The Kraken

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

Kasai looked at Avani and gave a look of confusion after she had moved away from where she had sat down just a few moments earlier. It was unknown to her what had set Avani off, but it was becoming apparent that she had definitely done something wrong in the last thirty seconds.

"Wait, what?"

Her face showed the confusion her brain was trying to work out, and she tried to scoot closer to Avani and speak with her about what had suddenly gone so wrong. It was a failed attempt though, because now Avani was standing up and striding across the room towards the door. Kasai was left with her eyebrows in a knot and her mouth slightly agape.

"Avani, wait, let me explain-"

She put her hand out towards Avani, but it was no use because her back was turned to her. The last words Avani spoke before closing the door behind her hit Kasai like a ton of bricks. Leading her on? That certainly was not her intention. Kasai quickly grabbed the crutches that leaned against the other side of the couch and started to make her way to the door as fast as she could manage.

It was no use though, by the time she opened the door, she could hear Avani's footsteps disappear outside the first floor, and by the time she pressed the button for the elevator, the sound of the motorcycle starting and taking off told her that she was a little too late on that one.

Frustrated, Kasai went back inside to her apartment and sat on the couch, staring at the glasses and bottles that sat upon the table. A sorrowful sigh escaped her and she grabbed her glass, filling it up to the brim with rum before she held it up.

"Way to fuck it up," she said to herself, before emptying the entirety of the glass down her throat.

There was a reason Kasai hadn't been in many relationships before. It always seemed that she was able to say the absolute worst thing at the absolute worst time. Unintentionally, of course. It wasn't like she found joy in watching people walk out her door, never to return. Oblivious to most things, she usually ended up alone and without anyone other than Kieron and Barron. But now, even they were gone.

Hanging her head in her hands, she grit her teeth and clinched her jaw, furious at herself for letting something silly like that ruin whatever that spark could have turned in to. Another shot filled her glass, and went down the hatch.

By now, Kasai was feeling the effects of the alcohol. She was far from drunk, but the substance was definitely affecting her judgement. Moping around for the next few hours, she kicked herself and ridiculed herself. This is why you're alone. She stared at the alcohol on her table, but figured that getting plastered wasn't going to solve anything, let alone mix well with the pain medication she had been taking.

It was late afternoon now, turning into early evening. Kasai assumed that Avani would soon be hitting the bars downtown to drink away the misery that Kasai had caused. No matter what she did, Kasai could not stop thinking about the desperate and disappointed tone in Avani's voice before she left. Never before had she cared so much after someone had walked out on her.

That was the moment she decided that she wasn't going to let Avani slip away like that, at least not without Kasai being able to apologize to her and explain herself. However, it did not take a genius to figure out that giving her a call and asking to talk over coffee was not going to work. Avani was probably closer to dropping a boulder on Kasai than she was to speaking to her.

Kasai worked up an idea in her head and grabbed the phone that sat on the end table of her couch, telling the operator to patch her through to the police department. A friendly voice met her, and she sat up to talk more clearly.

"Zari, it's Kasai. I need you to do me a favor..." Kasai went on to tell the man that he and his partner needed to go downtown and pick up a woman named Avani Shailesh, that she was needed for questioning.

"But the captain hasn't said anything about-"

"This doesn't need to be mentioned to the captain. Now do as I say, you and Tai go and get this girl and send someone over here to bring me to the station." Kasai interjected.

There was a moment of hesitation before the man agreed and hung up the phone. Kasai breathed a sigh of relief before standing and going to her bedroom to change out of the grungy hospital clothes she had on. It was a struggle in the trouser area, so she opted for black slacks and her police coat.

Making her way downstairs, she waited for her ride and prepared herself for whatever may come once she gets to talk to Avani one on one, knowing she very well may be talking to a person who has hatred in their eyes for her.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

Kasai watched as Avani crossed from one side of the table to the other, taking a seat right next to her. She smiled and shrugged, "Make yourself at home, would ya."

At the sound of Avani's choice in game Kasai smirked and nodded, pleased with the event. It was a fun little game for finding out some interesting tidbits about drinking buddies, but this time it would serve a different purpose. Kasai's gaze followed Avani's hand down as it found itself resting on her leg, which made her smile just a bit.

