Post by Growly on Jan 4, 2008 19:48:10 GMT -5
This is the thread for the Harem Fic. I'll be posting all the parts here so it can be linked to from the harem. 
No Title yet.
Chapter 1: The Bender
-01-
The flames licked higher all around Growly, the dried grass catching fire quickly. He barely noticed the heat of the blaze, though he stood almost at the heart of the inferno. His eyes were on the men who had hunted him this far, who stood before him with victory written on their faces. They thought they had him.
A tiny smile tugged at the corners of his lips. They would know better soon enough.
One of the soldiers came forward, unrolling a scroll and holding it up before him, reading it aloud. "Growly, you are under arrest for crimes against his Imperial Majesty, King Ozai. Surrender peacefully and we may allow you to survive." Surrendering would have been the smart thing to do, given the overwhelming odds against him. Surely there would be no way for him to escape - and fighting the entire force of the Fire Nation was suicide. The soldiers stared in disbelief as Growly began to laugh softly, their spokesman scowling. "What's so funny?" The man demanded.
"You are," Growly replied smoothly, raising his head and looking the man in the eye, smirking as the soldier took an uncertain step back. "Thinking I would ever surrender." Reaching up one hand, he took hold of the hilt of the sword strapped across his back, drawing it in a swift motion. Firelight danced on the blade, turning the sleek silver to a molten red as Growly charged into the midst of the Fire Nation troops with a fearless yell. They tried to scramble away from him, but he was like a demon in their midst, raising his sword to-
"Growly!"
"Huh!?" The scribe sat up rapidly, his sleeves dragging across the page and sweeping the ink jar to the ground. His face went red as he slowly looked down at the spreading mess of black on the wooden floor. "I… what?" He cleared his throat, looking around uncomfortably and noticing the stares of their customers. "I'll take care of that!" He assured them, raising both hands placatingly. Most of them went back to what they were doing, only a few bothering to keep their eyes on him until he actually dropped to his knees and began mopping up the ink with one long sleeve.
"Did you finish up the letter for Chu yet?" The person speaking was a pretty young woman with long dark hair and flashing green eyes - one of Growly's few friends in the village. She was dressed in the same style of clothing as him, the working outfit of a calligrapher, but the familiar green and gold yakata looked a great deal more flattering on her. She would have looked a lot prettier if she wasn't giving him that scolding expression.
He reached up to rub at the back of his head sheepishly, the ink-stained corner of his sleeve leaving a black smear on his cheek. "Sorry Ana. I just got a little bit distracted." Standing up, he caught hold of the scroll he'd been writing on, quickly curling it up and slipping it into the front of his shirt. "I'm almost done with it."
"Master Irys isn't going to be too pleased if we don't get this done on time - we're being paid a great deal of money for the Fire Nation contract." Still, her tone was less rebuking now and she even patted him on the arm reassuringly before giggling. "You have ink on your face."
"I do?" Growly reached up to wipe it away and only succeeded at smearing it further, much to the amusement of his friend.
Ever since the Fire Nation army had taken over their village, the population had been able to get by without too many problems. Other than the arrest of all the Earthbenders, a few laws and a strict village-wide curfew, most things were very close to how they'd been before the conquest. That didn't mean that most of the Earth Kingdom residents didn't resent being under the thumb of the Fire Nation - it just meant that they ducked their heads and tolerated things instead of fighting back. With the Earthbenders gone, what was the point.
Growly had never seen an actual Earthbender. The last ones had left the village the year he'd been born - gone off to fight a hopeless war against the Fire Nation. None of them had ever been seen again, although there were rumours that they'd been captured and were now held prisoner somewhere. Now, nearly two decades later, the southwest corner of the Earth Kingdom was firmly in the Fire Nation's grip and their armies almost always went through the village on their way to the north and the east.
"I'll finish it up before Master Irys gets back, Ana." Growly sighed, raising a hand to push his glasses back up on his nose. "I hope that's the last letter we have to do today. I'm starting to get a headache."
Ana raised a hand to touch his forehead, frowning slightly. "You're kind of hot. Are you coming down with something?" She sounded worried, and the scribe couldn't help but smile at her concern, finding it touching.
"I don't know. I might go to the healer after the shift is over, just to be sure though."
