AVATAR
The Young Lady Of Legends
She was a shy, self-centered and overall lazy dreamer from our world, transported to the world of Avatar where she's the stuff of some sort of legend. She also can't continue being lazy, not if a certain agitated prince gets his way. ZukoXOcc
O~O~O~O
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Flying Pigs And Foggy-Swamp People
"Hmm…" Bumi regarded me, and then smiled. "Are you by any chance an Earthbender, Emma?"
I froze. "N-no…?"
"Emma's a Waterbender." Aang explained. "Why?"
"Because she looks like an Earthbender." Bumi shrugged. "Oh well."
I gulped. He knows, doesn't he…?
O~O~O~O
Zuko's P.O.V:
"This is humiliating!" I told my Uncle angrily. "We're royalty! These people should be giving us what we want!" The very fact that we were outcasts from the Fire Nation was bad enough – but, the fact that my Uncle was practically begging for these peoples' money was nearly unbearable! Especially when my Uncle began using his "charms" to get the money from women…
When a man carrying broadswords asked us to perform, and my Uncle complied, I was furious when the man told us that my Uncles singing was not good enough for one gold piece. Why, if Emma were here, she'd have these people offering up everything they owned when they heard her sing!
When the man with the broadswords was sadistic enough to make my Uncle dance by waving his sword at Uncle Iroh's legs, it was almost the last straw. My teeth were gritted, and my were hands clenched at my sides. My Uncle didn't seem to care, but I was beside myself with rage. I felt the familiar warmth spread up through my hands, the tingling feeling that usually accompanied my Firebending but, with it, I could almost hear Emma's voice saying to me: Don't you DARE! ! She wouldn't resort to violence in this situation…what would she do?
An idea formulated in my mind, and I stepped forward between my Uncle and the man with the broadswords.
He smirked. "What's this? You wanna have a go, cone-head?" He asked, referring to my peasant's hat.
Clenching my fists, and forcing myself to think of Emma instead of the situation at hand, I began to sing a song I had heard her sing awhile ago. It seemed like another life-time.
Just one more moment, that's all that's needed. I can't believe I said I'd lay our love on the ground By now you'd know that I'd come for you I was blindfolded, but now I'm seeing By now you'd know that I'd come for you No matter what gets in my way Yes I'd come for you, no one but you, And I'd fight for you No matter what gets in my way
Like wounded soldiers in need of healing.
Time to be honest, this time I'm bleeding
Please don't dwell on it, cause I didn't mean it
But it doesn't matter cause I've made it up forgive me now
Everyday I spend away my souls inside out
Gotta be someway that I can make it up to you now, somehow.
No one but you, yes I'd come for you
But only if you told me to
And I'd fight for you
I'd lie, it's true
Give my life for you
You know I'd always come for you
My mind was closing, now I'm believing
I finally know just what it means to let someone in
To see the side of me that no one does or ever will
So if your ever lost and find yourself all alone
I'd search forever just to bring you home,
Here and now this I vow
No one but you, yes I'd come for you
But only if you told me to
And I'd fight for you
I'd lie, it's true
Give my life for you
You know I'd always come for you
You know I'd always come for you
As long as there's still life in me
No matter what, remember you know I'll always come for you
Yes I'd come for you
But only if you told me to
I'd lie, it's true
Give my life for you
You know I'd always come for you
As long as there's still life in me
No matter what, remember you know I'll always come for you
I'd crawl across this world for you
Do anything you want me to
No matter what, remember you know I'll always come for you
You know I'll always come for you
As I sung this, people began to gather around, and many of them even threw multiple gold coins to us, all of which my Uncle caught.
The man with the broadswords glared at me as I finished my song. "Well," He sneered. "At least you're a better singer than your Grandfather!" He tossed the gold coin to us, but I let it fall on the ground.
I looked down at it, and then back up at him. "He's not my Grandfather," I said, quietly, though anger was trembling behind my voice. "And, you can keep your gold coin." I glanced at my Uncle, whose robe front was full of gold coins. "We don't need it…" I took my Uncle's shoulder and quietly led him away from the crowd.
When we were out on the open road, I just shook my head in disbelief.
