I have some really cool news at the end of this chapter! Be sure to check it out!
"Cillia; one of the refugees is sick and I think we ought to move her to a different room. Do you know what's free?"
Cillia slicked back her hair from her forehead, staring up at Shen. Behind him, a woman stood clutching her stomach, looking quite green.
"Has she been to the infirmary yet?" Cillia asked, brushing off her knees as she crawled to stand from her task of counting the dry goods to tell the kitchens how much rations they could manage. It was toasty in the store room, which couldn't be good for the food. Perhaps she needed to speak to someone about creating airways, otherwise things would go bad faster.
But that was a later problem, because right now her bigger issue was someone who looked ten seconds from barfing all over the food.
"Let's go outside," she pointed toward the door, shuffling them out, "Has she just come from the infirmary?" she repeated, a bit more aggravated.
There could be plenty of reasons why this person looked sick, and not all required a movement so swiftly. It could be that her stomach didn't agree with Air Temple food - she looked to be a Fire Nationer. It could be that something was bad and her stomach was rejecting it; moldy, maybe? But she didn't see anything out of date in the storage room…
It could be she was pregnant, which was a whole other issue in itself but still not cause for immediate removal.
Or, worst case, it could be the flu that was starting to spread around…
"Well, I think we should have a room ready, in preparation, don't you?" Shen asked, staring at her with annoyance, "Look; I need to go, can you take her?"
No, no, I was only calculating how much sustenance we all had, but sure…I'll do this too.
"Fine," Cillia ground out, only because Shen seemed disinterested in seeing this to the end.
"Well?" Shen asked, remaining, "I want to tell a Palace Maid what to prepare."
Cillia took out her journal, which was once a carefully tracked list of who was who and where they were sleeping, but at this point was a mangled list of crossed-out names, arrows, and furious circles. If you could believe it, it was fairing better than the mental activity course that she was doing daily.
"I, uhm…" She swallowed, "What about Room…oh, never mind. We just got more Earth Kingdomers in last night…" She chewed on her pencil. "We could…erm…" She scrunched her nose. "I'll talk to someone when I figure it out," she said, feeling like she'd done something wrong.
"Alright," Shen shrugged, "If you want to take it on."
"Let's go to the doctor. Are you ill?" Cillia asked, pressing a hand to the woman's forehead. No fever.
"I think it was the fish last night," the woman said, pressing a hand over her mouth. "It tasted off. My friend is also barfing, but Shen just found me."
"Why didn't you tell Shen?" Cillia asked, groaning.
The woman looked green again, covered her mouth, and did not have an answer.
"Fine, come with me," Cillia said, motioning for her to follow. She found the cooks already preparing dinner though lunch hadn't even begun. Aiga was there, in charge almost as much as Cillia was.
"Aiga; I think the salmon yesterday may have been bad," Cillia said, hoping that they could be civil about this.
"I told you! Something didn't look right about that color!" A chef called from the back of the kitchen, furiously shaking their head. "It was gray!"
"Why did you serve that, then?" Cillia asked, horrified.
"It was fine," Aiga said snappishly, "He's being dramatic, Cillia."
"Maybe not so! Look at her!" Cillia waved a hand toward the refugee in tow.
"Has she been to the infirmary?"
"That's…if it looks bad, don't serve it!" Cillia huffed.
"Well, what were we meant to serve, then?" Aiga crossed her arms, "That's what we had portioned out for yesterday. Until Kuei comes with more food, that's what we had."
"Hey, did you ever finish that tally of the storage room-" Someone began to ask, but Cillia waved a hand at them, cutting them off.
"I don't know, but let's not poison the people under our care?" Cillia growled. At Aiga's stern expression, usually so willing to be helpful, Cillia knew she wouldn't get sympathy here.
"Once again, I wouldn't serve bad food. Perhaps she just had a less-than-ideal reaction," Aiga said, "Or maybe it's not that at all."
"She's gunna barf!" Someone else yelled, shoving the pair out of the kitchen, "We'll really be short if she ruins a batch of soup!"
The door slammed behind them.
"Just…be careful!" Cillia shouted through the wood door, but no one was listening anymore. She paced for a second. "Fine. C'mon, let's get some herbs for your stomach."
They were halfway to the infirmary when someone jumped right in front of Cillia.
"Cillia! Did you get a chance to approve the family unit? The one for that earthbender family; they have the four kids and would really like to be all together, instead of separated-"
"Sorry, Ty Lee, I haven't had a chance."
