Chapter one: Separated
Zuko sat in his throne in the Fire Nation palace. It had been five years since he had become Fire lord. Everyone had gone their different ways. Toph went to Omashu to help Bumi rebuild the city. Sokka, Suki, Ty Lee, and the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors had gone back to Kyoshi. Katara went to the Northern Water tribe, for reasons he didn't know. And Aang didn't tell him where he went. Zuko supposed that it was "official Avatar business."
Zuko stood up and walked out of the royal throne room. His formal Fire Lord gown swayed in the breeze as he stepped. Zuko stepped out of the palace, to find everyone staring at him in amazement, and a few seconds later bow to him. He grinned. He didn't need this kind of attention; after all he is just like them.
As he stepped up to the prison, the guards gave a quick bow and stood back in their stance. This prison had grown too familiar to him in the past six years. Three of his family members had been locked up in here. His uncle Iroh (who he thought was more than a father to him) was here six years ago. His dad and sister now locked up too.
He inhaled as he approached the door that led to his father. He opened the door and looked into the face of his father. He looked horrible, but he deserved it. He walked up to his cell, and looked him dead in the eyes.
"You didn't answer me before, now tell me…" Zuko started his voice serious. "Where is my mother?!"
There was a long silence. Zuko would wait all day if he had too. He needed to know where his mother was.
"I-don't-know," Ozai said.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Toph earth bent a chair to rest in. She didn't know rebuilding a city would be this hard, let alone take this long.
"You know Bumi; if I knew rebuilding was going to be this hard I would have never come with you."
"Ah, very funny young Toph," Bumi said back.
Toph sat, rubbing her feet. Too much work for one to her. She wondered what Sokka was up to. They hadn't talked in over two years, when he left her to go with Suki on Kyoshi Island. She had never felt so alone in her life. Katara, oh how much Toph missed arguing with
her. She hadn't seen Katara in three months. And Aang, the first person to save her from her misery back in Gaoling. She missed the good old days with the gang. The days that seemed to be out of everyone's mind now.
"Toph, come on five more houses to rebuild, and we are done for today!" Bumi yelled to her.
She sighed and walked over to Bumi to help rebuild the city that is Omashu.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Suki?" Sokka asked aloud. "Suki?" He continued.
He still couldn't find her. Where can she be? It's not like Kyoshi Island is huge. Sokka thought to himself. That didn't matter right now. There were more important things right now. One of them being the rumbling in his stomach.
He walked over to where he could buy some fish and vegetables.
"Hey Sokka!" A preppy voice said when Sokka was paying a merchant. He turned around to face Ty Lee, smiling like usual, but not as perky as she usually.
"Hey Ty Lee," Sokka said. Sokka and Ty Lee had grown a friendship in the two years that he was on Kyoshi. He still didn't completely trust her though. She was Azula's best friends, and ally at one point, and she could turn on him at any point. But none of that mattered at the moment; she might know where Suki was. "So um, what's up?" Sokka asked, scratching the back of his head.
"About that…walk with me Sokka," Ty Lee demanded. She did a semi flip and started walking on her hands. Sokka followed. They reached a place in the forest not that far from the mainland.
They were sitting on rocks, facing each other. "Now tell me, Where is Suki?!" Sokka asked outraged. "What did you do, steal her, put her in a box, and send her off to Azula?!" Sokka yelled, now standing over Ty Lee.
"I didn't do anything Sokka!" Ty Lee stated. "All of the warriors were asleep one night, and when we woke up in the morning she was gone."
"You lie, I know you had something to do with it! You and that scary no emotion girl!" Sokka yelled as he walked back to the mainland. "Wait!" Sokka yelled to a man getting ready to leave on a ship.
"Yes?" The man asked, sounding a bit annoyed.
"Do you think you can give me a ride to Omashu?"
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Katara bent down low to the water. She let the Koalaotter in her arms swim free in the water. That was all she ever did up at the North Pole. She lived with Gran Gran, and Pakku. They were nice, but nothing exciting ever happened up here. Nothing like the times when she was with…Aang.
No, she couldn't think about him. How much he hurt her. She had a job to do. There were people and animals that needed to be healed. That is why she was here.
She walked back to the building she called her work place. There were two other healers working to help people get healed. No one needed their healing at the moment.
"Hey guys, I am going to leave early," Katara said.
Her co-workers nodded as she walked out of the room. She walked to her house, she needed to confront with her grandmother. She saw her house, a few blocks away. It wasn't a huge ice mansion, and it wasn't a small igloo either. She walked in, and put on an extra parka. It was always colder in her house.
"Gran Gran, can I talk to you?" Katara asked her voice soft.
"Yes, my darling what is it?" Gran Gran replied. She motioned for Katara to sit down on a pillow so they could talk face to face.
"Well there is this boy. I really liked him, but he ditched me, and forgot my existence. And there is this other boy I like, but he might be too busy for me. What do I do?" Katara asked, sounding like she was 14 again.
"Katara, listen to your heart. Which do you like more? Whoever that is go find him and tell him, that is all I can tell you," Gran Gran said.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Aang sat down at the foot of the waterfall. Rebuilding a air temple by yourself was hard work. It had been over a year since he started rebuilding the Western Air Temple and he was just now finished.
That fight that they had here with Azula five years ago, had done a lot more damage than he could ever imagined.
He fell asleep, tired of all the work he had accomplished. He dreamt about Katara, and how he must have hurt her. He didn't want to leave her, but he had to. He had Avatar business to do. He needed to not dream of her anymore, like he did every day.
He woke up. He heard movement. He wasn't moving, and it wasn't Appa –it was too quiet for Appa.-
"Hello?" Aang asked aloud. He closed his eyes, and felt the vibrations with his feet. It was a person, he knew that much. He knew where the person was, and he went after them. Every time he would come closer, they would move. Aang stopped. "I'm not here to hurt you! I am here to help."
"And my people appreciate it," the person said.
Aang turned around. They person was right behind him. What did she mean by 'my people'? Aang thought to himself.
"Who are you?" Aang asked. He looked at the girl. Her hair was a light brown, and pulled into a messy ponytail. She looked his age, but Aang wasn't sure.
"My name is Niu. And I am an air bender," she said.
Aang's moth dropped open. So he wasn't the last air bender. "So, you can air bend?" Aang asked, not able to think of a better question.
"No…My family could air bend. My family moved out of the Western Air Temple before the Fire Nation attacked. We moved to Ba Sing Se, and that was where I was born. Naturally I could Air bend, my dad told me not to, so that our family could be safe. Then, over time, I just completely forgot how to air bend," Niu said. Aang stared at her, even more mesmerized.
End of Chapter One!
