Chapter 1- Waterbending Training
"Suddenly they heard something down the hall in the dark. Wwwooohhhh. It came into the torch light. And then they knew. The blade of Wing Faun was HAUNTED!" Sokka drew his sword from its sheath, standing in a dramatic pose "Aaawwaagghh" He screeched into the darkness. But alas his confidence was shattered at his companions blank and unphased face's.
"I think I liked the 'Man with a sword for a hand' one better" Aang commented.
"Water tribe slumber parties must stink" Toph complained, never one to sympathetic.
"Wait I've got one" Katara plucked up; curling her knees up to her chest for whatever warmth it gave her against the cool night air. "And this is a true Southern Water Tribe story"
Sokka stabbed his sword into the ground beside him as he slumped back down into the dirt, leaning his weight against a tree stump. "Is this one of those 'A friend of my cousins knew some guy who this happened too' stories?" Sokka said in his usual sarcastic tone that Katara had come to despise, but she continued on regardless.
"No. It happened to mom" Sokka bit back a snide response. "One winter, when mom was a girl, a snow storm buried the whole village for weeks. A month later mom realized she hadn't seen her friend Nimmie since the storm, so mom and some others went to check on Nimmi's family. When they got there no one was home, just a fire flickering in the fireplace. While the men went out too search mom stayed in the house. When she was alone she heard a voice. 'It's so cold, and I can't get warm'" She leant towards Sokka, watching as he curled his legs up to his chest for whatever small comfort it offered him.
She continued "Mom turned and saw Nimmie standing by the fire, she was blue. Like she was frozen. Mom ran outside for help, but when she came back Nimmie was gone" Aang pulled momo's long rabbit ears down over his, trying desperately to block out the sounds of the Ghost Story.
Sokka peeked his head up from over the top of a tree trunk. "Where'd she go?" He asked through shaking lips.
"No one knows. Nimmi's house stands empty to this day. But sometimes people see smoke coming up from the chimney, like little Nimmie is still trying to get warm"
Toph suddenly stirred for the first time since Katara had begun telling the story, gasping she placed her hand too the ground. "Guy's did you hear that?" Toph was usually an expert at concealing her emotions behind her coarse attitude, but now even a brain dead moose lion would know she was scared. If Toph was scared, everyone else should be scared. Out of shear instinct and fear Aang and Sokka each ran towards Katara, huddling close to her for the warmth and protection she offered.
Of course Sokka was either dumber than a moose lion or perhaps he was simply detached from basic human emotions, most likely both, as He attempted to act masculine and simply brushed it aside saying. "Puff, nice try".
"No I'm serious. I hear something" Toph desperately tried to enforce her point.
"You're probably just jumpy from the ghost stories" Katara tried to calm everyone's nerves by trying to find a logical explanation to this. But her effort was in vain as everyone was once again plunged back into the dark pit of fear with Toph's next words.
"It just stopped" Now her voice was tinged with pure fear.
"Alright, now I'm getting scared" Sokka however was still unconvinced it was any more than superstition.
"Hello children" A voice called out from behind them.
"AAAAHHHHHH!" They screeched in unison, scrambling around the camp fire and clinging to Toph. They turned to the source of the noise; seeing a figure in the darkness. They came forward into the light of the camp fire. The bright embers illuminating their raven black hair held back in a bun by a small Fire Nation headband, their perfect youthful skin and the dark Fire Nation clothes they wore. It was definitely a girl, no more than 17 years old. Her piercing hazel eyes staring into the shaking mess of flesh on the other side of the fire. "Sorry to frighten you" Her voice was cool and fluid. "My name is Hama" She looked over the four children that stood before her. "You children shouldn't be out in the forest by yourselves late at night; I have an inn nearby. Why don't you come back there for some spiced tea and warm beds?"
Sokka spoke through quivering lips. "Yes please" Ready to do anything that would get him out of these haunted woods. Even though they knew nothing of this girl who had appeared mysteriously as if from no where to offer them a free place to stay. But I guess when you travel with the Avatar you simply have to take things on faith.
