The Day With No Sun
By: Jean Warren
AN: I FINALLY have this done... It took 4-ever to write this! A whole month! x.X For
catalyst... She requested a drabble that turned into a 1300 word one-shot. lol.
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The air in the Fire Nation was thick and chocking to the Earth Kingdom Healers' lungs. None of them use to the thick blanket of heat that clung to their bodies as they worked endless hours. The smoke seemed to hang over them causing hours without the sun. Today was the worst day yet. When they awoke from a nightmare filled slumber the sky was still as black as night.
"Is it even morning?" Song questioned in an absent-minded manner. They sat at small table eating a breakfast with little effect on their hunger. This was something they chose to ignore in the process of their long days.
"The guards say it is... But I have a hard time believing so." A young man named Sae answered her. "Has to be a bad omen. Something terrible is going to happen today." He finished before taking a bite of his non-existent breakfast.
Song's head snapped up to look at him. It was the first time in what seemed like weeks that she had looked at another human face. He was a poor sight to behold. They all wore torn uniforms that had once been green, but were now a red-brown color from the blood.
The blood from Soldier after Solider that caused the icy numbing sea that they swam in. Thus she had a hard time understanding how something terrible could happen today. Something terrible happened every day.
The minutes of that day with no sun seemed to tick away at a grueling rate. It was so silent and calm today... Much too dang quiet for her liking. Where was the war?
"Why is it so quiet today?" She muttered to her fellow Healer, Min.
Min looked up at her with a heavy expression as if the weight of the whole war rested on her shoulder.
"Calm before the storm. It has to be." She sighed while brushing away a free strand of brown hair. "They are attacking the capital city today... Not far from here. The dam will be breaking soon, and all we can do is stand around to wait for the flood."
Song shook her head and then peeked out the curtains. She was hoping to see the sun shinning down at her, but was only given the sight of pitch black. Ignoring the doom that knifed through her gut, she slumped against the wall and fell into a fitful sleep. One filled with nightmares about a flood of crimson red water, and her standing by as each helpless soul was dragged under. The last face that she saw wash by shook her violently from her sleep. The face of a familiar old man that she had met but months before.
"Mushi?" She mumbled as she searched her sleep filled mind for his face once more. Another savage ominous feeling twisted its way through her gut when she heard the others crying for her to come quickly... The dam had indeed broken.
The hours soon became days as the she worked her way through the red sea. The cold waves sole purpose to numb her heart, and freeze her tears. Everything around her was a blur. It was as if time had slowed down but sped up at the same time... Each face rushed by once she had treated them. Faces and time soon lost all meaning until something familiar caught her eye.
Min stooped over an older man, and looked down at him with the same sombre expression she had worn for weeks. She shook her head as she mumble something about how war was just a waste of life. Song quickly scrambled to her feet when she processed what her words meant. She felt as if she were dragging her body from the sea as she slowly made her way over to them. It felt heavy and weighted each step down. Could that face really be his? Did this man have a face that would not blur in her presence?
The numb feeling was something that she had grown accustomed to over the weeks, but then her eye rested upon his face. She hadn't prepared herself for the sudden rush of emotions that ran up her spine... A gasp escaped her lips as she stared down into a face that had meaning.
"Oh Mushi." She whispered softly as she knelt down in order to run her hand gently down his cheek. Her heart breaking as she did.
"Did you know him?" Min asked as she turned her green eyes to her friend.
"Just for a moment... But it was enough to know that he was a good man." Song answered while shaking her head.
The sound of loud voices carried over from the next room. It snatched all of the Healers attention and the door quickly pulled open to reveal a rather startled looking young woman. Song got to her feet and went over to her.
"What in the world is going on in there?" Min asked when she saw her expression.
"There is a young man in there... He is demanding to know where his Uncle is." The woman answered in a shaky voice. Song instantly knew the young man...
"I will go speak to him." She said while pulling the door open to set foot into the next room.
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Zuko's patience had worn thin with these fools. The hours had seemed like days as he awaited news on his Uncle's condition. Why was it that every time he asked they tried to pacify him with another excuse? Well dang it all, he wasn't going to sit idly and allow them to ignore him. So he had stood up and grabbed a young woman by the arm. She screamed in surprise and turned her large brown eyes to look upon him.
"WHERE THE HELL IS MY UNCLE?" He roared at the terrified girl.
"I-I-I don't know sir! But if you let me go I can try to find him for you." She squeaked in answer as she tired to pull her arm away from him.
Zuko let her go and she quickly disappeared into the next room. He watched as the door closed before him, and a glance of two woman standing over someone. The sight brought with it a nauseating feeling.
The minutes that ticked away seemed then like years as he willed the door to open. His anger began to boil just under the surface again... Why did everything seem to be taking so long?! The fire raged once more through his veins and his mouth twisted into a stern frown.
"WHAT THE HELL..." He started to scream, but his voice died in the back of his throat. The door pulled open to reveal the soft acquainted face of a young Healer. His anger quickly fled when he saw the down-beaten look on her face. Tears began to streak down her cheeks as she spoke to him.
"Li... I am so sorry... So very sorry."
When her words reached him, it felt as if someone had knocked the wind from him. He fell to his knees with the realization that he no longer had the crutch that he had leaned on for years anymore. A sob racking its way through his body as he clutched desperately at the dirt floor. Each new sob more violent then the next as his mind became an ocean of chaotic emotions... One that he found himself drowning in... Until warm arms wrapped themselves around his neck... Pulling him to safety from the vast and deep waves.
"That's right. You cry. You just cry." Song mumbled as she gently ran her fingers through his hair. He buried his face into her neck and his arms clutched her shoulders. Silently he thanked the spirits that he had someone to hold him on this day with no sun.
OH and here is the Link.
www.fanfiction.net/s/3196821/1/