Chapter Nine: Ms. Fortunes

"The Prince of the Fire Nation? The Prince?" I threw my hands in the air. "Are you trying to tell me that this is same guy who's been following you from the South Pole? The same guy that's tried to capture you multiple times? And he just saved us? From his own people?"

Aang nodded. "I'm just as confused as you are."

I took him by the hand. "Come on. We have to get out of here before he wakes up."

"Wait." He slipped his hand out of my grip. "We should at least make sure he's okay, and to be honest, I'm kinda curious about why he helped us."

"It's just a minor concussion. He'll be fine." I folded my arms. "And do you really wanna risk him following us? We still need to get back to Katara and Sokka."

He shifted his gaze between Zuko and me before sighing and sitting on a tree root. "You know, this is what I hate most about being born a hundred years ago. I knew what the world was like in a time of peace, and I had friends from all over, even in the Fire Nation. If things were different…."

"But they're not." I put my hands on my hips. "The Fire Nation decided to terrorize the rest of the world, and while this guy might've saved us, we can't trust him. Now, let's get out of here before–"

I yelped as I saw two broad swords swipe toward me and stop right at my neck. I shivered at the sudden presence of the warm body behind me. Aang jumped to his feet, but the blades moved closer to my skin, stopping him from making a move.

"Going somewhere?" Zuko said.

"Leave her alone." Aang glared at him. "I'm the one you want."

"You think I'm falling for that again?" He stepped back, pulling me with him. "Both of you are coming with me. Your friend will serve as leverage, so you don't try to escape this time. And I'm sure my father will be pleased that I found another air-bender running around."

"Wait a sec? Aang and I were already captured, so you freed us just to capture us again?" I snorted. "What kind of stupid plan is that?"

"Silence, Peasant!" He tightened his grip around me. "Now, follow me, Avatar, and your friend will remain unharmed."

Zuko continued to retreat backward, and Aang met my gaze with teary eyes. I could tell he didn't know what to do, but I did. I recalled the way the prince fought back at the fortress. While he was skilled fighter, he was no killer, and despite dealing with Aang, he was clearly still clueless on how air-benders worked.

I threw a wink at Aang before taking a deep breath and propelling myself and Zuko backward into a tree. He grunted, the collision knocking the wind out of him. His swords dropped from his hands, and he slumped down to the ground. I stood and examined him. He wasn't unconscious, but he was too out of breath to fire-bend. Seeing him reach for one of his swords, I stepped on his hand with my left foot and pressed my right foot on his chest.

"Get… off… me." He heaved. "Peasant!"

"So, Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation? Hmph. Can't say I'm impressed. But since the mystery is over, I guess I should properly introduce myself." Stepping off of him, I grinned and bowed. "I am Tashi, loyal citizen of the Earth Kingdom and great-granddaughter of Priestess Ming, the Air Nomad your pathetic family failed to kill."

Zuko must've caught his breath, for when I looked up, I saw his fist shooting toward me. I dodged out of the way of the fire blast and air-kicked him across the head. He collapsed on the ground, and I sped away toward Aang.

"Did you really need to antagonize him?" Aang ran alongside me.

"The jerk deserved it." I scoffed. "Now let's get back to the others before we get into anymore trouble."

Furrowing his brow, he glanced back in Zuko's direction and sighed. "Yeah."

We retrieved the frozen frogs from the lake and returned to the temple ruins. I couldn't help but gape at the giant horde of junk that I'm pretty sure wasn't there before. Aang didn't seem to notice, for he gave Sokka and Katara their frogs without a word and sat in a corner by himself. I tried not to gag as I watched the Water Tribe siblings suck on their medicine. They must've been really out of it to be that oblivious.

I walked over to Aang, who was now laying on the floor and staring out at the sky. "Are you okay?"

"It's just frustrating how much everything has changed. I've tried my best to get used to it, but–" he said.