"Well," My Uncle said, conversationally. "If all else fails, you can always go into the singing business, Zuko. You know…"
"Don't say it!" I warned him.
"Don't say what?" He asked, innocently.
"You were going to say that if Emma were still here we could form a duo, weren't you?" I accused him.
"No," He shook his head, and then smiled. "But, that's not such a bad idea…"
I groaned. If only my Uncle knew how complicated things had really gotten…
"I was going to say," Uncle Iroh continued. "That the song you sang reminded me of Emma…don't you agree, Zuko?"
I sighed.
O~O~O~O
Emma's P.O.V:
"So, why were you scared of flying?" Katara asked, glancing at me over her Waterbending scroll.
I cringed, and buried my face in my Waterbending scroll. "Well…" I paused, and then said: "In the world I come from, there's these things called air-planes – they're machines that can fly in the air…"
Sokka and Katara stared at me.
"What?" I rolled my eyes. "It's true, you know…anyway, so I was just worried all the time because, well, sometimes planes crash, and, well, people die, so…" I shrugged. "I also got air-sick, and that was harsh…"
"So, where did you go when you were on an air-plane?" Katara wanted to know.
"Umm…we went toBali, when I was a kid," I smiled at the memories. "Me, my Mum, my sister, Nanna, Aunty Cheryl and I…it was actually fun…Bali's a tropical island with great shopping…" Life had been so much simpler back then…no worries, no stress…everyone getting along and being at peace with one another…
Katara glanced at me. "You have a sister?" She asked me.
I nodded. "Yeah…she's older…her name's…Sarah…we used to get along, but not anymore…she thinks I'm too immature…" I looked away, and sighed. "When we used to go to Bali, for example, we were always together, but now…I don't even think she'd hold my hand on the plane OH MY GOD! ! !" I fairly screamed, because Appa was descending. I gripped the side of the saddle with one hand, and Yong-Chan with the other. "We're gonna die!"
"No, we're not, Aang's good at this!" Katara assured me, although I noticed that she was looking a little worried. That scared me, because Mum always used to say that everything was okay until the flight attendants started looking nervous, and Katara was a flight attendant in my mind's eye at the moment.
"Hey, Aang, you takin' us down for a reason?" Sokka called.
I knew that Aang was zoned out, and that he would snap out of it, but that didn't make me feel any better!
Sokka made his way forward to where Aang was, and then peered down. "Oh no, we're gonna die!" He cried.
Katara rolled her eyes. She looked calm all of a sudden, despite the fact that I'd let go of the saddle and now had her hand in a vice-like grip.
"Aang?" Sokka grabbed the Airbender's arm. "Why are we going down?"
Aang shook his head then. "What? I didn't even notice…"
"Aang!" I wailed, now gripping Katara around the waist, with Yang-Chong hugged between us. "Do something! ! !" I was shaking. Why did I ever think I liked flying? "Now…! ! !"
"Are you noticing now?" Sokka asked.
"Is something wrong?" Katara was being incredibly patient with me, as she patted my shoulder and spoke to Aang.
"I know this is gonna sound weird, but…" Aang paused, and then went on with: "I think the swamp is…calling to me…"
Huh? There's a swamp down there? I dared to peer down there, still clinging to Katara. Oh…so there is…and, it's rushing up to meet us…yaaay…
"Is it telling ya where we can get something to eat?" Sokka wanted to know.
Aang shook his head. "No, I…I think it wants us to land there…"
"Good idea!" I called helpfully.
"No offense to the swamp, but I don't see any land there to land on." Sokka said, diplomatically.
"So?" I responded.
"I don't know," Aang tilted his head to one side. "Bumi said to learn Earthbending I would have to wait and listen…and now I'm actually hearing the earth. Do you want me to ignore it?" He asked.
"No!" I cried. Oh God, NO!
Katara, Sokka and Momo had different ideas, though.
"Yes!" Was Sokka's input.
"I don't know…" Katara blinked. "There's something ominous about that place…"
Momo took one look at the place, and grabbed onto Yang-Chong, who squawked loudly in surprise at being hugged by the lemur.
"See, even Yang-Chong and Momo don't like it." Sokka said.
