01 ≋ a frozen ocean joins our hearts ≋

[waterwhip]

Who: Katara and you!
What: Exploring the area and not getting into trouble at all ever.
When: Within the first couple of days of arrival.
Where: The fountain and the greenhouse.
Warnings: None! Maybe later.

--∿≈≋🌘≋≈∽--

It isn't lost on Katara that the assembled band of 'heroes' brought from every corner are fortunate to have an abundant supply of fresh water. She is fortunate, more than most--some people drink what they need to survive without thinking much about it, but for a daughter of the Water Tribe, and a waterbender to boot, water is essential to Katara. It has informed every aspect of her life.

She bends in the square when she has time and it's not too crowded. Pakku would never let her hear the end of it if she let her skills get rusty, and frankly, she's worked too hard just to be allowed to learn to let it go to waste.

The water she's gathered up now will go to the greenhouse later, but there's nothing saying she can't play with it a little first. It coils through the air, forming loops and spirals. Refracted light dances on the ground and the walls of the buildings around her. Another movement catches her eye, and she turns, first with a guarded look and then a smile.

"Oh, hey! I didn't see you there."

--∿≈≋🌕≋≈∽--

Since discovering that her skills as a waterbender are invaluable in streamlining the process of cultivating food, Katara has made daily visits to the greenhouse to water and weed the plants. There are a few she's become particularly fond of--one is a little maroon and pink fruit she's dubbed the 'glueberry' for how sticky the juice becomes if it gets mashed; it's sweet and tart, and she knows they're packed with nutrients.

Her favorite is a much larger fruit that she discovered after a few days of tending the greenhouse. The husk of the fruit requires a bit of effort to crack, but the inside is filled with fleshy seed pods that taste like something between the mangoes that grow on Ember Island and the moon peaches Momo loves so much. The seeds are a glossy, almost iridescent black; Katara has begun to save them to replant, and to make beads for jewelry.

She wasn't expecting company today, but she doesn't seem disappointed for it. "Here, help me break this open?" she asks, the football-sized fruit in her extended hand. "You really have to try this. It's so good!"

--∿≈≋🌒≋≈∽--

Wildcard!

Comments

Greenhouse

[the_tailor]

[Having helped around at the small farm his family owned when he was younger, he isn't unfamiliar with taking care of plants. Or animals, for that matter. The small farm thankfully gives him a place to keep Kaltenecker, who hasn't seemed to complain yet. She's still too stressed to really properly give milk, but hopefully she'll be able to adjust.

After taking care of her in the mornings, he heads into the greenhouse to tend plants and gather a little food for the day. Despite fighting a war and having killed more people than he wants to admit, Lance is finding it incredibly difficult to hunt animals, so he'd been shoving that responsibility to Keith while he took care of the more herbivore-aspects of their diet.

There's a girl he often finds there that he's familiar with, even if she doesn't know him. Lance was incredibly good friends with Sokka, after all, but this Katara doesn't seem to be the one he used to know. Either or, it wasn't an issue.

He gives a smile to her as he strolls over, nodding.]

Ooh, I was wondering what that was. Alright, how do we do this? Smash it like a coconut, or is there a trick to it?

[waterwhip]

[ It's true that Katara doesn't know Lance, but that doesn't mean she wouldn't like to. He has a friendly face, and in some ways, he even reminds her of Sokka. Perhaps it's the way he carries himself, or his cocky grin, or his coloring, or a combination of all of those things. It makes her miss her brother fiercely, but she quashes those feelings for now. ]

If we get a crack in the husk, I can use water to break it open the rest of the way. I'd just cut it through but I made a huge mess the time I tried that--it spilled juice everywhere. It's worth the effort, though!

[ Katara has done this by herself a few times, but it never hurts to get help and to share the bounty. There's more here than she can eat on her own. ]

There's a rock over here that we can use to break it.

[the_tailor]

Oooh, right, the water thing...

[It's more of a mumble than anything as he recalls it, and he nods with a grin. Lance heads over to grab the nearby rock in question.]

Hold it steady, okay? I think I see a good spot to hit.

[waterwhip]

[ Rather than holding the fruit steady while someone she's only just met swings a rock at it, Katara finds a flat spot on a nearby tree and freezes the fruit in place with a solid layer of ice. Lance's comment gives her pause, however. She considers him with open curiosity. ]

'The water thing'? Do you know about waterbending?

[the_tailor]

[A fair enough plan right there. Lance is hardly clumsy, but he doesn't blame Katara for wanting to be careful. Focusing his strength, he strikes the fruit with a rock where it doesn't seem quite as tough as the rest of it. Although it's not enough to crack the whole thing open, it creates a big enough hole for Katara to work with.

And...oh, he said that out loud, didn't he.]

Um, yeah. It's kind of...complicated, though?

[waterwhip]

[ Pulling the fruit away from the tree, Katara holds it in the crook of her elbow and uses a series of hand gestures to freeze and thaw water in the crack. Gradually, the fruit begins to come open. ]

We're on an alien planet surrounded by people from other universes. I'm not sure how it could get more complicated than that.

[ She shakes her head and chuckles, giving Lance a small smile. ]

It's nice that there's at least one other person here who knows what I can do. You're not Water Tribe, are you?

[the_tailor]

You'd be surprised.

[Very surprised.]

No, I'm not. I'm, errrr, I'm not exactly at all where you're from, but I'm still familiar with the whole bending stuff. I've been told about it.

[waterwhip]

Really? Hm. Well, it's nice to meet you, even if you aren't Water Tribe.

[ Well, plenty of people here have seen her bending at this point, so it's not outside the realm of possibility that someone else told him there was a girl who could manipulate water.

With a final crack, the shell of the fruit pops open and Katara passes half of it to Lance. ]

My name is Katara.

[the_tailor]

[Well, dodged a bullet there. Another time, maybe he'll explain to her exactly how he knows her. Probably likely. It's bound to come out eventually.

Lance takes the fruit gratefully from her, giving her a thankful smile.]

The name's Lance. Nice to meetcha, and thanks for the fruit!