"Bring it on,"

The first round went by as a way for Avani to make up for the warm up shot Kasai had already sent down to her gullet. After hearing the terms of the initial round, the smirk grew on her face. It was interesting to know, though with all that happened in the spirit world she didn't figure it was completely out of the question. Especially when Avani was loopy and without a good pint of blood.

Kasai took her glass in her hand and raised it, her brows lowering and lips pressed in a flat line as Avani's official first go around was announced. Raising her glass, she directed it to her mouth where she sent the burning liquid to the back of her throat and down her esophagus to her stomach. There was a brief tingling sensation at the back of her throat before she grinned and looked at Avani.

"I have a feeling you already knew the answer to that one, you're just trying to loosen me up a bit aren't you?" A light laugh escaped her and then she refilled her glass while she thought on the next question.

She pondered what kind of terms she should offer. It was a given that the conversation would shift to one of a darker nature after a couple shots, but Kasai thought it may be good to get a feel for what kind of person Avani really is early on, especially since those first two shots were already making her feel more confident. Ah, nothing like a little liquid courage.

"Alright," She smiled and looked at Avani, "Never have I ever had a one night stand." Kasai did not touch her drink, and waited to see if Avani would have to drink hers.

Either way, it woudn't change Kasai's opinion of Avani. She mostly just wanted to see if the other woman was the type to court or one who preferred a physical relationship and little else. Kasai had been in few serious relationships herself, but she still was not one to have a one night stand. If Avani had, she was curious for her explanation for it.

The Circus At The End Of The World (Engel X The Kraken)

It was unknown to Kate why her friends had suddenly turned their back on her. Were they mad? Or was she? This must be some twisted joke, a hallucination caused by some outside influence. There was no way this could be real, yet it felt as real as anything she had ever experienced.

Her eyes held a glossy stare on Claire as she yelled and let out her rage towards Kate. It was when she approached her and put her hand in the air that Kate grew terrified, but before she could react, Claire's hand made contact with Kate's face and sent her reeling to the side, holding her face where a red mark was quickly appearing.

A cry escaped her, more out of shock than pain. This trippy simulation was beginning to overwhelm Kate and her frustration was mounting. It was cruel, the way she was being treated by her friends, which told her it must be fake. The words that left Claire's mouth and were directed at her began to gnaw away at the bit of sanity she was keeping here.

Kate stood there, frozen in shock at the slap to the face and the hurtful words that targeted her very soul. Now her sadness was turning into anger. Why was this happening? If this were a terrible dream, she would not be able to feel the pain radiating on her cheek like she did. It didn't matter anymore, her hope was fleeting and she was sure she would be trapped forever here in this hell hole of a dream, doomed to live in it for eternity.

Elijah had turned when he heard Claire's hand smack across Kate's face. He considered approaching her, but only for a moment before deciding that he was better off keeping to himself. His hand was pressed against his neck, and blood continued to pour down his torso from a phantom wound that could not be found. The sight of the blood made bile gather in the back of his throat and he bent over to heave.

He felt a sharp pain as he vomited, and opened his eyes to see that in a pile of puke and blood lie a double-sided blade. Eli gagged and tasted something metallic in his mouth, which he now could not distinguish between blood or actual forged element. This sent him stumbling backwards, eyes wide and arms frantically splayed at his side.

He glared at Claire and rolled his eyes, standing and backing away from the two women. His hands were still tightly wrapped around his neck as he used every bit of concentration in his body to keep from having a panic attack and falling into an oblivion of madness.

Kate had clenched her jaw and blinked away tears of rage, all the while listening to Claire ramble on.

"I am the real Kate!" She said through locked teeth. It did take her by surprise when Claire stated that she probably would let Kate touch her in a different way than friends really should, but she did not take this statement to be true, but rather a result of an angry outburst.

Kate threw a hand to her face in an annoyed gesture. She had never thought Claire to be barbaric or unintelligent. In fact when she heard other people from the circus talking behind her back, Kate had threatened to pin them up and use them as target practice if they kept it up.

