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 Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:30 pm
Enough is enough! You've had it with your family, you're running away! But once you do, you realize life isn't as easy alone as you thought. Can you face your family back home? Can you even find your way back home? Or maybe you're going to tough it out. What made it hit you maybe this won't be so easy, and what factors determine your decision to go back home or not?
An ominous wind whipped the snow that day, hurtling it around in strange, unnatural patterns. For a few moments at a time, the winds would cease, offering a false sense that they were to stop for good. However, as soon as the powder had found home again, it would be savagely tossed on the whims of the wind once more.
A young boy, barely twelve, watched these happenings from the safety of his home. Unlike most modest Southern Tribe dwellings, his was strangely lavish, adorned with many a beautiful artifact both inside and out. Some of said outdoor decorations were currently being pushed around, just like the snow.
This fact found a smirk on the boy's lips. Many would dream, he knew, to have such things. He hated them. They were gaudy and worthless. In his, as he would tell himself, professional opinion, they merely lowered the true value of the house. It wasn't really a home.
"Anyu!" A shrill voice interrupted his thoughts. "Dinner!"
Sighing, the young boy, now Anyu, jumped from the pile of random odds and ends he had used to reach the high, reinforced window.
"Anyu!" Came the voice again, obviously annoyed with the extra few seconds it was taking him to join the family for supper.
"I'm coming!" He called back, agitatedly pulling at a stray strand of hair that had fallen from the tie.
………
Once the meal was well underway, the family found itself talking about the weather. Anyu hadn't doubted that would happen. All seven children listened intently as their father told the same story they heard on all bad weather days. Despite the fact that they had heard it so many times, it was still exciting to hear the story of the brave Southern Tribe warrior who had saved the village from the snowstorm.
Legend said that he stood up to the terrible monster who rampaged around the glaciers, causing a long and horrible storm. If it hadn't been for the brave warrior, a waterbender by nature, the village would've been buried alive. Since then, each storm to come and go was considered a battle between the monster and the warrior in the afterlife.
Due to this legend, no one strayed from their homes on bad weather days. It was best, the elders decided, to let the monster be defeated easily, rather than have anyone venture out and become and inconvenience to the warrior.
"I could beat the monster!" Anyu shouted bravely over a mouthful of fish. It was his usual ending to the story and every time he found himself, against better judgment, wishing his family would agree. Yet, also as usual, they all merely laughed at his antics.
"Don't be silly, baby brother." One of his sisters cooed, her lips curling into a giggle that looked nothing but sinister to said boy.
"Yeah! You're so short, you'd probably fall into a pile of snow and never come out!" A brother, only a year and a half older but much taller, added to the joking.
Normally Anyu was used to this. Normally he could control his anger, but not this time. No, not this time. Too many times had this story been told and too many times had he injected his opinion, only to be shot down by the cruel tongues of his siblings.
It was too much.
"SHUT UP!" The twelve-year-old shouted, slamming his fists on the table, sending food, as well as his chair, flying as he rose. Uncontrollable tears of anger welled in blue eyes. Rushing from the table, he burst out the door, not even grabbing so much as an extra parka.
"Anyu!" His desperate mother cried after him. Frantically, she jumped up to follow, only to be stopped by her husband.
"No." He said sternly.
"But!"
"No." And that was that.
………
Once he was well away from his prison of a home, Anyu finally stopped to allow himself rest. Breathing deeply, the boy found that with each breath he took, he felt even more tired than before. Beyond cold air stung at his lungs. Still, he did his best to ignore each pain. He wasn't ever going back, that was for certain!
Lifting his already weary form, his eyes desperately scanned the area. Shelter was needed first and foremost, his mind registered. However, even though he was wise enough to think of such a thing, it didn't much help if there was none to be found.
Groaning in frustration, he trudged on. The heavy snow seemed to have no other purpose than to slow his trek as it clung to his boots. Angrily, he flailed his arms, sending sharp spikes of bent snow away from him as if he were swatting at flies. It did little good, for the snow was endless and with each careless swipe, his bending powers looked as if they were lessening.
Finally, he collapsed, breathing unsteady and slow.
"Stupid snow," he mumbled, weakly pushing at the powder already beginning to collect around him. "Stupid."
This snow had no purpose, but he had a purpose! He would show his family! He would show them! Huffing, he forced himself up, despite the protest of both legs and lungs. Through the ever growing snow, he pushed on, eyes narrowed at the wind and hands tightly fisted.
However, such drive or not, a terribly vicious wind served to knock him from his feet. His landing, though softened by snow, still hurt and the frozen water, which leapt at him, stung at his eyes. Attempting to stand again, his legs merely buckled, even under his lightweight.
"Stupid wind," he choked out, a taunt similar to his first, though one which seemed to call an angry response. The wind whipped again and he felt a sharp p***k at the back of his neck. Reaching back with a stiff hand to quell the pain, he noticed something that sent a sick sensation to his stomach. It was gone! The necklace his eldest brother had given him was gone!
His eldest brother had been the only one nice to him, the only one who seemed to acknowledge him at all. The necklace was Anyu's prized possession, the only one he owned which he truly loved.
Digging blindly before him as the wind whipped up a fresh bit of snow, he searched frantically for the beads. Unfortunately, they were snow white.
"I'll never find it..." He conceded, a fresh batch of tears readying themselves. "It's not fair," the boy whined, griping his hands at his sides. "Not fair!" He squeezed his eyes shut, slamming his balled fists into the helpless snow before him; he didn't even wince as it jumped and stung at his ears.
But perhaps the warrior really was watching the poor boy, rather than merely fighting against the monster. As the snow flew all around, Anyu felt a hard something against his face and heard the hollow 'tink' of carved-out beads. Opening his blue eyes in a hurry, he watched, as if in slow motion, as his necklace fell cleanly into his lap.
With a gleeful sound, he grabbed at the necklace, inspecting it as if it might've been a fake. He noted the broken clasp. He would ask his eldest brother to fix... But wait. He wasn't going back. But he couldn't fix the broken clasp himself. And he was getting cold and hungry again.
Stubbornly, he shook his head. Grasping the white beads, he once again forced himself to rise. He stumbled at first nearly dropping the necklace as he reached for a pile of nearby ice and snow to steady himself.
It was then he heard it, a voice on the wind.
"Anyu!"
The boy spun around, almost falling again with the motion.
"Anyu!" The voice called again. Said boy tried to shout back, but found his voice suddenly frozen. And he began to worry. What if whoever was looking for him couldn't find him because he couldn't call back? Despite his earlier decision never to return, he found that thought frightening.
Even though he was exhausted, he ran. He ran towards the voice that still called his name. And before he knew it, he'd collided with something warm and furry, though it had the frame of a human.
"Anyu, there you are." He heard his eldest brother's voice. Pulling his face from his brother's parka, he looked up, his blue eyes narrowed as he fought back tears. He was too old to cry! Still, his sibling continued.
"You're freezing," the elder boy commented worriedly, wrapping a blanket around the other. Anyu finally noticed how he was clinging to his brother then and pulled back, hugging the blanket around his shoulders instead.
"Can you fix this?" He asked, holding out his open hand to reveal the precious necklace. His brother smiled.
"Sure, kid." His brother answered, taking the necklace before beginning to lead the younger back to the house, supporting his weakened steps.
And even though Anyu rarely felt accepted by his family, he was happy. He had his eldest brother and his other siblings weren't so bad, he supposed. His mother also loved him, he knew, and even his father, too. So maybe life wasn't so bad.
And maybe, just maybe, he would find his place one day.
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:31 pm
• Meeting Sasha, Razuten, and Avatar Kahamo :: Pg. 24-40 • The day seemed nice enough. Obviously much nicer outside than inside. That was Anyu's thinking as he stepped out into the snow. From behind he could hear his mother calling him to be home before dark. "Fine!" he responded, just barely looking back as he did so. Flipping his necklace in one hand while tugging at his sleeve with the other, he sighed. Even just walking past the other homes in his village, he could feel the stares. Why did he have to be so short?
Sasha didn't seem fit to be a waterbender, let alone a teacher for it. Not calm enough to focus most of the time, not nice enough to even bother learning the healing aspects of the art.
But, hey, it wasn't her fault. Kids these days were just so arrogant, even here. Particularly those of the male variety, though perhaps she only felt that way because of her previous tribe and her brother. Which, she realized faintly, made her a hypocrit on some level, but she chose to ignore that fact since she kept the opinion mostly to herself, anyway.
Considering she wasn't sleeping or off in another land for whatever reason, she was always found near the waters edge either instructing someone on bending or practicing her own. Which explained why the only villagers she knew were those children who she taught or parents of said children, despite how long she'd lived here now.
"Push and pull," the woman mumbled, the words in unison with her motions. Thinking of her twin always made her irratated. Unfortunately, he invaded her thoughts quite a lot, so she'd pieced together a sort of 'calming exercise'.
Which, really, wasn't anything beyond creating a small wave and moving it around.
What was so interesting? That's the part he couldn't seem to figure out. Was it because of his parents? Maybe that was it. Despite not liking the thought, he'd always found himself believing people would ignore him because of his stature. Yet they continued to watch his every step as if perhaps he would step into a snow pile and never come out.
Sucking in a breath of the cool air, Anyu glanced at the necklace in his hand, sliding it in his gloved palm a few more times before bouncing it lightly to his fingers. Even with the gloves, he was able to easily fix the clasp at the back of his neck again.
A while more of walking and before he knew it, he was at the water. It didn't seem to far, however inland his home was. Slipping to the edge, he knelt and pierced the surface with a tentative hand. Swirling the water, he bent it away, but only slightly. There wasn't much he could do without taking stance.
It wasn't that Sasha didn't like children, she just...
Didn't trust them. Too shifty and they weren't quite as easily for her to control as the water, and even that nobody could completely dominant over. Minus the Avatar, perhaps. She also lacked faith in those of the younger generation to actually get things done, in life and with bending.
And just when she started to think otherwise, she ran into punks like this kid. The ones who weren't even bothering to stand right!
