Disclaimer – all original Avatar: The Last Airbender characters in this fanfic (excluding my OC's) are the property of Bryana Konietzko and Michaela Dante DiMartino.
Chapter 9. Homecoming.
Spirit World, Ek'Noshi Pond.
After leaving the mortal world and returning to the Spirit World, Wei'Rai flew across the sky with unconscious Huo in his grasp. A lush forest with tall blue tress stretched beneath them as far as the eye could see. Since the trees could move their branches, reaching the center of the forest on foot was nearly impossible. Not to mention, every leaf and branch was covered with sharp thorns.
The entire forest protected a large pond, which lay in its center. The pond had crystal clear water and was surrounded by beautiful flowers and vibrant green grass. From the sky, Wei'Rai spotted the pond, which was his destination. As he lowered his flight, a drop of Huo's blood hit the sheet of the pond. At that moment, blueish vines emerged from the water towards Wei'rai and Huo. The phoenix let go of the boy, and the vines caught him before he even touched the water surface. Carefully, the vines coiled around him and pulled him under the water.
The wound on Huo's face began to glow green, and the clear water in the pond instantly froze. The phoenix landed on the now frozen pond and tried to scratch the thick white ice with his claws, but not even the slightest mark appeared on it.
"Who is that?" the phoenix heard a soothing feminine voice and looked to the side. Right beside the pond appeared a barefoot female humanoid with light blue skin and green-colored lips. She was clad in a green dress with pink ribbons. Her eyes were covered by leaves, and her brown hair was tied into a ponytail with strands of grass.
"Does it matter?" Wei'Rai asked back. "Any being with a physical body can use your pond."
"Yes, but never before has a Fire Keeper brought a human for healing," the spirit's green-colored lips curved into a smile. "Especially a human with a Keeper's aura."
"I didn't do it for his sake," Wei'Rai replied and flew away, leaving the boy in the frozen pond.
The woman calmly walked towards the frozen pond and stepped on the ice. She crouched in the place where Huo was being held by the vines and swiped her hand over the white ice. The spot became crystal, and the boy's face was clearly visible. "Who are you, young one?" she asked, looking at Huo's wounded face.
Sometime later – Spirit World, The Realm of Keepers.
Wei'Rai returned to his realm and joined the rest of his siblings. Just like he expected, Shen'Rai immediately started the topic. "So what did you do?" asked the phoenix.
"What was best for us and the Ancient One," Wei'Rai replied vaguely, and Shen'Rai wasn't happy. However, before the phoenix with violet-colored crest could ask more questions, Wei'Rai elaborated. "The child is now in the Spirit World."
The other three phoenixes were surprised. "You took a human to our world?" asked Vin'Rai, a male phoenix with a green-colored crest. "That's something I would never expect from you."
"Does his father knows?" Shen'Rai asked. "He'll be worried and will look for him."
"He saw me taking him, but either way, he won't be a problem," Wei'Rai replied quickly. "The female waterbender fatally injured the man and he had a few minutes at best after I left. If he meditated into our world before his death, he'll see the child here. If not, he won't remember him anyway. So like I said, he won't be a problem."
"Why didn't you help him?!" he asked angrily as the purple-colored flames on his five serrated tails intensified.
"You really asking 'me' that question?" Wei'Rai replied. "You said yourself that we have different opinions about humans, and besides, that whole mess was your fault. The reason all those humans started to fight was because that human child became a firebender. That man's death, the child's injury, everything is on you. I told you not to socialize with humans, but you wouldn't listen."
Shen'Rai's orange-colored eyes widened in shock after hearing about Huo's injury. Without saying anything, he took a few steps, preparing to fly. "The child is frozen in the Ek'Noshi pond," Wei'Rai informed him. "So don't fly around blindly looking for him."
Shen'Rai looked once more at his brother and took off, heading towards the exit while Wei'Rai sighed.
"Why did you brought a human to our world anyway?" asked Nou'Rai, the female phoenix with a white-colored crest. "If he was injured, humans have healers as well."
"Not to mention there are many other ways to heal him faster than using Ek'Noshi's pond," added Vin'Rai.
"It's better for the Ancient One if the child remains here for a long time," replied Wei'Rai. "His father won't reveal anything anymore to the humans since even if he's a spirit, he won't be able to return to the mortal world, but I wasn't sure about the child. His mother could've force him to say more about how he managed to change his element, thus force him to reveal the information about the Ancient One. So for now, we'll wait until he's healed."
"I don't think humans who know him, even his peers, will be around when he finally leaves the pond," noted Vin'Rai.
"That's the plan," Wei'Rai nodded with his beak.
Three hours later – Fire Nation Central Island.
