Okay, sorry for the long time with no updates. Writer's Block. What can you do? However, I am pleased to post the new chapter for the story.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the recognizable Avatar characters.

Rowing through the sea proved to be exhausting, tedious work for the two men. They went in shifts when rowing, but there was little to do except row and sleep. Occasionally, one of them would try to make small talk, but it often failed dismally and resulted in more silence.

Despite that, the two Water Tribesmen were nothing but happy with their goals. The girl in their village needed at teacher, a waterbending master, and they were sailing to get one for her.

One early morning, sun just rising into the sky, everything changed. They had been sailing for weeks and they had watched the sea change. The waters moved from ice filled to barren of anything. Then, over that previous week, they began to notice boats in the distance. The air turned warm and the parkas that they donned were removed in favor of their lightweight underclothes. They had entered Earth Kingdom waters.

Through all that time, it still took a week for the two of them to reach the dock. They took particularly long because Hakoda insisted on checking his map repeatedly in order to confirm that he was at the correct dock. It wouldn't due for them to arrive at the dock and discover that it wasn't the one that they wanted to be at. They needed to be at Jiang-Wu dock in order to meet their informant.

Pulling into the dock, Bato assisted Hakoda in tying the boat to the dock. They both took much needed stretches in order to work out the kinks in their necks and the stiffness in their muscles.

"Bato," Hakoda said after a moment of basking in the reality of being on dry land. "The informant is this way." He pointed his finger in the opposite direction and they started off.

From a few feet behind him, Bato asked "What exactly is this informant going to give us?" The curiosity in his voice was muddled by suspicion.

"Well," Hakoda began, "hopefully he'll give us a way to get into the waterbender prisons to help us free them. If that fails, we'll just have to head up north." The last part he said with a shrug.

Walking along the harbor was exciting in and of itself. There were hundreds of people milling around the area. They were all from different parts of the Earth Kingdom, obviously, by their different features, skin tones, and clothing. There were a few Fire Nation soldiers scattered about, but not enough to be worrisome.

"In there," Hakoda said, nodding in the direction of an alleyway. Surreptitiously, they altered their course to head in the direction of the alley. When they arrived at its opening, they glanced around to be sure that there wasn't any Fire Nation soldiers. Then they slipped in.

The alley, despite the light of the day, was darkened by shadows. Hakoda treaded swiftly down the alley before stopping halfway through. He turned to face a door that, if it hadn't been pointed out to him, Bato would have surely missed. Hakoda knocked sharply on the door three times. A moment later, the door opened a crack and Bato could get a glimpse of a short, old man there.

"What do you want?" an old, crackly voice croaked.

Hakoda said, in a firm whisper "We've come for the information on the southern waterbenders." A moment of dead silence followed. Then…

The door creaked as it swung open. Before them stood an old man with disheveled grey hair. His eyes, one abnormally wide open and the other squinted tightly, stared at the two of them. His mouth was opened in a scowl to reveal yellowed teeth with several missing. He was wearing the usual attire of an Earth Kingdom peasant. However his were dirt ridden and wrinkled.

"You may come in." With a sharp flick of his hand, he motioned for them to follow him into his home.

The man led them to a dimly lit room, the only light source being a single dying candle. There was a hard wooden table in the center of the room. It was cluttered with papers and scrolls and maps. There was one chair which the man sat in.

Bato remembered what Hakoda had told him on their journey. He wasn't to ask the man's name. In this man's line of work, it was better for him to be unnamable.

Hakoda stood at the opposite side of the table from the man, Bato a few steps behind him. He looked down on the man before saying "We want to know of a way to free the captured waterbenders."

The man looked at him, his wide eye narrowing slightly. His scowl deepened. "I can't help you free the captured waterbenders."

"What?" Hakoda hissed. "When we last spoke you told me you knew of a way to free them!"

"No," The man shook his head. "I told you I knew of a way to help you. You had been talking about needing a waterbender. I can tell you how to get one."

This, of course, piqued Hakoda's interest and calmed his anger. "How?"

"Payment." He held out one old, wrinkled hand.

"Half," Hakoda said, withdrawing a bag from his pocket that clinked with coins. He emptied what he assumed to be half of the bag into the man's hand. "You get the other half when we get the information."

The slight grumbling from the man made it obvious how he felt about that, but he withdrew his now money filled hand and placed the money in a jar on the table.

"I can get you a waterbender."

Bato could practically feel Hakoda rolling his eyes. "You already told us that."

"I meant," the man was obviously annoyed, "That I can tell you where to find one."

The man launched into details. He told of which ferry they must board and what island they must get off on. He told them how to approach the waterbender and how to gain her trust. He also offered to give them the required supplies to get on the ferry and into the land, "For and enhanced fee," the man had said.

Hakoda placed more money in the hand. He then held up the bag and jingled it. "Twenty gold pieces after we receive the supplies and deem them satisfactory."

The man's eyes glowed lustfully at the mention of the money and he walked over to a trunk and pulled out a box. From the box, he pulled out two lard outfits that would surely fit them, but may be slightly loose.

"This box," he laid a small wooden box down on the table, "contains all that you will need. You will need to wear these. Now, fee." He held out his hand and Hakoda placed the bag into it.

Hakoda turned to Bato. "Help me get this." The two hastily changed into their new clothes before taking that box on the table and walking out.

They left their former clothes in the canoe before heading toward the ferry that would take them to their waterbender. Hakoda sifted through the box, taking one passport for himself and handing the other to Bato. With them, they boarded the ferry.

I know, it's evil. But I want it to be a surprise when I reveal who will teach Katara waterbending. I figure that it would make people come back for more. Some people will hate me for what I choose, but it's my story and I have final say.

Review!