You & I

The Southern Water Tribe: Part 2

Iroh's POV
Another two days has passed and Y/N still hadn't woken up.

I stayed by Y/N's side in the healing hut every day and every night, when Katara would come every morning to heal her, I'd still be there, waiting.

She looked at me with sad eyes and sighed,

"Iroh, you really should take a break. When was the last time you stepped outside?"

The last time I stepped outside was when I first arrived and Katara sent me with my grandparents to her dinner- ever since then, my grandparents have brought my food to me because I've since refused to leave Y/N's side.

"I know, Katara, but I can't just leave her."

She softly exhaled before instructing me to place Y/N into the pool of water so she could begin her healing.

Towards the end of the day, Kya had been turning up to assist her mother in healing Y/N, but everything they had tried had failed, she still wasn't waking up.

But in the mornings, it was just Katara and I in the hut with Y/N.

"Katara?"

"Mm?"

"What if you can't heal her? Then what do I do?"

"I don't know, Iroh."

"Grandfather suggested that I travel to the Northern Water Tribe, he said that they have some special spirit water that you've used before."

"I don't think that will work, Iroh, there doesn't appear to be anything wrong with her, she just... isn't waking up."

I felt my eyebrows scrunch as I looked down at my lover- why aren't you waking up?

"What if she never wakes up? Won't she... die from starvation or something?"

Katara hesitantly nodded as she continued to move the glowing water over Y/N's body.

Y/N's POV
Everything was dark, I was cold, my body was aching and it was quiet.

I tried to step forwards but I was surrounded in water.

Water?

Oh my spirits- IROH.

I started swimming, but I felt like I wasn't going anywhere.

I tried to bend the water but I still wasn't able to move.

What is happening?

As I looked up, I couldn't see any light, any sign of a current or waves, it was pitch black.

Where am I?

I tried to call out his name but no matter how hard I screamed, sound wasn't coming out.

A light then pierced through the sea of shadows, from above me, I watched as a small red figure began to descend from wherever the surface might have been.

I squinted my eyes and it was him, it was Iroh.

I tried to scream his name but I physically could not.

As he got closer and closer, I watched as he continued to sink, about five feet away from me, unconscious.

No.

No.

No.

No.

No.

Iroh.

Please, no.

Then suddenly, I was able to move again. I swam as fast as I could towards Iroh as he fell deeper and deeper into the dark waters.

When I finally reached him, I grabbed onto him and tried to bend any water out of his lungs, but there wasn't any there.

I shook his body.

"Iroh?"

I could speak.

"Iroh!?"

But he wasn't waking up.

I held onto him tightly as I bent us as fast as I could towards the surface, but it wasn't working, it didn't matter how fast we were going- the surface just didn't seem to exist.

Everything started getting blurry, and my head began to feel light.

I pulled Iroh closer to me and held onto him tightly before everything went dark.

I woke up again, alone.

It was dark, I was cold, my body was aching and it was quiet.

I tried to take a step forward but I couldn't because I was in the ocean, but there was no surface light, no current, and no life forms anywhere.

I couldn't swim, I couldn't speak and my bending was ineffective.

A piercing light then shone down from the surface that I couldn't see and a red figure appeared.

I felt like I'd been in this situation before.

The figure then slowly descended towards me as I squinted to make out who it might be and my heart dropped when I realised it was him.

I tried to call out to him.

Iroh.

But I couldn't.

After he had passed me, I was suddenly able to move again and I rushed as fast as I could to his side.

"IROH!?"

"Iroh?"

"Wake up!"

I shook his body but he wasn't responding.

I tried to pull the water from his lungs but there any wasn't there.

I grabbed onto him tightly and whispered,

"It's okay, I'm gonna get you out of here."

I bent us as fast as I could towards the direction of the surface but no matter how fast we moved, there didn't seem to be a surface to swim towards.

Everything started to blur and my head began to feel light, but I kept bending us higher and higher until everything went dark.

I woke up, alone.

It was dark, I was cold, my body was aching and it was quiet.

I couldn't swim, my bending wasn't effective and I couldn't call for help.

Iroh fell overboard.

I tried to look around but everything was black, I then tried to swim towards the surface but it just seemed like I was staying in place, no matter how hard I kicked my legs.

Suddenly, a piercing light shone through the dark waters and a red figure descended from the surface- it was Iroh.

I tried to call out for him but I couldn't.

Once he had passed me, I was able to swim towards him and grabbed onto him tightly, I tried to bend the water out of his lungs but there was none there.

I shook his body,

"Iroh?"

"Iroh? Can you hear me?"

He didn't respond.

I grabbed onto him and bent us further and further up but the surface didn't seem to exist.

Everything became blurry and my head felt light.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I had been here before.

Everything went dark.

I woke up, alone.

It was dark, I was cold, my body was aching and it was quiet.

Where am I?