Chapter Text
Will
Will’s morning meditation was interrupted by a distant howl of pain.
He let out an exasperated sigh, but kept his eyes closed even as Austin yelped and cursed from a few yards away. They were in the back garden, where Will had been sitting in the shade of a large oak tree while Kayla and Austin played their usual game of Ice-Versus-Arrows. It was a vicious game that involved Austin hurling long spikes of ice at Kayla while she sent rapid-fire arrows back at him. Sometimes, the arrows and ice would collide mid-air and explode in a magnificent flutter of splinters and snow. Will hated when they played it. The game never ended without the loser getting injured. Today, apparently, Kayla had won.
“Wi-ill!” Austin complained, trying to win his attention. “I’m bleeding. ”
Will opened his eyes and glared at him. “How badly?”
Austin responded by turning and showing him his right arm, where the side of his shoulder had a sizable gash running through it.
Will rolled his eyes and stood up. “Fine. I’ll get the bandages.”
A few minutes later, all three siblings were sitting under the oak tree. Will sat on Austin’s right, carefully wrapping his arm and flicking him in the head when he complained too much. Kayla sat on his left, admiring her damage with a smug smile.
“You two are gonna get yourselves killed one day,” Will said, shaking his head.
Kayla scoffed. “Maybe Austin will. I haven’t let one of his spikes hit me in ages.” She stuck out her tongue at Austin, who responded with a firm glare.
Will ignored her and said to Austin, “You know, if you’re going to keep putting yourself into such ridiculously dangerous situations, you should really practice your healing more. You could’ve fixed this yourself if you didn’t goof off so much instead of practicing.”
Austin looked indignant. “I don’t goof off! I practice waterbending, like, all the time. I’m telling you, dude, I just suck at healing.”
Will sighed. “Yeah, I know. I know. Sorry.” He finished securing Austin’s bandage and leaned back against the trunk of the tree. “I guess I’m still a little jealous. You can do all of these useful things and I’m just…” He trailed off, looking down at his hands. Austin gave him a look of sympathy.
After a moment, Kayla stood abruptly and offered both of her brothers a hand. “C’mon,” she said, pulling them both up. “It’s almost time for lunch, and you guys remember how scary my dad got the last time we were late.” Austin shuddered at the thought of Lord Knowles’ heavy scowl, and Will grinned.
“Yeah,” he said. “Let’s get going.”
The three of them crossed the garden toward the west side of the estate, where Kayla’s father’s house was. Of the four houses on the estate, it was the biggest. Lord Knowles was a high-ranking noble in the Fire Nation, so his house had wide-open rooms and dozens of servants to fill them with. Will’s house was on the east side of the garden, and Austin’s was on the south. Both were much smaller, but Will’s still had plenty of room for just him and his mom to live in. And on the north side, in a house nearly as big as the Knowles’s, lived their dad: the world-famous actor Apollo.
Will had spent most of his childhood in the Fire Nation palace, where his mother had worked as a royal musician of the court. Firelord Zuko cared a great deal about reviving their nation’s roots in lively cultural music, so it was a well-paid position, and Will and his mother lived comfortably there. But the most memorable parts of his childhood were the days he spent on his annual trip to Ember Island.
That was where Will got to spend time with his father, Austin, and Kayla. Apollo invited his children to visit him each summer. Every day they had picnics on the beach, and Apollo would serenade them with his wild tales of acting in the theater and traveling around the world with the Ember Island Players. Will loved every minute of it. But the week always came to an end eventually, and Austin would go home to the Northern Water Tribe, Kayla would go home to her distant corner of the Fire Nation, and Will would go home to his mother.
Then, everything changed when the Firelord made an announcement. He and his dear friend, Avatar Aang, had formed a fifth nation: The United Republic of Nations. So far, it was growing and prospering as well as they had hoped. The nation had a capital: Republic City, a place for all peoples and cultures to coexist.
The people of the Fire Nation soon heard about all of the opportunities that were growing there. Lord Knowles ultimately decided that, as a symbol of the royal family’s support for the city, he and his daughter would move there themselves. Naomi, Apollo, and Austin’s mother, Latricia, all discussed the city at length in their letters. After weeks of writing, the three of them concluded that Republic City was the perfect place for their multicultural family to make a home for themselves. By the end of the year, all seven of them—Apollo, Naomi, Will, Latricia, Austin, Lord Knowles, and Kayla—were finally living on the same continent.
At this particular moment, with Austin talking his ear off about how sore his arm still was, Will was temporarily regretting the decision. They were climbing the winding wooden stairs to the fourth floor, where the dining room was.
