Katara left Aunt Wu's house, taking a bag with her to put all the supplies and food they needed in it. Katara saw a stand full of fruit, vegetables, and bread. She gladly bought plenty of it to last their whole journey, and it didn't even cost that much. She paid in Water Tribe money, which the owner gladly took. Katara smiled when Aang appeared, rocking back and forth on his heels.

"What trouble did you get yourself into now?"

"Oh, nothing really," Aang said, whistling now.

"Did you break something?"

"No."

"Did you blast an airball at someone?"

"Nope."

"Then what did you do?"

Aang gave his innocent smile, and took her hand. Katara gave a laugh as he started to run towards the back of the village, where rarely anyone went except those who lived back here. Katara laughed as Aang stopped, looking around every corner to make sure no one was looking. He gave another smile, and took something from a covered bowl. He held it out to her.

"Oh my! Aang, a Panda Lily!" Katara set the bag down, taking the rare flower from his hands and smelling it. "It is so beautiful! I love it!"

Katara kissed him, blushing as she did so. She wondered why he was acting so weird when they entered the village. He was trying to get up to the volcano and get her a Panda Lily. It was the sign of true love in the village, since the man had to do a dangerous journey up the volcano just to get the flower that grew along the top of the volcano's dormant top. Katara smiled when Aang blushed, looking at the ground. She lifted his chin and smiled softly.

"It is beautiful, thank you. I'm glad you got me this, Aang. It really means something to me," Katara whispered, kissing him again. She then put the flower in her hair, making her seem more beautiful in Aang's eyes.

"It was just a tiny present, nothing special," Aang blushed.

"It is something special to me! No guy has ever tried to get me a flower at the top of a volcano before!" she laughed. "Not a single guy has even had the thought before, but I bet the last time we were here you had the thought, right?"

Aang nodded, but they both turned their head in unison at the sound of a gong. Looking at one another quizzically, Katara picked up the bag and ran after Aang, who was running pretty fast. They headed towards the center of the village, where the villagers usually met. A man was standing under the gazebo that was in the center of the area, holding a scroll in front of him. He held it out to Aunt Wu, who took it with caution.

"What is this?"

"Read it and you'll find out," the man said sternly.

Aunt Wu was silent. She opened the scroll, and as she read it, her eyes began to widen. The whole village was now in the center of the town, whispering among one another as Aunt Wu held the scroll, a hand to her forehead.

"You are just kidding around with me, correct?"

"Does it look like that is a joke to you? The Fire Nation will be here in less than a week to take control of the village. Good day to you all," the man said, leaving the village now.

Aang and Katara gave a look to one another, then looked at Aunt Wu, who was rereading the scroll. She was shaking her head in disbelief. The village had remained safe for a long time, and now the Fire Nation was finally taking control of the village. Aang came forward, holding out his staff in front of him.

"I'll stop the Fire Nation," he proclaimed.

Katara stood next to him, smiling. She also said that she would protect the village, and Toph joined in. Sokka shrugged his shoulders and said he would give it a try. The last time he fought one in a village he lost his boomerang, but it was worth a shot. He saved the village last time from the volcano, so why not save the village from a bunch of Firebenders?

"Stupid idea!" Sokka yelled later that night. "I can't believe I volunteered to protect the village!"

"Oh, shut up, Sokka. The Fire Nation is taking control of every village they want to, but we have to stop it, and you're just sitting there complaining about it! Why don't you do something about it?" Toph yelled at him.

"Okay, I will!" Sokka said, standing up and walking towards the door. He stopped in his tracks and turned around. "Uh, how am I supposed to stop the Fire Nation by myself?"

Everyone looked at him, smacking their foreheads. Sokka really didn't have any common sense, did he? Katara shook her head as her brother came back over, sitting back down on his bed. He stared around the room, thinking of some way to bring down the Fire Nation. Everyone looked at him. They were kidding about him stopping the Fire Nation single-hand, and he knew that was impossible. Only the Avatar could do that by defeating the Fire Lord Ozai.

"Sokka, we were messing with you," Katara said, fixing their dinner at the stove. "Really, now, do you think you could bring the Fire Nation by yourself?"

"I could if I wanted to!" Sokka snapped.

Katara shook her head, mixing together the soup and its spices. Toph walked over, sniffing the air. She smacked her lips. She was hungry alright. She sniffed above the pot, careful to not touch the stove. Katara gave her a tap on the shoulder, and giving a meek smile, Toph scooted away from the stove and sat back down at the table. Aang was busy making something in his room, but no one was allowed to come in for some reason. Only Momo went in with him, and sometimes Aang would let him in and out.

"Aang, dinner is ready," Katara knocked on his door, carrying his bowl and setting it down at the dinner table.

Katara poured more soup into two other bowls and set them before Toph and Sokka, who started to eat as soon as they got it, but stopped when they burnt their tongues, drinking water down fast. Katara gave a chuckle as she sat down, then realized Aang hadn't came out yet. She got back up, and tried to open the door. Rattling the door knob, she shouted his name.

"Aang, dinner is ready! I've made your favorite soup!" Katara yelled, trying to get the door unlocked. "What are you doing in there, anyways?"

Aang sat in the room, the only light coming from a lamp that Momo was curiously examining. Aang was weaving together pieces of thread that he bought in the village marketplace, trying to make a beautiful decoration for Katara's hair. She would love it. He had braided together different colors of blue, and finished the decoration by folding it into a flower. He smiled at his work, looking up when Katara started yelling at the door, rattling the door knob. He hid the hair ornament in his side table drawer, and opened the door.

"Sorry! I was just finishing something up!" he said, shutting the door as soon as Momo left the room.

"Well, as long as you hadn't fallen asleep," Katara said, sitting back down.

Sokka and Toph had already finished their soup and were lying down on the floor, as full as could be. Toph yawned widely, and Sokka fell asleep. Katara slowly ate, taking her time. Aang just sat there, pushing the vegetables around in his soup.

"Are you okay? Is the soup too cold or too hot?" Katara asked, giving him a worried look.

"Huh? Oh, no, I'm fine, actually. I've been thinking about what I should do about the Fire Nation, that's all," Aang answered, looking up and plastering a smile on his face.