We all were tired.

Zuko had just joined our group. After the failed invasion, we all had decided to stay at the Western Airtemple until both our body's and mind's healed.

It was depression for me to come to any temple. Without the monks, the place seemed so lifeless. Looking around, though, we all seemed lifeless.

Katara was staring off at the moon, Sokka was poking the fire and Topf was showing a few pebbles how to fly. The bitter taste of failure was among us and we weren't taking it well.

I sighed. It would take a miracle to get our hopes up.

"There's someone here!" Topf shouted. The tween stood defenses ready, looking into the trees.

"Where is he?" Katara ask. I stared into the conifer trees; staff pointed, ready to defend. I didn't need to look to know Katara was behind me, with her hand on the animal sac.

"Come out," Topf's voice rang. We all stood with baited breath's in a tension filled air.

"Ugh!" she shouted, "Show yourself!" Suddenly a torrent of rocks flew into the trees. It was less than a second after when Topf stepped back with a look of pure confusion on her face. "Wha…?"

"What is it Topf?" Katara asked. We all looked at her. Topf stared into the trees.

"She moves, "she started, "That girl moves like you Twinkle Toes." I looked at top disbelivingly.

"What do you mean she moves like me?"

Topf turned to me. "I mean she is light, in the literal terms, on her feet."

I looked at Katara. She had her blue eyes set on me. They were full of emotion and I knew what she was silently thinking. She didn't want my hopes to get up, only to have them come crashing back to the ground.

"Maybe we should check it out…," Sokka said. I looked over at him only to see him already walking.

"She's escaping!" Topf yelled.

That was all the motivation I needed. The second the words escaped Topf's mouth, I sprang into the trees. I heard the branches rustling and followed the noise. It was a chase.

"Hey!" I yelled, "Come back!"

The girl had jumped from each tree with amazing precision. I wasn't able to see her; just where she was. Whoever she was, she moved fast.

"Please come back!"

I was losing whoever it was. With a newfound adrenaline rush, I pushed forward at the direction she was heading. A huge gust of wind propelled me into the trees before I hit something. I knew I had collided with the stranger.

"Oof!" we both said before falling into a clearing.

I grabbed her body with one arm and held her tightly before shooting a gust of air towards the ground. Landing us safely, I let her go. She backflipped five feet away from me. It was the first time I got a good look the girl who stood in a defensive stance away from me. I was shocked when I saw the arrow on her forhead. The blue tattoo was almost covered by blonde hair, but I could tell. She wore a monks robe from a temple I didn't recognize. Standing up, I lowered my glider. She mirrored me.

"Where did you get your tattoos?" I winced at the defensive tone in my voice, but I was angry. No one but a religious airbender should be wearing those tattoos and markings. The girl glared at me and I could see the invisible lasers coming from her green eyes.

"I was tattooed when I turned 8. It's to show that I am a master of airbending." Her voice held a strong conviction to it, but I held my doubts. This could be a twisted firenation spy disguised as a nomad to trick me.

"All the temples were attacked a hundred years ago. There are not any nomads left. How could you possibly be a nomad?" I asked, irritated.

She smiled slightly, but held her glare. "I could say the same thing for you"

I intensified my glare. "I'm the Avatar." The tension in the air thickened considerably. The girl waited a moment before laughing darkly. A laugh that you wouldn't expect from a thirteen-year-old girl. She, then, pointed her staff at me. "Like I haven't heard that before."

That was the only warning I got before she shot me with a gust of wind. I was so shocked that I didn't even move. In turn, my body was sent flying into a trunk of a red wood.

"Are you going to lie to me again?"

I looked up and saw her pointing her staff at my throat. "You're an ai-airbender!" I stuttered. She pulled her staff up and placed her hands on her hips.

"So?"

I looked at her in shock. "I thought they were extinct." I bended myself up and landed on my feet. The blond girl turned around and sighed, "They might as well be."

I walked up to her and frowned, "There are still airbenders left?"

She shook her head and sat down. I followed in suit.

"No, I thought it was just me until you came along." We both sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes. Many questions plagued my mind.

Why was she alive?

What temple did she come from?

Where did she learn airbending?

"Why did you run?" She glanced at me, imploring my mind with her gaze. I felt myself shrink a little.

"Because that little child attacked me, and then you chased me. I assumed you were trying to kill me."

I looked at her and suddenly noticed that her monks robe was stained a dark color. Quickly, I looked at my arm that held her before and saw it too was slightly stained. I looked at her in alarm. "You're bleeding!" I shouted.

The stranger looked at me before automatically touching her side. I saw her wince and stand up, but she stumbled down. I put my hands out to support her.

"I am so sorry!" I felt horrible. She must have gotten that while I was chasing her.

"Don't be, "se said lightly, "it's just a wound that reopened."

