Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar or anything associated with it except my fanfiction

A late Christmas present for those who celebrate Christmas, a way-too-late Hanukkah present for those who celebrate Hanukkah, and a gift to everyone for the holiday season. Happy Holidays!

Oh, another gift for those who like music, especially classical music: search up indiesound, click on the link to the site, click on the magnifying glass, type in weaverofstories, click on the profile with that name and a violin as the profile image, and listen to the tracks I put up. Those are my playings of each of the movements of Bach's Violin Sonata 2 - on the viola. Not my best material, and the sound seems weird (the mic isn't great and it got muffled too) but I think it's okay. Please enjoy! (the music if you listen to it, and definitely the chapter below)

Oh, and by the way, I'm too lazy to post a poll. You all know how I kept Yue alive in this story. Do you want me to pair Sokka with Suki still, or would you like a Sokka/Yue relationship?

EDIT: WAIT! ONE MORE HOLIDAY GIFT! READ: chapters 4, 6, 19 again. I reworked the Kataang. I hope you all like it better.

"Okay, so let me get this straight. The king is your long lost friend, insane Bumi, which I literally dissed off when you asked me to go on a chute ride, who also subjected you to a horrifying ordeal of ridiculous if inventive traps and trials for nothing, and withheld his name from you the entire time? Not to mention he's literally waited out one hundred years just for this one moment of amusement?"

"Yep."

"And I thought General Fong was bad. Bumi is literally off his rocker!"

"Sokka, look on the bright side. At least we'll get something from this. My best friend-"

"-from a hundred years back is still alive and... don't know about well... but anyways is going to teach you, yeah, blah blah blah."

They were walking outside, the tests all completed. Despite the seeming eternity it took to satisfy Bumi, the sun had only just passed its zenith, something Aang couldn't quite believe - as did Sokka, although his long suffocation was somewhat alleviated by the sweet crunchiness of his cage. There were not terribly many people about - the ramifications of a war - but the city was not devoid of activity. Here and there, a merchant shouted to advertise their wares, some elderly people were taking a stroll like the two boys were, a few small groups of kids played ball games in the street, and there were some noises from inside homes of chores and obligations and little squabbles, but for the most part, Aang and Sokka were alone, brewing on their thoughts and sharing them out loud with each other.

"Well, hey." Aang smiled sadly. "It's good to have one friend from... before..."

Sokka softened somewhat. As one of the few Southern Watertribespeople of his age - let alone of the scarce male teenagers he would have associated with back in his former sexist days - he himself wasn't able to have terribly many friends to relate to. But none of this compared with Aang. As the Avatar, he must have had countless friends in before the War started, but now - he had almost nothing left. Bumi was like a gift for the poor child, Sokka realized with a start. Aang was still physically too young to be a teenager. How much suffering we've all come to bear, thought Sokka wryly. "You're right. I'm really glad you still have one friend. Not to mention from a practical viewpoint, he could be a boon of wisdom for things about the Fire Nation and the world. After all, there's only so much I'd know as an isolated Southern Watertribesman. And Zuko was probably sheltered in his palace for his entire life until he became Scar Boy. And even though the Northern Watertribe's been better off, they still aren't exactly forthcoming with the world. But with Bumi and Omashu - it's practically the geographical center of the world. That gives easy access to all the Four Nations, so Bumi would have frequent contact with foreign influence. That also speaks to his ability to rule - it must mean something to have ruled for decades - maybe even centuries! - over a cultural hub that's been in frequent contact with the Jerk Nation."

"Jerk Nation?"

"Y'know - Jerk Nation? The Jerk Nation that's started all this? And their jerkbending that burns everything to the ground?"

"Ah. That."

"No offense to Zuko. But then again, he's not one of them anymore."

"Neither were his crew really... or his Uncle Iroh..."

They both fell silent as they recalled the enthusiastic crew that had aided them all in their journey to end the war until their fateful, fiery end at a mild shoreline. Though their time was brief, their gratitude was not, for gone though they were the crew's traitorous, benevolent deeds would never be forgotten.

"Man... I kinda miss them..." whispered Aang, tears beginning to trickle down his cheeks.

"It's alright, man. It's war," Sokka said softly, trying to convince himself as much as he tried to convince Aang. "All the more reason to end this war as soon as possible, right?"

Aang's face suddenly became stricken. "W-what?" he said, flustered. Then he reshaped his countenance into one more somber. "Yeah. You're right..." said Aang. "Soon as possible. Focus on the mission. No distractions, no needless obstacles..."


Although it was evening, the sun still beamed down on the arid land. The air, though cooler than before, was still warm, and it was this benign temperature that brought a ponderous Aang outside to finally be able to properly discourse with Bumi

"Well, dear Avatar, I hope you didn't find my welcome too outrageous. An old gasbag like me sure can get carried away, heh-heh!" he cackled. He settled down. "Now for the real talk. What did you really think about the purple dress?"