Elijah turned his head towards the pair at the sound of his name, but he scoffed. Kate shook her head and let it hang hopelessly in defeat.

"Nightmare? This is more like worst fears come true..." She remarked. But then, her head jumped up and her brain began working. "Wait!" She started thinking about a time when she had visited a gypsy that traveled with the circus. The woman had once said "If you want to be free of your worst nightmare, you must first face your fears. Only then will you have peace of mind."

Kate recited those very words and looked from Claire to Elijah, unsure of whether they were a part of her nightmare or trapped in this place with their own, but she knew now the answer to how to escape this terrifying world.

"Face your fears."

The Circus At The End Of The World (Engel X The Kraken)

It had been a while since Kate had fallen asleep with Claire on top of her and Eli to her side. Surprisingly enough, it was a peaceful sleep despite the unrest she had experienced the night before. She was enjoying the rest, pleasant thoughts filled her head until Claire started squirming around. Kate grumbled in her sleep and turned her head, sighing as she slowly started to wake from the disturbance.

Kate felt a jolt as Claire pushed her, waking her up fully now. She furrowed her brow when she opened her eyes and was about to yell at Claire for waking her when she discovered her arm was wrapped around Claire, up her shirt and resting on her chest. Kate's eyes grew wide and she opened her mouth to say something, but all she could manage was to stutter over her words.

She tried to remove her arm but found that she was unable to. The thumping in her chest grew to an audible tone as her heart beat practically out of her chest with panic. Claire pried her arm away and Kate looked from it to Claire, her eyes were frantic.

"Wait! Claire, no, I didn't...!"

The whole ordeal had woken Elijah, who sat up and felt something trickling down his neck. He subconsciously rubbed the area and looked down to his hand to reveal it was covered in blood. He screamed and scooted back quickly, checking for a wound on his neck but finding only blood that was flowing from some unknown source.

Kate looked at Eli when he cried out and her eyes grew even wider, she scooted over to him and put a hand on his neck but couldn't find a hole either. The words left Claire's mouth with hatred and Kate turned her head towards her, the pain of the words visible on her face. Her head started to spin and she looked down at the blood now on her hands as well. She was mortified at the whole situation, it was as if her worst nightmare was playing out before her.

Elijah started wheezing, but he coughed and pushed Kate away. "I'm fine," He grumbled and stood. Kate did as well and they were left gazing out at a wasteland that swallowed them from every angle. Kate looked around and thought that this must all be a figment of her imagination, so she closed her eyes and then opened them back up, hoping that she would instead be met with tents and grass and her friends napping lazily beside her.

Unfortunately, that was not the case. The same scene extended for as far as she could see, and her jaw hung ajar.

"No, no, no. Where the hell are we?" She questioned, fear in her voice.

Elijah had stepped away from Kate, for all he knew she had been the one to cause the bleeding in his neck again, making his experience from the previous night all too real. Kate was left with the backs of her two best friends turned to her, trapped in a barren and bizarre land that seemed to only want to make her fall into insanity.

"Claire, listen to me. I didn't do that!" She turned to Elijah, "Eli, what's with you?" Tears welled up in her eyes and then streamed down her face as she prayed for it all just to end, one way or another.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

Kasai was a little surprised at Avani's response, but relieved as well. She used one arm to attempt to return the hug, holding the crutch under her armpit and leaning in a little before shrugging. It was different then the normal attitude she had seen Avani display, granted she didn't actually know her all too well. Maybe she acted differently back here in the city than out on the mission, under different circumstances.

"Don't sweat it, a little teasing never hurt anyone." She smiled and then followed Avani into the apartment, kicking the door closed with her good leg. Walking into the living room, she leaned against her couch and watched as Avani crossed over to the windows. Kasai watched her as she looked out the windows to the city.

It was a nice view, she had to admit. One of the reasons she chose to live here. At night, the lights of the city twinkled and filled the space with amber light. Kasai spent many nights just sitting on her couch gazing out to the city, watching the artificial lighting of the buildings mix into the stars lighting up the sky.

A smirk appeared when Avani started up with the trash talking again, and she started moving over to the kitchen.

