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𝐁 𝚒 𝐭 𝚝 𝐞 𝚛
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𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘿𝙊𝙊𝙍 𝙎𝙇𝙄𝘿𝙀𝙎 𝙊𝙋𝙀𝙉 at an agonizingly slow pace. Halah's heart pounds against her ribcage, pulsing in her ears. Her head spins dizzyingly. Between the blackening stars in her vision, a blur of red and gold comes hurtling at her followed by a gust of wind, knocking her flat to the floor. Three little bodies pile on top of her all happily cheering her name while squeezing the life out of her. Just when Halah thinks she can't be any happier after reuniting with Tenzin, seeing how much his children grew since she last saw them brings tears to her eyes. After she dries every last one does she sit up and finally release the kids. Jinora bounces up and down on her heels while Halah hold her face in her hands and lovingly squeezes her cheeks together, just like she would before.
Jinora is her favorite, but no one has to know that.
"Halah, Halah!" Meelo air bends himself up on her shoulders. He seems to be trying to hug her head, but his arms over her eyes pull her to the floor again. "You wouldn't believe just how big I've gotten, I'm a man now!"
The little air bender scampers off of Halah, puffs out his chest and bottom lip and flexes his tiny muscles. Just for added measure, Meelo manipulates the air around him to circulate through his clothing to give it a flowing effect. Halah expects nothing less from the kid, he always had the cutest little crush on her and does anything he thinks would impress her.
"Wow, buddy, they're almost bigger than mine!" Halah reaches out and squeezes his bicep, right before she sticks two fingers in his armpit and wiggles them around. Meelo howls and soars away.
"No air bending in the house!" Tenzin scolds as he passes the room through the hall.
"Halah, look!" A hand-drawn picture is thrown into her sight. Ikki waves the piece of paper in Halah's face so close that she can't even make out what's on the page. She plucks the drawing from Ikki's fingers to examine it at a more comfortable distance. It appears to be of her and Ikki happily holding hands, and... Iroh is drawn next to them wearing a bejeweled crown that could've belonged to a king. Surrounding him is a crowd of stick figures cheering him on, various speech bubbles say things like 'You're our hero!', 'Thank you, Iroh!', 'Welcome home, Halah!'.
Halah draws her chin back with a snort. Behind her, she glances up at Iroh and flashes him the picture. "Check it out, you're a hero."
Iroh chuckles, the hint of a blush stains his cheeks. "That's very nice, Ikki. Maybe one day you can draw me a picture, too."
"I already did. Here!" Ikki replies excitedly and whips out another paper. Pictured is Iroh with a crown again, this time with Halah beside him. Surrounding them are...
Hearts?!
The two's features morph into mortified expressions once they register what they're looking at. Halah quickly turns away and rubbs under her eye after the lower lid had started to twitch. The only thing Iroh can do is breathe out a nervous laugh, his eyes glance between the picture and the little girl that made it. "T-Thank you, Ikki. I uh... I'll be sure to hang it up right when I get to my room."
Their shoulders jerk when Ikki launches herself up and snatches Iroh's hand. "Ooh, I'll help you!" She screeches, and within seconds, they're gone. Iroh flashes Halah a hesitant smile around the corner before his head disappears from the door frame.
Halah shakes her head, despite her lips tugging upward, and the brief moment of quiet is interrupted by her heavy sigh. She closes her eyes. Beside her, Jinora leans in close with her hands clasped under her chin in wonder. "Did your family already come? What are they like?"
Shit... that's still happening.
"Oh, um," Halah's eyes snap open and she clears her throat. "They aren't here yet, actually."
"Oh..." Jinora examines her face closely. She's so young, yet so good at reading people. Chances are she takes after her father in that sense. Terra compares her to a wise old soul trapped in a child's body. "You don't seem very excited to see them."
Halah sighs again, unable to hold back the truth that spills past her lips. "No, I'm really not."
Jinora's face falls with her shoulders. "But why—"
"Jinora, time to get ready for bed." Pema pops her head around the doorway with a laundry basket placed on her hip next to her pregnant belly. "Let's leave Halah alone for a moment, her family just got here."
Jinora's head whips back to Halah, and she looks worried for the Avatar. She can sense her tense energy, feel it in her own bones, and she wants to stay and hold her hand and help her through it. But, her mother beckons her forward and she obeys.
Before she's gone, she calls over her shoulder: "Don't worry, I'll make sure tomorrow is the best day you've ever had. We have lots planned!"
