I do not nor have I ever had anything to do with ATLA or Nickelodeon

"BG" means "Before (Air Nomad) Genocide" which happens when Aang is 12 years old

I want to thank my Beta-Reader fanatla, without you Anila's Story wouldn't be as great as it is!

Chapter 20

After a good night's rest Anila and Karma resumed their trip to Ember Island. Anila couldn't get her mind away from that brightly glowing crystal. She remembered seeing one once, almost identical to it at the Eastern Air Temple. She shrugged off the silly thoughts and turned her mind to the trip a head of them.

Ember Island was one of the many places she read about, she read about the braches and the troup of actors, The Ember Island Players. She always wanted to go see a play, growing up people like sister Dolkar always taught true enlitenment was their goal in life, her mother taught her that it's okay to have fun, Anila thought about how every year she had flown crane kites with other children on the small island, Munk Gyatso taught her it was okay to have fun too. She had heard stories about how he would make the fruit cakes then launch them off a balcony aiming at the meditating munks.

"What are we going to do on Ember Island?" Karma asked.

"Oh... ahhhhhhh... sorry I drifted away... Well I wanted to see a play. I read about them, I read a lot when I was little, I had only a few friends, there were many girls that always picked on me. So I spend a lot of time in the temple library. I read about all kinds of places, they all seamed so wonderful I think you would love them too."

"You... You didn't have many friends?! You are lieing, your so powerful and wonderful and so... so confident. I wish I could be half the person you are!" Karma told her.

Anila smiled at her friend, "I was awkward, and goofy, and so, so clumbsy."

"But you don't seem like it." Karma said.

"Just after my fifteenth birthday I got hit in the head by an Airball... I got knocked out my post and broke a few bones, I couldn't attend the Yankchan festival that year." Anila said saddly.

"That was the year I turned sixteen." Karma said. "I met Amitaruci that year... He sat next to me in the circle when we had our meal. He introduced himself, and we talked and he was just so nice, and so dreamy. I could hardly breath." Karma told her story.

Anila started to laugh, "I'm sorry I'm not laughing at you. I meet him because I was running in the huge green field... I, Oh goodness this is imbarrasing, I triped over him, he was laying in the soft grass." Anila's face was bright red and she could feel her cheeks burning.

Karma put her hands in front of her mouth, she tried to be nice and hold her laughter in.

"It's okay, you can laugh... It's funny." Anila said as she herself began to laugh so hard tears ran down her cheeks.

"What happened after you triped?" Karma managed after about twenty minutes of side splitting laughter.

"He helped me up, he said it was his fault... Once I looked him in the face... He really is dreamy, isn't he... The jerk!" Anila said.

"Did this happen the year you left with him?" Karma asked.

"No... it happened two year before, I had just turned fourteen, the year you seen me gliding... I could hardly breath, my mouth and throte went dry, I could hardly talk and I kept coughing thats why he gave me his water pouch... it was the year after that I got hurt and couldn't go, I was devestated, I wanted to see him again he was so dreamy, and so kind, he called me Pretty One."

"When he talked to me, he said I was sweet and beautiful... He paid full attention to me... It was amazing. The boys my age were always mean to me, they made fun of me because I really wasn't that good at Airbending. He made me feel so good... so happy. I cdouldn't believe such a handsome man stayed with me the intire time we were at the festival. When he asked me to leave with him, I didn't know what to do or say. I grew up at the Western Air Temple, I know exactly what happens when people pair off and leave together. His smile, his kind words and... well everything, so I accepted and he took me to the Fire Nation. And well, you and I both know what happened there." Karma explained.

Just a few days later they finally reached Ember Island. They decided to set up camp near the beach. After they set up camp and collected firewood, Anila and Karma decided to take a walk into town, Sonam toddled a little bit a head of them. "Sonam stay close to Mommy." Harma called to her daughter. Anila and Karma wondered from stall to stall, shop to shop. There were all kinds of souvaniers and nic-nacs being sold here.

Anila bought herself and Karma matching seashell necklaces. "Best Friends" Anila said as she helped Karma with her necklace.

"Best Friends!" Karma repeated as she examined herself in a mirror.

They stopped to watch a street preformer preform all kinds of tricks with his firebending. When he finished he took a bow and the two girls along with two others aplauded him. The other two people dropped a couple copper pieces each, Anila dropped two gold pieces into the preformer's cup. The girls then began to walk back to camp.