Aang rolled his eyes. "It was interesting, to say the least. Nothing that would be too unexpected of you."

"Heh. That's not a lie. But did it look good?"

Aang shrugged. "What do you think?" He knew better than to give his true opinion. He had no idea how the times and the war had changed Bumi - sure, he seemed for the most part just as amazing as before, but Aang knew firsthand that a century and an ongoing war tended to engender transformations in people, no matter how slight. Besides, agreeing or not, Aang's commentary on Bumi's attire was likely to be disregarded entirely, as Bumi always decided that in the end, it was his own opinion on his own subjects that mattered in the end.

"It's a rather interesting color. Apparently it comes from snail juice, but I don't usually venture outside the city's walls, especially due to my current condition and circumstances I must tend to." Bumi fiddled with the fur of his purple cape, which he hadn't yet discarded despite having swapped the rest of his attire for a more typical Earth Kingdom green. "Sometimes I wonder if it's even right to take something that's rightfully the snail's, but hey, clothes are clothes, and color is color." Bumi shrugged. "Although when you finish saving the world, maybe I ought to venture out to see this purple process... I find that my curiosity is piqued now."

Save the world...

"That sounds like an interesting idea," said Aang with a forced smile. "Maybe I should join you when your little trip happens. But... purple clothing aside... can we talk about saving the world?"

"Huh?" Bumi leaned over to peer closely at the Avatar. "Oh. Well, then, I suppose we could. I would actually like to discuss certain things with you about your earthbending training -"

Forget gliding. What with how high Aang jumped into the air, he almost thought he'd never make contact with the ground again. "Yippee! Earthbending, finally! You don't know how much I've done to finally get here and to this place! What are we gonna start with? Are you gonna teach me the stances? What earthbending move will you show me first? I can't wait to be able to be able to set up camp without pitching up a tent and taking out the Fire Nation Army and -"

"Calm down, Aang. I see that all that time in an iceberg still hasn't quite dampened your energy or enthusiasm," Bumi said dryly. Aang stopped, and had the decency to look ashamed. "There, there, now, not much that can be done about it. Although I did try to make an earth sculpture to try and cheer you up until they told me you had disappeared." Bumi sighed, then leaned backwards. A loud crack startled Aang, and when the king returned to his usual hunched position, his face looked relieved.

"Ah, the wonders of old age. Even the best of benders and the most physically fit of whippersnappers can't escape the shackles of faulty bones and joints. And I am quite the old man."

Indeed, as Aang restudied the king, he began to observe marks of old age that he hadn't noticed before knowing it was Bumi that reigned as king. Bright though his eyes were, they were surrounded in a sea of wrinkles - some from stress, some from war, but legions upon legions marking the blemishes of old age. White hair stuck out from the king's sides, with the entire top of his head vacant of hair. Bags that only now presented themselves to Aang hung under Bumi's eyes, marking endless days of the weary wakefulness of war. And formidable though he was an earthbending opponent, Bumi's hunched back was a sobering sign of the times.

"So as I was saying, Aang, we must start with your earthbending training. And as such, for your first lesson -" Aang perked up, curious about his first lesson - "We will have a meeting next morning."

Aang's jaw dropped. He violently shook his head to stay more alert, slapped his cheeks to make sure he wasn't embroiled in some exotic dream, and smacked his ears to dislodge any earwax that could have accumulated. With all that done, he blurted out, "Sorry, I must've tuned out of the conversation. What did you say?"

"Ah, the airbender, ever so flighty in thought, if grounded in wisdom. Why, Aang, I was thinking we could have our first discussion in the ! Maybe before dinner, when our brains won't be bogged down with food." He beamed down at a nonplussed Aang. "Aren't you excited?"

Excited? Confused, maybe. Outraged, possibly. But excited for a lesson that wouldn't happen until the next day, when there was time that evening and that night to get Aang started on his earthbending training?

He must have voiced his misgivings, for Bumi smirked in wry amusement. "That, dear Aang, is why we won't start our lesson until tomorrow morning. There is a reason I chose tomorrow morning instead of today in the evening or nighttime. Besides, of course, the fact that a bony, wrinkly king does need quite a bit more rest than a young whippersnapper like you Mr. -" Bumi cocked his head to the side. "Pippinpaddleopsicopolis." Aang blushed and grinned embarrassedly. Bumi's mind was apart from his ailing body in that it was still in pristine condition - eccentric and sharp as always. Aang had used the name in honor of old times - but now, at least it seemed as though they could reminisce about their past...

When it was all over.