"When I'm out of this damn cast we'll have to settle that for sure." A cabinet was opened and Kasai pulled down several bottles, setting them on the countertop. Two glasses were then retrieved from a cabinet adjacent and she looked over at Avani, motioning to the liquor.

"But, if a drinking game is what you want, a drinking game is what you shall get." She examined the bottles she had pulled from her cabinet and grinned, grabbing the glasses between her fingers and making her way to the coffee table in the living room.

"Now, if you would be a dear and go grab those bottles," She shrugged, "can't really carry much, can't really walk much." Kasai shook her head and then placed the glasses down on the table. She waited for Avani to get the alcohol, and then grinned. Taking a bottle of rum, she poured two initial shots and then held up her glass before downing it.

Placing the glass back on the table she looked at the other woman and held out her hand to the options on the table: Rum, whiskey, sake, and vodka.

"Pick your poison. What game will it be? Would you rather? Never have I ever? Pennies, perhaps?" Kasai held her head up confidently and waited for Avani to pick her drink and her challenge. It may be that she was being overly cocky, but she wasn't inexperienced in this area so she had reason to believe she could win this bet.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

All Kasai could do was stare at Avani with a questioning expression as she watched her tumble over words again, but by now Kasai took it to be a normal thing. She wasn't as surprised to hear that Avani didn't use a helmet, but was a bit worried until she did eventually retrieve one from the sidecar.

Hesitantly, she handed over the crutches and put her weight against Avani. It was a relief when she picked her up, but then Kasai remembered how her arm had been rendered useless in the spirit world, and while it may have healed, there was no way it was fully functioning already. A frown appeared on her face when she thought about how bad that must've hurt, but she knew Avani would probably take her concern for pity, so she kept the thought to herself.

Avani was right though, the little vesicle was plenty big enough for her and the crutches that sat beside her. She scooted down to where she was comfortable in the thing and then took the helmet with a grateful smile, placing it on her head and securing the strap under her chin. The rumble of the engine made Kasai jump a little, but she blinked hard once and then looked at Avani, who looked quite nice sitting up on the motorcycle. It seemed natural to her, and it contributed to her rebel look.

When they pulled away from the hospital and on to the road, Kasai felt a funny feeling in her stomach, almost like butterflies. She had done many dangerous and crazy things in her lifetime, but her first experience on, or to the side of, a motorcycle was a little intimidating to her. The ride was actually really enjoyable though, she liked the feeling of the wind on her face and through her hair. When someone honked at them though, her heart jumped and she prepared for certain death, though the other vehicle simply passed them in the other lane.

Then Avani asked where she lived and she blinked a few times. Oh right, she had no idea where Kasai lived. Luckily, she was headed in the right direction, but Kasai was far from the rich and prominent of the city.

"Good guess, but you might wanna take a left up here on Kenji Street." She waited until the earthbender turned them down the correct street and then pointed to a building on the right, pulling off the helmet as they stopped. "Police work isn't exactly as high paying as you'd think." She rummaged through the pockets of the sweatpants she wore and found her keys.

Getting out of the cart was easier than getting in, since now she could push herself up with her good leg. She sat on the side of the cart and grabbed the crutches and then stood, smiling at Avani.

"Well, here we are." She pointed to the building they had stopped at, which was a set of studio apartments. "And unfortunately for me at least, I live on the top..." Kasai sighed and walked up to the entrance to the apartments, then looked at the staircase. There was an elevator off to the side, but Kasai had never had to use it before, and she really didn't want to have to use it now. Reluctantly though, she walked over to it and hit the third button.

The two arrived on the top floor with a ding, and Kasai stepped off to the door to her apartment. She got the key into the door, but then looked back at Avani.

"Thanks for the ride," she decided to give back some of the teasing that Avani had done earlier before bringing her home, a little fun never hurt anyway. "How about you come inside for a different kind of ride?" She smirked and turned the key in the door, opening it up to her open concept apartment, where the bedroom and the living room and the kitchen all ran together with few walls and no doors in between.

