Sorry for the wait, writer's block sucks! Thanks to all those who reviewed/faved/followed!
Chapter 19: The Fortuneteller
When I woke up the next morning, my neck and shoulders were completely stiff. I don't think slept at all and I felt this weird energy radiating under my skin, don't think I could go back to sleep even if I wanted to. I stepped around Sokka and Katara who were still dead asleep. The sun was just rising and it was still dark outside. What was wrong with me? I'm never up this early.
I glanced over at Appa, whose rumbling snore was enough to blow away a small bush. Aang was sleeping on one of the bison's legs.
Hoping a bath might soothe my stiff muscles, I went around the giant slab of rock, took off my clothes and plunged into the lake. The cool water felt nice, I could've stayed underwater for a long time.
I lazily moved my fingers around, making small water bubbles and letting them float above my head, pulling them apart and freezing them like small ice pebbles. When I dropped them, they made the softest plop and I watched the ripples until they disappeared. Floating on my back, I let the lake's current carry me under the rock, floating upright when I felt my head tap lightly against it.
I raised my hand above the water and stared at my palm, flexing my fingers as if waiting for a flame to randomly appear in my hand. My eyebrows knit together, I didn't know how to describe what I was feeling. I needed to repress my firebending, but at the same time I was tempted to try it again.
Breathing through my nose, I stared intently at my palm, but nothing happened. I frowned and this time flicked my wrist. Still nothing. What was the source of power for firebenders? Water was fire's opposite and waterbenders gained their power from the moon. So...
I gazed at the sky as it went from dark to a light shade of blue. That was their source of power; either that or a volcano. And I was really hoping it wasn't a volcano. When I used to secretly practice my waterbending at night and during a full moon, I would feel like the moon was giving me some kind of energy. Was the sun supposed to give me a similar feeling? I pursed my lips and held my hand out to the sun like I was giving an offering. I waited for something to happen, but nothing did. I had no idea what I was doing though.
This wasn't helping. I lowered my hand down to my eye level and pursed my lips, flicking my wrist again. Nothing. I began to clench and unclench my hand, waiting for some kind of spark.
What did firebenders do to spark their fire? If the moon made me feel like it was giving energy, how could the sun work any differently? I chewed on my bottom lip and inhaled, moving away from the shade under the rock and feeling the heat of the sun. I raised my hand to my eye level again and thrust my wrist up. A small gasp escaped my lips as a small ball of fire puffed out and extinguished several inches above my head.
I lowered my hand a little so it was just above the surface of the water and snapped my fingers, a single flame calmly sat on my fingernail like it would on a candle, slightly bigger than the one from last night.
"Talia? Talia, are you here?" Katara called.
I dunked my hand under the water, cursing at the loud splash and hastily waved away the wisp of smoke in front of me. I whirled around, seeing her shadow just around the corner. "Er, taking a bath! Be there in a minute!" I shouted back.
"Oh okay, I didn't see you wake. Hurry up, we have waterbending to practice!" she urged loudly
"Be right there!" I yelled, watching as Katara's shadow disappeared back towards camp.
I breathed a huge sigh of relief and swam back to shore. That was too close.
Stop it, Talia. You can't afford to get caught! I mentally snapped at myself as I wrung the water out of my hair and pulled my clothes back on. I didn't realize how much time had passed since I woke up. When I made it back to camp, Aang, Katara, and Sokka were halfway done with breakfast. As I sat down, Katara handed me a plate she saved for me.
When she turned away I subtly smelled my hair, hoping there wasn't any lingering scent of smoke. Thankfully there wasn't and they obliviously ate through their breakfast. I fought back a relieved grin as I bit into my apple, enjoying my breakfast with them and then glanced over at Aang. He was fiddling with something in his hands, his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth in concentration.
Before I could ask what he was doing, Katara suddenly stood up, her eyes on the lake.
"Look!" she exclaimed, pointing at the water.
We turned to see what she was pointing at and saw a green fish jumping and flipping out the water like a dolphin. Aang and I chuckled and went back to our breakfast, but Sokka continued to stare intently at it.
He frowned. "It's taunting us" Sokka grumbled in annoyance and ran to fetch his fishing rod. "You are so going to be dinner!" he said, tossing the rod but nothing happened.
"Missing something?" I asked, wiping my mouth.
"Where's the fishing line?" he asked in alarm.
"Oh, I didn't think you would need it, Sokka" Aang said sheepishly, holding up whatever it was he was fiddling with. It was the fishing line woven with a pink flower on it.
Sokka studied it for a moment before frowning even more. "Ah, it's all tangled" he complained.
Aang breezed himself up. "Not tangled, woven. I made you a necklace, Katara" he said, before sheepishly smiling at her. "I thought since you lost your other one…" he trailed, before holding it up for her to see. That was too cute.
Katara smiled kindly before taking it from his outstretched hand. "Thanks Aang, I love it!" she said, "Talia, could you help me with this?"
"Hey, why don't I get a pretty woven fishing necklace?" I pouted, standing up and helping her tie the necklace behind her neck.
Aang rubbed the back of his neck. "I can make you one too if you want" he offered.
I chuckled and gave him a wink, letting him know I was teasing.
"Great, Aang. Maybe instead of saving the world you can go in the jewelry making business" Sokka said sarcastically.
"I don't see why I can't do both" Aang reasoned optimistically with a shrug, and I snickered at the thought of the Avatar, the most powerful person in the world, master of all four elements - owning a little jewelry business on the side.