"Okay, well…" Ty Lee twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. It was just brushing her shoulders now, having grown out from its original cut. Cillia wondered if she was trying to grow out her braids again.
Not important right now, Cillia.
"Well?" Cillia repeated, trying to keep her temper.
"I just think we really ought to be keeping families together, you know."
"Okay," Cillia replied evenly, exhaling through her nose, "I just haven't had a chance."
"The little girl is really scared at night, so I just think maybe you could do it quicker, you know?" Ty Lee said, "We want the people here to feel safe."
"They are safe," Cillia opened her book again, flipping through it, but closed it again. If she opened it, she had about ten other move requests she needed to go through before this one, not out of the rigidity of 'first come, first serve' as she had tried in the beginning, but just because unlike Ty Lee was insinuating, there were bigger issues at hand.
"Sure, but do they feel safe?" Ty Lee pressed. "They may feel better if they were all together."
"They're not under threat of death from a crazy fucking madwoman. They have places to sleep. Friends they've reunited with. Food to eat. They're fine, Ty Lee," Cillia said, "Beggars can't be choosers."
"I just think that's a rather glib take, all things considered!" Ty Lee argued, "Oh! Your friend looks like she's gunna barf-"
"If you want to find them a place to sleep, you take the damn book!" Cillia shoved the notebook into Ty Lee's chest. "I'm trying to get her to the infirmary!"
"You don't have to be so rude about it!" Ty Lee called as Cillia stalked away, "And I can't even read this anyway!"
Cillia turned around, waving her arms, "Exactly!"
She thought about just leaving her journal, but she'd be in far worse with her tasks if she didn't, so she ran back over, plucked it out of Ty Lee's hands, and left Ty Lee speechless in the middle of the path.
Once at the infirmary, there was a line out the door.
"Are they all sick?" Cillia shoved her way to the front of the line, ignoring the cacophony of complaints. "I'm just trying to talk to the healers!"
"This is normal, of late," one of them said, bandaging a hand as she talked, "More people, more fights, more issues, more everything. By the way, I just stitched up two idiots from Room C3 who got into it. I think one should be moved."
"Fine," Cillia ground, "But I'm a bit behind-"
"You? Behind? You don't know what that even means!" a healer chortled rudely, and Cillia opened her mouth to snap, but someone else cut in.
"We've really had a tough time since Katara left," another healer added, "Half of these issues could have been fixed in a second. What I wouldn't give for some more waterbenders here…"
"Okay, well, Katara's not here," Cillia sighed. What she wouldn't give for that help again. Or Zuko's. As it was, Ari - who usually helped her - had been sent to deal with another metaphorical fire, and she hadn't heard from him today, so she hoped it was all good news…
"Obviously," a healer snorted, plucking glass from the hand of someone squirming in their seat.
"Look, I just need something for stomach sickness."
"Top shelf," the first healer said, without even looking. "Third jar to the left. Ground that up and
have them drink an infused tea."
"And…I need to know, well, can you track if anyone else is nauseous?" Cillia asked, "And tell the kitchens? Specifically, if it relates to the salmon from last night."
This got one of the healers to look up. "Can you? We're a bit busy here."
"Yeah, come back at the end of the day," another said.
"But if they plan on serving salmon again tonight, I need to know," Cillia tried to explain, feeling like she was speaking Old Nomadic all day, and no one was hearing her.
"Okay, sure, but we don't even have time to eat in the mess hall. Someone brings us our meals," the first healer said, waving the next patient in, "And talking to you really slows us down, so…"
"Fine," Cillia bit out. "I'll be back before dinner."
"Oh! When you do," the third healer perked up, "Can you bring me the vegetarian dish?"
Cillia made a mental note. "Fine."
She grabbed the herbs and returned to the back of the line. "You just need to brew this in a tea and drink it."
The woman gave her watery look, "Me?" she asked, "Oh…I'm too sick to do that-"
As though to prove it, she barfed right on Cillia's shoes.
"Hey, you have a cure for nausea?" Someone from the middle of the line asked, looking back, "I've been here for hours! Can I come with you?"
"The salmon?" Cillia guessed. She wasn't sure if she hoped they'd say yes or prayed they'd say no.
"Uhm…something else." It was a teenager, who looked terrified at being questioned.
Cillia stalked up to him, yanking him out of line. "What did you do?"
"I may have…for extra dessert, last night…agreed to eat three firebugs…" He rubbed his stomach. "I think that was a mistake-"
Idiots! All of them!
