15. Home

Having done all the planned things, I decided to attend to my transition back to the North Pole. I've already started to miss my parents and my sister.

Coming at night to the place from where I fell out, I began to plunge into that incomprehensible space between the worlds. Already there, I started trying to feel the echoes of other places that are connected with the people's plan. After some time, I found two such sources, one of them was almost identical to the energy of the south pole, the element of water prevailed there, which is most likely the territory of my tribe, the other was very weak, it was more like someone formed this passage by simply pushing through the wall on both sides with his strength.

Obviously, this is the Valley of Oblivion, the Mother of Faces often visits there, which helps to fulfill the requests of people who wandered there in changing their face, sometimes together with the face, at the request of people, she could also take memories. I think it was she who created such a breakdown in defense, the ancient spirit can really do it. It is better not to go there without an obvious need, you never know how it differs from its prototype in the series, it has never harmed people there, but here I have already seen the differences of what was shown on the screen.

So I have an idea how to get to the place I need right away without making an effort, but I don't need to do it now, tomorrow after saying goodbye to the tribe normally, I can try to get home.

The next day, every resident came out to see me off. Many children had wet eyes, none of them wanted to let me go. As soon as I notified Kai's family of my departure, Katara did not detach herself from me in the morning, I had to carry her in my arms, otherwise she threatened to catch on my leg and walk like this. During these few hours, I heard from Katara persuasions with tears asking me to stay, persuasions in the form of bidding, where she promised to be very obedient, there were even threats in the form of ignoring me. Honestly, while all this was happening, I often caught myself thinking that "come on, stay a little longer," but I had to drive them away with an incredible effort of will, now I will stay for a little more, then another, so it can really drag on for a long time. Such tantrums had to be calmed down every time, and each time I promised her I would return soon.

Kaya seems to have become even more beautiful and younger these days, when there is a man, okay, as long as the boy, which gives a sense of security by his actions, when the children are full, shod and happy, then she feels quite satisfied with life. During the time that we spent together, I was able to roughly assess her character, she was a calm enough girl that she already has some wisdom, there is a sense of tact when I could not give a truthful answer to some of her questions, seeing that she easily discarded an uncomfortable topic of conversation for me, she was very attentive, we sometimes forgot to eat for a long time with the children, then she showed her foresight by laying ready-made food on the table.

- Can you still stay for a few more days? Kaya asked after our morning tea together, when the children were still asleep.

- I would really like to, but I can't. My family is waiting for me there," I said with a heavy sigh, "you know, there is a high probability of my return soon, if I can figure out the mechanism of movement, then I can come to you whenever I want.

- Yes, it's just hard to believe that you can somehow get from one point of the world to another, - strange logic, you live with bending, incomprehensible animals, spirits and still some things seem impossible for local people, - Katara will miss you very much, it seems today she won't even let you go, – she said with a laugh, - as soon as you woke up, she spends all her time only with you, even forgot about me – this has already been said with a certain amount of jealousy.

"I didn't do it on purpose," was all I could say awkwardly– "you've probably already guessed that Katara is a potential water bender?" I finished in a serious tone.

- Yes, - it was obvious that she was not too happy about it, being born a water bender in this tribe is not a gift, but a curse. - sometimes I am overcome by nightmares where fire mages attack the village in order to take my girl away, - as she spoke, her body began to shake, sitting closer, I hugged her with my hand, trying to give some support in this way - it seems that only with your appearance these bad dreams do not bother me anymore, - not even trying to pull away, but on the contrary, leaning closer to me, she whispered - promise me to come back soon - looking into my eyes, she said.

Well, how can you not come back when they look at you so touchingly, seeing her so defenseless, I could only nod.

So we sat in comfortable silence for another half hour, until we were interrupted by the sleepy faces of Sokka and Katara.

I will have to comprehend healing, the bending of water, and the vital energy itself with redoubled zeal, I don't really want to let go of Kaya, at the first glance I liked her, but I'll be honest, at first it was because of her gorgeous forms and beautiful face, but getting to know her better, simple sympathy began to flow into something more complex, in the near future I want to become someone she can rely on.

In the evening, at the place of my appearance, I said goodbye to already living people who began to appreciate every moment of their lives, it was very joyful to be involved in such changes, yet a person should be able not only to destroy, but also to create.

Finally wiping Katara's tears and passing her to her mother, who also tried to hide her sad look from me, I entered the same space with a small polar rodent.

Why do I need it? I want to check if I can drag living creatures in this way, for a start, small animals that like to eat the tribe's reserves will do.