Infront of Anyu, a small amount of water rose from the surface and formed into a ball. It carried across to the land, moving to Sasha. It suspended between her hands as she moved it carelessly over and under her shoulder, behind her then around one arm.
"I should drop this on your head for bending like that, but I'll give you a break since you're young."
Anyu was all but distracted by his swirling that he almost missed the bent ball of water floating up right in front of his face. Though, once he did, it took him a moment or two to actually figure out what was happening. Once the water floated off to land, it seemed to click.
Pulling his hand from the water, he shook away the liquid and stood, turning on his heels to face the one who'd summoned the water ball. The same person who'd just threatened to drop the very same water on his head.
And not only that, but he recognized her. She was the teacher. Not his teacher, of course. The tweleve-year-old told himself he didn't need one and had readily refused when his parents suggested it.
Despite having learned to respect his elders, a smug look crossed his features. 'Show-off,' his mind conjured, but he remained quiet. At least until he'd come up with something maybe a bit more respectful.
"What makes you think you can tell me how to bend?" Okay, maybe not so respectful.
"Because I could drown you if I wanted," Sasha answered simply.
Damn. Try to give the little brat a break and he goes off and runs his big mouth. She was oh-so-tempted to go back on her own words and actually enlarge the ball of water before sending it toppling down on this arrogant squirt, but she did nothing more than bend it back to the ocean to rejoin the rest of the water in the end.
Of course, she knew this kid. Not personally or even by his name, but who he was. Even some people outside the tribe knew about his family. Or, perhaps about his families wealth was more correct. They'd paid good for her work, and she was a bit annoyed with this kid for refusing it because of that.
"They shouldn't let little kids out so late," she commented casually, as if speaking to herself or another adult present. "You know, they should have to go to bed at the hour matching their age. So this kid should be sleeping around...6?"
Crossing his arms, Anyu stepped back, only to find that he couldn't go anywhere. Not that he was afraid. Not at all. Still, he eyed the ball of water as if soon he would be forced back inside to change into dry clothes. Luckily, that ended up not being the case.
His lips held an almost victorious smirk as the liquid joined with its origin, even though he knew in a second she could merely summon a new 'weapon.'
It was true that the boy was far from stupid. However, he was just as Sasha thought, rather arrogant. Despite the fact that he nearly loathed his family, he tended to use their position to his advantage.
Not only that, but he had a hidden temper. One he was normally skilled at keeping hidden, that is, until someone mentioned something concerning his height or age. Through the first part of the teacher's comment, he held his ground, arms still crossed in form of control.
But as soon as the word six formed in her throat, he dropped his arms, balling his hands into fists.
"I'm not six!" he blurted out. "I'm twelve!"
Alright, so... It was rather childish of her to do, but how could she resist?
"What? Who's saying that?" the bender questioned to no one. It was easy to argue it wasn't even a question, nothing more than a mere taunt. As she spoke, she lifted a hand to her forehead like she was straining to see something far away, and purposely kept her eyes just above Anyu's head.
"Oh!" she suddenly cried. "There he is!" And with a swift flick of her wrists and shift of her arms, she sent a nicely sized wave pouring down toward the boy. Certainly not strong enough to even shift his position, nor would it hurt him.
Minus his pride, maybe.
"You lost me a lot of money thinking you're too good for me to teach you, you know," Sasha told him sourly, and then added in a tone of voice that's arrogance could only be rivaled by Anyu, "But I wouldn't have taught you anyway. Obviously you have no talent."
"Me!!" Anyu shouted angrily, knowing deep down somewhere that it was rather stupid to go along with her ploy, but doing it anyway. When she scanned the horizon, he had to strain just to keep his hand from waving dumbly in her face.
And it was only when she 'finally' recognized that he was there did he realize his own folly. Feeling the cold water splash over his form, he kept perfectly still until the only moving water was dripping from his hair and clothes. Damp bangs seemed to hide his eyes as he glared up at her.
"You-!" he started, only to be stopped mid-way to the next word by her own words. Hah! So he'd taken away a nice fat paycheck? Good!
But while reveling in this small victory, her next words hit him like a ton of bricks.
"No talent?!" He blurted out. It was barely a question. "I'll show you!" And thoughtlessly he threw his arms back, feeling the tug of the water as he grabbed it within his abilities. Swinging the limbs forward, he sent a nice wave towards the teacher. However... it fell a good bit short, looking rather pathetic as it slipped back into the ocean.
The boy's cheeks reddened as he clenched his fists at his sides, suddenly thankful for the bangs hanging wet in his face.
Hopefully, the runt wouldn't catch a cold. She figured she was safe from that risk since he had all those bundles of clothes on, even if they were wet. Besides, waterbenders up here should be use to being cold, right?
She was, at least, which may have been the reason she didn't try to move out of the waves way. Maybe she'd planned to bend it away from her? It would have to be left to the imagination, since the wave collasped infront of her, a scene she watched with a rather dull look across her face.
Her voice flat, the teacher repeated herself, this time stretching the words longer than required, "Noo. Talennt."
No, he wouldn't let her get to him! There was no way he would allow himself to believe that his waterbending skills fell short. He could bend. That was that.
"I don't care what you say!" Anyu continued, suddenly flipping his bangs from his face and glaring daggers up at the teacher, despite knowing it probably wouldn't work to his advantage.
For a while he stayed like that, staring up into her face. Up. Oh, how he hated having to look up. One day he would be looking down on everyone.
Like a child refusing to do chores, he flung his arms crossed and turned away from Sasha.
"I can bend. I don't care what you say..." he mumbled out to sea.
She wasn't about to admit it out loud for any amount of money, but the kid--what was his name again, anyway?--he'd surprised her to an extent not immediatly demanding to duke it out or something. At the same time, she was positive he was lying concerning his lack of care on the matter.
Maybe he wasn't, and she didn't have him figured out as much as she thought.
Or maybe she did.
Sasha shrugged. "Fine, fine," she said calmly, returning to her former, simple bending of shifting a wave back and forth. "You don't have to care what I say. ....I'm just surprised you don't care what everyone else says."
Anyu's blue eyes scanned the horizon, looking furiously for something that could attract his attention long enough to forget the teacher's words and calm down. The strength he'd used to cross his arms began to fade. He was quick to realize he was squeezing the life out of his own limbs. Rubbing a gloved hand idly across his upper arm, he sighed.
Thinking wasn't always good for the boy. His emotions tended to flare easily and while he was lost in the moment, nothing bothered him. Once given time to muse over it all, however, he began to feel stupid.
He was about to wheel back around and say something else, what that was he hadn't yet decided, but her bending stopped him. From the corner of his eye, he could see the gentle motion of the wave and it served well, along with her agreeing words, to calm him somewhat.
That is, until her next words. Anyu's eyes narrowed. What everyone else said? 'No,' he thought, shaking his head. 'She's making it up.' But he found he couldn't quite fully convince himself.
Just barely peeking over his shoulder to watch her, he spoke up.
"What does everyone else say?"
While she was exagerating, Sasha wasn't really lying. Not to say she was above lying (which she wasn't), she just wasn't right now.
"Well, I've taught some of your siblings, you know. I talked to one of your brothers and they said it was best I didn't teach you. You're too young and too little, is what they said," she offered, shifting the lastest wave into a stream of water and lifting it from the large body, shifting it into a circle, then letting it drop.
She stretched her arms above her head and turned to him before continuing, "The fact is, the average age they start students with me these days is 10. It varies, of course, because some don't have a long enough attention span at that age. I'm just saying, squirt, you're not gonna get very far thinking you don't need anyone's help considering you have to make up for lack of height and all."
Too young and too little. That sounded like just the thing one of his siblings would say. It was probably Cikuq. Yeah, it had to be. He was just the one to say things like that. But then again... Light blue eyes widened in some sort of shock. "Which brother?" he questioned, turning quickly to face the teacher.
Anyu felt rather antsy as he watched her bend the water with seemingly effortless motions. His hand twisted strangely, almost forcing his glove off before he wiggled his fingers to pull it back on.
And he listened, rather intently, which was surprising, as she explained. And it all registered. And he found himself agreeing. However, it was difficult to tell if he truly agreed or whether he merely wanted her to get on with it and reveal which brother.
"Eh?"
Sasha scratched under her chin, then tilted her head to the left slightly. It was a habbit of hers and contributed to the choice to cut her hair--it was annoying when the strands fell in your face all the time. "I don't really remember," she admitted. "I'm not good with names."
Meaning names of her students and those who she saw as money, anyway. "Like a Q or a C or a K, was it...?"
A little grin found itself on Anyu's lips as the teacher tried to recall the name. Well, he knew right away who she must've been talking about. He'd been right and his worry misplaced. He should've trusted his eldest brother more so than to think he could possibly say something like that.
"Cikuq," he offered with a nod, all of his antsy movements from before fading. "You know, he's not that much older than me, but..." For a second he was going to say a lot taller. However, he would be hard pressed to slip up like that. Instead, he went off to name a fault, instead.
"He thinks he's cool because he can bend." And he cut it off there rather than admit that Cikuq thought it was also cool to be taught by Sasha.
That might have been it, Sasha mused. Just because he said a name didn't mean it would click the realization button in her mind. Cikuq was probably it, but could she be completely sure? Nu uh.
"You can bend, too," the teacher pointed out. "Not particularly well and you're way too full of yourself despite that, but saying he thinks he's better than you because he can bend doesn't make a whole lot of sense."
It seemed this teacher had a wonderful knack for calming the boy, only to have his temper swell at her next words. For, even though he wouldn't admit it, having a bender of her obvious skill tell him he could bend, too, was nice. Then again, having her tell him he couldn't bend well and he was full of himself worked to turn his opinion, no matter how true the statements may've been.
"Well, he's more full of himself than me," Anyu argued, trying in some way to save a bit of his deflated pride.
Sasha didn't buy that, and she, personally, couldn't remember if the kid had been arrogant or not. If he was, not enough she'd remember him more than the countless other kids she'd taught (or attempted to teach) waterbending.
