Chapter 2

The fresh air blew through their hair as they flew closer to the North Pole, the air growing cooler by each passing minute. Kyoshi’s mind was filled with thoughts of Yun. Had that all really just happened? It was all so much to process. Yun was dead, Rangi was on the edge of death, Jinpa was also injured, and her? Other than a couple scraps and bruises she was completely fine. But out of all her friends, why was she allowed to leave the battle unharmed?

No matter what, the North Pole was still the best place to go. They had the greatest population of world class healers, who specialized in advanced abilities. Maybe she could get Atuat to train her more while they were all there as well.

Kyoshi looked over all her companions, some looking more defeated than the others. Her focus soon shifted to Rangi. She carefully watched Rangi’s expressions, she watched as her face stiffened as she tried to adjust her position. Like she had bit into a sour grape. Kyoshi admired her partner’s want to put on a tough face, but she also wished she would let her in.

The ground below soon became covered in thick sheets of ice and snow. As the trees started to disappear, and were replaced by vast icebergs. The icebergs reminded Kyoshi of the Pirate Queen, her first actual battle.

“Hey, we’re here” Kyoshi gently nudged Rangi awake, she had drifted off in the past hour, or so. She didn’t say anything but just gave her a light smile.

As they landed Kyoshi tried to help Rangi off the bison, but she got a death stare in return. “Come on, let me help you” Kyoshi whined with her best intentions. “I’m fine” the fire bender pouted. “You were literally bleeding out a couple hours ago, and still are actively bleeding!” She was too tired, all she wanted was to help the people she cared about. Even if she was going to have to deal with possibly the most stubborn person in the four nations.

She rolled her eyes and just decided to carry Rangi off instead. “Kyoshi?!” Rangi whispered horsley as the avatar set her down on the layer of ice. But as soon as Kyoshi had set her down she immediately grabbed onto her tunic for balance. A slight grin crossed her face as she made eye contact with the fire bender. Not a word

Kyoshi’s eyes widened as she walked deeper into the northern tribe. All the details carved into the building of snow and ice. Houses and beautiful bridges filling the streets.

“Avatar Kyoshi, we are honored to host you during your travels. Sorry if things may not seem as…organized as you may be used to, we were not aware of your plans to visit our tribe.” A soldier announced as they all approached. “The honor is mine” Kyoshi bowed. “I am here solely because my friends are injured and in need of immediate medical attention.” She cut right to the point, she didn’t want to waste any time.

“Right this way Avatar Kyoshi”

She had never seen such an extensive care unit before, it functioned flawlessly. “What in the name of Rava happened here?” Atuat asked, walking into the room. Kyoshi tried to explain what had happened over the past couple of hours. By the time she had finished they had all her friends in rooms, and we’re beginning with their treatments.

“Avatar Kyoshi, might I show you to where you will be staying” She shook her head, “No I’ll just stay here”

As time passed she was still determined to stay awake, after everything she couldn’t fall asleep and possibly miss something vital. Not even for a second. She had to keep her guard up. “Kyoshi” Atuat walked up to where she was sitting. “Your fire bender is asking for you” A smug look crossed the healer’s face. Kyoshi tried to keep a neutral expression as she followed Atuat down the hall.

“Did you expect me to be dead, rocks for the brains?” Rangi asked from a tub, she was in her thin cotton top and shorts. “What no of course not!” Kyoshi said defensively. Rangi laughed as she watched Kyoshi’s face heat up. “Come here” She gestured for Kyoshi to sit next to her.

As they sat there Rangi traced the lightning scars that ran across Kyoshi’s hands and up her arms. “Lonna?” She asked calmly as she adjusted her position in the tub. “Would you mind getting someone to look at Kyoshi?”

“What? I’m fine.” Kyoshi protested. “Tell that to your black eye” She reached up touching her check, Kyoshi whinnied away at the sudden touch.

“No offense but your not any world class healer”

“I saved you didn’t I?” Kyoshi responded smugly. “Yet you still couldn’t heal yourself” God she would never give her a break.

After the other healer had left Rangi watched as Kyoshi slowly drifted off in the chair next to her. She gently reached out, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She was safe, they were safe.

Suddenly someone came barging into the room, startling her. Kyoshi however stayed dead asleep. “Might we have Avatar-” Rangi cut him off sending a death glare. “She’s not available at the moment”

“Isn’t that her right there?” The council men asked dumbly. “Again she’s busy right now, she’ll be with you when she is available” She got no response. He simply exited the room without another word.

When her healing session was almost done, Rangi woke Kyoshi up and informed her of the council men seeking her attendance. “You’ll be okay here?” She asked, wiping the sleep from her eyes. “No I’m scared the tub might eat me” She rolled her eyes. “No, I’m fine, go” Rangi said, waving her hand pushing Kyoshi out of the room. Kyoshi was not excited for what she knew was in store. As the Avatar she knew she had political responsibilities but she would rather spend her time doing just about anything else.

Kyoshi walked into a room filled with so many conversations it made her head spin. “This is Avatar Kyoshi.” A warrior announced. All the conversations soon came to a halt. This might be a mess. She had never been a good diplomat of sorts.

