Confusing Worlds

by iceypink11

One day, a girl is left without any memories of her parents. She then lives with her sister. But one day, Fire Nation attacks. She is forced to go out and finds somewhere to go. But she doesn't know she'll stumble onto Aang, Sokka, and Katara. The girl go

Confusing Worlds

: Chapter 1: Introduction

I don't know where I came from. All I remember is a shrill scream, and bright lights. But, in my head, I remember my mother telling me stories of fire, air, water, and earth. The fire stories were terrifying, but mother told me it was a good way to learn about the past. The air stories were funny, exciting tales. The earth stories always made me hungry, because it reminded me of mother's chocolate cream cake. And the water stories made me fall asleep, but they and the air were my favorite.

()() Chapter 2()()

My name is Malia Shoryou. I live in a cottage with my most annoying of a sister. "Mali! Go and take out the trash, now!" yelled my sister Youli. "Ok!" I yelled back. As I made my way out of the front door I saw a piece of parchment. As I reached down to get it, some bits of dust flew into my eyes. "Ahh..." I said. As I rubbed my eyes, I came to see that the envelope that had concealed the paper was off. I read, "To my lovely daughter. A bright, sweet little girl who'll solve almost an..." but the rest was torn off. Ignoring it, I put it into my pocket. I had never been in contact with anyone since that day when my parents died. I was about 3 and now I am a fully grown 13 ½ teenager. I walked to the trash-can and dumped the garbage bag into it. As I turned around, I came to see my house in flames. The first thing that came to my mind is Youli. I ran, ran as fast as I could to reach the house while screaming, "YOULI! YOULI! YOULI!" As I went into my house, I saw my sister, lying there on the floor. "Youli, what..." but she cut me off. "Listen, my sister. Run away or else they'll catch you," she said. "But..." "Now! Run, run as fast as you can!" she screamed at me. I did as I was told. I was off running into the woods. I felt cold, piercing water on my cheeks. I had hardly noticed that it was dark. I was so busy running that I didn't pay any attention to anything except the ground in front of me. I was getting tired. I needed to get some sleep. Finally, I saw a cave I which I could sleep in. I went to the far back of it and laid on the wall. I immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Chapter 3

"Hey Sokka! Catch!" said Aang. He tossed Sokka a piece of meat. "Mmmm... this is good Katara," said Sokka as he was chewing. "Well, I had to buy something good to eat at that market," said Katara. It was morning in a deep forest. Birds chirping, the smell of freshly cooked meat, and kids, eating in a circle. Blues skies with out a single cloud in the sky.

It was a beautiful morning. "So, did you have enough money to buy dessert too?" asked Sokka. "No, I didn't. The fishermen didn't give us enough money to, when we helped them unload 50 nets of fish," said Katara. "I wished they would've, because I'm really in the mood for a cream filled banana custard" said Aang. "Stop it Aang! You're making me hungry!" yelled Sokka, obviously still hungry. "Sorry Sokka," said Aang. C'mon, we need to keep moving if we're going to make it to the Earth Nation." said Aang. They packed up all their things, put them on Appa, jumped on, and soared into the bright sky. It seemed like days until Aang felt safe somewhere in the thick forest. Katara was wide awake, but Momo and Sokka were asleep. It was just getting dark when Aang finally

landed. "This looks like a good place to camp for about 3 days, just until we can find where we are right now and then take off again for the Earth Nation," said Aang. "Ok. Sokka, Momo! Wake up you two," said Katara. "Huh? Wha...what'd I miss?" asked Sokka drearily, still half asleep. "Well, we are about to get off now, so in a little while, you can go back to sleep," said Katara, slightly amused with Sokka's blank expression. Aang landed Appa and looked around for a good spot to camp. "There, in that cave over there. That looks like a good spot," said Aang. "Ok, c'mon Sokka," said Katara. Sokka slid off Appa but fell to the ground. He immediately got back to consciousness and was up on his feet again. "Nice job Sokka. Maybe next time you could slide off and get on your feet first," said Katara as she laughed. "Yeah yeah, make fun of me. But one day, I'll show you. I'm going to come in useful," said Sokka. "When? When we need someone to tell us how hungry we are!" joked Katara. Now she was laughing hard. "Guys would you save it for later?" said Aang. "Fine" they said. Sokka, Aang, and Katara started setting up camp when they saw...

/Chapter 4/

I woke up to the sound of voices. I got up, but failed. I fell down to weakness in my legs, which was caused by running all afternoon, to get away from that house. Then, I heard one voice say, "Is she going to be ok?" But, that's all I heard until I was back into the sleep.

I awoke, from the sound of crackling. I saw two boys and a girl. A girl! Just like me! I had never seen one until now. "Hi," said the girl. "I'm Katara. And the one sleeping, that's my brother, Sokka." said Katara. "Hi, I'm Aang," said the strange Aang. "D-do you kn-know you have a-an arrow on yo-your head?" I asked, frightened. "Yeah I know. That's 'cause I'm the Avatar," said Aang. The, what? What did this arrow-headed kid mean by the avatar? "What do you mean by the Avatar?" I asked. "Wait, you don't know about it?" asked Katara. I liked Katara. "No," I said. "Wait who are you?" asked Katara. "I-I'm Malia. But most people call me Mali," I said. "Oh, well, you'd better get some rest," said Katara. "We'll tell you about the Avatar in the morning," she added. I nodded. As soon as I hit the ground, I fell right asleep.

Chapter 5

"Malia! Help me! Malia!" yelled a familiar voice. "I'm coming! Hold on!" yelled Malia in fright. She didn't know where that voice had come from. "Malia! Malia! Help me!" yelled that voice. She had finally reached the spot where the voice was, but was too late. For which she saw was the figure of her sister, lying on the ground, dead. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" "Mali, Mali, wake up Mali!" said Katara. I woke up to see all the faces in my face. I felt the cold sweat on my face. I looked around frantically, hoping I was at my house, sleeping in my bed, my sister waking me up and giving me hot toast and eggs, sunny-side-up. "Where am I?" I asked the strange faces around me. "I guess she doesn't remember," said Katara. "Who...who are you...and you...and you!" I asked. "I'm Katara, this is Aang, and this is my brother Sokka. We found you last night in this cave, by that wall," Katara pointed. "My head hurts. Oww!" I said as I was trying to get up. "You need to stay down," said the so called Aang. I agreed. I woke up to yet more talking, but this time, I felt much better. "She's up," said Sokka. "I'm hungry, do you have anything to eat?" I asked. "Yeah, here you go," said Sokka as he handed me a piece of meat. "Thanks," I said as I was eating that piece of meat like an animal. "Sorry about my table manners, but I'm so hungry," I said, embarrassed. "What do you mean 'table manners'? I don't see any table," said Sokka laughing. "That's a good one Sokka," said Aang. They started laughing, then sat down back by the fire. A few hours passed and I finally decided to go and sit by them. "Hey, you feeling better?" asked Katara. "Yeah, a little," I said. "So, what happened? I mean, how did you end up in this cave?" asked Aang. "Well..." and I told them the rest. "Wow. I'm sorry. All your family gone by the fire-nation. Me and Sokka lost our mom by the fire-nation too," said Katara. "What do you mean, the 'fire-nation'?" I asked, completely lost. "You don't know what the fire-nation is?" asked Aang. "No. Is it real or just some scary story?" I asked. "No, it's real all right. Watch," said Katara. She opened her canteen and made it float up into the air. Then Aang made a breeze go toward my face and made the sleeping-bags push away. I had never seen this ever before! "Ok, can someone please tell me what's going on?" I asked. "I'm a waterbender," said Katara. "And I'm an airbender," said Aang. "And, I'm lost," I said. They all had worried faces on. Then Katara told me a story, a story similar to the ones my mom told me. "So, you mean to tell me that I can...bend something of earth, fire, and water? Ok, that's just weird," I said. "But it's the truth," said Katara. "Tomorrow, we will see what element you can bend," said Katara. "But right now, it's dark and I'm (yawning) sleepy," said Sokka. "Night!" said everyone. And so the friendships begin.

Chapter 6

I woke up. Darkness all around me. I had friends, real friends. Not imaginary, not my sister, but real friends! I was so excited that I jumped up out of my sleeping-bag, and twirled around and around and around until someone said "Ouch!" I turned around, petrified in my spot. It was so dark that I couldn't see who it was. Then I noticed that it was the girl's brother, Sokka. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I mean...that...well...I've never had real friends before. All the friends I've ever had were imaginary and my sister. Ya'll are my first real friends," I said, scared to know what he would say. Yet, I was embarrassed, my cheeks got hot. I had never told anyone my secret, ever. Not even my own sister. "That's ok. But, be careful next time," he said. "Yeah, right. I'll be more careful," I said, still embarrassed. "Wait, what were you doing?" he asked. "I was just spinning around," I said. He ran. He ran towards Katara. "Katara, wake up Katara!" he whispered. "Arrrrrrrrrrr, wake me up later," she said, annoyed. "Wake up, it's about Mali," said Sokka. "Wha-what about Mali?" asked Katara, half asleep. "I-I think she's an airbender," said Sokka. "What!" exclaimed Katara. She ran towards me, unfortunately, falling every once or twice. "And you tell me I'm clumsy. You should see yourself," said Sokka. "Not the t-time Sokka," said Katara, as she trips places. Aang, get up!" she yelled. Aang flew up, did a twirl in the air, and landed. "What's the problem guys?" he asked. "Sokka thinks Mali's and airbender," said Katara. "Really?" Aang asked. "Sokka, how do you know she's an airbender?" "She was twirling around and made rocks fly in my face," Sokka said. "Hey, where is she?" Katara asked.

; Chapter 7;

I was outside, twirling around, knowing that I finally have a bending power. But Katara didn't mention airbending in the story. But, I was still happy. I was going around so fast that I was actually off the ground. It was that time that when everyone came out to find that I was off the ground. "Look, she's floating!" Sokka said. His voice startled me. I immediately came falling down. I had never done this before. I didn't know how to stop. Sokka came running to catch me. He came just in time. I fell right into his arms. I guess he felt embarrassed so he put me down right away. I blushed a little. "Wow, I didn't know you were an airbender!" said Aang. "Oh, while I was out here too, it's like I was magic or something. I just looked down at a rock and passed my hand over it for some reason and it just went up!" I said. "Aang, do you think she could be another Avatar?" asked Sokka. "Sokka, come on now. Aang's the only Avatar. Duh!" said Katara. "Wait, I remember something of my childhood. I think my mother was an Earthbender and my grandpa was an Airbender, so it passed onto my father! My father called me something. It was a rare occasion when two different nations marry. Ohh...what was it called!" I said, angered. I thought and thought...wait. "I know! I'm something called a Saphinee," I said. "A... Saphinee? I've never heard of that," said Katara. "Yeah, so I guess I can airbend and earthbend,"I said, a little confused. "But, how did you go up so high?" asked Sokka. "Oh, that, I don't know. When I get all excited, I twirl and twirl 'till I can't anymore. But I've never gone up so high before because I guess that I wasn't very excited. And this morning, I was excited because...well...ya'll are my first real friends. The only other friends I've had were imaginary and my sister," I said, still embarrassed. "Oh, well now that we know what you can do, why won't we just practice it? Aang can teach you how to airbend. None of us know how to earthbend, so that's why we're going to the city of Omashu for Aang to learn it. But we're going to the North Pole first," said Katara. "Oh," I said. "I can start teaching her in the afternoon," said Aang. Sokka was trying to get some coconuts from the tree above us. He finally realized he had to use his boomerang and got some, but some were heading straight for me! And...boink. I was out, cold. When I woke up, I was lying in the cave again, the fire burning, darkness all around the fire, and voices, screaming voices. "Sokka, you idiot! Why were you using your boomerang to get those stupid coconuts out of that tree!" screamed Katara. Sokka looked scared. "It was the only way..." "So!" interrupted Katara. "Hey, you guys. It doesn't matter," I said. "It didn't even hurt me." "Well that's good news you didn't get hurt. But I know someone who will though!" shouted Katara. She did the slap-whipped move on Sokka with her waterbending, while he said 'Ouch! That hurt Katara. Stop it! She said it didn't hurt her! Quit it!' "Fine," she said. "Hey Mali, come eat. I think you can eat by the fire tonight," said Aang. "Thanks," I said. I made my way across the darkened floor to the fire with Aang, Katara, and Sokka. Aang handed me some roasted nuts. After we ate, we all got to know each other better. "So Mali, what's your 'full' name?" asked Aang.

"Well, it's Malia Ann Shoryou," I said. "Oh, nice name," said Katara. "Thanks," I said. "I think it's timeyawns to go toyawns bed, don't you think Katara?" said Aang. "Yeah, night everyone," said Katara. "Night," said Sokka. "Night," I said as I crawled into my sleeping-bag.

/Chapter 8/

"Hey Mali, wake up," said a voice. "Go away, I'm sleeping here!" I said, angered that someone had dared to awake me. Wind started circling around me and the voice. I could hear it screaming like a girl. Then I knew who it was. "O my gosh! Sokka, are you ok?" I asked. But as soon as I got up, he fell. "Ouch," he said. "Sorry, you might not ever want to wake me up so early next time. Or ever," I said laughing. We laughed. "So why did you wake me up, anyway?" I asked. "Well, for one thing, it's almost lunch. And second, Aang wants to teach you now," said Sokka. "Ok," I said. We walked out of the cave and I saw Aang riding on some sort of thing. He immediately jumped off when he saw me. "Just having a little fun before we started," said Aang. "Ok, so when do we start?" I asked excitedly. "Now," he said. He led me to a clearing where we could do it all day long. We did airbending for hours, and I got so hungry, I passed out. "Sokka! Bring us some food!" yelled Aang. But instead, someone else came. "Here's your food," said the voice. It was...can you guess because it's so obvious...Prince Zuko, duh! "Guards, take the two," he ordered. They took us away.

