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.
ZanYi was a simple woman. For her, a shower and getting dressed probably took about ten minutes. She certainly was not one to pamper herself. So when the lieutenant came back into the bedroom, she was clean and fresh with her wet tresses touching the tips of her shoulders, as they should be. "Has the medicine started kicking in yet?" ZanYi asked, putting Shun's knife back on the dresser.
She walked over to the bed, a towel ruffling her hair as she mildly dried it. One good look at the man showed her that he didn't look quite as feverish, the cold compress already doing its job. "You look a little better," she mused, sitting down next to the bed on the floor, "though your face is a little red…" ZanYi snickered a little before she could stifle it. Part of the red was fever, she was certain, but the lieutenant knew full well that the man was probably still embarrassed from her tactics earlier.
Shun opened his eyes and turned to give ZanYi an aggrieved look. "Why are you always so gleeful to see me uncomfortable?" he wanted to know, unable to comprehend what he viewed as a sadistic tendency. ZanYi meant well—most of the time—but Shun really could do without her taunting and teasing of him. Especially since she had no idea that she was messing with his heart as well as his mind.
ZanYi turned to look up at him, a brow quirked. "Gleeful?" she repeated, almost amused. It took a bit of thought, but the lieutenant was certain that was an adjective that had never been used to describe anything about her.
Shrugging it off, she supposed, "Shun, you're a grown man, and you carry yourself accordingly. But when you get embarrassed…" ZanYi couldn't help the chuckle that came out at the thought, "well, as far as weak spots go, it's what some would say would be a cute one."
Again, Shun's face lit up in his embarrassment. Cute? She thought him being embarrassed was cute?
"Is that why you're always teasing me?" he accused, frowning at the lieutenant. No wonder she did the things she did, then—the teasing kisses, the insinuating comments, the dangerous closeness. That made a lot more sense to him now… he just wasn't sure whether or not he liked the fact that ZanYi found his embarrassment 'cute'.
ZanYi seemed to ponder that for a moment, as if not quite sure of the answer herself. Certainly, she had started to tease him because she had noticed Shun's ineptitude with the female race. Seeing the sturdy man get so flustered was amusing to her.
But, as she had started suspecting, there was starting to be more to that.
So, ZanYi full turned to the waterbender then, resting her arm on the bed so that she could prop her head up on her hand. "I suppose that's one explanation for it," the lieutenant told him with a slow nod. Then the woman quirked a quick brow at him and smirked. "Though I have certainly found other reasons for it."
Her golden eyes never left his flushed face, as if waiting for a response, gauging just what reaction she would get with that.
Shun's frown deepened as he looked at ZanYi. Other reasons? What did that mean? What other reason could she possibly have for teasing him?
"What do you—?" he began to ask, suddenly feeling as if the answer to this question was vital, when all of a sudden, a piercing sound crossed his senses. He cringed and covered his ears, his head still sensitive from his sickness. "What the—?!"
YinLi burst in just then, looking pale and grave. "You two: downstairs into the basement, now!" she ordered, standing back and gesturing frantically for them to leave the room. "The alarm means that the Neo-Equalists are coming! We don't have much time!"
Shun sat up quickly, ignoring the protesting spinning of his head. Neo-Equalists were coming? Here? Was this about to be a repeat of Roku's Island all over again? Struggling to his feet, Shun stumbled his way to the door. What a time to be sick indeed. He growled under his breath, but refused to give up: he would not be a sitting turtle duck just because he had a fever. Turning back, Shun reached out a hand, beckoning to the lieutenant. "Come on, ZanYi," he urged. He wasn't going anywhere unless she went with him, because from now on, where she went, he went.
ZanYi didn't need the summons. She was on her feet, and quickly moving to Shun's side, slipping her arm around him to pull his arm across her shoulders. There was no way the guy was going to get very far on his own.
"Li, get the children and go on down there," the lieutenant ordered, ready for anything. The woman could be taken from the military, but the military couldn't be taken out of the woman. Moving as quickly as she could with Shun's sick and tizzy state, ZanYi got him downstairs, where the alarms sounded almost louder. It was piercing. She lead him down to the basement, content that the sirens were quieter. The twins and Ping were already down there, but that wasn't enough for her. "Syaoran and Tiki…" she muttered, their absence the most immediate thing to her. The lieutenant pushed even faster then, setting Shun down. "I'm going to go find them. Stay here and don't move, Shun."
Shun's hand immediately closed around ZanYi's wrist. He was battling with the desire to keep her safe as well as the desire to have Tiki and Syaoran safe as well. It was a short battle—his loyalty to his friends won out, and he reluctantly released ZanYi. "Hurry back," he urged, his eyes never leaving hers. If he knew ZanYi, he knew she would want to stay outside and fight. But, just this once, he wanted her to remain safe. He hoped that she would hear him.
ZanYi nodded to Shun, taking a step back. "I'll try," was the best promise she could give him. And the lieutenant knew it wasn't enough. And she knew he probably hated this, hated having to stay behind while they were all out there. But having Shun try and follow her would do more harm than good in his state.
Outside, everyone was moving, the children summoning air scooters and high-tailing it home, where their worried mothers ushered them inside, slamming the doors behind them. Tiki turned to Syaoran and Kei urgently. "You two need to get inside," she asserted, grabbing each of the men by the hand and pulling them as fast as she could to her aunt's house. "Once inside, go into the basement and stay there. You especially, Syaoran."
"But what's happening?" Kei wanted to know. Tiki stopped pulling them long enough to dash up the porch. She knew the spare key was hidden in the alcove, but she was too short to reach, so she used her airbending to pop the key loose. The tiny airbender unlocked the front door and swung it open before turning to answer Kei's question.
"The Neo-Equalists are coming," she said darkly, sizing Kei up. She stepped forward so that she towered over the nonbender, standing her ground on the porch. "If you want to leave with them, Kei, I won't stop you. But if you join forces with them against us, I will not hesitate to bring you down, understand?"
Kei's face blanched at this bold declaration. Before he could reply, Tiki turned from him to focus on Syaoran. "Inside, Syaoran," she said again, her tone making it clear that it was not a request.
Syaoran, however, did not care whether it was a request or not. His feet were planted, and his gaze on Tiki. "Well you have to go too then," he told her, refusing to enter until he knew that Tiki was going too. His furrowed stare went from her to Kei, suddenly wary.