"Fine!" She threw up her hands. "Come with me! And explain to me why you thought that would be a good idea!"
"They're just kids," the barfing woman tried to argue as she pushed them back towards the mess hall, "And they're bored here. Maybe you could put together some activities-"
"I'm not a camp counselor!" Cillia spun, "I'm a highborn lady with Military prestige."
"Oh!" The woman seemed semi-impressed, "I didn't know that."
Yeah, who would lately?
Cillia almost screamed as she saw Jeong-Jeong on the way to the mess hall making a beeline right for her.
"Ah, Cillia. I was just informed that Aden hasn't gotten his first meal yet today."
"I'm working on it," Cillia sighed, but truth be told, that had slipped her mind.
"It is your responsibility to care for the prisoners," Jeong-Jeong reprimanded sharply. "We can't starve them!"
"Not my intention-"
"And where is Ari? Is he not meant to be with you?" Jeong-Jeong added.
"He's not going to leave," Cillia crossed her arms, "He knows he's stuck here."
"Much faith you have in someone," Jeong-Jeong sniffed, "We did not tell you to decide to treat him as you see fit, you were told to be his keeper. Find him and keep him."
As he walked away, the teenager shuddered. "He scares me."
Cillia bit the insides of her cheeks so hard they bled. She was doing her best, alright?
She'd…she'd get this tea ready, take food to Aden, and then go fetch Ari. Hopefully, he was done collecting materials for more bedding, but with the influx of people, maybe not.
She managed to procure a teapot, mostly the staff in the kitchens were grateful they weren't tasked with making the tea. Cillia found a spot near the mess hall, used her fingers to light a fire, and dropped the leaves unceremoniously into it.
"I need to go feed Aden, and drink this when it's brewed," she instructed.
"How much?" The teenager asked.
"I don't know, half each?" she replied, exasperated. She managed to get Aden's meal, enough to last breakfast and lunch and started making her way to the prisoner's hold. On her way, Mai found her.
"Cillia, what are you doing?" she asked.
"Feeding Aden."
"I was sent to find you…" Mai looked at her expectantly. She ran through her mental checklist, which was as long as the Air Temples were high, trying to recall if she'd told Mai she'd look into something or promised a task, but came up blank.
"Uhm…"
"Isn't there somewhere you're meant to be?"
Cillia handed the meal off to the guard. "Is there?"
"The council meeting?" Mai prompted and Cillia gave the longest, most exhausted groan.
"I'll be there in a moment."
"We're all waiting for you," Mai said shortly.
Great, now you're an inconvenience, Cillia.
"Shut up, Mom," Cillia whispered to her mental voice as she jogged back across the camp.
Jeong-Jeong immediately asked where Ari was, but Iroh argued they'd been waiting far too long and should just start. There was a mild argument that was useless because it had Cillia running across the camp yet again to find her ward and return.
"The meeting will just have to run late, today," Iroh finally said upon her return. Jeong-Jeong gave her a disapproving glare like she'd manufactured this whole thing on purpose.
Fine, not like you have a gazillion things to do.
By the time they got out, it was just about lunchtime. Ari reported to Cillia what he'd managed as they walked. They were waiting in line for lunch - a line that got longer and longer each day with smaller and smaller portions - when Cillia was once again asked if she had the numbers from the store room, which she clearly did not and couldn't even send Ari to finish. She had just managed to sit down when an airbender found her.
"Hey, Cillia, we may have found another fruit tree!"
"Good," Cillia said, lifting her spoon to her mouth.
"Well, can you confirm it's safe to eat?" the airbender asked, "And take note of how much there is. You're in charge of that, right?"
Sort of…
"I'll come after lunch."
"Well, I'm worried I can't find it again unless we pick it now…" the airbender sucked in, "It's sort of out of the way, and would be a pain to go back to."
I didn't even get one damn bite of lunch!
But she didn't say that. Instead, she considered that if the salmon was bad, and if she updated their stockroom numbers, and if this new fruit was safe to eat - then yes, they'd need it immediately. They should get seeds, even, and plant them in their garden and-
"Cillia?"
"Fine. I'm coming."
Her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten breakfast either.
She opened her notebook and wondered what sort of fruit it was. If it was a berry, it would make a good dessert, but it wouldn't be filling. If it was akin to an orange or apple, that could really help their stockrooms! If it was even bigger…well, let's not dream too big…
"Cillia!"
