When Keith broke into Pohuai Stronghold to save Shiro, he was prepared to fight. The witch of Zarkon kept her experiments there - the word made him gag - and the Emperor had allocated a large contingent of soldiers.

It was difficult to get in, but it was practically impossible to get out.

Well, Keith will be the first to come and go. He never expected not to be the only one with this idea.

"Who are you?" he asked, trying not to wake Shiro.

Shiro was in bad shape, he could hardly breathe, but he was alive. It was more than he expected, to be honest.

The boy wrinkled his nose, "My name is Lance. I am the son of the chief of the Southern Water Tribe ... "

"I don't care," Keith cut him off, trying to snatch his brother away.

The other boy stopped him, "Hey no, I will save the Avatar."

"What are you talking about?" he asked annoyed.

"Dude, why would I go in here to save a stranger? He is the Avatar. "

Keith had to hold back as hard as he could to laugh in his face. Of course, Shiro is the Avatar. And he was the heir of Zarkon.

"Don't talk nonsense."

"No, it's true! - the boy protested - The spirit showed it to us. "

"The spirit?"

"It's a long story. In practice, this airbender girl swoops into my house blathering that she has to find the Avatar to restore balance to the world, but she forgets to warn me and my sister that she is being chased by a jerk named Zhao ... "

It seemed like an interesting story, but the soldiers were coming and there was no time to waste. She tried to drag Shiro, but the other boy kept talking and was unbearable.

If he doesn't kill him, it will be the second miracle of that day.

Shiro was really the Avatar, and Allura - the airbender who saved them from being captured - told him that his destiny was to stop Zarkon and restore balance between the Nations.

To his brother's credit, he had listened without batting an eyelid but Keith could see how Shiro's shoulders had tightened, his lips set in a thin line.

Did those guys really expect Shiro to save the world when it was clear he wasn't okay?

Keith wouldn't let Shiro go with that bunch of fools.

He would come too, and put up with that idiot of the Water Tribe. Lance was loud, cheeky, and annoying, his bending abilities were excruciating. Despite his lack of skill, he had made up his mind to save the world.

It will already be a lot if he doesn't get himself killed. Needless to say, they didn't get along. At all.

Shiro and Allura were somewhere practicing airbending, and Keith had ended up as a prisoner of the pirates. Oh, Lance was with him too.

They just needed Prince Lotor to arrive and it would have been the perfect ending to a disastrous day.

He knew that Lance would bring nothing but trouble (though part of him had to admit that if he didn't provoke the captain first, the others wouldn't notice Lance, and they wouldn't both be caught), and now they were both in the pirate shelter, waiting to know if they will be killed or taken to some Fire Nation officer to collect the bounty.

"Damn handcuffs," he muttered, trying to move.

Keith had his hands locked and couldn't use his bending.

This, coupled with the fact that he didn't know where Shiro was, made him more nervous than usual.

And he took it out on Lance - because it was easy, he was there, even if it wasn't right - yelling at him, "It's your fault!"

Lance replied, "These guys were Fire Nation riders. They had something that didn't belong to them."

"And you thought it was a good idea to steal from thieves? You put Shiro in danger! "

"Shiro is the Avatar. It won't take him much to put these guys in their place. "

This infuriated the firebender more. If the world was so messed up it was because people thought the Avatar was the solution to all their problems!

If the nations had resigned themselves to his disappearance, maybe they could already have organized a real resistance against the Fire Nation, and the fate of the world would not be on the shoulders of a handful of teenagers who had no idea what they were doing.

"Shiro can't solve all problems. He can't even solve his problems! "

Shiro had nightmares. He claimed he didn't remember what Haggar had done to him but his brother had always been a bad liar. Shiro remembered something but he was stubborn as a mule and preferred to suffer in silence.

"Unfortunately that's what he was born for. He was born to solve problems. It's in the job description!"

"He shouldn't worry about everything if at least you didn't suck with your bending!"

Keith realized he had exaggerated when Lance looked at him as if he wanted to kill him. Really kill him. It was the same look Veronica had when she fought and Keith was smart enough to understand not to provoke her.

Never.

"It's easy for you to talk. You are a firebending prodigy. It has been taught to you correctly since you were six. Well, guess what, not everyone has had this privilege. I was the last waterbender of my tribe, you of the Fire Nation took them all away. "

"Them all?" he asked her, feeling sick. Keith shouldn't be surprised, Zarkon had decimated the airbenders to search for the Avatar, burned dozens of villages in the Earth Kingdom, and caused Keith's mother to flee the Fire Nation in order not to be killed.

He also understood why the Emperor had wanted to capture all the waterbenders: if the Avatar were reborn in the Southern Water Tribe, he could have eliminated his enemy, perhaps stopping the Avatar rebirth cycle forever.

