On the Way to Chameleon Bay <Chameleon Bay, EK>

[chamir]

There was nostalgia there with this one. More than in many of his other stories. The pain of her departure was still there but for some reason it did not hurt to tell this story. In fact, this was the first time he told any story even involving his wife in the past four years. He was uncertain as to why he was sharing it yet to him the he felt something inexpressibly pleasant in its recounting.

“‘You’re a woman?’ I asked her, despite her overly soft feminine features as one could not be certain with the rest of her encased in a parka,” with his index fingers Chamir outlined the curvy figure of a woman in the air then went over. Making an obese rounded shape with both hands to symbolize the wearing of a parka.

“‘Pfft… and you’re a man?’ she asked me,” rising his voice a few pitches to mimic a woman speaking, along with rolling his eyes and neck.

“So I smiled sweetly at her—because I’m a sweet man after all,” he winked, “and moved in closer. Telling her, ‘let us both find out then,’ but rather than wait for a more comfortable position to opportune us,” he placed out a hand and gently squeezed the air.

“And to both of our surprise,” he jested, “she was in fact a woman! Thus I told her in fact I suddenly felt much like a man at the moment myself. And that’s when it struck me—from out of nowhere came a thunderclap and lightning bolt as if sent by the gods themselves.”

He waited a brief moment for some of the laughter to die down.

“And from that revelation that did indeed floor me, I discovered my wife!—I just had to find her again and duck next time.”

You are quite the woman indeed, closing his eyes as he bowed at the conclusion.

[ryota]

Ryota kept going toward Chamir, in the meantime smelling food being cooked nearby which subsequently made his stomach growl. He decided to take a detour before heading to what seemed to be the most lively of all crowds on the beach, the one where most of his Southern Water Tribe kin were seated.

The warrior starting heading to where he saw a few men mingling near a pot, the only recognizable one of whom was the main cook of the camp of Southern Water Tribe warriors. Ryota walked over and quickly got his rations, a food of some sort that he couldn't quite identify, even though it smelled great, in his opinion.

Ryota then headed back to the bonfire circle where Chamir was telling tales, hearing little of what Chamir was saying. He could identify but a few words, being about ten yards away on the beach, but he could tell the subjects of Chamir's tales were, in fact, women. He smirked a bit at this, already sensing somewhat Chamir's fondness for the opposite sex as the two were reintroduced earlier that day. He quickly made his way over while taking a few bites of his food while on his way.

He slowly moved around the ones encircling the bonfire, at one point walking past Aden, whose attention seemed to be fixed on Chamir. Ryota walked right past the young northerner, figuring he was too busy listening to Chamir to say hello, and proceeded around the circle to find a place to sit.

He spotted his father, Pamuy seated on the same driftwood log where Jamil Osahar sat and approximately a foot away from the edge of the piece of wood. With his elbow, Ryota nudged his father, and the stocky, bearded man turned to see his son. He scooted over a couple of inches to give Ryota room to sit, and Ryota stepped over the log, then sat, ready to listen to Chamir regaling all who surrounded this fire.

[kavik]

Kavik closed his eyes briefly as he listened to Chamir’s story. A pain for home echoed in his heart, he started to miss Kokomi a bit. He leaned back and looked at the great expanse of the stars, feeling small and so young. He sighed and laughed.
“Sounds like you’re blessed by Dong Feng himself with your way with women. Too bad I don’t have that kind of talent. But then again, don’t like them that much. ‘Cept for Kokomi…my twin.” Kavik sighed and giggled. “You would have liked her, she has too much will power, I remember when we where kids she use to get me in head lock. She was such a bully.” Kavik scratched his head and gnawed on his jerky.

He missed her; he missed his family, his sister, his dad and his mom. Kavik sighed, wondered if this was right thing to do. But deep down he knew he’ll do anything to find Hoji. It was not like he anything to go back to.