The Circus At The End Of The World (Engel X The Kraken)

Kate nodded to Claire and sat down with her on a soft spot of grass nearby to where they had been standing. It was a pleasant surprise when Claire plopped down in her lap, giving Kate more of a sense of reassurance. However, a different feeling tingled down her spine when she felt Claire's breath against her neck and her head on her shoulder.

Trying her hardest not to let that tingling feeling show outwardly, Kate inhaled and swallowed the lump in her throat. She couldn't remember when her feelings towards Claire had taken on a different nature, but she had decided to keep it to herself. After all, this was the girl she ran away with all those years ago, and the last thing she wanted to do was jeopardize their friendship as it was.

But lately, it had become harder to not express her affection a bit more. And now with the occurrence of recent events, Kate felt a pang in her heart that tugged in a different way than it had before. All she could do was hope that Claire took it as friendly affection, not anything more that would drive her away.

A smile appeared on her face at Claire's agreement to her titling Solomon as a big fluffy tomcat. But then the smile faded at the mention that the killer could strike again, which only worried her even more. The police had been at the scene of the bloody murder to investigate, surely they would follow up and pursue the one responsible, right? They wouldn't let some lunatic just roam around waiting for the next kill, would they?

This time, the role was reversed of who was muttering on as Claire sleepily murmured and carried on while she fell asleep. When she moved around to get comfortable, Kate felt the same feeling she had moments ago while goosebumps rose on her arms and her neck. She smiled to herself as Claire muttered her last few words before falling asleep. Kate then put an arm around her and rested her chin on the top of Claire's head.

"Alright, here's the-" Elijah stopped speaking when he walked up and saw Claire and Kate muddled together in a bundle, one of the two who appeared to be napping. He raised an eyebrow, but set the canteen of water that he had retrieved down and also took a seat on the ground. It was far too early in the morning to have already been so eventful. He laid back and placed his arms behind his head, looking up at the sky as he sighed.

Kate kept her chin lightly on Claire, but looked over at Eli. He turned his head towards her and gave her a warm smile, to which she returned one of her own. It was sort of relieving to sit in silence for a moment and allow their minds to be clear, not frantic about what they had just witnessed.

Kate decided to follow in her friend's footsteps and she closed her eyes. Eli was not as quick to settle, and he looked up at the sky again, putting one hand on the spot where he had been stabbed last night. His mind was wandering again while his friends rested, and he tried in his mind to figure out the mysteries that had unfolded the night before and that morning.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

"My wha-?"

The water met Kasai's chest and soaked her shirt as the bottle emptied onto her. A sigh escaped her as she realized she probably deserved it after the eye patch comment, so she refrained from saying anything further on the subject and instead looked down at her chest and back to Avani.

"You seem to have a real obsession with that area of my clothing. First the coat, now this..." She looked at the other woman with her lips pressed together in an effort to look indifferent, but that didn't last long after Avani leaned in close and whispered in her ear.

Kasai could feel her cheeks growing hot with a blush as Avani moved in to fondle her. There was nothing really she could do in return to the gesture, she was standing on one leg and if she let go of either of the crutches they would fall to the ground and then she'd really be struggling to stand. Her eyes closed and she breathed in deeply, all the while wishing she could at least get a hand around Avani.

Then, the sounds of catcalls and whistling coming from the few of her police friends that stuck around broke her attention from Avani. She looked down at the ground and her face grew redder by the second until she looked over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes at them. One of them was sticking their tongue out in their direction, a return to the gesture that Avani had delivered unbeknownst to Kasai.

"Hey, didn't I tell you to get a move on? That's an order." Her voice was stern with them, but they still couldn't help but grin and snicker as they turned their backs to catch up with the others who had already gone on ahead. Well, it could've been worse. At least they didn't gape at the pair and throw hateful looks in their direction. Still, Kasai knew she would be the butt of the jokes for a while to come now.

At the offer for a ride, Kasai looked back to the motorcycle and then at her one leg.

"Uh, well, assuming I could even get in..." But, the offer was probably a one chance deal, and Avani did say it was roomy. Kasai smiled and nodded, quite amused by how flustered Avani had gotten over the situation all of a sudden. Kasai felt as if her confidence worked in reverse. Groping and physical contact were right down her alley, but when it came to a simple offer she became giddy.

