A Glimpse of the Past <Wilderness, Earth Kingdom>

[jouroo]

There was a calming, almost otherworldly feel the the moss-covered stone ruins of the temple. As cloven hooves made a muffled clopping noise on the half-covered stone, it seemed as if the spirits of the temple wished to maintain the quiet tranquility. Thayari gazed around the forgotten temple with interest and respect. It would make a good place to spend the night, but first she would have to prepare an offering to the spirits of the temple. Cusi, Thayari's llama-horse steed, made chewing noises as he ground his teeth. Thayari leaned forward and looked at him, wrinkling her nose and giving a small smile before patting his neck and sitting back up in the saddle. She was careful to avoid the long, sloping horns that sprouted from his head and curved horizontally back toward her.

As the shadows lengthened they came to what must have been part of the main temple. The building was still somewhat intact, with a wall of columns lining the front. Behind them was an archway that lead inside. The chamber inside was large, surrounded by crumbling rock, weeds, and grass. Although it wasn't fully protected, there was enough shelter there for Thayari to deem it passable, so she dismounted Cusi and lead him inside.

Finding a suitable section of floor in the middle of the chamber, Thayari unloaded her bags and unsaddled Cusi, leaving him free to browse the area for grass or other grazing. After setting some rocks from the ruins into a circle, Thayari made her way outside again to look for firewood. Cusi followed her, moseying around the general area of wherever she happened to be.

With a pile of stray sticks and wood in her arms, Thayari paused, gazing off into the distance. There was supposed to be a town not far off. She was low on rice and a few other things, a trip to town in the morning sounded like a good enough plan. But for now, it was just her, Cusi, and the spirits. She made her way back to the chamber and struck a fire with some flint, digging out various food items that would be her dinner. As she waited for water to boil over the flame, Thayari stood and backed away from her small camp. Taking a deep breath, she took her stance, waving her arms calmly to lift the water from a bowl she had set on the floor. As the fire crackled, she practiced her bending, moving slowly and rhythmically in the half shadows.

[gandalan]

Nakamura was tired. Damn tired. And he should be.

A few months ago, he had left the North Pole with Raine, after she'd revealed that she was a waterbender. He'd come to respect her, and after a voyage across the northern sea to the mainland Earth Kingdom, they'd thought that they'd make their way to the South Pole, to their long lost kin. The plan had gone wonderfully for about 3 hours, until they found Zhy.

There, they were nearly captured by Fire Nation troops, but they both ran off. Unfortunately, they got seperated along the way. Nakamura last saw Raine running off South, which was probably the best place to go, since Omashu was still up and running. He was on his own now, and he knew she could take care of herself. So he went off on his own path.

He'd taken off straight east, and hadn't stopped. He'd been looking for Ba Sen Sei, hoping to find a regiment of waterbenders from the North, or maybe the rumored Southern Tribe soldiers that were said to be a thorn in the side of the Fire Nation. However, he'd had no luck so far, because without a map, and without knowing the terrain, he'd only gone by word of mouth, and sometimes, these pieces of advice were not such good pieces of advice. They were practical jokes, played on him to amuse Earth Kingdom kids. He turned south at Kei Lan, and then east again at the edge of the sea there. He traveled across a mountain ridge, dong so to avoid a desert. Then, he made his way straight est and a little south from there.

So, after he'd traveled for many, many months, he found himself, finally, in a small village. And what did they tell him? WHAT DID THEY SAY?!

"Oh, Ba Seng Sei? You must be lost child! It is nearly 75 miles to the northeast!"

He'd overshot the damn thing.

What luck.

And so he found himself backtracking, going west up towards the mountains again. They were a good 20 miles off yet, but the chill was there already. He had his parka on, and about nothing else except his clothes and his waterskin. He'd been looking for work for some time, realizing that he'd need to accumulate some money before he could travel any more. He was in dire straights and a bad mood when on this windy, chilly night, winding up a path through the rocky forest, he saw in the distance, of all things, a campfire.

Warmth... was the first thing that came to his mind. Something to keep out of this cold. The people in the village HAD said something about a Temple. Maybe somebody up ahead had found it first? Perhaps they'd share it for a night. Perhaps.

