Thread: Bending the Elements. (Avatar) (Ursa & rskde)

Shina shivered as the frigid air hit her, ripping through her thin coat easily. She'd given her sister, Io, the best clothes, per usual. Being the older sibling meant she had to sacrifice her own comfort more often than not, and so she'd accepted being cold as they trudged through the thick snow. They were still in the Earth Kingdom, but it was now snowing, almost a blizzard. Shina sighed as she squeezed Io's hand, pulling her onward. Only a little bit further. She whispered. Shina wasn't sure if she was speaking to herself or her sister, but either way, it didn't matter in the end. They were both tired and weak, having barely eaten in the past few days, and living without shelter. The cold had seeped into their bones, and they were practically frozen now. Shina had done her best to keep Io warm and fed, but no one was willing to help them at the moment. Shina couldn't seem to get work, either. Io tried to work as well, but she was sixteen, younger than Shina, and no one wanted to hire her. Licking her dry cracked lips, Shina realized that if they didn't find shelter soon, they most likely would freeze to death- despite how unlikely that sounded. It was at that moment that Shina wished, for the first time in her life, that she was a Fire Bender. If she was, she could easily make a fire for them, and at least melt the snow as they walked. Shina was about to give up hope, and just fall right there in the snow, when she spotted light ahead. Peering at it through squinted eyes, she realized it was a fire. Gasping, Shina shook Io, who had practically fallen asleep, and pointed to the light ahead. Seeing the fire ahead made them both speed up, so they'd arrived at the fire within minutes. Two men sat around it, one around Shina's age, the other much older, and much kinder looking. Swallowing, Shina approached slowly, carefully, before clearing her throat and speaking gently. Excuse me, may my sister and I share your fire? We won't stay long, only an hour, but it would mean the world to us. I can work for you in return if you like. The fire sat in front of Shina, enticing and warm, the heat reaching her slightly, teasing. Katara sighed as she exited her tent. It was snowing now, and outside the tent was cold and wet, something that she was used to, of course. Even so, Katara did enjoy warm weather, and she hadn't been expecting it to snow here in the Earth Kingdom. Luckily, she and Sokka came from the Northern Water Tribe, and it was always icy and cold there. Aang and Toph didn't deal with the cold as well as Katara and Sokka, but they were managing. Aang had curled up with Appa, wearing Momo as a hat, and Toph had made her Earth tent, after taking two blankets for herself. She'd cleared the snow on the ground first, using a lit log. It melted enough snow for her. Hoisting the basket up higher on her hip, Katara pulled her hood on, glad that she'd kept her warm coat from home. Her boots, too, which were definitely coming in handy. Sokka had decided to stay in the tent, complaining that he didn't feel well. It was just an excuse to get out of work, per usual. He promised to keep the fire lit- something Katara hoped he would keep his word on. The fire was nicely lit at the moment, and if anyone wanted dinner, it needed to stay lit. Katara had the job of going to the market to buy some food, to replenish their supply. They were basically completely out of food now, and she was usually the one who could find decent deals. She was in charge of cooking as well, though she didn't think everyone liked her cooking. Sighing, Katara made her way through the snow and to the market, which had been moved inside, due to the unexpected snow. Before she could get inside, however, she noticed a commotion nearby, shouting and some banging around. Turning to look, Katara saw a male bending, fighting two guards. He was bending, obviously the guards had found out about this. Seeing that he needed help, Katara intervened, dropping her basket of food on the ground as she jumped in front of one of the guards, pulling a wave of water up from her pouch, creating an ice shield as the guard went to attack. Katara managed to block it, and send the shards towards the guard, who jumped backward, flipping out of the way. Katara knew she'd just exposed herself, but she couldn't stand back and let someone get hurt just because they were bending.