I glared at him.
"Okay, since everyone but Emma feels so strongly about this, it's out-voted…sorry Emma…bye swamp…" Aang sighed.
"Ohhh…" I groaned, knowing what was coming. I closed my eyes and buried my face in the back of Katara's parka, preparing for the hurricane.
I only opened my eyes when I felt the winds hit us, and I was wrenched away from Katara.
All of us were screaming by that stage, which was pretty normal for four kids (and three magical creature) caught in a hurricane.
As we fell to earth, I mentally made a note to Christen the storm Swampy Cyclone Gladys.
That was my thought as I landed in the muddy water and, the first words out of my mouth as I stood up and the mud dripped from my Earth Kingdom clothes were: "Oh, I'm so glad I showered first…" The quote by the bird from Aladdin reminded me of Yang-Chong, and I looked around for the little orange bird. "Yikes! Yang-Chong's missing!" I realized with horror.
"Where's Appa and Momo?" Aang asked at the same time.
We exchanged a glance.
"Appa! Momo!" Aang called.
"Yang-Chong, where are you? !" I added.
There was no answer…
O~O~O~O
Katara's P.O.V:
Sokka and I trudged through the swamp. I glanced over at a sinister-looking creature watching us, and then back at Sokka.
"Sokka! You've got an elbow leech!" I pointed.
"Where? ! WHERE? !" Sokka yelled.
"Where do you think?" I asked coolly, crossing my arms. Honestly, sometimes my brother could be such an idiot.
"Why do things keep attaching to me?" Sokka ripped off the leech, and I just gave him a Look.
Aang and Emma suddenly swung towards us on a vine (Emma was clinging to Aang and looking horrified). Appa, Momo and Yang-Chong were nowhere in sight, which was bad news.
As my brother chopped through the swamp vines with his machete, Aang said: "Maybe…we should be a little nicer to the swamp."
"Aang, these things are just plants!" Sokka saud impatiently. "Do you want me to say "please" and "thank you" as I swing my machete back and forth?" He continued to hack away, making me concerned as well.
"Maybe you should listen to Aang…" I said to Sokka. "Something about this place feels…alive…"
"She's right." Emma muttered nervously, glancing all around her and gulping when she saw a bird-sized spider perched on a branch nearby her.
"I'm sure there are lots of things that are alive here, including that spider," Sokka said, annoyed and gesturing with his machete as the spider was eaten by a giant fly. "And, if you don't wanna end up like that, we need to find Appa as fast as we can!"
"He's right." Emma admitted.
"I'm just saying, we should be more careful." I replied crossly.
"They're both right." Emma nodded.
O~O~O~O
Emma's P.O.V:
"Appa!" Aang called.
"Momo!" Katara added.
"Yang-Chong!" I was close to tears by this stage – I hated being separated from Yang-Chong like this! I knew that this swamp was going to be a real test of all of us, and I wasn't sure I wanted to face it alone. First the cave, and now this…I was going to have issues by the time this quest was done.
"There's no way they can hear us and no way we can see them." Sokka said, diplomatically, coming to a stop suddenly. "We'll have to make camp for the night."
He was suddenly surrounded by a squillion angry swamp flies, which buzzed around him angrily. As he flailed with his arms and his machete, I heard him yell: "Aurgh! They're eating me alive!"
I groaned. This was going to be a long quest…
O~O~O~O
Later that night (well, I think night had fallen, it was hard to tell with all the canopy above us) Katara posed the question: "Does anyone else get the feeling that we're being watched?"
I gulped. Now that she came to mention it…I glanced behind me, and thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye, but maybe I was just imagining it?
Sokka, who still had a few flies bothering him, responded with: "Please, we're all alone out here."
Oh, now WHY did he have to go and say that? I wondered, as he swatted at a fly, missed, and (the fly) turned into a shining orb of light.
We all shielded our eyes from the light, and then turned to see many glowing, sinister eyes staring down at us.
"Except for them…" Aang said weakly.
The eyes vanished, and all four of us grabbed onto each other, with me hugged between Katara and Aang.
"Right, except for them." Sokka agreed, terrified.
That made all four of us.
