Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters.

It had been a week since Kuvira was able to stabilize Ba Sing Se, and with the approval of the world leaders, her forces were heading to the next Earth Kingdom city, dealing with bandits along the way. Many had joined their cause from all over the kingdom, drawn in with the prospect of bringing peace to their hometowns.

Baatar was busy at work designing new technology that made their lives easier and made stabilization a much smoother task. He had just finished what he considered one of his best inventions.

Baatar handed Kuvira a small metal disc, talking excitedly as she examined it.

"They're made of many slivers of metal fused together," Baatar explained as Kuvira looked at the cuff in her hand. "With metalbending, you can peel off each sheet separately and use them however you want."

Kuvira fastened it onto her right arm. She took a step back at the ready and concentrated on the band. She flicked her hand, and a sheet of metal stripped off of it. She let it hang in the air in front of her before she flung it forward, launching it in a wall. Then, she took off the cuff, looking at it again. It didn't look much different, which pleased her.

"This is incredible, Baatar," she praised him with a smile.

Baatar blushed slightly, scratching the back of his head.

"They're perfect for what we want to do," he explained. "They're light weight and can be worn anywhere on the body." He pulled out a roll of paper, spreading it out so she could see. It was a diagram of the human body with writing all over it. He pointed out areas of the body he had starred. "Cuffs above boots and the cuffs for your arms like that one." He took a pencil and sketched something over the shoulders and back. "I was thinking this for you. You're the most adept at metalbending, so something on the shoulders and back you can use would be perfect, yet still lightweight enough that they don't inhibit your movement. They should make fighting bandits a lot easier. No more cables are needed."

Kuvira studied the image for a long time, feeling a smile stretch on her lips. The design was flawless; Baatar certainly was the prodigious engineer that his mother always bragged about.

"This is perfect," Kuvira said. She put on the cuff again, turning to look in the mirror. Not only was it perfect for battle, but it was also fashionable. It reminded her of an even more modernized version of what Zaofu attire was. A better version of Zaofu.

When she caught sight of her face in the mirror, she stopped, glaring at it. She quickly undid the braid that fell down her back, combing her fingers through her unruly, thick hair. Then she gathered it up, tying it into a large bun at the base of her skull. She made sure to tuck the strand of hair she had begun wearing untucked from the braid into the bun.

"No braid?" Baatar asked in confusion. He had never seen her without the braid since they were young children. Kuvira's hair had always been a mess, but his mother had introduced her to braiding which she never stopped doing. The bun made her look older, less childish. Baatar couldn't help but notice that she looked even prettier now. She looked powerful.

"A new start," Kuvira reiterated for the umpteenth time. She turned back to him. "I don't need to be reminded of the past. Which reminds me…" She turned to her bag of personal belongings she had taken when they left Zaofu, rummaging through it until she found a small silver necklace, a typical Zaofu accessory. It had been given to Kuvira when she first moved in with the Beifongs. She handed it over to Baatar who took it without question.

"You can use this to make another cuff," she instructed. "Now that I think of it, take all of my armor. I won't be needing it anymore."

Baatar looked down at the necklace, conflicted. He couldn't help but remember their childhood, how great it was. But then his mother and father's voices rang in his ears and he scowled, clasping his hand hard around the cool metal.

"With pleasure."

~AN~

Thank you everyone for your support! Your reviews literally make my day! I am so glad there are so many people out there enjoying this story! And to those of you who have basically reviewed every chapter, you guys are the best! I enjoy hearing from you each week! Words cannot describe how much your support means to me.

Sorry this chapter is coming out a bit late tonight. I just got back from a baseball game with my exchange student... :3

Also I just want to send out a special shoutout to an anonymous reviewer (A Fan is what they called themselves). Thank you so much for your kind words. They literally made me cry! I wish I could have sent you a PM personally thanking you, but I guess this will have to do! Thank you thank you thank you.