The guy had not done anything to them; that was fact. He had only been a friendly shadow. But things were about to change very quickly. Things were going to get hostile; the war was coming to them again, and Syaoran didn't know where Kei stood.
"You better make up your mind fast which side you're going to be on, because this is about to get ugly," the Avatar warned him with narrow eyes.
Kei looked between the two, looking anxious. "But… what makes you think they'll want to fight?" he ventured to ask. Tiki removed her gaze from Syaoran long enough to deadpan a look at Kei.
"We're benders, Kei," she reminded him needlessly, "and the last time I checked, the NEs are trying to wipe us all out. Why do you think we're going to fight?"
"I—" Kei began, but Tiki strode away from him, looking down into Syaoran's eyes as she stood above him on the porch.
"Syaoran, go inside," she urged him once again, this time with an ounce of panic in her voice. "I don't have time to argue with you—they could be here any minute."
YinLi rushed out of the house just then, appearing shocked to see Tiki and her friends outside. "What are you all doing?" she demanded, approaching her niece. "Do you not hear the sirens? Get into the basement, all of you!"
"I'm staying with you, Aunt Li," Tiki asserted, turning her stubborn gaze onto YinLi next. This caused her aunt to frown.
"No, Tiki. You'll be safer in the basement. The Neo-Equalists usually go away if I bribe them—"
"They're robbing you, Aunt Li!" Tiki growled, crossing her arms. "We should be able to live freely!"
"I don't need you making trouble, Tiki," YinLi said, her scowl becoming more defined. "Now be a good girl and go inside with your friends!"
"No," Tiki denied forcefully, taking a step towards her aunt. "No matter what happens… I'm staying with you, Aunt Li."
YinLi huffed, utterly putout with Tiki. Why did she have to be so stubborn? She was her mother's daughter indeed—once she decided on a course of action, she pursued it to the very end. But YinLi had already lost her sister. She could not lose her niece too.
Just as she opened her mouth to argue further with Tiki, the island sirens stopped, only to be replaced with an even more disturbing sound: the chopping of helicopter blades. YinLi looked anxiously towards the sky before her gray gaze returned to Tiki.
"Oh… do what you want, then! I don't have time to argue with you!" The woman cried, rushing out towards the bank of the island, putting herself in plain sight with her wallet clutched firmly in her hands. Tiki quickly shook out her bangs to cover her arrow—it would not help matters to have her tattoos shown plainly in sight. At least she had dressed in a long-sleeve shirt and jeans today. She stepped down the porch steps with her head held high, and turned to look at Kei as she passed him.
"What are you going to do?"
Kei shifted uncomfortably, his eyes looking everywhere but into Tiki's. The truth was, he was not sure where he stood on this issue. A couple days ago, he had believed benders to be the most frightening thing on the face of this earth. But after meeting Tiki, her family and her friends… suddenly, Kei was not so sure. But did that mean he had to turn his back on his fellow nonbenders? Uncertain, Kei finally met Tiki's eyes, seeing the strength and determination there. She knew what she had to do, and she was determined to do it… no matter what. Suddenly, Kei had his answer.
"I… will stand with you, Tiki," Kei proclaimed with a nod. Tiki's eyebrows shot up into her hairline for a brief moment. When she saw how serious he was, however, her surprise faded to be replaced with something else: respect.
"Very well," she accepted with a small nod of her own. Turning to her right, Tiki locked gazes with Syaoran once more. "Go inside," she told him one last time before striding out towards her aunt, Kei in tow. Whatever happened, she was determined to protect her aunt—and this island—from harm. The Neo-Equalists had already taken enough from her. They would not rob her of her home and family a third time.
And Syaoran was determined to help her. So he started for the beach right after Tiki, only to hear a yell from behind. "Syaoran!" ZanYi called out, stern. The young man turned to look back at her with surprise. "Get in the basement, now. You can't be out here."
Syaoran stopped and watched as ZanYi made quick steps towards him, that fiery look in her eyes. But he wasn't going to yield to her words this time. "Tiki's staying out here with her aunt. We can't leave them out here," he told her, starting to move backwards to continue to the beach.
"I'll get them inside, just go now before hell breaks loose," ZanYi told him, moving ever closer. But Syaoran refused.
"Kei's with them," Syaoran pushed further. "He says he'll stand with us, but I'm not going to let him change his mind." And before the Avatar could be swayed further by ZanYi—whether by her words, her face, or her force—he scurried down to the beach. In great irritation, the lieutenant followed after him with every intent to bring all of them back inside.
Upon arrival he was yelled at again. "Syaoran!" Tiki growled, irritation beginning to fill her when she saw the Avatar headed her way, ZanYi in tow. "Would you listen to me for once?! You can't be out here!"
"All of you should be inside!" YinLi asserted, turning an aggrieved expression upon the four young people in her midst.
"I'm not going anywhere, Aunt Li!" Tiki insisted, turning to glare at her aunt. YinLi was about to spit out a retort, but the helicopter noises were getting louder. A moment later, a black helicopter appeared in the sky, getting bigger and bigger with the Neo-Equalist symbol emblazoned on the side. Tiki turned into her aunt's side as the helicopter flew closer to them, tossing up wind and sand. As it landed and the blades slowed, Tiki made sure her bangs were lying flat over her forehead before turning to see who was exiting the aircraft.
Only three men came out of the helicopter, all of them wearing the Neo-Equalist uniform. With a jolt, Tiki recognized the last Neo-Equalist to exit the helicopter: he was the one who had ordered the shooting of her parents. Gritting her teeth, Tiki reached out to take the nearest hand available; it happened to be Syaoran's. She squeezed his hand while her other hand wandered up to the neckline of her shirt, where her amulet lay hidden. So this murderer dared to come after the rest of her family, did he? Tiki would just see about that.
"Quite a welcoming committee," said the first Neo-Equalist, standing before YinLi with a smug grin. "Usually it's only you who dares to oppose us, YinLi."
"If it's money you want, take it," Tiki's aunt asserted, opening her wallet and shoving a stack of cash into the Neo-Equalists' open palm. "We've done nothing, so leave us in peace."
"This won't be enough," said the second Neo-Equalist, taking the bills from the first and counting them swiftly. "We'll need twice this amount from now on."
"What?" YinLi questioned, her face paling.
"Times have changed, airbender," the second Neo-Equalist continued, adjusting his glasses. "We're suddenly finding ourselves in need of more backing than usual, considering the rest of your kind that still believes they have a chance to win this war just won't stop pestering us. Consider it an inconvenience tax."
