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 sat in the gazebo, practicing her breathing as she meditated. She had gotten no sleep, but she was very disciplined when it came to her meditation—there would be no falling asleep here. The sun had yet to rise, so Syaoran did have some time, but if he was not here by dawn, then he would be considered late.
And, as any child on Southern Air Island would tell anyone who asked: Sifu Tiki did not like late students.
As Syaoran made his way outside, he tried not to be loud, knowing that most of the normal people on the island and in the house were not awake at such a ridiculous hour. The air was still heavy with dew, and the sky was just starting to lighten on the horizon. He had already stumbled down the stairs in the dark, fumbling a little in his half-awake stupor. He knew he had to be up for meditation. He knew training started early; it always had. Yet it felt like this was even earlier.
And yet, he found Tiki already in the gazebo, meditating. How she managed it so often was beyond him. Syaoran yawned, shuffling over to her, taking his seat across from her. "Morning, Tiki," he said groggily, doing his best to try and wake up. With all of her breathing exercises, he was certain he would fall back to sleep as soon as they started.
Tiki opened her eyes slowly. "Morning," she greeted in return, moving from her original position to kneel behind Syaoran. She trailed a finger down his spine. "Sit up straight, or your breathing won't be deep enough," she instructed before placing her hands on his shoulders, her thumbs rubbing circles into them. "Did you sleep well?"
The Avatar sighed, the urge to want to melt into putty under the massage overwhelming. But the way her finger trailed down his spine did the trick for him, making him sit up straight involuntarily, surprised. He frowned a little at the airbender, but turned back around, trying to breathe.
"I slept fine," he answered, focusing on staying awake. Syaoran yawned a little, stifling it with a hand. Despite all the mornings he'd woken up for firebender training, dawn had never really been a time for it. "It's just really early," the Avatar told her.
"The early lemur gets the firefly," Tiki quoted a saying common among airbenders as she continued to rub the Avatar's shoulders. Syaoran's shoulders were nowhere near as stiff as they were the day before. They had gained some tension in between yesterday morning and this morning, but that was easily remedied. With any luck, Tiki would be able to help Syaoran achieve his first successful meditation today.
She paused a minute, listening to Syaoran's breathing. "Syaoran, you're breathing with your chest," she stated, sliding an arm under his to rest her hand on said chest. She could feel his heart pulsing there, beating strong. Despite her serious demeanor, this made Tiki smile a bit.
"I need you to breathe from here," she continued, using her other hand to poke his stomach, "from your diaphragm. It'll help clear your mind better." Tiki placed that hand flat against Syaoran's stomach, wanting to check that he would do it properly. "Go ahead and try it."
Syaoran tensed up and gave Tiki an incredulous look. She was getting quite handsy this morning; it was almost like she was feeling him up, despite that she used to leap onto him all the time for 'protection'.
"No need to grope me," he grumbled, closing his eyes again tensely. But, trying to view this as part of his lesson, Syaoran took a deep breath and understood what she meant about breathing from his chest. Controlling his cardio had been key in firebending, after all. So the Avatar tried to breathe deeper, and then he felt the air coming from much further inside him.
However, his teacher frowned. No need to grope him? Tiki wasn't groping him; she was helping him. Where did he get the idea that she was trying to feel him up?
And then Tiki registered the fact that she was basically hugging him from behind in this position, her hands all over him… technically speaking, that could be considered 'groping'. Tiki's face tinged pink at the thought. At least Syaoran was breathing properly now.
"Good," she complimented, finally letting go of the Avatar and moving to resume her position in front of him, "Keep breathing like that, and just focus. With any luck, you'll achieve inner peace and be able to meditate effectively. Just remember to breathe and keep your mind clear…" Tiki raised an eyebrow as the Avatar stifled yet another yawn, "and don't fall asleep."
Tiki closed her eyes and focused, breathing deep. Within minutes, she could sense Syaoran's chi, thrumming rhythmically along with his calm state. A smile tugged at Tiki's lips once again. At least Syaoran knew how to relax now; it was harder to get airbending children to focus long enough to relax properly, let alone meditate.
"Don't fall asleep… right," Syaoran muttered, as if trying to assure himself that it was something he should not do. It was certainly an appealing option at the moment. With that thought in mind, Syaoran continued to breathe actively, deep and slow.
He tried to keep his back straight, mind clear and relaxed. Except the more he focused on being relaxed and keeping an empty head, the more it was difficult not to fall back asleep. Despite the efforts he was making, Syaoran slowly kept slipping away. His eyes began to droop, his shoulders beginning to sag.
Even though her eyes were closed, Tiki knew Syaoran was falling asleep. His chi had dulled, rippling in patterns similar to the look chi had of slumbering people. Tiki's eyes snapped open. Sure enough, Syaoran's shoulders were beginning to sink, his chin drifting to his chest. Tiki's eyes narrowed.
Slowly, she leaned forward, being careful not to make any sudden movements… until she reached out and flicked Syaoran's forehead.
"Wake up, Avatar," Tiki commanded, her eyes still sharp as she looked up into Syaoran's face, "You won't be able to master meditation if you fall asleep. Maybe you should do a few laps around the courtyard if you're drowsy?"
