Whirlwind [Avatar Aang]

☁Chapter Eleven☁

"Oh, I have to go to the storage closet," Puhong said with a sigh. He shook his head but continued smiling at her. "I totally forgot to get plates for you to try the cake on."

"Okay. Do you need any help?"

"I'm fine. I am a big boy, and you're the future queen. What would people think?"

Nazadori smiled at Puhong's receding back as he left the kitchen. However, the smile fell off her face very quickly when she was left alone. The wind whistled through the window, making her shiver. She wrapped her green and gold robe tighter around her thin dress. She wished she were at home in her warm bed instead of here at the palace, testing food for her upcoming coronation. She wished none of this was happening right now and that Bumi was still alive.

"May I join you?" 

Nazadori glanced up and saw Avatar Aang standing about an arm's length away from her. Her heart leapt in her throat at the sight of him. She had been trying to avoid him, trying to forget the emotions that were rising up in her chest. Today, he wore a soft gray cloak over his traditional robes to combat the fierce wind that whistled through the city. Though they were high up on the mountain above the ground, the temperatures were always a little colder than surrounding areas because of how Omashu was in the blast zone for any type of dangerous weather.

She realized that Aang was still waiting for an answer from her, but she didn't know exactly what to say to him. How could she tell him that she didn't want to spend any more time with him than was necessary? She had no idea how to turn him away, so she smiled at him and said, "Sure. I just finished up taste testing the food for my coronation dinner. Now, Puhong is getting the dessert ready."

"Thank you."

"Of course."

"Shouldn't Gazon and your other advisors be here, too?" Aang asked her as he settled down on his own cushion across the table. Thankfully, he didn't choose the spot next to her or else she would have run away from the kitchen. "I mean, they are helping plan the coronation, right? I hope it's not just you doing everything."

"No, they're busy right now," she told him with a shrug. "They're sifting through more applications for the council and choosing ones we should interview."

"Oh. That makes sense."

The air between them was so incredibly awkward. He probably knew that she had been avoiding him like the plague, so why in the world would he want to join her here? And how did he even know she would be in here today? Someone must have told him that she was here, but who would? That thought worried her because if someone told the Avatar where she was, did that mean they would tell bad people where she was? 

She shook her head, trying to dispel her thoughts. "I don't know how I'm going to choose the rest of my council," she said, sighing. "Everyone we interview is . . ."

"Bad? Weird?" Avatar Aang said with a smile. "I know. I wish you could just appoint my friends since they're from the different nations, but then people would assume that I forced my way into your reign, and I don't want to do that."

"I doubt Firelord Zuko would be able to be on my council, anyway," she said, grinning. "He has his own country to run."

"Plus, he's grumpy all the time and would bring the mood down."

They shared a laugh, and her bad feelings slowly dissipated. Even though Nazadori was nervous about the feelings crashing through her veins like waves, she loved spending time with Avatar Aang. He was so knowledgeable and funny and nice and cute. She had to admit that he was cute, with his tall, lanky structure, his smoky gray eyes, and his innocent smile.