If he had been on the ego-centric side, she wouldn't be surprised if this kid was a representation of the family modesty level.
Yet again, she brought a bit of water to her. "Well, if he is, at least he has a reason to be. Let's say your ego, my dear little arrogant child, is a jar full of water. The water represents talent. This here, this is your brothers."
A decent amount of the water collasped to the icy ground, leaving only a slight bit between her hands. "And of course, this is yours. Mostly because you strike me as one who thinks he can master everything by himself. You don't 'need' a teacher, hm? Even I had a teacher, shorty."
Anyu stared at the remaining water, frozen and thinking, as if trying to gauge how angry he should be at her incorrect assumption. Finally he snapped out of it, eyes leaving the rather unaffending liquid to land on the one who manipulated it.
"How would you know anyway?" He scoffed, hoping she'd forgotten his earlier display, but doubting that was the case. Besides, he'd been mad then. He did a lot better when people didn't go around insulting his bending skills.
Moving off a bit, he bent to the water, sticking his hand in. "Not like I would show you anyway," he said, voice arrogant. And as if to annoy her, he swished his hand as he'd been doing when they first met, just barely bending the water away.
"I can learn by myself. I can't say I've had much help doing anything else, so why should bending be any different? Just because you needed a teacher doesn't mean I do." Removing his gaze from her, he glanced at the water, watching his distorted reflection.
"You've got a lot to learn," was Sasha's response, and all she said for a few minutes. During the silence she shook her head, either disagreeing with or dissaproving of whatever thought had happened to cross her mind at the moment.
"Being a leader risks the chance of you getting someone else killed. Being independant risks the chance of you getting yourself killed. Just remember that."
And it seemed, for now, the conversation would end, since Sasha turned and headed back toward the village, offering only a careless wave over her shoulder as a farewell.
Anyu's chin had fallen to his knees as he continued to stare. He took his hand out of the water after a while, finding little pleasure in bending the wrong way if it wasn't going to get any sort of reaction.
And at her words, he found himself scoffing. Killed. Right. Nothing ever happened around here. How could he possibly get himself killed doing nothing?
Picking his chin up from his knees, he turned just in time to catch the wave. Fine, he thought. If that's the way she wanted to end the conversation, that was wonderful by him. It's not like he was gonna run after her....
But he found himself rising. And he felt stupid as he trekked off in her footsteps. He tried to act nonchalant, like he wasn't following her, but was merely going home. That's where he was going, wasn't it?
Maybe she'd have noticed Anyu was behind her--not following her, going home. Maybe she would have if she'd been thinking about him still. But her mind had too many serious matters to work out. One in particularly had been nagging at her, and while she considered telling some little punk the world worked a sort of vacation from thinking about it, even that couldn't allow her to avoid it for very long.
Speaking of 'punks', Razuten had a bad habbit of turning up where he wasn't wanted. Which outside his homeland was basically everywhere as far as Sasha knew. She almost felt as if she'd summoned him here, considering he'd been the thing she'd begun to ponder over so intensely.
If she hadn't been doing that, she might have realized it was strange that no children were playing outside. Because anyone wearing red was the warning signal: Run and hide!
"Sasha!" Razu called in a delighted voice, stretching his arms out as if he'd scurry forward and hug her. Said arms lowered when the waterbender shifted into an obvious defensive stance. "Aw, that's not nice. I'm not here to cause any torment. Not this time, I mean."
The way things were going, it was perfectly alright with Anyu. He didn't want her looking back and noticing him, anyway. Not that he was afraid she would. After all, he was just going home.
After a while he actually debated doing what he'd all but convinced himself he really was doing. Sasha had become rather boring. All she was doing was walking. To where, he had no idea. For what reason, he didn't much care, he told himself.
It was only when a red-clad character showed up that he suddenly forgot what he had been pondering over the entire time. His mind told him to just run, but he found he couldn't, but out of fear or interest was hard to tell.
Some sound rose in his throat, perhaps the beginnings of words, but they died quickly. Why was that guy being so familiar with the teacher?
"Here on business, are you?" Sasha didn't sound fearful or tense, even if she looked the latter. If anything, her voice was wary, as if this was a common event.
"Something like that," the opposing bender chirped, leaning off to the left and looking behind her. "Oooh, it's a little waterbending kiddie. Not very bright are we, hm?"
After a few quick, confused blinks, Sasha's eyes gazed over her shoulder, though only for a mere second before they snapped back to Razuten. "I'd suggest going home instead of just acting like you're going to, Shorty."
For a second, Anyu actually debated doing what he was told, even if it was a rare event. However, his childish pride wouldn't allow it. Not now.
"Don't tell me what to do!" he shouted, despite the slight shake in his tone. All the while he glared at her back. "You're not my mom and you're not my teacher. You can't make me do anything!"
At that, his gaze shifted to the firebender and narrowed.
"And don't make fun of me!" He demanded, taking a few steps forward, even though his legs were against it. He knew it was dangerous to talk back to one from the Fire Nation. He'd been taught since childhood. But despite that and the wise advice Sasha had given him only minutes before about getting killed, he stood up anyway.
"You're a real idiot, Shorty," Sasha commented, and while she was obviously speaking to Anyu, her eyes didn't dare stray from Razuten. If there was any type of bender that wouldn't hesitate to hit you when your back was turned, or your eyes were averted, it was definately those of fire. "And don't use your mom as an example, you probably don't listen to her."
"Ooh, isn't he FIERY?" Razu's words came in a hiss, which sounded amused and threatening at once. "Not at all like most waterbenders around here, hm? Sort of like you, Sasha." He lifted his hand a small flame erupted above it. "I wonder how easy that coat catches on fire."
Yeah, he knew it. He knew he was an idiot for talking back, for not running away. Still, despite his ever obvious fear and slightly shaking limbs, he didn't make a move.
Perhaps it was out of fear and fear only. Images flashed through his mind of attempted escapes, all ending with a flash of fire. Not exactly a push towards and attempt. Then again, he didn't much want to stay. Something made him think that Sasha wouldn't protect him. She didn't like him, so what good would it do her?
Arms tight at his sides, he tugged at the ends of his still damp coat, wondering also how easily it would catch fire.
"D-Don't threaten me!" he finally choked out, loosing a bit of his spirit at the sight of the flame. "I'm not afraid of some firebender!" Well, he sure sounded rather unthreatening now.
"Not afraid?" Razuten echoed, his grin widening, as did the flame. "Well--ooof!" The snow rose infront of him like a wave, then fell back, sending him toppling to the ground.
Sasha remained still for a moment, then seemed to relax. "Stop picking on kids, Razuten," she said in warning, then finally took a deep breath and let her arms fall to her side. To Anyu she said, adding an aggravated sigh, "You're gonna get yourself killed, honestly. Now, go home. It's getting late."
Besides, when Razuten got back up she wanted to deal with him alone...
If anything, Anyu seemed to take a bit of courage from her display. Rather than listen as he should, as he should've from the beginning, he merely crossed his arms, leaning to rest his weight on one leg.
"No," he rhetorted, turning his head, seemingly looking for something more interesting than the current scene. "You think if I don't listen to my mom, I'm gonna listen to you?" he threw back, returning to his last excuse for not doing what she told him.
It was foolish of him to not even think of the consequences once the firebender rose again.
"Like I mentioned, your mom can't--or at least won't--drown you. Nor will she set you on fire and watch you burn to death. Razuten isn't a pushover. You need to leave!" Sasha insisted, becoming increasingly aggravated, and not aware of just how much it showed. "Now."
"No, don't bother," the male voice chimed in. Razuten was already on his feet, brushing himself off. Though he didn't look particularly effected by the attack, there was a dark glint in his eye that just made it clear there'd be trouble. Again, a flame danced just above his finger tips, and his eyes narrowed on Anyu. "If he has to get hurt to learn a lesson, I say let him. Frankly, I'd enjoy showing two annoyances who's who."
Despite the teacher's repeated warnings, Anyu stayed cool. On the outside, anyway. Inside he was shaking and hating himself for doing so. His mind told him it was stupid to stay, but his stubborn heart kept up the hope that he could possibly defend himself, situation requiring.
And for some reason, he remembered when he was younger. He remembered when his parents had taught him of firebenders and their power. While his mother seemed more relaxed about them, his father had always believed firebenders meant trouble. Now the twelve-year-old easily realized his father's understandings.
Being threatened at one's first meeting with a firebender; Not exactly great for making good impressions.
And his mind began to tumble over a foolish idea. His heart backed up the thought so strongly, that he felt himself readying a strike. If he could defeat this firebender, then maybe his father would truly notice him for once. Thus, all knowing that he couldn't possibly beat another bender, especially not an older one, was pushed to the back of his mind.
Running up, he grabbed a pail of water from a nearby home, pushing it down into the snow as soon as he'd almost reached Sasha's side. Water was easier to bend than snow. And so he quickly took a position, his powers grabbing at the water and nearly tipping the pail as he flung a good sized whip that seemed it might actually reach Razuten. Whether or not it would actually do any damage if it managed to hit- Well, he prayed it would.
Sasha wasn't ready to abandon her stance that couldn't have been described as anything above or below defensive, but it took all her willpower resisting the urge to smack herself in the face. This kid was going to get himself killed...
Rather unphased by the movements, Razu had watched, almost boredly, as the boy had gathered the pail and attempted his pathetic bending. Seriously, who did he think he was kidding?
Then the water was charing him, and the firebender failed even to move. The 'whip', as one might call it, hit his shoulder and pushed him back to one side.
"You've got a lot to learn," Razu told him bitterly. "If you think a little punk like you can mess with one of the greatest firebenders, you've got even more than I thought."
He shifted his feet in an odd way, then charged toward Anyu.
--Only to be casted to the side by a large gust of wind that sent snow blowing everywhere. Sasha raised her arms to shield her face, lowering them when the area calmed.
Her eyes went wide. "It's the Avatar!" she squeaked, and indeed it was. Kahamo stood on a pile of snow just a few feet from the group, and she didn't look at all happy.
