on Tiki's door, only to find it crack open at the gesture. "Tiki?" she called out into the room, surprised to find it empty. The lieutenant was certain that she'd seen Tiki go into her own room. Out of the corner of her eye, ZanYi noticed the open window and she walked over to peek her head out.
That was when she saw the missing airbender hidden up on the roof.
Tiki sat on the roof of her aunt's house, watching the stars above her. She was trying her best not to cry, but tears rolled down her face nonetheless. She used to come up here with Ping four years ago to look at the constellations in the sky; now, she found herself trying to see her parents' faces in the stars, as if that would confirm that the spirits had accepted them into their world.
Why did YinLi have to mention that tomorrow was her birthday? The tiny airbender had been trying her hardest not to think about it. Another year older, but so what? What did it matter? She was still a kid who was being forced to fill the huge, sensible shoes of her mother with absolutely no knowledge of how to do so. Tiki might as well have been five years old, with how she appeared and how much she knew—nothing. It would take her a miracle to be able to solve this mess on her own.
"There she is…" she muttered to herself. Climbing onto the window ledge. the lieutenant gripped the tiled roof and swung herself a bit. Gaining momentum, she flipped up onto the roof, keeping steady. Treading carefully, she walked over to Tiki, seating herself next to her.
"Hey," she greeted, unlooking. Instead, ZanYi focused on the stars above, the night beautiful and tranquil. She'd seen the glimmer of Tiki's tears in the moonlight, but the lieutenant chose to ignore them, nonchalant. "So, the stars better company for you than everyone at dinner?"
Tiki was surprised: out of all the people to come and try to talk to her, ZanYi was the one who volunteered? When had it become April Fool's Day?
"…"
Tiki didn't answer; she was not sure what to say to the woman that sat next to her. ZanYi had not even stuck around to say goodbye to her two days ago. She kind of wanted to tell the lieutenant to go away, but deep down, Tiki didn't want to be alone. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rested her head on them, silent. A breeze was blowing, fluttering Tiki's bangs so that they tickled the sore skin her arrow had been engraved in.
She brushed them away, wincing when her fingers brushed against her arrow. That spot was definitely going to be tender for a while—Tiki had rushed her aunt so that she could reveal her tattoos at dinner, and YinLi could not be as gentle as she wanted to be. Thank goodness Shun was there with his canteen, or Tiki was sure her forehead would not be in as great a condition as it was now.
ZanYi noticed the movements out of the corner of her eye, but said nothing as well. Propping up a knee, she draped her arm over it, looking out at the horizon, where the stars met the sea. It was such a nice night, and if Tiki was going for comfort, it didn't surprise the lieutenant that the airbender went to the roof.
"With a tattoo like that, you're going to be sore for a bit," ZanYi said, "But your aunt did a pretty good job with it. Better than some of the military tats I've seen come through my unit." Truthfully, the lieutenant had seen some very poorly done tattoos that resulted in some pretty bad infections. But then she turned her gaze away from the water and finally looked at Tiki. "But we both know that's not the real source of your pain," ZanYi said, raising an eyebrow, "and we both know it's not actually your birthday. This is about you're parents."
"ZanYi, please," Tiki began, finally goaded into speech by the lieutenant's words, "I don't want to talk about this."
The one time the tiny airbender wanted to be alone would be the one time ZanYi chose to have a heart-to-heart with her. Well, Tiki did not need her pity. She didn't need anyone feeling sorry for her. She was fine and could take care of herself.
"So just go back inside and tell my aunt that you talked to me and that I'm fine. Because I am," Tiki asserted further, willing the words she spoke to be true. She didn't want to hurt anymore, but talking about it would only make it hurt worse. Her parents were dead. She had witnessed their murder, shot down like dogs. And it made her feel… well, it made her feel every negative emotion in the spectrum. Not to mention the way they had died: because of the Neo-Equalists, LingShi and YinXiang Chouko had died traitors. And, if that morning had been any indication, this injustice cut Tiki almost as deep as the murder of her parents.
