the recluse

All Haruko dreamt was blue. All of it, ever since she was a child. Nothing but an endless ocean, the sensation of drowning, and the ever-present feeling of blue.

She remembered, as a child, waking in the middle of the night crying. Her mother would rush over to her, scoop her into a warm embrace, and ask what was wrong. Haruko never had an answer, she couldn’t put into words what was so off-putting about her dreams, why she always woke up with tears in her eyes.

They had become more clear lately. At some point during the past year, Haruko began to hear an ever-present humming drone, steadily becoming more clear as time went on. Now, she was finally able to decipher what was being said.

It was her name. Her first name, only. Over and over again, like a mantra, the three syllables reverberating through her brain. It was so repetitive it would’ve been sickening, given any other context. But it wasn’t, somehow. The voice- the voices, it was at least two separate, distinctly female voices- were comforting, like she knew them somehow.

It was just out of her grasp, like the tune of a song she just couldn’t remember- when Haruko woke up. The chanting drone of the voices faded from her head almost instantly, replaced by the monotonous beeping of her alarm clock. Haruko gasped awake, only to find that she was safe in her own bed, the morning light pouring in from the window a warm yellow instead of the unnatural blue of her dreams.

Haruko sighed and turned off the alarm clock. The digital clock face read 6:01, just like it was supposed to. Haruko scratched the ear of Pasha, the small meerfox she had adopted off the street a few years ago, against Aunt Priya’s wishes. “G’mornin, Pasha'' She yawned.

Haruko walked through her room, tactfully navigating through piles of books and boxes and dirty clothes, to where she had left out her uniform from yesterday. She hadn’t bothered to wash it in between uses, but it wasn’t something that bothered her, and washing a uniform daily was a waste of material and money, not a luxury Haruko could afford. It simply wasn’t practical. After donning her off-white shirt and dark gray dress pants, Haruko tucked the bone-carved necklace her father gave her into her shirt, hiding it from public view. For some reason Aunt Priya hated whenever she did anything that reminded her of him, which included Haruko’s existence. She always mentioned how the man had ‘ruined her mother’, but Haruko always got the sense there was more to it. She just didn’t know what.

As soon as she was dressed, Haruko went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face- both menial tasks not warranting much thought. She took a moment to catch her reflection. She looked like a mess. Her uncombed hair and dark circles under her eyes gave her the appearance of a student who had stayed up all night studying, which she had, come to think of it. Nevertheless, Haruko resorted to washing the area around her eyes particularly well and combing her hair with her fingers as she left the bathroom to join her family at the breakfast table.

As usual, Aunt Priya hadn’t put anything special on the table for breakfast, just a couple boxes of dry cereal and a bowl of day-old fruit. Haruko sat down opposite her brother Aazir, on the right of her Uncle Mohan, who seemed preoccupied with the day’s newspaper. Like her, Aazir had thick brown hair, a prominent nose, and brown skin- the unmistakable look of a sandbender. From what Haruko remembered of him, they had inherited those features from their father. Priya looked like what she remembered of her mother, wavy black hair, soft green eyes and tan skin, although Priya wore makeup and curled her hair- both things Haruko never remembered her mother doing. Mohan had similar features, although his hair wasn’t nearly as thick, resulting in a receding hairline despite his relative youth.

“Anything interesting happening, Uncle?” Haruko greeted as she poured herself a bowl of nutri-ohs. They tasted as if cardboard were a food.

“Rail line malfunction up in Yi.” Mohan grumbled, not looking up from his paper. “Says we desert folk won’t be getting any fresh produce for a month at best.”

“Oh, that’s terrible!”Aunt Priya cried as she came over to the table with a bowl of congee, freshly heated. “Why can’t they get some of the metalbenders down in Zaofu to fix it? I’m sure they have the manpower to help out.”

Mohan nodded. “Or that Avatar girl, she should make herself useful for once and come fix a damn problem.”

Haruko nodded with her aunt and uncle’s back and forth about the Avatar. It didn’t matter much to her, but something stood out. “Was the rail line issue an accident or was it criminal interference or ...?”

Mohan opened his mouth to respond to Haruko but was interrupted by his wife, who had just noticed Haruko for the first time this morning.

“Haruko! I told you I don’t want you showing off your tattoos in here!”

Haruko looked down at her tattooed forearms, which were exposed due to her rolled-up uniform sleeves. The thick, black bands were acutely visible. Haruko rolled down her sleeves to cover them, giving Priya an awkward, forced smile.

Priya huffed. “Honestly, I don’t know how you even got them. Mohan, isn’t it illegal for teenagers to get tattoos?”

Mohan shrugged and returned to his paper. Evidently, he was more invested in the Badgerfrogs’ pro-bending win streak than the argument currently happening at the table.

“One thing I do know,” Priya added. “Is that they aren’t allowed per the school dress code. It’s a wonder you haven’t been expelled!”

“C’mon, Aunt Priya!” Haruko said. “You let Aazir wear his stupid hat to school, that’s against dress code too. Plus it’s removable!” There wasn’t any way to remove the ink from Haruko’s skin, so Priya was just wasting her breath.

“Hey!” Aazir looked up from his bowl of frost rocks. “I look cool!” He straightened his posture and puffed out his chest a bit to emphasize the point.

“You know what I mean, young lady.” Priya retorted. “Honestly, you’re so much like your father sometimes.”

Haruko pretended not to hear the last remark. She stood up. “It’s time for school.” She announced, already making her way to the door.

Aazir followed. “Bye, Uncle Mohan, Aunt Priya!”

“Have a good day at school!” Priya waved back at them.

The desert sun beat down on Haruko’s neck as she walked to school. Despite winter being close by, it didn’t ever get much cooler this close to the Si Wong Desert.

“I can’t wait for the nights to get longer,” Haruko remarked as they walked. “Hopefully it’ll get cooler out.”

“Yeah, that’ll be cool.” Aazir snorted at his accidental pun. “Dang, I just remembered I have a math test today.”

“Sucks to be you, I guess.” Haruko laughed. As she and Aazir continued down the sidewalk, they were soon joined by another familiar face- Li Mei, Haruko’s best friend since Junior High. Li mei was a delicate girl, with cleaner, paler skin and a less muscular build than Haruko. She always wore her long, dark hair in a perfect low ponytail, the very pinnacle of student professionalism, a stark contrast to Haruko’s own unironed shirt, choppy hair, and exposed tattoos. Haruko was surprised they were allowed to hang out together.

“Good morning, Haruko!” Li Mei greeted.

“Morning,” Haruko said. “Aazir was just telling us about how prepared he is for his math test.”

“Hey!” Aazir said, playing up his offense for dramatic effect, in typical fifteen-year-old-boy fashion.

Li Mei laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. “If it’s not a problem, I’d rather talk about something a bit more interesting.”

“Sure…” Haruko said. She looked to the sky as she thought, even this early it was a brilliant clear blue, like an ocean she was at risk of falling into. Only one thing came to mind. “I had another weird dream.”

“Really?” Li Mei replied.

Haruko nodded. “Yeah, pretty much the same though. Not much changes with me.” Li Mei, having known Haruko for close to a decade now, must’ve gotten used to her weird dreams by now. She had explained them about a million times, though she never was able to convey exactly what they were like.

It wasn’t long before they reached the school- a flat, wide building unlovingly dubbed ‘Salai High School’. The campus was built by earthbenders during the Earth Empire era, out of the sandstone and terracotta common in the area. It was the only high school in the neighborhood, and one of the most populated in the district. To accommodate the large student population, the school was separated into different sections by student age. . Li Mei and Haruko waved Aazir goodbye as he left to the underclassman’s side of the school.

“Hope he doesn’t fail that math test.” Haruko remarked as she watched her brother disappear into the crowd.

“Avatar Aang is also known for what, class?” Mr. Sang paced around the room, gesturing the image of the Avatar projected onto the chalkboard. The classroom had been darkened to accommodate the projector light, in a way that made every grain of dust around it visible, including the clouds of dirt rising up as Mr. Sang walked around the room.

“Founding republic city?” Someone muttered.

Mr. Sang sighed and pressed a hand to his temple. “Can anyone tell me something he did that isn’t painfully obvious common knowledge? Miss Saeed, perhaps. Have anything to say?”

Haruko snapped to attention, having previously been staring at the wall, pondering her dream. “Um…” She searched her mind for anything the famed air Avatar might’ve done that was remotely unknown and interesting. There had to be something. “Avatar Aang restored the air temples and created a blend between Air Nomad and Water Tribe custom with his wife, Katara.” She had no idea where the knowledge had come from, but it seemed to please Mr. Sang.

“Thank you, Miss Saeed. Avatar Aang did accomplish much during his lifetime, and we, even two Avatars later, still enjoy the benefits he brought to the world. Now onto his successor, Avatar Korra Sato.”

Mr. Sang changed the image on the projector from that of a kind-looking, middle-aged Air Nomad to that of a resolute Water Tribe woman in her mid-thirties. Avatar Korra had dark hair that reached her shoulders and intense, determined eyes that seemed to pierce through Haruko’s soul, yet a certain kindness residing in her features, the same Aang had in his. The woman almost seemed familiar to Haruko. She attributed it to having seen her picture in books before, she was the Avatar, after all. Her photo was everywhere.

Mr. Sang continued to ramble on about Korra’s various accomplishments, which surprisingly included four separate disasters in the span of a few years. Haruko had heard it all before, they had been teaching the same stuff about Korra ever since she had arrived in Jing Zi, but it didn’t hurt to listen.

“Unfortunately, Korra did not live very long.” Mr. Sang confessed. “She ended up living only a fraction of the time her predecessors did, dying at the age of forty-seven. The cause of her death is still unknown,” Mr. Sang added, sparking interested ‘oohs’ across the class, “and she is survived by her family and the current Avatar, Hanuel Beifong.”

Mr. Sang changed the picture yet again, this time to an earth kingdom girl around the same age as Haruko, with long black hair pulled up in a ponytail and soft, pale eyes. Her features were thin, delicate and beautiful- if Haruko had to guess, she’d say the girl was from Gaoling, or anywhere along the southern coast. Everyone in the class recognized her, she was on the vidset all the time, making important speeches and doing important things, a step so high above everyone else that Haruko found it ridiculous. A couple of boys whistled as her image became visible. Haruko rolled her eyes.

Mr. Sang sighed. “As you all know, Avatar Hanuel Beifong has brought great peace and prosperity to our nation.” He gestured to the map of the Earth Confederacy on the wall and continued.

It was easy to drown out Mr. Sang’s words. Haruko had heard it all million times before. The Avatar and her various accomplishments and escapades didn’t interest her because they didn’t affect her, Haruko had priorities that weren’t celebrating a hundred years of peace with the Fire Nation.

Like always, Haruko, Li Mei and Aazir ate lunch on the roof. None of them were all too prominent socially, and eating on the roof was the perfect way to avoid the stress of engaging with others, even if it was technically against the rules.

“How’d your math test go?” Li Mei asked Aazir as she set down her small bowl of rice.

Aazir shrugged. “Could’ve gone better, could’ve gone worse. Pretty sure I got a C, at least.”

“That’s good.” Li Mei replied.

“Ughhh.. I’ve got gym next.” Haruko groaned. “Coach still won’t let me on the earthball team, even though I’m probably the best earthbender in the school.” It was a slight exaggeration, but she still felt discriminated against, especially as it was her third year trying.

“Really?” Li Mei asked. “I thought you’d definitely make the team this year. I mean, who else is he going to pick?”

“Jian.” Haruko said, then shuddered for dramatic emphasis. Her ex-boyfriend, while less of a skilled earthbender than her, was apparently ‘more of the athletic type’.

“I don’t even know why you’re still trying.” Aazir remarked. “You don’t even like sports.”

Haruko sighed. “It’s the principle of it, they don’t want someone like me on their team cause it makes them look bad.” She didn’t need to elaborate on what ‘someone like me’ meant- Aazir knew. He fell into the same category. Their coach would likely die before letting any desert-born earthbender on his team.

“And you’re gonna fight them on it?”

“Yup.”

Aazir shrugged and returned to his lunch.

Li Mei started to say something when she was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Haruko turned to the stairwell that led back down into the school- they had been joined by Padma and her group of lackeys..

Li Mei started to pick up the lunch they had spread out across the floor as Padma approached them. She was accompanied by none other than Jian himself, as well as Wei, a tall, pale boy who had moved to Jing Zi only a few years ago.. Padma, despite being only a few inches taller than Haruko and with none of the muscle definition, had an imposing figure. It had something to do with the way she held her head high and the way her long black ponytail bounced when she stepped. Like almost every other girl in school, she wore it in imitation of Hanuel Beifong, who in turn was imitating her own past life. Only the Avatar really pulled it off, but that didn’t stop Padma from trying.

“Hiya girls, Aazir.” Padma greeted as she sat down opposite Haruko. Jian and Wei remained standing behind her. Haruko shot the former a dirty glare, which he returned instantly.

“What do you want, Padma?” Haruko asked.

“Just wanted to hang out with my favorite dust bandits!” Padma’s voice was honey as she spoke, despite having just insulted two out of the three people she was talking to.

Aazir shot Haruko a quick glance. Haruko shook her head. Whatever Aazir wanted to do, it probably wasn’t a good idea.

Padma smiled. “Hey Haruko, did ya hear about the railway accident in Yi?”

