"Mitsugi no Kaze"

A fanfic written by Marimato-kun

A/N: Although Sokka/Suki is my OTP, I will start by saying that Sokka has some relationship with Mikku, the girl in the story. Eh, big spoiler… Yeah, I hate OCs, but bear with me here. oo; BTW "Mitsugi no Kaze" means "Secrets of the Wind".

Chapter I: Arrival

"It has been over 100 years since the Fire Nation's attack. I search for the Avatar, but I know we will not cross paths. It is not our destiny. My destiny. I fear for him. Where is he? In the past half-year, he's been everywhere. I can't track him nor trace him. Hopefully Ninazar Island is his next destination… one can only hope…"

The young girl ducked under the boulder in front of her. She heard the footsteps of the troops outside her cave. One of them, tall with a gruff voice, spoke out. "Where is that blasted girl?" he asked the second man, walking with him. "She can't be far. We've got troops all over this area." Within a moment, they passed. She sighed and began to write again.

"It is with a heavy heart that I regret coming here. My quest to find the Avatar is coming to a close. The Fire Militia will catch me if I don't find him, though I am fearful he will be captured as well. Though he has been through worse, that is for certain…"

Several hours later…

"Aang, where are we?" complained a disgruntled Sokka. They had been traveling for over 6 hours, and Sokka had just woken up hungry. Aang, on the other hand, had been wide awake talking about something irrelevant, and Katara had been mildly interested. Surprisingly, they were all headed towards the Fire Nation. The late April sun was beginning to set, so they would land on the Isle of Sages when night broke (though it had broke some time ago). Not like there was any tension; Aang-tachi had traveled to the Fire Nation several times after the solstice, but this time they were going to look for Shaiyou and have him teach Aang Firebending. They had freed Shaiyou from Zhao's clutches awhile back, and he was now rebuilding the Fire Temple there. The Isle of Sages, too, had volcanic caves formed long ago, to replicate the old, though magma was at a minimal level.

"We're entering Fire Nation waters," said a confident Aang.

"How long until we get to Shaiyou's island?" asked Katara. She was obviously worried that they would not make it in time, due to the darkness growing on them. Several small atolls could be seen around them, but none with enough cover. "An hour," Aang started, "three or four tops."

"Aang, we'll never make it in time. We should stop and spend the night." Katara had obviously not thought about Sokka's fetish to Firebenders, as Sokka's head snapped backwards, glaring at Katara and Aang.

"Are you nuts? There are troops everywhere! We'll never make it through a night here alive!" Katara rolled her eyes. "We've survived before in worse situations. Don't worry, Sokka; Aang knows what he's doing… right?" Aang looked back at Katara and Sokka, and, with a confident and calm attitude, said, "Of course I do."

Silent drudgery, well… drudged on from there. Dusk was growing nearer, and as the mauve twilight shone in the sky, faint stars twinkled in the horizon. Clouds of gray were gathering upon them. Appa occasionally grunted from tiresome. Just as the sun set, Aang shouted, "Land ho!" seeing a small, but dense remote island in the lower distance. He pulled on Appa's reins. Appa grunted again, and then lowered himself gently, landing on the wet sand. Katara pulled an oil lamp out of her bag and lit it, sending illuminati onto the entire beach. Unbeknownst to them, Mikku saw the sudden flare and arose from her hiding place.

Katara led the group through the crowded, tropical forest, insisting they head inward incase a Fire troop scanned the shoreline of the island. Although Aang was somewhat saddened from the lack of adrenaline, Sokka felt lightened and more protected. They chose a campsite in a dry clearing, hidden from the skies by a large canopy of palms. Katara pulled some sleeping bags from her bag, while Aang and Sokka scoured the area for sticks. Momo picked up rocks to line the bonfire.

"Are you sure this is safe, Katara?" complained Sokka. "We're not that inland, and Fire-"

"Of course we are, Sokka. Now come on, let's go to sleep. We need to be at Shaiyou's island as soon as possible. Goodnight." And with a sigh, she lit the fire and crawled into her sleeping bag. They all fell asleep soon enough.

Mikku lurked in the darkness. Are you awake, Avatar?...

Footnotes:
1 tachi is Japanese for "group", "team", or "gang" in Japanese. An example would be Pokemon's Satoshi-tachi, or Ash's team (Ash and co.).
2 'illuminati' is a fancy way to say "light".
3 the group does have sleeping bags, as shown in "The Southern Air Temple".
4 I'm not sure how, but the group, once again, does light a fire, as shown in "The Southern Air Temple".

SPOILER:
Chapter 2 – Mikku confronts the Avatar, and we get to see Zuko.