And, it was only going to get worse…
O~O~O~O
I was determined to not fall asleep. Yes, I was exhausted, and no, I didn't think I'd be able to stay awake.
My eye lids were falling, and it was harder to open them again after each blink. My head began to nod, and I wished I'd asked someone to stay on watch with me.
I glanced over at Aang, Katara and Sokka, and smiled slightly. I turned away. Then, I looked back fast.
Snakes were slithering out of the undergrowth that Sokka hadn't cleared away, and were wrapping themselves around the ankles of my friends! No, wait…not snakes, but…
"Vines…" I whispered, just as one grabbed me around the waist, and yanked me into the mist that I hadn't noticed before now. I screamed, struggling and trying to free myself. I didn't want to leave the others alone in this forest – especially not Katara and Sokka, who would both see the illusions of people they'd lost.
I grabbed onto my vine, and tried to break it free. There was no water beneath me to Waterbend, just a lot of muddy and rocks. I concentrated on the rocks, and tried to summon up that Neutral stuff Bumi had been talking about. I wasn't fighting, I wasn't running…I was simply letting the vine carry me through…yeah, that was it…
I grabbed the vine with my left hand, and it (the vine) let me go. I felt myself falling, and gasped in shock, not because I was falling but because I had just Earthbended again. Or…was it Waterbending? Plantbending, perhaps?
I closed my eyes, waiting for the fall, and was surprised when a pair of arms caught me.
I opened my eyes slowly, and then felt the blood drain out of my face, as I looked up into the face of my savior.
It was Zhao…
O~O~O~O
Katara's P.O.V:
I was walking through an area of the swamp filled with white flowers. I'd been able to use a Water Whip to free myself from the vines, but now I was on my own. I was calling out for Aang, Sokka and Emma, and feeling slightly scared, despite the fact that the white flowers and the mist were pretty. I knew that the others would be looking for me, as well, and I'd feel a whole lot safer if we were all together.
Then, something I saw up ahead of me calmed me down instantly.
It was a woman wearing Water Tribe robes. She had long brown hair and, as I walked closer to her, asking her if she could help me, I realized that she had the same hairstyle as me. My heart just about stopped beating then, as I realized that there was only one person other than Gran-Gran and me who wore our hair exactly like that.
"Mum!" I began running towards her. Tears of joy were streaming down my face. It was really her! "Mum!" I reached her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I can't believe…"
Just then, the fog began to clear and, like it had been lifted from my eyes, I realized that what I had thought was my Mother was actually just a tree stump.
I gasped, realizing this, and sank to my knees, sobbing. I berated myself for being so foolish as to believe my Mother was still alive…but, I just couldn't let go of the thought…
"Oh, Mum…" I sobbed. "Why…?"
O~O~O~O
Sokka's P.O.V:
I hacked my way through the swamp, determined to not rest until I located the others. I'd woken up, alerted by Emma's scream, and then I was yanked away by a vine that had since become subjected to me and my machete. "Stupid swamp! Dumb, ugly vines! Katara!" I yelled for my sister, and turned to another vine obstructing my path. "You think you're so tough, huh?"
I somehow became tangled in the vines then, and fell flat on my face in the mud. When I looked up, however, I was stunned to see a ghostly figure floating within a shaft of light.
Princess Yue's spirit stared down at me.
"Hello," I called, walking forward. "Yue…" I then stopped, and looked away, shaking my head. "This is just a trick of the light…swamp gas…" I turned around, my back to the ghost. "I…hit my head running away last night…I'm going crazy…?"
I turned back around, even though I was still scared, and walked over to Yue.
The angel of beauty opened her mouth and spoke to me. "You didn't protect me." Her accusation, though hauntingly faraway and echoing, was enough to send chills running down my spine.
I rubbed my eyes, and suddenly the shaft of light was empty. I turned to walk away, and there she was.
I fell backwards in surprise, and felt like a fog was being lifted from my eyes as Yue disappeared.
I stood up, shaking my head, and walked away…
O~O~O~O
Aang's P.O.V:
"Katara!" I shouted, trudging through the swamp on my own, after using Airbending to free myself from the vines. "Appa!" I was trying to locate all of my friends, and having no luck.