[aden]

Aden couldn't help to contain a smile as he stood watching Chamir recall his first encounter with his future wife. The audacity of the man would have been astounding for some one as reserved as the young waterbender, but the way Chamir spunn a tale, Aden could only find humor in something so bold. As Chamir finished his story, Aden was looking down at his nearly empty plate and was shaking his head slightly at the whole thing, though the smile never quite left his face. The Southerner was indeed a valuable asset for the assembled war parties. For the Northerners who had faced a devastating Siege at the hands of the Fire Nation and then been through multiple battles during their trek through the Earth Kingdom, having some one around who was adept at lightening the persistent somber mood among the warriors was a blessing.

The young waterbender finished the last of his meal, chewing down the remaining half of his roll, and picked his way back toward the table where he'd gotten the food. He tossed his plate, which was more of a thin, flat piece of driftwood, onto the side of the table where a pile of other used plates was beginning to accumulate. Aden stalled after doing so and looked around the camp once more. Aside from Chamir's circle, which was quickly becoming the focal point of the two tribes, there were a few other commingled gatherings of warriors, though the fire furthest to the end of the Northern camp was predominantly surrounded by Aden's kin. Since his tent was nearby that fire anyway, he casually began to walk towards that circle. His eyes alternated between the sand of the beach and the stars in the sky, making passing glances at the group ahead of him when he'd switch between them.

An unoccuppied log, wide enough for two to sit comfortably, lined one side of the campfire, and Aden started for it. The men around that particular circle seemed to be some of the older, veteran fighters. He dipped his head respectfully as he took his seat and said nothing to interrupt the flow of their conversation. At the moment he wasn't tired, but he simply felt like enjoying a night of relaxation after the week of travel.

[chamir]

“Bless that woman—my love,” he heartily exclaimed every once in a while whenever she made an appearance in his stories. Partially out of truth as to how he felt for her and partially as a ward should her spirit take some offense against what he was doing at telling about their coupled past life. Especially in telling it as a form of humor.

Though, Chamir himself greatly doubted that his departed Chandrakanta was likely regaling their ancestors with the same tales of the couple’s shenanigans as well. Surely she would see no fault if he was merely doing the same here on Earth, or that her widowed husband felt no wrong if she did the same because of him. No vindictiveness on either’s part merely entertaining retellings of the joys, ups and downs of life with another person.

Of course… he half wonders how she was feeling at the moment. Closing his eyes and remembering the color upon her plump dark sepia colored, chocolate brown cheeks whenever she blushed. After all he was now speaking retelling the story of their wedding day/night, no doubt a great deal of hilarity for the coupled or married men amongst them. That moment of their lives was quite a change from her bold and stout demeanor he had become attracted to when she had struck him down. Many other women have shrieked, shied away, stood there embarrassed or coyly giggled. That wasn’t the case from her. But on that day she was a nervous, demure and overly “proper” woman. As the ceremony continued it turned out to be less due to her being reciprocating and on her best behavior and more due to outright nervousness.
Culminating to her hyperventilating in the bridal bedroom. Then passing out.

Before either of them removed an article of clothing.

And the fact that guests were waiting in the next room and waiting did not help either.

Even without the hooting laughter from his audience, Chamir would still have blushed as he was now. Cheeks darkening as he was now remembering every moment of that ceremony.

Yet he couldn’t help but laugh himself at the story either. A good concluding story for the night everyone agreed. Some going off into their tents for bed, or beginning their watch for the night or sticking around for a bit of small talk.

[ryota]

Ryota always enjoyed a good laugh. He had been laughing many a time along his fellow Water Tribe citizens in that circle since returning from atop the bluff with that quirky fellow, Kavik. Ryota thought he was a nice guy, though, in spite of what other people said about him...

It was getting late. As Ryota swept his gaze around the circle before rising, seeing most people heading off to their respective tents to get a good night's sleep. He thought it a good idea to go to bed at this point. Some may call it power of suggestion at work, but Ryota did indeed feel tired the more he thought about it.

He got up from the piece of driftwood where he sat and picked up the smaller driftwood that he had carelessly let drop to his side after eating all that sat atop it earlier that night. He walked over to throw it with the pile of other wooden pieces that most of the tribesmen had used as makeshift plates, due to the camp having only a short supply of the fine porcelain dishes they bought in Ba Sing Sei a few months prior. Seeing Aden and Chamir in the meantime, he would nod and smile to them.

