(A/N: Okay, chapter three is up. I guess I should introduce myself now. I'm Oblivious Princess and this is the result of watching a lot of ATLA with my cousin(I just got her hooked) and then having a marathon of Glee by myself. I have some things sbout it that I want to make clear.
1. This does not exactly follow the events of ATLA. Nor does it come after. You see, it comes before. Quinn is the Fire Avatar about two cycles before Roku. It was the closest i could get since we see an unnamed Fire Avatar in a flashback in The Avatar State. I'm sorry if I can't quite get my history correct but the characters from Avatar will appear sooner or later. I'm toying around with the idea of adding them in the prolouge when Quinn is dead. She could do a killer avatar State flipout for Aang, no?
2. There will be no Japanese names. Mostly becaus I don't really know a single one that hasn't already been used. I'm still contemplating what to do with the places I make up.
I couldn't really come up with more to explain right now(though I'm sure I've missed some things). I'll add more in later chapters. Happy reading!
I do not own Avatar or Glee.)
"Help!"
"Somebody help us!"
"She's going to kill us all!"
The first things Sabrina registered upon waking up were darkness and screaming accompanied by the sound of crashing and tearing of fabric. She shot up from her bed and looked around frantically for her robe. Wrapping it around herself, she looked out the window. People were running and the building next to her house was on fire.
Sabrina gasped and hurried down the stairs into the kitchen where her parents were. Her mother was looking out the window, hands over her mouth in horror and her father was packing things in a small bag. He looked relieved upon seeing her.
"Sabrina! Thank the Sun! Now come on! Cecile, we have to get out of here!"
They hurried out onto the main street, holding hands as to not lose eachother in the crowd, and ran as fast as they could away from the fire. Sabrina stumbled behind her father as she looked around at the chaos that engulfed them. Several more buildings were alight. She gave a scream that went unheard amongst the others as her foot got caught in a hole in the ground and her father's iron grip on her hand disappeared. She fell in a heap on the ground and instantly tried to shield herself from the onslaught of panicked people and animals that threatened to trample her under their feet. Not without a struggle, she managed to get up into a standing position again and started looking for her vanished parents.
"Mom!" She cried. Tears were welling up in her eyes now. "Dad!"
No answer except for the yelling and bustling of the crowd. She gasped as she was pushed into a wall and leaned against it as she tried to catch her breath and see were she was.
Then she saw her.
Just a shadow in the distance, this person was not running or screaming like any of the other people but merely walking slowly behind them. They didn't even flinch as a building collapsed behind them. Sabrina watched in horror as the person dug their foot into the ground, the hard earth crumbling as if it were mere sand, and stomped the other one. A rumbling was heard and the very earth beneath several citizens divided itself in a large crack that swallowed them up as easy as nothing. The person made a hard gesture with both hands and the crack sealed up again, trapping the people inside to die of suffocation beneath the very ground they had probably walked on for years. The person then repeated this on another group of people, further panicking the crowd who only screamed louder and ran faster.
Sabrina had watched this while completely rooted to the spot and had to muffle a scream as the person had advanced far enough so that there were only about twenty feet between them. Her eyes and the rest of her face were hidden by the hood of her cloak. Her figure had been what gave her away as female. Sabrina couldn't will herself to move as she took a low stance and thrust her hands towards the dissipating crowd.
A gust of wind, probably strong enough to blow several trees away, flew over them like a wave and people rose from the ground in a new flurry of screams. Another building crumbled close to Sabrina and she silently prayed for her own survival. She was still clutching at the wall and a decoration of a stone dragon had helped her keep in place against the wind. The onslaught only continued with another splitting of the ground, this one large enough to sink another building straight into the ground so far that the third story windows were low enough to enter it through.
Now this girl was just a few feet away from where Sabrina was standing and she wondered in panic how she could possibly have moved so fast from one place to another. She clenched her eyes shut in fear.
Only to open them a few seconds later when she got hoisted up from the ground by her robe collar.
"Hello." The person said in a tone that in any other situation would have been considered soothing. "Are you lost, little girl?"
Sabrina could not speak, only shake her head weakly. If it was to answer the question or deny that this was real, she couldn't really say right now. The girl grinned and it made Sabrina's blood run cold; there was such wicked pleasure in that smile.
"Oh don't worry. I'm sure we can find someone to take care of you." She chuckled and adjusted her grip, letting Sabrina sink to her knees on the ground. Sabrina crumbled like a sack of potatoes upon being lowered and fruitlessly tried to pry the hand from her collar, tears now streaming down her face.