Eilu ran back to the village and told everyone what had happened. It was hard to believe, but Shaku freed the people in the cave, and every former prisoner arrived at the village as well, confirming the girl's story. A group of villagers, armed with random tools, headed into the forest, following Eilu, who led them to where Huo and Yan Zu got injured by Hama.
Even though the group found Yan Zu, the man was no longer alive after losing too much blood. There weren't any traces of Huo besides a burned portion of the grass. The group decided to mourn later and focus on finding the boy, but they only managed to find two merchants encased in ice and helped them. Unfortunately, Huo was nowhere to be found, and the villagers assumed that Hama had come back and taken him.
Hama stood at the island's shore, rolling her shoulders and moving her hands, creating waves and levitating a ball of water. Once again, she could move her hands, and her waterbending was available to her. She assumed that Yan Zu had already told everyone that she was a waterbender and that she was the one who kidnapped people during the full moon. Even though she'd like to take a few things from the village, like her comb, it would be too much trouble. Fighting a whole village wasn't something on her to-do list.
The woman was still upset. Her plan was ruined, but it wasn't over. While she couldn't return to the village to start from scratch, she could return to her own tribe. Many years passed since she was kidnapped, so there was a chance that new waterbenders were born. Hama planned to return to her tribe to teach them bloodbending. Her own people would see things differently.
Hama crouched on the sand and looked at her reflection. The scar on her left cheek was a reminder of her failure, but she knew how to make proper use of it. It would serve as proof of the Fire Nation's ruthlessness, and it would be even easier to convince her people. In a way, Huo did her a favor.
"Huo," Hama whispered. She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed as the image of Huo getting hit by her ice disc appeared in front of her eyes. The woman shook her head with a grunt. It was no time to have regrets or doubts. She no longer had a family. Vengeance was the only thing she had left.
Now the only obstacle was the long trip back to her tribe. Before she'd left the island, she needed to gather some food, which would at least keep her alive until she would reach the Earth Kingdom. From there, she'd head South. It would take a lot of effort, but Hama didn't plan on giving up.
Sometime later – Spirit World.
Shen'Rai knew where the pond was, but he also knew that it was impossible to crack the ice until Huo was fully healed, so there was nothing he could do anyway. The phoenix flew around the edge of the forest, which surrounded the pond, for quite a while and eventually spotted a small light below, recognizing a spirit firefly. The tiny creature headed towards the forest, and a man ran after it.
He flew down knowing that only Yan Zu would follow one of the spirit fireflies since their light would lead individuals to what are they were looking for. Just like Shen'Rai guessed, Yan Zu ran after the firefly. "Yan Zu!" the phoenix called after him before he could enter the forest.
Yan Zu looked up, spotting the phoenix, who landed in front of him. "Shen'Rai, do you know where Huo is?" Yan Zu asked straight out.
"Get on, I'll take you to him," Shen'Rai stated, and Yan Zu complied. The phoenix knew that Huo was more important to Yan Zu than life itself, so that topic about the man's death would have to wait.
The phoenix took Yan Zu to the center of the forest and landed near the frozen pond. "Your son is inside that pond, under the ice," Shen'Rai said as Yan Zu dismounted him and approached the ice.
"What kind of a pond is that?" the man asked, seeing this pond for the first time.
"It heals any injuries, no matter how severe," a feminine voice replied, drawing Yan Zu's attention. He spotted a barefoot female humanoid with light blue skin and green-colored lips, who approached him slowly. "Welcome, my name is Ek'Noshi," she introduced herself. "And this, is my pond. The boy is being healed there."
Yan Zu turned to face her and bowed his head respectfully. "Thank you for letting my son use your pond," he said gratefully.
"Every mortal being can use my pond," Ek'Noshi explained with a gentle smile. "But I never saw anyone as interesting as your son."
"When he'll be ready to leave the pond?" Yan Zu asked, and Shen'Rai sighed, averting his gaze. Yan Zu heard the sigh and looked at him and then back at Ek'Noshi, who began to explain. "My pond uses the willpower of the being inside as energy to heal. The stronger the willpower, the faster the healing. The boy's injury isn't fatal or big, but even so, it can take up to a hundred years for him to fully heal."
Yan Zu's eyes widened. "How many?!" he asked in shock as his legs buckled.
"Don't worry," Ek'Noshi reassured. "Time flows differently inside the pond. For him, a few moments will pass and his body will suffer no changes."
Yan Zu didn't know what to say. He was in shock. Yes, he was now a spirit, so time wouldn't matter since he'd not age, but still. Shen'Rai approached him. "I'm sorry, Yan Zu," he apologized. "My brother cared more about keeping the Ancient One's existence secret than the humans. I should've been there instead of him to help you."
The man shook his head. "No... I have no right to blame you nor your brother," he replied and placed a hand on his forehead. "Everything, along my with my own death, is my fault. Huo got injured because of me and now he'll never see his friends again."
