Alright, here's another chapter updated for you. I know it's a late update, but at least I got it up by my deadline...I think? Anyways, this one is long, but I hope you like it. Sorry again for my grammar ahead of time.

I don't own Avatar, now back to the story.

Aang, Appa, and Momo had been flying nonstop for about three days now, with no food, or even a place to rest. Aang needed to get away as fast as he could, and flying over water was the best idea at he had when he ran off. Aang knew he needed to go back to the Eastern Air Temple, and find Guru Pathik. But first, he decided to go back to the Earth Kingdom land, take care of a small matter, and then be off again.

The air bender could smell his old bandages were getting worse, and it was possible that he was getting an infection. Usually, he had someone help clean the cuts, and put on fresh bandages, but he didn't attempt to try and take them off. It took them a couple of more hours before they finally reached land, near the beach. Appa was exhausted from his long journey as he landed, and fell sideways, throwing the Avatar, Momo, and his stuff off of his saddle, and into the sand pit.

Aang's entire body was soar once again as he laid on his back, feeling the heat of the sun on him. He wanted nothing more, than to be with Katara right now. To feel her hair, blowing against his face, and tickling his skin. Or to look into those blue eyes, and see the hurt and pain around him disappear, with nothing but she and him in the world. The air bender shook his head at this, and got up slowly from the loose sand. He limped over to his things, opened up his pack, and brought out the black cloak and gloves that went a fourth of the way up his fingers. Aang took off his fire nation shirt, which smelt of old blood, and put on the black cloak. He put the gloves and his pack on, then grabbed his staff, and walked towards Appa.

"Thanks boy!" he said patting his head, "I don't know what I could have done without you." The Bison roared, and licked him, leaving a big blob of slobber all over him. Aang smiled, and then put his hands together, and bent the slobber off of his body. The monk started walking towards the town with Momo on his right shoulder, to keep him company.

As much as Aang hated walking, he knew it would be the only way for no one to see him, and Appa. The last thing he needed, was to be spotted, and then the news travel back to his gang…if he was still miraculously apart of it. His walking was slowing down a lot more, and his vision was getting worse too. He continued for about ten miles, and came up to a small house, with a two sheep pigs, a chicken rooster, and a small barn full of hay. Aang's body was getting weaker, and weaker as he kept walking to the house, using his staff to hold up his weight.

Momo flew off of his back, and landed near a wooden rectangle and began drinking the water out of it. Aang followed Momo, and dropped down to the water and began drinking, but then threw it up, due to the saliva that was in it. He hadn't realized until now, that this was for the animals. Aang hung onto the piece of wood, but gave up, and fell down on the ground. Everything around him was spinning, and then he blacked out. But before he passed out, he felt rough hands placed over his forehead and then his cheek. She grabbed his cloak, and dragged him into the shady part of the house.

OooooOooooOoooo

Katara looked up into the sun setting sky, hoping to see a giant bison in the sky coming towards them. But it had been three days since she last saw Aang, since he ran off without telling her goodbye. The water bender felt so empty without him close by, almost as if she lost her other half. She still wanted to go after him, but didn't know where to even begin. Katara knew that Aang was going to lie low for a while, but soon or later he was bound to slip up. And when he did, they would be ready. The gang had already discussed what their plans were, and were all leaving today to go their separate ways.

Zuko and Mai would return back to the Fire Nation Palace, where he would continue to lead his people, and perhaps hear the rumors of the Avatar somewhere. Suki, Sokka, Toph, and even Tao said that they would join with Katara, as she began to search for Aang. They packed everything up, and started to head out to the metal ship that was docked waiting for them.

Katara hugged Mai goodbye, "Take care of yourself." the blue eyed girl said, "And take care of Zuko, you know how fragile he can be sometimes."

Mai laughed a little, and nodded, tightening her embrace on her new friend. Suki and Tao were already on board waiting for the rest of them. Sokka and Zuko shook arms, wishing each other good luck as well.

Zuko looked over at Katara, and then back at Sokka, "Do you think she will ever stop looking for him?"

Sokka and Zuko looked over at Katara, who had just let go of Mai. She still remained in her warrior's outfit, with a small bandage covering up her head injury. Sokka then shook his head, "I don't know. Katara has always been the type of person who never gives up, but my instincts tell me that we won't find Aang."

Zuko looked back, "Why would you say that?"

"Aang cleaned out his room in just under a few minutes. All of the scrolls, his clothing, and even a small bag of money were gone too. A guy doesn't do that if he doesn't want to be found." declared Sokka.

Zuko shook his head, "Can you blame him? I think his fear has taken over, after what he did to Katara. I saw it in him, but I never thought he would run again."

Now it was Toph's turn to interrupt, "Twinkle Toes will come back…he just needs time to figure out what is going on with him. There's no way he can stay away from Sweetness over there, for a long period of time. He'll show up."

Zuko smiled at the young earth bender, hoping her words were true enough. The Fire Lord bent down, and hugged her, "I hope your right Toph. You take care of the others, and look after Katara. She's going to need you to talk some sense into her."

Sokka looked at him curiously, as Zuko released Toph, "Talk some sense?" he questioned.

Zuko nodded, "If what your gut says is true Sokka, Katara will never give up. Even if that means separating from all of us to go and find him. And the last thing she needs is to be alone." Everyone stopped talking when they heard the water benders footsteps on the dock, making it appear obvious to Katara that they were talking about her.

"Hey," she said to Sokka and Toph, "are we ready?" Both of them nodded their heads and started heading up to the ship. Mai stood at the end of the dock, giving Zuko and Katara some space.

The dark skinned girl didn't know what to say to Zuko. She wished he could come, since he was the best at finding Aang, but he had been away from the palace long enough. He needed to help lead his people, and he couldn't do that on their adventure. It was time that they all split for a little while.

The chocolate haired girl needed to find Aang. She needed him to know that whatever happened three nights ago didn't change how she still wanted to be by his side, and help him in this struggle. Katara knew that he had been hiding something from her, and whatever it was, it was enough to make him drop everything, including what they had, and leave.