“Hey, Will,” Kayla said, interrupting Austin’s rant. “Do you wanna help Austin and I sneak out tonight?”
“Kayla, you weren’t supposed to tell him!” Austin stage-whispered.
Will raised an eyebrow.
“Oh, come on, you know you can be uptight sometimes.”
“Yeah, I can be uptight, but I still love a midnight adventure as much as the next guy.” Will crossed his arms, feeling a little offended.
Kayla elbowed Austin, grinning. “See, I knew he’d be down.” She turned back to Will and mimicked Austin’s stage-whisper. “We’re going to check out one of those pro-bending matches they’ve been having. One of my classmates let me in on where they’re holding them tonight. It’s going to be fantastic!”
For a moment, Will was tempted to fall back into his pattern of being the Uptight One again, but he resisted the urge. He could be cool about this. Sure, pro-bending was still a rowdy, unofficial, underground kind of sport where things could escalate into a brawl resembling a bar fight fairly easily, but, still. Will was Cool.
He realized Kayla and Austin were watching his changing facial expressions, both looking skeptical of his intentions. He straightened out his shoulders. “That sounds… awesome. What time are we sneaking out?”
Austin smiled his dimpled-smile that always meant he was excited, and Kayla laughed triumphantly, threw her arm over Will’s shoulders, and led them into the dining room, where lunch was waiting.
As they sat down to eat, she muttered to Will under her breath, “Ten-o-clock, sharp.”
Will wondered what he’d gotten himself into.
Nico
Nico was sick of papaya. The mansion had received an oversized shipment of the fruit three days ago, and ever since, the cooks had attempted to work it in as an ingredient in every meal. That morning, he’d had fruit salad for breakfast, and later, stir-fried sweet papaya pork for lunch. When the servants rounded the corner carrying his dinner in shiny silver trays, and he spotted small slices of papaya tucked between the leaves of lettuce, he promptly stood from the table and excused himself.
He never had much of an appetite, anyway.
Nico didn’t need to think about where his feet were taking him. He’d been living in this mansion for about a year now, which had been more than enough time for him to explore every corner of it. There were only a few spots he really liked. He wandered through wide marble halls, which were draped in green curtains and green banners, before ducking through a small door that led outside, blinking in the golden light of the setting sun. A few short steps, and then he settled into place, lying comfortably on the sidewall of a large fountain.
This was the only place where Nico could really relax. The quiet rush of the water in the fountain lulled him into a peaceful place in his mind. It reminded him of the brook that ran close to the town where he’d grown up.
The sweet smell of papaya drifted down from the kitchens, and Nico felt like barfing.
He still didn’t understand rich people’s food. There were always, like, ten courses, and almost all of it was sweet and fatty, and the portion sizes were insane . It made Nico sick when he thought about the years when he’d been on his own and had to go hungry every other day. Now, he was a prince, and he was expected to eat like one.
His father was Hades, the king of Omashu. Hades and his queen, Persephone, were beloved by their people for years throughout their reign. Then, everything changed when the scandal broke: the king had not one, but two secret children. Both were twelve years old, with two different mothers...neither of whom were Persephone. Under nationwide scrutiny, Hades had scrambled to save face; he found Nico—who had already been orphaned and living on his own by that point—and Hazel, and officially claimed them as his children and declared them Prince and Princess of Omashu.
Nico wasn’t sure how to feel about it. He lived in Omashu for a year, and in the beginning, he was just happy to have a roof over his head. He and Hazel bonded during that time. But he couldn’t stand to be around his dad. So, the next year, when King Hades announced he’d be sending his children to Republic City as official ambassadors of Omashu, Nico was relieved to be getting away.
Someone nudged his shoulder. “ Nico, ” they hissed.
Nico grumbled in his sleep and rubbed his eyes. He’d dozed off on the fountain, and now, as he blinked up at the stars, he realized night had already fallen.
Hazel was crouched beside him with a gleam of excitement in her eyes.
“Hey,” she whispered. “I need you to do me a favor.”
Nico scowled. “What kind of favor?”
“You know my friend Frank?”
“You mean, only-dude-in-the-city-who-can-take-you-in-an-earthbending-match Frank? Your classmate?”
“Yeah, that Frank.”
“What about him?”
Hazel took a breath, as if she knew Nico wouldn’t be crazy about what she would say next.
