I do not own Avatar.

Legends

II. Water

"Once, long, long, long ago, there was a time when the girls of the Northern Water Tribe weren't allowed to do any bending."

The youngest girl in the group, who was just beginning her Waterbending training, looked indignant. "And why not?"

"Hush, girl, and let me tell the story," said the sifu, sending her a look. She crossed her arms with a huff, but said no more.

"Now, the sifu back then was Master Pakku. He, like the rest of the tribe elders, believed that a woman's place was with her family, not fighting. As a result, the girls were only taught how to use their bending for healing."

A couple of boys smirked at this, which earned them each a whack to the back of the head from the nearest girl.

"Then a young Waterbender named Katara came to the North Pole with the Avatar. Master Pakku agreed to teach the Avatar Waterbending, but when Katara wanted to learn along with him, the Master turned her down and sent her to learn healing with the young ones."

Sympathetic groans came now, even from the boys. They knew how embarrassed they would be in her position.

"As you can imagine, Katara was not too happy about that. She was a strong-willed girl and didn't give up easily. The very next day, she marched down and challenged him to a Waterbending duel."

Everyone in the crowd gasped. A novice Waterbender challenging a Master? It was unthinkable! The poor girl would get creamed.

"As you might imagine, she was defeated. Soundly. However, her determination so impressed Master Pakku that he agreed to teach her. After that, and the battle with the Fire Nation that came within the week, the people began realizing that the girls and women might be able to help fight. Of course, centuries of beliefs don't just change overnight. It was decades before the women could go to battle with the men, and even longer than that for them to fight side by side. But eventually things evened out, and women are now viewed as equal to men."

Every girl there had a satisfied grin on her face. A few of the older boys were disgruntled, but the rest of them merely looked slightly sheepish.

One of the girls, who was about fourteen, spoke up. " Sifu, why did they think that girls weren't as good as boys?"

"Almost since the beginning of time, it had been that way in the Water Tribes. There are those who say that the great Moon Spirit created us that way, and to do as we are doing now is to defy the Great One. Others, such as myself, believe that we can all learn to do anything we wish, no matter what age or gender."

Suddenly the instructor clapped her hands sharply. "Okay, enough storytelling. Defense position!"

The students jumped up quickly and stood in the beginning stance. As their teacher led them through the drills, she smiled a small triumphant smile. The story of Katara would continue to remind girls how lucky they had it.

The End

A/N: Well, there was the second part. Any discrepancies between this story and the actual episode may be credited to the passing of time, or possibly to the fact that I haven't seen said episode in a while. Anyway, I hope you like it!

Reviews welcome and concrit greatly appreciated!

Numbuh 212