There was a long silence, with Ana looking at him speculatively. Then she shook her head and sighed softly, "Go ahead and head over there now. I can finish up the letter to Chu. I'll tell the master you had to leave early because you were ill."
He stared at her, mouth hanging open a little in surprise at her suggestion. Leave work early? She was even offering to cover his workload for him. Growly didn't know what to say, and he felt his cheeks growing a little hot. Then he smiled, the expression a bit bashful. "I don't know what to say."
She let out a soft laugh, "Just do it, pebble-head. And don't forget, you owe me one for this." Ana winked.
Growly nodded, grinning back as he reached for his things. With his brush and scrolls gathered close to his chest, he headed for the door, pausing for a moment to look back over his shoulder. "Ana…" He smiled shyly, "Thanks."
-02-
The healer's hut was a little bit removed from the general hustle and bustle of the rest of the village - partly because the herbs were more plentiful in that area, and partially because Taiyo preferred to remain far away from the Fire Nation battalions whenever possible. Growly could scarcely blame her, even when it made for a rather long trip. Normally it was a rather soothing walk, quiet and shaded by the spreading limbs of the forest trees, but today there was something decidedly amiss. The path was full of Fire Nation soldiers, most of them standing in front of Taiyo's hut. The scribe hesitated outside, not daring to go past the soldiers when they were giving him such threatening looks.
From inside the small hut, he could hear Taiyo's voice and although he couldn't make out her words, it was clear that she was not thrilled by this visit. Growly would not have wanted to be the soldier she was addressing right now. Comforted by that thought, he sighed and leaned against a tree beside the path, just a short distance from the hut itself. There was little to do but wait.
Fortunately, he was not kept waiting long, as Taiyo 'escorted' the soldier out of her hut. She paused in the doorway, noticing Growly standing there and gesturing for him to come inside. Swallowing nervously, he avoided the soldiers and stepped into the healer's hut, closing the door behind himself.
"Is this a bad time?" He asked, noticing her bubbling anger and wondering what the soldiers had said to her.
Taiyo drew in a sharp breath, then let it out slowly. "No, it's fine, really." Some of the tension melted away and she favoured him with a slight smile. "It's unusual to see you here, Growly. What seems to be the problem?"
He leaned against the wall, running one hand through his messy dark hair. "It's nothing big, Taiyo. I've just been feeling a little under the weather. Ana recommended I take off the rest of the day and come see you." A faint fond smile accompanied his words, "I think maybe she worries a little too much, but I wouldn't try to argue with her."
"That's a smart boy," Taiyo laughed, sinking into her chair and gesturing for Growly to make himself comfortable in one of the others. "So, what symptoms do you have? Coughing, sore throat?"
"I'm just tired, that's all. And maybe a little hot…" He sat down in the offered chair, setting his scrolls down beside him.
There was mischief in the healer's eyes as she looked him over, "Hot, hm? That might be a bad thing - or not. Tell me, are you only hot when you're around Ana or in general?"
Growly flushed. He wasn't clueless enough to not get the gist of her words, but Ana was just a friend. A really sweet, really nice friend. "All the time, for the past day or so."
Taiyo's gaze became contemplative. "Anything else?"
The scribe shook his head, "Not really. I don't have a cough, or even the sniffles." The healer nodded, and Growly took comfort in the fact that she didn't seem overly concerned.
"It doesn't sound like anything too bad - probably a bit of rest would help. Irys tends to be such a slave driver. He doesn't realize that people can't work that long without a break." No one else Growly knew would have dared to speak of the Master Calligrapher like that, but this was Taiyo. She could say anything with impunity, even to the Fire Nation troops. "But I suppose there's no harm in making sure, though. I'll give you some herbs - they're best if you chew on the leaves, but I know that most people don't like doing that. You can brew them into a tea if you prefer, then you can add a bit of honey to soften the taste." She was on her feet now, working as she talked. Her nimble hands went to the various jars of herbs, scooping out a small amount of each and wrapping them in a paper pouch.
Given the memories he had of some of Taiyo's herbal remedies, he was glad for the option to have tea with honey as opposed to plain leaves. And now that she had calmed somewhat, he felt a little more comfortable asking the burning question he had on his mind. "So… um… what did the soldiers want?"