Katara hugged Zuko, with her arms underneath his, and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. It was so different hugging him, compared to Aang. Zuko was a lot taller and more muscular too. But it only proved to her that she didn't want anyone else to hug her, unless Aang was the one doing it.

"Thank you for everything." she said, and let go as her eyes began to water.

Zuko smiled kindly, "Find him. And I promise to keep giving you updates by messenger hawk. You will need all the help you can get. Do you know where to find June?

Katara nodded, "I just hope she hasn't changed bars in the last couple of months."

The Fire Lord grunted, "I highly doubt that, but here is this too." he said giving her a heavy bag of gold pieces. "She won't do the job, unless she gets paid. There should be enough money in there for at least four months, plus Junes pay."

The water girl smiled as she wiped away a small tear, "I can't thank you enough Zuko, and I appreciate everything you have done for us."

Zuko smiled again, "I want Aang back as well. He is still the Avatar, and people are going to start wondering where he is at. So I hope you can talk some sense into him and bring my friend back." Katara nodded again. She picked up her bag, and started walking towards the small Fire Nation ship.

"Oh and Katara?" he said, waiting for her to turn to him. When she did, he said, "If you don't find him, don't blame yourself."

Katara didn't know what he meant about blaming herself over something like this, but she half smiled and walked onto the ship. The ship started to move, and they all waved at Zuko and Mai, who stood there until the ship was seen no more.

"Okay," said Sokka, as he pulled out his map and set it on the ground. Everyone got on their knees and looked at the map. "Zuko and I were able to see Aang land here," he said pointing it out with his index finger, "We found Appa's last footprints turning east, so our best chance is to look in the Earth Nation for a little bit. But wherever he is, he is a five days ahead of us with Appa. It should only take him a couple of days to get there on Appa, but our ship is much slower than him. So wherever he may go, we might not catch him, but he is bound to show up eventually."

Katara looked up at her older brother, and then nodded. She then got up from the rest of the group and went to the nose of the ship. She place her hands of the ledge, and leaned over a bit as she watched the water hit the metal of the ship. And then she looked back up to the high sun, and to the horizon. "I won't give up on you. Even when you disappeared for a 100 years, I knew you would return." she said to herself.

OooooOoooooOooooo

Aang opened his eyes half way, feeling a major headache as his eyes caught the bright light. He was lying on a soft bed, near a wall that had had green paint peeling off. Aang swung his legs over, so that he could finally sit up. For a second he blacked out, feeling his body tingling again, but eventually he could see again. When he looked around, he saw his cloak, gloves, were folded up on top of a chair, while his staff leaned against it as well. On top of the clothes was the blue ribbon, and a clear circle that held water and air in it. There on his clothes was the unfinished necklace for Katara.

The monk was confused at to how he got here, or who brought him into this small house. The air bender then looked down at his body and saw that all of his wounds had been sewed up, with some kind of leaf liquid on top of the stitches. He continued to sit their in his swim trunk, as he tried to process what just happened to him.

The monk didn't know what to think of this, but he was happy to know that someone was kind enough to help him out. He still felt so exhausted, and knew that he may have slept for only a couple of hours. Aang ran his fingers over his scalp, forgetting that he had cut if off days ago, feeling the small scabs on top. He had come to like his shaggy hair, but more than anything, he knew Katara loved it. But he needed a change, and he could always grow it back whenever he wanted to. The air bender got up, and walked towards his things, but before he started to reach for his clothes, a strange woman voice spoke behind him.

"You might want to wash up before you put your clothes back on, young Avatar."

Aang's eyes got big as he turned his head slowly, to see a woman in raggedy earth nation clothes. Her hair was long, and a dark brown color. Her eyes were gold, and showed so much love and kindness in them. Her face features were still soft, but he could tell that she too had been struggling through life to survive. She was very skinny, and pale, but still showed so much joy, as she walked towards him.

"I knew you would wake soon, so there is a bath waiting for you in the next room. The rest of your clothes are still drying outside, but you should definitely clean yourself up. You look as if you have been through a lot." said the woman, as she handed him a towel. The air bender started to blush, as he remembered that he was only in his swim trunks, and started to feel embarrassed. But instead of the woman laughing at him, she simply smiled, and walked out to give him his privacy.

Aang just stood there for a few seconds as his mind started to process his thoughts, as to what just happened. He felt like he somehow knew this woman, but had never seen her face before. The monk couldn't put his finger on it, so he walked to the back of the room, where he found a bucket that had green leaves and white pedals in them. Aang grabbed the small clothe that was on top of the water, dipped it in, and then started to rub it on his body.

The water was warm as he cleaned himself, feeling the stings coming back all over himself again. He was indeed grateful to the women for sewing up his scars. He never had anyone do this before to him, because he kind of always depended on Katara to help heal his wounds to the point where he could stop bleeding.

Aang continued to wash himself for a while longer, loving the sensation of a bath. He just realized that his ribs weren't hurting as much either, but there was still a purple spot on to prove that they were broke. When he was done, he grabbed the towel, and dabbed himself dry, hoping not to mess up the strings that pulled his skin tighter. As he walked out, he saw that all of his clothes had been cleaned. But he didn't bring his bag with him, so how did it all get here?

Aang ignored the question for now, and put on his fire nation pants on, as well as his shoes. He then put on the long sleeve black shirt, and then the gray shirt that went just below his elbows. He left the folded up clothes on the chair, and stood up. All of the sudden, his mouth started to water up, as he could smell food from around the corner. He walked around quietly, and found that there was a small table, big enough for two people only. Aang sat on the floor, and looked at the big bowl of steaming noodles that had only mushrooms, leaves, and even some small diced up tomatoes.

The women looked back at Aang, who just sat there starring at the food. "Please," she said, "eat."

And without a seconds thought, he grabbed the bowl, and the chopsticks next to it, and devoured at the bowl of hot noodles. The women then brought him a fresh hot cup of tea that had a fruity flavor to it, which he came to love very much.

The monk finished his meal in just under a couple of minutes, and gulped down four cups of tea without hesitation. It had been a while since he had a good meal, and this was the most amazing one he had, even if it was just noodles. But it could never beat out Katara's cooking. The women was just sitting on her knees, just watching the young tattooed boy eating her food.