Tiki's blood began to boil. Now they were going to double their extortion of her aunt? Nuh-uh. No way. It was not going to go down like this.
"We owe you nothing," she hissed, ignoring the horrified warning looks her aunt was giving her. "Call it what you want, but you Neo-Equalists are just a bunch of cowards and thieves, among other things!"
"Hush!" YinLi shushed Tiki, but too late: she had drawn the attention of the Neo-Equalists… the third, especially.
"You look familiar, little girl…" he drawled, leaning over to inspect Tiki more closely. She had to resist the urge to spit in his face. "I've seen you before, haven't I? …Perhaps in Republic City?"
Now he was mocking her? Tiki let go of Syaoran's hand, balling them into fists instead. "Oh, I don't know," she began sarcastically, once again ignoring YinLi's looks that told her to be quiet. "You haven't murdered any innocent airbending couples lately, have you?"
A spark of recognition went through the Neo-Equalists cold eyes; he smirked in delight. "Ah, the Chouko brat," he said, "so this is where you've been hiding. No wonder no one could find you after your little… temper tantrum. We should have known you'd want to be with your own kind, though. Nothing like airbending slums to remind you of your dear departed mommy and daddy, right?"
Tiki reacted without thinking: her fist struck out and hit the Neo-Equalist square in the face. Tiki smirked when she heard the satisfying crunch of his nose under her knuckles. The Neo-Equalist roared with pain, jumping back and clutching his bleeding nose.
"Insolent brat!" he roared, retrieving a handgun from his jacket and pointing it square at Tiki's forehead. Before he could pull the trigger, however, a swift movement had the gun out of his hands and into an unlikely pair of hands—Kei's. The other two Neo-Equalists had drawn their guns, but it seemed that they were afraid to shoot—Kei had his gun trained on their colleague, and Kei was much closer to their colleague than they were to him.
"I don't want to fight," Kei qualified, though he did take the safety off the hand gun, "I just want to talk."
"Kei," Tiki called, eyeing the gun in the nonbender's grasp. After all, she was not exactly sure if she could trust him or not. Kei glanced over to her before his hazel gaze returned to the Neo-Equalists.
"It's all right, Tiki," he tried to reassure the tiny airbender. "They're not going to hurt you—or anyone else—on this island. Right, fellas?"
"Who do you think you are?" the third Neo-Equalist spat through the blood trickling into his mouth. Kei lifted a dark eyebrow.
"You don't recognize me?" he asked, sounding almost incredulous. When the Neo-Equalists continued to stare, he lifted a shoulder. "All right: maybe you recognize this then?" With his free hand, Kei pulled down the right shoulder of the shirt he wore, revealing bare flesh save for one thing: a winding tattoo that circled his upper bicep and led all the way to the top of his shoulder, the head of a dragon roaring there. Upon catching sight of the tattoo, all three of the Neo-Equalists' eyes widened.
"It can't be…" the first Neo-Equalist muttered, "you're—"
"That's right," Kei cut him off, shrugging his shirt back into place. "I'm the son of the boss, in fact. And I happened to be enjoying a quaint little vacation on this island before you so rudely interrupted. So here's what you're going to do: you're going to give this nice lady back her money, climb back into your helicopter, fly off into the sunset, and never come back again. You're also not going to speak a word about this to anyone: I don't want word of my vacation spot getting out."
The Neo-Equalists stared at Kei, as if he had just demanded that they all start prancing around to the song 'I Feel Pretty'. Slowly, they turned to face one another.
"We should do what he says," the first one said immediately, still eyeing Kei in fright.
"How do we know he's actually one of the sons, though?" the second Neo-Equalist asked, looking suspicious.
"Want me to get my father on the phone?" Kei offered, producing a cell phone out of nowhere. As the Neo-Equalists watched, he flipped the phone open, his thumb hovering over the 'call' button. "I'm sure he'd be fascinated to hear just why you have not done as I asked."
The threat was clear in Kei's hazel eyes: Try me. That seemed to be enough for the Neo-Equalists. Scowling, the second Neo-Equalist threw YinLi's money at her feet. "This island is useless to us anyway. Hardly poses a threat with nothing but airbenders…"
The third Neo-Equalist followed his comrades slowly, his eyes never leaving Tiki as he backed away toward the helicopter. "This isn't over, Chouko brat," he hissed, climbing into the aircraft last. "We'll meet again: you can count on it."
Tiki glared at the hateful man as he shut the door behind him, starting the helicopter up. She only stopped glaring when sand began to fly through the air, and then again until the helicopter was out of sight. Finally, she tore her gaze away from where the aircraft disappeared to land on Kei. He had dropped the gun, and was now staring down at his feet, looking rather sheepish. Tiki padded silently through the sand and approached the nonbender, holding up a hand to stay her aunt, whom had called her back. She did not halt her steps until she was standing directly in front of Kei, looking up into his face.
"So," she began, folding her arms, "you had the use of a cell phone the whole time?"
Kei grimaced. "Not really," he confessed, holding the phone up once more for Tiki to see. "No cell towers—no bars."
That made sense. Tiki was surprised the Neo-Equalists had fallen for such a bluff. They must not have been very smart. "Kei. Who are you?"
Kei looked away at this question, color rising in his cheeks. "It's… a long story," he admitted. When he turned and took notice of Tiki's expectant expression, he smiled a little. "But I'm willing to tell it… that is, if you're all willing to listen."
Kei was looking at Syaoran and ZanYi. Tiki turned to look at them too, her eyebrows raised. She was not sure about them, but personally, the tiny airbender was very interested in knowing just what it was about Kei—and his tattoo—that had made the Neo-Equalists turn tail and flee like that.
Syaoran was kind of gaping at the moment, unsure of what to think. Before he—heck, even faster, before ZanYi—could do anything at all, Kei had swooped in and resolved the entire issue. Not only had the guy remained true to his word, but successfully frightened off the Neo-Equalists?
For Tiki, he was happy, no battle having to have been fought. Considering the soldiers that had been sent, a fight could have easily broken out. It was obvious that the one had no qualms about being a cold-blooded killer. They already knew that.
But for the rest of them, Syaoran was not quite sure where he stood. Kei may have done them all a huge favor, but somehow it seemed that were still more than meets the eye to the young man—a very suspicious amount.
ZanYi seemed to have that exact notion in her mind. Her brow was furrowed deeply in distrust, and she moved to stand in front of Syaoran, tugging Tiki back a little as well. "Start talking or I start firing," the lieutenant said, leaving no room for negotiation.