Cillia tried to ignore the voice as she followed the airbender.
"Cillia, are you listening?"
No.
"A new group of Ba Sing Se refugees just arrived and I was told to find you-"
Cillia turned slowly, fingers flipping to the housing plan in her notebook. Akia, one of the former handmaids, stood in the center of the path.
"It's a big group! What a blessing they've made it here safely. Thirty-two people! They need food, they seem hungry, and eight of them need medical attention and…"
Akia's voice drifted out of focus.
Cillia stared at her ledger, her brain working overtime.
Thirty-two. Thirty-two more people she had to figure out how to feed when they were so low already. Thirty-two more people she had to put in beds they didn't have. Thirty-two more people would do stupid dares, get hurt, fill the infirmary line and bother her for whatever they needed because it was her fucking job to manage them. The Refugee Rangler, a thankless task.
"Cillia, that fruit?"
Something just snapped.
She dropped the notebook in the pathway and turned toward the jungles, walking away.
"Where are you going? The fruit is this way!"
"Cillia, what about the refugees?"
"I don't care!" Cillia threw up her hands. "Figure it out yourselves!"
"But-"
"Figure. It. Out!" Cillia yelled, refusing to turn around.
Behind her, Ari stuttered through a response for Akira. He had been her faithful shadow and wasn't dumb when it came to these matters, but he was unable to do much as an untrustworthy ward of the camp.
Cillia just kept walking.
It was like something in her brain had just exploded, everything spilling out, leaving it empty.
Ah, pure bliss.
Someone crashed through the jungle after her.
"Cillia! Wait!"
It was On Ji.
Cillia spun, the emptiness giving way to anger.
"What? Do you need a task too? Something else for me to do? Some other problem that you can absolutely figure out yourself? Oh, Cillia will do it, she does everything! She can take it on, she's fine!"
On Ji's eyes were wide. "I…brought your soup."
"Oh." Cillia felt herself deflate, "Really?"
"You didn't eat this morning. Or at lunch. You must be hungry."
Cillia stared, swallowing hard. It had been a long time since someone had worried about her.
She collapsed right where she was in the trees, fingers reaching out for the soup.
She didn't even use a spoon, just drank from the lip, noisily slurping it. It was so unladylike. Her mother would be horrified if she was here.
"Cillia, I don't think you're doing okay."
Cillia licked the bowl dry. "I'm fine."
On Ji stared, eyes still open. "No…you're not."
It took a moment but Cillia finally sighed, "No, I'm not."
On Ji helped Cillia to stand, "Let me help. You'll run yourself into the ground if you keep this up!"
"It's fine," she lied, "It's my job."
"It's too much," On Ji argued, "I know we've never been close, but please. For my sake? I'm so bored, Cillia! I just try not to get in the cook's way most days, but I don't do anything else."
"I…" Cillia didn't like giving up control. "I guess…there's probably a few things you could do."
"Let's work on today," On Ji said brightly, "And then we're going to talk to Ursa tonight."
Cillia scampered back. "No…we can't bother her!"
"She's really nice! And, well, she might be able to help too." At Cillia's stony scowl, On Ji smiled sweetly. "Either you tell her, I will. We can't afford to let things get so bad that the worst happens. You're too important for that."
"I don't feel like it…" Cillia admitted quietly, "I feel useless. I feel like I can't even do the tasks they've given me."
"And I feel useless because I'm not doing much of anything." On Ji replied, "And I'm sure there are other people bored at camp and we could…divide it a bit better."
Cillia bit the inside of her cheek. "Maybe." But she thought of the teenager and his friends, bored. Maybe they couldn't take on a really important task, but surely they could be utilized better.
"Let's go get you a second helping," On Ji said, "And don't argue. You didn't have breakfast, so you're owed a second portion."
Her denial would work better if her stomach didn't growl.
Tired, worn to the core, and hungrier than she'd been in ages, Cillia felt all her fight dissolve away, "Fine, On Ji. Let's go."
On Ji picked up Cillia's notebook on the dusty path, brushed it off, and beamed.
XXX
There was a weight on Katara's chest like the entire world was sitting right on top of her lungs.
She gasped, water in the back of her throat, scrambling to turn over in soft, fluffy snow. Where was she; was she back home?
Something shifted on her chest and a cold, wet nose pressed into her cheeks. She blinked up, only seeing a thousand stars at first, water pouring over the sides of her lips.
It tasted like stardust.
"Nanook; get off of her!"