When she saw that he was done, she could tell that he was still hungry. "I'm sorry," she said apologetically, "I don't have anything else to feed you. I am afraid that my food has at long last run down."

When Aang heard this, he looked back up at the woman, and felt the brokenness in his heart. But she looked like she didn't regret it at all, as she kept looking at him. In fact, she seemed almost; happy to have done it. Aang looked down into the bowl, and saw only one noodle left in it.

This woman had given up her last meal just to feed him, and take care of him. Not many strangers would have shown him this kindness, even if he was the Avatar. She seemed to actually treat him like a son, just as Monk Gyatso did so long ago. The monk felt terrible, and wished that he could somehow pay her back, but he didn't have anything of great value to give her.

"I can't thank you enough for your kindness. It's been a while since I have had a good home cooked meal. Not since…well since I left." he said with a much regret in his voice, as she picked up his bowl, and placed it the side. He changed the subject quickly, "So, how did my other clothes get here?"

"Oh!" the woman said, "Your bison followed you. He came after you once I had decided to drag you in. Such a sweet ball of fur, but he can be a bit ferocious when he roars. It's almost as if he knew you were in danger?"

Aang smiled, "Yes mam, he seems to always be there when I'm hurting. It is a bond we share." But then he realized that if Appa was here, then it was possible that there would be absolutely no hay left once he was done. "I saw that you had some hay lying around as well, I hope he hasn't eaten any of it." he said hopefully.

The woman smiled back at him, "Well I wouldn't blame him if he did. He looked worse than you were, so I let him anyways. I can always find something else for the animals to eat."

This skinny female kept surprising him at every turn. For a woman who seemed to have nothing, she had a very high spirit. "Is your husband around to help you out?" he asked when after he gulped down the last few drops of fruity tea.

The ladies face turned pale, "My husband and I, are no longer together."

This made Aang sad when he heard of people who weren't together anymore. It was not something the monks had taught him to accept, but he could tell it was not his business to push the matter at hand.

"I see. Well, did you have any children by any chance?" he asked curiously, but could see that even if she did, they weren't here.

This made her smile a bit, "Oh yes, a girl and a boy. They are my most treasured gifts of this world."

"Where are they at?" questioned the monk, as his fingers continued to play with the chopsticks under the table.

"I'm not quite sure anymore." she announced regrettably, "I haven't had contact with them in almost a decade…a lot of things happened with their father, and I had to leave to protect one of them. It was the hardest decision to make, but I would choose it again if it meant protecting either of my children."

The monk could tell that whatever decision it was, it was indeed the hardest that she had to endure. They were almost the same, just as he left all of his loved ones to protect them, so did she. He had come to learn that mothers were willing to do whatever it meant to save their children. Just like when Katara's mother, Kaya, had chosen death to protect her little water bender.

"I am so sorry. I don't know what it is like to give up your children, but I kind of had to do the same thing too. Only it was with my friends." he said. Aang found that it was so easy to talk to a stranger about his problems.

The woman became intrigued about this and asked, "What happened?"

Aang decided not to tell her the whole story, but just key points. "Well, I ended up hurting one of them badly. And it turned out to be the one girl I had fallen in love with." the air bender said, and looked up again at the women. He could see pain in her eyes, as she continued to listen.

The bald teenager continued, "And when I saw her in that state of unconsciousness, I left. I had stayed with them, even though I was told to go." Aang closed his eyes as he held back his tears, "She and the others paid the price, because I was being selfish."

The room was silent for a little while, as the sun began to set, making the room look a little darker. She had two lit lanterns in the small kitchen, one on the table, and the other on a wooden counter top. Aang continued to stare at the small flame in the lantern, wishing that he could throw all of his fears and problems into it.

The woman sighed heavily, "We all make mistakes young Avatar. And some of them, we can sometimes carry for the rest of our lives. You already carry the weight of the world, so please, don't carry the weight of shame or guilt too. It will only cause you more pain and suffering in the end."

Aang looked back at his bowl that was to the right side of the table, and placed his chopsticks in front of him. He knew what the woman said was true, but it was easier said than done.

"You know," he said, "I have been talking to you like we have know each other for years, but I don't even know your name. You know that I am the Avatar, but my name is Aang." Then he finished with a small grin towards her.

The woman looked at him, as if she was trying to decide to tell him her real name. But she smiled and held out her hand, "I am Ursa." she said. The monk smiled widely, grabbed her hand and shook it lightly.

"I guess now we aren't strangers anymore Ursa. It's an honor to meet you, but I am afraid that I must go now. My friends will try and track me down, and I must stay ahead of them." he spoke, as he got up onto his feet, still feeling a bit out of energy.

"You don't want them to find you?" Ursa asked curiously.

Aang looked down to the floor, and said, "Not if I can help it. I left to protect them, and it would only make things worse if they did catch up to me."

Ursa nodded, and stood up to the young boy, who needed to leave. She didn't get a whole lot of visitors, due to the fact that she lived far away from any town, and it was nice to finally have someone to talk to for once. But she knew that whatever Aang needed to do, it was for the safety of his friends that had now become his family.

"You should at least stay for one night. It is already getting dark, and your Bison could probably use some sleep as well. You both could." she said, which made Aang look up again. She could see purple forming underneath his gray eyes, and knew that rest would help him a lot before he traveled again.

"I-I don't know. You have already given me too much kindness, and I would hate to be a burden to you even more."

Ursa put a hand on his shoulder, "Not at all Aang. In a way, you almost remind me of my own son. And I believe your duties are to the people first, and I don't think they can depend on an Avatar who looks like he can't stand on his two feet!" she said, laughing lightly at her little joke.

Aang laughed a little, forgetting about his hurt ribs, and for a second thought it was a good idea. "I suppose I don't have a say in the matter?"

Ursa grinned, "Not unless you know how to convince a mother otherwise."

And with that said, she led the boy back to the room he was laying when he woke. Aang could tell that this was the only bed in the room, and he didn't want to take that from her, like he already did.