If the Neo-Equalists did not want to cross this guy, than ZanYi did not trust him. Not one bit.
"ZanYi, stop it," Tiki complained, moving from behind the lieutenant to stand in front of Kei. "He just saved us from a bad situation. Can't you give him the benefit of the doubt?"
"It's okay," Kei assured the tiny airbender, smiling down at her when she looked up at him. "I know how suspicious this looks."
"Then explain so that it's no longer suspicious," Tiki replied, turning to face him. Kei's smile turned sad at this.
"No promises," he mumbled before looking up to address ZanYi. "My full name is Kei Ryuunosuke. I am the third son of Kenta Ryuunosuke, the head of the Ryuunosuke Family."
Tiki processed this information as calmly as she could, but even so, her mouth came open with a pop. "You're a gangster?"
"…Sort of," Kei admitted, looking ashamed. As Tiki took a hesitant step back, he continued heavily, "It gets worse: my father is allies with the Neo-Equalists. It's a flimsy alliance, but an alliance nonetheless—we provide them with weapons and our name, and they provide us with political power and money. It's an even trade, you could say."
Tiki may have been imagining it, but she could swear there was a whole lot of bitterness in Kei's tone as he explained his ties to the Neo-Equalists. "So how did you end up here?" she wanted to know.
Kei sighed. "I'm the third son. I'm still in the 'business', but no one really expects much of me. So I used my father's money to go out and party, buy things—you know, typical spoiled rich kid stuff. None of it was really my style, though… I guess I just wanted to make some kind of name for myself. And then, three nights ago, I borrowed my father's yacht without permission. Me and a few of my friends went out to sea, having a good time… we never even saw the storm coming until it was too late. And the next thing I knew… I woke up and saw you."
A small smile adorned Kei's features as he looked down at Tiki. "This might sound cheesy and borderline creepy, but… you kind of saved my life, Tiki. I know I haven't known you for too long, but your strength and your kindness… how you always strive to do your best, and how you protected me, a total stranger, from everyone else… you made me see that the way I was living life wasn't the answer."
Hesitantly, Kei reached out, clasping one of Tiki's tiny hands. "I want to be able to stay here with you, Tiki. I want to learn more about you, and I want you to get to know me… even the bad parts about me. Now that I know not all benders are bad, maybe I can convince others as well, with you supporting me. I want to be able to make a difference, like you do. So even though you know my past isn't great, I still hope you'll give me a chance."
Tiki was not sure why, but she was blushing. Kei made her sound way cooler than she actually felt she was. But she could also tell that he was being sincere; he wasn't just trying to butter her up. He meant what he was saying. Suddenly, the fact that he was the son of a mob boss became unimportant to Tiki.
"…I think I can do that," she agreed, a slow smile stretching across her features. Kei grinned in relief.
YinLi watched this scene unfold, feeling unexpectedly gleeful. True, being married to the son of a mob boss wasn't exactly reputable, but if Tiki did marry Kei, it sounded as if she would be well taken care of. And Kei had pretty much confessed his feelings already, unless YinLi was interpreting that speech he just made wrong. Still, the way he looked at Tiki had YinLi feeling very hopeful for their future.
"Well then, let me say this officially," she butted in, beaming at Kei, "welcome to Southern Air Island."
Perhaps having the son of a mob boss in the family wouldn't be such a bad thing… in any case, the Neo-Equalists would lose a powerful ally, and that was certainly something.
Syaoran frowned, on the fence. Kei had been harmless the whole time he'd been with them thus far. He had been instrumental in just saving them from a very hostile breakout. He clearly just wanted to help Tiki.
But, and this is why he was frowning, Kei was also the son of a mob boss. Not just that, but a mob boss with Neo-Equalist ties. Third son or not, it made Kei reasonably less reliable. Tiki was prone to trust very easily—to the point of naivety, as she'd put it earlier. And her aunt had her own warped agenda.
"What do you think about this, ZanYi?" he asked, moving to her side from her back. The Avatar didn't necessarily need a verbal reply. Darkness had crossed her face. Positives or not, it seemed the lieutenant had already made up her mind about Kei. ZanYi had crossed her arms and was glaring at Kei, hostile. She knew all about the Ryuunosuke's, about the kind of help they provided the Neo-Equalist militia. Resistance fighters had lost their lives because of the additional weaponry. Some of Zaron's soldiers, in fact.
When she started forward, Syaoran considered stopping her—but then he realized that would make things even worse. ZanYi moved between Kei and Tiki, her glowering eyes trained on him. "You may be welcome on this island by them, but let me make something painfully clear to you." The lieutenant closed the gap between her and Kei, in his face. "Give me any reason at all to think that you are not sincere, pose a threat to any of them, or your family poses a threat to them, and I will end you."
She lingered for a moment, ensuring that if Kei didn't get the message through her words, it was conveyed in the gravity of her eyes. Then ZanYi stepped back to pick the gun up out of the sand. With swift and knowing hands, she returned the safety to its rightful place and ejected the cartridge of bullets.
Her eyes never leaving Kei, she slid the top of the gun to pop out the bullet that was already loaded. "I'll be keeping this," she told him. The lieutenant was not going to allow a nonbender with any sort of Neo-Equalist ties in possession of a gun. Her point clearly made, ZanYi moved away from Kei to head back to the house, make sure everyone in the basement was fine. In passing, however, she muttered to Syaoran, "I don't care what Tiki or her aunt say: don't let him out of your sight."
He nodded, knowing he could at least do that, trustful of Kei or not. Then ZanYi continued on up to the house to tell Shun just what was going on. Syaoran walked over to the airbenders and Kei, still uncertain as to which side of the fence he was on. "A bit of advice," the Avatar did offer Kei with a grimace, "I would listen to her. She's really good at her job."
"So I see," Kei mumbled, still staring after ZanYi in shock. Tiki shook her head, disgruntled.
"Don't take it personally—she's like that with everyone," the tiny airbender explained with a folding of her arms. Kei glanced at Tiki, looking rueful.
"But she's right to keep her guard up. I would, if I were in her shoes." Kei stared down at Tiki, appearing to ponder her. Once again, Tiki felt her face flush and wondered why. "To be frank, I'm a little surprised you're willing to take me at my word. I am considered part of a crime syndicate by many, though I did not choose to be born a Ryuunosuke."
There was that bitterness again. Did Kei hate his family? It was starting to sound like that was the case. Tiki tilted her head, considering Kei as he had pondered her.