"What's the meaning of this?" the woman demanding, obviously speaking to all of them despite the fact her eyes lingered Razuten as he recovered to his feet.
There were times in his life when Anyu found himself wondering. Did your life really flash before your eyes when death was upon you? Well, he threw that life-flashing theory out the window now, since all he could see was a flash of evil looking red that obviously spelled punishment for him.
Before the wind even hit, the boy had taken to shielding himself. And then when it finally hit, it took all he had to remain standing, despite the fact that the main of the blast wasn't aimed at him.
'It's the Avatar!' He heard next, though barely, as his ears rung. It seemed to take a second or two before Sasha's words actually sunk in.
The Avatar. The greatest bender. She had saved him.
Slowly opening his tightly shut eyes, he looked to the wind's origin. However, rather than relief which he thought he might feel, he felt a pang of fear. Just Kahamo's angry expression seemed to resonate power. Subconsciously, the boy shied closer to the teacher, as if perhaps trying to hide behind her.
Truth be told, Sasha's pride wouldn't be particularly injured if she could find something to hide behind herself. Something about Kahamo just made her nervous. The fact she could do pretty much anything was probably why...
"Avatar, he came here starting trouble," the waterbender attempted, cut short by the young man.
"I certainly didn't!" Razu defended, crossing his arms and leering at her. "I only came here to speak with her, and that little punk over there couldn't keep his mouth shut."
Briefly, Kahamo's eyes flashed to Anyu, then just as quickly back to Razuten. "I see. Well, whatever the case, I'm ending it now. You two speak peacefully with each other." And again, she was looking at Anyu. "And you best head home."
Anyu carefully watched as both teacher and firebender stated their cases. Despite the presence of the Avatar, he felt inclined to be wary of Razuten. Unfortunately, it also seemed he easily picked up his father's dislike of firebenders.
At the thought, his eyes narrowed on Razu, but his angered gaze was short-lived. Just the feeling of Kahamo's quick glance caused him to nervously shift closer to the teacher. Of course, he felt even more scared as she spoke directly to him, eyes settled on him now, as well.
And while he truly had no will to return home -- bothering Sasha was much more interesting -- he also knew there was no way he could talk back to the Avatar as he did to the teacher.
"Yes, ma'am." He muttered, nodding slightly. With that, he turned away, doing his best not to look back. Still, even as he concentrated, his gaze wandered back to the slowly shrinking scene. Sighing, he reached up to slide a finger along his necklace.
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:32 pm
As unfair as he claimed it, Anyu had been scolded upon his return. The sun had just barely begun to slide below the horizon. Truly, it hadn't been completely dark when he stepped foot into the well lit house, but it was now, just minutes later.
"I told you to be home before dark!" Sakari raised her voice, wanting to get her point across. "Yet you come home when the horizon is nearly empty!"
Anyu couldn't help but think that his mother had a strange way of expressing things. For what seemed a good long while, he merely stared up, his eyes locked on his mother's identical orbs. In a sort of habit, a gloved hand warily moved along the visible length of the trinket around his neck.
"Well, what do you have to say?"
Rather than lie, the twelve-year-old actually thought to tell the truth. But what a farfetched tale. Would his mother even believe it?
"I met the teacher today," he started slowly, gauging his mom's reaction to each word. And before he was even able to continue the excuse, Sakari's eyes sparkled like a little girl's and she moved a bit closer to her son.
"You did?" She seemed overjoyed at just the thought. "What did you think of her?"
Though Anyu had never met Sasha before that day, he'd readily refused her tutelage. His mother had always wanted him to be taught by her. 'Just like Iluak and Cikuq,' she'd chirp. 'You want to be like your big brothers.'
Anyu would always scoff internally at that. No, he didn't want to be like Cikuq in the least. Iluak, yeah, but not Cikuq.
"She was okay," he stated dryly, not wanting to disappoint his mother too much. Besides his eldest brother, she was his closest relation. Still, he had no intention of being taught by Sasha.
"Just okay? Well, alright." Stepping out of her son's personal space, she sighed. "Get to bed early." Despite how vague she'd been, the young boy knew that an early bedtime was his only punishment for coming home late.
"Alright." The submissive answer actually earned a smile from his mother. Bending to her son's height, she kissed him on the forehead and gently hugged him.
"Good night, Anyu."
"Night, Mom."
He watched, as she walked away, not even bothering to make sure he actually went to bed as she instructed. However, Anyu actually had the intention of sleeping. It was his sister's fault that he was sidetracked.
"Baby Brother," Yakone cooed, setting her arm on her short brother's head. "You got busted."
"Leave me alone," he hissed in response, not as kind with his sister as he had been with his mother. Angrily, he waved his arms at her. She stepped back, eyes slanting in annoyance.
"Touchy," she said bitterly. "Grow up, little baby." With that, she stormed off to her room.
And even though it was short, this meeting with his sister flared his temper and he knew well he'd have a hard time sleeping.
With a sigh, he stalked off to his room, only to stare at the shut door, unable to go inside. A long scar in the wood told of a past temper tantrum. Running his eyes along the damage made him remember.
"I don't want to!" The young child shouted, waving around the broken shell and barely missing his eldest sister's currently uncovered leg.
"Watch it, squirt!" Buniq raged, nearly lashing out at her brother, though her father caught her.
"Outside, Anyu."
"NO!" Again the shell was waved precariously. It was a long shell, sharp and strong, nearly like a knife. It was a wonder it had been broken in the first place. Thus was the power of nature.
"Outside." Amaguq's voice was low, but demanding and tough. It lent no room for the insolent replies of his son.
"I don't want to! I want to keep it!"
In one final flare, the child spun around, meaning to dash inside his room. His father caught hold of him, however, and he flailed wildly, lashing out. His entire present family, save for his father, retreated. And the lashing earned him nothing but an angry mark on his door.
His father had taken and gotten rid of the shell.
In his rememberance, Anyu had set his head against the scar, nearly leaning all his weight against the door.
"Something wrong?" Came a voice from behind him, startling the boy out of his daze. Shooting around, he looked up, rather happily, into the eyes of his oldest and most favored brother.
"Nope!" He feigned, smiling. And though Iluak seemed less than convinced, he took his brother's word and passed subjects.
"Get to bed," he said lightly, ruffling his brother's hair and causing even more strands to fall from the tie. Anyu didn't stray from the friendly touch. He seemed to savor it.
"Okay," he muttered, less than happy at the order, but more than happy to do as his brother said.
"Night, Kid."
"Night."
And finally Anyu was able to pass the scar and step inside his room. He didn't even bother to flip on the light. His bed was unmade and easy to fall into. Its inviting surface took quickly to lulling him and soon his slept. At least in sleep, there were no worries.
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:33 pm
• Meeting Whisper :: Pg. 46-52 • Actually leaving the house was probably Anyu's favorite part of the day. The boy breathed in the frosty air of mid-day, all but ready to forget the trials of his house and take up some other entertainment. If he was lucky, he might even come across Sasha. Annoying the teacher sounded particularly fun today.
"Be back before dark!" He heard from behind him. It was his mother's customary farewell.
"Fine," he shot back, kicking idly at the snow before walking off at a brisk pace. It didn't take long before he was on the path that'd led him to the shore just the other day. Sadly enough, he didn't see the teacher.
"Not like I care," he mumbled, kneeling to the water and sticking his gloved hand beneath the surface.
Well. There was another girl there. He'd just have to make do.
That is, if he even noticed her.
Whisper, naturally, was in a rather secluded area - high and dry! - sitting in ring of boulders. It made her feel a little safer - whenever she touched the ocean, it made her feel as if it was urging her to try bending.
So, she was drawing in a sand with a piece of turtle seal shell that she had found when she realized someone else was out there. Cautiously, she poked out her head between two particularily large slabs of rock, pushing the hood of her anorak slightly up and over her eyes to get a better look.
...Not that she was going to say anything.
The water bent slightly around his hand, as he willed it. Still, he knew full well that without proper stance the liquid would do nothing but swirl in fancy patterns. It was something he figured he'd get scolded for if Sasha happened to show. Whatever. Like he cared what she thought.
But thoughts of proper stance aside, he began to wonder what had happened that day after he left.
"Stupid firebender..." he mumbled. And through out all his pouting, he was oblivious to Whisper's presence, even if he supposedly prided himself on always being aware of his surroundings.
Whisper gasped audibly, then ducked down behind her coven of stone, anorak hood falling back over her face. The kid was doing waterbending!
And he seemed younger than her. That is, if his height was anything to go by.
She was a fair distance away, but the wind carried the low words over to her. Of course, some syllables got a little lost in translation. "upid...bend...
Whisper blinked. "Your bending isn't stupid," she finally said outloud, peeking over the boulders. Well, it did seem a little juvenile, at least compared the hers when she tried it, but she could make allowances. Since he was just a little kid.
Definitely not expecting such a small voice to call out to him, it took Anyu a moment to process it all. Finally, a rather confused expression took hold of his features and he pulled his hand from the water.
"What?" The boy questions, turning to look for whoever it was that had spoken. It wasn't long before he noted someone peeking out from behind a few boulders. Rising, he crossed his arms.
"I never said my bending was stupid," he muttered, his tone slight biting as if she'd done something horribly wrong through mis-hearing him.
'Who does this girl think she is, anyway?' he questioned in his head, playing superior. For now, he had such a luxury.
What could be seen of her mouth was curved into a benevolent smile - almost as if she was talking to a little boy. Of course, that's what Whisper thought she was doing, but Anyu definitely did not need to know that.
"A-are you sure?" she said, voice faltering slightly at his harsh tone. "I...must have heard wrong."
She fell into an awkward silence, in which Whisper nervously pulled the hood further over her face. Now nothing could be seen of it.
"What did you say?" she tentatively asked.
Domineering speech didn't get him very far at home or with many of the villagers. It was a strange surprise to suddenly have such an obvious effect on someone by merely speaking. Anyu had taken up such a tone to defend himself, not really to hurt anyone.
