Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar the Last Airbender.
Hei Bai
We were back to the quiet days. Reminiscent of when Kaya only had a handful of words. Though those days were preferable if you asked me. Back then Kaya's silence was paired with curious stares and tentative smiles. Now, after the Rig, there was fury in her brown eyes and she kept her lips thinly pressed together.
Aang and Katara must have felt it. Kaya had less patience for Aang as he tried to twist his tongue to form her strange string of constants. During the evening chores, Katara would start talking to the yellow-haired girl, as she was used to doing, only to look over her shoulder to see Kaya working away from her.
They choose to shrug it off; knowing it would blow over eventually. Instead, they focused on the passing scenery or discussed what we'd do for dinner once we made camp. "What fluffy-looking clouds", Katara observed as she lay on her stomach; peering over the edge of Appa's saddle.
It was early afternoon. And we were all feeling relaxed at this time of day. Something travelers only got when they had a flying bison to do most of the work. Aang slouched on Appa's head; not even needing to steer. I sat on the back of the saddle; legs closed and a bit of wood in one hand and a knife in the other. I'd carve a… trinket of some sort. Once I figured out what it should be. Maybe a penguin otter.
My eyes flashed over to Kaya. She sat on the opposite side of Katara; her legs folded under her and one of my shirts in her hands as she busied herself with the mending. Her scarf wrapped loosely around her shoulders and from its folds, Momo was perched. His long bat-like ears perked and twitched in interest as he watched Kaya work from behind her shoulder.
Maybe I could carve Momo. Kaya liked Momo. More than she liked anyone else at the moment. I could give it to her and she would smile. Maybe say something. Then things could return to how they were before the prison break.
Though it was difficult to focus on the carving. Especially when I couldn't figure out how I could turn it into a Momo-like creature. And especially when Katara kept going on about the clouds. "They look like you could jump on top of them and it'd feel like a big soft pillow". Katara sounded like she was daydreaming.
I glanced at Kaya to see if she was listening; to see if she was comprehending. But Kaya had her chin tucked down; concentrating on making her stitches as small as possible. So, I turned my head in Katara's direction instead. "You could find out", I suggested; smiling to let her know I was joking.
One look at me, and Katara knew I was. "Haha", she mocked in response; slight annoyance visible in her brow. Though I found that her expression lightened the overall mood. What good were little sisters if you couldn't tease them?
Aang, however; didn't get the joke. "I'll try it!" He announced as he shot up from his relaxed position and grabbed his staff. Before either of us could say or do anything, Aang leaped off Appa with an excited shout.
Gasping, Katara grasped onto the edge of the saddle and peered over further over the edge. "Aang", she cried as I dropped my carving and knife to do the same. A few seconds later, Kaya was on the other side of me; staring wide-eyed down at the clouds below us with Momo's little lemur hands tangled in her hair.
But we should have known that regular people's physics didn't apply to Airbenders. Falling face first, Aang vanished into one of the clouds with a loud "Woo!" as he left a person-shaped indent in the cloud behind. For a few worrying seconds, we could see or hear Aang. Though before we could fear the worst, there was a woosh from behind. The three of us twisted around in time to see Aang land safely on Appa's saddle; his staff now in glider form.
Katara breathed a sigh of relief as Kaya blinked in astonishment at Aang. Aang, in return, gave us the biggest smile we've seen since saying goodbye to King Bumi. Droplets of water dripped from his person and his clothes. "Not soft at all", he declared; failing to see my unimpressed stare. Now, that was an example of taking things too far. "Turns out, clouds are just water".
I moved on my knees to retrieve my knife and carving. Kaya did the same to fetch her sewing before the cloth could blow away. Only Katara kept her focus solely on Aang as he took in a deep breath and slapped a fist in the palm of his overhand. Somehow, thanks to Airbender logic, this created a blast of air that dried him off before he could even begin to shiver. He breathes in deeply and slams his balled, right fist against his stretched left hand, creating an expanding air ball around him in the process, drying himself off.
Kaya hadn't been fast enough in grabbing her sewing. She had a good grip on it, so I didn't lose a shirt. But she had been in the blast zone. Little droplets splattered her and my shirt. And the rush of air had Momo's fur standing on end; as if someone had to pet him in the wrong direction.
As Aang leaned back; his hands taking most of his weight, Kaya sent him an irritated glare. It took the bald kid a few moments before he noticed. Still smiling, he rubbed sheepishly at the back of his head. "Sorry, Kaya. Sorry, Momo".