He continued walking until he was within sight of the Temple. It was a great big carved rock thing, with lots of moss growing on many of the fallen statues. Momuments to a fallen culture. He had no idea who had lived here, though he was curious. However, a snort, an unhuman snort caused him to cry out. He jumped back, looking around wildly for what had made the noise. A 'clomp' told him it was an animal, and a big one at that.

He moved his left hand to his waterskin, uncorking it, placing the cork in the top of his boot. He moved a small amount of water out of it, before looking around nervously. He gulped, being a shy person, and called out, rather weakly, "Wh-who's there?" The wind impeded the firelight enough that he really couldn't see that much.

[jouroo]

As strange new smells drifted into the dilapidated main chamber of the temple ruins, Cusi the llama-horse felt compelled to investigate. As he wandered out of the chamber, Thayari paid him no notice, assuming that he was simply looking for grazing and would wander back when his hunger was sated.

The creature moved with a light step accustomed to rocky terrain. His barely-cloven hooves tread lightly and deftly on the rocks and wooded ground beneath him, making barely a sound. As Cusi moved further into the gloom of the wood surrounding the temple, his nostrils flared, taking in the many scents that the woodland had to offer, but he followed only one. The young llama-horse's hoof came down hard as he stumbled over the burrow of some small animal or another, and as the noise echoed around the vicinity he snorted loudly, senses heightened in alarm at the noise. He froze, the tension in the air almost tangible...

The next sound he heard sent Cusi into a frenzy. Although he had no idea what it was, the noise of a nervous voice had cut sharply through the silence and Cusi whinnied shrilly, shaking his horned head and half-rearing onto his hind hooves. As he landed on the soft earth the llama-horse pranced nervously, whipping around to face every direction, searching for a predator that he was convinced was stalking him.

Back in the temple, Thayari lost concentration, sending water splashing across the floor as the high pitched noise met her ears. She heaved an exasperated sigh, grabbing her large wooden staff and rushing out of the decrepit building to find her frantic steed, certain that he had fallen prey to some hungry predator.

As she rushed into the gloom outside the temple, Thayari gave a shrill whistle, calling out, "Cusi!" There was no reply, but she could hear the frantic plodding of hooves between the trees. As she moved toward it, she slammed into something about her height, knocking whatever it was to the ground. Thayari jumped back, raising her staff, a stream of water flowing out of a skin at her belt, ready to attack any threat...

[gandalan]

Nakamura kept looking around, as he pulled more water from his pack. This didn't seem right... none of it did. There was a fire, but no human, and a BIG animal and-

And he tumbled to the ground. "AHHHH!" he screamed in surprise.

He looked up to see a five armed... thing... sillhouetted by the fire in the distance. It was about his size, and for some reason he thought it was a spider. It waved a sixth leg around, though this leg was... wierd shaped. Wavy almost, and it changed shape all the time. He still heard the other animal, and he crawled backwards, his arms behind him to give him support, but he backed into a tree. He looked at the thing fearfully.

WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING?! I DON'T WANT TO DIE NOW!

"AHHHHH! GET AWAY FROM ME!" he yelled at it. He forced water out of his waterskin quickly, slamming it into the thing, freezing it's fifth leg (the straight one) in place on the beast, earning a flailing around from it, and he just thought he'd made it angry. He turned and ran down to hill only to run into the other thing, and fall backwards again. It whinnied, and nearly hit him with something as he turned aside, falling near a tree, trying to get back to his feet, when suddenly the thing was right in front of him, and he just waited for it to do something, staring up at it with terror on his face.

[jouroo]

Thayari was caught off guard as she felt her leg frozen stiffly to the ground. She heard a shout and a shrill whinny from a terrified Cusi and stopped. Wait... Kneeling down Thayari placed a hand on her leg and felt a strong coating of ice. With a few waves of her hands the ice melted away and drifted through the air to join the water she already had out, which she then replaced in her water skin.