"You're not fine," ZanYi said matter-of-factly, unperturbed by Tiki's wishes. It didn't bother her that Tiki didn't want her there. It's not like she wanted people around when she felt horrible and was mourning either. But Tiki was not ZanYi; the lieutenant was not a talkative person to begin with.
But Tiki was. So if she wasn't talking, there was a particular reason for it. "So the question is why you won't talk about it," ZanYi continued, looking away as she did so, "Is it because you're avoiding the topic? Trying to ignore the fact that they're not coming back? Is it because you don't want to feel guilt for it all? Or is it because you're ashamed of them and you don't want to say it?"
With a curious eye, the lieutenant looked at Tiki, brow piqued. "Tell me, Tiki: why is the girl who never runs out of words avoiding talking about the two people she cared about the most in the world?"
"Shut up."
Tiki didn't realize that the words came from her until she registered the fact that her body was shaking—in anger. She was on her feet again, glaring down at ZanYi, her rage beginning to bubble back to the surface. How dare ZanYi speak to her that way—since when did she care about what Tiki did or did not talk about?
"You don't know me, ZanYi! You might think you do, but you don't. That little girl you used to scold isn't here anymore. She died the day my parents were murdered!"
Ashamed? ZanYi thought that Tiki was ashamed of her own parents, the only two people in the world who had actually accepted her for who she really was? Was the lieutenant out of her mind?
"What do you want me to say? Huh?" Tiki snapped, her anger rising, but this time at herself—tears were beginning to pool in her eyes once again, "Do you want me to sit here and throw a tantrum like the baby you think I am? You want me to bawl my eyes out over my dead parents? Well it's not going to happen!"
Belatedly, as Tiki was yelling, she realized that what she was doing right now could be considered a tantrum. But she was too far gone to care if she sounded foolish. "I don't want to talk about my parents because I don't want to talk about them! I can't even cry over their memory without feeling guilty, knowing that it's my fault that they're dead! I've been running around like I've lost all common sense for so long that I don't even deserve to call myself their daughter!"
The tears were spilling out in a torrent now, but Tiki would not even acknowledge them by wiping them away. She did not want to give into her weakness again today. She would not let ZanYi win. Refusing to break gazes with the lieutenant, though she knew she looked like a mess, Tiki finished, "There. I said it. I won't talk about my parents because the person I'm ashamed of—the person I hate and can't forgive—is me. Are you happy now?"
"Am I ever happy, Tiki?" ZanYi asked her, taking her fit in stride, "But right now I'm satisfied. Because you're finally admitting the problem."
The lieutenant looked away, training her eyes out on the crashing waters, her brow furrowing a bit. "I don't know you, Tiki. That's true. But I know what you're going through better than you may think. And I know that if you can't admit to yourself what your problem is, you'll never get over it."
She grew somber and silent for a moment. For the first time in a while, she allowed herself to think of her parents, of Zaron. "It took me a long time to realize that, Tiki. You're older than I was. I'm telling you so maybe you'll get it more quickly."
ZanYi pushed away her circumstances and looked to Tiki again, honest and true. "Even if I tell you it wasn't your fault, you won't believe me. I get that. If I tell you to cry, you'll fight even harder not to. So how about this: if you hate yourself now, be someone that would make them proud. Show everyone else they were wrong. Chances are your parents loved you more than anything and were already proud of you; they wouldn't have tried to protect you with their lives otherwise." Rising to her feet, the lieutenant never broke the lock that Tiki's angry eyes held onto her golden ones. She put her hands on her hips. "Become something incredible so that even you have no doubts that they are proud of you."
Tiki stared at the lieutenant, her anger slowly fading away. Was it possible that ZanYi was actually trying to help her? The tiny airbender abruptly remembered that ZanYi had been raised by Master Fei, meaning that her parents hadn't been around when she was young. Had they died tragically as well?
ZanYi's words of wisdom moved Tiki to her core. Her hand wandered up to her neckline, clutching her amulet out of habit. It was exactly what she needed to hear… but she wasn't about to tell ZanYi that.