"I'm glad to see that you still remember those names we gave to passersby. Ah, good old Bonzu." Bumi sighed satisfactorily. "He never did forgive me - or you, for that matter - for placing a boar-q-pine in his chair when he complained about body aches and pains. At the time, I thought it would be a brilliant way to subtly suggest that maybe acupuncture was the answer - and also loosen up old Bonzu a bit - but unfortunately -" Bumi shrugged. "- we found out the hard way that even if great minds think alike, not everyone is privy to such a privilege." Aang snorted. When Bumi had first suggested the idea, Aang wasn't too sure if Bumi was joking or not, but the idea, which promised of adventure and mischief and a sort of vindication against the grumpy old letdown Aang detested, seemed to be promising. However, it took them a while to figure out how exactly to find a baby boar-q-pine, and then to somehow extricate it from under the mother's nose. All that work was worth it, however, when they finally set up the baby animal in the old man's home. Less gratifying was the retribution the boys faced: as far as Aang was concerned, it was probably the only time Gyatso's patience with Aang wore thin, and Aang had no idea how bad Bumi had it - or of later times when Bumi bore the brunt of the two boy's foolish antics.

"I still kind of feel bad," admitted Aang. "No matter how crabby Bonzu was, I don't think anyone really deserves to have hundreds of boar-q-pine needles embedded in themselves.

Bumi waved a dismissive hand. "Eh. The deed's done, it's either laugh at it or cringe from it. Besides, I found it funny when everyone in the city heard his yelling. It sounded like some sort of wolf! Heh. The good old days." Bumi smiled as his eyes glazed over from nostalgia, and Aang felt a pang in his stomach when he finally saw this final deterioration in Bumi. He didn't think Bumi's live-in-the-moment craziness would ever subside, but now... war had clearly taken a toll on the externally unruffled king, as did old age, for now Bumi had nowhere to turn but to the past. Even his youthful friend, the Avatar returned after a century, was merely a continuation of and from a time of peace.

Bumi's eyes cleared, and they twinkled with mischief. "Eh, Avatar, now about the good old days... what say you to a chute delivery ride? It'll be just like old times, even with my crown and extra regal apparel." Bumi flicked at his cape. "It's not the best - it's all so heavy and suffocating - but my wardrobe has expanded considerably since as king I get access to all these resources. Of course, almost all of it is devoted to the city and its affairs, but on the other hand, a king's got to have his entertainment." Bumi cackled. "Like that purple dress." He turned towards Aang expectantly, a mischievous grin illuminating his face. "So, what say you?"

Aang wanted to say yes. He dearly wanted to grin and nod and get carried away. But his past weighed too heavily on his mind. Images flashed through his mind... of the old times of fun and where they lead to... of the new times and the responsibility placed on Aang's shoulder... and last but not least, a mark of retribution against Aang, a worn-down, tattered soul clinging on to echoes of the past.

And it was all his fault.

Fighting to keep his composure, he stated, "Thank you for the offer, Bumi... I really appreciate it. But... I... I..." he faltered, and then recomposed himself. "Just give me some time to mull it over. I'm sorry." And he swept past the king, not wanting to see the hurt and confusion and curiosity on Bumi's face.

Just another affliction he caused.


Aang flopped onto bed and stared at the ceiling.

He felt like he was suffocating. Plain and simple. The entire chamber could collapse, and the crushing rubble still would not even begin to rival the debilitating guilt on his chest. He concentrated on his breathing, indifferently inhaling, indifferently exhaling, trying to focus on his breathing and not on the war that he caused, the consequences he wrought, and the hurt that he inflicted. A motherless Katara. An ostracized Zuko. An overwhelmed Sokka. A lonely Bumi. And the whole world on the brink of destruction.

Everything. His fault.

It hurt too much to think about his failures and his vices, so he closed his eyes, shut out the world, and concentrated on his breathing. In and out. The monks told him that breathing, although necessary to life, could also become an island of isolation and solitude and peace and detachment. Something Aang desperately needed at the moment, but couldn't attain. If nothing else, just the very act of carrying out an Air Nomad teaching served a bitter reminder of their near extinction from the earth, and Aang's complicity in the abominable event.

Always, I do something I want to do, and this kind of thing happens.Breathe in. Breathe out. Stop it! Don't think about them. Don't think about anything. Just breathe. Breathe...

"Alright, Aang, what's eating you right now?"

Startled, Aang yelped and shot off the bed, hand outstretched for the wooden handle of his glider-staff, ready to intimidate or stave off whatever intruder had encroached on his privacy - and found himself face to face with an equally startled Sokka, who hastily threw up his arms in appeasement.

Aang lowered the staff. "Sorry. Didn't realize it was you."

Sokka squinted at Aang. "Bad day?"

"Sort of."

"Feeling unwe-" Sokka's gaze of concern turned into a deliberate roll of exasperation. He flopped onto his own bed, sighing from annoyance and newfound comfort "Great. I had a whole chain of questions to ask you, and you answered 'yes' to the first one. Honestly, can you not deprive a man of his whims, Aang?" Sokka rolled and bent his head to try to gauge Aang, who remained as he was. "Aang?" Sokka asked softly.

Aang didn't respond. The brief moment of adrenaline having come to pass, he leaned slightly backward and let gravity and momentum carry his body back to his mattress.

