Legacy

Chapter 6

Aang approached Tenzin's room and quietly opened the door and peeked in. Tenzin was asleep on his bed, and, thanks to his mother, looked a lot better than he did before.

Aang slid in, and gently shut the door. He walked over to Tenzin's bed and took a seat beside him. As he watched his child sleep, dozens of happy memories flowed through his mind: the day Tenzin was born, the day they discovered he was an airbender, their training sessions... such wonderful memories that made him smile.

Then, Tenzin began to move. He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and looked at him groggily.

"Dad?" he said softly.

Aang smiled. "Hey, bud."

"What're you doing in here?"

The smile fell off Aang's face. "Son, we need to talk."

Tenzin sighed. "Mama told you, didn't she?"

"Yeah," Aang replied. "She told me a little about what you told her, but she didn't tell me everything."

Tenzin didn't reply; he merely stared at the sheets.

"Tenzin, I need to know."

Tenzin sighed, and gave in. "Fine. She told you what they do to me, right?"

Aang nodded, a frown on his face.
"Yeah. They don't say nice things to you, do they?"

Tenzin shook his head, but, once again, didn't meet his gaze.

"Tenzin, what are you hiding?" Aang asked. He knew his son well, and could tell he was hiding something.

When Tenzin didn't reply, he reached out and pulled his young son onto his lap.

"Come on, bud," he prodded. "You know you can tell me anything."

"Well," Tenzin said hesitantly, "I didn't tell Mama this."

"Why?"

"It would make her sad."

Aang sighed. "Well, we need to know so we can help you. Your mama's very strong; I think she could handle it. Will you tell me?"

Tenzin squirmed uncomfortably, but he nodded. He swallowed, then began to speak, all the while staring at his robes and fiddling with them.

"Sometimes, they beat me up. It hurts."

Aang gave a small gasp. "What?! Tenzin, why didn't you tell us?"

Tenzin finally looked up at him. Aang cringed internally when he saw the tears that were now on his face.

"I didn't want you to worry." he said softly. "I also wanted to prove I could be brave and strong, like you."

"Oh, Tenzin." Aang pulled him into a hug. Tenzin buried his face in his father's robes and began to sob. Aang held him tightly.

"Son, it's okay to be afraid. But just because you're afraid doesn't mean you're not brave and strong. You're one of the bravest, strongest kids I know."

Aang pulled him back so he could see Tenzin's face. Tenzin rubbed his eyes with his sleeve.

"You can tell us anything. We love you, Tenzin. We want to help you. We won't think you're weak if you tell us. You don't have to go through things by yourself. You have Mom, me, Kya, Bumi, Aunt Toph, Uncle Sokka...all of us are here for you."

"Really?" he asked timidly.

"Yeah. And you know what? If I hadn't had their help, I never would have been able to end the war."

Tenzin gaped at him. "Really? You needed help?"

"Of course! I was just one kid, after all."

"But you saved the world!"

"True, but I needed a lot of help to do it. Even the strongest people need help sometimes."

Tenzin gave him a small smile. "Even the Avatar?"

Aang laughed. "Yes, even the Avatar."

They both sat in silence for a minute. Tenzin was deep in thought, and Aang was content to wait him out.

Finally, Tenzin turned to him. "Dad?"

Aang smiled at him. "Yeah?"

Tenzin wrapped his arms around him. "Thank you. For everything."

Aang hugged him back. "You're welcome. Will you promise me something?"

"Okay. What?"

"Promise me that you'll always remember that we're here for you, no matter what."

"Yeah, I promise." he sighed. He didn't want to move; he was perfectly content to stay here in his father's embrace. He hadn't had a moment like this with his father in a long time.

Aang was enjoying it as much as Tenzin was. His son didn't open up to him like this often, so that made the moment all the more precious.

"Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

Aang squeezed him a little tighter."I love you, too."

After holding him for a moment, he pulled back.

"Now, you have a mom and two siblings that are worried about you. I think it's time to go see them."

Tenzin nodded. Aang set him down and, together, they left the room and went downstairs into the family room, where they found Katara, Bumi, and Kya. Kya was cuddling into her mother, who was holding her close with one arm. Her other arm was around Bumi, who was sitting on her other side. The kids both had sad expressions on their faces. Katara's expression was sad, but showed a deeper pain.

Tenzin, heartbroken at their expressions, walked quickly to his mother, crawled into her lap, and hugged her.

Katara, a bit surprised, hugged him back.

"Mom, I'm sorry." he whispered. Katara, unable to respond, just held him close. Over his head, she saw her husband smile at her. She smiled back.

Tenzin pulled back and looked at his siblings. He opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't think of anything, so he closed it. Kya stared at him skeptically for a moment before she grinned and dove onto her mother's lap and wrestled her brother into a big hug. Katara reached out and grabbed her kids' clothes to prevent them from tumbling off her lap.

Tenzin grunted in surprise at his sister's attack. He smiled at her sheepishly. She grinned back, and released him. Tenzin turned and looked at his brother. He was still a little surprised at the tender, protective nature Bumi had showed him. Now, though, he didn't know if it was still there. As if answering his silent question, Bumi shot him a mischievous grin, and, so fast that Tenzin was unable to get away, he grabbed him, and pulled him off Katara's lap and tackled him to the floor. Bumi got him in a headlock and rubbed his bald head with his fist. For once, instead of fighting it, Tenzin stayed put, content. He knew that this was his brother's way of showing expression.

Everyone laughed at the scene on the floor. Aang and Katara exchanged relieved glances. Their son was finally okay.

As Tenzin looked around at each of his family members, affection overwhelmed him. Sure, his brother was rather strange, his sister could be bossy, his mother worried too much, and his father seemed to goof around a lot, even though he was the Avatar, but they were still his family. They would always be the ones to have his back. They would love him no matter what.

Tenzin smiled happily, and, instead of running off to his room, decided to stay with the ones he loved most.





Well, that's it for this part. I'm planning on continuing it, but when Tenzin's a little older.

So, if you want to give me some feedback or suggestions/ideas on what to put in the next part, let me know.

Thank you.