Another pet peeve of Sifu Tiki: children falling asleep in her class. It was not appreciated in the slightest.
Syaoran flinched back with a small utterance of pain. He frowned at Tiki as he rubbed his forehead, a little sore in his pride as well. "I'm awake, I'm awake," Syaoran grumbled as he straightened back up, trying to breathe again, "I don't need to run…"
That was like a ZanYi-threat. That was something he could do without having again. So he was going to have to listen to Tiki… Under normal circumstances, that sounded like a terrible idea. But now…
The Avatar opened one eye to look at Tiki, gazing at her new look. The tattoos, the hair, the stillness—this was not the same Tiki he'd known before. And even to this point, he did not know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. He'd wanted her to grow up, but never would Syaoran want it the way it got kick-started.
So Syaoran closed his eyes again, trying to give Tiki the credence she should have as his teacher. He began to breathe again, in and out, deep from the stomach. And this time, he made sure he wasn't falling asleep.
Tiki had quirked an eyebrow at Syaoran when he was gazing at her. What was he looking at her like that for? He closed his eye before she could ask, however, and resumed his meditation process. Tiki knew she should do the same, but instead, she ended up watching him.
Her threat had worked better than she imagined; Syaoran was actually listening to her… respecting her. It was a strange feeling, since up until that point, he had regarded her more as an annoyance than a friend. Was it pity now that softened his gaze when he looked at her? Or was it simply because she was now his teacher? Would this newfound respect end once the Avatar mastered airbending? Would things go back to the way they were?
Tiki was not sure if she wanted them to. Being with Syaoran was mostly easy, because he never pushed her on subjects she did not want to discuss like ZanYi did. He was nothing if not considerate… most of the time. But still, she missed being able to joke around with him, even if it sometimes made him mad. How she wished those days could come back. But they wouldn't. Nothing would ever be the same again.
Tiki let out a quiet sigh and closed her eyes. She was thinking too much; she needed to relax and continue to meditate, lead by example. She already decided that she wasn't going to cry anymore. It was time to be a big girl now. And big girls don't cry.
Syaoran's fumbling had been enough to jerk ZanYi from her light sleeping as he'd bumbled through the house. Rising up from the couch, she wiped the sleep from her eyes, her hair in disarray. It hadn't been the worst night's sleep she'd ever had, certainly not. Some of the credit had to be given to the rather warm blanket she had been given to use.
Folding up the blanket on the couch, the lieutenant then pulled her hair back from her face. Toeing quietly about, ZanYi managed a much quieter exit than the Avatar and headed down to the beach, stretching her arms along the way. Pink was starting to shimmer across the water by the time she got down there.
Over on the beach, Shun waded into the low tide, being conscious not to go in too deep. With his luck, ZanYi would catch him if he decided to disregard her warnings and go for a swim, and he would never hear the end of it, after all the times he had urged her not to push herself. Not wanting to be a hypocrite, Shun had planned to stay away from the ocean, entertaining himself otherwise… but there wasn't really much to do around YinLi's house. She only had one or two good books to read.
Shun sighed to himself, reminding the part of him that wanted to rebel that the burn on his back would not heal any faster if he didn't do as ZanYi instructed. He would just have to grin and bear it for now.
Which, frankly, was smart on his part, since it was already to ZanYi's dismay that she found Shun out there in the water, though it did not surprise her. "You get that burn wet, Shun, and I'll make sure it's a very painful process next time I clean it," she warned him, coming to the edge of the sand.
ZanYi's voice, though familiar, still startled Shun; he turned around too fast, lost his footing, and ended up splashing into the water, soaking his lower torso because he fell on his backside. He just sat there in shock for a moment before climbing to his feet. The giant waterbender looked down and groaned—his bandages were soaked through. Shun waded out of the tide, giving ZanYi an exasperated look as he went. "You really need to stop sneaking up on me like that," he grumbled, pausing in front of ZanYi, frowning down at her as he crossed his arms, "You know I startle easily." It was all her fault that he had gotten his back wet—he hoped she realized that and did not punish him for accidentally disobeying her instructions.
ZanYi gave him the exact same look of exasperation and crossed her own arms. "It's not sneaking up on you if I'm talking to you," she retorted, "If I was sneaking up on you, you wouldn't be talking to me."
The lieutenant looked over Shun's wet form, seeing his bandages completely soaked through. It made her grumble a little, sigh in mild irritation. The ocean water would only serve to dirty up his wound; she only hoped the couple seconds wouldn't be enough to do that. "You just couldn't stay away from the water, could you?" ZanYi huffed.
Shun gave ZanYi an odd look. After a moment, he raised his hand, paused, and snapped his wrist forward. A small jet of sea water flew past him, hitting ZanYi in the forehead. "Waterbender, remember?" he said, smirking. How exactly did she expect him to stay away from the water? It was pretty much his whole identity. He would not be the man he was today if not for his waterbending.
ZanYi blinked away the water, only to frown at him then. The water dripping from her brow started to steam and dry away. "Yes, I remember," she told him, stepping closer to him, "as you should remember that I'm a firebender." The lieutenant lifted a hand, the flames rising from it. It felt good and warm against her skin. Smirking, ZanYi cocked her head to the side and asked him, "Don't you know by now it's not smart to play with fire?"