Ryota took a few steps away, then stretched and yawned. He grabbed his head and jolted it to the side, feeling and hearing a joint pop, as was his intention. Increasingly tired, the warrior bumbled toward his tent, occasionally removing an item of clothing, first the sash tied around his waist, then his hanfu, revealing his chubby upper body to everyone else during the three or four yards remaining until he got to his tent.

As he got to his tent, he dropped his clothing off to the side with his other belongings and sat at its opening, quickly removing his boots and setting them with his newly removed clothing. He slumped into his sleeping place inside his tent and closed his eyes, feeling himself slowly drift away...

[kavik]

Kavik sighed and when to his tent he unfurled his roll and an old fox skin that he used a pillow. Hey laid down and let his eyes shut a bit. "Kokomi...I'm sorry that I left. One day I'll be home again just to *yawn* see you." Kavik rolled over and fell asleep.

But Kavik didn't sleep well, he woke up several times...and tried to get comfortable, but it wasn't easy.

Finally Kavik woke up for the last time...it was finnally dawn.
"Great..." the fisherboy rolled over and stretched moving his muscles so he could get the sleep out of them. He got out of his sleeping bag, and rolled it back up. Kavik rubbed his eyes and got out a bag with a hair brush and began to brush out the tangles from his lovely morning hair. Denali snorted for breakfast in which Kavik found his feeding bag and began to scoop his grain into it.
"Alright, alright, after breakfast we can go for a ride." The boy took off his tunic top and serched for something clean...he'll have to lanunder his clothes today.

Kavik finally mangaged to find a clean tunic top. He tighten his belt and slipped on his boots. He grabbed Denali's curry brush and quicky groomed the buffalo-deer. and went into his tent to grab a leather and fur riding pad. Kavik didn't want to go into the ship to get the saddle so a riding pad will have to do.

He removed Denali's feeding bag and grabbed his halter and made some makeshift reigns. Rubbing his hands around the buffalo-deer's ears and chest comforting the beast he lead Denali to the top of the bluff.

"Ready for a gallop Den?" Denali snorted as Kavik got on, and kicking lightly the buffalo-deer began trot.

[aden]

Despite feeling a desire for sleep, Aden ended up staying out by the campfire until nearly all the tribe's warriors had turned in for the night. He wasn't entirely sure why. Perhaps he just felt some sense of peace letting his gaze become lost in the dancing flames as he soaked in the conversations of those around him. Just sitting there, a silent, invisible observer, made time seem to fly by.

There was only one point during the night when an older warrior even spoke to him. The man was perhaps in his mid 30's and asked Aden humorously, "Isn't it past your bed-time?" The young waterbender was broken from his trance-like fixation on the campfire and glanced over at the man. His smile showed that he meant no offense, but the attention his comment had brought on him for those around the campfire made Aden feel that his presence was becoming bothersome.

"It is," Aden replied after a few moments. He stood from his seat on the log and stretched himself a little bit. He offered a respectful nod to his elders and then slipped into his tent. Two men were already asleep in their respective bedrolls with two empty ones still remaining. He stripped off his overshirt and boots and placed them neatly at the foot of his bedroll before slipping fairly quickly into a deep sleep.

*************************************************

Sunrise came and passed without waking the young waterbender. Aden must have been more tired than he thought, for even as the other men in his tent awoke and began milling about the camp to perform the daily activities involved with keeping the war partyrunning smoothly. Some men began preparing a breakfast while others checked the longboats for any sign of wear and still others went about gathering some firewood and fresh water.

By the time Aden's eyes finally opened, his tent was empty and it was several hours into the day. He lay in his bedroll for a few more minutes, letting his mind catch up to his waking body, before stepping out into the camp without bothering to put on his sleeveless overshirt or sealskin boots.

[chamir]

''Birth they were from Moon and Sea, sons of Water forever bold,'' rang the voice from atop on of the dhows.

''But bravest by far amongst their ranks, mothers who birthed them upon the ice,'' a chain of men loading tangle mines responded.

