When We Were Young

Chapter 8

Here we go... The last chapter. Enjoy :)

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In the week following the Battle for the Fire Nation every person who engaged in the utilization of the heat absorption technique was taken to the South Pole. Chief Sokka organized a facility there to accommodate them as they worked towards their recovery, while at the same time employed a considerable number of guards to keep them from checking themselves out. It was Katara's idea to use a location on one of the Poles, since it provided the cold necessary to make relapsing considerably harder, as well as an abundance of healers available at a moment's notice.

Katara also temporarily relocated to the South Pole to run the facility, while Aang returned to Republic City. Kya and Tenzin both decided they wanted to help their mother and followed her when she moved. Kya's healing skills proved invaluable, while Tenzin made himself useful by helping people overcome their temptation through meditation.

All was going well and the first patients were released in just a week. Izumi and Zari were both amongst them since they merely scratched the surface of what heatbending could accomplish. Since the Fire Lord's palace was still in ruins, they traveled back to Air Temple Island while Zuko got all that mess sorted out. Tenzin decided he'd had enough of the Pole and decided to return home with them.

The Beifongs were the only ones who could return to their normal lives without a scratch. Well, almost. Lin did sustain quite a few fractures from being thrown across the field. Katara did the best she could with her healing abilities, but Lin still spent the first week mostly lying in her bed. She needed lots of help in the beginning and her mother did the best she could, all the while complaining Lin should just walk it off and quit whining. Lin figured admitting her daughter was seriously hurt was too much for Toph to handle.

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"Mom? Did you take my suitcase from Air Temple Island?" Lin yelled from her room, "Mom!"

"How was I expected to worry about your stuff?" she heard Toph yelling from the other side of the apartment, "You're not three!"

"I couldn't walk!"

"You could speak! You could have told me!"

"Can you pick it up today?" Lin asked, but got no answer, "Mom! Did you hear me?!"

Lin carefully got out of bed and hobbled out of her room to find her mother. She made it to the living room, but there she only found Suyin listening to the radio.

Su scowled at her and then got up to leave, not saying a word.

"Su, wait! I can't chase you!" Lin said, but tried to catch up anyway. Su did stop and turn around, but she still refused to say a word or look at Lin.

"I'm sorry, alright?"

"That's such a nice apology..." Su rolled her eyes.

"Then what do you want?!"

"You know!"

"Su, I... It was a really difficult time for me. I wanted to tell you about the baby, I really did, but it... It doesn't even matter now, it wasn't real."

"But you didn't know that! We're sisters, but you leave me out of everything!"

"This may be hard for you to grasp, but not everything in this world revolves around you!"

"You know what? This may be hard for you to grasp, but I'm going to Zari's welcome so I don't have to look at you!" Su grabbed her jacked and bolted out of the house.