"Are you all right, Sokka?" Katara said, glancing over her brother's shoulder as he pouted at the river we sat next to. "You're been staring at that se tu for a while."
"He's totally taunting us," Sokka said. The green se tu leaped out of the water. "Look, it just smirked at me!" Sokka leaped to his feet. "That's it! I'm eating you for dinner tonight!"
Sokka ran over and grabbed the fishing pole he carved during our long flights. He reeled his arm back and thrust the pole to the water, but no line came out.
"Aang, where's the fishing line?" Sokka said.
"Oh... uh... I didn't think you would need it," Aang said as he sat next to the smoking campfire. He held out a necklace he woven himself. He climbed to his feet and turned to Katara. "I made this for you."
Katara smiled and took the necklace in her hands. "Thank you. It's beautiful," she said.
"Well, if the whole Avatar thing doesn't work out for you, at least you can always get a job in the jewelry-making business," Sokka said. The se tu leaped out of the water again. Sokka chucked the fishing pole like a spear, but he missed. With a growl, he pulled out his jaw blade and ran into the water.
"How do I look?" Katara said. Her mother's necklace was in one hand while she wore the woven necklace. Aang blushed deeply.
"Uh, well, if you're talking about all of you, then you look great!" Aang said, rubbing the side of his head nervously.
"Aw, you're so cute, I just want to throw up," Sokka cried sarcastically as he wrestled with the se tu. It slipped out of his arms, slapping him in the face with its tail, and swam away.
"Stop teasing him, Sokka. Aang's a good friend. He's as sweet as Momo," Katara said, petting Aang's head and then Momo's head, who sat on Aang's shoulder.
I covered my mouth in my hand and chuckled. Aang did not look pleased to hear that. Sokka climbed out of the water, soaked and cranky. We perked up at the roar of an animal nearby. Aang jumped onto a tall rock to get a better vantage point.
"Someone's being attacked by a platypus bear!" Aang called. We followed his finger to a little ways down the river, where an elderly man stood in front of a platypus bear. The bear swung his paws and tail, but the man dodged its attacks with a casual smile.
"Hello, there. Beautiful day, isn't it?" the man called. He ducked as the bear swiped and laughed. "That was a close one!"
"Run!" we called frantically, but the man stayed still.
"No need to fret; it's going to be fine!" he said. He ducked again, this time sitting on the ground. The platypus bear swiped the tree behind him, taking a giant chunk out of the trunk. Aang leaped in front of the man and hit the bear with a gust of wind.
"Whoa, there!" Aang cried. The platypus bear roared, even angrier at Aang's presence. However, Appa stepped behind the bear and roared even louder. The bear, startled, laid an egg right there and scurried into the water.
Sokka picked up the egg with a smile. "Lunch!" he said, rubbing the egg against his cheek.
"It's a good thing we were here, or else that platypus bear would've gutted you," I said.
"Thank you, but it was not necessary." The man stood up. "Aunt Wu predicted that I would have a safe journey."
"Who?" Aang said.
"Not 'who', Wu. She is the fortuneteller from my village."
"So that's why you were so calm," Katara said.
"But the fortuneteller was wrong! You were attacked by a platypus bear; you almost got killed!" Sokka said.
"Ah, but I wasn't. I must be off. Before I go, Aunt Wu told me to give anyone I meet this." The man placed a thin package in Aang's hands. "Have a good day!"
The man turned and walked down the side of the river.
"Fortunes, huh? That sounds like fun. Maybe we should get our own," Katara said.
"Please! It just sounds like an old lady saying whatever she wants to people that'll get her more business," Sokka said.
"Neat. An umbrella!" Aang said after ripping the wrappings off the package. He opened the orange umbrella. "I wonder why he gave us this."
At the end of his sentence, a loud crack of thunder made me jump. I looked up as it started to spontaneously pour. Katara jumped underneath the umbrella. I raised my hand, creating a slab of ice to shield me from the rain.
"I guess Aunt Wu predicted it would rain," Katara said.
"No, she didn't! Anyone could have predicted that; the sky's been gray all day!" Sokka said, stepping underneath my slab of ice. "And besides, you can't really tell the future."
