#*curls up into a ball*

[swiftsaltsweet]

The Hunt for Kyoshi: Chapter 13: Kyoshi-The Present

Characters: Rangi and Kyoshi (plus whoever appears in Rok)

Pairing: Rangshi

Summary:  

“What are we going to do?” She asked steely, still not looking up from the ground. She was ready to uphold her duty, or at least, what remained of it. “We need you to capture Kyoshi,” Jianzhu instructed. “Capture?” “Yes, we need to set an example of an Avatar murderer,” Jianzhu responded, oh so matter of factly again.

(Canon Divergent AU- “What if Rangi wasn’t there when Kyoshi ran away, and Rangi had to hunt her down?)

Other Sites: AO3 

A/N: *dragging my corpse across the finish line* ヽ(´ཀ`」∠) I will release a chapter a week. I won’t go on hiatus again… *sob* ヽ(´ཀ`」∠) The amount of times I’ve gotten sick not long after I open up a Hunt word doc is actually low key astounding, it’s kind of comical ngl (yes I will keep bringing it up every time it happens cause it’s kinda funny). I’m starting to think it’s a pavlovian response now. (Was really lucky I had buffers ready to go ;w;)

(also, yay, I published this before Saturday. I deserve a cookie. Also happy 50K words, and I apologize for yapping in this chapter way too much ;_;)

(Oh, and if anyone likes the little flashback parts, I started a canon compliant prequel fic called "Yokoya Days." It's episodic, and obvie the endgame is in the main novel, so no officially dating Rangshi content sadly. u_u Buuuuuut it’s an excuse to write cute gay-by Rangshi, and yearning!Rangi so jfksafj So there’s still Rangshi content just not the endgame kind)

Also, anyone who’s read Two Knives may have noticed a familiar village’s name. This was not planned, but when I went to name the village… I realized the placement was in a similar spot so yeah. 8U Reference~! *falls over* *picks myself back up* Almost forgot the important thing.

Trigger Warning: Suicide ideation and planning a suicide (is there a word for that? Suicidal intent?). 

Sorry for the late TW ;w; Should I put this in the tags? (if so tell me how best to tag it TT0TT)

__________

Kyoshi’s heart was pounding like no tomorrow. Of all the days there had to be some banquet, did it have to be today?! Banquets were already nerve wracking enough, but it was almost excruciating for a day like today!

Today wasn’t just any old day, it was a special day. It was Rangi’s birthday!

And Kyoshi had yet to give her present to her fiery friend. The only free time either of them had would’ve been in the early reaches of the morning, but Rangi had left early with her mother for something relating to her birthday. 

By the time the Fire Nationals had returned, the servants were chin deep dealing with what needed to be done with the banquet. Kyoshi had only one brief window of opportunity to talk to Rangi so far, and it had been to request that they talk again later when everything had quieted down.

“Rangi,” Kyoshi whispered behind a door the soldier was stationed at, careful not to be seen by the guests. 

Rangi didn’t turn her head, ever the attentive soldier on duty, but she did lift her chin slightly to show acknowledgement. “Hm?”

“When the banquet’s over, meet me by the crop garden, it’s important.”

Rangi’s body stiffened at Kyoshi’s words, between that and her steely features, one would think she was angry. But Kyoshi saw a light flush on the tips of Rangi’s ears and knew her friend was excited for the meet up. 

And now the moment was coming. And fast!

It was fine. She shouldn’t be this nervous. She was just giving her friend a present for spirits sake! She hadn’t been nervous when she helped chipped in for Rin’s, a fellow servant’s, comb on her birthday. So this shouldn’t be any different!

But it was different. It was Rangi. She wasn’t just Kyoshi’s friend, not even just her best friend. Rangi was someone Kyoshi admired, someone she looked up to intensely. She was strong, skilled at everything, capable and beautiful and–

Kyoshi shook her head. Lately her mind had started to drift towards something that was beyond simple admiration. She didn’t know what it meant, but whatever it was, it was now making her more nervous. 

Regardless of her wayward feelings, she really did want Rangi to like her present, she’d put a lot of thought into it. But now the doubts were seeping into her head like black tar. Slowly sticking to every good thought and sinking it to the bottoms of their depths.

Kyoshi was pretty sure Rangi came from some kind of nobility in the Fire Nation, her mother held a high status as the ex-Headmistress of a Fire Nation academy. Couple that with being Avatar Kuruk’s companion, and now the firebending Sifu of Avatar Yun… Well… Hei-Ran was probably accustomed to money. Which meant Rangi was accustomed to it as well.

Which meant… Rangi may be accustomed to higher quality items.

“I’ve seen better made ones,” Rangi from months ago stated, it was about something on a new robe that had come in for Jianzhu. Yes she’d made comments like that countless times with all the various gifts for Yun and Jianzhu that came in. Rangi always had an eye for quality.

And so, Kyoshi was now doubled over in her own mind, wondering if what she got could meet the firebender’s level of quality.

Oh forget if it’s good quality! I–I’m not overstepping anything, am I?!

Unfortunately for Kyoshi, quality wasn’t the only thing she had to worry about. With different nations came different customs. What could be seen as fine in the Earth Kingdom, could start a war in the Fire Nation. And so on and so on. 

It should be good, right? I mean– Fire Nationals like their hair! So wouldn’t getting something like this make them happier than most? 

It wasn’t like she could ask Hei-Ran if the present was a good idea, she wasn’t close to the woman and she wasn’t sure she could keep a secret. She also feared accidentally insulting the older woman in case it was an issue, especially if it meant barring Rangi from ever interacting with Kyoshi again.

So she settled with asking others that could keep a secret. Such as Auntie Mui! When she ran the idea by Auntie Mui and some other maids they seemed to think it was a fine idea. She would’ve double checked with Kelsang but he was away on some relief mission for his temple. 

So Kyoshi bought the gift. Foolishly. Kyoshi was so keen on getting this particular gift for Rangi, she actively chose to ignore her rational side saying ‘You haven’t gotten confirmation from a Fire National yet, idiot! You know, the ones that actually matter in this scenario!’

She usually had a cautious side to her, but…damn it! She could be so damn stubborn when it came to something she wanted. And she really wanted to give this particular present to Rangi!

So here she stood, waiting to give a present to her friend she secretly admired; unsure if it was going to end with her falling on her own sword.

For the briefest of moments, Kyoshi thought to just bail. Say she forgot it and just get another present some other time! Not that she had much money, most of her savings went to this gift. But she’d figure something out!

Just as she was about to send energy to her feet to take a step away, a voice appeared behind her. “You know, you kind of look like a statue. Standing there…all stiff like.”

Kyoshi recognized that warm, raspy voice, and squeaked with a slight jump. She quickly turned around to see Rangi.

She looked extra pretty today. Her hair had a sparkly sheen to it, and her skin looked smoother and softer than usual. Perhaps she went to a spa with her mother? Or she applied makeup for the special day? Whatever it was, Kyoshi couldn’t help but think it was a shame the girl had to be relegated to some corner of the mansion on guard duty rather than taking center stage at the party like she should’ve. 

“Did I scare you?” Rangi chuckled. “Sorry, I thought you heard me.”

“Oh please, the only person who has softer footsteps than me is you!” Kyoshi grinned at her friend, quickly hiding her present behind her back. 

Rangi flashed Kyoshi a sly grin at the movement, and it took all of Kyoshi’s effort to keep a sudden heat from rising in her cheeks. 

“So you had something you wanted to give me?” She raised an eyebrow as she made a slight motion to peek around Kyoshi, but didn’t fully commit to the action. She was going to let Kyoshi take her time, but she’d tease her slightly while she waited.

Kyoshi laughed, trying to calm her nerves. “Yeah, is it that easy to tell?”

“Just a little,” she made another playful, but non-committal motion to peek around Kyoshi. “I heard from a little birdie it’s something important?”

“Oh? And what did this birdie look like?” 

Rangi tapped her forefinger to her chin, pretending to think. “She was… pretty…” Kyoshi felt her heart stop for a second. “–tall.” Rangi finished with a cough. “Pretty tall. With long hair and a lot of freckles.”

Kyoshi felt her heart restart, it was flavored with both relief and disappointment. She didn’t understand the strange emotion so she decided to file it away to confront later. “Well darn, I hate to tell you this Rangi, but I’m part bird.”

Rangi placed a hand over her chest and fake gasped. “My my, Kyoshi! Just how many secrets do you have?”

“Tons!” Kyoshi beamed at Rangi, it was always fun when she got the firebender to show off her more playful side. So much so that she easily ignored the pang of guilt that hit her. There were a lot of secrets Kyoshi had, ones that were forced upon her, ones she didn’t want, ones that were outside her control. And she was always afraid that Rangi wouldn’t look at her the same if they ever came out. 

Rangi’s opinion, especially of Kyoshi herself, always seemed to matter greatly to Kyoshi for some reason. 

“Well I guess I’ll just have to uncover them all, one by one,” Rangi gave another sly grin, followed by a giggle. Kyoshi had the sudden wish that she could capture the sound so she could listen to it whenever she wanted, it was heavenly. 

Kyoshi pushed the strange thought away, and moved the present from around her back to hand to Rangi. Rangi stopped giggling and looked at it with surprise. “I–uh, you said you liked starpoppies so…”

Kyoshi had wrapped the real present in a plain package, but she’d tied it with a ribbon and expertly woven the stems of the starpoppy flowers around the ribbons to give it more flare. Maybe she went a bit too overboard? It looked more like a bouquet than it did garnish for the wrappings. She was so focused on prettying up the plain box with all the free flowers she could find that she hadn’t noticed the overabundance. 

Rangi gingerly took the box with a look of… awe? Yes, awe. Awe was good. Kyoshi could work with awe. As long as Rangi hadn't thought the packaging was too beneath her to even hold, then Kyoshi could work with just about anything!

“Oh, Kyoshi,” Rangi said breathlessly. “It’s–it’s beautiful! Thank you–”

“T–the real present is inside the box!” Kyoshi put her hands up, realizing Rangi thought she just got her flowers only. The thought of only giving Rangi flowers made her stomach flip flop and her heart race. The want and need to do that, and the fear of doing it hitting her at the same time. The conflicting emotions were really making Kyoshi’s head spin. 

“Oh!” Rangi's cheeks were dusted pink. Embarrassed to have assumed. “Sorry the box was just so pretty I–”

Kyoshi laughed, she hoped her nerves weren't showing through. “It’s fine. Open it! Open it!”

Open it before I melt into the ground! Kyoshi cried internally.

But Rangi didn't open it. She worried her lip instead. 

