collision → atla, reader insert

chapter eight

SHE MISSED.

     [Y/N] furiously swiped the bead of sweat that rolled down the side of her face. That was her last arrow and she missed the poorly made target for the umpteenth time that night. With sore arms and a stiff back, she lowered her bow with a huff of air allowing her body to sink to the ground and lean onto a nearby tree.

     After her last memory, she found out her arrows belonged to the Yuyan Archers. And the arrow that nearly took her out had the point crooked from being shoved and roughly pulled from the ground emitted an eggplant pool that stained the grass.

     At first, she wondered what the purpose of liquid in an arrow was. Then, she remembered the stark difference between that arrow and ones she carried. Hers were meant to harm, theirs were meant to kill.

     Her heart nearly skipped a beat at the thought of her being one second late in pushing the masked person out of the way. Now, the arrow was lodged in his left shoulder, but it just so easily could've reached his heart. One hesitant moment and she would have cost both of their lives.

     Her head had been clouded ever since. She was thankful she followed her gut that time, but she couldn't stop thinking about that person and whether he was alright or not. She didn't stay long enough to see if the Avatar left him to his misery and opted to save him. And she had no grasp of how soon the arrow was removed or if he's gotten tended to or if he was even still alive all these days later.

     That was all she could wrap her head around for the past week despite him not being a part of her end goal at all. She was to find the Avatar and go from there, not worry about someone she knew for less than a day—even if he did seem like someone she'd met before.

     Come to think of it, her memory came shortly after she ran away. Yet, she conversed with a kid named Zuko who had a lack of a scar. Was it possible they were the same person? It was difficult for [Y/N] to get a good look. She was too overwhelmed in the moment to come to any good conclusion, but the two seemed so different. Could a person really change so much in just a few years?

     Therefore, if he was Zuko then why was he trying to help the Avatar? Her memory showed him—both of them wearing red clothing. Something must have happened for him to not be helping the Fire Nation. But what?

     And if he was Zuko, then that means the entire time [Y/N] was being helped by someone she allegedly was supposed to know. And that if she took one more second than the Yuyan arrow would've hit his heart. The thought of that sent a punch to her stomach.

     [Y/N] placed her head in her hands. This was too much. She'd thought finding the Avatar would give her answers. She thought it would end all of this confusion and make things better. It seemed to make things more complex and more confusing.

     She'd dozed off in that position and awoke to an aching back. The nearby village she'd been stalling from entering glowed like a lantern against the dark sky. The distant sounds of drums and cheering were heard as [Y/N] stretched her back out and got to her feet.

     Gathering her belongings, she decided she'd practice her archery another night. Right then was the perfect time to slip in and restock on supplies while people were distracted by their celebration. She swung her bag over her shoulder and made her way down the steep hill and closer to the village.

     With her cloak billowing behind her, she entered the village's entrance. She nearly walked around the info column until one poster captured her attention. Aside from the wanted posters from local thieves or from the next town over and daily news, one of the largest posters had the words "MISSING" written in black ink. Under it was a sketch of a girl that was a splitting image of herself.

     Smaller writing was at the bottom of the poster written in characters similar to those on her arrows. She'd read it a thousand times, but her mind swam so much she could only digest pieces of it. Reward. Return. Caldera City.

     Those last two words went off in her head like a bell. Where had she heard that before?

     Taking a quick look around to make sure the coast was clear, she took down the poster, ripping it in the process. She rolled it up and shoved it into her bag, then tugged the hood of her cloak tighter around her head before entering the celebrating village.