"Leave him alone, Sokka. I think it's sweet" I defended smilingly, sitting back down and leaned against a boulder.
Sokka rolled his eyes and looked back at the water as the fish jumped in and out again. He tossed the fishing rod into the water, but his aim was off. "Stop taunting me!" he shouted angrily before taking out his knife and wobbling into the water.
I would've told him to leave the fish alone, but I was too amused by him randomly stabbing the water.
"So how do I look?" Katara sang, twirling around to face Aang.
I pursed my lips to stifle a giggle as Aang turned around, his cheeks flared red and his eyes widened. I cocked my head to the side, smirking as I waited for him to respond.
He swallowed and tugged awkwardly at his collar. "You mean all of you or just your neck?" he asked nervously, "I mean, both look great!" he added quickly.
Sokka suddenly popped out of the water with the green catfish clutched tightly to his chest. "Smoochie, smoochie" he said teasingly towards Aang "Someone's in love…"
Rolling my eyes, I waved my hand in one swift backward motion and a small wave of water splashed Sokka all over his front. The fish managed to release itself from his slippery grip and slapped him in the face with its tail. Aang and Katara didn't seem to notice. I whistled unmindfully, not looking at Sokka as he gave me a look and spit water out of his mouth.
"I...well..." Aang stammered
"Stop teasing him, Sokka" Katara told her brother sternly as she put a hand on Aang's shoulder "Aang's just a good friend, a sweet little guy! Just like Momo" she cooed at the lemur as he jumped on Aang's shoulder.
"Thanks…" he mumbled.
Ouch
I walked over to him and patted his shoulder. "She'll come around" I whispered reassuringly, so only he could hear.
He gave me a small smile as Sokka came trudging out of the water and narrowed his eyes at me. I gave him an innocent smile when we heard a loud animalistic roar. Aang jumped on top of a boulder several feet away from us and pointed his finger in front of him.
"Someone's being attacked by a platypus bear!" he yelled.
The three of us ran to see a calm man standing by the river while a platypus bear towered over him. The bear growled and swung his paws, but the man effortlessly moved away from each blow, not even slightly fazed that he was being attack.
He looked over at us and smiled. "Why, hello there. Nice day, isn't it?" he said pleasantly.
Nice day? This guy was being attacked by a giant bear and he says 'nice day'? I ignored his comment as we all began to yell at once.
"Make noise, he's run off!" Aang shouted.
"No, play dead! He'll lose interest!" Sokka yelled.
"Run downhill then climb a tree!" Katara told him.
"No, make yourself look bigger, you'll scare him away!" I hollered.
"No, punch him in the bill!" Sokka told him.
"And then run in zigzags!" Aang added in.
The man didn't listen to any of our suggestions. He continued to swiftly dodge the bear's attacks. "No need. It's going to be fine" he said simply. I recoiled as the bear swung its paw and chipped off a big part of a tree as the man ducked, barely missing his head.
Aang swiftly jumped in front of the man and blew the bear back with a wave of air. "Whoa there" he said with his arms out in front of him.
The platypus bear stood on its hind legs and roared. Just as it was about to attack him, Appa flew down from behind the bear and bellowed even louder, causing the platypus bear to lay an egg and retreat into the river.
"Way to go, Appa" I laughed as we ran over and scratched him behind his ear. The bison rumbled lowly as if to proudly say 'why, thank you'.
Sokka ran over to the egg and picked it up. "Mmm, lunch" he grinned before sniffing it.
I grimaced. "Sokka, did you see where that egg just came out of?" I asked rhetorically
He hugged the egg to his chest. "The only thing that matters is what's on the inside" he replied simply to which I rolled my eyes as he looked back at the traveler. "Lucky for you we came along" he said as if he was the one who scared off the platypus-bear.
"Thank you, but everything was already under control" he said, gracefully standing up "Not to worry. Aunt Wu predicted I'd have a safe journey"
"Aunt who?" Aang asked
"No. Aunt Wu" the man corrected "She's the fortuneteller from my village. Awful nice knowing your future" he said with a smile
I raised an eyebrow. Fortunetelling? This guy put his fate in the hands of fortunetelling?
"Wow, it must be" Katara said interestedly "That explains why you were so calm"
"But the fortuneteller was wrong. You didn't have a safe journey, you were almost killed" Sokka objected.
"But I wasn't" he chuckled, bowing to us. "Alright, have a good one" he added happily before he continued to walk. He suddenly stopped again and turned around. "Oh, and Aunt Wu said if I meet any travelers to give them this" he said, placing a long wrapped item in Aang's hands. Sokka looked at the package suspiciously before watching the traveler walk away.
"Maybe we should go see Aunt Wu and learn our fortunes. It could be fun" Katara suggested eagerly.
I frowned, crossing my arms over my chest. "I thought we were going to practice waterbending?" I pointed out.
"What's wrong with a little exploring? We can practice afterwards" she decided.
"You suggested it…" I bemoaned, "Frankly, I think that traveler just got lucky he wasn't killed"
"Yeah come on, fortunetelling is nonsense" Sokka told his sister, while still holding the egg protectively.
Aang hastily ripped the package open and pulled out an orange umbrella. "What do you know? An umbrella" he said brightly, holding it above his head. The minute he held it up, there was a loud clap of thunder above our heads and it began to drizzle.