"Actually," he said opposing, "I tend to sleep better on the floor, if you don't mind?"

The woman gave him a strange look, knowing that he was lying to her. "It's an Avatar thing." he said, with a goofy smile that made Ursa laugh. Her laugh was so nice to hear, that it almost made him think of Katara again.

Ursa knew he was trying to be a gentleman, but she agreed anyways so that he could stay. The woman grabbed some blankets from the small cupboard, and laid them next to the other side of the wall from her bed. Once that was done, Aang laid himself on the blanket, and used his arm as a pillow, and closed his eyes.

But then the monk was surprised when Ursa put another blanket over him, and tucked him in it, as if making sure he couldn't escape. She smiled, wished him goodnight, and blew out the candle near her bed. The air bender couldn't stop smiling at the young mother before him, and how she treated him as if he was her son too. Whoever her children were, they were blessed by the spirits to have someone like her as a mother. Aang wished he knew his mother, and how beautiful she was, or if she tucked him the same way Ursa did. But for right now, he was content with pretending that Ursa was his mother.

A few hours went by, and the air bender untangled his body from the blankets and looked over at the young woman who was sleeping soundly. As quietly as he could, he got up from the floor, and walked over to his things, and started to pack. He put the unfinished necklace in his left pocket and the rest in his things in the bag. His heart was beating so loud, that he figured Ursa would hear it, but she still remained asleep. He continued to pack, and when he put his last bit of air nomad clothes in, his hand fell onto something cool. He reached in, and pulled out the clear element that he had forgotten about in his bag.

Then Aang wondered how much someone would pay for this object, and smiled, knowing that anyone would pay a hefty price for it. The Avatar, melted the liquid back into his hand, and began to form it with his other hand on top. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the matter at hand. It took him a couple of tries to get it right, but when it was done, he opened his palms and saw it.

On the bottom, was clear short grass, with a mother that had no face, who sat on her knees in clear ground. Her hair was long, just like Ursa's, but she was wearing clothes of royalty, with no nation symbol showing. Her arms were wrapped around a young girl and boy, who wrapped one arm around her neck and shoulders. The children's heads rested on each side of her cheek, but their faces faced south of her. The girl on the left had her short hair down, and the young boy on the right had his hair up. They too were in royal clothing with no symbols of a nation on them at all.

Aang was amazed at how quickly he was able to do this, and was happy to see that this new element didn't go to waste either. The monk swung on his pack, grabbed his glider, and the figures he just made for Ursa. He wrote a quick note, telling her that he was sorry for leaving without saying goodbye, and he hoped that she would understand. He also told her where to sell this new object, and who to trust. He folded up the letter, and placed the object on top of it, so that it wouldn't blow away. He slid the door quietly, and shut it even more faintly. The monk ran to the Bison who was asleep in the barn, but woke up when he heard footsteps. Aang air bended the saddle back onto Appa, feeling a lot of agony in his ribs coming back now, but continued anyways.

Once that was done, he threw his stuff on the saddle, and then grabbed Momo, who was still sleeping on the other side of the little animal shelter. He pulled the reigns of Appa, led him out of the barn, and then climbed up him as he held his breath while climbing in pain. When he finally settled down, the beast jumped, and began to fly.

Aang walked off the bison's head, and placed Momo on the saddle, who still continued to sleep. The monk walked to the end of the saddle, and sat down, with his arms on the edge. He rested his head on top of his arms, and sighed heavily as he watched the two bedroom house disappear. Wishing he could have stayed longer.

OoooooOooooOoooo

Five days later, Katara and the gang had at long last reached the shored of the Earth Nation. And for once, she was so happy to see land, but no one was happier than Toph.

"Ah, LAND!" she said jumping into the sand, and rolling in it, "Sweet, sweet land!"

Katara smiled at the young earth bender, who had been throwing up a lot during their long voyage. But Tao was always by her side, taking good care of her. At first she didn't need him, but when Katara told her that this was a good sign that he liked her, Toph allowed it. She seemed to really take advantage of it too, with them staying up late at night, talking quietly.

Sokka was the next one off the ship, with Suki holding his hand tightly. The boomerang guy was back in his water tribe outfit, while Suki was in an Earth Nations shirt and pants. When it was Tao's turn coming down the rail, Toph jumped up and sand bended a pathway for him. He smiled at her, "Thanks Toph!" and rolled onto the hardened sand.

Katara of course was the last one off, waving to the Captain, and telling him to stay there until they got back. They knew the tavern was only a few miles away, but everyone was already complaining as they went through a small forest. Sokka, of course was cutting down everything that was in his pathway, with his trusty machete.

"Sokka, do you think that is a good idea?" Katara asked, "Especially after learning form the swamp?"

"Nope!" he said swinging away, "I told you before, trees aren't alive! How many times are we going to go through this?"

Katara was about to protest, but Toph stopped, and blocked everyone from going ahead behind Sokka, who just kept walking and talking. The blind girl pointed up, and when they all followed her finger, they saw a swarm of different kinds of birds at the top of the trees. And when they looked back down, they hadn't noticed all of the bird droppings until now.

"Ugh, Sokka," said Suki, "I think you might want to stop!"

The pony tailed boy continued on anyways, "Oh come on Suki! I hope you're not as superstitious as Kata…" but before he could finish his sentence, he felt something drop onto his shoulder. It was white, with dark colors in it, and then another fell on his head, and another on his boots, and before he knew it, it was raining down with bird droppings.

Sokka started to run back towards the gang, but ended tripping over a tree limb that he had just cut off. He rolled back onto his feet, but slipped from the birds little gifts, and fell flat faced into an ant pile. Sokka jumped up quickly as he tried to get the ants off of him, but wasn't able too.

"Ah!" he screamed like a little girl, "Get 'em off of me! Get it off!"

Katara summoned the water from her pouch, and threw it into Sokka's face, and then releasing it, not wanting that kind of water around. His face was red all over, with little mountains on it as well. The water girl tried to hold in her laugh, just like everyone else was trying to do.

"Ew!" Sokka said, as he tried to get the gooey bird junk off of his outfit, "Why do things like this always happen to me?"

