POV Gran Gran
Watching him leave without any visible concern makes me think about how much he's had to endure to hide his emotions. Even after I told him he would be the new chief, his expression barely changed.
I'm afraid that by placing this new responsibility on him, I might end up overwhelming him more than ever. I know he already carries out many of a leader's duties, but I hope that instead of adding more weight, making it official will give him some kind of comfort—will let him know that his efforts are being recognized.
But he's right. I can't make this decision alone.
My old body moves heavily as I head toward the meeting hut. It's the best time, since Sokka has gone to train Katara and Tiga.
The best time to hold the meeting is now.
On my way to the hut, I call out to all the women I find, asking them to gather the others for an important decision.
Some women ask impatiently what the meeting is about, worried that it might be bad news. Once everyone calms down a bit, I speak:
—"This meeting isn't about bad news or anything like that. It's to decide the future of our tribe."
My calm words resonate through the room, causing a bit of murmuring.
—"Our tribe has been without a chief for a long time. Without one, we cannot move forward or prosper as we should."
—"But we have Sokka," a woman interrupts. "With him, the tribe has prospered more than I ever imagined."
The place fills with chatter supporting her words. "Yes, that's right," they say.
—"I know. No one knows how important Sokka is to us better than I do. But he is not the tribe's official chief. The true tribal chief is Hakoda. Because of that, Sokka can't make big changes for us. Our traditions and laws say only the chief can authorize major changes, including access to the archives..."
My words reached everyone's ears. They seemed to understand my point, as each of them wore an expression of comprehension.
—"We must name Sokka as the tribe's chief!" a woman finally spoke with conviction.
—"Yes, Hakoda is gone, and we haven't heard from him in a long time."
—"I truly hope they're all safe and sound, but I agree—we've heard nothing. That's why I vote for Sokka to be our new leader."
With those words, a wave of similar decisions flooded the room.
—"Sokka must be chief!"
—"He already is. We just need to make it official."
—"Let his leadership be officially recognized!"
The buzz grew, but this time it wasn't chaotic—it was full of determination. Women of all ages spoke clearly and confidently. Some stood, others held hands. I saw expressions I hadn't seen in years: firm, united, certain.
I waited for the excitement to die down a little before raising my voice again.
—"Then we agree. It won't just be my decision. It will be the decision of the whole tribe. We will name him chief... not as a symbol, but as the leader he already is. Because he has been here—protecting us, guiding us, teaching us when no one else would."
I paused for a second, breathing with effort but standing firm.
—"But we won't do it in silence or in private. We'll do it in front of everyone. In front of him. As he deserves."
Everyone nodded. Some applauded. And one of the youngest girls, barely over ten years old, stood up and raised her arm.
—"Can we give him a gift too?"
Several women laughed, and one jokingly suggested:
—"Yes, a proper cloak. Not the same one he's worn since he got burned."
—"Or at least one without holes," added another.
—"We'll sew everything tonight," I said with a gentle smile. "He deserves it."
The atmosphere became warm. Full of emotion. And for the first time in a long while, I felt we were moving forward... together. Sokka thought carrying us was his burden, but he didn't realize that many of us only stayed strong because of him.
Now I only hope that by making it official, it won't push him farther away from us.
That it won't lock him in his silence.
That he knows he's not alone.
That even if we don't say it every day... we are with him.
And we always will be.
The preparations will take some time, so I'll give him something useful.
It's been in the tribe for many decades, but the only one who managed to learn it was Thod, a great warrior. That's why I'm sure Sokka will master it with no problem; he's more agile than a leopard-caribou, not to mention his incredible strength.
I found it in Hakoda's office, hidden beneath the floorboards. A former tribal chief decided to create that compartment after Southern raiders stole all the waterbending technique scrolls.
I wish I had a scroll for Katara—something to teach her about her waterbending—but there's nothing left.
As the sun set, I found Sokka. He had just returned from training Katara, who wore a complex expression: it looked like joy and frustration at the same time—if that was even possible.
I called out his name, and he answered with genuine curiosity, clearly visible on his face.
End of Gran Gran's POV
—"The decision has been made. Everyone agrees you will be the new chief. The ceremony will take place in three days, on the last full moon night."
At Kanna's words, I could only smile with genuine joy. That was just enough time to begin my plans.
—"Alright, Gran Gran, I'll be gone until then."
My words surprised the elder woman, her astonishment impossible to hide.
—"What do you mean? What are you going to do?"