“Is something the matter?” Kyoshi asked, wringing her hands.

“No… I just don't know how to open it without ruining the arrangement…”

Kyoshi breathed a sigh of relief. She was just worried about ruining the box! And… Kyoshi was now kicking herself over the packaging. Why did she go so overboard?! “T–then I’ll help you!”

When Rangi gave a nod of approval, Kyoshi moved her hands alongside the box, not realizing how much of a bad idea it was. As she did, she accidentally grazed Rangi’s hands with her own and froze.

Rangi’s hands were very warm, and silky despite the career she was in. Her fingers were long and elegant and well groomed, but her hands size still paled in comparison to Kyoshi’s massive hands. When she first met Rangi, Kyoshi was originally envious of the girl for various reasons; but especially Rangi’s hands. Kyoshi never did like her own much, but at some point, that envy started to change. She envied whatever those hands came in contact with, she wanted to covet their touch instead.

And every single time she had the honor of her and Rangi’s skin grazing just a bit, she’d feel her brain come to a complete stop just to relish in the nice feeling.

There was a long beat of silence as the two girls just stood there, staring at the box they were both holding. Kyoshi should move, she should really move, but the feeling of Rangi’s hand next to hers had her welded into place.

In the end it was Rangi who first spoke up. “Kyoshi… are you going to…” she trailed off, clearing her throat. Kyoshi felt her press the edge of her hand into Kyoshi’s, possibly as a helpful nudge. It just grounded Kyoshi to the spot even more. 

Kyoshi forced herself out of her reverie. “Y–yeah, it’s just, um. A little harder than I thought it might be.” 

I don’t want to move away just yet…

“I–I see,” Rangi responded in a soft voice. 

They stood there for a brief moment, neither moving. Kyoshi was grateful the moon’s light wasn’t that bright, it covered up the deep flush she could feel rising along her whole body. She was torn between mentally kicking herself for being weird, and enjoying what she could out of the moment.

It took all of Kyoshi’s effort, but she finally jump-started her body again, and moved her hand away from Rangi’s. As she helped unwrap the ribbons and flowers, she couldn’t help but let her hands graze Rangi’s at every opportunity she could. She was like an addict to a drug or an alcoholic to the sweetest wine.

Eventually, the ribbons and flowers were finally relinquished from the package. Kyoshi held them gingerly in her hands as she watched Rangi open the box with bated breath.

She watched as Rangi’s fingers picked the top off the box and lifted at such a slow, excruciating rate. She watched as Rangi registered what was in the box, and how her eyes widened to a size Kyoshi had never seen before. Instantly, dread started to course through her.

I messed up! Kyoshi thought. There was no way that was a good or happy expression on her friend’s face.

“Kyoshi…” Rangi whispered, her voice was barely audible. “Is this…?”

“I know it’s not much!” Kyoshi started a little too loudly, Rangi finally looked up from the box and jumped at the sudden volume change. Kyoshi tried to tamper it down, but was only able to by a little, she was in crisis mode. “I know you probably have fancier hairpins, but I– I saw this and thought it’d look perfect on you and…”

Kyoshi's gaze drifted towards the ground as she finished her sentence. She couldn’t look at Rangi, all her courage was zapped from her. Anxiety was thrumming through her like no tomorrow. 

“You… saw this and… thought of me?” Rangi finally replied. Her voice was soft, not angry, not hurt. Gentle. So gentle, it eased some of Kyoshi’s anxiety, and gave her the courage to lift her head to look at Rangi once more.

Her eyes were boring into Kyoshi’s, piercing as always. But they were…tender, fragile. Kyoshi felt the need to tread very carefully.

“Well yeah, I thought since Fire Nationals really care about their hair… That you might…enjoy…a gift like…this…” She wrung her hands together for a moment. “Your hair’s important to you, so I wanted to give you something for it. Because you’re important to me.”

Kyoshi watched as Rangi’s pupils dilated for the briefest second, as if understanding was hitting her. “Oh, I see.”

Kyoshi felt her heart sink for a moment before the sound of light laughter caught it. Rangi was smiling and looking at her present fondly.

“Is something…funny?” 

Rangi shook her head, “No, it's just– Well, I was actually thinking about getting a new pin. I guess I was so shocked I thought you may have been a mindreader.” 

She shook her head, as her laughter built to her unrestrained choking sound. Her face filled with mirth and pure delight set Kyoshi's heart ablaze. She'd made the right choice, Rangi liked her gift.

Finally Rangi calmed down and caught her breath. “This is the most thoughtful–no, best gift anyone’s ever given me. Thank you, Kyoshi, I love it. I'll treasure it always.” She flashed Kyoshi a smile full of such blazing joy, Kyoshi felt her lungs starting to fail her.

How can anyone be this beautiful?

“I'm glad.” Kyoshi smiled back, just barely able to find the air to speak.

“Hey, hold this for me, I want to try it on.” Rangi held the box out for Kyoshi to hold. Kyoshi maneuvered the bouquet in her hands to one side and held the box as Rangi swapped out the old pin with the new one 

After she was done fussing with her hair, Rangi took the box back. “So? How does it look?”

She made a show of moving her head so Kyoshi could see from various angles. 

Beautiful. “You look gr–It looks great on you.”

Rangi flashed her another dazzling smile, and then took a step forward and started readjusting Kyoshi’s lapel, it must’ve gotten messed up. Kyoshi stood there like she really was a statue, her life’s calling to not move and let the fiery girl do whatever she wanted with her. 

“I… actually have a present for you too. I’ve been meaning to give it to you for quite some time…”

Kyoshi silently swallowed, trying to keep her voice steady. “You have? Why?” Why would Rangi want to give her a present?

Rangi chuckled as her hands moved upwards to fix Kyoshi’s collar. “Yes, it’s a birthday gift of sorts.”

“I don't know my birthday though…”

“You still have one regardless. We can choose any day you like, but you're getting this present now whether you like it or not!”

Kyoshi chuckled. “Ok, ok. So where is it?”

“It's…in my room,” Rangi said, smoothing a hand over Kyoshi's shoulder, finishing fixing whatever mess Kyoshi's kimono had gotten itself in. Her hand lingered at the edge of Kyoshi's shoulder.

Kyoshi’s swallowed thickly. Something in the atmosphere felt heavy, but she wasn’t sure what was creating it. “Oh? Should we go there now?”

Rangi slid her hand down from Kyoshi’s shoulder to her bicep as she looked at Kyoshi up through her eyelashes. Kyoshi watched as her heart shaped lips parted–

“Heeeeeey!” a voice in the night yelled in their direction.

Both girls jumped at the voice, and quickly took a step back. A moment ruined.

“So this is where you two ran off to!” Yun beamed at them.

Rangi gave a small bow. “Avatar.” 

Rangi looked completely at ease. Like there hadn’t been any weird energy between her and Kyoshi. For some reason that bothered the taller girl.

Yun waved his hand at her and pouted. “C'mon Rangi! We've been friends for how long now? Drop the formalities already!”

“Yeah…” Rangi clicked her tongue. “Not gonna happen.”

Yun looked at her aghast and turned to Kyoshi. “Did you hear that Kyoshi?! Insubordination!”

Rangi raised an eyebrow at him. “What are you going to do? Punish me?”

Yun gave her a sly grin. “That I might!”

Kyoshi giggled at her friends’ antics. “C'mon Yun, go easy on her. It's her birthday!”

“Oh alright, I'll let you off easy this time!” he grinned.

“Well aren't I just so lucky to have such a generous Avatar,” she said sarcastically, but her smile took away any bite it was supposed to have.

The three laughed and Kyoshi watched as the two continued their banter. And slowly everything felt like it started to fade away.

____________________________

Kyoshi woke up to the ass crack of dawn shining in the sky and directly into her eyes. Upon waking up, she started lightly bouncing the back of her head against the ground she laid on. “Stupid… stupid… stupid… stupid…” she chanted. 

Her younger self (by like barely a year) had been so stupid. How could she have not seen the signs that she was falling for Rangi by then? Was it because she was still getting over her shallow crush on Yun? 

Maybe things could’ve been different if she was more aware. More honest with herself. At least, if Kyoshi and Rangi had gotten together before all of this, perhaps maybe Rangi would've at least heard her out?

Well… that was assuming Rangi liked her back. Kyoshi still wasn’t convinced by Kirima’s past analysis. 

“Stupid… stupid… stupid…”

“Yeah, yeah. We know you are, but I’mma need you to shut up,” Lek’s annoying voice yawned. “Some of us wanna sleep. Ow!” Lek cried out in time with a thud.

“Get up!” Kirima said, kicking him again.

“Wha–ah–why?” Lek bemoaned.

“There’s a town over that hill, and we want to scope some things out,” Wong explained.

Kyoshi got up and stretched. She wasn't too sore anymore, thanks to Kirima's healing. Even if it did take her a few days to fully heal her…

I really need to learn waterbending soon. The sooner she was self-sufficient, the sooner she became a bending master… the sooner she was a fully realized Avatar, the sooner she could have her revenge. And the sooner Rangi…what? 

Could they go back to the way things were after Jianzhu was finally dead? Would her friend be able to look at her the same way? An Avatar, hands still bathed in blood of a previous Avatar’s companion? Who would want to stay by such a barbarian’s side? Surely not her more noble friend…

Kyoshi shook her head, trying to bade the dark thoughts away. She clapped her hands together, dusting them off. “What are we looking for? Joints to hit? Or are we buying things this time?”

“Depends,” Kirima said. “We aren’t in dire straits just yet Baby Daofei, so we can take our time scoping out this job.”

Kyoshi shrugged and started to follow after her two seniors. She felt grimy, and her hair was most certainly a mess, but they could most likely find a place to wash up in the town, or find a nearby river later. 

“Girl, let's have our meditation time after we get back,” Lao Ge said, saddling up next to her.

“Back off old man, I get to bully her first!” Lek said, chasing after the group. “You totally need more control, especially if Gorgeous is gonna keep coming after ya!”

Kyoshi sighed. She really hoped she wouldn't have to use any violence against Rangi again.

_______

The village they were in, apparently called Hongcun Village, was surprisingly bigger than Kyoshi would’ve thought. It was sandwiched just Southeast of Omashu, and Southwest of the Si Wong Desert, and was apparently known as a hotspot for trading. 

She didn’t like how close she was getting to Yokoya, but perhaps that was the safest place? Maybe Jiazhu was too focused on his efforts to find her far away; he wouldn't realize she was so close to home… Right? 

Regardless, she needed to be careful.

