"You have no idea where we're going, don't you?" Sokka asked, staring at the map cluelessly.

We were traveling on Appa for a few days now, landing to mainly go on pit stops. So far, the only thing I saw ahead of us was a calm ocean. I laid on my back, staring at the clear image while Katara continued to sew our brother's pants. Aang wanted to take us somewhere he knew had giant koi fish. Apparently, he was going to ride them.

"Well... I know it's near water," Aang answered.

I sighed, "We've been surrounded by water for a while."

"I guess we're getting close then," Sokka said dryly.

I ended up glancing over at my sister, who was currently poking a needle through Sokka's ripped pants. I wasn't that great at sewing, mostly because I never took the time to actually learn it. It's as if I couldn't stay in one place for too long. When I held a needle in my hand, my hand started to shake and I couldn't concentrate. Maybe it was too boring for me.

"Hey Katara!" Aang said, breaking the silence. "Check out this Airbending trick!" He reached into his pockets and cupped something small into his hands. Aang removed his hands from the grip, bending air between his palms to make two marbles spin around in a circular motion. I tried to smile, but his wide, toothy grin made it hard to be genuine.

"That's great, Aang," Katara said, absentmindedly. She concentrated on her sewing, not paying much attention.

"You didn't even look," Aang told her.

There was a pause before she continued, "That's great!"

"I'm not even doing it now," Aang said, dismayed.

"So... it's great that you didn't look?" I assumed.

She ignored my question and simply continued to poke the needle through Sokka's ripped pants. I knew Aang liked Katara ever since he saw her when she rescued him from the Iceberg. She always seemed to care for him; sure, I did, but he was more like a pal. That's why he was my best friend.

"Stop bugging her, airhead," Sokka said, nonchalantly. "You need to give girls their space when they do their sewing."

I shot him a glare as Katara furred her eyebrows menacingly. There was no way Sokka was going to get away with this. Just because he was the oldest male in our tribe, that didn't give him the right to talk about girls in such a sexist way.

"What does me being a girl have to do with sewing?" Katara questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Sokka laid his head against the saddle, the back of his head resting on his arms. When that cocky smile appeared, I knew he was gonna say something stupid. My instant reaction was to prevent him from opening his mouth.

"You know what happened the last time you made Katara mad?" I asked him, trying to ease the tension. "We ended up waking an Airbender, who happened to be the Avatar," I felt my cheeks burn as I realized what I was saying, "well, that's not really a bad thing." I finished awkwardly, my voice dying down as I tried to avoid the others' stares.

In these types of situations, I was the one trying to break the two off. Being a girl, it probably made sense that I'd be offended. Taking sides never worked when it came to arguing with those two, but I felt like I was clearly on my sister's side.

"I'm just saying," Sokka held his hands in defense, "Girls are better at fixing pants than guys, and guys are better at hunting and fighting and stuff like that."

"Says who?" I asked, noticing Katara's glare through the corner of my eye.

"It's just the natural order of things," he continued. "I'm sure you'll understand it soon enough."

I hated the way he shrugged and acted as if he was being completely innocent. Has he been ignoring all those times when I proved him wrong? I actually caught fish when he couldn't; I even caught animals when he couldn't! Was that enough proof for him? Hunting helped me prove to others that I wasn't weak. I was capable of doing something!

"If all guys are good hunters, then how come you sent a twelve year old girl to bring back meat when you failed?" I questioned.

"It was one time!" Sokka whined

"Seems like more than once to me," I said, folding my arms defensively.

"Besides, that doesn't prove anything," Sokka replied, brushing me off.

"I'm a girl!" I countered, "A twelve year old girl."

I pouted, scoffing at his cockiness. As much as I still loved Sokka, I wished he was a bit more realistic towards his "masculine" talents. When I looked at Katara, her furred eyebrows and frown obviously showed that she was mad.

"All done with your pants!" she said sarcastically, "And look what a great job I did!"

Katara tossed the pants at him. I couldn't help but smirk as the pants hit him in the face, completely covering it. He tried to free himself, scrambling after the legs that were dangling in the air.

"Wait, I was kidding," Sokka pleaded, "I can't wear those, and Kyra can barely sew! Katara, please!"

"Sokka, relax!" Aang said, enthusiastically. "Where we're going, you won't need any pants."

Katara and I gave Sokka and uneasy look. I knew I definitely didn't want to see my brother without his pants. Aang flicked harder on Appa's reigns, directing him to land on an island that was covered in mountains. We landed on the shore of a beach, sand tickling my feet. The particles of sand kind of felt like snow, though a lot warmer. I was looking forward to take a break from flying, but my siblings seemed to think otherwise.

