#yangchen: what was your interaction with kuruk like??

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Kyoshi, when she first sees Yangchen: ?????!!! MOMMY????!!! Yangchen:

[creampuffqueen]

I wanna hear more avatar headcanons! From the novels or just the avatars themselves! I loved reading your kavik and yangchen hcs 🥹🫶🏻

ahhh thank you!! i'm glad you like my random thoughts lol 🫶

here are a few more random thoughts i've been having that i just haven't quite made into posts yet (mostly yangvik because i love them but some other avatars as well):

yangchen is actually a terrible cook 💀 she's basically always had people taking care of her so she never really needed to learn! she can make a good cup of tea and that's about it. she regularly burns rice. she's also just generally bad at remembering to feed herself. kavik, who is a decent cook, is largely the only reason she remembers to eat

as for the other known avatars: kyoshi is by FAR the best cook. she's genuinely good at it. aang is a very close second. roku, kuruk, and wan are all average at it. korra has been banned from every kitchen in republic city

yangchen and kavik both strike me as people who really enjoy physical touch. they both really enjoy cuddling with each other, even before their relationship turns more romantic. acts of service is also a major love language for them

i also feel very strongly that they never used typical labels for their relationship. they usually referred to each other as their 'partner', occasionally 'lover', but most often just continued to use 'companion'. these vague labels frustrate scholars to no end, and today in the atla universe nobody can agree on the nature of their relationship. which is exactly how they wanted it lol, they were extremely private about their relationship

yangchen does have the iconic crooked smile that all the avatars share, but it only comes out when she's well and truly happy about something

her laugh is the same way. she has a very convincing fake laugh, as her real laugh is kind of 'ugly'. it's some kind of snorting, wheezing sound that kind of sounds like she's dying but is also absolutely adorable. yangchen hates it. kavik adores it, and will make an absolute fool of himself trying to hear it

yangchen is a massive, merciless flirt and takes great pleasure in seeing just how red she can make kavik's face turn. but on the rare occasion kavik gets enough confidence to flirt back, she turns into a total mess

pik and pak's favorite place to sleep is right on top of kavik's face

because of how hard she works herself, yangchen often falls asleep in the strangest places. if she's actually tired, she can fall asleep literally anywhere. it's simultaneously a superpower and a massive annoyance

a somewhat sad/bittersweet headcanon i have is that yangchen dies first. i've seen a lot of people saying that she lives to 150 but i can't find a source for that anywhere so i'm choosing to ignore it. yangchen has already watched too many loved ones die, she doesn't need to see kavik die before her as well. they both live very long lives, but kavik outlives her by a few years. after yangchen's death, he returns home to the northern water tribe

at one point, only a few months before his death, he is out for a walk when a little toddler wanders up to him all alone. he chats with him for a few minutes until the boy's parents find them and thank him for watching over their son. 'kuruk, what have we told you about wandering off like that?' the mother asks. the toddler waves goodbye, and kavik walks home feeling oddly contented. he never meets the boy again, and he dies well before kuruk is revealed as the avatar, but he feels a sense of peace from the interaction, knowing deep down that yangchen has made it safely back into the material world

when kavik dies, he wills his bone necklace to kuruk's family. they don't understand why until kuruk's sixteenth birthday. (SERIOUSLY THEIR NECKLACES LOOK ALMOST IDENTICAL ITS WILD)

that's all the thoughts i can scrape up off the top of my head, but i'm just generally thinking about avatar characters All The Time lmao. thank you for asking!!!

[avatar-roko]

Kyoshi & Kuruk

I headcanon that Kyoshi and Kuruk were like, the ultimate BFFs.

I like the attitude shift from when Kyoshi realizes she was wrong about him to the way she teases him when she meets Yangchen but think’s its Kuruk. (“I don’t want to relive memories of you swimming in this pool.” HAH. I can just picture the snarky smile on her face as she says that!)

They have such a cute BFF/sibling energy. He’s like her older brother. Calling her “hey kid”. Giving her pep talks. Kuruk doesn’t have the wise-old-master vibe that Yangchen or Roku or even Aang have in all their spiritual projections. He died young and left so much unaccomplished in his lifetime that I bet he continues to have a much stronger role in Kyoshi’s life than the other past lives ever do for any other Avatar.