She was singling out her prey. Haruko remained stoic. “I have.”

“Well,” Padma exaggerated her words. “They say it was done by bandits, you think it was your dad?”

“Our dad’s not a bandit!” Aazir interrupted, his voice harsh. “You don’t know anything about him! For all you know he’s probably dead!”

Padma recoiled. She had apparently provoked the wrong sibling.

Haruko put her hand on Aazir’s arm. “Calm down, it’s not worth it.” Aazir’s rapid breathing slowed as he returned to a calmer state. Haruko turned back to Padma, “If you have a problem with us, spit it out. I’m not afraid of you.”

Padma smiled again. One way or another, she had gotten her way. “Meet me tomorrow. Sundown. Lao’s pavilion.” With that, she and her group of lackeys left the area.

“Haruko, what’ve you gotten yourself into?” Li Mei chided.

“I don’t know.” Haruko replied, her eyes transfixed on the door Padma had left from. “But I don’t think it’s a good thing.”

the airbender

The mountain ranges in the northern Earth Confederacy looked just as beautiful as ever as Koto passed above them. It was one of the few areas in the nation that had miraculously stayed untouched by urbanization, making it a haven for wildlife, spirits, and airbenders alike. She had been staying at the Northern Air Temple for a few months now, yet the natural splendor of the area hadn’t ceased to amaze her.

“Koto, why are you taking us down?” Tashi asked from the bison saddle behind her. “We aren’t at the temple yet.”

Koto abruptly realized she had been leading her bison, Cloud, closer to the ground than normal. She guided her bison upwards. “Sorry about that, I just got a little lost in thought.”

“No problem!” Tashi replied, her voice chipper. Koto spared a small glance back to the younger girl, who, like her, was looking out at the horizon. Her thick, dark brown hair had only begun to grow back out after she had earned her mastery tattoos a few months ago. Noticing that Koto was watching her, Tashi started telling her a story about something that happened in town, despite the fact Koto was there for the event.

Koto returned her gaze to the horizon. The sight of the Northern Air Temple was a relief. Not only could Tashi talk to someone else while at the temple, but Koto’s home was also a welcome sight, despite the temple looking a bit hostile due to the ruin and incomplete construction. The many towers of the temple created a majestic silhouette, though the scars the buildings had endured were all too visible for Koto’s liking- the incomplete spires still being rebuilt, the lavacast left behind from years ago covering the temple’s foundation, the broken walls having yet to be reconstructed. Despite the wounds the temple sported, the sight of it brought a smile to Koto’s face

“It’s nice to see you home,” Uncle Rohan greeted as he, Koto and Tashi walked from the bison stables to the temple proper. Like both her and Tashi, Rohan had his airbender’s mastery tattoos, although he had earned his much longer ago. He had the same thick black hair Koto’s brothers did, and wore it short, spiked in the front. Despite being the youngest of her mother’s siblings, the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth displayed his age.

“It’s nice to be home.” Koto smiled. “Is there any news fromRepublic City?”

“Republic City…” Rohan mused. “Yes, we received a call from them earlier. Everyone’s fine back home, your father specifically told me to tell you that the new Lazerbender mover isn’t very good.” Rohan said the words awkwardly, as if he was just now encountering the idea of a mover.

Koto laughed. That definitely sounded like her father. “I’ll be sure to call him back when I can, although with these crime rates, I don’t think I’ll be seeing any movers anytime soon.”

Rohan nodded. “Speaking of that, how’d it go in Beixi?”

“It went great!” Tashi interrupted. “We delivered our entire load and got supplies to nearly the entire town!” She waved her hands around for emphasis.

“It’s a rather small farming village.” Koto explained. “But it got hit rather hard by criminal activity during the Kuvira incident, and since it's such a small town in the middle of nowhere the government forces don’t typically bother with it.” There was a chance Rohan already knew this, but Koto couldn’t be sure, and it was better to be safe than sorry. No one was expected to keep track of every town in the entire Earth Confederacy.

Rohan sighed and pressed a hand to his temple, near his arrow tattoo. “If I can, I’ll get your Aunt Ikki to talk to the Prime Minister about that. She can’t rely on the Air Nation’s hospitality to fix all her problems. If Mira doesn’t listen, at least the Avatar might”

A brief thought of Hanuel Beifong crossed Koto’s mind. Despite having grown up alongside the new Avatar, it had been nearly three years since they had seen each other. She wondered what Hanuel had been doing during that time. The airbender returned her attention to her uncle and Tashi, who were discussing a group of small children who had been amazed by the presence of a sky bison in their village.

“Actually, something weird happened in town.” Koto said. The two other airbenders turned to face her. By now, they were standing in one of the temple halls, the evening sunlight pouring through the large, open windows.

“While we were in Beixi, I noticed we were being watched by some of the local police.” Koto explained. “I didn’t pay it much mind, but they watched us the entire time we were there.”

Rohan placed a hand to his chin as he thought. “Hm… well I can’t say that isn’t concerning, but it’s probably just a local incident. Some people are just like that, wary of outsiders to no avail. Though, contact me if it happens more. Also, I have your next assignment.”

“Already?” Koto asked, although she knew it was redundant. There was always more work to be done as an airbender. It was the price for vowing to help everyone you could.

“Yes, you two will deliver food and medical supplies to the city of Jing Zi, near the Si Wong desert. It’s a mildly large city, and fairly new. Apparently it sprouted up after the discovery of oil in the area and has a decent population of relocated sandbenders. The rail lines leading there were damaged and the people there will be cut off from trade networks.”

“Isn’t it a bit far from here?” Tashi asked. She was right, none of their assignments ever led them too far from the temple, especially not to such a distant locale as the Si Wong desert.

Rohan must’ve sensed their worry, he put one of his hands on each of their shoulders. “You two are some of the most capable benders we have, I’m sure you’ll be able to handle it.”

Tashi smiled and embraced Rohan into a hug. “Thank you! We won’t let you down!” Koto joined the hug, becoming enveloped in Rohan’s sunset-colored robes. “Thanks.”

the chosen

The moment Hanuel stepped out of the airship, she was met with a cacophony of cheers.

For a moment, she was overwhelmed by the noise of the crowd, but she composed herself. They were here to see her- their Avatar. She couldn’t let them down by shying away from them.

As Hanuel walked the stretch of path between her personal airship and the Ba Sing Se palace, she waved to the crowd around her, held back only by green-velvet rope barriers and some very stressed out guards. It wasn’t long before Hanuel arrived at the palace doors, where Yu Yan was waiting for her.

Yu Yan, Hanuel’s personal manager, was a thin, small woman in her mid-thirties, with bright makeup and artificially dyed and curled hair. She had practically raised Hanuel since the discovery of her avatarhood seven years ago, and despite her somewhat snooty personality, there was no one Hanuel would’ve rather seen upon coming back to Ba Sing Se.

“Come on, Hanuel,” Yu Yan clipped as she directed Hanuel into the palace, though the Avatar continued to wave at the crowd.

“Come on, Yu!” Hanuel flashed her manager a smile. “I haven’t been home in months! They want to welcome me home!”

Yu Yan sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll meet you inside. Your friends are in the parlor in the west wing” She said before heading inside.

Almost as soon as Yu Yan had disappeared inside the palace, Hanuel’s attention was brought to a man in the crowd. Clearly a reporter of some sort, this man wore an expensive gray coat and carried a microphone. He was accompanied by a bored-looking cameraman trailing close after him. Both men had noticeably dark brown eyes, uncommon in the Earth Confederacy.

“Hello, Avatar!” The reporter held out his hand as he crossed over the velvet ropes, flashing a badge of some sort to the guards, who only looked more annoyed at his presence. “I’m Shota Shinobi, with the Republic City Inquirer, and I’d like to ask you some questions if I can have your time?”

Hanuel smiled and nodded. From what she knew, the Republic City Inquirer was one of the biggest news networks in the United Republic. It was a bit strange that their reporters were all the way out in the Earth Confederacy, but she shrugged it off. She was the Avatar, her return was a big deal.

“Fantastic!” Shota exclaimed. “Avatar Hanuel, how does it feel to be back home after months of diplomatic training in Gaoling?”

Hanuel looked to the camera as Shota angled his microphone towards her. “It’s great! I’m excited to be back in Ba Sing Se, and I’m ready to get to work doing Avatar business!” She laughed, it was forced, but that didn’t matter.

Shota had continued to interview Hanuel until she managed to break away from the crowd under the guise of needing to attend a meeting. In part, it was true. Shota, and by extension the general public, didn’t need to know that she was actually just going to reunite with her friends.

The quiet inside of the formerly-Earth Kingdom palace was refreshingly quiet, the grandiose, empty hallways a much needed break from the revelry outside. Hanuel loved being the Avatar- she loved being loved- but even someone like her needed a break from it sometimes, if for no other reason than to give her ears a break.

It wasn’t long before Hanuel reached the parlor on the west wing, and just like Yu Yan had said, her best friends were there waiting for her.

Mikah and Jitsuko were opposites, not just in element but in about every possible way. Mikah was tall, with broad shoulders and warm brown skin, flat features and a square jaw typical of Water Tribe men. He wore his hair in a loose low ponytail, with two braids in the front framing his face in a traditional Northern Water Tribe style, and was growing out a scruffy beard. His light blue eyes seemed to look at nearly everything with kindness. Almost everything about him radiated a sense of softness, which could definitely be attributed to his skill in healing and personal vows of pacifism- as a member of the White Lotus, he, in his own words, was “honor-bound to promote world peace”. On the other hand, Jitsuko seemed to be composed almost entirely of angles. From her metallic, golden hairpiece to her Fire Nation shoulder armor to her glasses, Hanuel could compare her to a dagger- small but dangerous. Even her facial features seemed sharp, at least compared to Mikah’s. Both being nobles of their respective nations and prodigies at their respective elements, they were the perfect companions for the Avatar.

Mikah greeted Hanuel with a hug as soon as she walked through the door. Jitsuko soon joined them. “Hanuel! You’re back!” The waterbender exclaimed.

Hanuel laughed as she broke from the hug. “It’s so nice to see you guys again!”

“How was Gaoling?” Jitsuko asked as they all sat down on the fancy couches in the parlor.

“Ugh, it was terrible” Hanuel groaned as she leaned back. “Apparently ever since my folks all moved to Zaofu, Gaoling’s just full of a bunch of boring old rich dudes who haven’t smiled in thirty years and have nothing better to do than boss people around.”

Mikah chuckled. “I know some Northern Water Tribe noblemen who would get along with them. Old master Quma talked my ears off about ‘masculine tradition’ when I told him I wanted to be a healer.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure there are grumpy old dudes everywhere,” Jitsuko nodded. “Definitely seen my share of grumpy Fire Nation advisors who look like they were alive for the Hundred Year War.”

The door opened, and Yu Yan walked in, struggling to carry a mountain of paperwork. “Avatar!” She called out. “Prime Minister Mira requests your presence at a cabinet meeting!”

“Right now?” Hanuel asked as she stood up, although she already knew the answer.

Yu Yan nodded and Hanuel followed her out the door. As soon as they were outside the parlor, Yu Yan dumped a considerable portion of the paper she was holding into Hanuel’s arms then walked off, the click-clack of her heels echoing on the tile floor.

Hanuel was apparently late to the meeting, judging by the way Yu Yan ushered her into the room, sat her down with all the required paperwork, and took her place at the back of the room.

“Avatar Hanuel Beifong, how nice of you to join us.” Prime Minister Mira greeted from the head of the table. A nonbending, Gaoling-born woman in her early fifties, Mira was probably far from the beacon of democratic progress Avatar Korra and King Wu had envisioned when reforming the country, but Hanuel knew she had the nation’s best intentions at heart.

“We were just waiting for you to arrive,” Mira said. “If you’ll notice on your agenda, you’ll see we have a multitude of subjects to discuss that require the Avatar’s input.”

Hanuel looked down at the papers Yu Yan had spread out in front of her and located the agenda. It included a list of topics including taxation breaks among the upper ring, the lack of employment opportunities created by the Si Wong and Foggy Swamp Relocation acts, and the growing crime rate in the southwestern Earth Confederacy. As Hanuel read, Mira and one of the cabinet members started discussing the first item on the agenda- accessible transportation in the Coral Isles, a topic so dull Hanuel started to drift into a daydream.

“Avatar!” Minister Qiang snapped. Hanuel startled out of her thoughts and looked around, eventually making eye contact with Minister Qiang of the Earth Confederacy military. From what Hanuel knew, the middle-aged man was a decorated war veteran, having served in the Earth Empire’s army.

“Uhhhm…” Hanuel trailed off. She must’ve missed a question being asked.

“Minister Qiang asked what you think of the growing spiritual unrest in the Southern Earth Confederacy?” Mira repeated.

Hanuel started to panic. She didn’t have a prepared answer for this. “Uhhh…. I think with the help of the Air Nation, as well as improved natural conservation efforts, we’ll be able to make peace with the spirits.”

The answer was vague and optimistic enough that everyone seemed to agree, and the discussion continued.

After the meeting, as Yu Yan was packing up the papers on Hanuel’s side of the table, Mira approached Hanuel.

“Avatar,” the Prime Minister smiled. “Care to meet me in my office?”

When Hanuel looked back at her manager, Yu Yan gestured for her to follow the Prime Minister. Hanuel swallowed her anxieties and nodded.

