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It was close to nightfall, and Rangi had not yet found what she had been searching for. It had been hours since she set out, ignoring Kyoshi’s queries and requests to come with her. This was a mission she would undertake alone. It had been hours, and she had nothing to show for her quest. She had looked up mountain and down valley, all around the small town of Yokoya and even ranging far beyond, pushing fire from her fists, trying to fly as much as she could to save energy. She paused her search for a moment, slightly out of breath from her exertions, before returning to the sky. She would not be stymied. She would find what she sought, because Kyoshi didn’t know what mistletoe was, and it was now Christmas Eve.

Rangi’s duties as bodyguard to Yun meant that she spent a lot of time with not just Yun, but the servant girl Kyoshi too, who had come to work at the mansion a few years before. At first, she had simply tolerated the tall, quiet girl, who never made a fuss and never spoke out of turn. But after a while, that tolerance had become…something else. Rangi didn’t quite know what, but she did know she would do absolutely anything to keep Kyoshi happy. She gritted her teeth. Including this.

Rangi had known Kyoshi had a crush on Yun for some time. She had trained for years how to read people in the Academy, so it really wasn’t too difficult. Kyoshi wasn’t as subtle as she thought she was. She looked after him all the time, it really wasn’t surprising. Rangi shook her head. Yun was a player, and he always had been; it wasn’t his fault, just his personality, but Rangi knew whatever he felt for Kyoshi wasn’t the same level she felt for him. She sniffed, coming to light on a promising hill top. Kyoshi deserved far better than the Avatar. She shook her head. It wasn’t her concern. But here she was, searching for a sprig of mistletoe instead of being at Yun’s side while he ate dinner. And why exactly am I here?

Rangi knew Kyoshi wanted Yun to kiss her. She could tell by the way she looked at him. It annoyed her, even hurt her, but she didn’t want to ask herself why. Too much baggage to unpack. The simple fact was, Kyoshi loved Yun. That was just how it was. It didn’t matter to Rangi, her only job was to keep Yun safe and out of the way of whatever threats happened to come their way. At least, that’s what she told herself whenever her gaze drifted to Kyoshi. Whenever she couldn’t sleep at night, rolling over and over in her bed, imagining what it would be like if she had one shy, tall Earthbending girl to share it with. It didn’t matter. And now she was here, searching for mistletoe, because she knew of the holiday tradition it held. Maybe, just maybe, if she could maneuver them correctly, Kyoshi and Yun would end up under that mistletoe and she could make Kyoshi happy for Christmas.

There- finally. She climbed a short stone formation, hauling herself up to the top to find a small mistletoe shrub, its leaves giving off a green tinted shine. It was a good thing she’d finally found it; it was getting late, and if there were a time to pull this off, it’d be now. She twisted off a good sized piece of mistletoe and turned, jumping down off the stones to the ground below. She put the sprig in her pack and braced herself for the journey back to Yokoya. With her Firebending flight skills it wouldn’t take too long, but the effort it took exhausted her like nothing else could. Luckily, it was worth it to see the look on Kyoshi’s face. She took a breath, readied herself, and began.

She made it back to the mansion in record time. She had spent the entire time arguing with herself, back and forth, to put it up or to throw it by the wayside. She knew she was being selfish. Kyoshi barely looked at her, and certainly never looked at her the way she looked at Yun. It was stupid. Of course she was putting it up. She wanted Kyoshi to be happy, didn’t she? She dismissed the thoughts, compartmentalizing them in the back of her brain. It didn’t matter. She wanted Kyoshi to be happy, and this would make her happy.

She entered the house, shaking off the snow from her boots and unloading her pack. Everyone was inside at dinner, a celebratory meal for the day before Christmas. She took the opportunity to hang the mistletoe from the parlor ceiling, where Yun and Kyoshi would open the first of his many presents, before slipping into the dining room to her seat beside Yun. Her mother, seated across the table, shot her a quick glare. Rangi knew there would be hell to pay later for missing the majority of the meal. It would be alright. She glanced around for Kyoshi, but the tall girl wasn’t there. Probably in the kitchen helping to clean up. It was alright. They’d all be in the parlor later. She jumped slightly as Jianzhu raised a glass and bellowed out a toast to Yun. She looked over at the Avatar. He was drinking it in, the praise from his master, the cheers from the dinner party. She gave a halfhearted yell, but found herself wishing he could be more…humble. Quiet. Reserved. Like Kyoshi? She frowned. She had to get that girl out of her head. After today, it would be over. She could go back to normalcy again if she could just get through tonight. Kyoshi would go back to pining over Yun from afar, Yun would go back to regular duties, and she could go back to her job guarding Yun and not thinking about anything else. It would be fine.

