Written for the prompt 'escape':
The Joy of Remembrance
Appa was frantic. But more than anything, the air bison was tired. Manacles on each of his six legs kept him in place, like an insect pinned to a mounting board. He could blow air all he wanted, but he couldn't move from his position. Huffing once more, a brief burst of air, he allowed brown eyes to close.
The bad men had put him down here, away from the sky and away from sunlight, and away from Aang. Below ground, in the dank cell, water continually dripping, the air bison felt only half alive. The stone floor was cold despite thick pads on the bottom of his feet. He recalled the beautiful ice of the Polar Regions, its slippery smoothness. It was cold too. But Aang had been with him, negating any discomfort or strangeness he had felt.
The boy's laugh filled his memory now, the sound of a fresh breeze caressing the sweet, new leaves of spring. It lulled him to sleep and for a few minutes, Appa was at peace.
~~~~0000~~~~
A Girl and Her Knives
Sometimes Mai wondered how objects so deadly could provide her so much comfort. Was it that her knives, the sleek, cool smoothness of them, felt perfect in her hand, almost a part of it? They were every bit as vital to her as the heart pumping blood or the lungs taking in air. Life without them would be like life without Zuko; unthinkable now.
Mai was fastidious and kept each weapon clean and sharp. Light bounced off their shiny surfaces and she could see her reflection in each blade, clear as if in a mirror. The weight of them on her body, slight enough, but noticeable when absent, kept her in balance. She felt right with them on. Even while she slept, Mai kept two blades on her person, one on her thigh and one on her upper arm. One could never be too careful or too safe. And they could add an element of surprise and intensity to lovemaking as well.
The sound of steel hitting her targets during training, or the wood of a tree, that wonderful, solid thump, the sight of the projectiles soaring through the air, graceful as birds in flight, calmed her; they provided a reprieve from both the boredom and the strain of daily life.
The young woman knew well enough that she would still be 'Mai' without them, but the thought of giving them up horrified her. For years now, those sharp, shiny things had given her an escape. She owed them much more than that.