"I don't need you to tell me that," she denied, turning away from ZanYi to look up at the stars again, "That's exactly what I've been trying to do ever since we got here. I'm going to be stronger, I'm going to make sure Syaoran masters everything there is to know about airbending, and I'm going to take my place as councilwoman of the airbender society. And I'm going to do so many good things and shine so brightly that no one—no one—will ever think to associate my name, or the names of my parents, with the word 'traitor'. But I won't be doing it to prove myself to the world. I'll be doing it to prove myself to me."
Tiki glanced down at her hands, the blue of her arrows highlighted by the moonlight. She was a proud airbender, and she would never forget that fact again. Even if she despised the way she was now, that could always be used as motivation to improve. She was going to make sure she did everything in her power to make herself worthy of the Chouko name.
"I'm going back inside," she announced, turning heel and striding back over to her window. She had almost hopped back inside when her conscience made her halt, reminding her that ZanYi had not come up to speak to her for her health. Tiki let out a sigh. "And… thank you, ZanYi," she said, turning to give the lieutenant a nod before slipping back through her window.
Tiki was energized now. She had been planning to go to bed as soon as she had worked out her frustrations, but now that was out of the question. There was work to be done.
At the sound of footsteps on the stairs, Shun turned in his chair. But where he had been expecting ZanYi, instead he found Tiki. Her face was streaked with tears, but there was a look of fierce determination on her face as she marched around the table. YinLi opened her mouth to speak, but Tiki held up a hand without looking at her aunt; her gaze was on Syaoran.
"Starting tomorrow," she began, her hands leaning on the table to meet Syaoran's gaze, "you're going to learn airbending forms as well as continue your meditation practice. We'll start your morning meditation practices at dawn, and you will move on to learn and master airbending forms in the late morning, along with the kids at my dojo. In the afternoons, we'll have independent practice, and sparring sessions once you manage to airbend. I'm going to work you just as hard—if not harder—than ZanYi did, so be prepared, and no complaining. You'll learn not to underestimate airbending, Syaoran Wong."
Shun's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. Had Tiki killed ZanYi and then proceeded to channel her spirit? It certainly looked as if that was the case. He watched in awe as Tiki straightened up and, finally, turned to face her aunt.
"I'm going to go practice at the dojo," she informed YinLi, and then walked away from the table, heading for the front door. "Don't wait up."
It took the slam of the front door for Shun to speak. "…What just happened?"
"I don't even know," YinLi admitted, wearing the same bewildered look as Shun.
"Whatever the lady lieutenant said," Ping entered the conversation, his eyes on the front door, "it must have been really effective."
Syaoran nodded, speechless. He had no idea what on earth had just happened, but it was almost as if ZanYi had given Tiki some of her fire, her passion. He couldn't imagine being worked harder than he had with ZanYi—or that time he shared with her and Master Fei—but if it meant doing more than meditating, he had no problem with it.
There was another set of steps, and ZanYi walked back into the room, this time actually taking her place at the table. She ignored the questioning and bewildering look that Syaoran was giving her and instead looked around the table.
"So," she asked nonchalantly, as if Tiki had not just stormed through like a whirlwind, "is there any more stew?"
"What did you do?" Shun had to ask, standing up to spoon stew into ZanYi's bowl.
"Whatever it was, it worked," YinLi chimed in, eyeing ZanYi with a lot more respect, "I can see now why you're a lieutenant."
"She's THE lieutenant," Shun corrected with a grin as he handed ZanYi's bowl back to her, full of stew. Looking to YinLi, he continued, "And she can get a lot scarier than that. Trust me."
"Sounds like you've been on her bad side," YinLi teased.
"More than once," Shun readily admitted with a sheepish grin.
"But you two seem so close," YinLi remarked. Shun stiffened. He could sense that this conversation was not about to take a positive turn, if it kept going in the direction it was going. "I'm just curious, but are you two—?"
