Curiosity Equals Trouble

It took about a week for the four teenagers on the flying bison to get to the Earth Nation. They had just landed in a small mining village near the ocean. Now that Aang had mastered waterbending, it was onto earthbending, and they knew exactly who would be perfect to teach him.

"It's so good to be back here," Aang said. "This place is so calm now that the Fire Nation is gone." All three slid off and looked around. The forest surrounding them was beautiful, but that wasn't the only thing that they were happy to see again.

"Katara," a familiar voice shouted. Katara turned around to see Haru running towards her. She smiled and hugged him, glad to see her friend.

"Haru, I missed you so much. It's been too long." Haru released her and saw her blushing cheeks, which in turn caused his face to turn red. They both shook it off as Aang came up to the young earthbender to shake his hand. "Haru, you remember Aang and Sokka."

"How can I forget the people that helped free my village? I see you have a new traveler with you." Stella turned to face Haru. She shook his hand as he introduced himself. "I'm Haru. It's nice to meet you, miss…"

"This is Stella," Katara explained. "She's traveling us for the time-being."

"It's nice to meet you, Haru," Stella said politely.

"The pleasure is all mine," he said as he looked her over. Of course, he couldn't resist admiring her for her beauty, which made Sokka fume. What is with this guy? He always puts his charm on people. First my sister, and now Stella. He needs to back off.

"I'm going to find some food," Sokka said angrily. "I'll see you later." He ran off towards the village, and Stella followed him. Aang and Katara just ignored them.

"So what brings you here?" Haru asked.

"We were wondering if Aang could learn earthbending from your father," Katara asked. "I hope it isn't too much trouble." Haru shook his head.

"Of course not. My father would be honored to teach the Avatar. We owe him that much." Aang smiled as he started to walk to the village. "I can show you where he is."

"That's ok," Aang said cheerfully. "I know where your house is." And with that, he flew off on his glider, leaving Katara and Haru alone. Both of them turned to each other with unsure looks.

"So would you like to take a walk with me?" Haru asked. "It's been so long, and I want to catch up on your travels." Katara blushed as Haru held out his hand, but she simply smiled, nodded, and grabbed it. They walked up the mountains to the cliff they had sat on together so long ago.

Stella ran after Sokka as he stomped away. They were at the village when she had caught up to the warrior. "Sokka, wait for me." He finally turned around, causing Stella to gasp. His eyes were full of rage and hatred, as if she had done something wrong. "Sokka, why are you upset?"

"I'm not upset!" he yelled in her face, but she knew he was lying.

"Don't lie to me," Stella said softly. "Please tell me why you are angry. Did I do something to offend you?" Sokka couldn't hold it in. He had to let out his anger.

"Why don't you just go find Haru? I'm sure you'll be happy with him!"

"Sokka, what are you talking about? I just met him. Do you think I'm in love with him?"

"Why wouldn't you be? He's good-looking, just like me. You don't think so though." Sokka screamed. "I saw the way you looked at him. Just leave me alone, you little whore." Sokka stomped away, leaving Stella in tears. She ran into the forest on the edge of the village until she completely lost herself. How could he say that? I didn't do anything wrong. I thought he loved me. She stopped her thinking and her tears. No, he doesn't love me. We are just friends. That's all. Then why do I feel this way? Why am I crying?

Her thoughts were interrupted when two men grabbed her. Before she knew it, she was pinned against a tree by two strong arms with a knife against her neck. When she opened her eyes after wincing, she realized she had been grabbed by two Fire Nation soldiers.

"It looks like we got ourselves a waterbender," one of them said with a look of greed in his eye.

"I'm sure the general would love another prisoner for his collection," the one with the knife said. "We are going to get a raise." Stella tried to get free, but the one with the knife pressed the cold steel against her neck, causing a small stream of blood to drip down her neck. What am I going to do now? she thought. Why did I have to be so curious? Please, somebody help me.

As if on cue, the man holding her was pulled back by a hooked sword. Holding the two swords was a boy with short brown hair, Earth Nation armor, and a piece of grass in his mouth. Stella was memorized. He looked so handsome and heroic, not to mention he had so much confidence in his eyes.

"You shouldn't be so rude to young ladies," he said. "I think I will teach you some manners." And with that, he started fighting with the soldier he took down. When the other soldier was distracted, Stella summoned a stream of water and knocked him out. Seeing that the boy was having trouble with his foe, Stella performed the Waterbomb on him. When she was done, the young boy walked up to him. "You shouldn't be walking in the forest by yourself. There are some dangerous beasts living in here." Stella smiled at the handsome young man. She couldn't help but be drawn into his charisma. "By the way, my name is Jet."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Stella."