She froze for a moment and Growly wondered if maybe he shouldn't have just kept his mouth shut. But she didn't immediately turn on him and chew him out for daring to ask. With the long silence, he didn't think she would answer him at all, but she surprised him yet again. "They're looking for someone. Apparently they fought a group of Earthbenders and one escaped…" Her words were softer now than usual, and Growly remembered abruptly that her father had been among the group of Earthbenders who had gone off to fight the Fire Nation all those years ago.
"I'm sorry."
Her head jerked up sharply and she stared at him. "For what?" Her lips twisted in a bitter mockery of a smile. "It's the Fire Nation's fault. Whoever the Earthbender they're after is…. I hope he gets away. I hope he gets away and finds others. And I hope they take down those Fire Nation jerks once and for all. I even told that soldier so."
Given the constant threat of the troops, and their tendency to punish such impunity harshly, those words were either a testament to Taiyo's courage or else the depth of her hatred of the Fire Nation. Or maybe both.
"Do you think he will? Or she?" He corrected himself.
"I don't know Growly. With luck, he or she will get away safely - maybe head to the north towards Ba Sing Se." She pressed the packet of herbs into his hand. "Don't worry yourself about it. There's nothing you can do to help whoever it is. Nothing any of us can do…"
She seemed lost in sad contemplation now, and Growly quietly excused himself, not wanting to trouble her further. Her words had struck a chord though. As much as he disliked the Fire Nation and wanted to help in the war effort, there was nothing he could contribute. He wasn't an Earthbender. He wasn't even a fighter…
Growly sighed, reaching up to pinch at the bridge of his nose. It was the same problem he'd always faced - the only time he was ever going to be a hero was in his own stories. His eyes went wide as he remembered the scrolls he'd put down in Taiyo's hut and forgotten to pick back up. The thought of someone else possibly reading his writing made him livid. He turned quickly, dashing back along the path towards the healer's hut.
He was so caught up in his embarrassment and haste that he didn't even notice anyone else on the path until he ran headlong into a warm solid form. Both of them tumbled to the ground in a heap. Growly winced as he slowly sat up, looking down at the man he'd just run into in dismay. An apology was on his lips, but it died when he saw the man's outfit - the traditional green, edged with gold colours of the Earth Kingdom, but the style of the clothing itself was not one common among the villagers in this area. The man himself was obviously strong, well muscled and with his hair pulled back in a traditional topknot. Everything about him screamed 'warrior'.
"You…" Growly stuttered over his words, not certain whether to be afraid or ecstatic, "You're the Earthbender!"
-03-
For a long moment, Growly was caught up in a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions. Shock was the strongest at first, although it started to wear off quickly, allowing other things to bubble up and take its place. Just seeing an Earthbender was astonishing enough, but to know that this man had been personally involved in fighting the Fire Nation was a bit of a thrill. It was also a bit scary.
It wasn't until he got a good view of the man's expression that he realized that the Earthbender was actually afraid of him! Well, probably not of him, but certainly of being discovered. The scribe realized that he'd better reassure the fellow before he ran (or worse, decided to lay some Earthbending moves on him). "I mean… There are some soldiers looking for you." Probably not the best thing to say… "That is, they were, but they're not now. Well, they are, but not right here. They were just here. And they left - so they're not anymore. Here, I mean." He wanted to smack himself for messing up in his attempts to communicate his goodwill towards the escapee.
His chance at talking to an actual bender and he was messing it up royally. The man probably thought he was some kind of lunatic.
He was so tied up in mentally berating himself for his utter lack of verbal grace that he was caught off guard at the next sound to reach his ears. Blinking quizzically, he stared at the Earthbender. Far from being angry, the man was laughing - and not the same kind of mean-spirited laughs Growly had fended off a few times in the past. These were the full-throated guffaws of a person who had just seen something immensely funny. Growly gaped at the man for a long moment before shaking his head. "What's so funny?"
"You." Growly would have taken offense at this if the look on the man's face hadn't been so genuinely amused. He maintained a frown for all of a few seconds before his own lips turned up at the corners in a wry smile.
