Post by Teяa253 on Dec 20, 2008 3:09:31 GMT 1
chapter 49... I love this chapter.
it is completely about Zakura bonding with The Four Benders. it's really sweet in my opinon.
I didn't get all watery-eyed and emotional about it, but I still think it turned out beautiful.
CHAPTER 49: YOU ALL ARE MY REAL FAMILY
Koara finished up with Alzar a few minutes later, and then she calmly stepped out of the room, closing the door. She didn’t mind being “kicked out”; for she knew that Zakura had something important to say.
The Four Benders were sitting down, and they looked at Zakura (Alzar was facing in her direction at least. her eyes, which no longer served her any sensory purpose, were wandering like they usually did);
“Well,” said Aiku calmly, “you said you wanted to talk to us, and here we are. Whatever you want to say, you feel free to say it.”
“Though if you’re gonna dislocate our jaws, perhaps you should be merciful to Alzar and Shinon for a day or two,” Zinjamyn added, chuckling slightly, and the others, even Alzar did too;
“Nah,” said Zakura, “it’s not that. It’s just something I learned in the spirit world a few nights ago. I learned about my family, and who they were.”
“You didn’t know your family,” Shinon exclaimed,
“No,” Zakura replied, “I learned something different. I learned who my blood family was, and who my real family was.”
“Ah,” said Zinjamyn, “and what did you discover?”
“I discovered,” said Zakura sincerely, “that my real family has 4 other members, and that they’re standing in front of me. You four were the first real family I ever had. No matter how badly I treated you, you were always like parents trying to teach a rebellious child.”
“You weren’t necessarily rebellious,” said Alzar, you were just really cocky. You learned too fast for our liking. We were prideful too, you see, and to see you learn and mater our moves in half the time it took us to learn them sort of made us jealous, but at the same time it made us proud. It meant that not only were you an excellent learner, but that we were also good teachers. A good learner and a bad teacher will not result in much.”
“I know,” said Zakura, “and again, I feel really bad for the way I treated you. I gave you all no respect. I’m sorry.”
“Our wisdom was not meant to be taken in with absolute surety,” said Aiku, “But rather, we wanted someone there to question it to find things wrong with it so we could correct those wrongs.”
“When we were young mater benders, we were determined that we were going to hunt down the avatar so we could teach him.” Said Zinjamyn, “aye, we thought it would be another male avatar, seeing as the last 4 were. We’re sorry about that.”
Zakura chuckled, “people say I’m manly enough anyways,” she said, flexing her arm, “it’s not a big deal.”
“But aye,” said Shinon, “we had devoted our lives to teaching the next avatar, and even when you came along and seemed to be ignoring us when we tried teaching you, we stuck to it. We were not about to let our lifelong goal slip away just because the woman we were teaching was a bit rebellious. No, we stuck to it because we wanted to teach you.”
“And I wanted to learn,” said Zakura, “and now that I look back, I don’t really have an excuse for why I acted the way I did.”
“Well,” it was several yeas ago,” said Alzar, “and even “stubborn Lady Alzar” has gotten over it.”
“I’m sorry, Alzar,” said Zakura apologetically, “you easily got the worst of it. And then I found out you were blind and...”
Zakura didn’t finis. She shut her eyes, feeling really guilty, as this was still a sensitive subject for Alzar as well.
Alzar shut her eyes as well.
“It was deep, Zakura,” she said quietly, “to be reminded of that horrid mistake again by someone laughing and shoving it in my face... I... I can forgive you for it, but I can’t really forget it... it hurt, Zakura. It cut me to the bone.”
Zakura stopped, and looked genuinely serious.
“How so,” she asked curiously,
“It made her cry,” said Shinon, “and you know Alzar; she hates crying in public. Just to hear the way she told me that story again (though the four of us were there); it brought me to tears as well. It’s powerful, Zakura. You should ask her to tell it to you one day.”
“And I will if you ask,” Alzar added, “it’s just... it’s me weakness.”
“Everyone’s got a weakness, Alzar,” said Zakura, “the fact that you’re even able to use your heat sense in the Water Tribes means that that’s not even your weakness anymore. I believe that the five of us here are limited to emotional weaknesses. Physical ones seem a bit beyond the worlds’ greatest benders.”