Shun smirked as well. Trying to intimidate him again, huh? Did she not remember how this played out last time?
Funneling more water from the ocean, Shun kept a corporeal ball of water in his hand, the light of dawn reflecting off its shimmering surface. Boldly, the giant waterbender reached out and clasped ZanYi's flaming hand, shielding the skin of his hand with the water, his fingers locking with hers. A hiss sounded, followed by an expelling of steam from their joined hands. Shun smiled down at ZanYi, mischief alight in his eyes.
"Fire's only dangerous to play with if you don't have the right extinguishing tools," he teased, keeping his hand clasped with hers. He realized that she could just summon more fire and burn him, but it was no big deal. He could heal the resulting injuries after he was finished teasing her. If she was going to make fun of him, than he would return the favor.
ZanYi feigned a sarcastic grin for a moment before deadpanning. Despite the water that had extinguished her flame, the water was now warm, not cool or cold. It could also have been the heat from her and Shun's interlocked grasps. The lieutenant looked at the hands, intent for a moment. Come to think of it, she noted, ZanYi had never had this happen before—the hand-holding, not the extinguishing.
Shaking the thought away, she lifted her other hand. A short and quick spark zipped through it. "You do realize that I could zap you right now, correct?" ZanYi asked him, moving even closer to him. They were then pressed against each other, their hands still locked. Her golden eyes stared up at him challenging. "You may have water, Shun, but I've still got lightning up my sleeves," she warned him, a slight tilt to her lips.
Shun's eyebrows rose, though his smile was still in place. She was such a spit-fire. It was extremely attractive, for some odd reason.
He took this hand into his possession as well, leaning down so his forehead was resting against ZanYi's. "I thought you didn't want to hurt me, ZanYi?" Shun asked softly, reminding her of that morning in Roku's Island, when he had been playing around and embraced her from behind. How did he not realize then that he was attracted to her, let alone in love with her? It seemed so obvious to him now. Was he really that oblivious?
ZanYi looked at him, brow furrowed in contemplation. "I don't want to hurt you, Shun," the lieutenant said, knowing it to be true. She knew what he was talking about; she remembered that moment well. It had been a little too close to electrifying the mess out of him that time since he'd actually gotten the jump on her.
That was also the time that had given birth to huge headaches on both of their parts about a misunderstanding. ZanYi looked to their two interlocked hands again, the absence of space between them. "But I do believe that if we stay like this much longer, there's going to be a big misunderstanding," she reminded him, looking back up at his deep eyes.
"Ah," Shun grunted, cringing as he dropped ZanYi's hands and backed away, looking around them. "You're right. I'm sorry."
What part of 'NO TOUCHING' was so hard for him to understand? It was like he was breaking his own rule every single day. Why even bother if he was not going to uphold his own morals? A stab of guilt went through him as he thought of Syaoran, suspicious, but still trusting. And here Shun was, moving in close to ZanYi while the Avatar was busy with his airbending training. The giant waterbender felt sickened with himself.
ZanYi, on the other hand, didn't care about misunderstandings; whatever happened between her and Shun was between her and Shun. No one's opinion on it mattered to her. But it made ZanYi think. She thought on her master's words and she stayed silent and still. If the lieutenant really looked at Shun, he was a good-looking guy. And that, combined with his caring demeanor, she supposed that was why so many women seemed to fall for him. He was a bit too caring or gentle, sure, but she could understand the appeal for others, she supposed.
But for her, like Master Fei seemed to allude? ZanYi thought for a moment about her circumstances. She was excommunicated by the people she trusted most. This war was still hers to fight, but in what way was up to her now. Just what did that mean for her, though?
Shun turned back to ZanYi to excuse himself from her company. He needed to go elsewhere and do something else—anything else. But he hadn't even gotten the words out before he noticed the very odd look ZanYi was giving him. He cocked his head to the side, a curious expression on his face.
"What is it?" he asked, his brows beginning to furrow. She looked like she was thinking very hard about something. What it could possibly be, Shun could only guess.
ZanYi contemplated in silence for another moment, her hands resting on her hips as she did so. Her gaze swept over him then, taking in every inch of him. "Don't worry about it," she answered the waterbender absentmindedly, finishing looking him over. The lieutenant could still see why the average woman seemed to take notice of him. "But let me ask you something," ZanYi did continue, walking over behind the man. She proceeded to lift up his shirt and start peeling away at the bandages so she could take a look at the damage. "You always seem so self-conscious about someone making anything out of the two of us," the lieutenant mused, "Why is that? You got yourself a girl hidden somewhere you haven't told us about? Feel like you're cheating on that motorcycle you used to have?"
Then she paused, smirking and with a small snicker. "Or are you the kind of guy that has a type? Perhaps blondes?" ZanYi jested, continuing to slowly work Shun out of the gauze.
Shun flushed. He was fervently grateful that ZanYi could not see his face right now. After a hesitant moment, he answered her questions with muffled responses; his hand was over his mouth again. "Um… I just don't want people to get the wrong idea," he clarified, trying not to think about the fact that she was touching his bare skin right now, "I mean, we're just friends." And that was the way they had to stay, Shun firmly reminded himself.
Her other musings made his face turn an even darker shade of red. "I don't really have a type. I, um… I've never had… feelings… for someone before."