"So... what exactly was it that made your day suck?" Sokka's voice pierced through the din once again, and Aang grimaced. "Well? What was it? You know, maybe getting it out of your chest will help... not everything has to be kept secretive, you know..."

"You were right!" Aang suddenly burst out. Sokka was right. His guilt and regret poured out like a torrent of water having burst through a dam. "You were right!" Aang cried out again, and he flipped himself around, grabbed his pillow, and buried his head under it. He tried to drown out all sensations - the darkness of their chamber, the noise of their breathing, even the feeling of the bed sheets pressing against his body. He wished he didn't exist, that the world didn't exist, that he didn't have any responsibility, that he wasn't responsible for this foreign world he now was forced to fix far too late. He wanted out.

He felt a presence looming over him, and he heard a muted, "Aang. I have no idea what you're talking about. What was I right about?"

Aang morosely lifted up the pillow to unmuffle himself, said, "About everything," and then covered himself back up again, wishing Sokka would leave him alone.

He didn't. "What do you mean by everything?" Sokka asked bemusedly. "I wouldn't say I'm right about everything. Not only that, but "everything" doesn't exactly clarify what you're trying to say. What's the matter?"

Aang flipped himself around, pillow and all, to properly talk with Sokka. He couldn't help noticing a look of concern on Sokka's face, something he found out of place. "You told me that time when I asked you to a chute slide ride -"

"You didn't. I just kinda figured it out from what you were saying, but I think I know what you're talking about."

"- and you told me I kept shirking off duty and responsibility and landed the world in this mess?"

Sokka froze, and put his hands behind his back. "To be honest..." he said evasively. "I don't remember that all too clearly. I do remember being tired and angry and not wanting to go on that ride - and maybe a few insults at you and Bumi, which, actually I should apologize for - but, beyond that, I don't really remember the specifics of what I said," Sokka said.

"But you were right, Sokka. I ran away from the Air Nomads. They got massacred. I decided to travel all over the place to try out some fun stuff like riding the Unagi. Look what happened to us."

"Hey, meeting those Kyoshi Warriors was enlightening! At least for me. It was interesting seeing women able to fend for themselves and others."

"Still, we landed in a tricky spot yet again thanks to me. And then countless other times, and now, chute sliding. We almost got in huge trouble, and it was only because Bumi's alive and king that we escaped by the skin of our teeth." Aang closed his eyes. "Every time, I keep evading what I'm supposed to do. Every time, we have to face the horrible consequences." Aang looked bitterly at Sokka. "You were right. I can't do this."

Sokka regarded Aang for what felt like decades. A decade in which Aang slowly pulled himself out of his bed and slowly looked up at the teenager who he was ward of. They stood silently, a standoff of no origin or rationale except that of thinking. Sokka broke the silence, asking, "And... what happened today that's related to this?"

Aang's shoulders drooped. HIs face burned. He didn't want to say it out loud. But Sokka wasn't letting him go so easily. "Come on, Aang, it can't be that hard to say. Didn't you say something happened today?"

"Yes..."

"So what is it?"

Aang sighed. "Bumi asked me to go chute sliding."

Sokka nodded slowly. Then he clapped Aang on the shoulder. "So... did you say yes?"

Aang looked aghast. "Spirits, no! You've seen what happens every time I do something like this, right?" He hugged himself. "I don't want that kind of thing to happen again."

Sokka nodded slowly. Then he said, "You know, Aang, I've been thinking about this... and... I think I've realized... maybe this fun... isn't so bad."

Aang stared blankly. "But the consequences -"

"Yes Aang, I'm aware there are consequences of not tending to duties and not living up to responsibilities, but on the other hand, having something else to alleviate that burden... is nice. You see how upbeat you've been before all of this Bumi stuff came in?" Aang nodded. "I mean, compared to now. You didn't really focus all of the time on your Avatar stuff - and you shouldn't. It's not healthy to just worry and work all the time. Besides, even though it's great to make the world happy again, you can't forget about yourself. Sometimes... you know Aang, you've done work. Let's admit it. You learned waterbending in record time - a few weeks! I don't know where you pulled that from, -"

Katara. For her. It was always for her. He suddenly felt even more guilt at neglecting his responsibilities, if only so that he could make a better place for the Watertribe Girl... he was flooded with yet another wave of guilt, and resolved, with his still young and immature mind, to do better, if not perfect, and to stop his craziness for good.

Or perhaps not entirely, as Sokka was pointing out. "-but the thing is, you technically bought yourself several years of bending time. Now, obviously we're under a huge time constraint, and you've had to take a shortcut or two in order to achieve mastery so quickly - hence those waterbending scrolls you haven't practiced since the whole Bumi incident. Don't think too badly of it, though. I'm just saying - maybe you do deserve a break. And besides, he's your best friend."

"But -" Aang protested weakly, albeit less mournful and melancholy than before. "It's still not right to forgo the world for a chute slide ride."

