Chapter Three: It's Not a Good Idea To Keep Secrets From a Powerful Avatar

Part Two

A/N: Sorry it took so long to write this. Homework and fanfiction don't mix.

Katara and Sokka followed Aang into the Air Temple.

"Katara, firebenders were here. If we don't break the news to him, he'll trip over one of those skull helmets that are lying around. Do you think he'd rather get the news broken to him by you or a stubbed toe?"

"Don't worry, Sokka. I told you, I've got everything under control."

They caught up with Aang, who was talking to a statue. He saw them and smiled. "Hi, guys. I'd like you to meet somebody."

"Were you supposed to take a pill or something?" asked Sokka while Katara shot him a look.

Aang laughed. "It's Monk Gyatso. He taught me everything I know. Hi, Gyatso."

The statue said nothing.

"He's just being shy."

Sokka and Katara were looking at him weird, so Aang laughed nervously and decided it was time to change the subject with a flashback.

It was a bright morning in the air temple. Gyatso pulled a cake from the oven and said ". . .but the true secret is in the gooey center."

He used airbending to make the colorful filling into a neat pile.

Aang sighed, uncharacteristically depressed.

"My ancient cake baking technique isn't the only thing on your mind, is it Aang?"

"It's this whole Avatar thing." Aang sighed. "Mabe the monks made a mistake."

"The only mistake they made were being jerks about it."

Aang sighed "Gyatso, I'm not ready to save the world. Even though I'm not sure why it needs yet. . ."

"Your questions will be answered when your old enough to enter the air temple sanctuary. Which won't be for a while." Gyatso then shrugged. "Strange how the monks wanted to tell you so early even though you can't go into the sanctuary yet. Oh, well, are you going to help me with these cakes or not?"

The two stepped back, forming balls of air in their hands. They airbent the cakes into the air and they landed straight on four meditating monks. Gyatso and Aang laughed.

"Huh, so that's where you got your jokey personality from." Katara muttered after Aang finished the story.

Sokka snickered. "Wow, the airbenders only used their bending to make cakes? No wonder the Fire Nation –"

"Sokka!"

"Right, sorry, I forgot, we're pretending the entire race of airbenders isn't extinct."

Aang started to walk away. Katara called after him "Where are you going?"

"The air temple sanctuary. There's someone I'm ready to meet."

Katara and Sokka exchanged looks before catching up with the young airbender. "Aang, no one in there could have survived for a hundred years."

"Yeah," said Sokka "Especially with the Fire–Ow!" Sokka rubbed his stomach where Katara had hit him.

"It's not impossible." said Aang "I survived in that iceberg for a hundred years."

"Good point." said Katara

"What, so this other guy was in a magically formed iceberg, too?" Sokka scoffed "Despite the fact that the Fi–OW!"

Aang, still oblivious to the fact that firebenders had indeed been in the air temple, said "Whoever's in there could help me figure out this whole Avatar thing."

"And whoever's in there might have a medley of delicious, cured meats!" said Sokka, rubbing his hands together and not realizing that he was about to earn himself the title of the "meat guy" for the rest of the series.

Sokka then hurried to the door, slamming against it with a thunk, simultaneously securing his spot as the comic relief character. He pushed against it, trying to open it, but to no avail. He turned to Aang and said "I don't suppose you have a key."

"The key, Sokka, is airbending." said Aang.

Aang stood in front of the door. Sokka slunk away, hoping he wouldn't humiliate himself any more after this episode. Aang airbent into the door. The air passed through the tubes, flipping over the air symbols, unlocking the door. Slowly, the door began to open.

Aang started to walk inside, calling "Hello, anybody home?" Sokka and Katara hesitantly followed him into the dark room.


Zhao laughed at the young fire prince seated in front of him. Zuko scowled. "Quit laughing."

"No, this is too good. You're telling me that a twelve year old bested you and your men. I didn't think you'd be this much of a failure."

"Stop laughing. It's not that funny." Zuko scowled at him. "I underestimated him once, but it will not happen again."

"No, it won't." Zhao said, glaring at the young firebender. "Because you're not going to have a second chance."

"Zhao, I've been hunting the Avatar for nearly three years. Do you know how long I've been waiting for this chance?"

"So I'm taking from you what you worked hard to get just when it gets easier? Get used to it, Prince Zuko, this isn't going to change anytime soon."

"Just you wait, Zhao." Zuko muttered to himself "I'll do this same to you. In about ten episodes."

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Zuko scowled at Zhao.

Zhao turned around. "Capturing the Avatar is too important to leave in a teenager's hands. He's mine now."

Zuko jumped up to attack him, but the two guards behind him pulled him back. Needing to find a way to take out his anger, he kicked over the table.

Zhao just rolled his eyes "Aw, is the baby having a temper tantrum?" and General Iroh looked up, saying "More tea, please." securing his role as the tea loving old guy.


Aang, Sokka, and Katara walked into the air temple sanctuary, where they were surrounded by statues. The hungry Sokka was unimpressed.

"Statues? That's it? Where's the meat?"

Katara rolled her eyes. "Sokka, the airbenders were vegetarians. Did you honestly expect them to have meat here? Especially when you've been going on about how they're all. . ." she looked over to Aang and whispered "dead?"

Sokka looked over to Aang. "Vegetarians? What a sad existence."

Katara sighed and looked over to the statues. "Who are these people?"

"I don't know, but I feel I know them somehow."

Sokka then backed away, sensing that freaky Avatar stuff was about to happen.

"That one's an airbender."

"And that one's a waterbender." Katara looked through the statues. "They're lined up in a pattern. Air, water, earth, and fire."

"That's the Avatar cycle." said Aang

"They're Avatars!" said Katara "They must be your past lives."

"Wow. . ." said Aang, looking up at all the statues "There are so many of them."

Sokka scoffed, ruining the moment. "You don't honestly believe in past lives, Katara."

"It's true, though. When the Avatar dies, he's reincarnated into the next nation in the cycle. Honestly, Sokka, how can you not believe this? You saw Aang go into his Avatar state thing."

"Don't listen to Sokka." Aang said "He's the normal guy."

"Well, sorry I don't have magic powers like everyone else."

Aang stopped in front of another statue. A light passed over its eyes and Aang stared at it, in a trance. Katara shook his shoulders, saying "Aang, snap out of it."

"Huh?" Aang looked around.

After Aang somehow knew the name of the person even though there was no writing, Sokka decided he had enough of this freaky Avatar magic and started wondering where the food was.

The trio saw a shadow at the doorway and immediately ducked behind some of the Avatar statues.

Sokka whispered "Firebender! Nobody make a sound."

"What makes you think a firebender's here of all places?" Katara whispered. The two boys shushed her, not wanting to admit she was right.

The shadow advanced. Sokka hoped his stomach wouldn't growl and give them away. He then thought It'd be really anticlimatic if all this tension built up and it was just something like a lemur, especially if this chapter ended right now –

To be continued. . .