Halah doesn't want to tell her she didn't have much to compete against when it comes to her having the best day ever, it would break the kid's heart. "I'm looking forward to it. Love you, Nora."
Jinora grins, so does Pema. "Love you more. Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Halah. It's lovely to see you again," Pema says quietly with a slight nod and a sweet smile.
Halah doesn't want Jinora to leave. The kid has always been her rock. If Tenzin can't help her wrangle her emotions, Jinora is there and ten steps ahead. Halah is sure she has to be the smartest, most gentle and kind being in all of existence. In a perfect world, Jinora would make a million times better of an Avatar than Halah has been so far, or will ever be. Jinora has a mind that can bring about the right kind of change to their world. Peace all around. She is far more strong and courageous than the pathetic, weakened Halah. In a perfect world, with Jinora—anyone else—as the Avatar, Halah would have lived a simple, content life, happily with her family. In a perfect world...
In a perfect world, Halah would never have been taken by Amon.
But there will never be such thing as a perfect world. Not in this life.
Voices start traveling closer from down the hall—voices that Halah doesn't recognize. Her heart begins to race a mile a minute, her eyes dart around as her mind plans of ways to escape. But she has no choice, she's stuck. She will have to face them right then and there... alone. Anything she's, it is done alone.
She is terrified.
When she closes her eyes, it offers no relief. Her eyelids provide a screen for her mind to project every moment she would catch a glimpse of a news article displaying the faces of a couple and their three boys. All without Halah, they lived a well-off, content life. So it seems, perhaps. Halah watched her younger brothers grow through the weekly paper listing their latest accomplishments. One is even set to marry soon. Even through the black ink, each of them—her mother, father, and brothers—displayed shining, white-toothed grins clad in only the most expensive fabrics with perfectly trimmed and styled hair. Then there is the eldest brother—Halah's twin. He always wears an arrogant scowl, even on the mover screen displaying his Pro-bending matches, she has never seen a smile on the boy's face.
Halah can't deny the jealousy she holds towards her siblings living a wealthy, extravagant life with so little to worry about, meanwhile she only owns four sets of clothing and two pairs of shoes with no money to her name. Or an address—she has never received a letter in her life. A fire inside of her roars through her every time she thinks of what her life could have been like with them in the inner Earth Kingdom, and every time it quickly turns from longing to loathing. Amon loved to rub it in her face each time she showed a sliver of weakness in training.
The tempo of multiple pairs of boots tapping the floor nears the door, inches away from Halah's view. Her hands swipe across her forehead and neck growing damp. The last time she had sweat this much, Amon's mask had been inches away from her face for the very first time.
In her lap, her hands shake. Her leg bounces against the floor. Her breathing becomes increasingly labored until Iroh rounds the corner and she shoots up from her seat. Halah's eyes search the space behind him, but it remains empty. It makes her heart settle just a tad. He notices her worry and closes the gap between them. With hesitation, he gently wraps a hand over her shoulder.
He's much taller than her, her stare glues itself to his uniformed chest at her eye level. He towers over her, but he still doesn't reach Amon's height. His stature, on the other hand—Amon's slender figure can't compare to Iroh's broad shoulders and strong jawline.
Iroh's lips twitch downward. "You're scared, I understand. But I've known these people my whole life, Sorren is one of my greatest friends, so I hope you trust me when I say there's nothing to be afraid of. Your parents are kind people and they've missed you more than words can tell." With a soft squeeze, his hand fell back to his side and he took one step back.
Halah keeps her gaze away from him. A shaky breath escapes through her nose. Iroh only means well, she's aware of that, but the thought of this stranger being much closer to her family than herself strikes her in the chest. It angers her. But, he's now her personal guard. He saved her life, dedicated four years of his life to her. This is a man she has to trust.
Halah lifts her head to look at him and forces out the words. "I... trust you."
His eyebrow lifts at her emphasis on the word. There's more she isn't saying. "But?" He edges on.
A slight roll of her eyes doesn't go unnoticed, and she straightens her shoulders. "But... I can't trust your speaking of my family. Not after they abandoned me while living comfortable lives in their precious estate while I..."
Her voice wanders off, she doesn't finish. Iroh feels sorrow for the girl, her state makes it harder for him to be more understanding of the White Lotus' decision on her life. I'm his words, he's trying to convince himself as well. "They didn't have much of a choice, one that I can imagine was very hard to make. It'll be difficult to understand, but you'll get all the answers you've been looking for soon enough." He nodded his head towards the door. "They're waiting in the next room. I decided it was best I come to you first. Shall we?"