"It's also not right to refuse the request of a king though, is it?" countered Sokka. "Especially of such a huge city. Especially of a super close, long-standing friend who - let's be real - might not have too much time left in the world. So, I say, just go for it."

Aang broke into smile and tackled Sokka into a fierce hug. "Thank you," Aang said.

Sokka awkwardly patted Aang's back. "Alright, alright. Now go off and enjoy your chaos."


The cabbage merchant hummed as he wheeled his cart of cabbages through the street.

Business had been good. After successfully managing to wheedle his way past the guards with his trove of treasure, he had managed to capture the attention of a few curious pedestrians and had managed to spread the love and joy of the simple, round, leafy produce he had devoted his life to. Despite the cruel guards outside who had demolish his first crop of cabbages, he thought happily, the situation didn't turn out as bad as it could have.

No sooner than he finished this thought, however, did he suddenly hear the high pitched shout of a young child and the low growl of an elderly man piercing the quiet emptiness of the street. Making the deduction that there was going much violent and energetic activity arriving at his location soon, he hastily started pushing his cart to save his cabbages from the carnage that could visit them.

He hurriedly scurried to a large square, careful not to let any of his precious cabbages drop, and then breathed a huge sigh of relief when he parked his cart of cabbages next to a wall. Finally! His cabbages were safe. He took the opportunity to nuzzle a cabbage affectionately as the noises got louder and louder. At least now, there was room for whatever was happening to spread out and avoid destroying his precious ware.

Except... was the noise coming from above?

He looked up, and shrieked as he saw a large blocky object descend from the skies, and leapt away from his cart as it shattered into splinters of wood and fragments of cabbage. Blinking through the torrent of shards raining down on him, he saw a brief flash of yellow, orange, purple, and green as a pillar suddenly shot out of the ground to send the Omashu delivery cart back up into the air again, destroying what little was left of his beautiful cart of cabbages.

And all he could think to do, beyond considering pressing charges in a place where he wasn't welcome in the first place, was to wail, "MY CABBAGES!" as he beheld the wreckage of his life's love.


Aang was all grins when he returned from his little ride with Bumi. Sokka had forgotten how talkative and energetic and happy airbenders - especially young ones whose voices hadn't cracked yet - were after even a few seconds of amusement and fun. If Sokka wasn't cognizant of his approval in the matter, he would not have stood for the chatter storm that Aang was bending. But as it was, he quietly endured the airbender's excited recounting of the wilder-than-it-should-have-been slide ride.

"- and then we landed on some poor old man's wooden cart with some sort of green vegetables in it - I kinda feel bad because he looked much nicer and younger than Bonzu - but then I asked Bumi and he said so long as it wasn't lettuce (it tasted like cabbage) then he didn't care, and then we were sent off in the air, and then we knocked over a bunch of carts, and then we smashed into another cart at the bottom of the next slide, and then we slid down a bunch of rooftops and ended up all over the place and still somehow managed to land at the ending of the slide we started at. Bumi really was a mad genius!"

"Alright. That seems like a lot of fun," Sokka said. In reality, he followed roughly half of what Aang said, and of that only a quarter of which he really understood, as he was busy doing his daily maintenance of his club and boomerang that he had neglected the day before when they were just wandering the streets of Omashu with no place to stay and no place to go. He tried his best not to let any inflection pass into his voice, but evidently failed, as now Aang was the one looking over at him in concern.

"Is everything okay?"

Sokka threw his arms up, careful not to dislodge his whetting wheel or accidentally toss his club. It wasn't Boomerang. It wouldn't come back like Boomerang. "Why wouldn't everything be okay? We got a deal with your old friend to do earthbending, you got to reunite with your old friend and go chute sliding, and everything's just going great!" Sokka forced a smile on his face that he knew looked more like a grimace.

Luckily for Sokka, Aang was astute enough to realize the bother. "Are you... jealous?" Aang asked.

The deafening silence gave Aang all the answer he needed.

"Awe, come on, Sokka! It's not like that! You two are entirely different!"

"Oh? And how so?" Sokka didn't deny it. He was bitter that his brief friendship was getting frayed by the addition of Bumi. He'd had a sort of falling out with Aang, and in return Aang had started gravitating back to Bumi. Not that it wouldn't have happened, but it made the defection all the more painful. It didn't help that Aang was right; they were different. Bumi was Aang's friend for forever, Sokka was just someone Aang had picked up involuntarily a scant few months ago. But still, Sokka desperately hoped Aang would be able to appease his misgivings, and laid his dissent bare for Aang to dissect.

"Well... look at it this way... Bumi's been my friend since... well... forever, and that isn't as exaggerated as most 'forever' claims - we've known each other for well over a century! We're thicker than mud, and we've always been friends through thick and thin, no matter what. You however..." Aang paused and took a look at Sokka's bemused face. "Well... I've known you for a few short months. BUT -" he added, jabbing a finger into Sokka's chest. "We've always stuck together, for better or worse, and it's not Bumi that's accompanying me on my jaunt to stop Firelord Ozai. It wasn't Bumi that's traveled with me to the North Pole. It wasn't Bumi that fought off Fire Soldiers with me. It wasn't Bumi that's stuck with me throughout the madness of the Earth Kingdom. It was you. So Bumi might be my friend for forever, but you're the friend that's really stuck with me for every single second no matter the danger or the odds or whatever you find annoying about me. Okay?"