"Excuse me!" A voice from behind them called out. Both girls were surprized by the voice. "Excuse me! Hello?"

The girls turned around too see who was calling out to them. It was the street preformer, "Normally I would't say anything... but two beautiful young girls like you... I just had tpo talk to you." He said with a smile.

The girls smilled back. "Thank you Anial said."

"Okay so, my reason for talking to you, You gave me two gold pieces, I think you made a mistake, that you meant to give me two other coins."

"No, I gave you two gold on purpose." Anila said.

"Really!? Thank you so much! I'm Zakai." He told them. He looked as if he he were right about as old as they were.

"Nice to meet you Zakai, I'm Anila and this is my friend Karma." Anila told him.

"So are you two beautiful girls here with your family?" Zakai asked them.

"You could kind of say that." Anila said with a laugh.

"We are just friends." Karma told him.

"Would you like to join us for dinner?" Anila asked as they approached their camp.

"Oh... uuummmm... I've never been invited to have dinner with alyone before." He told them as he nervously fidgeting with his cup in his hand.

"Air Nomads never turn away a hungry guest." Anila said.

Karma started setting the wood up for their camp fire as Anila started cutting bread, fruits and vegetables.

"Would you like me to do that?" He asked Karma. "I can do it quickly." He said with a chuckle, as he produced a small flame from the palm of his hand.

"Ok, thank you so much." Karma said to him.

Aang began to fuss so Anila took him out of his sling and laid him on a blanket. Zakai watched Anila couriously.

"How... I hope you don't mind me asking but... well I noticed you both have babies with you... Not to pry too much but... well... How old are you two?" He asked them.

"I'm eighteen." Karma said.

"I'm seventeen." Anila said, "and yes the babies are ours."

"So you both have husbands." Zakai looked a little glum.

"No, no husbands." Anila laughed, "Normally airbenders dont marry, we breed... Have babies to keep up the Airbender population."

"Wow... uuummmmm... no offence but that just doesn't seem right." Zakai said. "If I had a young woman as beautiful as you two are, I'd never let them go."

"Well, in all honesty... We don't see how the rest of the airbenders cold give up families and relationships like they do." Anila told him. "I will never give my sweet little Boy up."

"I could never give Sonam up either... Sonam, I told you to stay close to Mommy." Karma said as she got up to collect her daughter.

"Anila... Your name is almost as beautiful as you are." He told her.

She looked up and started to blush, but then remembered what the last person that said she was beautiful did to her. "Thanks I guess." Anila said turning back to her little boy. She began to feed him small bits of cheese curds. He made cute little "num num num" sounds with each bite.

Karma prepaired a plate of food for Sonam then she made one for Zakai and finally one for herself.

"Thank you both for your wonderful genorocity. I haven't ever meet an airbender before." He smiled at them, "Now I know two."

"Four" Anila corrected him. "Air Nomads don't give birth to nonbenders... we ALL airbend." Anila told him.

"Oh, Well I guess I learned a lot about airbenders today." Zakai said with a smile.

After Aang had his fill of food he began to yawn and fuss. "It was really nice to meet you... My tiny one is getting sleepy, I need to put him dawn for the night." Anila said. She airbended herself to her feet and picked up her son, then she went into her tent and nursed her baby andput him down for the night.

Zakai was nice, and he wasn't bad looking but as soon as he started to use the same words Amitaruci did Anila's guard went up... She wasn't going to put herself in a position to have her heart ripped out again by a man.

LINEBREAK

The Young Air Nomad Monk reached the Western Air Temple quickly. As he was led to the Head Nun's office he saw so many babies that looked to be the right age to be the new Avatar. "Wait here please." A yound Nun told him as she went into a circular room. After about fifteen minuets she emerged, "She will see you now."

He walked nervously into the room and bowed to the head Nun. "I was sent here to inforn you that The Avatar Cycle contenuies. We need a list of all the babies that were born the night the valcano in the Fire Nation erupted, almost sis months ago." He bowed again.

"I will have a list made up for you, we have almost fifty babies born everyday, this wil take a bit of time to collect all the information you requested. I will have the young Nun that brought you to my office to have special quarters set up for you while you wait." The Nun told him.

"Thank you very much Sister." He bowed yet again then left the room.

After another twenty minutes the young Nun came out once more. "Pleas follow me." She led him away from the main area where the women were and showed him to a room.

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