"But it was I who took Huo to the Ancient One," Shen'Rai pointed out. "I had no idea he was a waterbender."
"I knew," Yan Zu admitted. "I wanted to talk with you both about it, but I needed to confront his mother. She was the one who kidnapped villagers during full moon. I thought I could convince her to stop, but everything got messed up." He looked at the ice. "At least, he's safe now. As for me... one could say I got a well-deserved punishment for my past sins."
"Don't say that," Shen'Rai replied.
"You can stay here if you wish," Ek'Noshi suggested.
Yan Zu pondered for a moment and nodded. "Thank you. I will wait for Huo to heal up. I got nothing but time."
Many weeks later – The South Pole, Southern Water Tribe Village.
The South Pole was the southernmost point on Earth and served as the spiritual center of the Southern Water Tribe. An ancient forest, which contained a portal to the Spirit World closed thousands of years ago by the first Avatar, was located in the center of the pole.
A significant stretch of tundra covered most of the South Pole. In contrast to the mountainous landscape of the North Pole, the frozen plains of the South were broken only occasionally by mountains. The harsh terrain was made all the more dangerous by a brutal, unending storm that had battered the South for decades.
The southern water tribe village was positioned on a shoreline and consisted of dozens of tents and igloos surrounded by a huge ice wall. A central igloo, where the leader of the tribe and his family lived, lay in the center of the village, which was circular in design. The city shrunk in size somewhat due to constant raids by the Fire Nation, but the amount of the Water Tribe warriors was still impressive since they hadn't departed for the war yet.
Tired and hungry, Hama managed to reach the shoreline on her boat made of ice. She could feel the slowly falling snow on her face and all the water surrounding her in all shapes and forms. It was completely different from the terrain in the Fire Nation village. The cold never felt this good before. She came back home, and it was glorious.
Hama left her boat and stood on the snow. She could see the tall wall of ice and headed towards the village's gate. Two warriors, clad in blue-colored heavy hooded coats, spotted her even before she reached it. "Who are you?!" asked one of them, holding his spear. "What do you want?!"
Even though Hama didn't look dangerous, she was still clad differently than a member of the tribe. Her clothes were more similar to the ones the people of Fire Nation wore since she still had her innkeeper clothes under the brown coat. In response, Hama raised her hands and waterbent, turning the falling snow into water, and shortly after, turning the water into ice spikes, pointing them at the warriors. "Is that a way to greet a member of the tribe?" Hama asked with a smirk.
The warriors took a few steps back, dumbfounded. After allowing her words to sink in, Hama turned the spikes back into the water. "You're a waterbender," stated one of the warriors.
"A southern waterbender, young man," Hama added. "Now be a dear and let me in."
The South Pole, Southern Water Tribe Village, Kanna's Igloo.
Kanna and her son Hakoda, lived in a simple igloo, like many water tribe villagers. Walls were covered with animal skins and furs, just like the floor. Three comfy, warm beds lay close to each other. In the center of the igloo was a small fireplace with a large pot hanging over the fire. The entrance to the igloo was covered by a green drape.
Kanna scooped a large portion of a five-flavor soup into a bowl and gave it to Hakoda, who sat on the animal fur right beside a large kettle. "Eat up, Hakoda," she said, and the eleven-year-old boy began to eat.
When she poured herself a bowl and was about to sit down as well, someone moved aside the green drape and entered her igloo. When Kanna turned her head to see who that was, her blue-colored eyes widened, and she dropped the bowl with the soup. Even though many years have passed since they last saw each other, Kanna recognized her friend. "H-Hama?!" she asked, and her eyes began to water.
"Mom? Is everything alright?" Hakoda asked worriedly and looked at the stranger.
"Hello, Kanna," Hama replied and smiled. Kanna rushed to Hama, and both women hugged each other tightly.
"I never though I would see you again,"Kanna said through her tears and suddenly felt Hama leaning on her. Hunger and exhaustion finally took their toll, and Hama didn't have any more strength to keep standing and lost consciousness.
"Hama?!" Kanna managed to place Hama gently on the floor. "Hama! Hakoda help me with her!"
Hakoda rushed to his mother, and together, they moved Hama to the bed. "Is she okay?" Hakoda asked.
"She looks tired and that's probably the reason she collapsed, but I need to check to be sure," Kanna replied.
The return of the last waterbender of the water tribe raised quite the commotion, and the villagers already wanted to see Hama, but Kanna told them that she was exhausted and needed her rest. A few hours later, Hama managed to wake up. Despite not being a waterbender, Kanna knew much about herbs and medicine. She often prepared herbs to make into medicine for her village and often made rubbing pastes to treat colds. Luckily, none of that was needed here. Hama only needed to rest and have a warm meal. Kanna gave Hama a big, warm bowl of five-flavor soup and let her eat in peace.
