passion & pain. ((zuko x o.c.))

avatar state?!

"AANG! AANG!" Katara's voice rings through my ears, which feel like blocks of ice... weighing me down... making me sink. I'm suspended in the icy South Pole water, my body sore after falling into the surface of the water. Ow... everything hurts. Maybe I'll rest... yeah, I like the sound of that.

"NI!! NIKARA!!" Sokka shouts from above. My eyebrows twitch and furrow at the familiar voice, but I just... can't open my eyes. Aang... if you can hear me... Please wake up... 

Aang doesn't move, and my body unthinkingly makes me breathe in. I choke on frigid water as it enters my lungs, consuming all my body heat from the inside, but my eyes still won't open. As I sink hopelessly into the water, I realize there's nobody to save me...

But me.

I feel a warm glow all around me, and open my eyes involuntarily. Everything is blurry, in shades of blue and red, and my head is spinning, like I'm not the only one controlling my body. Aang is next to me, his brows furrowed, his eyes and tattoo glowing a bright white. We spin, and twist up water from beneath us. I can't feel my fingers, yet we're doing master-level waterbending?! 

As our twin columns of water climb, we erupt onto the surface of the water, rearing our pillars of ocean down towards the ship. We take matching stances, and I watch Zuko's eyes widen as we push all the Fire Nation soldiers to the edges of the ship. My head feels light, and the red-and-blue glow fades from my eyes and brain as I collapse, as does Aang, but not without seeing Zuko's look of sheer astonishment from the outside edge of the ship. 

Katara and Sokka land Appa and go down, Katara flocks to Aang, while Sokka comes to me. "Nikara? Are you okay? Also, how did you...do that." 

I cough out water, and rub my head, as I say, "Ugh. I don't really... know. It was like I wasn't even in charge of my own body..." I shake my head. "And everything was red, and blue, and my head was all..."

"Hey, uh, Sokka?" Aang croaks. "My, uh, glider, can you grab it for me?" He points to the glider, which is hanging half on half off the ship precariously.

"Yeah, got it- AHH!" Sokka yelps, after seeing a certain ponytailed prince dangling off the edge. He moves Aang's staff back and forth, and Zuko drops down the ledge. "Ha! That's from the Water Tribe!!" 

I slowly crawl up, and peer at the prince's scarred face from on the ship. "What." he growls, his face contorted. "do you want."

"Oh, it's nothing," I smirk. "It's just... kinda like our roles are reversed, hm? I could just step on your hand, and plop! You'd fall right into the water; right out of your element." 

His eyes widen, and he furrows his brows. "You would't..." he pants. "You're too soft... too weak to make the final blow." He frowns, and mutters something barely audible to himself. "Just like... I was..."

I look at him, a hint of curiosity in my red-gold eyes. "Ni! They're back, we gotta go!!" Katara yells. I look at her, then back at Zuko, and smugly salute him in farewell. 

"Hasta la vista, Ponytail."

"Tch."

I run over to Appa, and use some of the water on the ship to propel me upwards. Sokka jumps onto Appa, frantically shouting something like "Yip yip!" It seems to work, because the fluffy cow lets out a groan and flaps its tail, gaining altitude and soaring into the sky. 

I let out a breath and peer over the edge of Appa's huge saddle-like thing, only to see Zuko and and older man up on the ship, aiming their fists at us, attempting to shoot us down. I squint at the area, and bring up some water to help Aang out on this one. 

Aang!  I signal him to jump, and somehow he does, fully in my trust. 

As the fireball shoots closer and closer to us, Aang lands on the icy platform I made just behind Appa, twirling his glider and shooting out a huge gust of air. It collides with the fireball and flings it sideways, knocking ice down onto the Fire Navy ship. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

As we fly over the newly iced-over ship, I sigh and sit back into Appa's saddle-thing. The sunset is pretty... I might as well relax a little, right?

"How..." Katara starts. "How did you guys do that?!" At the question, Aang and I perked up. 

Aang replied, "I don't really know... I kinda just... did? If that makes any sense, at all?"

I nodded, a silent show of confirmation. "Yeah, same for me. It was like... involuntary, almost. Like I didn't even need to think about it. I dunno, but I'm sure it was something big. I've never waterbent so extravagantly before, and I don't think I even can." 

"But why red and blue?" Sokka wonders. "That's pretty random, considering the fact that Aang just glowed white..." he furrows his brows, going full-on detective mode. "Why'd you glow at all, though, Ni?"

Red and blue... Fire and water...

"Erm..." I shift my weight where I sit, not wanting to say anything. "Maybe because of my telepathic connection-thing with Aang? I'm not really... sure..." Damn it. I feel terrible lying outfront like that, but I have to, right? If they find out I'm part firebender... I...

I know for a fact that they won't want me here anymore. With them. Especially Katara.

"Also, um," Katara thinks aloud, breaking my train of thought. "Aang, why didn't you ever tell us that you were the Avatar?"

Aang purses his lips, looking away into the distance. "Because I never wanted to be."