Hanabira - Part One - Letting Go

Chapter One

Cold wind swept through the Easter Air Temples, signaling the season change from summer to fall. Despite the freezing wind, the small air benders ran around the soft grasses below the temples, laughing and having fun as if the summer would never end.

"You have to come down and play with us, Hana!" Uteki wined, sitting on the end of Hanabira's bed with a heavy thud. She worked up her best sad face, but it was unseen by Hana, who's eyes were fixated on her friends playing below.

"I don't want to," Hana muttered, just loud enough for Uteki to hear, but quiet enough for her to not hear the hoarseness of her voice after hours of crying. Her eyes, which were usually a bright and vibrant green, seemed dull and grayish, worrying many of the monks and Hana's closer friends.

Uteki crossed her arms, trying to think of a strategy to get her friend out of her room and into fresh air. She finally spun around, unsure whether she should be wary of this new decision or happy about the new idea. She went for it.

"Aang wouldn't have wanted you to stay up here all day." When Hana only pulled her knees closer up to her chin, Uteki sighed. "He would have wanted you to play. Come on, Hana, please? Forget Aang and come play with us."

Hana let out a choking breath; caught between a sob and a laugh. She stared at her friend, bewildered and Uteki regretted the decision to bring Aang into the conversation, let alone use him as leverage.

"I don't want to forget Aang!" Hana sobbed, her voice void of all it's timid and softness that had made Hana seem so shy and quiet before. She shut her eyes tightly, letting her forehead fall against her knees as she let out a shaky sob. Uteki moved closer, placing a hand on her friends shaking shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Hana," Uteki cooed, rubbing Hana's back and thinking frantically of what to do or say. She was a bold person, a natural when it came to telling things how it is, but comforting a friend? This was new territory. "You know I didn't mean it like that. We can never forget Aang. We'll always remember him."

"We don't have to remember him, Uteki." Hana said incredulously, "He'll come back."

Uteki was glad that Hana still had her head buried in the mass of arm and legs hugging around each other, otherwise she would have seen the disbelieving look that Uteki couldn't manage to wipe off her face.

It's been a week…. Uteki thought, realizing that almost everyone except a few of the monks and Hana had lost all hope of Aang coming back. She continued to rub Hana's shoulder until the sobs quieted down to hiccups and the steady flow to tears subsided to a few stray teardrops.

"There," Uteki smiled, conjuring up the happiest smile she could.

"I can't believe he'd leave me," Hana said, brilliant green eyes searching the clouds outside. "He didn't even say goodbye… he just…."

Uteki nodded and Hana took in a long breath, letting it out slowly and closing her eyes. She let her head fall against the window and suddenly felt very tired. Who knew grieving could be so tiresome?

"At least we know the Fire Nation doesn't have him." Uteki smiled at the small bit of hope they had left for their friend. Hana's eyebrows furrowed as she looked up at her friend. Her skin was paler than usual, and even the freckles lining Hana's nose and cheeks seemed duller than before. Another pang of worry shot through Uteki as she noticed her friend was in an even worse state than she thought.

"How do we know that?"

"If the Fire Nation had Aang, they would gloat about it. Scream it from the mountains so we would all know that any hope for them to not start this war would be gone." Hana nodded, letting a smile catch onto her face but not letting it reach her eyes.

"That's true," Hana said, glancing back out the window as another chilling breeze swept the girls' tan clothing around their limbs before settling back into place. "At least we know wherever he is, he's safe."

Uteki nodded, shutting her mouth before she could blurt out the thought that had been forming in the back of her mind. What if wherever he was… he was dead?

Uteki kept her mouth shut, mirroring Hana's smile, and just glad that her friend had stopped sobbing over the loss of her best friend.

"Will you please come play with us?" Uteki asked, a small, but hopeful smile on her thin face. Hana let her arms fall from around her knees and she glanced back out the window, wishing she would see Aang flying through the clouds on Appa, ready to tell her this was all a trick and the joke was on her. Hana's heart sank when the clouds parted, only to reveal the sun almost setting.

"Fine," Hana said, letting Uteki pull her to her feet.

She wiped her eyes, trying to put on a smile that was somewhat convincing as Uteki pulled Hana out of her bedroom for the first time in days.

A/n: This story is going to have different parts, because there are going to be a few big parts of this story. I can't wait to hear what people think about it.

Disclaimer: I do not, and will never own the rights to Avatar: The Last Airbender. I do, however, own those characters which you do not recognize from the show.