Disclaimer: Yep yep... 2 guys own this... I'm female.

Renin: So... I did this... Ari doens't really know anything about Avatar. Hehe... yeah. If enough people want more, I'll probably write another chapter... if not... I'll write another chapter... But I'll write it faster if enough people ask for it. :D Haha. I'll make you guys work for it. So, let's begin...

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Many years have passed since the great battle between Avatar Aang, and Fire Lord Ozai. 256 years have passed since his death, as well as a Waterbendering avatar and an Earthbending avatar. The newest Avatar is the first Firebending avatar in over 300 years. Many prejudices against the Fire Nation are still around, even hundreds or years after the war. So the newest avatar is not welcomed among the Earth, Air (which Avatar Aang helped rebuild), and Water nations any longer. So, as to keep the avatar safe from harm, she was hidden away in the Fire Nations Avatar Temple. For 16 years the female avatar grew up in secrecy, training and honing her firebending skills. She spent her days training and her nights, reading, staying as optimistic as possible, hoping one day the Temple would open its doors for her to explore. It wasn't that she hated the Elders for keeping her away from the outside world, but it was that she dreamed of more, and wondered day in and day out, why she was kept at the Temple. But on her 16th birthday, it was revealed to her, the secret that her country had not told her till that day. The reason she was kept away from a normal life. All because of her past lives she had to study firebending till she knew it inside and out. So, it was at that time, the Elders of the Temple told her it was time for her to go on a journey to master the other skills. She was shocked, but she had always knew she had grown up in secrecy, as if a precious jewel the Fire Nation was trying to keep clean. She threw her clothes, some spare money from the Elders, and a bit of food, into a bag, and left. Three days after she had left the Temple, the news of the avatar spread across the land, and so began the journey of Dakotta We Lin, the Firebending Warrioress.

"I'm telling you! I never touched your stupid stuff!" A young girl, with long black hair, and bold blue eyes argued angrily with an old shopkeeper, who bore an angry scowl on his face. She was pretty but looked about 2 or 3 years younger than she actually was. Still having a baby face, she was often mistaken for a little kid, which had never sat well with her. She had a black jacket over a red shirt, and had black knee high pants, with red and black, striped, stockings covered by black boots. On her left cheek, shoulders, ankles, and on the middle of her back were tattoo's of what looked like flames. They were well drawn, and only worn by a master firebender, though many masters didn't care for them, unlike the air nomads who wore them proudly. She had never wanted them, but they were put on her as a baby so she had, had no choice. So to cover them up, she wore 3 band aids on her cheek, and covered up the ones on her body by wearing long sleeved clothing and boots.

"I saw it! You walked right by and threw one of my cabbages into your bag there!" The man shouted, pointing at the bag that hung off her right shoulder.

"How dare you! Accusing me of stealing!" She argued back, opening her bag and showing him that there was no vegetable in it. The old man clenched his teeth, unable to say anything in response to her proof.

"Grrr…" The man growled as he sat back down upon his stool. "Fine! Get, shoo!" He growled, lowering his head and waving his hand in the direction of the street. It was the local cultural festival and Dakotta was trying to enjoy herself as best she could. She loved watching the fireworks, the performances, and the festive masks her nation's people wore. She looked over a rack that was littered with different colored and designed masks. She was about to choose one with a sad expression when a voice caught her attention.

"You don't want that one." Someone behind her said. Tall arms reached over her head, picking up a white and red colored mask with a smile on it, and placing it into her hands. "And next time, you should be more careful when stealing from the cabbage man." The voice said next to her left ear, in a low tone that made her shiver. She spun around to see who had spoken to her, but no one was standing there. She blinked a couple times before sighing, not bothering to question who had just talked to her.

"Weird people…" Dakotta muttered as she paid for the red and white mask, slipping it over her face. After that she watched some street performers eat fire, twirl fire, and throw fire around. "Pfft." Dakotta laughed as she watched the self proclaimed professionals toss around bits of the element in fancy formations. One of the fire twirlers noticed her laughing at his performance and scowled.