Just then, I spotted two figures atop an earthen mound, and called out to them: "Hello…? Who are you?"
The one on the left was a pig with wings. The one on the right was a girl in a white robe, and she covered her mouth with her hands and laughed. The pig flapped its wings and raised itself into the air, flying away.
The girl ran down the opposite side of the mound.
"Hey, come back!" I called to her, and gave chase.
However, she was fast, like lightning, and I couldn't catch up to her. I thought I saw her on another mound but, as I was halfway through the process of crash-tackling her, I realized too late, as the fog cleared from my eyes, that it was Katara. We ended up falling together, and landed, just as Sokka dropped in – literally.
After briefly sharing our experiences, we began to wonder where we were, and where Emma was…
I also wondered why Katara and Sokka had both seen people that they'd known, but I was the only one to see a stranger.
I also wondered if Emma was going through a similar ordeal…
O~O~O~O
Emma's P.O.V:
I must've fainted or something because, when I opened my eyes, it was morning, and I was being carried through the swamp.
However, the man carrying me wasn't Zhao anymore…it was…Prince Zuko!
I stared up at Prince Zuko, feeling confusion and almost panic set into my heart. He was here! I was sure of it! This was no illusion, not like back in the cave…or was it?
I must've mistaken him for Zhao at first…I'd better not tell him that, either…
"What are you doing here?" I asked him, as he set me down. There was fog all around us, as well as dirt on my clothes and mud in my ears…great…
He gave me a confused look. "I was just about to ask you the same question…" His voice sounded odd and far off, and he was looking at me like he'd never seen me before. "Not many people come through here…" He eyed me. "Especially not Waterbenders wearing Earth Kingdom clothing…"
"It's a long story…" I paused, and then gulped. "Uh…how did you know all of that? I've not spoken to you about this swamp before, have I my Prince?"
He gave me an incredulous stare, before asking me: "Are…you alright?"
I shook my head, and stumbled back. "N-no…why is…this swamp…it's playing tricks on me…y-you can't be here…you're not him…you aren't him! You're not!" I stumbled backwards, and fell into the swamp water. I gasped, and struggled, flailing with my arms. "No! Aurgh! I'm gonna drown!" I panicked.
"Young lady!" A voice called, and I was able to hear it better now because the mud was being washed out of my ears. "Stand up!"
For once, I did as I was told, and realized that the water was only knee deep.
I frowned, and pushed my sopping wet hair out of my face.
That was when I realized who my savior actually was, now that my eyes were cleared of the fog, as were our surroundings.
"It's you!" I exclaimed, pointing at him. "I-I don't believe it!" I was stunned.
Hue was still looking at me oddly. "Have we met before, young lady?" He asked me.
I shook my head. "N-no…I…umm…I'm a Priestess…?" That was the only logical explanation I could come up with. I just hoped that it would be adequate enough. "I can…see things…?"
"You sound unsure." The old man said calmly.
"Yes, well, I'm not terribly sure of anything right now, am I?" I said sarcastically, stepping out of the swamp and trying to get the majority of the algae off of my clothes and hair. "I'm lost, my friends are all missing, I mistook you for my ex like I mistook someone else for him and it's all your fault!" I cried, all in a big rush, breathing heavily.
Hue just stared at me.
Just then, I felt something shift in the ground under me, and a vine tapped me on the shoulder.
"Hyaa!" I turned to face it swiftly, my hands held up in a karate-pose. The vine countered this by calling on reinforcements, and I brought up a water shield to block them, calling to Hue: "Please stop doing this! I don't mean the swamp any harm!"
"You may not," Hue told me, his eyes staring past me at something un-see-able. "But your friends…particularly the boy with the big knife…and your Bending friends cut at the vines…"
"They were scared!" I exclaimed, wrestling off a couple of vines, and thinking that maybe the swamp had a life of its own. "They really do respect the swamp, I promise!"
"We will see!" Hue intoned, and then he was gone, swinging through the swamp on a vine, Tarzan-style.
I stared after him, and then decided to follow.
O~O~O~O
Aang's P.O.V:
"There's someone in there! He's bending the vines!" Sokka shouted, as we struggled to fight off the plant monster.