As they walked the streets, something started catching her attention. She noticed how much attention was being drawn towards them. This wasn’t normal. Sure, she’d draw some attention usually because of her height. But these stares… They were lingering on her for too long. It set her teeth on edge.

Her jaw flexed as they walked, trying to keep her expression as neutral as she could, trying to stave off her fear and anxiety. If she wasn’t careful, the wrong people would smell blood.

She needed to warn the rest of her team, something was up. But how could she do it without drawing attention? Well… More attention.

Before she could voice her worries, her field of vision was obscured suddenly, something wet hitting her in the face. As she brought her hands up to wipe at whatever hit her, trying to remain calm, she felt her body being roughly shoved and was being pushed along somewhere.

She was just about to spiral into a real panic when a familiar voice spoke up.

“Ugh! Watch where ya aiming, old man!” Lek complained. 

“The hell’s the matter with you, Gramps?” Wong’s low, melodic voice said. Kyoshi felt a strong hand on her shoulder, steadying her.

“Oh, I’m sorry, my dear,” Lao Ge’s voice said, apologetically. “My bending isn’t what it used to be. I was trying to move the mud, not fling it at you!” Kyoshi felt his hand on her arm, coaxing it away from her face discreetly. Well, at least Kyoshi knew what was probably on her face. But why would he intentionally blind her like this?

“Well, nothing we can do now. C’mon Jesa, let’s get you cleaned up,” Kirima said from behind her, her slender hand was on Kyoshi’s back, coaxing her forward.

Jesa?! Does she mean me?! What’s going on?!

Kyoshi wanted to argue with her group, especially for calling her by her mother’s name! But a small voice in her head told her to go along with it. They were weird, but this was out of the ordinary, even for them.

Kyoshi let herself be blindly pushed around for what felt like multiple minutes, before she was unceremoniously shoved into a seat of some sort.

“What the hell, kid?!” Kirima angry-whispered. There was the sound of paper rustling in front of her. “What the hell is this?”

“W–what?” Kyoshi spluttered out as she wiped at her face, she stopped when she felt someone smack her hands. “What the hell–?”

“Don’t wipe that away!” Kirima chided, the paper rustled in front of Kyoshi’s face yet again.

“Well if you want me to look at something, I very well can’t do that with all this crud in my eyes!” 

“Fine! Only the eyes!”

So Kyoshi did just that, carefully wiped the mud out of her eyes so she could see what Kirima was waving in front of her. When she finally opened them, she saw her face staring back at her.

Kyoshi’s eyes widened as she registered what she saw.

It was a very detailed portrait of her face, making sure to get her appearance down even to her iconic freckles. It read:

WANTED – Kyoshi Earth Kingdom Citizen Sixteen year old female with brown skin, brown hair and gray eyes. Distinct freckles on face.  Nearly 7 feet tall, may be armed and dangerous. Use extreme caution. By order of the Avatar Yun and Earth Sages, please report all findings of her to a nearby lawman. 

There it was, her name, the characters of ‘empty’ or ‘worthless’ and ‘child’ being the ever great reminder of who she really was. She was accustomed to her fitting name, but what set her blood on edge was the use of the Avatar’s decree.

The fact Jianzhu would go as far as to still use Yun’s name after all that he had–

“Why is the Avatar after you?!” Kirima cut off Kyoshi’s spiral by shoving the paper into her face yet again. “I thought you said it was your boss! Some Sage, no?

Kyoshi was reeling. Oh no, what if they abandon me? And so close to Yokoya too! She’d never survive, not what she was essentially in Jianzhu’s backyard!

“He is!” Kyoshi quickly whispered back. “I don’t know what’s going on!”

“You don’t know? But the Avatar is on your case?” Kirima raised an eyebrow. “Just tell us if you stole something–”

“I didn’t steal anything!” Kyoshi blurted out a tad too loudly. Then she continued more quietly. “That man, my boss, he… He killed some people I cared about…”

“And you got set up to take the fall?” Wong questioned.

“Not exactly, it’s complicated.”

“But still the Avatar is–” Lek started.

“It’s a lie!” Kyoshi hissed. “The Avatar is not involved in this. It’s just a ploy from my boss to scare me into appearing. Y–Avatar Yun will not appear at all, I can assure you!”

It wasn’t the complete truth, but it also wasn’t a complete lie. But she didn’t feel comfortable telling the members of the Flying Opera Company that weren’t Lao Ge, that Avatar Yun was dead. That, and the longer it took for them to know she was the Avatar the better.

Kirima pinched the bridge of her nose. “So you say but how can we–”

“Knives and thunderbolts! Remember?” Kyoshi looked at them all with a hardened expression. “That’s what would happen to me if I lied. I’m not lying. Avatar Yun isn’t involved.”

She was very careful with her wording. Her misdirection. Working within the code she needed to follow so she could exploit them. 

“My boss is a powerful man, who can call in favors like this,” Kyoshi started confessing. If she gave them a little more information, just to garner their sympathy, maybe they’d let it be. “He killed my loved ones and…wants me.” She said the last bit of her sentence like she ate something foul. She hated the insinuation, but it would most likely gain her the most points. And again, her word of choice wasn’t wrong. The daofei's assumptions may be, but that’s not her fault, right?

A round of disgusted noises from the back of throats were heard. 

“Ok, fine, kid,” Kirima grimaced at the ground. Then she put a hand over her face and shook her head. “I get it, we get it.”

“Don’t worry, we’re still going to help you out,” Wong comforted, patting Kyoshi on the shoulder.

“Ok, but, what are we going to do about her face?” Lek asked. “We can keep calling her Jesa, but…” He gestured to her whole being. “The rest of her is gonna stand out.”

Wong nodded. “We can probably fix that, but maybe we should leave. Let’s head South, maybe to Yokoya, or Quinch–”

“No! We can’t go to Yokoya! Not even Qinchao! They’re too close!” She didn’t want to be too obvious where she’s from, because it was possible they could piece together that her boss was Jianzhu.

“Wait, are we actually near where you work?!” Kirima demanded.

“If we go South we will be!” 

Kirima pinched her brow again and then looked at the wanted poster. “We should be ok.” She ran a finger down the page, and the picture smudged a bit. “These are new, it’s possible they only just put them up. As long as we address the key issues now, while people are still new to these posters, we should be able to stay here for another day or so.”

“We very well can’t just run out of here now. Someone will surely chase us if we act that reckless. It’s better to act natural and not draw attention to ourselves,” Lao Ge advised.

Kyoshi nodded, trying to follow along. “Ok, so how are we going to…address me?” Were they going to hide her away with Pengpeng? Wasn’t the most glorious fate, she also hated the idea of being by herself. Both as deadweight for the team, and possibly being open for Rangi to kidnap her…again.

“Well, we’re going to need a new look for you!” Kirima said, grabbing Kyoshi by the arm and dragging her away from their sworn brothers, and down multiple winding back alley pathways.

“Wait, a make-over? At a time like this?!” Kyoshi questioned the woman’s sanity.

“No, you dolt! We need a new disguise!” she chided. “You’ve already drawn attention with that get up, but if we change how you look now we’ll probably be fine.”

Kirima approached a locked door, and used waterbending to open it, then she shoved Kyoshi inside. She expertly navigated them once inside, it looked almost like a private spa area. It was probably a really expensive place, if they went about paying for it. 

“What in the–” Kyoshi looked at the warm, crystal water in the tub. It was much too fancy, only high end nobles would come to such a place. 

Kirima put her finger up to her mouth, indicating Kyoshi to be quiet. Then she pointed at a chair for Kyoshi to sit in. She disappeared around the corner for a moment, there were sounds of clicking and rummaging and then reappeared with a soft, white robe and a bucket. 

“Get undressed and wash up with this. Once you’re done, change into this robe. I’m going to get some supplies. Don’t worry about the door, no one is getting in here.”

Kirima left out the same way they came. Kyoshi waited until she heard the clicking sound of the lock Kirima had picked earlier before getting undressed. She took the bucket and dunked it in the warm water, careful not to get the water dirtied, and brought it over to the designated washing station. The tub was meant for soaking in, not for washing. 

She quickly and quietly scrubbed all the grime off of herself. Easy enough, especially with water and soap nearby. She was done in only a handful of minutes, the time restraint for washing back at the mansion came in handy. 

As soon as she finished tying the sash of the white bathrobe, she heard the click of the outside lock again, and Kirima came sauntering in.

“Huh, you’re done already? You’re faster than I thought,” she said, sounding slightly impressed.

Kirima entered with a bundle in each arm, and started unpacking one. She pulled out a mortar and pestle, a smaller waterskin, and a large handkerchief full of elderberries. The last thing she pulled out was a makeup kit, and put it to the side.

She poured the berries and the contents of the waterskin into the mortar, and started mixing them together. The dark liquid that came out of the skin and the sharp smell made Kyoshi’s nose twitch.

“Is that wine?” she asked.

Kirima nodded.

“Why? What are you making?”

“Hair dye, we’re going to darken your hair to black. Then, we’re going to put you in makeup,” she nodded to the makeup kit. 

Kyoshi grimaced, she hated the white gunk that Auntie Mui begged her to put on her face. But she didn’t complain, whatever kept them all safe.

Kirima quickly went to work with Kyoshi, working the mixture into her hair, and making sure it only dyed Kyoshi’s hair and not her skin. It helped that she was a waterbender. After she finished dyeing and drying her hair, she quickly worked Kyoshi’s hair into an intricate design. After that ordeal was done, she got to work with Kyoshi’s makeup.

“I’m going to style it more like a maiko’s than our usual opera style we use on jobs. It’ll be a tad extravagant, but not out of the ordinary, ok?” She said, not really asking permission. Kyoshi just gave her a hum of approval, afraid of messing up the makeup as she dabbed it onto her.

Once she was done, Kirima assessed her handiwork with almost a somber look on her face. 

“What? What’s the matter?” 

But Kirima didn’t say anything, just shook her head. 

Annoyed and puzzled, she pulled her face away from Kirima and went to a mirror. What was staring back at her almost made Kyoshi scream and run for the hills. The face of her mother, Jesa stared back at her. Memories of her mother in geisha and maiko style makeup flooded Kyoshi’s mind. Were they playing with the makeup? Hiding from lawmen? Or having a night of celebration? That…Kyoshi couldn't remember.

She’d forgotten about it until now, she didn't realize she had any memories left buried. 

While Kyoshi grappled with her new emotions, Kirima retrieved the other bundle and unwrapped a long, blue, silk gown. There wasn’t anything too flashy or expensive about it, and the color had faded a tad, but it still looked nice. “This’ll do for today. I recommend changing into your nicer silk clothes back at camp. You know, the green one?”