Hanuel had always hated Mira’s office. It was sparsely decorated and always seemed cold, no matter what the weather was like outside of the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city.

“How was Gaoling?” The Prime Minister asked, politely resting her hands on her desk.

“It was alright.” Hanuel replied. “I learned a lot, and Master Lei was able to help me refine some of my earthbending techniques.” The earthbending master, while incredibly dull, had given her some useful insight about neutral jing, the founding principle of earthbending.

Mira smiled. “I assume your metalbending is still top-notch?”

Hanuel nodded. Being born in Zaofu and being a direct descendent of the first
metalbender had definitely helped her skills in that regard. She also liked to think that since Korra was also a skilled metalbender, that the ability had somehow transcended lifetimes. It helped her feel more connected to her past life.

Mira smiled and nodded. “I’d say it’s safe to say you’ve mastered earth and-”

“I’ll be moving on to fire?!’ Hanuel interrupted. She had been waiting for this moment for so long that she forgot the rules of etiquette that had been drilled into her for years.

Mira raised a hand to silence her. “Patience, young Avatar. Firebending will come in time. For now, you will remain here, there’s some business for which I need your presence.”

Hanuel slumped down into her chair. “Alright” She huffed.

“Don’t worry. It’s only a few months. By the time the first snow falls, you’ll be off to the Fire Nation.”

Hanuel smiled. “Thank you.”

chapter 4

“Haruko!” Aazir called out. “Aunt Priya says you need to drink some water.”

Aazir’s voice startled Haruko out of her work. She rolled out from under the car she had been repairing to face her younger brother.

Having been home for a few hours, Aazir had since changed out of his school uniform and was wearing a simple beige tunic over dark green pants. For some reason, he was still wearing the same olive green beanie he always did. Pasha was on his shoulder, but jumped to Haruko’s as she sat up.

Aazir tossed Haruko a plastic water bottle and sat down on an unopened crate. Haruko opened the bottle and drank from it- the water was cool and refreshing, she didn’t know how long it had been since she had stopped for a break.

“How’s work?” Aazir deadpanned.

Haruko shrugged. “Mr. Liwei crashed his car again. You’d think he’d just buy a new one, but you know.” She sighed and glanced at the wrecked automobile she was attempting to fix.. “Apparently wasting my time is cheaper.”

Aazir contemplatively glanced over the car and nodded. “Yeah, suppose so. Lemme guess- it’s a cabbagecar.”

Haruko nodded and stifled a laugh. The fact that Cabbage Corp products were poorly constructed was one of the few things Aazir must’ve picked up from her angry rambles. Unlike her, he had elected not to learn mechanics to support Uncle Mohan’s repair shop after he got too old to fix the cars himself, leaving Haruko to be the sole mechanic in the business. She didn’t mind, they only had a few regular customers- enough to make ends meet- and she preferred working alone anyways. It helped her think.

“Oh, you have a cut on your hand” Aazir noticed, pointing out a gash along Haruko’s palm. She hadn’t noticed the cut while she was working, it must’ve been recent. “Hold up.” Aazir continued, looking around the general area. He eventually found what he was looking for, a small roll of bandages. Haruko gave him her hand, which he meticulously wrapped with the gauze.

“Not to interrupt this adorable sibling bonding moment,” A voice from the window interrupted, “But don’t you have somewhere to be?”

Haruko turned to the open window, where she saw Ai Xue, leaning on the wall. A year older than Haruko, Ai Xue had earned a reputation at school for taking absolutely any bribe. The nonbender, like Padma, wore her long black hair in a high ponytail, reminiscent of the Avatar, with messy bangs and long whispies framing her face. Neither pulled it off to the same extent Hanuel Beifong did, but that certainly didn’t stop them from trying.

It quickly became clear to Haruko why Ai Xue was here. Haruko cursed herself, she had forgotten about her and Padma’s prior engagement. Padma must’ve hired Ai Xue to ‘remind her’ of it. Haruko looked out the window- it was almost sunset. “Alright.” Haruko stretched and stood up, grabbing her jacket from the table. “If Padma still wants to do this, let’s go.”

Ai Xue smiled wryly. “Rad. Oh, by the way- change of plans. Padma’s waiting at the schoolyard.”

“The schoolyard?” Haruko scoffed as she donned her jacket. “Does she want everyone to watch us?” It quickly dawned on Haruko that was exactly why Padma wanted to fight in the schoolyard. Her pride had gotten the better of her. “Alright. If Padma wants to lose in front of a crowd, I won’t argue about it.”

Ai Xue smiled. “Fantastic! She told me to escort you to the fight, so if you’re ready-”

“I’m ready.” Haruko glared at Ai Xue before turning to her brother. “Aazir, you stay here.”

“Really?” Aazir groaned, taking Pasha from her shoulders despite the meerfox’s yelp of discontent. “I’ve seen you fight before, I can handle it.”

“Someone needs to stay here so Aunt Priya doesn’t get worried.” Haruko shrugged as she stood in the doorway. Aazir looked disappointed, but didn’t say anything. Haruko took that as a sign of reluctant agreement and turned around to walk with Ai Xue.

The two of them walked to the pavilion in relative silence. Haruko focused not on her companion, but on the environment around them. Sunsets in Jing Zi were one of the more beautiful things about the region, though after ten years Haruko had become accustomed to them. The city moved in a routine, the street merchants packing up their wares for the day, the businessmen on their way home, the bars and nightclubs opening up for the night. Haruko supposed she and Ai Xue fit into that routine- in the eyes of an outsider, they were simply two teenage girls on the way to whatever illicit activity they were up to that night. That wasn’t far from the truth.

It didn’t take long to get to the school- Haruko walked the same route almost daily. When they approached the parking lot, Haruko noticed a small crowd gathered around a car, Padma standing on top of it.

“I was starting to think you weren’t going to show.” Padma taunted, jumping down from the car. The crowd cleared around her, giving her room to stretch out her arms around her.

Haruko shoved her way through the crowd, taking off her jacket and handing it to Ai Xue. The teenagers around her parted the same way they did for Padma, forming a ring around both of them.

“Your lackey made sure I did.” Haruko smirked, raising her voice for effect. If Padma wanted theatrics, she was getting theatrics. “Really? Bribery? For some reason I thought you were better than that.”

Padma laughed and started to pace the clearing. Haruko matched her movement until they had made an entire ninety degree turn. Haruko saunk into an earthbending stance, closing her fists as she took hold of the earth around her. Padma mirrored the movement, though she still held her head high in foolish pride.

For an eternity, they stood still, locked in position and eye contact- a moment’s away from the brawl.

Someone- one of the onlookers, most likely- shouted, “FIGHT!” The word rang out in the silence, stirring action.

In a brutal response to the call, Padma thrust forward, sending a jab of earth at Haruko. It was easy for Haruko to dodge it, and easier for her to redirect it back at her opponent.

Padma only barely managed to dodge the earth Haruko sent at her, getting hit on the shin by the rocks. She took a moment of pause before thrusting upward- pulling up the ground Haruko stood on.

Haruko jumped towards Padma and grabbed her by the wrists, kicking her in the stomach.

“Figures you’d fight dirty.” Padma huffed. Her hair was becoming untied, her face drenched in sweat. “You are a sand rat.”

Haruko couldn’t muster a verbal response, but shoved Padma to the ground. The other girl almost instantly rebounded, sending a chunk of asphalt up at Haruko and hitting her in the face.

Haruko fell to her knees, clutching her jaw. Her ears rang from both the surprise of the impact and the pain. She had definitely been bruised, but she couldn’t tell if the liquid dripping onto her hand was sweat or blood.

“You’ll always be nothing, Haruko.” Padma taunted, walking around the ring in a gesture of pure and utter victory. “Nothing but the dirty sand rat spawn of a rotten deadbeat father. Your own kin didn’t want you. Aren’t your people supposed to value family or something?”

Haruko picked herself up off the dirty ground to look Padma in the eye, then tackled her, forcing the girl to the ground. She lifted a chunk of rock above her head, all too ready to crush Padma with it.

“What the- Everybody leave!” Someone shouted- their voice distinctly that of a teacher. Haruko tore her gaze away from Padma to see the gym teacher, Coach Liu, shoving his way through the crowd. Once at the edge of the crowd, he pointed at Padma and Haruko. “You two! Principal's office, now!”

Haruko stared at her hands- covered in dirt and scabs from the fight, as she waited to be called into Principal Yun’s office. Padma had been called in first, but Haruko couldn’t tell how the conversation was going. After the fresh cut across her lips had been patched up, Haruko had been sent to sit in the uncomfortable chairs in the office outside. She glanced up at Coach Liu, one of the only other faculty members still at the school at this hour, and was met with a cold glare.

Moments later, the office door opened and Padma walked out. Haruko couldn’t determine what had happened or even how Padma felt at the moment. “He wants to see you now.” The other girl monotoned, walking away from the door.

Haruko nodded and stepped into the office. Once she assured the door was closed behind her, she collapsed onto the seat opposite the Principal's desk.

Mr. Yun put a hand to his forehead. “Haruko, what were you thinking? This is the fourth time-”

“She started it!” Haruko barked, using most of her remaining energy to shout. “It’s not my fault she has some sort of problem with me.”

“Haruko, that isn’t an excuse.” Mr. Yun removed his glasses from his face. “You can’t honestly expect me to believe you-”

Haruko broke eye contact with the man, staring at her hands again. She didn’t want to think about justifying her actions, she knew she was in the right.

Mr. Yun sighed. “Haruko, is this about your father?”

“Why would this be about him? This has nothing to do with him!” Haruko retorted.

After sighing, Mr. Yun put his hand over the phone. “I’m going to call your aunt and uncle. They’ll come pick you up so you don’t have to walk home.”

Haruko didn’t respond, staring at her feet.

peacebringers

Haruko had slept in the day after the fight. She hadn’t been planning to- she hated sleeping in and the very prospect of the missing time she could’ve been using to work, but she had no energy after her brawl with Padma and ended up sleeping till noon.

When Haruko did wake up, it was because of the light pouring in from her window and the sound of children’s voices from outside. It wasn’t a school day, which would’ve excited her if it didn’t mean having to pull another shift at Mohan’s repair shop.

“Welp, gotta get up sometime.” The earthbender grumbled as she pulled herself out of bed. Her first objective of the day was a shower- she was still covered in dust from her fight and reeked of sweat and body odor. After that, she’d grab a quick breakfast (or lunch, at this time of day) and would head down to the shop.

After Haruko’s shower, she walked downstairs to encounter an excited looking Aazir at the foot of the stairs. He was practically bouncing as he stood. “Haruko! You’re up!” He smiled.

“What happened?” Haruko asked. Even though he was the more enthusiastic of the two of them, it took a lot to get Aazir this excited about something.

“There are airbenders in the plaza!” Aazir grabbed Haruko by the shoulders. From her stance on the bottom stair, she was taller than him. “Like, legit airbenders! From the Northern Air Temple! That’s not even close to here!”

“Huh….” Haruko pondered. “Wonder what they’re doing here.” She had heard stories of the airbenders before, pacifists who brought the good will of the spirits wherever they went, but like a lot of things, she had never seen any in real life, only on the vidset and in the movers Aazir occasionally made her take him to.

“C’mon! Let’s go see them!” Aazir said as he gestured to the door, clearly motioning for Haruko to follow him. “They're probably gonna leave soon, we gotta go meet them while they’re still here!”

Aazir was right, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, at least for those who lived in the middle of nowhere like Haruko did. Her work would have to wait.

Aazir dragged Haruko by the wrist the entire way to the plaza. It wasn’t that Haruko had put up any resistance, her younger brother just walked too fast for her to keep up.

When they finally got to the plaza, it was packed. A crowd had formed around a large animal- a sky bison - and two girls, around the ages of Haruko and Aazir respectively, both wearing crimson wingsuits and distributing supplies. Haruko couldn’t tell their features from so far away, other than that they both had bright blue arrow tattoos on their foreheads, just like in the movers and on the news.

“C’mon, let’s get closer!” Aazir exclaimed as he led Haruko through the crowd, once again by the wrist he hadn't let go of. Haruko had barely any time to object before they were standing in front of one of the airbenders. It was the taller of the two girls, and once they were closer Haruko could tell she was the older one. The airbender had pale skin, and light brown hair cut just above her shoulders. She had a thin, tall frame and eyes a color Haruko hadn’t ever seen before- a warm gray, like the color of tree bark.

“Hello.” The airbender greeted, and extended her hand. Haruko shook it.

“Uhhhh, I’m Haruko, and this is my brother, Aazir.” Haruko smiled awkwardly, putting her hand in her pocket.

“I’m Koto, and that’s Tashi.” The airbender gestured to her companion. Haruko could now take in the other girl’s features, tan skin like Aunt Priya’s, olive green eyes like her own. She had dark hair, but it was shaved close to her scalp, exposing her round ears.

“We’re distributing supplies here after the rail line malfunction,” Koto explained. “Does your family need any food? Or medical supplies?” Haruko could feel Koto’s eyes go from the fresh cut across her lip, to the bruise on her jaw, to the bandage over her palm. She probably didn’t look too good right now.

“Uh…” Haruko thought. They had been running low on food for the upcoming winter when produce prices would increase, and if the rail lines weren’t working, then they wouldn’t get any till spring at best. “Yeah. I guess we could.”