She had to have answered at least a hundred questions but one weighed heavily on her. “What will you do to make sure the Yun incident will not happen again?”

This triggered a variety of emotions. She didn’t like the way that they had said his name, referring to him like he wasn’t a person. Like he didn’t have feelings, or a life, or people who cared about him.

“Avatar, what will you do to prevent this?” They asked again.

Her brain froze, everything around her seemed to be moving in slow motion. “Avatar Kyoshi?”

All eyes were on her. “I will do my best to make sure this doesn’t happen again.” She replied leaving the room before any more questions could follow. She knew that wasn’t the most mature and Avatar-like thing to do but that was all she could handle.

By the time she walked out of the meeting room she realized that she had no idea where she was going. “Ah, Avatar Kyoshi, going somewhere?” She turned around to see Jinpa standing behind her. “Not really”

“That’s why I’m here”

The cold air felt nice in her lungs as they walked down the snowy street. Compared to the stuffiness of that meeting room, compared to the questions that lingered in the back of her mind.

“Rangi’s in there, ” Jinpa said, gesturing to the hut on his left. Kyoshi gave him a confused look. “You’re not as discrete at you may think.” He gave her a half smirk.

She walked into the warm hut to find Rangi brushing her hair. “How was the meeting?”

Kyoshi didn’t respond, she just flopped down on the bed face first. Setting the brush down Rangi walked over sitting next to Kyoshi. “Did you get something to eat?” Rangi asked. Kyoshi’s response was muffled into the pillow, that was soon followed by a long trail of silence.

Rangi racked her brain trying to come up with answers of sorts, she hated it when Kyoshi was so down on herself. Which is what she presumed, more often than not she was right. She knew Kyoshi always put all this unnecessary pressure on herself, and claimed she was the worst Avatar.

“You’re not the worst Avatar you know…”

Kyoshi’s head perked up. “Kill… killing… taking on Yun was something you never should have had to deal with. You had to make a difficult decision.” Rangi said softly. Kyoshi knew that what had happened wasn’t any easier for Rangi than it was for herself.

Kyoshi sat up staring intensely at a pillow, for that moment it was everything she hated. “Aggghhhh!” She yelled throwing the pillow across the room. Rangi just sat there, she wasn’t sure what to do. She had rarely see Kyoshi act this way.

Suddenly the exhaustion changed to a sense of rage that filled Kyoshi’s body. It almost became unbearable. “I need some air”

She didn’t know what to think anymore, it just seemed like a huge part of her life was just taken from her. But she was the one who had taken it from herself, and Rangi. She fell to her knees in the snow.

She had taken their friend.

Giant tears started to roll down her cheeks. “What did I do?”

“Get up” A cold voice called from behind her. “What?” She mumbled. “Get up, you’ll freeze out here” All the sympathy was drained from her voice. Kyoshi didn’t move. Minutes continued to pass, before long they were both shaking from the cold.

“Look I know you feel shitty about what happened, but I’m not losing you to some snow, ice and stubbornness!” Rangi yelled, bending down to where Kyoshi was sitting. It was when she had finally looked up to meet Rangi’s gaze that she saw she was crying too. “Now pull yourself up,and come inside… please.”

Rangi never asked nicely for anything, Kyoshi thought. She took this as a sign to try and stop digging this hole she had created for herself. She had to do something, anything.

Rangi offered her hand, reluctantly Kyoshi took it. The fire bender’s shoulders relaxed a bit as they both went inside.

The heat of the hut almost stung her skin from being in the cold. She felt what she thought was better, she felt like she wanted to cry for a long time, but was never allowed the time to do so. She slowly took off her tunic and let it fall to the floor leaving her in under layers.

“For your make up,” Rangi said, handing her a warm rag. “Or what’s left of it” Kyoshi took the rag but did nothing with it. She simply just set it on her lap. The fire bender sighed, taking it back. “Hold still” She instructed, sitting on her lap carefully removing the remaining makeup off of Kyoshi’s face revealing more of her dark brown freckles.

When she was done she tossed the rag a side flopping back on the bed. “Is the reason you like to wear your makeup so much is to cover the bags under your eyes?” She joked trying to ease the tension.

“What no?!” Kyoshi’s head turned so fast she could have snapped her neck.

“I don’t know why,” She said, finally laying back. “Either way I think it would do you some sleep would do you good”

They laid together in the silence as Rangi nuzzled close under Kyoshi’s chest feeling her heartbeat. “I’m not sorry for what I did,” Kyoshi said, finally breaking the silence. “I mean of course I didn’t want to have kill Yun but… each time I play it back in my head, I can’t see how I could have done anything differently”

Rangi was surprised by this sudden confession. It brought a new thought into her mind. What would she have done if she was in her place? Would she have done things differently if she was in Kyoshi’s position?

“I would have done the same thing” she mumbled into Kyoshi’s chest.

I’m so excited to be writing this fanfic for you guys, please let me know if you have any comments, good or bad I’ll take them all. Also let me know if you want more fluff, or more angst in this book. Thanks for reading, I’ll try and update soon<3