The weight was hauled from Katara, and she flipped around, spitting up water onto the snow below her. As she regained her bearings, she realized she was in a low cave.
Had someone dragged her from the depths? No, the last thing she remembered was someone pulling her deeper…
Someone tugged her up. Katara, her throat raw and dry - despite just hacking up half the ocean - coughed deeply, waving them away.
"Water," she croaked, grasping her chest. She felt her heart beating slowly…too slow. After such a fright, she expected it to be as frantic as the wings of a bird. But it wasn't so; she had to wait, pressing ungloved fingers underneath her tunic, to even feel the beat of it at all.
"Katara."
Katara snapped her head up at Xiuying's voice.
She was not the only figure in the room.
All around the rim of the cave were ghostly lingering figures made from faint pulsing colors, the same as the Northern Lights. Spirits of old, young, male, female, happy, and sad…they all sat, watching Katara with nervousness like she was an interloper. They all wore pelts of different animals, something more crude than Katara's tribal wear, but reminiscent of old traditions all the same.
One of them was farther out than the others, the second closest to Katara other than Xiuying. It was a child, a boy with a tooth missing and a mischievous glimmer, wearing a bearskin cloak over his shoulders.
Katara squinted at him, like she'd met him in a dream, long ago.
"Where I am?"
"Do you not recognize your own ancestral plane of Adlivun?"
The voice that spoke was commanding, sending a shiver down Katara's spine. She rushed to straighten to a standing position, holding her shoulders back as she gazed at a woman who seemed as tall as a great wave, as though with just a flick of her fingers, she could send ships to a watery grave. Her skin was dark, but her hair was a startling white and her eyes were a dark blue that seemed stormy and uninviting.
Though Katara had only ever seen her in spirit form, she knew immediately who she was being greeted by.
"La," she whispered, dropping to her knees in reverence, "Ocean spirit."
"You may stand," La said but did not move from where she stood.
Katara felt herself shake as she pulled herself back up. She was almost used to Xiuying at this point, a lesser spirit (though Ratana may disagree). But La…she knew of spirits that wielded immense power, and Tui and La were two of them, most sacred to her people. In fact…
"Where is Tui?" she blurted.
"Do you always say exactly the thoughts that cross your mind?" La asked, and Katara wilted under her chastising question. It seemed she was not to receive an answer.
"I apologize," Katara said, "May I ask another?"
"I have a feeling you will anyway."
"Am I…dead?" she asked, "Did I drown?"
"Yes, and no. Did you think you'd find your spirit above ground? Did you not realize you'd have to nearly sacrifice everything to be blessed by your gods?" La asked with a rough laugh. "If I find you worthy, you will return."
The certainty of her words sent a shiver down Katara's spine.
"And if I am not?"
La only gave a bored raise of her eyebrows.
"So…" Katara swallowed, "I, uhm, I'm here to find my spirit animal, so do I have to…" she waved a hand uncertainly, "Do a trial? Connect with someone in some way?"
"You already have," La said.
Katara blinked slowly. "I have?"
Something came underneath Katara, nearly knocking her off her feet. She spun to see the same bear, the one she'd saved, bounding around her legs. She felt a laugh, despite it all, bubble up her throat.
"That was a test?" she asked, "Really?"
"Everything is a test, Katara," La replied crisply.
Just as Katara reached to pick up the bear, it poofed into the young boy again. "I'm Nanook!"
"A bear?" Katara echoed, and even as she stared at him, she couldn't exactly gauge him correctly. He hovered between bear and human, clearly otherworldly, too spiritual for her human eyes to focus upon. She had expected a cougar, perhaps. Or a wolf. A bear was…incredibly surprising. And not even a hybrid bear at that; she wasn't sure how long it had been since the South had non-mixed bears, so that should have tipped her off, to begin with…
She frowned, digging through what she knew of bears to glean what this spirit animal could be meant to teach her. She wondered, idly, if the fact he appeared as a young child was meaningful.
"Bears are totems of healing, aren't they?" she said slowly.
"Among other qualities," La said, seemingly a twinge proud, her lips twitching like she was about to smile.
Katara felt pride at first, wanting to please a goddess. Then, something like disappointment curled in Katara's stomach. She'd asked the universe for answers and had gotten them. Did this mean the most she was meant for was to be a medic, fixing heroes? Not a warrior? Did it mean that she was set to be away from the fighting?
But La had said among other qualities…perhaps it was just a message to strengthen her healing prowess, but not to abandon the fight entirely.
