Chapter 3: The Iida house
After a somewhat silent walk, the two reached the nearby train station and boarded the east bound line. Katara looked through the brightly lit cabin with uncertainty, but was grateful it was empty at least due to the late evening.
"So at least this is kind of similar to what I had before." Katara said as she sat on the train seat next to Tensei.
"You had trains from where you came from?" he asked her.
"Yeah, but none were as big as this one. Usually just one or two carts that were pushed by earthbenders."
"people pushed the trains?" Tensei's mind immediately pictured Fred Flinstone as the train began moving.
"Thats right. The trains were made of rock so for a bender they simply push the rock along the track."
Tensei listened with interest to her as she explained how her home worked, people using powers for jobs just like he did. His eyes went down to the canteen she had on her waist and raised an eyebrow. "So I heard from Manual that you called him a waterbender since you saw his quirk."
Katara looked back to him and nodded, "Well, yeah. He controlled water just like I do. But… wait, why do you call them 'quirks'?"
the hero smiled and leaned forward. "Well, quirks are abilities that people have and can use. It seems you know of have four different elements and you can control one of them from where you came from, correct?"
Katara nodded again.
"Well, you seemed shocked to the chief when he walked in."
"Uh, yeah. He had an animal head!" She exclaimed, finally able to speak her mind, "I saw so many other odd things when I was in the city!"
Tensei simply laughed at her shock to the situation. "So obviously you haven't seen those kind of things before. The captain has a dog quirk, so he is obviously part dog. That means he has all the abilities a human and his animal form has together. Speed, strength and senses."
Katara tilted her head in confusion. "So… he can smell and hear as good as a dog?"
"Actually better. Anyone who specifically trains their skills can push them to unforeseen levels." He noticed Katara leaning over and staring at his backside. "Uh, something wrong?"
"You don't have like… a lemur tail or something, do you?"
Tensei burst out lauging and waved his hand at her question. "No no. Not everyone here has animal or element quirks. Some have powers to create weapons from their body or just glow. Others do things as simple as see miles away. Quirks can be anything from strength to mental powers."
Katara looked at the man next to her up and down, but couldn't see anything odd coming from him that she could tell was one. "So you have one of these… quirks?"
"Yes I do…" Tensei lifted up his arm and pointed to the golden pipes sticking out. "This is my engine quirk. It accelerates me and makes me very fast."
Her eyes widened as she stared at the metal pieces protruding out. "Wait, that's coming out of your body? I thought that was part of your armor!"
"No, its from me." He chuckled. "I have engines that come from my arms. They…" He looked at the empty train and smiled, "How about I just show you, instead."
Katara watched him stand up and walk towards the back door of the train and then turn back around. She glanced to the left down the long empty hallway and then back to him. "What are you going to do? The-
Her words stopped in her throat when she watched the thin column of flames burst out the top of his exhaust pipes and he blitzed forward through the cabin. Katara watched the blur of a man rush by her and cause a whirlwind passed her head and reach the end of the cabin in only a moment. Before she could even react, he flipped around and rushed back the other way. Her hair got whipped up and pulled by the gust following his body down the train before he skidded to a stop in front of her.
"Woah."
Tensei grinned at the one word she was able to get out. "Yes, that is my quirk."
She looked up to the smoke slowly coming out of the top and remembered the same thing when he had saved her. 'So that is how he got to us so fast. That is amazing.' she thought to herself as she straightened her loose hair. "That is a great power to have. You can move faster than anything."
"Well don't give me too much credit. I'm not near as fast as other heroes."
Katara was about to say more when she heard a voice echo through the train.
"All passengers, we are arriving in Tokyo station momentarily. Please prepare to depart."
Tensei looked up and blew out his mouth. "This is our stop. Let's get going."
"Oh, alright then." Katara stood up as well, both of them feeling the train coming to a stop. The doors opened revealing a small crowd of people preparing to board the train. While the hero and his acquaintance attempted to make their way through, many of the younger ones noticed the hero and rushed up to him in excitement.
"Woah, it's Ingenium!"
"Sir, can we get your autograph!?"
"Hey, take a picture with me!"
Tensei gave the best smile he could for all of the kids and teens that ran up to him. "I thank you all, but I really should be getting going now, actually since-
"Oh come on, please!" Some of the girls giggled out in excitement and came closer.
"Oh alright, just I can't stay long, alright?"
As the fans all cheered in excitement, Katara stood to the side speechless. This all seemed so similar to when Aang was swarmed with all those kids back on Kyoshi island when they first met. She couldn't help but giggle at his expense seeing these girls obviously crushing over him and getting closer as he tried to sign the pages they shoved in front of him. She was caught off guard though when she felt a slight tug on her robes. She turned to see a young boy smiling up at her with a giant smile.
"Uh… hi there." She smiled down at him but was confused when he handed her a notebook and a pen. "What's this for?"
"Can I get your autograph please!?" he yelled up to her.
Katara was taken back by the sudden request and stepped back slightly. "Wait, what? Why?"
"Well you are one of Ingenium's sidekicks, aren't you?"
"What? His side…" She chuckled and waved her hand. "No no, I'm not one of his sidekicks."
The boy pulled the notebook and stuck his tongue out at her. "Then you're just a stupid fan girl, aren't you?"
"I- what!?" Katara was shocked at the kids sudden attitude change as he turned around and walked away from her. "What the hell was that about?"
Tensei laughed at her expense and made his way through the fans towards her. "Don't worry about it. Many kids love heroes and don't like when people pretend to be them."
"But I'm not trying to be-
"I know I know. It's not your fault. Come on, let's get you some food. You hungry?"
Almost on hearing that, Katara's stomach growled out loud for both of them to hear. She blushed and held her abdomen. "Yeah, I guess I am."
"Well I have some ramen to cook back at my place if that is alright for you."
Katara sighed in excitement hearing a food she was definitely familiar with. "Yes that sounds amazing actually. Thank you."
"Don't mention it. I'm glad to help." Tensei nodded as they made their way through the station and out the main entrance to the street. "My place is just down the block actually, so it isn't far."
"Block? What is… oh never mind." Katara shook her head, figuring she would find out the terms and other things she kept hearing. She looked to her right and watched the different cars drive by, still getting the odd sensation firebenders would jump out at any moment. But she had to remember this place wasn't her home, and she would have to figure out how it worked until she found a way back.
Or… if she could get back.
"Katara?"
"Huh?" she looked back to him, realizing she spaced out. "I'm sorry, what was that?"
"I was saying that when we get there, we will have to introduce you to my parents to make it-
"Wait, you live with your parents?" Katara put her hands on her hips and gave a questioning look. "How old are you?"
"Easy there, captain obvious…" Tensei sneered back at her. "Yes I do live with them since our family business is being heroes. We help each other with our costumes and work on cases together, so it's easier to be close for convenience."
"Can't you just get a home right next to them and have your own space?"
"I have more than just a bedroom if you were curious. It's…" Tensei huffed and pointed to the left. "Let's just let say it's big enough."