Kaya moved further away; taking Momo with her as the Lemur started grooming himself. Frustratingly, it wasn't closer to me. Sorry. Kaya didn't understand sorry. It wasn't like that was an easy word to explain. Which is why I had to make this carving in the first place. Frowning, I stared down at the piece of wood in my possession with a sigh.
A long time ago, after a fish dinner Dad had said something to Gran-gran she hadn't been impressed by. Dad's immediate response was to apologize and tell her she was right and he was wrong. Once Gran-gran was out of earshot, I asked him why he caved so quickly. Dad had said, "Son, sometimes a man must pick his battles. It is wise to pick the battles you can win. And when your opponent is an angry woman, a man will never win".
I didn't get it at the time. Men were stronger, of course, we'd win in a fight. But that was before Kaya and before Suki and before Suki gave Kaya a slingshot. And now I kind of understood. The world was a much better place when the women in your life weren't annoyed by your presence (with little sisters being the one exception) So Kaya could be right, even if she was wrong, if that meant she'd smile and talk to me again. And I could be wrong, even though I didn't know why, as long as Kaya stopped putting distance between us.
My grip around my knife tightened as I continued to frown at the piece of wood. Except I couldn't tell Kaya she was right and I was wrong because those weren't words she knew. Aagh! Maybe life would be better without women in my house (little sisters and Gran-grans not included). Then I wouldn't have to worry about hurting her feelings or messing up when all I tried to do was keep her away from a Fire Nation prison ship!
"What's that?" Katara asked; breaking me from my musings.
Looking up, I tracked Katara's eyes until I saw what she did. I wasn't the only one. Kaya and Aang turned their heads as well. Below us, wasn't the sight of hundreds of trees far away. What lay below us was scorched earth. Black and charred; the patch stood out from an otherwise healthy forest.
Putting the piece of wood away, I kept my knife out. "That can't be good", I said as Aang moved back to Appa's reigns to direct him to land.
Kaya knelt; a frown on her face as she picked up a handful of chard dirt and ash and let it cascade through her fingers. She wasn't alone. This was a solemn place. Kind of reminded me of the foodless forest where we met Haru. There was no bird song. Or twigs snapping and leaves rustling as animals moved. Except this place was worse. At least the foodless forest had greenery and nuts. This place, with its blackened and ready-to-crumble tree trunks, was just… void.
Aang looked the most depressed. His shoulders slumped as he clutched his staff with both hands in front of him. As if that was the only thing keeping him on his feet. "Are you okay?" Katara asked; using what I liked to call her motherly voice.
Stepping further away from Appa, I noticed imprints in the soot I hadn't seen before. The sight made my blood boil. "Footprints", I snarled. Kaya glanced at me from the corner of her eyes. "Fire nation!" I elaborated. It had to be. Why else would only one part of the forest be burned like this? "And they think we're the savages? No respect for life. The next time I see one of them, I'm-"
A low and pained moan cut me off. Aang had dropped his staff and sank to his knees. "Why would anyone do this?" He asked the difficult question. Katara approached on soft feet. Though she stopped a few feet behind Aang. Wanting to give comfort, but respecting his space. Aang held his head in his hands. "If I had been doing my job, this wouldn't have happened".
"Aang", Katara whispered soothingly. "There was nothing you could have done. Even the Avatar can't be everywhere at once".
But her words didn't seem to help. Aang stayed where he was; a gloomy picture as he knelt in the dirt and ash. "Some Avatar I am", he said to himself. "I don't even know how to be the Avatar".
Katara looked at me for help. I stared back at her with a shrug. Don't know what she expected. It wasn't like I could make the forest regrow or teach Aang how to do his job. Honestly, I'm not sure there is a way to fix this. Sometimes, you just have to let it hurt.
With a humph Katara turned away; her frustration balled into fists as she walked off. Kaya watched her go; frowning but not in the angry way she had been. This frown was more thoughtful; concerned. It was the frown I was more accustomed to seeing. Brushing her hand clean on her skirt, Kaya placed a hand against her sleeved forearm. Her fingers started tracing the scars I knew the sleeve kept hidden away. All of us, I was reminded, didn't have good memories when it came to fire.
We wasted daylight on that scarred land. There wasn't anything for us to do here. No hunting or foraging. No nearby water for Appa to drink and for us to refill our waterskins. Despite this, we didn't move on. Aang wasn't ready. He remained on his knees in the dirt and soot. Eventually, Kaya walked over to Appa and started scratching his giant head that he lowered for her. I ended up sitting in the dirt a few feet behind Aang; waiting for this pity party to end.
