Confidence
Aang sighed; he was sitting at the edge of a steep cliff, his feet dangling over the edge. He was precariously close to the edge, but he wasn't worried, he had excellent balance and his staff was propped up against a tree nearby. Lately Aang had been thinking more and more about the Airbenders. So far he had refused to accept that he was the last Airbender left, and that the rest of his people were gone, but more and more he was beginning to wonder if he really was the last remaining Airbender. So far he had not seen or heard of even a single Airbender or Air Nomad left except him, apart from him, Appa, Momo and the Air Temples, there was no sign that the Air Nomads had even existed.
An entire nation was on the brink of vanishing, so much of his people's culture was gone, sometimes Aang would think about the Air Nomads and he would miss them so much it would ache inside. He, Appa and Momo, the only survivors of an entire nation. Aang was the only one who remembered what the Air Temples used to be like 100 years ago. They used to be full of monks, and bison and lemurs, now they were desolate and abandoned, with empty rooms. The overwhelming thought that apart from Appa everyone from his past was gone, All the Airbenders, the bison, they were all gone. He missed the Air Masters who he and Gyatso played pranks on. In particular Aang missed Monk Gyatso.
He had been so nice to Aang. When he found out that he was the Avatar, and everyone was pressuring him to master the elements, Gyatso had been there for him. He had filled his life with fun, games and laughter, and now he was gone. Aang remembered how the Southern Air Temple used to look, he remembered the Airbenders training, the bison grazing, and the skies around the Air temple would be full of flying bison and gliding Airbenders. Lemurs accompanied the gliders, and down below hundreds of miniature figures were training, while more bison grazed in the lush valleys. At least not all parts of the Airbender's culture was gone.
Aang had managed to find a hidden valley where the last herds of Flying Bison still roamed. Lemurs lived in the mountains above, and Aang had brought them back to the Southern Air temple and the populations were soon going to be restored. But it still felt empty without the Airbenders, Aang was glad that the flying bison and lemurs had survived but he wished that he could find some other Airbenders. Aang began to sing:
Oh the power to be strong,
And the wisdom to be wise,
All these things will come to you in time.
On this journey that you're making,
They'll be answers that you seek,
And it's you, who'll climb the mountain,
It's you, who'll reach the peak.
Son of man look to the sky,
Lift your spirit, set it free,
Someday you'll walk tall with pride,
Son of man a man in time you'll be.
Though there's on-one there to guide you,
No-one to take your hand,
But with faith and understanding,
You will journey from boy to man.
Son of man look to the sky,
Lift your spirit, set it free,
Someday you'll walk tall with pride,
Son of man a man in time you'll be.
Although Aang didn't know it, Katara was hidden in the bushes nearby, listening. She had followed Aang when he left the campsite. She was concerned because he'd been acting really miserable recently, she knew he was disappointed that he hadn't found any other Air Nomads yet, so she thought she'd come and talk to him. Then she'd heard him singing and not wanting to disturb him and a little curious as to what he was singing, she had crouched down behind a thick bush. It was cramped and uncomfortable, but parting the foliage she peered over at Aang and listened as her best friend, and love of her life, sang.
In learning you will teach,
And in teaching you will learn,
You'll find your place beside the ones you love,
As Aang sang, he saw the faces of his friends in his head. Sokka, Toph, Momo and of course Appa and Katara. He also thought of Gyatso, his loving mentor, and he struggled not to cry:
Oh and all the things you dreamed of,
The visions that you saw,
In Aang's mind he saw the Southern Air temple full of Airbenders again, he saw him and his friends, laughing and joking, he saw him and Katara riding on Appa. He began to smile.
Well the time is drawing near now,
It's yours to claim it all,
Son of man look to the sky,
Lift your spirit set it free,
Someday you'll walk tall with pride,
Son of man a man in time you'll be.
Son of man, son of man's a man for all to see…
Aang heard a rustling sound behind him he leapt to his feet and grabbed his staff, swinging round. To his surprise he saw Katara standing in front of him, his eyes widened" Katara!" he said, surprised. Katara smiled" Nice song." She said, Aang blushed furiously, he looked at her, worried" You heard that?" he said" All of it?" Katara nodded, and Aang blushed. Katara then threw her arms around him and hugged, Aang looked at her surprised, she smiled" Aang," she said" I am so proud of you, despite all the pressure on you and all your troubles, you still manage to stay strong, and that's why I love you." She hugged him again.
Aang smiled and embraced her, and then he grinned" What," he said" You don't love me because I'm smart, and wise, and kind, and handsome?" Katara smiled" That too." She said, and they kissed, "Eew eew eew!" a voice cried, and Aang and Katara turned to see Sokka, covering his eyes in order to block the image of them kissing. Katara sighed "Sokka," she said" Its fine, you can look now." Sokka lowered his arms, and relaxed when he saw they were no longer kissing, he sighed and wiped his forehead" Phew," he said extravagantly" I NEVER want to see that again." Aang smiled sheepishly" Sorry Sokka." he said, Sokka shrugged" Its fine," he said" I was only kidding." Katara sighed" As usual." she said." Hey," Sokka said defensively" I was only coming to look for you, you and the little bald guy had been gone for so long I was beginning to get worried, so I came to find you."
" Where's Appa?" Aang asked, looking around. Then they heard a loud bellow and Appa ambled up to the top of the slight hill, the bison grunted" Appa!" Aang cried happily, running up to greet his large friend. Appa also charged down the hill to meet him, knocked him down and began licking him enthusiastically. Aang smiled and patted him affectionately on the head; he levitated to his feet with a gust of wind. Katara and Sokka walked over, Momo glided down and landed on Aang's shoulder, Aang smiled and patted him.
Katara smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder" Don't worry," she said" There are other Airbenders out there,"" and you're gonna find them." Sokka finished, Aang smiled" You mean WE'RE gonna find them." Sokka nodded" Yup." he said. Aang smiled, perhaps there was still hope after all.