Koto nodded and pulled out a small notepad. “We’re distributing medical kits right now because they’re easier to distribute by mass. We’ll be making food deliveries later on Cloud.” She gestured to the bison behind her. “So can I get a family name and address down for that?”

“Uh. Saeed.” Haruko blurted out. Priya would be upset with her for using her father’s family name, but it was the first name she thought of. “As for the address, 1478, Sandridge Avenue.”

“One order of food supplies for the Saeed family….” Koto muttered as she wrote in her notepad. She paused. “Could’ve sworn I’ve heard that name before. Anyways, it was nice meeting you!” Koto bowed at them both, using a gesture Haruko hadn’t seen before, she put her fists facing each other so the arrows on her hands would face each other. Haruko awkwardly imitated it out of respect.

“Do you guys have anywhere to stay?” Aazir blurted out.

“Aazir!” Haruko snapped at her brother.

“What, if they’re doing all these deliveries it’s gonna take them more than one day!” The boy retorted.

“Actually, we don’t.” Koto glanced to Tashi. “I hadn’t really thought that far ahead.”

Something about the way the airbender said that stuck with Haruko, it made her want to know more about Koto. She was used to the way people acted in Jing Zi, but Koto was nothing like any of that.

“You could come stay with us!” Aazir offered.

“Aazir!” Haruko said through gritted teeth- she didn’t want to seem hostile to the outsiders, but she doubted Priya would be too happy about bringing home strangers.

“Really?” Koto smiled. “That’s very kind of you.” She called over Tashi and explained the situation to her.

“That sounds great!” Tashi exclaimed. “And way better than sleeping in a random inn. I hate inns.”

“So…. it’s settled?” Haruko asked. She still wasn’t convinced of the plan’s success, but there wasn’t much she could do about it now.

Koto nodded. “Yeah, we’ll finish up here and then head to your place.”

It didn’t take long for Koto and Tashi to finish distributing medical kits, and before she knew it, Haruko was leading the two airbenders and their giant bison to her home.

“Your bison’s pretty big.” Haruko said. She hadn’t meant to say something so obvious, she just was trying to make conversation and it was the first thing to come to mind.

“Cloud? Yeah.” Koto smiled. “She’s actually kind of small for a bison of her age.”

“Cool.” Haruko replied. “I actually have a meerfox. They’re native around here and
usually feral, I don’t know how I convinced Aunt Priya to let me keep little Pasha.”

At the sound of her name, Pasha climbed out of Haruko’s hood and sat on her shoulder.

“Aw, cute!” Koto scratched Pasha’s head, the unexpected closeness made Haruko’s heart race.

“Anyways.” Koto continued. “Are we going to a house or a repair shop? Because I’ve heard both.”

“Oh… uhh.” Haruko stammered. “It’s both, kind of. The repair shop is right next to our house, our uncle bought both properties a while ago when land was really cheap because of the sandbender relocation act.” It struck Haruko that she was giving Koto too much information. “Anyways, Aazir and I were thinking you could probably keep your bison- uh, Cloud- in the yard of the shop. It’s not perfect but-”

“Thank you.” Koto cut her off. “Again, the alternative was a random inn and a parking lot. You’re being way more hospitable than you need to be already.”

Haruko smiled, then realized where they were. “Uh, we’re here!” She gestured to the small house and adjacent repair shop. She was briefly struck with the thought that to their companions, their home was nothing but a stop to stay for the night, and their real home was no doubt more beautiful, not to mention bigger.

“ … We should get inside.” Haruko said. Aazir was already at the door.

Koto said something to Tahsi before joining them. “Alright.” The airbender smiled.

The lights were on when the group walked in, which meant that Priya was home. Haruko directed the airbenders into the living room. It was small, with a few seats, a coffee table covered in magazines and Aazir’s homework, and a small vidset.

“Aunt Priya!” Aazir called into the kitchen. Apparently, he was more observant than Haruko and had noticed which room she was in. “We have guests!”

Priya marched from the kitchen, wearing a beige cloth apron embroidered with pastel flowers. “I swear if it’s more of your troublesome- Oh!” Priya’s eyes lit up at the sight of the airbenders.

Koto stood up and bowed to Priya, the same gesture she had done in the square. “We don’t mean to be rude, my companion and I are peacekeepers traveling to deliver supplies in your area and needed a place to stay for the night. Your niece and nephew offered your home, I hope that’s alright.” She sounded so calm, so confident in the way she spoke, Haruko guessed she spoke with authority figures all her life, authority figures probably way more important than a random high school student’s aunt.

“Oh, it’s not a problem at all!” Priya smiled and patted Koto on the shoulder. “Your people have done so much good for this world, you and your friend are always welcome in my home.”

Tashi jumped to her feet and enveloped Priya in a sudden hug. “Thank you!” The woman seemed surprised but didn’t object other than gently patting her on the back.

Koto gently pulled Tashi away, Priya straightened her glasses. “Well, I’m going to continue making dinner, you air nomads are vegetarian, right?”

Koto nodded. “Yep.”

“Alright, I’ll make sure to make something special for you two, it’s not often we have such important guests over!” Priya beamed with pride before returning to the kitchen.

As soon as her aunt was gone from the room, Haruko turned to face the group. “Ok, uh, Aazir, you can help Tashi go figure out where she and Koto are gonna sleep.” She turned to the Air Nomads. “We don’t have any spare rooms, but we have couches and spare beds. I’ll help Koto get Cloud situated.”

As Tashi and Aazir ran upstairs, Koto turned to Haruko. “You’re quite the leader.” She remarked.

“Eh, that’s just bossing around my little brother.” Haruko shrugged. “Pretty easy stuff.”

Koto laughed, covering her mouth with a hand. “I wouldn’t know anything about that, I just have older brothers. But we should go, Cloud’s gonna get impatient.”

“If we clear that.” Koto gestured to the piles of crates and scrap metal across the yard, “And get some soft blankets or something out here, I think this should do. Cloud’s used to sleeping outside, and as long as it doesn’t storm or anything, she should be alright.”

Haruko nodded, highly doubting the probability of a storm given the climate. “Alright, let’s get this cleared out.” She walked over to one of the piles of crates and dropped into a bending stance. “Stand back” She warned Koto before gently lifting ground a few inches and moving the crates to the side of the yard.

“You’re a pretty good earthbender.” Koto commented as Haruko continued to clear scrap.

“Thanks.” Haruko replied after she had cleared a sizable area in the yard. “Though this technique’s pretty simple. I’d offer to show you, but … y’know.”

“Do you not get many other types of benders here?” Koto asked, intrigued.

“Nah, it’s mostly just earthbenders. Sizable number of us are sandbenders from the Si Wong desert, me and Aazir included, but that’s still just earth. I’m pretty sure there was a waterbender at our school once, but she graduated a few years ago and I haven’t seen her since.”

“Huh….” Koto looked to the horizon, lost in thought. Her hair seemed to float in the wind for a brief moment, until Haruko cleared her throat and Koto turned her head and returned her attention to her.

“Uh… you were saying earlier how some blankets would be good… and we have some in the shop…. That we could use.” Haruko stammered. “If that’s good.”

Koto smiled. “Sounds great.”

home again

“Avatar Hanuel, I cannot stress enough how excited we all are to have you back in Ba Sing Se!” The news reporter beamed. Hanuel didn’t remember his name, or even what news channel she was being broadcast to, but none of that mattered- the only thing that did was that she remained poised, graceful, and confident. The perfect Avatar, just like she had been taught to be.

“I’m excited to be back!” Hanuel said, flashing a smile to the camera. “While I enjoyed my stay in Gaoling, nothing compares to my hometown!” That was a manufactured lie, like every other part of the script she had been given before the interview. The real avatar Hanuel was from Zaofu- born and raised among her metalbender heritage. But that, at least according to Mira, went against the idea of a ‘unified nation’, since ‘Zaofu always fancied itself a separate part of the world anyways’. Hanuel didn’t know if she technically believed in all that, but it made Mira happy and it made the people happy, and that’s all that mattered.

“So,” the news reporter continued. “We’ve all been wondering, but what’s next for the avatar? Following in your grandfather’s footsteps and mastering lavabending? Travelling to the fire nation to move onto firebending? Connecting with the Avatars past?” He gave a forced laugh.

Hanuel laughed in reply, hers all as fake as his. “I don’t think I’ll be lavabending anytime soon,” That part was true; no matter how many times Grandpa Bolin had tried to teach her, she couldn’t get the hang of melting rocks. She figured it was because she was a metalbender- no one, not even the Avatar, could do both. Hanuel continued to the next of the news reporter’s points. “As for fire, the Prime Minister and I have discussed going to the Fire Nation and starting my firebending training in the near future.” That was one thing Hanuel was actually excited for- and she was happy to disclose it with the public, even if it meant her training would no doubt be highly publicized.

The rest of the interview passed without much happening; it was the same it had ever been, a comforting routine. After the cameras shut off, Hanuel met Yu Yan backstage, ready to spend the rest of the day relaxing with her friends.

“You did wonderful.” The woman said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Unfortunately, you have a meeting in five minutes with the national senate.”

“Really?” Hanuel groaned. Relaxing would apparently have to wait.

“I cannot allow a limit on immigration in my province!” Senator Yumi declared. She had always been one of Hanuel’s favorite state senators, typically showing up in full Kysohi Warrior attire, complete with the war fans on her belt and the white-and-red makeup on her face. She was younger than most of the other senators, and stood out among the crowd, both in appearance and political stance.

“Kyoshi Island is so close to the Southern Water Tribe, their influences on our culture are so important and long withstanding that without them, we wouldn’t be Kyoshi Islanders.” Yumi continued. “For the spirits’ sake, Governor Suki was married to the chief of the Southern Water Tribe! We can’t just ignore that cultural connection.”

“If you and your historical reenactment troop want to join the Southern Water Tribe, that’s between you and Chief Saila.” Senator Lu of one of the northern states retorted. There were too many Earth Confederacy states- twenty-seven in total- for Hanuel to keep track of, but she knew all of the senators, at least a bit. “I won’t have any of that ‘cultural cross-contamination’ happening in my nation.”

“Cultural- what?” Yumi stammered. “Kyoshi Island is just as Earth Kingdom as anywhere! The last earth Avatar was from my homeland!”

“She was also half air nomad and a criminal by oath.” Lu said while Hanuel pondered how both senators knew more about her own past life than she did. “You’re painting Kyoshi to be much more of a paragon than she actually was, as is typical for your… type.”

Yumi seemed about ready to give Lu another retort when she was stopped by a hand on her forearm and a calm, pleasant voice. “Senator Yumi, calm down. It’s not worth it.” Jade Beifong, Hanuel’s mother and the Senator of the State of Zaofu, said. “Senator Lu, I think what Yumi is trying to say is that the legislation you’re proposing would destroy the cultural link between the residents of Kyoshi Island and those of the Southern Water Tribe, a link that has survived since before the Hundred Year War.”

The discussion went on for what seemed like hours, with neither side of the argument relenting. Eventually Mira had to call time on the debate lasting too long, and everyone had to shuffle out of the room uncomfortably.

“That could’ve gone better.” Jade complained as she and Hanuel walked out to the lavish palace hall. Like Hanuel, Jade had silky black hair and light green eyes, although Jade was shorter than her daughter by about half a foot. She wore the signature metallic jewelry and floor-length robes of Zaofu, but in a fashion that accommodated her metallic leg prosthesis, operated by metalbending. They made her footsteps echo across the halls; Hanuel had memories of hearing her mom from rooms away back in Zaofu, where everything was made of metal and the sounds were so much clearer and sharper.

“Yeah…” Hanuel sighed. “I think I’m gonna try to visit home for a bit, I know I just got back but it’s been forever and….” She trailed off.

“You should at least try.” Jade smiled, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder. “Even the Avatar deserves a break.”

“You’re right, thanks mom!” Hanuel waved goodbye as she ran off to talk to the Prime Minister.

Mira was still in the meeting room, and seemed to be finishing a conversation with the senator of Gangbei.

“Hello, Avatar.” She greeted as Hanuel approached her,

“Hi,” Hanuel replied. It was an exceedingly casual way to greet a world leader, but Hanuel could get away with it, being the Avatar. “I was wondering if I could maybe visit my family in Zaofu, at least for the weekend?” She gave the most convincing smile she could muster.

“Hm, what purpose would this visit serve?” Mira put a hand to her chin.

“It would serve me well to reconnect with my family,” Hanuel said, coming up with excuses as she uttered them, “And I could better refine my metalbending techniques; there’s no better place to learn metalbending than Zaofu! And I should probably patch up all my earth skills before moving on to fire.” Hanuel concluded.

Mira seemed to think it over for a moment. “Very well. You and your companions may visit Zaofu for the coming weekend. I do want you back by next week, though. We have business to attend to.”

Hanuel nodded, a smile growing on her face. “Thank you!” She thanked Mira about four more times before setting off to tell her friends the news.

the stranger

Koto pulled her knees up as she watched Haruko work-the earthbender had explained whatever part of the car she was fixing, but it was lost on Koto.

Haruko had the look of an earthbender- a stocky muscular build, skin like red clay, and hair the color of the fresh, rich earth found in cooler climates. Her face was square and defined, with a heavy brow and sunken eyes. Haruko’s body seemed to be covered in scars, which was surprising. She seemed the same age as Koto, if not younger.