But it didn't. Not on its own accord. It took Katara chucking acorns at our respective heads before Aang would even look up. But what did I do?! I didn't deserve to be pelted with an acorn. "The forest will regrow", Katara told him as I rubbed the now sore spot on my temple. "These acorns will become trees and then all the birds and animals will return".
Kaya was listening. I could tell by how her head was tilted in our direction. Though Appa held most of her attention. Momo's too by the looks of it. The lemur had left Kaya's shoulders in favor of climbing on top of the bison.
Aang's expression lightened as he rolled an acorn around in his palm. It was then, I noticed the approaching figure. I climbed to my feet faster than I would have in other circumstances. "Who are you?" I asked; hand hovering over where I kept my knife sheathed on my belt.
A quick glance over my shoulder. Kaya was by Appa. Katara by Aang. My family was behind me. And this guy didn't look like he'd cause trouble for us. He was old. Like Gran-gran old. Dressed in robes and furs that were passed their prime and needing a cane to help him walk. Even better, the old man did have a stitch of Fire Nation colors on him. Still, I thought as the old man introduced himself as Kay Fon, anyone could talk. Haru's village taught us that.
"Please", Kay Fon started as he held the top of his cane with both hands; his long beard blowing gently in the breeze. "I saw your flying bison in the air and felt hope. For you to come here of all places…" The old man's eyes landed on Aang and remained there. He seemed transfixed by the arrow tattooed on Aang's head. "There haven't been any Airbenders for a hundred years. That must mean you are…"
Aang glanced at Katara. As if searching for her permission. When she nodded at him, Aang bowed respectably to the elder. "I'm the Avatar", he confirmed. In his bowed pose, Aang missed the look of great relief that took over Kay Fon.
Suddenly, the old man couldn't talk fast enough. "My village suffers a great evil. Will you come, young Avatar?"
Aang started to agree without really thinking about it. "Hold on", I interjected. My voice reminded Kay Fon it wasn't just him and the Avatar standing in the midst of this burnt-down forest. His eyes widened as he took in the sight of Katara, myself, and Kaya standing in the background. When his eyes lingered a few seconds longer than he had spared for Katara and me, Kaya slowly raised her scarf until it covered her hair. "What sort of evil?" I asked. Because we were limited in what we could do. If his village was plagued by…. I don't know, flying lemurs; that was something we could help with. But if his village was occupied by Fire Nation soldiers, we should stay clear. After all, there was still a long way to go before we reached the North Pole.
Kay Fon sighed, his face ashen. "At night, a monstrous spirit raids our home and kidnaps one of our people. Three people have been taken so far. And with the winter solstice fast approaching…" Kay Fon paused and shook his head with a fearful sigh. "When it comes to spirits, only the Avatar can save us. We cannot communicate with Hei Bai, the spirit I speak of, the way he can. We must have spiritual guidance from the Avatar. It would be our last hope".
I lost interest at the first mention of spirit mumbo-jumbo. Sure, I may pray to La, but that didn't mean I thought spirits walked among us. Like they actually cared about the ongoings of men to the extent they could be angered, offended, or hateful. And Kay Fon claimed a spirit kidnapped three of his people? There was probably an explanation that made more sense.
But Aang seemed more interested and alert than before. "This does sound like Avatar business", he said. "I am the bridge between the two worlds. It's my job to help". Katara smiled in agreement. And I decided involvement in this case wouldn't hurt us. A spirit couldn't hurt people. All Aang could do was talk to the air and maybe we'd find out what really happened to the missing villagers. If anything, maybe it meant we'd get to spend the night with a roof over our heads. And so… We followed Kay Fon to his village.
The village we were led to was encased by impressive stone walls. It wasn't a very big settlement. With one great hall and a few surrounding shops and homes. But the structures were sturdy and spoke of prosperity. With the exception of a few of the buildings that appeared to be in shambles. As if something had attempted to smash them to pieces.
It was sunset by the time introductions were made, and the village leader further explained the situation. As normal for small places, the arrival of strangers garnered us a few looks. But the people were more interested in keeping a weathered eye on the sky. Like they were constantly checking the time.