I can totally imagine Kyoshi coming to him not just for Avatar advice but life advice too. She gets into a fight with Rangi and so she vents to Kuruk about it. He commiserates with her about how Hei-Ran was also so hotheaded and difficult. Women! Ugh! But then eventually talks her down and helps her remember why she loves her so much. With the precision memory only possible from someone who literally watches your life play out like a movie, he points out specific acts of love Rangi did for her recently that are all too easy to forget when you’re mad at your partner. He reminds her that life is short and doesn’t want to see her make she same mistakes he did. Kyoshi ends up sobbing with happiness, resolves to forgive her, and Kuruk has a grand time teasing her for being such a sap.

Also, Kyoshi is admittedly impressed with how smooth Kuruk seemed to be with flirting/dating. Kyoshi used up every once of savvy she possessed in that department when she kissed Rangi for the first time, leaving her a complete lovesick dork the rest of her life. She feels a little weird getting romance advice from someone else at first, feeling like that sort of thing should come from her heart. But Kuruk is technically herself, so she figures it still counts, right?

So she asks Kuruk about what type of flowers to buy, what type of date to plan. Kuruk gives the best big bro pep talk when Kyoshi is freaking out about how to tell Rangi I love you for the first time or ask her to marry her. And then he listens to her gush about it afterwards like BFFs at a middle school slumber party. When that advice proves to be a hit maybe the topics start to get a little more interesting hahaha

So yeah. Kuruk is amazing. I love him. Kyoshi loves him. Rangi is probably somewhat freaked out by this strange co-dependent relationship Kyoshi seems to have with him (seeing that he is, like, her mother’s ex… hahahah that’s gotta be weird). But all around 10/10 best BFFs ever.

That’s my headcanon anyways. I’m not sure if anyone else got all that subtext out from literally only a few interactions but that’s what I think about quite often hahaha.

[likeastars]

Roku: oh, look who showed up!

Yangchen: give him a break! Sorry Aang, he's still mad about the whole Zuko thing, don't worry

Aang: wha- what is happening? I was in my bed with my family and-

Roku: you died kiddo... I'm sorry...

Aang: oh... well, it is the natural cycle, isn't it? I had to make space for the next Avatar

Kuruk: yeah you tell Kyoshi that

Kyoshi in front of a bowl: you're just jealous of how good I look after 250 years

Kuruk: *smirks* yes I am

Aang: uhm... what are you doing sifu Kyoshi?

Kyoshi: first, don't call me that and second-

Roku: you are witnessing the most irritating part of your life as an Avatar kid. We are making the basic personality of your future student, but you can't interfere with it because you're not fully dead yet

Yangchen: holy myself Roku, stop being so dramatic!

Kuruk: can we focus on the next Avatar please?!?

Kyoshi: I think we should add some stubbornness

Roku: when did we not do that?

Kyoshi: and a bit of bi disaster vibes

Kuruk: last time we did that the whole thing with Yun and Rangi happened

Kyoshi: you mean last time we did that the whole thing with Firelord Sozin happened

Aang: WHAT?

Roku: THAT- THAT'S NOT-

Kuruk: ooooooh right! So that's what was happening! How did I miss it?!

Kyoshi: they nominated Pai Sho so much in my life that you cried for the whole Avatar creation process

Kuruk: shut up

Yangchen: so I think we can all agree that we won't- and you did it

Kyoshi: what? I'm not working with another straight Avatar. And you know Raava's preferences...

Aang: I am straight...?

Kyoshi: yeah. And Zuko grew up to be a very handsome man and you didn't even look at him!

Kuruk: I'm sorry... she misses her girlfriend...

Kyoshi: shut up.

Yangchen: you know that there are more sexualities other than bi right?

Kuruk: let's make her very competitive

Kyoshi: and buff

Kuruk: and charming

Kyoshi: but like... meat head charming

Kuruk: good one! *high fives Kyoshi*

Yangchen: please not another himb- and you did it again!

Kyoshi: we listened to you while making Aang!

Roku: *mixes the elements in the bowl* aaaand done! Let's hope they don't ruin with trauma this one too!

Every avatar: *bitter laugh*

The past Avatars reacting to Korra's love life

Kyoshi: I think she should go for Mako

Roku: yeah me too

Yangchen: WHAT? Bolin is clearly the best choice! He's sweet, caring and they get along so well!

Kuruk: the firebender charm is irresistible

*Mako and Korra kiss*

Kuruk: see?

Aang: doesn't the boy have a girlfriend...?

Roku: WHAT?

Yangchen: sEe?