'Until now,' his mind grumbled unhappily. For a few seconds, he allowed himself to imagine the look on ZanYi's face if he ever admitted to her that someone like her was his type. Shun wouldn't know whether to laugh or cry.
ZanYi ceased for a moment, utterly perplexed and a bit confused. "Never?" she asked, as if that was a completely foreign concept to her. It was certainly enough to make her peer around Shun's large frame to look at him with scrutiny. The deep flush to his face told her all she needed and ZanYi moved back behind him.
"Dang," the lieutenant muttered, shaking her head in slight disbelief, "That's hard to believe. Everywhere we go, it seems that women are either fawning over you or ready to eat you up." ZanYi continued to peel the bandages away slowly as she was nearing the end, careful so that the wet cloth didn't stick to the wound. "I had you pegged as one-woman kind of guy, not as a no-woman kind."
Shun frowned a bit. Did women really give him such looks all the time? He had always been stared at because of his enormous height; most of the time, he assumed women were staring because he was such a big guy. Was he simply missing all of the signs of attraction from the female species? He wasn't sure; he had little to no experience to compare.
"It's not that I'm not interested in women," Shun wanted to clarify, afraid that this line of questioning would lead to an even bigger misunderstanding, "I've just never really had many chances to interact with them normally. You're bound to be socially awkward when you spend most of your life in a testing lab…" When Shun realized what he had just said, he stiffened, muttering curses under his breath. He had not meant to share that with anyone. It was his own personal nightmare that he wished to take with him to the grave… looks like that plan was out now.
"…Anyway, I think you might be exaggerating," he said, attempting to draw attention away from his previous statement, "I know I might get some looks occasionally from women I pass by, but I think most of them might be afraid of me. With my height and build, I kind of look like a thug."
He really hoped ZanYi would just go along with the conversation. He had no desire to discuss that part of his life. It was too dark.
It had been big enough of a slip, however, that ZanYi had faltered in her movements. The lieutenant frowned at the back of Shun's head for a split-second before returning to her work. Just like everyone else, Shun apparently had a rocky past too. And while she did wonder if being in a test lab had anything to do with his abnormal dislike of small spaces, ZanYi was not about to ask. A person's past is something she just wouldn't touch.
"You don't look like a thug, Shun," the lieutenant opted to say instead, taking his lead and following the conversation, "You're way too friendly for that."
Finally at the burn, ZanYi winced again as she saw it, though was pleased to find it at least healing marginally. "It's going to be a slow heal," ZanYi informed him, "but it'll be okay as long as we keep an eye on it." She rustled through one of her cargo pockets, pulling out a roll of fresh gauze. Perhaps it was a great guess, but ZanYi had figured Shun would be near the water, if not in it, and had brought it along. "Anyway, I think you need to get your eyes checked. If you haven't noticed, I don't exaggerate. If you opened your eyes a little, you would see a lot of women with their eyes on you."
Shun refrained from pointing out that no one knew he was friendly when they saw him on the street—all they saw was his size. He'd had little old ladies run out into traffic just to cross the street to avoid him. It hurt sometimes. But at least ZanYi had avoided the slip of his tongue. He was thankful she was not asking questions; his hands were already beginning to shake at the thought of that cold, cramped place, where he thought he would surely die of either overdose or insanity…
Shun took a slow, rattling breath. He needed to calm down; he was out now, and he was never going back.
The giant waterbender turned to survey ZanYi. She was beginning to patch up his wound once again, and he was more than a little amused that she had already been prepared. That was ZanYi all right. "The same could be said about you, Lieutenant," Shun could not help but tease her, turning to face forward again. Remembering her bar stint in Republic City, a corner of his mouth turned down. "Though, considering the way you gather intel, I'm assuming you already knew that."
She was merciless when it came to her job. It was something that frightened Shun as much as it attracted him.
ZanYi started to unfurl the bandage from the roll, releasing a humorless snort. "It makes me wish I could turn the blinders on sometimes like you," she told him, disgusted. Yes, ZanYi was under no illusion of how her appearance could affect the opposite gender. But that certainly didn't make her like it. "But sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do, and if I can get some necessary information out of it, then the greasy looks are worth it."
Mostly. It didn't mean that her skin didn't want to crawl when she noticed the looks. ZanYi suppressed a shudder, knowing it had been worth it every time. She started to take the gauze and pat it gently over the area of the burn, then started to wrap it around Shun's torso. He shivered involuntarily; ZanYi was really warm. When her hand made its way to the front of his torso, he clasped it for a second, holding it there.
"…You're very pretty, ZanYi," he said softly, blushing as he did so. But he was speaking nothing but the truth, so he went on, "You shouldn't take all the attention you get negatively."
Like the attention Syaoran gave her. That thought jarred Shun back into his senses, and he released her hand. Why was he always losing control nowadays? At this rate, he was going to have to recite mantras constantly in his head: I am not allowed to touch ZanYi. I am not allowed to touch ZanYi. I am not allowed to touch ZanYi. Maybe then Shun would actually learn to listen.
