the wind in my sails | aang x oc

three

an air sphere formed around her head as the breath was bended out of her lungs.

through teary eyes, she looked at her killer while clutching her throat in agony.

brown eyes met with their own. they looked focused and frightening, dark pupils were constricted to reveal an amber ring in the inner iris.

her lungs convulsed and her body shook as she ran out of air, but then suddenly, she was fine, watching from the sidelines as an airbender proceeded to kill the fire bender before her.

~

a loud rumble woke liara from her slumber.

her hair was loose and messy and she was only in some maroon boyshorts and a yellow tank top. she quickly threw on some clothes, not bothering to do her hair as she ran out with her staff in hand.

she slid on her knees next to aang and yanked sokka out of the way from an explosion. "what's happening?!" she hastily yelled at her friend, peeking around the corner.

"combustion man is back!" toph answered quickly, bending the shutters closed so that they were all protected within the chamber.

"co-what now!? ugh nevermind, I'll whip up a cloud so that he can't see!" liara informed, signalling for toph to open only one of the shutters so that she could bend.

"stop! I don't want you hunting the avatar anymore!" she heard as she whipped up a cloud to cover them up a little bit. she saw the half metal man shove the fire bender out of the way and take a breath, sending a combustion toward her.

shrieking, liara hit it away with her airbending.

a combustion bender. she hadn't seen one of those in a while. they were mostly firenation, but long ago, there was one at the air temple too. his name was Xiaoshu. she had read about his bending in scrolls.

combustion bending was sort of like a mixture between fire and air bending.

she retreated back into cover. "this guy's a combustion bender. if we hit that eye-thing in the middle of his head, he can't bend." glancing back around the corner, liara let out a huff, "I just don't know how yet."

liara sent out a powerful tornado towards the man and he countered with an explosion.

she got blown back, but aang grabbed her just in the nick of time and pulled her back behind the corner.

"he's gonna blast this place off of the cliffside!" toph exclaimed, and liara's heart sank. this place was so important to her, she couldn't lose it.

"I can't get a good angle!" katara yelled, and sokka's face lit up, "angles!"

he whipped out a blue boomerang and aimed it ninety degrees from where this combustion guy was standing. he then threw his boomerang and it hit him right in the middle of his forehead.

when he tried to bend, he blew himself up and fell into the raveen along with the top of one of the buildings.

zuko climbed back up from the vine he was handing into and liara offered him a hand, so that he wouldn't fall again.

he walked towards team avatar as liara stood back on the sidelines, near a wall.

"i never thought I'd say this, but thanks, zuko." aang told the fire bender.

zuko walked closer to them, "listen, I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday. I've been through a lot in the past few years. and it's been hard." he looked at toph, "I'm sorry I burned you. fire can be uncontrollable and you can hurt those you care about. as a firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending."

liara felt a pang in her chest. any bending can be used to kill. even airbending. she knew all too well.

aang looked at zuko, "I think you are supposed to be my firebending teacher. the first time I firebended, I accidentally hurt katara. after that, I never wanted to firebend again." he said.

"thank you! I won't let you down."

aang quickly stopped him and went on to ask his friends. they all said it was fine and liara felt somber until aang looked at her, "liara?"

folding her arms uncomfortably, her eyes darted between aang, who was looking at her expectingly, and katara who wore a familiar scowl. "what?" she asked passively. "what do you say? can zuko join?" aang smiled.

liara looked at zuko, who stared at her with hopeful eyes, "what does it matter what I say? let him join if you want," she shrugged and quickly walked back to her room to go tie her hair.

sighing as she sat down on her bamboo bed, liara buried her face into her arms. "what the hell?" she mumbled. she heard an agressive knock on her door and saw katara standing in the doorway.

curtly standing up, liara looked at katara. "may I help you, katara?"

"I don't know what it is, but something about you ticks me off."

liara stared at her with a deadpanned expression. is this girl disrespecting her in her own home? "okay. what do I have do do about that? change my whole personality to fit you?"

"if you even dare hurt any of my friends you will be removed. even if it's jokingly. even if it's playfully."

"katara what the hell are you talking about?" liara folded her arms, now dun with katara's antics. "I have done nothing but stay out of your way."

"you have the eyes of someone who has seen death. someone who has blood on their hands. this sweet little air nomad ruse doesn't cover up that fact that you have the eyes of a murderer, liara."

liara deadpanned. is this girl serious?

"get out of my room, katara." she said, sending a gust of air to blow katara out of her room.

how dare she? this is liara's room. liara's temple. katara couldn't just threaten her out of nowhere. liara wouldn't hesitate to blow her off of the cliff in a millisecond. besides katara was way to edgy for liara's liking.