Hello everyone! So I know this story has gone neglected for a long time now, but a couple of recents faves of it have pushed me to work on it again.
To start this thing back up, I'm reloading edited (mostly) chapters. They won't be 100% perfect, but some obvious things shoudl be fixed.
So Disclaimer: I didn't own Avatar when I first posted this, and I still don't now, but I do own those few OC's
Chapter 1: The Earth Bending Master
A shadow grew over the small town of earth benders, as a large flying bison, called Appa, flew over head. On top rode a young water bender, about the age of 12 ½. She had long, brown hair, that matched her tan skin, and her blue eyes shined from the sun. Her older brother, who was about 15, was taller, with the same colored skin and big, blue eyes that just called for attention. The third rider was the last air bender, the Avatar, the soon to be master of bending all four elements, who was 12. He was bald with pale skin, and covered in blue arrows, similar the one on his flying bison's head. They all where were amazed at the small town below. Though they had seen Earth Nation towns before; this one had something different about it. The ground was so much greener, and it seemed to be risen above the woods that surrounded it. There were little shops, right next to large ones, and carts beside those.
"WOW!" yelled the young Avatar. "Look down there!" He pointed to a group of women rode into town on ostrich-horses from the woods.
"Aang," the water bender said shaking her head, "If you get so excited over just seeing it, we might as well just stay up here."
"No, Katara, I wanna go see the people, and ask them if I can find a master to teach me earth bending," he replied.
"Why here, Aang?" Katara's older brother asked, while eating a bag of seal jerky.
"Because, Sokka, it's right by the fire nation," he said, using air bending to make himself comfortable enough to explain, "If we're right by to the fire nation, then we don't have to travel for a long time to find a fire bending master that will teach me." Sokka was listening, until Momo, a lemur from the Southern Air Temple, had stolen his jerky.
"That's odd," Katara said, looking down at the town, "Why is it that they're so close to the fire nation, and yet they look like they don't even know that there's a war going on?"
"Beats me," Aang said.
"Maybe," Sokka started, "They are alliances with the fire nation." He grabbed his jerky from Momo, and sat back down.
The others shrugged their shoulders. They had heard all of Sokka's stories, and though this one had a possibility of being true, they didn't think so. After all, the town was so peaceful, and it was full of men. They knew that anyone one the side of the fire nation, would have gone to war to fight.
They landed the bison, and went to town. They had to stock up on food, find a place to stay, ask about masters, and all before dark, which was only an hour or so away. They split up for the separate jobs. Katara went to get food, and find shelter, Aang went around asking people about any earth bending masters, and they left Sokka to stay with the Appa and Momo.
"Excuse me," Katara asked a cart woman selling fruit, "Would you happen to know a place where some friends of mine and I can stay for a while?" She picked up a papaya and checked to see if it was ripe, as she waited for an answer.
The woman scratched her head and rubbed her chin, until she came up with an answer. "There's an inn where you can stay." Katara looked at her and put down the papaya. The woman nodded and continued, "It's about 20 miles west of here!" She declared with a smile.
Katara sighed, "That's a little too far," she said and thanked the woman as she paid for the fruit.
Aang walked around the town and asked several people about finding a master, when a little boy came up to him and said, "There are no masters in the town, but there is one that works here." Aang looked at the boy, confused. "He lives in the woods, no one's ever been there before, but I know where he works, I can take you there." Aang smiled, and told the boy to lead the way. The boy gestured Aang to follow him, and they walked up to a small candy store.
"He works in a candy store?" Aang asked, now even more confused.
The boy smiled and said, "Yep, I come here everyday!" Aang smacked his head, and said, "I don't need a master in candy making, I need a master in earth bending!"
The boy looked at him, and replied in a sad voice, "But… but he is a master at earth bending. His wife, Mrs. Choso, makes the candy. He just helps." The boy was close to tears, when a young woman, came out, and asked what was happening.
"I'm sorry Ma'am! I didn't mean to do it! I was gonna apologize, just as you came out! I'm sorry!" Aang pleaded his case to the woman.
She picked the boy up, and just smiled at him. "It's alright, she said in a gentle voice. "I heard that you were looking for an earth bender, and to be brought here by a little candy loving boy, can be misleading." Aang sighed in relief. The woman was beautiful. She had long brown hair, like Katara, pulled back in a bun, green eyes, and a small nose. She looked so young. "I'm Mrs. Choso. You're looking for my husband, Mr. Choso. He's in back; I'll get him for you." She walked in side, still holding the boy, and Aang followed her.
She brought him in to the back room, and he froze as a large man stood up from a table covered in rock candy. He was very muscular, had the same green colored eyes as Mrs. Choso, and short dark brown hair. When he stood up, he looked sternly down at Aang, making Aang gulp and begin to shake in fear.
"This is my husband, Jung Choso. He's an earth bending master." Aang stared at the large man, and forced a smile and wave. "He… He… Hello. I… I'm Aang, the Avatar," he said, then closing his eyes, only to open them to the couple laughing.