Standing straight up, Thayari cupped her hands around her mouth and called out, "Cusi! Come 'ere boy!" But Cusi was nearly deaf with terror. Out of the darkness some creature had collided with him, yelling loudly and flailing. He gave a shrill scream and reared up, hooves flailing through the air not far from the creatures head. But as he was coming down Thayari reached out of the darkness and pulled the llama-horse's head to the side, causing him to swerve away. "Shhh, calm down boy, 's alright..." She stroked his nose soothingly and patted his neck.

Turning to the tree Thayari strained her eyes to see through the darkness. She could only faintly make out a figure sprawled at its base. Once again readying her water skin, she called out, "Hello? You're a bender right?" Cusi shuffled nervously as they awaited a reply...

[gandalan]

The thing called out to the bigger thing. "Cusi! Come 'ere boy!"

Cusi? That THING has a name-... it's a damn HORSE, isn't it?

"Shhh, calm down boy, 's alright..."

And that's a girl. Stupid idiot girl, out here scaring people.

Nakamura was a little more than just angry. This stupid girl had to come out here and scare people with her damn horse, who she let wander off, which was the problem. Horses should be kept behind fences, he thought. What a stupid thing to do- let it wander off like that.

He rolled his eyes at what he could now see as the sillhouette of a girl, maybe a bit older than him, and a bit bigger. That sort of sealed it, his being angry. He was pretty small for a guy his age, but when a girl was bigger than him, he just felt worthless. He tried to bend the water back into his waterskin, but it was no longer on the girl... how had that happened? He hadn't seen anything, so maybe... he missed? Yes... he saw a shiny bit on the ground. He bent it back into his waterskin and corked it shut.

"Hello? You're a bender right?" No, I can shoot water out my nose. Duh stupid.

"Yeah, I'm a bender," he answered testily. He'd get over his anger soon, but for now, it was better if he took deep breaths and calmed down. "Who're you?" he asked.

[jouroo]

Thayari drew back at the stranger's testy reply, raising her brows skeptically. Maybe if he hadn't been groping around in the dark... For a second she thought she should have let Cusi crush the ungrateful runt, for all he reminded her of her younger brother. That really made her shiver, half the reason she'd left the mountains...

She watched him replace some water into his skin and smirked, letting go of her own and letting it fall at her waist. She held firm to Cusi's halter and turned back to the temple. "Does that mean we're kin?" She made her way back through the dark of the woods toward the light of her fire in the temple, using her staff to tap the ground before her to make sure there was nothing to trip over.

She half turned back to see if the stranger was following. "We got here first, but you're welcome to share the temple with us." shortstuff. Her better judgment told her not to include the last comment. It would cause unnecessary aggravation and she wasn't about to put herself through that. Still, it would be interesting meeting another water bender. She was almost certain he was not from the mountains. His clothing and accent betrayed that much. Was he one of the North/South Pole benders she'd heard legend about? Hmph, if so, 'guess they're not all they're cracked up to be...

"Got a name?

[gandalan]

She drew back when he got mad at her, making him feel bad. He sighed. About to apologize, but she said, "Does that mean we're kin?"

She bent some of her water back into her pouch. He just watched. For some reason, he wasn't suprised. His shock with Raine had gotten him through that. He'd given up on old world ethics.

She was walking back, so he joined her. About to apologize AGAIN, she again interruptd him. "We got here first, but you're welcome to share the temple with us." He bowed slightly as he walked.

"Thank you, miss." He felt bad about being so mad earlier. He usually wasn't very mad, but several factors had led to his anger buildup lately, namely his overshooting of Ba Seng Sei. They were about there, when she asked whether or not he had a name.

"Nakamura. ...I'm sorry about earlier. I've run into bad straights lately." He walked behind her.

He looked at her curiously. "You aren't a Northern Tribeswoman." It was a statement, not a question. It was obvious. Her clothing was too different. Her speech was different. And she had... a horse. "I suppose I have lots of questions, but where do you come from? I've never met a waterbender outside my home."

[jouroo]

"I've never met a waterbender outside my home."