“I like your tattoos.” Koto complimented. At some point, Haruko had taken off her green jacket, exposing thick, black bands of ink across both forearms. The design was symmetrical, four bands on each arm, with the two in the center having a break where Koto’s own tattoos were.

Haruko looked up from whatever she was doing and made eye contact with Koto for a brief moment, then looked down at her arms, as if she had forgotten them. “Thanks.”

“When’d you get them?” Koto asked.

“About last year, Aunt Priya almost killed me when I did. You?”

“I earned my tattoos when I was fifteen, so about three years ago.” Koto hesitated. “Do yours mean anything?”

“Strength, endurance, fortitude.” Haruko explained as she worked. “That sorta thing, earthbending stuff, y’know.”

While Koto wasn’t an earthbender herself, she was familiar with the philosophy- the idea of standing strong and persevering in conflict was strange compared to the negative jing, Air Nomad philosophy she was raised to believe in. The quality of perseverance would also explain the scars.

“Where’d you get the cut? The one on your lip.” Koto asked. It was only after she said it that she realized she might be pushing Haruko too much.

The earthbender stopped her work, thinking over whatever her response would be. “I got in a fight.” Haruko stated. She didn’t elaborate, and Koto didn’t press the question. She gazed out the window Haruko had opened onto the busy market street. It was about halfway through the afternoon and the city of Jing Zi was bustling, despite it being the hottest part of the day.

“I wonder when Tashi and Aazir will be back…” Koto mused, not expecting Haruko to reply. Their younger companions had set out about an hour ago to deliver supplies across the city on Cloud, they would probably return soon.

As if on cue, the shop door opened as Tashi and Aazir dragged in what looked like a body.

Haruko wasn’t expecting Aazir and Tashi to be back so quickly, and certainly not lugging a person dying of heatstroke, but she could deal with that later. She jumped to her feet and ran over to help.

The woman they had brought in was much taller than both of them, even taller than Koto by a considerable amount, though her thinner build made her easier to support as Haruko guided her to a couch they had set up in the shop. She had brown hair the same shade as Haruko’s, though it was much straighter and longer, tied in a loose braid that reached her mid-back. The woman wore loose green clothes that exposed a great deal of her tan skin, which was spotted with sunburns, freckles, and scars.

As soon as she had laid the woman out on the couch, Haruko turned to everyone else. “Aazir, get me some towels from the house. Tashi, get some water, there’s a bathroom down the hall.” She gestured to where it was. “And buckets in the shop. Koto, help me keep her cool… doing some airbending or something.” She gestured with her hands in a vague imitation of the bending art she had never actually seen.

Everyone nodded as they received their respective tasks, and Aazir and Tashi ran off to retrieve supplies. Koto assumed a light stance and alternated arm movements, creating a breeze that circulated the room, cooling it considerably. Haruko turned to the woman.

She noticed that she wasn’t really a woman, more of an older teen girl, only a few years older than her, just tall. Her long, soft features were familiar to Haruko.

“Hang?” The earthbender asked.

The woman tried to prop herself up on her elbows. “How do you know my name?” She rasped.

Tashi ran in with a bucket of water, and seconds later Aazir returned with an armload of towels. Haruko wetted one of the towels and put it on Hang’s forehead.

“We were classmates, I’m two years below you.” Haruko explained. She had seen Hang’s face around the school back then, but never spoke to her before now.

Hang’s rapid breathing slowed down some as she cooled off.

“What happened?” Tashi asked.

“Probably heat exhaustion.” Haruko explained. “It’s pretty common here, especially if you spend too much time in the sun.”

Hang tried to sit up as she gestured to Tashi. “W-water.” She muttered.

Tashi thrust the bucket of water at Hang. To Haruko’s surprise, instead of drinking the water, Hang made a fluid motion with her hand and pulled some of the liquid to her arm- waterbending, something Haruko had only seen once or twice before. She created a bubble over a cut on her forearm and moved the water; it produced a faint blue glow.

“You’re a waterbender…” Koto stated, even though it was obvious.

Hang gave Koto a long stare. “Yeah..?” She said before muttering something about being bad at healing.

“What is all this racket going on?” Priya’s pitchy voice came from the shop. Haruko turned just in time to see her enter the lounge area they were all standing in, still wearing her apron.

“Wh- who’s this?” Priya gestured to Hang.

Hang didn’t respond, just looked at Priya blankly.

“We found her on the streets, she was dying!” Aazir explained.

“You’re taking in random riff-raff from the streets…” Priya muttered. “Well, I suppose you can stay, at least for the night while you recover. My home is becoming a boarding house for wayward teens…”

“I won’t be here long, I promise.” Hang said, her voice dry and coarse.

“Where do you live? Tashi and I are doing supply deliveries and we could get you a medical kit so this doesn’t happen again.” Koto interrupted.

Hang looked to the side. “I’m kinda… homeless?” She shrugged. That definitely explained why she was out in the heat.

Koto stiffened, seemingly uncomfortable with the reality of life in the rural Earth Confederacy. “Well, if you ever need a place to go, the air temples offer sanctuary and relief to those in need.”

Hang scoffed. “Yeah, sure, whatever.”

Hang rested for the rest of the afternoon, while Tashi and Aazir continued deliveries and Haruko worked in the shop. Before long, night fell and everyone gathered in the house for dinner. Priya had unfolded the table’s leaves to accommodate the guests and had cooked up a thick vegetable curry.

“Thank you for your hospitality.” Koto said as the meal began.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Priya smiled. “We should be the ones thanking you, your aid will do wonders for this town.”

Mohan nodded in agreement, but didn’t say anything. Likewise, Haruko focused on her food instead of the conversation Priya was having with Koto about air nomad cooking. Across the table, Hang seemed to have a similar idea and was resting her head on her hand as she ate, still weary from the heat and her injuries.

“Aazir! I keep telling you, Pasha isn’t allowed at the table!” Priya cried. Haruko looked up to see that Pasha was sitting on her brother’s shoulder, being fed a piece of apple.

“Aww…” Aazir whined as Pasha scampered across the table onto Haruko’s shoulder to hide in her hood.

“Hey kid, watch this.” Hang caught Aazir’s attention with a gesture of her hand. Aazir’s eyes went wide as he watched the waterbender pull the liquid out of his cup and froze into a sphere of ice. Hang dropped it to Aazir’s hand, he immediately started marvelling at it and showing it to everyone else at the table.

“That’s neat, but how’re you supposed to drink a ball?” Mohan pointed out. Hang shrugged in reply. “It’s just a neat party trick, y’know?”

Aazir seemed like he was about to respond when he was interrupted by a jarring knock at the door. Mohan huffed and stood up to go get it, with Koto following close behind.

Haruko stayed at the dinner table but could hear snippets of the conversation from the door. It was the cops- they were here because the shop didn’t have a permit to house a sky bison. Although the conversation started out polite and hushed, it soon escalated as Koto started yelling at whoever was standing in the doorway. Haruko exchanged an awkward, worried glance with the other people still at the table.

It wasn’t long before Koto and Mohan returned to the table. Mohan seemed to glance around nervously and kept his distance from Koto, who was fuming with anger. Haruko stood up and looked Koto in the eye.

“Let’s go on a walk.” She said. It was more of a demand than a suggestion. Koto nodded as Haruko guided her out the door.

The earthbender spared one last glance at the people remaining at the table. “We’ll be back soon.” She announced.

the walk

It was close to an hour after sunset and the streets were emptier than normal, with only a few other passersby in sight. Already, the air was cool enough that Haruko needed to wear her jacket.. She wondered if Koto was cold; though her wingsuit covered her entire body, it was hard to tell how insulating the fabric was.

As they walked a simple route down the street, Koto started to ramble.

“I can’t believe them!” Koto sighed, placing a hand to her forehead. “All we’re trying to do is help, and they try to boss us around. The Earth Confederacy barely recognizes us as a nation, they can’t treat us like foreigners and deny that we’re an independent nation!”

Haruko nodded along, pretending to know enough about the situation to be invested in it. Truthfully, Koto was complaining about issues Haruko didn’t know existed.

“The modern air nation is ethically mixed! Yes, we have a larger population of people from the earth kingdom but that’s because the earth kingdom is huge!” Koto lamented, gesturing around with her hands. “Of course more earth kingdom individuals got airbending during harmonic convergence, there’s more earth kingdom individuals!”

Haruko tried to nod along but was getting more lost by the second. Koto continued rambling about what happened, gesturing around with her hands. Apparently the police officer who showed up had demanded that she and Tashi pay a fine for ‘illegally keeping a flying bison’, even though it was perfectly legal for Air Nomads to have sky bison, at least according to Koto.

Instead of trying to make sense of whatever international affairs Koto was rambling about, Haruko took in her hometown, trying to see it through the eyes of an outsider, like how Koto saw it. She tried to see it in a way she didn’t, ignoring her own memories of the streets and plazas. In the daytime, Jing Zi always seemed to be bathed in a golden light, especially during the evening, when the sunset would illuminate the entire sky and cast long shadows across the floor. By night, the city seemed to become an inverse of itself, everything empty and chilled and illuminated by the moon and the city lights. Jing Zi was such a small city it didn’t have the same nighttime hustle-and-bustle she had heard of on the vidset. It wasn’t alive, but it wasn’t as quiet as the depths of the Si Wong desert were, the desert she remembered from her childhood. Out there, the sky was so vast and clear you could see every star in the night sky.

She and Koto reached a bridge-the Beifong Legacy bridge that ran over the highways leading to the rest of the world. It was a breathtaking sight, the city alight in the dark of the night, and even though Haruko had seen it and passed this bridge almost daily, for some reason it took her breath away today. Haruko noticed that for the past few moments, Koto hadn’t said anything and was staring at the open sky above them.

“It’s beautiful…” She whispered.

Haruko smiled. “You should see the sky out in the real desert. It’s so open you can see for miles.”

Koto took a moment to respond. “You’ve lived in the desert?”

Haruko hesitated. She didn’t know what parts of her past she could trust Koto with. “Let’s get going home, I’ll tell you on the way back.”

They started walking home. “When me and Aazir were kids, we lived a nomadic lifestyle as sandbenders with our parents. Our dad was native from the desert, but our mom was from here and only joined the tribe when she married him.”

“I never knew the sandbenders were nomadic…” Koto mused. “Guess we have something in common, then.”

“Yeah, I suppose so.” Haruko continued. “Anyways, we lived there until my mom died when I was about five, and a few years later the sandbender relocation act was put in place and Aazir and I were put into the care of our aunt and uncle.”

“If it’s ok,” Koto asked. “What happened to your father?”

Haruko stopped walking for a brief moment. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen him in years.”

It didn’t take long for them to return home, and the rest of the trip passed mostly in silence. Haruko guessed that Koto felt guilty after asking Haruko about her past, even though there was nothing she could do about it.

The first thing Haruko noticed when they arrived back home was that Cloud was gone from the yard. The second thing she noticed was that Hang, Aazir and Tashi were in her place.

Tashi ran up to Koto as soon as she saw her and grabbed her by the forearms. “Koto, they took Cloud!” She sobbed. “We couldn’t- they just…”

“What?!” Koto’s voice rose in pitch. Her brow furrowed. “Who took her?”

“The cops that were here before.” Hang said. “Apparently they can just confiscate stuff- or bison- if you don’t have a permit.”

“What are we gonna do?” Tashi whimpered.

“We’re gonna get her back.” Koto stated.

Hang nodded. “Alright, I’m in. You won’t be able to pull something off like that with just two people, you’ll need my help.” Haruko was surprised at how passionate the waterbender seemed about the situation, Hang had seemed like the type of person who wouldn’t bother with anyone else’s business unless it affected her.

“Me too!” Aazir piped up. “I know seismic sense, which might come in handy.” He turned to Haruko, his voice uncharacteristically grave. “You should come too.”

“Really?” Haruko stammered. “My bending isn’t as stealth-oriented as yours is and-”

Koto put her hand on Haruko’s shoulder. “Please.” She near-whispered, her voice close to breaking.

Haruko nodded. “I’ll help in any way I can.”

Koto turned to Tashi. ”I want you to stay here, just in case.” The other airbender nodded and wished them good luck before Koto turned to the rest of the group. “Let’s go.”

the catalyst

The city seemed near-dead as Hang led the four of them through the streets. Haruko had initially pegged the waterbender as an outsider, like Koto and Tashi, but from the way she navigated the backstreets and alleyways, it was clear Hang knew the city as well as Haruko, if not better. Even though she was still limping and clearly weary from her injuries, Hang had made her way to the front of the group, with Koto, Aazir, and Haruko trailing her.

“Turn here” Hang made a gesture with her hand. She spoke with a directness, an urgency Haruko wasn’t used to. The waterbender seemed comfortable with the situation, at least more comfortable than Haruko. “They’re probably keeping your bison at the police headquarters.”

Hang led them to an empty office building. Haruko knew it as what used to be the Jet Gold business office before the oil processing company had gone bankrupt a few years ago. Now the five-story-tall office building was completely empty and had been up for sale for what seemed like forever. No prospective business wanted property so close to the police station. It dawned on Haruko why they had stopped here.

“Can you guys climb?” Hang said, pulling water out of a leather waterskin she wore on her waist. Koto nodded and jumped a story up, her movement propelled by airbending. Hang followed soon after, creating a sort of grappling hook with the water she had brought. Not knowing exactly what to do, Haruko ran at the wall and started to scale it.