"We just made a pit stop yesterday. Shouldn't we get a little more flying done before we camp out?" Sokka asked.

"At this rate, we won't get to the North Pole until spring," Katara agreed.

I shook my head, "I wouldn't mind taking a little break."

"Thank you Kyra," Aang said with a smile, before turning to Appa. "And besides, Appa's tired! Aren't you, boy?" The Air Nomad looked at his bison suggestively, but the bison remained silent. "I said, aren't you boy?" Aang repeated, causing a grunt to come out of Appa's mouth.

"Yeah, that's real convincing," Sokka said, sarcastically.

"Besides, it's hard to argue with something so cute!" I cooed, as I hugged the bison. Appa's soft fur rubbed against my fingers, and he let out a soft grunt. I felt his head rub against mine, letting me pet his back.

"He's a ten ton magical monster. What would you think?" Sokka said, dryly.

I stared at the water, tempting to jump in. The calm waves gently creeped against the shore. It brought me back to the South Pole, where I would watch the waves and try to mimic them. The way the water pushed and pulled always fascinated me, and I always felt at home near the ocean. I was glad Aang brought us here. He snapped me out of my trance as he eagerly pointed north.

"Look!"

I jumped as I heard the sound of a rough splash not too far away. There were groups of giant yellow fish with orange stripes. A smile creeped on my face as they jumped back into the water. They looked so elegant! I had to ride them! I was always in for new things, and riding on the back of a koi fish was one of them.

"That's why we're here! Aang exclaimed, "Elephant koi, and I'm gonna ride it. Katara, you gotta watch me!"

I eagerly watched as he dived into the water, laughing when he jumped back in alarm while shouting, "Cold!" I smirked. Growing up in a village that was surrounded by ice, I got used to being around icy water. Slowly, my legs started to shift towards the water. In my mind, I was thinking that I was going to follow him; I guessed that Katara had other plans since she pulled me back by my shirt.

"Where do you think you're going?" my sister asked. She furred her eyebrows and folded her arms disapprovingly.

I gulped, laughing nervously, "Koi fish riding?"

"I'm not letting you get eaten by some fish!" Katara said, sternly.

Of course she wouldn't. Ever since I jumped out of Appa's saddle when Aang was unconscious, Katara was more overprotective of me. Even though I should've been happy to have a sister who looked out for me, sometimes she needed a little lesson on fun. Koi fish riding was fun; standing around and watching wasn't.

Sokka turned to us while making an "Aang is crazy" gesture by circling his finger on the side of his forehead. Katara gave me an uneasy look, but I couldn't help and think about the fact that I wasn't swimming right now. I wanted to feel my skin soaking in that water.

I hear another splash from the bay, and Aang was on the back of a koi fish with two following him. A huge smile spread on his face, and I heard him laughing a mile away.

"Woohoo!" Katara cheered.

"Go Aang," I said, dryly.

Sokka seemed to be as gloomy as I was. Well, he never really did like Aang. His arms were still folded just like mine, and he wasn't as amused as Katara.

"He looks pretty good out there," Katara commented.

"I would've looked good too," I muttered.

"Eh, the fish is doing all the work," Sokka shrugged.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Katara trail off to Appa with alerted eyes. "No, Appa! Don't eat that!"

I looked back at Aang, squinting my eyes to get a closer look. As my vision got clearer, I saw two of the fish swimming away from something. My eyes widened in alert as I found that there was a shadow gaining on them!

"Aang!" I shouted.

"There's something in the water," Sokka said, alarmed.

Katara ran back with Momo screeching on her arm. She seemed to catch the fact that something was not right. "What's wrong?"

"Aang's in trouble," Sokka answered, before turning his attention to our stranded friend. "Aang!"

"Get out of there!" Katara yelled.

"There's something going after you!" I followed, looking down afterwards, "I guess I'm glad that I didn't go."

I started flailing my arms, motioning for him to come back. We really didn't need for the Avatar to be swallowed by some giant monster. Especially since he's our only hope in saving the world. I wasn't just scared for the world's safety; I definitely didn't want my best friend to be eaten.

I gasped as a huge dorsal fin creeped near him. The fish must've got scared, since it flicked Aang off it's back. I blinked as I saw him running on water for his life. It would've been so cool to walk on water! Then again, not cool if your friend was running away from what seemed to be a giant... fish? It's hard to tell when you could only see the dorsal fin.

