Kiara glanced down at the medal around her neck, feeling not for the first time a little awkward about the whole thing. It would seem that her reckless running into danger and dragging her friends along had resulted in an official, and very public, commendation from the Council. After the big public ceremony and the crazy cheering, the three of them had been led back inside for a more relaxed meeting, apparently, though she wasnât feeling all that relaxed, to be honest.
It was only two days ago that everything had happened, and she was still feeling anxious about it. All those benders the Equalists had taken had yet to be found, and also⊠Kohaku was still in town. Sheâd been putting him off successfully so far, but she felt bad. Whatever else might be true, he was her friend, and though she knew on some level why he was here, it was not a conversation she wanted to have. Thus far, heâd been kind enough to accept her reasons, given everything that had happened, but she was running out of excuses not to talk to him, and his patience, while considerable, was not infinite. That talk was coming soon, and she wasnât looking forward to it.
There were refreshments provided in the meeting room, and she kept well away from the chilled wine, picking absently at the fruit table. Currently, three of the six Council members remained, as well as some other random guests, and there had been a few speeches about bravery and service, none of which Kiara really felt she deserved. Sheâd just⊠acted, without really thinking about what sheâd been doing. It didnât seem brave to her, especially not when so many of the other benders in the parade had been kidnapped. Her lips pursed together, and she sighed through her nose.
âDid the grapes offend you?â The voice, wizened but with some humor to it, belonged to one of the Council members, an elderly woman named Kalla. She was half-Water Tribe and half-Earth Kingdom, from her tanned complexion and green eyes. She was also a waterbender, though the occupation had always been secondary to her life in politics, apparently. Her hair was snow-white by this point in her life, but her face was relatively smooth for one so aged.
âOh, um⊠no. Sorry, was I looking upset?â Kiara wasnât sure what the expression on her face had been, though apparently it wasnât the most pleasant.
Kalla chuckled, then shook her head. âYou looked like you were deep in thought about something that made you unhappy.â Kiara blinked. Was she really that easy to read? She searched for some way to deny itâshe felt terrible thinking that Kohaku made her unhappyâbut the truth was, the direction of her thoughts was making her a little miserable.
âI just⊠well, itâs just a personal problem, is all. Itâs been⊠a hectic couple of days.â
Haki sat quietly, glancing around the room they currently occupied. He played with his medal absentmindedly, taking in a slow breath before closing his eyes. The whole grandeur of the ceremony had been a little much. He didn't believe that such a thing was required or necessary. They did what was necessary, and for them to be honored for it, Haki could only sigh. He glanced towards Rika, watching as she fidgeted nervously. He had to crack a small smile at that. After all the time they've all been together, all the matches they've had, he would have thought she'd be used to such publicity by now.
She only frowned as he smiled, shifting her attention towards Kiara. She was by the fruit table, picking at it and seemed to be in thought. She couldn't blame her friend, really. She didn't know the source of her troubles, but if Kiara wanted to talk about them, she hoped that the waterbender knew she could at least speak to her about it. Haki probably wouldn't make things better, and she doubted if she could make things better, however; that didn't mean she wasn't going to be willing to lend an ear to her friend when she seemed to need it. Shaking her head, she returned her attention back to Haki.
"Stop doing that," she whispered to him, unsure of why she was even whispering. Haki blinked down at her, tilting his head to the side as he gave her a questioning stare. "You keep sighing and you look like you're lost," she clarified, raising a brow as if it were the most obvious thing. Haki blinked, his lips pulling into a grin as he shook his head. Perhaps it was because he was getting lost in his thoughts, a dangerous thing to do.
"Does it make you nervous, Lotus?" he questioned, leaning on his hand. She rolled her eyes at him and glanced away, causing him to chuckle lightly. Truth was, he was nervous too. He wasn't completely aware of what the Council wanted with them, and he wasn't so sure he wanted to find out. All they did was save their lives, but they couldn't save the other benders. Not that one life was more valuable than the next, because they all were, it just seemed a little odd for him. He stood from his spot and made his way towards the fruit table Kiara currently occupied, bumping her shoulder lightly with his and offered her a small smile.
"Is Turtle-Duck as nervous as Lotus?" he questioned, taking a moon peach, and taking a bite out of it.
It may have only been a light bump, but it nearly sent Kiara into the table all the sameâshe wasnât exactly feeling on-balance at the moment. Rather the opposite unfortunately. Kalla raised a white eyebrow at the two of them, but then politely excused herself to go talk to Shun, the firebending Council member.
