markofthebrave | (no subject)

(no subject)

[Action: Locked to Nephry]
[It makes no sense for a known and proud waterbender to step out of the fountain in the middle of winter and remain soaking wet. But yet, that is exactly what she is doing: getting out of the fountain, her arms wrapped around herself, shivering, and looking both confused and frightened... and younger. About three years younger, to be exact.]

[Open action.]

Katara, properly attired to face the winter thanks to your friendly neighborhood Clothing Shop, can be seen:

a) Stopping and staring at the snow, as if she hasn't seen any in a very, very long time
b) Entering the Welcome Center to get the maps/layout of the place
c) Stalking House 56. She will not enter. She will likely not be seen, as she is administering a frightening amount of skill at sticking to the shadows, but you might catch her as she starts to walk away...
d) Checking out a Community Building for a spare room.

((Katara, returned from her mallynap, is experiencing this AU. Feel free to bump into her anywhere, but don't be too surprised if she doesn't respond to her name. It's been a long time since she's called herself anything Water Tribe.))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"... if you do, you'd barely remember it. It would be like a dream. Are you sure?" He knew she might not. But she replaced his sister twice. So maybe, just maybe, she'd remember. Just like his own counterpart had.

"A lot of things seem like a dream from when I was a kid."

And not a lot of them were particularly nice dreams. Katara frowned suddenly, remembering, "I used to think that maybe the Avatar would come and rescue me. I don't know why. He sure never rescued anyone else. Now I've learned to take care of myself."

He imagined that it wasn't Aang that she was hoping to come find her. It was Kuruk. "How? You were so young when they took you. What happened after they took you to the Fire Nation?"

"That doesn't concern you," Katara snapped. She really, really didn't like to think of that time. "The important thing is that I'm stronger now. And when I get back, I'm going to make sure they can't do it to anyone else, ever again."

"You learned to waterbend." It was an observation, really. That was what he took away from her being 'strong' anyway. But she couldn't have been much older than when they first met Aang. Something doesn't add up though. How would she ever learn? She grew up surrounded by water and was more or less rubbish until she stole that scroll.

"I know you don't trust me. But even if you don't believe me about who I say I am, I want to help. I'll even call you whatever you want me to. And... well, I know a place with some really good food."

No. This place wasn't the Fire Nation, that was profoundly evident, but caution flashed in her eyes at his words.

"You want me to start trusting you? Then you need to learn to be more careful with other people's secrets."

If anybody ever found her...

And this - this was her brother? But... not her brother at the same time. He said he'd been here before? Nothing made sense.

He raised up his hands. "Okay, okay. Exnay on the aterbending-way."

Then he realized she'd have no idea what that meant. "That was uh. Pig Latin. It's for uh. Coded messages."

She gave him a disgusted look that had just enough hardness in it to be distinguishable from Katara's usual responses to his more ridiculous antics. "You really have no concept of what you're talking about, do you. And you're not helping me understand how it could possibly be that you are who you say you are, and that you know who I am. I don't see why I should be wasting my time with you."

She won't let her own weakness deter her.

That stung a little. He realized he should be treating this more delicately. It was just easier to retreat into silliness than to deal with real problems.

"The Malnosso." He said it in a hurry before she started leaving. "The Malnosso are why you're here. Why I'm here. They're powerful. Even more than the spirits back home. When they bring people here, time doesn't matter. I've been here since I was fifteen. You... you just got here. That's why I look so much older."

He realized it wasn't exactly that. It was a simplification to the extreme. Not even touching the fact of what the Malnosso were responsible for, he wasn't going to diminish her life by saying that she was just an experiment that was here only temporarily.

"They brand us when we show up. All of us." He turned his head to the side and lifted up some of the scruffy hair on his neck to show his own barcode. "We all get one. You have one too."

Branded.

Seeing that brand on her brother's - on what she assumed to be her brother's - neck only reminded her of what had happened to her and it set her into a cold fury.

"How are they keeping us here? I don't see any bars."

He pulled his hand away and looked away towards the south.

"It's a big prison. It goes on for miles. Eventually though, you can't go any further. There's a barrier at the far end that can't be crossed. It's invisible too. Which I realize sounds ridiculous. But it's there. I can even prove it to you."

"How?"

"How do you feel about flying?"

"Like the wings are too small to sustain it."

"True. But what we'll be riding, we don't need wings."

She gave him a skeptical look, "And just what is that?"

"A flying bison."

Not funny.

"Flying bisons have been extinct for a hundred years."

You learned all about them in Fire Nation school, the fearsome beasts controlled by the airbenders. Katara knew better than to listen to propaganda, but still...

"They're only mostly extinct. If you come with me, I can show you."

In which he realized there was opportunity. If he could show her Appa, then maybe she would be more inclined to believe him.

"Go with you? Potentially hundreds of feet above ground?" She just wanted to make sure she was clear on what he was asking her to do.

"I'll leave my weapons behind. You'll have a canteen."

It was a big leap of faith he was putting out there. But this was his sister. He had to be able to trust her, regardless. Right?

Edited 2013-01-23 03:59 (UTC)

He had to be out of his mind. Carry around something that would advertise what she was?

Katara spoke through gritted teeth, "I thought we agreed that you would be more careful with other people's secrets. Don't you know anything?"

Casually: "In case you get thirsty. It gets pretty dry up there. In the air."

She just gave him a disgusted look, bordering on outright contempt. "I think I'll find my own way."

And Katara turned to go.

Crap. He'd done it again. Every time he started to make progress, he stuck his foot in his mouth. He didn't chase her, but he did make a half step forward.

"Wait! I'm serious. You don't have to worry about that here. There's no Fire Nation here. No war. In fact, there's only five benders here. Five."