Sokka cupped his chin and stroked at what Aang could only assume was an imaginary beard. "Well... if you put it that way... it doesn't sound so bad," the older boy admitted with a self-satisfied grin.

"That's the spirit!" Aang cheered. "Oh, and just so I don't forget about it... about the chute slide ride and riding it with friends..."

"No."

"Really?" Aang asked, a devious grin on his face. "Don't you think you need some fun too, Sokka? All you do is work and train and babysit me. Why not loosen up?"

Sokka opened his mouth for a witty retort, but he drew a blank and could only stand there with his mouth opening and closing until Aang grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him off.

Later, as he sat, grabbing onto the sides, screaming for his life while Aang laughed and used airbending to speed their ride up, he knew that even if his wisdom was sound and that sometimes he should take them as well, that in the future he would do good to word his thoughts more carefully. But later, when he flopped onto his bed, completely spent, all he thought about was how he wouldn't have to worry about anything but waiting for Aang to complete his earthbending training.


"Wake up!"

This time, there was no delay between the first wakeup call and the first brutal jab of the spear to the side accompanying the call. Aang excitedly got up, figuring this was going to be the beginning of his earthbending training. That was, until he saw Sokka blearily rubbing his eyes and another guard standing over him.

"We have orders to take you out of the city. Supplies and money have already been supplied to you. Take the southernmost sewer exit out of the city - we'll point you the way. We have to move swiftly -"

"Woah, woah, woah," said Sokka, not fully awake and aware. "What's going on? Where are you taking us? Why are you doing this? Aang's supposed to start his earthbending training now, so what changed? Did Bumi say something? Has a new king replaced him? Has -"

"The first thing you said. Bumi's orders," clipped the guard as Aang and Sokka were jostled along.

"But... why?" Aang cried, stunned by this betrayal. "What have we done? Why are we being treated like this? Is it really Bumi that gave the orders?"

"Yes," the soldier said impatiently. "Now if you'll excuse us, we really must get you going -"

"No." Aang said, crossing his arms. He and Sokka were in no position to fight, but Aang was still determined to wring out every bit of information he could get his hands on to make sense of the upside down universe he had woken up into. "We're staying. I don't trust what you guys are saying, and I'm not going to listen to you guys try to force a coup -"

Aang was suddenly rapped sharply on the head, and he had to blink stars out of his eyes for several seconds before realizing the soldier was holding him by the neck. Before Aang could move, the soldier got right up to Aang's face and hissed,

"In normal circumstances, I wouldn't blame you, Avatar. And since you two were sleeping, you'd have no idea about what's going on. But we've gotta evacuate you two out now, or you're never going to escape this city!" Before Aang and Sokka could voice another round of objections, the soldier hissed, "You don't understand. The Fire Nation's attacking!"


Aang had never experienced a mood swing as sudden as the one he felt at that moment. Not when Gyatso snapped him out of his Avatar burden funks. Not when he eavesdropped on the discussion to separate Aang from Gyatso. Not when he found out he was the Avatar and had to cope with the threat of a looming war. Not even when he received the crushing news of his people's demise and of the ongoing war which he wasn't there to stop from happening.

Utter confusion morphed into terror and anger as he and Sokka were shunted along like two especially unwieldy delivery carts to the southern part of Omashu. They were roughly jostled to a stop, and a sewer hole was opened. Sokka pursed his lips at the rancid sight, not forgetting the repugnant memories of his last venture through the city's refuse, but at the same time thankful that the trip wouldn't be against the flow of the dark sludge. In the meantime, Aang stared numbly at the sewer, having gone into shock on the way to the maintenance hole. Far off in the distance, shouts and explosions and screams could be heard, all of which Aang deduced to be soldiers fighting. He prayed that Omashu would be able to hold out as it had for the last century, but deep down in his heart, he had the sickening feeling that the rebounding aggression of the Fire Nation due to his revival would topple the powerful city. He ruefully wished that bad luck and the Fire Nation wouldn't pursue him all over the world, then remembered that if he didn't complete his tasks within less than half a year, he wouldn't even be making wishes anymore. And so when the soldiers poked them forward, Aang went without complaint. Sokka, seeing this, tried to stop him. "Aang, don't! What about B-"

Aang glared his companion into silence, and then nodded to the soldiers. "Thank you for your help. We'll be off now." The soldiers nodded and retreated into the darkness. Aang swiftly grabbed Sokka and dropped him into the sewage, much to the latter's chagrin. A muffled yelp and squelch satisfied Aang, and, looking to the shadows, he himself vaulted into the sewage line, ignoring the smell that now permeated the air. He motioned to Sokka to follow him, and then walked away from the hole. He saw to his satisfaction that the lid to the hole was closed, and that he could hear the soldier's footsteps rapidly receding, likely to help the fight.