"Just admit that you were wrong and we can get on with our day."
"I won't because I'm not wrong! Just watch this: it's going to keep on drizzling."
As quick as the rains started, they stopped. The clouds separated, shining light on the area. I tossed the ice slab to the side, and Aang closed the umbrella.
"Not everyone has the gift," Aang said.
Sokka grumbled under his breath. He took a step, but he snagged his ankle on a protruding rock. He tripped and fell to the ground, faceplanting right into the giant platypus egg he had been carrying.
We arrived at a town built at the base of a volcano. As we entered, a pair of turkey ducks squawked at us when we passed by them. Sokka stuck his tongue out at them.
"Don't be such a child," I said.
"I'm not!" Sokka hissed in a whiny tone. He cleared his throat. "Don't tell me you're buying all this future nonsense."
I shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, I'm interested in getting a fortune, but I'm not going to obsess over it." Sokka rolled his eyes. "What if you got a fortune and it all came true?"
"Pure coincidence."
"Right, sure. Whatever."
We approached one of the larger buildings. A man dressed in black and white robes with white hair stood at the door.
"Aunt Wu has been expecting you." He gestured for us to enter.
"Really?" Katara said with a smile. We entered through the doors. Warm fall colors decorated the inside: oranges, browns, greens, and maroons.
A young girl with brown eyes and black hair tied up in pigtails that stuck straight to the sides entered the room. She wore a long, pink robe with purple trimming.
"Welcome to Aunt Wu's. My name is Meng, and I'm her assistant," the girl said. She stopped, her jaw dropping slightly, to stare at Aang. I glanced at the airbender, who glanced around the room in disinterest. Meng smiled, revealing a missing front tooth. "Please, take a seat. May I get you some tea or some of Aunt Wu's special bean curd puffs?"
We sat down on the pillows near the wall.
"I'd like some of-" Sokka said, but Meng raised a hand toward him to shush him.
Meng crouched down in front of Aang. "What's your name?"
"I'm Aang."
"It's very nice to meet you."
"Likewise."
Meng left the room, sneaking one more peek at Aang. Sokka sighed and stretched his bare feet out.
"Did we really have to come inside here? It's got 'coocoo' written all over it," Sokka said.
Meng returned with a plate of bean curd puffs. She approached us, her eyes fixated purely on Aang. She lost her footing and stumbled. Aang reached out and helped steady the tray, cupping Meng's hands in his. They looked up at each other, their faces less than a foot away. With a blush in her cheeks, Meng pulled her hands away.
"Enjoy your snack," she said, and hurried out of the room. Sokka took the tray and began stuffing his face with bean curd puffs.
"Welcome, travelers." An elderly woman, who I assumed to be Aunt Wu, entered the room. She wore yellow robes, purple eyeshadow, and dark red lipstick. "Now, who is next?"
Sokka and Aang avoided Aunt Wu's eyes.
"I'll go." Katara climbed to her feet. She and Aunt Wu disappeared into the back room.
Sokka shoved the bowl of bean curds into my face, offering some to me. I plucked one out of the bowl and nibbled on it.
"So... what do you think they're talking about?" Aang said, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked jittery.
"It's a fortune, Aang. It's all about your future: luck, success, wealth, love..." I said.
"Love? What do you mean?"
"You know, love, like who you're going to marry, how many kids you'll have when you get older. That kind of stuff."
"Yeah, that kind of boring stuff," Sokka mumbled as he gulped down his tea.
I rolled my eyes. "Don't listen to him. He's just pouty because... well, you're like this all the time, actually," I said, turning to Sokka. Sokka mocked me, mouthing incoherently and making talking motions with his hand.
"No, no, he's right. I mean, love is boring..." Aang said. He glanced nervously to the hallway. "I need to go find a bathroom."
Aang scurried to his feet and jogged out of the room. I reached for another bean curd puff, but Sokka slapped my hand away.
"No curds for the crazy," he said, stuffing the last of the puffs into his mouth. He choked on them and coughed, pounding his fist against his chest. I sighed. Aang entered the room with a spring in his step. "That must've been a great bathroom trip."