I immediately huddled underneath the umbrella close to Aang. "Huh, that's an interesting coincidence" I muttered as Katara gave me a smug smile
"That proves it!" she said excitedly, coming under the umbrella next to me
Sokka held the egg above his head as if that would somehow keep him dry. "No it doesn't. You can't really tell the future" he said.
"I guess you're not really getting wet then" his sister teased. The egg slipped from Sokka's wet grip and cracked on his head.
"Well at least you got what was on the inside" I said teasingly, to which Katara and Aang started laughing. We began to walk on the muddy trail the way the traveler had left. Appa and Sokka trudged moodily behind us. "Sokka, get under here would you? Before you catch a cold" I told him
Once we were halfway there, he spoke up about the fortunetelling again. "Of course she predicted it was going to rain, the sky's been gray all day" he said
I couldn't say I disagreed with him there. It was going to take a lot more than coincidental bad weather to convince me. I wasn't entirely sure I even wanted to know my fortune especially with everything that's happened.
Katara spoke up. "Just admit you might be wrong and you can come under the umbrella" she told him
He abruptly stopped walking, causing us all to stop and look at him. "Look, I'm going to predict the future now. It's going to keep drizzling!" he declared dramatically before crossing his arms over his chest again. "See?"
Then right on cue, the rain stopped. We looked up at the sky as the clouds parted and the sun shined through. I raised an eyebrow and smirked, still not completely convinced on this whole fortunetelling thing, but this was amusing.
Aang smiled as he closed the umbrella. "Not everyone has the gift, Sokka" he said brightly
We continued to walk on the dirt path with Sokka lagging behind with Appa. We came to small village that wasn't too far from a high mountain. The place definitely seemed welcoming, despite the few hostile ducks that quacked at Sokka by the entrance. The villagers all had wide smiles on their faces as they mingled or went about their business. It was nice, but also very weird. We walked towards a small building where a man in a black kimono was standing outside.
"Aunt Wu is expecting you" he said, bowing to us before opening the door.
"Really?" Katara asked in amazement, running through the door.
Sokka scoffed and I rolled my eyes. "I bet he says that to everybody" I muttered to him quietly.
He snickered as we followed Katara inside. Two paper lanterns were hanging on the ceiling on one end of the room. Four colorful cushions were placed on the ground on one side where people would sit. Behind it was a panel that had mountains painted on it. A small girl in a pink kimono and pigtails walked towards us.
"My name is Meng and I'm Aunt Wu's assistant" she said sweetly. She looked over at each of us and her gaze stopped on Aang. "Well, hello there" she sang flirtatiously
Aang scratched his nose. "Hello" he replied boringly
Meng gestured to the four cushions that were put out for us. We kicked off our shoes and chose a cushion, I sat on the far end next to Sokka.
"Can I get you some tea or some of Aunt Wu's special bean curd puffs?" she asked as we all sat down. Though, she was only looking at Aang when she asked.
"Actually, some tea sounds great" I replied.
"I'll try some curd puffs" Sokka added brightly.
She held her out to both of us. "Just a second" she said rudely.
I blinked at her rudeness. Sokka simply wore a disappointed expression as he sat down and I leaned my back against his shoulder and crossed my arms. I watched Meng crouch down in front of the young airbender.
"So, what's your name?" she asked eagerly.
"Aang" he said bluntly.
She gasped. "That rhymes with Meng!" she said brightly "And you've got some pretty big ears, don't you?" she added.
One of eyebrows shot up and had to bite my tongue from snickering, from the way Sokka was shaking against me I'd say he was trying to hold back an actual laugh. If this girl was trying to get Aang to like her, telling him he had big ears was not the way to do it. Aang just seemed uncomfortable.
"I...guess?" he replied, saying it as a question.
"Don't be modest. They're huge!" Sokka teased, stretching his arms widely. I hit his leg as Aang glared at him with his hands over his ears. Katara gave her brother an equally stern look.
Meng stood up and began to walk away, not noticing Aang was uninterested. "Well Aang, it was very nice to meet you" she told him "Very nice"
"Likewise" Aang said politely, still oblivious to Meng's crush on him.
"I think she likes you" I leaned over and whispered.
Aang turned to me with wide eyes. "Huh? How can you tell?" he asked.
I blinked. "You mean you can't?" I asked.
Aang looked back at the door Meng disappeared through and back at me. "She was just being nice and doing her job, Talia" Aang reasoned.
I shook my head. "Oh buddy…"
Guess it's true when they say men are clueless.
Sokka stretched out his legs and glanced around the room boringly. "I still can't believe we're here in the house of nonsense" he said dully
Katara rolled her eyes at her brother. "Try to keep an open mind, Sokka. There are things in this world that just can't be explained" she said "Wouldn't it be nice to have some insight into your future?" she asked. I couldn't believe she was this excited about a simple fortuneteller. She was most likely a con artist.
"It would be nice to have some bean curd puffs" he said, making Katara narrow her eyes.
"I'd rather not know my future" I commented, shifting my bandaged hand under my arm
Aang craned his head to look at me. "Why not?" he asked.
"What's the fun in knowing your future anyway?" I waved.
"It could save your life, for one thing" Katara put in with a raised eyebrow.
Meng was coming back with the puffs and tea as a woman stepped out from behind the sliding door. "Oh Meng! Aunt Wu says I'm going to meet my true love!" she gushed "He's going to give me a rare panda lily!"
