making it to the northern water tribe

a/n: another love interest is being introduced!!

warning: survivors guilt

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authors pov

10:44 AM. ICY SEAS

"zuko's on his own," aang says as him and the rest of the water tribe siblings are sitting on appa; who flies them over the cold waters. "well, unless he's with his cousin. and he wasn't anything like i thought he would be. he just seemed so alone,"

"i'm shocked,"

"sokka," y/n says, looking at him as he puts his hands up. 

"aang made a connection with him," katara points out. "right?"

"i just realised zuko and i, we both have a lot on our shoulders," aang says. "this whole time, i've been worried that i don't know what i'm doing. and the truth is, i don't. i haven't learned any of the other bending skills, and i'll probably continue messing up, but at least i'll be able to do it with my friends by my side,"

"team avatar," katara smiles. 

"i was thinking the gaang," y/n says as everyone looks at her. "you know because aang's name is literally aang and if we just and a 'g' infront," she sees the disapproval on her siblings faces. "i-never mind,"

"no! no!" aang says. "i like it!"

"of course, you do," sokka says, rolling his eyes. playfulness hidden behind it. katara and y/n laugh, as appa grunts loudly.

"what is it, boy?" aang says, turning around. 

"look!" katara says, standing up slightly. "it's the northern water tribe!"

"wow..." y/n says, her smile getting bigger and bigger. it's beautiful. 

"we did. we finally made it," katara continues, smiles landing on everyone's face. 

appa flies over the ice wall, slipping through one of the gaps. 

"they're here!" a woman says, cheering with the rest of the northern water tribe. 

"avatar, welcome to agna qel'a!"

"this is..." sokka says, looking around in awe. 

"beautiful," aang finishes off for him. 

"it's perfect," katara smiles. let's just say, she's the person who's wanted to be here the most. 

"more than perfect," y/n says. "it's incandescent," she smiles. 

they fly over a bit more of the northern tribe. it screams home. it screams unity. it most have taken decades for it to such a stronghold as it now.  

appa lands on a platform, a bunch of the northern water tribe standing around them. 

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"we've been expecting you," a water tribe male says, walking them to the palace. "your beast is in good hands. my men will take him to our buffalo yack stables, which are in a heated grotto with plenty of light and space,"

"make sure he gets of seaweed," aang says to the male. y/n, sokka and katara behind him. they continue to look around in awe. this is not the wolf cove anymore. "lots of seaweed,"

"of course," the water tribe male bows towards aang. 

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"welcome," the chief of the northern tribe says, looking at the four kids. well, y/n is an adult. "i'm arnook, chief of the northern tribe, and i offer you our hospitalities and our protection in the name of the ocean and moon spirits,"

"thank you," aang says. "you don't know how long we've been looking forward to this,"

"i can't tell you the joy it brings us to welcome a long-lost brother and two sisters from the south," the two girls smile wider as sokka nods. "this is master pakku. he is our senior waterbending master," pakku nods as katara shakes y/n's arm in excitement. "this is my daughter, princess yue, our tribe's spiritual leader," sokka looks at her, remembering her from somewhere...but where? her white hair, different, but still just as beautiful as any other colour. "and this is my son, prince arden, our chief in battle strategy," a boy with long light brown hair bows over to the gaang, slightly pausing, seeing y/n. 

"there's something i need to tell you," aang says to arnook. "you're in danger,"

"avatar aang-"

"i know it sounds crazy, but i've seen a vision, and in it, the north is under attack,"

"we know," aang's eyes go wide with relief and also confusion. "several days ago, our scouts picked up a fire nation fleet steaming this way. we've been keeping track of them ever since,"

"we are grateful to have you with us," pakku says to aang. "with the power of the avatar on our side, we'll teach them a lesson they won't soon forget,"

"citizens, it is a great day for our city as we welcome mighty allies, and we shall celebrate their arrival with a feast,"

"feast," paaku repeats with slight enthusiasm. 

"stop staring," y/n says, nudging sokka who gives a glance at his older sister. 

"i can't help it," he says to her, katara listening to the conversation. "there's something about her. have we meet her before?" sokka says, looking at both of his sisters. 