Still, Anyu was Anyu, and he wasn't quite ready to play nice just yet.
"None of your buisness," he rhetorted sourly. He was in a mood of sorts today. Not so good for his company.
Pacing up to the rockface, he stared up at her, as if trying to see her obscured features. When it seemed impossible, light blue eyes narrowed.
"Why do you hide your face?" He questioned, leaning his weight on one foot as he continued staring. "Do you want people to think you're weird?"
Whisper gave in quickly. She flinched at the retaliation, mumbling an "Okay then..." Her hands twitched and gripped on the rock she was sitting on as the boy came closer, as if she wanted to pick it up and hide under it.
Quick as a raindrop falling out of the sky, Whisper sank down behind her shelter, picking up the shell piece and drawing squiggles in the sand. "Does it make me seem weird?" Weird was a bad thing, right? She hesitantly pushed up the cloth, just enough so that her trembling frown could be seen. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be weird."
Having nothing more to look at now than rock, Anyu frowned. In some attempt to gain sight of her once more, he leaned back on his heals, barely noticing how far he bent his back before giving up.
Mumbling something about crazy girls and rocks, he stalked off around the boulder. He made it clear to her side just when her own frown was visible. And despite the fact that maybe he'd been enjoying finally being the dominant one in a conversation, he felt bad.
"No. Not really..." He muttered in answer, tightening his grip on his own arms. "I was just saying. People might think that."
"Do you think that?" Whisper idly sketched a wave-like symbol in the sand, before scribbling it out. "You probably do. I'm sorry for looking weird," she said again. Maybe if she said 'sorry' enough times, he'd be happier. "I'll stop doing it." Her nose and mouth were visible now, but nothing of her eyes.
After scratching an inch-deep ditch - her hand making the motion without her mind really thinking about it - she looked up at Anyu. Her eyes still were obcured by the fur-lined hood, but they appeared to be pointed in his direction. "What is your name, little boy?"
For a while he thought, and for a while he almost said he didn't think she was weird. He was about to open his mouth. He was about to reassure her. And then-
"Little?" He repeated in question, eyes narrowing. He was almost afraid to ask her just how old she thought he was. But oh, how he hated being talking down on.
Most, then again, probably all thoughts of pity and all ideas to be nice for once began to fade.
"I'm not little," he bit out, just able to keep his voice from rising. "I'm twelve." Had he a copper piece for every time he had to tell someone his true age, he'd be able to live on his own, without his family's wealth.
Whisper's eyes widened, although Anyu wouldn't be able to see that. Her mouth did open, though, forming into a small 'o' as if there was an invisible pebble between her lips. "Oh," she said.
There was a pause, then another: "I'm sorry. Really, I am. I'm not good with ages."
A second hesitation. "I'm twelve too. And you never answered the question?" The last sentence turned up at the end like a question in itself, making it sound not impudent at all, but rather apologetic.
Not good with ages. Bah. Like he believed that. He didn't think for a second to give her the benefit of the doubt. Shifting his weigh from one foot to the other, he watched her bitterly for what must've been an eternity.
"Anyu," he finally offered, lifting his weight to both feet and taking a step closer. In an angry huff, he flopped to a sit. "You?" The question was simple enough, though he adjusted his tone to try and sound uninterested. Of course, he wasn't the best at sounding anything but annoyed in such situations, so that's how it came out.
Now, this was interesting. For one thing, he actually answered the question, even though he was obviously annoyed at her. And second, he had asked her name in return. Which she was slightly hesitant to give.
"My name is Whisper," she pronounced slowly, her voice showing through her namesake.
She covered over the ditch in the sand that she had made, and wrote out:
W H I S P E R.
"Interesting name," he let out, staring at the etched letters before realizing that he was and stopping. He groped for something else to say. Silence tended to bother him.
"Your parents give it to you?" He finally decided on, shifting to lean on one arm. For a moment, he wondered if maybe her parents hailed from a different land. Whisper seemed like an unusual name for a Water Tribe girl.
"No, they called me Amanda." Whisper didn't know why she was telling him this. Maybe she still felt bad for calling him a little kid. "But the orphanage woman didn't know that and she named me Whisper - I guess I'm used to it now."
"What about you? What is your family like?" Surely he couldn't be an orphan, too. She would have met him before, wouldn't she have?
"Mm..." An orphan. He felt suddenly stupid. But then again, if she hadn't known her true name at first, but now she did, did that mean her parents were back? Anyu didn't much feel like mulling over someone else's confusing personal life, so instead he went along with her question.
"Too big," he mumbled. A good start. "They usually just ignore me or make fun of me," he drew out bitterly. "And too rich for there own stupid good." Pulling out of his cross-legged sit, he pulled on knee to his chest and set his arm to rest on it.
"Except my eldest brother..." He had to remember to add.
"Make fun of you...why?" she questioned. "What do your parents do for a living?" Whisper was confused. If he was rich, and he had a family, why was he always so irritable?
She barely caught the last fragment, so absorbed was she in drawing a penguin. Or something that looked vaguely like a penguin. "Your eldest brother. What is he like? I've never had one before." Obviously. She had to stop herself from asking if he was like a penguin - she was getting distracted.
"Because I'm short, why else?" Anyu snapped, wondering how she could've mistaken him for a little child and not understand why his siblings made fun of him. Sighing, he shook his head, knowing full well getting angry never got him anything at home, but he was still unable to keep annoyance from seeping from his person.
"My parents, I dunno, they're traders or something." Huffing, he flopped over, stretching out on the ground. Despite being unable to rid himself of his usual stresses, he had to admit it felt good having someone listen. He had no idea she was at all distracted.
"My eldest brother, he's the only one who's nice to me." He reached up to touch the beads around his neck. "He made me my necklace."
Whisper looked down at the penguin at the tone of his voice. "Oh," she said again. "You're not that short," she said after a beat.
She smiled and turned her face up again, to be able to look at the said necklace. After quietly observing it for a while, she agreed, "That was nice of him. Did he teach you bending, too?" She gestured with the piece of shell toward where he had been playing with the water before.
Rather interesting, the sky. Or so it would seem, considering Anyu's gaze was fixed to it now. Part of him wanted to believe her when she said he wasn't that short, but he knew he was. And so, he resolved as he always did while musing over his predicament, that one day he would look down on everyone. Yeah, sure would.
Finally letting his eyes leave the sky, he turned his head to look at Whisper. From his position below her, it was easier to see her face.
"It was a gift when I turned ten," he revealed, meaning the necklace. "But no, I taught myself." And at his own words, the teachers words returned. She had told him everyone needed a teacher. He still tried his best to doubt that.
Whisper noticed his new line of sight, and adjusted to fit it. "Does he give you something nice every birthday?" Whisper asked, looking even more at the ground. She usually got practical things - new clothes when they got too small for her, and once, the hairties that were wound around her braids.
Ah. So that was why he wasn't that good. "Impressive," she lied. It was different for her, the fact that she didn't have a teacher either. Whisper didn't want to learn bending. Unless, maybe for healing. But she had heard the teacher here looked down upon that kind of thinking.
"Not always," Anyu said, thinking back to the things he'd gotten. "For my fifth, he got me a woven mat. For my eighth, he got me a permanent ice crystal." His gaze left Whisper once more for the sky as he idly folded his arms behind his head.
"He says it's not good to get too many nice things or you might forget who you are." The boy scoffed. "He oughta tell that to our parents. They have so many ugly ornaments..." Shutting his eyes, he listened and heard the compliment. It made him remember how pitifuly he'd done against the teacher and the firebender.
"If you say so," he muttered, for once in his life actually beginning to doubt his self-taught skills. Stupid teacher...
"That is good advice. Your brother must be very wise," Whisper said. "But it is nice to get things like that every once in a while." She tried not to make the self-pity evident in her voice; no doubt this fellow wasn't the type for listening to other's woes and griefs.
To make up for it, she tried to smile again. "Hearing you talk about your parents that way," she said as lightly as possible, "almost makes me glad to be an orphan." Almost.
"And I do say so," she added. Anything to put him in a good mood...
"I guess I'd be lying if I said I wished I were an orphan," Anyu stated truthfully. It was rather surprising how he seemed to open up when someone actually took the time to listen. By now, most of the annoyance had faded from his tone, save for the little bit that was always there. It was like some sort of defence mechanism.
"But my brother is wise. More than my parents." Opening his eyes, he sat up suddenly.
"And don't lie," he shot, his voice adopting a little of the bite it'd lost only a while before. "How could you know if you've never seen me actually bend more than a few swirls in the water?" His gaze narrowed slightly, but it was more expectant than upset.
"One should never wish such a thing," Whisper agreed again. "Besides, the orphanage caretaker - " she looked around before continuing " - can be a little annoying," she confided. "Though her intentions are always good. I bet your parents and the rest of your family have good intentions, too. But maybe only your brother knows how to show them." This was good, he was becoming less bark and more...leaf. Even if he wasn't an Earthbender.
"Any bending is impressive, to me. I'm not very good at it." You just don't let yourself be good at it, an inner voice, a bolder voice, the one that had shouted at her mother when she had come back, chided. But she pushed it down, looking very humble indeed.
"If you say so." The response was the same as earlier, for it conveyed the same point that he wasn't quite sure himself. Settling back down, he moved to a cross-legged position, resting his elbow on his knee and his chin on his hand. And so, he did his best to transition back to the more normal part of their conversation.
"My brother must be the most lucky of my kin, myself included." Anyu drawled, face slouching against his gloved hand. "I try not to envy him." Sighing, he shifted his head to his other hand. "I wonder if I was orphaned, would I envy those with parents?" Rather than a statement, it came as a question with another expectant look attached.
"I do say so," said Whisper seriously again. She was getting the distinct feeling of deja vu, albeit a minor one.
She sighed at his next question, averting her own gaze from the anticipative glance. Obviously, it was an awkward subject for her. "I don't know about the other orphans. Maybe...I really am weird, and think differently. But I don't like my mum anyhow. I don't want to go back and live with her."