It was a simple enough idea, to assist her climbing by slightly altering the bricks in the stone wall, but it took a lot of precision and dexterity to both keep the wall intact and keep herself from falling. It definitely wasn’t the most effective version of earthbending-enhanced wall climbing technique, but it was the quietest one Haruko could think of. She made it to the top of the building just before Aazir..

Hang helped Haruko up and helped her dust herself off, she had returned the water to her waterskin in the time it had taken for Haruko and Aazir to get up. She wordlessly led the two of them to where Koto was standing, looking over the edge at the police headquarters.

The building was small, at least compared to the office building they were standing on. It stood a few stories high, with a large courtyard in the back. In the courtyard was Cloud, tied down by metal cables. Koto looked visibly worried at the sight of her bison in pain.

“I think I have a plan.” Hang said. “You see that fountain in the front?” She gestured at a water feature in front of the building. Haruko hadn’t noticed it before.

Hang continued. “If I can get to that, I can create a wave of fog that will make it easy for you-” She pointed at Koto. “To drop in and free your bison. But I’ll need cover.”

“I’ll do it.” Aazir stated.

“No, you’re going with Koto. That seismic-whatever it is will come in handy if you’re being sneaked up on. Haruko’s coming with me.”

“I am?” Haruko asked.

Luckily for Haruko, Hang helped her on the way down from the tower, using the same technique she had used to get up. Haruko felt exposed on the street, so close to the headquarters, but for now, they could hide in the shadows.

“I need you to create a distraction so I can get to the fountain,” Hang whispered. Haruko nodded, dropped into a quick bending stance, and made an upward punching motion, creating a rift in the street in front of the building. Her sudden movement had done exactly what she wanted it to- catch the attention of the people inside. Within seconds, a pair of officers ran out to subdue and arrest her.

Haruko pulled up a wall of stone in between her and the cops for defense, then sent it at them. She was outnumbered, but not outmatched. If she kept reminding herself of that, maybe it would be true. As Haruko dodged the small bullets of earth shot her way, Hang maneuvered through the battle to the fountain and pulled out nearly all the water in the feature, using fluid, almost dance-like movements Haruko hadn’t ever seen in real life.

For a moment, the water stood still, reflecting the moonlight in a ball over their heads, until Hang, with a fluent motion of her arm, dropped it onto the ground. The water didn’t make an impact but evaporated into a thick mist as Hang bent it, spreading the fog around the entire headquarters. The flowing movements of her arms seemed almost reminiscent of the airbending Haruko had seen Koto perform earlier.

The fight didn’t stop. Haruko was hit in the shoulder by a chunk of asphalt, which she immediately sent back in the direction it came from. She lifted another wall to hide behind, and to her surprise, Hang emerged from the fog right next to her.

“What now?” Haruko asked.

“Now that I’ve created the fog, Koto and Aazir should be on their way to free Cloud.” Hang grimaced and clutched her side, she must’ve gotten injured during the fight and wasn’t recovering well.

Haruko nodded. She stood up briefly to send a chunk of earth at her opponents- it was difficult to aim when she couldn’t see, but that meant they couldn’t see her either. For now, it was a waiting game. “Do you think they’re-”

Haruko’s question was cut off by a low, loud roar from above. Haruko and Hang both looked up to see Cloud descending from the heavens. The fog around her seemed to clear as the bison descended, and as she came closer Haruko could see Koto and Aazir riding her.

“Come on!” Koto yelled. Haruko could barely hear her voice over the ringing in her own ears but the message was clear. She and Hang exchanged a quick glance before racing to Cloud and climbing onto her.

As soon as Haruko and Hang were sitting in the round saddle with Aazir, Koto near-shouted the command, “Cloud, yip yip!” And pulled them into the sky. Haruko watched from above as the mist cleared and the scars of the battle became visible.

leaving home

“You can tell her where we are, but don’t tell anyone else.” She turned to Haruko. “I’m going to get changed, civilian clothes will make me less recognizable. You and Aazir should gather up anything you’ll need.”

Haruko nodded and entered the house.

The house was quiet and dark as Haruko and Aazir crept through it, Priya and Mohan had gone to sleep long ago. She didn’t say anything to Aazir as she ran up the stairs as quietly as she could, taking every measure to be as stealthy and efficient as possible.

Haruko didn’t bother to pack her schoolbooks; the heavy tomes wouldn’t be practical to bring on the run. She packed clothes- work pants and tank tops and a spare jacket for cooler weather, socks and underwear and anything essential. She made sure to pack the jerky treats she bought for Pasha, and the first-aid kit she kept on her bathroom counter. Haruko hesitated over the framed photo of her family she kept on her bedside table- the four of them photographed before her mother had died, Aazir barely three years old, the paper burnt on the edges. She settled on taking it, removing the photograph from its frame, and folding it before stuffing it into her satchel bag. Haruko did one last scan of her room before leaving it, unsure when she would come back.

She reunited with Aazir, Koto, and Hang outside. Tashi was busy preparing Cloud for yet another departure, and everyone else seemed as on-edge as Haruko did. Aazir had packed a bag like her own, Hang had gathered what belongings she had brought from the shop (which, surprisingly, included a banjo that Haruko hadn’t noticed before), and Koto had donned an outfit of off-gray pants and a crimson sweater over a yellow button-up. Her arrow tattoos were still visible, but she looked less distinctive without the uniform.

“All packed and ready?” Koto asked as Haruko locked the door behind her.

“I guess so.” Haruko replied. She exchanged a nervous glance with her brother.

“Alright.” Koto put her fist over her hand for emphasis, she spoke in a grave, serious tone. “We’ll head off to the train station; we should be in the Coral Isles in a few day’s time.”

If there was one thing Haruko was grateful for, it was that the train station, and the train itself, were relatively empty so late at night. They boarded a southbound train without any trouble, save for a few strange glances. Haruko didn’t mind them; it would take a lot to offend her now.

They quickly found two pairs of seats facing each other next to a window. Haruko took the frontwards-facing window seat; Aazir sat next to her and almost instantly fell asleep against her shoulder. Hang took the window seat across from Haruko and put her bags on the floor by her legs as she turned to look out the window. Koto filed in behind her and pulled out a book titled ‘The Complete Collection of Laghima’s Poetry.’ It seemed too boring to strike up a conversation about, so Haruko stared out the window, following Hang’s example.

It wasn't long before the train started moving, and the train station- then the Jing Zi skyline- began to disappear from view. The landscape became less urban by the second, eventually spreading out into desert scrubland. Haruko barely had time to register what was happening as she left the home she had known for years, running away with strangers to a part of the world she had only seen on the vidset. In the past twelve hours, her world had expanded incredibly and flipped itself upside down, and she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sinking guilt as her home gradually disappeared from view.

the city of silver

Hanuel’s home was bright, it was beautiful, and the sight of Zaofu’s metal domes over the horizon filled her with a sense of relief and awe.

“Mikah! Jitsuko! We’re almost here!” She exclaimed as she leaned on the airship’s railing, her face so close to the window that the glass almost fogged up.

Mikah was quick to abandon his and Jitsuko’s game of Pai Sho (much to the latter’s frustration) and accompany the avatar near the window. His face alighted with joy as he noticed the city in the distance. Hanuel was sure he had visited her hometown before; they had been friends for years and she had undoubtedly forced him to attend at least one Beifong family reunion, but Zaofu was the type of place that always took your breath away.

Jitsuko, now without a Pai Sho opponent, was quick to join the two of them. “The domes are platinum, right?” She asked, leaning on the railing.

“Uh, yeah, I think.” Hanuel responded, trying to remember what she had been taught. “Back when Kuvira was in power she made her giant robot out of them, but they’ve been put back since then.”

Jitsuko laughed. “Duh. But that’s a pretty sweet defense system you got there. Gonna be really hard for anyone who wants to get in.”

Hanuel smiled and returned her gaze to the city they were rapidly approaching. She could always count on her firebender friend to look at things from a militaristic standpoint; Hanuel was pretty sure she had attended the Royal Fire Academy.

“Yeah, isn’t the property value, like, crazy high?” Mikah added. Hanuel laughed; she could also rely on Mikah making astute observations that only a completely normal, grounded person would notice. He always brought a sense of stability to her life.

As Hanuel and her companions disembarked from their personal airship, Hanuel noticed a small crowd that had gathered to meet them. It was tiny compared to the masses that had greeted her when she arrived in Ba Sing Se, but these were the people she wanted to see the most.

“Dad!” Hanuel exclaimed as she ran down the airship’s ramp and enveloped her father in a hug. Seok Beifong was a tall, muscular man with the same bright eyes and warm smile as her. He took after his father, and in turn, she took after him.

Hanuel turned to the rest of the group. In attendance were her paternal grandparents, Bolin and Opal, her Aunt Ahn, and her two cousins, Ai and Ji-yong, who were both younger than her. They were all dressed in the long, elegant robes common in Zaofu, save for Opal, who wore a modified version of Air Nomad robes. All together, they were the entire earthbending side of her family, other than her mother. Hanuel exchanged hugs with each of them.

“It’s so nice to see you again!” Bolin smiled as he broke from Hanuel’s hug. “How’s your mom doing?”

Hanuel smiled. “She’s doing great, we’re working on new legislation to improve the lives of Earth Confederacy citizens everywhere.”

Bolin laughed. “Y’know, it’s so relieving to know that there’s good people in charge of the nation now. I can’t tell you the last time that happened.”

“Your cousin Tashi is here as well.” Opal smiled and put a hand on Hanuel’s shoulders. The woman was considerably shorter than her, and had a vibrant blue arrow tattooed across her forehead like every master airbender.. “She arrived last night, and is resting now, but you two should catch up.”

Hanuel nodded, recalling the last time she had seen her airbender cousin. It must’ve been her tattoo ceremony a few months ago, just before she had set off to Gaoling last spring on Avatar duties. It would be nice to see her again.

As Mikah and Jitsuko walked off the ship to join the group, Ahn cleared her throat, looking Hanuel straight in the eyes. Of all her family members, her non-bending aunt had always managed to be the scariest, even though Hanuel knew she meant well. “I’ve made sure that no press will show up during the visit.”

Hanuel smiled, relieved that she wouldn’t have to deal with the press or fans while spending time with her family. It was good to be home.

“Yes!” Hanuel exclaimed as she won yet another match of power disc- her eighth victory this afternoon.

“No fair.” Ji-yong complained as she stretched out a bruise she had gotten during the fight. “You’re like, the Avatar.”

Hanuel stuck her tongue out at her cousin. It was nice to be able to be herself, outside the view of the public.

“I can heal that up for you.” Mikah suggested. The waterbender had decided to come watch the game while Jitsuko read about architecture in some hidden library nook. Ji-yong shrugged and looked like she was about to say something when her face lit up. “Tashi’s up!”

Hanuel turned around, spinning on her heels. Her airbender cousin was, in fact, awake and was now walking around the estate in yellow-orange civilian clothes. Her hair had grown since Hanuel had last seen her at her tattoo ceremony, but it still wasn’t to the length it had been before. Hanuel ran up to her and enveloped her in a hug.

“Hanuel!” The shorter girl protested, trying to get out of Hanuel’s grasp. “C’mon.”

By the time Hanuel let go of the airbender, Ji-yong and Mikah had joined them.

“Spirits, your tattoos are so cool!” Ji-yong exclaimed. “I wish earthbenders got mastery tats, that would be sooooo cool.”

“Awww, thanks.” Tashi laughed and put her hand to her forehead. “They did hurt though, so…” She shrugged, and Ji-yong seemed to agree with the unsaid statement.

“So, why’re you here in Zaofu?” Hanuel changed the topic of the conversation. “I thought you were out doing air nomad things.” She gestured around, alluding to the nomadic lifestyle Tashi lived, but Hanuel could barely understand.

Tashi forced a laugh. “Uh, yeah. I was out with Koto, but we ran into some complications… I’m taking her bison back to the temple for her.” Tashi quickly glanced away, as if she had revealed too much of a secret.

Koto, Hanuel’s best friend since the age of six, was the great-granddaughter of Avatar Aang and one of the best airbenders she knew. When they learned she was the Avatar, Hanuel had wanted Koto to be her airbending master. Hanuel was reminded of the fight they had a few weeks before Koto’s tattoo ceremony; she hadn’t seen her friend since. Koto hadn’t even shown up for Tashi’s tattoo ceremony, apparently dealing with some ‘spiritual business’ with her Uncle Rohan. “Is she alright?” The Avatar asked.

“Oh, uh. Yeah. She’s fine, she just had some… stuff to deal with. Elsewhere. Uh…” Tashi gestured with her hands as she stammered.

Mikah must’ve sensed the tension in the air, because he put his hand on Tashi’s shoulder and led her over to the power disc court. “Come on, we were watching the metalbenders play a sport I barely understand, you can tell me about sky bison while we watch.”

Tashi visibly exhaled as Mikah led her away from the conversation, yet Hanuel couldn’t help but feel sick to her stomach as she returned to the court- the sinking feeling there was something Tashi wasn’t telling her.

the coral isles

Haruko woke to the rumbling sound of the train and the light pouring into her window. For a moment, she could pretend she was back home, simply imagining things as she floated between dreams and consciousness, as long as she ignored the rocking sensation of the train and the soft whispers of the other passengers. The illusion was shattered as soon as she opened her eyes.