"what do you…" She stopped walking when she saw where he pointed. "Okay, now you are just showing off."
The two of them stood in front of a large mansion that ran along most of the sidewalk they were standing on. It was three stories tall and had what looked to be a dozen room windows along the face of the building. It in fact looked like one of the large buildings she would have seen in the earth kingdom capital and yet it was where he lived. No wonder he didn't move out of his parents place. They must have been loaded!
Katara sat open mouthed as her host came by and lifted it back up. "It's just a house, nothing too special."
"Nothing special? I grew up in a block of ice and a hut." she muttered and walked alongside him to the doors.
"Hey, a home is a home." Tensei smiled and went to open up the door before pausing. "Hey, so I will be honest and say your situation is… interesting to say the least. Lets keep that stuff between us, okay?"
"What am I supposed to say then? I don't know anything of this place to lie about."
"You're an exchange student from a small village in the south and are here learning about Japan. How about that?"
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Really? Thats it?"
"You got a better idea?" Tensei unlocked the door and pushed it open.
Sighing, Katara walked in after him and was taken back by the sheer size of the entryway inside. Marble flooring shined against the faint light coming from the ceiling and illuminated the rest of the room. There were several large couches lining the walls, along with a few side tables lined with glass vases and small trinkets.
"Wow, this is amazing." she said in awe as she spun looking to everything around her.
"Yeah, they always thought the first room was the most important for an impression." Tensei sighed, obviously not impressed with his parents expensive taste. "Actually it looks like they aren't home now."
Katara looked at him in confusion. "How can you tell? The house is huge, they could be in the back."
"You see the shoe rack?" Tensei pointed to the empty stand to his left. "There are always shoes when they are home."
"Shoe rack?" She looked down and saw her shoes still on, and several small scuffs where she left marks behind her. "Oops."
Tensei smiled and waved her off. "Don't worry about it, I'll clean it in a bit. So it gives you some time to relax before having to meet them. Now let's get you that food."
After taking their shoes off, Katara followed him down one of the hallways and passed several large rooms that really caught her eyes. She wanted to see what were inside, but she respected his home and would wait for him to give her the tour. They came up to another closed door at the end of this hallway as he turned back to her.
"So this area of the house I rent from them. This is where you will be staying, alright?"
"Stay here with you?" She shifted awkwardly in place as her mind began racing. "Well I appreciate you doing this for me, but I would be intruding if I had to share a room with you."
"Don't worry, you get the spare room."
"Spare?" She questioned as he pushed the door open and was completely surprised once again. "And I thought it really would be just a room."
His "bedroom" was in fact a large and spacious living room connected to what she assumed was a kitchen due to the pots on the counter. Several couches encircled a glass table to the right in the main living room and in front of a large black picture on the wall. Behind this room she could see several other doorways leading to a few other bedrooms and what looked like a library filled with books. She couldn't help but be impressed with what she saw here.
"Okay, so this is like your own house here. I can see why you stay here."
Tensei chuckled as he removed the chest portion of his costume and set it aside. "I actually have been looking for a place of my own eventually. Since I run my own agency, I was thinking of getting a home just across from my office in Hosu. Oh, go and sit down, I'll get you something to eat."
"Thank you." Katara smiled and walked over to the couch and took a seat. She leaned back and rested her head on the soft headrest behind her, relishing in the comfort she felt like she hadn't had in weeks. Her eyes shifted back and forth through the room, taking in the nice and yet modest look he had compared to the entryway she saw just before this. Perhaps he didn't value things like money as much as others did despite obviously having a lot of it. That along with his already generous heart made her respect him even more.
"you want some juice with your food?"
Katara turned around to the sudden question. "Yeah, I would like some. Thank you." She continued to watch him as he opened up a strange metal door and inside was… everything; eggs, cheeses, meats, and multiple containers of different kind of drinks. "what is that thing?"
Tensei turned in confusion to her. "What is what?" He took note of her staring passed him to the thing behind him. "This? Uhh, you mean the fridge?"
"Yeah. You keep all of your food in that thing?"
"No, just things that need to be cold or… Wait you have never seen a fridge before?" he watched her shake her head and felt his own mouth drop slightly. "You really don't know anything about this place, do you?"
Embarrassed, Katara just rubbed the back of her head. Tensei shook his head and poured a glass of apple juice for her. "Things just get stranger with you, Katara."
She shot him a small glare. "Hey I've been here for like three hours. I haven't had much time to learn anything."
"I mean I have an entire list of encyclopedias you can go through in my office. That is bound to help you pick up plenty of things you are curious on." he paused and walked over with the glass in hand. "I'll be going back into work tomorrow, so you are welcome to use them If you want."
Smiling, Katara took the juice from him. "I really appreciate it. Thank you." She brought the juice up and took a sip. Her eyes bugged out from the amazing flavor, pulling it back and eyeing it like it was gold. "Wow, this is really good! You made this yourself?"
"Haha! I wish I could made juice. No I bought this."
"You can buy things like this? Wow, what else can you-
The sudden knocking on the entry door caught both of their attentions.
"Tensei, are you in there? I didn't hear you come home."
The new voice was male, and sounded stern yet young at the same time. "Who is that?" Katara questioned.
"Oh don't worry. That is my brother that I told you about." Tensei walked passed her and opened up the door.
"Your brother?" Katara watched as the door slid open to reveal a teenager possibly around her own age. What caught her off guard was that he looked remarkably like Tensei, only slightly shorter and with glasses in front of his eyes. She kept her eyes on him as he… seemingly talked with his hands chopping every so often.
"Brother, I didn't know you were home until I saw your boots by the door. Why didn't you come and alert me?"
"Sorry Tenya, I didn't know anyone else was home. We came in and didn't see anyone else here at the moment."
The boy Tenya leaned back to his brothers answer. "We? You are with someone else?"
"Oh yes, I'm sorry. Where are my manners." Tensei stepped out of the way and let the two teens see the other. "Katara, this is my little brother Tenya."
Tenya walked forward through the room and came to face the young waterbender. "Greetings Katara, I am Tenya Iida. Pleasure to meet your acquaintance."
Katara stifled a giggle to how proper he spoke and nodded back to him. "Hello, nice to meet you too."
"It is not often my brother brings his sidekicks home to discuss their progress. How long have you been working for him?"
"Work? Oh no, I'm not a sidekick. I just met your brother today, actually."
"What? You are not working for him?" Tenya stepped back and placed his hand on his chin. "You do not work for him, and yet you are here at his place. That means…" His eyes shot open when his mind came to a conclusion. "Brother, how could you do something so despicable!?"
"Uhh what?" Katara watched in utter confusion as the younger brother stormed back towards his sibling. "Did I miss something?"
Tenya walked right up to his big brother karate chopping the air. "Brother, I cannot believe you would stoop to this level! You can't be serious at this moment!"
"Easy Tenya, what are you trying to imply that…" Tensei's mouth dropped when he understood what was being inferred. "Oh you have got to be kidding me. Come on, you know me better than that!"