When they had fully disappeared, Sokka spoke up. "Really, Aang? What was that for?"

"You're welcome," Aang deadpanned. "I just needed them to go away as quickly as possible."

"Huh? What would you need to do that for - ah." Understanding hit Sokka. He leaned back the direction they came and extended an ear. "Think they've gone?"

In answer, Aang sloshed his way back to the sewer hole, airbent it off, and then quickly leapt out of the sewer and helped Sokka up as well. He silently and swiftly airbent the disgusting residue off of themselves, and then ran his way into a side street. Sokka followed along as quickly as he could, knowing that time was of the essence.

"So, Aang, any idea where the king is?"

Aang shrugged. "Probably on the front wall. Those guards are gonna be mad at us, but hopefully we'll evade them." He set his face straight ahead, determined look on his face. "No matter what, I'm going to learn earthbending. And I refuse to leave my last friend behind."


After dashing through empty streets and alleyways, getting chased by some animals, and playing hide-and-evade with soldiers that seemed to unexpectedly pop into view, Aang and Sokka finally made it to the forefront of the battle, where things seemed... off.

There was barely any sound on the walls, and little outside of it as well. Aang was confused as to the lack of activity. He remembered all too clearly the chaos and explosions and noises from his battle at the Northern Air Temple, and the sound of bursts of flame and rumbling of rock. So what was happening up there?

Suddenly, Bumi came walking down the stairs, calm and relaxed look on his face. All of which faded away at the sight of Sokka and Aang. "Hello, Aang. Hello, Sokka. I thought I ordered the guards to escort you out of the city. Omashu is in a tight spot right now, and it wouldn't be wise for the Avatar to remain."

"Bumi..." Aang said. "What happened with the fighting? Everything seems to be so quiet."

Bumi softly snort-cackled. "Why Aang, I told the troops all to do nothing."

Sokka was the first to recover. "What? The Fire Nation's up on your doorsteps, ready to take the city over, and you're going to do nothing about it?" he shrieked. Aang had to restrain Sokka from charging forward - whether to confront Bumi or the Fire Nation, he did not know, but neither option seemed sensible at the moment.

Bumi peered down wide-eyed at the red-faced Sokka. "Why, yes, I believe that's what I just said. I'm giving the city over without a fight."

"But... why?" Aang almost pleaded. "Omashu is such an important city. It's literally the economical lifeblood of the Earth Kingdom - you said that yourself, word for word! If it falls, the only place that will be free of the Fire Nation will be Ba Sing Se. And why aren't you fighting back? No matter the odds, you're Bumi, the mad genius. You'll figure something out! Right?" Aang suddenly caught a sad smile creeping onto Bumi's lips, an enigmatic smile Aang could neither make heads nor tails out of.

"Heh... but you're forgetting one thing. I have figured something out already. Trust me, Avatar. I know what I'm doing, even if half of my guards think I'm crazy." Aang shot Bumi a withering look. "Okay, all of them. But that's not the point! Once again, you underestimate the power of an old man, Pippin! It's pretty clear that you still haven't quite grasped at the lessons I was trying to teach you with my challenges!" Aang shifted uncomfortably as he realized Bumi was right: just as he had underestimated Bumi's combat prowess during the final trial, so too had he readily dismissed Bumi's intellect. But be as that might, he still did not wholly agree with the king's course of action, which the king duly noted.

"Aang... have you ever been taught the types of jing?"

Aang snapped back to attention. "Are you kidding me?" He snapped. Of all the things to do, and the surrender of Omashu after a hundred years, and Bumi decides to ask him a rhetorical question? "There's positive jing when you act, and negative jing when you react!" he mocked, ostentatiously counting the two types of jing on his left hand to show his exasperation at the pointless question.

But Bumi gave a knowing smirk. When he was sure Aang had finished his tirade, Bumi retorted "... And neutral jing, where you do nothing!" And he gave a crooked grin back at the Avatar, who stared aghast at the now three fingers he held up in the air.

"There's three types of jing?"