As if to humor her, Anyu looked away, as well. He took to watching a nearby rock, however uninteresting it may've been.
"Everyone has their own opinion." He stated simply when she'd finished. That was one thing he knew, if anything. Throughout his life, his opinion had been constantly trampled by his own family. Thus, perhaps it was this self-experience that helped with understanding.
Still, he felt weighed down now. Going outside and taking walks had always been his way to escape stress. Trying to fully comprehend the choices of a girl he'd just met was a bit draining. Picking himself up, he brushed off his coat and stretched his almost stiff back.
"Wanna take a walk?" He asked idly, scanning their surroundings. He tended to visit each part of the shore equally, so he was rather familiar with the area.
Whisper caught with her periphiral vision Anyu's mimicry, and remembered her promise to stop 'being weird'. She turned back, although still kept her eyes glued to the penguin drawing still scritched into the sand.
"That is true. But sometimes a person's opinion doesn't matter to other people," she said, almost as if reading his mind.
His sudden invitation surprised her. "A - a walk?" she stuttered, finally lifting her head to look at him full in the eye, in her surprise. "Sure - I guess - that'd be fine."
For a second, Anyu found himself childishly wondering if she had in fact read his mind. But he shook the thought away almost as quickly as it came.
"Come on then," he muttered, offering his hand to help her up. It was probably one of the nicest things he'd done for anyone. It was an old habit of his not to hand out favors to anyone who hadn't done something for him. Well, she'd listened to him and had apologized after mistaking his age. She was one of the few. So, he supposed she deserved a favor in return.
She didn't take the hand right away, and her grip was tentative - as if expecting it to retreat at her touch - but she smiled brightly enough. "Thank you." This Anyu is as nice as his brother, she thought decidedly. Just as rare for Anyu to do such a kind thing did people talk to her so much, nevermind invite her for a walk.
"Where are we going?" Whisper asked, turning her head to look at the expanse of icy beach.
"Welcome..." Anyu muttered, reclaiming his hand once she'd risen. The same hand then moved up to gently glide along his necklace, a little worried habit he'd picked up after almost losing it in the snow the first time.
Turning just enough to follow her gaze, he shrugged, but mulled over the question nonetheless.
"This way," he decided, barely pointing. He remembered a few solid chunks of ice that were reachable from the shore. If you climbed across them, there was a small cave-like structure with a few ice crystals.
Her hidden gaze followed the hand, and she sighed again softly, her own hand touching the end of her braid, where the dark-blue hairties were twined. Maybe if she made that into her habit, like Anyu's, she would become more interesting, and not as weird.
Whisper shrank a little, the eyes going from the hand to the pointing finger. "Are we going to go into the water?" She was proud that her voice barely trembled, although in truth her heart jumped uneasily.
Anyu was ready to get going, but her voice stopped him. Turning to look at her again, he shook his head. Still, he supposed his couldn't just say no.
"Not if you don't slip," he said, more affirming than a mere nod. "You're not clumsy, are you?" He then questioned, raising a brow. If she was, that might be a problem. He supposed he could try and help her, but where he'd been thinking of going, you really had to get there on your own ability.
"So we're going out...over the water? How?" Whisper's head turned across the wide expanse of water, noticing the ice chunks. "...oh."
The scanning motion turned into a shake of the head that nearly upset her anorak's hood. Patting it back in place, she confirmed, "No more than the other person." But she still appeared a little apprehensive.
As he was about to answer, he own scan revealed it and he decided she understood well enough. Despite her worry, he began walking. They were burning daylight.
"It's okay," he reassured, surprised at his own ability to sound friendly rather than bite her head off for being afraid. "I won't let you fall. So, come on." He waved his hand, calling her to follow. The sooner they got there, the easier it would be for him to convince her. Climbing ice chunks really wasn't so hard.
Whisper followed obediently, murmuring a soft "Thank you."
After a fleeting thought and a moment's pause, she also swept her head clear of the anorak hood, keeping dark eyes averted from the weak sunlight. She might need a better expanse of sight to keep her balance.
She nearly bumped into Anyu as they neared the ocean, so preoccupied was she in keeping her gaze to the ground.
After a while of walking, the iced beach seemed to spread out into nothing but ocean. However, a rather close-grouped path of ice chunks floated silently on the mellow waters. Stopping at the edge, he looked over his shoulder to Whisper.
"Just be careful, okay?" He said, hoping not to have to fish her out of the freezing water. Still, he had told her he wouldn't let her fall... He supposed he'd have to at least try and catch her if she slipped.
The first ice chunk was wide and smooth, but luckily it was covered with enough snow to cut down on the slipperiness. Anyu only slid a tiny bit when he first took a step on its surface.
She was tempted to shut her eyes, but that wouldn't help - it would only disorientate her perception and balance, not to mention it was the touch and not the sight of water that frightened her. Whisper gave a wordless nod in response.
She took a deep breath and with it, the first step.
Surprise, surprise. She didn't fall. Whisper proffered a timid grin at Anyu. "This isn't so bad."
Standing rather comfortably on the floating ice, Anyu smiled, though it was a rather tentative smile, as it was not offered to many. Looking out fondly on the floating walkway, he nodded.
"See, no problem." The next chunk, however, was not so big as the first. It was a much smaller piece wedged between to large ones. "The next one we'll have to go separately. Wait until I'm on the third one before you start." Once instruction was given, he moved onto the next one, arms out for balance. And it wasn't long before he was waiting on the third one for her.
Whisper bobbed her head up and down, eager to agree with his instructions. Indeed, she almost waited too long, pacing the first slab of ice nervously for several seconds after Anyu gave the okay. Then she took the next step, wobbling slightly. "Have you come this way often?" she asked. Anyu appeared like he was in his element here.
Cautiously, she rested one foot on the edge of the third piece of ice, pushing herself up and edging forward.
"A few times," Was all he admitted. But truly, Anyu did enjoy climbing across floating ice. There were many places he crossed that were smaller and much more narrow, but despite the easy level of this area, he enjoyed it most because of the end.
Ever since his eight birthday and the ice crystal gift, he'd been more inclined to come here and compare his own crystal to the ones still forming there. His was always better, he decided. Too bad he hadn't brought it today.
Just three chunks away was a small ice formation, not unlike a glacier. Around it, on the other side, was their heading: the small ice cave. It couldn't really be considered a cave, it was very small, but he wasn't sure what else to name it.
"Okay, the next two are pretty easy to cross, so I'll meet you at the second one." He nodded slightly and started off. His boots skid a bit on the first, but once he'd reached the second and relaxed, he seemed perfectly content.
"You're pretty good at this," she observed in return. "Are there other paths than this one?"
By now, Whisper had gathered enough courage to step along the ice with real confidence. Which was her mistake. Nodding back, she skipped across the first and jumped to the second. Her boot hit a slippery patch, and consequently shot out from under her, a petulant squeak forcing its way from her mouth. Luckily, she didn't fall into the water, although she did hit her head rather hard.
"...oops," she said sheepishly.
"All kinds," he stated in answer, watching her come with crossed arms. She seemed to be getting the hang of it- or so he'd thought. As soon as she went down just next to him, he startled, nearly falling from the ice himself.
"Are you okay?" He asked, regaining enough balance to step over to her. She seemed alright, but he'd learned not to take head injuries too lightly. Once, the youngest of his sisters had slipped and knocked her head. His mother had been frantic. It was one of the few times he remembered truly fearing for a sibling.
Bending down to her, he sighed. "Can you keep going?"
She seemed to be all right. At least she was sane enough to reply: "I'm fine. Do they all lead to caves?" picking up their conversation. Her gloved hand gestured in the direction of the not-far-off cave as she picked herself up. "Where's the next step we should take?" she asked, looking for the next ice chunk.
Well, she seemed fine enough, then. Once she'd stood with no problems, he did, as well.
"Not all of them, some just lead out to no where or to a far off glacier." Stepping slowly across the surface, he moved closer to the large ice formation holding the cave. It seemed for a moment that he was scanning the water, but really he was looking for a certain foot-hold. Once he'd spotted it, he pointed it out to Whisper.
"See that? You have to step on that and then over to that ledge." He moved his pointing finger along the length of the edge to where it ended on a large platform.
"If you think you're gonna fall, just grab onto the ice form," he continued, pointing to the large almost-glacier the ledge was attached to. "Okay?" He would wait for her to decide she could do it before starting across himself.
"Sounds simple enough." Watching Anyu for a second to see how it was done, she quickly followed suit, although not too quickly. Whisper had learned her lesson.
Although she didn't have to grab onto the glacier-form to keep going, she did take the chance to blow out her breath in a steamy mist and watch it freeze to the side of the ice.
As he'd expected, there were no problems crossing the ledge. He'd at least hoped she would learn from the mistake and he would want to hide before losing his ability to cross ice chunks.
"Alright, not much further." He moved across to the edge of the ice, glancing around for the final step to the cave. This one was the most dangerous. It moved much more freely than the others and was sometimes not even in the same place as it had been the last time. But luckily, he spotted it easily.
"All we have to do it take turns stepping across that piece-" he pointed to the one he'd been looking for "-and then over to the ice platform with the cave." Tentatively, he tested the movement of the next chunk with a foot before stepping onto it. He wobbled only slightly, then moved off to the platform.
Like a dog approaching a possibly poisonous bone, Whisper crouched down and poked it with the tip of her foot, before cautiously moving across it, arms spread out and knees unconciously bent.
She sighed a very audible sigh of relief as she reached safe land, then her gaze turned wary as they turned toward the cave. "Is there anything...dangerous in there?" What if there was some vicious animal? Then she'd have to use her bending abilities.
"Dangerous?" Anyu echoed. "Nah." Walking up to the entrace, he rubbed his hand along the ice. "Just don't yell or the crystals might break off the ceiling and fall on you." He was mostly exaggerating. It would take quite a bit to get the long-frozen ice to fall.
"Come on," he coaxed, walking easily into the cave. It wasn't at all deep and at the end was the best part. There were so many crystals all in one group that you were reflected all around. The little bit of light from the opening also caused them to glow many colors.