"That's so romantic! I wonder if my true love will give me a rare flower" Meng said dreamily, looking at Aang out of the corner of her eye.
"Good luck with that" Aang told her simply
The woman giggled and said in a hushed voice. "Is that the big eared guy Aunt Wu predicted you'd marry?" she said, causing Meng to push her out the door. I think Sokka and I were the only ones that heard her whisper.
Meng walked over towards Aang with the tray of puffs. She tripped as she made her way over, nearly dropping the dish if Aang hadn't caught it. They were both holding it and stared at each other for a moment. She flushed and pushed the dish into his arms. "Enjoy your snack" she said nervously, before scurrying out.
Aang watched her go in confusion as Sokka grabbed the tray from Aang's hand and was about to toss a puff in his mouth when an old woman gracefully walked into the room. I was guessing she was the fortuneteller. She didn't look anything like I was expecting. For one thing, she was an old lady, wearing bright yellow robes with a matching headpiece. She wasn't wearing a ridiculous amount of jewelry like I was expecting either, the only thing that really stood out was her purple eyeshadow.
"Welcome young travelers, now who is next? Don't be shy" she said sweetly.
I pretended to be particularly interested in the paper lantern above my head. Sokka folded his arms across his chest and looked away. Aang glanced over towards Katara.
She shrugged her shoulders. "I guess that's me" she piped up, eagerly standing up and following Wu behind the sliding door.
Sokka immediately began to munch on the puffs. "Not bad, not bad" he mumbled hungrily through a mouthful of puffs. I grabbed a creamy puff from the dish before he offered it to Aang.
"I'm good on puffs" he told him, pushing the dish away. Aang shifted nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "So…what do you think they're talking about back there?" he asked anxiously
"The usual stuff girls would ask a fortuneteller. Her love life and stuff" I said, grabbing one of the cups of tea and took a small sip, smacking my lips. It was good, but I'd have to say Iroh's tea was better.
Wait. Why in La's name was I thinking of Iroh's tea?!
"Love life?" Aang questioned.
I frowned at the cup as if had insulted me, placing it on the tray as far from me as possible just as Sokka grabbed his cup.
"Love, who she's going to marry, how many babies she's going to have..." Sokka trailed, sipping his cup.
Aang's eyes widened as he stared at the hall anxiously. "Right...well, I have to find a bathroom" he said quickly, standing up and walking into the hall.
I glanced over and opened my mouth to advise him not to eavesdrop but he'd already disappeared. I rolled my eyes and grabbed another puff, leaning back against Sokka's shoulder.
"Well, we already know who Aang's supposedly going to marry" Sokka remarked
"What do you mean?"
"Isn't it obvious? It's Meng" he said in a matter-of-fact voice "You heard what that lady said, she's going to marry a guy with big ears"
I rolled my eyes again. "I'm sure there are a hundred big eared guys out there, Sokka" I replied, without looking at him "Who knows, Meng's big eared husband-to-be just might end up being you" I said sarcastically and then suddenly found myself staring at the ceiling as he deliberately moved away, causing me to fall back. "A big eared jerk…" I chuckled sarcastically and tossed my cushion at his head.
He grabbed it before it made contact with his face and placed it under his elbow, looking rather proud of his reflexes. "You don't really believe in this whole fortunetelling nonsense do you?" he asked all of a sudden.
I shrugged. "I don't know, I'm gonna need more proof than just bad weather" I replied. Sokka frowned in disbelief that I was actually keeping an open mind about this whole fortunetelling thing. "Hey, after finding a hundred and twelve year old Avatar, fortunetelling might not be so crazy" I added.
Speaking of the Avatar, Aang came strutting back, looking rather happy. I made a face; he eavesdropped on Katara, didn't he?
"Looks like someone had a pretty good bathroom break" Sokka commented
Aang stopped and widened his eyes. "Yeah, when I was in there—"
"I don't even want to know" he interrupted quickly in disgust.
Aunt Wu walked back into the room with Katara following behind her. Katara was looking rather pleased as she sat back down again. "Who's next?" Aunt Wu asked kindly
Sokka sighed unenthusiastically and stood up. "Alright, let's get this over with..." he said as he stood up and stretched his back.
Aunt Wu raised an eyebrow at him. "You're future is full of struggle and anguish. Most of it, self-inflicted" she predicted.
"But you didn't read my palms or anything!" Sokka objected.
"I don't need to, it's written all over your face" she explained. He narrowed his eyes before sitting back down, pouting, and I snickered. "You then, come with me" she said pointing to Aang and he followed her into the room.
"Struggle and anguish, huh? Sounds about right" Katara quipped.
"I can believe that" I laughed in agreement.
"That woman's a con artist" Sokka grumbled.
I tapped my chin mockingly. "Remind me, of the four of us, who led us right into a Fire Nation camp?" I teased. Katara giggled as Sokka shot me a look and I stuck my tongue out at him good-naturedly. I stretched my arms above my head, glancing briefly at my bandaged hand. "I think I'll skip my fortune" I said.
"What? Why?" Katara asked.
"Katara, if I'm going to die in three days or a month from now, I'd rather not know about it"
She raised an eyebrow and gave me a look. "She's not going to tell you anything you don't want to know"
Before I could say anything, Aang walked out of the room, looking excited. Aunt Wu came out behind him and glanced at me, Katara smiled at me expectantly.