ZanYi resumed to wrap his wound, albeit slow to start after Shun's sudden move and proclamation. The compliment left her a little quiet at first, unsure of how to take it. In the end, the lieutenant tried to take it in stride. "Well… thank-you, I suppose," ZanYi expressed, confused again like when Shun had told Master Fei that she was beautiful. Shaking it away mildly, ZanYi continued to wrap the wound, keeping each round tight and taut on his skin. "But unless I'm trying to get intel, I don't need attention for my looks. I'd rather have it because of what I've done and who I am," she said matter-of-factly. After all, looks were not high a priority, either in war or the relational department. There were many things more important than appearances.
Shun smiled. ZanYi was no typical woman—she was more comfortable in her camouflage and dog tags than in dresses and jewelry. It was one of the many things that made her extremely unique.
"You get plenty of attention for those qualities too," he assured her. "Who wouldn't admire you? You're smart, brave, you look out for others, and you make sure to always give a hundred and ten percent. You're amazing, ZanYi."
And now Shun needed to be quiet; he had already said too much. His blush returning, the giant waterbender dipped his head. "Sorry. I'm rambling," he apologized humbly. After all, ZanYi did not need him pointing out the obvious; she must already know her best qualities, for they were always on display for everyone to see. It was kind of a wonder that more men did not gravitate towards her… or maybe they did and simply were too terrified to say so because of her attitude. That was also a feasible explanation.
But ZanYi just couldn't fathom where this was all coming from. Certainly, she had heard those things before—from Master Fei and Zaron. And she knew her soldiers spoke well of her, definitely. But having everything slurred about together with such… admiration was a first. "I wouldn't say amazing," she tried to understate him, a bit uncomfortable. "I'm just doing my job. It's a soldier's job to be all those things so that others don't have to."
Finding she had wrapped it enough, ZanYi tore a new end with her teeth, and then tucked it in tight amongst the bondage. "There, you're all done for today. So just try not to get it wet again," the lieutenant ordered him with a bit of an accusing look.
Shun kept quiet; he was sure ZanYi would not appreciate him blaming her for his bandages getting soaked… even if it pretty much was her fault for surprising him. Instead, a corner of his mouth lifted up in response to the look she gave him.
"Thank you, ZanYi," he said politely. And, before he could stop himself, he added, "and, for what it's worth…you're one heck of a soldier."
And to words like that, the lieutenant smirked up at him. "That I'll take," she conceded. Because that's all she needed to be: a soldier, and a good one, at that. She didn't need anything more than that.
But that didn't mean more wasn't going to come her way.
Tiki moved about in the courtyard, practicing her bending forms. It was something that had become routine for her, ever since her training with Syaoran had started a couple weeks back. In order to keep her own reflexes sharp, she had to practice and meditate a lot more than normal. Syaoran had learned the bending forms as well by this point, once he ceased to fall asleep during meditations, but so far he had failed to airbend. Tiki kept telling him that patience was key, but the Avatar's patience was wearing thin very fast as the days of the month flew by.
The airbender had finished her last bending form when she heard her aunt's voice calling from the porch of her home. "Tiki, come inside! A bad storm is brewing!"
Tiki looked up. Indeed, dark clouds were moving in over the island at an alarming rate. It appeared as if a hurricane was forming. The tiny airbender was not overly concerned; it wasn't even raining yet. But being blown away by the strong winds that were beginning to blow was not something Tiki wanted, so she decided to follow her aunt's advice. As she headed over, a glance at the churning ocean made Tiki stop in her tracks: something that looked like a tree trunk was jutting out near the shore, and an unconscious form clung to it, as if from an unconscious desire for the person to survive.
As Tiki's eyes widened in horror, the ocean spat the person out onto the shore. Reacting, she dashed over to the edge of the shore, falling to her knees next to the unconscious person. He was a boy, she finally realized, with dark hair and pale, defined features. He was breathing, thankfully, but his eyes were shut tight.
The tiny airbender looked down at the boy anxiously. What was she supposed to do? He was not conscious, but he seemed to be breathing just fine. Should she run and get help? Or should she try and wake him up to see if he was responsive? Just as she was deliberating, a twitch went across the boy's face. The next moment, his hazel eyes fluttered open.
"Are you okay?" Tiki asked, leaning over the stranger. He stared up at her a moment, looking confused. And then, quite abruptly, he sat up. Tiki, who had not anticipated this movement, did not move out of the way in time: the stranger's head collided with hers. "Ow!" she cried out, rubbing her forehead as she frowned at the stranger, who had backed away and was staring at her as if she were a pariah.
"Bender," he whispered with a hoarse voice, pointing a shaking finger at her forehead, where her blue arrow was clearly displayed. And then, before Tiki knew it, he was shouting. "Bender! Help, somebody! Bender!"
"Calm down!" Tiki shouted, getting to her feet and approaching the obvious nonbender with her hands raised, as if she were approaching a wild animal. "It's okay—I'm not going to hurt you!"
The boy was not listening. He had jumped to his feet and was backing away from her as fast as he could. "Stay away from me! Stay back! Don't touch me!"