"Stella, I like that name. It is really unique. It's nice to meet you." He grabbed her hand and kissed it, causing her to blush even more.

"Um, I should get going. Thank you for saving me." She turned around to leave, but she realized she had lost herself in the forest. "I guess I really don't know where I am."

"You can come stay at my hideout for now. It's getting pretty dark out. Follow me." They both began to walk into the forest when Jet started the conversation. "What were you doing in the forest by yourself anyways?"

"Well, I was traveling with some friends. One of my friends and I had a fight and I ran into the forest. He just got really angry and I couldn't stand being around him. He thinks he knows everything."

"Let me guess," Jet said. "He always goes off of instinct." Stella laughed at the comment. That was just like Sokka. They suddenly stopped and Jet grabbed a string then Stella. "Hold on tight." With that, they both went flying into the air. Stella looked up at Jet and started to blush again. He looked so radiant against the forest background and sunlight.

They finally landed on a tree house high above the ground. It was amazing how many tree houses were hidden in the trees. It was like a huge fortress. Teenagers and young kids were swinging from tree to tree like it was nothing. Stella was amazed that there were so many people living up here.

"It's our little fortress," Jet explained. "There are Fire Nation soldiers running around here, but they'll never find us up here. We fight them and try to keep them on their toes. We call ourselves the Freedom Fighters of the Earth Kingdom. Most of our parents, including mine, were killed off by the Fire Nation. We want to free the Earth Kingdom from their hold and make sure no one else has to go without parents." He stopped when he saw the sad look on Stella's face.

"I'm really sorry about your parents," she said with pity. "My father was killed by the Fire Nation, and my mother died from disease." Jet walked over to her and lifted her chin to meet her eyes with a smile. His smile made her heart melt. He was so attractive.

"I'm sorry. I really am. So we are both after the same thing. We want to stop the Fire Nation from hurting anyone else, but for now we should eat something and get some rest." They started walking across a bridge when Stella looked down. She could barely see the ground, which made her very nervous. She found herself clinging to the bridge ropes on her knees. She was always afraid of heights, but this was the highest she had ever been. She started to feel dizzy when Jet picked her up and carried her across the bridge. "I see you don't like heights."

He laughed and brought her into a small tree house. He then sat her down on a bed and smiled. "This is the guest room. You can stay here as long as you want. Feel free to look around, but I doubt you will want to. I'll come get you when supper is ready." He politely bowed to her and walked out her door.

She laid herself down on her bed and smiled to herself as she lost herself in thought. I hope Sokka and the others don't worry about me. She stopped when she thought about Sokka. "No, I shouldn't think about that jerk. I'll let him worry about me." Besides, I want to get to know Jet a little better. He's so cute. It would be a shame to leave so suddenly. Who says you can't go out for steak when you have hamburger at home?

What did you think of that? Sorry that it has been so long. I had writer's block on this story. It should get better. Quick question: Who do you guys think I should pair Stella with? Should she fall for Zuko, Sokka, or Jet? I won't pair her with Haru because he likes Katara, and I'm not sure about pairing her with Jet either. Please help me out.

Bubble-Gum-12: No, I'm not done writing this story. It should be a pretty long one, so keep reading and reviewing.

Amberhawk: Yes, Sokka and Aang can be jerks, but Aang is a lot better. Sokka is a little dumb though when it comes to Stella. He's just jealous.

not telling you: Well, Stella hasn't really developed her full power, and neither has Aang, so they are still beatable. The good guys need to be together. Besides, the Fire Nation has Hiroki. Yes, there are no magicians in the Avatar world in the TV Series, but there is going to be one in my story. Thanks for reviewing my story.

lensgirlfriend: You were right on Jet and Haru. Bumi I'm not sure about yet. I'll tell you one thing. Zula will be in this story for sure. Thanks for reviewing again.

Neko: Don't worry. I don't think Sokka and Stella are going to be that easy. Sorry if they sound like it. I'll try to have a little Katara/Aang in this. One quick question. What the hell is a Mary-Sue? I know that Stella is really goodie-two-shoes if that's what you mean, but she'll get a little spice on her after awhile. She'll lose that innocence she has before long.

Hey, thanks for all the reviews. You guys are great. I'll try to update soon. Cya.