4 Chapter Four: Agni Kai

Once her eyes opened, Harmony knew she had to find Nyla. She looked everywhere on the island, but this proved to be futile. She needed to ask someone for help and Jinora just happened to walk by at the perfect time. "Jinora! Finally someone who can help me. Do you know where Nyla could be?"

"Hmm.. She might be with Bolin in the training arena. If you don't mind me asking, why do you need her?"

"I.. just wanted to see my best friend." She smiled nervously. "That didn't sound convincing, did it?"

"Nope, but I won't judge you either way. Hope you find what you're looking for."

Harmony started to walk away, however Jinora's words felt off; as if there was a double meaning behind what she was saying. She turned around to say something, but Jinora had already left. Harmony decided to leave this for another day and leveled her head for what Nyla was going to learn sooner or later. In the arena, Bolin was teaching her some things about her element and Nyla was taking in his knowledge.

Mako was sitting in the small stadium, watching the two talk and learn. Harmony came over and sat by him. "Hey, Mako.."

"Harmony. What brings you here?"

"I needed to talk to Nyla, but I might leave it for tomorrow. I don't wanna interrupt her lesson."

"I wonder why. We can't ignore this and keep it in the shadows. It's not right and--" His attitude enraged Harmony, but she felt a little sad she couldn't tell her friend something so vital. "You know what?" He stood, walking to the two Earthbenders. "Bolin, I want to speak to your student."

"Umm, sure thing?"

"Nyla, you've learned a lot from my brother here, but I think you should try to learn from outside of your element." He face turned smug. "I challenge you to an Agni Kai. The rules will follow pro-bending, but I want you to fight me one on one; using only fire."

"Maybe we shouldn't push her for something she's not ready for." Bolin laughed nervously. "Come on Nyla, back to training." Harmony silently agreed with him, balling her hands into fists.

Nyla eyed the people surrounding her, throwing a cocky smile to her best friend. "I guess you're right, Mako. I'll do it. We fight tomorrow?"

Harmony's heart skipped a few beats as her face turned deathly pale. She couldn't believe Nyla was actually gonna duel this guy they hardly knew. To say she was worried was an understatement. Nyla was turning into a completely different person. She ran down to her friend when Mako and his brother dispersed. "Tell me this is a joke."

She laughed, "I don't think I know what you mean. Is what a joke?"

"You're not being serious, are you? You can't fight him. He's been firebending for years and you've never even made a single flame in your life!"

"Relax, 'Mom'. I know I can do this. Why are you so worried?"

"No, you can't. I don't want you to." She crossed her arms and shot a glare at her. "How can you be so calm about this?"

"Love the faith, water girl. I got this! Hopefully, my Avatar side comes out while I'm in the fight. I'll beat him easily."

"You're being selfish! Please, don't. You need to stay away from this fight. You aren't thinking clearly. You should be thinking like.. like--"

"Like what, the Avatar? I am, and the Avatar should be able to do this. I gotta do this. Why can't you just support me on this? You're supposed to be here for me, no matter what. You should trust me. This could be my destiny. Can't you just accept my choice and be on my side?"

Harmony hung her head with regret. "I can't, not with this. I'll see you at the fight." She walked off to the first place she went when she first came to Air Temple Island. The bridge looked just as peaceful. A familiar face just happened to beat her there. "Asami? What are you doing here?"

"I decided to stop by again. I could ask you the same thing."

"I.. needed a break from a certain person."

"I don't blame you. Korra and I often had our fights too, but they never got in the way of our relationship." She put a hand on Harmony's shoulder.

"I still care about her, but Mako insisted that she fight him in an Agni Kai! I can't believe that jerk sometimes. How did you deal with him?"

"Well, it wasn't always easy, but he was a part of our team. Tell you what, I'll stay here and be with you on the day of the fight. You won't have to go through it alone."

"That.. sounds perfect. Thank you, so much." Harmony smiled a bit. "You could even stay in my place for the night, unless that's too weird?"

She laughed. "I don't mind that at all."

***Time for the Agni Kai***

The day of the fight, Jinora sat next to Harmony and Asami. "This is going to be exciting, don't you think?"

"Ha.. yeah!" Harmony was fidgeting with her leg and her hands. She was, ultimately, losing her mind. She couldn't imagine watching her best friend getting hurt or worse.

Asami put her hand on Harmony's shoulder, smiling slightly. "Hey.. It's gonna be alright. Don't worry about a thing."

"She's right, Harmony. If Nyla feels she's in danger, the Avatar State will kick in and help her out. Raava has never let the Avatar down."

Mako had entered from one side of the arena, while Nyla did the same on the other side. She glanced at Harmony, but didn't convey any form of forgiveness to her. Harmony still felt on edge and she was scared for her life, regardless of the circumstance. Mako sent a wave of flames to his opponent who, in turn, lifted a shield of stone to protect herself.

"Stop!" He made his way over to the young bender, grasping her shirt collar. "I said only fire. I can see how difficult this is, but try to use fire. We're gonna fight until I see a spark out of you." Mako threw Nyla to the ground. He went back to his side, sending more waves that she tried to deflect. She focused on heat and burning sensations, but nothing was coming out from her hands. There was no spark. She never felt so much fear in her life; as did Harmony. Mako created a huge ball of flames, looking at Harmony before throwing it at Nyla with a smirk.

Everything had stopped for a moment. It felt as if life was going in slow motion. Someone had run down the stadium to parry his attack, diverting the flames to Mako. The fire dissipated in his hands. "Well done, Avatar."

"H-harmony?" Nyla lifted herself unto her feet. "What the hell is going on!?"

"I.. I wanted to tell you sooner." She kept her eyes on the ground as Jinora, Asami, and Bolin walked over. They kept talking about training and how she needed to stay with them until she was trained enough, but she didn't want to hear any of it because Nyla had made her appearance unnecessary. Where did she go? "I would love to talk about this more, but I'm a little shaken up about everything. Do you guys mind if we have these conversations tomorrow?" They complied, but Mako stayed behind with his self-satisfied look never going away. "Are you happy now!? I've lost my friend and now I have to stay here and look at your 'I told you so' face. Is this what you wanted?"

"What I wanted was to find you, and I have. I want to make it up to Korra to protect you and make you the best Avatar."

"I'm not your rebound! I am not your second chance at life, ok? Get it through your thick skull that I don't want to be around you anymore! I don't even know what to do now.."

"You're gonna have to figure it out, Avatar." His footsteps got quieter as he left the arena.