"You think you can do better kid?!" He yelled, annoyed by her laughing demeanor. She grinned, but decided to ignore him as she continued walking. The man, embarrassed by being brushed off by a teenager, reactively sent a large stream of fire directly at her. But just as it was about to hit, Dakotta stepped to the side, letting the stream of fire hit a brick wall that she was standing next to. Surrounding people looked from the young girl to the performer. Some chuckled at the man missing the girl; some shook their heads in disappointment at the older man. He just looked around at all the faces, and then looked back at the girl. Her stare was blank and expressionless, but with a determined look in her eye that told him she could crush him if she felt like it. Startled, he quickly grabbed his equipment and ran off the stage, as she just shrugged and kept walking. She decided she had, had enough of the festival, as she walked towards the woods quietly, humming a quiet song as she went. As she passed one of the last couple stalls she briefly overheard two old ladies gossiping.

"… I heard they ran away a month ago! I mean the avatar?! Don't they know their responsibility that they have to our country?" The short, older looking women said, loud enough for passing people to hear and shake there head in approval.

"I know exactly what you mean, Sarah! The nerve of kids these days! They should just have stayed with the elders of our Avatar temple and stuck to mastering the elements! At least then they'd be useful to us regular people." Replied the younger, taller women with curled grey hair.

"I remember the stories my grandparents used to tell me about the 'Great Avatar Aang' and 'Avatar Roku'! But this one goes and runs off without saying anything, and apparently no one knows what they look like, or even what gender they are, except the elders of the temple. And I heard they're not saying anything about it either. Kids like that should be taught a lesson." Dakotta stared at the ground as she continued walking, her teeth clenched.

'Idiots… Believing foolish rumors. I never ran away! They don't even know if I'm a girl or a guy.' Dakotta thought as she broke out into a quick walk, then a jog, until she found herself running into the sea of trees that looked out upon the town. After a few minutes of running she came across her campsite, she stumbled into her tent, her legs feeling weak as she collapsed onto her sleeping bag. "The people of this country… None of them have respect." She sighed and pushed herself to sit up. Slowly she crawled out of the tent towards the fire pit she had made a few days prior, near her tent. Snapping her fingers, sparks flew from her skin and lit the dry wood that sat in the middle. She sat up next to a nearby tree staring at the fire, thinking about how useless her life was up to that moment. It was around then that she remembered the cabbage that she had grabbed. Opening up her bag, she grabbed a piece of string that hung out the right side of her bag, which opened up revealing a secret pocket where a large, ripe, cabbage sat. She smiled as she reached into her bag, grabbing her knife and beginning to cut up the pieces. After heating up the pieces of lettuce with her finger tips she sighed. "These steamed vegetables are really starting to get to me. One day it's a carrot, the next a potato, and now a cabbage. I need real food." She muttered as she popped open her mouth to chew on another piece of cabbage leaf. She was halfway through the vegetable when she felt something weird with her stomach. "Ah…" She moaned out as she doubled over in pain. "… I-I knew I… should of caught f-fish or some… something." She murmured out as she curled herself up into a ball. "I guess I am pretty useless after all. Those old women where right. I can't do anything with out someone's help… so hungry…" Dakotta could feel her head start to go blank and her vision began to go blurry. But just as she was about to black out, she saw a pair of shoes approaches her from out of the woods.

When Dakotta awoke the next morning, she found herself, lying on a warm bed, with sunlight filtering through a nearby window. She rubbed her eyes and was about to question where she was, until she caught the scent of something delicious. She looked down to her left and saw a bowl of oatmeal, and a glass of some sort of blue liquid. She didn't hesitate, grabbing the bowl and shoveling it down hungrily, then chugging the blue drink, which didn't taste to bad. She sighed as she set the dishes back down on the table and fell back against the pillow. She blinked a few times, and it was then that she realized she didn't know where she was. She threw the blanket off her body, and pushed herself off the bed. But Dakottas' legs where still asleep and she found herself falling. But before hitting the ground, a young man dressed in green clothing grabbed her into his arms, setting her back onto the bed. Dakotta put right hand on her head as she rubbed it dizzily. She opened her eyes, to find herself staring right into two large green eyes covered in thick red hair, accompanied by a small grin. The guy who had caught her looked to be about 1 or 2 years older than her, and was quite handsome. She blushed as she jumped back, slamming her head into the wall behind her, which made her even more tired.