"Uh, I think I'll pass" I told her apologetically, standing up. Katara's smile dropped into a frown.
Aunt Wu blinked. "Are you sure? I sense there's something rather interesting about your aura" she said
I took a nervous step back. She couldn't read minds, could she? "Interesting? Me? No, I'm just simple and boring" I replied, receiving strange looks from everyone in the room except Wu. I mentally slapped myself at my own stupidity.
"If you insist" Aunt Wu said kindly "Have a good day"
"Well, now you guys got to see for yourselves that fortunetelling is just a big stupid hoax" Sokka remarked once we were outside.
Katara folded her arms over her chest and smirked at her brother. "You're just saying that because you're going to make yourself unhappy your whole life" she told him
"That woman is crazy!" he ranted, throwing his hands in the air. We stopped walking and watched in surprise as he continued to rant. He was really taking his fortune a little too personally. "My life will be calm. And happy. And joyful!" he said in aggravation, kicking a rock. It bounced off a sign and came back to hit him in his temple. Sokka fell on the ground, clutching his head.
"She did say self-inflicted" I pointed out.
"That doesn't prove anything..." Sokka grumbled irritably, rubbing the side of his head.
Katara put her hands on her hips. "Well, I liked my predictions. Certain things are going to turn out very well" she said, glancing at the sky dreamily.
"They sure are" Aang agreed, crossing his arms.
"Why? What did she tell you?" Katara asked interestingly
"Some stuff, you'll find out" he said with a grin
I raised an eyebrow at Aang and we continued to browse around the village. All the villagers were crowded around a small gazebo and staring at the top of the mountain. "What's with the sky?" Katara asked the traveler we had encountered earlier.
"We're waiting for Aunt Wu to come and read the clouds to predict the fate of the whole village" he answered. Another reason why I didn't want to know my fortune, I didn't want to take it so literally the way the rest of this village seemed to.
Aang pointed at the sky. "That cloud looks like a fluffy bunny" he commented.
The man crossed his arms. "You better hope that's not a bunny!" he cut in dramatically. "The fluffy bunny cloud forecasts doom and destruction"
"Do you even hear yourself?" Sokka scoffed at the traveler bluntly, who just simply gave him a look.
Fluffy bunny cloud equals doom and destruction? Wow. I looked around the entire village with a raised eyebrow; did all these people wholeheartedly rely on predictions?
"The cloud reading will tell us if Mount Makapu will remain dormant for another year or if it will erupt" a woman explained, pointing at the enormous mountain.
"We used to have a tradition once a year of going up to the mountain to check the volcano ourselves, but ever since Aunt Wu moved to the village twenty years ago. We have a tradition of not doing that" the man explained happily, putting his hands together.
"But wouldn't it make more sense to go check the volcano instead of relying on…clouds?" I expressed, skeptically looking up at the sky.
"Yeah!" Sokka agreed loudly, putting his hands on his hips and glared at the traveler in annoyance. "I can't believe you would trust your lives to that crazy old woman's superstition!" he said disbelievingly.
Either these people were gullible or just tired of trying to do things themselves. I wasn't at all impressed the way Katara seemed to be by Aunt Wu. Speaking of which, Katara approached Sokka and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Sh! She's coming" she hushed excitedly.
The villagers parted as Aunt Wu walked towards the gazebo in the center of the village. Everyone clapped and cheered as she stepped on the stage and the young man in the black kimono stood off to the side. I crossed my arms over my chest and watched her curiously as she flipped through the book she had in her hand.
"Bending arrow cloud…" she muttered, then looked down at her book. "Good crops this year, nice big harvest"
She got that from a bending arrow cloud?
"Wavy moon shaped cloud…" she went on, "Going to be a good year for twins"
How could she tell that from a moon shaped cloud?
"And a cumulus cloud with a twisting nub coming off the end of it—the village will not be destroyed by the volcano this year!" she announced.
The entire village clapped and cheered happily. I watched Aunt Wu walk back to her little dojo, dumbfounded. That's it? That's all it took for her to determine whether or not a volcano would erupt? Then again, if she hasn't been wrong before…
I didn't finish my thought because Katara had squeezed my arm. "Talia, come with me. I need to ask Aunt Wu more questions" she said eagerly.
"Why do you need me to come?" I questioned, trying to loosen my arm from her death grip.
"Well, I don't want to look too desperate" she said obviously.
I raised an eyebrow. "But you are desperate" I pointed out.
"Just come with me" she scoffed, pulling me back towards the fortuneteller's building. She finally let go of my arm as we entered the main room again. "I still don't understand why you wouldn't want to know your fortune" she said.
"What if my future isn't so bright? Like I end up doing something horrible or hurting someone? I don't want to know about it" I answered, resting my elbow on my knee. "What's the fun in knowing your future anyway?"
When I looked back at Katara I was surprised to see that her eyebrows were raised high as she stared at me, like she finally solved a hard riddle.
"You're afraid" she stated.
I stared at her, surprised. "What? No I'm not, Katara" I laughed.
She frowned and put her hands on her hips. "'Like I end up doing something horrible or hurting someone'?" she quoted, "Why would you think something like that?"
"I'm just thinking out loud" I sighed, pulling my knees up to my chest. But I wasn't.
She crouched down in front of me. "You've been acting weird ever since you got away from Zhao. What's going on?" she asked, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Hey, talk to me"
Her expression was curious, but not worried. And I didn't want to worry her. I plastered a smile on my face. "Katara, I'm fine, really" I assured.