Kuruk: what an asshole!

Kyoshi: wait guys... isn't his girlfriend's family from the Firenation?

Roku: ooooooooooh *smug look*

Kuruk: she should steal her

Kyoshi: HELL YEAH SHE SHOULD

Aang: we do get along with her well...

*Mako an Korra break up*

Yangchen: thank Raava. She can do so much better than that Mako guy

Kyoshi: NOW GO AND GET HER TIGER- and she lost her memory

Kuruk: why would she kiss Mako again!? Asami is a much better option!

Roku: *sighs* love is blind...

Kuruk: I'll drink to that bro

Aang: we don't have any alcohol here

Kuruk: *starts crying*

Aang: *pats his back*

*final episode of season 2*

Kyoshi: Firenation girls' favourite positions are- *disappears*

I was inspired by @failingradish 's Avatars interactions

[smolfluffybork]

Some interactions that might happen

Yangchen: My friends died because of me. Kuruk, I hope yours won’t be ended up like mine. I suffered a great pain due to the loss and I will never recover from this remark

Kuruk: I did a lot of silly activities that tainted my reputation. I left the physical world to deal with the problem on it own, I neglected my friends so I ended up alone, I destroyed the trust of my lover so she forever moved on from me. You’d better be the opposite version of me, Kyoshi. Engage yourself with human’s life, try to help them as much as you can so that you won’t have to leave a messed up world to your successor like I did to you. I’m sorry little one that you have to live in such a miserable world. Also, be faithful to your beloved people, to the ones who stay by yourself no matter what. Those people are hard to come by

Kyoshi: Put all of your efforts in training, Roku. You have to be a skillful bender so that nobody would want to threaten you. And besides that, you need to become a diplomat. It’s a shame that I was bad at solving political issues. I was not a diplomat so I chose alternative solution by using violences which I really hate to do such things. Let violence be the last solution, Roku. I admit I killed people and I absolutely hate it. I killed my bestfriend. I wish I didn’t have to do that

Roku: Every action has its consequences, Aang. Be thoughtful and decisive. I regretted that I caused the war. I hope you learn from my mistake

[steebs-nerdy-corner]

Weird Avatar Theory

So after the two Kyoshi novels have swirled around a bit in the old noggin, simmered next to the show and the comics, a bit of an out there theory came to me. Its not something groundbreaking, but it might be a new way to look at the Avatar most by now seem to view as the most milquetoast.

We learned from the novels that Avatars having travelling companions, like Aang did, is not only normal, but fairly traditional. Yangchen had them (two even laying down their lives for her), Kuruk had them, and of course Kyoshi had them. There was even a fair bit of prestige in being an Avatar’s companion: Kuruk’s companions earned fame and infamy throughout the world, and Kyoshi was excited to be an Avatar companion, even briefly, for the mistaken Avatar Yun.

On reflection, there seems to be only one Avatar who doesn’t have a list of travelling companions: Roku. He had bending teachers, we know, and we even hear that many of them become lifelong friends. Thing is, from his flashbacks they seem to be framed as static teachers rather than people who travelled with him across the world.

This might easily just be a case of retconning and oversight years after the series ended, but it got me to thinking... what if Roku was the first Avatar in memory to not have travelling companions? What could be the cause? And how might that have affected his views on the world?

If this was the case, I think the problem might have started with Kuruk. Those who’ve read the novels know there was a lot going on behind the scenes in Kuruk’s life, but in the public view he was seen as a bit of a shiftless Avatar. He had a band of incredible companions with him, powerful benders in their own right and shrewd political minds, yet he seemed to laze about in his 33 years of life, coasting off of Yangchen’s peace (we know this isn’t true but run with it). In the public eye, it probably looked like even though Kuruk was surrounded by companions any Avatar would be proud of, they did nothing to temper his excesses. These were his friends, his closest confidantes, and yet they could barely manage to drag him to important meetings and prop him up so he could pretend to care about what Fire Nation shipping lanes weren’t doing so well this year.