Kyoshi knew which ones she meant. She’d only brought a handful of clothes, the ones Kyoshi was wearing today was her old maid attire. But the outfit Kirima was referencing was the same outfit Jianzhu had gotten her for her trip to meet the Fifth Nation. She’d tried her best not to wear it as much as possible. Hated the fact she still owned anything that was from him. But she kept it for its sturdiness. It was best she started wearing it more frequently, especially with how hard Rangi hit…

Kyoshi quickly changed while Kirima cleaned up, then they left like two thieves in the metaphorical night, the entire place looking about as undisturbed as when they first entered. She quickly followed Kirima down the alleyways until they found their way back to their brethren.

Lao Ge was the first one to notice them, and gave her his wide, partially toothy grin. “My my, you’ve outdone yourself, Kirima. And you’re back faster than I thought to boot!”

Kirima flourished her hand, presenting Kyoshi. “It helped that I had a patient guinea pig mouse.”

“You look good,” Wong said affectionately, his hand coming down onto Kyoshi’s head to give a gentle pat.

“Touch her hair and you’ll be eating out of a pond reed for a damn week,” Kirima warned. 

Wong instantly retrieved his wayward hand, and coughed. 

“Eh, I dunno. She looked better with the mud on her face,” Lek said, his tongue sticking out. Which he bit when he got a wallop upside his head from Wong. “Ow!” And then cried again when Kirima water whipped his tush. “Ow, hey, quit it!”

“You insulting my handiwork, you little shit?” Kirima huffed.

“What? No! It’s not your fault you had a shitty canva– Ow!”

“Don’t be rude to your sister!” Wong griped at Lek, bopping him on the top of his head again.

“Ok ok! Fine! You look fine!” Fine was a pretty high compliment coming from Lek, Kyoshi could work with it.

They made their way back to the main roads and blended back easily within the crowds. As they walked, Kyoshi still couldn’t shake the feeling she was still being watched. However, Kirima said that they were ‘good’ stares this time. She didn’t feel fully at ease, but chose to trust her sworn sister.

And so, the Flying Opera Company staked out the town before returning to camp.

______________________

Kyoshi laid under the stars, tired from the day and happy to be out of the complex hairstyle and makeup. After they had returned back to camp, she spent the day training with the Flying Opera Company members. She could feel her muscles working through her forms she practiced today, even as she laid there. 

Lao Ge had seemed especially mouthy today as well, really on her to learn that damn useless firebending skill she couldn’t even use! 

She shook his voice out of her mind. Her mental power was best to be put elsewhere! Like…thinking about Rangi. 

Was everything really over for them? No, Kyoshi was sure she could still salvage it. She just needed to force another element out, then Rangi would believe her. Then she could apologize for everything up until then, and they could go back to…

Kyoshi felt the bile begin to sure in her throat, but she pushed it back down. ‘Back to the way things used to be’? Yeah right, Yun’s dead. We can’t go back… But maybe we can… Maybe we can at least heal together?

Kyoshi sighed and threw her forearm over her eyes as she recalled her last encounter with Rangi. The gleam of the hairpin she’d given Rangi still in her topknot.

She’s still wearing it. 

Maybe that’s why Kyoshi couldn’t shake the hope that she could maybe, just maybe get through to Rangi. She still wore Kyoshi’s present, donned a piece of Kyoshi’s heart on her. That had to have meant something, right?

Kyoshi closed her eyes, and drifted off to sleep. The hope in her heart kept her warm and with company until she finally succumbed to the abyss.

_____________________

“And this is important because–” Kirima kept prattling on as she held up various jars. Kyoshi had no idea how to tell the difference between…were they still on makeup? Kyoshi was certain they hadn’t left the makeup section of the bazaar. 

Kyoshi was barely listening, she was doing her best to not scratch at her face and ruin the white foundation. Kyoshi didn’t know what bothered her more: the gunk on her face, or the various stares she was still getting.

Well at least they stare less when I’m wearing this as opposed to the gown. Kyoshi thought. She was wearing the battle attire Jianzhu had gotten her. Apparently it not only protected her against weapons, but also lecherous eyes!

They had stayed in the town for two days and were now on their third. Kyoshi was getting antsy, but they promised to leave by the end of the night. The rest of the gang wanted to finish their lighthearted five finger discount with various stores. 

After the first night, they’d decided to hit the stores in a less flashier way than what they did in Youke Village. It took longer, but they only wanted small supplies, plus they had time. They still had a few days head start on Rangi, if Kyoshi’s calculations were correct. Which they may not be…hence how antsy she was…

Regardless, Kyoshi had taken the time to keep practicing and honing her skills to a surprising degree. And attempting to bend another element, no such luck on that last one, however.

She sighed. It felt like she was making a lot of progress, and also no progress at all.

“Well sor–ry,” Kirima snarked. “Am I boring you?”

Kyoshi blinked, coming back to reality. “No?”

“Then what did I just say?”

Kyoshi racked her brain, trying to remember what Kirima was talking about. “This is important because–”

Kirima made an error sound. “Wrong answer! That was, like, twenty sentences ago. What’s on your mind– Oh!” A sly smile stretched across the waterbender’s face. “I know what you’re thinking about.”

Kyoshi blinked at her. Her brain was all over the place, even Kyoshi couldn't pinpoint what she was last thinking about. “You do?”

Kirima tapped her on the nose. “That spicy hot dumpling of yours~!”

Kyoshi blinked again. Sometimes she felt slower than she should be. She hadn’t had any dumplings recently. 

No…with that look she’s insinuating something… Kyoshi thought it through. Spicy. Hot. Spicy. Hot… Fire?

She could feel her face blazing the second it hit her. Kirima was talking about Rangi.

“I–I wasn’t–”

“Yeah, yeah. I know you were mooning over her, you love sick fool!”

Not this time, at least not this second. Kyoshi groaned in her head. 

“Why are you teasing me about this, I thought you didn’t approve?” Kyoshi challenged. 

Kirima ho and hummed as she slipped another vile into her pocket. “I don’t, but I can see you’re dead set on pursuing it. So, as your older sister, if I can’t stop you… I’m gonna at least tease you a little.”

Kyoshi rolled her eyes, but couldn’t help the small smile that made its way onto her face. At least someone was enjoying her whole situation. They kept on walking, Kirima teaching Kyoshi some of the group’s daofei trade. The importance of good quality makeup, how to set up a good ruse, the key to having the stickiest fingers, and the best way to make an escape. And so on and so on. 

“So the diversion team had this performance where–” Kirima, regaling Kyoshi with one of the Flying Opera Company’s heists, was cut off by a loud noise in the distance. The two looked in the direction of the sound, trying to gauge what it was.

There was another loud rumble that could be heard, the ground shook with remnants of the fissures. Birds flew in the air, and the sound of screaming could be heard.

Kirima and Kyoshi got into a battle ready stance. 

“Is it an earthquake?!” Kyoshi yelled to her. She thought she could feel something akin to rumbling in the earth, but she wasn’t talented enough to really pinpoint it yet.

“I don’t know, you’re the earthbender!” she yelled back. Kirima looked at the sky, where the birds were fleeing. “Those birds have the right idea, let’s get out of here!”

Kirima grabbed Kyoshi by the hand and they started running down the road, as they did, Kyoshi could feel herself going higher in elevation! She was mist-stepping! Well, not really, she wasn’t doing it. It appeared Kirima was taking the big sister role seriously, as she was creating mist pillars for her and Kyoshi to step on. 

Just another thing to add to my todo list! She thought. She’d still yet to master the art of dust-stepping, but she was glad for the assist nonetheless. 

When they were safely on the rooftop, they looked over to where the commotion was. There was a dust cloud beginning to form. They started sprinting along the roof, away from the commotion, Kirima helping Kyoshi with the larger gaps in between with her mist stepping. 

As they ran, the sound of an explosion kept getting closer and closer, when Kyoshi turned her head back each time, she would see another plum of dust rising with each explosion. But between the angle of the roofs and people on the street, she couldn’t get a clear view of what was causing it. 

As they were mist-stepping a much bigger gap, it happened. The explosion ruptured from under their feet. Kirima flung themselves to the side in the air, catching them with the mist as they dodged a black mass. They scrambled back to their feet and as Kyoshi turned to run again, she heard a whizzing sound and leaned her head to the left. Right then, a pink whip shot out over her right shoulder, narrowly missing her head. 

The duo launched themselves onto the nearest roof and chanced a look back. On the ground a furry black monster stood, taller than some of the huts from Yokoya, its massive tongue whipping around and hitting random bystanders. As it hit them, they instantly dropped to the ground. 

“Tui’s gills! What the hell is that thing?!” Kirima screamed.

Kyoshi couldn’t answer, she was too stunned. The dust cleared and they could see the monster’s features more fully, it bore no eyes. It was a black void of a face, except for a pink, parasitic shaped flower donned its nose and mouth, wiggling and snorting. And it pointed itself right at Kyoshi.

Kyoshi felt a wave of nausea hit her from the uncanniness of the monster, stricken both with fear and sickness. She was staring into a living breathing nightmare, a creature only found in the most decrepit parts of hell.

This must be Jianzhu’s doing. Was her only thought that pierced her fog of fear. Only that bastard would conjure up the most heinous being in existence to drag her back into his clutches. 

A tugging on her clothes brought her out of fear’s clutches, it was Kirima.

“Quit laying around!” she shouted. “I think it’s after us, we gotta move!” 

As if shocked by lightning itself, Kyoshi rose to her feet in an instant and started following Kirima’s lead at a full sprint. Behind them, they could hear the crushing of stone and wood as the creature used its claws the climb up onto the roofs after them.

“Should we head to lower ground?” Kyoshi shouted, unsure if the rooftop was the safest option. Fearing what would happen if they fell.

“No! I think that thing can burrow!” Kirima shouted back. Kyoshi thought back to the dust plums from earlier. It must’ve been caused by the creature, digging a path underground only to pop up every so often.

As they ran, Kirima would use her waterwhip to help deflect the tongue when dodging didn’t help. Up ahead, there was a large gap between the buildings. They were nearing the main square of the village! 

They just needed to get through the square and out of town, and then up the hills back to Pengpeng and they were home free. But a feeling of dread settled into Kyoshi’s stomach as she looked out onto the horizon, it appeared there was a plum of dust just beyond the hill that led to their camp.

“Don’t slow down!” Kirima shouted at Kyoshi. “Just keep running forward and I’ll keep a path going for the both of us!”

Kyoshi nodded, unable to speak due to needing to reserve that precious air for breathing. Kyoshi pushed forward, speeding ahead of Kirima so that her sister could see her feet more clearly and provide a platform. 