I winced as I saw the direction Aang was running to... My brother raised his eyebrows, completely alarmed.

Crash!

Aang landed head-first on Sokka, sending him flying to a tree. I couldn't help but smirk, since I avoided getting hit by an inch. For some reason, my brother was the butt-monkey in situations like these.

I ran over to help him up, as Aang was getting dressed. Sokka rubbed his forehead to relieve the pain.

"What was that thing?" Katara asked.

"It looked pretty dangerous," I said, matter of factly.

"I don't know," Aang said, shrugging.

Sokka stood up and wiped the dust off his pants, "Well, let's not stick around and find out. Time to hit the road."

Before I was able to make one step towards Appa, the four of us were surrounded by girls with green kimonos and fans. I froze in place, not knowing what to do. However, they had no hesitation to attack us. Sokka was pulled back and knocked over. I tensed as Katara was grabbed by her hood.

"Hey!" I shouted, as I felt one of the girls took me by the arm. My back ached as I was pinned down to the ground, right besides Aang. I squirmed as someone covered me with a blindfold, the world instantly becoming dark.

"Or we could stay while," Sokka said, nervously.

I couldn't have agreed more.

My body was tied against a hard surface. It almost felt like a wooden pole. My hands were tied against my back. I hated to say that I was still blindfolded, not being able to see a thing. This position was really starting to get uncomfortable.

"You four have some explaining to do," an old, deep voice spoke.

"And if you don't answer our questions, we're throwing you back into the water with the Unagi," a more feminine voice threatened.

I gulped as I heard the words back into the water. As much as I did want to go koi fish riding, I didn't want to get eaten.

"Show yourselves cowards!" Sokka demanded.

I blinked a few times as my blindfold was removed. The light pierced my eyes and drained my vision until it grew clearer. The girls that attacked us looked at us menacingly. Villagers dressed in blue clothing were gathered around a bearded elderly man. I was glued in between Sokka and Katara with Aang on my far right.

"Who are you? Where are the men that ambushed us?" Sokka asked, aggressively.

I shook my head at his stupidity. Of course he wouldn't think that the girls who's faces were painted in some sort of warrior make-up would attack us.

"There were no men, Sokka," I told him, "They ambushed us."

"Smart kid," the same girl said. "Now tell us! Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Wait a second! There's no way a bunch of girls could take us down," Sokka said, mockingly.

If I could've moved my arms, I would've strangled him by now. Did he seriously have to be so sexist at a time like this?

"A bunch of girls, huh?" the girl threatened, grabbing him by his collar, "The Unagi's gonna eat well tonight."

Sweat ran down my back. I was too young to get eaten by a dangerous sea creature! I looked down to avoid eye contact.

"No, don't hurt him! Our brother is just an idiot sometimes," Katara pleaded.

"Yeah, he can be a real butt-head," I added. I smirked as Sokka turned over to glare at me.

"It's my fault," Aang apologized. I turned to him, surprised that he spoke up. "I'm sorry we came here. I wanted to ride the elephant koi."

"How do we know you're not Fire Nation spies?" the old man asked, pointing his finger at us abruptly.

I understood that we lived in a world where people were blinded by war, but how delusional could one elderly person get? Then again, as I thought back to the time where we first met Aang, that kind of made sense. I still felt pretty agitated when he just accused us like that.

"Do we look like Fire Nation spies?" I sassed.

"Kyra!" Katara scolded. I simply ignored her, focusing on the old man.

"Kyoshi," the man started, glaring at me before continuing, "has stayed out of the war so far, and we intend to keep it that way."

Aang's eyes lit up, "This Island is named after Kyoshi? I know Kyoshi!"

At first, I was confused. An ordinary person would be questioning him, mainly because he didn't look like he would've known a woman who lived before Avatar Roku. Then again, know one knew that Aang was the Avatar. It all made sense when the four of us visited the Southern Ajr Temple a few days ago. Looking at that man, he seemed confused too. He looked at Aang as if he was crazy, with his raised eyebrows and shocked facial expression.

"Avatar Kyoshi was born four hundred years ago! How could you possibly know her?!" he spat.

"Good to know! Have you met her four hundred years ago?" I retorted. That might've sounded mean, but I was defending my friend's honor.

That was when Katara's foot somehow made contact with my body. I wanted to rub my leg to ease the pain, but I couldn't. Great.

"I know her because I'm the Avatar," Aang spoke in a calm voice, looking at the villagers hopefully.