"I guess I can see that." He conceded, rubbing at the back of his neck and grinning. Just like that, the tension of the situation dissolved, the two of them sitting there and beaming like a couple of idiots. It was unfortunate that the situation couldn't last - reality dousing the scribe as he heard the faint sound of shouting coming from far down the path. Growly's head jerked up immediately, eyes going wide. "What was-"
The Earthbender was already on his feet, all traces of humour gone from his face. "It has to be Fire Nation soldiers." Growly scrambled to get up, tripped over himself in his haste and almost fell back to the ground. A strong hand catching hold of his shoulder saved him from that particular embarrassment.
"Thanks." He flashed the man a grateful look before staring down the pathway, straining to see what was going on. "Do you think they've found you?" If so, Growly wasn't going to have the luxury of asking the fellow about Earthbending - or about anything else for that matter.
There was a distinct scowl on the Earthbender's face, but he wasn't fleeing yet. "If they have, they've picked a strange way to try and capture me. Why aren't they coming over here?"
"I don't know…" Growly began, then cut himself off with a sound halfway between a gasp and a yelp. "That's Taiyo's hut… they must have gone around the other way." The rest clicked into place for him quickly, once that realization was in place. The soldiers hadn't taken Taiyo's attitude as lightly as he'd thought, either that or they suspected that she might actually know where the escapee was hiding. Either way, they were going to try and take her prisoner for questioning… or worse. "We have to do something! They're going to arrest her!"
A pair of green eyes met Growly's light brown ones - while the look was faintly sympathetic, the man shook his head. "I can't fight them here. There's too many. If I get captured, then there will be no one left to take the information I have to the capital."
"Can't I take it for you?" The scribe offered hastily, desperation colouring his words.
The man gave him a briefly quizzical look. "You're not an Earthbender?"
"Well… no…" Growly conceded, shuffling his feet uncomfortably.
"A soldier, then?"
He was squirming under the scrutiny, intensely aware that he was really a nobody, especially where the defense of the Earth Kingdom was concerned. "I'm just a scribe."
The bender looked at him a moment longer then sighed, shaking his head. "I can't risk it in the hands of a civilian. I'm sorry. I can't help you save your friend. There's just too much at stake right now."
Growly took a step back, looking at the man with hurt disbelief. He should have been prepared for the answer, especially considering the situation, but somehow he'd been hoping for better. After all the stories about Earthbenders fighting against the evil of the Fire Nation, he'd been expecting someone… well, a bit larger than life. A hero. But here was an Earthbender and it seemed he was nothing more than an ordinary man.
"Fine." He was aware that his disappointment was clear in his voice and didn't particularly care. "But they're arresting her because she was defending you. I guess that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, but I thought it was worth something." The scribe couldn't think of anything else to say after getting that one barb in. He felt a bit bad for resorting to such a low blow, but he was still too angry to apologise to the man.
He dashed along the path towards Taiyo's house, not looking back to see whether the Earthbender had fled or not. Growly wasn't even sure what he could do - if there was anything he could do to help Taiyo - but he was determined to at least try. As he entered the clearing where the healer's hut was, he skidded to a halt, staring at the soldiers who were slowly turning to look at him. There were a lot more of them then there had been earlier… The scribe swallowed, feeling a little weak at the knees.
"Growly?" Taiyo's voice rang out through the clearing. He could see her in the grasp of two soldiers, only a short distance away. She might as well have been in an impenetrable fortress. "Go back to the village! I'll be okay!" If he didn’t know better, he would have said she seemed almost more concerned for his sake than for her own.
"I can't leave you here!" He called back unhappily, his gaze darting to the gathered soldiers whose gazes were now looking decidedly unfriendly.
One of them, apparently the leader of the group, let out a disgusted snort. "What is it with these villagers? Fine. Take the guy too. We'll let the inquisitor sort it all out."
"What?!" Growly's voice hadn't hit that note since puberty. He was too floored to even think about escaping. One of his arms was grabbed roughly and twisted behind his back, causing him to yelp and sink to his knees. In moments he was being dragged over to where Taiyo was being held captive. He looked up at her apologetically. "I guess I'm not too good at being a hero."
"Quiet!" The head soldier snapped, raising one arm to backhand the unfortunate scribe. Growly shut his eyes with a cringe, waiting for the blow to fall - slowly opening them as it never did. The sound of an unexpected voice ringing out through the clearing sent his heart leaping into his throat and he opened his eyes just in time to see a figure emerge from the trees.
"Enough." The Earthbender stood at the edge of the clearing, a large boulder braced in the fingers of one hand. His dark green eyes glinted dangerously. "Let them go."