They started running in the air, and halfway through the gap Kyoshi took a chance to look back. Kirima was concentrating on their feet, making sure they each had a platform to put their feet. She watched in horror as the monster behind them reached the roof’s edge and launched itself into the air after them. 

Kyoshi took a fan out and flung a chunk of earth from the ground at the creature, hoping to knock it off course. As the boulder made impact, Kyoshi felt like she was hit by a boulder in midair as well. Her body fell sideways, accelerating away from Kirima, who bore a look of shock. 

Then there was a blast of fire, and Kirima was knocked out of the sky as well. Kyoshi twisted her body around to see Rangi wrapped around her waist in a mid-air tackle. Her feet propelling them forward to the ground with jet-stepping, she must’ve sent a kick of fire at Kirima when she knocked her down.

Rangi didn’t seem aware of the possibly deadly fall they were both hurdling towards, so Kyoshi used the fan she had and prayed. She grounded and pulverized the entire area, hoping the dirt would soften their landing. 

Right before the hit the ground, she twisted her body and held onto Rangi, so that she’d be the one to take the impact first. As they crashed, it was clear that, despite the pain, the plan had worked. 

She lifted her head up, and saw Kirima was already on her feet again, either having also landed on the soft earth or she course corrected with her own bending. Nevertheless, she was in a battle with the monster. The monster’s mouth was bleeding, its long tongue hanging on by a thread where Kirima sliced at it with a blade of ice.

Kyoshi looked down to see Rangi slowly getting up off of Kyoshi’s stomach. She needed to at least convince Rangi to get out of here with her, even if it led to a fight later!

“Rangi, I know you're mad at me but– There’s a monster chasing us. We need to get out of here, after we’re safe you can yell or hit me as much as you wa–”

CRACK!

Kyoshi’s head was back on the ground, she could feel her skull vibrating with the impact of whatever had just hit her jaw. Her vision splotched, both from the impact and the inability to take a breath. The wind was knocked out of her.

It felt like an eternity, but after only a moment, she finally took a gasp of air. As she did, blood spluttered into the air, her teeth had cut her cheek open from the impact. She took another racking breath as she felt Rangi mount her, fist gripping at the front of Kyoshi’s robes. 

Kyoshi didn’t dare to move her head yet, so she only shifted her eyes in Rangi’s direction. Her breathing stopped yet again. 

Whatever fear Kyoshi felt towards the monster moments ago paled in comparison to the absolute fright Rangi was instilling in Kyoshi this very moment. Rangi’s face was darkened with utter loathing, her eyes were like bronze knives that were freshly oiled in blood. Hungry for the next slaughter. Her fist, raised and vibrating with energy, preparing for its next hit.

It was evident, it didn’t matter if there was one monster behind her or a million. Rangi wouldn’t have cared. The only thing that mattered to her right now was Kyoshi.

Kyoshi gritted her teeth. She knew any kind of talking was way out of the question now, she was going to need to fight. Once she knocked Rangi out, Kyoshi could get them both away from the monster; then, she’d have the Flying Opera Company help her restrain Rangi until she saw reason.

Kyoshi noticed Rangi’s left shoulder, a piece of her armor had fragmented off from where Lek had hit her. Perhaps she should target that side?

Kyoshi flicked her wrist as Rangi’s fist was coming down, a giant boulder of earth rocketed at both the girls, and flung them to the side. Kyoshi had subscribed to the art of fifty-fifty with that shot. Either both of them got hurt, or just Rangi got hurt. Unfortunately for Kyoshi, it was the former. 

Regardless, the boulder did the trick, it got her separated from Rangi. Kyoshi scrambled to her feet while pulling out her second fan and got into a low stance, she was going to need all the help she could get. But double unfortunately for her, she’d created a giant dust cloud from the impact of the earth she chucked. 

She looked around trying to gain her bearings. From what she remembered, the main square was more like a main circle, with an obelisk statue surrounded by a fountain in the middle. While not as packed as the bazaar, it still had a lot of stands and shops scattered throughout the open area.

As she looked around, her leg started to tremble from being squatted for so long. Then, out of the dust, a fireball came at her face. Kyoshi quickly dove to the left, winding her arm up as she rolled to send another boulder in that direction. She saw Rangi dodge it at the last second, her fist coming down onto the ground where Kyoshi had been with a combustion punch.

Gotta keep my distance! She gazed as the small crater Rangi’s fist left.

But she wasn’t sure how long she could keep that up. While she could fling boulders the size of houses at her friend, she didn’t want to. Not just because she valued Rangi’s life, but because it wasn’t sustainable. The act was too slow moving, too easy to dodge, and it would wear her out faster. If only she had a faster moving element to access…

Kyoshi inhaled. No… She was going to need to bend smaller. As small as she could. She readjusted her grip on her fans, recalling her training with Lek, Wong, and Kirima. She was going to need to pull out all the stops, even if it meant close quarters combat. She was just thankful she wore her armor today…

She dropped into a Sixty-Forty stance that Wong taught her, and began her katas, focusing on throwing boulders only slightly bigger than her torso. She snapped her fans forward twice, throwing two semi large boulders at Rangi at a much faster pace.

Rangi quickly dodged the first one, and blasted the second. But Kyoshi didn’t give her time to breathe. After launching the first two boulders, she launched two more. The dust created from Rangi’s blast when she destroyed the second boulder obscured the third and fourth one. 

As the boulders flew towards Rangi, Kyoshi charged. She watched as the third boulder nicked Rangi’s right leg as she attempted to jump over it, only to get knocked out of the air by the fourth boulder. Rangi caught herself from completely falling to the ground, but as she rose back up, Kyoshi closed one of her fans and slammed the point into Rangi’s temple. 

Rangi instantly crumpled to the ground, unconscious, trickles of blood flowed from the newly formed cut. Kyoshi looked down at Rangi, panting. A grin slowly spread across her face. 

I–I did it! She’d successfully beat and knocked Rangi out. Now she just needed to carry Rangi to safety and help Kirima at the same time! No pressure!

Kyoshi put one fan into her sash (she’d only have one arm to work with anyway), and slung Rangi’s body over her shoulders in a fireman’s carry. She turned and looked for Kirima, but she and the monster weren’t where Kyoshi last saw. Carnage seemed to indicate their fight continued on down another street.

She’d only taken one step when she felt Rangi’s arm, that was pulled across her body, quickly grab her own leg and pull both limbs upward into Kyoshi’s neck. Rangi had woken up, or perhaps she’d just feigned unconsciousness, and now Kyoshi was in a makeshift chokehold!

Kyoshi had made her own noose. Thankfully, it was a haphazard hold that Rangi made in haste, so Kyoshi had a little room to breathe and think. Not a lot, but it was enough. She remembered what Wong had taught her, one way to get out of a chokehold. Especially if said hold wasn’t on the ground. 

This is going to hurt! She thought as she braced herself for the pain.

She dropped the fan she was holding, and grabbed both of Rangi’s arm and leg, and flung herself backwards. The duo hit the ground, Rangi taking the brunt of the hit. Kyoshi didn’t get out unscathed, falling on top of Rangi’s armor like that hurt. She was just thankful it wasn’t one of Rangi’s spikes that she’d landed on!

Rangi’s limbs went slack, and Kyoshi scrambled to get out her hold. She looked around, trying to find the fan she dropped and spotted it. She lunged for it, but Rangi was quicker. The firebender shot her foot out and kicked the fan away. The two watched as the fan flew and disappeared into a nearby stand. 

Kyoshi snapped her head back to Rangi and the two stopped and just looked at each other. Rangi’s eyes glowed in a fit of fury, her teeth grit and Kyoshi grabbed her remaining fan from her sash. Rangi’s fist shot out, a fireball flying towards Kyoshi’s face. Kyoshi unsnapped her fan just in time and swung it in front of her face. 

The fireball dissipated upon impact. The two looked at each other, shocked. Did…Kyoshi just firebend? Or did the fan just absorb all the impact? 

Regardless, Kyoshi quickly shot to her feet and started to back away, just in time for Rangi to let off a barrage of fire blasts at her. With each one, Kyoshi caught it with her fan. And each time, the metal fan got hotter. 

I don’t feel anything. Kyoshi thought.There was no real energy flow, not like when she earthbent. If she was firebending, it was a miniscule amount and the fan was doing most of the work. Maybe Rangi’s fire blasts aren’t actually that powerful?

As if reading Kyoshi’s mind, Rangi sent out a particularly large fireball, in which Kyoshi had to dodge. It instantly incinerated a stand behind her. 

On second thought… Who am I to judge firebending?

“I don’t know what you’re doing… Or how you’re doing it…” Rangi panted. Kyoshi wasn’t sure the last time she heard Rangi out of breath. She looked at the firebender more closely. She looked worn out, and had a sickly tint to her pale skin. Seeing Rangi like that set Kyoshi on edge, she needed to end the fight sooner rather than later. For both their sakes. “But you can’t keep it up forever…”

“I wouldn’t need to keep it up at all if you would just stop!” Kyoshi yelled back. Partially hoping to buy herself some time to allow her fan to cool off. It was getting harder to hold, and she was pretty sure her hand was starting to blister.

Kyoshi stretched her free arm out, to point at all that was happening around them. “Look around you Rangi! This place is being attacked by a monster! And all you care about is–”

“I’m well aware that a shirshu is attacking this place, Kyoshi,” Rangi said so calmly, it made Kyoshi hair stand on edge. 

Kyoshi’s eyes widened. Shirshu– She knows what it is?!

“How else did you think I found you this time?” She began to stalk her way to Kyoshi, slowly circling a path towards her, keeping a wary eye on her fan. “Bet you thought your little disguise would work? Sorry, doesn’t matter how much you pretty yourself up, we can track you based on your scent. Any time. Any place.”

The world felt like it was tilting sideways. Rangi was willing to go as far as to spawn a creature from the depths of hell to bring her back? Even to cause all this destruction? No, that didn’t sound like Rangi, it had to be Jianzhu!

“So you’re fine with dragging all these innocent people involved?!” Kyoshi challenged, fury welling inside her, not sure where to aim it at.

“These innocent people got involved because of you!” Rangi was passing by a small stall cart, and kicked the vehicle at Kyoshi. Kyoshi stumbled out of its way and barely blocked another fire blast. 

Kyoshi looked up and then at Rangi, gauging the distance briefly. Then she brought her foot down with all her might. The earth shook and cracked. She could see Rangi stumbling, trying to keep her footing. Kyoshi aimed her arm and fan at the obelisk, dropped into a low stance, and pulled down. 