Kaya was quiet as she stood close behind Katara's and my shoulders. Her focus was on the village leader, a clean-cut man who kept his appearance neat, as he talked; listening to what she could. Though, for some reason, she seemed more intrigued than she had with other conversations. It was something about the way her eyes would narrow or spark after hearing certain words.
Despite not knowing what he could do, Aang agreed to help. As if there was ever a question of Aang saying no. 'No' really wasn't in his vocabulary. Katara restating she believed in him didn't help. But… I'm sure it's fine. It's not like spirits can touch us in our world. I'm sure whatever was poaching villagers was something else. Something tangible.
So, when the sun reached the point where it was tucked from view behind the village's stone wall, Aang stood alone in the center of the village; waiting. Appa had been settled into a stable for the night. While Momo, the girls, and I were hidden inside the great hall with the other residents. The ones too afraid to rest in their own homes.
They remained huddled together in the back of the hall; clinging to family remembers. At least that meant the three of us didn't have to push our way to be able to see out an open window. Katara's eyes tracked Aang as he moved further away from the hall. We could hear him calling, "Hello? Mr. Spirit? It's the Avatar. Do you want to speak with me? I'm here to help". He sounded like a madman; talking to some invisible being.
The concentrated frown still graced Kaya's face she stared out at the village as it slowly grew darker and darker. Momo perched on her head and watched with her. Though with less intensity. I hope she wouldn't be disappointed when nothing spooky happened.
"Where are you?" Aang called again. He looked in all directions; his staff held in front of him as he faced the main entrance. "Hei Bai?" Surprise, surprise. There was no response.
"Hei Bai", Kaya whispered from beside me. The new name fell from her lips easily. Did she understand? That Hei Bai was this supposed spirit's name?
"Uhh…" Aang cast another sweeping glance over his surroundings. There was no monstrous spirit in sight. He straightened his spine to try and mask how unsure he appeared. "I officially ask you to leave these people in peace!" He spun his staff in the air before thumping it down in a bout of showmanship. Katara continued to watch nervously as I tried not to laugh. If that was all it took to the spirit portion of being the Avatar, Aang had nothing to worry about. "Okay…" Aang spared one last searching glance. "I guess everything's fine then…" He turned and started heading back to us.
However, from behind him; behind the gates, a massive, buff six-limbed beast appeared. Katara's breath hitched in her throat. At first, the monster was transparent. But as it entered the village; shadowing Aang's steps, it became more solid. No way, I thought to myself. Hardly believing what I was seeing. Spirits weren't supposed to be… to be things we could actually encounter. Spirits were just things we made occasional offerings to and asked for good health and safe passage.
Kaya was the only one not frozen by the otherworldly sight. "Hei Bai", She whispered again; sounding concerned. I get why they called him the black-and-white spirit. Some of his limbs were white. Some black. But Hei Bai's most noticeable feature was his snarling, razor-sharp teeth.
"Aang!" Katara yelled in warning; once the initial shock wore away.
Not as scared as he should be, Aang turned back and started talking as if he was faced with an old friend. "Hello. Are you Hei Bai? My name is-"
The spirit cut him off with a scream. A burst of light roared out of his wide night and covered Aang before Hei Bai moved; stepping over him completely. "Hey wait!" Aang called after him. Though Hei Bai did not seem to notice. The spirit began to swing its multiple limbs; smashing the roofs of buildings and knocking over the guard tower. Each time; blowing away debris from its path with further screams of light.
From the safety of the great hall, we watched Aang run after Hei Bai; yelling for his attention and begging the spirit to let him help. "The Avatar… seems to be struggling to reach Hei Bai", Kay Fon said from behind us.
The village leader shuddered in response. "This spirit, what have we done to deserve this? Why does he hurt us so?"
No one had an answer for him. Before now, I wasn't fully convinced Spirits were real. But… Holy, La! They are…. Speaking of La, I'd probably have to make an offering and apologize to him. There's been one too many La jokes in my time… Maybe that's why I had poor luck.
"But…" Kaya started to say; her voice barely audible as she stared transfixed at the sight of Aang chasing after the destructive spirit. "Hei Bai not bad".
Not bad? She must have gotten some words confused. "Maybe we should go help Aang", I said to Katara after Aang dodged a failing limb. "It doesn't look like talking is working".
"No!" Kay Fon adamantly refused. Even though I wasn't talking to him. "Only the Avatar is a match for spirits. He is the bridge".
Bridge? I snorted. If we could see this spirit, that meant we could fight it. Why stand here and do nothing?