I didn't know how or why this was happening, but as soon as Sokka said that, I realized that we might still have a chance.
"I'm on it!" Katara yelled, twirling around gracefully and swiftly in a bending move she'd been practicing. The water around her sliced at the mask and the head of the monster in a Water Whip. More vines grabbed Katara, which was when I decided to spring into action.
I leapt up into the air and sliced down with my staff, blowing away the rest of the plant monster to reveal a fat, leaf-clad man.
Sokka, seeing his chance, rushed at the man with his machete.
Just then, another figure leapt out of the trees, and placed herself between Sokka and the man.
"Sokka!" Emma cried, as Sokka screeched to a stop, his machete just inches away from Emma throat.
"Emma, get out of the way!" Sokka ordered her.
"No!" She said firmly. "You have to listen to him! And, he has to listen to you!" She added, glaring over her shoulder.
I was angry, not at her, but at the man. Who was he, anyway? "Why did you call me here if you just wanted to kill us?"
The man looked surprised, as he dropped the rest of the vines around him. "Wait! I didn't call you here!"
"He really didn't!" Emma added.
"Stay out of this Emma!" Sokka snapped, grabbing her arm and dragging her over to Katara and me.
"We were flying over and I heard someone calling to me, telling me to land." I told the man in leaves, who stared at me in shock.
"He's the Avatar," Sokka said, by way of explanation, as Emma helped Katara to free herself from the vines without actually snapping any of them. "Stuff like that happens to us."
"A lot." Katara added, stepping over to stand by my side.
"The Avatar!" The man was stunned, now. "Come with me…"
O~O~O~O
As we climbed the great roots of the great tree at the centre of the great swamp (and, by great, I mean big), we learned about this man. His name was Hue, and he protected the swamp from those who wanted to hurt it. Emma confirmed this story, also adding that Hue had caught her when she'd fallen, although it sounded like there was something that she wasn't quite telling us…she kept fiddling with the yin-yang around her throat and blushing.
Hue told us that he'd reached enlightenment under the banion grove, and that (like me) he heard the swamp calling to him.
"Sure ya did." Sokka nodded. "It seems real chatty."
"See, this whole swamp is actually just one tree spread out over miles…" Hue pretended like he hadn't heard Sokka. "Branches, spread and sink and take root and then spread some more – one big living organism, just like the entire world."
"I get how the tree is one big thing, but the whole world…?" I was confused. I could tell by the looks on the others' faces that they were, too.
Hue said: "Sure. You think you're any different from me. Or your friends. Or this tree. If you listen hard enough, you can hear every living thing breathing together, you can feel everything growing."
I glanced at Emma then, to see that she was looking down, with slightly bright eyes. I knew exactly what she must be thinking. That she wasn't from this world…she was from a different tree…
Hue continued with: "We're all livin' together, even if most folks don't act like it. We all have the same roots, and we are all branches of the same tree."
Emma dropped her head then, and I reached out a hand and patted her shoulder. She looked at me, and smiled sadly.
"But, what did our visions mean?" Katara wanted to know.
"In the swamp, we see visions of people we've lost, people we loved…" Hue told her.
Katara nodded. "My Mother…" She whispered. She looked at Sokka. "And, you saw Princess Yue…"
He nodded silently.
Emma gulped, and then spoke up softly: "I…I saw…someone…someone I saw die…and then I thought I saw someone I love…but it turned out to be Hue…not them…" She looked down again.
Katara patted her hand sympathetically.
"Folks we think are gone," Hue spoke. "But the swamp tells us they're not. We're still connected to'em. Time is an illusion and so is death."
Emma gulped.
"But, what about my vision?" I asked Hue. "It was someone I had never met."
Hue smiled. "You're the Avatar. You tell me."
I thought about this. I glanced at Sokka, and then at Emma and Katara, sitting side-by-side and whispering to each other about their ordeals. I said: "Time is an illusion…so, it's…" I suddenly realized. "Someone I will meet!"