The giant stone structure cracked and fell, providing a makeshift wall between her and Rangi. Kyoshi took the opportunity to dive into the sea of stands, stalls, and carts. Hoping for Rangi to lose sight of her. But also losing her sight on Rangi in the process.

“You still shouldn’t have unleashed it on all these bystanders!” Kyoshi yelled, poor decision. Rangi would possibly be able to pinpoint her. Even if she kept moving.

There was a burst of flame and a cart a ways up caught fire. Shit, she’s going to light this whole place on fire at this rate!

“I didn’t, it got excited when it tagged your scent, the handlers couldn’t control it,” Rangi’s voice was eerie, devoid of emotion. “They both did, the handlers chose to go after the other one, while I followed this one to you.”

Kyoshi’s heart sank and panic thrummed through her. The other one? There were two of these bastards?! And where did that one disappear to?!

More stalls behind her started blowing up in rapid succession. Smoke was starting to thicken in the area, she’d need to get out of there. It was only a small miracle that the damn place had been cleared out before their battle began.

Where’s the exit?! She cried in her head as she ran past the stalls. There were so many entrances and exits to the square, she just needed to find one. 

Her feet stopped when she ran past a nice looking textile stall. An idea flashed in her mind as she looked upon its wares, a memory of a special dance Kirima taught her flitting through her mind not long after. The dance steps the Flying Opera Company used to disguise their martial arts. Kirima had taught her the steps, they’d done the katas, but Kyoshi never had the object needed to actually utilize it. Not like Wong and the fans…

Kyoshi stashed her last fan back into her sash, and used her first five finger discount: a scarf.

“If you just came back quietly back in Chameleon Bay, none of this destruction would’ve happened!” Rangi roared, she was close, just a stall away. 

Kyoshi wrapped the scarf around both of her hands, and pulled it taunt, checking the tension. Then she picked up a rock and threw it, drawing Rangi’s attention away from where she was. Rangi threw her fist out towards the noise and that’s when Kyoshi struck.

She jumped out of the shadows, quickly wrapping it around Rangi’s extended hand. Instinct took over before thought. In a fluid motion, she swung her body to the side so her back was facing Rangi, and threw the smaller girl over her shoulder in a picture perfect seoi otoshi throw. 

It almost worked, but as Rangi’s body was being raised up, Kyoshi ended up being propelled forward. They both ended up flying forward and colliding with the ground, farther away from the smoke and fire. Rangi had used her jet-stepping to get out of the throw.

Kyoshi felt the scarf come loose, and quickly scrambled to get away. She grabbed at a stand, filled with fruit and stood up. Just as she saw a fireball flying towards her again, she threw a melon at it. It exploded in the air. 

Damn it, whatever works! She grabbed two more melons and brought her foot down. Rangi jumped, using her jet-stepping to avoid the tremor, and fireblasted one of the melons Kyoshi threw at her. It exploded.

Kyoshi quickly followed the blow up with another melon throw, hoping to use the wreckage of the first melon to disguise its path. Rangi predicted it, she followed up with another blast, and even fell back, expecting Kyoshi to throw another boulder at her.

Rangi was right to be cautious, but a boulder wasn’t Kyoshi’s next move. 

Kyoshi took a page out of her playbook from Youke Village, and threw her arms up into a Soft Bridge Stance. A small pillar of rock shot out of the ground, right under Rangi. The edge of the pillar collided with the underside of her chin, and hurled her back and onto the ground.

Kyoshi capitalized on the hit, and wrapped her scarf around one of Rangi’s arms again. She remembered how Rangi almost knocked her out in Chameleon Bay with a chokehold, and maneuvered the remainder of the scarf around her neck. Then she threw her over the shoulder. Rangi attempted to jet-step out, but the flames sputtered wildly, unable to gain traction due to her lack of breath. The source of firebending.

Wait, how long do I hold this? Kyoshi realized in a panic. She felt Rangi thrash, and a gurgling sound escaped her mouth. Panic quickly turned into terror. She wasn’t knocking her out, she was killing her!

She gritted her teeth and loosened her grip, let go of the scarf, and dodge rolled out of the way. She turned back around and saw Rangi kneeling on the ground, clutching at her throat. She grabbed the scarf and let it burn away in her fingertips as she caught her breath.

“I’m not going back, Rangi! Not until I have my revenge!” 

“Revenge?!” Rangi growled at Kyoshi. “Revenge for what? Because your life has been shit? News flash, Kyoshi! Just because your life sucks, doesn’t mean you can go around and destroy the world!”

That blow hit her harder than anything Rangi had swung at her yet. She knew it was because Rangi just didn’t know the whole picture… Right? It couldn’t be because this is what Rangi always thought about Kyoshi?

Rangi quickly took the opportunity to lunge at Kyoshi, hands grappling at her lapels. Kyoshi grabbed Rangi’s shoulders and tried to push her away. It was clear both were running out of steam.

Rangi kicked Kyoshi in the thigh, then pulled Kyoshi downwards as Kyoshi’s leg gave out. “Your stance is weak!” She delivered an onslaught of knee jabs to Kyoshi’s stomach. It was unpleasant, but Kyoshi was grateful for the armor she was wearing to absorb most of the blows. 

Kyoshi tried to use the momentum of her failing leg, in her own hold she twisted her body and brought Rangi to the ground. 

Instead of trying to take advantage with a ground grapple, she instead tried to right herself, stumbling backwards to get away, but she ran out of space. Her back hitting a nearby wall. By the time she looked back, Rangi had already capitalized on her mistake…

In Rangi’s right hand, she held a fire dagger up to Kyoshi’s throat, just far enough to not burn her, but close enough she could feel the heat licking at her skin. The side of her left hand was pinned to the side of her stomach; right where there was a gap in her armor, ready to pierce her stomach with another fire dagger whenever she was ready. 

Sweating, aching, and bleeding. The two panted, pressed up against each other, and assessed each other one last time. 

“Rangi, it doesn’t matter how many times you come after me… I’m not going back to Yokoya,” Kyoshi repeated. “You can capture me now, but I’ll fight you the whole way there.”

Rangi didn’t respond, her eyes only darkened.

“Jianzhu killed Yun and Kelsang, he’s using you–”

“Don’t! Shut up–” The fire dagger flared up in her hand, Kyoshi could feel it singing her skin now. 

“Because he’s a sick freak that wants to keep the power of the Avatar to himself–” 

“I told you to shut up! Stop lying!” Rangi took the fist by her stomach and delivered a quick blow near her liver but just missed it due to the armor.

“I won’t let him get away with it. I’ll avenge them. And you can either help me, or we can keep playing this game. But I won’t stop until I put his body so far down into the ground that even the badgermoles can’t find him.”

“I said stop!” Rangi hit her side again, this one hitting in between the armor but luckily not the liver.

Kyoshi coughed from the blow, but continued onwards, frustration finally coming to the forefront. “I– Damn it, Rangi! Pull your head out of that privileged ass of yours and listen to me for once!” She was getting sick and tired of this. Was their friendship really so meaningless? Was it so inconsequential to Rangi that she couldn’t spare her any words? Or did Jianzhu’s poison run deeper than she realized?

“Did it really never occur to you that they could be the ones lying? You seem to buy that Kelsang and I were the bad guys, but ever thought it could be the other way around?” Her vision started to blur as tears started to well up in her eyes. “I had to watch two of our loved ones be murdered by that maniac! Then he threatened to torture me! And now he’s turned you against me I–”

Her voice cracked as she fought back the sobs. Finally, she asked the question that’d been gnawing at her, the one she didn’t want to acknowledge but couldn’t ignore any longer. “Did our friendship mean nothing to you? Am I nothing to you?”

Kyoshi bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to let her fury give away to sadness. A new wave of metallic taste flowed over her taste buds as she did, reopening the wound that had begun to staunch as she fought. After a moment, she noticed Rangi didn’t respond to her, but that she didn’t feel the fire dagger singing her skin anymore. 

When Kyoshi blinked her tears away, she was met with an unwell looking Rangi, the dark circles under her eyes contrasted horribly with her green tinted skin. She looked worse than the time Kyoshi had seen her with a winter head cold back in Yokoya. Fury and distress were warring over her face. And as much as it hurt seeing Rangi like that, it gave Kyoshi hope. Hope that Rangi wasn’t lost to her just yet. 

“Talk to me,” Kyoshi said. “Please.”

Rangi’s gaze drifted downwards, out of focus. “I–I’m… It’s not– That’s not– You’re not–” 

Kyoshi felt the heat near her neck dissipate completely, Rangi's fire dagger was gone. Rangi’s hands now went to grab at Kyoshi’s robe, stumbling, trying to keep herself upright; shaking with rabid shuddering breaths. Kyoshi was quick to catch her by the shoulders, then tentatively wrapped around, pulling her into a hug, trying to ground her.

Her face found its way to the top of Rangi’s head, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Like it belonged there. Two puzzle pieces that fit together perfectly.

Rangi’s hair was sweaty and grimey (similar to how Kyoshi’s had mostly been since she’d run away), and not like the soft and sweet bouquet it had been the one other time Kyoshi had the honor of holding her like this. But Kyoshi didn’t mind, she’d take Rangi in any shape or form. 

Despite the muck, she still smelt a familiar flowery scent from all those weeks ago…

Maybe she just smells like that naturally? Kyoshi thought, head fluttery. Her mind wandered to the time they shared the same bed. She had comforted Rangi in a similar manner until she fell asleep, though she doubted Rangi was in any position to fall asleep here. Nevertheless, she let the sweet memory wash over her for a brief moment. She wished she hadn’t been so dense, and that she’d done something… But alas, here she was, her heart falling into a pile of ribbons yet again.

Kyoshi allowed herself to make one last transgression, and pressed her lips to Rangi’s head as a discreet kiss. 

“I’m here just… Please. Talk to me, I’ll listen…”

Rangi took another breath that wracked her whole body. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this…”

Kyoshi’s heart squeezed. “You’re right, it wasn’t…” The three of them should be at the mansion, eating watermelon in the garden, spitting out the seeds, and running from Auntie Mui. Not be trapped in this sick game.

“So why? Why did you do it?”

Kyoshi’s morale sank. “Rangi…” Kyoshi pleaded. “I didn’t do anything… I just ran… Jianzhu he’s the one who– Why do you trust him over me?” It didn’t make any sense. Sure, she understood he was a powerful figurehead, an old companion of Kuruk… Maybe he was also a family friend because of Hei-Ran? But she didn’t think he was close to Rangi herself. Did that really trump their own friendship?

