Sound Bender (Avatar: The Last Airbender) #Wattys2017

||Chapter 37 - Spiritual||

Himoko's POV

I stared at the Airbender door, all things that were used as weapons for the Fire Nation having since been thrown out of the room- And over the edge of the cliff side, quite literally.

I stared at the closed door, my mind running over what had happened in the past 24 hours, Teo's Father being put in such a dire situation to the point of never reaching out to either of the Kings, or any government officials for aid. The Northern Air Temple was still technically in Earth Kingdom land/waters, it would have been quite easy to have stop them from destroying the temple. But fear can easily control your actions, that's what I learnt today. It wasn't just me, fear enraptured every single one of us at varying levels.

I wanted to be alone for now, to think over things with no interruptions, none of my friends to come check up on me, no animals wanting to be held or pressed up against my side- That included Appa, who was just a big furbaby wanting affection.

I didn't want bad things to happen to my people, the people I was adopted to protect. Royal Blood may not have been running through my veins, but how I was viewed on the outside by the people of Omashu and many others outside of it, I was still a Princess. A Member of a Royal Family.

My blood didn't matter, my heritage? Sure it was important, I was The Last Airbender for so many years before Aang was discovered to be alive and well. Before it all, before I laid eyes on him myself, recognition coursing through my veins, remembering the clothing, the arrows- He didn't look like any other nation, he looked like what my father did when he was 12 years old from paintings my grandmother did before she passed. I could even look at my own features and point out the similarities, we were Air Nomads, people who were ingrained in customs and with the spiritual side of life.

Aang had lived that life for 12 years, I could only gain a snippet of it.

Karlie did her best in showing me the world of Air Nomads 100 years ago, before the war, when there was peace. But she didn't know everything, could only gather so much information before it was lost to time.

My parents could barely practice for what they believed in, passed down from their own parents, my grandparents, as they were from different temples and knew the practices and did them as often as they could while on the run. Especially in the first years after the Air Nomads were basically wiped out.

Traps were spread out across the world by the Fire Nation, to capture our people and kill them, never knowing who was the Avatar. They figured they were still alive since they didn't reborn into any of the Water Tribes. But nothing, and soon only my grandparents were left, every few years one would be picked off, one would be found out, before only my parents and I were the last ones. Then, only me.

I blinked erratically, my eyesight blurry from tears. I wiped away my tears, never having realized that I started crying, silently.

I wished I could have been born during the time Aang was, so I could experience that, the life of a Air Nomad, free to fly and explore, connect with anything and anyone. Be carefree, be- Be happy.

But, I probably would have died along the rest of them, when the Fire Nation attacked the temples.

I was lucky to be alive, I was lucky to be alive during a time where the war could be over after Aang learns all of the elements and defeats the FireLord.  That's what crossed my mind, I was lucky for so many reasons.

I licked my chapped lips, tasting salt from my tears as I pushed myself off of the ground, dusting off my pants. I took a deep breath in of air, breathing out slowly as I closed my eyes. My ancestors walked through this temple, hell even perhaps one of my grandparents did, I could never remember who from who came from where. Those teachings from my parents were drifting away, lost in reservoir. But I knew one of my grandmothers used to live here.