I didn't falter. "Please, come with me. My friend can heal you. She's a waterbender."

My gray eyes bore into her green ones. I saw her hesitation before she nodded. I didn't hesitate to fly up and head towards the Western Temple. For the first time since the chase, I thought of the others. I just left them. Oops, I thought.

It only took a minute to get there. I landed and set her down. She laid down for a moment and kept her arm on her side. It was the first time I noticed the differences between her and mine outfits. The top was the same, but instead of capri's, she wore an orange skirt with yellow ankle length leggings. Her entire body was covered but her head and hands.

I looked over at the trees as Zuko, Topf, Katara, and Sooka came out. They all looked from me to the airbender beside me.

"Uh, hey guys," I mumbled, suddenly feeling really bad that I left them. It must have been at least and hour since I left.

"Aang!" Katara shouted. "Where were you?"

I frowned and pointed towards the blond girl. "Questions later. She needs help, Katara."

Katara's blue eyes left mine and flew to the creature on the ground. "Oh no!" I heard her whisper. She ran over to the girl and yelled at Zuko and Sokka to het her water and rags. The blond airbender widened her eyes as Katara tried to pull her shirt up. She quickly tugged her shirt back down.

"Hey, I need to have contact with the wound to heal it." Katara's voice sounded soft, yet demanding. The blond girl looked between me, Katara and Topf, who was still standing by the trees.

"Umm, I would rather not have an audience." She looked at me before looking Katara in the eyes. Katara nodded and helped her up.

"Aang, help me get her to a room." I nodded and led them towards a room that I once stayed in myself. I looked back and knew Topf was staring at us.

Katara shoved me and the others out, but had asked for more water. When I walked into the stone room, I immediately dropped the water. I stood, shocked, as Katara calmly bended the water from the ground.

The girl was barely awake it looked like, but her body made me was the burn the firenation. Her body was covered up and down with deeps scars and dark purple and blue bruises. On her stomach, there was a large gash in the shape of the firenation insignia. It was the one Katara was currently trying to heal. I fell to the ground on my knees and traced my hand over the scabs on her ankles. They were burns in a perfect circle around her ankle, meaning she was shackled and someone heated the shackles. On her thigh, it looked like someone had tried to carve her tattoos off. The tattoo looked bumpy and swirled in different ways.

I felt myself glow a little bit as my anger intensified. Katara watched me carefully and tried to calm me down. "Now Aang, she's healing. I know you're angry, but you need to calm down."

Katara's soothing words did nothing to sate my anger. My eyes stsared at the bleeding firenation insignia and my hands stayed in balled fists. I knew I was about to lose control, but I took a few calming breath's.

Still on my knees, I touched the healing burns and wished I had healing powers myself. Katara hugged me and went back to healing the mysterious airbender. I looked at her face. Her eyes were completely shut now, and I wondered who would torment a little girl.

It was dawn the next day when the girl walked outside. Everyone had been eating in a tense silence around the fire. We all looked at her before Katara quickly stood up and walked towards her.

"You shouldn't be standing right now. Your wounds had not healed all the way," Katara chided. The girl looked at Katara and then shifted her gaze towards me.

"What's your name monk?" Her green eyes held no anger and her voice was light. She seemed to feel better.

"Aang, I'm Aang." My voice sounded raspy since it was the first time I had talked since last night.

"Well, I am Maila." She looked around at everyone until she made eye contact with Zuko. Katara and I both winced at what we expected to be a yelling match. But, all Maila did was smile sadly. "You were once the firelords son, weren't you?"

It was said more like a statement, but Zuko gave her a curt nod. They locked eyes for a moment and I saw Zuko search her body. Maila was still in her wraps from last night. Every scar was still showing. Katara had healed the burns on her ankles and wrists, but she could not save the burn on her side. Even though the burn itself was gone, a nasty red scar was in it's place. Maila was forever branded by the firenation.

Zuko stared at the scar and widened a fraction. "You were a delta prisoner."

His voice was softer than I ever heard. Immediately, I felt my senses stand on edge. Topf walked over to Maila and silently asked permission to trace her body. Maila brought Topf's hand and placed it on the scar. Topf gasped.

"Zuko, what's a delta prisoner?" Katara asked.

"It's the most guarded and tortured prison that there is. Only a few people know about it, and those are the royal family and the guards who guard them." Zuko looked at Maila before starting again.

"They are secrets that the firelord keeps. Like, if he thought a King being alive would bring people hope, then he would 'kill' the king, but in reality, he puts them in the Delta Prison and tortures them until the king breaks. Since Maila is an airbender, they didn't want her to bring hope to the people. They also thought probably thought she knew where the Avatar was. They are ruthless."

Maila stared off as Topf walked back. Katara and I stared at her. Maila looked at us and sighed, "Story time is it?"