"You haven't given me a reason not to trust you so far," Tiki pointed out, "you've kept true to your word, and you were willing to admit things that aren't so easy to talk about. I can respect that, and I will respect you until you give me a reason not to… not that you will."
Kei took a moment to process this before his face lit up into a grateful grin. "Thank you, Tiki," he said fervently. "You really are an amazing woman."
The pink in Tiki's face darkened to red, and she ducked her head, embarrassed. "No problem, I guess…" she mumbled, somehow unable to meet Kei's eyes. What was she getting so flustered for? This sensation was all so new to her, and yet similar to what she felt when Zaron had been around, but deeper…
…Did this mean that Tiki liked Kei? It was hard to tell objectively—she hadn't known the guy very long at all. But when he smiled, Tiki knew that she could not help but feel attracted to him… Had YinLi's yammerings taken root in her head after all?
As if she sensed it was time to butt in, YinLi did just that, throwing an arm around both Kei and Tiki. "Well, isn't this delightful! Kei, I want you to know that I agree one hundred percent with Tiki. Feel free to stay with us as long as you like: you already feel like you're a part of the family!"
"Aunt Li," Tiki hissed, scowling at her aunt. YinLi shrugged at her, though the mischievous look in her eyes was somewhat familiar…
"Now don't fuss, Tiki," the woman chided, finally releasing her niece and Kei as she strode past them and Syaoran. "I was just being friendly. Well, I think I'll get started on dinner, then. Any requests? How about you, Kei?"
The nonbender looked a tad startled to be asked his opinion; after contemplating for a moment, he lifted a shoulder. "Whatever you make is bound to be delicious, Ms. Li," he stated diplomatically. YinLi absolutely beamed.
"Such a sweetheart," she cooed before bouncing off towards her house. Feeling as if it was a line a politician might say, Tiki turned to Kei, lifting a skeptical eyebrow for the first time since she met him.
"You're really fine with anything? We're vegetarians, you know," she reminded him, remembering all-too-clearly a time Syaoran expressed his displeasure over the lack of meat on the dinner table. Kei turned a smile onto Tiki.
"It really is fine; I don't mind that you're vegetarians. In fact, I've always wanted to try tofu, so you could say you're giving me a whole new experience."
Was this guy for real? It seemed as if he was too good to be true. But as Tiki searched his expression—and found it to be sincere—she could not help but smile. Kei was definitely unlike any boy she had ever met before.
Syaoran almost felt like Kei was being a suck-up. It reminded him of all the times his sister had pulled similar lines to get her way at home. But Kei just seemed to be trying to be considerate; Syaoran knew he could probably do with a bit more of that. Apparently, airbender or not, Li was not about to forget his slip at dinner about the meat. A month ago.
Even Tiki was starting to fall for the nonbender's spell, it seemed. Her finally being happy again was one thing. But this shy, flushing thing? When Syaoran wasn't sure whether they could fully trust Kei, and had strict orders from the lieutenant to watch him, that didn't look good to him.
"Well, let's get going so you can have that new experience, Kei," Syaoran encouraged, coming up on Tiki's side. He slung an arm over her shoulder, putting her in a loose headlock and leading her back up to the house. "After all, Li seems quite enthusiastic about dinner tonight."
Tiki frowned, displeased with the sudden man-handling treatment she was receiving. True, Syaoran wasn't hurting her, but she still didn't like the way he was handling her.
"Let go," she demanded, though she did not give Syaoran a chance to oblige—the tiny airbender elbowed him in his side and ducked out from under his arm as soon as she was able. Tiki stepped in front of him with her hands on her tiny hips. "Quit treating me like a kid, all right? I'm older than you, remember?"
"Are you really?" Kei asked, sounding interested as he came up beside Tiki.
"Yeah—he's nineteen, and I'm twenty," Tiki informed Kei while at the same time reminding Syaoran of the age difference. From her peripheral vision, Tiki noticed Kei's amused look.
"It's not that much older," he pointed out, recalling the tiny airbender mentioning that her birthday had just passed a few weeks ago.
Tiki turned to give Kei a look. "It's enough," she insisted in a tone of voice that dared Kei to claim otherwise. Taking the hint—though still looking very amused—Kei passed the pair and headed back towards the house. Once he was gone, Tiki turned to Syaoran once more, her frown lessening.
"Please start taking me seriously, Syaoran," she requested, asking rather than demanding. "I know you're used to how I was before…" Tiki paused, her breath catching, and then barreled on determinedly, "but I'm not that girl anymore, okay? I don't think I will ever be that girl again. It was time for me to grow up, so I did. Please respect that."
Syaoran frowned, starting to be miffed as well. He didn't understand why this age thing was bothering her. He would be turning twenty at some point within the next year as well. A few months made no difference to how she was acting.
"If I didn't take you seriously, I wouldn't have taken you as my airbending teacher," he deadpanned, wanting to roll his eyes, "and I wouldn't talk ask for your opinions either." The Avatar stepped closer to her, not caring if it seemed like he was looming over her, a hand ruffling through his shaggy hair in frustration. "I don't care who think you are now and who you thought you were then. I'm going to treat you like Tiki, and that means all of you. And you know what? If you had really grown up, you would know that the girl who was high on life and bounced around like a maniac is still a part of you."
Tiki's face colored once more, though not in a good way. "You mean the stupid little girl who was always annoying everyone else with her chatter and mischief?" she deadpanned right back, "And don't bother denying it: I know that's how you thought of me." It was how everyone thought of her, except for maybe Shun… but that man usually had a deep well of patience, so he didn't really count.
"You know what I think?" Tiki asked, though it was a rhetorical question. "I think you want me to go back to my old self because I was easier to boss around back then, and now you don't know what to do with me." Tiki stepped closer, frowning up into Syaoran's face. "News flash, Syaoran: that Tiki is gone. So don't ever mention her again. I hate her." And with that, Tiki turned on her heel and stormed away in the direction of the dojo, wanting to be alone.
That Tiki was an airhead who always tried to laugh herself through her problems and never took anything seriously, causing irritation and exhaustion for the ones who attempted to put up with her. Looking back now, Tiki wanted to hang herself for all the foolish things she had said and done. She really could not blame everyone else for not taking her seriously: who could, when she behaved like a clown? It was probably already too late to ask for anyone's respect, although Syaoran swore that he did take her seriously, otherwise she would not be his airbending teacher or his confidant… personally, Tiki thought he had just taken her on because he was desperate.