“Well,” she started. “He’s doing a pro-bending match tonight with his team, and I really want to go see it and cheer for him, and I want you to come with me because you know how I am about using the buddy system when traveling at night, so would you please come?” She batted her eyelashes and gave him her best puppy eyes.
Nico slowly sat up. He looked her carefully in the eyes and rested his fists on the stone fountain wall. “Pro-bending?” He said. “That’s the one where an earthbender teams up with a waterbender and a firebender, right?”
“Yes,” Hazel said, a little nervously, but still looking him in the eyes.
“Hazel…”
Hazel interrupted, grabbing his hand. “Look, I know firebending makes you uncomfortable, but it would mean the world to me, and I honestly think you would like it. You loved those Earth Rumble matches we went to last year; this isn’t that different.
“And,” she added, holding a finger up in response to Nico’s dubious stare, “I promise, if we get there and you can’t handle it, you can tell me, and we’ll leave. Just like that. What do you say?”
Nico had to think about it. Saying that firebending made him “uncomfortable” was an understatement—the idea of sitting in a cramped arena to watch it made his skin crawl—but it wasn’t like he could completely avoid firebenders anyway. He lived in Republic City now; they were all over the place.
Plus, Hazel was not kidding around with those puppy eyes tonight. Nico looked up at the sky and heaved his best Exasperated Big Brother Sigh.
“...Fine.”
Hazel squealed and hugged him. Nico smiled into her hair.
She pulled back, stood, and tugged Nico up to stand next to her.
“Let’s go get your sword before we leave. Y’know, in case we run into trouble.”
Nico laughed. It wasn’t unlikely.
They found the arena inside an old, abandoned warehouse. Nico distantly wondered how a city as new as Republic City could even have warehouses this old. There was a small crowd forming just outside the warehouse entrance. A lot of the people were armed, and, for lack of a better word, buff, and their expressions clearly stated that they weren’t to be messed with. Nico stuck close to Hazel as they approached, hand resting tentatively on the hilt of his sword.
Hazel seemed less nervous, but she gripped Nico’s hand tightly as she led the way, weaving through the crowd and into the building.
Inside, the arena was set up: stone benches lined the walls, and a deep trench separated them from the hexagonal playing field. It was clear that the whole thing had been built using earthbending. Nico could appreciate the workmanship.
Most of the benches were filled with rowdy, chattering people, so Hazel and Nico spent a few minutes pushing their way around to find seats. At one point, Nico felt a shove on his right shoulder, followed by a flustered, “‘Scuse me!” and Nico turned to watch the freckled blonde-haired boy that had run into him be yanked away by a red-headed girl with a bow on her back.
Huh.
Hazel said something underneath all the noise, and Nico partially-shouted back, “What?”
She stood on her tip-toes and yelled into his ear, “I found seats!”
She pointed up at one of the middle rows, where, sure enough, there was space for about two people. They hurried over and sat down with a huff of relief. Nico closed his eyes for a moment. Now they just had to wait for the bending to begin.
Soon after, the players took to the field, and Hazel tugged on Nico’s arm, pointing excitedly. “There’s Frank!”
Nico giggled and said, “Yeah, I can see that.”
Hazel rolled her eyes and went back to bouncing with excitement. Nico was starting to be glad he came.
Then the match began. Nico flinched as the first of the flames danced across the field. The firebender on Frank’s team was a short, scrawny kid with curly brown hair, and he wasn’t pulling any punches. Nico didn’t know much about how pro-bending was supposed to work, but that kid was shooting out flames like they were grenades and he was a fully-loaded launcher.
It got a little overwhelming after a minute. Nico could feel his pace quickening and his breathing getting unsteady, so he closed his eyes.
The subtle flashes of orange light in his eyelids weren’t pleasant either, but it was better than watching the flames head-on. His heartbeat calmed a little.
Hazel squeezed his hand. She shouted, “You okay?” Even over all the cheers of the crowd, Nico could hear the worry in her voice.
Nico nodded, eyes still squeezed shut. “Yeah, but I think I’m just gonna stay like this for the rest of the match.”
“Okay!”
Nico couldn’t tell much of what was happening in the match from just the sounds of it. It was a random garble of whooshes and crashes. After a while, Hazel’s cheering got more intense, so Nico got the impression Frank’s team was winning.
Then, all at once, the crowd went “Ohhhhhhhh!” and Hazel yelped in alarm. Someone blew a whistle, and the orange flashes stopped, so Nico opened his eyes.
Frank was crouched on the ground, clutching his side, which was bleeding. His waterbending teammate was kneeling next to him, while the firebender was marching up to the other team in a rage, yelling “Ice?? Are you serious, man? That’s fucking illegal!”