She watched me for a minute before pulling her hand away and standing up. "Okay, if you say so. But why don't you get your fortune read anyway? Who knows, you might like what you hear" she said optimistically.
I chuckled, shaking my head. "Alright, if it'll make you feel better, I'll get my fortune read"
A big smile quickly spread across her face. "Really? You promise you won't chicken out?"
"I promise" I told her, raising my right hand.
"Great!" she exclaimed as I started to stand up. "But me first!" she giggled and ran to Aunt Wu's door.
I rolled my eyes amusingly as she tapped on the door three times, rocking on her heels eagerly and her arms folded behind her back as Aunt Wu slid the door open. "Hi Aunt Wu! Sorry to bother you" she said brightly
"Anytime" she answered sweetly.
"About this man I'm supposed to marry...is he going to be handsome? Oh, I hope he's tall!" Katara gushed.
"Ah, you want another reading" Aunt Wu guessed.
Katara clasped her hands together. "Yes please!" she answered immediately.
She walked inside and the door slid shut behind her. I huffed and threw myself on my back, staring at the ceiling. Great, now what was I supposed to ask Aunt Wu? I think I would've felt better if she was occasionally wrong, but with how seriously the villagers were taking her, it sounded like she hasn't been wrong in twenty years, which could only mean she was very accurate. I glanced at the shut door out of the corner of my eye.
A part of me didn't want to have my fortune read and run out the door.
I rubbed my face in my hands and groaned. I was being ridiculous. Sokka was right, fortunetelling was nonsense. I'll get my fortune read, what's the harm? I sat up and anxiously tapped my foot, waiting for Katara to emerge from the sliding door.
And waited…
And waited…
And waited…
I was pouring myself a third cup of tea when the door slid open with Aunt Wu gently pushing Katara along by her shoulders, out the door. "And you'll be fine as long as you've got a scarf" she told her, a hint of impatience behind her voice.
"Okay, okay, but one more thing?" Katara asked hopefully.
Aunt Wu tensed. "Alright, what is it?" she said, somehow managing to be both impatient and calm at the same time.
"Should I eat a mango or papaya for breakfast tomorrow?" she asked.
I raised an eyebrow. Really, Katara? You hate papaya.
"Papaya!" she snapped and abruptly slid the door shut.
Aunt Wu turned around and rubbed her temple until her eyes landed on me. With a teacup halfway to my lips and a confused look on my face, I probably looked like a fool.
She quickly smiled and turned back into her sweet, old self. "Hello dear, changed your mind for a reading?"
I took a deep breath and put down the teacup. "Yeah…" I said as I stood up and brushed off my lap.
"No need to be nervous, dear" she assured and gestured me to follow her.
Easy for you to say, I thought sarcastically as I followed her inside and she slid the door behind me. The smell of incense was overwhelming and made me dizzy. Trying not to inhale too deeply, I sat down on the mat in front of the small fireplace, feeling the heat lightly touch my face.
Aunt Wu sat down on the mat next to mine, rubbing her chin interestedly as she stared at me. "I sense there's much conflict in you" she stated.
I looked away uncomfortably, fidgeting with my fingers. She could sense that just by looking at me? Maybe this was a bad idea.
Aunt Wu chuckled. "It's alright, dear. Easing internal conflict is what I'm here for" she eased. "Now, what would you like to know?"
I immediately regretted this, but I was too embarrassed to run out now. Not to mention that I promised Katara that I'd get my fortune read and she was so happy about it. There's no choice but to go through with it.
"Er…well, I…I was thinking that…well, maybe if…well, I mean…" were the stuttering words that left my mouth. I immediately pursed my lips, feeling my ears turn red. But when I glanced back at Aunt Wu, she was smiling at me patiently. I took a deep breath and spoke again slowly, this time forming a coherent sentence. "I want to know if there's any hardships in my future. Life-changing ones" I told her reluctantly.
There was a brief silence between us and then she gestured to a bowl a bones I hadn't noticed before sitting between us.
"Pick a bone and throw it into the fire" she instructed.
I raised an eyebrow skeptically but reached for one anyway, grabbing the first bone I saw and threw it in the fire. "The heat makes cracks in the bones and I read the bone cracks to tell your destiny" she explained to me.
"And how accurate is this?" I asked kindly
"Very reliable" she answered.
Both of us stared into the fire and watched as the fire crackled and made small and big cracks in the bone. After about two minutes, Aunt Wu swiftly grabbed the bone from the fire before she could burn herself and held the bone up to the light.
"Hmm...I see you have a very long journey ahead of you. Hardships…yes…"
I watched her anxiously as she moved the bone around in different angles. The more she studied it, the more questions I had about what my future held. Did it show anything about my bending abilities? Were my friends still with me? It seemed like an eternity before she finally said something.
"There will be times where you must choose between doing what's right and what's honorable"
I frowned. "Isn't that the same thing?"
Aunt Wu shook her head. "Sometimes the right choice isn't always the honorable choice" she advised before looking back to the bone. "You're clever…strong-willed too. There will be some struggle along your journey. You'd do anything for the people you love, especially your friends. Even if it meant parting ways…"
What did she just say?
"What do you mean by that?" I urged.
Aunt Wu waved her hand nonchalantly. "Not to worry dear, that choice will be yours alone. A difficult, but necessary choice" she assured.