"no," katara deadpans. "now quit it before they think something's wrong with you,"

"more than there already is," y/n teases, making sokka shove her a little. he rolls his eyes, but looks down away from the princess. and he doesn't see the way she looks at him. 

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slurping on the warm noodles, y/n watches as her brother gives googly eyes at the princess. but she doesn't notice some one giving her googly eyes.

"go and talk to her baby bro," she says, before sipping the rest of the broth. she's sitting at the end of the stools. sokka next to her and katara next to him and aang at the opposite end.

"and say what?" sokka says, looking at her. "'hey there. sokka, southern water tribe'," he scoff quietly, looking at his hands.

"sokka,"

"she's just a girl," katara says, looking at yue.

"and pretty girl," y/n adds. "but still just a girl,"

"she's a princess and a spiritual leader," sokka says. "she probably sleeps on a throne and only eats dewdrops and sunshine,"

y/n shakes her head in disbelief.

"you should still try," she says, putting a hand on his shoulder. she pats him, before trying some more food. she needs to learn how to cook this. maybe she could seek into the kitchens and learn how.

"so enjoying the food, are we?" pakku says, walking over to the gaang.

"it's delicious," katara smiles, giving a small bow.

"you say you were entirely self taught," pakku says, motioning to the waterbending sisters. katara motions for y/n to speak, making the older girl quickly swallow her food.

"yeah, we are," y/n nods. "i think we're come pretty far but there's still more for us to learn. it's why me and katara couldn't wait to meet the other waterbenders and masters like you,"

"it must have difficult to grow cut off from the other benders," pakku says. "the fire nation's attacks took so much from you. from all of us,"

y/n watched her mother be burn to a crisp. there was nothing she could do. katara tried to waterbend to save her, but she had no practice. she couldn't bend properly. and it cost her mother her life. y/n has always felt guilty of kya's death. and it probably won't stop.

"the worst part was i...i couldn't do anything about it," katara admits.

"what's important is that you both survived," pakku says. "that is what we do. water is the element of change. and we waterbenders have always adapted to the flow of life. tomorrow morning, go and find yagoda. she is one of our finest instructors, and she can start you on your journey,"

"thank you, master pakku," y/n and katara both bow their heads, smiling. they're actually going to learn how to waterbend. that's amazing!

she smiles, noticing the prince as been staring at her. and maybe for this whole time. what was his name again...aiden? no, it was arden.

she smiles at him, bowing respects to him as he is royalty. he smiles at her, doing the same. he points out of the hall, then looks back at her. he wants to meet her outside of the hall?

"i'll be back in a second," y/n says to her family before walking off. arden follows, not extremely behind her. "hi," she says they're away from the hall, in an open corridor. so the stars are beautiful for her to see. 

"hi," arden says, smilng at her. "i just wanted to say you're really pretty," y/n smiles at him. she can't help it. he seems to sweet. "and i wanted to ask what it's like being on a journey with the avatar,"

"thank you for calling me pretty," y/n says. "you are also very pretty," arden looks away flustered. but he is. "and the journey...well..." she thinks back to every time she's been hurt, the fights she's lost, being separated from her family and loosing her hair. then she thinks back to all the smiles and laughs, meeting suki and minho, getting better at her waterbending, meeting the badger mole and the king of omashu and the other good things which cancels out the bad. "it's been an experience. and very long, but good experience,"

"woah," arden hums, resting on the railing on the balcony. "would you do it again in a heartbeat?"

"oh yeah," y/n laughs. "it's been worth it. but enough about me, what's it like being the prince?" arden shrugs, looking out to the stars. "seriously? not one good thing?"

"the food?"

"usually, i would look at you in shame but the food is actually amazing," y/n says. "is there any chance i could learn how to cook what they made?"

"uh, yeah. me and my sister helped," arden says. "helped with the desserts too,"

"i haven't had any of the desserts yet," y/n says, looking over to the stars. "you know. since you basically took me out here,"

"hey! you agreed,"

"you're the prince; did you expect me to say no?" y/n asks. "you could have gotten me beheaded,"

"no one does that anymore!"

"we don't know that!"