Kiara looked a little puzzled by the question, having very little context for it, and when she glanced around him to observe Rikaâs state, she noticed that the other girl had been approached by Shao, a green-robed Council member. She presumed that meant he was an earthbenderâtheyâd kind of color-coded themselves. Kiara only infrequently wore blue, but her tribal heritage was obvious anyway. âNervous?â she asked, blinking blue eyes up at her friend. âNot⊠particularly.â No, it wasnât really nerves that were the issue. She was just prepared for an unpleasant conversation, and was dreading its arrival.
âShe should get better, thoughâCouncilman Shao is a known follower of probending. Heâll probably talk to her about strategy or something.â It would at least be less awkward than trying to express your reasons for an uncomfortable expression to someone you hardly knew. Stillâthe event didnât have much longer to go. She could probably suffer through the last half hour without too much trouble.
Haki blinked in mild surprise when Kiara almost fell over, and made to help her regain her balance, however; he stopped when she seemed to do it on her own, and shook his head. He should be a little more mindful of his teammates body language. Kiara said she wasn't nervous, but there was something laced in her voice that said otherwise. Maybe he was reading too much into it? He did not press further, and instead focused on the moon peach he was currently consuming. He glanced towards Rika, and spotted Shao, the earthbending Council member, approach Rika. He smiled softly as the nervous body language seemed to disappear from her and turned his attention back to Kiara.
"Then what is on Turtle-Duck's mind, if she isn't nervous?" he questioned. Though she did not have to answer him, it would be a bit of help to know what was occupying her thoughts the last few days. Neither team member had seemed to get the events out of their head, and perhaps it was just a bit overwhelming with everything going on, but they could at least share some of the burden... if that is what it was to begin with. "You do not have to say anything, just," he paused, glancing at her through the corners of his eyes.
He wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was worried about her. He would always be worried about her even if he couldn't tell her why. He sighed softly, dismissing the thoughts before they could go any further. "Moon peach?" he stated, offering her one of the moon peaches on the tables. They were really sweet, oddly.
Kiara sighed softly, but accepted the fruit, slicing into it with a small paring knife, then taking a bite from the resulting wedge. She was doing it more to buy herself time to think about how she wanted to respond than anything, because she wasnât sure if she wanted anyone else to become involved in this⊠issue of hers. In the end, though, she decided she was probably being selfish, keeping it from them. They were just a little concerned because she was acting unlike herself, and she didnât want it to turn into worrying on her behalf. She stared down at the peach, slicing another thin wedge with the knife before she spoke.
âI, umâŠâ It wasnât like her to be hesitant with her words, but then, this was kind of a big deal. âI didnât want to tell you guys because there was already so much to think about, what with the attack and all this.â She gestured around to encompass the ceremony and all that was involved with that. âI was also kind of hoping it would go away. It seems like such a small problem, compared to everything else, butâŠâ she chewed her lower lip, pulling it between her teeth and shaking her head.
âI donât know if you saw that man, the one who tried to talk to me during the parade. His name is Kohaku; heâs from my tribe. We were close friends when we were younger, and⊠well, technically heâs my betrothed.â
Haki blinked, unsure of he heard her correctly. He knew, because she had told him not too long ago, that she was engaged. But she had run away, left the Northern Water Tribe to strike out on her own. If that man, the one she called Kohaku, was here and her betrothed, it didn't bode well for Haki. It meant one of two things. He was either here to collect her, to try and take her back, or he was here to follow after her. Both reasons were enough to set Haki's eyes into a narrow glare. He closed his fists tightly, glancing anywhere but at Kiara.
"Then why does it bother you so? If he is here for you, do you not have a say in your life? What goes on and what you can do with it?" he spoke, his voice a little dryer than normal. "Tradition is not so easily broken, I understand that, but you live here now. You don't have to abide by those rules any longer," he continued. He wasn't sure what he was trying to say, to convince her of, but he wasn't going to allow someone to come back into her life and cause her unnecessary stress. Granted, he did that occasionally, but he did that to all of his friends. He sighed deeply, taking another moon peach from the table.
"I cannot tell you how to go about these things, and childhood friends or not, betrothed or not, do not forget that it is your life, Kiara. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise. No one can make you do something you do not wish to do," he stated, sighing heavily as he took an extra moon peach to Rika, greeting the Council member and offered the peach to his other teammate.
Kiara sighed, looking after her leaving friend with sorrow in her expression. He was right⊠but only so far. Her life might be hers, but it was also her familyâs, to some extent, and her tribeâs. She had fled that, but it had followed her, and she understood now that it would never stop following her. She didnât love Kohaku, but she liked him, quite a lot. It wasnât so simple a decision as what she wanted to do with her life. Not considering who they were. But that was part of this that her friends didnât know. It had never seemed importantâsheâd given up her status when sheâd left. Now⊠now it was coming back to bite her, and she wasnât exactly sure what to do about it.