I awoke to a seasick feeling. I looked around me. It didn't look like the clearing me and Aang were practicing in a while ago. I saw Aang, Katara, and Sokka next to me. "Where, where are we?" I asked, still dazed from not eating. "Why, you're on Prince Zuko's ship," said Zuko. "Well, can you bring us off your ship?" I asked, nicely. "Ha! Nice try, you silly little girl," he said, amusingly. I got mad, really mad. "Well, can you at least bring me some food!" I said. "No!" he said. That was it; I was hungry and hungry now! I got to my feet, and made fists in my hands. All of sudden, giant gusts of wind were ripping around us all. I was surprised. I had never done this thingy before. But I didn't let that get into my way. Then, out of nowhere, I jumped up and landed on the ground, forcefully with my hands. The ground shot up towards Zuko. He ran, ran as a coward. He left and got his men to come and get us. But before they could arrive, I flew my hands towards the wall and it knocked over into the ocean. Aang, surprised at how he knew when to do this, blew his whistle and Appa came. Momo was on his back as well. We jumped onto him and flew off back to camp to gather our stuff and fly to the North Pole. When we got to camp, Aang, Sokka, and Katara came around me. "Wow, that was amazing!" said Sokka. Aang looked jealous. "Listen, Aang, I never knew that I was capable of doing that! I mean...I'm sorry. I'll just go," I said sadly. I started to walk, but fell. "Ahhhh!" I said painfully. They came running towards me. Sokka flipped me over onto my back. And there, he saw a big gash in my leg. I looked down, in horror to see my leg bleeding at speed, I fainted.

"Malia! Help me! Malia!" yelled a familiar voice. "I'm coming! Hold on!" I yelled in fright. Where had that voice had come from? "Malia! Malia! Help me!" yelled that voice. I had finally reached the spot where the voice was, but was too late. For which I saw was the figure of my sister, lying on the ground, dead. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I awoke to feel deadly cold sweat piercing my cheeks. I looked around, turning my head quickly. It was that dream again, that stupid dream! I got up, but screamed instead, a loud, shrill scream. My leg felt like it had been stabbed that second with a million daggers. I fell flat on my back, leg throbbing at great speed. I was hot, sweating, and scared. My head turned this way and that, trying to make the pain go away. Suddenly, I saw people rushing towards me. I was in horror at the faces. "It's ok Mali, I pitched up the gash," said a nurse. "Your friends brought you here just in time." Then, I saw Sokka, Katara, and Aang standing in the doorway looking at me with sad and tired faces. They came to me, saying that it was all right. The nurse shooed them away and told me to get some rest. And I did.

Chapter 9

The nurse awoke me. This time, I was sure not to get mad. She told me that I was all better and that I had been sleeping for days now, and that my friends were ready to leave. I got up and wobbled around some, trying to get my balance. Sokka came in and helped me walk to Appa, which was carefully hidden deep in the woods. I was embarrassed, again. Cheeks hot, blushing. We finally came to Appa. Sokka told me to hang on to Appa's fur while he climbed on him. I did that and when he got secured, he reached out his hand to pull me up. I was frightened to see how he would react. I didn't know if I was heavy or not. I had to take my chances. I grabbed onto his hand, held tightly, and I was up there in a flash. "Wow, you're light," he said. Flattered, I went to the opposite side of Sokka and we were off. I felt so refreshed. My long, brown hair blowing in the wind, my hazel eyes closed. It felt good against my face. I caught Sokka staring at me in the corner of my eye. I ignored him and looked up at the sky. I could tell it was late afternoon. The pinkish-blue sky was so beautiful. Full of white clouds were up against the sky. Such a beautiful work of art. "Aang, when are we going to stop and eat?" asked Sokka. He interrupted my daydream! I was furious. My hair got a shade of dark as black brown, my eyes, a blood curdling red. Everyone was in horror when they saw me. As I looked at them, I stopped. My hair got light brown again, my eyes hazel again, and my temper back to normal. I buried my eyes in my hands. Katara came to comfort me. "It's ok, it's ok. Tell me, what made you so angry?" she asked soothingly. "I think if I'm still going to be around ya'll, ya'll better be careful because I loose my temper easily," I said. "Well, I was looking up at the sky, enjoying the beautiful scenery, and then Sokka had asked Aang when we were going to stop and eat," I said. "Oh," she said, looking at Sokka angrily. Sokka just turned slowly. Katara smiled at me and I returned the smile. "Hey Sokka, your turn to fly Appa," said Aang. Sokka got up and took Aang's place. Aang came and sat down and wanted to know what happened. I told him. "Oh," he said. He sounded frightened. I had a sad look on my face. "Why do you look so sad now?" he asked. "Because you're slightly scared of me," I told him. Aang's mouth dropped. "But how...?" "I don't know how I can do it, but I've always been able to do it," I said. "And please don't be scared of me. It's just when I get mad, like at the ship," I said. "Ok. Now I feel much better," he said. "Aang, I'm tired of flying Appa. You come fly him," said Sokka. "All he wants to do is be nearer to you," whispered Katara. I laughed, trying to hide my blushing. Aang flew, or jumped high...high...high..., onto Appa's neck. Sokka made his way towards us. I looked up into the sky, daydreaming again. I daydreamed about the last time I was with my dad. We went for a walk into the woods. "Little Malia, you are growing up so fast. I need to give you something. This is your mommy's jewel bracelet. Every generation, the mommys pass down their jewel bracelet to their daughters when they think they come of age to have the responsibility to have it. I'm now giving it to you," said daddy. He handed me an envelope. "Do not open it until we get back home," he said cautiously. "Ok daddy!" I said joyfully, unknowing what he had just said. I held it in my hand. Then, my dad had a worried look on his face. "Sweetie, let's play a game. I go and hide while you count your numbers. Can you count to fifty?" he asked me. I nodded. "Good. I'll go and hide back home and when you're done, come and find me, ok?" he said. "Ok daddy!" I said. He kissed me on my forehead. "Now, count!" he said. I turned around and began counting.

5 minutes later

"Ok daddy! I'm coming!" I shouted. I ran my way back to the house when my sister came for me. I looked at her in confusion. She picked me up at great force. My package! It had fallen! "Youli! Wait!" I screamed. "Mali, Mali! Wake up Mali!" said a voice. I sat straight up. Katara was there beside me, and so were Aang and Sokka. My heart was beating fast. The envelope! "The envelope! The envelope!" I yelled. "What envelope?" asked Aang in confusion. I realized the paper in my pocket, the paper I had found a week ago before my house...burned...I started to cry. I wiped my eyes and dug through my pant pockets. I found it. "This was in my dream. Here, read it," I said. They all read it. Aang had wide eyes. I looked at him. He took out a piece of parchment as well. He put it close to mine. The missing piece! I ready it aloud:

"To my lovely daughter. A bright, sweet little girl who'll solve almost anything imaginable to this world. In this letter here contains what and who you are. You, my sweet child, are a Saphinee. That is a rare occasion when a child's parents are from two different nations. I am an Earthbender. Your father is an Airbender, so like his father. Inside this envelope is my bracelet, for which your father will give to you. A bracelet full of jewels. Your father will explain the story. I love you my precious. You are worth more than this silly bracelet in this envelope. If I ever die before you get this, remember: Open up your heart, close your eyes and you will be able to talk to me whenever you feel in danger. I will help you on your powers, and when you get angry, you will be more powerful as your opponent ever will. You are special. Remember, my Malia. Love, your one and only mother." I cried forcefully. Tears flowed out my eyes. I fell to my knees, crying, crying all that my eyes had to offer. Katara, Aang, and Sokka kneeled beside me. Sokka put his arm around me. We walked off of Appa and into yet another cave. It was dark. My clothes drenched in tears. My quarter-sleeve shirt my sister had made, pants I had bought, even my long hair was soaked at the tips. I had stopped. "I have to find that bracelet," I said. Everyone was startled. "Aang, where did you find that other piece?" I asked. "Back at those woods where we found you. I found it beside the cave," he said. After about an hour, we landed and made camp. "We have to go back," I said. "Are you nuts?" Sokka said. "That place was in fire nation!" "Uhh...no it wasn't. I lived there silly. If the fire nation destroyed my house and killed my parents, why do you think my sister would live there for 10 years?" I asked. Sokka was speechless. I grinned, knowing that Sokka felt embarrassed. "Well, can we leave in about two days?" asked Aang. There I went again. Dark brown hair, fiery red, and a new feature, my clothes (or to say my shirt and sandals) grew. What I mean is that my shirt sleeves grew down to my wrists and my sandals became shoes. My clothes and shoes also turned red. Looking at my clothes, I calmed down. Then I went back to normal. "Sorry Aang. Sure we can leave in two days," I said, apologizing. Aang didn't seem scared anymore. Neither did Sokka and Katara. They were just astounded at my clothes, that's all. "I think we shouldyawnsgo to bed," said Sokka. I nodded. Katara put out the fire. We slept through the calm night...

On Zuko's Ship

"I can't believe I ran away like that!" said Prince Zuko. He shot fire from his mouth. "Calm down Prince Zuko. I wonder who that girl was. She obviously was the only one who would be able to get them out of there," said Uncle Iroh. "Yeah, she was," said Zuko. "I was such a coward!" Zuko started throwing fireballs at the water below. Steam came up from the water. He turned toward the hallway which led to his bedroom. "I'm going to bed Uncle," sad Zuko. "Good night Prince Zuko," said Uncle Iroh.

Chapter 10

It was morning when I woke. I yawned. I had the most peaceful dream ever. I got up and looked behind my shoulder. There, in the corner of the cave, were Aang, Katara, and Sokka, all bunched up together. My guess was it must've been cold last night. I turned and went out of the cave. I walked to see if there was a river near by. I saw one. I went up to it, kneeled down, and splashed some water against my face. crack What was that! I breathed under my voice. I readied my fighting position. My hair, eyes, shirt, and shoes changed, ready for battle. Wind was whipping all around me. The figure walked out of the shadows. It was only Sokka. I calmed down. "Sokka, why did you do that to me?" I asked. "I didn't know you were right here," he said. "Whatever," I said as I was walking past him. I went back to camp. Katara and Aang were up. "I saw the wind. Sokka scared you?" asked Aang. "No. He just...startled me, that's all," I said. Aang had a little smirk on his face. "Anyways, I'm hungry. Katara, did you get any food? Not that I think you're in charge of the food and all," I said. "It's ok, I know what you mean," she said. "And no, I didn't find any." "I could go and help you, if you want," I said. "Ok, we can go later, for lunch," she said. I nodded. I walked around, looking for something to do. I decided to play with a rock. I made a dart circle on a tree and gathered up some rocks and started airbending them to the tree, acting the rocks as darts. Unfortunately, I was never good at darts, so I never made a bull's-eye. I decided to give up. I laid on the ground, hands folded behind my head, eyes closed. "Boo!" "Ahh!" I said, jumping 10 feet into the air, eyes wide open and breathing deeply. "Wow, it's sure easy to scare you," said Sokka, laughing. "Don't you ever, EVER scare me again!" I said to him, angered. I shook out of it. "I'm sorry, but I thought by now you shouldn't interrupt me again, after that incident on Appa," I said. "Sorry, I forget easily," he said. "It's ok," I said. I started to cry. "Why are you crying?" asked Sokka. I shook my head as I wiped the tears from my eyes. Sokka looked like he understood why. "Ever since my parents died, I have been crying and getting mad very easily. And now that my sister has died, well, I don't think I can ever shake off the anger held inside of me," I said. Now that made me burst out in tears. I got up and went into the cave and wiped my eyes dry. I had to stop crying all the time. I just had to. I had to put the past behind me. I took a deep breath.

1 Hour Later

I was so bored. Aang, Sokka, and Katara went look for food.snap What was that? It was probably Sokka again trying to scare me. I turned around, petrified at what I saw. For there stood Prince Zuko. "Where are the others?" demanded Zuko. I said nothing. "Fine, guards, take her!" he yelled. I went into battle position. They all stared at me. Zuko wasn't afraid this time. "I see you aren't scared of me this time!" I yelled. He shot fire. I brought up the earth wall and airbended towards Zuko. It knocked him unconscious. I air kicked him and he flew into the trees. He came conscious again and fired at me. I dodged all the fire he threw at me. "Tired yet!" I yelled. His eyes got red with anger. He knew he couldn't defeat me. He made a ball with all his might and shot it at me. This time, I couldn't escape it. It hit me hard. I had burn marks all around me. I didn't let that stop me though. I was a big ball of fury. I twirled around, making a tornado, and then I got out and pushed it towards Zuko. At the same time, I gathered up some big rocks and shot them at his guards. My tornado made Zuko fall on his ship. He foolishly didn't know the Avatar was here, and if he was, I'd be fighting way harder, so he retreated. I still was in the mode. I was still mad. I thought to myself, this might be the guy who destroyed my family and my houses! I was determined to finish him off.snap I blew air followed by a big boulder at...Sokka, Aang, and Katara! I ran to defend them. I airbended the rock away. "I'm so sorry you guys," I said as I looked into their eyes, terrified. I fell. The air knocked me down from when I accidentally blew it at them. My burns were killing me. "What happened?" asked Katara. "Zuko came a-and I fought him," I said as I was getting up. They looked at my burns. "Its ok, all I need to do is wash them off," I said. "We brought food back," said Aang, trying to cheer me up. My face lit up.

It was getting dark, and we were eating some roasted nuts and some extra meat that Katara found in her bag. "Why don't we go and take a swim in the lake," suggested Aang. "Sure," Katara, Sokka, and I said. We ran outside and raced to the lake. Aang got there first and jumped in. I was next to get there. I jumped up and did a flip into the water. The lake felt good against my burns. I floated on my back, while my eyes were closed. Water splashed on my face. I looked up to see who it was. It was Aang. I made a bigger one with my airbending. "Haha! I got you wet more!" I said. He had a smile on his face. Then, he airbended me towards the shore. I looked up. There I saw Sokka, laughing his head off. I blew him away, causing him to land on his butt. Then, I had the laugh. I stood up and my eyes were closed, from laughing so much. Then, Sokka came and pushed me into the water. I came up and squirted water out my mouth right into his face. "Sorry Sokka," I said laughing. He dunked me under. I used airbending to push me from his grasp. I came back up. I was at least 10 feet from him. We all swam until Aang said it was time to go sleep. We had to wake up early to get to the North Pole and to find my bracelet. And we did have to. My clothes were drenched in water. They were hugging me, squeezed up against me. Aang blow-dried Sokka and Katara, using his airbending. Then, he did me. Returning the favor, I did him. My hair was frizzed up. Everyone was laughing at me. I was such in a happy mood that I laughed at myself. Normally, I would've gotten mad and attacked them. Well, maybe not attacked, but would've gotten mad. We laughed all the way back to the cave, where I had the most peaceful dream ever.