Katara was at a total loss what was going on, so she figured she might as well enjoy the juice while they argued over something.
"I understand you haven't dated in a while, Tensei, but she is far too young to be your girlfriend!"
PFFFFT!
Katara's mouthful of juice sprayed out all over the room when she heard that statement. "WHAT- *cough* WHAT THE HELL!?"
Tensei face palmed to his brother's bluntness. "Good god, Tenya… I don't know where you get these ideas from."
After the awkwardness went away (although it never really did), the three of them sat and ate the ramen together while explaining the situation to each other. The story of her being an exchange student ended up being enough for the straightforward Tenya to accept and left it at that.
"Well I must say I am terribly sorry for the off handed statement I made to the both of you." Tenya stood up and whipped his body into a deep bow. "Please accept this apology!"
"It's… it's okay. It must be odd to see your brother with a young girl in his place all of the sudden." Katara responded.
"Yeah, but how about you whisper your concern to me before blurting it out next time, alright?" Tensei glared at his sibling.
"Absolutely. I will try better next time." Tenya stood back up and smiled. "So Katara, how long do you plan to be here for your transfer study?"
She sat there for a few seconds, not sure how she was supposed to answer that before Tensei stepped in. "We are allowing her to stay as long as she needs to until she is ready to go back home." His eyes met hers and gave her a silent wink. She smiled and nodded to his answer.
"Y-yeah. Your brother is very kind for offering this to me. I hope to learn a lot."
Tenya raised his eyebrow but nodded in approval. "well I hope you enjoy your stay. And if you ever need anything, I am here to help as well."
"Thank you, Tenya. I appreciate it." Katara smiled, but then noticed the awkward look on his face when she said that. "What's wrong?"
"well, it is proper to call a person by their family name unless you are very close to them."
She blushed in embarrasment and rubbed her head. "Oh, I didn't know that. Sorry. Thank you, Iida."
Tenya nodded his head in approval. "It is no problem. Well, it is late, so I shall leave you two on your own. Have a goodnight."
"Goodnight." the two others said in unison.
After he left and closed the door behind him, Tensei rubbed his temples and laughed. "Sorry about my brother. He is quite the character sometimes."
"Oh trust me, I know exactly what you mean. I could go on for days about the things my brother has done." Katara chuckled with him as they sat there.
"Yeah, but he really is a good kid. So smart, and extremely talented too. He is already more advanced with his quirk than I was at his age."
She tilted her head in curiosity to that. "what kind of power does he have?"
He actually has the same quirk that I do; engine. The difference is that mine are in my arms and his come out of his calves."
"Really?" Katara couldn't tell due to the pants he was wearing. "Huh, that is really interesting."
Tensei yawned and glanced over to the clock on the wall. "Wow, I didn't realize it was already 9:30. I need to get to sleep soon. Come on, let me show you where you'll be staying."
"Oh, alright then." Katara stood up and followed him out of the kitchen towards the center open door of three along the wall. The room was lined floor to ceiling with books on nearly all sides and a desk to the right.
Tensei pointed in here as he continued speaking. "This is the office I told you about. You can use the books if you want to, but please don't mess with the desk and the papers. I have a few cases I'm working on."
Katara nodded to his request. "Sure, I'll remember that."
"Alrighty then. Now over here…" He shimmied passed her to the door on the right, "This will be your bedroom."
Katara walked into a decent sized bedroom with a bed, a night stand and a large cabinet with a mirror. She also noticed that the room had a doorway leading to another room, but it was dark and couldn't see much inside of it. She assumed it was a bathroom due to the sink she could see in the very faint light. "So, do you have some candles I can use for light?"
"Uhh, or you can use the light switch?" Tensei sighed and pointed to the white button on the wall.
"The what?" She eyed it for a few moments before reaching her hand and pushing it down. The next moment the lights above her flipped on, causing her to jump back a step. She stared at the bright bulbs in awe to how they glowed, reminding her of the crystal caverns under Ba Sing Se. This however was as if you took a lantern's light but removed the flame from it. It was so amazing, and yet for this place it was something so simple.
She had a lot to learn.
"If you want to wash off, I can get you some clothes you can borrow for the night. They won't fit, but they are clean at least. I can take you shopping over the next few days for your own things." Tensei said as he made his way out of the room.
Katara sat in disbelief to how generous he was. "Thank you."
Tensei simply waved his hand. "Nah, it's just some clothes. I'll put them on the bed after you get in the bathroom. Have a goodnight."
Katara watched him walk out of the room and out of sight around the corner, leaving the young waterbender alone in her room. "Goodnight."
Chapter 4: First Night is always the worst
Once inside the bathroom, Katara leaned on the counter and stared at herself for what seemed to be minutes before she even blinked. "How in the world did I end up in a place like this?" She muttered to herself. She turned to the tub and then realized she should have asked him probably the most important question of the night.
"Crap, how do I work this thing!?"
She stared at the silver faucet and handle trying to make her best guess to how the worked. She could see the plug obviously went to the drain. Step one one. Now she looked to the handle and gave it a partial turn, immediately followed by water draining out of the bottom. "Okay, so that works at least." Her hand felt the water and shivered slightly at the touch. "Okay, so… maybe I have to turn more to get it warmer."
Deciding to pull it all the way, the water rushed out faster and began to release humidity as it poured. She smiled seeing she was right. "Perfect. I guess that wasn't so hard."
Katara stood back up and began removing her blue robes and setting them on the counter top. She could smell the slight odor seeping from the cloths and scrunched her face in embarrassment. "Jeez, I hope they didn't smell me when we were eating dinner earlier." sighing, she continued to remove the white bra and leggings she wore underneath until she was finally free. She was never one who reveled in being without clothes, but she had to admit it did feel good to be out every once in a while.
She opened up the cabinets underneath the sink and found a few towels sitting there. "Well at least I don't need to drip dry." her eyes then noticed the thick layer of steam that began forming in front of her eyes. "What the…" she looked back to the tub and saw the water was near the top filled with scolding water. "Crap. I guess I made the water too hot."
She quickly shut off the faucet and touched the surface, yanking back from the intense heat. "Yeah, definitely too hot." Luckily for her, she had the perfect fix for that.
Placing her hands towards the water, Katara blew out a cool gust of mist from her mouth creating a stream of ice crystals. The cold air spread across the surface, a slight sizzling sound erupting from the top as its temperature dropped. After a few moments, she stuck her finger back in and smiled when it was just perfect for her. Stepping in, she let out a satisfied moan as the warm water enveloped her body. "Now this is exactly what I needed."
Feeling the knots and aches in her body melt away, Katara leaned her head back against the tub wall and stared up at the ceiling. She sat in silence for probably ten minutes, her nerves and body still slightly on edge to this strange place she was in. She was eternally grateful for having someone kind like Tensei help her, but she still had the entire problem that this was not her home and would somehow have to make her way back.