"Well, that's just the way it is." I sat beside him. "While it's good to remember who you are and learn from your mistakes, you have to live for today. Otherwise, you'll drive yourself mad like my great-grandmother."

He tilted his head to look at me. "What happened to her?"

"One minute, she was happy with the other Air Nomads, and the next, she was the sole survivor in a world where she was no longer welcome." I huddled my knees close to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs. "She loss everything, and then had to spend the rest of her life in hiding. My grandfather said that even though she tried her best to move forward and take care of him, he could tell that she was numb on the inside. When he was seventeen, she took her own life."

Aang's eyes widened.

"After losing his mother so tragically and then his own daughter much too soon, my grandfather looked at me and knew that I couldn't end up the same way. I had to be stronger than they ever were." I looked toward the clouds. "Don't get me wrong. Sometimes, I find myself mourning the past and pondering 'what ifs', but at the end of the day, I remind myself to stay focused on the now."

He nodded. "Monk Gyatso used to say, "We can't focus on what was but what is. Otherwise, you become attached to things you can't change and blind yourself to the possibilities of the future."

"Exactly." I smiled. "Maybe someday the world can be a different place, maybe even closer to the one you left behind, but right now, it's dangerous and complicated. You have to keep your wits about you."

"I know. I just thought that maybe…." Aang shook his head. "Never mind. You're right. Thanks, Tashi."

"No problem." I stood. "Now, get some rest. Zhao and that prince could still be sniffing around for us, and we need to be ready to move as soon as possible."

I retrieved my things and started tending to my shoulder. From what I could see, the arrow had struck near my shoulder-blade, so there was only some muscle damage. I cleaned it, spread some medicine over it, and wrapped it up with a cloth. I lay down, only just realizing how exhausted I was. I wanted to write off what happened last night as some crazy dream, but little did I know, it was only the beginning of this new chapter of my life.

….

It was two days later, and we were on our way to the mysterious village of Aunt Wu. Katara, Aang, and I were walking underneath an umbrella that a traveller from the village had given us while Sokka sulked in rain.

Sokka scoffed. "Predicting rain after the sky's been gray all day. Really amazing."

Katara rolled her eyes. "Just admit you might be wrong, and you can come under the umbrella."

"But Sokka has a point. One lucky guess doesn't prove anything, and besides, is it really possible for someone to know the future?" I said.

"See." Sokka folded his arms. "At least Tashi sees some reason."

Katara frowned at me. "How can you not believe it's true? You heard what the villager said."

I held up my hands and backed out from under the umbrella. "I'm just saying it seems unlikely, but it could be true. I don't know. I'm on the fence with this one."

"There's nothing to be confused about. This is definitely a hoax. In fact, I'll make a prediction right now." Sokka stopped walking. "It's going to keep drizzling."

The second he said that, the rain cleared, and the sun started peaking through the clouds.

Aang smiled. "Not everyone has the gift, Sokka."

He and Katara continued on, and I walked alongside Sokka, who went back to sulking.

"Maybe you should keep an open mind? It's not that big of a deal," I said.

"Because it's stupid. That's why." He huffed.

I sighed. "Fine, whatever. You're just being grumpy because you haven't eaten yet."

"I would've if Aang hadn't used my fishing line to make that necklace," he said.

"Well, cheer up." I smiled. "We're on our way to a village, so we'll have a variety of food to eat. Not to mention stock up on a few things."

His stomach let out a loud growl. "Yeah, that'd be nice, but I was kinda looking forward to you making something."

I laughed. "You like my cooking that much, do you?"

"Yeah, if you knew some traditional Water-tribe dishes, I think you'd be perfect." Sokka smiled at me before his eyes widened a little, and he coughed while scratching the back of his head. "I mean your food. Your food would be perfect."

We reached the village, and I was amazed at how beautiful it looked. The buildings rested peacefully in the midst of the forest, and in the distance was a snow-capped mountain. It made my heart sink at the thought of the Fire Nation finding this village and destroying it. Katara asked for directions, and we were guided toward the fanciest building in the village. A man dressed in black robes bowed and gestured to the circular, red door.