Wordlessly, she follows. It only takes a few steps down the hall before Iroh stops in front of an identical sliding door. She can hear murmuring voices beyond the barrier. Iroh braces his hand on the door and turns his head over his shoulder to glance at the anxious Avatar. "Are you ready?"
Another eye roll answers him before her mouth. "Do I have a choice?" She retorts back.
He only nods, tight-lipped, and slides the door out of frame. Before her stands a man and a woman, two identical-looking younger boys, and another taller, much older boy. Each set of eyes, all a matching shade of chesnur, stares at her wildly in the seemingly-frozen room. The blonde woman rushes forward with open arms and tears in her bright eyes. As she gets closer, Halah can see her eyes hold more green as opposed to solid brown of gold, just like Halah's.
Before her mother reaches her, Halah snaps out of her daze and takes a stumbled step back, bumping slightly into Iroh who braces a hand against the middle of her back. Yuneda falters, her heart crumbling in her chest when her daughter flinches away from her touch. Noruk sweeps up behind and holds his wife's shoulders, her hand meets his, their eyes never leave their daughter.
Their daughter.
Halah grows uncomfortable under their desperate stares. The silence around them, deafening. The walls start gaining on her, diminishing any and all space. As her breathing turns into short pants, black spots blot over the faces in the room. She subconsciously reaches behind her and squeezes Iroh's index finger where his hand still holds the middle of her back. He shifts his weight when he feels her grip, light pink stains his cheeks and goes unnoticed.
Noruk clears his throat. His dark raven hair matches Halah's. "Halah, dear, we've waited for this day for years. It's been so long, you've... grown so beautifully. You gained your mothers eyes as well." He squeezes Yuneda's shoulders.
Halah remains silent as her eyes travel to the three boys that haven't moved a muscle since she arrived. Her parents step aside to allow her to see them fully. The eldest stands as tall as Iroh and has light, straight hair like their mother and thick brows set over piercing walnut eyes. The other two adorn dark brown curls, and the one with what she now notices are a set of amber eyes has a blonde streak on the front left of his hairline.
"These are your brothers," Noruk interrupts the silence. "River and Roe, the twins. Tomorrow we will celebrate their eighteenth birthday."
He then raises his hand towards the blonde boy. He grins as though he's gloating his most prized possession, a first place trophy. "And your fellow Avatar, your twin, Sorren."
That whole time, she wanted to say: I know. In fact, I know nearly everything about them. Did they even know of my existence?
In the way Sorren's cold, hard stare meets Halah's, she feels her chest freeze over. Her fingers tighten around Iroh's who hides his pain well.
The resentment coating Sorren's features can be seen a mile away. He keeps his chin held high and his arms crossed proudly over his chest as he stares her down. There's an arrogance to him that Halah already doesn't enjoy. He holds all of the power in the world and he knows it, but now, he isn't the only one wielding all four elements. He's no longer the most powerful bender in the room—in the world. Sorren views her as competition, as his enemy. There's not a chance he will let his long lost sister steal his light.
"Halah, come sit, please. There is much we would like to discuss with you." Yuneda beckons her over to the sofa. She sits next to her husband and motions to the seat across from them.
Only, Halah can't get herself to move. She eyes Sorren, who returns the glare, and turns back to her parents. She can't stop the words that spill past her lips. "Why don't we start with why you abandoned me for sixteen years?" She snaps and drops Iroh's hand to clench her fists at her side. Yuneda flinches. Halah's eyes flick to Noruk. "You waited for this day your whole life? In all of that time, you never bothered to visit, never bothered to contact me. Surely, you have all the money in the world to travel or send someone after me. So, why now?"
She's met with silence. Noruk's mouth bobs open, unable to form a response. Yuneda cries silently into her hand. Seated on the arm rests, the twins stare in shock. Halah continues, fuming from their inability to answer her. "What was so wrong with me that you could keep him—" She motions with wild hands at Sorren and he scoffs bitterly at her words. "—But you got rid of me? Was I really not good enough for you? Or did you just hate the idea of having a daughter so much? Did you think I wasn't going to be as successful and spectacular as the boys? Now, I don't know what kind of training they received in their lives, but I'm more than positive none of them can hold their own as well as I, and certainly not after everything I've been put through. No amount of Pro-bending practices can stop what's out in the real world."
Sorren's arms drop to his side as he struts forward with a teasing grin, but his eyes are a raging, angry fire. "Is that a challenge, twin?"