The group's first night in the inn was the most relaxing night they'd had since leaving Ba Sing Se. It wasn't hard to imagine how much being in disguise and walking through enemy territory in an effort to reach the Fire Nation Capital within a few weeks weighed you down. Even with all the adventure of travelling the world, you never pass up the chance to sleep in a warm bed and have a home cooked meal.
The next morning was spent helping Hama gather food at the village market. Hama said she had more work to continue in town and asked the gang to carry the food up to the inn. Once they had returned with the supplies, Sokka couldn't shake the suspicions about this girl that had been festering inside of him since she had appeared the night before. "That Hama seems a little strange. Like she knows something, or she's hiding something"
Katara sighed; her brother could always find a way to demonize a kind person. "That's ridiculous. She's a nice girl who took us in and gave us a place to stay". Katara laid the groceries out on the table, smelling the fresh scent wafting from the vegetables. "She kinda reminds me of Gran Gran".
"Hmm. I'm goanna take a look around".
He strolled across the room towards the stairs leading to the second floor of the inn, and Hama's private rooms. "Sokka!" Katara cried out, shocked at her brothers blatant disregard for peoples privacy. "Sokka! What are you doing? You can't just go snoop around someone's house"
She followed him up the stairs, watching as he opened the first door. "It'll be fine" He attempted to convince the others of his actions. "She could be home any minute" But Aang was still fearful. Sokka scanned the dark room in search of something incriminating, some shred of proof of who this 'Hama' really was. Finding nothing he shut the door and continued down the hall, not in any way demoralized by finding nothing in the first room. If anything it spurred him on to continue his search for the truth.
"Sokka you're goanna get us all in trouble, and this is just plain rude"
Katara continued to nag in the back of his ear. "I'm not finished yet" He shot her down. He tried the doors of the hallway closet, jammed. He pulled on them hard, still stuck.
"Come on" He put all his weight behind this one last pull.
Suddenly the doors of the closet wrenched open, sending Sokka crashing into the opposite wall with the unbalanced force. Out of the closet spilled small wooden people, held back by an entanglement of strings. Sokka fumbled for his sword, brandishing it shakily at the sudden surprise. Still keeping his sword at arms length he raised to his feet, he had found his first clue. "Ok that's pretty creepy"
Katara stepped forward and closed the closet doors. "So she's got a hobby? There's nothing weird about that" But Sokka was still unconvinced. "Sokka you've looked enough, Hama will be back soon" He stormed down the corridor. 'He can be so stubborn sometimes' Katara thought to herself as she stayed at his heel as he climbed the ladder leading deeper into the forbidden wing of the home.
He stepped up into the attic, one door on the side wall. Sokka tried the doorknob, locked. "Just a puppet loving inn keeper, huh? Then why does she have a locked door up here?"
"Probably to keep people like YOU from snooping through her stuff" He knelt down and spied through the keyhole.
"We'll see" The light shined through the small crack in the far wall, illuminating the room and revealing the small blue box on the floor. "It's empty except for a little chest" He reported.
"Maybe it's treasure!" Toph's money eyes glowed at the prospect of finding hidden booty. Sokka however was seeking the truth, not wealth. He rose to his feet, unsheathed his sword, plugged it into the keyhole and turned.
"Sokka! You're breaking into a private room"
"I have to see what's in there" He replied.
The door whined open on its rusted hinges. Together the four of them entered. Sokka scooped up the small box into his hands. "We shouldn't be doing this" Aang pleaded. Upon attempting to pry it open, Sokka found the chest to be locked.
"Maybe there's a key around here" Sokka looked around the room.
"Oh, hand it over" Toph plucked up with an idea, extending her small hands to accept the package. She unclipped the meteor bracelet around her arm. She crushed the bracelet in her hand, bending it into the shape of a key that she jammed into the small slit in the box. She began bending every component of it to match the lock.
"Come on, come on" Sokka annoyingly chirped over her shoulder.