"You seem troubled, Katara," La said, tilting her head.
"I am worried about this war," Katara said honestly. She didn't think she could lie to a goddess even if she tried. "And I'm concerned about where I should go; to chase Azula, to return to Aang, or to stay with my people?"
"We have heard your questions," La assured, "And while some gods do not consider this fight to be worth our time, I am not convinced we are so separate."
Katara perked up. "Where should I go?" she asked, "Wherever you tell me, I will." Though stubborn, she didn't think she could disobey the spirits of her people.
La exchanged looks with Xiuying, as though they were discussing things telepathically. She watched Xiuying shake her head, but La raised her chin, as though asserting dominance.
Finally, she turned to Katara.
"Return to the Avatar," La said, "He needs you. From there, the path will be clearer."
Katara felt a heavy exhale escape her chest.
"Of course, La," she said, kneeling and praying, "I will. I promise I will."
She didn't dare ask what her role was there; she imagined it could be a hundred possible things. She could be put back in the medicine hut, relegated there for the remainder of the war. She may be needed as a waterbending teacher to aid Aang's journey. She may be needed as part of a close-knit group to protect Aang, while he did whatever he was meant to do.
She was afraid to know, as La said, that her path would become known upon her return.
She was a tinge disappointed that she wasn't tasked to take down Azula, as it seemed obvious that one needed to weed out trouble at the start, but the gods must see something she could not. Maybe Aang would be so incensed to go after her upon Katara's return, and she was meant to protect him on the journey?
"What about Azula?" she demanded, "Can you tell me what she's searching for?"
La's expression was stony. "I cannot. It is not for you to solve."
"But-" Katara started until she remembered herself. She swallowed back her frustration.
"And my tribe?" she asked, her lip quivering. Though she was given her path, she hated the idea of leaving them again. Now more than ever, she was afraid it would be the last time she'd see them.
La came closer, placing her hands on Katara's cheeks. They were so large that her fingers felt like branches, tangling around her.
"They are my people too, and my people will be watched over," she said quietly, "We are all watching, always."
Then, La stood back.
She moved to the side, revealing a door that was not there before.
"Go, marry. The stars divine it anyway," She added with a wry smile, glancing at Xiuying, the only indication of their shared history she would make, "Find joy where you have it and then return to the Air Temples," La commanded, blessing her union with Zuko. "And pray that it will be a long while before I see you down here again."
"I will."
"And remember your totem, Katara," La said, closing Katara's fist around something hard and solid. "There are many great lessons that Nanook can grant you."
So it seemed that there was a deeper meaning than merely healing.
Nanook scrambled up to her, unfurling her fingers to reveal a piece of bone carved into a bear statue. He pressed his fingers to it, in a sense imbuing it, and leaned up on his toes, so he was just barely at Katara's height.
She expected a piece of sage advice to be bestowed upon her, perhaps a signal to what she was meant to learn from her new totem or some reassurance that Nanook would be with her, even after this. But instead, he passed a long, hurried whisper, almost frantic, into her ear.
"No one can live forever, Katara."
When he pulled back, his eyes seemed to press her to realize what he'd said was significant in some way. Behind him, Katara caught Xiuying's eye.
A sense of dread pulled deep in her navel; perhaps it was a warning. She suddenly knew that, after she died, that would be her end. There would be no afterlife for Katara, at least, not one she remembered. Xiuying would speak fondly of her, perhaps one day, but her time was now doled out in sands of time, dripping through her fingers with each second.
So, she'd better make her time here count.
With renewed purpose, Katara walked through the doorway and into the blinding light.
XXX
"-And then Wu came and asked me with a bouquet of roses, but I don't know if I should say yes to him or to Juro. Juro did write me a poem, but it didn't rhyme very well…but he is more attractive than Wu-"
"Aunt Wu?" Anaselma gasped as she came to sit down with her lunch, "Wow, plot twist!"
"No, of course not Aunt Wu," Ratana made a face, as though it was absurd someone would think so, "You know, Fire Nationer Wu. Hot Wu."
"Oh...there are too many people here with the same name," On Ji laughed into her hand, "Do you know how many 'Lee's there is? I think that there's at least twelve!"
"As I was saying, Hot Wu - who is less hot than Juro-,"
Suki tried to drown Ratana out as she ate her breakfast. She was speaking at the group, not to anyone in particular, though Avizeh was by far the most invested.
"Well, you know what I heard about Wu, right?" Avizeh asked, eyes glimmering.