Someone blew the whistle again, this time louder and longer, and the entire arena finally fell silent. A messy-haired dude in a dirty, striped shirt that was apparently supposed to resemble a ref’s uniform stood in the center of the field, rubbing his neck and looking up at the audience.
“So, uh,” he said, eyes sweeping around at the audience. “Are there any healers in the building tonight?”
He was met with silence. Nico looked at Hazel in disbelief. “They don’t have any healers on staff?” He whispered.
Hazel tore her worried gaze from Frank for a moment and looked back at him, shaking her head. “I mean, it’s all usually thrown together last-minute, so, not really.”
After a minute, when no waterbenders volunteered their services, the blonde-haired boy from earlier seemed to materialize in the crowd across from Nico when he stood up and raised his hand. His voice rang out clearly in the quiet arena. “I’m, um, not a healer, but I can still help.”
The ref shrugged and nodded. Frank’s waterbender teammate started helping him up while the earthbender on the other team pulled up a bridge across the trench.
Hazel jumped up and started tugging Nico along with her. “They’re going to take him outside, it’s the only place where they’ll have space.”
She sounded really worried. Nico squeezed her hand. Hazel looked back at him and smiled a little.
They made it outside, where Nico found the cool night air to be a welcome change from the sticky heat of the crowded arena. After a moment of scanning the semi-deserted lot, Hazel pointed out where Frank and Mr. Blonde Doctor Man were set up and took off in their direction.
Nico approached more slowly and took in the scene. Frank was sitting on a wooden stool, wincing in pain as the technically-not-a-healer dude carefully cleaned his wound. Frank’s two teammates were standing to the right, watching, while two other kids who looked to be about Nico’s age—a brown-eyed boy with dark cornrows and a blue-eyed girl with bright red hair—stood on the left.
Hazel quickly sat on her knees next to Frank. “Are you okay?”
Frank gave a pained smile, but nodded firmly. Dr. Blondie took his eyes off his work for a moment to give Hazel a reassuring smile. “He’s going to be fine. The gash is pretty shallow, so we just need to make sure it doesn’t get infected.”
Hazel sighed in relief. “That’s good. Thanks for doing this, by the way. You seem like you know what you’re doing. What’s your name?”
“I’m Will, and it’s no problem.” Will finished cleaning Frank’s wound, and was now pulling a roll of clean, white bandages out of his shoulder bag. “I have to patch up my brother here,” he nodded to the boy on the left, “like, every other day, so it’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”
Nico scoffed. Hazel and Will both looked at him. He held up his hands and said, “Sorry, I just think it’s ridiculous that they didn’t plan to have any healers around tonight. And now Frank here is going to have to heal the old fashioned way.” Hazel gave him a Look, and Nico added, “No offense, Will.”
“None taken. I agree.” Will was looking at Nico with a glint of amusement in his eyes. He smirked. “I certainly don’t enjoy having to heal people the old fashioned way, either. Not all of us can be blessed with waterbending like my useless brother.”
He jabbed his thumb at his brother, who gave a half-hearted “Hey!” in protest. Nico chuckled.
Will held his gaze a moment longer, then turned his full attention back to bandaging Frank.
Hazel cleared her throat. “Okay… Well, I’m Hazel. It’s nice to meet you, Will. This is my brother, Nico, and Frank’s teammates over there are Percy and Leo.”
Leo and Percy smiled and waved. Will grinned.
“Pleasure to meet you too, Hazel. These guys are my siblings, Austin and Kayla.”
Kayla turned to Leo and Percy and said, “You guys were killing it in the arena today.”
Austin, Kayla, Leo, and Percy started up a lively conversation about the match, which Nico was completely disinterested in, so he tuned them out and instead turned his focus on Will as he finished the bandage job. It seemed that he’d reached the most painful part of the process, and Frank kept wincing harder and harder, so Will started muttering quiet words of comfort as he went, patting his arm softly every once in a while. Nico watched his hands moving deftly across Frank’s midriff, and he had to admit, it was impressive.
Before he knew it, the job was finished, and Frank was standing and tentatively touching the bandage with his hand.
“How’s it feel?” Will asked.
Frank smiled. “Much better. Thanks, man.” He offered Will a fist-bump, and Will obliged.
“Not bad for a non-healer, huh?” Will said, turning to face Nico now. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall of the warehouse, raising his eyebrows as if giving a challenge.
