masters of the earth / listening and waiting for / the exact moment

[roc_on]

Beila will need to practice more to be truly a master of waterbending, but she knows the technique, now, and the rest is application she can practice on her own time. The nuns find her an earthbending teacher.

She goes to Dao's house after her first earthbending lesson. "Shifu Riko is a strange person," she remarks.

Comments

[roc_on]

"She said I wasn't listening to the earth, and if it was so hard, I should see how much harder it would be to get rocks to move by brute force, and I spent most of the day carrying chunks of stone around. As in, in my arms. And you know how I can barely walk without airbending? That does not get easier when I'm carrying something heavy, I fell over a lot. Occasionally under the heavy rocks. This is me after fixing up a lot of bruises as best I could. I don't think this is standard earthbender training."

[thinklikethis]

"...I don't think so either," says Dao. "That is weird. Weird and disquieting."

[roc_on]

"If she tries to get me to do that again I'm signing up with a regular dojo," says Beila, shaking her head.

[thinklikethis]

"That is a wise decision!" he says. "Because wow."

[roc_on]

"But I dunno, maybe tomorrow all of this boulder-hauling will have granted me special insight and I'll be able to bend the earth like I have its children hostage."

[thinklikethis]

"Maybe that's why she carries rocks in her hair," giggles Dao.

[roc_on]

Beila bursts out laughing and hugs him.

[thinklikethis]

Giggling, he hugs back.

[roc_on]

"I think she might actually carry rocks in her hair so she can have them available in a pinch. Sort of like how metalbender cops like Chali wear metal armor," shrugs Beila.

[thinklikethis]

"That makes more sense," he concedes. "But isn't as funny."

[roc_on]

"It is not nearly as funny," Beila agrees.

[thinklikethis]

"So I'm just gonna keep thinking about her taking them hostage."

[roc_on]

"Very well. You may do so," says Beila magnanimously.

[thinklikethis]

He giggles some more.

[roc_on]

"Anyway. I don't wanna walk anywhere right now, but we could hop on Liqing and catch a movie or something? Sit in the nice rock-free theater," snorts Beila.

[thinklikethis]

"I am all in favour of rock-free theaters!"

[roc_on]

"Excellent. I continue to never have any idea what's playing, do you know?"

[thinklikethis]

"Nah. Guess we'll find out when we get there!"

[roc_on]

"All right." She hauls herself to her feet, totters out the door, and whistles for her bird, who has just been sitting on the roof and promptly hops down to easier wafting level. To the theater they go.

Available are two romances, a comedy, another bloodbending-horror movie (sequel to the one they saw on their first date), an action-bending flick, and something historical about the Kyoshi Warriors.

[thinklikethis]

"Well, I know which one I wanna see."

[roc_on]

"Enlighten me."

[thinklikethis]

"The horror one?"

[roc_on]

"The horror one it is." She buys the tickets and limps into the correct part of the theater with him.

[thinklikethis]

He plops into a seat and hugs her.

[roc_on]

Hugs.

The movie starts after about fifteen minutes, and it is gory and horrifying.