Hey y'all, it's been a while since I last uploaded a story. I have no idea where this one came from...I just felt like writing it one day. So...there ya' go! Enjoy!

Pema had never been this scared in her life. She didn't understand how Republic City can become so frightening when only a bit ago it was so fun. She clutched the jar of sweets in her hand as if her life depended on it and her legs shook. She sucked in a big breath, gotta keep walking.

All she wanted were some candied lychees from that one store in the city. That morning she snuck out to the ferry with the adults when no one was looking and walked straight to the store through the same path she remembered her parents taking when they went grocery shopping. Her plan was carried out smoothly without a problem and the little jar of sweets was soon in her hands. She carefully picked a lychee out of the jar and popped it into her mouth, savoring the cool sweetness of the fruit on her tongue. After eating two more, Pema screwed the lid of the jar back on and decided to save the rest for later.

She planned on heading home, but as she looked around at the bustling streets and brilliant lights of the city, Pema realized that she was free to go anywhere she wanted. Normally her parents would never let her roam around when they were grocery shopping, now was her chance! And so, Pema followed her eyes and ears and wandered, drifting about the place like a cloud in a breezy day. She peeked into restaurants, stood to listen to some street musicians, and marveled at the blinking signs that were beginning to come to life as the sun went down.

It was then that Pema realized that she had no idea where she was. Pushing away the twinge of fear in her tummy, she convinced herself that she'd find her way soon enough. Maybe if she walked around a little more…That's right, maybe if she retraced her steps, she would find a familiar building! Pema started walking.

It didn't work; she didn't find anything or anyone familiar. She had no idea when it got so dark. She couldn't see the city lights. The buildings here were dark and everything was so scary. All of a sudden the city didn't seem so fascinating anymore and Pema desperately wanted to go home.

She could feel someone, or something, watching her. Suddenly, a dog barked from behind a wire fence making Pema scream. She scrambled away as the dog growled and clawed viciously at the fencing.

Pema ran as fast as her legs could carry her, the jar of candied lychees clutched to her chest where she could feel her heart pounding. In her haste, she tripped over a glass bottle she could have sworn was a few feet ahead and tumbled into a shallow puddle on the hard concrete. She didn't want to get up; she wanted her mommy and her daddy and her friends. Tears stung at her eyes. She didn't care about the jar of sweets anymore, which had slipped from her fingers and shattered into a hundred pieces. But I have to get up, she thought, or else I won't get home. She then proceeded to pick herself up off the ground and began retracing her steps again. She didn't run this time, in fear of falling again. Pema walked silently, her lower lip trembled but she refused to cry like the babies at the Air Temple.

Out of nowhere, as if the entire world was playing some cruel prank on her, someone grabbed her shoulder. She spun around to see a slouched man with a funny beard and half-lidded eyes, a translucent bottle held loosely in his hand. "Little girl," he said, "What're you doin' out here all alone?" Pema shied away from him, he sounded kind of nice, but something told her that he was dangerous. "Come play with us, we won't bite," he added, nudging her toward a group of men seated under a flickering light bulb attacked above a door. They were eating something, and after careful inspection Pema realized in horror that that were eating dog. Her eyes widened and the knot in her gut twisted."I-I have to go home," she managed to stutter before shuffling away as quickly as possible.

The man grabbed her arm and yanked her back, "Wait—"

"NO!"

As if on cue, Pema heard running and metal on metal, a fight.

"The cops are around!" The man yelled, "let's get outta here!"

He and his friends grabbed all their stuff and ran off in different directions. Without wondering why they would need to run, Pema sought refuge behind an old cart, right before a wall of fire blew through the very spot she stood at moments ago. From her hiding spot, Pema could see some people fighting in the alley. Some of them shot fire from their hands, and others could manipulate the ground and some metal cables; it was amazing and terrifying all at the same time for the little girl. Suddenly, a ball of fire almost caught her in the face and Pema was forced to hide completely behind the cart. She hugged her knees tight to her chest and buried her head in her arms, praying to the moon for the fight to be over. Luckily, the battle was soon terminated as the earth shook, and the alley quickly grew quiet once again.

Pema hoped the scary people would go away so that she could continue finding her way home. After a while, she moved to get up from behind the cart. Before she had any time to react, someone was suddenly towering over her. She screamed.

"Whoa there kiddo, we're not gonna hurt you," the person said as she crouched down to eye level with Pema , placing her hands firmly on her shoulders. "You're okay now." Her eyes were delicately green, sort of pretty, but something was weird about them, as if the woman couldn't really see her. She was dressed in a metal suit, which made her look intimidating, but not mom scary or bad guy scary; more like a really strong knight in battle armor. She had a friendly smile, and for a moment Pema felt safe; as if nothing in this world could harm her.

Tears started falling from the child's eyes, rolling down her cheeks as she realized it was okay to cry. "I want to go home!" she sobbed, suddenly lettinsg out all the fear and panic she felt from the last few hours. A warm hand on her head brought her back to the present and calmed her nerves. "Relax kid," the nice lady said jovially as she ruffled Pema's hair, "Lin! Why don't you take this pipsqueak home? I'll take it from here," she called out into the darkness. Immediately, another woman appeared beside her. "Lin" had the same green eyes as the other lady, but hers were more focused. She was much younger than the lady, maybe the same age as her babysitter. She eyed Pema carefully and then huffed, taking Pema's small hand in her own, "Fine, let's go."

Lin led little Pema through the dark roads as if she knew its every nook and cranny. In ten minutes, the lights of the city from earlier were visible. Pema was still sniffling. Her chaperone put a hand on her hand, almost in the same way as the woman from before, except a lot more cautiously, almost nervously. "Um…..there..there?" she said awkwardly as she patted the girl's hair gently. Pema could tell that this girl didn't deal with children that often, but at least she was trying, so Pema was going to be good for her and stop crying.

They walked in silence for a moment before Lin spoke, "Why were you out her all by yourself?" she asked idly.

"I wanted some candy…"Pema replied guiltily bowing her head. She was ashamed for sneaking out.

A knowing looked passed through Lin's eyes as she tugged onto Pema's hand and changed directions. The child cocked her head to the side in confusion, but followed anyway. A moment later, they arrived in front of the shop Pema was at that afternoon. "Wait here," Lin said curtly and disappeared behind the door flap. Pema wondered why she knew to go to this specific shop…

Lin reappeared shortly and pressed a small jar into Pema hand. She realized immediately that it was the jar of candied lychees that she bought in the afternoon. The little girl smiled broadly and quickly thanked Lin before opening the jar and excitedly popping a lychee into her mouth. From the corner of her eye, she could see that Lin had cracked a sympathetic smile.

When she got off the ferry, Lin took Pema straight inside where her parents and Avatar Aang were waiting. She rushed into her parents' arms and was enveloped in a warm hug. Pema glanced past her mother's shoulder to see Lin chatting amiably with the Avatar, so they know each other. As she waved goodbye to Lin, who was boarding the ferry again, Pema vaguely wondered with an inward giggle if she also knew her babysitter, Tenzin. Maybe they can date each other!

Huuuh? huuuuuuuuuuuh? So how about it?

The thing is that Tenzin and Lin are already dating here, Pema just didn't know that because she's five and her idea of dating is a little different. Another thing she didn't know is that she'd fall in love with Tenzin years later...

Comments for the poor please (^-^) Don't kill me if I did something wrong XD