 The dinner finally ended, and the guests dispersed to their separate rooms. Rangi caught a quick view of Kyoshi clearing away dinner dishes before her mother swept in front of her. Hei-Ran’s face was hard as stone, preparing to give her usual ‘neglected your duties again’ speech. As quickly as she could, Rangi wrested herself from her mother’s grasp and headed to the parlor. Yun was impatient and would want to open presents soon. It’s not like he had a shortage of them, so he never put off opening the first ones until Christmas Day, preferring to stretch the gift extravaganza over Christmas Eve too. Rangi had planned well. Kyoshi didn’t spend a lot of time away from the servants’ area of the mansion, unless she was cleaning up after Yun. When it came to Yun and Christmas, there was quite a lot to clean. She reached the parlor and paused in the doorway, assessing the situation.

From a first glance, it didn’t look like anything had happened. Yun was eagerly unwrapping gifts, throwing paper to the winds for Kyoshi to collect and smooth down, her need for order keeping pace with Yun’s wild energy. Just like normal. Rangi tamped down the emotions welling in her mind and leaned against the doorframe, watching. Had it happened? Kyoshi wasn’t flushed. If the mistletoe had done its work, she would have been nearly speechless. So it hadn’t happened yet. No matter. Rangi could wait and hint if needed. Somehow or another, she would make Kyoshi happy this year.

Yun looked up, throwing a Water Tribe ceremonial spear behind him. “Hey Rangi! Where’ve you been?” He jumped to his feet, leaving Kyoshi on the ground amid piles of paper. “Missed you at dinner. Must’ve been something important to keep you away for that long!” He winked at her, striding forward and – past her? Rangi turned slightly to let him pass, unsure of what he was doing. “I’ll be right back, Kyoshi.” Yun took a look back into the room. “Just, talk to Rangi a minute, okay?” And he was gone, down the passage, leaving Rangi in simultaneously her favorite daydream and her worst nightmare: alone with Kyoshi.

She glanced at the taller girl, still on the ground. Kyoshi looked nervous, twisting her hands together. Rangi grimaced. Kyoshi was obviously still desperate for Yun to notice her. She glanced at the ceiling. Perhaps the mistletoe wasn’t obvious enough? The glance revealed a glaring lack of mistletoe where she’d left it. She shifted, puzzlement washing through her mind. Where did it go? A scrabbling sound brought her attention back to the room, where Kyoshi had struggled to her feet. She stood there, in the center of Yun’s whirlwind, looking down at her shoes. Rangi’s heart dropped into her stomach. Yun must have taken it down to avoid anything happening between them. What had he said? Talk to Rangi? She steeled herself. One of them would have to open a conversation until Yun got back. She opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, Kyoshi suddenly spoke.

“Rangi.” She held up her hands from where they’d been firmly at her sides. Clenched in one was a sprig of mistletoe. “Did you put this up?”

Rangi sagged against the doorway in surprise before pulling herself together. “Yes. It’s a traditional decoration here, as well as in the Fire Nation. It wouldn’t be Christmas without it!” Careful. She was a bit overexuberant. She could not let herself slip, especially now.

Kyoshi bit her lip, taking a step forward, closer to Rangi. The Firebender fought to keep her inner flame from spiking. She was rarely this close to Kyoshi, and she had had no idea just how much it would affect her. Clearly she needed to work on her self control, but Kyoshi was oh so close now. How easy would it be to – no. Kyoshi liked Yun. She could do this.

Kyoshi stepped right in front of Rangi, holding the mistletoe out in front of her. “Yun said you put this up for me. For me and him. He told me what it’s for.”