"Uh... yeah. You see, I-" Aang said.
Sokka shot his palm out to him. "I don't want to hear about it."
Katara and Aunt Wu returned. "Who's next?" Aunt Wu said.
"Fine, let's get this over with." Sokka stood up and stretched out his back.
Without missing a beat, Aunt Wu said, "Your future is full of struggle and anguish, most of it... self-inflicted."
"You didn't even read my palms!"
"I don't need to; it's written all over your face." Sokka pouted and flopped back onto the pillow. Aunt Wu looked at me. "How about you, dear?"
I perked up. "Okay..." I stood up and followed Aunt Wu to the back. A warm fire glowed in the center of the room, illuminating the area. A canopy covered the two orange pillows that lay next to the fire.
"Have a seat," Aunt Wu said, gesturing to one of the pillows. I obeyed. "Give me your hands."
I stretched my hands out, palms facing up. Aunt Wu took my hands in hers. She shivered intensely, her whole body trembling for a few seconds.
"Are you okay? Is there a draft?" I said.
"No! It is you," Aunt Wu said. I knit my eyebrows. "Your soul... it is so cold, so disconnected. I feel a wall of ice around your heart."
My shoulders slumped and I looked at Aunt Wu in annoyance. Great. Ice. My favorite.
"You are haunted by the memories of your childhood. You had a family, those around you who loved you and cared for you... but they were taken away. The hardships of your past have caused you to drift into a void of emptiness, and none have been able to pull you out of it. Your heart drowns in such lonely emotions... These hands which I hold were blessed to change and create, but your heart has been clouded by fear and sadness, which has locked away your true power. Yes, yes... Hands of a waterbender, but a heart of a firebender."
I gulped. Maybe Sokka was wrong about her. Aunt Wu closed her eyes.
"I see three reunions in your future. The first two are bittersweet, each of them leaving you more heartbroken than the last. But... I see a large, roaring waterfall flowing through your veins, thawing the ice shielding your heart. Your power will grow stronger as your burdens disappear, your strife light as a feather." Aunt Wu smiled. "Ah, but the third reunion... Like a triumphant choir of trumpets welcoming a soldier home from war. I see spirits being lifted, hope renewed, and souls pieced back together again."
Aunt Wu opened her eyes. I blinked several times as I stared at her.
"Um..." I mumbled. "I don't really understand what you said. Could you perhaps simplify it for me?"
"Life is not as complex as people make it out to be. They wander through, pursuing paths they believe will lead them to where they want to be, but when they take their final steps and look back, they realize that life guided them exactly to where they needed to be. The chips will fall where they may, but you determine how the finished picture will look. Your destiny is in your hands; how will you shape it?"
I felt like these words would be much more relatable to Aang. Aunt Wu released my hands, and they fell into my lap.
"That is all," Aunt Wu said. We stood up. I bowed to Aunt Wu, and we walked side by side to the main room. Aunt Wu looked to Aang. "All right, young man. Your turn."
Aang jumped to his feet and followed Aunt Wu to the back. I took Aang seat between Katara and Sokka.
"How did your fortune go?" Katara said.
"It went... okay," I said, holding my arms. "She was pretty accurate about some things."
"Oh, don't tell me you believe her scam, too!" Sokka said. I avoided his eyes. Sokka groaned and threw his hands in the air exasperatedly, falling back and laying on the ground.
Once Aang had received his fortune, we left Aunt Wu's house.
"That woman is completely crazy," Sokka mumbled.
"You're just upset because your fortune wasn't as good as ours," Katara said, folding her arms and cracking a smirk.
"It was a scam, I tell you! Just watch, my life will be filled with happiness and joy and good fortune!" Sokka kicked a rock laying on the ground. It ricocheted off a shop sign, coming right back and hitting Sokka in the head. "That doesn't prove anything!"
"Unlike you, my fortune was great. I can't wait for it to come true."
"Me, too..." Aang said with a smile.
"What did Aunt Wu tell you?"
"Um... some stuff. It's really not important."
We entered the village square. All the people were gathered in front of the large, ornated gazebo in the center of the square, and everyone gazed up at the clouds.
