The brat beside is almost hit by a flailing leg. I decide to press it down gently while calming the flinch that almost knocks the baby on his back with a soothing hand between his tiny shoulders. Her reaction to my touch is to go unnaturally still. This would work for , if I were trying to terrify her. But as it happens, I want to heal her. I need her throat not to close up with fear.
...
So psychological aspect of it might be soothed if she can endure this without the crippling fear she feels now. Or sothing. (It may also make slightly uncomfortable that when I touch her, she is too terrified to move. Uneasy is not in my nature.)
"If my face ends up plastered on notice boards all over the Fire Nation occupied territory, I will find a way to make your lives utter misery", I say as I remove the hand I have on her leg to untie the mask covering my features. Mai has no visual reaction to the show of trust, but I can see how Circus Girl is a little less… tense now. But the little progress that is made is instantly void once I et her terrified gaze.
With a deliberate, slow and careful motion I bend my wrist, trace it in a swirl and allow a clear ball of water to form in my palm.
"You trust your friend, don't you?", I say and without waiting for confirmation or removing my eyes from hers, I manipulate the water into steam, then back into water, careful to retain the heat, or as much as is possible. We want it sterile, after all.
"He and I have co to an understanding", Mai chips in, "He will heal you in return for a future favour of equal value from ."
Sothing in Circus Girl's large doe-eyes eases. The fact that that makes a knot co undone in my chest will forever go unspoken.
"This will make you uncomfortable. It will feel cool and soothing and invasive", I say and lean forwards. "You will be able to speak afterwards, without pain, though I cannot promise that your voice will be as it was before."
She blinks.
I take it as confirmation to begin and use the hand not manipulating the water to take hold of her chin and gently open her mouth. What I do next is bring the water close, but a twitch of her neck tells she will panic if I continue. I move away slightly.
Again, deliberately, I et her once again terrified gaze. "Look at your friend. Go to your happy place. I don't care, but I would hate to have to restrain you forcefully. It will not be a pretty experience for either of us."
She tries to swallow, fails with a pained noise that would be a moan, if her vocal chords cooperated.
Mai lays a soothing hand on her cheek. "Please, Ty Lee. Please. I know you can do this."
Circus Girl blinks again and looks at her friend.
I repeat my motions and this ti there is no twitch.
Smoothly, the water slithers into her mouth, to the back of her throat and down. I move the hand on her chin to her neck, guiding the water to where it needs to be. Then, with higher focus than I use for learning a new trick, I begin to heal.
It is not difficult, really, only intricate and sowhat tiring.
When I am done, and remove the water slowly, trickle by bloody trickle, I feel a bead of sweat run down my temple. Ah, lovely. Maybe I'll be able to take a shower sowhere in the city later. That would be therapeutic in many, many different ways.
With a flick of my wrist, I disperse the water and sit back on my heels.
"M-Mai", the Circus Girl croaks, voice rough and like sandpaper.
Mai is ready to burst into tears. I'll spare us both the embarrassnt. "Get her so water", I say quietly, aware that she doesn't want to leave Circus Girl's side, but knowing that she would never drink bended water from an icy cup I could make.
The girl gets up and hurries to procure so water. Which leaves with a very apprehensive-looking Circus Girl. I say nothing as she warily inspects my face.
"You", she whispers, "Took that fireball for ."
A wry twist of my lips, "Could've been better in the end, if I hadn't", I touch my own throat.
She doesn't know what to say to that.
"I realise that this is going to an very little coming from ", I begin, wondering at the sa ti why I even bother, but so part of urges to, "But you are aware that Aang, Katara and Sokka only fight to defend themselves and their friends, aren't you?"
They are not soldiers, or even really trained for this kind of thing. Aang is twelve and has too soft a heart to kill anyone. Katara might want to fight, but she hardly likes having to defend her life and those of her friends just because they are who they are on a weekly basis. Sokka is the sa, even though he would like to join his father.
"And you?", she questions and my eyes flicker briefly to the brat still sitting where I put him down.
"I have killed before. I will do it again", I say simply instead of telling her exactly who beheaded Admiral Zhao.
She swallows thickly and raises a shaking hand to touch her throat.
With a sardonic smile that says 'yes, even pretty girls like you' I untie the knot on the bandages around her ribcage. I don't spare a thought for her modesty as her purple and bruised skin shiny with so kind of ointnt or cream is uncovered layer by layer. This is simple. Broken ribs needed healing plenty during the aftermath of the Invasion.
Once I've finished, I check for other injuries and bruises. There are so on her lower back and shoulder where she must've landed when I tackled her. Those are taken care of as easily as breathing. Or they would be, if she were inclined to roll onto her stomach instead of covering her breasts and running a frantic hand over her now intact ribcage.
Sighing, I wait until she's done with that.
"Roll over", I say and the exasperation in my tone must make her look up at .
With a snappish twist to her mouth, she does as instructed. The bruises are healed quickly and Mai returns just as I hand Circus Girl a blanket for her nakedness. There is an endless care and gentleness to her movents as she helps her friend drink water and soothes her through a coughing fit.
Silently, I re-tie the mask to my face and pick the quiet and still strangely compliant brat up. He slaps his pudgy little hands against my neck and taps my throat a few tis. I have no idea what he wants to say to .
"Wait", Circus Girl says in her slightly less croaky voice as I turn to leave while they're both distracted.
I have a feeling of foreboding as I turn my head to look at her.
"What about Azula?"
Well.
Does that an she hasn't woken from her unconscious state?
I slide curious eyes to Mai. "Wasn't she recovering just fine earlier?"
Circus Girl casts a both apologetic and admonishing look at her friend. "She has been behaving strangely."
"Ty Lee", Mai hisses warningly, but she is ignored.
"When she ca to visit she was… she thinks she's ten years old and her mother is punishing her for being an to Zuko."
Ah. How… unfortunate. Not. Brain damage is sothing… far too delicate for my rather untested organ-healing expertise. Beside my rather conflicted opinion of her, I have no knowledge of the internal workings of the brain, where the mory cache is, what could be attempted without any physical healing involved.
"The Fire Nation Princess", I say very slowly, "Is quite an obsessive individual."
I do believe Mai understands my aning imdiately, Circus Girl takes a mont longer.
"Please! She's our friend! I'll- I'll do anything!"
"There is little to nothing that I would want from you and even less that would make consider helping soone ready to kill a dear friend of mine", I say, but I do wonder what it is she will offer now.
"What is it that you want, then?", Mai asks coolly.
"I would like", I say flatly, "For this war to end without the Firelord ruling over the entire known world. Or his insane daughter."
"In-… insane?", Circus Girl whispers.
"Sociopathic with mummy and daddy issues to fill an ocean, if you prefer", I say and she flinches, just a little. "So tell , what would healing Azula do for ?"
...
Don't forget to throw so power stones :)
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