Her mind began replaying the events of the last few hours in her mind over and over again; Just earlier she was with Aang chasing firebenders through the woods. She came across an enraged spirit and somehow ended up in this place, one that was so different than the one she knew. And to make it worse they had no knowledge of the place she came from, which meant finding a way back would be even harder for her. She could always look for a library around here and… "Wait."
She sat up from the water and remembered the books that Tensei had shown her before she came in here. "I can look through those books and see if there is anything similar between our worlds!"
She began draining the water from the tub and grabbed the towel. Drying herself off vigorously, she wrapped herself up and opened up the door to the bedroom and was met with the sight of some clothes on the bed. She smiled and lifted up the over sized white shirt and shrugged. "It would be odd If he had clothes my size already. Can't be helped."
Slipping the shirt over her body, she chuckled seeing it hang on her like a dress. She then pulled on the baggy blue sweatpants and threw the towel back into the bathroom. She opened up the door back to the main living room and turned towards the office. Before she entered she could hear the light snore coming from the end room, obviously being Tensei's room. She made sure not to be loud and entered the center door. At first she was annoyed by the darkness, but then remembered the bathroom and felt on the wall until she found the switch and flipped it on. She grinned when the lights flicked on and lit up the place, allowing her full access to the large collection of books.
"Alright. Where to start…" she muttered as her eyes ran along the many titles he had. "I am sure glad I ended up in a place with the same language." She joked as her eyes came to the encyclopedia books he mentioned. "This should have what I need. Okay… A… E… F… S… W."
She grabbed the matching book to each letter she mentioned, hoping in someway she could find traces of her home. He carried the five books over to the spare desk in the corner and sat in the chair. Opening up A first, she skimmed through the pages to the area she needed. "Okay. Air… Air. Air nomads. Anything." She murmured as she came to the "Air" section. Her eyes scanned up and down the list of different terms.
Air blast Quirk.
Air Blow Quirk.
Air walk Quirk.
Her finger stopped scanning when she reached the words with "AJ". Her heart felt a slight ache when she found nothing about Airbending, Air nomad monks or air temples. "M-Maybe this book isn't updated." She tried to convince her self as she moved the A book out of the way and opened the E. She flipped through until she came to the earth section. She looked back and forth, trying to find anything from earthbending to earth kingdom. But the closet she could find were different earth quirks that didn't sound anything like bending. Her heart began to beat faster as she once again didn't find anything referencing the earth kingdom or any of the cities.
She slipped the book aside and flipped open the next one. "If there was anything about the fire nation's history there is no way that would be ignored." Katara sped through the book until she reached fire. Her eyes grazed over every term of fire quirk, trying to find anything similar to what she knew about firebending. She could see so many terms and names describing what they could do.
fire manipulation.
Fire creation.
Fire resistance.
Fire breathing.
"So many things. If they were firebenders they would definitely say something like that." Her worry began to increase as she looked further in the book to find anything about the fire nation. The fire nation attacks, or even the term fire lord. And yet after several passes, she came up with not a single thing relating to her search. Her finger stopped scrolling down the pages as she finally passed fire.
"No, there... there can't be nothing." She worringly said as she snatched up the s book and flipped back until she reached what she hoped would be the best chance of hope.
"Spirits. Spirits... spir-"
Her heart felt like it stopped when she read the one word after spirits.
Folklore.
Sweat started dripping down her forehead as she shakingly held the book. Spirits in this world were only legends and fairytales. They were not real. That means... they do not exist here. Her thoughts came to the realization that was always in the back of her mind and yet she tried desperately to ignore. The fear that she was feeling when she saw the changed world and felt so out of place.
There was nothing regarding anything to her home world.
Katara sat in utter silence to the pain she began to feel inside her chest. Her breath came in shallow gasps and she stumbled out of the chair to lean her back against the wall. She slid down to the floor as her knees pulled up into her chest to try and comfort herself, but it just made her feel more secluded and alone. She didn't even bother to try searching for waterbending, for she knew what the answer would be. Her bottom jaw began to tremble as emotions she was trying to hold back were beginning to make their way to the surface and reveal themselves. Images of people important in her life began flashing by, reminding her of the pain she was being tormented with.
"Sokka. Dad. Aang. Toph. Zuko. Suki. Gran-Gran. All of you…" Vision began to blur as tears started to flow outward. "I never even got to say goodbye to anyone. And now…"
She brought a hand to her mouth as her breaths became ragged, sniffling with every gasp. "...I don't know if I'll ever be able to see you again. I- I'm sorry."
Her dad, grandmother and brother would hear from Aang what had happened to her, thinking the worst that she was dead. Then there was the many great friends she had made over the course of her adventures, lifelong bonds she would not ever have broken were now severed instantly. And then there was Aang. Her tears flowed freely when she thought of the Avatar.
It was he who started her on the grand adventure she had experienced over the last seven months of her life. He who pushed her to join him to the north pole to master her bending, and aided him through his battles with the fire nation. He was always there for her when she needed it, and she would have been there as well. And then… he had revealed his feelings to her.
Her eyes clenched shut when she remembered him kiss her before the invasion, instantly telling her that he truly thought of her as more than a friend. He then tried to tell her during their stay on Ember island, revealing to her he always loved her. And what bothered her most was the fact when he revealed this to her, the secret burning inside of his chest since the day he met her, she chose to say the only thing that could come to her mind at the time.
That she was confused.
Katara gritted her teeth in frustration thinking about what she had said. Her best friend revealed how he had felt, and she had shot him down because of the fear in her heart that she was afraid to admit to him and even to herself; that she really didn't know if she loved him back. And now, she would be stuck in limbo because he would never be able to find out from her the truth. All she could do now was be reminded of her mistake, gripping her legs tight and bury her face into her knees and weep.
"I am sorry. I'm so sorry, Aang."
Katara continued to cry for what felt like an hour, unable to get up from her position. The only reason she slowed down was the fact she was running out of tears to cry. Her breathing began to stabilize and her nerves leveled out as she laid her head back against the wall behind her. She stared up at the blank ceiling, her mind slowly beginning to take in the fact that she was in a new place and time different from where she came from, and as far as she knew at this point, perhaps this is where she was going to have to live.
"When you're a waterbender in a strange land, you do what you must to survive."
The words of another bender she hoped to forget reappeared inside her head, bringing a frustrated grimace to her face. "Not even your situation was to this level, Hama." She sneered to the demon from her past.
Realizing to where her search had led, Katara forced her self off the ground and turned to leave the room before stopping herself. She wanted to go back to the bed in the room she was given and curl up in the dark. All she felt like doing was sit alone and try to get some rest for herself. At this point however, her nerves were on such a high from her situation she knew there was no way to fall asleep. She would be laying there for hours just being reminded of the pain she just stopped crying from. The only way to keep herself from losing it again would be to have something to distract her with. Turning back around, her eyes met the books still sitting open on the desk.
