Chapter Text
Ty Lee had expected to feel more relieved, having her identity as a bender out in the open. Admittedly, it had only been a few days, and don’t get her wrong, she was relieved, and excited, but it was also very strange. Mostly because Aang was slowly making her aware of how much she just… didn’t know. Partly, it was about her bending. Despite being two years younger than her, Aang was miles ahead on his control over air. She was learning now though, and she was lucky enough to have a good teacher and endlessly enthusiastic in Aang. Plus, how many people could claim to have learned their element directly from the Avatar?
The rest of it was harder. There was so much about the Air Nomads Ty Lee just… didn’t know. So much Aang probably didn’t know, at twelve years old, about his own culture. That information was lost to both of them now. Even what Aang did remember, what he could tell her… they could only ever be stories. Festivals that Aang couldn’t remember the reason for, silly jokes he didn’t remember the punchline to. Maybe someone, somewhere, did remember, and it would be one more piece to put back in place, but maybe there wasn’t. They could rebuild the Airbenders and the Air temples, given enough time and determination, but the Air Nomads, as they had once been, they were never coming back. Some things were just gone.
Ty Lee was brooding, and she knew it. She’d never really been much for brooding, that was more Mai’s thing, or occasionally Azula or Zuko’s, and she wasn’t quite sure how one went about brooding. In the absence of a better idea, she’d snuck a little way away from the main group to actually do her brooding more privately. She perched herself near the edge of a very scenic bluff so she could at least have a nice view while she felt sorry for herself. Lost in her own thoughts like this, she didn’t notice Katara come up behind her until the other girl said,
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look so serious.” Ty Lee jumped slightly, and Katara rushed on, “Sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you; I just thought you might like to talk about it. Whatever it is.”
Ty Lee considered this for a moment, then said,
“I… guess I’m just mourning what I’ve lost, you know?” Ty Lee said, “Like, Aang’s a great teacher, but I’m never going to be taught the way he was, or know what an Air Temple was like. I was always so worried about getting caught, I never thought much about what it was like before, being an an airbender. Having this whole society full of people like you! I don’t know if that makes any sense.”
“Has anyone ever mentioned to you that I’m the last water bender left in my tribe?” Katara asked, settling beside her on the ground, and Ty Lee looked up at her surprised.
“No. I didn’t realize.”
“I know it’s not exactly the same. My tribe still exists, and the Northern Water Tribe still has benders, but still… there’s this whole style of bending I’ll never learn. Parts of my culture that used to involve bending are just gone now.”
“And even if you bring bending back you can’t bring those parts back. Not exactly how they were.” Ty Lee smiled sadly.
“Exactly. So, I guess I do understand, at least a little.”
“How do you accept it, all the knowledge that’s gone?” Ty Lee asked.
“I don’t. I’m going to fight tooth and nail to rebuild my home. Will it be the same? No, but that’s not going to stop me from doing everything I can to help my family and my tribe.” Ty Lee smiled,
“That I can do.”
“Good.” Katara held out a hand to Ty Lee, “We could always use the help.”
Ty Lee took it. It was nice, being around non-Zuko people her own age again. It made her miss Mai and Azula more, though. It had been three years since she’d seen them, and a year since she’d been able to write to them. She hoped they’d see things her way when it came to the Avatar, but three years was a long time to spend in close proximity to the Fire Lord. She didn’t believe that either of them had any real loyalty for the man, but that didn’t necessarily equate to being prepared to work with the Avatar, or the sworn enemies of the Fire Nation.
“Can I ask you a slightly rude question?” Katara asked suddenly.
“We did kinda trick you all into thinking we were going to capture you and take you to the Firelord. I think you might be entitled to a rude question or two.” That managed to startle a laugh out of Katara, and Ty Lee grinned at her in triumph.
“I understand why you want to end the war, and defeat the fire lord, and decided to seek out the Avatar and everything, but… why did Zuko?”
“It’s… complicated. Parts of it just aren’t my story to tell, you know? The short version is that Firelord Ozai is about as stellar a parent as you would expect him to be. Neither of his kids are going to be shedding tears when you take him down.”
“Neither? Zuko has a sibling?” Katara asked, startled, and Ty Lee blinked.
“Oh oops! Yea, that’s how Zuko and I originally met, actually. I was a friend of his younger sister Azula. She, Zuko, and our friend Mai were the only ones that knew about my bending for… years. Until I told Aang.”
“But it’s just you and Zuko here.” Katara noted, brows furrowed.
“Like I said, it’s complicated. Zuko… he’s in exile but technically I’m not. I left because, well, when Zuko got exiled, we realized I wasn’t safe. We’d always sort of assumed that being royal meant Zuko and Azula could bail us out if it really came down to it.”
“You’d have to be a monster to turn on your own blood like that.” Katara put in sarcastically. Ty Lee snorted despite herself.
“Exactly. And even though it seems obvious in hindsight, as awful as Ozai, and before him Azulon, were, we still didn’t think they’d turn on their own family, you know?”
“And your friends, Mai and Azula, they’ve been stuck there with him the whole time.” Katara realized. Ty Lee grimaced.
“I have to believe they’re okay, and that we’ll find a way to get them out. I don’t know how I’d keep going, otherwise.”
“You have hope. We all do. None of us are stupid, we know the risks we’re taking by trying this.” Katara said. “But we have to hope it will be okay anyway. Because otherwise how could we keep going?”
“Exactly.” Ty Lee repeated. She reached up absently and tugged on the ends of her hair and realized she didn’t feel the strange off-balance feeling that came with her hair newly cut hair anymore.
For a few minutes, they sat there, enjoying the view and each other’s company, until Katara got to her feet and brushed the dirt off her clothes.
“I should head back before trouble finds the boys, or the boys find trouble, it could go either way really. Do you need a minute?”
“No.” Ty Lee flipped to her feet and settled the grief weighing her down squarely between her shoulders. It wasn’t new, only her awareness of it was. “I think I’m ready to move on.”
One foot in front of the other. She’d been walking this tight rope for years, she wasn’t about to fall now, when she was so close to the other side.