The sun had set hours ago, yet it was still warm outside in the dark sky. Nazadori and Aang's legs dangled over the edge of the mail system, and she leaned back on her hands to gaze up at the moon and the stars shining down on them. Her heart already felt so much lighter up here in the sky with an amazing boy by her side.
Aang and Nazadori remained silent for the longest time. She was grateful that he didn't say anything to her because she probably would have lost her mind if he asked her how she was doing or what was going on in her head. Right now, she didn't even know what was going on, let alone how she could explain to Aang everything. It was better for her to think things through.
A sweet breeze blew through the air, ruffling her hair that she pulled out of the bun it was in during the feast. She glanced over at Aang and saw his right hand raised, his fingers wiggling slightly. A small smile spread across her face at the sight of him airbending, and he caught her eye, smiling, too. There was something dark in his eyes, though, something that matched the dark dragon curling up in the pit of her stomach.
He dropped his hands to his sides, gently brushing against her bare arm. In the dark of the night, she felt her cheeks heat up. She couldn't focus on her feelings for him. No, she was too caught up in her swirling emotions about the feast they just came from and how people were believing the rumors about her.
"The food was good," Aang said, making her laugh. Of all the things he could have talked about, he chose the food. "We chose amazing food."
"I'm glad you thought so," she said, shaking her head. She wasn't sure how he was able to joke about things when they were both drowning in dark feelings. "Everything else was a disaster, though."
"My friends like you, too," Aang said, continuing on with his happy speech. He nudged her shoulder with his, a sly grin on his face. "They think you're going to be an amazing queen."
"They're the only ones, Aang."
Aang shook his head, looking back out at the city that lay beneath their feet. Nazadori followed his gaze and saw lanterns lit up as people walked home. Their cheers rose up even though they were far away, and her heart hammered against her chest. "I think there are people that think you're the one for the job," he said, and Nazadori glanced at him. His head was cocked to the side, his gray eyes clouded over. "People thought I wasn't going to save the world because I ran away from my duties. I had to show people that I could do it, that I had it within myself to save the world. For a while there, I lost who I was, but I was reminded along the way who I was."
"How'd you remember who you were?"
Aang's smile turned sad. "I had an airbending teacher that was my best friend and mentor," he said, wriggling his fingers again. A small breeze blew through her hair, pulling her closer to his side. Her back was starting to hurt from hunching over, but she didn't want to leave his presence just yet. "His name was Gyatso. He told me that I had it within me to be the Avatar, that I was kind, peaceful, and a leader. I lost my way during my journey a few years ago, but his words came back to me through my new friends." He turned toward her and said, "You need to remember who you are, Nazadori."
Her eyes pricked with hot tears as a memory of Bumi resurfaced. For a moment there, she was transported back to the palace. Bumi and Nazadori were talking about the school system there in Omashu when he turned toward her and said those exact words. She wasn't sure what prompted him to say that. Maybe it had something to do with the way she lashed out at everyone. Or the time when she believed all the lies people said about her at school -- about how she wasn't a citizen of Omashu, about how she wasn't related to her family. She had forgotten about that conversation until Aang said it.
"Bumi used to say that to me, too," she said, fighting through the tears. Her throat burned horribly, and she kept trying to swallow the lump forming in her throat. It wouldn't go away, though. "Thank you for the reminder."
They were silent as they stared out at the city that was finally asleep, finally quiet. Nazadori allowed a few tears to fall down her cheeks, pressure building up in her throat and her head. She was mourning the man that had passed this curse onto her, and she knew the boy sitting next to her was doing the exact same thing.
"You know, Bumi and I used to ride the mail system together when we were younger," Aang said, his voice echoing softly around them. He stared out at the mail system in front of him, the famed engineering feat that made Omashu a real name for itself. At least, that was what Nazadori always told herself when she was younger. "Him and I were best friends growing up, did you know that? I met him before I froze myself in the iceberg."
"He mentioned it to me a lot," Nazadori said, nodding, swiping the tears away. She recalled the many conversations her and Bumi had about his childhood and everything he missed about it -- especially the little bald monk that turned out to be the Avatar. "He loved to talk about you and how much he missed you."