On Zuko's Ship

"Again!" said Zuko. "Again I fled! But she is so good. Where did she get that kind of training?" "She didn't. She is a Saphinee," said Uncle Iroh. "A...what?" said Zuko. "You know, a Saphinee. Her parents were from different nations. What kind of bending did she use against you?" said Uncle Iroh. "I think...air and earth. She didn't use any water or fire," said Zuko. "Ahh, I see. She is a rare one then. Air and Earth didn't get along 100 years ago Prince Zuko. Her parents were very old. They were 157 years old, but they did not look like it," said Iroh. "Yeah, but still, how can she be that good without any training?" said Zuko. "Well you see, Saphinees all ready have their powers in them. They are already good. But to make them stronger, they have fire burning within them. In this case, she must've been pretty mad at you Prince Zuko," said Iroh laughing. "Urhhhh...I'm going to bed," said Zuko. "Good night Prince Zuko!" said Iroh. "Night Uncle," he said. While Zuko was walking down the hallway, he had seen her face before. But where? "I'll just sleep on it," he said to himself before he got to his room.

!Chapter 11!

"Wake up Mali," said Aang. I opened my eyes. I saw that he had backed away. "It's ok Aang, I'm over it," I said smiling. I got up and helped pack up camp. In a matter of 10 minutes, we were off, off onto Appa. "Aang, don't forget, we have to go back to where you found me and look for my bracelet," I said. "I know! I don't forget as easily as Sokka does you know," he said. Sokka looked angrily at Aang. "So, don't you know," said Katara. "Uhh...is this a trick question?" I asked dumbly. "No," she said. "Well then, I don't know," I said. "It isn't that obvious," she said. I shook my head. I was confused. "Don't you know Sokka likes you?" she said under her breath, just loud enough so I could hear it. "Yeah right," I said, laughing once more so she couldn't see me blushing. "You'll see," she said. I was still blushing.

30 minutes later

"Uhh...Aang, when will we stop! My butt's getting sore!" I said. "Yeah, and I'm hungry," said Sokka. I rolled my eyes and thought to myself,he's always hungry. It was blazing hot out, even though it was still morning. My neck started sweating, I could feel it. "Aang, could you go a little faster?" I asked. He nodded. As he went faster, the wind blew my long, brown hair back. I took a ribbon from my waist (I put it there for pretty and it's a belt too) and tied it around my hair, making my hair now in a ponytail. Now that feels good I thought to myself. I laid back. Katara thought it was a good idea to so she laid back as well. Soon, Aang and Sokka did the same. We flew over the gorgeous skies with the pure white clouds. And...boom! "What was that?" said Sokka as everyone got up. I looked down. There, I saw a ship. It was firing big fireballs at us. Aang was flying Appa faster. He took a sharp turn. Katara fell off. "Help! Ahh!" she yelled. I jumped off to save her. Wind was whipping against my face, making my eyes water. I reached out my hand, and Katara grabbed it. "Hang on tight!" I yelled. She nodded. Soon, I twirled around and around, flying back up towards Appa, Sokka, and Aang. I made it. I fell onto Appa, exhausted from putting all the effort in flying back up. "Thanks Mali, oh thanks!" said Katara gratefully. "Don't mention it," I said smiling. I fell to sleep on Appa.

On Zuko's Ship

"Uncle, I am getting tired of losing that Avatar in my hands!" said Zuko. He fired fireballs at a worker. It knocked him in the head unconscious. Zuko laughed at him. "Calm down Prince Zuko. All in a matter of time, all in a matter of time," said Uncle Iroh. "No time for your..." But Zuko couldn't finish. The boat turned on the side. 'Has someone changed our course?' he said to himself. He went up to the front deck where the driver of the boat was steering. "Prince Zuko. Urgent news. Someone has spotted the Avatar. He is going to the Viniceapole Island," said the captain. "Good work," Zuko said. He went down to the deck where we was and watched from there until he got to that island.

Chapter 12

When I woke up, we already landed. "Here we are, back on Viniceapole Island," said Aang. I jumped with joy. I jumped off Appa and ran to try and find that same cave. I found it after 10 minutes of looking. Once everyone came, I asked Aang, "Now, where was that tree you said you found that bracelet at?" I asked. "Over there," he said as he pointed to a huge tree far away. I could only see the branches. I ran through thick shrubs and tall grass until finally... "Looking for this?" said Prince Zuko in a nasty voice. He pointed over my shoulder. I was stupid enough to look. There, I saw a firebender when the second I turned around, he threw a fireball into my face, making me unconscious.

On Zuko's Ship

"Ouch," I said. My head throbbed so badly. I tried to get up, but couldn't. I was so weak. The floor was so cold. I remember this place. "Had a nice sleep, Saphinee?" said a cold voice. I looked into that cold voice's face. It was the face of Zuko. I could feel me raging up inside, but not outside. "Haha, I can see you not gaining your powers," he said. I tried to use my bending, but it wouldn't work. Something in this room was stopping me from bending. "What is in here?" I demanded. "Ahh, you figured it out. Pity, you are so smart. If only you'd have figured it right before the firenation area," he said. "Well, if you want to know, it is a mere piece of rope. A rope I have had one of my crewmen twirl around and around, making anyone who can bend in this room unable to do it," he said in a chuckled voice. "Where are Sokka, Katara, and Aang?" I demanded. "What. You mean the worthless Avatar, the little waterbender, and that pathetic excuse for a warrior? They are just right there," he said as he pointed right across from me. I looked in horror, for what I saw across from me were the burned, unconscious bodies of Katara, Sokka, and Aang. This was it, I said to myself, my family, my houses, my friends, and even me, are all going to be gone, gone by the firenation. Then, a little voice reminded me of something, something my mom said:

"Open up your heart, close your eyes and you will be able to talk to me whenever you feel in danger." Zuko left the room, laughing. I closed my eyes, and opened up my heart to my thoughts.

"Mom, I am here. I need your help." "My sweet Malia. It is good to be able to talk to you again." "I need your help more than ever this time, mother. My friends, the world, and I are in danger. My friends and I are about to die and the world with it, controlled by the evil firenation. But Zuko has some rope that is bending-proof. And I am so weak." "My Malia. I shall try and help you. You need to gather all of your leftover strength. I shall help you from there. Remember, you are stronger than any other opponent you are fighting against if you fight with reason, with fire in your heart, and mostly, for your world and friends." "I love you mother."

I came back into consciousness. I had tears rolling down my eyes. I knew what I had to do. "Aang, Sokka, Katara, oh please wake up!" I said shaking them. Katara was the first to wake up. Sokka was next. Aang was last due to his nasty burns. I thought, 'Just because he's the Avatar, he gets special treatment'. Something came over me. Like a spirit that flowed into me. I thought, 'Mother'. She had seen the burns. I was a glowing white. My eyes closed, arms spread out. Soon, the light shone over them. After that, the spirit flowed out of my, making me fall to the ground. I heard a voice. "Now, you know what you must do. Get up now!" I got to my feet. Eyes red, clothes transforming, hair changing. I looked to my friends. They were in awe, looking at their once burned bodies now completely healed. They some how seemed to know what was happening. I nodded. I pushed my hands forward and it made the door bust open. I walked out of the cell. Another door was in my path. I did the same thing, but with more force, for I knew were crewmen guarding behind that door. I stepped over the debris left from the door. I saw the crewmen on the ground. I stepped over them as well. Before I knew it, more crewmen came from the noise. "Stay behind me," I ordered Katara, Sokka, and Aang. I turned and flew my arm around my body, making a big air wave. "Run!" I yelled behind me. We ran. We were lucky enough that Zuko was so happy with himself that he decided to park the boat at the nearest town and go into the market. He was already in the market when we got off. We ran into the nearest woods, deep, deep into the woods. As soon as I stopped, Aang blew his whistle and in a matter of minutes, we were on Appa again.

"Thank you mother." What I wouldn't give to make my little girl happy. Have fun with your friends. Oh, and what that wonderful girl Katara said is true. That boy does like you." "See you next time mother. Or should I say 'talk'."

As soon as she left, I collapsed onto Appa.

( )Chapter 13( )

I had yet another dream. A wonderful sad dream. It was about my mother. "Little Malia. You are so beautiful," said my mother as she turned around with me in her arms. I was laughing because I was about 3 years old. My dad came out and told my mother to go inside. He whispered something to her that I couldn't understand. My dad took my hand and led me through the woods. We walked for what I thought was hours. But I was only a little kid. What did I know, right? We came to a clearing with beautiful flowers. There were red roses, yellow daffodils, orange and yellow tiger lilies, and purple, blue, pink, white, and gold pansies. There were no trees above us, so the light shone on all the flowers, making it look like a mystical place, lighting up the whole scenery, making it glow. I stood in awe, looking everywhere. My eyes were shining, mouth open. My father took a look at me and began to laugh lowly. I looked at him, questioning "What's so funny daddy?" He just looked at me soft eyes. "It's just that when I look at you, I see your mother. Your eyes, soft as the earth. Your skin, swift like the air. Your hair, shiny like the water. Your heart burns with fiery love for everyone. You are just a poem of everything beautiful, all combined into one, special, little girl," he said as he tapped my nose. I giggled. "You Malia are something very special. You are a Saphinee. Even though you don't know now, you will understand later. Little Malia, you are growing up so fast. I need to give you something. This is your mommy's jewel bracelet. Every generation, the mommys pass down their jewel bracelet to their daughters when they think they come of age to have the responsibility to have it. I'm now giving it to you," said daddy. He handed me an envelope. "Do not open it until we get back home," he said cautiously. "Ok daddy!" I said joyfully, unknowing what he had just said. I held it in my hand. I jumped up and hugged my father. He then put me down. His face turned into a scared face. I had a puzzled look on my face. He tried to smile a convincing smile. He failed. "Why don't we play a game?" he asked me. "Ok daddy!" I said. "Ok, I know you should be able to count your numbers by now," he said. I nodded. "Ok then. Count to the farthest number you can count to and then go home. I will be hiding at home and you will come to find me. Understand?" he explained. I nodded. "Good. Turn around, close your eyes, and START!" he said. I began. I counted to about 57, and then ran home and when I got there, Youli, who was about 15, ran up to me and picked me up at great force. The envelope, which was still clutched in my hands, was now dropping to the ground below. "Wait sister!" I screamed. She kept on.'

I was rolling around, then, I screamed. My eyes opened straight away. My hand was on the edge of Appa's saddle. My feet and other hand were dangling in midair. Sokka was the first to hear me. He was in shock, petrified in his place. "Umm...you know you can help me up!" I yelled at him. He responded quickly. He grabbed my free hand and pulled me up. "Th-thanks," I said as I breathed deeply. He stared at me. "What, do I have something on my face?" I asked. He shook his head to get out of it and blushed. I just laughed. "Are you ok?" asked Katara. "Yeah, I'm fine," I said. "That was close," said Aang. "Yeah, it was," I said.

Chapter 14

"Aang! When are we going to land?" I asked, agitated. We had been flying for hours. Well, more like the whole night. The sun was just rising, casting a spell on the skies, turning them a light shade of pink and orange, small white fluffy clouds floating across the sky, the moon just visible shimmering in the background. I was lying on my back, looking up at the sky. Sokka and Momo were still sleeping. Momo was on Sokka's stomach, going up and down every time he breathed. Katara was the first to get up, about 20 minutes ago. She awoke to the sound of thunder. She woke me up, and then I woke Aang up. He was sleeping on Appa's head, still clutching his reigns. Now he was wide awake, ready to fly through any storm that might take place. "Soon," he said. He had said that all afternoon yesterday. My bracelet was on my wrist. I had felt so much better after I had gotten it back from that Prince Zuko. It was complicated how I found it. While we were running out of his ship, guards had surrounded us. Of course I had bended them away or we'd have never been able to get off. Well in a room right across from us, I saw a glittery thing. Then, a force pushed me forward, towards that glittery thing. In an instant, I knew what it was. My mother's bracelet! I grabbed it and that's when I told Sokka, Aang, and Katara to run. And well, you know the rest. Now, back on Appa. "Gran-gran, I want to eat it! Katara's too fat to eat anymore. Thank you gran-gran!" said Sokka in his sleep. Katara got mad. She picked up leftover food and put it to his nose. "Mmmmm...something smells good," he said. "Ok, now, when I say 'Wake up Sokka', you scream. Got it," whispered Katara to me. Aang wanted to see this. He turned around and watched. Katara put it right to his nose and said, "Wake up Sokka," in a soft voice. It was my turn now. I screamed as loud as I could. Sokka jumped up, knives in his hands, still half asleep. Then, his pants fell down (his long shirt was still there and covering of course). We all laughed very hard. Sokka, now wide awake, blushed the most I had ever seen him. He smiled a great big smile and immediately put them back on. But they wouldn't stay. They had a rip on the side. I could tell he was very embarrassed and knew he wanted Katara to sew them back, so I turned around and he gave them to Katara. He grabbed his sleeping bag and jumped right into it. Katara said it was ok for me to turn around. I couldn't help but laugh at Sokka. He was still blushing. "Ok ok, I'll stop," I said. Suddenly, I had chills run over my body. It was freezing. "Here we are guys, the North Pole," said Aang. Sokka came over and put his coat on me, while saying, "A real man doesn't need a coat for warmth," he said in a low voice. I laughed inside me, knowing that soon, he'll be freezing too. Aang and Katara put on their coats too.

5 minutes later

Sure enough, he was. Teeth chattering, goose bumps on his arms and whole body ice cold. He was lucky that Katara had finished up his pants before we got into the icy weather. Katara laughed and said, "Some man." He shot angry eyes at her. I went over to him and said, "Here, we can share." Luckily his jacket was very big. We were warm in a few minutes, either because we were in a jacket, we were close together, or because we were very embarrassed to be so close. Which is it, I'll never know. But we were closing in on the North Pole, and then we were here.