—"I'm preparing a surprise for everyone. Katara probably won't like it at first, but she'll come around."
I answered vaguely, letting her ponder the small clue I'd left.
—"And please give this to Katara," I said, handing her a scroll. "It's a waterbending scroll I made this morning. I was planning to give it to her a couple of hours ago, but I thought it might backfire."
Kanna took it with surprise, and I saw she held a similar scroll in her other hand. She noticed me looking.
—"This is for you. Now that you'll be the tribe's chief, you have access to the archives and scrolls. But I think this is the only one that might interest you. It's about chi-blocking."
—"Chi-blocking?" I asked, excitedly taking it.
—"Yes. It was bought from traders many years ago. But only Thod was able to learn it properly. That's why I'm giving it to you. I know you'll learn it easily."
I nodded at her words and carefully unrolled the scroll. It was an anatomical map of the human body. It marked chi channels, pressure points, and nerves, followed by quite detailed instructions on how and where to strike. It was complex, but not impossible to learn, so I stored it carefully inside the small storage spirit.
—"Alright. I'll take a few supplies and leave now. I'll also take three leopard-caribou. There's enough food for a week in the storage, so don't worry about that. Eat well," I said with a smile.
—"Alright, I'll tell Katara."
—"Good. And tell her to attend Tiga's lessons."
I only heard Kanna affirm as I went to prepare. I filled an improvised backpack with supplies like water, food, and unused wood.
—"Alright, Skar. I'll be back in a few days."
I said to the large dog, who looked sad.
—"I want you to obey Katara and Tiga, understood?"
The great polar bear dog let out a sad sound and nodded. Honestly, I don't know why he's so sentimental despite being the biggest. Not even Lunita pouted that much when I said goodbye.
After saying farewell to the polar bear dogs and some leopard-caribou I left behind, I got ready and loaded the rest.
I know it's unpleasant to leave for several days without telling Katara, but I hope this helps her learn to control her emotions and let go of her emotional dependency.
I set off toward the sanctuary of the moon and ocean spirits, which was now empty, without threats. I would build the tribe's new city around it... or at least in that area.
The journey was long, around two hours.
The leopard-caribou were exhausted, so I let them rest.
When I entered the spring, I felt a strange energy. It felt wrong, dark.
I knew it must be the lingering negative energy from the lion spirit I killed, but I had an idea of how to cleanse it.
I took a small flute I had made from a bone of that lion while training Katara and Tiga.
I began to play a soft, sweet melody that radiated peace and calm. I infused my breath with chi, hoping my hypothesis would work.
As I let my heart guide the energy and the music, I saw a golden light emerge from the flute, flowing toward different parts of the area.
A dark energy began to rise from the stream and elsewhere, wrapped in my golden energy.
Quickly, the negative energy was consumed and transformed into clean, pure spiritual energy, which flowed toward me. I reached out to touch the chi and absorb it. When it entered my chi flow, I directed it toward that dark gray cluster: my bad luck.
Although it was considerable in volume, it wasn't enough to brighten the gray of my misfortune.
Now the place felt lighter. Somehow, it felt clean and full of peace.
I looked up at the sky in search of the moon. And there it was—huge and full, beautiful with its radiant glow lighting up the frozen tundra.
I headed to the port, about ten kilometers from the sanctuary. I moved my arms and body in fluid, precise motions, causing a massive body of water to rise—much larger than I ever imagined. It was easy for me to move it… and at the same time, incredibly heavy.
Anyone who saw me would think I was a true master, given such a display of power, but that would be a lie. The only explanation is that, for some reason, it's easier for me to manipulate large amounts of water—just like Kyoshi had trouble moving small rocks but could effortlessly shift massive mounds of earth.
With beginner-level but precise movements, I mimicked a memory of Aang, compressing large volumes of water.
A slight dizziness followed by a pang of physical weakness came over me for a moment before I dismissed it as emotion.
I compressed them as much as I could and then froze them, forming huge blocks of solid ice. I carefully set them down, one by one, outlining the perimeter of the wall that would protect my new tribe.
It took me hours—with several breaks in between—to place all the blocks that would form the wall.
Each one was about twenty meters wide and weighed several tons. After placing them, I anchored them to the ground and reinforced them with snow and frost.
I had built a perfect circle covering ten square kilometers, with a height of thirty-five meters.
Now it was time to put my construction knowledge from my previous life into practice… and begin building the homes.