"I'm not going to—" Tiki tried to insist again, but before she could finish, the nonbender tripped over his own feet in his haste to get away from her. Flailing, he fell backwards onto the ground, his head hitting the grass rather than the sand. Tiki watched as his eyes closed once again, nothing moving but his chest as he breathed. She sighed. If he had just calmed down, this wouldn't have happened…
Giving the nonbender one last pitying look, the tiny airbender jogged up to YinLi's house. Upon entrance, she found that Syaoran was clearing dishes off the table from the evening's dinner—presumably because YinLi had asked him to. Deciding that he would do, Tiki beckoned to him. "I need your help. There's an unconscious boy outside; he's passed out from hitting his head. I want to bring him inside."
Syaoran glanced up from the dishes, an absurd look on his face. "Unconscious?" he repeated, as if he hadn't heard correctly the first time. The wind was growing strong outside, but the Avatar could still hear just fine. He put down the dishes and lifted an eyebrow. The past several weeks had been quite an adjustment as he'd gotten used to the Tiki he'd known before—the one who probably would have set this all up as a prank.
So it was only with mild hesitation now that he dried off his hands with the dishtowel and followed her outside. The skies were darkening with every moment, the wind whirling and swirling with great gusto. The opaque waters seemed rougher and edgier, more deadly than their usual calm. YinLi had been certainly right: something nasty was brewing out here.
Stepping after Tiki down to the beach, Syaoran's gaze rested on the young male on the ground, soaked and tattered. And completely unfamiliar.
"Who the heck is he?" Syaoran asked, peering closer as if he was someone he should be recognizing. It didn't help. "I don't know this one."
Tiki knelt down, peering once more into the boy's face. He had strong cheekbones, she noted.
"…He's a nonbender, I think," she said quietly, looking up at Syaoran, "He freaked out when he saw my arrow." Self-consciously, Tiki brushed her bangs over said arrow, as if she did not wish to offend anyone with it again. "He washed up on shore just now… I don't think he knows where he is. I want to bring him inside so he can rest."
Inside her mind, Tiki was wondering if this was a smart decision. Technically, nonbenders were the enemy of benders on principle. But by his reaction when he saw her, Tiki could tell that the nonbender boy was more afraid of her than she was of him. If she decided to give him shelter, she was sure he was going to be harmless, if not terrified.
Syaoran stood up straight, looking incredulously from the guy to Tiki. "Are you crazy?" he called out over the winds as they began to roar. "What makes you think putting a nonbender and the Avatar in the same house is a good idea?" Syaoran questioned her, throwing out his arms with dramatic effect.
There was a plop of rain on his cheek, and the Avatar looked up to the billowing clouds, shrouding the atmosphere in darkness as it began to cry. He looked down at the young man again, seeing his battered state. Chances were if the mystery boy had just been washed ashore, he was weak. Meaning if he tried anything, they could be ready for it with ease… and as Avatar, he is supposed to be helping both sides, so he really shouldn't let a nonbender get even more banged up just because he was afraid to give the guy shelter.
Syaoran sighed. "Fine," he told Tiki, lifting the stranger onto his back to carry up to the house. But he did qualify that, giving the airbender a pointed look. "You have to be the one to tell ZanYi," Syaoran insisted, knowing the fuss the lieutenant would kick up, "And Shun!"
"It's my aunt's house. But fine," Tiki agreed, appearing calm at the aspect. The nonbender boy was injured as well as tired from being thrashed around by the ocean; Tiki was certain that Shun would not want him to be put out into the storm in such a state. And ZanYi… ZanYi Tiki would handle, one way or another. If anything, she could just invoke the privileges that came with her guests staying with her family. If ZanYi did not like the nonbender staying in YinLi's house, ZanYi did not have to stay in YinLi's house.
Shun was inexplicably waiting for them on the porch. Tiki wondered if he had seen what was happening from outside his window—ZanYi had argued him into staying in the room upstairs tonight. "What's going on?" he asked, frowning as he watched Syaoran lug an unconscious body on his back. Tiki forged ahead, determined to do damage control with Shun.
"I saw this guy wash up on shore. When I tried to help him, he freaked out when he realized I was a bender, and then fell and hit his head… which means he's most likely a nonbender. I want to keep him here until he feels better," she explained, stating her purpose and her reasoning calmly. It would not do her any favors to hide the fact that the boy was a nonbender—once he woke up, he would probably react the same way to the rest of them as he had to her… though, to be fair, it was not as obvious that Shun, Syaoran and ZanYi were benders.
Shun's eyebrows immediately furrowed. "And you want to keep him here?" he wanted to verify, his tone just as calm, with just a touch of bewilderment.
"Yes," Tiki replied immediately, "He's injured and, so far, he's done nothing to threaten us. He seemed more scared of me than I was of him, so I want to give him the benefit of the doubt."
Shun surveyed Tiki, still frowning. On the one hand, he was very hesitant to sleep under the same roof as a nonbender, non-threatening or not; something like that could easily change. But, on the other hand, if the boy was unconscious and injured, Shun could not really turn him away and keep a clear conscience. Bender or nonbender, the boy was still in need of a place to stay. In Shun's mind, it was a stalemate.
Sighing, the giant waterbender opened the door, peering into the living room. "ZanYi," he called, hoping she was there, but not already asleep, "come out here, please. We need to discuss something with you."
Whatever was decided, Shun hoped YinLi would be all right with it. Despite her saying that any friend of Tiki's was a friend of hers, it was still her house. Her children lived here… Shun was not too sure how Tiki's aunt would feel about a nonbender residing under her roof… especially when the word eventually got out.