In her sleep, Haruko had ended up with her face against the train window. Her hair clung to the window in a static effect as she got up. She felt absolutely terrible, the uncomfortable sleep and pain from her bruises only adding to her insurmountable dread of leaving her home.

Haruko heard a small “Brrm?” sound; she looked down to see Pasha curled into a ball on her lap. She was glad she had brought her little meerfox; the small animal’s presence brought some sense of normalcy to her situation.

“Did I wake you up, Pash?” Haruko whispered as she pet Pasha’s head. She looked around the two seat rows she and her companions had claimed. Aazir was still asleep, leaning against her shoulder. Across from her, Hang was awake and was looking out the window. Koto was nowhere to be seen. She must’ve gone off to get food again.

Hang must’ve heard Haruko speaking, because it wasn’t long before she looked away from the window and made eye contact with the earthbender. “Morning.”

“Good morning.” They had been traveling just over a day now, and the scenery around them had changed from the rough, dry mesas and deserts Haruko was familiar with to a lush, green forest.

Hang pulled out the map she had taken charge of yesterday. “We passed Gaoling last night,” The waterbender mused. “So we should arrive in Aringreu in a few hours.”

Haruko nodded, returning her gaze to the scenery outside. Even from inside the train, she could tell how different the world was in this part of the Earth Confederacy. There were trees everywhere, lining both sides of the tracks and casting green-tinted light into the beige interior of the train. The world seemed more alive here, at least compared to anything she had seen before.

As the train pulled in for a stop on Kyoshi Island, Koto returned to the seats, carrying a tray of food. “I got breakfast.” She announced, waking Aazir up.

“Ooh, nice.” Aazir smiled. “Whacha got?”

Koto sat down and looked at the tray. “We have steamed buns and congee. I got tofu pudding for myself.”

“Man, why do you get first dibs on the food?” Aazir complained as he picked up a bowl of congee from Koto’s tray.

“Because I’m the one getting the food for everyone!” Koto retorted. Over the time they had spent on the trip, the four of them had gotten more comfortable with one another, even if that only amounted to making sly remarks at each other.

“Thanks, Koto.” Hang said as she took two buns off Koto’s tray, handing one to Haruko. “I already told this to Haruko, but we should be arriving soon.”

“Good.” Koto remarked. “I’m getting a little sick of trains, to be honest.”

The moment Haruko stepped off the train, she was immediately confronted by the humidity. The air in Aringeru was so dense with water, it was like moving through honey. She must’ve hesitated at the train doors for too long, because Koto quickly took her by the wrist and pulled her over to a bench where the rest of the group had congregated.

“We’re supposed to be at Hira Family Inn.” Hang said as she unfolded a roadmap. Haruko didn’t know where she kept getting maps from. “The best route seems to be to go down Makapu Street and turn left here, I’ve heard it’s on Lotus Boulevard.”

“Do you even know where this place is?” Koto berated, leaning over the map. “If it’s an inn, we should check around the tourist-y areas.”

“It’s an inn for criminals!” Hang replied.

As her companions bickered, Haruko took off her jacket, much to Pasha’s distaste. Layers had been practical out in the desert, but it was too humid here. After checking that Aazir was doing the same, she started to take notice of the people around. Aringeru grand station was full of people, most of whom had dark brown hair and brown skin like her, but there wasn’t a consistent look other than that. People milled about in every shade of every color, adorned in green cloaks and blue headscarves and red dresses. Haruko knew the area was diverse, but nothing could’ve prepared her for the mix-mash of elements and culture that confronted her. She had been worried about their group standing out amongst the crowd, but apparently, that wasn’t a concern. The area was as different from Jing Zi as she could’ve ever imagined.

“Alright, it’s settled!” Koto clasped her hands together; apparently she and Hang had reached a solution that they both agreed on. “Let’s get going, the less time we waste, the better.”

Hira Family Inn was a small building made of wood, meaning whoever lived in it was probably not an earthbender. It was located on the outskirts of a bustling outdoor market, and it was mostly due to Hang’s height and map-reading skills that they were able to find it.

The door was propped open by a barren flowerpot, and it took a bit of maneuvering to actually get inside. The interior of the lobby was strikingly quiet compared to the bustling market outside. A simple wooden desk took up most of the space in the room, accompanied by a few straw chairs, a magazine rack, and a muted vidset, currently playing the news. A mix of magazines, paperwork, and a random assortment of bowls covered the desk itself. Behind it sat a teenage girl not too much younger than Aazir, with warm brown skin, vibrant blue eyes, and curly black hair that reached her back. She seemed entirely engrossed in her reading material- a magazine called BenderLife with a picture of Hanuel Beifong across the cover- until she heard the group enter the room.

“Lola Tuli!” The girl called towards a door leading elsewhere in the inn. “We have guests.”

Moments later, a short elderly woman walked in from the other room. She had the same features as the girl behind the desk, save for her white hair tied up into a low bun. “You four.” She beckoned them to the desk as she rummaged through the drawers, seemingly searching for something. “Do you want a room? Two rooms?”

Hang approached the desk; she had to bend down a bit to make eye contact with the woman-Tuli, apparently. “Actually, we’re here because of the… uh.” She lowered her voice. “The criminal safehouse.”

“Hmph.” Tuli nodded before turning to a door opposite the one she had come through. “Tala! We’ve got another of your people here!”

A few more moments and a crashing sound later, a tall, muscular teenager appeared in the doorway. Looking like they had just fallen down, the person was in the midst of gathering themself as they entered the room, their confidence unwavered. They had the same features as Tuli and the teen girl, although they wore their hair in a high bun and had copper-colored eyes. Intricate, abstract tattoos covered their upper arms, shoulders, and what of their chest was visible beneath their low-cut shirt. “Yeah?” They replied, walking over to Tuli and pressing her hand to their forehead in an act of respect, then stood back up.

Tuli gestured to Haruko and the rest of the group. “They’re your type.” She huffed. “You can take care of them.”

“Alright.” The person spun on their back heels to face the group, they extended their hand. “I’m Tala, I run the safehouse part of the inn.”

Hang took his hand and shook it firmly. “Thank you, I’m Hang and these are my companions, Haruko, Aazir, and Koto.” She gestured to each of them respectively. “We’re in need of a place to hide out from the greencoats, at least for now.”

Tala’s gaze lingered over each of them for a brief moment. “Alright, you can stay here for a few months until my associates and I can get you set up somewhere safe and out-of-country, or it becomes safe enough for you all to return home.” They gave the group a confident, charismatic smile that threatened to melt all of Haruko’s natural defenses.

“Come on,” Tala gestured to the door and the rest of the inn outside. As they were leaving, Tuli called something out.

“Tall girl! You want healing on that nasty bruise?”

Hang, rightfully assuming she was the one being singled out, turned back and gestured to herself, her hand over the large, purple-green bruise covering her shoulder. They were all visibly wounded, but she looked the worst out of all of them. “Uh, yeah I guess.”

“Follow me.” Tuli said as she left through the opposite door.

“She’s a master healer.” Tala explained as they led them into the inn’s courtyard- an open space surrounded by stone walls and covered in dense foliage. “Waterbending. Masina’s a waterbender too, she’s learning the craft.”

Haruko assumed that Masina was the girl with the blue eyes inside the shop. “Cool.”

As Tala led them around, they started recounting a brief history of the inn. “It was founded by my great-great-grandfather, back during the hundred year war. We’ve always taken in outsiders but we just started doing it officially- don’t worry, we don’t charge you guys- Oh hi Ahsa!”

Tala had spotted the woman, who appeared to be in her late twenties, roaming about the courtyard and basking in the open sun like a lizard-toad. She didn’t look a thing like Tala or the rest of their family, with her pale skin, narrow frame, and straight, long hair bleached blond at the tips. The only resemblance she had to any of them was her strikingly amber eyes, a shade that closely mimicked Tala’s. She seemed familiar to Haruko, both in face and name, but she couldn’t quite place it, a far-off memory too easily confused with a dream.

“Hey Tala.” She casually replied. “Who’re these guys?” She glanced over the group, her gaze catching on Haruko and Aazir.

Tala smiled and put an arm around the woman’s shoulder. “Everyone, this is Ahsa, my mentor and compatriot. Ahsa, this is Haruko, Koto and Aazir.” Haruko was surprised by how well Tala remembered their names.

Ahsa smiled and extended her hand. Haruko shook it. “Nice to meet you.” The woman said. “In the nature of honesty, you should know that Tala and I are part of the same organized crime group, and it’s our mission to bring freedom to every corner of the world. You in no way are being pressured to join, but I think it’s nice if our guests know who they’re in the hands of.”

Haruko nodded, she didn’t have any personal problem with that. Tala’s guided tour went on normally soon after, but Haruko noticed Koto’s gaze staying on Ahsa for a moment too long.

Tala led them each to separate rooms, Haruko’s being the last. The rooms were, as Tala described them, ‘small and homey’, with a door and window each that led to the outside. It wasn’t much, but it was a definite relief from the train car Haruko had slept in the last few nights. She dropped her bags inside and didn’t bother to unpack, planning to sleep for the rest of the day.

“Hey, are any of you by chance an auto mechanic?” Tala asked, still standing in the vicinity of the doorway.

Haruko nodded. “I am, actually.” It was strange how convenient the coincidence was; she would’ve suspected spiritual interference if she didn’t know any better.

“Great!” Tala smiled. “Cause our satomobile has been broken for a while now, and we’ve got no one to fix it; every mechanic on the island overcharges way too much and I’ve just been waiting for one of the guests to know how to fix it.” They shrugged bashfully.

“I’ll see if I can be of any help.” Haruko shrugged.

The Hira family satomobile was a wreck. It was an old model, even by the standards Haruko was used to, and was missing three out of four tires. When she mentioned these issues to Tala, they looked at her like she was speaking another language. Not wanting to give up on her promise, Haruko focused on something she could fix- the exhaust system.

“So, Tuli’s your grandmother?” Haruko asked as she worked.

Tala made a sound of approval as they played with Pasha, watching her work. “Yep. Masina’s my cousin, her mom and my mom were sisters.”

“Were?”

“Yeah, they all died quite some time ago in the Sun Plague outbreak. Y’know, that plague in the Fire Nation a few years back? We had a bit of an outbreak here, too. It took both our parents. That’s why Lola Tuli took us in, y’know.”

“Huh.” Haruko mused, surprised by how similar Tala’s background was to her own. “Uh. Me and Aazir’s… our parents also died when we were really young. We were raised by our aunt and uncle.”

“Interesting.” Tala remarked. “Where’re you two from, by the way? You don’t look much like the folks we get around here.”

“Jing Zi.” Haruko replied. “Si Wong Desert.”

“Wow, you really are from far from home.” Tala laughed. “How’d you get caught up with an airbender and a Swampbender?”

“Koto- wait, swamp?” Haruko replied. She had heard of a ‘Foggy Swamp’ before, but had never researched it in depth.

“Yeah, the tall girl- Hang.” Tala gestured above their head, alluding to the waterbender’s height. “From the looks alone, I’d say she’s from the Foggy Swamp tribe down near Gaoling. We get some refugees from there from time to time. Is she a waterbender?”

Haruko nodded. “Yeah, she is.”

“Cool.” Tala nodded. “She reminds me of someone, though I can’t exactly place who.” Haruko knew the feeling.

“What about you? Are you a bender?” Haruko asked. Based on how they had described their relative’s bending arts, Haruko guessed they weren’t a waterbender, but that only ruled out one of four elements.

“Yup. Firebender.” Tala smiled, and as if to prove their point, created a small flame that danced above their fingers. The light of the fire caught Haruko off-guard, it had been quite some time since she’d seen fire up close.

“Huh.” Haruko replied. “Never met a firebender before.”

“Well, now you have.” Tala smiled. “What about you?”

“Earthbender. Aazir and I both are.”

Tala smiled. “Nice. My mom was an earthbender.”

“Didn’t think firebending was too common here, aren’t we a bit far from the Fire Nation?”

“It’s technically not,” Tala replied. “I was the only firebender in my class back in school. And it’s because during the hundred year war this place was really heavily hit by the Fire Nation, they had a base that’s still standing up on one of the hills. All that colonization resulted in a lot of firebending babies.”

“Huh.” Haruko replied. The casual discussion of such disturbing historical events was somewhat new to her, but if Tala could joke about it, she wasn’t going to pay it much mind.

The two of them continued to talk while Haruko worked, trading stories about life and the places they grew up. Haruko found Tala surprisingly easy to open up to, something about them made her feel safe. For the first time since leaving home, she felt able to breathe freely.

an unlit candle

A few days into their vacation at Zaofu, Hanuel found Jitsuko in the library, of all places. It was one of the smaller private libraries in a corner of the estate Hanuel didn’t often visit. The metal furnishings of the room were all somewhat dusty, as if Jitsuko was the first person to visit in quite some time.

“Spirits, you’re a nerd.” Hanuel mocked her firebender friend as she read. “Whatcha reading about- war tactics again?”

“Architecture, actually. It’s pretty interesting, written by your great-grandfather about how he built the city.” Jitsuko lifted her book to show her. It was in fact, about architecture, and seemed too big for Jitsuko to be able to pick up. Hanuel sometimes forgot how strong her friend actually was; she had graduated the fire academy three years early.

