A/N: This is just one of the ideas that came to me after watching 'The Fury of Aang,' and I wanted to write it. It's my first Avatar story, so please don't be too harsh! Oh, and the dialogue doesn't exactly mirror what was said in the 'movie,' but that's on purpose to avoid plagiarism and what not. I hope everyone enjoys it.
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, even though I might want to, I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Incomplete
As soon as Sokka, Momo, Katara, and I landed outside the slowly sinking library, I knew something was wrong. Toph was there, struggling to hold the library above the sand, but something was missing. Something big, white, and furry. Something like my giant flying bison named Appa. Immediately, I knew Appa being missing wasn't a good sign, especially if Toph was still there. What had happened while we were inside the library?
Toph was thrown backwards as her Earthbending gave way, and the library sunk into the depths of sand beneath our feet. All that remained of the building's presence was a large, round crater located where the tower which we had entered through had been.
Sokka and Katara were totally oblivious to Appa's missing form, unlike me. While they celebrated the knowledge of a solar eclipse being close by, I looked around once again, carefully making sure that I hadn't overlooked Appa. Maybe he had wandered off to look around? But that couldn't be right. Appa wouldn't leave Toph and the others and I behind. Besides, we were in a desert. There wasn't much to look at other than the sand. And even if Appa had wandered off, he wouldn't wander off that far. I should still be able to see him, with us being in a wide open, vast stretch of desert.
Fearing the worst but wanting answers, I approached where Toph was sitting, head bent forwards, in front of the crater that was the last remaining remnant that the library had left behind. "Where's Appa?" I asked the blind, Earthbending girl, the newest member of our group, dreading the answer. But I had to know. I had to find out why Appa, my oldest and best friend and companion, was nowhere in sight.
The minute Toph shook her head and emitted a noise sounding similar to a moan, I understood. Something bad had happened. Something bad had happened to Appa. And now my best friend, one of the last links to my home, was gone. This couldn't be happening.
Tears filled my eyes. Appa couldn't be gone, he just couldn't be! But in my heart, I knew it was true. Appa was gone.
A thought suddenly occurred to me. Toph had been there. She had been there when Appa had been taken away. Why hadn't she done something? Furiously, I turned toward the Earthbender, and rounded on her. "Why didn't you do something?" I demanded, angry and hurting at the thought of my friend being out there, somewhere. Who knew what those people could be doing to Appa? What if he was hurt or suffering? If Toph had just stopped them, had prevented them from taking him, Appa would be here and we would be on our way to Ba Sing Se by now! Everything would be fine and none of this would be happening!
Toph fought to defend herself. They snuck up on her; there were too many of them. She was having a difficult time sensing things using the Earth, because of the unstable sand. And besides, Sokka, Katara, and I had been down in the library when it had started to collapse. Her priority had been to make sure that we got out before the library completely disappeared beneath the sand. What could she have done? There was almost no way she could have stopped them from taking Appa without letting go of the library. But I didn't want to hear her excuses.
Deep down, I knew there was nothing Toph could have done to prevent Appa from getting taken. She was forced to make a choice, to choose to either help Appa or save her friends. There was a possibility that we would be able to find Appa and rescue him, but if the library sunk with Katara, Sokka, and I inside it, we would most likely be gone forever. But this didn't really matter to me. Nothing seemed to matter to me at that moment. All that mattered was that Appa was gone. So, even though I knew that I shouldn't blame Toph since the girl had only been trying to help, I couldn't control my emotions.
"You've never liked Appa!" I accused her, all rational thoughts abandoned. "You wanted him gone!" I needed someone to blame, someone to actually yell at, and since Appa's captors weren't present, Toph was the next best person. After all, she had been there, and she was the one that hadn't done anything to rescue Appa.
Toph recoiled and hurt shown on her face for a moment before, furious, she yelled back at me. "You think I didn't try to stop them? You think I just let them take Appa? It was either you guys or him! What was I supposed to do? I already told you that I tried my best! I'm sorry you're upset, Aang, and I'm sorry about Appa, but it's not my fault!" she shouted. I opened my mouth to retort, but Katara stepped in.
"Aang, calm down. Toph did all she could. It wasn't her fault. Everything will be okay. We'll find Appa, I promise," she soothed, trying to resolve the situation and keep it from getting out of control.
I knew Katara was right and that she was only trying to help, but I just couldn't bring myself to care. All I could think about was Appa. My friend was gone.
But he wasn't gone forever. Not if I had anything to say about it. I was going to get Appa back. I'd already lost so much throughout my life. There was no way I was going to lose Appa too. I would find Appa, and I would get him back. Even if it was the last thing I'd ever do. Because Appa meant more to me than anything. He's much more than just my friend. He's my best friend. My confidant. My companion. He reminds me of home, and sometimes it feels like he's the only one who completely understands me. More importantly, he's a part of our group, this little traveling family we've created. Without Appa, that group, that family is incomplete. And, most of all, I'm incomplete. We need to get Appa back. I need to get Appa back. Because nothing feels right with him gone.
A/N: Okay, I don't know how good that was, but hopefully it wasn't too bad. It felt a little short, but what can you do? Please feel free to review and offer some thoughts, feelings, impressions, constructive criticism, compliments, etc. I hope everyone enjoyed it and that I got all of the spellings right.
-IrishMagic