"Please." She said weakly. "Please."
The woman smirked and now that she was on the ground Sabrina got a look at her eyes. What she saw was enough to get her panicking anew and she struggled even more. The woman raised her hand above her head, prepared to strike. Sabrina closed her eyes and braced herself.
Four hundred people fled the small town that night.
Fifty-seven people were confirmed dead two days after the incident.
Thirty-two were found injured and trapped in different types of spaces.
Some were never found.
Quinn woke up that morning with a smile on her face. Three days had passed since they left the air temple and this was the day that Artie had promised her a head start on her airbending training. That was why she dressed herself that morning, still with a small smile on her face. When she left the tent she was met by the sight of a roaring campfire(resurrected from last night) and three fishes being cooked on a stick above it. Mercedes was turning the spit in an even rhythm and Artie sat next to her gazing into the fire. They both looked up and smiled as she entered the scene.
"Good morning Quinn." Artie said politely and Quinn rewarded him with a wider smile.
"Morning."
"Someone seems to be in a good mood today." Mercedes grinned knowingly and Quinn scoffed before sitting down so that they formed a triangle around the fire. They smiled at each other and the three enjoyed their meal together, talking and laughing about any and everything. When they were done Artie and Quinn stood up at the same time, earning another grin from both. Artie gave a low waist bow.
"Shall we my lady?" He looked up and chuckled. She raised an eyebrow and laughed with him. Something about the prospect of being able to bend several elements thrilled her in a way she didn't believe would happen when she found out she was the Avatar. She nodded curtly, playing along with his charade and they started walking away together. Mercedes stood up and brushed off her travelling robes.
"Well, I'm off to go shopping then." She muttered to no one in particular and started walking in the opposite direction from Artie and Quinn. She did promise herself she would go to the nearest town and but some more food today before Artie revealed he could fish. Still, lady has got to do some shoppin'.
Quinn and Artie didn't go very far. There was an open field just a few yards from where they had set up camp, simply hidden by the trees and bushes of the forest. Once they were there, Artie immediately ran into the middle of the field, twirling and dancing to get to his destination. It looked so silly that Quinn couldn't help but laugh. She followed him at a somewhat slower pace and smiled when he fell onto hi back in the grass, grinning like a little kid.
"Sorry to interrupt the dance lesson but I thought I was supposed to learn airbending?" It really was more a joking question than a statement and Artie merely smiled at her.
"Well that, my dear lady, is exactly what I am showing you right now." He wiggled his arms and legs a little to illustrate his point. She raised a questioning eyebrow at him.
"What?" He popped up from the ground(definitely airbending there) and nodded sagely at her.
"As I said. Exactly what I am doing right now." Now she just looked confused. He rolled his eyes and elaborated.
"Air is the element of freedom and peace. You have to have a free mind. A good sense of humor and playfulness never hurt either." He winked at her. "You just have to get loose and be free to do this."
Now Quinn felt slightly hesitant. The royal palace never really left much time to be "free and loose" between her etiquette lessons and general education. The most free time she had, she spent reading books and studying. Then Artie started dancing around her in some strange mix of an Indian dance and an endless twirl.
"Come on princess, let loose a little!"
She hesitated but grabbed his hand when it was offered and the two began dancing again. It was awkward and stumbling at first but Quinn soon got the hang of it, dancing around with Artie in a mix of a waltz and a tango with a big smile on her face. She had never done something like this before and it was elating for her to say the least. They stopped and she yelped when he pulled her down on the grass. They lay on their backs and looked up in the sky, both still laughing lightly.
They stayed like that for a while until Artie sat up and grinned.
"Well, do you want to try now?" Quinn nodded and he held out a hand for her to take, helping her stand up and making her assume a light stance. It was unlike anything Quinn had ever learned as a firebender.
"Alright, just breathe and try to clear your head." Quinn did as she was told(though not without a mental groan at the "breathe" comment) and tried to make her head go completely blank. It proved very hard to do; her mind kept switching back to "oh my god did I just dance!" mode. Artie chuckled as she pouted and tried once more. Her inner eye stared at a proverbial wall of nothingness.
"There, now move your hands and arms like this and focus your positive energy." He stood beside her and moved his arms in a slow circular motion around each other. Quinn copied him and they settled into a rhythm. Suddenly Quinn felt it; a small draft between her hands, very tiny but at least she was doing it right.
She was airbending.
