A strong wind blew through the temple as Jack packed up his belongings. This was it, today was the day he was going to leave. The wind surged through his white hair, which the monks had allowed him to grow out so that he wouldn't stick out so much outside. This of course was proved pointless, but nobody, even Jack, had expected his hair to grow in white. Although he had been brought up in the Eastern air temple, he was not a monk, and had never shown any sign of being able to air bend. The elders had found him as a young boy, freezing in a winter storm and unlikely to survive, but they had brought him back with them and somehow healed him. They had shaved off his then brown hair and brought him up as an air nomad. It was only recently that he discovered the truth, that he was an outsider. It should have been obvious, why else would he be the only non-bender there, why else would all the bison run away from him. He could remember the day when all the other children got to pick a bison, bond and make a friendship that lasts eternity. He scoffed at the memory, the bison he had approached had charged him down, one of the monks just managed to sweep him out of its path before he was crushed. To be fair, he had jumped on its back without warning, and he might have scared the herd the week before, but it was all just good fun. No one else seemed to realise that though, almost everything he did was frowned upon by the temple and its people. "You must find your centre", "clear your chakras", "try some more meditation", "maybe it would help to find your roots, where you came from Jack."

That had been Master Tai Long's idea, of course the monks were far too polite to just kick him out, instead he was being set on an 'adventure' to find his true self and inner peace. He laughed at the thought, before the reality of what lay ahead sank in. He had never left the air temple before, and the only knowledge he had of the other nations came from ancient scrolls caked in dust. The only information the monks could give him was that he was found not far outside walls of Ba Sing Sei, so that would be as good a place as any to try and find his supposed centre. With his tightly bound pack on his back, Jack walked out of the temple gates, not waiting for anyone to say farewell, no one would come to his departure, no one cared enough. To the other kids, the moment he proved he couldn't air bend, he was as good as invisible to them. To his surprise, a voice called after him, reaching him just before he entered the forest. "Jack!" cried the young girl, gasping as she ran to catch him. "Jack, must you go?" It was Emma. Of course it was, who else would care enough to see him off. The little girl with the big brown eyes that had stuck to him like glue after his arrival. He cared for her like a sister, but she could not come with him, no matter how much it pained them both to leave her behind.

"I'm afraid so." He chuckled as she hugged him tightly, "Or else the monks might throw me out of the tallest tower." At this Emma looked horrified, so he quickly added, "Don't worry, I'll be back, I just need some time is all." He tousled her hair before turning around and walking into the unknown. He wouldn't look back, couldn't, or else he would never be able to leave. The path was steep and rocks shifted dangerously beneath his bare feet. Glancing around he spotted a stick with a crook at the top, and picked it up, using it as a third leg on his way down the mountain.