"What's everyone looking at?" Katara said.
"We are waiting for Aunt Wu to come and read the clouds. They predict the fate of the village," a nearby man said.
"The cloud reading will tell us if Mt. Makapu will remain dormant for another year or if it will erupt," a woman said, pointing up at the large volcano that the village sat under.
"Long ago, the tradition used to be we would climb up the mountain and check the volcano ourselves, but since Aunt Wu moved here, our traditions have changed."
"You really have all of your lives in the hands of a crazy, old lady?" Sokka said. Katara grabbed Sokka's shoulders and shushed him.
Aunt Wu, along with her black and white bodyguard, climbed up the stairs leading to the village square. The villagers cheered as she passed through and stepped up to the gazebo. She raised her hands and took a deep breath. Reaching inside her robe, she pulled out a small cloud reading book.
"According to the clouds... the harvest will be rich and plentiful... a good year for twins... but most importantly, the village will not be destroyed by the volcano this year!" Aunt Wu said.
The villagers erupted into cheers.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Sokka mumbled as he stomped a few paces ahead of me. He eyed the merry villagers as he passed by them. "Someone really needs to give these people a dose of reality. I can't believe they're eating up all this fortuneteller rubbish."
"I wouldn't say rubbish..." I said.
Sokka turned around, shoving a finger in my face. "You see?! They even got you brainwashed!"
I pushed Sokka's finger away and held my arms. "You don't understand, Sokka. The truths behind what Aunt Wu told me were frightening. She knew things I've never told anyone..."
Sokka calmed down. "You mean... something having to do with where you came from before we met you?" I perked up and looked at him. "I couldn't get what Jet said out of my head."
I nodded. "He was right. I did come from the Fire Nation." I turned my back to him. "Not everyone there was a horrible monster. My best friend was the nicest, bravest person I knew... but now..."
"What?"
My shoulders drooped. "Nevermind."
"Hey, guys!" Aang cried, hooking his arms around our shoulders. "Want to go on a field trip?"
"Uh... to where?" Sokka said. Aang pointed to Mt. Makapu. "Great..."
"Out of all the places where a stupid flower could grow, why does it have to be inside a volcano?" Sokka grunted as he hoisted himself onto a rock.
"It's not just any flower, it's a panda lily. I've seen them work some serious magic."
"You don't need to worry about flowers until you're married. Until then, aloofness is guaranteed to get you places."
"Aunt Wu told me if I trust my heart, I'll be with the one I love, and my heart is telling me to go get a panda lily."
"Great, everyone is now a mindless Wu slave."
"Aunt Wu hasn't been wrong yet. Why should she be wrong about love?"
Aang beat us to the top of the volcano. I could see some panda lilies blooming from the side and swaying in the light breeze. Aang plucked a panda lily and smelled it. However, his dreamy state was followed by a gasp. Sokka and I caught up with him and we looked below. The volcano was filled with molten lava, churning ominously and ready to erupt at any minute. The heat hit my face, causing an instantaneous sweat.
"We can't let the villagers live in ignorance and get killed by this volcano. We need to warn them!" Sokka said.
"We have to hurry. Grab on!" Aang said, standing up and activating his glider. We clung to the glider and jumped off the side of the volcano, flying down to the village below. We hurried to Aunt Wu's house. Katara stood at the door. "Hey, Katara."
"Can you believe Aunt Wu? She won't let me in!" Katara huffed.
"How many times have you bothered her today?" I said.
"I didn't bother her! I've been giving her plenty of business!"
"We have other things to worry about. Aunt Wu was wrong about the volcano," Sokka said.
Katara rolled her eyes. "You've done nothing but complain about Aunt Wu since we first heard about her. It's going to take a lot more to convince me-"
The ground rumbled, causing us to stumble. We looked up at saw a thick plume of smoke rising from Mt. Makapu.
"Oh, no..." Katara whispered.
We hurried to the village square. The villagers were still gathered together.
"Everyone, you have to get out of here! Aunt Wu was wrong about the volcano! It's going to blow any minute!" Sokka cried.
"Yeah, yeah, you and your complaints!" a villager cried. Sokka growled.