"That…doesn't make me feel better" I told her and she watched me calmly. I sighed and hugged my knees to my chest. "You said that you sensed internal conflict in me. Does it have anything to do with that?" I asked hesitantly.
"Hmm…the bone doesn't tell me anything about that" she replied, glancing briefly at the bone and I could've screamed in frustration. "Now, is there anything else you'd like to know?"
"No," I said a little too quickly as I stood up. "Er, thank you for your help" I added and shuffled out of her dojo.
I never thought I'd be so happy to feel the fresh air blowing on face after stepping out of that incense infused building. I pressed my back against the wall and closed my eyes, a shuddering breath escaping my mouth. When I opened my eyes again, Katara was standing several feet away and jogged towards me.
"So how'd it go?" she sang excitedly.
I plastered a smile on my face. "It went really well, Aunt Wu read my palm" I lied.
Katara beamed at me. "Really? That's great! What did she tell you?" she asked, grabbing both of my hands tightly
"She told me...the man of my dreams has really nice hair" I fibbed.
Katara gasped in delight. "Is he a bender? I bet he's an earthbender" she sang teasingly.
I sighed. She was becoming a little too obsessed with fortunetelling. "Yes. He's an earthbender" I agreed bluntly
"See, that wasn't so bad? You have to tell me more later, I have one more question to ask Aunt Wu" she said, before running to the door of her building and knocking enthusiastically on her door.
The end of my mouth twitched up into a grin, I can't remember seeing her this excited about something. But after about ten minutes of waiting, Aunt Wu never came to the door and her shoulders slumped. Sokka and Aang flew down towards us. Where have they been? And where were they flying down from?
"Hi Katara. Hey Talia" Aang said.
"Can you believe she won't let me in? And after all the business I've given her?" Katara complained, putting her hands on her hips.
I rolled my eyes amusingly. Never would I have thought Katara would ask Aunt Wu so many questions that she'd refuse her service.
"But she doesn't even charge" Aang pointed out.
"I know, but still..." Katara reasoned.
"Well, we have other things to worry about" Sokka interrupted impatiently "Aunt Wu was wrong about the volcano!"
I turned my attention to him, raising an eyebrow. "What're you talking about?" I asked.
"We were up there on the mountain and saw the lava with our own eyes. It's almost filled to the rim" he explained, pointing to the volcano.
I folded my arms across my chest. "What were you doing up there in the first place?" I asked quizzically.
"Long story—" Aang replied
"Doesn't matter!" Sokka interrupted again, this time in exasperation.
Katara pointed a finger at her brother. "Sokka, you tried to convince me she was wrong before. It's going to take an awful lot to change my—" her sentence was interrupted by a loud boom and the ground rumbled violently.
I grabbed onto the wall to keep myself from stumbling and glanced up at the volcano with wide eyes. "Well, I'm definitely convinced" I shouted, before pointing to the plume of black smoke rising from the peak. Katara whipped around and gasped.
We all ran to the center of the village where people were going about their business. They were oblivious to the erupting volcano behind them or any sort of rumbling. "Everyone, that volcano is going to erupt any second! Aunt Wu was wrong!" Sokka announced
The crowd simply smirked at him. "Yeah, yeah, we know you don't believe in Aunt Wu, Mr. Science-And-Reason-Lover" a woman mocked.
Maybe Sokka shouldn't have been so persistent on proving Aunt Wu was wrong.
"If you won't listen to him, then maybe you'll listen to me" Katara told them, stepping forward, "I want to believe Aunt Wu and her predictions as much as you do, but my brother and Aang saw the lava with their own eyes"
The traveler stepped forward. "Well, I heard Aunt Wu's prediction with my own ears" he retorted
Aang flew to the top of one of the houses and looked down at them. "Please listen to us, you are all in danger!" he shouted. "We have to get out of here; you can't rely on Aunt Wu's predictions. You haveto take fate into your own hands!"
The people all began to murmur and I was sure they would believe him. Several people jumped as the ground shook once again. Sokka pointed at the volcano. "Look! Can your fortunetelling explain that?" he demanded.
A man next to us scoffed. "Can your science explain why it rains?"
"Yes! Yes, it can!" Sokka snapped in the man's face.
I squeezed his arm and pulled him back a step, thinking for sure he was about to punch someone, probably the poor guy in front of him. People began to depart without the slightest bit of worry.
"No one's listening" I remarked unnecessarily.
"They just won't listen to reason" Katara replied sadly
Aang jumped down from the roof next to us. "But they will listen to Aunt Wu!" he pointed out
"I know that's the problem" Sokka grumbled in annoyance
"Well, it's about to become the solution" he said "We're taking fate into our own hands. First I need to borrow Aunt Wu's cloud reading book..."
Once Aang was able to steal Aunt Wu's cloud reading book, Katara and I climbed into Appa's saddle and waited for him outside the village. Sokka kept watch in front of the building. It would've looked too suspicious if the three of us were standing there. Aang flew down on Appa's head with his glider and tossed us the cloud reading book. He led Appa into the clouds as Katara and I skimmed through the book.
"Clouds are made of water and air. So between the three of us, we ought to be able to bend them into any shape we want"
"Wait, that's the one!" I said quickly, pointing to strange cloud shape on one page.
"We found it. The symbol for volcanic doom" Katara told Aang, holding the page up for him to see.
