Several days after that storm, we were flying when Sokka noticed a boat by the seashore.

"That looks like it might be a Water Tribe ship!" he exclaimed. "We should check it out."

"Okay," said Aang.

I wanted to say it was a waste of time, but I knew I'd get outvoted. That didn't mean I wasn't going to have my say, though. "Let's land in the woods," I said. "Just to be cautious."

"And I thought Sokka was paranoid," said Katara.

"The word is 'vigilant'," Sokka corrected.

"I didn't know you could use such big words."

"Will you two just ignore each other for five minutes?"

After landing in the forest and taking a brief walk, we got an up-close look at the ship.

"It's one of our boats!" Sokka said happily.

"Is this... Dad's boat?" asked Katara.

"No, but it's from his fleet. Dad was here."

"Think there are Water tribesmen nearby?" I asked.

"I don't know. From the looks of it, there was a battle here. I think we should camp here tonight and see if anybody comes back to salvage anything from the boat or fix it."

"Why? We could cover more distance between now and sunset."

"Look, my instincts tell me we should stay here."

"He's right," Katara chimed in. "It wouldn't hurt to lose a few hours of travel and we might run into someone."

Someone they knew, I thought. "I'm sorry, did I mishear, or did you two just agree on something?"

"Hey, it happens sometimes."

"Well, start doing it more, why don't you? The sibling rivalry is getting old."

"I think it's kinda fun," said Aang.

"Don't encourage them."

"Hey!"

A few hours later and we had a fire going under a full moon. Aang and Katara were asleep, while Sokka and I kept watch. Technically, I was doing the watching; Sokka just idly poked at the fire, lost in thought. I sensed a bit of sadness and anxiety in him.

"Are you going to finish poking around anytime soon?" I asked. "I think the fire's just fine."

"Huh?" He looked up. "Oh, sorry. Just thinking."

"About what?"

He shrugged. "Nothing."

"My senses tell me otherwise. Something's on your mind and I'm the only one available right now. Spill."

"Why so concerned?"

"Because you being distracted could affect the mission. Let me guess, you're hoping to see your dad?"

He nodded. "Yeah. It's been years since we've seen him."

A younger Sokka, painted for war, struggled to drag a sleeping bag through the snow.

"Sokka..." said his father, Hakoda.

"I'm coming with you," the boy declared.

"You're not old enough to go to war, Sokka. You know that."

Sokka pleaded desperately. "I'm strong! I'm brave! I can fight! Please, Dad!"

Hakoda placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Being a man is knowing where you're needed the most, and for you right now that's here, protecting your sister."

Tears welled up in the boy's eyes. "I don't understand."

"Someday you will." The two shared an embrace. "I'm going to miss you so much."

I wasn't exactly the "sage" type, and I certainly didn't know how to give familial advice. "Sorry to hear that," I told Sokka. "The way I see it-"

I was interrupted by a noise. "Someone's coming."

Sokka pulled out his club while I put a hand on my lightsaber. "Who's there?" Sokka demanded. His voice was loud enough to rouse Aang and Katara.

The source of the noise stepped into the light, revealing a man with a bandaged left side, wearing Water Tribe clothing and sporting the same skin tone. "Sokka?" he asked.

"Bato?" Sokka answered. I let my guard relax since the two seemed to recognize each other.

"Who the what now?" Aang asked with a yawn.

"Bato!" Katara called happily. Well, the three definitely knew each other.

The newly identified Bato smiled. "Sokka! Katara!" The three hugged. "It is so good to see you two! Oh, you've grown so much!"

The Avatar bowed. "Hi, I'm Aang." I decided to wait before giving my name. Unless it disrupted the mission, I wasn't going to interrupt a little reunion.

"Where's Dad?" asked Sokka.

"Is he here?" asked Katara.

"No," Bato answered, "he and the other warriors should be in the eastern Earth Kingdom by now."

A cold wind kicked up and I moved closer to the fire while everyone else shivered.

"This is no place for a reunion," Bato declared. "Follow me."

Sokka and Katara began following Bato, completely forgetting about our campfire. I turned to Aang, who seemed a little uneasy. "Mind taking care of the fire?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah." A thrust of his hand and the fire was out.

Bato led us to a stone building in the forest, where a number of women were walking around. "After I was wounded, your father carried me to this abbey," he told Sokka and Katara. "The sisters have cared for me ever since." He turned to one of the women. "Superior, these are Hakoda's children. They have been traveling with the Avatar and his friend. I found them by my boat." That was when he actually noticed me, my hood covering my hair and cloth covering my fake eye. "I'm sorry, I don't think I ever got your name."