“So.” Hanuel said, not caring that she was interrupting. “I had an idea.”

“What’s your idea?” Jitsuko didn’t look up from her book.

“So you know how you’re a firebender. And I’m the Avatar.”

Jitsuko looked up from her book and raised an eyebrow, as if to say ‘and? What about it?’, although Jitsuko had known Hanuel for so long she probably knew where the conversation was headed.

“Can you teach me some firebending? Please?” Hanuel begged lightheartedly. “It’s the next element and I’ve literally never done it before, I should probably get some practice in before I start.”

Jitsuko sighed and shoved her hefty book back onto the table, creating a small cloud of dust. “Fine.” She grumbled, getting up to walk out of the secluded family library. “But I’m only showing you the basics.”

Hanuel smiled. “Sure thing, Sifu Tanaka.’

“Don’t call me that.” Jitsuko replied.

Hanuel led her friend to the best training plaza in the estate, an open garden on the south side of the main residence. The area was generally quiet enough that benders could practice and peace, and there was enough rock in the ground and nearby metal to provide easy ammunition. Of course, they wouldn’t be earthbending today.

“Legend has it this is where Avatar Korra learned to metalbend.” Hanuel said as she and Jitsuko found a place to practice.

“What legend, your grandpa?” Jitsuko sneered, lightly punching Hanuel in the shoulder. The Avatar laughed in response, used to the back-and-forth of her and Jitsuko’s relationship.

“Alright,” Jitsuko dropped into a bending stance, which Hanuel imitated awkwardly.

“Try to lift your center higher.” Jitsuko gestured to her own stance. “Firebending’s light, and not as grounded as earth.” She took a breath and quickly moved her fist outward- a move Hanuel recognized as a fire fist. A brilliant, golden flame sprouted from Jitsuko’s motion and danced across the sky for a brief moment, quickly dissipating into smoke and thin air.

“Wow…” Hanuel breathed.

“You try now.” Jitsuko near-ordered, regathering her posture.

Hanuel imitated the motion Jitsuko had performed, fully expecting to see at least a spark flash before her eyes. Nothing happened.

“Hm.” Jitsuko put a hand to her chin. “Your stance is really good for a beginner, and you’ve got the breath control down. Firebending relies on drive and energy, maybe you’re lacking that?” She shrugged.

“I don’t know.” Hanuel said, repeating the motion. “I feel pretty driven. And energized.”

Jitsuko seemed disappointed as Hanuel continued and eventually sat down on the steps, Hanuel followed her closely.

“It’s so strange…” The firebender muttered. “Y’know, most firebenders have the opposite problem when they’re beginners, we create too much flame and don’t know how to control it- that’s why our schools are so rigid, to beat control and discipline into us. But you’re not like that.”

“Maybe it’s cause I’m the Avatar?” Hanuel pondered. “I mean, the four elements are all pretty different, and I’m used to earth, so…” She didn’t want to follow the trail her thoughts led her down. She was the Avatar, she was going to firebend someday. She would just have to work at it.

Jitsuko nodded, a strong resolution in her movement and voice. “You’re right, and I’m hardly a professional teacher. Once we get to the fire nation, my sister will have you firebending in no time.”

Hanuel smiled, remembering what she knew of Jitsuko’s older sister, Ochako. From what she knew, the woman was one of the best firebenders in the world and taught at the Royal Fire Academy. “Sounds great.” She hesitated before getting up and returning to the estate. “Thanks for trying, anyways.”

the spark

Time passed quietly in Aringeru, and Haruko was almost getting used to it. She had formed a routine the past week-and-a-half, she had found normalcy in the work she did fixing the Hira family car, and then their neighbors’ cars. Her wounds had been healed by the power of waterbending. Things were going well, as well as they could be.

“Your turn.” Tala said. They were sitting on the lounge room floor with Aazir, and had been trying to teach the boy Pai Sho for just over half an hour.

Aazir’s hands hovered over the pieces, he picked one up. “Can I-”

“No.” Tala stated blankly, and redirected Aazir’s hand to a move he could actually play.

“How long have they been at this, again?” Hang said from across the room, she had stopped tuning her banjo to make the remark.

Haruko shrugged and continued to pet Pasha, who was sleeping on her lap. She was going to say something, but was interrupted by the door opening. Koto and Masina walked into the room.

“Tala!” The younger girl said. “Grandma wants you to go to the market and get food for dinner.” She pointed at Hang. “She wants you to help cook.”

“Alrighty.” Hang set her banjo on the couch and told Haruko not to let anyone touch it before heading out the door to the kitchen. Apparently she was the best cook out of the four of them, and Tuli had enlisted her help in kitchen matters. Haruko suspected it was just so they could talk about waterbending or something.

Tala started to pack up the Pai Sho pieces, with Aazir’s help. “Did she say what she wanted?”

“Yeah. Get a fish.” Masina stated before leaving in the direction Hang had gone.

“Ooh! Ooh!” Aazir said. “Can I come with you? We haven’t been to the market ever since we got here.”

Tala seemed a bit surprised, but nodded. “Alright. It’s just a market, though.” He looked at Koto and Haruko. “You two wanna come?”

Haruko exchanged a glance with Koto and nodded. “Yeah, sure. Will be nice to get out.”

Koto nodded in agreement. “Yeah. I’ll probably buy some food on my own, because…” She waved her hand in the air, by now the entire group knew that she was vegetarian.

Tala smiled as he sat up. “Alright, let’s go.”

The Aringeru open market was as abuzz with energy as it had been the day Haruko arrived. Everything seemed more alive and colorful in the coral isles, at least compared to the pace of life back in Jing Zi, the pace of life she was used to. The market, according to Tala, had been designed long before the invention and popularization of cars, resulting in a labyrinth of small tunnels only accessible by foot, or a small, manpowered cart. The whole area was packed with bodies, Hang had nearly tripped over a small child twice. It was still undeniably humid, but the heat was helped by the fact that many of the merchants kept fans in their stalls, to cool both the products and the customers. Aringeru was still as colorful as Haruko remembered being, both in regards to the diverse population and the literal color of the tents and canopies overhead, shielding market-goers from the harsh afternoon sun.

Haruko kept close to Koto as they walked through the plaza. Even though she trusted Tala’s guidance, she was an outsider here and didn’t know where anything was, it would be easy to get lost.

The airbender adjusted the jacket she was wearing- Tala had lent her one of theirs to cover up her tattoos. It was too big for her thin, lanky frame, but Haruko suspected that was for the better, it was hot out and the loose fit would probably be welcome. “You ok?”

“Yeah,” Koto replied. “Just a lot to take in.” She was right, the sounds and sights and smells of the market had almost been too much for Haruko at first.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure we don’t get lost.” Haruko took Koto’s wrist in her hand to reassure her. Koto laughed, smiled and thanked her.

“What do you mean fifteen yuans for a salmon-crab? That’s outrageous!” Tala said as they bartered with a stallkeeper.

“I’m telling you, those uppity mainlander greencoats.” The merchant glowered. “They keep policin’ the fishing boats, restricting what areas we can fish, what fish we can catch. I only got these fish right here, so I gotta price them high or else I’m not gonna be able to feed my kids. You understand, right Tala?”

Tala nodded, apparently they had a good enough relationship with this particular merchant to compromise. “Alright, we’ll take the salmon-crab.” They fished through their wallet and produced the required amount of money.

“Alright,” Tala said as they returned to the group, salmon-crab in hand. “Now Koto, do you wanna get some-” Tala stopped mid sentence. Their eyes drifted away from the group and to something behind Haruko.

“What is it?” Koto near-whispered, fresh panic in her voice. Haruko looked between the members of the group.

“UDES troops.” Tala whispered, still keeping their eyes focused on the spot behind Koto. “The greencoats.”

Haruko snuck a glance at where Tala was watching. Sure enough, two adult men in crisp UDES uniforms were walking around the plaza. It had been awhile since she had seen the soldiers in the flesh, but their iconic silver-lined jackets, stiff collars and slicked-back hair gave them away, back in the desert they had been regarded as an omen of death among the sandbenders, she could still hear her mother’s words to never trust someone in that uniform. Before Haruko could tell what they were doing, she was pulled aside by Tala into an alley between two tents.

“What are we doing?” Koto said; she didn’t have the same panic in her eyes that Haruko, Aazir and Tala shared, and instead seemed confused. “What’s going on?”

Tala hesitated and kept their voice low. “The UDES troops showed up years ago, back when I was just a kid. They have a big factory up on the hill, in the old Fire Nation base. I don’t know what they’re doing, but they’ve never come down here before. This can’t be good.”

“Excuse me, children.” Someone said from behind them. Haruko turned around- it was one of the two greencoats, standing in between them and the way out- he had them cornered. The man had light tan skin and brown hair, olive green eyes lighter than most and a neatly groomed beard. If Haruko had to guess, he wasn’t from the isles.

“What are you doing here?!” Tala exploded, tossing the salmon-crab at Aazir and marching over to the man with a fierce determination. Haruko could almost feel the small alleyway getting hotter- was that a thing firebenders could do?

“We’re clearing the plaza. Go back home, ash maker.” The man snarled, making a bending motion with his fingers and arms. The metallic bands around his wrists and upper arms detached, forming into knife-like projectiles. He was a metalbender.

Tala was clearly provoked, Haruko could see the fire in their eyes, but they took a breath and relaxed their posture. The alleyway cooled “I guess we’ll be leaving then.” Their voice carried a message of disdain towards the soldier, and they kept eye contact as they left the alleyway.

“What are we going to do?” Koto asked as she jogged to make pace with Tala. It seemed everyone else had been evicted from the market, creating a steady stream leading outwards.

“I don’t know.” Tala said. “But we’re definitely going to do something.”

Ahsa was at the inn when they got home, but Tala didn’t spend any time acknowledging her presence, they brushed off her concerned greeting and walked straight into the kitchen. Ahsa followed, yelling about how they were going to burn the fish. Surprisingly, Aazir also left for the kitchen, though for what reason Haruko couldn’t name.

Not knowing what to do, Haruko sat in the courtyard of the inn, on the steps to one of the buildings, though she didn’t know which one. To her surprise, Koto joined her.

“Hey.” The airbender said, placing a hand on Haruko’s shoulder. “You alright?”

“I- I don’t know.” Haruko stumbled over her words. Her first instinct was to lie and say that she was fine, but she doubted that would help the situation any. “I’m just trying to get used to things. I’m so scared all the time now, everything’s changed so fast. I- I miss when things were normal.” She could feel tears streaming down her face.

“I’m sorry.” Koto’s voice was soft and clear. “I can’t help but feel it’s my fault that you’re even in this mess. But that’s why I’m here.” She turned Haruko so they were making eye contact with one another. “I will make sure that you, Aazir and Hang all end up safe and sound at the end of this. Mark my words, I will do everything in my power to guarantee it.”

“Is that a promise?” Haruko asked. She didn’t often trust blatant statements like that, but the determination in Koto’s voice made her hopeful.

“It is.” Koto replied. “I’m not going to leave you alone.”

Aazir had never seen anyone as mad as Tala was. He was entranced as he watched the firebender cut up the salmon-crab for cooking.

“Dude, chill out.” Ahsa remarked, briefly stopping chopping vegetables to berate them. “You’re going to burn the fish.”

Tala grumbled. “I’m fine.”

“Aazir, will you cut the salmon-crab for my grandchild?” Tuli instructed. “I’d prefer if our fish remained un-burnt until the time we cook it.”

“Alright.” Aazir answered as Tala shoved the half-prepared fish to him. Aazir picked up the knife, but his hand wavered over the cutting board- he had no idea where to start.

“Here, I’ll help.” Masina walked around the table from where she was helping Hang stir broth. The waterbender put her hand around Aazir’s and guided it to where the salmon-crab needed to be cut. Once he got the hang of it, it was easy to return his attention to the conversation.

“As I was saying.” Hang continued. “Back when I lived in the swamp, when I was a little kid, my mom would use her waterbending to make pho. It was always my favorite.” Apparently the waterbender had been born in the swamp and lived there until she was seven. Aazir was surprised when she had brought it up, but it made more sense than her being from either of the poles.

Tuli smiled. “You’re good at the technique, dear. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were raised here in the isles.”

“Do you know any cool fighting moves?” Masina piped up.

Tuli shot her granddaughter a glance that showed what she thought of her learning fighting techniques, but Hang laughed.

“I don’t know much….” The tall girl laughed. “Uh, I created a fog over a few buildings once. That was pretty cool, not exactly fighting though.”

“Whoa.” A large grin formed on Masina’s face.

“In my experience, fighting skills are alright but the true measure of a bender comes to how practical their skills are. Take healing for example, with these two I need to heal them up practically every day. Cooking too. Practical skills.”

“True, true,” Ahsa commented. “But you have to admit shooting lighting out of your fingertips is pretty epic.’

“You can generate lightning?!” Aazir exclaimed.

Ahsa smiled. “I’ll have to show you sometime.”

Tala, who had been sulking the entire conversation, sat up and smiled. “Hey, I can generate lightning too!”

Ahsa gave him a smirk and turned to Aazir, putting a hand over her mouth to pretend like she was telling a secret. “Only cause I taught ‘em how.”

Aazir laughed. He could get used to this normal.

the heist