Italics represents thought in this chapter
Ty Lee tore through the woods, the rough terrain mutilating her bare feet. She winced in pain each time she stepped on a twig or a rock and it dug into her foot. She ran on and on, sprinting all out for as long as she could. Finally, her pace began to slow and she truly felt the pain shooting through her muscles. Not hearing or seeing any sign of Azula, Ty Lee stopped at a river bank. Her reflection looked up at her as she gazed into the water. Wounds could be seen from the whipping she had received the previous night as she was being punished. Her clothing was torn, her shirt split in half at the front. Her pants were fortunately undamaged for the most part. They still preserved her modesty, although they had been torn while she had run.
The water looked clear enough, so she cupped her hands and brought some water up to her lips. After drinking until her thirst abated, she considered Mai's words. She was right. Azula broke my spirit, turned me into a coward. She would have to hide to protect herself, maybe in an Earth Kingdom town. First, the clothing would need to be replaced, or at least altered. She knew of natural dyes that were found in plants, and hoped that they could cover the colors in her clothing that identified her as a member of the Fire Nation. Her clothing wasn't expressly related, having removed the blood red articles she wore over her clothing and only leaving bright pink, but she had seen the paranoia of the general population in the Earth Kingdom.
Finally, there was the matter of her shredded feet to attend to. She made a rip in each pant leg above the knee and pulled the tubes of fabric off. She tore each piece into strips, and used the strips to bandage her bloodied feet after washing them off in the river. Rather than get up immediately, she chose to sit and wait, hoping to allow the feeling to return to her legs before she went on the move again. She debated on where to go next, since she was almost certainly on the Fire Nation's wanted list by now. She removed the tie that kept her hair in a braid and let it fall past her shoulders. Looking at her reflection again, she noticed she looked fairly different without the hair and clothing styles that she had always used. Not enough to fool Azula or anyone else who knew her well, but she looked different enough to not be associated with pictures of how she previously looked.
Finally, she felt ready. It was time to begin a new life of hiding. She would find a place to get a job and make her living there. She only wished she had some better clothing so she would not look like a common street girl. But beggars can't be choosers, so she got up, intending to venture back into the woods until she found someone who could direct her to a town. That might have led her to her fate, had she not heard a voice a bit down river. It was the voice of the Water Tribe boy. The one who had inadvertently started the whole mess. As she felt the weight of the events and the terrible pain fill her again, she sank to the ground and began to cry.
Viewpoint Switch
"I still don't get why I have to get the water," Sokka said to no one in particular. "She's the waterbender, but of course all the hard work falls on the guy who can't bend." He continued his angry ramblings as he filled the canteens an got some water for the rest of them. Finally, all the containers were filled, and he was ready to head back to the camp. As he walked along the bank, he heard a noise at odds with the forest calm: a girl crying. He looked around, searching for the source of the noise, and his eyes finally fell upon a girl sitting on the riverbank and crying.
His brain told him to leave the girl. Common sense screamed at him that it was a bad idea to get involved with a person he knew nothing about, especially in a world where anyone could be an enemy. His heart told him otherwise. Ever since his mother's death, he had hated to see people in pain, physical or mental. The smart thing to do and the right thing to do battled for dominance, and finally a decision was reached. He walked over to the girl and spoke gently too her. "Excuse me, is something wrong?" He regretted the phrasing as soon as the words left him, and berated himself for not choosing his words more carefully. Of course something was wrong, or else why would she be crying?
"No," she whispered. "Nothing that you can help me with." Now that he had gotten closer, Sokka could see many long, thin cuts all over her body.
"Okay," he replied. "But do you at least want some help with those cuts?" The girl looked up at him curiously. Answering the question she had not asked, Sokka said, "My sister's a healer. She waterbends, so I think she could get rid of the worst of those cuts." This time, the girl stood up and nodded. Sokka's face began to go red as he noticed that her shirt was open. Immediately, he averted his eyes. If the girl had noticed, she didn't give any sign. "So, what's your name?" he asked, starting to walk and gesturing for her to follow.
Viewpoint Switch
Ty Lee looked hesitant. Revealing her name could be dangerous, but she then realized that the boy would not know it. "Ty Lee," she replied quietly. She began to walk, speeding up slightly until she caught up with him.
"I'm Sokka," he said. They continued in silence for a bit before Sokka spoke again. "Sorry for asking this," he said, removing his coat, "but could you put this on?" he asked, handing it to her. "I don't want to think about what my sister would say otherwise, because of your clothes." Color flooded his cheeks after he asked the question.
Ty Lee smiled slightly. "Thank you," she said, slipping it on. It felt warm against the cool night air. She continued to walk until they reached Sokka's camp. Even though she was fairly sure that she wouldn't be recognized, it still felt strange to be walking into the territory of the enemy. The fear that someone might recognize her hung over her head like a cloud.
"Who's your friend?" asked a girl wearing Earth Kingdom colors to Sokka. She had black hair, and a look at her eyes told Ty Lee she was blind.
"My name's Ty Lee," she said, but immediately regretted saying her name. Still, she needn't have worried, as none of them gave any sign of recognizing the name. The Earth Kingdom girl frowned at her, but didn't say anything. She gestured for the others to talk to her, but the Avatar hung back and headed over to her.
"Where are you from?" asked the Avatar.
"A small town a few miles away," she replied. No point being complicated about it. Their discussion apparently finished, the waterbender girl walked over to her.
"My brother told me about your injuries." Opening a water storage barrel, she moved her hands, and some water flowed out in a stream. "Can you take off the coat?" Ty Lee obliged, removing it, and the girl gasped at the state she was in. "How did that happen?" she asked, moving the water over each cut.
"I'd rather not talk about it," she replied. "I was... hurt by someone I considered a friend." The cuts glowed and sealed themselves as the water passed over them. "Thank you..."
"Katara. It must have been terrible to have been betrayed by a friend."
"Thank you Katara. It was terrible; the worst experience of my life." She sighed. "I should get going."
"Why? Don't you want to stay for a while?"
"I'd like to, but I shouldn't."
"It's fine," she insisted. "fine with me, anyway. I'll have to talk it over with the other's, though." She headed over to them to do just that, and after a long discussion, they finally agreed to let her stay. Ty Lee smiled. For now, at least, she was safe.
Okay, I was mostly consistent with my updates of chapters 1, 2, and 3, but now my updates might be kinda random, though I'll try to update twice a week at least.