"Eric."

"Unusual name."

"Maybe in the Water Tribe."

"Good point."

The Sister Superior was focused on Aang. "Young Avatar, it gives me great joy to be in your presence. Welcome to our abbey."

Aang bowed. "Thank you. It's truly an honor to be here."

Sokka sniffed the air. "What smells so good?"

"The sisters craft ointments and perfumes," Bato explained.

"Perfume, huh? Maybe we could dump some on Appa? 'Cause he stinks so much! Am I right?"

No one laughed. "You have your father's wit," said Bato.

Bato led us into the room he was staying at. It was decked out in various Water Tribe decorations and animal pelts. In the middle of the room was a fire with a pot over it.

"It looks like home!" Katara said happily.

"Everything's here, even the pelts!" said Sokka.

"Yeah, nothing's more comforting than dead animal skins," Aang commented, sounding dejected. I sensed his fear, though I couldn't place what was causing it.

Katara took the lid off the pot and peered inside. "Stewed sea prunes?" she asked excitedly.

"Help yourself," said Bato.

"Dad could eat a whole barrel of these things!" Sokka exclaimed.

Katara dished out bowls to each of us, which Sokka dug into vigorously. Aang took one whiff of the food and made a face. I decided to chance it and took a spoonful. I'd tasted worse. Momo bit into one, then spat it back out.

"Bato, is it true you and Dad lassoed an arctic hippo?" asked Katara.

"It was your father's idea," said Bato. "He just dragged me along. Well, the hippo did the dragging."

"I ride animals too," said Aang, though no one paid attention.

I tapped Aang on the shoulder and motioned for him to follow me.

We stepped outside and I noticed Aang looked dejected. "Alright, what's bothering you?" I asked. I already sensed his fear, but knew I had to get him to say it.

"Well, you guys are the closest I've got to family," he answered. Made sense. His people were wiped out, so he latched onto our little group. "Watching Katara and Sokka talk about their dad, I just feel sorta left out. I mean I'd be happy if they saw their dad again, but..."

"I doubt that'll be a problem. The eastern Earth Kingdom's too far out of the way from our destination."

"But what if they want to leave me and go with Bato? I don't wanna lose them."

There was a moment of silence as I tried to figure out what to tell Aang. He was your average kid on the outside, but he was also hurting. The poor kid had already lost one family and he wasn't about to lose this one.

"Look," I told him, "I can't really see the future or anything, so I'm not going to guarantee everything will be okay. The way I see it, Sokka and Katara think you're family too. I've seen how you three interact. I don't think they'd want to lose you either. I do think that where you go, they'll go. Last time I checked, Katara still wanted to learn Waterbending, right?"

Aang smiled. "Thanks, Eric. I guess I got a little worried over nothing."

I shrugged. "You're still a kid. It happens." I looked up at the night sky. "Looks like we're staying here for the night. We need to leave first thing in the morning."

"Okay."

I heard someone coming, so I turned around and saw a Water-Tribesman riding in on some kind of giant lizard. He stopped in front of us. "I am looking for Bato of the Water Tribe," he said.

"We know Bato," said Aang.

The man reached into his pouch and pulled out a roll of paper. "Make sure he gets this."

Well, that guy was way too trusting. I pointed my thumb at the door. "He's in there. If that message is important, give it to him yourself."

The soldier frowned, but dismounted and walked inside. He came out a few seconds later, followed by the others.

"Guys!" exclaimed Sokka. "This is a map to Dad!"

I looked over and the paper showed a drawn route to somewhere in the Earth Kingdom. "Going that way would set us back at least a week," I noted. "That's time we don't have."

Sokka lowered his head. "Yeah, I know. We just haven't seen Dad in so long. We really miss him."

That was when an idea came to mind. "We need to get to the North Pole and find a Waterbending teacher for Aang and Katara. That said, we will have to go into the Earth Kingdom to find an Earthbending teacher. I don't see why we can't stop by then."

"They'll have moved on by then."

"Maybe, but my point is they'll still be in the Earth Kingdom somewhere. We're bound to run into them at some point."

"Eric's right," said Katara. "Getting to the North Pole should be our first concern."

"Hakoda would be proud that his children are helping the Avatar," Bato declared. "I wish you all good luck on your journey."

We spent the night at the abbey. By sunup, we were soaring.

A bit late and mostly filler, but I just knew this little episode needed changing. Next chapter will cover the team's encounter with a certain deserter.