"If I am up, I might as well…" She sighed to herself and walked back over, gathering them up and restacking them. She stepped to the shelf and pulled out the book with a "Q" on the spine and brought it to the countertop along with the others.
"Perhaps someday I may find out a way back home…" She muttered out loud while flipping it open. "Until then… This is where I will be, so I should know everything I can."
She skimmed through the pages until she reached the section she had been curious on since the moment she heard the words. Perhaps the most important and common thing she was going to experience here and should know what she could about it. Once she found it, she took a deep and began."
"So, what is a quirk..."
And so she began her research.
Chapter 5: Starting Line
The alarm next to Tensei's bed stirred him up from his slumber. He forced his eyes open and mumbled to himself. "Ugh, I don't know why I set it so early this morning. I don't have much set for the day." He rolled over to slap the alarm off and stared at the time. "it's only six. Great job, Tensei."
He rubbed his face for a few seconds to wake himself up, huffing out and sitting upright. He walked out of his bed and slipped his shirt on over his body. He grabbed his phone and scrolled through his messages to look back to what he had sent last night to remind himself, seeing all he had planned was a day of paperwork he was slacking on lately. But now that he was up, he knew he couldn't simply fall back asleep. "Might as well do some of that work now…" he sighed to himself and slipped on a pair of socks.
Walking out of his room, he made his way to the left and turned to open his office, but was confused when he saw the door open and the lights already on. "Huh? I know those were off last night and…" His voice slowly trailed off when he saw the sight before him, bringing a large grin to his face. "...Ah, I see."
Katara was leaned over the side desk that he had in the room, multiple books spread out across the top of it. The young girl was face flat against one of the open encyclopedias, obviously exhaustion took over her body from reading. Her hanging hair was strewn out everywhere, some of it blowing in and out from her open mouth breathing. The sight of her in this position brought a chuckle to the turbo hero, walking over to the couch and grabbing a spare blanket and carrying it over to the young girl. He draped it over her shoulders and glanced to the pages she was reading before she passed out.
"What do we have here, huh?" He pulled one of the books up and raised an eyebrow. "Refrigerator… Hm, I see you weren't joking last night."
He set the book back down and walked out of the room to the kitchen. He pulled out a bowl from the cabinet and reached for the cereal as well. He was about to open it up before he sat and thought for a few moments. His eyes drifted back towards the office and he felt a little guilty having her stay here alone while he went into the agency for the day. If she really was new to this city, lifestyle and world, maybe leaving her alone her first day wouldn't turn out the best.
"I'd come home, and she burned the place messing with the stove." He shivered at the thought before picking his phone up and dialing it real quick. He waited a few moments before he heard it answer. "Yes, can you cancel my appointments for the day? Some stuff came up… family emergency? Uh… you can say something like that."
He waited a few moments before nodding. "Perfect, I'll see you Monday. Goodbye."
He clicked it closed and smiled. "Well, since I am here too, might as well introduce her to them."
Katara slowly felt her mind stirring awake, forcing her eyes to slide open. She mumbled to herself as she sat up from the desk and gave a small wince. "Ow!"
She reached up and rubbed the back of her neck and felt a tight kink. "Great, falling asleep like this wasn't the best idea." She grunted to herself and tried to stand up, shocked when she felt a blanket fall down from her back. "Huh?"
Looking down at it, she remembered she never put one on last night, meaning someone placed it on her at some point. A small smile crept on her face at the act, appreciating her host even more. A big yawn left her mouth and she stretched out her back feeling a few pops escape. Sighing in relief, she looked back down to the books before her and rubbed her head. "I guess I overdid it last night."
Her mind began replaying the random assortment of things she attempted to take in the night before.
Cars.
Fridges.
Countries.
She lost count of how many things she read last night, and after a while they began to blur in a giant mess as her exhaustion crept up and took over her mind. Trying to learn as much as she could in one night was definitely far too much for her to process and understand, now knowing she should pace herself a bit better if she were to get a true feel of this place. She turned around and took notice of her water tribe robes folded on top of the main desk.
"Wait, how did those…?" Katara question stopped when she noticed a note on top of the clothes.
"Katara, I took the liberty of washing your clothes for you. I hope you don't mind. I have guests you should meet and would look better with you in these than the ones I loaned you.
Breakfast will be waiting for you."
While she was extremely grateful, Katara took note of what he had said halfway in the note. "Guests?" Her ears suddenly picked up light chatter on the other side of the now closed office door. She looked down to the baggy clothes she sported and felt her face grow a light red. "If his brother thought of dating last night, I don't want to know what they think of me in his clothes."
After a few minutes of stripping her current set off and redressing in her standard look, Katara gave a small huff of satisfaction being back to what she knew. She straightened her hair and took a breath before reaching for the handle. "Here goes nothing, I guess."
Pushing it open, she was met with a wonderful aroma of scents from the kitchen. Her stomach immediately growled in anticipation to what it had coming its way, but then her eyes met not just Tensei, but two other adults in the kitchen with him all turning in unison to the new guest.
"Ah, so you are awake now…" Tensei smiled as he walked over towards her. "… I hope the desk wasn't too uncomfortable for you."
Katara blushed and rubbed her head. "Sorry, I was reading and kinda lost track of time."
"It's okay, it happens to all of us. Come in, I'd like to introduce you." He guided her over towards the other two there in his place. "Katara, these are my parents. Mom and Dad, this is Katara that I told you about."
The two adults were around fifty or so, the man with short dark blue hair and a slight line of stubble on his chin. His mother had shoulder length hair of the same color, along with glasses over her eyes like her other son. Deciding to be polite, Katara smiled and gave a bow to the two of them. "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Iida."
Mrs. Iida had a large smile on her face and walked forward. "Well it's good to meet you too. Tensei didn't tell me you were so pretty."
"Really mom?" Tensei sighed as he saw Katara blush.
Miss Iida giggled at their embarrasment and waved her hand. "I'm just teasing you, Tensei. It's a pleasure to meet you too. I am Madoka Iida, and this is my husband, Toki."
Katara looked up to the older man and smiled. "Pleasure to meet you, sir."
"The honor is all mine." Toki answered with a grin. "I heard from Tenya that there was a new guest staying here and wanted to meet her."
Katara sweat dropped at that statement. "He did now, did he?"
'Did he tell them he thought I was some new girl Tensei was dating?' she mentally moaned.
Luckily, the mother Madoka grabbed her husbands arm. "Oh come now, lets grab our food and not make her wait eating."
As she watched the family gather food together, Katara felt a nice warmth flow over her body from the positive energy here. She followed them to the table and sat down across from Madoka. She was leaned back as Tensei came in and slid a glass of water and a plate of food in front of her. She looked down and felt her eyes widen in excitement. "Wow."
The plate was loaded with several eggs, a few pieces of ham and what seemed to be chunks of potatoes grilled up and covered with seasoning. She felt her mouth water and her stomach growl as the wonderful scents reached her nose. She would have scarfed it down with her hands then and there if she was alone, the only thing stopping her was the his parents sitting there. Holding back her urges, she waited until Tensei delivered the other plates to his parents and sat down himself.