"No," Shun cut her off, no longer smiling. Did they just give off that vibe? Was that why everyone seemed to assume they were together? If so, Shun probably was going to have to spend a lot less time with ZanYi.
"Really?" YinLi fished, sounding as if she did not believe him. "But this morning—"
"Li, are you finished? I'll take your bowl and wash all the other dishes if you'd like," Shun offered in a desperate attempt to derail this line of questioning. It worked; YinLi's forehead crumpled.
"Oh no, don't worry about it! You made dinner! The least I can do is wash dishes. Besides, you're guests! Though the food was delicious, I regret having to have you make dinner in the first place!"
"It really was no trouble," Shun insisted, hiding his look of relief behind a smile. No need to stir up any more waves. Syaoran was already on tenterhooks about Shun and ZanYi. And Shun still had things to discuss with the Avatar—the last thing he needed was YinLi saying something she should not and having the whole issue blown up at the dinner table. Haven't they had enough drama for one night?
Syaoran, however, did notice Shun's quick evasive maneuvers and his eyes narrowed again at the waterbender. There was a bit of panic to his words, and he kept cutting YinLi off—something Shun never did for fear of being rude. So Syaoran was only left to wonder just what Tiki's aunt had seen that morning.
Suddenly he did not appreciate Tiki's sudden gumption to have him training around the clock. That was going to leave ZanYi alone with Shun far too often for far too long. He looked over to said firebender, trying to gauge her reaction to the conversation.
ZanYi just sat at the table and ate quietly, completely uncaring. Well, aside from the small smirk that played on her lips. But knowing the lieutenant, there was no way to determine what the cause of that was. "Still too mild," she muttered, before reaching for the hot sauce and giving it a couple hearty shakes. Syaoran was the adequately distracted.
"Don't you think that's a little much?" he asked her, warily eyeing her stew as if it was now going to combust into flames. But ZanYi only shook her head, taking a couple bites and looking fairly satisfied.
"I prefer it spicy," she told him simply. Syaoran didn't think that spicy was what she was going for as much as volcanic, but he didn't say that.
Instead, he reiterated Tiki's new plans for him. "Well, whatever you said, Tiki's now got me training around the clock. I don't know when we can fit in firebending practice," he informed her begrudgingly. ZanYi dismissed it with a wave.
"You're learning airbending now, Syaoran. Today was only because Tiki was out of commission. You are now under her mercy and I expect you to put forth the same amount of effort that you gave me."
While ZanYi did not seem bothered at all that they would not be practicing together, Syaoran was a bit put out. So, he stood slowly and looked at everyone, bowing his head towards them. "Well, if that's the case I'm going to get to bed. Goodnight," he bade them, heading then upstairs.
Finishing up her stew, ZanYi pushed her bowl away a little bit, folding her arms neatly across the table. "Not bad, Shun. It's not as burnt as I thought it would be," she said, a bit of jest in her voice. The lieutenant rose to her feet, preparing to leave as well. "Don't forget you shouldn't go swimming tomorrow and that I'll need to change your bandages."
"Yes, Mom," Shun replied, though he was frowning at her burnt comment. He wanted to ask 'innocently' just whose fault it was that his stew had ended up burning, but that would just cause him unnecessary trouble again. He pushed his chair back and stood up too. "Li, are you sure you don't want my help cleaning up?"
"Absolutely not: I won't allow it. Besides, Ping has agreed to be on dish duty for the rest of the week," YinLi said, gathering all the dishes from the table and handing them to her dutiful son, "But thank you again for dinner, Shun. If you'll excuse me, I have to put the little ones to bed."
"Not tired!" Pai and Sho chorused together. YinLi's smile was indulgent as she swooped up the twins into her arms and carried them down the hall to their room.
"You say that every night, and as soon as I put you to bed after your baths, you're out like lights."
Shun smiled. The atmosphere in Tiki's aunt's house was very homey—it made him miss his family, but it also comforted him, in a way. This was a place one could relax in and call home. Shun wondered why Tiki had only stayed for a while when she was fifteen, though he guessed it had everything to do with the sizable bounty on her head.