"It's not far," he said, looking back to make sure she was following.
O-kay. That sounded pretty dangerous to Whisper, but she wasn't about to pipe up and show her cowardice any more than she already had.
Her worries were forgotten, however, the second she stepped into the cave. Ice crystals glittered here and there, and it was such a secluded place she felt right at home. "This...is beautiful," she said, voice touched with awe.
She bent over to inspect one sharp ice crystal, wondering privately to herself what kind of bending could be done with ice, and thinking that this would be a dangerous place to get in a fight with another Waterbender.
"Isn't is?" Anyu spoke out, though it was more of a rhetorical question. Still, he couldn't relax completely, not even here. Every time he came, he wondered just how bad his brothers would tease him and how many times he would be called cute by his sisters if they knew he was calling anything beautiful.
Sighing, he sat down near the wall, leanly idly against it and watching Whisper go about her inspection. He'd already explored and memorized every inch of this place, himself. Habitually touching his necklace, he shut his eyes, feeling the cold of sitting against ice already starting to slip through his thick clothing.
"Yes," Whisper replied softly, despite the uselessness of answering. "What's the matter?" she asked next, noticing his slightly uncomfortable manner with much worry, although not for him. Was she making him uneasy? Did that mean she was weird? Back to the old lament, like a toothache in the mouth of her mind.
She tried to forget it as she examined another crystal, touching it carefully with her index finger, as if it was fragile and would break.
Anyu opened his eyes to watch her again. Reluctantly, he started to rise from the ground. For a minute or two, it almost seemed he wouldn't answer. Then he found himself wandering over to her, bending down to look at the same crystal she was currently examining.
"Nothing. I was just thinking about my family." He muttered, setting his chin on his knees. "My siblings, except for my oldest brother, would make fun of me for coming here." Now that he explained it to someone and actually thought about his own words, his siblings sure did make fun of him for a lot. What luck, being the runt of the litter.
"Are you the youngest, then?" Whisper said sympathetically. She was an only child, biologically (at least that she knew of), but most of the older children in the orphanage tended to look down on her and her quiet ways. She voiced this to Anyu.
She waved a hand vaguely toward the glittering wonders. "Are there different types of ice crystals? I bet you know a lot."
Anyu nodded slightly when asked if he was the youngest. And though he was strong enough to handle it, sometimes it was difficult. Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he felt a little smile tug at his mouth.
"We're not so different, then." He stated, watching as she pointed out the crystals and asked him about them. For a moment, he wondered if she was trying to make him feel better, but he pushed away the thought and moved on to the explaination at hand.
"Well, I don't know too much..." he started, eyeing the familiar ice gems. "But I don't think that the crystals are really different, except for how they were formed." He scanned the formation for a thin looking shard and reached down, breaking it off.
"Very rarely, water'll drip from the ceiling. When it gets caught on the walls and floor, it starts to form the crystals." He held up the piece he'd broken. "This one was formed from a few drops, then the water stopped dripping there and the crystal was left small and weak."
Setting the crystal down, he moved his hand to a larger, thicker looking form. His fingers strained obviously against the ice, but he was unable to break it at all.
"This one was formed from a lot of drops in the same place, probably over a long time." He examined the top, noting the small indent where water hit still hardening ice. "The water probably still drips here, too." He finished.
"We're both the same age, we're both Waterbenders, and we're both teased by our older siblings," she ticked off on her fingers. "We're practically the same! Although you're better at waterbending than me," Whisper added, looking slightly downtrodden.
She paid extreme attention to his description, nodding after each sentence. "Have you ever seen one form over time?"
"We don't know that," Anyu rhetorted to her final assumption. "You've never seen me bend for real and I've never seen you bend, at all." Before, he would've readily agreed with her. But now, she was his first real friend and he didn't want to do anything to mess that up. For once, the benefit of the doubt was given.
He rose at her question, stretching out his legs before moving off a ways. "Over here," he called once he'd located the specific crystal he'd been looking for.
"Even your little bit of bending is better than mine," Whisper protested back. "Sometimes it doesn't work at all for me." Like when she was feeling the least self-confident.
She scurried after him then crouched down next to the crystal he had indicated, watching it silently. In the few seconds of quiet, she heard something she hadn't heard over their talking."Whisper! Whisper! Time to come back!"It was the orphanage caretaker. That old woman could shout a lot louder than first presumed at first glance.
"I've got to go, Anyu." There was an apologetic tone in there, as Whisper stood up regretfully and flipped the hood back over her head. "But let's come back here another time, okay?" Without waiting for an answer, she dashed out of the cave, skipping across the ice chunks with a speed contradictary to the caution and fright from before. "Bye!' she called.
"Bye," Anyu said quietly, though she'd already gone. Glancing back to the crystal he'd watched grow since first coming to this place, he sighed. Well, it's not like he would never see her again. They lived in the same village.
Slipping out of the cave, he moved across the floating ice, though at a much more mellow speed than Whisper had. And once he'd reached land, he slowly moved off towards home.
He didn't much want to go back, but it was starting to get dark, anyway.
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:34 pm
"Dinner!"
"I don't want any."
For once, Anyu retreated to his room upon returning home. He wasn't even distracted by his sisters' teasing or his mother muttering that her son was too skinny to skip a meal.
For living in the same village over the twelve years of his life, he couldn't sat he had any friends. The other children seemed always envious or afraid of his family. They only approached him if they had to.
But today had been different. For once, he didn't feel judged for the possessions and wealth he never asked for or wanted.
Flopping down on his bed, he glanced idly around the room. It was full with things he never used and didn't want. Only a few trinkets of real personal value caught his eye. Just this thought made him sigh.
He didn't want all of these good, imported things. He wanted to live a simple life, like the rest of the villagers.
Rising from his bed, he tugged at the covers, causing them to slide off and land haphazardly atop and around the woven mat, a gift from Iluak. Grinning down at his work, he nodded internally. This would do.
Settling down on the pile, he kicked off his boots, glad for the heavy socks that still protected his feet from the cold. In being so used to the comforts of an actual bed, it too Anyu a little bit to find a comfortable position. Once he had, however, his mind set to wandering...
Only to be interrupted by yelling.
The words were hard to hear. They were garbled by the cloth and walls. Still, suddenly felt even gladder he'd skipped dinner.
And it was only a minute or so later that there was a knock on his door.
"What?" He called out, icy blue eyes narrowing in annoyance. No one usually bothered him once he was in his room. It was the only time he was safe from the teasing of his siblings.
"Can I come in?" It was Tunerk. Why, he wondered, would his introvert brother, whom he rarely talked to, be asking to come in?
"Yeah..." He said after slight hesitation, watching warily as the door slipped slowly open and his fifteen-year-old brother entered.
Tunerk had always been the fairest skinned of the family. As fair skinned as a one from the Water Tribe could be, anyway. But tonight he seemed paler than usual.
"Can I stay with you tonight?" The elder asked quietly, almost inaudibly. He seemed to be looking around nervously.
"Um." Anyu wasn't sure what to say.
"Please."
Finally, the twelve-year-old found himself nodding, the signal barely caught by his brother.
"Thanks." Was the proffered response. And with that, Tunerk moved off to sit in the corner, pulling his knees to his chest and pulling into himself.
"You can use the bed." Anyu offered, not planning on using it himself this night. But the offer was merely given a shake of the head and a soft answer.
"No, thank you."
"Okay..."
The silence that followed ate at the younger. Before, while alone, silence was no problem, but this was uncomfortable. Heaviness hung over the brothers. Anyu knew something was wrong, but didn't want to ask.
"Could you... get me a book?"
Anyu hadn't been expecting the question. Sitting up, he raised a curious brow. Normally, he would've snapped that he'd been nice enough to let the other stay, so he wasn't about to go out of his way for such a trivial thing. But there was something about his brother's expression as he gazed down at his knees that rendered even the young heart.
"Which one?" He rose, tugging off his parka and tossing it over one of the posts of his bed.
"Any."
So he snuck out of his room. And if he thought the tension inside had been bad, out in the main home, it hung heavier than lead. Padding quietly to Tunerk's room, he pushed past the thin wood door. At least his brother's room was clean. It was easy to find a nice, fat book to take back.
Holding the book tightly to his form, Anyu snuck out of his brother's room. And just as he was pulling the door shut behind him, a voice resounded.
"What are you doing?"
Snapping to attention, he swung around, now holding the book at his back.
"Nothing, sir," he lied obviously. His father seemed less than convinced, but wasn't in the mood to argue it. Sighing, the grown man stalked off to his own large room with nothing but a glare in the boy's direction.
Letting out the breath he'd been holding, Anyu practically ran back to his room and would've bolted the door, were it possible.
"Thank you, Anyu," Tunerk said before the book was even offered.
"Yeah... Welcome." Handing over the hard-covered story, he retreated to his pile again, flopping down listlessly.
In the silence that followed, the same thick silence as before, Anyu's mind raced. He knew why his brother had sought refuge with him, now. He couldn't have gone to their sisters, Cikuq would've turned him away, laughing, and Tunerk, though he wouldn't admit it, was actually afraid of the kind Iluak because of the favor the eldest held with their father.
"Dad again?" Anyu questioned.
"Yeah."
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:35 pm
• A Place for Friends -- With Whisper :: Guild •
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 9:02 am
Just outside of his overdone home, Anyu watched the setting sun. It'd been a few years since he'd stood here exactly, staring intently into the distance and waiting for a specific form to move into view. Oppositely, it had been sunrise then. They had decided to meet early. He'd even gone to bed as soon as possible to ensure he wouldn't oversleep.
Lifting a hand, he rubbed his head, letting out a grumble. Despite the tough front he put on, it still burned when he thought about it. The years had done little to diminish the hurt. She'd never showed up. Whisper had never come... And it had been her idea! He couldn't understand. And not matter how weak it sounded, with each day that passed after her strange disappearance from his life, he felt more and more betrayed.
