markofthebrave | [ Action, Video ] .051

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[ Action, Video ] .051

[Toph's taken. Masaomi's gone. Shikamaru and Nami and Chopper are all still gone. Suddenly using the rest of her free time at the beach as Katara has been seems to have lost its appeal completely. She needs to be doing something. She's had this on her mind for a while, but... this just brings everything to a front.

She makes this post shortly before her regularly scheduled practice time - just about seven o'clock.]

Hey, everyone. My name is Katara. I'd like your attention for something serious for a minute. I've been here for about a year and a half now, and there are some things about Luceti that are really great which are easy to take for granted - like the grocery store. But a few weeks ago you all saw how easily things in Luceti can change. [And they did change, once. Last August. But she's not trying to scare people here.] And the drafts have changed as well, so that those who go out might have to either carry or catch their food supplies. So I thought I would offer to see if anyone was interested in lessons on how to live off the land.

I know plenty of people who could teach hunting, and back in my village at home I learned all about how to prepare game and use every part of the animal so that nothing was wasted. If anyone's interested I could teach that, along with different ways of cooking outside, and give some basic lessons what kind of plants are and aren't good to eat.

[She tries - and succeeds - in attaining a more cheerful tone now.] And I thought that maybe at the end of the month before school starts we could go on a camping trip with everyone who wanted to learn! This way we could all test out what we've learned and have some fun too. If you're interested in learning or teaching, or if you have any questions, just let me know.

[And Katara will keep her journal opened for the next two or three hours as she alternates between answering it and going through her bending forms. She'll remain mostly off-camera here, but since it's opened it won't be hard to see the outline of the barracks or occasional glimpse of a girl waterbending.]

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[Oh - she's angry. She's very, very angry, make no mistake. This is one upset waterbender.

But she's still in control. She doesn't pull out any big moves or lose her focus, simply redirects the water back towards him a little faster.]

[Angry and focused.

... That sucks. As he's calling up a wall of fire to defend himself, he speaks.]

I offered to talk too.

[Because. Really. This wasn't quite what he had in mind.]

[Yes, yes you did - or you'd offered to listen, which was better.

This just makes Katara grit her teeth a little and start moving closer, letting another waterwhip clear the way for her.]

So talk.

[Guess who's actually not that bad at dodging waterwhips? He leaps into the air and skids a bit on landing as he punches fireballs not at her, but was the offending water.]

Why don't you? Seems to me that you're the one who needs to be talking.

[Quit running away, you jerk. She wants to get close enough to punch you in your smug face. Not that she would actually do that, of course.

Duck, dodge, this is an old familiar pattern. Be careful, Zuko, the water coming at you has an edge.]

I don't want to talk!

[Stubborn? Who's stubborn?]

[He would dare her to try. It'd be an interesting spin on a spar, at the very least. This time Zuko sweeps his arm up in front of himself as he darts to the side; meet fire, water.]

Why not?

[It's probably stupid, challenging her now. Zuko's stubborn, too.]

[The water holds.]

Because there's nothing to say! [Incoming from your right!]

Everyone knows what happens here. There's nothing left to talk about!
[Incoming from your left! Short, hard jabs of water, both of them.]

Edited 2011-08-22 05:12 (UTC)

[Of course the water holds. Zuko ducks and rolls out of the way -- forward, toward her, and raises both fists. Two fireballs, each the size of her head, shoot toward her.]

Seems to be plenty to vent about, though.

[In an unexpected move from Katara - in fact it's a move a lot more like firebending than waterbending - Katara drops and somersaults quickly forward. She's got a waterwhip out shooting towards him before she completely rises into a crouch - and it's aiming to wrap around his front-facing foot.]

Of course there is! I hate this place! But I can hardly talk about that, now can I?

[In fact, she shouldn't have said that much.]

[What kind of move was that? He'd never seen her take such a direct approach. It's almost clumsy, the way he side-steps, but the sweep of his arm is at least measured and quick; he cloaks that side of himself in fire.

And then sprints toward her.]

Why not?

[Katara stands her ground, set and ready for his attack, her arms cloaked with water.]

Because!

[Because if I fall apart, then there's no one around to hold everyone else up.]

[Zuko's attack doesn't materialize, not yet. He comes to a stop, his stance defensive.]

That's no answer. [And you know it.] Come on, Katara. Time to quite dancing around it and give me a straight answer.

[...this would be so much easier if he was attacking her.]

I was right there! Okay? I was right there! I ran after her, but I couldn't catch up. They took her right out from under me.

[And that's not the first time this has happened.

And now she's pissed, and she doesn't want you standing there watching her cry. So you'd really better duck, because as her arms level off the water wrapped around them streams - faster than you've seen before - straight for your own hands. And once that connects, your hands are hers.]