Noruk stands up to place a hand on his son's chest. "No, Halah. No, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You... you are a miracle to this world—to us. We yearned to see you everyday, it was painful not being able to raise our own daughter, but it was for your own good. Please, allow us to explain."
She doesn't budge. For twenty years, Halah begged for answers, longed to see her family. But, now that they stand before her, begging her to listen, she won't have any of it. She's past the point of giving up, since the moment she was in Amon's grasp, maybe even long before, all hope had evaporated from her.
"Sit with them. Please, Halah." Iroh whispers behind her, inches away from her hair. She shoots him a glance from the corner of her eye. He licks his lips, and his eyes plead with her. "Trust me."
Halah closes her eyes and turns her head to the ground to hide the heat rushing her cheeks. Damn him. She wants to slap the fire bender for bringing her here, for gaining what trust she has left in her in such a short time, for convincing her to finally move her feet and seat herself in front of her family. Suppose she did it for his sake. Yuneda finally calmed herself down and clasped her hands in her lap and Noruk covers her hands with his own after sitting back down. Sorren continues to sulk in the corner even after Noruk insisted he sit with his twin. It's fine, Halah doesn't want to sit next to him either.
The room transformed into a sauna now. Halah tries to subtly wiggle her shoulders to relieve herself of the slick sweat pooling under her arms and running down her back. She hopes there are no visible stains darkening the fabric of her clothes. The sun outside has fully set by then and the room is lit by various yellow lightbulbs and a few jasmine scented candles. Her mother sips her tea with shaky hands while Noruk spoke.
"When you and Sorren were born," he begins. "We had no idea the power we birthed. You were only three years old when you started bending for the first time, and it didn't take long for people outside of our village to hear of the two Avatars. A few days later was the first kidnapping attempt. We were scared for our childrens' safety.
"Tenzin, Sokka, and Fire Lord Zuko actually came to us one day, the White Lotus wanted us to put one of you in hiding for the sake of the other, and we were new, young parents, so we obliged. We assumed they knew best, so we let you, Halah, go with them. A-And you were just a child, how could we ever get you to comprehend the evil out there trying to harm you for your bending? We tried to convince you it was just a vacation, but a few weeks turned into months—years. After a while, the White Lotus, they wouldn't let us speak to you—we tried, but they refused. They claimed it would be too confusing for you, detrimental to your upbringing. And when we found out you had been kidnapped..."
His eyes trail to Yuneda. Anger crosses their faces only for a second, Halah almost misses it. "Your mother, she cried day and night. You were finally old enough to come home, and they were willing to let you, but then that monster stole you from us. But, you're here now. Safe. With us. You can come home, Halah."
Tenzin—he didn't let Halah's parents contact her, along with this White Lotus her father spoke of? As a child, he went to her home to force her parents to give her away? Yet, 'forced' could be a harsh word for it, and maybe the decision was not entirely up to Tenzin himself.
Halah goes back and forth on it a million times in seconds. But in the end, to her, their decision had been entirely wrong. Had they allowed Halah to visit home, she wouldn't have lost years of sleep over growing up alone, of spending every day drenched in blood, sweat, and tears in training—and then having been tortured by Amon. Countless scenarios and what-ifs are a constant in her mind. It drives her to insanity the way one thing—one tiny, minuscule difference—can change the course of everything. Any opposing course could have been taken, and there would still be a million chances she would end up with Amon. She can't find it in herself to blame Tenzin for another second, but it is harder to lift it off the man and woman crying in front of her begging for forgiveness.
Because if there is a will, there is a way.
Could Iroh be a perfect example of that? She recalls his search lasting the entire length of her captivity. Had he really spent all that time looking for her?
Yuneda speaks upon Halah's lack of voice. She adds, "Only if that's what you want, of course."
"I want to stay here," Halah answers quickly once she refocuses. Yuneda's face falls at her response. "I want to be here, with Tenzin... for now."
Noruk nods sadly, but understandably. "The choice is yours, Halah. When you're ready, we would like you to visit your home. Your true home."
Halah wonders if she will ever be ready. And she wants to scream that she doesn't have a true home, she never did, and it's at the fault of a group of old, powerful strangers that took it upon themselves to sculpt her life for her and guide her to a future she never wanted.
The never-ending list of questions and demands race around her mind, but she can't find the will to spit a single one out. Especially after her outburst, she's left slightly ashamed, and exhausted. All she wants is for everything to be done and over with so she can throw herself in bed and sleep forever.