“Because…” Rangi sobbed, gripping Kyoshi’s robes tighter. “Because if he’s lying, then my mother–” She couldn’t finish the sentence. 

And there it was… Blood. It always comes back to blood. 

Kyoshi closed her eyes in frustration. If there was one person Rangi would hold above their friendship, it would be Hei-Ran. Rangi probably never even considered that her own mother would betray her… Could Kyoshi blame her? Not everyone had the same mindset and upbringing Kyoshi got… But regardless of Kyoshi’s personal feelings on one’s family, Rangi was still hurting...

Was Hei-Ran being lied to as well? Or perhaps she understood Jianzhu’s vision, and knew sending her daughter after Kyoshi was the best move. They did say that Avatar Companions and their relationship were the stuff of legends. Regardless, Kyoshi wouldn't know how Hei-Ran thought, she'd never talk to the woman outside of one other occasion…

Instead, Kyoshi tried to draw from her own experience. Her mind drifted to her own mother…and father… And how easily it was for them to cast her off like common garbage. Her grip around Rangi tightened, the mere thought of Rangi being abandoned in a similar manner angered her greatly.

“You’d be surprised what blood is capable of doing,” she said darkly. “No one knows best how to hurt you like your own family does…”

Rangi started to quiet down.

“We have to consider the possibility she lied too, Rangi,” Kyoshi continued, thinking she was finally calming Rangi down. 

“She lied?” Rangi asked, her voice was hoarse. It sounded distant, almost feverish.

“Yes, she could be in on this with Jianzhu,” Kyoshi nodded. “Or she's being lied to too, seems like Jianzhu has a tendency to always lie,” Kyoshi said bitterly.

“-shi always lies…” Rangi repeated in the same strange voice.

She? Kyoshi frowned slightly, she must’ve misheard Rangi. 

“Listen, how about this… Come with me. We’ll get you treated, you can rest up, and when you’re feeling better we can have a much longer talk,” Kyoshi couldn’t help the small smile forming on her face. The idea of Rangi being with her on this journey, interacting with the rest of the Flying Opera Company. She could perfectly imagine her reaction to their antics. “We’ll come up with a plan. Together.”

“Run away with you?” Rangi’s fists tightened around Kyoshi’s robes. “Why?”

Kyoshi laughed. “Why? Because you’re my best friend and I love you! I care about you, Rangi.” Kyoshi ignored how close she came to a confession of her feelings, how she hid behind the mantle of ‘best friend.’ It wasn’t the time or place for such a thing, she just wanted Rangi to not be distressed anymore.

“Care? Love?” Rangi’s voice sounded strained and quiet, Kyoshi wasn’t even sure she heard the second word or if she just imagined it.

“Yes! I care about you, so much.” She held her tighter, hoping to emphasize the message.

But Rangi didn’t react. She stilled, as stiff as a statue. “Cared? But… Yun said…”

Kyoshi’s brow furrowed. “Yun? What did Yun say?” 

Had Yun said something to Rangi long before his death? Maybe it was after the iceberg? 

Suddenly, Rangi violently pushed herself away from Kyoshi, wrenching herself out of Kyoshi’s arms with so much force Kyoshi almost toppled over. A shadow bled over Rangi’s face, obscuring her features. 

“Ah–wha– Rangi?” She blinked confused. “What’s the mat–”

A humorless laugh escaped Rangi’s lips and chilled Kyoshi to the bone. “He was right… Damn it… You really are…”

Rangi swayed from side to side, her left fist vibrating with energy.

“What are you talking about Rangi? Who was ‘right?’ Yun? What did he say?” She reached out a hand, hoping to steady Rangi. “Rangi, you aren’t well. Let’s just take a moment to breathe and–”

Rangi’s liver punch came swift and fast, Kyoshi had no time to react. Kyoshi keeled forward, resting her head on Rangi’s shoulder as one hand gripped at Rangi’s back. Trying to stay conscious. Trying to breathe again.

Rangi growled in Kyoshi’s ear, finally answering her question, digging her knuckles into Kyoshi’s side as she did. “You’re trying to control me! Using words I want to hear to manipulate me into doing what you want!” 

Kyoshi could only respond by coughing. Most of the impact was thankfully absorbed by her armor, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. Black spots sprinkled her vision, and her mind whirled.

‘Want to hear’? But what parts? And did Yun really tell Rangi this? It didn’t sound like him. When would they have had this conversation? Was it before Kyoshi woke up after the fight with the Fifth Nation? Nothing was making sense. 

“You’re a poison to me, Kyoshi.”

“Rangi…” Kyoshi cried, pleaded, weakly. Tears stinging the corner of her eyes.

“You make me weak.”

Kyoshi slammed her eyes shut, letting the tears fall from her eyes. She pressed her forehead into Rangi’s shoulder briefly, before dropping her hand from Rangi’s back and standing upright once more.

“So what are you going to do?” Kyoshi responded, her voice felt hollow. “You’re going to take me back to Yokoya? And then what? Act as my warden? Until I’m a good dog, nice and trained?”

Kyoshi only had a taste of Jianzhu’s ‘lessons’ once before. The idea of him suffocating her, as Rangi watched. Being there to keep guard so no one intervened. Or worst…there to keep Kyoshi from fighting back. It sickened her. 

“Just how much longer do you want this sick game to keep going?!”

Rangi looked down, the action obscuring her face in the process.

“You don’t get it…” Rangi muttered.

“What?” 

“There won’t be anymore ‘games’ after this, Kyoshi…” 

Kyoshi gritted her teeth. There was something in Rangi’s voice… It set her on edge. It set the voices on edge. Almost like an approaching symphony, she could hear the voices in her head pleading for her to run. 

“What do you– What do you mean by that?” Kyoshi could barely get the words out, it felt like her throat was slowly being closed in on.

“I’m not here to bring you back to Yokoya…”

Kyoshi’s blood iced in her veins. Realization slowly hitting her like a glacier slowly moving towards the hull of a ship. 

Kyoshi balled her fist and pressed her back against the wall even harder. Trying to get more distance between her and Rangi, and also to brace the mental door of past Avatars demanding to be let in. To take control.

“What are you…going to…do…?” Kyoshi forced out.

Rangi finally looked back up, her eyes were as pitch and starless as her hair. “I’m going to kill you.”

Kyoshi’s heart stilled in her chest, and it took every ounce of energy to not have the black spots in her vision to be replaced by white ones. 

Fear, sadness, and confusion mingled and became one inside her being. 

Kill? Had she heard her right? Kill? Surely Jianzhu wouldn’t have ordered that, right? Or did he think she was just that much of a lost cause, it was better to start over with a Fire Avatar? 

No, he wouldn’t have any control over a Fire Avatar. Killing me wouldn’t serve his agenda in any way. 

Which meant…was this Rangi’s idea? The very idea made her head spin. She was so busy wondering if Rangi even valued her and their friendship, and this entire time Rangi wanted to kill her?!

No, she said her intent was to capture me before! Something changed. In just a handful of days, something had gone terribly wrong. 

“Kill? Come on, what do you mean by– That’s just– Aren’t you supposed to–” Kyoshi’s words came out in a jumble. She knew if she was captured her life would be over. But it never occurred to her that her life would end. She felt the world spinning out of control around her, and she desperately grasped at any straws she could reach. “That’s not what you were assigned– You’re not– Rangi, this isn’t you! This isn’t honorable! Think of your ho–”

“My honor?! What do you know about my honor?! I don’t have it! Not anymore!” In a flash her right hand went to her topknot. The next thing Kyoshi knew was that Rangi’s dark locks began falling all around her head and face, topknot undone, and the point of the hairpin Kyoshi had gifted her was pressed against her throat. 

“YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME!” Rangi roared. Kyoshi couldn’t see it, but she knew birds from miles around scattered into the sky. The silence that followed was deafening, it was almost a relief when Rangi finally spoke again. “This is the only way I see I can get it back…”

Kyoshi felt time slow, and her mind went into overdrive, trying to piece together where it all went wrong. Jianzhu must’ve lied to Rangi that I wasn’t the Avatar, that’s the only way he could’ve kept her from my side. So she thinks I killed Yun, the ‘Avatar’... She must be in contact with Jianzhu because of those shir-whatever monsters… But Jianzhu wouldn’t have me killed, it’d ruin his plans… So… Rangi was the one who wanted to kill me? But why–

Kyoshi’s eyes widened at the realization. The same realization she had in her delirious, suffocated state back in Chameleon Bay. But this time it was for real. She thinks I killed Yun…

Was Rangi trying to take revenge for their friend’s death? Take matters into her own hands? Even if it went against her orders?

Kyoshi’s heart tightened. She was the Jianzhu in Rangi’s story. It didn’t matter if Rangi didn’t have all the facts, that was the truth she knew and believed. The truth that was presented to her. 

Kyoshi couldn’t help but wonder…if the roles were reversed… If she thought Rangi had been the one to kill Kelsang and Yun. Hell, what if Yun had killed Rangi and Kelsang? What would she have done? If either one of her friends had gone so far off the deep end, to have upheld multiple lies to her for multiple years, to have killed her loved ones… Would she be threatening death upon Rangi too? 

Kyoshi couldn’t answer it. She knew she wanted to kill Jianzhu, and while she wasn’t close to him, he had been her benefactor. He’d kept her alive and clothed with his donations to Kelsang. She’d even cursed Kelsang to his face when he’d betrayed her trust, and spoke about their secret. Both had different circumstances…but her ability for bloodlust and cruelty was still there…

The fact she couldn’t give a solid answer terrified her. The possibility that this could’ve happened a different way scared her greatly.

Kyoshi saw the pain and anger in Rangi’s face, she knew it all too well. It was how she felt about Jianzhu. She knew what kind of hatred that could do to a person, but at least Kyoshi had the Flying Opera Company on her side to help guide her. Rangi’s just been alone this whole time. 

This entire time, Rangi had been in pain…grieving the loss of both of her friends and Kelsang… But had no one to grieve with. No one to rely on. Separated from her only family… The entire time, the one person who could understand her pain…was who she thought inflicted it upon her. 

Kyoshi was hurting her. Kyoshi was hurting Rangi, and she didn’t know how to fix it. She’d tried being honest, but Rangi took every word of Kyoshi’s as a lie. Unless she gave definitive proof by bending another element, there were only two options for Rangi to finally be able to grieve and process…

Either Kyoshi bent another element…or she let Rangi kill her.

She thought back to when Rangi tried to knock her out back in Chameleon Bay. When the past Avatars tried to take over and how she fought them back. When she thought she was on the brink of death and her only hope was letting them take over and possibly killing Rangi.