“That’s about true,” said Zinjamyn, “except there is one thing we’ve learned: we cannot be apart for very long. For some reason, it just doesn’t sit very well with us. If one of us died, the other three would be devastated.”
“Wow,” said Zakura, “that’s... really?”
“Aye,” Aiku replied, “and if you died...”
“Then all our work would have been in vain,” said Alzar, “we’d feel like we lost our purpose for living in this world.”
“We’ve dedicated our lives to you, Zakura,” said Zinjamyn, “that is why despite the 6-9-year age difference that naturally still applies today, we were submitting to you. We were your teachers, but you were our leader. We loved you, Zakura. Aye, your arrogance sometimes bothered us, but we honestly loved and cared for you. Why else do you think we were so tolerant of all of that?”
“But why,” said Zakura, “what did I ever do to deserve you all putting up with me? Was it just that you were set to teach me, or...?”
“Because” said Shinon, “we realized that underneath all the taunting and arrogance, there was a young woman who was missing family love from her life. We could see it in the way you behaved. We could tell from subtle references we made that it bothered you, and figured it was your weak point. But Alzar sensed it was strong—strong enough to make you lose the will to do anything.”
“How did you know,” Zakura asked,
“It just took time and being around you extensively,” Alzar replied, “we saw it, but we had respect for you. We didn’t want our swift learner to drop because of that.”
“So why so much respect for me, when I gave you all next to none;” Zakura asked, “I mean, didn’t you all just want to attack me?”
“There were times,” said Shinon, “but we resisted. We knew what you had been through and knew that if we went against you that you’d break. You needed a family and we figured we’d take it upon ourselves to fulfill that role.”
“we enjoyed teaching you,” said Aiku, “when actual bending was involved you were such a nice person to be around, we enjoyed how much you loved it—we enjoyed you giving us sleepless nights because you wanted to learn more all the time.”
“For a woman who doesn’t seem to care about being the avatar, you seemed to enjoy the abilities you were granted with,” said Alzar, “you were practicing all the time. It made us proud.”
“There was not really a reason for us not to love you after seeing how eager you were to pick up a new move,” said Zinjamyn, “you were always ready; didn’t give us a time of rest. We’d create a move, and you’d be all over us trying to find out what it was and how you could learn it. It made us proud, Avatar Zakura.”
“So basically,” said Aiku, “at first we were nice to you so you’d stay with us, but then we realized that you had sort of molded yourself into our seemingly impenetrable ‘clique’. We cared about you, we wanted to always be there for you, just like a family was and is.”
“And one day we’ll be able to look back and say “you know the avatar? She was our greatest student ever. She is an amazing learner, and is probably the greatest avatar to ever live.”
“How do you think I got that way,” said Zakura, “for me to be the best, I had to have had the best teachers ever. The other avatars I’ve spoken to have called you four by that title.”
“Really now,” said Zinjamyn chuckling, “I guess that’s just something we can add to our bragging rights list.”
“Ha-ha,” said Zakura, laughing, “I’M the arrogant one around here, so back off; know your place.”
“We do,” said Shinon, as all 5 of them were chuckling, “we are The Four Benders; teachers of Princess Zakura Ishiko—Earth Kingdom Avatar.”
“Heh,” Zakura replied, chuckling, “very good; very good. But aye, the point of this was to say that I’m sorry for how badly I’ve treated you all in the past. I owe you all so much; you gave me the two things in life I wanted: bending skills and a family. I can die happy now.”
“Just don’t die too soon,” said Alzar, laughing, “otherwise my jaw might feel the need to get dislocated, and who will be there to do it?”
“I can rectify that right now if you want,” said Zakura, laughing and holding up a fist.
“Eh, maybe later,” said Alzar, “at least let me recover first.”
“Alright,” said Zakura, and they all laughed, “just this once.”
“We’re glad to see you’ve matured,” said Zinjamyn, “it makes you all that much more a part of the family.”