Then we come to Our Lady of Perpetual Asskicking, Kyoshi. An Avatar who mingled with daofei bandits, who swore the oaths to never make an honest living, who not only dragged an otherwise honorable Fire Nation soldier into the shadows, but even seemed to involve an airbender, someone most of the world seems to think as inherently sacred, into schemes of espionage and brutality. Now, you know and I know there’s way more to that story, but I’m more approaching this from what the public would see. We never got a good look at the public reactions to Kyoshi working with bandits, but I have to figure this would come to light sooner or later. She wasn’t exactly subtle about working with them in the first book and I can’t imagine she got more subtle when she contacted them about fighting Yun in the second. Whether it was word from the aftermath at the battle at the Avatar mansion, or sightings from the raid that resurrected the Yellow Neck bandits, or from the duel that scattered them, I figure at some point it would come to light that Kyoshi’s companions, even Rangi, were sworn bandits.

Finally, 200 something years later, we come to Roku, who gets to look back on the past two Avatars and see companions that were competent politicians and benders but poor motivators to the most powerful person on the planet, or were outright wanted criminals who were not above good old fashioned murder of rightful authorities. I wonder if, by that point, the Fire Sages had told him that the idea of travelling companions to the Avatar was a bit outdated. If they couldn’t motivate Kuruk and threatened to corrupt Kyoshi, what made them better than standard, static teachers in the Four Nations?

And so, all this holding true (and again I completely understand this could just be a big misreading of the situation), Roku would have went off on his Avatar training alone. He would have made his friends, of course, we know Gyatso, Sud, and presumably his waterbending teacher made the list, but I don’t think they would have formed as strong a bond with him as past Avatars would have with their travelling companions. There’s a special kind of bond when you’re really travelling with someone, after all: you’ve bickered, you’ve shared incredible experiences, you’ve shared incredible lows, you’ve seen each other at your most vulnerable, and you’ve been there for each other when the rest of the world is miles away. Roku never got that, if this is the case. He just had teachers and friends he left behind once he got the hang of his bending abilities.

The only constant would have been Sozin.

Even before Roku knew he was the Avatar, these two were damn near twin brothers. They shared a birthday, they trained together, lived together, probably ate together, maybe attended festivals together. We never really see mention of other Fire Nation acquaintances of Roku, and we know he was a shy boy from his interactions with Ta Min, so it may be that Sozin was Roku’s only friend. Even after leaving on his Avatar journey, Roku would likely be reminded of Sozin every time he looked in a mirror or down at a pond. Without the strong friendships a travelling companion would introduce, Sozin would well and truly be the most constant friendship Roku would have. We make jokes about Roku not killing a genocidal tyrant because they were besties, but after being a constant presence in Sozin’s life since becoming the Avatar, likely the only one until Ta Min, is it any wonder that he stayed his hand?

On top of that, I think this might have affected his opinions on the Four Nations. From the comics I think we get a good feeling that Roku saw the Four Nations as very distinct lines on a map. Earth Kingdom here, Fire Nation here, Water Tribes here, and Air Nomads here give or take a few. But we know from the books and from side materials that the world of Avatar just wasn’t that clean cut. People immigrated and emigrated, people mingled, people intermarried, it was a mixing world long before the era of Republic City. We even see this in Kyoshi’s story: she finds a highly skilled waterbending teacher in the Earth Kingdom and even duels one of the most infamous firebenders on the planet who had gained his infamy by leading Earth Kingdom daofei. Though certainly not ideal, I think Kyoshi had realized what Aang realized centuries later: people are people, and the Four Nations are really just that, lines on a map. Roku? I don’t think he ever got to experience that cultural mingling. He only ever saw the people of the Four Nations in the centers of their power, be it Agna Quel’a or the Southern Air Temple. I really wonder if that helped form his rigidity that we see Aang struggle with, the idea that cultures should never mix or mingle, that nations can’t work together. I wonder what decisions that might have led to in his life, if that might have shaped the world to be more isolated... Earth Kingdom here, Fire Nation here, everyone in their corners, no mixing. Perfect breeding ground for nationalism.

Or I could be completely wrong and this’ll all get amended in a future outpouring of content, one or the other.

[patrickstargang]

The Firelord’s Promise (Kyoshi fic)

Chapter 1: Nomad’s Land

Chapter 2: A Bureaucrat's Word

Chapter 3: Throw Away Your Honor, Rally In The Streets

Chapter 4: Unfortunate Truths

Chapter 5: A Change For The Better

Chapter 6: The Roles We’re Given

Chapter 7: To Save A Life

Final Chapter: I’ll Always Be With You

*this fic contains massive spoilers for Shadow of Kyoshi

The distance from Yokoya to the Fire Nation wasn’t particularly far, but sometimes a sky bison could be unreliable in long distances. It didn’t help that everyone from the estate (minus Aunt Mui) decided to join in on Kyoshi’s “diplomatic” meeting with the Firelord. Even the Flying Opera Company begrudgingly tagged along as back up. They weren’t in support of dabbling with the authorities but they still swore loyalty to their brothers and sisters.

