Chapter 1
Why do I do this to others? Kelaya thought as she prepared to fight. She was a waterbender and some student wanted to challenge her abilities. With a few simple moves, she defeated this kid. It was always the same. Someone would think they could challenge her and she would always defeat them. She sighed and headed out of the training arena. She headed back up to her room on the top floor and plunked down on her bed. Then she sighed, stood up and went to the next room to shower.
After her shower, she went downstairs to dinner. Everyone else was gone, off with various boyfriends or girlfriends, so she was alone. After eating a few minutes in silence, she slammed her fist on the table in frustration. She hated being the only girl here. She hated that she was the only one without a boyfriend. She held her head in her hands and willed herself not to cry.

Nick ran through the forest, breathing hard. He had no time to stop and check if the monsters were still following him. He knew he just had to get out of there immediately. There was a painful stitch in his side, for he had run over three miles. He saw a clearing up ahead. If he could just push himself to there, he could rest. He entered the clearing and immediately felt an overwhelming calm come over him. He thought he saw a house, but he collapsed to the ground before he got to it. The last thing he remembered was trying to call for help but knowing it would never come and he would be eaten by the monsters.
When Nick awoke, he was lying in a comfortable bed.
He tried to sit up, but a voice said to him from somewhere off to the left, "Whoa, hold on there. You don't want to risk even more injury."
He was gently pushed back into the pillows and tried to look at the voice. Suddenly, a girl came into view. She looked about the same age as him. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her mouth was set in a slight grin. He looked up her face and almost gave a small gasp. Her eyes were emerald green. They made all her features stand out. She looked so beautiful, that he fell in love instantly. She fed him something. He took it willingly, and immediately Nick felt better all over. His vision looked clearer too. Now, he could see the girl clearly. She was beautiful. She wore no make-up, but seemed to be comfortable with herself. Nick tried to talk, but his tongue got caught in his throat.
"Rest now," the girl said, "you're safe here." Nick closed his eyes and fell asleep instantly.

Kelaya was still tending to this boy when he fell asleep. She could tell that he was asleep because his breathing slowed. He had scratch marks all over his body. When he opened his eyes, his eyes were electric blue. Inside her, something felt wrong. She could sense this kid was a bender, but she could tell he was not a waterbender. That's what made him so different. When his breathing slowed, she stopped feeding him ambrosia. She went to go get Jay, one of her closest friends and someone who could show this kid around. Then she left to go get the boy some nectar. When she came back, he had his eyes open again and she held the cup of nectar to his lips. When he drank, more color returned to his flushed cheeks. He looked up at Kelaya and a slight smile crept up his lips. She smiled back, but noticed Jay smirking next to her. She laughed, shook her head, got up, and walked out of the infirmary.
As she was doing her work, Kelaya's thoughts kept drifting to the boy. It was strange, how his eyes were blue, yet he wasn't a waterbender. It reminded her of her own self. She was a great waterbender, yet her eyes were undoubtedly emerald green. When people saw her, they thought of her as an earthbender. She proved them all wrong by bending water. She smiled at the memory and kept going on her work, not realizing a single tear had escaped.

Nick knew he felt better before the doctor cleared him. After introducing himself to Jay, the two boys started walking around the place. Nick realized the place was headquarters for a lot of kids, aged 10-19. He met countless boys and saw innumerable places. Finally, Jay took him to a room with a closed door. He opened the door, and Nick saw bunk beds and two of wardrobes, tables, and chairs. The bottom bunk was messy, but the top one was nice and clean. There were a few clothes strewn on the floor.
Then Jay said, "This is your room. You will share with me. What's mine is yours."
Nick was speechless, but mumbled a thanks anyways.
Then Jay said, "Oh, I almost forgot to show you one last place to meet one last person."
He led Nick up a small flight of stairs and turned left. Nick couldn't make out the designs on the closed door.
Jay knocked on the door and asked, "Can I come in? I want you to meet someone."
The person inside said, "Just a minute. I'll come out." The door opened and out stepped the girl that had fed Nick.
Jay said, "Kel, I want you to meet Nick. Nick, this is Kelaya. She's the one who nursed you back to health."
Kelaya stuck out her hand and said, "Nick, it's a nice to meet you when you're fully conscious."
She smiled, and he shook her hand. He loved the way her eyes sparkled when she smiled. Then, Kelaya looked at Jay and some kind of conversation must have passed between them.
She said to Nick, "Come with me. Let's go see what you can do." With that, she led the way downstairs.