"No! Oh, if you have a way to help me pick, please tell me," Ratana gasped, slamming her palms on the table.
"Wu is the son of a formerly wealthy politician; I mean, not saying that things will absolutely go back to how it was, but he does have something to make up for the unfortunate size of his nose-"
Suki snorted internally.
Or, she thought it was internal.
At once, all the eyes of the table - every girl, not just Avizeh and Ratana - turned critically to her. Mai was the only one who seemed semi-unbothered, the rest all scowling at Suki as if she'd just spat in their oatmeal.
"Do you have something to say, Suki?" Ratana asked, her voice silky smooth.
"It's all rather…superficial, right?" Suki finally found her words, "To pick someone based on money or looks instead of who you enjoy?"
Ratana rolled her eyes. "I'm picking a date for the dance, not a marriage."
"Nothing's going to happen," On Ji squeaked.
"Well, if I'm lucky, something may-" Ratana giggled into her hand, causing On Ji to blush bright red.
"So it's about who kisses better then?" Suki asked, fully judging Ratana.
"If I could figure that out early, that would help things," Ratana replied seriously. "I would hate to be kissing someone whose lips are like a dead fish, or someone who has so much saliva I feel like I'm drowning!"
"I'm leaving," Suki grasped her half-eaten bowl, "If anyone wants to go train with me, I'll be doing something productive with my time!"
"This is productive," Aveizh argued, "The ball is in three days, Suki! Dates are filling up fast!"
"Oh, ignore her," Ratana finally huffed. "She's just upset no one has asked her!"
Suki ground her teeth, trying to let Ratana's jibe roll off her shoulders, but it wasn't so easy. She knew that she scared boys here, in a similar way that Cillia and Mai did. But Mai didn't seem interested in anyone and Cillia was so busy that Suki doubted she'd be attending at all.
Outwardly, Suki acted as though she was in their camp, but secretly?
Well, she had been earnest about forging a love connection with Zuko, even if that hadn't worked out.
Uzuki came up next to Suki.
"Sparring with me?" she asked.
"I thought I'd watch," Uzuki replied, "You know, you could ask someone. We're a more progressive society here; plenty of girls I know have asked their crushes."
Suki let out a strangled laugh. "Absolutely not. And, even if I wanted to, I don't have anyone to ask. There's no one here that I want."
But, if someone had asked her, well Suki would have given it her best effort to like them in return.
"Okay," Uzuki said, dropping the matter easily, "That's how I got my date."
And that was the last she said on it, for the moment.
Suki managed to find an airbender around her age to spar, who also wanted to brush up on their fighting skills. She spent most of the morning here; it was nearly empty. The entire Temple was eager for the party, either preparing for it elsewhere or spending time in newly coupled pairs, holding hands and kissing in alcoves.
Suki felt like they were all children again!
Faintly, she heard a commotion near the path that led to the welcome center, but every day there was a commotion. Usually, it was no one Suki cared about, as the Kyoshi were still holding strong and able to protect themselves. Unless it was Katara or Yue coming back Suki didn't care.
Even so, eventually, the voices faded away.
When she heard them again, she was deep in a sparring match, focusing only on besting this quick little Airbender, who she was tied in matches won.
"-And here is our training ground. It's quieter than usual, but if you two need a place to practice, we can book our time!"
Suki had just managed to grasp the airbender and pin her down. Heaving with exhaustion, she looked up, sweaty and undignified, to see a roving group of people led by Iroh. Behind him, Aang followed, and then Anasemla, and behind her-
"Suki, how good to see you again."
Suki felt her fingers release the Airbender like someone had punched her stomach. She scrambled up, pushing her sweaty hair from her forehead. "Haru," she greeted, though her voice shook, "It's, uhm, good to see you too."
"Please let us know if this will work for you and Avatar Aang."
"Of course, General," Haru said pleasantly. "We may need to commandeer the whole space, though. Earthbending practice can get rocky."
Suki let out a laugh, assuming it was a pun, but no one else even so much as giggled. She slapped a hand over her mouth, wanting some earthbender to pull her down into the dirt and out of sight. Uzuki gave her a bizarre look.
Haru, though, grinned.
"That was a joke. I'm glad someone appreciates my humor," Haru shrugged.
"Your jokes suck. I'm sure Suki was just being nice," Anaselma rolled her eyes.
"Well," Iroh said, blinking between the pair, "Shall I show you the kitchens? I'm sure you must be very hungry."