"You cleaned it up for me?" a light laugh came from Kasai and she smiled at Avani, "Careful there Avani, wouldn't want me to think you actually liked me or something." She decided to quiet down on the teasing and instead she nodded and replaced the cheesy grin with a smile.

"Alright, I'll take you up on that offer. Might take me ages to get home otherwise," She turned around and placed the crutches in front of her, then her good leg again, slowly making her way over to the motorcycle. Then, Kasai realized she had never ridden on a motorcycle before, even if this was a sidecar to it.

"Uh, do you perhaps have an extra helmet? I wouldn't want to lose anymore brain cells than I already have over the past week." She realized she was probably overly concerned with her safety, but it was a new thing to her. Finally she had limped her way to the motorcycle where she stood and examined it, trying not to psych herself out about getting a ride from someone who didn't appear to be the most trustworthy driver.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

The hope in her smile turned out not to be misplaced when the doctor gave the thumbs up for Kasai to check out of the hospital and head home for more rest. Happily, she sat up in bed to sign off on the papers and listened as the doctor gave his last instructions for her injuries. Pain pills were given to her and she was instructed to keep off of her leg until she was to return to have the cast removed from it, and a nurse came in to remove the stitches from her face before she left.

Pain flared up again across her cheek while the nurse tugged at the strings to remove them, dabbing the partially healed wound with antiseptic that stung and made her wince a bit. Finally, she was given a pair of grey sweatpants and a black shirt to put on, seeing as the clothes she was wearing when she arrived were torn to hell and had to be cut off so that the doctors could attend to her.

After she changed into the plain outfit, she turned and took the crutches. It was difficult at first to gain her balance on the one foot after not standing for so long, but with the support of the crutches she managed to not fall over. When she hobbled out of her room and down the hall, she saw a few of her colleagues from the department waiting in the lobby for her.

A smile appeared on her face as she scanned the small group of familiar faces. A small pang of disappointment hit her when she didn't see Avani. Not that she really expected her to be there, but it had been a week already and she hadn't heard from her at all. Maybe it was better that way, perhaps the woman wanted nothing to do with her after everything that happened. Kasai might be considered bad luck after the events that took place anyway.

Small talk and words of support were given as Kasai joined her fellow officers and exited the hospital. Each gave her a hug and the talk shifted to how it'll be better when she gets back to work and how the PD could really use her back in action. She merely smiled softly and nodded along with the conversation while they walked out of the building and onto the sidewalk outside. The sun was refreshing on her skin, and she breathed in deeply, letting the fresh air fill her lungs.

The crutches stepped out in front of her, then her good foot, and then the crutches again. Her eyes remained on the ground to make sure she did not stumble on her path. Following her friends, she kept her head down and only interjected her voice occasionally. That is, until one of her colleagues mentioned the funeral set in a couple days. Kasai stopped in her tracks and looked up at the one who had mentioned it, a young man who was now hanging his head to hide his mistake.

Her glare bore into him, until something else caught her eye. Moving past the embarrassed young man, her stare fixated on a motorcycle that was parked just beyond the sidewalk. Several curious looks fell upon her, but she ignored them and continued staring at it. The familiarity of the thing was far too overwhelming, and then it hit her. She looked at the other officers, who looked concerned now.

"I can get along by myself. You all go on ahead." This was met with several protests, but Kasai glared at them, using the young man who goofed up as an example. Reluctantly, they agreed. Kasai turned around as quickly as she could with the crutches and scanned the area.

There she saw her, sitting on a bench with a bottle in her hand. A small smile played across her face, but she staved it off as she limped over to her.

"Bit early to be hitting the bottle don't ya think?"

Kasai smirked and rested on the crutches with her damaged leg hanging above the ground. She looked Avani over, noticing how well she looked for how beat up she was just days ago.

"Nice eye patch, I'm diggin' the whole pirate vibe." She realized it may be a bit too soon to joke about it, so she quickly coughed and looked down at her cast, then back up at Avani.