Entering the empty dojo, Tiki sighed, sliding down the wall to sit down, wrapping her arms around her legs. Well this was fantastic: now she was in a foul mood. There was no way she could go to dinner like this. What now?
Tiki looked up at the wall opposite her, the whole thing covered in mirrors. Her reflection stared back at her, a look forming on her face that Tiki recognized all-too-well. Why not? It wasn't like anyone else was around…
Getting to her feet, the tiny airbender strode across the room to the boombox she kept in the dojo for the occasions she wanted to play soothing music for the children. She had other CDs, however, and found her favorite right away; it was at the top of the stack. Tiki popped the CD in, pressed play, and moved to the center of the dojo. As the music started, she took a deep breath, stretching out her muscles a little. When the tempo picked up, she nodded her head to the beat. Just as the music broke into the bridge, Tiki began to move, her spins and steps timed with the music. She had had a little professional training in the art of dance—ballet, to be specific—when she was a child, but had been kicked out of the class by the teacher for making up her own dance moves. She liked free form a little too much, the teacher had complained to her parents.
Even so, Tiki never stopped dancing. Did she do it often? Not really, no. But that didn't mean she had ever stopped or stopped loving dance. In a way, Kei had been right when he said that airbending was like dancing: one's moves had to flow as they did in dancing in order for one to airbend successfully. But Tiki had said that airbending was not dancing because, even with all the flowy movements, there wasn't much room to improvise if she wanted to airbend right. With dance, she could make up any move she wanted to make, and no one would be the wiser, as long as she looked good doing it.
…Not that anyone ever watched her dance.
That is, until that moment.
Syaoran wasn't about to just let her storm off like that, not when she wasn't seeing sense. Of all the things that had changed about Tiki, why couldn't her attitude when she got mad be one of them? She still refused to see sense when she was mad. And he didn't appreciate that.
He was going to tell her so when he caught up with her at the dojo. But when he got to the doorframe, he stopped, watching. He was surprised, among many things. He supposed he'd never pegged Tiki for a dancer. Then again, Syaoran thought as he leaned against the jam, it made sense. An excitable airbender sounded like quite the dancer.
"Indeed she is…" he muttered to himself, jade eyes watching, the irritation ebbing away. In fact, at one point, Syaoran was even nodding along as he watched in silence. He couldn't recall the last time he'd been able to listen to music—it had to be a long time ago, before his family had been taken to the concentration camps. Certainly the Avatar was not familiar with the song, but that didn't stop him from enjoying it, or Tiki's movements.
The last part of the song had Tiki doing a series of spins. Her eyes were closed, enjoying the sensation of letting her body move to the rhythm of music. Vaguely, she thought to herself that she should really stop spinning before she ran into the walls, but she knew the dojo like the back of her hand. She had time to stop if she needed to…
…Or so she thought. One spin too many had her crashing into something that actually gave way under her minimal weight. Down she went, taking whatever solid object she had knocked over with her. There was a crash involved, and Tiki's eyes were squeezed shut as she braced herself for the unpleasant feeling of broken glass or some other broken object. But though she was laying on top of whatever she had just knocked over, nothing felt like it was in pieces… Curious now, Tiki peeked through one eye, only to have her gray gaze fly open at the sight of Syaoran sprawled out under her.
"Syaoran!" Tiki squeaked, her shock and embarrassment causing her voice to go up a few octaves. Trying to regain some of her dignity, the tiny airbender scowled down at the Avatar. "What are you doing, spying on me like that!"
How humiliating. How did she not realize that he had been there the whole time? She must have been too involved in the music to be focused enough to sense his chi… what a scary thought. And now she had to deal with the consequences of her inattentiveness. Perfect.
"I wasn't spying on you!" Syaoran denied adamantly. He reached up to rub the back of his head, a dull ache there from where he hit the floor. Rising to sit up, Tiki still on him, the Avatar winced. At least Tiki was light; that was all he could be thankful for.
Opening his eyes to really look at Tiki, Syaoran lifted an eyebrow. "I came to talk to you and you barreled into me," he explained. He was holding himself up by leaning back on one hand, the other hand across his knee, the fingers carelessly touching Tiki's back.
"You never mentioned you danced," Syaoran noted, almost accusatory. But there was no sting to his words, a look of approval on his face. "You're pretty good."
Tiki looked away then, her face getting warmer. Why was she blushing all the time lately? If any more blood ended up in her head, she would pass out. "That was actually just a warm-up," she admitted to him, not bothering to move—he didn't seem bothered by their proximity, so why should she be? "I haven't danced professionally in years, so I'm really rusty… but thank you."
The melody from the boombox shifted to another, slower song—a ballad. Tiki's eyes saddened. This was the song her parents danced to at their wedding, which was why Tiki loved it. They always said that one day she would dance to this song with her own husband at her own wedding… now they would never get to see her get married.
With a sigh, Tiki rested her head on Syaoran's shoulder. She hoped he wouldn't mind—she kind of needed the support at the moment. "…I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier," she apologized, closing her eyes as she listened to the Avatar's distant heartbeat. "I've been moody all the time lately—I'm acting like Aunt Li when she was pregnant with the twins. I just… I'm not sure who I am anymore, or who I should be. Who I was before… I'm ashamed of her. But, come to think of it, I'm not sure I like who I am right now either."
This was ridiculous—on top of everything else going on in her life, the tiny airbender was having an identity crisis. When would the problems end? At least she could depend on Syaoran when she really needed to. They almost never saw eye to eye, but they were at least always there for each other when it counted.
Syaoran almost sighed, since Tiki finally seemed to be being honest with herself. Because just as much as she didn't know who she was these days, neither did they. It showed in everyone. Shun couldn't find the words to say. Li always felt like she was saying and doing the wrong thing. ZanYi… well, the lieutenant treated her hardly any different, but then again, the firebender treated just about everyone with indifference.
Even Syaoran himself didn't know whom he was dealing with anymore. He respected Tiki for being able to airbend—he was the Avatar and he couldn't figure it out. And the girl had gone through a lot. But this wasn't the Tiki they knew.
"Don't worry about it, Tiki," he assured her first with a shrug. Syaoran knew she was having a rough time. If she got it out at all, then he was content. His eyes rested on her head, face in his chest. Even a pose so intimate felt so comfortable and easy with Tiki. It was nothing like the lieutenant, and Syaoran actually found himself grateful for that. "It's okay to be unsure right now," Syaoran continued, lifting a hand to ruffle her hair. "Just figure it out the best you can. Sure, who you were before could be annoying, but at least you were true to you."
