markofthebrave | [Action] .009

[Action] .009

[Due to Sokka's unexpected bout of sheer win, Katara has been given the gift of free time and she plans on making the most of it... after she was shooed back to bed due to threats from Sokka that made no sense at all.

First, she wants to check in on Sanji at the Strawhat's House. Then she wants to stop by the school and see if she can register to go once things are back to 'normal.' And... she has an idea that is going to lead her to the weapons shop. Finally, she'll go grocery shopping because they're running low on easy-to-cook things. Maybe she'll even get a chance to stand by the bridge and practice with real waterbending! ...although saving her strength to keep healing Zuko is probably a better idea. She'll probably just stare at the water wistfully and talk to Sona.

If you're around any of these places today, feel free to say 'Hey!' or give her hand, since she's not exactly sure how to do what she wants to do at the smithy or the school.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What does the lack of sound have to do with it? - Oh. Does it neutralize magic by taking away the ability to speak? Someone mentioned that people use chants to cast spells?

[She pauses to consider what Nash has said about a weapon. What does she want to accomplish with it? What does anyone want to accomplish with a weapon?] I want to be able to defend myself and my friends, and stop my opponent.

It's more than just taking away the ability to speak, but it does that too. I'd demonstrate, but then what would happen to our conversation? Pretty rude of me.

So, you want to stop your opponent, but you don't want to kill them?

[So, Nash knew magic? That was interesting. Maybe he'd let her see sometime. But at his question, Katara pauses. She's not like Aang - completely against killing at all times. She's pretty sure that some of the people she's fought before haven't survived. She wouldn't have stopped Sokka from flying away and leaving Zuko unconscious in the middle of a blizzard. But to deliberately take someone's life in battle...]

...I believe that life is sacred. That doesn't mean that there aren't times when you have to kill. But... I'd rather not have that be my first option.

Most weapons aren't lethal if you know how to use them. It's just that the torso is the easiest thing to hit on the human body, especially from a distance.

[Katara exhales and crosses her arms.] Then I guess in that case it's a question of what I can learn the fastest, and what works with the style of fighting I already know.

Try to find a style that works with your smaller size, not against it. I'm sure there are plenty here who would be qualified to teach. And here, I can give you something. [And he rummages around in his pockets fairly dramatically.]

Something that works with my size..? [Her size doesn't mean anything in bending, other than the fact that she's usually underestimated. That usually ends in fairly short order - she hadn't even considered how it could be a factor in choosing a weapon. ~~What is she doing? This is crazy - she's a bender, she doesn't need...~~ And her train of thought is handily cut off at Nash's offer.]

Really? What? [Nash's dramatics are met with unabashed curiosity, as her face lightens and she looks at him expectantly.]

Here! [It's a small ball, apparently ceramic. Ta-daa!] If you throw it on the ground, it breaks, and there's a special sort of smoke inside. It incapacitates someone for a short while— as long as they need to breathe. Even if they don't, the stuff is usually distracting enough to provide cover to escape. Because sometimes the best defense is not being in the area at all.

[And Katara laughs in impressed delight.] I can agree with that! Thanks, Nash!

[And she will put that carefully in the pouch that she has looped around the same line as her waterskin.]

Heh. Well, running away is a bit of a Clovis specialty.

Heh. [She doesn't completely believe you. Why bother learning a spell like that silent one if you're just going to run?] Well, it worked this long, right?

[She casts a glance over the weapons again.] Is there any one of these that you think would work with my... size?

[It's actually true. Silent Lake takes a long time to cast for someone who isn't that great at magic, and it's easy to interrupt.]

Just pick something that feels comfortable for you to hold and use. I guess I'm partial to darts, but that might be because they're a great way to win money in bars.

Throwing darts? I fought someone who threw knives a few times... she was very good.

[Hmmm...] I guess I could try.

You can use knives from up close, too. They're pretty flexible, as far as weapons go. And useful for eating!

[A knife. Slashing, blood, scars... eeee. But then... the alternative...] I'm not really used to close combat...

[And maybe this isn't the best thing to be telling people, Katara! But she just realized it herself, so... hmm.. maybe picking up a knife would be a good idea. If she could bring herself to use it.]

[He can tell she's uncomfortable with the subject.] There's no reason you should be. Don't let the situation force you to do anything you don't want to.

Heh. I'm kind of used to being able to make a difference, too. [That shiny light in her eyes? Steel hard determination. This place is not going to get the best of her.]

There are ways to make a difference that don't involve fighting. Most of the time, when we leave a mark on the world, we don't even realize we're doing it.

[She's heard something like this speech before. She knows that it's at least partially true. But she doesn't think it applies.]

Maybe that's true. But you have to stay alive long enough to leave that mark.

Absence is a mark, too.

[Katara reacts as if you'd slapped her.] No, it's not. It's an echo. Once someone is gone - they can't change anything. They can't do anything. And all everyone has to live with is the fact that nothing, nothing will ever bring that person back.

[Nash doesn't change his tone, or seem particularly offended.] I'd disagree on all counts. Dead people change everything. That's why we build statues, why we keep telling stories. And there's so much more of a person you can take with you, besides the knowledge that they're not there anymore. [A pause.] But my wife says that I shouldn't be so free with my opinions. That's why they aren't worth anything.

[One hand reaches up to touch her necklace.] What you're saying isn't wrong... but it isn't right either. They don't matter because they're dead. They matter because they lived.

Sometimes dying is the most important thing we ever get to do. Heh, you can tell I've never had children.

[She'd got out of Zuko exactly why her mother died during the love experiment - and every single word Nash is saying hits her like those knives they were talking about. This isn't just theoretical to her - it's deeply personal. She can recognize that he's trying to change the subject, and she's grateful for his help, but there is still something about him that feels hidden and... really, she doesn't want to talk about this anymore, and she doesn't want to cry in front of him either. So she turns away and when she speaks her voice is a little thick.]

Thanks for all your help, Nash. I appreciate it.

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