"No, I know what you mean." Mitsuko spoke in response to her statement about healing. "I, too, am a little bit curious to see what the world would be like if there was much more love in it than hate. However, there's a piece of me that knows to have love there must be hate. To heal, there must be fighting. Then again, perhaps that is just the Waterbender in me coming out. After all, Tui and La, the moon and ocean spirits, circle each other in a constant dance of pushing and pulling. They are counterparts yet are still able to coexist. But, I guess people tend to struggle much more with coexisting than the spirits ever do."

As she finished speaking, she reflected Ren's movements and poured herself another cup of tea. She laughed softly as Ren told the story of her village, she did it so vividly that Mitsuko could imagine a young Ren, running around with other children from the village. The scene was a heartwarming one and funnily enough, gave her a slight feeling of nostalgia despite never experiencing it herself. She nodded in understanding about her parent's leave, the memories of the events under Amon still scared her. More so because of the fact that just because Amon was gone, didn't mean that all the tension he had caused disappeared with him. In fact, it only grew after his disappearance.

"Hm, what is it like to bend?" Mitsuko repeated the question. She answered the question slowly, forming her response as she went. It was a difficult question to answer after all. "I suppose it can be frustrating at times as it becomes yet another way you can be compared to others with. It can become a competition about who is a better bender and it can cause pain and embarrassment when maybe you aren't the better bender. It can be exhausting, both physically and mentally, most of the moves aren't as easy as they appear, at least not at first. It can be scary because there comes a point where you fear you could hurt another on accident. It's extremely hard and I think that's a fact that us benders like to keep to ourselves because we want it to appear as though it is effortless."

The corners of her lips turned upwards, "However, despite all of that, it's rewarding. Whenever you learn something new or perfect a difficult move, all of the frustration just washes away and is replaced by this feeling of accomplishment. It's something that allows us to protect those we love and you can connect with others through it. It's immensely fun and when things get serious, you have something that you know you can use to save others or protect yourself.

She paused to take a sip of the tea while it was still warm. "But, I think the answer you're really looking for is something you might already have yourself, despite not being able to bend. For me, as a Waterbender, I have a deep connection with the moon. Every single night I feel a boost, a new strength I didn't previously have. But bending, at it's core, is rooted in a connection to the spirits. While the Avatar may be the bridge, bending originated not with humans but with spirits and so most of us have a spiritual side to an extent. There's a large focus on chi and balancing that chi, on becoming centered with oneself. I believe as an Air Acolyte you likely have this slight focus on balance as well. There are variations in every bending style but in an odd way, I suppose you could say it's as if we have a connection with our element. I can feel the water even before I begin bending it, I can feel the way it moves and shifts and changes. I guess the best thing I can compare it to is that it's almost as if a heartbeat that you feel along with your own."

Mitsuko paused once more to ponder the second half of the question, "I don't think it's really a change that you feel. By no means do you wake up one day and feel like a new person. If anything it's just as if you've gained another sense but it feels like you've had it ever since you were born, you just didn't realize it yet. You begin to notice things you never did before, like the stillness of the waves during the day or that push and pull at night under the moonlight. When you begin to advance you start to notice more things, like now for example, I can sense the water that's in the air or the way that all of the tea in this tea shop tends to swirl in the same circular pattern. It's something so tiny, something so seemingly insignificant that even we don't acknowledge or think about it in any way. It's just there, just something that's a part of us, as if our bending is not any different from an arm or a leg. I suppose bending is a bit like learning to walk, you may stumble and fall or even hurt yourself, but you preserver anyways because it is a part of you and you can't imagine living your life without it."

"I've often wondered myself what I would be like without it, or how my life would have carried out had I not been a bender but for some reason, I come up blank. I can't possibly even think about what it's like to not experience all of the things I do now. Not having my bending would feel like losing my sight or my hearing, I'm sure it's something I'd have to adjust to it. But it would take a long time to do so."

Mitsuko looked at Ren, "So, and only if you're comfortable answering it, I guess my question to you is what is it like to not be able to bend, especially today? I've always been curious myself on understanding what the other half is like, because like I said, I haven't quite been able to ever even imagine it."