----
*Updates coming soon!*
No Title yet.
Chapter 1: The Bender
-01-
The flames licked higher all around Growly, the dried grass catching fire quickly. He barely noticed the heat of the blaze, though he stood almost at the heart of the inferno. His eyes were on the men who had hunted him this far, who stood before him with victory written on their faces. They thought they had him.
A tiny smile tugged at the corners of his lips. They would know better soon enough.
One of the soldiers came forward, unrolling a scroll and holding it up before him, reading it aloud. "Growly, you are under arrest for crimes against his Imperial Majesty, King Ozai. Surrender peacefully and we may allow you to survive." Surrendering would have been the smart thing to do, given the overwhelming odds against him. Surely there would be no way for him to escape - and fighting the entire force of the Fire Nation was suicide. The soldiers stared in disbelief as Growly began to laugh softly, their spokesman scowling. "What's so funny?" The man demanded.
"You are," Growly replied smoothly, raising his head and looking the man in the eye, smirking as the soldier took an uncertain step back. "Thinking I would ever surrender." Reaching up one hand, he took hold of the hilt of the sword strapped across his back, drawing it in a swift motion. Firelight danced on the blade, turning the sleek silver to a molten red as Growly charged into the midst of the Fire Nation troops with a fearless yell. They tried to scramble away from him, but he was like a demon in their midst, raising his sword to-
"Growly!"
"Huh!?" The scribe sat up rapidly, his sleeves dragging across the page and sweeping the ink jar to the ground. His face went red as he slowly looked down at the spreading mess of black on the wooden floor. "I… what?" He cleared his throat, looking around uncomfortably and noticing the stares of their customers. "I'll take care of that!" He assured them, raising both hands placatingly. Most of them went back to what they were doing, only a few bothering to keep their eyes on him until he actually dropped to his knees and began mopping up the ink with one long sleeve.
"Did you finish up the letter for Chu yet?" The person speaking was a pretty young woman with long dark hair and flashing green eyes - one of Growly's few friends in the village. She was dressed in the same style of clothing as him, the working outfit of a calligrapher, but the familiar green and gold yakata looked a great deal more flattering on her. She would have looked a lot prettier if she wasn't giving him that scolding expression.
He reached up to rub at the back of his head sheepishly, the ink-stained corner of his sleeve leaving a black smear on his cheek. "Sorry Ana. I just got a little bit distracted." Standing up, he caught hold of the scroll he'd been writing on, quickly curling it up and slipping it into the front of his shirt. "I'm almost done with it."
"Master Irys isn't going to be too pleased if we don't get this done on time - we're being paid a great deal of money for the Fire Nation contract." Still, her tone was less rebuking now and she even patted him on the arm reassuringly before giggling. "You have ink on your face."
"I do?" Growly reached up to wipe it away and only succeeded at smearing it further, much to the amusement of his friend.
Ever since the Fire Nation army had taken over their village, the population had been able to get by without too many problems. Other than the arrest of all the Earthbenders, a few laws and a strict village-wide curfew, most things were very close to how they'd been before the conquest. That didn't mean that most of the Earth Kingdom residents didn't resent being under the thumb of the Fire Nation - it just meant that they ducked their heads and tolerated things instead of fighting back. With the Earthbenders gone, what was the point.
Growly had never seen an actual Earthbender. The last ones had left the village the year he'd been born - gone off to fight a hopeless war against the Fire Nation. None of them had ever been seen again, although there were rumours that they'd been captured and were now held prisoner somewhere. Now, nearly two decades later, the southwest corner of the Earth Kingdom was firmly in the Fire Nation's grip and their armies almost always went through the village on their way to the north and the east.
"I'll finish it up before Master Irys gets back, Ana." Growly sighed, raising a hand to push his glasses back up on his nose. "I hope that's the last letter we have to do today. I'm starting to get a headache."
Ana raised a hand to touch his forehead, frowning slightly. "You're kind of hot. Are you coming down with something?" She sounded worried, and the scribe couldn't help but smile at her concern, finding it touching.
"I don't know. I might go to the healer after the shift is over, just to be sure though."
There was a long silence, with Ana looking at him speculatively. Then she shook her head and sighed softly, "Go ahead and head over there now. I can finish up the letter to Chu. I'll tell the master you had to leave early because you were ill."
