A/N: I do not own Avatar the Last Airbender
"Mommy, when is daddy coming home?" I ask in a little baby voice.
"Soon, Shen, very soon," my mother replies.
I am Shen Zhu, otherwise known as Shen. I am a four year old little boy, though I thought my parents would agree that I'm not a baby! I'm not three anymore! I'm one year older! I turned four last week on December 25th. Yes, Mom taught me time, dates, and numbers, though she only taught me how to count to 10. I have a 7 year old sister named Jing. She's a firebender, like me, though she's much better at it.
"Jin! Shen! I'm home!" Daddy calls from the other room.
"Daddy!" I run up and hug him.
"Oh! Shen! I missed you, too. Why don't you play with Jing. I have to talk to your mom alone," Daddy says.
"Oh, okay," I reply, running off.
Later that same night after everyone had gone to bed, I am abruptly awoken by a disturbing sound: screaming. I Jump out of bed and race off to the living room, where I heard the sound. The gruesome sight that meets my gaze nearly makes me throw up. My parents lay a few feet away from me with burn wounds all over their back and chest. Four men are standing a little bit away, their hands smoking.
My mom and dad apparently heard me come in, because they turn their heads toward me. "Run, Shen, Run my son!" My parents shout simultaneously.
"Mommy! Daddy! I Ahhhhh!" I shout as I feel a burning sensation twisting up my arm. The firebender struck me! I turn and run out the door. Two of them chase me. They don't see me, though, as I turn towards an abandoned alley. I hide behind a trash can as I weep silently. Not just from the pain in my arm, but because, at that moment, I know my parents are in the spirit world.