Appa led the way through the clouds as Katara, Aang and I bended all the water and air from the clouds and shaped them into a skull like symbol. Through the clouds I could see villagers gathering below and pointing at the sky. Sokka was supposed to find Aunt Wu since the villagers only listened to her. Katara and I moved in several different directions so the water would follow our hands.
"I think we're good!" I shouted over the rushing wind. Aang and Katara nodded their heads in agreement and landed Appa outside the village so no one would see us. When we ran back towards the gazebo, all the villagers were there and murmuring apprehensively. Sokka was standing on the small stage. "I'm guessing the plan worked?" I asked him
"Yeah, but now they're so scared out of their minds they won't listen!" Sokka replied in exasperation.
I put a hand on his shoulder before pressing my fingers to my lips and whistled sharply. Several people cringed as the noise reached their ears and gave me an annoyed look. "Everyone please listen up! The village can still be saved, my friend has a plan" I announced before turning to Sokka who nodded in gratitude before stepping forward to explain his plan.
"Lava will flow downhill to this spot. If we can dig a deep enough trench, we can channel all the lava away from the village to the river" he explained
"If any of you are earthbenders, come with me" Aang announce
Several people stepped forward and followed him. "Everyone else grab a shovel!" Sokka instructed, another tremble shook the ground. "Come on, we have to hurry!" he said, before jumping off the small stage.
One of the farmers lent me a shovel as we all followed Sokka outside the village. Everyone encircled the village and began to dig the trench. Every few seconds my eyes would dart towards the volcano to see what was happening. I swiped away at the sweat on my forehead and another hard jolt shook the ground followed by an explosion. Lava erupted from the summit and was flowing quickly down the mountain. Everyone began to pick up the pace of their digging until the trench finally reached the river.
"Everyone needs to evacuate! We'll come for you when it's safe!" Aang shouted.
All the villagers ran out of the trench to any secure location. Sokka grabbed my hand and we both ran out of the trench to Katara and Aang. The sky was quickly raining down ashes and I could already feel the heat coming from the magma. I covered my mouth with the collar of my shirt to avoid inhaling ash. We watched as the lava flowed down and into the trench, quickly filling it up.
"It's too much! It's going to overflow!" Katara cried in despair. Another loud crash rumbled the grounds and Katara, Sokka and I sprinted away into the village, but Aang stayed there.
I abruptly stopped running and watched him. "Aang, what're you doing? You have to move!" I choked out, causing Sokka and Katara to stop and watch him too.
A wall of lava splashed in front of him. Aang jumped high into the sky and swung his arms around, collecting a large amount of air before landing back on his feet. He bended air at the lava, making it flow a little farther back. He inhaled deeply and blew the air from his mouth, making all the lava into a charcoal black wall. He breathed in and out deeply, putting his arms at his sides and staring at the lava wall. I moved my shirt away from my mouth and stared in amazement.
"Wow, sometimes I forget what a powerful bender that kid is" Sokka remarked.
"Wait, what did you just say?" Katara asked.
"Nothing, just that Aang is one powerful bender," her brother replied simply.
She muttered something back, but I didn't catch it.
I packed up the last of our things and secured them on Appa's saddle. The villagers were standing in the center of the town surrounding Aang and Aunt Wu. I was glad the worst part was over. I slid down the bison's tail and made my way to where Katara and Sokka were standing.
"By the way, we kind of borrowed your book" Aang admitted guiltily, holding her book out to her
"So you messed with the clouds did you?" Aunt Wu said sternly, taking the book from his hand. She smiled then laughed. "Very clever" she told him.
"No offense, but I hope this has taught everyone a lesson about not relying too much on fortunetelling" Sokka told the crowd.
The traveler man chuckled. "But Aunt predicted the village would not be destroyed and it wasn't. She was right after all" he said happily.
I grabbed Sokka's arm as he went to approach the man. Annoyance etched all over his face. "Let it go, Sokka" I told him calmly.
Katara rolled her eyes and led her brother towards Appa. I shook my head and laughed. I bet he was happy to be out of this town. There was no point convincing these people anyway.
"Can I ask you something?" Aang asked the fortuneteller. She nodded. "You didn't really see love in my fortune, did you? You just told me what I wanted to hear" he said glumly
She smiled at him. "I'll tell you a little secret, young airbender. Just as you reshaped those clouds, you have the power to shape your own destiny" she told him.
Aang shot a hopeful glance at Katara before jumping into his bison's saddle.
I was about to do the same when Aunt Wu approached me. "The first step to solving inner conflict, is accepting there's a conflict" she told me quietly so only I would hear.
I raised my eyebrow at her little word of advice. "Er…okay, thanks Aunt Wu" I told her, climbing inside the saddle with Sokka and Aang. Katara waved goodbye to everyone and we were on our way again. I looked down as the village became smaller and smaller until it was finally out of sight.
"That was by far the weirdest town we ever stopped at" Sokka commented.
I threw myself on my back and folded my arms behind my head. "Including Omashu?" I chuckled.
"Including Omashu" he emphasized before mumbling 'fortunetelling' under his breath.
I chuckled again before Aunt Wu's words started repeating in my head. "You'd do anything for the people you love, especially your friends. Even if it meant parting ways"… "The first step to solving inner conflict, is accepting there's a conflict
If there was anything I learned, it was that Aunt Wu's predictions weren't always right.
"Fortunetelling…" I scoffed.
End of Chapter 19. Please review!