It was only two days ago that everything had happened, and she was still feeling anxious about it. All those benders the Equalists had taken had yet to be found, and also⊠Kohaku was still in town. Sheâd been putting him off successfully so far, but she felt bad. Whatever else might be true, he was her friend, and though she knew on some level why he was here, it was not a conversation she wanted to have. Thus far, heâd been kind enough to accept her reasons, given everything that had happened, but she was running out of excuses not to talk to him, and his patience, while considerable, was not infinite. That talk was coming soon, and she wasnât looking forward to it.
There were refreshments provided in the meeting room, and she kept well away from the chilled wine, picking absently at the fruit table. Currently, three of the six Council members remained, as well as some other random guests, and there had been a few speeches about bravery and service, none of which Kiara really felt she deserved. Sheâd just⊠acted, without really thinking about what sheâd been doing. It didnât seem brave to her, especially not when so many of the other benders in the parade had been kidnapped. Her lips pursed together, and she sighed through her nose.
âDid the grapes offend you?â The voice, wizened but with some humor to it, belonged to one of the Council members, an elderly woman named Kalla. She was half-Water Tribe and half-Earth Kingdom, from her tanned complexion and green eyes. She was also a waterbender, though the occupation had always been secondary to her life in politics, apparently. Her hair was snow-white by this point in her life, but her face was relatively smooth for one so aged.
âOh, um⊠no. Sorry, was I looking upset?â Kiara wasnât sure what the expression on her face had been, though apparently it wasnât the most pleasant.
Kalla chuckled, then shook her head. âYou looked like you were deep in thought about something that made you unhappy.â Kiara blinked. Was she really that easy to read? She searched for some way to deny itâshe felt terrible thinking that Kohaku made her unhappyâbut the truth was, the direction of her thoughts was making her a little miserable.
âI just⊠well, itâs just a personal problem, is all. Itâs been⊠a hectic couple of days.â
Haki sat quietly, glancing around the room they currently occupied. He played with his medal absentmindedly, taking in a slow breath before closing his eyes. The whole grandeur of the ceremony had been a little much. He didn't believe that such a thing was required or necessary. They did what was necessary, and for them to be honored for it, Haki could only sigh. He glanced towards Rika, watching as she fidgeted nervously. He had to crack a small smile at that. After all the time they've all been together, all the matches they've had, he would have thought she'd be used to such publicity by now.
She only frowned as he smiled, shifting her attention towards Kiara. She was by the fruit table, picking at it and seemed to be in thought. She couldn't blame her friend, really. She didn't know the source of her troubles, but if Kiara wanted to talk about them, she hoped that the waterbender knew she could at least speak to her about it. Haki probably wouldn't make things better, and she doubted if she could make things better, however; that didn't mean she wasn't going to be willing to lend an ear to her friend when she seemed to need it. Shaking her head, she returned her attention back to Haki.
"Stop doing that," she whispered to him, unsure of why she was even whispering. Haki blinked down at her, tilting his head to the side as he gave her a questioning stare. "You keep sighing and you look like you're lost," she clarified, raising a brow as if it were the most obvious thing. Haki blinked, his lips pulling into a grin as he shook his head. Perhaps it was because he was getting lost in his thoughts, a dangerous thing to do.
"Does it make you nervous, Lotus?" he questioned, leaning on his hand. She rolled her eyes at him and glanced away, causing him to chuckle lightly. Truth was, he was nervous too. He wasn't completely aware of what the Council wanted with them, and he wasn't so sure he wanted to find out. All they did was save their lives, but they couldn't save the other benders. Not that one life was more valuable than the next, because they all were, it just seemed a little odd for him. He stood from his spot and made his way towards the fruit table Kiara currently occupied, bumping her shoulder lightly with his and offered her a small smile.
"Is Turtle-Duck as nervous as Lotus?" he questioned, taking a moon peach, and taking a bite out of it.
It may have only been a light bump, but it nearly sent Kiara into the table all the sameâshe wasnât exactly feeling on-balance at the moment. Rather the opposite unfortunately. Kalla raised a white eyebrow at the two of them, but then politely excused herself to go talk to Shun, the firebending Council member.
Kiara looked a little puzzled by the question, having very little context for it, and when she glanced around him to observe Rikaâs state, she noticed that the other girl had been approached by Shao, a green-robed Council member. She presumed that meant he was an earthbenderâtheyâd kind of color-coded themselves. Kiara only infrequently wore blue, but her tribal heritage was obvious anyway. âNervous?â she asked, blinking blue eyes up at her friend. âNot⊠particularly.â No, it wasnât really nerves that were the issue. She was just prepared for an unpleasant conversation, and was dreading its arrival.