"Well… goodnight, ZanYi," Shun bade the lieutenant; it was best that he got into the habit of spending less time in her company than was necessary. With a nod, he moved past her to take refuge on the couch for the night. Boy, was he going to be bored tomorrow, not being allowed to swim and all. If only he could reach the stupid burn on his back.
ZanYi, however, did not follow suit up to bed as he thought she would. Instead, she followed him, perching on the arm of said couch. "You go up and take the bedroom tonight. You need the space more than I do, Big Guy," she told him.
The previous night there was no way she could convince him. The lieutenant was still having trouble moving on her own, and the blankets on the bed were so warm. Besides, Shun had been very adamant. And when she posed no threat on her own, it was difficult to be persuasive.
"Besides, it'll be better for your burn if you don't have it all scrunched up trying to sleep on this tiny couch," the lieutenant continued to state her case.
Shun groaned. Of course this would happen: any time he tried to do something nice for ZanYi, she had to be difficult about it. It seemed as if they spent half their time fighting these days. Why was Shun in love with her again? "ZanYi," he sighed, moving to sit on the other end of the couch, "I don't want to fight with you tonight, all right? Just take the room upstairs. I'm fine on the couch."
Did she really believe that he could let her sleep on the couch with a guiltless conscience? If anything, he would get even less sleep in the bed, knowing that she was downstairs on old cushions instead of on a comfy mattress. He could appreciate that she was trying to look out for him, but as he had told her time and again, his burn was no big deal. Hopefully, it would be healed up soon enough.
ZanYi grumbled a bit herself. "I'm not trying to fight with you, Shun," she agreed, standing back up and crossing her arms. The lieutenant fixed him a deadpanned expression. It was no surprise that he was going to put up resistance, sure; that didn't mean that she was trying to pick another argument.
Crossing over, ZanYi moved to stand in front of Shun, looking down to him. "But that was your room. I don't need one. You've still got your stuff in there. But we can argue about who gets it another time, so at least tonight, go up and use it. You were kind enough to let me use it last night. Let me return the favor."
Shun drew in a breath and let it out slowly. Returning the favor, huh?
"…All right," he finally agreed, scooting down the couch so he could get up without being toe-to-toe with ZanYi. "I'll take the bed tonight. But just for tonight. It'll be yours for the rest of the time we're here."
Shun didn't consider his canteen and satchel 'stuff' that was being stored in the room upstairs—he could keep those items anywhere, so that argument wouldn't work tomorrow, should ZanYi bring the subject up again—and she probably would. And the room was not 'his'—his name was nowhere on it. And he wasn't that fond of pink flowers, so really, ZanYi would be doing him a favor by claiming the room upstairs as her own. She would get more sleep, and it would make Shun happy. But then, since when was the lieutenant about making him happy? Shun was beginning to think that he had masochistic tendencies for falling in love with a woman like ZanYi.
ZanYi sighed a little in satisfaction. "We'll see about that," she baited him, "but this is a start. At least we've agreed for the night."
For once, the lieutenant actually closed up her military jacket and rolled down the sleeves, already feeling that it was going to be cooler downstairs than it had been in the bedroom. But Shun was a large man, and he needed more space. She could fit on the couch with much more ease than him.
Sitting down on the couch, ZanYi started to unlace her boots, feeling it rude to sleep on someone's couch with them on. "Get to bed. You've had a long day and really should be watching out for that burn. It'll probably start getting itchy as it heals, but you can't scratch it or we're back to square one." She looked up to the large waterbender, her lips crooked as she did so. "Goodnight, Shun. Sleep well," she told him, nodding. Then the lieutenant turned to lay out across the couch, situating one of the throw pillows beneath her head.
Shun watched her for a moment, deliberating. And then he headed upstairs without a word, only to return a minute later with the spare blanket from the closet upstairs. Standing behind the back of the couch, he pulled the blanket over ZanYi, dropping it when it covered her entire body, head included. With a little smirk, he leaned over to tug the blanket back a bit, revealing ZanYi's eyes so she could see him grinning.
