dive and disappear without a trace (ATLA x BNHA)

Chapter Three

When the person in the iceberg opened their eyes, the only thing Shouto could think was oh my god.

This shouldn't be possible, right? Even in Shouto's dimension, the secret to cryogenic preservation still hadn't been unlocked. How was it that this dimension figured it out, what with their lack of technology? It was baffling, to say the least, and definitely not what Shouto should have been focusing on at the time, but hey, Shouto had been dropped into some weird-ass world only a day ago, he should be allowed some slack.

Katara, at least, had her head screwed on straight, racing towards the figure after only a few seconds with a call of, "He's alive, we have to help!" It was a bit embarrassing that a regular civilian was able to make a quicker judgment call than Shouto, a hero-in-training, but Shouto shoved down the twinge of feeling, ew, and sprinted after Katara.

"You guys, get back here! We don't know what that thing is!" Sokka called desperately behind them. When both of them didn't even spare him a glance, Shouto heard the groan of exasperation and the sound of pounding feet following after them. Nice to know Sokka was so susceptible to peer pressure.

Shouto reached the iceberg at about the same time as Katara, subtly beginning to melt the ice with his left side while she hit it with Sokka's club. It was admirable that she was willing to hack through all these layers of ice with nothing more than a weapon from the ice age, in Shouto's opinion. It was a sign of a true hero.

Surprisingly, after a few hits, frosty wind exploded from the globe of ice and the sphere collapsed. With its destruction came a huge beam of blue light that created a pillar in the sky. Hm. You don't see that every day.

As the gale settled down, Shouto was able to make out the person climbing onto the top of the remains of the ice. Some of the blue light was still shining onto the person, making it hard to discern exactly what they looked like, and when the light finally stopped Shouto couldn't help his eyebrow raise.

It was just a kid. How did he end up in the ice? How long was he in there? How was he even alive?

Shouto's thoughts were interrupted by said kid fainting and sliding down the ice. Shouto's many years of hero training kicked in and he caught him before he could get hurt too badly. Shouto pressed his lips together lightly. Proper medical procedure...right, elevate the legs above heart level. He did as such, then sat back as Katara leaned over the boy's face.

Shouto saw Sokka move in with his spear, but he caught the end before it could make contact with the kid's head. "Sokka, don't give him more head trauma." Sokka opened his mouth, but was cut off when the young boy opened his eyes with a small groan.

His grey eyes caught on Katara's face, and Shouto observed the slightly too long stare. "I need to ask you something..." the boy muttered, coughing. Oh, wow, he's already talking.

"What?" Katara prompted, her eyes shining with curiosity.

"Please, come closer," the boy said. His half-lidded gaze looked exhausted, and Shouto could relate. What was it Kaminari was always saying? Mood?

"What? What is it?" The boy paused, and Shouto was starting to feel a little impatient. Please, just spit it out.

"Will you go penguin sledding with me?" The boys face brightened in an instant, previously half-closed eyes opening fully and a wide smiling stretching across his face.

"Uh, sure, I guess," Katara said awkwardly, obviously taken aback by the kid's sudden change in demeanor. The kid got to his feet in one swift motion, almost as if he had been lifted by a gust of air. The comparison rang a bell in Shouto's mind. What was the term Sokka had said—airbender?