âShe should get better, thoughâCouncilman Shao is a known follower of probending. Heâll probably talk to her about strategy or something.â It would at least be less awkward than trying to express your reasons for an uncomfortable expression to someone you hardly knew. Stillâthe event didnât have much longer to go. She could probably suffer through the last half hour without too much trouble.
Haki blinked in mild surprise when Kiara almost fell over, and made to help her regain her balance, however; he stopped when she seemed to do it on her own, and shook his head. He should be a little more mindful of his teammates body language. Kiara said she wasn't nervous, but there was something laced in her voice that said otherwise. Maybe he was reading too much into it? He did not press further, and instead focused on the moon peach he was currently consuming. He glanced towards Rika, and spotted Shao, the earthbending Council member, approach Rika. He smiled softly as the nervous body language seemed to disappear from her and turned his attention back to Kiara.
"Then what is on Turtle-Duck's mind, if she isn't nervous?" he questioned. Though she did not have to answer him, it would be a bit of help to know what was occupying her thoughts the last few days. Neither team member had seemed to get the events out of their head, and perhaps it was just a bit overwhelming with everything going on, but they could at least share some of the burden... if that is what it was to begin with. "You do not have to say anything, just," he paused, glancing at her through the corners of his eyes.
He wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was worried about her. He would always be worried about her even if he couldn't tell her why. He sighed softly, dismissing the thoughts before they could go any further. "Moon peach?" he stated, offering her one of the moon peaches on the tables. They were really sweet, oddly.
Kiara sighed softly, but accepted the fruit, slicing into it with a small paring knife, then taking a bite from the resulting wedge. She was doing it more to buy herself time to think about how she wanted to respond than anything, because she wasnât sure if she wanted anyone else to become involved in this⊠issue of hers. In the end, though, she decided she was probably being selfish, keeping it from them. They were just a little concerned because she was acting unlike herself, and she didnât want it to turn into worrying on her behalf. She stared down at the peach, slicing another thin wedge with the knife before she spoke.
âI, umâŠâ It wasnât like her to be hesitant with her words, but then, this was kind of a big deal. âI didnât want to tell you guys because there was already so much to think about, what with the attack and all this.â She gestured around to encompass the ceremony and all that was involved with that. âI was also kind of hoping it would go away. It seems like such a small problem, compared to everything else, butâŠâ she chewed her lower lip, pulling it between her teeth and shaking her head.
âI donât know if you saw that man, the one who tried to talk to me during the parade. His name is Kohaku; heâs from my tribe. We were close friends when we were younger, and⊠well, technically heâs my betrothed.â
Haki blinked, unsure of he heard her correctly. He knew, because she had told him not too long ago, that she was engaged. But she had run away, left the Northern Water Tribe to strike out on her own. If that man, the one she called Kohaku, was here and her betrothed, it didn't bode well for Haki. It meant one of two things. He was either here to collect her, to try and take her back, or he was here to follow after her. Both reasons were enough to set Haki's eyes into a narrow glare. He closed his fists tightly, glancing anywhere but at Kiara.
"Then why does it bother you so? If he is here for you, do you not have a say in your life? What goes on and what you can do with it?" he spoke, his voice a little dryer than normal. "Tradition is not so easily broken, I understand that, but you live here now. You don't have to abide by those rules any longer," he continued. He wasn't sure what he was trying to say, to convince her of, but he wasn't going to allow someone to come back into her life and cause her unnecessary stress. Granted, he did that occasionally, but he did that to all of his friends. He sighed deeply, taking another moon peach from the table.
"I cannot tell you how to go about these things, and childhood friends or not, betrothed or not, do not forget that it is your life, Kiara. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise. No one can make you do something you do not wish to do," he stated, sighing heavily as he took an extra moon peach to Rika, greeting the Council member and offered the peach to his other teammate.
Kiara sighed, looking after her leaving friend with sorrow in her expression. He was right⊠but only so far. Her life might be hers, but it was also her familyâs, to some extent, and her tribeâs. She had fled that, but it had followed her, and she understood now that it would never stop following her. She didnât love Kohaku, but she liked him, quite a lot. It wasnât so simple a decision as what she wanted to do with her life. Not considering who they were. But that was part of this that her friends didnât know. It had never seemed importantâsheâd given up her status when sheâd left. Now⊠now it was coming back to bite her, and she wasnât exactly sure what to do about it.