Foam of the Chameleon Bay's surf gently broke at Chamir's feet. Frigid sand and water rising above his sandals. Washing and slushing about his feet whilst he gathered seaweed nearby. Lyrics reverberating in his throat as he sang along with his birth kin.

''Brave men are plenty even heroes of fame''

''But braverer still, those who bear our blood, mothers who birthed them upon the ice''

''Men of Fire has life grown so dull, you seek to end the lives of your own''

''Vile infidels you trod upon homes of men whose mothers birthed them upon the ice''

Further out, the bay's waters were as blue as today's clear sky. And swiming within that sea of sea were numerous seabids rythmically harking and lethargically wafting about the late morning breezes that played with his unclothed hair. A cascade of spiraled locs falling about his head. Clad only in trousers rolled up the knees and the thick, cloth sarashi wrapped about his midriff as he attempted gather as much seaweed as possible. The more he collected, he thought, the more seaweed there was to hopefully tangle the propellors.

''Bask last morning and ancestors pray, but pray not regrets you may''

''By this we imply you are going to die, by hands whose mothers birthed them upon the ice.''

''Your women shall weep, your ancestors you meet''

''At hands of brave men birthed from upon the ice.''

Earlier his father Jamil had further informed of the stalemate between them and the Fire Nation here at Chameleon Bay. Obviously unable to tow any ship that was abandoned unto shore, they were left in the bay's water wherever they came to a stop. Drifting upon the waters until another Fire Nation ship came to tow it back to whatever port they were using. If they were lucky there would not be enough time for the crews to set any parting traps inside the ship, lest the Water Tribesman raid it for whatever they could have gotten ahold of.

''While upon the ice a vigil kept, neath the light of full moon's star''

''A woman who births upon the ice, shall never mumur my name and weep''

Yet capturing the crews themselves were something of another matter all together. It had turned out inside the a Fire Nation ship was a smaller steam power craft. Around the size of their dhows but being steam powered was always able to evade and outrun them if they ever attempted a capture. Though father and son both agreed that with the Northern Water Tribe's waterbenders it would be possible to capture a fleeing crew.

[ryota]

He opened his eyes to the sound of fellow tribesmen raising their voices in song. Ryota overslept. Again... Before wondering why nobody woke him up, he stumbled out of his tent, bedraggled, half-asleep and partially nude, then grabbed his hanfu and sash and donned them both, already clad in his leggings from sleeping in them the night before. He lumbered, cerulean eyes drooping, toward the warriors making tangle mines in the nearby surf.

As he walked, he slowed down considerably when a thought came to his mind, one that jolted him from his grogginess. What if they make me catch skunkfish?... Shrugging, it soon drifted across his mind how the value of these tangle mines being on hand more than outweighed the temporary displeasure found with their construction. Their smell was bad enough to wake the dead, but, praise the spirits for Hakoda using his ingenuity in inventing them...they really were a boon to his tribe.

He resumed his normal pace to the shoreline, but realized how hungry he was. He strayed off his path to a cooking pot, where, as usual, several warriors were gathered, shooting the breeze. Looking inside the pot, he saw it to be filled a third of the way with boiled crabs. Crab was not his favorite food, especially the palm-sized blue ones that crawled all over the beach...he much preferred the giant sea crabs the older fishermen caught, but these only existed in the cold waters of the South Pole, or at least from what Ryota knew. Nonetheless, he grabbed five or six and headed toward the warriors making the tangle mines.

He arrived near the surf and sat to watch the men work as he ate, cracking open the crabs and feasting on their soft, flaky meat. He threw the empty shells as far as he could into the water, far enough so none of his fellow tribesmen would step on them, that is to say, unless the tide caused the shells to drift in further...Ryota realized that it was no real problem. No tribesman would care if his foot was merely scratched by an empty crab shell, as they had faced much, much, much worse ever since they'd arrived at the bay. As Ryota pondered these things, he continued cracking open the crabs he was about to ear as a small pile of them lay in his lap and he watched the workers.