Chapter 15

We got off of Appa and I slipped once I got on the ground. I stood in amazement once Katara helped me up to my feet. It was beautiful. It was noonish, the sun shining on all the ice. It glistened in its rays, the water looked mystical, and the ice like a mirror. Then, a girl about my age ran up to me and hugged me. I pushed her off of me. I was so busy looking at the ice and water that I hardly noticed we were walking into a village. "What are you hugging me for!" I demanded. "Why do you not recognize me?" she asked. I had a dumb look on my face, a confused one to be exact. "It is I, Lalain (La-len)!" she squealed. My head asked this question over and over, 'Who is Lalain?' "Wow, it has been too long. Remember, we were in the Middle Nation? The boundary from all the Nations? The point where they all meet up? Uhh...sighs. Maliain, remember. That was you and I was, well, Lala," she said. My face had lit up. I remembered. "Lala! I missed you so!" I screamed. Katara, Aang, and Sokka all had confused looks on their faces. "Guys, this is Lala...I mean... Lalain. She was my only friend I had when I was 3," I said joyfully. The all looked at her. A brown-eyed, blonde with a blue silky dress. A little taller that Katara, about Sokka's height. She was the same age as me, or so I thought. "This is so surprising! You came on my birthday! Today, I am 14!" she said. "Ok, would you like to tell us who you are?" asked Sokka, rudely. "Right. I am Lalain Moshean. I am the princess of the Waternation. I am here to train the Avatar. I was told he was dressed in Airbending clothes. You, I presume are the Avatar?" she said strongly, pointing to Aang, speaking more formal like than before. Aang nodded. "Ok, well that doesn't explain how you know Malia," said Sokka. "Oh, you mean Mali? Well, we've lived at the Middle Nation, before the Firenation attacked us. I was a waterbender, yet Malia didn't know what she was until, probably the past week when she was with you three. You see, her father was an Airbender warrior. Since he was the last one, he had to fight for his town. Mali's mother was a warrior too. She didn't think it was fair for her husband to fight alone, so she went and fought with him too. Well, Mali and I were great friends, until one day when we had to leave for the North Pole to do my training. It was the day before they attacked us," she said. "Oh," said Sokka. "Now, Avatar and friends follow me," said Lalain. We followed her to a great big palace. "This is where you'll be staying. In my house," she said. Sokka's mouth was open in amazement. Aang and Katara were fascinated, but not like Sokka. I was overjoyed that I would be staying in the same house as Lalain, like old times. We followed her into the palace, down marble walkways and hallways, passed a great big dining room, and a huge greenhouse with a huge garden full of unique flowers. After about 5 minutes, we reached our rooms. "Katara, yours will be here," she said as she pointed to a room to the left. "Mali, on the right of her. Sokka, your there," she added as she pointed to a room to the right. "And Avatar, to the left of him. My room shall be down the other hallway and all the way to the left. But on this special occasion, it will be on the right of Mali's room," said Lalain. A servant passed through and said that dinner will be ready soon. Lalain told us to go and wash up and go downstairs when we're through. She also told us to look in our rooms for a 'bathroom'. We were kind of scared so we all went into my room to check it out. In there, we saw a small bowl with water in it and a big big bowl with water in it, steam coming from it. We saw another servant standing there, doing nothing. We watched him until the steam was gone in the big bowl and the little bowl. He got up and firebended the big bowl and the little bowl, making it steam again. "It's to make sure it's hot and warm," he said. "A- are there more of you in every 'bathroom'?" asked Sokka. The servant nodded. We decided after the next time he firebended to go and try it out.

We were in the dining room, looking at all the delicious foods there was to eat. Sokka's mouth watered. "Wow, this is the most food I've ever seen in my entire life!" said Aang and grabbed some food and ate it. Sokka did the same. Lalain laughed quietly. "Uhh...Lalain. I have a question," said Katara politely. "Yes?" asked Lalain. "When we 'washed up' for dinner, we saw a small bowl filled with water and a really big bowl filled with water. Why are they there?" asked Katara. "Well," said Lalain, "The small bowl that you saw is a 'sink'. A traveler gave me the idea and I paid him some money if I could use it in my palace. The big bowl you saw is called a 'bathtub'. It is a new way of life. You can take a bath in it instead of going into the nasty river and bathe. I hired some Firebenders to firebend the water when it stops steaming. You wouldn't want to tale a cold bath now would you? Any more questions, Katara?" "Yeah, do you have any bread?" asked Sokka with his mouth full of food. "No, the cooks didn't make any tonight. I am highly allergic to bread," said Lalain. "So Lalain, where are you mother and father?" I asked. She had a sad look on her face. When I was 10, the Firenation came and attacked our village. My mother and father perished away with it. I was in control now and I had decided to make a new village, except larger. It took 2 years, but it got done," said Lalain. I was suddenly not hungry. "I think I'm going to bed now," I said. "Aang, first thing in the morning, I shall teach you Waterbending," said Lalain. He nodded as he kept on eating. I walked up after that.

My bed was squishy. It was very comfortable. I knew I would have a good night sleep. I rested my head on the pillow and soon drifted off to sleep.

On Zuko's Ship

"Uncle, do you have any news to where the Avatar is!" said Zuko, still mad as he made that foolish judgment to leave the ship with that powerful girl. "I have a hunch tha..." "I can't take hunches! I need you to be sure!" "Prince Zuko, calm down. Isn't it obvious? The Avatar has to learn to waterbend first. So he must be going to the North Pole," said Uncle Iroh. "I have no time for hunches," Zuko said. Just as he said that, a crewman ran to him and said, "Prince Zuko, we have news sir. The Avatar is in the North Pole." Zuko nodded and told the crewman to go towards the North Pole. He went off and Iroh said to Zuko, "See? My hunch was right." Zuko walked off and said to himself, 'I will find and capture that girl and offer her to the fire lord, making my honor greater.' As he said this, he smiled.

Chapter 16

"Mali, Mali wake up," said a voice. I opened my eyes slowly. It was only Lalain. "Hurry up or you'll miss out on Aang's training!" she said, taking off my covers. It was so cold. I shivered. "Here, take these," she said, handing me a big jacket, a skirt made of buffalo skin, a long-sleeved shirt, and some fuzzy boots. To top it all off, she gave me a necklace. "Now, you look beautiful," she said. I looked at me in the mirror. I actually did. "But, why am I dressing all nice?" I asked. She just smiled. "You always have to look nice if you're in my presence," she said, laughing, obviously joking. We made our way outside into the snow. I saw Aang standing there, shivering. "His coat isn't working, I guess," she whispered in my ear. "Don't worry Avatar, you'll warm up soon." He nodded. Aang took a glance at me and his eyes got big. "Wow. Why are you dressed all nice?" he asked me. "Because I have to look nice in her highness' presence," I said in a mocking voice. I laughed. We made our way into an ice cave. It went down into the ground and once we were all the way down in the cave, it was magical. In the far corner, you could see the water. The ice was like a mirror. "This was my secret place where I came to be in peace. You know, when I've had a hard day," she said. "Now, let's get to work."

1 hour later

"I have never seen anyone learn so fast!" said Lalain. Aang just smiled a big grin. "I think it's time to go," I said. "I'm getting hungry." "Yeah, we'd better," said Aang. Lalain nodded. We headed back for the palace. As we approached it, a servant ran out. "Princess, princess. We have news. The firenation is coming to attack in search for the Avatar. We need to rally up our troops in prepare to fight," he said. "Very well. Prepare them," said Lalain. "I'm so sorry, but for your safety, I have to make you leave. I hope we see each other someday Mali- I mean Malia." Lalain hugged me and then said, "And you, Avatar, make sure you use your waterbending wisely. I don't want to look bad and be known as the one who didn't train the Avatar enough, now do I?" She then hugged Aang. He blushed. Soon after, Sokka and Katara came out. "Goodbye Avatar and friends," said Lalain as she waved. I nodded and cried a little as we jumped on Appa. We waved goodbye as we flew away. I thought to myself, 'I promise I'll come and see you again Lalain.' While we were on Appa, I thought about the things in the world. Good, bad, surprising. After I thought about all of this, I realized something. The world is very confusing. And so, we made our long journey to the Earth Nation.

End Of Book 1

Our Journey

Chapter 1 Introduction

I now know who and what I am. I know I have friends now. I also have a mission. I am going to help the Avatar defeat the firenation and bring peace back to the world. I am Malia Shoryou. I am a Saphinee. I am helping save the world! Wow, what a rush!

It has been days since we left the North Pole. "Guys, we're out of food," said Katara. Sokka had a worried look on his face. Aang almost went blank the other day because we didn't have enough food to feed us all. All I've seen is water, water, and more water. It's driving me crazy! I slammed my head onto Appa's saddle. "Look you guys, a village!" yelled Aang. I immediately sat up. "And when there's a village, there is food!" said Sokka. Aang went down. "Hey, I remember this place. This is Tywone. Guys, this place has the biggest cliffs in the whole world. It's so fun to jump off of," said Aang. Katara had an 'I'm surely not jumping off those cliffs' look on her face. Sokka smelled himself. He grimaced. "I'm surely going," he said. "Yeah, you better. And I thought it was something dead in the water the whole way here," said Katara. "Hey!" said Sokka, offended. "Can you two save it for later?" asked Aang agitatedly. They shrugged. After a few minutes, we were on land. Sokka kinda fell, due to we were on Appa for about 5 days. My legs felt all gooey. "Look! A market! We're saved!" said Sokka. He rushed towards the dessert stand. His eyes widened and sparkled. Katara immediately went for the fruits and vegetables section. Aang and I just stood there. Then Aang was the one who broke the silence. "So Mali, wanna go jump off the cliffs I was talking about?" he asked me. "You bet I do!" I said. He led me into the woods for about 5 minutes. Then we were at the cliff. I looked down. It was at least 50 feet down. My eyes widened in fear. "Oh come on, it's only scary when you first jump off. But after you jump off, you'll want to do it again and again," he said trying to comfort me and persuade me at the same time. "Ok, but only of you go first," I said. He nodded. He backed up and started to run, but when he got up close to me, he took my hand and made me jump with him. Before I knew it, we plunged into the water. Water rushed all around me. And then, my head was out of the water, into the cool air. Aang shot up right after. "Now that was awesome," I said smiling. He smiled back. There was an awkward silence. "So... should we head back now?" I asked trying to break the ice. "I think we should," he said. We swam until we got back to the cliff's small beach. All there was was the cliff around it. "How do we get up?" I asked him. "I know. I'll airbend my way up towards the top, and then I can throw you a vine down," he said. "Uhh Aang? Incase you haven't noticed, I'm an airbender too ya know," I said. "Ok then, we can both fly up," he said. I nodded. It took us at least 10 minutes until we were at the top. I was halfway dry. My hair was all wet. My clothes halfway. When I walked, my shoes squished. Aang laughed the first couple of steps. When we neared Appa, Sokka and Katara were there waiting. "Where have you two been?" asked Katara. But before I could answer her, she said never mind, because when she took a look at us, she knew. "I got some more food," she added. "Good. We'd better head off before someone notices we're hear," said Aang. We jumped on Appa and started flying again.

: Chapter 2 :

"Katara, can I have a piece of the banana custard?" asked Sokka. "Sokka, do you want to go hungry again?" Katara asked. We had left the town a couple of hours ago. We were seeing less water now, but mostly water. There were islands here and there. "But I need food! I'm a growing man Katara!" said Sokka. "Man? All I see is a boy kneeling down begging his sister for food. Now, that isn't too manly now is it?" she said, outsmarting him. "Fine. But, one day, you'll be sorry! One day you'll ask me for help and I'm going to be weak from not eating enough," he said. "The only help from you we'll get is to finish all the leftovers," she said slightly laughing. Sokka had nothing to say. He went over to the other side of Appa and folded his arms as he sat down. "Katara, why do you guys fight all the time?" I asked. "I like to because it's funny when Sokka gets mad. Another reason why is because we're brother and sister. It's like brothers and sisters were made to fight with each other," she said. "Oh," I said, feeling dumb. I looked out towards the sea. The water now was a turquoise. With the sun shining on it; it looked as though it was a metallic turquoise. The sun was setting now. The sky was turning a pinkish- orange and the moon was out. The breeze caught my hair, making it blow in the wind. I closed my eyes and remembered the day I first saw Katara, Aang and Sokka. I was nervous and scared. I got out of it. "I see land. We're stopping there," said Aang. He lowered Appa to the ground. Once we got off, we set up camp. Katara put out her and Sokka's sleeping-bags. I decided to sleep on Appa with Aang tonight, so that in the morning, packing up everything would be easier. Katara made a small fire. "Hey guys. Wanna go take another swim? I'm kinda feeling sick of smelling Sokka," said Aang. "Hey! I don't smell that bad, do I?" he said. I nodded my head. We raced again, like we did before, and once again, Aang got there first. I got in second, followed by Sokka and Katara. "Hey Mali, wanna see who can make the biggest wave?" asked Aang. "Sure," I said. I went first. I splashed him a little. When it was his turn, he smiled. My eyes then widened. I knew what he was going to do. He made a HUGE wave. I tried swimming underwater, but it still got me. I was at the edge of the bank when I heard someone running. In the background, I could hear Aang laughing. I stood up and turned around when I saw Sokka coming. He grabbed me and pulled me into the water with him. Some water got into my nose. It burned so badly! I was angry at him. When we got up to the surface, I airbended him into the air. He was screaming. I laughed. He was screaming at the top of his lungs saying, "Put me down! Please Mali!" "Fine, I will!" I screamed to him. I let go of him. He fell into the water. Aang, Katara, and I were laughing. When he got back up, he said "Man! She got me again!" We swam for about 30 minutes. I got tired, so I got up on the bank and laid down. I looked up at the sky. It was a little dark now. Dark enough so that I could see the stars. They were twinkling in the darkness. I looked out to the water. The moonlight was shining on it, making it look dark and dangerous in some places. But in the others, beautiful. Sokka came and sat beside me. I wasn't shy around him anymore. We were like buds. I closed my eyes, thinking...thinking...thinking about... "Ahh! Ok, who got me wet!" I said. Katara and Aang pointed to Sokka. He smiled. I got up and pushed him into the water. "Hey! I was dry too!" he said. "You shouldn't have splashed water on me then," I said. He just smiled. I rolled my eyes. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to bed. Night," I said as I headed off towards Appa. When I laid on Appa, I heard something. "Mali...Mali," said the voice. It was a faded voice, scratchy and dry, like a spirit. I shivered at that thought. "Mali...Mali," it said again. I went to look for it. It was coming from the woods. I headed towards it. But when I got to where it was coming from, I was not expecting to see what it was.

