ATLA: The Lost Airbender

Chapter Forty Two

The royal garden of the Palace was filled with the sound of a child giggling and a lemur chattering, Kiyi was playing in the garden with Momo as he flew above her and she tried to catch him while laughing. Sen watched from under a tree and smiled at the happy and energetic child, it was good seeing her play around because when she first started staying in the Palace she was a little introverted and only kept to herself. It was good seeing her back to her old self with  nothing to care about but catch Momo in his tracks.

"Oh, Hirohitaba if only you could see me now". He whispered.

He noticed a blue figure at the corner of his eye coming toward him, he turned in its direction and saw Katara approaching him with slow and hesitant steps. He knew then immediately what the talk was going to be about, he actually didn't feel like talking but he knew with the Water Tribe girl, he just had to.

"Hi, Sen". She said as she came to a stop.

He stayed quiet and only watched Kiyi.

"I'm not leaving until you say something".

"What do you want, Katara?". He asked her before looking up at her with his cold Grey eyes.

His Grey eyes made her take a few steps back but she was still able to compose herself.

"I want to talk".

"If you're here to tell me that Aang is no coward, then don't waste your breath". Sen said,"If it wasn't for him running away, none of this mess would have taken place".

Katara bit down her rising anger and decided to sit down next to him on the grass and just talk things out.

"Don't call Aang that, please". She said quietly.

"Then what do you call someone who runs away to leave his people to die?".

"Someone who is afraid and confused and didn't know what to do". Katara said, looking at him.

"So was I, Katara". Sen responded,"So was I".

"Aang didn't mean to run away". Katara said,"They were going to separate him from the man who he saw as his father".

"That part I understand". Sen said,"But running away wasn't the answer. He could have faced the council head on and told them that they didn't have any right to separate him from Gyatso, since he's the Avatar he at least would have had a say in how he wanted things to go. I would have even come up as his support system and we could have let him stay with Gyatso while still training to become the Avatar".

"You're saying the war continuing is Aang's fault?". Katara asked.

"Basically".

"What about you?".

"The war continuing is also my fault, yes". Sen said,"I had many chances to end Sozin and Azulon but I didn't do it and not just because of my Air Nomad beliefs but they would have been martyrs and the Fire Nation would have rallied behind their deaths and they all would have been convinced that all Airbenders are a threat. That's why I stepped back because the world would have been more understanding if the Avatar took down the Firelord".

"Aang said that violence is not the answer to our problems". Katara pointed out.

Sen groaned before getting to his feet and facing her with a glare which made her scoot back from him a few feet away.

"In case you haven't noticed Katara everything we've done up to this point has been solved by violence. What stopped the seige in the northern water tribe? It was violence. What saved Haru and his people from the Fire Nation? It was violence. Violence made you become the Painted Lady and let you stop those bandits from attacking that river town. It was the use of violence that made Zuko perfect his firebending form and it was violence that made you defeat Azula in your final fight. And most of all, it was violence that ended the hundred year war. So don't try and tell me that violence never solved any of our problems".