The resident firebender was indeed still up, and at the call, she came out on the porch. ZanYi's amber eyes surveyed the scene before her: an indecisive Shun, calm Tiki, and exasperated Syaoran with an unconscious guy on his back. "Who is that?" she immediately asked, crossing her arms and looking expectantly at the Avatar.
Syaoran sighed. He should have known the lieutenant would still call on him out of everyone else. "Don't know," he answered honestly, shrugging, "Nonbender. Washed up on the shore. Tiki wants him to stay here and rest during the storm."
And, just as he thought would happen, her eyes grew narrow. ZanYi looked to Tiki, frowning. "Tiki, I understand wanting to be helpful, but this is not a good idea. At all," she said adamantly, tense, "Having a nonbender under the same roof as us is just inviting trouble, and for once, we've managed to keep ourselves out of it. What are you going to do if he wakes up and freaks out surrounded by benders? Or better, what if he's a Neo-Equalist and tries to take out Syaoran here in his sleep?"
Syaoran did gulp a little at that, looking back to the young man on his back warily. "That doesn't sound pleasant…"
"It wouldn't be," ZanYi cut off, focusing only on the airbender in their party, "Don't forget that you're inviting him in amongst your own family as well. Are you going to put them at risk too? I say no, absolutely not."
Tiki met ZanYi's eyes unflinchingly. She had expected most of the opposition to come from her, and was not the least bit surprised when the lieutenant cut right to the heart of the matter. But Tiki was willing to argue her point, no matter what: something within her could not let this boy be stranded in the storm, Neo-Equalist origin or not.
"I understand your concerns, ZanYi, and I appreciate them," Tiki began, "but I am against letting anyone, stranger or not, be turned away when they need help. You have a fair point when you say he could be a Neo-Equalist, but as far as we know, none of the Neo-Equalists know that Syaoran is the Avatar. And even if they do know what he looks like, no one knows that he's here."
"Tiki, your heart is in the right place," Shun jumped into the conversation, "and I sympathize with your desire to help those in need, but this is very risky. You have no idea where this guy came from, or if he's even really injured. For all we know, he could be listening in on our conversation right now, gathering intelligence for the Neo-Equalists."
"He's out cold, Shun," Tiki rebutted. When Shun raised his eyebrows, she continued, "Just trust me, okay? I can tell that he's unconscious—his chi flow is dull."
This meant nothing to Shun. But Tiki appeared confident in her facts, and it did not appear as if she was going to back down anytime soon. The giant waterbender decided to let it play out and see what action needed to be taken from there. Satisfied with Shun's silence, the tiny airbender returned her attention to ZanYi.
"If you're concerned about everyone's safety, ZanYi, I'll assume personal responsibility over the nonbender," Tiki volunteered, her expression solemn, "I will watch over him until he gains consciousness, and I will make certain that he does not touch any of you. Especially you, Syaoran," Tiki added with a glance thrown at Syaoran before her eyes returned to ZanYi, "Good enough for you?"
ZanYi put her hands on her hips, her finger tapping on them, and Syaoran could see the situation being slowly processed in her eyes. It was quite clear that ZanYi still did not like the situation at all—neither did he. But Syaoran could also see how firm Tiki was being about this. She wasn't about to get walked all over on this matter. However, Syaoran wasn't sure whether this was a great time to be exerting her new sense of persistence, and he couldn't do a thing about it. But they were quickly running out of time. The rain was starting to come down harder, and it was almost like the unconscious guy on his back was getting heavier. "Um, I'd hate to rush you, ZanYi," Syaoran said first, looking up to the sky to find the clouds gathering quickly, "but he's getting heavy and it's starting to get nasty out here."
The firebender looked at him with brief reproach, but then focused back on Tiki. It was with great reluctance that ZanYi said, "Fine. He's your responsibility, unconscious or not."
Taking that as the answer, Syaoran quickly moved inside with the guy, wanting to put him down as soon as possible. But ZanYi did not move. "If something happens because of that kid, it's all on you, Tiki," the lieutenant said lowly, clear in her distaste of the situation, "and if something does happen, I will not hesitate to retaliate."
Shun tensed. He did not like this situation if it meant pitting the female members of their group against one another.
But Tiki did not seem perturbed; she simply nodded and said, "Understood." Brushing past ZanYi and following the Avatar inside, Tiki added, "You can put him down on the couch, Syaoran. I'll bring my futon down here and stay in the living room to watch over him tonight."
Shun had followed Tiki inside and caught the tail-end of her decision. He frowned. "Then where is ZanYi supposed to sleep, Tiki?" He was not about to let the airbender put ZanYi out of a bed simply because she wanted to house a nonbender that may or may not be hostile.
That brought Tiki up short. She paused a moment, thinking hard. Technically she didn't need her futon since she would not be doing much sleeping, but she did not want to be uncomfortable during the night either. It was an inconvenient call to make. "Why don't you just let her use the bed upstairs?" Tiki suggested to Shun. He nodded at once.
"That's fine. I'll sleep on the floor in your room or something," he decided. No way was he going to leave ZanYi and Syaoran upstairs alone while there was a stranger in the house. That was just asking for trouble.