/Chapter 3 /

It was a floating blurry pure white ball. "Hello, Malia," it said. I was in fighting position. "No need to fight. It is I, Alain. I, like your mother, shall help you on your journey. The journey to help the Avatar. I was your mother's best friend," it said. I calmed down, with a confused look on my face. "I too have died like your mother by the firenation. They are a cruel and heartless bunch, they are. Anyways, back to the point. I will give you information on anything you need to know. The things you NEED, not want. If ever you need me, close your eyes and sing a hymn. Like, 'Leda do, ston mani, hea len, antrose kaie.' In fact, sing that one. That is one that I will surely remember. It is the old, dead language of all the Saphinees. It is saying, 'Come, I need you now. Follow my voice, for you know how.' Understand?" it said. "I nodded. "But, do I have to sing it aloud?" I asked. "Yes, you do. But don't be embarrassed," it said. I nodded again. "I shall be going now," it said as it flew towards me and then, at great speed, flew into me. I screamed and fell to the ground. My eyes slowly closed.

On Zuko's Ship

"Uncle, do you have anything on the Avatar!" said Zuko, angered. "Unfortunately, no," said Iroh. Zuko slammed his fists onto the table. He calmed down. "Very well. I am going to bed now," he said as he stormed off to his bedroom. "Goodnight Prince Zuko!" yelled Uncle Iroh. "Goodnight," said Zuko under his breath. He was tired of him not knowing where the Avatar is. All the candles along the hallway rose in the air, making it look like the sun was in it with Zuko. When he entered his room, he slammed the door behind him.

Wind was around me. I could feel it. My hair was blowing all over the place. I opened my eyes. I saw the face of a worried Katara. "I thought you were gone!" she said, overjoyed now that I was awake. "What happened last night?" she asked me. I couldn't remember. I then shot out words out of nowhere. "Leda do, ston mani, hea len, antrose kaie," I said. Katara, Aang and Sokka all had puzzled looks on their faces. All of a sudden, a white ball came out into the open of the sky. I finally took a look around. I was on someone's sleeping-bag. "Hello again, Mali," said the voice again. I remembered. "Uhh...guys, this is...uhh...who are you again?" I asked it. "Alain," said Alain. "Right. This is Alain. She is another helper for me. She is to give me information on anything I need to know," I said. "So, you have a weird flying ball of white stuff inside you and when you need to know something, you sing a weird song and all of a sudden, it comes flying out of you?" said Sokka. "Yeah, pretty much," I said. "Now that is even weirder than the first time I saw Aang," said Sokka. "Hey!" said Aang. "Well, it's true," said Sokka. "Well, I see you have no need of me, so, I will be..." "No! I need to know something. Where is Zuko?" said Aang. "Zuko is about 50 miles behind you," said Alain. "Will that be all?" I nodded. "Very well then," said Alain and she shot back into me. This time, I didn't faint, but was still knocked down. "Ouch...well, that was a start," I said as I was sitting back up. "Yeah, well, we'd better get going," said Sokka. Aang nodded. We packed up camp and headed to Omashu.

Chapter 4

"Ah-choo!" I sneezed. My eyes were watering. My head was pounding and hot. I could barely keep my eyes open. It was 2 days after I had that incident with Alain. And I was sick like crazy. The sun was shining so bright. I couldn't close my eyes and point them in the way of it or else, well...my eyes would hurt really badly. I had to put Sokka's sleeping bag over my eyes to keep it from hitting them. Aang said as soon as he found a town, he would land and find me some medicine. I sure hoped he would find it soon. I don't know how much I could take this cold. Sokka came over and put his hand over my head. He quickly took it off. "Guys, she's really sick. Her head's burning hot," he said. "Aang, go faster," said Katara. "Yip yip Appa," said Aang. He went faster. "The clouds are covering up the sun Mali. Take off this sleeping-bag before you get even sicker," said Sokka. I took it off. The wind made me feel even better. I closed my eyes to take a short nap.

I woke up to sun bright in my eyes. I felt really good. "Aang, you don't have to stop at a town. I feel all better," I said. "But, we already did. We stopped yesterday. You slept through it all," said Katara. "Wow," I said. I could see Sokka pigging out on some food. "I see that ya'll bought more food," I said. "Yeah, you and that food costed all our money," said Aang. I had a sad look on my face. I thought, 'I made them have no more money. I wish I'd never gotten sick.' It was getting late, so Aang decided to look for an island, the first island he could find. It took about an hour before we landed. When we landed, we set up camp and ate a little bit of food. I was surprised to see Sokka eat less than us. But he ate some other food before we got here, so that was probably why. Aang stood up, alarmed. Katara looked frightened. She said, "Aang, what's..." "Shush!" he said. He stood in attack position. Then, out of nowhere, we were knocked out.

When we woke up, we were blind-folded. Then, a voice said, "Who are you and what is your business here?" "Uhh, well, you see, we were tired of traveling and it was dark, so we decided to sleep on this island," said Sokka. "Answer all our questions and maybe, we'll let you spend the night," said another voice. "Show yourselves cowards!" said Sokka. "Sokka... I don't think it's the time to..." But before Katara could finish, our blind-folds were taken off us. There were 7 women, standing there. Sokka had a puzzled look on his face. "Now, what are you three?" said 1 woman. Katara was the one who spoke up. "I'm a waterbender, this is my brother Sokka. He's a...well...he's him. That girl over there is Malia. She's a Saphinee. And Aang is the Avatar." The villagers all gasped. "That cannot be. The last Saphinee was killed in a fire in the Middle Nation and the last Avatar died over a hundred years ago," said a man, obviously the leader of the village. "Take them to the cages, where they will be fed to the Quaries," said the man. Then, Aang flew up into the air. Then, everyone gasped, except us of course. Then, I decided to do the same thing, just to prove that I really was a Saphinee. "Oh great. Those 2 show off and what do we do? Stand in the background?" said Sokka. "Shush Sokka," said Katara. Then, the villagers bowed to us. "I am sorry Avatar and Saphinee. Will you accept our apologies?" asked the man. "Sure," Aang and I said at the same time. "On one condition. Will you give us food?" said Sokka. "Anything," said the man. "Sokka!" whispered Katara as she elbowed him in the arm. "What? I am hungry!" he whispered back. She rolled her eyes. "Follow me, Avatar and Saphinee," said the man. He led us into a room full of food and beds. Very cushiony beds. Sokka's eyes got so big I could've sworn they were as big as oranges. He ran to the food. He ate it very fast, at least 10 things in under a minute. After the man had left, we sat down and started to eat.

1 hour later

"Ohh...I can't eat anymore!" said Sokka. "Well, if you hadn't eaten almost half of the food, maybe you wouldn't have been so full," said Katara. "C'mon you guys. Let's go to bed," said Aang. We all settled down onto the very comfortable bed. It was like sleeping on a cloud.

Chapter 5

Something was tapping me on my shoulder. "Go away," I said drearily. "Mali, wake up!" said a voice. I opened my eyes. It was pitch black around the place. "Who...?" But I was cut off. "Listen, you've got to get out of here. Zuko is coming," said the voice. Then, I saw a figure of a woman. She was just now glowing. "Hey, it's Alain. This is what I used to look like, besides me like a ball. Now, hurry, get out of here," she said. I ran over to Sokka and pushed his shoulder. "No! Stop chasing me! Ahh!" he screamed. That woke Katara and Aang up. Aang held his staff and was swishing it everywhere, eyes barely open. "Ok you firebenders watch out because I'm the Avatar and I learned all the elements so I'm gonna kick your butt," he said, still in his dream. Katara was tripping all over the place, screaming, "Run! They're attacking! The earthnation is attacking! They're throwing big rocks at everyone!" I looked at them with an 'I cannot believe them' look on my face. I then screamed, "Wake Up!" They stopped. "Wha..." they all said. "Never mind. Zuko is coming! We've got to leave now!" I said, interrupting them. They all packed up quickly. We headed out on Appa without saying goodbye. "As we were on him, I said, "Did you guys know that ya'll dream about people attacking you a lot?" But no one answered. I heard snoring. I thought to myself, 'I cannot believe they are sleeping again.' I looked out to the ocean. It was a dark, mysterious place at night. I shivered. I stayed up and looked out to the ocean until the sun rose up into the morning sky. Aang was the first to get up. He yawned and stretched his arms out. "Hey Mali, you just woke up to?" he asked. "Well I..." But he cut me off. "Whoa! We're on Appa? How'd we get here?" he asked stunned. "You don't remember?" I asked him. "Remember what?" he said. "Alain came last night and she warned me about Zuko coming. So I woke you guys up. Trust me, it was not a pretty sight to see," I said. "Ya'll were dreaming about people attacking you. You had said that you mastered all the elements and some firebenders were coming, so you told them to be careful because you were going to kick their butt." "Oh," he said as he blushed a little. "Don't worry; Sokka was the one who woke you and Katara up. He was screaming, 'Stop chasing me'," I said. "It was probably his food nightmare again. He had one before and he said that food ate people," said Aang. "Hey!" said Sokka, obviously awake. He looked at Aang with angry eyes. Aang went over to Appa and started steering him. Sokka went back to sleep. I saw that Katara had woke up and was sitting straight up, looking at the sea. I walked over to her and sat beside her. "Katara, what's wrong," I said, sensing something was troubling her. "It's just that, every time I look at water, I remember her," she said. I was about to ask 'who', but I realized she was talking about her mother. "Every time I see towns, I think of my parents, how my town, once too was a well built, small, but well built town," I said. I heard a sniffle and saw something gleaming on Katara's cheek. She was crying. "This necklace is all that I have left of her," she said. "I didn't have anything left of her until I met you guys. If it hadn't been for Aang and my dream, I would've never found what contained in that package and my mom's bracelet," I said. Aang started blushing a little, since he heard every word I said. Katara and I sat there, staring out to the sea for a long time. Yawning sound "Good morning every one!" said Sokka. I laid back on Appa's saddle. I looked up and saw Sokka's face. I closed my eyes. Thinking of things. Thinking of nothing. The world is such a mysterious place, full of bad things, scary things, and good things. Some things happen for a reason, some happen because you made them happen. You have to live with what you've got, and try harder to add more things to what you've got, so it's not what you take when you leave, it's what you leave behind. Like my mother's bracelet. Some things can mean so much and some things barely anything. Yep, the world is so confusing. I felt a trickle of water on my cheek. I felt the other cheek. There was no water there. It was starting to rain! "Leda do, ston mani, hea len, antrose kaie," I said. Alain came and asked, "What is it that you want to know?" "Is it going to be a bad rain, or just a little drizzle?" I asked. Alain glowed a bright light, trying to figure it out. "Ahh...I see. There will be a terrible storm approaching. You better find shelter, or you'll be lying at the bottom of the ocean," she said. "Thank you Alain," I said. She then left. Aang must've heard because he lowered Appa down into a cave. We rested there for the night.

Sokka was trying to light the fire. "Man! Why won't this fire light!" he said as he put down the two rocks. "Here, let me try," said Aang. He started rubbing he rocks together. It took him 5 times to rub the rock until the fire was lit. Sokka folded his arms. "I could've done that," said Sokka. "In an hour. Aang did it in under a minute," said Katara. "Would you two put it on hold for a while!" I said. But as soon as I said that, there was a loud crackle of thunder. My heart skipped a beat. Rain pounded outside the cave, drowning out any sound. Lighting streaked the sky, while the thunder deafened my ears. We ran to the back of the cave, frightened like cats when they see water. Appa came in front of us, while Momo on Aang's shoulders. Momo's hair stood on end. Appa was snoring. I wanted to ask Aang 'How can he sleep in this weather', but didn't, remembering how the rain drowned out any sound and the thunder deafened your ears. I lay on the ground, trying to fall asleep. But couldn't. I sat up, like everyone else. I sat there for what seemed like all night.

Chapter 6

It was morning, drizzling a little hard, but the rain let up a whole lot. We stayed up all night, at least until somewhere early in the morning when it let up. We slept for about 5 hours, until now. My guess is that it's about 8 something in the morning. Sokka, Katara, and Aang had gray circles around their eyes, barely visible though. I probably have some, too. My stomach growled. We didn't have any dinner last night. "Sokka, go look for some food," Katara said. "Why should I? You're the one who wants it," he said. Aang had a 'Here they go again' look on his face. "Sokka, if I'm starving, you are close to dying of food right now," she said. "Do I look like I'm dead to you? I don't think so. If I was, I wouldn't be talking right now Katara. Shows how much you know," he said. Katara's face started getting red with anger. "Oooooh! You make me so mad sometimes Sokka!" yelled Katara. "The storm's over now Katara. You don't need to..." But she cut him off. "I don't care!" she said as she stormed off onto the other corner of the cave. She sat down and folded her arms in anger. Sokka had a scared look on his face, not knowing his sister could fire up like that. I was shocked that Katara fired up like that. Aang was too, since his face showed it. I decided that I would go and look for food. "I'm going look for food guys. Be back with something," I said. I walked out of that cave. Water was coming down on me. Sokka came running out of the cave, too. I could hear Katara screaming, "Oh yeah, you go look for food when she goes." I turned to Sokka and said, "Why are you coming?" "Would you want to stay with that thing in there?" he said. I gave him a little nasty look and said, "You shouldn't treat your sister like that you know." He just walked off. I ran to him. "Why did you just take off like that?" I said. "When I'm hungry, I'm hungry Mali," he said. I smiled a laughing smile. We started to look for food.