As he spoke, the people stared at him with disbelief. At first, I didn't think he was the Avatar because he could've been any Airbender. My body started to feel heavy, knowing that we had to do something fast. No one would just believe him willingly.

"That's impossible!" the girl exclaimed, "The last Avatar was an Airbender who disappeared a hundred years ago!"

"That's me!" Aang smiled.

"If you haven't noticed, my friend over here is wearing clothes that came from the original Airbenders," I said, defensively. "Plus, he has an arrow."

Aang grinned sheepishly as I mentioned the arrow on his forehead. When I looked at the old man, he seemed to be taking my words into consideration.

"You do have a good point," he agreed, nodding his head.

When I turned to my siblings, I felt a huge sigh of relief escape my lungs. We shared a hopeful glance, but were we really going to get away with it?

"But that doesn't prove that he's the Avatar," the old man concluded. I tensed, and a heavy gulp got stuck in my throat. "Throw the imposters to the Unagi!"

My eyes wandered around anxiously. I bit my lip. This is it, I thought, I'm not going to die a hero, but cowardly eaten by a giant fish. Unless Aang did some flashy move, we're toast!

"Aang, do some Airbending," Katara muttered.

Aang pushed himself off the ground, leaving a large dust cloud behind as sky rocketed into the air. The crowd gasped as he used the fan engraved on the painting to rip the rope in half. I had to admit, it was pretty impressive. Almost immediately, we heard whispers from the crowd.

Aang landed gently on the ground, as everyone stared at him in shock. More people started to gather towards Aang, because they couldn't believe their eyes.

"It's true," the man gasped, "You are the Avatar!"

"It took us a while to figure that out," I said. My siblings didn't hesitate to agree with me. The way the villagers looked at Aang with fascination and awe didn't surprise me at all.

"Now," Aang said, a twinkle forming in his eye as he reached for his pocket. I signed, knowing what he was about to do. "Check this out!" He released his palms and made the marbles circle around. I shook my head as the crowd cheered; it wasn't that impressive if you've seen it way too many times. I stared at this guy with an amused look as he started to squeal, foam forming in his mouth. Cool!

I had this gut feeling that I was really going to like it here.

As the day continued, we settled down in the village. We were invited to stay in the home of Oyagi, the Leader. Every wear I went, people gave me strange looks. They cocked their eyebrows and whispered to each other, sometimes even pointing. Was it because of the way I looked? The way I acted? I felt so over whelmed by the way people glanced at me that I forgot the reason why I walked out in the first place.

Ever since we left the South Pole, I realized that I was weak. I didn't know how to fight; I was just a small, vulnerable little kid. Sure I was good at some things, like hunting, but that was going to help me survive one way. I didn't even know how to Waterbend that well! I was thinking, maybe I could get a lesson from the girls that attacked us?

I approached the markets, where there were multiple stands of fruits and vegetables. People scurried around excitedly, eagerly chatting to one another. That was when I saw a group of eight girls in the green kimonos, only without makeup. I was startled at first; they just looked so different. They were disguised as regular citizens. I felt my feet dragging me towards them.

"Uh... hi," I stuttered, scratching the back of my neck, "You look a lot different without your makeup. I almost didn't recognize you as the girls that nearly attacked us."

"Are makeup is apart of our tradition," the lead warrior smiled.

I blinked. I didn't know she would be so friendly. I guessed it was because of the way she accused us before.

"Thanks for not feeding us to that Unagi," I said.

"We didn't know you were traveling with the Avatar," the girl answered, "You must've come a long way."

"All the way from the South Pole," I shrugged. "It's more like a camp site than a village."

"Well, we hope you enjoy your stay here," the girl said. "I'm Suki."

"Kyra," I answered, offering my hand. She shook it with a firm grip. "Say, do you mind if I stop by for training?"

"Training?" Suki repeated.

"Yeah, it would be nice to know some techniques. We have a lot of run-ins with Firebenders."

Suki turned to the girls, who nodded in response.

"Is that so?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Why not, then? Stop by our dojo later on."

With that, she turned her head around, walking away in a hurry. I picked up my pace as I headed back to Oyagi's place, swinging my arms back and forth. I didn't know what time it was, but the group was probably eating breakfast right now.

I stopped in my tracks as I heard a familiar grunt sound. I turned to see Appa, who was being groomed while painters fixed up Kyoshi's statue. I couldn't help but smirk as the flees were removed his fur was combed. However, that was nothing compared to the royal treatment we were going to get.