“Aye,” said Zakura, “I’m glad you all are always here for me. I’m glad that I know who my family is—You All Are My Real Family”
~Azula~
it is completely about Zakura bonding with The Four Benders. it's really sweet in my opinon.
I didn't get all watery-eyed and emotional about it, but I still think it turned out beautiful.
CHAPTER 49: YOU ALL ARE MY REAL FAMILY
Koara finished up with Alzar a few minutes later, and then she calmly stepped out of the room, closing the door. She didn’t mind being “kicked out”; for she knew that Zakura had something important to say.
The Four Benders were sitting down, and they looked at Zakura (Alzar was facing in her direction at least. her eyes, which no longer served her any sensory purpose, were wandering like they usually did);
“Well,” said Aiku calmly, “you said you wanted to talk to us, and here we are. Whatever you want to say, you feel free to say it.”
“Though if you’re gonna dislocate our jaws, perhaps you should be merciful to Alzar and Shinon for a day or two,” Zinjamyn added, chuckling slightly, and the others, even Alzar did too;
“Nah,” said Zakura, “it’s not that. It’s just something I learned in the spirit world a few nights ago. I learned about my family, and who they were.”
“You didn’t know your family,” Shinon exclaimed,
“No,” Zakura replied, “I learned something different. I learned who my blood family was, and who my real family was.”
“Ah,” said Zinjamyn, “and what did you discover?”
“I discovered,” said Zakura sincerely, “that my real family has 4 other members, and that they’re standing in front of me. You four were the first real family I ever had. No matter how badly I treated you, you were always like parents trying to teach a rebellious child.”
“You weren’t necessarily rebellious,” said Alzar, you were just really cocky. You learned too fast for our liking. We were prideful too, you see, and to see you learn and mater our moves in half the time it took us to learn them sort of made us jealous, but at the same time it made us proud. It meant that not only were you an excellent learner, but that we were also good teachers. A good learner and a bad teacher will not result in much.”
“I know,” said Zakura, “and again, I feel really bad for the way I treated you. I gave you all no respect. I’m sorry.”
“Our wisdom was not meant to be taken in with absolute surety,” said Aiku, “But rather, we wanted someone there to question it to find things wrong with it so we could correct those wrongs.”
“When we were young mater benders, we were determined that we were going to hunt down the avatar so we could teach him.” Said Zinjamyn, “aye, we thought it would be another male avatar, seeing as the last 4 were. We’re sorry about that.”
Zakura chuckled, “people say I’m manly enough anyways,” she said, flexing her arm, “it’s not a big deal.”
“But aye,” said Shinon, “we had devoted our lives to teaching the next avatar, and even when you came along and seemed to be ignoring us when we tried teaching you, we stuck to it. We were not about to let our lifelong goal slip away just because the woman we were teaching was a bit rebellious. No, we stuck to it because we wanted to teach you.”
“And I wanted to learn,” said Zakura, “and now that I look back, I don’t really have an excuse for why I acted the way I did.”
“Well,” it was several yeas ago,” said Alzar, “and even “stubborn Lady Alzar” has gotten over it.”
“I’m sorry, Alzar,” said Zakura apologetically, “you easily got the worst of it. And then I found out you were blind and...”
Zakura didn’t finis. She shut her eyes, feeling really guilty, as this was still a sensitive subject for Alzar as well.
Alzar shut her eyes as well.
“It was deep, Zakura,” she said quietly, “to be reminded of that horrid mistake again by someone laughing and shoving it in my face... I... I can forgive you for it, but I can’t really forget it... it hurt, Zakura. It cut me to the bone.”
Zakura stopped, and looked genuinely serious.
“How so,” she asked curiously,
“It made her cry,” said Shinon, “and you know Alzar; she hates crying in public. Just to hear the way she told me that story again (though the four of us were there); it brought me to tears as well. It’s powerful, Zakura. You should ask her to tell it to you one day.”
“And I will if you ask,” Alzar added, “it’s just... it’s me weakness.”
“Everyone’s got a weakness, Alzar,” said Zakura, “the fact that you’re even able to use your heat sense in the Water Tribes means that that’s not even your weakness anymore. I believe that the five of us here are limited to emotional weaknesses. Physical ones seem a bit beyond the worlds’ greatest benders.”