"Please, I'm sure we'll be back soon," Haru said, and gave one last grin at Suki, "And perhaps we can find a time for the two of us to spar. You seem like you'd give quite the challenge."
"Yes! I mean, sure. I mean, if you're not too busy-" Suki blabbered.
Once he was gone, Suki looked at the sky, urging herself not to scream into the heavens.
"You like him!" Uzuki gasped, "Oh my gosh, Suki! You have to ask him before someone else does."
"No," Suki said, grabbing her water cup. "I do not…it's not-"
"He's a hot commodity," Uzuki pressed, "He'll be snapped up before sunset if you don't move now."
"Drop it," Suki groaned.
"What? Scared?" Uzuki said, like an annoying sibling, bounding behind her. "I didn't think Suki of Kyoshi was afraid of anything."
"I'm not scared, I'm just…I don't even know if I want to go!"
"Don't be like that, it'll be fun. And it would be more fun with Haru at your side!" She poked Suki's stomach, "He likes you too."
Suki stopped so abruptly she almost tripped over her feet. "He…does?" she asked, and then shook her head, "You're just saying that."
"He asked you to spar! Didn't you learn anything from Zuko and Katara? For warriors, that's pretty much inviting you to foreplay. "
"Uzuki!" Suki shrieked.
"I'm so right. Look, there he is." Uzuki found him and the convoy on the path. "Oh, man, looks like someone's going in for the kill. Get over there, Suki!"
With a firm shove, Uzuki sent Suki and stumbled down the path, nearly knocking someone at the back of the huddle over.
"Sorry, sorry!" Suki said, sure that this was the most embarrassed she'd ever been.
"Forget something?" General Iroh asked, knowingly. Damn him; he was so perceptive, it drove Suki mad!
The girl, an Earth Kingdom refugee, looked put out to have her big moment interrupted. Haru turned his whole body away from the girl, looking expectantly at Suki.
Suki opened her mouth to stutter an apology, but something very different came out.
"There's this dance! On Ji is putting it on; it's sort of stupid, but everyone's going and people are asking dates and I thought maybe, we danced together before and we weren't terrible, so maybe meandyoucouldgotogetherHaru?"
The last bit of it all came out at once like she was vomiting her thoughts.
The Earth Kingdom refugee sighed and stomped away, "I'll never get a date!" she groaned to her friend, who was waiting in the bushes like Uzuki was for Suki. Her friend patted her shoulder, pushing her toward a new group of boys who had just returned from foraging dinner ingredients.
"Sure," Haru said earnestly, "Sounds fun."
"Now that that terribly important interruption has played out," Jeong-Jeong said pointedly,
"Perhaps we can continue with the tour, so that Aang may have his first lesson with Haru today?"
"Right, sorry," Suki winced, "Uhm, see you around, Haru?"
Haru's smile was so easy-going it made her head feel light and airy, "I'll find you, Suki."
Behind him, Anaselma made a barfing sound.
I have some exciting and terrifying news to share with you all. You may have noticed me stepping back from posting lately, and I'm finally ready to share my news with everyone…I've decided to try my hand at writing original novels! If you like what I'm writing with my fan fiction at all, I think you'll really like what I have in store. The stories I'm still drawn to writing are stories about magic, fantasy, sci-fi, and dystopian with lots of world-building and many plot twists. I sincerely hope you'll support me on this journey, because doing this is one of the scariest things I've ever done. It's easy to post anonymously on fanfic sites, knowing you'll get a few kudos or comments. It's scarier putting my work to the real test.
I've set up a Tiktok account ( alkbrada) as well as an Instagram ( ALK_Brada) where you can follow updates for the stories. Right now, I have a book trailer up for a few of the things I'm working on, but will be adding much more soon! I'll be taking you through everything; from early writing stages, editing, sending out queries to publishers, and maybe one day getting my work in print! I'll also be looking for ARC readers eventually and would love nothing more than to give some of my most faithful readers the opportunity to get some first peeks!
If you follow me on either my Instagram or my Tiktok, and drop me a message to let me know which story(s) you're coming from, I will be in need of about 20 original background characters for a story. If you'd like a chance to make a character, let me know and in about three weeks I'll be reaching out to people to help!
What does this mean for my fics? Well, I love fan fiction, and even if I'm a published author, that won't change a thing. Updates may be more sporadic, but I don't think there's anything in the world that could stop me from updating :)
It would mean the world to me for a follow, or even a comment or a like on my first posts, so thank you in advance!