Noruk stands, followed by Yuneda, then the twins. "We appreciate your time," he bows his head slightly and takes his wife's hand. "This coming weekend, we celebrate the twins. And with your approval, come time, we can celebrate you as well. We hope you will join us."
He turns to Iroh and firmly shakes his hand with his free one. "Thank you, General. We will see ourselves out."
Halah stays glued to the sofa as they depart. She can't help the guilt crawling across her skin at her coldness to her parents. They love her, truly, she can see every bit of it. She's their child—their only daughter—after all. But, she still can't rid the anger the holds towards them for letting the Council just take her away. Did they even try to fight for her? She doesn't even want to ask. Halah is torn, severed right down the middle. What if they had given up Sorren? Would he feel the way she does, or maybe things would be different for him? Better, even? Would he have been taken by Amon as easily, or at all?
The world will never know.
The guilt, it consumes her. The sadness in her mother's eyes earlier cracks and splinters her frozen heart. She cursed herself for being so cruel. It wills her up from the sofa, past Iroh who questions her, and down the hall after them. Paintings lining the hallway whip past her hair before she bursts through the front door just as her mother is being lifted onto a flying bison.
"Wait!" Halah calls after her before she can stop herself. Yuneda freezes, her head snaps around to Halah running from the house. She slows to a stop as Yuneda grasps the creature's fur. Halah has no idea what she's doing or why she's doing it.
Yuneda paces towards her daughter. Slowly, hesitantly, afraid if she moves too fast, Halah will turn right back around and run inside. The wind whips Halah's soft curls around her face and Yuneda relished in the resemblance it holds to her lover's. Halah reaches her hands out and Yuneda mirrors her actions, taking Terra's cold hands in her own. Halah bites down on her lower lip as she stares into her mother's identical eyes; one green, one gold.
"I'm sorry," Halah chokes 0ut. Her voice is barely above a whisper.
Yuneda squeezes Terra's hands. "Do not be sorry, my love. This will take time." She curls a piece of hair behind Halah's ear, only for the wind to loosen it from its place. "Will we see you over the weekend?"
Halah nods, part of her not even wanting to, then lets Yuneda pull her into an awkward hug. Her mother nearly broke her ribs.
"Thank you," she whispers into Halah's hair. Yuneda pulls back to examine every feature of her daughter's face and strokes the strand of hair that refuses to sit still. "Oh, how I've longed to feel your touch again, daughter."
Halah gives her a tight-lipped smile and watches as she boards the bison and disappears into the night sky. From the doorway, Iroh watches the scene play out. Something deep in the pit of his stomach didn't feel right when the family entered the room. Over the years, he has cracked down on many wealthy families pleading allegiance or supplying weapons to the Equalists. A few members of the police force already brought up suspicion of Noruk having ties to Amon and his men, rumors of him donating money to Equalists. He was quickly proven innocent, but Iroh still wonders if bribery was involved. Noruk rose to become a very powerful man. Could he have known where Halah hid the entire time and led Amon right to her?
It's something Iroh didn't want to think about, and he doesn't want to worry Halah. Lost in his thoughts, he convinces himself it isn't possible and tries to beat down the suspicion beginning to consume him as Halah approaches him on the steps.
"You look... unsettled," she says, her head cocks to the side. "I can't have my security distracted now."
Iroh breathes out a short laugh and brings his hand to the back of his neck to anxiously scratch an imaginary itch. He plasters on a weak half-smile and turns to the open door pouring light outside. "I'll show you to your room."
With one foot braced on a step, Halah turns toward the city. She hasn't noticed its glowing aura trying to bleach the sky in the night until now. The lights shimmer against the water lapping under the bridge, the reflection of Aang's monument distorted in the calm evening waves. Her eyes travel up to the stars in sky that has darkened to the color of her hair. Iroh can't help but stare at the awe-struck girl and asks himself when was the last time she had even seen the stars.
In his mind, she resembles the night. The darkness of her brows and long, chestnut curls falling out of its braid contrasts with her olive skin, and in her dual-colored eyes shine millions of stars. Even after enduring Equalist brutality, her eyes—they still hold spark. It captivates him, along with the pieces of her dark hair tickling against her scarred cheeks. The chilly evening breeze reminds him of the feeling of her cold hand clasped around his still-aching finger. In spite of her physical and vocal coldness, it's brought warmth to his face the few times her eyes have met his, or the way she said she trusted him.
"Iroh?" Halah stands a foot in front of him now, her brows drawn together. Lost in his own mind again? He silently curses himself and leads her inside.
What is his mind trying to do to him?
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