"If I said it once, I'll say it again," Toph quoted and folded her arms, "You make it too easy!"

Sokka was about to attack Toph, but Suki got in his was and stood between them both. "Look, lets just get to the tavern, and hopefully they will have a place for you to wash up in. Okay?" she said as sweetly as she could, still laughing.

"I don't think she'll want to kiss you anymore Mr. Poop head!" yelled Toph, in a sarcastic manner.

"Stop it you two!" screamed Katara, "We need to keep moving, because every second we waste here, Aang gains miles. So can we please go?"

Sokka sighed at the group, and knew Katara was right. "Fine, let's keep heading north then."

Sokka started to walk ahead of the group with Katara behind him, but a hand caught her hand. The water bender looked back at the arm, "Wait one second." said Toph with a crooked smile.

The next thing she heard was an angry yell from Sokka. Katara turned around and saw another gift landed on his head, and dripping down his nose. Then the Blind Bandit let go of her arm, and walked forward.

"Okay, now we can go." Toph said, as she walked by Sokka.

After a couple more miles of arguing, they had at long last come to the wooden tavern. All of the sudden, two guys went flying out of the opened windows, but they got back up and went back to fight some more. Katara breathed in and out of her nose, and walked through the house with no doors. They were surrounded by many men who were fighting, gambling, arm wrestling, and drinking till they couldn't stop.

Katara remember it being a lot easier to walk through these bums when Zuko was here, it was as if he was able to intimidate these people. The room reeked of sweat, old ale, and smoking pipes. Just about everywhere they turned, someone was off fighting, two or three guys at a time, or getting thrown into a table.

Toph was surprised to see how calm Tao seemed in a place like this, most people would be at least a little nervous, but Tao's heart beat calmly. This impressed her even more, but it was soon disrupted when a guy bumped into her, and grunted at her.

"Hey! Watch it you overgrown whale!" yelled Toph, causing the fat man who couldn't bring his shirt over his gut, to stop and look at the little girl that was half his size.

"Maybe a little girl like you shouldn't be in this place, you blind freak!" he said, and started laughing, and then all of his boys joined in on the laugh.

"Wait!" one of his buds yelled from behind, "how blind is she?"

The giant whale spoke, "Blind enough not see a mirror!" and he busted out laughing along with his drunken friends.

Toph clenched her fist, ready to show these guys just how blind she really was. But Tao rolled out in front of her, "I think you owe this lady an apology you skunk hippo!"

The laughing stopped as the oversized man looked down at him, "What the hell did you say wheels?"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" he said sarcastically, "I guess skunk hippo wasn't good enough for you, you overgrown whale! So how about a joke then?" Toph couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she was liking Tao more and more.

"Your mama is so fat, that when I gave her a piggy back ride, she ended up paralyzing me from the hips down!" said Tao laughingly, as he looked at the man. He could tell the man in front of him was getting mad, but his friends started to snicker at the joke.

"Or how about," Tao continued, "Your mama is so fat, that she is the only person I know who can play hide and seek with her bellybutton!" This time the big guys friends busted out laughing, causing the man's face to turns red as he clenched his fist.

"And now for the grand finale!" he yelled towards the man's friends. Tao faced right in front of him, and looked up at the man with the wart face, and a nose that went to the side. "What do you call a fat man, groveling on the ground?"

Tao waited for an answer as he looked at the confused faces. Even Toph looked at him curiously. Finally he yelled at the whale in front of him, "You!" and punched the man right between the legs.

The next thing Toph heard was the man howling in pain, as he rolled onto the floor, while holding both hands between his legs. Toph began to laugh hysterically at the joke she just got, remembering that she need to do something like that someday.

His face was burnt red, and even a mixture of purple was in it. "G-g-get th-them you i-diot-s!" he whaled at them, and then his friends started walking over towards them, with sticks, and swords in hand.

Tao looked over towards Toph, and saw her mouth opened a little at him. He just smiled and said, "Well, I hope your fighting is as good as I remember!"

This made the blind girl smile widely at him; "Only if you let me have the one on the ground there!" she said pointing her finger to him, as he started scrambling up.

"He's all yours!" spoke Tao, and with that, they fought 6 against 2 kids. One blind and the other crippled.

Katara heard a lot of cheering coming from the entrance of the room, but paid no head to it at the moment. She kept searching for June, but she was no where to be found. Finally she went to the bar, and asked the man behind the counter.

"Excuse me, but is June around by any chance? It's an emergency." she added.

The bartender turned around, and eyed the beautiful dark skinned girl. He was wearing an old shirt that was once white and was now a creamy color, which also had holes on it as well. It seemed to fit with his bushy, salt and pepper mustache, which he thought helped him show off his three front golden teeth.

He leaned over, and said, "An emergency, huh?" as he continued to look up and down at Katara in a disgusting way. "How much are you willing to bargain with Miss?" he asked with his eyebrows raised. Katara looked around the bar, and saw that Sokka was off trying to gamble for some money, while Suki kept telling him it was a bad idea, which it was indeed.

The water bender gave him a flirtatious smile, and grabbed the bartender's shirt with both hands, and brought him inches from her face. Her face had turned into anger, "I'll ask one more time." she said with her best threatening voice, "Where is June?"

"Ooh, you're a feisty one ain't yah?" he said licking his lips slowly, as he continued up and down at her. Katara could smell the stench of his alcoholic breath, and knew what he wanted from her. And it only caused her to get even angrier. She leaned her head back, while still holding the man's collar, and then brought the man's nose into her head, satisfied to hear a pop sound.

"Ah!" the man screamed, as he tried to stop the bleeding, "You broke my nose you little tramp!"

Most of the time Katara would have took that offensively, but it just washed off of her. "That's not going to be the only thing I break, if you don't tell me where June is!" she said clenching her fist, ready to release the ale that she had been summoning underneath the bar table.

"She's not here!" he answered at long last.

"You're lying!" she yelled and shook him a bit.

"No! I-I swear on my dead mother's grave! A young guy came in here four or five days ago and asked where she was too. And-and the next thing I knew, he handed her a bag of money, and she left! I didn't hear the conversation, but she hasn't been back since! And she always comes back on arm wrestling night!"