"I miss him, too," Aang whispered. She glanced over at him to see him hanging his head, so she placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it a few times. "Why didn't anyone notify me when he was dying? Why didn't I get the chance to say goodbye to him?"
Nazadori's chest constricted at the anguish evident in Aang's voice. She had thought that her grief was killing her, but she hadn't realized just how much it was affecting Aang, too. She scooted even closer to him, her stomach jumping as she got a little too close to the edge. "It was so sudden, so quick," she said softly. Her heart ached at the look on his face, the agony in his words. "I didn't have time to notify anyone."
"Was he hurting?"
"No, I don't think so," she said, shaking her head. She was grateful for that, too. "He talked about you up until his death."
Aang's shoulders shook as he finally let the tears fall. Nazadori wrapped one arm around his shoulders, drawing the boy into her embrace. Her own tears cascaded down her cheeks and into his neck. The pain of losing her mentor rose up in her chest until she couldn't breathe anymore, and she had to let it out before it killed her.
"I miss Bumi, too," she whispered to him as she pulled away from their embrace. She couldn't see him through her tears, but that was okay. She needed to get this off her chest. "But I'm so angry with him for choosing me to be the queen when I have no idea what I'm doing. The other day, I said that I hated Bumi for choosing me, and I didn't mean it, but I just -- I don't know why he chose me."
"Nazadori, he chose you because you are kind and sweet and so passionate about people," Aang told her, reaching out and taking her hand in his. "You saved that girl from being robbed. You fight for people who aren't able to themselves. That's why he chose you. He knew you would take care of the people and lead Omashu in the right direction."
"Are you sure?"
"I've never been surer of anything else in my life."
Finally, the tears cleared out of her eyes just in time for her to see Aang leaning toward her. Or was she leaning toward him? It didn't matter who went first, all that mattered was that they were kissing. She could taste their salty tears mixing together, but she didn't care right now. All she cared about was holding Aang closer to her. Nazadori felt like she was floating in his embrace, and maybe she was. She couldn't really tell right now, not when his lips were on hers, his hands were running through her hair. She didn't care about anything else.
Aang's hand found hers again, and it was warm, so incredibly in hers as he pulled away from their kiss, and the tear streaks down his face glowed in the soft moonlight. His eyes were still dark, but there was a small light burning in them as he stared at her, taking her all in. A mischievous smile played on his lips that she had just kissed, and her own lips burned in remembrance.
"When we were kids," Aang said softly, "Bumi used to tell me not to look for him in the everyday things after he died. Instead, he said to look for him in the chaos." He motioned toward the mail system, and her eyes grew wide when she saw an earthen cart sitting near them. When did that appear? She wasn't exactly sure. "I think we should ride it in memory of Bumi."
"You know how much trouble I'd get in," she whispered, squeezing his hand once. But there was that little girl still deep within the walls and rivers she created to keep people out. The little girl wanted to go against the authority holding her down, to follow this boy into the deep blue of the unknown, to create a red sky of delight and happiness. "Do you think we'll get caught?"
"I don't know."
She looked at Aang and watched as his cheeks flared red when he caught her staring. Then, she peeked over his shoulder at the cart, sitting so innocently in the moonlight. She was already in so much trouble; what else could go wrong?
"Let's do it."
Aang grinned at her and stood up. He helped her stand up, too, and they slowly made their way over to the cart. Nazadori climbed in first and sat toward the front, allowing Aang to settle in behind her. She rested against his chest as his arms and legs wrapped around her, and she gripped the edges of the cart, her heart thudding against her chest. And then they were off, his airbending shooting them down the rail. A scream built up in her throat, and the air tore it out. Aang was laughing behind her, and she couldn't help but laugh with him.
In the soft moonlight, Nazadori let go of the bad feelings, of the rumors, of the fear and allowed herself to have fun with a boy that she had fallen for, Bumi's words about remembering who she was circling around her head until she finally did remember. She held onto that as they flew through the sky like a comet, burning brightly for only them to see and just enough for the moment to last.