"Goodnight, ZanYi," he said for the second time that night, dropping the blanket back on her face and heading up the stairs with a chuckle. If she wanted the couch that badly, he would let her have it—f or tonight. But he was going to make sure that she was as comfortable as possible as well. Although he found her tenacity frustrating at times, Shun loved her stubbornness as well, because it usually meant she was fighting hard to do what was right.
ZanYi pulled the blanket off of her face, looking in skeptic bemusement from it to the retreating man. His chuckles made her feel like he'd gotten one over on her, and she frowned a little. But she'd gotten him to vacate the couch, so ZanYi decided she would take it.
Turning away from the stairs, the lieutenant looked at the blanket again and shook her head, but this time, there was a small upturn to both sides of her mouth. Pulling the warmth of the blanket all around her, ZanYi finally closed her eyes and drifted to sleep.
It was just a couple hours before dawn. Tiki had only come back to the house to get a change of clothes; the ones she was wearing were dripping with sweat. But the rest of the house was still asleep, of course, so the tiny airbender had to move slowly and deliberately to make the least amount of noise as possible.
In fact, if this was not necessary in the first place, Tiki might have missed the pink-frosted cupcake sitting on her dresser as she pulled on a fresh peasant top and a pair of yoga pants. She had to finish sliding her arms into the shirt before she could take a closer look.
The pink-frosted cupcake was decorated with white butterflies made of icing, and there was an unlit candle in the center of it. As Tiki picked it up, a slip of paper that was stuck to the bottom of the cupcake fluttered down to the floor. Retrieving said paper, the tiny airbender instantly recognized her aunt's handwriting.
Dear Tiki,
I'm so sorry for upsetting you last night. I know how hard things have been for you lately. But I just don't want you to miss out on the good things that are still in your life. You're such a sweet girl. I just hope you learn not to let life get you down all the time. It's okay sometimes, of course, but please don't feel like you have to go through it alone. I'll always be here. But, then again, I'm not worried about you: you have fantastic friends now. I'm sure you'll be all right.
Happy 20th Birthday, Tiki.
Love, Aunt Li, Ping, and the Twins
Tiki stared at the slip of paper. She hadn't been expecting this, nor had she been expecting the added signatures, encouragements, and birthday wishes of Shun, Syaoran and ZanYi (though these were brief and crammed into the bottom of the paper). True, she hadn't wanted any acknowledgement of her birthday today...but this kind of quiet recognition she did not mind. In fact, it made her heart swell and tears gather in her eyes. Brushing the latter away, the tiny airbender left the birthday card (of sorts) and the cupcake on the dresser and slipped back out of her window. She didn't have time to eat the cupcake right now, since Syaoran's training would begin soon. But the tiny airbender supposed she had something to look forward to at the end of the day, now. She still refused to acknowledge that it was her birthday, however, and she would not actually thank the others for the cupcake and the birthday wishes.
They were definitely getting big hugs from her in the near future, though.
A/N from Eva: Awww, Tiki. It pains me to see her struggle, but dang it if it doesn't make her stronger every step of the way. :3 I'm proud of her, and I hope you are too! Thanks as always for reading and supporting us! And now, responses to reviewers!
the-new-avatar: Always a pleasure to hear from you. :3 Hahaha, if the finale makes it here, it'll be after a LOT of editing, so fingers crossed! DJ and I always write the chapters together. Oftentimes, we get together at her house so we can talk to each other as we write rather than texting back and forth, because that seems to make the process a little smoother. We're glad we could brighten your week, and we hope this chapter has the same effect!
Ben: Hello there, new reader! At least, I'm assuming you're new, since is the first time we're hearing from you. :3 Ha ha, yes, we do use guns in our story. It helps us keep up with the age. So glad you enjoyed the Fire finale! We hope you'll continue to read!
We hope you guys are continuing to enjoy the story! Things are going to get rocky soon, so brace yourselves! Have a great week!