Bumi stopped smiling and scrunched his head. "Well, technically, there's eighty-five, but -" he added, catching onto Aang's overwhelmed expression at this new information. "For the sake of preserving your sanity so that at least one of us possesses popular sensibility, let's just focus on the third one. Neutral jing is the key to earthbending. It involves listening and waiting for the right moment to strike. I know there are many exemplars of earthbenders ignoring this fundamental of earthbending, but usually those are the bad ones, or they're just having a little bit of fun with you. But do you remember how I kept blocking your paths of escape during our duel?" Bumi asked. He didn't wait for Aang's nod to continue. "Whoops! Forgot we're almost out of time! That was me waiting to see what you were going to do, and then acting accordingly. In fact, you'll notice how I intended to give you my first lesson this morning, or rather, now I suppose. Heh, heh! But the point being, was that I wanted to emphasize the importance of neutral jing. Yes, you are on a mission. Yes, you don't have much time. But if you aren't going to use the right time to strike when you are capable of knowing when that time is, well then... it's worse than never striking at all." Bumi turned a solemn eye down onto Aang. "And although I would have dearly loved to teach you all the pranks and tricks of earthbending, I fear it is not to be. Great though I am an earthbender, these joints are very creaky. I do not know how I would fare in your little trip to visit the Firelord for some tea. On the other hand, this will be your key to earthbending. Practice your neutral jing. Lay in wait. Your teacher will have to be a master at neutral jing. You will be able to tell immediately who that is. And don't worry about me. I still got a few tricks up my sleeve." Bumi cackled, and then fully covered himself up to look the part of a harmless old crone. "Well, off I go to offer myself up. See you around!" He cackled as the guards marched him off to the front gates, which were now slowly grinding to an open.

"But... Bumi..." Aang said, holding out a futile hand. He didn't want to leave his friend behind. He'd already had too many goodbyes. He didn't need another one.

But Bumi turned around. "Oh, and by the way, please do win against the Firelord. I'd like to think the lettuce hat I made will have someone to wear it."

And leaving Aang with this typical, endearing thought, Bumi shrank into the distance as the Fire Nation emblem could be seen adorning the army on the ground. Aang reluctantly grabbed Sokka's arm and slipped into the shadows. Then he remembered something.

"Bumi, one last thing." The king turned around. "How did you take away my bending powers? During the trials?"

When Aang saw the enigmatic smile, and the succeeding receding of the king into the distance, he knew he wasn't going to get an answer from his friend. He shrugged. Some things would always remain a mystery, he supposed.


They finally found Appa.

After slogging their way through the sewers once more, they were immediately greeted by the flying bison, who took one sniff of the boys, retched, and lumbered off to recover. Sokka breathed a sigh of relief at not having to endure another licking episode again.

After cleaning themselves up, they gathered their new supplies - along with their old - and clambered up to their normal positions - Aang at the top of Appa's head, Sokka in the cradle of a bison saddle. Momo skittered up to the bison, staying clear of the two boys, not wanting to end up like Appa.

Aang rested his head on Appa's. "Good to be back, boy," he murmured. Appa rumbled in response.

"Hey! Are we going to go, or what?"

Aang looked back down on a slightly irked Sokka. He was lying, spreadeagled, facing the sky, packs dangling by his feet. The air was a muted red as the sun finally peeked its head above the ground. Aang ignored the question he was asked, instead asking his own: "Sokka... how do we get balance?"

"Huh?" Sokka eyed Aang skeptically. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... look at all of these shenanigans. Excursions. Duties. Responsibilities. How are we supposed to handle them all? It seems like no matter what, bad things always keep happening."

Sokka returned to looking at the sky, now much brighter. "I mean... I don't know. I don't know if anyone knows, actually. But no matter what," he said, looking over at Aang, the light changing to a warm orange and finally, a bright yellow. "Just be yourself. There's nothing wrong with a good personality, and I think - I think it would be good for the world to have a cheery counterpoint to what it's had to deal with for the past hundred years or so." Aang nodded, and turned around.

Suddenly, Sokka blurted out, "Besides, if spending months with a moody Fire Nation Prince and a realistic watertribe teen hasn't sobered you up by two months ago, Aang, nothing else is really going to do that for you."

Aang looked back, and saw Sokka grinning at him. He returned the favor, and it was with a burst of vigor and enthusiasm when he whipped the reins on Appa's horns and shouted out a boisterous "Yip yip!"

And they soared into the sky, ready to confront whatever was to come.

But then Aang realized one thing that he had forgot to do, something very very important.

"By the way, Sokka... the correct term is 'pessimistic'."

"Realistic."

"Pessimistic."

"Realistic."

"Pessimistic."

"Same difference."

And Aang was happily resigned to this neverending volley of conflict, until he suddenly had an idea. He snidely replied to Sokka, "Oh yeah? So then you do admit that pessimistic is correct!"

Sokka opened his mouth to respond, grew quickly flustered when he realized he didn't have a comeback prepared, and simply growled a "Listen here, you little..." half-standing up to go up to Aang and give him a piece of his mind. Then he mistakenly looked down and yelped at seeing the ground so tiny, and decided that his previous position on the saddle was perfectly fine for the time being. And so he reassumed his spread-eagled stance, muttering invective under his breath.

But when Aang looked back, he saw that Sokka, despite his rude bark, was peacefully resting, eyes closed, mouth smiling. And Aang smiled, and turned around, and Appa flew them all into the distance.

Some things never change.

And some things never should change.

Please Review! Please, any constructive criticism would be amazing. Also, let me know about your opinions on other things. And above all, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!