"Ah! Don't do that!" He said, as he put his hand on her head to make sure there weren't any bumps. She sat in a daze, wondering what the elders of the Avatar Temple would think of her if they saw her at that moment. The young, red haired man was quite handsome, which made Dakotta have to pinch herself on the leg to stop blushing. He was dressed in a rare style of Earth Nation clothing. Light green shirt and pants with a creamy gold jacket and shoes. Regular Earthbenders didn't wear gold on their outfits unless they came from the middle of the Earth Kingdom nation. After making sure she was okay that he grabbed a chair, twisting it around so that he could rest his arms on the back and talk to her. "I was surprised… seeing a kid like you out in the woods by yourself. You got food poisoning from that cabbage you stole. After a few people ate them, the man realized they were bad and closed up shop. So, as I was saying, what is a girl like you, doing on in the woods alone, at your age?" He asked as he tapped his toes on the ground, in a somewhat fatherly manner. She looked up at him with narrow eyes before realizing what he had asked.

"You were the weird mask guy?" She muttered, rubbing her head and yawning. "And what does my business have anything to do with a guy like you. I was perfectly fine by myself." She stated as she crossed her arms sorely. He found it amusing that she was embarrassed from fainting from hunger.

"The names Ezeric. Ezeric Buu Mii." He replied, holding out his hand waiting for her to grasp his. "Earthbending, traveler, extraordinaire." She blinked a couple times before reaching out to shake his hand.

"You must think pretty highly of yourself to say extraordinaire. Names Dakotta. Just Dakotta." He grinned as they pulled their hands back.

"So, you didn't answer my question. What's a wee little thing like you doing out here in the big scary woods?"

"I'm not 'a we little thing'… Your probably only 1 or 2 years older, if that much." She remarked stubbornly, a tad angry at being called little. He raised his eyebrows in interest.

"What? You don't look a day over 13." She clenched her fists. She had always been called small by the Elders of the temple, and it had always made her a bit angry, but since they were old she let them off the hook. But to be told by a guy about her age…

"FOR YOUR INFORMATION, I'M 16 YEARS OLD!" She snapped angrily pointing a finger at him but quickly drew it away before he could see that smoke was rising off the tip. He threw his hands back in the air, a bit surprised, realizing it was a touchy subject to her.

"Okay, okay! Sorry! Then you are only a year younger than me." She grumbled angrily as she settled back on the bed. She suddenly felt bad at yelling knowing it wasn't his fault.

"…S…. sor… sorry..." she mumbled quietly, but just enough for him to hear. He hid a small grin before ruffling her hair.

"S'okay squirt!" Her face grew red, partly from anger, and the other from the embarrassment of having a cute guy, only a year older than her, treat her like a child. Just as she was about to snap at him again, a huge explosion, followed by a lot of smoke, erupted from the doorway of the room, making the two teen jump. Ezeric fell off his chair backwards and Dakotta slammed her head against the wall for the second time in surprise.

'I'm gonna have a concussion by the days end…' she thought to herself as she opened her eyes and rubbed the back of her head, looking around the room. She glanced down noticing Ezeric pick himself up off the ground and wipe some of the smoke that had got on his clothes from the explosion.

"Jodeell! What in the name of Earthbending, are you doing?!" The red head yelled out angrily as he waved his arms around trying to clear the smoke from the room and opening a few windows. A young boy that looked about 12, with thick, messy blonde hair covered in patches of ash and smoke, came stumbling into the room, opening a window as he did so.

"Sorry Ezeric. I accidently mixed the sulfuric acids with the titanndum crystal extract… the components didn't like that…" He said with a cheesy grin and half a chuckle, not sure if he should laugh and shake it off, or apologize profusely to his friend. Ezeric just sighed and rubbed his head to think.

"Save what you can of our supplies and pack up. We should get moving again, before the owners get back." With that he went over to the dresser by her bed and began pulling out a small amount of clothes stuffing them into a nearby bag. The boy who appeared to be Jodeell, waved at Dakotta before bounding off back to wherever it was that he had been before. Dakotta sat on the bed, not really sure what to think, until she realized something that Ezeric had said before.

"Wait… You're an Earthbender?!" She said, trying to hold back the excitement in her voice, at finally finding someone who knew a bit about the element and could teach her. Ezeric who was expecting a bit more questioning about the fact that he had said, "… before the owners get back." Was taken off guard by this remark, but nodded at her anyways before returning back to his work.

