the wind in my sails | aang x oc

twenty two

so she turned to zuko with a pointed finger and began scolding him.

"your uncle is much wiser that ozai will ever be. he has a pure heart and great honour. you should have asked him, instead of turning to your lunatic father for help."

"i know. I'm sorry."

"and you should have been more careful with how you acted! if it weren't for aang, I would have killed you in yu dao that day."

"i understand."

"good," liara huffed, folding her arms across her chest. "just don't go haywire like that again. if you ever need to speak to iroh, just send a messenger hawk to me and I'll fly you over."

"i will." zuko nodded and Liara finally sat down beside aang, sighing.

"it feels like I was out for a week." zuko grimaced, his head pounding with a headache.

"you were just asleep for four days" aang smiled at his friend, who hummed.

"the earth King has agreed to talk," aang explained, "we'll meet him in yu dao when you're ready. a small group of the residents will be joining us. the city can't stay a fire nation colony."

Zuko sighed into his teacup. "it can't be an earth kingdom city either."

Liara smiled at the boy, "that's why we need to meet. to make something new of yu dao and the remaining colonies."

"liara, I was wrong to ask you for that promise. to ask you, someone who already struggled with guilt, to kill me if I went bad? that was putting too much stress on you and it was like having you figure out the difference of right and wrong for me. I'm sorry." zuko stated.

Liara smiled at him, "I forgive you. and I don't blame you. if I had to step up and lead a country I would have probably done the same thing."

"zuko, you've always known what's right." aang chimed, "you were right about yu dao."

Liara nodded in agreement.

"I'm sorry about the chasm, zuko" aang stated, "im glad liara grabbed you, otherwise I would have been too late. I don't think if be able to live down the guilt."

"its okay, aang,"

"it's because I'm a flawed avatar,"

what? where did that come from?

"roku told me that you're his great grandson, so in a way, you're my family. and I've never been able to let go of such bonds." aang said as he looked at liara. "it's a flaw, but it's one I've chosen to accept. at least for this life."

"maybe if I found my mother, it would connect me to a part of my heritage that isn't so murky and confusing." zuko brainstormed, now that they were talking about that side of the family.

"roku's bloodline? I dunno." aang huffed.

"maybe if you find your mom, your firelordy struggle will get better?" liara hummed.

every child needs a motherly love, she had that with monk Nora, and zuko needed that especially now, with his mom.

"i haven't told you guys this, but right after I became firelord, I sent out searchparty after searchpary looking for her, even June and her shirshu. what can I do now that I haven't yet done?"

Liara thought for a moment, "maybe I can ask yao, or some of the other older spirits like Ko or wan shi tong."

"i can get Azula to coax it out of my father." zuko said, "if I get too little, I'll send a hawk."

~

aang and Liara sat under a tree, their legs crossed and both wearing their usual air nomad attire.

Liara's hair was in a half-up bun with a plump, silk blue ribbon decorating it.

"you all already have the hearts of air nomads, so now we'll teach you the ways of the air nomads." aang explained. and Liara nodded, continuing after him, "from now on, you will all be known as the air acolytes."

the girls all smiled, "however," liara went on, "about the tattoo situation,"

"yes?" the president asked and liara sighed. "unfortunately, mastery tattoos were always only given to airbenders. there were very few nonbenders in the air nation, and none of them had gotten tattoos, seeing as they couldn't bend the element."

"oh. we're deeply sorry."

"apologies accepted,"

"alright, first off!" aang announced standing up, "all life is sacred, and a life should never be taken, so the air nomads followed a vegetarian diet."

Liara smiled. "milk and eggs are fine, since a cow keeps producing milk even if she doesn't have a calf, and hen's eggs aren't fertilised unless there is a rooster."

"so just... no meat?" one of the girls asked, and Liara pointed at her with a grin, "correct!"