Turning away from the last light, the now teenaged bender moved back to the house. It would be his sixteenth birthday soon. He had really hoped his best friend would be there. Even if she had missed every birthday since they'd met, he still wondered if she would show up at his door, holding some sort of scrounged together gift, unable to afford anything else. But something like that would've been treasured more than the most expensive present.
Stepping inside, Anyu kicked his boots against the ground, knocking snow this way and that. His mother would probably scold him for dirtying the house she tried so hard to keep clean. At this point, he was okay with that. It didn't really matter.
Heading down the hall, he noticed Tunerk loitering outside his door. "Hey," he greeted idly, pushing open the untouched door and letting his older brother move inside first. They spent a lot of time together now. While time with Iluak was always his favorite, his eldest brother was getting too old to hang around the house all the time. So now, Anyu was glad for the kinship that had been forged between he and Tunerk. And the respect for personal space that Tunerk had didn't hurt, either. Most of his other siblings would've pushed in and destroyed his room rather than waiting for him outside.
Without a word, Tunerk moved to what the youngest had dubbed 'the quiet corner.' His brother always sat there, never accepting an offer to occupy the bed, the mat, or anything closer. Picking up his book, Tunerk began to read.
"Dad hasn't come home yet, has he?" Anyu questioned, kicking off his boots as he sat on the bed. Whenever their father was away on business, the house seemed so much more peaceful.
"No, not yet," Tunerk answered shortly, eyes still trained on the words before him.
"Good."
With a heavy sigh, Anyu settled back onto his bed, not bothering to pull the covers over himself. Time was still on his mind. It had been a long time... No. He shook his head. Tomorrow he would go for a walk and clear his mind.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 9:04 am
• Fire and Water -- Meeting Ina :: Guild •
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 11:17 am
"You want to what...?" Sakari hadn't heard such talk in a long, long while. About four years ago, her son and his friend had come to her with a similar proposition. "You want to go where?" Brows furrowed. She had been secretly glad when Whisper hadn't shown up. And no matter how old her boy got, she still didn't like the idea of him leaving her.
"I want to go to the Fire Nation," he answered. "...For the Spirit Day festival," he added quickly. Yeah, almost forgot that part. And surprisingly, it seemed to make a difference.
"The festival? Really?" His mother's eyes brightened. She always did carry an interest in world affairs. If it was the peace of the world he wanted to celebrate, she could admit she felt more inclined to let him go and enjoy himself. "What sort of festival is it this year, do you know? How do you plan on getting there?"
Anyu sighed internally, although he had expected a barrage of questions before she gave any sort of consent. "It's a masquerade." If possible, she looked more excited. For a moment he thought she'd ask to come along with him. "And my..." he hesitated. "... friend, Ina, is taking me."
"Oh, a new friend?" It looked like she forgot about the actual trip after learning he'd made a new friend. Her son never was social enough for her. "Do I get to meet them?"
"Mom..." Anyu dragged on, sounding almost like a kid again. Now wasn't the time, not when he was trying to get permission to go somewhere. If Ina wanted to meet his family, then he would bring her by. Then again, he couldn't understand why anyone would want to meet most of his family.
"Alright, alright..." she gave in, shaking her head. "Bring them by if you think about it." Looking around the room, she let out a sigh. "I think it's a good thing to go to one of the festivals one day... We'll have to get you something nice to wear."
A very gentle smile came to Anyu's face. Only his mother saw that expression most of the time. "Thanks, mom."
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 11:37 am
• Spirit Day Masquerade :: Thread •
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Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 11:16 am
It was almost... Was it colder than he remembered? It had been his very first trip to anywhere that wasn't constantly snowy. Maybe that was why, upon setting foot in his homeland once more, Anyu almost shivered, even with his thick anorak back on. Or perhaps it was something else all together. The realization had dawned on him on the ride back. It would be his last time here in... Well, he had no idea how long they would be at sea before returning to the Southern Tribe. This place was nice for tradition wares and well-carved whatnots, but it would probably be just as easy (and maybe even cheaper) to purchase them in the Northern Tribe. So, would they have much of a reason to return after this.
Along the edge of the water, with the dock and ship still in sight, he stopped. Leaning to the clear ocean at his feet, he lifted and moved a hand, watching with idle disinterest as his own inherited powers, as weak and unpracticed as they were, bent the water into a slight swirl. Ina had praised him for being a Waterbender, saying they were perfect for sailing or something like that. But would his skill really be sufficient for anything at all? When she had first sprung the whole crew question on him, his emotions immediately screamed yes, but knowing how useless he really was, he had told her he needed time to think. Finally, nearing the shores of his frozen homeland, he'd found himself calling her over and agreeing. It was time to get out of here. The sight of the horizon of the Tribe had been so much nicer than the sights within.
Scoffing slightly, the young teen pulled away from the edge. The village was not his destination, but rather the route around it. Technically speaking, it would've been faster to head home through the marketplace instead of the way he had in mind. But ah well. He preferred avoiding other people. Hm. Well, he supposed he'd have to get over that to work on a ship. That was something he would worry about later.
For now, his thoughts slipped between his mother and his new superior of sorts. Ina had told him to go home without her for now, enabling him to speak with his family alone and get ready to go. He was sure his father would put on an indifferent expression. But his mother... She would argue and be unwilling. He knew her well enough for that. However, Sakari really had no say in the matter. Anyu had already made up his mind. Love and what little common courtesy he had were the only things that kept him from telling the captain to forget the Southern Tribe and turn the ship around. Ah... And the need to pack a few things, too. Maybe he wasn't an adult yet and maybe she could try and use her authority to stop him, but... He shook his head, shooing away the vivid images of his mother's attempts to be strong.
It didn't take as much time to reach home as he felt it should have. Standing outside and staring at all the ornamental items littering the snowy lawn, he couldn't help but sigh. These things reminded him once again just why he wanted to get out of here. It might had been nothing but a cliche and corny idea, but this wasn't the life he wanted. Something simple, the ability to work and support himself... They ability to.... have friends who wanted to be with him for more than an expensive gift after the fact. Bah. How stupid.
Pacing forward, he pushed into the house, looking around and not noticing anyone at first. That wasn't too unusual, he guessed. His siblings weren't kids anymore either. They were usually out during the day. "Mom?" Nothing. "Mom, hey?!" Hm... She was probably at the market. Probably would've come across her if he'd manned up and gone through the crowds.
"Anyu?!" Eyes widened and his gaze quickened to one of the flaps separating different portions of the house. Had she really not heard him before? "Welcome home!" she exclaimed before he could think further, nearly running to her son and pulling him into a hug as tight as her little body could give. "Everyone missed you." He doubted that. "I'm glad to see you home safe." Peeking over his shoulder, his mother's expression moved to a soft frown. "So I really don't get to meet your friend? I was looking forward to it." At that, Anyu's own once placid expression sharpened a bit.
"Don't worry... I'll introduce her to you." He couldn't tell her about his plan now. Not just yet. He'd been home for only minutes and she was too happy. It would have to be soon, but not now. Letting out a little breath, he pulled back from her. "Ina, remember?" Sakari nodded, smiling softly. "I'll make sure to remember when she comes to visit." Humming gently, she moved off to prepare a little something for him to eat before dinner, despite the fact that he didn't have the chance to say he wasn't hungry.
Giving her retreating form one last glance, he moved off to his room to start getting ready. It would only be a day or two before he had to go meet up with Ina again and bring her here. He was planning to be completely packed before then. Not that he had much he really wanted to bring. Only the essentials...
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Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 11:53 pm
The few days had passed slowly and it was time. With unexpected difficulty, Anyu had told his mother of his plans. She had reacted exactly as he'd expected. It took at least an hour to convince her that this was what he wanted and needed, to be free of this place. She had tentatively agreed and he'd moved to his room with a quickness to finalize his packing before she could change her mind and get emotional again.
Everything was finally packed. It wasn't much, just like he'd assumed. Just a small pack with what he needed: a few changes of clothing and a money pouch were the main things. Of course, the pounch was nearly stuffed, his mother having come in and forced the currency on him. In all honesty, he was already hoping she wouldn't bring up the topic of funds around Ina. Yes, he would be well supported for his work, he was sure, but no, he didn't want his mom to be nosy and he didn't want Ina to know how much money his family had. After all, he never really considered his parents' wealth his own. Shaking his head, he reached to the last thing sitting out on the bed. It was the blue and white crane mask he'd been gifted at the masquerade. And, as much as he knew he wouldn't need such a thing on the ship, he carefully wrapped one of his spare anoraks around it and shoved it into the bag with a placid expression.
Turning away from the bag, he stretched lightly, moving towards the door with a plan to step out and get a little fresh air. However, on his way towards the entrance, he heard light steps behind him and a soft, familiar voice. "You're really leaving?" Looking back slowly, Anyu took in the sight of one of his older brothers, the only sibling (besides the eldest) that he actually got along with. "Yeah." Came the short answer.
Tunerk wore a mostly unreadable expression as he reached out, grabbing his younger brother's hand and pulling him gently in the direction he'd originally been heading. Surprised by the sudden and unusual touch, Anyu had to mentally steady himself to keep from yanking away thoughtlessly. Mumbling, he let himself be led for now, thinking maybe there was something important going on that he just didn't quite understand. Once they'd reached the outside, Tunerk let go, looking off into the distance with a strange expression. "H-hey..." The younger began. But before he could finish his thought in the least, the other started up.
"I'm glad."
Anyu's eyes widened. What was that now?
"I'm glad you're getting out of here." Tunerk let out a little breath, gaze lowering to the snow at his feet. "One day, I'd like to leave here, too..... When you get established on the ship, make sure to come back and visit." Turning back, the elder brother smiled softly, an expression that Anyu rarely saw on the usually depressed looking brother. The look reminded him quite a bit of their mother. "That's all. You can go back inside if you want."
At this point, Anyu really had no idea what to say. Frowning, he too took in the sight of the crystalline snow. ".... Thanks..."
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Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 11:55 pm
• Meeting Mom -- With Ina :: Guild •
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