He stared at her, mouth hanging open a little in surprise at her suggestion. Leave work early? She was even offering to cover his workload for him. Growly didn't know what to say, and he felt his cheeks growing a little hot. Then he smiled, the expression a bit bashful. "I don't know what to say."
She let out a soft laugh, "Just do it, pebble-head. And don't forget, you owe me one for this." Ana winked.
Growly nodded, grinning back as he reached for his things. With his brush and scrolls gathered close to his chest, he headed for the door, pausing for a moment to look back over his shoulder. "Ana…" He smiled shyly, "Thanks."
-02-
The healer's hut was a little bit removed from the general hustle and bustle of the rest of the village - partly because the herbs were more plentiful in that area, and partially because Taiyo preferred to remain far away from the Fire Nation battalions whenever possible. Growly could scarcely blame her, even when it made for a rather long trip. Normally it was a rather soothing walk, quiet and shaded by the spreading limbs of the forest trees, but today there was something decidedly amiss. The path was full of Fire Nation soldiers, most of them standing in front of Taiyo's hut. The scribe hesitated outside, not daring to go past the soldiers when they were giving him such threatening looks.
From inside the small hut, he could hear Taiyo's voice and although he couldn't make out her words, it was clear that she was not thrilled by this visit. Growly would not have wanted to be the soldier she was addressing right now. Comforted by that thought, he sighed and leaned against a tree beside the path, just a short distance from the hut itself. There was little to do but wait.
Fortunately, he was not kept waiting long, as Taiyo 'escorted' the soldier out of her hut. She paused in the doorway, noticing Growly standing there and gesturing for him to come inside. Swallowing nervously, he avoided the soldiers and stepped into the healer's hut, closing the door behind himself.
"Is this a bad time?" He asked, noticing her bubbling anger and wondering what the soldiers had said to her.
Taiyo drew in a sharp breath, then let it out slowly. "No, it's fine, really." Some of the tension melted away and she favoured him with a slight smile. "It's unusual to see you here, Growly. What seems to be the problem?"
He leaned against the wall, running one hand through his messy dark hair. "It's nothing big, Taiyo. I've just been feeling a little under the weather. Ana recommended I take off the rest of the day and come see you." A faint fond smile accompanied his words, "I think maybe she worries a little too much, but I wouldn't try to argue with her."
"That's a smart boy," Taiyo laughed, sinking into her chair and gesturing for Growly to make himself comfortable in one of the others. "So, what symptoms do you have? Coughing, sore throat?"
"I'm just tired, that's all. And maybe a little hot…" He sat down in the offered chair, setting his scrolls down beside him.
There was mischief in the healer's eyes as she looked him over, "Hot, hm? That might be a bad thing - or not. Tell me, are you only hot when you're around Ana or in general?"
Growly flushed. He wasn't clueless enough to not get the gist of her words, but Ana was just a friend. A really sweet, really nice friend. "All the time, for the past day or so."
Taiyo's gaze became contemplative. "Anything else?"
The scribe shook his head, "Not really. I don't have a cough, or even the sniffles." The healer nodded, and Growly took comfort in the fact that she didn't seem overly concerned.
"It doesn't sound like anything too bad - probably a bit of rest would help. Irys tends to be such a slave driver. He doesn't realize that people can't work that long without a break." No one else Growly knew would have dared to speak of the Master Calligrapher like that, but this was Taiyo. She could say anything with impunity, even to the Fire Nation troops. "But I suppose there's no harm in making sure, though. I'll give you some herbs - they're best if you chew on the leaves, but I know that most people don't like doing that. You can brew them into a tea if you prefer, then you can add a bit of honey to soften the taste." She was on her feet now, working as she talked. Her nimble hands went to the various jars of herbs, scooping out a small amount of each and wrapping them in a paper pouch.
Given the memories he had of some of Taiyo's herbal remedies, he was glad for the option to have tea with honey as opposed to plain leaves. And now that she had calmed somewhat, he felt a little more comfortable asking the burning question he had on his mind. "So… um… what did the soldiers want?"