Katara didn't want to believe the man, but he seemed to be telling her the truth. But she needed to know who this person was. "Who is this guy?" she said pulling him close to her face again. He tried to back away, but her grip was too firm.

"I-I don't know who he is! He is maybe about your height, or an inch taller. I couldn't see his face, but when he turned, I saw a small scar on his far left cheek!" he said, trying to cover his grounds. "But I could be wrong, it was too dark for me to see, and that cloak of his didn't help either!"

"Wait, did you say on the left side?" Katara asked, thinking that it couldn't be possible.

The man nodded his head in fear, and raised his hands up, while the blood continued to trickle down.

The man was starting to sweat, "Umm…I think so? It was pretty small though. P-please, I don't know anything else. This guy was like a shadow almost."

Katara wide eyed him, realizing that it could have been just about anyone, but it could be very possible that Aang was covering up his tracks now. The water bender knew she was scaring the man with the mustache, and she normally wouldn't act like this, but she had to catch up to Aang. Whatever was going on with him, she wanted to help.

Katara looked at the drunken man eyes, and could see that he was indeed telling her the truth. So, she finally released the bloodied nose guy, as he stumbled backwards. Katara then took a gold fire nation coin, from the money that Zuko gave her, and tossed it on the counter. The man looked at her as if she was crazy, as he continued to hold his nose, hoping to stop the bleeding.

"For the trouble we have caused." she said, and walked away to find the others, and then let the ale fall underneath the bar to the ground. Sokka was still gambling money, as he threw another dice, landing on a spider snake eyes. He kept itching his face, which Suki would always end up slapping him. And now that Katara looked at Sokka, with his messed up clothes, and bumps on his face, he could fit right in with this crowd.

"Yea!" he screamed in triumph, "Now, all I need is one more!" And then he grabbed the dice, and shook them in his hands, raised his right hand up, ready to throw them against the three wooden cubicle. But before he could get the right roll, Katara grabbed his wrist, which caused him to let go of the dice. The dices rolled and hit each other, and he ended up getting a Yo instead.

"What was that for?" he yelled into her face, feeling the anger building up inside of him because he was about to win some money. But when he looked at his sister, he could tell that something was wrong, and they needed to leave. And without saying another word, he nodded, grabbed Suki's hand, and began to walk away as he tossed in the last bit of his own money into the pot.

"Where is Toph and Tao?" Katara asked the couple next to her, attempting to avoid the crowd as much as possible.

"How should we know?" said Sokka, "They both ran off somewhere when we entered into the room."

Before Katara asked where, they heard a lot of men start to yelp in pain. The small group ran towards the noise of the crowd, and saw that about six guys were dog piled on top of each other. They all kept groaning in pain, and could see that they were too weak to even move. Then the water benders eyes caught that Tao was on the ground, crawling back towards his wheelchair. Sokka and Suki saw it too, and helped him back into his wooden chair. When they saw his face, a black eye was already starting to form on his right eye. His goggles seemed to have a small crack in them, but he was the happiest kid Katara had seen after a fight.

Toph walked over towards the gang, and dusted herself off. "Well, that was fun." she said looking at Tao with a big smile.

Katara wanted to yell at her, but that was going to have to wait for later. "Come on guys, we need to get back to the ship now?"

"What about June?" Suki asked as they began to walk behind Katara, who stopped when she asked the question.

"She's not here. Let's go." the blue dark skinned girl said, and walked out the door, with Suki and Sokka behind her. With the setting of sun in her face, and the winds blowing softly.

Toph was about to follow them, but then she felt a hand grab hers. "Hey," said Tao, "wait just one second." and then he pulled her towards the guy who had made fun of her in the beginning. He was at the bottom of the pile, and couldn't breathe. Tao rolled to the side of his face, so Toph could hear him correctly, and then grabbed his hair and pulled his head up.

"Now, I think you owe this girl an apology." he said, hinting that it was a good idea. Toph couldn't believe that even after kicking their butts, she was going to get an apology from him. But she knew that it wasn't going to be possible, but then again, they fought like a bunch of girls.

The man looked up at the blind girl, and said, "Sorry for bumping into you."

"And?" Tao asked politely.

"And…for calling you a blind freak."

"And?" Tao pressed again.

"And-and for calling you ugly…"

Tao then smiled at the bottom man and then decided to pull a kid move on him. He put half of his pinky finger in his mouth and said, "Thank you. Wet wiley!" and put the slimy finger in his ear. The man stirred as he tried to move, but gave up when no one got off of him.

"Okay," the wheelchair boy said, "now we can go." And then he took Toph's hand and they rolled out of that bar scene. The earth bender was very impressed.

When they got back onto the ship, Katara told the Captain to stay near the shores and continue south. Or at least that was what her gut told her. She then walked out onto the deck, and found everyone sitting around in a circle, waiting for her. Sokka had changed clothes, and washed his hair. His arm around Suki, while Toph stared at door behind them, while Tao looked at the blind girl from the corner of his eyes and smiling slightly.

Katara sat down between Sokka and Toph, and spoke, "June wasn't there because some mystery guy tipped her off, and she has been gone for maybe a day or two."

"So…" said Toph, "what does this mean?"

"It means," began Sokka, "we are right back where we started. June was our best hope at finding Aang, but now, now we don't know where to start?"

Katara looked up at the clear skies, and then back at the gang. "Well, from what the bartender said, Aang beat us to June."

"What?" yelled Sokka loud enough to cause Suki's to jump.

"I think Aang was there. The bartender gave a small description of him, and I believe it was him. It's he is trying to cover his trail, so we can't find him."

"Then" said Tao, "that means he's close by." Automatically, everyone looked at him curiously, as he continued, "Look, wherever he is, it seems kind of obvious that we could catch up to him easily if we had June to help. He knew we would use her, and needed her out of the equation."

"But her Shirshu can smell from long distances." said Suki.

"That may be true, but I don't think it would have mattered. Because even if he went somewhere far enough, then he could easily change his scent by using the perfume that you guys used before once." Tao said intelligently, remembering a story of that happening.