His lips quirked a little at the thought—Syaoran resisted the grimace. "If you don't like who you are now, then take the parts you do like of you were, of who you are, and who you want to be, and become that person. As long as you're Tiki, the rest of us will take you."
Tiki opened her eyes, pondering the pearl of wisdom Syaoran had unexpectedly offered her. Just when did he get so smart? The tiny airbender sat up, meeting Syaoran's gaze with her own perplexed stare.
"Can I really do that?" she asked, as if she needed his permission first. Was it really okay for her to mix and match like that? Wouldn't that put her at risk for multiple-personality disorder? As councilwoman (in training) of the airbending nation, she was required to act a certain way… but was it okay to let loose with her friends and family, to be the person she was free to be when she was not under public scrutiny? Was it okay for her to be a little immature at times? To laugh or cry when she wanted? To be able to have the choice to be silly or serious? Would it really be okay for her to actually be… happy?
The lump Tiki had become so familiar with was beginning to rise in her throat once again. But for once she did not feel like crying from sadness. For once, the tears that began to well in her eyes were tears of joy. Finally, with a little help from Syaoran, she had found her answer.
"Thank you, Syaoran," Tiki mumbled, hugging the Avatar around the neck. Her tears embarrassed her of course, but now she knew it was okay to cry when she wanted: especially if it was Syaoran she was crying around. Tiki knew he hated to see her cry, but he also insisted it was healthy for her, so, just once in a while, she would allow herself to be vulnerable. But only with Syaoran. He alone had earned that privilege for sticking with her all through the pain and rough patches.
Syaoran was certainly conflicted then. On the one hand, Tiki finally felt a little like Tiki, and whatever he'd said this time actually got through, unlike the other times. Those were all good things. Her holding it in was bad.
But then she was actually crying then. And that brought him under the scope of a whole load of awkward. He was willing to deal with it if it helped Tiki, but that didn't mean he had all of the answers. Apparently, Syaoran just had some.
"Um, you're welcome?" he suggested, patting her back a little. Syaoran bucked it up, however, thinking that at last there was some kind of breakthrough here. "Yeah… you're welcome, Tiki. Whatever helps, I guess."
Through her tears, Tiki giggled. At least some things hadn't changed.
"You're so awkward," she told him, sniffling and smiling at the same time as she pulled away from him. "But you're sweet." In her rush of affection for the Avatar, Tiki did something she had never done before: she kissed Syaoran on the cheek. Brushing away her tear tracks, the tiny airbender moved off of Syaoran and got to her feet to cross the room and turn the boombox off. Whirling on her heels, Tiki approached Syaoran once again, a new bounce in her step.
"Shall we go? With all the people staying in my aunt's house now, we'll be lucky if we get fed," she teased with a smile. Ah, she was actually smiling on her own. It felt good to be able to do so again.
Syaoran just kind of looked at Tiki, jaw dropped a reasonable amount. Had Tiki just…? But she couldn't have. But she did?
"Huh?"
It was very unintelligible, but it was the first noise Syaoran could actually make. Shaking it off with a whip of his shaggy hair, the Avatar got up then, standing over her. Tiki was smiling. And it wasn't Kei-induced. And she had a pip in her step. Syaoran was just about as grateful for all of that as he was horrified. But he would survive if it helped cheer the girl up.
"Yeah, yeah. Time for tofu. Yum." Not that the food wasn't good. It was quite good! And it was hot food! But Syaoran couldn't but feel a bit pampered after leaving Roku's Island. They sure could cook there.
Syaoran ruffled at Tiki's hair, knocking her head away as he did so, hiding her gaze from the tinge of red on his face. "Let's go, Tiki," he said, and then he led them back to the house for dinner, a bit hopeful that maybe Tiki would really be okay someday.
Shun sat in the cold basement with Ping, Pai and Sho—who were clinging onto their elder brother in fright—just listening. He could hear nothing, of course, but that did not stop him from trying. The lights had been cut off, so they just sat there in the dark, with the occasional whimper from one of the twins. After a few tense minutes, Shun could not take it any more.
"I'm going up there," he decided, struggling to his feet. He did not get far before a gust of air knocked his feet out from under him, causing him to land on his backside. "Ping!" he growled in frustration, glaring at the space somewhere to his right.
"You can't leave, Shun," Ping said calmly in the darkness, "You might give away our position if they're still out there."
Shun growled under his breath. Ping had a point. How annoying.
"What about everyone else?" the giant waterbender challenged. "It's been twenty minutes already. How do we know they're okay?"
"We don't," Ping replied, his voice harsh with the truth. "All we can do is sit here and hope that everything is all right."
Belatedly, it occurred to Shun that this must be just as frustrating for Ping as it was for him: the airbender would probably rather be outside with his mother and cousin as well, but he had to look after his younger brother and sister. And Shun would be useless in a fight in his condition. All the two of them could do was sit there and hope that things would turn out fine. Shun hated being helpless, but given the circumstances, he did not have any other choice.
Thankfully for his dwindling patience, the light was soon kicked back on in the basement. Footsteps thudded down the stairs and soon ZanYi came into sight. For the children's sake, the lieutenant had pocketed the gun and all its ammo in her deep pockets. No need for them to be concerned.
"The coast is clear now," she announced, a bit terse and tense. "Everyone down here okay?"
"What took you so long?" Shun demanded, struggling to his feet once more—that fall Ping caused him to take had hurt quite a lot. Nonetheless, Shun made his way over to ZanYi, automatically taking her face in his hands as he glanced over her. "Are you all right? What happened?"
"Is my mother safe?" Ping wanted to know, approaching ZanYi as well with Pai and Sho in tow. "And Tiki? Is everything all right?"
ZanYi swatted down Shun's hands, not really in the mood at the moment for his worrywart tendencies. "Everything is fine, Shun," she told him. The lieutenant turned to Ping and his siblings, nodding to him. "Your mother and Tiki are just fine. Absolutely no one was hurt. They're probably upstairs by now. You can go on up and check."
Needing no other encouragement than that, Ping rushed past them to go up the stairs, both of the twins lapping at his heels. Once they were out of sight, ZanYi let out a groan of irritation. Looking to Shun, she frowned. "There wasn't even a fight. Turns out our nonbender is the son of a crime boss with ties to the NEs," ZanYi started to explain, clearly unhappy with the turn of events. "Kei sided with us and sent away the soldiers before things got ugly."