[kavik]

Denali's hooves pounded the rich earth as Kavik rode long and hard. He could feel Denali move with the earth churning with him as if Kavik was part deer himself. A deer-taur, half man, half buffalo-deer. Kavik laughed as Denali cantered around the bluff. Kavik has his fingers tight and heels down as he kept balance on his mount. He looked to the east to see the sun rise, Kavik couldn't help but smile. It was going t be a beautiful day.

Kavik finally left Denali on the bluff to graze and ruminate. Denali wounldn't go far. And if predators come, Denali would run down to Kavik for safety. Kavik would brush him and clean him later today. For now he had his own needs.

"G'mornin' Hey Ryota, Aden! I just got back from a early morning ride. What could I do for the camp?" Asked Kavik as he took off his tunic top and looked for clean one.
"Drat I need to do laundry." Kavik groaned as he found a clean top. Kavik began to look around his bags. "Aww c'mon where did I put that lavendar and chestnut soap?" He fumbled around and then stopped.
"Well thats sucks I'm sure I had some fresh soap...looks like fleabane again." He grumbled and grabbed fleabane he gathered yesterday.

[aden]

Aden had started toward the cooking pot, led on by the aroma of boiled crab. He saw Chamir and a congregation of Southerners by the water's edge, apparently having just fished some kind of cermony. The young bender thought he'd heard some kind of song or hymn being recited while he was still in his tent, but he hadn't bothered to investigate. Ryota was sitting not far away, eating a handful of the delicious-smelling breakfast. Aden had pulled off the lid to the pot to get some for himself when he heard Kavik call out a greeting.

"G'mornin' Hey Ryota, Aden!" he said. Aden gave a slight wave of his hand in response and reached into the pot to pull out a pair of red-boiled shellfish. "I just got back from a early morning ride. What could I do for the camp?" Aden thought to himself, You could go back to sleep, but he didn't voice that out loud. Instead he found a seat on the edge of one of the logs that had been positioned around the previous night's campfire and began to work on one of his crabs. He hadn't given an answer to the question, as he noticed Kavik wasn't entirely paying attention to him any more.

Kavik had decided to remove his shirt, declaring that he needed to do laundry. Aden raised an eyebrow for a moment as he watched the spectacle of the wiry boy looking around for his precious 'lavender and chestnut soap.' Aden shook his head slightly and fixed his sight on his breakfast. He grabbed one of the claws, very greatful these smaller shellfish weren't covered in spikes and barbs that could pierce leather like the ones back home, and tore off the limb with a satisfying crunch. He made swift work of the claw, breaking off the shell expertly with his fingers and teeth in order to keep the tender meat inside in one piece.

Aden had allowed Kavik to slip almost entirely from his mind and between his breaks in eating his breakfast he called over to Ryota, who was seated not too far away, "Ryota." The young bender allowed a pause for the Southern warrior to tear his focus off the crab in his own hands, "Does your tribe run patrols along the shore when there are no immediate threats?"

[chamir]

"You think that the smell is something now, yeah?" Jamil laughing at his son's contorted face, having gotten a good whiff of the skunk-fish as they filled a tangle mine together. "Consider one of our poor boys who was sprayed by one of those things," rubbing his chin as he chuckled. "Came daang near close to burning his clothes and sleeping offshore, did so--heh heh."

"Lagh," Chamir hurled his tongue out as he turned away. " I would abandon a ship as well if this smell was any worse... wouldn't mind shoving one of those candles face first into muck. Suffocate 'em," bitterly growling as his father set aside the empty filling pouch.

"Aye, or the Fire Lord..."

"Mm, or his hellspawn..."

"Yeah," maliciously nodding in agreement. "We've even thought 'bout flinging some lively ones on thar decks. Course our rail to there is quite high--daang shame it is," his son cleaning off then beating down the lid on tightly with his simi.

"Don' worry poppa," clasping a hand atop his father's shoulder. "We've got our bender kin from up North," moving his hands as rolling a ball in it. "Would not be too hard for them to encase some skunk-fish into a bubble of water and shoving it up on their deck."

Thinking upon the outcome, together the two laughed maliciously.