"Likewise, are you from the north?" Seeing that he was following her Thayari turned and trudged forward, keeping a firm hold on Cusi so that he wouldn't spook again. "I'm from a small section of the mountains to the south and west of here between the desert and the coast. I was surprised when I heard that no one knew there were waterbenders outside the poles. As far as I know, my people have always been there." Though Thayari really wasn't the loquacious type, it felt nice having someone to talk to that would talk back. It had been many a long day since she had left the isolation of her mountain home, and since had only really had Cusi for company. Not that she didn't fully appreciate Cusi.

It felt strange, first that he called her Miss, then being referred to as a tribeswoman. Though she had come of age a few years back, she still didn't feel like an adult, even if he was younger than her. "You can call my Thayari, Nakamura," she said as she turned her head to look back at him, "Thayari Kallpa."

Now that everyone was formally introduced, she felt a bit more comfortable, relaxing a little and letting a slight smile grace her round features. As they neared the temple the glow of her fire cast both light to see by and long shadows across the grounds. "Bad straits? Whoops, watch your step..."

[gandalan]

"Likewise, are you from the north?" she asked. He nodded.

"Yes. I'm from the Northern Water Tribe... it's a lot different here..." It was indeed. No snow, no nothing. Very little cold, except up here, which he welcomed. The girl continued.

"I'm from a small section of the mountains to the south and west of here between the desert and the coast. I was surprised when I heard that no one knew there were waterbenders outside the poles. As far as I know, my people have always been there."

"Really?" asked Nakamura, still behind her as they came closer to the fire. "We only know of ourselves and the Southern Tribe. I didn't see your home on the way here though, strange..."

The Earth Kingdom was strange. For all it's problems, the Earth Kingdom had the largest territory of any nation to date. Also, they had the most rivers of any nation. And yet, they had not stood up against the Fire Nation... when they seemingly had the best circumstances in which to do it.

"You can call my Thayari, Nakamura," she said as she turned her head to look back at him, "Thayari Kallpa." He nodded, smiling.

"Nice to meet you Thayari-san."

"Bad straits? Whoops, watch your step..." He picked up his foot over a fallen tree branch. They were now in the Temple, and he saw the fire close ahead.

"Yeah... I was traveling with a girl, also from the Northern Tribe. Her name was Raine. We landed at Zhy in the Northwestern Earth Kingdom, but almost got captured by the Fire Nation. Raine ran off one direction, and I ran off the other. I'll probably never see her again..." A wierd look came into his eyes, a kind of sadness. He knew Raine could take care of herself, but he did want to see her again sometimes. All the same, he wouldn't go back, not now. She could take care of herself, and he'd come this far to make it to Ba Seng Sei.

He looked at Thayari. "You know, you guys seem pretty untouched by the Fire Nation. How'd you manage it?" he asked.

[jouroo]

"Yes. I'm from the Northern Water Tribe... it's a lot different here..."

Thayari nodded, thinking of stories she'd heard of cities made entirely of ice. "I can only imagine." She trailed off, thinking of other things she might say, but instead letting her mind mull it all over first. Perhaps I'd like to see these grand cities one day...

"Really?" asked Nakamura, still behind her as they came closer to the fire. "We only know of ourselves and the Southern Tribe. I didn't see your home on the way here though, strange..."

She gave a short laugh as she turned into the main chamber of the temple, finally letting go of her firm hold on Cusi, allowing him to wander inside. He eyed Nakamura warily for a moment, before wandering off to the back to nibble at some moss and weeds growing between cracks in the stone. "I'm not surprised. Where I come from is very high in the mountains. You didn't find us for the same reason the Fire Nation has not bothered, we are remote, we are few and far between. It's not worth navigating the treacherous mountain peaks. We are... remote."

As she came to the fire Thayari noticed that her bowl was still sitting on the floor, full of water that she had been using to practice her bending. She promptly bent it back into the skin at her belt, deciding that she had had enough practice for one night. Thayari-san She chuckled and wondered if all northerners spoke so properly.

She cocked her head at his mention of Raine, questions meandering through her mind but never making it out. She just gave him a quizzical look. For a few minutes she sat at the fire, first dumping some rice into the boiling water then simply watching it bubble, mulling over her thoughts. She wondered many things, about this stranger and the strange land from which he hailed. Her knowledge of the war was as limited as her homeland was remote.