"How are you feeling?" Kanna asked when her friend finished eating. She didn't ask Hama about her scar since she was sure it was the work of the Fire Nation soldiers.
"Better, I'm just not the young gal I used to be," Hama replied, allowing Kanna to take the empty bowl.
"Take your time and rest," Kanna advised. "You're home now."
"Home," Hama whispered. She lay back on the bed and exhaled, closing her eyes.
The next day – The South Pole, Southern Water Tribe Village.
After getting a good night's sleep and eating another meal when she woke up, Hama was able to get up. Kanna gave her some clothes, and now, Hama once again felt like a true member of the water tribe. She didn't have to hide her waterbending or pretend to be someone else.
Of course, when she left the igloo with Kanna, they were immediately surrounded by the villagers, mainly the children, who asked Hama to show them waterbending. Hama was more than happy to oblige. The kids cheered and were in awe, watching as Hama turned the snow into water and played with it.
After a skillful display, Kanna and Hama continued their walk. The women were approached by a tall, burly man with brown hair, brown skin, and blue-colored eyes. "Greetings, I'm Sabu, the leader of the tribe," he introduced himself. "It's an honor to meet you, Hama."
"Likewise," Hama replied with a smile.
"Everyone is so happy to see you," Sabu noted. "It's been many years since they seen a waterbender. You're like ray of hope for the future of the tribe."
Hama looked at Sabu, squinting her grey-colored eyes. "Are you saying that there aren't any other waterbenders in the village except me?" she asked and even looked at Kanna. "Not even one?"
"You were the last waterbender the Fire Nation has kidnapped," Kanna stated. "After that, not even a single waterbender was born. The men are the only ones capable of protecting us. Luckily, there weren't any other attacks on our tribe so far. Still, the tribes unity has declined. Many of our own people left the village and scattered across the South Pole. We even lost contact with the Northern Water Tribe."
"Kanna is right," Sabu confirmed. "Many of our people blamed the North for effectively abandoning them to the Fire Nation."
Hama was displeased hearing that. Without waterbenders, who could learn bloodbending from her, the trip seemed worthless. Waiting for a waterbender to be born was also risky. True, the next newborn could be a waterbender, but it also could take many years for the next one to be born. In the worse case, no waterbenders would be born before she'd die of old age.
"I need to head to the Northern Water Tribe," Hama announced suddenly. Both Sabu and Kanna were surprised. "What? Why?" Kanna asked.
"I escaped from the Fire Nation prison thanks to a waterbending skill I've discovered," Hama explained. "That skill will help waterbenders to protect themselves against the Fire Nation more efficiently and it even can help us turns the tides of the war. If I die without passing it to another waterbender, everything will be wasted."
"I don't want to leave," Hama continued. "Believe me, if there were waterbenders here, I would stay without a single thought, but I must do what I can to defeat the Fire Nation."
"But you just got back to us," Kanna complained. "You collapsed yesterday. At least stay a few days and rest properly."
"I second that," Sabu said. "If it's really that important, I won't stop you but at least rest for now. I can even send a few of our warriors with you for protection."
Hama pondered for a moment. A day or two wouldn't change anything, and it'd be a much longer trip, so a good rest was advisable. "Alright," Hama agreed and smiled. "You win."
When Sabu walked away, the two women continued their walk. Hama spotted the same boy, who was at Kanna's igloo, playing with another boy around his age. "That's the boy I saw earlier in your igloo... is that your son?" Hama asked curiously, gesturing towards Hakoda.
"Yes, his name's Hakoda," Kanna confirmed with a smile. "His father passed away a few years ago."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Hama replied, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I'm sure he was a great husband and a caring father."
"He was," Kanna confirmed with a smile. "Luckily, Hakoda was old enough to help me with everything around the house. He'll be a great warrior like his father and who knows, maybe a leader of the tribe."
Hama nodded and sighed, looking at the snow beneath her feet. Huo appeared in her thoughts, and Hama wanted to know how was he. Her son had a beautiful face, and because of that ice disc, he'd get a scar. Hama pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why did you have to jump in front of her, Huo?" she asked in her thoughts.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a snowball, which hit her in the head and made her gasp in surprise. Some small children had a snowball fight, and a stray snowball happened to fly towards Hama. "Hey!" Kanna was ready to scold the kids, but Hama chuckled and reassured her. "It's okay. Nothing bad happened."
Hama smirked and used her waterbending to levitate many snowballs at once. She hurled them at the kids, who ran away laughing. "Don't ever challenge a waterbender to a snow ball fight!" Hama stated and sighed a smile. A part of her really wanted to stay in the village for good, but the Fire Nation needed to pay. The young waterbenders needed to be taught bloodbending so they would have a weapon against the firebenders and who knows, maybe a talented waterbender could hone this skill and make it even more deadly. Only time would tell.
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