When I entered the wooded house, the two long dining tables were already filled with so many types of treats. Some were vibrant colored and tempting while others were simple, but elegant. I couldn't wait to dig in! I sat in between Katara and Aang, whom were already seared. Momo started lunging for sweets, while Katara was a little hesitant as waiters switched dishes around.

"Hey guys! What did I miss?" I asked.

"Nothing much. Just in time for-" Katara started.

"All right!" Aang cheered, thrusting his hands in the air. "Desert for breakfast!" he started stuffing his mouth with the sweets and pastries, "They sure know how to treat an Avatar!"

I quickly stuffed a pastry into my mouth. It tasted so sweet, and it felt so good to finally have something to eat that's made by humans. Trust me, you don't want to ask what else I've been putting into my stomach. When you're traveling to the other side of the world, you'd need to eat whatever you can find.

"Mhm! Katara, you gotta try these!" Aang offered her an orange covered gooey sweet.

"Don't hesitate!" I added.

Katara looked over at his hand hesitantly, but took it anyway. I knew she liked it, because she started grabbing sweets one by one. Looks like I'm not the only one in my family that has a sweet tooth! Speaking of sweat tooth, I looked over at Sokka. He hasn't touched anything, which was weird because he's the biggest eater in the family.

"Sokka, what's you're problem? Eat!" Aang encouraged.

"Not hungry," Sokka muttered, staring gloomily at his feet.

I raised my eyebrows at him. I never thought I'd see a day when my meat-loving brother wouldn't want to eat. Back at home he would always be the one to finish his food first. There had to be a good reason why he wasn't hungry.

"But Sokka, you're always hungry!" Aang voiced my thoughts.

"What's up with him?" I asked.

"He's just upset because a bunch of girls kicked his butt yesterday," Katara snickered. She was probably satisfied that a girl taught him a lesson. By the looks of it, that broke his ego big time. Hopefully that would make a lasting impact on him.

Sokka made a fist, protesting. "They snuck up on me!"

"Right, and then they kicked your butt!" my older sister smirked.

"Sneak attacks don't count!" he stood up defensively. As he walked over to our table, I sneaked up behind him. My lips stretched into a mischievous smile as I playfully punched him on the shoulder. He turned to me with a glare, "Fine, that counts," he muttered, grabbing a few sweets before gritting his teeth, "Tie me up with ropes, I'll show them a thing or two. I'm not scared of any girls," he stuffed a sweet in his mouth, "This is tasty..." With that, Sokka stomped away, leaving Aang, my sister and I.

My stomach seemed to be getting full by the minute,so I tried to finish what I had in my hand. We were always supposed to finish what we were given back home because it was a sign of respect, and meals were scarce sometimes. You had to finish even if it tasted like spoiled seaweed, but it was a good thing they didn't have any here!

"Kyra, slow down," Katara said, calmly, "You're eating too fast."

I felt my cheeks grow a slight pink as I slowly lowered my arms. Katara got pretty annoying once in a while when she tried to look out for me. Don't do this; don't do that. I knew she was looking out for me, but she got a bit too... motherly.

All I wanted to do was get up and leave, so I decided to go with the easy way out.

My eyes darted around, "Uh... I'm just gonna go," I said, awkwardly. Before I headed out, I grabbed one more sweet, trying to ignore Aang and Katara's confused expressions.
***

All I saw on the rode were bright green trees. Dozens of them. Even though it was a nice exchange for patches of snow, seeing so much grass was overwhelming. I paused in my tracks as I had a familiar high pitched screeching sound. It sounded as if someone was getting a beat down

The path lead me to a large wooden house. As I approached, I kept hearing more groans and screeches. Sokka! I couldn't believe I didn't recognize his high pitched voice! I ran into the room. The girls were dressed in their makeup and kimonos. I blinked, my eyes darting over to Sokka, who was getting a good beat up.

"Uh... I'm here for," I was interrupted by a loud thud! Sokka was on his stomach, his hand tied to his leg. "Warrior training?"

A faint blush appeared on his cheeks as Suki towered over him, smirking. "Is there anything else you want to teach us?" The girls laughed, causing Sokka to look down in embarrassment. I sort of felt sympathetic, but he deserved it.

I sighed, "I don't even wanna know."

"Your brother decided he could give us a lesson," Suki said, mockingly. "He did say he was the best warrior in your village."

I gritted my teeth, "Just because he's the only warrior, doesn't mean he's a good one."