"So I didn't know how you like your eggs. If you prefer a different style I can make you new ones." He asked as he sat down in the chair between Katara and his mother.
"No no, these are perfect. Thank you." Katara responded and grabbed the utensils next to her. She grabbed a few potato chunks and brought them up and took a bite. It took all of her will power to hold back the moan of pleasure she wanted to let out from the amazing taste. "This is really good!"
Tensei chuckled at her response. "I'm glad you enjoy it. I've always been a potato fan myself."
The family ate quietly for the first two minutes as they enjoyed the breakfast before Madoka broke the silence. "So Katara. I hear you are here to study japanese culture."
Katara finished chewing the eggs she had before responding. "Y-Yes, I was given the chance to come and experience Japan, so I took the opportunity."
'Okay, that answer is seeming to work.' Katara grinned internally as she took another bite.
Toki took a sip of coffee and nodded in agreement. "That is nice. So how did you get to stay with my son?"
Katara froze mid bite. 'Crap, we didn't talk about that!'
"It was through my agency actually…" Tensei interrupted, "… one of my associates was talking about a fundraising event to bring in people from outside Japan to come and experience life here. There was a mistake in her paperwork and she was stuck with no place to go. So I told him I could offer my service."
"Really? Aww I'm sorry to hear that." Madoka said.
Katara simply brought the water up and took a sip. "Mhm…" She mumbled, trying to hide her awkward glances. 'Nice save, I was screwed there!'
Toki accepted the story and smiled. "Wow Tensei, that is very kind of you. You have always been sp generous with others."
"It's the least I can do, father…" Tensei answered. "I learned this from you both."
His mother couldn't help but smile to the compliment. "Aww thank you sweetie. So, Katara, what have you liked so far about your stay in Japan?"
Finishing her plate, Katara sat up and wiped her mouth. "It's only been a day, but I am really surprised by how different it is than my village."
"Oh, how so?"
"Well, it is much more different than any cities I have been to, and I am very shocked by the quirks here."
Both parents gave questionable looks to what she said. "What do you mean?"
Katara suddenly felt her neck sweat, thinking she shouldn't have opened up this conversation. She however kept her cool and decided to go with it. "You see, uhh.. where I'm from we only really have ben- I mean quirks that involve elements like water, earth or fire. We don't have quirks like your son's."
Toki sat back curiously to this. "That is very interesting. What is your quirk?"
Sitting silently for a few moments, Katara decided the best way to play along was to demonstrate. "Well, my quirk is waterbending." She placed her hand above the glass and lifted it, pulling the water out of the cup in a single fluid stream that began flowing through her open fingers. "I can manipulate water and control it however I want."
"Oh, I see. That is a very nice quirk." Toki watched as the water flowed through her hand like a graceful snake. "It seems you have great control of it as well, you must have trained a lot."
"Yeah… you can say that." Katara nodded as she placed the water back into her cup, deciding not to go in depth what she could really do with her power.
"And I must say, Katara, I love your outfit you have on." Madoka said as she leaned in looking towards the young girl. "Tell me, is this from your village?"
"Oh, this?" Katara looked down to her robes. "Yes, this came from my home."
"Oh I love the colors! They are so pretty! It makes me want to see what other designs you brought."
Katara felt extremely awkward at the request, once again having to think on the spot. "Oh… uh funny thing. I… lost my clothes on the train ride here. Hehe."
Madoka's mouth dropped at hearing the situation. "You lost your luggage!? That's terrible!" She quickly stood up and marched over to the waterbender and placed her hands on her shoulders. "You can't be here without anything else to wear. Let's go."
Now the gears were cranking in Katara's head as the elder woman gripped her shoulders. "Uhhhhhh… go where?"
"We are taking you shopping!"
Tensei sat frozen mid bite as he stared at his mother. "Crap…"
Katara really couldn't tell what was more awkward.
First, there was the situation that they were told by the chief that they were supposed to lay low after the entire predicament she caused when she came here. Damage, disturbing the peace, and using a quirk (well technically bending) without a license were all charges that he was allowing to push aside due to her unforeseen arrival. They didn't want to cause any more problems until they were settled. Not to mention the fact an enraged Endeavor might have just burnt her to a crisp if she ran into him on the street again.
Second, there was getting into the car. Not that she had never been inside of a moving metal vehicle before, in fact she had been in multiple different kind of machines in the last year. And yet getting into this small… Sushuki? Shuzuka? Whatever they called it, and it's open windows exposing her to everything outside just felt odd. And she had to put this strange belt over her body, locking her in place and rubbing against her neck irritated her.
And then third… was Tensei's mother.
"Ohh this is going to be so fun! I have always had to shop for two boys! I always wanted to take a girl to get new outfits! Eeeeeeeeee!"
Tensei just rubbed his temple as he sat next to his mother while she drove them down the road. He didn't want to take Katara outside, but he knew if he tried to dissuade her she would have got suspicious. All he could do was go along with the two of them and keep an eye on her.
"So, there are several places I know you must go to if you need a new wardrobe set!" Madoka continued on her excited tangent as merged down the road. "We need shirts, obviously for day to day use. Then shoes. And dresses. Ohhh, a beautiful blue one for you! OHH! I know the perfect store! And then-
"Uhh, I think I'll get just new things…" Katara attempted to calm down the eccentric woman in the front, but she obviously had other plans.
"Oh darling, please! You are to experience a new place from your village, yes? Than you will experience what we have to offer! There is a wonderful store that has great jackets and wondrous designs you will adore!"
The excited mom continued as Katara shook her head. She glanced outside the window as she took in the many passing buildings. Now that it was the day, everything looked so different to her from before. The dazzling lights from the night were gone, leaving her to take in the structures for what they were. She was also shocked to see it was winter here, and yet where she came from it was summer. "Something to do with how I got here?" She said quietly.
She stared at the people passing by, all of them so different from everyone else. Her mind began imagining new powers that some of them may have had. She saw a man with a bush for a head. Did he grow leaves? Or fruit?
"Quirks are something else." She whispered under her breath.
"Aaand here we are!" Madoka cheered as she pulled into the desired parking lot.
Katara snapped out of her thoughts as she looked ahead to see an immense shopping center spreading out across the size of what she guessed was the entire northern water tribe. She sat in awe at the sheer mass of the place, not believing there was a way this place simply sold things.
"This is where you go shopping!? How is one store this big!?"
"Oh no no no!" Madoka giggled at her question. "There are many stores here in this mall. Come on, lets get to it!" she quickly unbuckled and seemingly danced her way out of the car, leaving the other two in awkward silence.
Twiddling her thumbs, Katara looked to her host and blew out her mouth. "Sooooo… we should get out now, right?"
Tensei sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Yes, lets do this. Just… don't go wandering off, promise?"
"Yes, I promise."
Nodding, both got out of the car and caught up to the giddy mother walking up the steps.