Zarkon had already managed to kill the Avatar, twice. He won't let him do it a third time.

"Yes, and no one has ever returned. Everything I know about my bending, I have learned by myself. So sorry if I have a style too sloppy for your sensibility, I'm lucky to have one!"

Lance probably had to go into hiding so as not to be taken away too. Keith considered him a clown, an idiot who loved adventure too much and had no idea what he was getting himself into.

He was wrong: Lance was an idiot, but he wasn't t a reckless adventurer. He had made a difficult decision to save his tribe, not to have to fear being himself anymore.

Keith now understood why he hated pirates so much. It was admirable that he just tried to get the scrolls back. Keith would kill them.

"I ... I hadn't thought of that."

"Veronica and I set out to go to the North Pole to find me a teacher. Only there I will be safe without fear that ash will fall from the sky and the Fire Nation will attack. "

"No place is safe. Not as long as Zarkon is alive. "

"Zarkon will lose."

Keith frowned, "How do you know?"

"The Avatar is back, and he's going to kick his ass of him."

At that point, Lance finally broke the cuffs and freed himself.

Keith was speechless, "How did you do it? You didn't have water with you. "

"Sweat is water, dude. And I can bend it. As you can see, I can be very creative. "

Lance made up for the lack of technique with the ability to improvise.

Keith could respect that.

The waterbender helped him free, and together they fled. But when they were out of the pirate shelter, Keith froze.

"Mullet! Hurry up!"

"You go ahead! I will join you!"

He ignored Lance's shouts of protest and went inside. Inside, the pirates kept weapons, food, stolen goods. It took Keith half an hour to find what he was looking for, and then he set everything on fire.

There was no way he was going to leave anything behind those bastards.

When he came out, he found Lance still there.

"Did you really come back just to set everything on fire? I can't believe it!"

"Not only for that ..." and Keith handed him the scrolls.

Lance's eyes widened, "I thought the pirates brought the scrolls with them."

"They put them with the other stolen things. For them, these aren't precious, but for you they are. So I thought ..."

Lance clutched the scrolls to his chest as if he were afraid they would be taken away from him again.

"Thanks, mullet," he told him sincerely.

Keith felt his heart racing, and he blamed the adrenaline.

Perhaps it happened after the incident with the pirates. Or maybe when Lance punched Jet in the face after the asshole tried to make a massacre.

Keith didn't know, but at one point, Lance was no longer the annoying guy who had helped him save Shiro, but someone he could trust.

Dear Agni, Keith was first not to expect it.

But just because he trusted Lance now didn't mean Keith found him any less annoying. But now he was less on his nerves, and Keith was trying not to be the first to start an argument.

Surprisingly, it was less difficult than expected.

"I read that the secret of waterbending is push and pull ..."

Shiro was listening, but it was evident from his expression that he wasn't understanding a damn thing. The others tried to look like they were busy: Veronica was cleaning her weapons, Allura was feeding Blue, Hunk and Pidge were discussing their plans and Keith watched their training.

He couldn't miss the sight of watching his brother in trouble. He already imagined the old masters of Shiro horrified to see their earthbender prodigy struggling to move a little water.

It was more likely that they would have been entranced by it, because of the Avatar thing and the whole question of the balance of the world.

Lance was trying, he had to admit it, but he wasn't a master.

His waterbending level was elementary, and his movements were clumsy. He was moving oddly, in a dance Keith didn't understand.

He couldn't take his eyes off Lance.

"Can't you wait to get to the North Pole for your training?" Keith asked, trying to stop staring at Lance. He failed.

Lance didn't turn to look at him, continuing with his movements, "We both have to practice. Shiro is already at a good level with firebending, and he is learning airbending. He must have at least the basics for waterbending. "

"Bases gave by you? You don't even know what you're doing. "

"No, but I'm making progress thanks to the scrolls," he replied piqued.

"I don't think so. Your technique is still atrocious, and... "

He didn't finish the sentence: Keith was hit by a jet of water that left him soaked.

He spat out water as Lance laughed, "What do you think? Is my technique still atrocious?"

Damn. Never provoke a waterbender near a water source. You will regret it.

Keith was supposed to attack back. This was how he had been taught. But Lance's laugh was pleasant, and he didn't want to spoil the moment.

Keith didn't believe in fortune-tellers. He didn't believe in a lot of spiritual things, and only believed what he could see and hear.

Okay, there was this spirit that helped them from time to time - it helped Lance or Veronica more - but it was different.

Fortune-tellers were cheaters. They used people's gullibility to make money, said some obvious phrases, or terrified their customers.

They were unreliable.