Nico shook his head, smiling despite himself. “Yeah. Not bad.”
“So, where’d you get that sword, Nico? It’s pretty sick. Are you any good with it?”
“Stay on my good side, and you’ll never have to find out.”
Will giggled. Like, actually giggled. It was kind of adorable. “I guess I’ll take that as a yes.”
They stood in a comfortable silence for a moment, and Nico caught himself counting the freckles on Will’s cheeks. He looked away, trying to think about literally anything else.
He blurted, “I think it’s pretty cool that you’re a medic, you know."
Will looked confused, so Nico added, "I mean, we already have more than enough fighters in the world." He looked down, furrowing his brow in thought. "I had to learn swordplay out of necessity, but given the chance, I would've liked to get good at something more… constructive. That's all."
Will smiled, more genuinely than before when he had been teasing Nico. He looked touched.
"...Thanks," he said, but then he frowned. "You know, I'm not just— "
He cut off, suddenly, and pushed off the wall to stand staring over Nico's shoulder. Nico turned around and followed his gaze. In the distance, he saw nothing but shadows.
"Did you see that guy?" Will asked.
Nico shook his head.
"He was wearing dark robes and this wide hat, and he looked… I don't know, it just seemed like he was watching us. Then he vanished."
Nico did not like the sound of that at all. He left Will where he was standing and started circling the group, scanning their surroundings for signs of a threat. He was resting his hand on his sword hilt again.
He didn't spot any shadowy figures, but after a moment, he did find something out of the ordinary. A small, shivering ball of blue fur was glowing faintly a few yards away. Nico approached it cautiously.
Just as he was kneeling to inspect it, a voice from behind him made him jump: "What is it?"
Will had followed close behind him without Nico realizing. Nico took a breath and sent an exasperated glare back at Will. "Lower your voice," he ordered.
Will nodded. "Sorry."
Nico looked back at the furry creature. "Can you see it, Will?"
"No. But you're looking at something."
Nico held a gentle hand out over the creature, hovering just above the tips of its fur. "It's a spirit. Most people can't see them, but it's pretty normal for them to occasionally wander the city."
Will let out a soft laugh of amazement.
"The problem is," Nico continued, "this one seems scared. Terrified, really. Normally I'd think it was the rowdiness of the crowd inside, but after what you saw, I'm starting to get worried."
Nico stood and looked at Will. "I think we should go home." Will nodded, looking concerned.
Nico turned and called, "Hazel—"
That was when everything went black.
There was a soft crash from the top of the streetlight, and in an instant the lot was bathed in shadow. Cries of alarm sounded from their group, including one from Hazel, and Nico leapt in her direction, drawing his sword swiftly as he went.
Kayla was calling for Will, and Nico sensed the boy running next to him.
Just as they reached their siblings and Nico's eyes finally started adjusting to the darkness, he heard Will curse under his breath and say, " Spirits , I'm stupid." At that moment, a warm, orange light washed over the group, and for a second, Nico was beyond relieved to see Hazel standing safely within his reach.
Then, he looked back to Will and nearly jumped out of his skin. The boy was cradling a small, flickering flame in his hands, lifting the blaze to shoulder-height as he headed to reunite with Kayla and Austin a few feet away.
Nico couldn't speak. He stood frozen, staring at Will. After a moment, Will looked from his siblings back to Nico. His expression turned from relief to concerned confusion. "Nico, what is it?"
Nico took a step back, gripping his sword tightly. "You're a firebender?"
Hazel was eyeing him cautiously. Will looked hurt. He didn't answer Nico's question; the answer was obvious. Instead he lowered his hands and watched his flames carefully as he let them grow a little, so that even the furthest edges of the lot could be seen.
Nico's breath caught in his throat, and he turned away.
"What's going on?" Frank asked. "Who took out the lights like that?"
"Nico?" Hazel asked. "What were you looking at over there? Did you see anything?"
Nico took her hand and spoke quietly. "Nothing that made sense. I'll explain more later. Let's just go home, please? It doesn't feel safe anymore."
Hazel nodded. She went back to Frank and his friends to start saying goodbye. Nico stood a short distance away, staring out into the lot to avoid watching Will's flames. The whole time, he could've sworn he felt Will's gaze on him, but he didn't look back.
He left with Hazel without a word to the others, and as they marched through the chilly city breeze, Nico stared down at the sidewalk with his thoughts storming through his head.
He felt tricked. He felt like he'd wandered into a trap disguised as a safe haven. Will was a firebender, and to Nico, that was a betrayal too deep to forgive.