Emma suddenly swung around to look at me. "Was it a little girl, with black hair and a white dress?" She asked me suddenly, her eyes shining and, when I nodded, her face lit up into a grin. "OMFG, you must've seen…" She suddenly clapped her hands over her mouth, and giggled, much like the girl had.
"Who?" I asked her, interested. "Who did I see?"
She shook her head, still smiling behind her hands, because the smile extended to her golden eyes. "You'll see…" She said, in a sing-song-voice. It was annoying, but I was glad that she was feeling better now, though.
"Sorry to interrupt all this," Sokka said, standing up. "But we still need to find the guys." He said, meaning Appa, Momo and Yang-Chong.
I nodded. "I think I know how to find them…" I leaned forward, and placed my right hand on the tree root. I closed my eyes, concentrating. "Everything is connected…"
Through my closed eyelids, I saw my hand arrows begin to glow blue but, I also thought I saw some pink light as well.
"Ah!" I heard Emma exclaim.
I knew why, because she was seeing what I was seeing – Appa, being netted by boatmen, and clearly losing his battle.
Emma and I stood up quickly as we were brought back to the present settings.
"Come on! We've got to hurry!" We cried in unison.
O~O~O~O
Emma's P.O.V:
We found Appa easily enough, and Momo was also captured with him! But…where was Yang-Chong?
"Appa!" Aang yelled, jumping onto a tree branch and then unleashing a blast of air that knocked one of the Swamp Persons – Tho – off of the boat. He dropped the bag he was holding, and Momo got out and flew away.
Due shouted: "We're under attack!" He Waterbended a wall of water up at Aang and Katara, which they bended away from them.
"Hey, you guys are Waterbenders!" Katara exclaimed.
Due smiled. "You too? ! That means we're kin!"
Katara looked horrified.
Hue, Sokka and I joined Aang and Katara on the tree branch.
Due put his hands on his hips and smiled. "Hey Hue! How you been?"
Gue smiled sheepishly. "You know, scared some folk, swung some vines, the usual."
I spoke up. "Where's my phoenix?" I called to him. "Where's Yang-Chong?"
"Oh, the yellow bird?" Due tilted his head to one side. "He's…umm…being cooked as we speak…"
"WHAT? ? ! !" I screamed.
O~O~O~O
I sighed. "I should've known…you can't toast what's already been toasted…"
Yang-Chong, who was perched on a spit above a roasting fire, cooed happily, before swinging down bat-style, and letting the flames envelope him. His blue eyes sparkled, and he roasted the shish-kabob I was holding to perfection.
"Thanks!" I cried, blowing on it to cool it down before taking a big bite out of it.
I watched as Sokka got on the wrong side of old Slim, the catgator, and Katara had a conversation with the swamp people about her home.
I glanced over at Aang, who was seated next to Hue, in front of Appa and with Momo on his lap, and smiled.
Still, I couldn't figure out why I'd seen both Zhao and Zuko in the swamp. Zhao's death had been horrific for me to watch, but it had certainly been no illusion. He was gone, and that was all there was to it. And Zuko…well…
"I…wanna see you again…" I sang softly, smiling sadly.
"Louder!" Sokka called to me.
"Finish your shish-kabob!" I called back.
The others laughed at this…
O~O~O~O
Somebody's P.O.V:
I regarded the man in front of me thoughtfully, not allowing my eyes to show any emotion.
"Tell me again what you heard." I said slowly, carelessly twirling my beard in one finger. "Slowly, this time, so I can understand you…"
"My Lord," The man bowed respectfully. "I have been hearing many rumors from the Earth Kingdom, concerning the whereabouts of the Avatar. Some soldiers reported spotting him near the infamous Cave Of Two Lovers…and, then there was the incident in Ba Sing Se…your daughter reported seeing him there as well, and battling with him. But…" The man paused.
I glared at him icily, my golden eyes piercing into his red ones. "Yes…?" I asked, coldly.
The man gulped, and nervously wet his lips. "There are rumors that there is a fourth person travelling with them…another girl, and well…" He ducked his head. "She has a mystical bird with her…a phoenix…"
I sat back on my throne, absorbing this new information. "There is only one person I know of whose animal guardian is a phoenix…" I smiled slightly. "I may get the chance to meet this mysterious young priestess after all…"