After some minutes had passed, she turned back to Nakamura. "Why leave the North? Isn't the war more apparent here?"

[gandalan]

Nakamura was warmed by the fire. Of all things, a fire, and he welcomed it. He supposed that even Firebenders had to drink water, though. Even as a Waterbender, he needed warmth. Fires had their places, just as did water and ice. Right now, the fire's place was here. to warm him. He stared into it, mezmorized by it's whisps tangling back and forth. The temple was old, rustic, and there were several holes in the cieling. He could see the sky above, and the smoke traveled up, and through the cieling. The rice cooking emmited no smell, but apparently he would get some too. He didn't have any food with him; he'd planned on going to the next town to get food. But apparently Thayari-san was going to be nice to him.

"Why leave the North? Isn't the war more apparent here?"

He was surprised by her question. He remember why he'd left in the first place. It involved Raine Waterbending when she probably oughtn't have, which nearly got them both into trouble. Raine's mother sent him off with her, to protect her... but he'd failed that job badly. She was fine though, something inside him told him. Yes, she was fine. She had to be.

He then realized he hadn't answered her question yet. "I... left... because I helped Raine escape. You see... they..." He stumbled over his wording. He decided to put it bluntly, and see how she reacted. "In the Northern Water Tribe, they don't allow girls and women to learn how to Waterbend. They're allowed to learn how to heal, but that's it... I don't think that way," he added quickly.

He smiled in a sort of sad way, but a hopeful one. "She ran off on her own, and I'm sure she can take care of herself. She's a tomboy."

Did he really believe that? Can I really believe she's okay?

...Yes. She'd turned and given him a thumbs up as she'd run away. He'd drawn most of the soldiers, running for dear life, but she was able to get away. She was as safe as anyone could be from the Fire Nation. It would probably have been stupid to go looking for her anyway, since the Fire Nation was looking for the two of them TOGETHER, not apart. So he decided, both morally, and inside, he was doing the right thing to guard Raine. He thought he could see Raine's mother smiling at him... he hoped that he wasn't doing the wrong thing. He could finally put that doubt to rest.

"But neither of us can go back... we'd be punished, probably. So I guess I'm here now. The war here isn't so bad... the place is too big for the Fire Nation to be everywhere. So right now, I'm looking for a place to work and settle down awhile... though I must say, I would be interested to meet your people, if you would so allow me."

And he was. He was interested in how these people were waterbenders, and yet were so far away from the others. How had they came here? How had they not been affected by war? Even if they were so remote! He just couldn't believe it. And it was cold up here, something he'd missed dreadfully. He simply turned back to the heavens, laying down with his hands resting behind his head, looking up at the stars... and the brilliant crescent moon...

[jouroo]

Thayari nodded as she listened to Nakamura's story. It seemed difficult for him to recount his tale, and she waited patiently while he thought through his reply and struggled through his wording. She pondered this Raine person and her relationship with the boy sitting across the fire from her. He must be what, 15? 16? Many boys in her tribe married around that age.

However Thayari was both genuinely surprised and not entirely shocked that the Water Tribe didn't allow women to bend. A rule such as that would simply have been impractical in the mountains, where every bender was needed to protect the home, herds, and minimal crops from the viscous mountain snow and ice. Also, there was much less of a need for healers where she came from because there wasn't really any fighting going on. There hadn't been any kind of major dispute among the tribes in decades.

She mulled this over before replying, instead of saying something rash about it being unfair for women not to bend. "It's... interesting. That women in your tribe cannot bend. It must be very safe there, in the cities. Where I come from, to deprive anyone of their bending would be to send them to their death in the mountains. To have a bender in the family of any kind tends to boost the survival rate." It came out blunter than she'd meant it, but Thayari got the point across.

She smiled warmly as a burst of steam came from the rice when she lifted it from the fire. As she separated it into to crude wooden bowls, she reassured Nakamura, "She sounds strong spirited, and she's a bender, I'm sure that your friend is fine." She passed him a bowl and dug out a flat, rectangular piece of wood that was curved down the center lengthwise, passing it to Nakamura and keeping one for herself. She then used it to scoop the steaming rice into her mouth. It wasn't classy, but it got the job done.