She froze for a moment and Growly wondered if maybe he shouldn't have just kept his mouth shut. But she didn't immediately turn on him and chew him out for daring to ask. With the long silence, he didn't think she would answer him at all, but she surprised him yet again. "They're looking for someone. Apparently they fought a group of Earthbenders and one escaped…" Her words were softer now than usual, and Growly remembered abruptly that her father had been among the group of Earthbenders who had gone off to fight the Fire Nation all those years ago.
"I'm sorry."
Her head jerked up sharply and she stared at him. "For what?" Her lips twisted in a bitter mockery of a smile. "It's the Fire Nation's fault. Whoever the Earthbender they're after is…. I hope he gets away. I hope he gets away and finds others. And I hope they take down those Fire Nation jerks once and for all. I even told that soldier so."
Given the constant threat of the troops, and their tendency to punish such impunity harshly, those words were either a testament to Taiyo's courage or else the depth of her hatred of the Fire Nation. Or maybe both.
"Do you think he will? Or she?" He corrected himself.
"I don't know Growly. With luck, he or she will get away safely - maybe head to the north towards Ba Sing Se." She pressed the packet of herbs into his hand. "Don't worry yourself about it. There's nothing you can do to help whoever it is. Nothing any of us can do…"
She seemed lost in sad contemplation now, and Growly quietly excused himself, not wanting to trouble her further. Her words had struck a chord though. As much as he disliked the Fire Nation and wanted to help in the war effort, there was nothing he could contribute. He wasn't an Earthbender. He wasn't even a fighter…
Growly sighed, reaching up to pinch at the bridge of his nose. It was the same problem he'd always faced - the only time he was ever going to be a hero was in his own stories. His eyes went wide as he remembered the scrolls he'd put down in Taiyo's hut and forgotten to pick back up. The thought of someone else possibly reading his writing made him livid. He turned quickly, dashing back along the path towards the healer's hut.
He was so caught up in his embarrassment and haste that he didn't even notice anyone else on the path until he ran headlong into a warm solid form. Both of them tumbled to the ground in a heap. Growly winced as he slowly sat up, looking down at the man he'd just run into in dismay. An apology was on his lips, but it died when he saw the man's outfit - the traditional green, edged with gold colours of the Earth Kingdom, but the style of the clothing itself was not one common among the villagers in this area. The man himself was obviously strong, well muscled and with his hair pulled back in a traditional topknot. Everything about him screamed 'warrior'.
"You…" Growly stuttered over his words, not certain whether to be afraid or ecstatic, "You're the Earthbender!"
-03-
For a long moment, Growly was caught up in a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions. Shock was the strongest at first, although it started to wear off quickly, allowing other things to bubble up and take its place. Just seeing an Earthbender was astonishing enough, but to know that this man had been personally involved in fighting the Fire Nation was a bit of a thrill. It was also a bit scary.
It wasn't until he got a good view of the man's expression that he realized that the Earthbender was actually afraid of him! Well, probably not of him, but certainly of being discovered. The scribe realized that he'd better reassure the fellow before he ran (or worse, decided to lay some Earthbending moves on him). "I mean… There are some soldiers looking for you." Probably not the best thing to say… "That is, they were, but they're not now. Well, they are, but not right here. They were just here. And they left - so they're not anymore. Here, I mean." He wanted to smack himself for messing up in his attempts to communicate his goodwill towards the escapee.
His chance at talking to an actual bender and he was messing it up royally. The man probably thought he was some kind of lunatic.
He was so tied up in mentally berating himself for his utter lack of verbal grace that he was caught off guard at the next sound to reach his ears. Blinking quizzically, he stared at the Earthbender. Far from being angry, the man was laughing - and not the same kind of mean-spirited laughs Growly had fended off a few times in the past. These were the full-throated guffaws of a person who had just seen something immensely funny. Growly gaped at the man for a long moment before shaking his head. "What's so funny?"
"You." Growly would have taken offense at this if the look on the man's face hadn't been so genuinely amused. He maintained a frown for all of a few seconds before his own lips turned up at the corners in a wry smile.
"I guess I can see that." He conceded, rubbing at the back of his neck and grinning. Just like that, the tension of the situation dissolved, the two of them sitting there and beaming like a couple of idiots. It was unfortunate that the situation couldn't last - reality dousing the scribe as he heard the faint sound of shouting coming from far down the path. Growly's head jerked up immediately, eyes going wide. "What was-"
The Earthbender was already on his feet, all traces of humour gone from his face. "It has to be Fire Nation soldiers." Growly scrambled to get up, tripped over himself in his haste and almost fell back to the ground. A strong hand catching hold of his shoulder saved him from that particular embarrassment.