Once up the stairs, Katara's mouth nearly dropped to the floor when her eyes set sight on the monstrous mall. Multiple floors stacked on top of each other, each one packed with stores of every variety of things she could imagine. Along with the immense number of stores were the droves of people walking through the center. It felt like Ba Sing Se all over again for the young waterbender.
"This… place is enormous. This is where all of your stores are?"
Tensei gave a small shrug. "Well… for this mall, yes."
Her eyes bugged out of her head hearing that. "How… many malls do you ha- Wha, hey!?"
"Come on, miss! So much to do today!" Madoka excitingly pulled Katara by her wrist towards the first stop on her list. "Let's start with the basics!"
As she was tugged along, Katara simply moaned and let the woman lead her. "Well, it can't be that bad, can't it?"
"So, how do you like them?" Madoka wiggled back and forth in anticipation as she waited for the young girl outside the changing room.
"Uhhhh, I'm not sure. It seems… fitting." Katara awkwardly answered from behind the door.
"Oh come out, let me see!" the happy mother watched as the door opened up and revealed the waterbender, earning an exasperated gasp from the blue haired woman. "Oh. My. Gosh, You are gorgeous!"
Katara was in a blue crop top revealing the lower half of her tanned abs. She wasn't bothered by that part, but felt covered and yet very exposed with the tight leggings she had on. "Ehh… this goes under other things, right?"
"Well you can yes. But many wear just those. And you have the shape to show off, darling!" the giddy mother gave a big wink to her.
"Just these?" Katara turned to the side and felt her face burn red when she saw every curve of her lower half in the mirror. "Yeah… that is NOT happening!"
"You sure these are what people wear here?" Katara questioned as she eyed the giant round sun hat in her hands. She placed it on top of her head and frowned when the large bill drooped in front of her face.
"Well this is for special occasions!"
"Special for what? Being blind?" Her mind suddenly smacked herself. 'Sorry Toph.'
"OHH! Those are perfect for you!"
Trying to stand up in the skinny stilettos was already hard enough for Katara, but moving in them were another story. "These are… woah!" her ankles wobbled between steps as she tried to balance on the tiny spike under her heel. "How are people supposed to-AHH!"
SNAP!
Madoka winced as she watched the girl fall sideways and the bottom of the shoe break off. "Yeah… maybe a shorter size for your first time." She quickly glanced around seeing they weren't being watched. "Just put those away quickly and lets hit another store."
After nearly three hours of shopping, Katara had to admit she was actually enjoying herself more than she expected. She was now wearing a gray T-shirt and blue pants along with new footwear. Sure there were stores she wished she could have skipped (She was never a fan of fancy shoes) but she was blown away by some of the things that were here. Sure the basics like shirts and shorts were picked out, along with other things she was familiar with like sandals for basic use around when she was relaxing. But there were several things that she discovered that blew her mind.
The first thing were the type of pants called Jeans. The strange material seemed like it would be rough to her legs, but they were surprisingly comfortable once they hugged her skin. She wanted only one, but her host was adamant that she grabbed others to change colors. Blue of course, but then black and tan to go with other shirts she bought. She wasn't too big of a fan of the short skirts or leggings, but of course Madoka had to grab a few of each for her.
Another thing she was taken back by were the strange shoes in this world called sneakers. The odd, rubbery shoes were incredibly soft and gave amazing cushion to her soles that it felt like she was walking on a pillow. She loved one of these green pairs she found so much, she almost didn't want to take them off out of the store. She then figured she was already in new clothes so she decided why not wear new shoes to go with them too. Wearing them out, along with the two other pairs chosen, she assumed they were done with their day.
Looking down, Katara now counted four bags in her hands as they walked through the center of the mall. "Wow, I didn't realize how many things we got."
"I know, isn't this great!?" Madoka cheered as she wiggled in glee. "After shopping for Tensei and Tenya for so long, I never knew helping a young girl shop would be so fun!"
Katara suddenly remembered the one she originally came with, turning around to see Tensei carrying most of the shopping bags and boxes with a giant frown on his face. Evidently being the pack mule for the ladies wasn't what he thought fun was.
"Ohh yes. Jolly fun time." He sighed as he trotted along.
Seeing him flustered made Katara giggle. She couldn't believe the situation she had found herself in. Just the night before she was thrown into this strange world with nothing but the clothes on her back and no place to go. And now, she was here with several new people offering her everything she needed and more. There was no way to describe how much this meant to her, the happy feelings it brought up inside her chest, she didn't even realize the haziness forming in her vision.
"Katara?"
"Huh? What?" She snapped out of her thoughts to Tensei's voice and noticed both him and his mother staring at her. "What's wrong?"
"Well, we should be asking you that…" he asked with a hint of worry.
Before she could say anything, the feeling of a tear rolling down her cheek gave her the answer she was looking for. She reached up and wiped away the wet streaks from her face and smiled. "I'm alright. It's just…. I can't tell you how much I appreciate what you are doing for me. You are giving me much more than I need."
Madoka clenched her chest hearing that. "Aww, sweetie… you don't need to feel bad, This is the least we can do to help you."
"Yes, but I feel really bad. I promise I can pay you back for this stuff and-
"You won't be needing to do that…" Tensei walked up to her, his face warm and caring. "I told you I'd help you with your situation, and I am happy to do this for you. You don't need to pay a thing right now."
Drying the rest of her face off, Katara nodded to both of them and smiled. Happy with what she had done, Madoka decided to call their shopping spree. "Well perhaps that is good for your first mall trip. Perhaps we could head back and get home now."
Katara gave a small nod in approval as Tensei adjusted his many boxes he carried.
'Thank god… moms finally done shopping.' he yelled internally.
The car ride home was surprisingly quiet compared to the drive over. Katara stared out to the blue sky as they cruised down the road. Her mind drifted calmly as she listened to the music that came out of the doors around her. She had no idea how it worked, but somehow there was music being played with no band around and yet it sounded right there. The guitar strings plucked reverberated around her, almost as if the band was directly in front of her. She would eventually ask what this was, but at the moment it felt good to just relax and listen.
After they pulled into the driveway, the trio unloaded the bags and boxes of clothes and carried them up the steps. After getting them into the house they walking them to Tensei's place, they dropped them all off into her room. As they walked back towards the car for the remaining bags, Katara's eyes wandered into one of the rooms she had passed the night before. She couldn't help but stare inside at the strange metal room. Her legs seemed to move on their own as she was drawn into it before a hand fell onto her shoulder making her gasp. She looked up and saw Tensei standing behind her. "I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't be going into other rooms without your permission."
To her surprise he just looked down to her. "So you took notice of this room, huh?"
She was confused by his statement as he walked by her into the strange room, signaling her to follow. She was hesitant at first, but decided to stay with him and entered. The entire room was a light blue color but almost entirely made of metal several work benches were lined against the sides of the wall littered with pieces of metal fragments ranging in all shapes and sizes. And on one of the tables she noticed something very familiar to her from the night before, walking up to it and staring intensely at it.