"Uh… actually, Shun," Tiki began apologetically, "my room… it's small. Really small. I don't think you'd be… comfortable."
Shun got the gist immediately and gulped. "Oh… okay," he mumbled, "I'll figure something else out."
Who knew it would be so inconvenient to house so many people under one roof? If Tiki took in any more strays, this would become darn near impossible.
Syaoran put the guy down on the couch and scratched his head, ruffling his shaggy hair. "I'd say you could crash in my room, Shun," he reluctantly suggested, "but I don't have much floor space either." Which was fine by him. To be quite frank, Syaoran was becoming more and more leery of Shun as of late.
Tiki kept Syaoran at training for very long hours every day. That was a lot of time Shun had been spending with ZanYi, and not a lot was being told about what they were up to. It certainly did not provide Syaoran with a pillar of confidence in the man.
But things were about to get worse.
"Shun can just stay in his room, like he has been," ZanYi advised, walking into the room. The irritation was clear on her face still, but it was nothing quite like the confusion on Syaoran's.
"Then where will you sleep?" he asked.
ZanYi rolled her eyes, as if it were obvious. "I'll stay up there too. We can just share."
"No way!" Syaoran rebuked immediately, and when the lieutenant shot him a dark look, he didn't even flinch. "You guys cannot share a room."
"Why not? We've already been splitting it in the month we've been here, and it's not like we all haven't shared a room before."
Syaoran rubbed his head, frustrated. "That was different!" he defied.
"How so?"
The Avatar wanted to tell her because it was going to be just her and Shun. Alone. In a room. At night. There were a lot of things wrong with that kind of scenario, but for Syaoran to insinuate any of it would spell trouble for him.
Shun turned a very bright shade of red at this suggestion.
"Uh… I don't think that'd be quite… appropriate," he agreed with Syaoran, turning his head to hide his blushing face behind a large hand. No-freaking-way could he share the room with ZanYi! He just couldn't! Not only would his self-control be stretched to the max, but it was just awkward! Not to mention Syaoran's dirty looks would increase even more than they had as of late. Shun was not about to put himself in such a position. It was not going to happen. No way.
"But Shun, unless you want to sleep in the hallway, there's really no other option for you," Tiki pointed out. Shun shot her a look before giving the room full of people his back.
"Then I'll sleep in the hallway," he decided. This was not up for debate. He would not share a room with ZanYi, and that was final… he thought.
"Don't be absurd," ZanYi shot him down immediately. She honestly didn't know why he and Syaoran were kicking up such a fuss when they had all spent several nights together before. And those were not even the first times for her. "I've slept in the same room with all of you before, and my soldiers are mostly men, who I've also shared rooms with before."
Syaoran growled, "ZanYi—!"
"No buts, Syaoran," the lieutenant stopped him, a highly irked look on her face, "If Tiki's going to have her way, this is the best way we can work out sleeping arrangements." She walked over to the stairs. "Shun and I can share the room we've already been switching using. End of discussion."
Even as ZanYi went upstairs, Syaoran felt his fists clenching and unclenching. It was going to be a pain to try and relax now during meditations. "ZanYi, wait…" he called out, moving to follow her in a futile attempt to further persuade her. Syaoran stopped to give Shun a narrowed eye, but then continued up the steps.
Shun frowned after the Avatar. It wasn't like he was any more pleased about the situation than Syaoran was, so he didn't appreciate the negative looks he had been receiving from the other man as of late… although, Shun reminded himself with a cringe, that Syaoran had sufficient reason to worry: the giant waterbender was in love with the woman the Avatar nursed a crush on.
"This is a bad situation," Shun mumbled to himself, disgruntled as he rubbed his stubbly chin. Tiki surveyed him, pity in her glance.
"Just bear with it for now, please," she asked, feeling a tad guilty: it was her decision that forced Shun into this situation. "I promise things will go back to normal as soon as he gets better." She nodded to the unconscious form on the couch, still slumbering peacefully. Shun spared her a glance before turning towards the stairs.
"I'm holding you to that," he replied before moving upstairs to face the night. It was only for one night, hopefully. How bad could it be?
A/N from DJ: How bad could it be? Well, you're going to find out in next week's big chapter! Trouble is in the Air! ...Get it? In the air? In the Air, as in the book? Okay, I'll shut-up now. But hopefully we'll be back on track for weekly updates! Last weekend was a combination of circumstances and slothfulness. And now, it's on to the acknowledgements!
TheInkBender: Thanks for putting an alert out on Fire! I hope you've figured out by now that Fire is finished and have made your way here to Air~! Either way, awesome to know that you are on board and enjoying it, hopefully!
CasterChroniclesLover: WOW! So much love! Fire favorite. Air favorite. Air alert. So much love! Thanks for joining us, and we're happy that you're enjoying the series so much! I hope we get to hear from you soon, because we'd love to know why you like it!
The-new-avatar: Ah, our number one reviewer has returned! Thanks for all of your continued love and support, and we hope you enjoyed this week as well! Tiki's birthday eve kind of sucked, but it can only get better from there!
And that's all for this week, guys! Hope you enjoyed this week's prelude to the madness of next week! See you next Friday [hopefully]!