Aang hopped onto the roof of a nearby building. "Please, listen to us! You're all in danger! You can't rely on Aunt Wu's predictions; you have to take fate into your own hands!"
Mt. Makapu rumbled again.
"Can your fortunetelling explain that?!" Sokka cried, pointing at the smoking volcano.
The villagers ignored us and went their separate ways.
"How are we going to get them to listen to us?" I said.
Aang cupped his chin in his hands. "Maybe we're going about this wrong. There's no way they're going to listen to us, but they'll listen to Aunt Wu. She was able to predict the future by reading the clouds, right? Well, if we change the shape of the clouds to match what her cloud reading book says, then she'll tell everyone about the volcano and they'll leave."
"But what's the symbol for 'volcano will go boom'?" Sokka said.
"I'll sneak into Aunt Wu's place and get the cloud reading book so we can find out. Cover for me."
We nodded and hurried over to Aunt Wu's house. Sokka, Katara, and I stood in front of the doors, trying to look as casual as possible, while Aang snuck in through the top window of the building. After a few minutes, Aang scaled down the building and landed next to us.
"Now that we got the book, Katara and I will take Appa up into the sky and bend the clouds into the symbol for volcanic destruction," Aang said. "Sokka and Ursa, you go and get Aunt Wu so she'll see the clouds and warn the people."
We separated. When we saw Appa in the sky, Sokka and I knocked on Aunt Wu's door.
"What is it this time-" Aunt Wu said. She stopped when she saw us. "Oh, it's just you. I thought you were the other Water Tribe girl. How may I help you?"
"Come quick, Aunt Wu. Something's happening with the clouds!" Sokka said. We took each of her arms and guided her back to the gazebo in the village square.
"What do you mean? The clouds never..." Aunt Wu cast her eyes up to the sky and gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. "Oh, my!"
The clouds, thanks to Katara and Aang, were shaped like a large skull.
Once Aang and Katara returned, Aunt Wu told the villagers about the volcano. Concerned murmurings broke out.
"Listen up, people!" Sokka called. "Lava is going to flow downhill to this spot. If we can dig a deep enough trench, we can redirect the lava away from the village and to the river. If there are any earthbenders here, go with Aang. Everyone else grab a shovel." The volcano rumbled again. "Hurry!"
As the night descended on the village, we worked tirelessly to dig the trench. Even with the few earthbenders, progress moved quickly and smoothly. Mt. Makapu rumbled again, spilling a thin steam of lava down the side.
"Everyone needs to evacuate! We'll come get you once it's safe!" Aang cried once the trench had been dug and connected to the river.
The villagers hurried down the mountainside. The four of us stood on the other side of the trench, our backs to the village, and watched the volcano. Lava began to spew unceasingly. Ash rained down from the sky. A stream of lava rushed toward us, leaving a large forest fire in its wake. All that it touched burst into flames and melted, becoming one with the lava. The lava flowed into the trench, but it quickly began to fill. The volcano burst again, launching lava into the air.
"Get back," Aang said. We glanced at him before running a small ways into the village.
More lava ran down and into the trench, creating a giant splash of lava that shot into the air. Aang took a running start towards the lava before leaping into the air, using wind currents to propel him higher. Gathering as much wind as he could, he landed back on his feet and swirled his arms, pushing back the lava that threatened to spill over the trench. Taking a deep breath, he unleashed a powerful wind current that hardened the lava, creating a dome-like wall.
"Wow. Aang's one powerful bender," Sokka said. Katara perked up and looked at Sokka in surprise before she glanced back at Aang.
"Yeah... he is," she said.
Morning came, and the villagers regrouped in the village square.
"Um... by the way, we kind of borrowed this," Aang said, holding out Aunt Wu's cloud reading book. She snatched it from him.
"So, you messed with the clouds, huh?" she said. She laughed. "Very clever. Because of you, our village is safe."
"I hope everyone has learned not to rely too much on fortunetelling," Sokka said.
"But Aunt Wu predicted that the village wouldn't be destroyed, and it wasn't. She was right all along," a nearby villager said.
Sokka's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. I grabbed his arm and led him away from the villagers before he could attack them.