Katara was starting to kind of starting to see where he was going with this, but decided to ask the question that was on everyone's mind. "So, what are you saying then?"

"I'm saying, that he has to be somewhere in the eastern section still. A man doesn't cover his trails, unless he plans to stay close." the young inventor concluded.

"So," began Toph, "if he plans to stay close, like you said, then what place can he go to? We all traveled together to a lot of towns, and if he went back to Ba Sing Se, then we may never find him."

"No." said Katara, as her mind started to scramble through the maze. "He wouldn't go to Ba Sing Se, because whatever he is going through, he might be looking for help. And I don't think anyone can help him there?"

"What about his friend King Bumi?" Sokka asked curiously.

"No, I don't think so either. As much as they are friends, I don't think an earth bender is going to help him in this situation." announced Katara, and then looked back at Toph, "No offense."

Toph shrugged her shoulders, "Eh."

Suki spoke up again, "What other place could he travel to, where he could get help then?" The small group became silent at the question, as they thought hard about it.

"Tao is right." Katara thought to herself, "if Aang was covering his trail with great care, then he would have to be somewhere close by."

They were about 4 days behind him now, with the new information the bartender gave them. Which Katara hoped he didn't lie to her, because she would know where to find him again. The answer was right there under their noses, but it seemed like whatever the water bender thought about, only seem to come to a no.

Then a light bulb went off in Sokka's mind, "The Guru!"

Suki raised an eyebrow at him, "A…spiritual teacher?"

When Katara looked up at her older brother, it clicked. "Of course! When Aang needed help with the Avatar State, the Guru told him that he could help him. And he said that he could find him in the Easter Air Temple!"

"What makes you think this guru" Toph emphasized, "would still be there again? It's been months since Twinkle Toes saw him again!"

"It's our best guess right now." said Sokka, letting go of Suki and getting his Earth map from his pack, and laid it out for everyone to see. "Since he is using Appa, he can cut across a lot of land. It should only take him about 3 days in the least to get there, a week at the maximum if he stops a lot. Which is very possible? And It seems to be the perfect place to go in just those few days."

"How long would it take by boat?" asked Tao curiously, knowing it was going to be a long while.

"If we travel back to Kyoshi Island, it will be about six days, if we don't stop. And then another five days if stuff doesn't happen to us." Sokka ended.

"Well," said Toph sarcastically, "it's a good thing the universe loves you then, Sokka." The meat lover was about to protest, but then shut his mouth, knowing it was pretty true when it came to his Karma.

"What happens if we get there, and he's not there? Do you guys know anywhere else he could go to?" asked Tao.

Katara didn't want to think about that right now. She was hoping that by some miracle they could catch up to him, but it was going to be hard to do. They would need to stop for supplies eventually, and she didn't know how much longer Toph could handle being on a ship.

She looked up at Tao, and said, "Maybe we can figure it out once we get there."

Toph leaned over and whispered to the young inventor, "We always seem to make it up as we go."

The water bender knew Tao was right. He was just asking another question that was on hers, and the others mind. She had hoped that they could catch up to him, but it made things difficult when traveling by boat. And they always did seem to get some bad luck when traveling. They would indeed be lucky if nothing happened to them at all. The sky around her was getting darker, which seemed to bring the sleepiness out of her.

She got up and looked down at her brother, who rolled his map back up and placed it into his pack. "Then we need to get started. Do you think you can tell the Captain where to head to? I already told him to head south, so as of right now, we are on the right course."

Sokka nodded at his young sister, as she walked through the doors, and disappeared into her room, wishing Aang could just come back.

OooooOooooOooooo

Finally, at long last Aang and his animal friends had made it to the temple. The place seemed just so isolated, compared to the Northern Air Temple well Tao lived. In a way it made him sad not to see others attempting to take over the skies.

The air bender's mind started to wonder back to the last few days, when he talked to June, and paid her with everything he had. And then there was Ursa, who had become like a mother to him too. And how it took him five days, with rest and food to get there; however Aang didn't get to eat a whole lot. His friends always seemed to find something, but he didn't always have that luck. Even at times when he was desperately hungry, he would never steal food from any town they flew over. It was the way of the Monks, and he did his best to keep their ways alive in him.

Aang looked up, and saw a scrawny, dark skinned man at the top of the highest tower. He was in a meditative state, and didn't move when he heard them near. Appa landed just below the tower, and immediately the monk jumped off. He air bended the saddle off of the Bison carefully, so he wouldn't break the stitched on his body. He thanked Appa for everything, and then the Avatar told them that they could stay here and rest, while he went to go and talk to Guru Pathik.

Aang walked slowly up the stairs, toward the top of the tower. The man was still sitting peacefully as he walked toward him, "Guru Pathik?" he questioned.

But the man didn't move an inch. The monk continued to walk around him slowly, until he saw his face again. The Guru looked skinnier than he did last time he saw him. His clothes were the same, his white beard had grown a bit longer, and he had a piece of clothe that was tied around his head and covered his eyes. He waved his hand in front of the scrawny man, as if hoping he would blink or feel a breeze.

The, out of nowhere the Guru yelled, "Boo!"

"Ah!" Aang yelled back, and stumbled to the ground, landing on his butt.

The Guru began to laugh at the young air bender, "Oh how I love a good scare people sometimes. But the key is to wait until they are absolutely close, and then you spring out at them."

The monk scratched his head bald head, at him, but then stood back up. He bowed, and said, "Guru Pathik, I am in need of your help again. Something is happening to me, and I don't know how to stop myself."

"I know all about what has happened to you young Avatar. I have been visiting the spirit world everyday, and I could sense a disturbance in it." he said, as his looked up at Aang.

Aang sat down in front of him, and began to speak to him. "My past lives tell me that you might be able to help me. And right now, I could truly use your wisdom."

"Mmhmm" said the white bearded man, "I can see that you are a different person now, I could even tell from the way you walked."

The monk raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't speak. "You have indeed been through so much young Avatar. Things that a boy your age should never have to face, or deal with and I can also sense that a change has happened in your spirit."