"Thanks." He flashed the man a grateful look before staring down the pathway, straining to see what was going on. "Do you think they've found you?" If so, Growly wasn't going to have the luxury of asking the fellow about Earthbending - or about anything else for that matter.
There was a distinct scowl on the Earthbender's face, but he wasn't fleeing yet. "If they have, they've picked a strange way to try and capture me. Why aren't they coming over here?"
"I don't know…" Growly began, then cut himself off with a sound halfway between a gasp and a yelp. "That's Taiyo's hut… they must have gone around the other way." The rest clicked into place for him quickly, once that realization was in place. The soldiers hadn't taken Taiyo's attitude as lightly as he'd thought, either that or they suspected that she might actually know where the escapee was hiding. Either way, they were going to try and take her prisoner for questioning… or worse. "We have to do something! They're going to arrest her!"
A pair of green eyes met Growly's light brown ones - while the look was faintly sympathetic, the man shook his head. "I can't fight them here. There's too many. If I get captured, then there will be no one left to take the information I have to the capital."
"Can't I take it for you?" The scribe offered hastily, desperation colouring his words.
The man gave him a briefly quizzical look. "You're not an Earthbender?"
"Well… no…" Growly conceded, shuffling his feet uncomfortably.
"A soldier, then?"
He was squirming under the scrutiny, intensely aware that he was really a nobody, especially where the defense of the Earth Kingdom was concerned. "I'm just a scribe."
The bender looked at him a moment longer then sighed, shaking his head. "I can't risk it in the hands of a civilian. I'm sorry. I can't help you save your friend. There's just too much at stake right now."
Growly took a step back, looking at the man with hurt disbelief. He should have been prepared for the answer, especially considering the situation, but somehow he'd been hoping for better. After all the stories about Earthbenders fighting against the evil of the Fire Nation, he'd been expecting someone… well, a bit larger than life. A hero. But here was an Earthbender and it seemed he was nothing more than an ordinary man.
"Fine." He was aware that his disappointment was clear in his voice and didn't particularly care. "But they're arresting her because she was defending you. I guess that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, but I thought it was worth something." The scribe couldn't think of anything else to say after getting that one barb in. He felt a bit bad for resorting to such a low blow, but he was still too angry to apologise to the man.
He dashed along the path towards Taiyo's house, not looking back to see whether the Earthbender had fled or not. Growly wasn't even sure what he could do - if there was anything he could do to help Taiyo - but he was determined to at least try. As he entered the clearing where the healer's hut was, he skidded to a halt, staring at the soldiers who were slowly turning to look at him. There were a lot more of them then there had been earlier… The scribe swallowed, feeling a little weak at the knees.
"Growly?" Taiyo's voice rang out through the clearing. He could see her in the grasp of two soldiers, only a short distance away. She might as well have been in an impenetrable fortress. "Go back to the village! I'll be okay!" If he didn’t know better, he would have said she seemed almost more concerned for his sake than for her own.
"I can't leave you here!" He called back unhappily, his gaze darting to the gathered soldiers whose gazes were now looking decidedly unfriendly.
One of them, apparently the leader of the group, let out a disgusted snort. "What is it with these villagers? Fine. Take the guy too. We'll let the inquisitor sort it all out."
"What?!" Growly's voice hadn't hit that note since puberty. He was too floored to even think about escaping. One of his arms was grabbed roughly and twisted behind his back, causing him to yelp and sink to his knees. In moments he was being dragged over to where Taiyo was being held captive. He looked up at her apologetically. "I guess I'm not too good at being a hero."
"Quiet!" The head soldier snapped, raising one arm to backhand the unfortunate scribe. Growly shut his eyes with a cringe, waiting for the blow to fall - slowly opening them as it never did. The sound of an unexpected voice ringing out through the clearing sent his heart leaping into his throat and he opened his eyes just in time to see a figure emerge from the trees.
"Enough." The Earthbender stood at the edge of the clearing, a large boulder braced in the fingers of one hand. His dark green eyes glinted dangerously. "Let them go."
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