I do not own Avatar
Legends
I. Air
"Once, long, long, long ago, there was a time when there were no Airbenders left."
A small gasp from the audience interrupted her tale, and the old grandmother frowned at the young one.
"Sorry," he whispered meekly. "But were there really no Airbenders at all?"
"As far as anyone knew. The Fire Nation was trying to take over all the nations, and they knew that the only one who could stop them in their mad quest for power was the Avatar. The Air Nomads were the next nation in the Avatar Cycle, so the soldiers of the Fire Nation killed all of them."
Shocked cries and quiet sobs greeted this statement, but the grandmother held up a finger and continued.
"Or at least, that's what they thought. What they didn't know was that one small boy had run away from his temple with his flying bison, and so was spared from the massacre."
"The Avatar," breathed a girl, entranced by the tale.
"Yes, the Avatar. His name was Aang, and he was only twelve years old when he was found – frozen in an iceberg – by two teenagers of the Southern Water Tribe. Together with a young Earthbender, they went on to defeat the Fire Nation and save the world."
Every child stared at her, their eyes wide and their mouths open in amazement.
"Did that really happen, Grandmother?" asked the little girl.
"Of course it did," said the boy, pulling her pigtail.
As she slapped his hand away, another boy said, "My dad says that Avatar Aang didn't do anything like that. He says that the Fire Nation was just trying to keep the peace, when Avatar Aang came in and messed everything up."
"That's not true!" shouted the first boy, jumping up and pointing accusingly at the second boy. "Avatar Aang was a hero, and someday I want to be just like him!"
The two boys began scuffling, trading blows and insults energetically. The rest of the kids shrieked, and some of the other boys looked like they were about to join in, when the grandmother cleared her throat warningly. The young boys stepped away from each other and turned to face her. "Sorry, Grandmother," they said in unison, hanging their heads.
"All right, then, go and play," she said, making a shooing motion towards them. A breeze nudged the children gently, and they ran off, laughing – all except one.
"But is it really a true story, Grandmother?" asked the young girl persistently.
"Well," said the old woman, giving the retreating boys a stern look, "no one really knows. All we really know is that there was an Avatar Aang. There are some who say that the rest of it was just something that was made up over time. What do you think?"
The girl furrowed her brow in concentration, and the grandmother laughed. "Go and play with the others now, young one," she said gently.
The oldest woman of the Eastern Air Temple smiled softly as she watched the children running and shrieking with laughter. The story of Avatar Aang would give inspiration to another generation.
The End
A/N: So the idea behind this is that it's been so long since the events of Avatar that some people don't believe it happened. They've turned into something like King Arthur, or maybe even Hercules: just myths. There'll be four chapters, one for each nation (cause that's such an original idea, isn't it?) and the next one should be up in about a week or so.
Reviews welcome, and concrit greatly appreciated!
Numbuh 212