Icelily in hand, she weaved her way through the tents that had been erected in the snow. They rarely had too many guests here, so there was little need for permanent accommodation. Her cousin had been offered a place at Unalaqs estate, but she politely declined.

The cloth all looked the same, but Eska knew which one was his. She had seen him enter and leave it many times, if she was within eyeshot when he left it he headed straight for her.

She remembered the things he had said to her, she hadn't understood a lot of them. He intrigued her and she found herself wishing she knew more about Republic City's culture.

'So, did you know I know all 21 letters of the alphabet?' he had asked her, hands raised behind his head. She didn't reply, hoping he was going to continue and she wouldn't have to break the news that there were 26 letters.

"Oh wait!" he slapped his head 'I missed U,R,A,Q and T!' He looked at her proudly as he finished listing them on his fingers

'It seems as though you should further your education' She said, not understanding when he chuckled at her.

She approached his tent, there was no apparent light inside so she pressed her ear to the fabric. She hoped she wouldn't be found by anyone in such a position. She heard his light snores, confirming her suspicions that he was asleep.

Not being one to wait around or be denied what she wanted, she shot several beams of ice up from under his sleeping bag. She heard his snore hitch as he moved, waking up.

"Oww….what the?" She heard fabric rustling, presumably he was rubbing the bruises she had given him. She smiled, he wasn't going to forget her anytime soon.

"Bolin" She said quietly to the fabric, speaking his name to him for the first time. He went quiet as he heard her, making his way over the where she was standing. A sheet of material was all the separated them now.

"E-Eska?" he asked as if he was unsure.

She nodded slightly before remembering he couldn't see her, she realised she would have to rely on verbal communication. This was going to be tough.

"Yes" She spoke a little quieter, knowing he had his ear against the tent wall. A moment of silence passed before she continued "Thank you"

"For what" He asked, once again sounding confused. It seemed that he was confused a lot of the time he was around her

"The icelily" was all she said, absentmindedly feeling the petals with her fingers.

"Oh! You're welcome!" He said enthusiastically "I wasn't sure if you liked it, y'know, I kinda left before you said anything, I ummm, I'm glad you like it!" He rambled, eventually stopping himself.

"I'm sorry" She said, referring to the words he had overheard. He seemed to understand what she meant this time

"Did you mean what you said?" He asked, he sounded as though he had been worrying about this

"It seems I was…mistaken" She replied, staring at the lily. She could almost hear his smile as he let out a small, happy laugh

"That's good because I…uh…the flower was to say…I umm…I really like you?" He asked

She was thankful he couldn't see the uncharacteristic blush tinging her cheeks "I'm rather fond of you myself"

"It reminded me of you as soon as I saw it, an cold, icy exterior, but if you look a bit harder you can see the beauty underneath"

She was touched by what he said, he seemed sincere. For once she wasn't being called beautiful just because she held the title of 'Princess'.

The sound of a set of footsteps broke her out of daze. She looked around, wondering who could be wandering around at this time of night. Her eyes caught the familiar form of Desna, a look of disapproval on his face.

"I must depart" She whispered quickly, leaving her place from next to the tent. Desna allowed her to walk past him, walking behind her to accompany her back to her room

"Eska wait!" She heard Bolin say a fraction louder, pulling back the door of his tent and looking around for her.

He grabbed the shoulder of Desna, silhouetted in the moonlight and span him around, placing a kiss on his lips

Eska's eyes widened as she realised his mistake, she watched Desna struggle before Bolin pulled back, alarmed

"I'm sorr-Desna!?" He exclaimed, looking around widely to see if he had an audience

Eska couldn't hold back her amusement any longer, and it manifested itself as a laugh. Desna looked at her, the slightest look of shock on his face, partly from the kiss and partly from hearing her laughing. He stormed off, catching her eye as if to say 'He better be worth this'

Bolin's blush remained as he watched Desna leave, turning to face the waterbending Princess

"You have a beautiful laugh" He said sheepishly, looking at the ground as he replayed the scene in his head.

Eska knew the kiss was meant for her, and that made her feel a fluttering sensation in her heart. She made her way over to the endearing Earthbender and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you" She said softly, turning to follow the distant form of her twin, the icelily still clutched preciously in her hands.