"This isn't as easy as it looks" she snapped at him. Katara nervously looked over Toph's shoulder, her growing fear keeping her on edge.
"Guys, I don't know about this" Aang murmured, never a person to break the law even in the course of justice.
"This is crazy, I'm leaving" Yet another of Katara's vain attempts to dissuade the others.
"Suit yourself" Sokka rose right into Katara's face, ensuring he made his point. Turning back to Toph. "Do it Toph"
Katara turned to leave. But she only made it two steps before she heard an accomplished click of Toph breaking the lock. Katara's mind said go, but her legs betrayed her as she scrambled across the room with the others as they all grouped around the box, each clawing to get it open. "I'll tell you what's in the box" They heard a voice behind them.
"AAAAAHHHHH!" They all snapped round towards the source of the noise, concealing the box behind them.
Hama stood in the doorway, her raven black hair hidden by the veil of darkness. She stepped into the room. The Avatar gang lowered their heads in shame, revealing the chest to her. She took the chest, opened it and reached inside. Sokka's eyes flourished. "What's in there? Fire Nation Secrets? Treasure!" He thought to himself.
But what Hama pulled out of the chest dashed any hopes he had of finding her Dark Secret, because what she pulled out was a Water Tribe Comb in the shape of an elegant wave. "An old comb?" Sokka's heart sank.
But Hama's face beamed with an elegant smile on her rosy lips as she stared at the implement, memories flooding through her. "It is my greatest treasure. It's the last thing I own from growing up in the Southern Water Tribe" Sokka and Katara were stunned, they had discovered another girl from the Southern Water Tribe.
Katara was dumb struck. She had not only met another Water Bender from the Southern Water Tribe, she had promised to take Katara out tomorrow morning and teach her all of her Southern Water Bending forms.
Morning came eventually; Katara eager to begin training left the village, heading towards the forest at the base of the town. "Growing up in the Southern Pole, Water Benders are totally at home surrounded by snow and ice and seas. But I'm sure as you've noticed on your travels, that isn't the case wherever you go"
"I know" Katara spoke. "When we were stranded in the desert I felt like there was almost nothing I could do" Katara's voice was tinged with strong guilt, as though by not being able to bend she had somehow betrayed her friends.
"That's why you have to learn to control water wherever it exists"
"I've even used my own sweat for water bending" A small smile grew on Katara's lips.
"That's very resourceful Katara. You're thinking like a true master. But did you know you can even pull water out of thin air?" Hama snapped her arm outstretched, Katara stepped back to give her instructor room to demonstrate. She swung her arm gracefully around her head, small droplets of water being ripped from the air itself as if from nowhere. "You've got to keep an open mind Katara" The water encapsulated her fingers; the smooth tranquil water suddenly froze, becoming sharp daggers. "There's water in places you never think about" With one quick movement she snapped round, throwing the darts as they punctured a nearby tree before Katara even saw her move, she was amazed.
Katara and Hama continued their training in the forest, emerging in a bright red field of flowers that painted the air with a sweet smell. "They're called Fire Lilies" Hama leant down to smell the sweet scent wafting from the flower. "They only bloom a few weeks a year, but they're one of my favourite things about living here. And like all plants, and all living things, they're filled with water"
"I met a water bender who lived in a swamp and could control the veins by bending the water inside" Hama turned to Katara, her raven dark hair fluttering as she did.
"You can take it even further" Hama outstretched her arms, turning as she pulled water from each of the plants, snapping round to release the attack against a nearby rock, the sliced plates sliding smoothly off each other.
"That was incredible!" Katara was amazed. But she soon realized what Hama had to do to perform her 'incredible' attack, looking down at the starved flowers. "It's a shame about the lilies though"
Hama brushed away her love of the flaming red plants. "They're just flowers. When you're a water bender in a strange land; you do what you must to survive. Tonight I'll teach you the ultimate trick of water bending"
Katara's face beamed. "That would be great". A loving smile grew on Hama's lips; they turned and headed back towards the village, ready to rest up for tonight's training session.