"He's right, Sokka", Katara said as Aang yelled again that he just wanted to help. "Aang will figure out what he must do. We just have to trust him". You know, for a bald kid that almost got eaten by a giant sea monster back on Kyoshi Island, Katara sure has a lot of faith in him.
Another building crumbled and fell under Hei Bai's limb. A gasp of terror echoed throughout the hall at the noise. I couldn't help but flinch. It would take ages to repair all these homes. These people were in for a rough few months. Longer if this spirit problem didn't go away.
Suddenly, Hei Bai turned as Aang stood on a roof; shouting at him. Though Aang was too far away for us to hear what was said. One strong limb swung and Aang was swiped off the roof. Only for him to slam bodily into the roof of another building.
"Hei Bai", Kaya whispered sadly.
Wanted to ask her why. But there wasn't time. One second her face was worried and the next, determination set in. She plucked Momo off her head and set him on the floor before making a mad dash for the doors. "What? Kaya!" I yelled after her. Running a few steps, I was able to grab her wrist and pull her back around. "What are you doing?"
Brown eyes stared up into mine. I was shocked at the lack of fear they contained. "Hei Bai not bad", She said. As if she knew the spirit. And knew him well. "Hei Bai…" She searched for the right word "Hurt".
"Hurt?" I asked. "What do you mean-" I didn't get to finish my question, Kaya shrugged and shook off my grip before she was running again for the doors. Flinging them open, she raced in the direction of all the destruction. "Kaya!" I yelled after her. What was she thinking? That thing was huge. And violent. And clearly angry…. She didn't even have her slingshot ready!
"Ugh", I complained; wasting time to send Katara one panicked look before hurrying after Kaya. Women, was their company really worth all this?
"Wait! Katara yelled after me "Sokka! Kaya!" But Kaya didn't turn back, so neither did I.
With a good head start, Kaya reached the beast before I did. She stood in front of the spirit; her arms stretched out from her sides. "Hei Bai!" She yelled up to him followed by many long strings of constants before she ended with "Kaya help". The spirit's limbs stilled; somehow listening to her when he'd been happy to ignore Aang.
"Kaya!" Aang yelled as he regained to himself; his eyes wide with panicked concern. "Get away from him".
But Kaya didn't move. She just kept talking to Hei Bai. Using some of the words we taught her, and some from her own language. Her voice grew softer and softer every time Hei Bai lowered his head; his razor-sharp teeth drawing closer and closer to the yellow-haired girl. It was frightening to watch, this great terrifying monster looming over my gentle and foolishly-brave fiancé. Was Hei Bai going to snatch her? Eat her? I found myself reaching for my boomerang as I came to a halt by Aang's side.
"Sokka?" Aang asked, sounding scared.
"We'll beat him together", I told him the plan. "But first we need to get Kaya away".
"But Sokka", Aang protested as I raised my boomerang; poised to throw it. "I don't think fighting is the answer and Kaya-"
My boomerang soared through the air. Aimed perfectly; it smacked Hei Bai right on his backside. Though… considering his size, it had no effect. Still, as if stung, the spirit jolted around; making Kaya hastily step back to get out of his way. Her eyes found me. "Sokka!" She yelled; shaking her head furiously.
"Hey, Spirit monster!" I yelled at Hei Bai; anything to lure him away from Kaya and her weaponless self. "Over here!".
"What are you doing?" Aang asked; gripping his staff tightly. "Sokka, I don't think this is right".
There wasn't time for this. Hei Bai was already rushing our way. "Get ready", I tried to prompt Aang. But I had only managed to get that instruction out of my mouth before I blinked and suddenly my feet were off the ground. One of Hei Bai's limbs curled around me as he fled from his village. His skin, if it could be called skin, felt cold like a wash in cold water.
"Sokka!" I heard Kaya cry. Alarmingly, she sounded distant. How fast could this thing run?
I tried to struggle free. Knowing that a fall at this speed and height would hurt but I didn't know what else to do. Where was Hei Bai taking me? What would he do with me? These were all questions without answers. They blurred through my thoughts like the trees did as Hei Bai sped past them. I made no progress in freeing myself from Hei Bai's grip.
At one point, Aang caught up on his glider. It wavered a little as he held out one hand for me to grab hold of. "Come on, Aang!" I yelled; stretching to reach him. "Just a little closer!"
"I'm trying!" Aang promised; voice strained. We were less than an inch apart. I could feel his fingertip brush mine and then… a weird tingling feeling engulfed my whole body followed by… nothing.