Aunt Wu was just another person who had made her fortune on people's ignorance. The problem was that the whole village trusted her.

Nobody there had listened to them when they warned them that the fucking volcano was about to awaken.

If Aunt Wu didn't foresee it, we're safe.

They were all so stupid!

Keith had been tempted to set something on fire, but Veronica and Shiro had stopped him. Something about not giving the inhabitants of the Earth Kingdom more reasons to hate firebenders.

However, they had to do something to save the village. And Allura had a pretty good idea, but she needed Lance's help to manipulate the clouds.

Did the villagers want a sign? Well, they will.

But someone had to distract Aunt Wu and not let her out before Allura and Lance were done. And the job lay with Keith.

He was the only one who hadn't already gone to her for a consultation on the future - even Pidge had gone there, albeit for research purposes. The only one who believed that excuse was her - even though he suspected that Hunk just wanted to know what the future held for Keith.

His friends were terrible people.

"Oh, look who's here ... the skeptic," Aunt Wu said as Keith entered the room.

Keith hugged his arms to the chest, "Don't try. I don't believe you"

The smell of incense was giving him a headache, and his eyes stung him for who knows what herb the woman was burning at that moment.

"Why did you come?"

"I was forced by my friends."

The woman smiled, "They are guys who are very connected to the spiritual world. Especially the boy in blue. "

The firebender held back a laugh. Allura was spiritual. Lance's interest in earthly matters had gotten them pretty much in trouble.

The old woman giggled, "Don't be fooled by appearances, dear. There are many ways to be spiritual, and his connection with the spirits is strong.

"

"Yeah, sure ..."

"Now let's talk about you. What do you want to know?"

" The usual."

"You should be more specific."

"Who will I marry in the future?"

"I didn't think you were a romantic type."

He wasn't, but people loved that kind of nonsense.

Lance had asked her when he would meet his soulmate - and Keith wasn't overhearing, he just happened to be there, okay? - only to be disappointed with the answer.

You already have.

What kind of answer was that ?! Keith was right, she was a cheat.

"I have my reasons," he said through gritted teeth, hoping Lance and Allura would hurry.

"I know exactly what these reasons are ... give me your hand."

Reluctantly, Keith did. Aunt Wu made a lot of noises, and nonsense mumbles.

After a few moments, she said, "What an interesting future. I have good news for you: you will get what your heart desires. "

It was the usual vague phrase. But the woman wasn't done yet, "You are bound by fate to a very powerful bender, together you will be unstoppable.

Two opposites that attract each other, but find a balance together and ... "

She was interrupted by the village chief who violently opened the door, "Aunt Wu! You have to come out!

There is something in the sky ... "

The fortune-teller stood up, " You can believe me or not, my dear. The future is yours alone to model.

But don't waste your opportunity for fear of suffering. "

"I don't understand what you are talking about."

"Oh, the denial phase. I guess it will take you a while to understand. "

" What should I understand?"

Aunt Wu winked at him, "You'll find out soon. I don't want to spoil your surprise. "

Pakku was a jerk. Okay, Keith understood why no one there trusted him. He was a firebender, ergo an enemy.

He was used to it, even though it still pissed him off.

But he couldn't stand that Pakku treated Pidge, Allura, and Veronica with disdain, when Pidge was a non-bender genius, Allura was a master airbender, and Veronica was a warrior who had cornered the elite of the Fire Nation.

What did it matter that they were girls? It was thanks to them that they had survived until that moment.

Without them, they would have died in the wilderness, or Lotor would have captured them.

Heck, Allura was a better teacher than Pakku.

He wanted so badly to kick that old asshole. But he couldn't.

Lance, on the other hand, could do it.

"Lance can't win against him. Pakku is a master, " Pidge said after Pakku accepted the boy's challenge.

Amazing how almost dying from a block of ice could change your mind.

"Watch him," Veronica told her, her eyes hard. Lance's movements were fast, almost difficult to follow. But Keith noted that they weren't typical watrerbender moves.

No, he was using earthbender moves that he must have seen Shiro use, and he was confusing Pakku.

Lance felt the water as an earthbender felt the earth, in this way he anticipated the moves of his opponent.

He waited, listened, then attacked.

His mother used to say that a master was recognized by his ability to learn and mix other styles of bending.

Months ago he would never have thought that, but Lance had the potential to be a master.

"Wow...you wouldn't know it to look at him, but Lance is a very powerful bender" Hunk said with wide eyes.

Keith turned his head to him, "What did you say?"

"Mhm? I said that Lance is a very powerful bender."

Keith remembered Aunt Wu's words, You are bound by fate to a very powerful bender.

Oh.

He hoped no one would notice the blush that colored his cheeks.