She immediately regretted it as the hot rice burned her tongue and she had to open her mouth, taking quick gasping breaths before speedily swallowing it down, making a face as it burned its way down her throat. She bent some water from her skin into a small chunk of ice and sucked on it for a moment to cool her tongue and throat. When it melted she gulped it down as well.

Shaking her head she turned back to her guest. He was right, the Earth Kingdom was more vast than she could have imagined, and she wasn't all that far from home. She chuckled at the thought of taking him there. "The mountains can be very different from here. They are very rocky and treacherous, but good to those who call them home. It is high up in the sky where the air runs freely; many outsiders find it hard to breathe. Down here, in the lowlands, the air is thick and heavy with water, it made me choke at first." She chuckled and grinned at the memory. It had been like trying to breathe under water, the air was so heavy. It seemed as though the warmth had melted all of the water from the earth and into the air. She surveyed Nakamura haughtily. "A lowlander like yourself would probably get sick in the mountains. This is common among those not used to it." Again she grinned, poking fun at her guest.

"Still, I would have you see it someday. Because of the cold the air is very clear and you can see for miles in any direction. The moon shines brightly over the mountains, and sometimes you can see the desert, far to the west, or the ocean to the east." She sighed thinking about it. She had been born and raised in the mountains and had never strayed this far from home before. She'd thought of going to Ba Sing Se, bringing home with her various luxuries and oddities from the city. But she had no real plan and the mountain passes would be open for some time yet. Thayari let her mind wander through the idea of showing her home to young Nakamura.

This made her happy, and brought her to another thought. "I too would like to see the grand cities of the Water Tribe. I've heard stories, of the people living in the ice, the first waterbenders. That is, if you'd return...?" She hoped she hadn't brought up any painful thoughts for him, but didn't let the smile slip from her face as she tentatively began to pick at her rice.

[gandalan]

They were silent awhile as the rice cooked. The moonlight flooded into the temple, bathing it in an eerie silver light. It was almost as if it was daylight, yet dimmer, gentler. Softer.

This was why the Moon was beloved of the Water Tribes.

Thayari spoke, interrupting the silence of the moonlit night.

"It's... interesting. That women in your tribe cannot bend. It must be very safe there, in the cities. Where I come from, to deprive anyone of their bending would be to send them to their death in the mountains. To have a bender in the family of any kind tends to boost the survival rate."

It was a startling statement. It carved into him. How cruel his people were, he already knew. But this was really reality for Thayari. It hurt him to know that they suffered so. But apparently, life was good enough.

His face fell, and she seemed to think he was thinking about Raine. As she fileld a bowl with rice for him, she said, "She sounds strong spirited, and she's a bender, I'm sure that your friend is fine."

He nodded his thanks, and took the bowl. She handed him a wooden sort of spoon for him to use. He waited a few moments for the rice to cool before he ate. It was bland, but rice was supposed to be bland. It filled him with energy. He ate it quickly. While he ate, Thayari told him of her home. "The mountains can be very different from here. They are very rocky and treacherous, but good to those who call them home. It is high up in the sky where the air runs freely; many outsiders find it hard to breathe. Down here, in the lowlands, the air is thick and heavy with water, it made me choke at first."

This interested him a lot. He hadn't been all that affected by the thin air when he'd been in mountains earlier, but maybe these were different.

She continued. "A lowlander like yourself would probably get sick in the mountains. This is common among those not used to it. Still, I would have you see it someday. Because of the cold the air is very clear and you can see for miles in any direction. The moon shines brightly over the mountains, and sometimes you can see the desert, far to the west, or the ocean to the east."

This was what he had wanted to hear. He didn't think he'd be all that sick in the mountains, and the place sounded exactly like the home he would never see again. He was sometimes sad, sometimes glad. His people would never accept him for allowing Raine to escape. He was a traitor to their way of life.

So be it. He continued eating without interruption.