[ryota]

He glanced over at Aden when he heard his name called, then heard a question posed. "Does your tribe run patrols along the shore when there are no immediate threats?". Ryota shrugged, then replied, "Sometimes. Not too often, though..." He then wrinkled his nose, adding, "Just a minute..."

The stench of the skunkfish was getting to him, so he flung the remainding fragments of empty crab shells that lay in his lap as far as he could into the waters of Chameleon Bay, and got up and headed away, as far as he could. Or at least where the odor didn't reach. As he wandered aimlessly around the campsite, he noticed a club propped up against a pile of various other supplies short distance away from where he stood currently. This club was one expertly crafted from whale skullbone, inset with a large, sky blue ball of bone on one end. He approached the implement and picked it up, admiring its craftsmanship.

His father used a club as his main weapon, one just like the one he held. Ryota recalled how his father had trained him to use a club, among other weapons, as a child. He couldn't recall, however, why he didn't use a club currently. It was simple to use, effective. It didn't cut his fingers if he handled it clumsily, unlike his saber and dagger.

He looked it over for a few more moments, expertly dodging responsibility in filling the tangle mines or handling those overwhelmingly stinky fish until he was asked. Suddenly, a man of the Northern Water Tribe approached Ryota from behind. When Ryota turned, he saw the man, who was unintimidating, to say the least, but he had a indistinctly stern expression plastered on his tanned face, and his arms were crossed. Ryota smiled, but the man plainly said, "Any reason why you're holding that club?".

Ryota looked down at it and stuttered, "I...I was just admiring its craftsmanship." Then, holding out on his palms toward the man, he continued, "Does it belong to you?".

The man's expression changed to a more placid, if not somber one. "No...", the man said, gently pushing the weapon back toward Ryota while it still lay in his arms. "It belonged to a warrior of ours who lost his life valiantly in a battle against the Fire Nation. May he rest peacefully."

Ryota blinked. "Wow...I'm very sorry to hear that...". He looked over the weapon once more and said, "I was looking over it because it brough back memories. My father actually trained me to use one when I was younger, back in the Southern Water Tribe". The young warrior grasped both hands on the handle and swung the weapon playfully, but slowly, and from side to side. "Nothing to it."

The man smiled a subdued smile. "Well...it doesn't belong to anyone now. Would you like to keep it?"

Ryota scratched his chin with the edge of the club, pondering this for a few seconds. Shrugging, he said, "All right. I may as well. I've wanted a club like for a while, actually...Thanks!"

"Don't mention it. It was just going to lay around unused. At least it has an owner now." said the man, who then walked away after nodding at Ryota.

Ryota then headed back to his tent, placing the club amongst his previous weapons, his whale tooth scimtar and seal-jawbone knife. Just as he rose from kneeling down, he heard an authoritative voice call out, "Ryota!!!"

[kavik]

Kavik gathered his clothes and took them to a tide pool among a cluster of rocks he layed them out and began to washed them with the fleabane and plains soap. He smack them on the rocks briefly before he wrung them out and the hung them on a piece of twine between two trees that was near the beach. Using wood and bone pins he hung two tunics, a undershirt, two pairs of trousers, his turquoise and indigo tunic and two loincloths. Kavik grimaced as he hung one loincloth with a stain. The fisherman shook his head as he finished with laundry and walked over to where breakfast was. He took a crab and with practiced ease slurp down the meat.

Kavik wrinked his nose, the meat was decent but it had no flavor. Or vary little. Shore crabs was were like that, also if you over boil them they lose their flavor that way too. Kavik scratched his head.
"Hey! Later this afternoon, how about I go and grab dinner for the camps. I have nets and a boat. I'm sure I can grab a large enough haul for everyone." A few men looked at each other. A some shrugged.
"Sure what ever fisherman." One of them said. Kavik was about to head back when a voiced called to him

"Hey Fisherman! Hissun is gathering ment to gather seaweed for the mines. He sent me to get you to do your share." A basket was thrown at Kavik which he caught and with an eye roll he rolled up his trousers and headed down to the ocean.