They found themselves in a canyon, the slightly rougher areas of the Fire Nation wilderness that bordered the capital. To get to the capital was about a day’s journey on foot, but it was already nearing dusk. Everyone made camp while the sun was beginning to set.

Kyoshi stood away from the camp, attempting to earthbend, something that should be more than familiar to her. While her state of bending improved since the day Hei-ran arrived at the estate, Kyoshi still found herself struggling with bending. She lifted up a large chunk of the ground in front of her, but it began to swivel around as she tried to push it forward. It was fragile and unbalanced, crumbling before it could make impact with anything. Her face strained as she tried again, feeling like it was more of an effort than it should be.

Rangi noticed Kyoshi struggling, seeing the Avatar having to face the obstacle of basic bending was a sorry sight. But Rangi remembered her promise, and she knew what to do in a moment like this.

She walked up behind Kyoshi, observing the towering girl as she tried to hold another chunk of stone before it collapsed. “Having trouble?”

Kyoshi shook her head with a stoic face. Rangi then stood in front of her with a knowing smirk. “Are you sure?”

Kyoshi then remembered the promise she made to Rangi, to be more honest with her when she needed to. She exhaled, letting the fourth attempt at shifting earth fall to the ground.

“I’ve just been having trouble with bending lately. Like yesterday, I couldn’t even bend a puddle, now I can’t even bend my native element.”

Rangi began to understand the severity of the situation. At first, she thought her superstition about the Avatar not learning the elements in order was becoming true, but she knew that saying that wouldn’t help. So she had other ideas.

Rangi lightly tugged on the sleeve of Kyoshi’s kimono, getting her attention. “How about some firebending practice? This time we can actually start with fire fists.”

Rangi stood back and reeled her arm behind her and swiftly let out a quick but forceful flame from her fist, like a sudden fiery jab. Kyoshi observed, noting the delicate details she might have missed the first time she properly learned the technique. She copied her motions to the best of her ability, only to have produced a light spark from her knuckles. She hid her face in her hands, filled with aggravation.

“I don’t understand! I was fine a few days ago, now it’s like my bending disappeared overnight.”

Rangi’s concern grew, she wasn’t sure if this was something that she could help with. Jinpa stood off to the side listening to their conversation, but after Kyoshi’s last statement he decided to join the group.

“Maybe it has something to do with your chi flow,” said Jinpa while stroking his chin.

Kyoshi remembered her lessons about chi flow at the Air Temples. She learned about its place as the energy that connects all life, more or less the ultimate life source. But she also learned that it is the life force of the bender , giving them the powers they possess. And as a result, she learned about chi block, an instance where bending is rendered almost useless by some physical or mental obstacle. She wasn’t being attacked in any way so she crossed off physical obstacles from the possibilities. All that was left was the more tricky of the two.

“Honestly I’m surprised you haven’t had a chi block sooner, especially with your run-in with the Yellow Necks.”

Kyoshi remembered the injuries she took from her fight with Xu Ping, which should have been a complete block of her chi from everything the Monks told her. Yet she was still able to bend after her recovery. So why was this happening now?

Rangi wasn’t entirely knowledgeable about chi, as it was a concept that was never taught in-depth at the Academy. However, she tried to move the conversation in the right direction. “Is there a way to unblock her chi?”

“Well, one way to do that is to connect to your spiritual side. Sometimes this could mean visiting a spiritual place or something as simple as clearing your mind and emotions through meditation. It all depends on how bad your chi block is.”

It was strange for Kyoshi. In terms of being the Avatar, she still had trouble connecting with the spiritual, mainly since most of her encounters with it left her in dire situations. But this gave her an idea.

“Maybe I can try going into the Spirit World, there's nothing more spiritual than talking with your past lives, right?”

Jinpa thought about it for a moment and quickly nodded in agreement. “I don’t see why it couldn’t work.”

But then an air of doubt came over Kyoshi, she looked down. “But at the same time, I’ve only gotten it to work on rare occasions. The only thing I’ve noticed is that I was able to enter the Spirit World whenever I was in a spiritual place, and as far as I know, there aren’t any spiritual places near he-”

Suddenly, a rustling came from the bushes next to camp that caught everyone off guard. It stopped for a moment before rustling again. It also sounded as if voices were coming from them. At that point everyone became alert. Rangi held out a ball of fire in her hand and Kirima brought a stream out from her water skin, ready to attack. Kyoshi got into her earthbending stance before she remembered her chi block, awkwardly dropping her hands.

