parallel lines

chapter iv

Word Count: 1, 859 words

Chapter IV: 愚公山を移す

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Natsuko was conscious in her mind, debating with herself if she would come back to the spirit world and meet Wan again.

Her juxtaposition on this was her and her meeting Wan had lots of things in common by dying being the only outcome for her stupidity.

But she needed a friend, her friend.

She opened her eyes to the world where she came from and saw Wan, surprised after seeing her after so long and worried by the way she held her stomach at the tight grip of the Fire Nation soldier. He walked towards her in a fast pace and hugged her, in which she let go of her stomach and returned the hug.

"Are you alright?" letting go of the woman in front of him, shaking her hand and sighing, "I've been captured by Fire Nation soldiers."

"What?"

And she confided in him with every single detail of what had happened that day, from staying with Wan Shi Tong, who was understandably angry at the trouble she had unknowingly caused, until the said trouble she had caused from a single conversation with a frequent of the library, "It's not your fault."

"But it is." she was already disappointed in herself for slipping up even before she had found the Avatar and being the reason she might not find him in time, "It was already stupid of me to not be careful and it finally came to bite me."

"I already failed before I could even start."

She was sad at herself for giving up the fight before one could give the first blow and Wan sensed distrust and distance between her and just her as it was inevitable to stay alone for all this time, "You'll be fine, you always did and you always will."

"I would be delighted if you wanted to stay for more but I'm sure you have to take care of your body in the human world, no one knows what might happen."

Natsuko sighed before finding a place to have good tea with him, but understood his eagerness to bring her back, "Take more care of yourself there, we can't always be worried of you."

"Of course." she grimaced at the joke but later laughed it off, knowing he didn't mean her fragile, she closed her mind and braced herself before she could even open her eyes to the human world.

"What should we do with her, sir?"

She could hear the people scattered around the place and water colliding with where she was, probably a ship and a really uncomfortable one at that. It was her first time behind prison bars, rusted, unkempt, cold despite the hotness of the atmosphere, and collecting dust and bacteria.

A clear sign they never take prisoners or they let them go often, but neither were good signs.

"Dispose of her when we get back to the fortress."

She wished she hadn't thought of it sooner.

The prison cell opened and practically yanked her from inside, her hands still bound at her back but the muzzle wasn't there on her mouth, "Where are you taking me?"

The soldiers who had her in their hands didn't respond but the man from the library kept a keen eye on her as she was brought up to the deck. The door opened and the sea breeze is the first thing she could feel on her face after being locked up in a overheated ship filled with firebenders and hot headed men for days.