Already there I began to realize my idea, as it seems to me there is no such thing as distance, this place is more like the Wang Shi Tong Library, where you need to recreate your own path with the power of thought and energy.

Going in one direction, I began to concentrate on the energy of the material plane, while focusing on the increased background with the energy of water. As I moved, the energy began to be consumed at a furious pace, while I had to cover the rodent with it, which at the beginning of walking in this space began to really dry up. It seems to me that not having enough of his energy, such a walk began to drink his vital energy, the amount of which he also could not boast. After walking several hundred meters, according to my estimates, I began to feel my approach to the right place, after taking a breath, I began to fall out of this place.

As soon as I opened my eyes after the transition, I got a view of the Oasis of Spirits, then paying attention to my empty hands, I was able to notice how the former rodent turned into a kind of mummy crumbled into dust in my hands.

It's good that I didn't immediately take a person with me, especially since the same thing could happen to me if I didn't have a large reserve of energy. It seems that when I first tried to get into the Realm of Spirits, I walked right on the blade of a knife, if I didn't have two sources, I would have appeared in the Southern Tribe being the same dust. Brr, I already shuddered at such prospects.

Okay, you need to mark your mistakes, but not live with them in any way.

After greeting the spirits of the Moon and the Ocean, who did not even pay attention to me, I walked briskly towards the Leader's Palace, and as I approached, the people that caught my eye continued to look at me in disbelief, anticipating trouble with my seat, I accelerated my pace, almost switching to a light run.

When I entered our living room, I was greeted by an oppressive atmosphere, they say about this even with a knife. The sullen faces of Arnuk and June only complemented the picture that was not too joyful for me. But the whole effect created by the parents was spoiled by Yui, who rushed into my arms with moisture in her eyes. The parents, seeing that the whole atmosphere was gone, just shook their heads and also went to hug.

After so many warm greetings, a serious conversation began.

- Son, my mother and I know that you are a very responsible and precocious adult, but everything has its limits, - the father began to speak, under the mother's nods of agreement, - I hope you realize how you made my mother and me worry?

- Yes, I understand everything, - still, even if I am the most powerful bender in the world, parents are parents, and they will try to take care of you as long as possible, and I created this situation myself.

- Well, I hope now you're ready to tell us at least some of your secrets? We've been guessing for a long time that you're hiding something from us, but we hoped that over time you yourself would share some secrets with us - it's inconvenient, I thought parents had enough of their ideas, and they wouldn't touch on these issues anymore.

It's worth telling them about the portals that connect the two poles, yet if I want to continue to disappear unhindered for a while in another place, they need to know where and what I'm doing. How difficult it is, you need to come up with a more or less plausible story of my knowledge about the portals themselves, spirits and everything else that ties it together.

- Even as a child, knowledge of some things seems to pop up in my head out of nowhere, it may be some places in our world that really exist, techniques in water bending, even some events from history, - I began my story with a sigh, - from there I learned that there are portals to the spirit world, where practicing your bending for just a day, you achieve the same result that you would get from training for whole weeks, - of course, if you absorb the residual energy of spirits, - well, I got the idea to get to such a place, from the same knowledge I I learned about portals to the spirit world. My other feature is the understanding of the spirits themselves, that day I really talked to Tui and La, who also helped me in conquering the water. By the way, they asked them not to bother them too much - maybe to take a ride to change the subject.

- Son, we thought that you were much more prudent, seeing so many risks, you still decided to go somewhere unclear, - father and mother looked very unhappy, if not angry at me for my recklessness, at the expense of my revelations about spirits and knowledge, the reaction was not so violent, about something similar they themselves thought.

Then I already told them in more detail about what I failed and how I subsequently got into the Southern Water Tribe.

At the mention of the current state of the Southern Water Tribe, the parents looked really furious, the father still remembered how his father and his advisers had to make a difficult decision about non-interference in the war of the Southern Tribe with the People of Fire. To spray so small forces on two different ends of the world means to question the existence of the entire nation of water in general.

Having learned that I could safely travel back and forth, my father immediately gave the go-ahead for my transitions to the southern brothers and sisters, asked only to be careful, and if the situation was critical, he was not ready to leave immediately, he was not ready to lose his son on the other side of the earth.

We finished only late at night, baby Yui fell asleep in my arms an hour after my arrival, her parents say that she couldn't find a place for herself, even searched the whole city in my search. I made her worry, after all, I have never left her for such a long time, I need to figure out how to make amends, but all this is tomorrow, now I just want to go to bed.