"Aunt Wu is expecting you." He opened the door for us.

"Really?" Katara's eyes lit up like a little kid getting a present for their birthday.

"Yes, she knows all." The man nodded. "Right, this way, and be sure to remove your shoes."

We did as he asked before heading inside to what appeared to be a lobby. The place was well decorated with fancy cushions, lanterns and screens, and we saw a little girl, who couldn't be older than eleven or twelve, walk over to us. She wore a pink and lavender dress, and her hair had been tied into two, giant braids that stuck up like antlers.

She bowed. "My name is Meng, and I'm Aunt Wu's assistant. If the four of you would take a seat over here–"

Katara sat on the farthest cushion on the left, Aang sat next to her, I next to him while Momo curled onto my lap, and Sokka sat on the farthest right cushion with a scowl on his face.

"Can I get you some tea or some of Aunt Wu's special bean-curd puffs?" Meng seemed to be addressing Aang more than the rest us, and she stood in front of him with a smile. "So what's your name?"

"Aang," he said.

"That rhymes with Meng." She giggled. "And you've got some pretty big ears, don't you?"

Aang glanced the other way. "I guess."

"Don't be modest." Sokka chuckled and gestured with his hands. "They're huge."

Aang frowned and covered up his ears while Meng continued to smile at him.

"Well, Aang, it's very nice to meet you." She bowed. "Very nice."

"Likewise," he said.

Once Meng was gone, I laughed and placed a hand on Aang's shoulder. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that girl likes you."

"What?" His eyes widened a little, and a small blush crept its way onto his cheeks.

Sokka grinned. "Well, he is the Avatar."

Katara folded her arms and snickered. "You should've seen him when we were on Kyoshi Island. The girls were fawning over him left and right, and he pretty much let the attention go to his head."

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow. "I didn't take you for the ladies' man type, Aang."

Aang's blush deepened, and he tried to hide his face under his tunic.

Sokka reclined back against his hands. "I can't believe we're here in the house of nonsense."

"Come on, Sokka." Katara sighed. "There are things in this world that just can't be explained. Wouldn't it be nice to have some incite into your future?"

He shrugged. "It'd be nice to have some bean-curd puffs."

I shook my head. "Give it up, Katara. You're not gonna convince him."

Meng returned with a tray of tea and puffs, and she almost tripped handing them to Aang. She blushed and quickly fled from the room.

"Finally." Sokka took the tray and started wolfing down the puffs.

"Hey, food hog-monkey, trying saving some for the rest of us?" I said.

"By all means, have one." He held up tray for me. "They're delicious."

"Thank you." I tried one of the puffs and smiled. "You're right."

"Welcome, young travelers." A middle-aged woman in elegant gold and red robes walked into the lobby and stood before us. "Now, who's next? Don't be shy."

Sokka crossed his arms and looked away, Aang focused his attention on the floor, and I played with one of my ponytails.

"I guess that's me." Katara stood and followed Aunt Wu into another part of the building.

Aang stared at the hallway they disappeared into. "So… what do you guys think they're talking about back there?"

"Boring stuff." Sokka took a sip of tea. "Love, who she's gonna marry, and how many babies she's gonna have."

"Yeah, dumb stuff like that…." Aang said.

"Could be something worse." I cringed. "Like death."

"Death?" His eyes widened.

"Well, it's a possibility. Like it or not." I twirled the end of my ponytail around my finger. "This is why I'm unsure about this prediction stuff. What if she tells us something we'd be better off not knowing?"

"That's assuming anything she tells us is true." Sokka ate another puff. "And it's not."

"Yeah, well, I gotta find a bathroom." Aang jumped up and rushed into the hallway.

I narrowed my eyes at his sudden strange behavior but shrugged it off. I saw Momo trying to steal the tray from Sokka and picked up the lemur.