"Is that… your armor?"
Tensei nodded and walked over to the disasembled set of pieces set in front of the waterbender. "I needed a few adjustments to the joints in the shoulders, so I take it here. This Is where the family keeps their hero costumes."
Katara couldn't help but notice several large patch spots under the chest portion where the ribs sit. She reached out and ran her hand over the area, feeling where there were deep gashes from before. "So something nearly cut through, didn't it?"
Tensei raised an eyebrow in surprise at her guess. "Yeah, a villain with a scythe quirk almost got to the skin a year back. How could you tell?"
"I've seen my share of repaired armor in the past."
He couldn't help but get a small shiver when she responded so naturally with that statement. Last night she had told him about her home being ravaged by war. Judging by how easily she came to that assumption meant she must have been telling the truth. Before he could say anything, she continued.
"So you're job is to go out and save people from others who try to hurt others, right?" She asked, the tone in her voice different from before.
"Not every time, but there are times when there are people who want to hurt others using their quirks. That is why there are those like me who do what they can to help others. Those are heroes."
Katara took her hand off the armor and looked down to her own hand, thinking back to what he told her the night before. "You said what I did last night when I tried to save that boy… that I reminded you of what a real hero would do. But I just did what was right."
"You seem to have a good heart, and I respect that. But unfortunately here, the government requires those who want to use their powers to get a license to use them for use against others." He picked up his helmet and brushed off the dust. "That is why the police chief was so upset when you used your ability in the public like that."
She clenched her fist and remembered the many times she saw how the fire nation would restrict the bending of the villages they conquered. While this place obviously was not as bad, she felt annoyed that people didn't have the freedom to defend themselves if they needed to. She almost felt… responsible wanting to be there to help others if she could.
"Hello, I'm home!"
The two of them in the workshop turned to see Tenya standing in the doorway in his gray school uniform. Tensei raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Tenya? Why are you back from school?"
"The school had a water break in the main building, so classes were cancelled for the day." Tenya responded with his usual stiff movements. He noticed Katara standing there. "Oh, Katara, hello! I see you here with my brother as well."
Katara gave a nod his direction. "Yes, him and your mother took me to the mall to get clothes since I lost my other ones."
'This lie is coming pretty natural.' she mumbled internally.
"Well that is wondrous you have new things now! I am pleased that they helped you!" Tenya happily exclaimed and gave a small bow. "Well I shall leave you and cease my disturbance to finish my studying."
Tensei suddenly came up with an idea and grinned. "Hey Tenya, how about you take Katara with you and let her study as well."
"Huh?" Katara looked up to him in confusion. "study?"
"Brother, that is a wonderful idea." Tenya answered excitingly. "you said you wanted to learn about Japan, and I would be honored to help you study new things!"
At first Katara was very hesitant at the offer, but realized if she was to learn anything of this place, help would be amazing. Trying to read and figure everything out herself was an option, but would probably take so much longer than having someone to be her teacher. Perhaps this was actually a great idea.
"That would be amazing, Thank you." she said with a large smile.
"Excellent, if you would like, we can go and study by the pool. calm sounds of water always helps with the mind."
"Pool?" Katara asked before she frowned, realizing why their mom kept insisting they go to the swimwear store.
As they walked out of the room together, Tensei couldn't help but smile. He walked over to the printer on the desk and lifted up the two sheets he made earlier. "Tenya, you already have your mind set on what you want to do and who you will become." He paused as he read the UA high school application for his brother before flipping to the second page; another application sheet that had a blank name spot.
"As for you Katara, I can see you have interest and the drive to do what is right. I however won't say anything. If you want to become a hero, you must make that choice yourself."
Through the back hall of the house, Katara stared at the large indoor pool with a small sparkle in her eye. She just felt good having a large source of water close by as she sat at the patio set near the edge. She looked over to Iida as he quickly set his books on the table, giggling as he already had a giant grin on his face.
"So Katara, today I am learning the fundamentals of economics of Japanese history. I shall happily help you get this subject figured out!"
"Uhh… sure. Sounds fun." She answered with sarcasm as she grabbed the sheet Iida handed her.
While she didn't understand a word about what he was studying, she knew she would have to learn anything and everything she could about this place. She smiled and grabbed the pen and leaned down towards the page in front of her.
"Let's do this."
"Studying Sucks."
Katara mumbled as she fell onto her bed late that evening. Her brain felt like it was pulsing in her head from the overload of information she was trying to cram into one day. Not to mention Tenya was not a slow teacher for her.
"He acts like this stuff is as basic as breathing." She chuckled to herself and rubbed her forehead.
She looked out the window to the dark sky, noting how the sun had already been down for several hours. After Tenya said he needed to go to sleep for school the next day, she ran into his parents who were going out for a date together. Tensei also mentioned that he was going to be working in the office doing work the rest of the night. She figured she would just go back to the room and try to sleep. On the bed however, her mind was racing so fast there was no way she was going to be able to relax for sometime.
"And now I'm here alone and can't sleep." She sighed to herself as she sat back up. She needed to do something relaxing to calm her mind, something she was more comfortable with than anything at the moment. She needed water.
Thinking back to earlier, she walked out of her room and looked over and noticed Tensei deep in thought on his desk. His face was buried in the paperwork stacked on top, not noticing her peeking inside. Not wanting to bother him, Katara made her way to the entry door and silently pushed it open. She closed it behind her and walked through the empty home back towards where she was earlier. Once inside the pool room, she gave a small smile at the sight of the dark water sitting still in front of her. The light from the moon illuminated the surface, casting beautiful reflections across the ceiling of the dark room.
Katara took her shoes off and sat on the edge of the water, letting her feet fall into the refreshing pool. Just three seconds in and her mind already ceased its throbbing sensation she had been experiencing. "Now I would just sleep in here if I could." She chuckled to herself.
She kicked her feet several times , letting the water splash out and make little waves. Her hand reached out and bended up a small ball of water. the wet orb gently spun in the air above her fingers, bringing a smile to Katara's face. Then, her mind clicked again.
"If I am here in the place, I do need a place to practice my bending." She said as she stood up. knowing she was alone at the moment, she knew it was the perfect time to do this. She reached her foot onto the water surface, but it didn't sink through. instead, the water pushed back up against her to support her weight. She slowly walked out the pools rippling surface until she was in the center. she stood still for several seconds, taking a deep breath before raising her hands from her sides and pulling up two streams of water with her.
Taking slow spins, she pulled the water around her body like two flowing paper streamers, not letting a single drop fall out of place. The columns of liquid crawled up her arms and slowly encased her shoulders as well, almost as if a large serpent sat on top of her body. she lowered her arms along with what she bended, the water reaching down and lifting herself above the surface. She hovered there for a few moments as her eyes stared at the ceiling, her mind finally at ease from before. Now she had truly made her decision.
She would continue to practice her bending here when she could, and she would learn the new ways of this world from her new friends here.
From here on out… this was her new starting line.