Oh no. Rangi had no idea how to react. For the first time in her life, she felt out of control of a situation. What if she just told the truth? Kyoshi valued honesty. And why shouldn’t she have it? Maybe if Rangi told her the truth, or most of it, she could still salvage the situation. Maybe she could pull Yun aside and get him to do it. This could still work. “Yes – I did. I’m sorry. I can see how you look at him, I just thought maybe if I put it up, he would perform the expected tradition, and…you know..” She couldn’t bring herself to say it. Kyoshi would get the message. She looked up, into Kyoshi’s eyes. The servant girl was…blushing.

“Rangi….I do look at him that way sometimes. Far less now, though, than I used to. Do you know why?” She looked down at the mistletoe in her hand. “Do you know why I refused when he tried to kiss me, just now, under this?”

Rangi felt like she was in a dream. Maybe it was a dream. She searched Kyoshi’s face, but sensed nothing but genuine emotion, carried so openly in the tall girl’s face. This couldn’t be happening. “What do you mean, refused?” She could feel the blood rushing to her face, through all her efforts to prevent it. She could also feel the temperature rising around her, her inner flame spiking far beyond her control in response to Kyoshi being so close.

Kyoshi didn’t seem to notice, leaning down towards Rangi so that the Firebender could more easily hear her next words. “I refused. I didn’t want to kiss him. I wanted-“ She paused, looking directly into Rangi’s eyes. “-I wanted to kiss you. I’ve wanted to for so long now. Almost from the minute I first saw you.” She reached out, brushing her hand along Rangi’s face. Rangi nearly melted into her touch, still unable to process what was happening. She blinked away a tear. She had to be sure.

“Kyoshi…you like Yun. I can see it so easily. I never even thought-“ She was cut off by Kyoshi’s soft laugh, ringing out across the empty room.

“I do like Yun. He’s my friend, and if you’d never shown up, then maybe I would have kissed him today. But here you are. You searched for this all day, didn’t you? And for what, so that I would be happy? Rangi. You make me so happy. Every time I see you, it’s like a cloud lifts, until you’re gone and it drops again.” Her eyes softened, still locked with Rangi’s. “Would you have been happy if I had kissed him?”

Rangi couldn’t believe it. She had never, even in her most desperate dreams, imagined that this could ever happen in reality. And yet it had happened, and Kyoshi was right there, so close, so beautiful, so precious to her. She choked out the only thing she could possibly say. “No. Of course not.”

Kyoshi grinned. She raised the sprig of mistletoe above their heads, looking down at Rangi with the most brilliant look of joy on her face that Rangi had ever seen. Rangi stretched up on her tiptoes, reaching up to grasp Kyoshi’s face. She met her giant girl in the middle as Kyoshi bent down, and allowed herself to melt fully into the Earthbender’s embrace. She melded together with Kyoshi until she didn’t know where she ended and Kyoshi began. It felt like home.

She could have kissed Kyoshi forever and a day, but they were interrupted by the sound of clapping. They broke apart, both Rangi and Kyoshi blushing redder than a tomato, to find Yun standing behind them, applauding with excitement. “Finally!” He grinned at them,  still holding on to each other. “I’ve been trying to set this up for ages. It took me flat out telling Kyoshi what she had to do in order to get her going, but it finally worked. Thank the spirits!” He walked into the room, grabbing Kyoshi and Rangi and squeezing them both into a massive three-way hug. “Merry Christmas, you two idiots. I’m so glad you guys finally decided to do something about the mutual pining thing I’ve been dealing with for the past two years.”

Rangi gathered herself together from the pieces she had melted into. She smiled up at Kyoshi, the simple gesture communicating more than her words ever could. “Merry Christmas, Kyoshi. Promise me you’re happy?”

Kyoshi reached down, breaking out from Yun’s hug. She picked Rangi off her feet and twirled her around. “I’m more happy than I’ve ever been in my life. Merry Christmas, Rangi.”

The three of them embraced again, still in the midst of paper and presents, as the snow fell outside the mansion in Yokoya. Rangi had never felt so happy in her life. This was the best Christmas she had ever had. She couldn’t wait for the future Christmases to come.