Rangi stepped toward the bush, a stern authority in her voice. “Who's there! Show yourself!”

Suddenly, four different people rolled out from the small bush. They were wearing light Fire Nation clothing with long sleeves and carried small bags and satchels. One of them, a somewhat scrawny man with a big beard and spectacles, held up his hands trying to stop the tension.

“Hey, hey, we mean no harm! We didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”

Kirima raised an eyebrow. “Oh really, then why don’t you explain what you're doing out here in the first place. Who are you people?”

At that moment, Jinpa noticed something about the group. They were all wearing necklaces, more specifically necklaces made from fire lilies. Jinpa’s eyes widened. He moved past Rangi to meet the group.

“You-your all nomads, aren’t you.”

The bearded man smiled at the sudden recognition. “Yes my good man, more specifically we’re Fire Nation nomads.”

Kirimia and Rangi slowly let their guard down, both confused at Jinpa’s interaction. He shook the bearded man’s hand, keeping his polite demeanor.

Kirima walked up to the group of nomads. “That still doesn’t explain what you're doing out here.”

“Why, we’re out on a spiritual journey to find enlightenment. We’re here to find Szeto’s Pillar.”

A feeling of suspicion came over Kirima. “Szeto’s what?”

The bearded man turned off to the side and pointed out into the distance. “Szeto’s Pillar.”

Surrounded by a sea of cooled molten rock stood a towering, monolithic pillar of stone. With its height, it was able to partially block out the sun as it was setting.

The bearded man continued to gaze off into the distance. “During the age of Avatar Szeto, one of the volcanos near the Fire Nation capital was erupting, causing mass hysteria and panic for the people. But Szeto stopped the magma flow from the safety of his stone pillar. Now, these volcanoes will stay dormant for years to come. This pillar has become a sort of sacred spot, a place to stand where one of the great Avatars once stood.”

This gave Kyoshi an idea. Not only did she have a spiritual place to unblock her chi, but this could be an opportunity to speak with Szeto. She was able to contact Kuruk and Yangchen, this could be the next step.

She turned to Rangi, whispering so the nomads wouldn’t overhear. “This might be my chance, if I can get my chi flow back by tomorrow we’ll be able to make it into the capital safely.”

Rangi let out a light chuckle, realizing this was Kyoshi’s way of asking to leave. “You don’t have to tell me twice, go on ahead.”

Kyoshi smiled and kissed Rangi on her forehead before starting a light jog towards the Pillar.

The bearded man halted his conversation with Jinpa to note Kyoshi’s sudden leave. “Gee, your friend there is pretty excited to see the Pillar.”

Jinpa nervously rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, she can be a bit….enthusiastic sometimes.”

The bearded man let out a hearty laugh before surveying the area. “Well, it looks like you're all settled in pretty nicely, I guess our journey can wait till tomorrow. But in the meantime….”

The bearded man and the other three nomads all pulled out jars filled with a strange looking liquid.

“Who wants to drink cactus juice and find spiritual enlightenment!”

-----------------------------

Night quickly came over the canyon, the campfire lit up the darkness and spirits were high. Mostly. The nomads were already in full swing with some of their “spiritual” exercises. Jinpa decided to join in to varying degrees of success. He thought that cactus juice was a spiritual cleanser, like what onion-banana juice was back at the Air Temples. Now he was laughing hysterically at the wildlife and his own airbending while the nomads incoherently argued about who opened the most of their seven chakras.

Kirima and Wong were both amused and terrified at Jinpa’s state. The airbender was known to be somewhat of a stickler for good behavior, but now he had no regard for proper manners. Hei-ran looked as if her soul was leaving her body, watching everything that was unfolding alongside the other two members of the Flying Opera Company. She had her blackboard and chalk but even her words couldn’t communicate the confusion and distaste she felt. Atuat almost tried the cactus juice, but after seeing how Jinpa fared after trying it she decided against it.

Rangi half paid attention to the antics that were taking place, but part of her mind was elsewhere. There was a lot of uncertainty for what tomorrow would hold. Even though she was the Avatar’s bodyguard, she was also part of the Fire Nation military. Now she would have to face the idea of going against her own nation’s leader. She had fought to stop corruption in many other parts of the world, but it was a different beast to deal with corruption in her own home. If Zoryu had not kept his promise, then that means Rangi would have to go against her own code of honor.