As I said this, Sokka stood up and left without making eye contact. He kept his head dow, knowing that his ego was completely shattered. Suddenly I felt this little pinch in my heart. This new wave of emotions took over. Did I really feel sorry for him? I mean, he did say all those dumb things about girls. The question was, did he learn his lesson?

I was brought out of my trance by the sound of Suki's voice. "Alright girls, we should go back into our regular routine. Let's try to push that event away and help Kyra get ready. She'll be training with us today."

The girls smiled cheekily at me. I really wanted to be accepted by them, since I never met female warriors before.

"Speaking of training, let's get her into one of our traditions," Suki continued.

Before I was able to ask any more questions, I was seated on a chair. Two girls started covering me in powder and makeup. It was sort of similar to Sokka's warrior makeup he wore when fighting the Fire Nation for the first time. My face was covered in white powder, and my eyes were outlined with red makeup. I got dressed into one of those "kimonos" the girls wore, and they were surprisingly comfortable.

When I looked into my reflection, I barely recognized myself. I never liked makeup, but warrior makeup was an acception. I felt this strange new sense of power in myself, this ability that I could be a stronger version of myself. The Kyoshi Warriors giggled and gushed at my new transformation, and I couldn't have been more pleased! I was really going to learn how to fight like them! I couldn't wait for the others to see me with my new fans and waistband!

The girls started getting into groups according to Suki's instructions. She took me by her side and started demonstrating techniques one-on-one. There seemed to be a lot of stealth and ease in her moves. When she demonstrated, it looked like she was just disarming something the entire time.

"Try to follow my wrist movements," she guided me, "Let your energy flow and guide it."

"Like this?" I asked. I started copying her movements, but I seemed so stiff. My heart raced as I tried to copy her movements, but they were all so rough and out of control. My cheeks turned red as I accidentally let go of my fan. I winced as it-let's say-accidentally smashed into the wall.

"Oops?"

Suki laughed, "It's okay. We all started training when we were a lot younger, and we kept making the same mistakes," she put a hand on my shoulder, "You'll get the hang of it."

"I feel like I could really use this," I said. "What if I can't bend anymore? It would be nice to know how to fight in different ways."

"You're a Waterbender?" she raised an eyebrow.

"My sister and I are the last Waterbenders in the South Pole," I nodded, "I admire how you fight. You're not scared."

"It takes a lot of practice and hard work," Suki said.

"Hard work..." I repeated. "Can I try again?"

"Of course," she smiled.

The two of us started practicing. As I followed Suki, she showed me how the fan was an extension of the arm. That was the main focus of energy. I continued repeating the moves over and over, concentrating on my internal flow.

"Remember, use the fan as an extension," Suki instructed.

I closed my eyes, concentrating on my movements. I moved my hands, balancing the energy flow. As I flicked my wrist, I removed the fan that Suki held in her arms! I felt this huge wave of pride.

"I did it!" I cheered.

"Not bad," Suki said, nodding in approval.

Just as the girls started to clap for me, I heard a set of heavy footsteps approach us. Sokka stood in front of me, and it was the frown that got my attention.

"Uh... hey, Suki," Sokka greeted timidly. The two of us looked up at him, alarmed that he was there.

"What are you doing here?" I sneered.

"I-um," he stuttered.

"Hoping for another dance lesson?" Suki mocked him.

"No, I-let me explain."

"Spit it out!" Suki said, impatiently.

I backed up as Sokka bent down on his knees. My jaw dropped open slightly. My brother; my sexist brother, showing this type of respect to a girl?! I raised an eyebrow at him. We bowed to those who were higher in class. Maybe he really did change...

"I would be honored if you would teach me," he admitted.

"Even if I'm a girl?" Suki asked, bitterly. She crossed her arms in defence.

"I'm sorry if I insulted you earlier, but I needed to make a point out to you. Kyra-" he started, and I felt my eyes widen when he said my name. "You're my sister, and I have to respect that you have some skills that other girls might not have, that I may not even have."

"What other girls?" I glared.

"You're not afraid to fight," he explained, "You're brave, and you're strong... Something that I'm trying so hard to be. Please except my apol-"

I interrupted him, wrapping my arms around him. I pulled him tighter than I ever did before. I even felt a soft tear slid down my cheek! I never expected this from him.

"I love you Sokka," I whispered.

The two of us smiled at each other. This was the sweetest thing he ever told me, and I never expected this from him! This was Sokka we're talking about!

"Nice speech," Suki smirked to herself. "But-"

"I'm sorry if I insulted you earlier. I was... wrong," Sokka finally managed to say.