We had managed to get a smallish rabbit and a few apples with some good looking nuts. When we went back into the cave, Sokka realized something. He said to Katara, "Wait, why did we go looking for food when we already have some?" "Because we're running low on money," she said. "Oh," said Sokka. He gave the food to Katara and sat down. Katara started a small fire. Sokka and I were freezing, since we were covered in water. Aang airbended us dry. My hair frizzed up again, but no one laughed. I was relieved. The weather picked up again. After a while, I saw a figure in the distance. It was an old lady. I squinted to see closer. "What's wrong Mali?" asked Katara. I walked up to the entrance of the cave. The lady was calling for help. I made an air bubble around me, making no water hit me. I walked out to the lady. As soon as she saw me, her eyes widened. She stammered out the words, "The Avatar?" "No, the Avatar is in there," I said as I pointed into the cave. "Are you another airbender?" she asked. I shook my head. "Follow me," she said. "Hang on," I said as I ran into the cave to get everyone. Katara and Aang had confused looks on their faces. Sokka had a suspicious look on his. Then, the old lady came in the cave, soaking wet. "Avatar?" she said. Aang nodded his head. "Yep, that's me," he said. "Who are you?" said Sokka in a threatening voice. "I am Valinia, a resident of the village of Rou-Nwot (Ru-Not. Also, backwards, it's spelled Our Town), but everyone calls it Rou. My town is in desperate need of help," said the old lady, Valinia. "What kind of help?" asked Aang. "Something is taking the lives of innocent people, but we do not know what," said Valinia. "Come, there is no time to waste." We followed her deep into the woods, until we came across a big, wall made out of moss. She pushed aside it and on the other side was the village. It was small, like mine, except they had a HUGE building in the back. There was a section for houses on the left, and on the right was the market. There were about 30 houses. "Welcome to Rou," said Valinia. She led us into the big building, where we saw 7 people sitting in chairs, and being quiet with their eyes closed. "I have brought the Avatar," said Valinia. One of those seven people looked up. "The Avatar...?" he said. Valinia nodded. "It is an honor to meet you," he said as he bowed his head. The other 6 did the same. Sokka had a grin on his face and whispered to Katara, "Now this is how we're supposed to be treated." She elbowed him in the side. "Hi," said Aang shyly. "There is something that is taking our people away, young Avatar," said one man. "It comes in the morning, before the sun comes up. We hear people screaming as they go away into the darkness. It has now been 2 weeks since it has started," said another man. "So...do you know what the thing is?" asked Aang. "Unfortunately, no," said another. Aang fiddled with his hands. "So, what do I have to do?" he asked. "You will have to defeat it, what else?" said one person. A man elbowed that man in the side. "Ouch," whispered that surprising young man. "Excuse Taichee (Ti-chee), Avatar. He is the newest member and is a troublesome16 year old," said a man. Taichee rubbed his side. "So, when do I start?" asked Aang. "Tonight," said another. They bowed once more and Valinia led us out. "Ok, if I had understood right, you four are supposed to go and meet a secretary at Mojoiun's Café. She will lend you some extra rooms upstairs. You have some hours to get a bit of sleep. Taichee will show you there," said Valinia. "Thanks Valinia," I said politely. "Oh please child, call me Vali. And what is your name?" Valinia asked. "Malia Shoryou, but most people call me Mali," I said. "Oh, the lost Saphinee? I am honored as to meet you as the Avatar," she said. I smiled weakly. I didn't like to be known as 'The Saphinee'. Much a less as Aang as 'The Avatar'. Taichee walked out towards us and said roughly, "Come on." We followed him. We walked a ways until we were at Mojoiun's Café. "There, now I suppose you know what to do," he said as he hurriedly walked away. Aang had a blank expression on his face. "Didn't you listen?" I asked him. He shook his head. "Momo kept squirming in my bag," he answered. "Well at least I was listening," I said. "Come on." I led them into the café through big crowds of people. I could hear classical music playing, and voices chattering. I looked around until I saw the counter. I walked over to it. There was a woman at it. I said, "Hi, I'm Mali. I'm here with," I started to whisper, "the Avatar." Her eyes widened. Aang rolled his eyes. "Come, come with me," she whispered as she led us upstairs. We got to a door. She fiddled with her keys, trying each one until she found it. "Here you are," she said. She opened the door to a huge room, filled with fresh flower aromas, candles, about 10, lit everywhere, and two king sized beds, followed by a balcony overlooking the sea and the sky with trees. The room also had a couch and a chair. I was dazed, due to all the aromas mixed together to for a misty, romantic air. My eyes closed, breathing in the air. I wobbled a bit. Aang caught me as I was about to fall. "Oops, sorry," I said. I went and sat onto the bed. My eyes were in a dreamy look. Sokka came over and sat down next to me. I looked at him dreamily. He asked, "Um, are you ok Mali?" "I am now," I said. I leaned over. Sokka got up. I kept on leaning, which that is until I fell on the bed. I closed my eyes. I could hear, "Something's wrong with her." And, "Is she going to be alright?" Someone left the room. It was about an hour until I heard the door again. I opened my eyes to see Aang, Sokka, Katara, and someone that seemed very familiar. He came over to me and put his hand on my head. Then he asked, "What is she?" Then, someone replied, "A Saphinee." "Ok, what type?" "Earth and Air." "Hmm, this isn't likely. Well, all Saphinees are allergic to a lot of candle scents all combined, especially Fire and Air. In this case, there were a lot of aromas. And what I mean by 'allergic' is that they have a romantic reaction to it. They either get in a trance to fall in love the first person they see, dreary, or even a permanent love reaction. But, I doubt she'll fall in love or have a permanent love reaction. All she has is the Dreary Allergy. She'll be fine within the hour," the strange, but familiar boy said as he walked out of the room. I smiled a weak smile until I fell asleep.

Chapter 7

I woke up to someone pushing my shoulder back and forth. I opened my eyes, seeing Katara. I rubbed my eyes. "Where are we?" I asked. "The café," said Katara. "Oh," I said. I got up and walked around. "Well, I can see your feeling much better," said Katara. I didn't pay any attention to her comment. "So, where are Sokka and Aang?" I asked. "On the balcony," she said. I walked over to it, until I heard voices. "Yeah, she is." said a voice. I walked out onto it. "Hey guys. Who were you two talking about?" I asked. Sokka looked around. Aang didn't answer. "Hello, I just asked a question," I said as I waved my hand in front of their faces. "Who were we talking about?" asked Sokka to Aang. "Umm...weren't we talking about..." said Aang, but couldn't finish since Sokka put his hand over his mouth. "Mmnmn...mmm!" tried Aang. Sokka just smiled, a little red, but barely noticeable. I gave them a weird look and walked away. I could kind of hear in the background: "You idiot! Why you said something!" But I paid no attention to it. Katara wasn't in the room, and it was getting dark. I walked down the stairs and looked around. I wonder how I knew to come down here. I walked around until I saw her, sitting down with someone at a table. I decided to walk over to them. It was the same person that came into the room. "Hey guys. Katara, it's getting dark. I think we should head back to our rooms," I said. She smiled at the boy she was sitting with. She got up and waved good-bye to him and walked upstairs. I had a confused look on my face and turned to meet Katara. "Who was that?" I asked her. "That was Taichee. Don't you remember? He just wanted to talk to me about what time Aang had to go meet them. It turns out to be right about...now!" she said as she rushed into the room. "Aang, you have to go meet the people to defeat the thing that's causing all this trouble," said Katara. We walked downstairs, in the café, and outside where the wind was blowing roughly, making the weather cold. It was dark. It looked like a ghost town. No lights were on except a small lantern in the café for weary travelers. I could hear the faint sound of the music still playing. My eyes watered from the wind. Aang looked around and saw the big building. We followed him inside it. "You're late," said a man. "Sorry," said Aang. "Come," said another. That man got up and walked over to Aang, took him by the shoulder gently, and ushered him to the door. "You are to go and await for any sign that there is a monster or whatever it is that is killing our people," said the man. Aang nodded his head nervously, but courageously, and walked out into the chilly darkness. He looked around. I watched in horror. "Uhh...hello. Anyone out there?" yelled Aang to the air. He walked upwards, making it harder to see him. I squinted my eyes. "Beware! I am the Avatar and I order you to stop hurting these people," said Aang. A gust of wind passed him. I couldn't see him anymore. But I could hear his footsteps coming closer. I felt relieved. But, in the mist of the air, I heard a shriek. My eyes widened in horror. Gusts of dirt filled the air, making it look like a smoky fire. I immediately ran out after Aang. I heard voices screaming after me. But I paid not attention to that. In my head, the questions ran over and over: i If the Avatar dies, who'll save the world from the firenation? Surely I can't do it. I am only a Saphinee of Air and Earth. I need Water and Fire too. But Saphinees can only do two elements, not all four. /i I ignored them and searched. I could see an animal about the size of a gigantic bird. It had Aang in its talons. His eyes in pure terror. His shirt was ripped by the stomach, and some trickles of blood flowed down. His eyes told me the whole story. He knew it was the end. I wasn't about to let that happen. I turned into my mode, but more angry. But the bird flew off. I saw Aang pointing to his glider right beside me. I got it and flew out to follow the bird. I went faster than Aang on this, but not fast enough to catch right up to them.

It seemed like hours I was flying. I flew over numerous waterways and trees. I grew tired. I was out of the mode by now. I could see far in the distance that the giant bird was flying downward to a deserted island. I followed as well. I landed me and the glider behind some shrubs. As I looked over the bush, I could see Aang, and followed by some other people, unconscious, lying on the ground. Aang was unconscious as well. The bird left them and flew off the island. Now was my chance.

Chapter 8

(Don't worry moderators, Aang won't die!)

I ran over to Aang, eyes in pity at him. I looked down at a bloody Aang, magnificent yellow and orange clothing torn and stained in blood in some places. I couldn't help but cry. He was barely breathing. I did what was natural to me; I airbended some air into his mouth. As I did this, he came back to the world. "M-m-Mali?" he struggled to say. I nodded. Tears flowed out my eyes and down my face now. This is the worst I have ever seen him. "I have to get you out of here Aang," I said. "But, what about the people's problem?" he said. "All that matters is that I get you to a decent place to get you fixed up," I said. He smiled a weak smile. I picked him up and on my shoulders. It was hard, but I did it. I held Aang with one hand, and the free one on the glider. I also blew air out of my mouth to help us stay up. It took us a while to get back, but we made it. Katara and Sokka were waiting for us. It was just daybreak, sunset rising in the east, romantic for anyone but us. Katara and Sokka's expression could not be said in words when they saw Aang. The 7 men were speechless. One ran to a building to get a doctor. I fell on the ground when I touched it. But I got up, remembering that Aang was in much more pain than I was. Katara and Sokka ran to us. Sokka grabbed me and Katara, Aang. I was exhausted. I breathed deeply. I noticed Aang wasn't breathing normally. I did the procedure again, and it worked once again. I smiled at hope in him. Who would've thought that a 12 year old kid could survive such a terrible incident? Aang was truly a brave and strong person, inside and out. The man came back and had a doctor with him. The doctor's eyes widened at the site of Aang. He immediately took him and brought him in his house, followed by Katara. "I think it is best that you two get going back to your room," said one man. Sokka helped me walk back to the room, up the stairs and into the room. The candles weren't lit, which I wished they were. But as soon as Sokka put me down on the bed, I fell right asleep.

The sun woke me up. Sokka was snoring loudly. It felt like noon. I got up. My arms were sore. A little "Ouch" escaped from my mouth. Sokka came roaring up, wide and awake. "Mali, you're awake," he said. "Yeah, I am. Is there something wrong?" I asked. "No," he said. "Ook then," I said. "Wait! Where are you going?" he asked me. "Going to find Aang and see how he's doing," I answered him as I walked down the stairs. I rushed out of the café, Sokka at my heels. I remembered the house in which the doctor had brought Aang in. I walked in it and saw a much better looking Aang in a bed. He awaked when I stepped in. "Aang! Oh I'm so glad you're ok!" I said as I ran to hug him, but stopped right away as I noticed that he had some cuts on him and was still in some pain, but not too much. I felt embarrassed. "So, how are you doing?" I asked Aang. "I feel much better. Thanks Mali. If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't be here right now," he said. Sokka rolled his eyes in jealousy. I blushed slightly as I smiled a big one. Katara came in, circles around her eyes. "Hey everyone," she said as she fell down in a chair. "Katara, wha-what happened?" I asked, shocked at her. "I stayed up. Nothing much," she said. I realized something; the bird wasn't defeated yet. Then I just blurted out the words, "I have to defeat it. I have to go back and get those people." Aang's eyes grew wide and Sokka's. They both said, "No!" Then, they blushed. I shook my head. "I have to, or else these people will have to live this way forever," I said. "If you do, I'm coming with you," said Aang. "No. You're not in any shape to fight. Neither are you Sokka or you Katara. I'm going on my own this time," I said. I walked out of the house and out into the cool breezy air and thought to myself: What could be causing this gigantic bird to bring people to that place? Then, I head loud music. It was coming from the café. Then, it hit me: The music! That's what's making the gigantic bird freak out. I saw Taichee walking over to the hut. I ran over and said to him, "I know what's taking the people and why it is." "Well, what is it?" "It is some kind of gigantic bird, and the reason why it's attacking people is because of THAT café," I said as I was pointing to our café that we were staying in. "A gigantic bird? Oh my, it's the Mouli, the protector of the sea. The music must be affecting it or something," Taichee said. "And I've got to stop that music from playing, or kill the Mouli," I said. "I'd rather you stop the music, or else its spirit might come and haunt Rou-Nwot forever." "Well, I have to stop that music." I ran off to the café, and went up to the front desk and asked her, "Can you stop that music from playing? I'd really appreciate it." "I'm terribly sorry if you can't sleep with it, but if you need some peace and quiet, I suggest you go to another..." "No. I NEED you to STOP playing it, or do you want to be one of those people taken away in the darkness?" "I-I- Oh, alright." "Good, but you need to stop it forever. That's the reason that the creature is attacking these people, understand?" "Yes, I do. Now good day." I walked out of it, feeling that I accomplished what Aang had to do. I smiled a great smile, eyes beaming. I walked down the hill where a path leads to the sea. My feet sank into the sand; its cold feeling grew deep inside of me while the wind blew across my face. Someone tapped my shoulder. I turned around to see Sokka, Katara, and a limping Aang holding onto Katara's shoulder. I smiled. Sokka put his hand on my shoulder as I turned to face the sun. It was setting now, and I hadn't eaten all day, but wasn't hungry. Wait, Aang was out here? "Aang, why are you out here?" I asked as I turned around. But I didn't need the answer. He was bandaged up and Katara did the best she could to sew his clothes back to normal. They were good enough. I turned back around to face the sunset. Then, all I remember is being lifted into the air.