But then another thought came to her. She had said before that she wished to share the greatness of the Fire Nation with the rest of the world, but with everything that was happening she was beginning to question how true that “greatness” really was. The more she thought about it, the more it upset her. The Saowan clan was charged not for the few people that were creating pushback, but for the entire clan itself. Chaejin and Huazo obviously had their hand in starting a commotion but there were those who were arrested without knowing what was even happening. It made her stomach churn.

But then she became much more grateful for Kyoshi, she could have pretended that Zoryu’s treatment of the Saowan clan never happened and let them all be imprisoned, or worse. But she didn’t. She became a headache for both Zoryu and the chancellors. The Firelord was trying to make an easy solution for a not so easy problem, which might cause greater harm to his people and his own status than he may realize. Kyoshi wasn’t out for what she believed was revenge, she was out for stopping injustice enacted by those who were the supposed preservers of justice. But the possibility of killing Zoryu was still a thorn in Rangi’s side, the consequences for it could be much greater than the Saowan’s imprisonment. What could Kyoshi be gaining if she went through with it?

Then on that thought, Rangi realized Kyoshi was still at the Pillar even though hours had already passed. She might be having trouble getting into the Spirit World. Rangi remembered her promise to Kyoshi, as she got up from her seat.

She leaned over to Atuat. “I’m going to go check up on her. Could you keep an eye on Jinpa for me?”

The healer chuckled lightly. “Don’t worry sweetie, I’ll make sure he doesn’t embarrass himself...well any more than he already has.”

As she said that, Jinpa was reaching for another glass of cactus juice before Hei-ran took the drink out of his hands and threw it into the bushes.

------------------------------

The terrain of the cooled magma was uneven, like trying to maneuver through a valley filled with millions of small hills. Rangi skipped from the peak of each mound, getting closer to the Pillar. Once she arrived, she noticed a stone stairway around it, one that was built at some point after Szeto’s time. She ascended to the spiraling staircase, noting just how tall the Pillar actually was. Once she made it to the top, she found her Yokoya girl meditating.

At least that's what it looked like at first. As Rangi moved closer she could see the strain in Kyoshi’s brow, like someone trying their hardest to look as if they were at peace. Kyoshi let out a soft sigh and opened her eyes. She turned her head to see Rangi.

“Still having trouble?”

Kyoshi looked back out into the distance, feeling the soft breeze that such a high spot gave her. “Yeah….But I’m still not getting anywhere. I’m the only one who can bend the four elements and communicate with the Spirit World and right now I can do neither of those two things. Some Avatar I am, huh….”

Rangi gave her a concerned pout. “You seem to forget really quickly don’t you,” she said as she shifted to sit beside Kyoshi. “You may think that you have to face your Avatar duties alone, but you don’t. I’ll be here for you, even if I can only help a little.”

Kyoshi’s sardonic tone quickly changed to sincerity. She didn’t forget, but it was still nice to remember that Rangi meant what she said that night. “Thank you….”

“Now, maybe you just need a partner,” Rangi crossed her legs and put her hands together in the same position that Kyoshi was in. “Try breathing with me.”

Kyoshi straightened herself and closed her eyes, waiting for Rangi’s orders. It was like doing Horse stance again, except without the pain in her legs.

“Now do as I do…..In.”

Kyoshi inhaled at her command, letting it linger as long as it needed to.

“And out…..”

She exhaled through her nose. Already she had a greater sense of flow than she had when she was alone.

“In…..”

She inhaled again, she was fully in sync with Rangi. While the Avatar was uncertain of her many bending abilities, she felt comforted by the fact that she still had air on her side.

“And out….”

Kyoshi could feel Rangi’s warmth beside her, every breath like an ember slowly growing its flame. It was relaxing and stimulating at the same time.

Soon the words were fading out, but she still kept into the flow of her breathing before she was doing it instinctually. Sound began to fade out completely, her mind becoming clear. She stayed in that silence for a little bit.

Then she felt a cool air come over her, like that of a mist coming over the mountains. She slowly began to open her eyes, seeing the abstract clouds that enveloped the Spirit World before she heard a voice. A voice that sounded experienced yet rough.

“It’s about time you showed up, you're a few months late.”