Shun blinked at ZanYi. Surely, he must have misheard. Did she say that Kei…?
"…Are you telling me that Kei is a gangster?" Shun wanted to clarify, looking at ZanYi as if she was babbling nonsense. After all, this was Kei they were talking about, the nonbender who had taken to following Tiki around like a lost pup-cub over the past couple of days he'd been here. What about him exactly screamed 'crime boss's son'? "Explain, please, because I'm confused."
ZanYi rolled her eyes and groaned. "I didn't stutter Shun," she snipped in her frustration. After shooting him an irritable look, the lieutenant moved to sit on the steps, arms resting on her knees.
"Kei is the son of the head of the Ryuunosuke family, a crime syndicate that has been supplying the NEs with weapons for a while now." And she certainly didn't like that. Since that family's involvement, it was all the more help to the enemy forces, all the more benders' lives taken.
ZanYi shook her head and pursed her lips tight. "He claims that he changed when he came here, that he's changing sides. I don't buy it."
Shun sank down next to ZanYi, frowning in confusion. "Something doesn't sound right," he agreed, though for an entirely different reason. "If he wanted us to trust him, why would he willingly admit that he's a part of the Ryuunosuke family? If I were him, I'd do the exact opposite and hide it for as long as I could."
And yet, according to ZanYi, Kei had revealed his origins in order to make the Neo-Equalists leave the island. Why?
"Why is he eager to stand with the benders all of a sudden?" Shun speculated to himself out-loud, rubbing his stubbly chin. It was rather difficult to think through his fever, and the basement was freezing, which did not help matters. But still, this problem was too important for him to worry about anything else. "He's a Ryuunosuke… What could he possibly gain from allying himself with us?"
The few times the giant waterbender saw Kei, he was always with Tiki so she could keep an eye on him. He was always watching her as she went about her daily business, and soon began to open up to her as well, smiling and talking and joking with her. Could it be possible that the reason he was siding with the benders… was because of their very own Tiki?
"…Call me crazy, but I think Kei might be sincere," Shun stated his opinion after thinking long and hard about the issue. The only way it made sense was if Kei was actually telling the truth; otherwise, he was just wasting time here. The island had nothing to offer him, and he could just as easily have escaped with the Neo-Equalists off the island. So why bother to defend the island, reveal his secret and scare off the NEs?
For Tiki, of course. Maybe it was Shun's gigantic heart doing the thinking for him, but he wanted to believe that Tiki was actually having a positive influence on the misguided youth. ZanYi doubted Kei based on his background, but Shun was willing to believe that anyone could change, if they were sincerely willing to do so.
But in response, ZanYi looked at Shun, as if in betrayal. Truly, it was not what she wanted or expected to hear, though the lieutenant shouldn't be surprised. Generally speaking, the man was one of those who preferred to see the good rather than the bad—or the realistic, as ZanYi considered it.
"So you're willing to risk everyone's safety just because you think he's sincere?"
Shun stared up at ZanYi, looking as if she had struck him. Now that stung. How could she imply such a thing? Didn't she know better by now?
She couldn't help but the let the question out. Her and Shun didn't see eye to eye on many things, but when the safety of the group was concerned, they usually agreed. It was a moment when it hurt a bit, a reminder that these people were not like her, not trained. They hadn't seen what she'd seen, despite the effect the war had had on all of them.
ZanYi shook her head, pushing the question away. "Sincere or not, one false move and he's mine," she vowed, standing up then. Too many of her comrades had been lost in this war for her to just be so forgiving, so willing to accept his change. It wasn't happening. "I'm not taking any risks."
"ZanYi," he began with a frown, rising to his feet. "You know I have your back. If you had a solid reason to distrust Kei, I would stand with you. I'd never put Syaoran, Tiki, or anyone else in harm's way."
Shun leaned in, firmly meeting ZanYi's eyes. "But I will not demonize the boy for his father's actions. So far he has done nothing to make me doubt him, so I'm willing to give him the benefit. If, however, he tries anything, I will let you say 'I told you so' as many times as you want. For now, I'm reserving judgment."
The giant waterbender's nose was beginning to itch. Turning swiftly from ZanYi, he let out another powerful sneeze. With a hearty sniff and a scowl, Shun began to march up the stairs. "I'm going upstairs. It's freezing down here."
If his cold got worse over this, Shun was going to be a very unhappy waterbender.
ZanYi didn't follow after the waterbender, but paced away, even more irritable. Few things put ZanYi in a bad mood more than the higher-stakes disagreements she had with Shun. Finding out about Kei was bad enough; now she had this to contend with when her and Shun had just made up.
She cursed and lashed a hand out at the wall, sucking in a long breath when the pain hit her hand. She'd forgotten it was her injured hand.
Sliding down to the floor, ZanYi shook her head, trying to figure out what to do now. Everyone wanted her to trust Kei, but every instinct and predisposition the lieutenant had said not to. It was a battle that could not be won, and the soldier in her detested that.
Pressure built up inside and then the woman let out a small sneeze. And she froze. ZanYi could not be getting sick too now. The mere suggestion made her almost regret making Shun take the medicine the way he had.
The sad part was that, possibly sick or not, ZanYi didn't regret it.
"I'm going to kill Shun one of these days."
A/N from DJ: Things can never go right for Team Avatar, can it? xP On the plus side, hopefully this will be a turning point for Tiki! And what will happen with Kei? Who knows! Keep reading xD On another note, I think we're just going to say that the chapters could be coming out on Fridays or Saturdays now. Some weeks it's hard to get it out on Friday xP Just a heads up, y'all! Now, to the acknowledgements:
Japaneserockergirl: YOU LIVE! You're still behind, so I dunno if you'll even get to see this, but hooray! We were wondering what had happened to you xP Hopefully someday you'll catch back up! And yes, Air is the drama book, so things get heavy xP We try to give interludes where we can. Glad you enjoyed the Revelation though!
Same Guest: Not going to lie, I just about died laughing when I saw that you were now labeled "Same Guest" instead of just Guest xDD I just think that's hysterical. I hope you survived the suspense of the last week and enjoyed this chapter! And hopefully we'll be able to keep impressing you, week after week! As for progression... are you talking story or pairings? Same Guest, my dear, are you shipping? xDD
That's all for now, folks, and we'll see you again next weekend! Hope you enjoyed and more will come! To be continued...