FOUR | TUG OF WAR. ( the avatar returns, part one )
❝ sharing my heart, it's tearing me apart. ❞
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CRYSTAL AND SOKKA were in the midst of a snowball fight when the flare went off. She had him pinned in snow when they saw it streak across the sky. Crystal was so flabbergasted that she let go of his arms, collapsing on top of him. "What was that?" She gawked.
"I don't know," Sokka answered, brows littered with snowflakes.
A pit settled in Crystal's stomach. This was cause for concern. They had to collect the villagers, immediately—
"Can you let me go now? My face is numb," Sokka murmured.
"Oh, right. Sorry."
After that, they gathered up the tribe. The village was scared, huddling together, the image of the flare sticking to them like glue. Now they stood restlessly at the gateway to the village, waiting for Aang and Katara to return. Crystal's frozen hands anxiously kneaded together. She hoped to heaven that they were safe.
The sun was a hazy yellow. She was sweating already. She couldn't believe this was happening. That flare was a massive Fire Nation signal, and she didn't know what would come of it. This village was the only home she had left, and she couldn't lose it. She couldn't risk losing another home.
After a while, two shadows started to make their way towards them. Crystal sighed in relief. She looked over at Sokka, but his face remained unreadable. It was somewhere between concern and resentment. Gratitude and anger. She could already tell he was going to act impulsive, and she dreaded it.
Aang and Katara traipsed over the hill and were met with far less hostility than they deserved. Little girls and boys erupted into cheers, breaking from their tight-knit pack to run towards Aang and hug his legs. He just stood there, wary. He could see the way the rest of the tribe was looking at him.
"I knew it! You signalled the Fire Navy with that flare!" Sokka wasted no time accusing, stepping forward. His brows were pinched in anger. "You're leading them straight to us, aren't you?"
"Aang didn't do anything! It was an accident!" Katara said. Children shuffled around Aang's feet like they were afraid to leave him.
"Yeah, we were on the ship and there was this booby trap, and well, we. . . we boobied right into it," Aang admitted bashfully, rubbing the back of his neck.