She paused a few moments, before saying, "I too would like to see the grand cities of the Water Tribe. I've heard stories, of the people living in the ice, the first waterbenders. That is, if you'd return...?"

He stopped eating. He put down the bowl of rice, and the spoon. He turned to look at her. A pained look entered his eyes, the kind of pain that said, "I'll never see it again."

And so he couldn't hold back anymore. He let a few tears slide down his face. He wouldn't cry openly. Tears were all he would allow. He supposed he was a bit sexist, at least. Crying was for when men were alone, not with girls to watch and see him, and mull over his emotions. He waited a few moments before meeting her eyes with his own.

"No," he said simply. "No, I will not. I helped a girl, a girl who could bend, escape after she committed what they view as treason. They would not allow me to return. At the very least, they would imprison me, should I return... and they would perhaps kill me for my treachery. I have no home now."

And he turned away. "I'm sorry. I don't like telling that story to others..."

And tears continued to slide down his face for a few moments, before they stopped. And then he picke dup his bowl and ate some more.

The rice was cold, just like his fearful, shy, cold heart. And it grew colder every second.

[jouroo]

As soon as Thayari saw the sad look in his eyes at mention of his home, she knew she'd struck a nerve. Even as Nakamura elaborated on his situation, she didn't let her smile fall, though it did take on a sad and pitying undertone. Her thoughts lingered for a moment on whether she should feel guilty for bringing up the subject of his homeland. She didn't, and knew inside that it was something he'd have to come to terms with, but she hated seeing him so sad, the first lowlander she had ever met.

After a brief hesitant pause Thayari rose and walked across the fire. Cusi looked up at her from his grazing only momentarily before continuing to browse the sparse growth in the temple. She seated herself beside Nakamura and leaned over so that she could see his face. The tears sliding down his cheek were apparent, but she didn't say anything about it. Instead, she changed the subject, "You know, you remind me very much of my brother Pisco." She lifted her head, looking outside the archway of the temple to the moonlit grounds, choosing her words carefully. "My brother thinks big, dreams big, and because of this is often downcast, discouraged. But you know, my entire life I was content with what I had, to never leave the mountains, to never amount to anything more than a herder's daughter. Personally, I think he got the better deal. I think someday he will be a teacher or professor of some kind. I'd really hate to see him go, but he would thrive in a place like Ba Sing Se."

Alright, so she'd lost her purpose somewhere in that little speech, but hopefully it had at least taken his mind off things. Of course, she had neglected to say that Pisco was also skinny and emotional like Nakamura was, but things like that were better left unsaid. Besides, Thayari was sure that he wasn't emotional by nature, just that the circumstances were stacked against him.

She got up and moved toward her pack, digging out her thick blue poncho and an extra blanket she kept for when it got really cold at night. Returning to Nakamura, she draped it over his shoulders and donned her poncho, which she used as a blanket most of the time anyway. "You don't seem much like the country type, but who knows, perhaps the mountains will look more kindly on you than anywhere else. And you may not get sick, who knows, it happens occasionally." Without saying it directly, Thayari had decided to take Nakamura back to the mountains with her. It seemed like the best thing to do. She tried not to think about what her four brothers would say when she came home with a boy in tow, but hopefully they knew her better than that. Hopefully.

Instead she looked around the chamber and the rest of the temple outside and thought of home. "We have an avatar temple back home too. Well, actually, it's more of a shrine inside the general temple. It's right there in between the shrine to the moon spirit and the shrine to the llama spirit. It may not be big, but I think it's really nice." She thought about home and the town on the river a few days trek down the mountain from where she lived. It was a small town by worldly standards, but a city for the mountain peoples. It was where virtually all foreign trade took place, among the few merchants that made the rocky and dangerous trip from the coast. "I'll have to show you the temple some time. It's built of stone, so it's sturdy, and there is usually a village girl that tends to the shrines. A priestess of sorts I suppose. The shrines themselves are filled with statues and draped with silk and fabrics. There is always some incense lit as well, it's all very... I guess you could say very spiritual."

She looked sideways at Nakamura and his now cold rice. She hoped she'd captured his attention, but understood if he wasn't in a totally agreeable mood at the moment...