"Can you say that again?" I piped up.

"Hey, one time is enough," he answered.

"We normally don't teach outsiders, let alone boys. Kyra was an exception."

Sokka stared her in the eye, "Please make an exception. I promise, I won't let you down," he begged.

"All right," Suki said in a friendlier tone, "But you have to follow all of our traditions."

"Of course!" Sokka said, eagerly.

It was my time to smirk, "but she means all of them."

"Kyra, you know me. I can handle anything!"

"Oh really?" I challenged.

In a matter of seconds, Sokka dressed just like one of us: a Kyoshi Warrior! Even though the makeup and dress didn't really fit him, it was tradition! To be honest, he looked really weird.

"Do I really have to wear this?" he complained, looking down in embarrassment. "It feels a little...girly."

"It's a kimono," I corrected him.

"She's right. It's a warriors uniform, you should be proud," Suki said. "The silk threads symbolize the brave blood that flows through our veins. The gold insignia represents the honor of the warrior's heart."

"What about the waistband on our foreheads?" I asked.

Suki shrugged. "They're just used for decoration."

"Bravery and honor," Sokka smiled himself.

As he spoke, I noticed Aang pass by the dojo and peering out the door. Sokka had a look that basically read "please don't say anything!", but I had different plans!

"Hey Aang!"

He looked over at me, a huge grin spreading on his face. "Hey Kyra! Hey Sokka! Nice dress!" he laughed to himself, before running off to who-knows-where. Even thought Sokka was blushing a deep red, he was going to laugh at this moment later.

I had to admit, Sokka was improving quite a bit! He slowly started to get the extension. Suki taught him the moves I learned earlier, and he started getting use to it after I kept doing it with him.

"You're not going to master it in one day. Even I'm not that good. I was quite impressed when Kyra was able to learn it so quickly," Suki complimented me.

"Thanks Suki!" I replied.

"I think I'm starting to get it," he said, and started performing the drill we practiced. He wasn't doing that bad, but he lost balance and ended up throwing his fan out the door. It smashed into a tree, causing it to shake a bit.

Suki walked over to Sokka. "It's not about strength. Our technique is about using your opponents' force against them. Loosen up," she instructed, pointing her fan at him. "Think of the fan as an extension of your arm," my brother got into battle position, "Wait for an opening and then..."

She striked at him, but he used her energy to knock her down. Sokka smiled at her smugly, folding his arms.

"Sokka one, Suki zero!" I announced, and that made Suki even more irritated.

"I fell to make you feel better," she sneered.

"I got you! Admit I got you!" Sokka grinned with pride. Suki laughed and bent his hand, causing him to wince in pain. That got to hurt!

"Go Suki!" I cheered her on.

Sokka turned to me, "Hey! Who's side are you on?"

"Okay, it was a lucky shot," she agreed, but then her expression quickly changed to a smirk. "Let's see if you can do it again."

She eyed me, and I knew that I should get into battle stance. We circled around Sokka, but just as we were about to strike, Oyagi ran over to us. He seemed to be troubled, since he was panting heavily.

"Firebenders have arrived!" he announced, "Girls, come quickly!"

Suki and the other girls started rushing to battle, while Sokka quietly muttered that he wasn't a girl. I sighed, dragging him by his kimono. He was going to have to fight, even if he did look like a little more feminine than he liked.

I took out my fans and charged outside. The area was too quiet to my liking, almost ghostly. I made it out just when the Warriors were getting into their stationary places. I just stood outside the dojo, and I couldn't move because my bones tightened. I knew this would be my first real battle against the Firebenders.

"Come out Avatar!" a familiar voice bellowed. "You can't hide from me forever!"

Zuko; I should've known! When I looked closer, I realized he and his men were standing near the statue of Avatar Kyoshi. That meant I had to jump pretty far to land near one of the soldiers. The other Warriors were near me, but I decided to stay behind my brother. We quickly ran on top of the houses so that we won't get caught beforehand.

"Find him," the Prince ordered.

Just as he spoke, I charged along with a few other Kyoshi Warriors. I was able to attack one man with my feet, and attacked one with a fan at the same time. Suki was right behind me, unleashing a spinning kick to attack one of the men. As a result, she was beaten with the tail of the rhino. I winced as it lashed at her.

"Let's go find Sokka!" she told me.