[This is a bad idea. This is a very bad idea. Even as Zuko is telling himself that, he resolutely does not dodge. Here, Katara. His hands are yours.

... He might live to regret this.

In fact, he's kind of just hoping that he lives.]

Of course it's not okay.

[He's not fighting her. Why isn't he fighting her? She can't - she can't do this to him if he isn't fighting.

The water falls to the ground from his hands with a splash and she wants to yell at him-

'Why aren't you fighting!'

But she knows why, it's because he's not the same, it's because it's pity when what she really wants is rage to match her rage, to work herself into exhaustion so that she'd be able to think and respond calmly to this sort of thing and why was he asking this of her--

She abruptly turns away.]

And then, when I think of one thing I could actually do here, one thing that could help people... no one wants to learn. There's nothing I can do. Not about any of it.

[Well, he's not dead. He hates seeing her like this. Hates seeing any of them feeling so helpless and useless. He understands it -- understands it all too well -- and the fact that he can't do anything about it just pounds the point home.]

So you're just gonna give up?

[It's heated, the way he says it. It's not meant to be, but that same frustration that led her to this is bleeding into him and he's angry. Angry at himself, at her, but mostly at the Malnosso for forcing them into this sort of position.]

[She whips her head around.]

Of course not! Who do you think you're talking to? But you can't make someone want to change, you can't make them want to help themselves - you should know that better than anyone!

[Katara is not known for pulling her punches when she is upet.]

All I can do is wait. But that doesn't mean I have to like it.

[That was definitely a punch not pulled. Zuko snarls a little at that and, without thinking, stalks toward her.]

I didn't say you had to like it. I didn't say you should let the idea go. In fact, I kind of remember saying it was a good idea. Take the few people who want to learn and start teaching. It's something and it's better than getting more and more angry while you wait around.

[Still stalking toward you, Katara.] You know what else I know, Katara? I know that people can't change and can't want to help themselves unless someone believes in them.

[You can stalk towards her all you want, Zuko. She doesn't have Aang dying in her arms this time, and you're not backed up by your sister and her pet Dai Li agents. She knows she's more than a match for you.

She lifts her chin. She's not sure when this turned into something more than the apathy of Luceti and her own general feelings of anger and helplessness, but she's not afraid to meet him on whatever battleground he chooses.]

I do believe in them! If anyone, anyone changes their mind and contacts me, I'll do all I can to help them. But no one did, Zuko! Sometimes believing in people isn't enough!

[They'd never had this talk before.] I believed in you and that didn't change a thing.

[She's going to throw that in his face, is she? He stops, only a step or two in front of her.]

That so? Then explain to me why I'm not trying to kill you right now.

[Because he did change, Katara. He did change and it partly because he remembered a dark-haired girl who believed that he could be far more than what he was.]

[Blink.

Oh.]

I'm not sure. Why aren't you?

[Because say what he likes, she knows how things were. And why Zuko changed was one thing that they'd never really discussed. And if he was really saying that it had anything to do with her...

...well, he succeeded in distracting her, anyway.]

[She would make him spell it out.]

Because someone showed me that standing up to the do the right thing is rarely the easy road. And she showed me what courage and compassion really are. You, Katara, and my uncle and Aang... All of you showed me what a family is and should be. It was you who showed me how to stand up for the right when everything's coming down around you, so don't stand there and tell me that believing in me didn't make a difference.

[Another step closer.] You pushed me and you challenged me and you believed in me, if only for a moment.

[Pause, then quietly:] It was enough.

[No it wasn't.

And once, she might have said that out loud. When it had counted, when it had really mattered, Zuko had chosen the other way. It wasn't enough.

But he was standing right in front of her now. And just because he hadn't changed in time didn't invalidate the fact that he had changed and he was trying to make up for it - to make up for everything.

...

Is that enough? Deep down, had she ever really forgiven him? Or had it just been swept away under... everything else. It would be so easy to point that out right now, but he was standing here talking to her on her word that they were friends. If she hadn't forgiven him yet... then she could forgive him now.

That, at least, was something that she could do.]

...I'm glad.

[He lets out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. He had no idea how she'd react to that and, in fact, had no idea what he would say until it was said. He nods once and lets his shoulders slump.]

I'm sorry, Katara. About them and about Toph. And I hate that there's nothing I can do. [Pause] I'm guessing that you understand that one. I've got nothing for you. A spar sometimes, maybe. An ear if you need it.

[Another pause, as he remembers how this turned out earlier.] I'm not trying to be a jerk, but you gotta tell me when you want something like that. I'm not that good at reading people.

[In fact, he kind of fails at it.]

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