"No, Momo. You have to share." I took some of the puffs and fed them to him. "There you go."

Sokka cleared his throat. "So, Tashi–"

When he didn't continue his sentence, I blinked. "So… Sokka?"

"Uh…?" There was a light blush on his cheeks, and he straightened his posture. "Um. Well, since we're like you know… alone for once… I… uh…. I don't think you ever mentioned how old you were?"

"I'm sixteen, but I'll be turning seventeen by the end of winter," I said.

"Oh." He deepened his voice. "Me too, but you could probably already tell."

Sokka started making muscles and patted what little bicep he had.

"Uh huh. I could've sworn Katara said you were fifteen." I smirked. "But nice try, Junior."

"Junior!" He gasped. "It's only about a year difference!"

I rolled my eyes and folded my arms. "In my experience with you boys, a year makes all the difference."

He swiped his hands in a crossing motion. "Okay, age thing aside, my point is you are well… you know… you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Who else would I be?"

"You know what I mean." He lifted himself onto his knees. "You're pretty, and can cook really, really, really…."

His mouth started watering, his eyes glazing over, and I clapped my hands in front of his face to snap him out of it.

"Really good. And you're a decent fighter." He smiled. "What I'm trying to say is that maybe we could–"

Aang marched back into the lobby with a bright smile on his face. "I'm back."

Sokka returned to his spot and whispered, "We'll talk later."

He reached for the tray only to realize that Momo had devoured the rest of the puffs. The conversation was unexpected, and I wasn't sure what to think. Actually, scratch that, I was. I had no interest in Sokka at all, and his generic checklist for me didn't sway my opinion.

Aunt Wu returned with Katara and looked to the rest of us. "Who's next?"

Sokka stood up to my surprise. "Alright, let's get this over with."

"Your future is full of struggle and anguish." Aunt Wu gave him a plain stare. "Most of it self-inflicted."

"But you didn't read my palms or anything," he said.

"I don't have to." A small smile curved on her lips. "It's written all over your face."

He narrowed his eyes at her and picked something from his teeth.

Laughing, I stood up. "Then I guess I'm next."

"Perfect." Aunt Wu smiled. "Come with me."

I followed her across the hall into the next room. It was mostly dark except for the fire pit in the center. Aunt Wu guided me to the cushions next to the pit, and we sat down.

"So how does this work?" I said.

"Quite simple. Just give me your hand, dear." Aunt Wu held out her hands.

I did as she asked, and she turned my hand over to examine my palm.

"Oh my." She furrowed her brow. "You have suffered through much for one so young. Despite your trials, you have persevered, but your strength has become a mask for the pain that has encaged your heart."

I blinked. "What?"

Aunt Wu met my gaze. "All of your life you've longed for one thing, but you will never achieve it so long as your heart remains caged."

The one thing I longed for? I pulled my hand back and looked at it. "How do I uncage it?"

She gestured to the bowl of bones next to us. "Pick one of these bones and toss it into the fire. I'll read the bone cracks to determine your destiny."

I picked one of the bones and dropped it into the fire pit. The flames started eating away at it, and a long crack spread through the bone from end to end.

"Interesting." Aunt Wu put a hand to her forehead. "To achieve what you desire, you must confront the past that has returned to haunt you, reconcile a broken bond, and open your heart to the forbidden. Only then will the cage around you be lifted."

"That's–" I shifted my gaze from the flames to her and gave an awkward chuckle. "Is that all? No marriage? I don't end up ridiculously rich or something?"

"Air is the element of freedom, dear." She smiled. "Nothing else will matter without it."

Okay, I'm officially creeped out. I bowed. "Thank you, Aunt Wu."

"Of course, dear." She stood and led me back to the lobby.

I returned to my spot and sat down while Aang left to visit with Aunt Wu.

Katara smiled. "So how did your prediction go?"

"I'm gonna side with Sokka on this one." I rested my elbows on my knees and leaned my face against my hands. "She's a hack."