Aang nodded, "That is what I need help with Guru Pathik." And with that Aang told him all that had been happening to him since Ozai, how everything was fine, and then it changed. He told him about how he liked fire more than air, about what he did to Iroh and his friends. He told him everything. When he finally finished the Guru still remained silent.

After about an hour of them just sitting there, the dark skinned man spoke, "Ah. So much has indeed changed in you, and it saddens me. But I believe I can help you, but it will take time."

Aang knew it would take time, so he asked anyways, "How long do you think?"

"Just as the Avatar's before you took years to manipulate all four elements, this will be the same process. It could take anywhere from five to ten years to master."

All of the sudden the monk started to feel sick to the stomach, as he processed what he just said. "Ten years? Why so long?" he yelled.

"Because it is not easy to conquer the evil that is inside of you, it takes much practice and skill to learn to stop this. He has already begun taking over your body, and you will need a lot of time to learn and control this part of you, and it will not be easy."

Aang didn't like this one bit. He was hoping that the Guru could teach him in a matter of months, and not years. The air bender didn't want to do this anymore, but then a memory flashed at him. He saw Katara lying on the bed, unconscious, and bleeding from the head. She was so out of it that she could have passed to looking dead.

The monk couldn't imagine what could have happened to her, if Ozai had stayed in control of him till he killed them all . He knew that leaving her was the right decision, but he was still hoping that he could somehow get back to her quickly. If she could ever forgive him.

The air bender sighed, "What must I do?"

The Guru smiled, "We must leave this temple."

Aang raised an eyebrow, "Why? I just got here."

"Because in order for you to succeed, we must travel through the lands in disguise."

The bald monk was still confused, "Why?" he asked again.

"I can only do so much here Aang. But out there, I can show you." he said

Aang nodded slowly at his wisdom, realizing that this was going to be even more difficult than he thought.

"And your friends are on their way as we speak. They seem to be very clever at trying to find you. Plus, if what you say is true, about what happened to you and your friends, then they cannot find us. It will only make things harder, if your loved ones are there."

Aang look up at the sky, as he realized that they were never going to stop looking for him. He didn't know how they could possibly find him. The monk thought that he covered his tracks pretty well, but it was possible that people could still see Appa, even with the cloud coverage. Aang didn't want to let Appa go, but it might be a good idea if he wanted to stay hidden for a long period of time.

Aang got up and bowed to the bearded man, "Then we should go Guru Pathik. But I need to take care of something first if you don't mind."

The old Guru got up and said, "I'll be waiting for you when you are ready." He grabbed his staff, and the blind man began to walk down the stairs of the tower.

The monk jumped down the building, and headed towards Appa and Momo, who were sleeping together. He smiled at them, and continued to walk forward. The Bison's ears perked up, and then he opened his eyes. Aang could see his own reflection in those big brown eyes of his, and saw the friendship that they had for each other.

"Appa," he began, "I need you to stay here with Momo, and wait for Katara and them." The bison looked at him with a strange face, and then shook his head.

"Look buddy, you have done all that you can for me. But I can't have you following me around, when I need to stay hidden. If it is possible to hurt my friends, then it's even more possible for me to hurt you. Your job now is to look after the others. Protect them as you would with me." he said petting his head. Aang could see that his spirit guide didn't like this plan, but he knew he would do it for him.

"I'll come back for you as fast as I can. I promise." Aang said, and then he jumped on his head, hugging him tightly. The tears started coming down his face, as he realized that it would be ten years before he saw his best friend again.

"Watch out for them." he said one last time, squeezing his Bison harder. Aang let go, and Appa licked him one last time. The monk smiled at his friend, and went over to Momo, who patiently sat next to Appa. The monk bent down, and scratched the lemur's ear, who then he began to purr at him.

"Momo, you stay out of trouble, and keep Katara warm for me. Watch out for her, will ya?" The lemur looked up at him curiously, and jumped onto his shoulder and began to lick his bald head. It made Aang laugh as he kept tickling him, and then he set him back him back down. Aang thought about leaving a note for the beautiful water bender, but decided that it might be a bad idea

The air bender went towards his pack; put it on carefully, so as to not keep his ribs from killing him again. He grabbed his staff, and started to walk off towards the Guru. The monk looked back one last time toward his last friends, that he wouldn't to see for a long while. Appa was sitting down, while Momo was on top of his head, with his ears down in sadness. The Guru put a hand on his shoulder, as Aang continued to look at them.

"Are you ready to begin Aang?" he asked.

The monk looked up, at the blind Guru, and nodded. "Where are we going?"

The old man turned and started walking towards the edge of the ground, "Wherever the wind takes us. But first, we need to find your inner self again."

The air nomad gave Appa and Momo a halfhearted smile, and ran toward the old man slowly. "How are we going to do that?" he asked when he finally caught up to him.

"First" he said holding up his index finger, "we will have some onion and banana juice." But before he got the wooden cups out, Aang stuck his tongue out in disgust, hoping he would never have to taste it again.

The Guru laughed, "I may be blind, but I can see your face reaction still. Our first lesson, is to find the inner child within you. I can sense that you have so much turmoil inside, that the loving and caring Avatar that I met months ago is not longer here."

"But how can this help me to win against Ozai's spirit?" asked Aang curiously, as he took the cup from his spirit teacher.

"In due time, just as the moon rises everyday, you too will learn why we must do this." announced the skinny man, as he poured his pouch into Aang's cup. Filling the air with the aroma of banana's, onions, and perhaps some pickles in there somewhere.

Okay, so tell me what you guys think. I know I made Katara a little bit tougher, but we all know she can be just as tough as Toph sometimes. And I also wanted to give Tao and Toph a cool scene too,.I haven't done too much on them, so they needed it. I know the jokes are a bit stupid, but I tried to make it seem like them somehow. And don't worry, I'm not going to make Aang wait 10, 5, or even 3 years before he see's everyone again. I think I'll do one more chapter, and he will go back to them; however, he will have been away for a little while.

Anyways, if you guys don't mind, please review me! I do read all of your comments, because it keeps me motivated. Peace and Love Avatar fans.