Chapter 9

My head was in pain. I looked around. Nothing, but darkness. I heard a shriek of pure terror. Then I saw a huge bird. It was the Mouli. I saw other people were awaking and screaming, children and adults of all ages. It came to me. "Mouli, listen to me! The music is gone! There is nothing to worry about! You can go back to the way you used to live!" I yelled out to it. Its terrorizing yellow eyes looked at me directly. Its pupils were eyeing every inch of me, making me petrified in my spot. I was terrified to the bone. It walked up to me and picked me up in its talon, holding me up, eyeing me again. I then blurted out some strange words, the words of a true Saphinee. "Hashen el caibro du spacho. Mei en du wolbre' ganse tor besue." It translates in: Leave Mouli. The town is no longer yours. 'Be gone into your deathly waters and await prey there, creature of the sea.' As I said this, I fell to the ground. The Mouli shrunk into...a mere FISH! I couldn't believe it! A fish, a fish! It jumped into the waters and swam into the dark depths of the sea, where it can terrorize other things than people. Now, I had a problem. How am I going to get back! My question was answered when my bracelet glowed. We were being transferred back to Rou, by my loving mom.

We ended up in the dust, pitch dark. Then, a light came from a house and out ran Sokka and Katara. They hugged me. I had a cut on my arm and my pant leg was torn, followed by another cut, but they weren't serious ones. One of the men from the 7 came out. "You-you brought back our people! Thank you," he said as he bowed down. He then ran and sounded a siren, causing everyone to wake up and come out to where they were. Then, screams and tears of joy rang out just like the siren. People ran to one another, hugging like they never existed, and then just came out of nowhere. I was proud of me, for rescuing all these people. My arm stung from the cut. I let out a little "Ouch" and grabbed my arm. Katara noticed and helped Sokka bring me to the doctor that did Aang. We walked passed people crying and hugging and yelling, "You're back! I can't believe it! Oh!" One person actually started freaking out because he saw his long lost wife. He was running all over the place. We walked into the doctor's hut where I saw Aang slouching in a chair. He gave me a warm smile. I couldn't help but return the smile. The doctor looked at me and immediately brought me into a room. The room was plain white with a chair. He sat me down and began to bandage me up. He put some kind of medicine on me that stung like crazy. "There, in about 2-4 days, you should be fine. Just be careful, and try not to get into trouble," he said. I got up and left the room, glad to see Sokka, Aang, and Katara waiting for me.

On Zuko's Ship

Uncle Iroh walked in on Zuko while he was meditating. "Why have you disturbed me in my silence Uncle?" he asked calmly. "Well, one of our waiters heard from one of our cooks, that heard from a shopkeeper, that heard from a merchant, that heard from a cattle herder, that heard from a little boy around the age of 10 that the Avatar has defeated the Mouli that has threatened the town of Rou-Nwot for 2 weeks now. And the Saphinee helped finish it off, but the Avatar is in bad shape," said Iroh. (Wow that was a mouthful! LOL!) Zuko rose from his sitting place and said, "To Rou!" (Hey, that rhymed! Cool!)

We slept in the doctor's house 'till morning. It was around 9 when we woke up. "We'd better get going, or else Zuko might find us," Sokka said acting smart. "Come on," he said. We followed him, not knowing where he was going. My leg ached in pain, but I didn't bother to stop Sokka. He was on a roll! Well, at least to me. Aang must be scorched in pain, for he was the worst of all. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. We walked until we got to the bottom, where a beach laid. "So Sokka, do you know where Appa is?" I asked him. Aang's face was turned upside down in the mention of Appa. "Oh no, Appa! My poor bison! Oh, he must be starving by now," said Aang freaking out. As Momo heard Aang's screams, he ran into a bush. "Momo, no," said Katara. As she went to get Momo, Aang almost fell until Sokka went and helped him. Katara came out of the bush with Momo, who was covered in sticks and leaves. "So Sokka, how are we going to get going to Omashu? We don't have Appa..." "I'm trying to figure that out now!" he yelled at me, interrupting what I was going to say next. He was getting on my last nerve. I walked away and tried to think of where Appa was. All I remember is a big cave that was shaped like a bowl. Well, that's all I had. "All I remember is that the cave looked like a bowl," I said. "Good enough," said Aang. Sokka had a jealous look on his face. "Well why don't you lead us oh wise one?" he said sassy. "Good, I will," I said. I started walking. Sokka helped Aang walk while Katara held Momo so that he wouldn't run away. Sokka was mad at me, I could tell. But, so what? I mean, it was just Sokka. I led them around the beach, not reaching any sign of our cave. I could hear mosquitoes buzzing around in my ear. The sun was setting a little bit. And then, a beam of hope came. I saw the cave! I rushed towards it, seeing Appa in its darkness. Aang, Katara, and Sokka were behind. My leg ached, but I didn't care. I wanted to get on the soft, warm fur of Appa. As soon as I reached him, I wanted to get away. He smelled like rotten fish. I guess all he ate was grass. I almost threw-up from his stench. I backed away, holding my nose. As I reached far enough, I breathed in big clumps of air. "We need to wash him off," said Aang. "If you think I'm going to clean that dirty thing, you mu...," I started to say, but didn't finish since I saw Aang's expression. "Oh, alright," I said. "Come here Appa," I called him. He came, his scent reaching us. I turned around to make sure Aang wanted me to clean him off, but they were way back there. And when I turned around, the big beast was in front of me. "Oh... go in the water Appa!" I yelled to him, urging him into the water. He went and stayed in there, turning around happily and splashing water this way and that. I made him stay in there for half an hour. As he was in it, we all sat on the ground, eating some juicy fruit that tasted SO GOOD! "Mmm, if only Sokka could find this instead of nuts," said Katara. Sokka didn't reply, which was strange. I guess he was still mad. Then, drops of water fell on me. I looked up to see Appa. "Hey Appa," I said grouchily. I got up and airbended him dry. It looked like he smiled, but under all that fur, I didn't know what it was. The sun was setting more now, sticky hotness filled the air, mosquitoes coming out. The sun was casting rays of wine red, and shades of lavender and pink, mixed together with red and orange, shading the sky the most beautiful sky ever known to me. I looked up in amazement, gazing at its shades, mystifying me with its beauty. I stood there for what seemed like hours, but only few moments.

We were on Appa now. It was dark, and all the bugs flying through the air. Momo was jumping up and down, catching bugs in his teeny-tiny hands and shoving them into his mouth. It disgusted me. I looked away. Aang and I were the only ones awake. Stars surrounded the black sky, the crescent moon shining down on the midnight black sea. "Wow, the way the moon sets on you, like, like..." said Aang, but couldn't find the word. "What about me and the moon?" I asked. He said nothing, looking away into the night sky. I looked around me. The moon shone right on me, like I was something special, like a treasure. A rare treasure. My arms and clothing shone with the moon's white brightness; I gathered up some of my hair and looked at it. It too shone. I let it slide against my shoulder, falling back in place with the rest of my hair. I was drifting off into sleep, as my eyes slowly closed.

(:) Chapter 10 (:)

"Mali, wake up! Wake up!" yelled a voice. It startled me. "Come on!" it said again. I scrambled to my feet, looking this way and that staring into the darkness. I looked into the frightened face of Sokka. I immediately got up. Fire was around us. Appa was on the ground. As I looked around, I saw Aang and Katara, hands tied and feet tied as well. And I saw the evil, spine tingling face of Zuko, smiling a smile that would curl anyone's hair. "Hello again, Saphinee," he said. Guards took me away onto his ship, where we would all be stowed away, like some kind of cloth into a drawer, until someone claimed us and took us away. I passed through hallways after hallways, fire after fire, and tin wall after tin wall, like we were closed in. The guard brought me down some steps into a cold, damp room where he threw me into a cell. My head hurt painfully. Sokka, then Katara came in. After a short while, Aang was brought in, but with a chair. "The Prince doesn't want the Avatar hurt anymore...just yet," said one of the crewmen. He sat the chair against the wall and shoved Aang into it. There was no conversation, no sound at all, except the swishes of the waves beneath the ship, and the sound of the engine humming its tune of despair towards the Fire Nation. Then after a long while, Zuko came in with a grin. "Well well well, I've finally captured the great Avatar, master of all elements. Well, now he'll only master the element of death. And the Saphinee. This is a great victory," he said. I gave him a glare, which he had a puzzled look on his face. His eyes widened and spoke, "I remember that look. You, well. I've seen the face of my burning house that I've conquered. The one in the Earth Nation, isn't it? The one with the loving, caring sister? Ha, foolish girl. Had no sense in her," he began to say. As I heard him say this, I grew with anger, deep down in me. I could feel my eyes beginning to flame with fire. "And you're that little girl who ran away. I remember now. My father attacked your defenseless village in the Middle Nation. Yeah, I remember now," he said. I froze. It felt as my heart stopped; I had a sinking feeling in me, like the rest of my life opened up. I was cold, freezing like ice. All I could do was stare into the face of the killer. The one that caused all my pain, all my losses. But, he gave one thing to me; friends. And from all this ice broke a small flame. I began to warm. Zuko just stood there. Then, I was hot, burning. Zuko got up and backed away. And then, gusts, powerful enough to knock over tons of houses, ripped and whirled around us. A force was in me, urging me onward to defeat Zuko. And then, I blasted wind at him. He dodged them and shot massive fire at me. Our battle went on for hours, through crewman and more of them. Unfortunately, when we got out of the ship, Zuko was just badly injured and unconscious. Zuko had stopped the ship to land before all this happened. We stepped out to it and all fell to the ground. We just laid there, almost all day. The cool breeze passed us.

After a while, Aang got the energy to call Appa. Momo was on him. As we climbed onto Appa, I saw the sunset of the outskirts of the Fire Nation. All the shades of red were among it, all the shades of pink, and orange, mixed together into a milky whiteness of the sky. That was the most wonderful sunset I've ever seen. We rode on Appa farther into the Earth Nation, searching for Omashu.

Once we were on Appa, I sat at the other end of his saddle, away from everybody. I sat there in sad silence. And then, I busted out in tears. "Wh-why did he do thi-this to me! Why!" I yelled. Hiccups were interfering with my words. "He's a killer, like all the Fire Benders," said Katara. I looked at my hands. They looked pale. I felt like I was sick, my stomach turned this way and that, like water swishing in a glass. I had the need of eating something, but once I thought about food, I felt like throwing-up. I just sat there, throughout the night, thinking what would happen if he didn't do all this.