The man smiled at him and said, "Nice to meet you Aang. So if the Avatar is here, looking for a master, then you've already mastered water and air, correct?"
Aang nodded, afraid of the man becoming scary again.
"Then I'll be happy to teach you. You can stay with my wife and me, that is, if you don't mind my three daughters as well," he said with a laugh.
Aang smiled back and said, "Sure, but I'm here with two friends, do you mind if they stay too?"
Jung looked at him suspiciously, and said that it was fine.
"Okay! I'll go get 'em. Katara will be happy I found us a place to stay!"
"Katara? So you have a girl friend?" Jung asked.
Aang looked back, and grew redder than red. He had liked Katara for a long time now, but they weren't boyfriend and girlfriend. "Ah… No, Sir. She's just a friend, her brother Sokka is my other friend." The couple smiled and told him to go get his friends.
"You don't know anywhere close by?" Katara asked a man selling bread, "Oh, alright, thank you anyway."
"Katara!" Aang yelled as he came towards her.
She looked at him surprised, an asked, "What is it Aang? Did you find a master?"
"Even better!" He replied out of breath, "I found a master, and he said we can stay with him!" Katara was relieved. The two went back to Appa to get Sokka, and the animals, then to the candy shop, where they met the Choso's. Sokka was just as scared as Aang was at the first sight of Jung, and twice as relieved. They left the shop, and headed into the woods.
The trees were dark, dead, and scary as they continued their walk. There was less grass and the road was filled with rocks. The couple seemed used to the woods, but the three held on to each other, hoping nothing would jump out at them. They came up to a large log cabin looking house, and the trees looked as though they regained life. The grass was green again, and there were even flowers. When they arrived, two girls ran out of the house, screaming.
"Mom! Dad!" they yelled. They ran into their parents' arms. The girls shared their parents' looks exactly, brown hair, green eyes, and all.
"Zeeva's gone, again!" One girl yelled. Her parents looked shocked, and ran into the house, leaving the girls behind. With a clearer view of them, Aang, Katara, and Sokka could tell that one was taller, and they had to be about their age. Katara walked up to them, introducing herself and her friends, and asked who they were.
"I'm Shaya," the taller girl said, "I'm 16."
"And I'm Kaysa. I'm 14." The three introduced themselves, and Sokka asked, "Who's this Zeeva person?"
"She's our middle sister, she's 15," Shaya said, "She runs off a lot, and it takes forever to find her."
"But she's usually at the springs. She likes it there, but we wouldn't panic as much if she just told us where she as going," Kaysa finished.
They all went into the house to see what was going on. When they got in, Mr. and Mrs. Choso were rummaging through everything to find Zeeva.
Katara's eye caught a portrait on the wall. She recognized everyone, but one. Mr. and Mrs. Choso stood in the back with Kaysa and Shaya in front, looking like twins, and everyone was smiling, except for the one she couldn't identify. It was a girl with pale skin, freckles, serious, gold eyes, and black hair in short, messy pig tails. She had a scar on her neck and wasn't smiling, and the only person Katara could place her as, was Zeeva.
"Shaya, is that your sister?" She asked and pointed to the girl in the portrait.
Shaya nodded. The boys had looked too, and Sokka laughed. "That's your sister? She's doesn't look a thing like any of you, she's ugly, and…"
"And what?" He heard an unfamiliar, dark, feminine, voice and turned around, with the others. Standing in the window was a beautiful girl with black hair, and gold eyes. She was skinny and her skin was pale. She was smirking at Sokka, and said, "Well, go on, continue, what you were saying." Sokka blushed and looked at the girl.
"Are you a friend of Zeeva's?" Katara asked. The girls laughed, and the girl with black hair looked at her. "No," she said, "I am Zeeva. If you can't tell by looking at Shaya and Kaysa, that's a portrait from about 2 years ago." She stood next to the girls, and even besides their facial features, they looked very different.
One other difference was their clothes. Shaya and Kaysa wore green shirts, only different in embroidered designs, and brown skirts that flowed in the slight breeze, while Zeeva wore long, loose green shirt that was just at knee height. It was shredded at the short sleeves, and at the bottom of the shirt. She wore it like a dress, tied with a black cloth about her waist, and at her feet were off-white socks that were strapped to her legs, due to being way too big, and they were inside a pair of black shoes. Not to mention, Shaya's hair was nicely brushed, Kaysa's was in a bun like her mother's, while Zeeva's hair was in a messy, loose green wrap on top of her head.
Sokka's jaw dropped as he looked back at the picture. "No way," He said, "That can't be you. You look too different for that to be only a two year old portrait."
"Well it is, so get over it," she replied. The girls' parents ran in and started to yell at Zeeva, after hugging her. She apologized, and they all went to eat dinner. Shaya and Kaysa shared a room, so at night, Katara stayed in Zeeva's room, and the boys stayed in the living room. The next day, Aang would start his training. As for Katara, she felt that there were one too many differences between Zeeva and the other girls, and tomorrow she was going to find out what.
What could she be hidding? Well I know, but you'll have to keep on reading. PLEASE R&R!