She almost lost focus when she realized she had done it but no, she had been raised to be more disciplined than that. The draft didn't grow much stronger but it was pleasant between her fingers. Artie smiled at the peaceful look on her face. They continued moving, two airbenders practicing their art in a natural dance of spiritual happiness.
Quinn and Artie walked along the road back to camp in a comfortable silence. Quinn still had a hard time processing what had just happened and it seemed Artie was happy to let her ponder it on her own.
Quinn smiled for the n-nth time that day. When she'd found out about being the Avatar, she'd freaked out. She screamed, cried and looked herself up in her room until Mercedes had convinced her to take up her responsibilities as a world saving spirit thing or whatever it was. At the time she didn't even think to imagine what it would be like to actually learn another type of bending. Airbending turned out to be lots of fun, she thought happily. Did that mean that earth and water would be as much fun? Well, probably not water. She had heard stories of how your opposite element would be a little harder for you than the others.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the boy beside her as he suddenly grabbed the sleeve of her robe and tugged. She gave him a questioning look and he gestured a little further up the road. She looked and saw a carriage, probably from a nearby village travelling through the forest. Two horses, one brown and the other black were pulling it and in the front sat a small crooked man. That was basically the only way she could describe him. He sat like someone had broken his back over and over again and let it heal together at odd angles. He gave them a strange look as he passed them. Quinn gave him a polite smile back(as she had been raised) and Artie gave a happy wave back at him. As the carriage passed Quinn saw a glimpse of a pair of blue eyes before someone pulled the curtain closed and the carriage was behind them. They continued to walk back to camp, not even giving it a second thought.
The Fire Nation is a mighty nation and elements be damned if it is nothing but organized. The sophisticated system of economics, communication and political intelligence is nothing to scoff at if you have any sense of appreciation(or survival) whatsoever. The people are happy and rich and the ruling royal family is firm and precise. So why, if something strange happens in any of all the locations of the land, should the royal palace not be informed of the incident? Why no reason at all! That is why, on one dull summer day that a messenger hawk bearing a very important message landed in the window of the tower affectionately known as the 'birds nest' among the palace residents. Inside sat an assortment of birds, some screeching aloud, some picking at birdseed on the floor and in food bowls and some even sleeping perched on twigs that had been nailed to the walls. A man sat on a chair by the window, fast asleep with his hat drawn down over his eyes. The bird gave him an expectant look for a little while. When it became clear that the man wasn't waking up the bird started picking impatiently at his hat and shoulder. The man jerked and almost fell out of his chair before hastily standing up and noticing the bird in the window. He gave a mighty sigh and muttered a curse under his breath before he reached out to take the message in the canister on the hawk's back. It was surrendered without a struggle and he unfolded it, fixing the paper with unamused eyes. They changed from unamused to confused to intrigued to outright horror in five seconds flat as he read and he stumbled over several birds as he ran to the bottom of the tower. He almost fell over a thoroughly shocked stable boy as he crossed the grounds on his way to the main building.
Sitting by the main gate was a very much bored royal guard. He sat leaning against the wall of the building and watched boredly as his colleague on the other side of the gate made a show of picking his teeth with the long spear they both had as standard guard equipment. Both remained seated as the man from 'the nest' came running only to double over in a panting mess before them. One blinked. The other sighed tiredly.
"Hey Barry. What's up?" The younger of the two tried to sound cheerful but he was just so very bored. 'Barry' gave him a decent glare as he stood up and brushed off his clothes.
"I have a message from the eastern regions. It arrived just now with a black ribbon tied to it. Some kind of disaster has happened in one of the smaller towns."
This got the guards attention, though still not enough to actually rouse anyone from their comfortable positions. The older of the two reached for the message and unfolded it to read. He got through the second row before the letters blurred together before his tired eyes and he folded it again, tossing it to his friend.
"Take care of it, will ya?" The other one said nothing as he caught the letter in one hand and made a show of standing up before entering the palace main building. Satisfied that his job was done, Barry went back to the Bird's nest. He had some sleep he needed to catch up on.
Through a number of exchanges varying from similar to this one to completely serious, the message finally made it to the throne room. Fire Lord Fabray sat straight up in his throne and watched with a stoic expression as the messenger(a boy about sixteen whose father had contacts) stumbled into the room and hurried to deliver the message to his ruler. As he read the date of writing(yesterday at this time) and thought about how this would have been much slower(although less comical) in the Earth Kingdom he couldn't help but feel a little bit proud.
Yes, they were indeed an organized nation.