"So, about that dinner..." She smiled a bit, but didn't want to be too hopeful. For all she knew, Avani could be here to mock and ridicule her, or to blame her for the deaths of her friends, or worse, pay her back for all the damage caused in the spirit world. Kasai swallowed and stared at Avani nervously, running her tongue over the cut on her lip.

Sacred World (Engel x The Kraken)

Kasai saw Avani turning away to escape in the water, and her heart sank a little. True, it was what she herself had told the other woman to do, but another part of her wished she were escaping with her instead of watching her leave. Kasai closed her eyes for a moment, then looked back down at her leg and continued to struggle to free it from the tangled mess it was trapped in.

Much to her surprise, Avani froze in her footsteps and uttered another sentence. Kasai assumed it was a last-ditch effort before she took off to escape the attacks, one last sarcastic remark before the spirits clawed Kasai to bits. It didn't surprise her much, what did surprise her was the sight of a earth-ridden leg that came crashing down on her own.

Cries of pain blurted out as a resounding crack echoed from the splintering wood and bone. Which splitting sound was her own leg breaking? Who knew. All she could feel now was an intense pain pulsing up her leg and throughout her entire body. She felt like every nerve in her body was on fire, igniting the pain that coursed through her veins.

A sense of weightlessness was felt when Avani picked her up, but she had little strength to aid in her transportation. She felt a pat on her rear and a trademark snarky comment from Avani. Kasai smiled weakly and tried to help defend against the incoming spirits before the mud encased her, preventing her from bending anymore.

At Avani's command, Kasai drew in as much air as she could. The water slipped around them and they sank to the bottom of the lake, where they started pressing towards the shore. A burning sensation was developing in her lungs, and she released half of the air she held to relieve some of the pressure. By the time they surfaced on the other side of the lake, Kasai was coughing out water and gasping for air.

The earth could be felt shifting beneath her, but at this point Kasai was on the verge of losing consciousness. Fabric was pressed to her face, and she looked up to see it was in fact Avani's shirt, sopping up the blood that had stained her face.

"Couldn't you take you clothes off at a time I could enjoy it a little more?" A weak laugh escaped her before she coughed again. The last thing she experienced before slipping into unconsciousness was Avani's voice and lips pressed against her own.

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Wrapped in the sterile white sheets of a bed that occupied an equally white room, the young firebender lay sleeping off the round of pain medication that the doctor had injected into her system. A nurse opened the door to her room and brought in a clipboard that held information on her release from the hospital, left on a table at her bedside for when she woke.

Sleepily, Kasai's eyes fluttered open and she inhaled deeply. The drugs still lingered in her system, but she woke at the sound of the door closing. Her eyes fell to her leg, which was wrapped in a cast and propped up on a pillow. Stitches pulled the skin of her cheek and lips back together, which was starting to scar over now.

It had been nearly a week since she and Avani had managed to escape through the spirit portal. Both beaten and bruised to no end. Kasai had spent the first 3 days in the hospital in an unconscious state, but several days ago she woke. Turning her head to the clipboard on the table, she grabbed it and read. She would be released that afternoon after the doctor gave her one last check.

A pair of crutches leaned against the wall to her right, and a simple display of flowers sat on the nightstand, a get-well gift from the police department. She sighed and stared at a clock that hung on the wall, waiting for the time when she could leave this dreaded place and go back to her own home, where she could rest and recover. Though that wouldn't last too long, because the police department was holding the funeral for their fallen brother, Barron, in just two days.

Tears welled up in Kasai's eyes for the thousandth time since waking up in the hospital, without either of her best friends to comfort her. Visitors had come and gone, all telling her that they were sorry for her loss and that she was strong enough to recover physically and emotionally. They were all attempts at consoling her, but they didn't work. She grieved in her own ways, and she hoped that the funeral service would provide her with some closure of the events.

The only thing she held on to from the whole experience was Avani. She had risked her own skin to stay behind and save Kasai, and managed to get them both back to safety. How? Kasai still didn't know. But, she was grateful. The last scene that she could remember was burned into her mind, and she played it in her head over and over to hold on to that memory.

The door to her room opened again, and the doctor entered to evaluate her for release. She greeted him with a hopeful smile, praying that she would be able to leave this place and go somewhere with a little more color.