The answer she had back then was the same as the one she had now. She would always choose Rangi over herself.

She still didn’t want to sully Rangi’s hands, but she’d happily walk up to Death itself and give herself over if it meant Rangi got to heal. It was better than the alternative. She couldn’t bend the other elements, they were blocked. She was too tired to fight back. It was either this or let the voices take over, and she wasn’t ever going to entertain the latter.

Kyoshi visualized stepping away from the door, locking it and the voices on the other side. They weren’t happy with her decision. 

I guess it’s time for a new Fire Avatar.

Kyoshi took a shaking hand and encased Rangi’s fist on her stomach, and pushed it farther into her. She took her other hand, and gently caressed the hand with the pin in it, coaxing it forward into her neck. If she was going to die, at least she’d be holding the hands she loved. Even if they were colder than usual.

Rangi only realized what Kyoshi was doing when Kyoshi could feel the prick of the pin piercing her skin, and a small trickle of blood fell down her neck. Alarm rang across her face.

“What do you think you’re–”

“Do it,” Kyoshi stated with as strong a voice as she could muster. “It’s what you need right? Do it. Kill me.”

Rangi gaped at Kyoshi, shocked. Did she think Kyoshi was going to fight back? Grovel? No, Kyoshi knew when to accept her fate.

She looked into Rangi’s eyes, not wanting to break eye contact for even a second. She wanted Rangi to be the last thing she saw. “Just promise me two things…One, you’ll look after the Fire Avatar after me… And two… Please, live a long, happy life. That's all I want.”

At least Rangi would be happy. At least her successor would be out of Jianzhu’s grasp.

I only pray she never realizes the truth of what Jianzhu did. Kyoshi found herself thinking. If she was going to die, she wanted Rangi to think it was the right choice through and through.

Seeing no positive jing from the other girl, Kyoshi closed her eyes and started to press the pin down more…only to be met with resistance.

Kyoshi's eyes flew open. Rangi was trying to stop Kyoshi from stabbing herself. Trying to pull the pin back with her right, and pushing off of Kyoshi with her left. A flurry of emotions flitting across her face. 

Was Rangi’s resolve crumbling? Or was Kyoshi actually robbing her of her right to slay her with her own hand? Was it both? Something else?

“I–I can’t…” Rangi said, gasping from the strain. Kyoshi hanging onto every word. “I can’t promise that– Either of–”

Kyoshi felt everything stop around her, as a new horrific realization hit her: Rangi had no intention of continuing on this plane of existence.

If Kyoshi died, the result would be the same as if she’d slayed her friend with her own hands. 

Her ears started to ring. The world started to darken, it became hard to breathe. Kyoshi was trapped, no…worse. She’d fallen on her own sword.. No way to save Rangi. She knew she only had the strength to keep the Avatar State back for so long. If this struggle continued, they’d win out and Rangi would be dead. 

No! I can’t– I just need more time! Kyoshi started to cry. Yes, if she could just stay on the run, have Rangi keep chasing her. At least until she unlocked another element then…

She prayed for someone to intervene, to stop them both from making a horrible mistake. 

A familiar whistle cut through the mental fog in Kyoshi’s ears. Then the familiar sound of a rock colliding with Rangi followed by Rangi falling to the ground. 

The spirits hadn’t forsaken her yet! The Flying Opera Company had once again come to her aid. 

Breathing a sigh of relief, Kyoshi tried to grab Rangi. To restrain her and take her with them, but her vision doubled. She was still feeling the effects of Rangi’s liver punch.

She couldn’t put up much of a fight as she felt Kirima’s water wrap around her torso. 

Thank the spirits, she’s safe too. Kyoshi cried in her head. 

She sagged into the water, ready to have it carry her away. As she was lifted up, Rangi also got to her feet. 

“NO!” She heard Rangi yell, followed by a piercing pain in her left leg as Rangi drove her hairpin into Kyoshi’s thigh.

Rangi didn’t have the strength to hang on and let go as Kyoshi was lifted into the air, hairpin still in her leg. 

The sounds of Kyoshi’s screams and cries could be heard for miles. 

__________

A/N: Ok they’re both getting a bit fussy and dramatic, I think I should put them down for an N-A-P. uwu

Haaaaa….that fight scene. I hope y’all liked it/it turned out well… I was having a whole damn time of it. TT0TT And don’t even get me started on their final conversation, that ended up being a lot harder than I thought it’d be *sobs**whispers to myself* We’re getting to the climax of the mental breakdown, c’mon me… you got this! *sobbing harder*

Anyway, back to the fight scene… I feel like I should’ve foreshadowed some of Kyoshi’s fighting prowess a biiiiit more in previous chapters (tbf I only had the end result of the fight scene in my mind for most of this fic, not the fight itself….and that was IF there was gonna be a fight at all TT0TT). But I thought I kept it….ummm….vague (?) enough with her progress to give wiggle room (and tbf I feel like I’m mostly in Rangi’s mind in this arc too), but…..yeah….. 

Maybe I shouldn’t have spent so much time on the little Kyoshi/Kirima bonding excursion? Orz I tried to actually make it go by really fast (but the pages kept coming and they don’t stop coming ~! ;w;), but I already set up this plot thread with the last Jianzhu chapter I needed to at least follow through on it here…. Plus I feel like I’m ignoring the FoC a tad too much, I know we have actual canon (and we, aka I, wanna focus on the spiraling girlies….but I need to invest some effort into them). εミ(ο_ _)ο 

Also, Kyoshi and Rangi should probs stop visiting Hongcun. Bad shit keeps happening when they visit Hongcun. u_u

Oh yeah return of the edits, this time it’s Zuko/Iroh’s wanted poster. I just edited Kyoshi tho. I didn’t edit the text because….. Well…. I don’t know Chinese. :’D If Avatar’s writing system was Japanese tho? I could’ve taken a stab at it. But alas. 

[avas-wonderland]

No further words needed

(Looks up therapist’s number /lh)

[borealtwilight]

i'm so fucking tired of fighting just to breathe. i desperately need some kind of respite in life, but i don't even know where to look

[eatingmarkerz]

i decided to redraw one of my favourite pieces ive made!!!

old one below vvv

from july of last year!!

[rhinestonesox]

this panel makes me sick and i’ve seen nobody talk about it???

my heart’s breaking.

[truepeaceinspace]

metroid is about isolation

but metroid is also about learning to do trick jumps from random animals who celebrate when you get it right, and about saving them even as the planet shudders under your feet

and metroid is about lowering your gun when you meet the last of a species who's only just hatched, and gently holding out your hand

and metroid is about accidentally calling the name of someone you care about, who you thought you'd lost, and finding out they've been with you the whole time

and about a little scribble of a child with their parents tucked into the corner of a grand mural

and about the gifts left behind by others because they may be gone before they get to meet you, but that won't stop them from helping you

metroid is about love actually

[tazmiilly]

kissing his nose💥

[idontmindifuforgetme]

[rhiangalaxy]

Some more Cat!Yuan Jiuyuan <3 Piece chosen by this week's poll! :D

[ID: A Scum Villain Drawing. Image one depicts Cat Hybrid!Shen Yuan with white wavy hair curled up and resting his head on Shen Jiu!Shen Qingqiu's Lap with a closed eye sleepy but content :3 smile. SQQ looks down at him with a soft smile, with one of his hands resting on SY's head. The second image is a mini-comic done in a chibi style. The top half depicts SY surrounded by various Qing Jing disiciples including Ming Fan on the left and Ning Yingying on the right, all looking up at him with happy expressions exclaiming "Shiniang!!" as SY with a sheepish smile and hands on his hips says "Hello everyone-" It then cuts to SY with a surprised flushed expression with his hands raised slightly up in front of him stuttering "wait- w-what did you call me?" With SJ walking with his fan out in one hand and his other behind his back with a pleased sparkly smile in the background. End ID]

[starryjaybird]

Ben and Uncle Luke

[uncanny-tranny]

Every time I think too deeply about how we've found the bones of thousands and thousands of years old ancient people and we've given them people names I just

Guys, do you get it? We put to name these ancient peoples whose bodies vaguely resemble us and we go, "you're one of us, and we will give you a name that we have invented". They are not here to have a voice for themselves, but they are here to be remembered.

To be named is to be loved.

[caulmiflower]

Kendrick really edged us w/ the not like us track at first

His devious little grin into the camera, addressing Drake directly. With those lil bootcut jeans on.

Plus ugh the choreography and the America iconography and the unapologetic blackness of it all, to state that “this revolution will be televised” in front of our shit ass president.

What a fucking masterpiece, one of the best Super Bowl Halftimes I’ve seen in a hot minute

[za0mbie]

opening my hand to reveal a bunch of sketches!!

[meteortrails]

I think a lot about how we only get like one or two scenes of law actually interacting with his little sister, but it’s so glaringly obvious what kind of older brother he was to her through all his interactions as an adult. every time he pulls a morbid prank on the strawhats; the genuine joy of reuniting with his crew; his protectiveness and the way his crew’s safety comes before anything else. it’s so clear what a loving, doting, and insufferable older brother he must’ve been. you know if they grew up together he would’ve done that thing that older siblings do where they lie to you about how the world works and then just let you believe it until you’re like, 25. he would’ve walked her to school and tied her shoes for her and earnestly attempted to help her with her homework. and it kills me a little bit that I don’t think law recognizes that in himself; that the parts of him that were lami’s brother and his parent’s son are still alive and well in who he is today.

[envy-of-the-apple]

Can we have mermaid geto for din din? Idk I’m feeling like sushi tonight

k but you have to eat your sharkuna first

that one art post changed my brain chemistry forever ngl i cannot stop thinking of geto as a caecelia....cacealia??? idk how to spell it- SEXY OCTOMAN. but he's still a siren

could you imagine being IMMUNE to a siren song tho? maybe youre on a super cheap fisherman boat to travel, and you wake up to this horrific inhuman voice and you're scared shitless, but the rest of the passengers...aren't. they're calm, climbing out of bed walking onto the deck. it's almost like their in...a trance.

and then to your horror, they all start jumping overboard. one by one. until it's just you. on a creaky, empty, flimsy, fishing boat. eventually, you get brave enough to peak over the railing and thats when you see them.

heads bobbing in the water. two pairs of eyes. purple and blue. staring right at you.

and now youre stranding in the ocean, on a boat with dwindling resources surrounded by two creatures with these terrible voices that keep coaxing you overboard and join them.

[gomzdrawfr]

doodle dump of my emo babies

slightly suggestive

been awhile since i do a semi full canvas