󩏥 Chapter 11 �

I didn't sleep a wink. I just looked out towards the moon, casting shadows across the water below. Aang, Katara, and Sokka slept. Aang had felt better, with his injuries and all. I felt a little better too. The sun was out by now, and everyone was awake. There's nothing to say, nothing to do. Just to look out towards the sky, the ocean, or look for traces of land. This is the most boring time I've ever had with Sokka, Katara, and Aang. Nothing was there to say or do. All Aang did was lie on his back while playing with Momo, Sokka drove Appa, and Katara practiced her Waterbending. All I had to do was just sit...and sit...and sit...AND sit! "Uh, land! Come back!" yelled Sokka. "Sokka, how many times do I have to tell you, you CAN'T call land," said Katara. "Yeah, whatever," mumbled Sokka. And then, a small black dot loomed out on the ocean ahead. I was in full of doubt. 'Probably just another ship' I thought to myself. But as we grew closer, it didn't look like a ship. "Gu-guys. Land! Sokka, your little calling out to land thing worked! It actually worked!" I said. "Well, you know how I do. All in the instincts," he said. "Yeah, sure Sokka," I said. I just couldn't wait 'till land! To put my feet on the soft earth, smell the trees instead of fish in the sea, and to walk around. It wasn't long until we got there. And as soon as we did, I jumped off and ran around. I almost tripped over a root, you know, but besides that I was fine. I screamed, "Land! I missed you so much land!" But the others weren't as happy as I was. Katara was too mature to do this, Aang couldn't, and Sokka, well I don't know why he didn't do this. Then Alain came out. "Ah, I see you are rejoicing. I suspect you know what today is?" she said. "Yeah, the day we meet our long, lost friend, land!" said Sokka. "No, not that. Today is Malia's 14th birthday," she said. I was in shock. "My, my...birthday!" I said. "Yes," said Alain. "Woo-hoo! My birthday!" I yelled. "Happy Birthday child," said Alain, and she left. I started doing a dance, while singing, "Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday dear me, Happy Birthday to me!" Everyone just looked at me. "What, like you've never done this before," I said, stopping the dance. They shook their heads. "Well, it's my Birthday and I can dance if I want to," I said, coming up with an excuse to hide my embarrassment. "Birthday, huh?" said a voice. I turned around sharply to see a boy. He had dirty-blonde hair, pure green eyes that glimmered, had a beautiful smile, and dressed in Earth Nation clothing. "Hi, I'm Talim," he said. "Hi, I'm Mali, and these are my friends. You didn't possibly see my dance, did you?" I said, embarrassed. "Actually, not all of it," he said. I was relieved, some. "And what are you're friend's names?" he asked. Katara was the first to speak up. "I'm Katara, and this is my brother Sokka," she said. "And that's Aang," I said, pointing to Aang. Talim saw his arrows, and immediately asked, "Are you the Avatar?" Aang nodded his head. "But, I'd like it if you'd call me my name instead," he said. "We have been awaiting your arrival," he said. "Really? This isn't Omashu though. I was..." "Oh, forget Omashu. They have old, boring trainers. I have a sister. She's the best Earth bender here in Gesan," he said. "Umm, ok. I guess I can train with her," said Aang. "Great, it'll be an honor for you at our town Avatar," Talim said. "But he'll have to wait 'till his scars heal up first," I said. "Sure anything," Talim said. "Ok, good," I said. "Come on, it's this way to Gesan," he said and led us towards his town. He led us through tons of trees, puddles around the ground, and tree roots that planted them inside the ground. Sokka tripped over a few and hurt his ankle, Katara fumbled over some but didn't hurt herself, and Aang as careful as he was didn't trip over any but he lingered behind the whole way which delayed our walking to some minutes longer than I had wanted to. But, we made it there before dark; my guess it that it's somewhere around 3. And I was starving! My hunger soon took over me and I was on my knees, clenching my stomach. "Oh, here. Let me get you something to eat. Bread good enough?" asked Talim. "Sure, anything," I said. "Mali, are you ok?" asked Sokka. "Yeah, just my stomach hurts since we didn't eat much," I said. "See, just like I said Katara. When we don't eat enough, we'll get weak. Except, it's Mali instead of me," said Sokka. "I guess," said Katara. Sokka looked like he was proud that he was right. "Well, actually, if you hadn't found Appa soon enough, then we would've gotten extra food but the mosquitoes were out, then Mali wouldn't be so weak," said Katara. "But...but," stuttered Sokka. "Looks like you weren't all right," said Katara. Sokka began to sink down again. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. I mean, he always, or at least close to, says the wrong things or makes the wrong actions. But in the end, he finds a way to make it right. "Here you go. Fresh baked bread," said Talim. "Oh, thank you!" I said and hurriedly took the bread from him. "You know, now that I think about it, I'm hungry too," said Sokka. "Sokka, just be quiet!" whispered Katara. "Yeah, you treat Mali, the Great Saphinee to some good, warm bread, but not a warrior!" whispered Sokka back. "Warrior! I don't see anything like that here," whispered back Katara. Sokka just let it go and just stayed quiet. "Mmm...thank you Talim. That was so good! I hadn't had that in a while," I exclaimed. "Don't mention it. Oh, let me go get my sister," he said as he sprinted off. He came back soon with a girl. "Guys, this is my sister, Darie," said Talim. In front of us stood a girl with sandy-blonde hair which was up to her waist, pulled back in a braid and had some bangs hanging down. She had green eyes just like Talim, and looked around 15, like Sokka. She had faint freckles and looked tired. "Hi," she said managing a smile. "Darie, this is Mali, Sokka, Katara, and Aang, the Avatar," Talim said. "The...the...Avatar?" she stuttered. Aang had an expression that was clear among his face: 'Here we go again.' "Wow, I had never thought you'd be visiting us. Word had gotten around that you'd be going to Omashu for training," Darie said. "Well, it doesn't really matter to me actually," said Aang. "Thank you for choosing Gesan. We will start your training immedia..." "Can't it wait? Aang hasn't recovered fully with his burns yet," I said. "Umm, ok. Sure, as long as it's ok with him," said Darie. Aang nodded. "Ok then. Just come and tell me when you want to start," she said. I just remembered something. "Sokka, go get Appa, so we won't have to look for him again," I said. "Appa?" asked Darie. "He's my flying bison," replied Aang. "Oh, please, let some of our people get him for you. As soon as I tell people, they'll go get him," said Darie, and in a flash she was gone. Gone to tell everyone that Aang was here. In a matter of minutes, kids began to surround Aang asking questions like, "How does it feel to be the Avatar?" and, "Do you get lonely?" and, "I see you have some scars. Do they hurt? How'dya get 'em?" He seemed pleased by all this attention. A little while later, Appa and Momo were here. "Come on. We have some place you can stay," said Talim. We followed him to a 4 story inn. "This is the best inn in Rou. I hope its good enough," said Talim. I looked up in amazement at the tall building. This was a pure work of good construction. Lamps were lit in the windows and laughing and joy could be heard from the main entrance. "Oh, it's good enough alright," said Sokka. "Come on, I'll lead you up to your room," said Talim. We followed him into the inn. It was filled with glass ornaments, people dressed in nice clothing, and joyful people tilting their heads back to laugh. They obviously had too much to drink. Then, we climbed up an elaborate staircase up towards the top floor. This inn showed an excellent work of craftsmanship and labor. Beautiful walls lined the halls and candles were lit along the walls also. We walked until we came to a door. "Here's your room. The best in the inn," said Talim with a smile as he opened up the door that led into the room. It looked very similar to the room in the café we stayed in at Rou. Except there was rarely any candles in here. And the balcony viewed the whole town, not the sea. It was a very peaceful sight. Candles lined the metal bars along the balcony, making sure no one fell over. "Well, when you are healed up Ava- I mean Aang, you and Darie can start training," said Talim. "And I ask you all to enjoy the beautiful sights of Gesan and be sure to attend all of our famous festivals," he said in a dry, routine-sounding voice. "You must do this a lot, huh?" asked Katara. "More that I should," he answered. "Well, have a nice night," he said as he left. "Wait..." said Katara. Talim turned around, looking at her. "Umm, are there any festivals tonight?" she asked, uneasily. "Yeah, there is in fact. Wanna come?" he asked. "Sure!" she exclaimed. "C'mon guys, follow me," said Talim as he left the room. Katara's shimmering face turned dull after he said 'guys'. She must've thought he said just 'her' when he asked her himself when he said 'Wanna come?' She followed him slowly, feeling gloomy. Then, Sokka, Aang, and I followed down the hallways, down the flight of stairs, and out into the open. The air was crispy. Down the stoned road with buildings along them, I saw a magnificent festival going on. Dancers were dancing in the road, walking at a steady pace, carts were here and there, saying, 'Masks, here they are!' and 'The Food You Need!' Others were there too. Fire was blasting into the air and lights were lit along it. People were crowded along the streets to get a nice spot to see the fabulous festival. "Come on! We're missing the best part!" said Talim. We moved closer into the barrage of people. In the center of it all, that was where the big excitement was. The whole surrounding buildings, people, and road looked painted red, but wasn't. The bright, red lamps shone on everything that was there. Then, a song emerged from all the shouting. It was a beautiful song. "This is one of our original songs of Gesan. Isn't it great!" Talim said. I nodded in agreement. Hours passed, and soon the fun was over. "Well, how was that for a festival!" Talim said. "It was great! Especially the food," said Sokka. "It was yawns fun," I said as I stretched out my arms. "I guess we need to go to bed. Well, night all," Talim said as he walked away. "Hey Aang, you feel any better for training tomorrow?" I asked. "Well, maybe not tomorrow, but probably the next day," he answered. "Ok," I said, and we walked back to the inn. And as I fell unto the bed, I immediately went to sleep.

--Chapter 12--

Sunlight shone in my eyes the next morning. I sat up in my bed, only to see no one in the room. I got up, and then went down the stairs. When I came to the bottom, I saw Aang, Katara, Talim, and Sokka. Then they sang, "Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday dear Mali. Happy Birthday to you!" I smiled as I heard them sing this. They then revealed each a small box. Everyone came one at a time to give me that box. As I opened up each one, I saw that it concealed a gift in everyone. Katara gave me a beautiful lavender-lime green beaded necklace. Aang gave me some kind of hairpiece, and then Talim came. He brought me a small bag that jingled. "Go and open it later. Then, go into the market. You'll know what to do with it," he said. Sokka was last. He handed me a box that seemed the lightest of all. When I opened it, I saw a delicate looking flower. It was snowy-white, pink out-trimmings, and a sandy orange middle. "Talim showed it to me this morning. So, I got it while he wasn't looking," he whispered. As Talim saw the flower, he grew with anger. "That, was the last flower Gesan has this year! It is the Omahuie-Chou-Si flower. It only blooms about twenty times every year!" he said. "Sorry!" said Sokka. "Oh, you will be!" Talim said as he rushed towards Sokka. "ENOUGH!" I said and I blew air between them, making them hit the walls. People looked at us. "Go outside now," I said lowly and roughly. They walked outside. Aang, Katara, and I followed. When I got there, they were fighting. "STOP NOW!" I yelled again. This time, I stomped my foot and the ground split open, causing them to fall down. "Now, can we go without a day of fighting?" I asked. They didn't answer. "Igottagohome," said Talim fast and rushed away. 'Well, he's out the picture, so there obviously won't be any fighting today,' I thought. "Why don't we walk around today? You know, by the hills and stuff," I offered. "Sure, why not?" Katara said. And then we walked off. We passed luscious green valleys, part of Gesan I've never seen before and would've never thought of seeing, since Gesan is a prosperous town. The grass was soft beneath my feet with the sun shining bright on us. Animals were prancing around happily and without any cares. We walked for what seemed like miles, looking at the beautiful scenery. Until finally, some shade. Right beside us was a big oak, its branches stretched out wide across the grass. We rushed towards it and sat down. Well, more like laid. The soft breeze passed me by and the sound of the leaves swaying in the breeze. The birds were chirping their cute little song. It was like lying on a cloud, though I've never really done that. "So, what now? How are we going to find our way back?" asked Sokka. "Boy Sokka, you really know how to kill a moment, huh?" said Katara, "I was enjoying the peace." I sat up, hearing a sound not made by the wind. It was a i swoosh /i sound against the ground. I stood up and looked overhead into the distance, squinting my eyes. "Guys, I think there's a beach over there," I said. "Oh no, we're not going any further. I'm getting hungry and I don't want to loose..." "Let's go. I'm sure we can catch some fish i Sokka /i ," said Katara. "And I'll make the fire," said Aang. "And I'll bring you back," said someone's voice. I turned around to see Talim. "How...how'd you know we were here?" I asked suspiciously. "Doesn't matter. This ground is forbidden for anybody who stays in Gesan. It's where we bury our people. And you're standing on my grandmother's grave, so GET OFF!" he yelled. We jumped out from under the tree. "Sorry, we didn't know..." "Oh, you didn't know 'eh? Well you should've asked before you came! Now, come and let's begin with your training i stinkin' Avatar /i ," he said in a low whisper. But I heard it. I had a hate for Talim now. He wasn't all superior anymore. He was a jerk. An immature, showoffy jerk. I followed far behind and at a slugging rate. Sokka came over and asked, "What's the deal?" "Tell ya later," I answered. At this, he hurried back towards Aang and Katara. Somehow, I knew that this place wasn't forbidden. When we were leaving to go here, people were looking at us while they were passing by. They didn't try to stop us. Something was bothering Talim about going to that beach, probably. And I was determined to find out what that something is. Up close and personal.

Chapter 13

We followed him all the way back. As we entered town, no one eyed us. It was just like a casual day in Gesan. b First clue: Nobody is suspicious that we went there. /b We walked without any communications at all between us all. Talim brought us back to our inn. "Wulbye," he said in low tone and hurried off, again. "Something's up with Talim," I said as I began to walk up the stairs. Katara, Aang, and Sokka followed me. As I came to the door, Katara stopped me. "I know you know what's up with Talim, so tell," she said. I walked into the room, sat on the bed, and told them what I heard. "When we were about to leave from the tree..." I began, but I thought of something. 'What if something i is /i dangerous at that beach? I can't let them get hurt too, especially Aang.' I knew I had to make up something. "Well?" they said. "Uhh...Talim had said..." I couldn't think of anything! I was so nervous. I had to think of something really quick. "He had said that he was really mad at us and he probably won't talk to us for a while," I said. "Oh, so you got mad over just that?" asked Sokka. Normally, I would've gotten mad, but I let it pass...this time. "Yeah, I guess I did. Stupid, huh?" I said. I walked over to the balcony. It seemed like noonish. Then, a tiny yellow dot appeared. It was walking toward the inn. In a couple of minutes, there was a knock at the door. Aang opened it and out busted Darie. "So, Ava---Aang I mean. Ready to start training?" Darie asked. "Sure, I guess. Let's go!" he said. "Ha, so little. You won't be happy when I get through with you," she said. Now that got me worried. "Uhh, do you mind if I go. You know, I also am an Earth bender," I said. "Wait, also? What do you mean, also?" she asked. "Umm, I'm a Saphinee. I can do Air and Earth. I just wanted to see if I could get any tips," I said. "Sure, with all my pleasure come," Darie said. We walked out, down the stairs, and into the town. Darie led me and Aang into a clearing with a small little stream by it. "Ok, now Avatar. You need to build strength. And a lot of it as that. So, clutch your fits tightly, and breathe in and out big clumps of air. Also have a taut face on," said Darie. Aang seemed bewildered at this. "Just, do it," added Darie. So he did. "Oh, and squat too,"" she said. He squatted, which reminded me of a duck once. I busted out in laughter. Darie seemed furious. "Seems like YOU need some practice. Go, go and do the same as Aang. GO!" said Darie. I looked at her like she was crazy, but went and did it by Aang. "Good. Now, do that until I come back," said Darie. "Wait, where are you going? You aren't leaving us here, are you!" said Aang. "I'm just going back to town. I'll be back in about, and hour or so," she said. "An HOUR!" I exclaimed. "Yes, just, do that," she said and was off.

1 Hour Later

Darie finally came back. "Now that you've learned that, on to more important things. Now, you learn Earthbending," said Darie. Aang seemed lightened of by this and was up and ready to go. "Now, just, follow me," Darie said. Her voice was softer, kinder than before. She bent down and picked up some dirt. "Feel the dirt as it runs through your fingers. Feel it as it glides past them, going swiftly and yet, strongly. Try to grasp every bit of grain," Darie said. Darie's head was bent down as she said this. "Now, try to, gently, push the ground. Just slightly pass your hand forward, but have muscle put into it also. And remember, you have to FEEL the ground as it was being passed through your fingers," she instructed. Aang tried, but couldn't do it. "Here, like this," she said. She looked like an old, wise teacher. She did it with ease. "Try to feel the earth; the ground, the grains, the smells," she said once more. And, at last, Aang managed to get some dirt across. "Good! Now, on to other manners," Darie said. She stood up, straight and tall, and did some complex move. A huge boulder went up. "I-I have to do—THAT!" said Aang. "Of course not! I'm just warming up," she said. If that was just warming up, I'd hate to see what hard is for her. Maybe, trying to lift a town! "Now, I want you to try to lift this rock. Just remember the technique I taught you," Darie said. Aang managed to pull up the rock. "Well, let's see what the Saphinee can do," she said. I just moved my hand upward and the rock rocketed off into the sky. "Good, I guess. For a showoff," Darie said. I couldn't believe she said that! I could feel my face getting hot. Then, water splashed on my face. "Thanks Aang," I said. "Any time," he said jokingly. "We can't have any cocky Earthbenders. Ever. Back to the rocks please," said Darie, "Now that you've got the basic Earthbending techniques down, let's move on to some other moves. Now, you try to bring up a boulder about the size of your average cart up towards the surface." Aang's face seemed like it shrunk. "Don't worry, it's easy," she said. Aang tried with all his might, and about half the size of the cart emerged. I don't know what the problem is! Aang mastered Waterbending with ease! Maybe, Earthbending IS a hard element to master.