"I'm not a full master yet, but I'm training." He replied as he stuffed a pair of green socks into his bag. "Jodeell is about 12 and we're traveling together. He's not a bender… more of a scientist, I suppose you could say; also, he makes great food." At the word 'food' he saw her eyes light up, causing him to look away or he'd burst out laughing.

"Will you teach me some Earthbending!" She asked as she leaned forward on the bed, watching him as he finished stuffing a pair of shoes into a second bag.

"Earthbending? But don't you live here, in the Fire Nation? I would think someone like you would want to learn their own countries bending arts.

"What do you mean by someone like me?" She asked looking at him suspiciously, as he stood up and stretched, brushing some dirt off his knees. "You don't know a thing about me." He looked over at her and raised his eyebrows with a smirk on his face.

"My, my. The little mouse has some attitude." Was all he said as he walked over and ruffled her hair playfully. She hit his hands away, and he just chuckled as he picked up the two bags, throwing one over to her. "C'mon. Your stuffs out in the kitchen. Tent, and all." She pushed herself up, off the bed and followed him out the door. They were now walking down a narrow hallway, with a bathroom on her right and straight ahead a kitchen could be seen. From her surroundings, Dakotta guessed she was probably in an old cottage. "We found this place." Ezeric said, almost as if he had read her thoughts. "No one inside, but then we saw some pictures and realized people lived here, so we've been staying here since last fall, waiting for winter to pass, so that we could leave in the spring. You came just at the right time. We're heading out to the North Pole, because Jodeell's looking for some plant or something." He said as they walked into the kitchen, and set their stuff on the table.

"It's not just any old plant! The plant of life! Said to have mysterious healing powers as good as those gifted waterbenders you always hear about, who train to be healers." Jodeell interrupted as he set down a sack of food onto the table, and scratched his head in thought.

"Plant… I thought it was to cold up in the North for plants to grow?"

"Apparently not this one…"

"Plants can survive most anywhere, if they have the right conditions!" Jodeell explained as he counted all the bags on the table. 3 were filled with each of the traveler's clothes, a bag with leftover food, and the 5th bag contained Dakotta's extra stuff like her tent and sleeping bag. Five bags in total. "So Dakotta, you're coming with us, right?"

"Ah… To the North?..." She sat, thinking quietly to herself for a moment, the word 'Waterbending', running through her mind. Finally she clenched her fists under the table, sighing quietly, before looking up nodding. Ezeric noticed her strange behavior, Jodeell was rummaging through his bag of clothes, wondering why she had sighed, but figured it was better to leave it alone.

"So little mouse, know any bending?" Ezeric asked as he leaned set his elbows on the table, and rested his head in his hands, looking over at her from across the small, circular, table.

"Oh yeah. I know a little bit of firebending." She said as she held up her fingers to signify a small amount, using her other hand to cross her fingers behind her back. This was a major lie, that she would probably regret someday, but for the time being she wanted to keep her power a secret. The Elders of the Avatar Temple taught her the 4 rules of the avatar that she should try to live by, except in extreme emergencies. First, there was the secret of who she really was. In other words, she had to keep a low profile on the whole, Avatar, business. Second, keep the extent of your firebending powers limited. Make people think you're not as strong as you really are. People waste their whole lives trying to kill the avatar, so keeping your position, and power under wraps will keep you safe. Third, find masters, and make loyal friends. This rule is mostly pointing towards Avatar Aang and his adventures with his friends and masters. And finally, if someone is in need, help them. It's the avatars duty to help people in need, no matter what country they're from.

"That'll be useful! Now we don't have to waste hours trying to start a fire!" Jodeell said happily as he picked up his bag of clothes and the food.

"It only takes hours because someone insists on rubbing two sticks together… Brilliant genius."

"Hey! That was one time, and it worked!"

"Heh," Dakotta chuckled quietly as the two boys argued, Ezeric picking up his bag of clothes and her camping stuff. Dakotta tried to grab her gear away from him, but he just held it away, and tossed her own bag of clothes at her. The three stood up, and started for the door, the two boys still going at it. Dakotta hid a smile, shutting the door behind her. "Maybe… this won't be, to bad."

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Renin: Yeah... um... Thanks for reading? ;D All of you make me happy!!

Ari: Zzzzzz sleeping

Renin: -- Sleeping while I write all the stories... Typical Ari. :3