" by me "

"don't let go"

his hand grips hers, desperate now. hanging on the edge of disaster, she is the resilience of his soul. he can't do this without her by his side.

"don't let go"

her grip weakens against his. sweaty hands intertwined are her last hold on this life. this might just be it for them.

"don't let go"

tears steam down her cheeks as she examines her face now. she's not who she was when this began. scars and age have changed the reflection she once knew well.

"don't let go"

shaking hands meet quaking hearts. rushed reunions and hugs and kisses dance in her memories, never knowing which goodbye would be their last.

"don't let go"

he whispers now, holding her tired body close. sobs wreck his chest, panic and fear gripping at his throat. she mumbles the phrase back, but her mind is slipping despiste the angry tears falling past her defenses...

"don't let go"

"don't let go"... katie

They say that all it takes is a single moment for everything to change. And she knows, all to well, that that's the truth.

See everything in her world changed when the fire nation attacked. When they invaded her hometown and threatened her father, the very leader of the earthen city, to comply. And when they kept going, kept taking, to their darkening hearts desires, she lost more than she could have ever imagined.

All she knows is war. The war. The one that has touched every part of her life. All she knows is that the war, that the fire nation, has stolen all that she once held dear. That she's lost her life to the greed of men who don't care about anyone but themselves. And she's so angry.

The seventeen year old girl has thrown away every part of her childhood, every piece of her that once loved in order to survive. Because if she doesn't survive, who remembers the tragedy she escaped? And even now, in the humble sanctuary that has cared for her for the past eleven years, where she has trained her hardest so that one day she can avenge those the fire nation took from her — she does not love freely.

Ayen is an orphan by chance and circumstance. She's a war-hardened soldier ready to fight anyone and everyone in her path of revenge. She can not afford to grow attached. She can not afford to lose again.

There are whispers of the Avatar — the world's greatest hope for peace. There are whispers that he's returned to them after hiding for the past one hundred years. And Ayen has a feeling, a deep pull in her soul, that when the Avatar does appear, she's going to have to make a choice.

So when she falls headfirst into the nightmare that has tortured her night after night since that day eleven years ago, Ayen's reason to fight resurfaces. Reliving her past in a moment and losing everything just the same, sparks that dangerous anger and her desire to fight all over again. But as she feels the fire surround, and the burns following the path they left behind, deep in the midst of her nightmare — one thing happens that has never happened before.

In a flash of light appears a boy, a child innocent of the death and loss that surrounds Ayen. He reaches out a hand, eyes glowing white like the arrow tattoos that cover him whole. In that moment, Ayen and the Avatar, her savior pulling her out of the moment where she lost, she finds her answer to the choice that's been echoing in her mind since whispers of the Avatar first reached her.

So when the Avatar does appear in Kyoshi village, on the very anniversary of her own tragedy, Ayen knows that she was right about having to make this choice, this change.

The world had it's moment of change.

She thought she had already seen her own.

But in truth? Her change is only just beginning. And the war, her revenge, suddenly aren't so far from reach.

starring

AYEN
struggle, survive, serenity

" just get rid of them, right?
they're scars! not old boots!
you can't just take away how i
got here, how i survived, like that "
portrayed by adora/she-ra

PRINCE ZUKO
restless, revenge, revival

" how can i not regret all of it?
it was the only thing the world
ever offered me, it was all i knew.
i didn't know i knew wrong "
portrayed by himself

RIAYI
promises, pure, purpose

" i'm used to being teased for
being soft... but we live in a
world that has only known war,
don't we need soft? "
portrayed by balsa

KATARA
trusting, trials, triumph

" i keep being forced to unlearn
my heart. that it's not right, that i'm
not right — i don't care what's right
anymore, this feels right "
portrayed by herself

the remainder of the cast of
avatar: the last airbender
as they are or as described

DISCLAIMER && WARNINGS

I do not own or claim to own the canon plot
lines, writing, or characters of the series
"avatar: the last airbender"

I do; however, own my original characters,
ayen and riayi, as well as their original
plot lines and backstories

I also own all changes and diverges
from the canon plot lines of atla

all graphics, poetry, and quotes
have been created and written by me,
katie, @/dorkiest_nerd,
unless stated otherwise. I tend to write my own poetry for my fics, so if there is no name beside a poem/paragraph, assume that it is my own.

please be aware that this book will contain the mature themes in "avatar: the last airbender" such as: war, violence, depictions of
hate, manipulation, abusive families, unnatural powers, and cultural genocide.

"don't let go" will also contain mature themes such as: torture, greed and manipulation, torture, abduction/kidnapping, angst, and traumas.

" by me "

*whispering* what have i doneeee

WELCOME ONE AND ALL — to my completely unhinged, darker, romance-packed, fever dream born "avatar: the last airbender" fic!!

slight warning after the warnings... if you are unfamiliar with my fics, let me explain something I love quite clearly now — my entire being will be put into making you cry. no. matter. what.

and let me just say, these characters and their stories are things that I hope to write in a way that they will make you cry. although i can promise a few happier years within this book!!

starting with riayi and katara, my northern—southern water tribe lovers. they're a fast burn, they love sassing old men, and they become each others balance in a spectacularly beautiful way. one thing that i adore about them, is that as the series goes on and katara darkens from facing war, riayi stays so soft. she's a gentle kindness that the entire group depends on, but katara depends on her even more so in a very special way.

but zuko and ayen are an entire universe of difference. these are already the most traumatized of the bunch in insane ways. we all know zuko's story very well if you've seen the show, and all the ways that i adore him and his arc are going to be seen in this fic!! but you all don't know ayen and her story the way that i do. despite everything that happens, ayen might just have the most valid reason to be angry, and to want to fire lord dead. you get a small peak at her start here, but just let me tell you, she's so much more than this small bit.

her and zuko find a lot in each other. from solace to friendship to survival to love to peace. ayen's plot and character is definitely my favorite, and i cannot wait to share her with the world.

A BIG THING to know about this fic in particular is that i am aging everyone up to make it more appropriate for dating and for what they go through. as i am making things darker, i feel better aging these kids up, even just by a year, knowing what they'll go through.
so if you're unfamiliar with their ages, a good reference is that now zuko and ayen are the oldest at seventeen; katara and riayi are now both fifteen; and everyone else is aged up accordingly.

DEDICATIONS && LOVE

hecatespells  oneirataxia_girl  Winter326 moonqlow miyagidos  -babyroses-  sstariinights  pendragons-  BlackCat2907  -sanascribbles 
@moonyslantsov @-emoweasley @syxlvievaxrianttvaaa @Trix_Forever @mikaelsxnwhorr @linodoongie

I love you all so much!!
thank you to every single person reading and interacting with this fic!! your comments and votes make my day every single time and I hope that you enjoy reading this fic as much as I enjoyed creating the plot and writing it
💕💕💕