We ran towards the dojo, but we didn't only find my brother-we saw Zuko as well. We circled around him. He shot a huge fire blast on me, the heat close enough to burn my hand. I lost balance, and got knocked backwards as a result. I couldn't get up because my back was to stiff. I lightened up as my brother was running towards me.

"Kyra! Are you alright?" Sokka asked, worried.

"Sort of..." I mumbled.

"I guess that training's over," he said.

"You think?" I told him.

Suki and Sokka glanced at each other before running towards Zuko. So far he was knocked down, but I could tell he had more plans; I saw the look in his eye. He stood up on his back, and started to shoot fire out his feet. I tried to avoid his hit, and I was sort of successful, though the other Warriors were hit instead. Sokka fell on his back right next to me, and Zuko angrily looked around for Aang.

"Nice try, Avatar! But these little girls can't save you!" he called out, hoping to get Aang to come out.

For our sake, he did.

"Hey! Over here!" I heard Aang's voice shout from behind. He held out his staff, ready for battle.

"Finally!" Zuko whispered to himself, his nostrils flaring in anger.

Two fireballs were fired at him, and Aang blocked him with his glider. So far he had it under control, but Zuko shot another blast of fire that knocked his staff from the grip of his hand! My heart made a leap as I saw his worried face. He jumped off and picked up two of my fans that I dropped before Zuko started to run at him full force. Aang puffed in some air into his chest and used the fans to control the currents. This caused him to be pushed all the way to a house and get knocked over, letting Aang get an easy escape.

But I knew my job was not done yet.

I rushed over to some of the Kyoshi Warriors and started to fight two men. I threw a fan at one of them, causing him to get knocked off the rhino, while the other tackled the other off it's rhino. Suki then appeared from behind, rushing over to me.

"Get out with your brother! I'll help hold them off," she told me.

I ran over to Sokka, and the two of us headed towards Aang and Katara. Before I climbed up on Appa, I called out to Suki."Thanks for training me!" I thought she heard me because she smiled, but it was time to get out of here!

"Come on Kyra, Sokka!" Aang shouted out to us. Sokka helped me get on Appa by pushing me upwards, and I pulled him on both hands. "Appa, yip yip!" I heard Aang say, and in a matter of seconds we were soaring in the sky just like before. Only this time we're running away from Firebenders, and not hog monkeys.

When I looked down, I noticed Kyoshi Island covered in flames. Each building at least had one flame burning it down, even the statue of Kyoshi herself. Almost everything was ruined, and I couldn't help but feel a lump in my throat, the guilt rushing through me.

"I know it's hard, but you did the right thing," Katara reassured Aang, who put his head down in disappointment. I started to wipe my makeup off with my sleeve. "Zuko would have destroyed the whole place if we had stayed. They're going to be okay, Aang."

"Are you sure about that?" I asked. "He practically almost destroyed the whole village."

"She's right," Aang mused to himself, and his eyes squinted to a view of the town. I knew what he was doing, I had the same face when I was about to jump into the ocean to save him. In other words, he was going to do something stupid and dangerous.

"What are you doing?" Katara asked, worried.

Without saying a word, he leaped off of Appa. The two weren't as worried as they were with me, because Aang was an Airbender. I watched closely as he dived into the water, not even blinking once. Though I did blink when I saw the thing he was on top of! The Unagi; he was riding the Unagi!

I quickly took over and pulled the bison's reins, directing him a little closer so we wouldn't have much distance. Aang; pulled on the eel's reigns, sprinkling water all over the village. It didn't take long for the fire to quickly disappear into thin air, leaving the village soaking wet. I was relieved when he jumped onto the Appa unharmed!

"That was amazing," I told him. "You were all whoosh, and bam! You saved the village!"

Aang rubbed his head nervously as I spoke, "I know, I know. It was stupid and dangerous."

"Yes, it was," Katara smirked. To my surprise-and Aang's as well-she hugged him! I was happy that he finally got to impress my sister. As long as Aang was smiling gleefully, I was smiling gleefully. There was nothing that could ruin this moment.

Even though this Island is small, the village will definitely have a big place in my heart. I got to learn how to fight from this amazing warrior, who happened to be a girl. Yes, I was going to miss Kyoshi, but I was hoping to have more adventures.

"Where are we heading to next, Aang?" I asked.

"Omashu!" Aang answered, triumphantly.

New places meant new adventures and people to meet. Besides, something told me that I wasn't saying goodbye to the Kyoshi Warriors for long.

I hope you guys like this chapter! I'm having a lot of fun working on this series and it's really helping me develop my writing style. Thank you so much to the people that are reading this and commenting!