“That’s about true,” said Zinjamyn, “except there is one thing we’ve learned: we cannot be apart for very long. For some reason, it just doesn’t sit very well with us. If one of us died, the other three would be devastated.”
“Wow,” said Zakura, “that’s... really?”
“Aye,” Aiku replied, “and if you died...”
“Then all our work would have been in vain,” said Alzar, “we’d feel like we lost our purpose for living in this world.”
“We’ve dedicated our lives to you, Zakura,” said Zinjamyn, “that is why despite the 6-9-year age difference that naturally still applies today, we were submitting to you. We were your teachers, but you were our leader. We loved you, Zakura. Aye, your arrogance sometimes bothered us, but we honestly loved and cared for you. Why else do you think we were so tolerant of all of that?”
“But why,” said Zakura, “what did I ever do to deserve you all putting up with me? Was it just that you were set to teach me, or...?”
“Because” said Shinon, “we realized that underneath all the taunting and arrogance, there was a young woman who was missing family love from her life. We could see it in the way you behaved. We could tell from subtle references we made that it bothered you, and figured it was your weak point. But Alzar sensed it was strong—strong enough to make you lose the will to do anything.”
“How did you know,” Zakura asked,
“It just took time and being around you extensively,” Alzar replied, “we saw it, but we had respect for you. We didn’t want our swift learner to drop because of that.”
“So why so much respect for me, when I gave you all next to none;” Zakura asked, “I mean, didn’t you all just want to attack me?”
“There were times,” said Shinon, “but we resisted. We knew what you had been through and knew that if we went against you that you’d break. You needed a family and we figured we’d take it upon ourselves to fulfill that role.”
“we enjoyed teaching you,” said Aiku, “when actual bending was involved you were such a nice person to be around, we enjoyed how much you loved it—we enjoyed you giving us sleepless nights because you wanted to learn more all the time.”
“For a woman who doesn’t seem to care about being the avatar, you seemed to enjoy the abilities you were granted with,” said Alzar, “you were practicing all the time. It made us proud.”
“There was not really a reason for us not to love you after seeing how eager you were to pick up a new move,” said Zinjamyn, “you were always ready; didn’t give us a time of rest. We’d create a move, and you’d be all over us trying to find out what it was and how you could learn it. It made us proud, Avatar Zakura.”
“So basically,” said Aiku, “at first we were nice to you so you’d stay with us, but then we realized that you had sort of molded yourself into our seemingly impenetrable ‘clique’. We cared about you, we wanted to always be there for you, just like a family was and is.”
“And one day we’ll be able to look back and say “you know the avatar? She was our greatest student ever. She is an amazing learner, and is probably the greatest avatar to ever live.”
“How do you think I got that way,” said Zakura, “for me to be the best, I had to have had the best teachers ever. The other avatars I’ve spoken to have called you four by that title.”
“Really now,” said Zinjamyn chuckling, “I guess that’s just something we can add to our bragging rights list.”
“Ha-ha,” said Zakura, laughing, “I’M the arrogant one around here, so back off; know your place.”
“We do,” said Shinon, as all 5 of them were chuckling, “we are The Four Benders; teachers of Princess Zakura Ishiko—Earth Kingdom Avatar.”
“Heh,” Zakura replied, chuckling, “very good; very good. But aye, the point of this was to say that I’m sorry for how badly I’ve treated you all in the past. I owe you all so much; you gave me the two things in life I wanted: bending skills and a family. I can die happy now.”
“Just don’t die too soon,” said Alzar, laughing, “otherwise my jaw might feel the need to get dislocated, and who will be there to do it?”
“I can rectify that right now if you want,” said Zakura, laughing and holding up a fist.
“Eh, maybe later,” said Alzar, “at least let me recover first.”
“Alright,” said Zakura, and they all laughed, “just this once.”
“We’re glad to see you’ve matured,” said Zinjamyn, “it makes you all that much more a part of the family.”
“Aye,” said Zakura, “I’m glad you all are always here for me. I’m glad that I know who my family is—You All Are My Real Family”
~Azula~
