Hayden was disappointed that Zoe didn't trust him not to kill her. He was a people person, he was good at getting along with everyone, except Zoe it seemed. She always answered with the least amount of words possible and never went out of her way to start a conversation, unless she was artfully extracting information from him. They had been travelling south-east for three days now, heading back to the island where Zoe bought her map and where Zeb and Alice lived, before heading on to the Academy; Hayden had told Zeb he would come by before heading south.

They were approaching the island when Zoe spoke up for the first time that day, her voice muffled from her mask and the wind, but Hayden could hear her. "I'll wait in the forest while you go and visit your friends," she said. Hayden had learnt that Zoe was not a people person, seeming much more comfortable around the wounded dragons they had come across on their trip and released from hunters. The dragons seemed to be equally drawn to her too, immediately calming down when she spoke to them or they felt her stroke them.

"No way!" Hayden called over to her. "Zeb will want to meet the person who has caused me so much misery the last 12 months," he laughed before noticing Zoe's posture shrink slightly as though she was feeling guilty, but he didn't say anything.

-o0O0o-

They landed at the edge of the village near Hayden's friend's house. Zeb and Alice's house was in the outermost row, the back of the house about 30 meters from the cliffs edge. It was a simple design, made from wood, a metal roof and the foundations and bottom half meter of the wall was made from stone.

Hayden dismounted, removing his helmet in the process. Zoe was more reluctant to move.

"Come on," Hayden called. Zoe sighed, removing her helmet and sliding off Uri, clearly hesitant. She patted Uri, Sharpshot nuzzling her cheek before jumping from her shoulder and taking Zoe's place on Uri's saddle. Zoe walked over to Hayden, the pair walking up to the front door and Hayden knocking on the wall since the door was open to encourage the cool breeze through the house. "It's me!" He called.

"Hayden! I thought you decided to just bypass the island and head straight south," a man, slightly older than Hayden said, coming to the door. He looked to be in his early to mid- twenties with sandy hair and blue eyes. He was tall, taller than Hayden, very muscular and clean shaven. He had the biggest, most genuine smile on his face that radiated youth and pure excitement.

"I'd never do that," Hayden laughed, 'man-hugging' is best friend. At that moment, a young woman who Zoe assumed was Alice appeared in the hallway behind Zeb. She was stunning: long black hair, blue eyes and a kind face.

"Let them in," she told her husband.

"Right, sorry. Come on in," Zeb said, stepping to the side and letting Hayden through, Zoe staying in place.

"Come on," Hayden said quietly to her. "It's ok," he felt like he was trying to soothe a wounded dragon. "This is Zoe," he said, addressing Zeb and Alice who both responded in welcome. "Zeb and Alice are the nicest people you'll meet." He told her. He saw her take a deep breath before stepping forward and managing a small smile and a quiet greeting. As the four walked through the house, Hayden said to Zoe, but loud enough so the others could hear: "so I was lying when I said Zeb and Alice are the nicest people, Alice certainly is, but Zeb is a dick." Zoe just rolled her eyes and chuckled quietly.

"Hey!" Zeb turned and yelled. "For that you have to light the fire out the back. You chose a good day to come by, we've set up a spit. Come on." The two males went out the back, leaving Zoe with Alice, the former becoming visibly nervous.

"It's nice to meet you," Alice said in a soothing voice that immediately calmed Zoe down.

"I'm sorry I'm so-" Zoe struggled to find the words to finish her sentence.

"It's ok, I get it. Can I get you anything? A drink or something to eat?"

"I'm alright, thank you though."

"Come, sit. Let's get to know each other while those idiots play with fire."

Zoe laughed, agreeing and sitting down with Alice, unable to say no to her.

"I'm sure Hayden has grilled you enough with questions already, some things you'd probably rather not answer, am I right?"

"Yeah... I guess."

"Ok, so why don't you tell me something about yourself that you would like to share?"

"Um...ok." Zoe thought for a moment. "I'm not bad with a sword?"

"Really? Zeb's an instructor, you guys should spar later."

"What do you do?" Zoe asked, genuinely interested.

"I train kids in water bending before they head to the Academy." Alice sounded slightly bitter when she mentioned the Academy, Zoe immediately picking up on it.

"You don't like the Academy?" She asked.

"Is it that obvious?" Alice laughed. "But to answer your question, no I don't. Neither does Zeb, but he puts up with them. Me on the other hand, basically told them to go screw themselves." She laughed bitterly. Zoe was slightly taken aback. She didn't expect someone who seemed so kind to have such hateful emotions towards something.

"How come?" Zoe asked "if you don't mind me asking?" There was a moment of silence before Alice answered.

"They're the reason I don't have a dragon anymore. They told me and the team I was in, to go scout an area for hunter presence. I told them that we already knew they were there and it was too dangerous, half of the team had only just graduated. I was the most senior rider and I was only 19. They didn't care, they told us to go anyway. The hunters took my Nala from me, she saved my life and everyone else and their dragons." Zoe was disgusted by the story, getting up and sitting next to Alice and just holding her whilst she sobbed quietly.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked," she whispered.

"It's- it's ok." After a few minutes of sitting in silence, Alice spoke again. "The Academy's leaders have very warped logic. They don't like anyone who could become more powerful than them, sending them away instead of making them allies."

"I don't understand..."

"No one does. Just promise you'll be careful and won't hang around if they turn on you. It's highly likely they will considering you ride a white fury."

"I promise," Zoe whispered.

-o0O0o-

With much persuasion from Hayden, Zoe and Hayden had decided to stay the night with Alice and Zeb. Hayden had just left for the market to top up on supplies for him and Zoe for their 5 day trip to the Academy. They were going to stop two days from the Academy at Hayden's house that he had built with Max's help on an uninhabited island, but they needed the supplies to get them the whole way, not wanting to have to stop in another village.

Zeb was in the kitchen, preparing the rest of the meal, the meat already cooking on the spit. Alice had taken Zoe to a spare room and showed her the bathroom so she could shower and change before Hayden got back who would no doubt want to clean himself up as well.

"Thanks, Alice," Zoe said as she closed the door to the bathroom.

"You're welcome."

Zoe had removed her armour in the spare room so she only had to remove her clothes before stepping into the shower. It was exactly like the ones in the City of Airbenders, sending a wave of nostalgia over her. She enjoyed the shower, she hadn't had one since leaving the city, having to bathe in lakes and rivers the past month. After she showered and changed into fresh clothes, she went back to her room for the night to sort out her bags and comb her hair. She was sitting on the bed, her back to the mirror and combing her hair when Alice came in.

"I'm making some punch, do you have a preference to what-" Alice stopped mid sentence, frowning at something in the mirror.

"What is it?" Zoe asked, turning to look where Alice was looking, exposing the back of her right ear in the process since she had her hair pulled to left to comb it, instead of her usual right to conceal her tattoos.

"You have a tattoo." Alice said, astonished as she stepped further into the room.

"What? No, I-" her excuse died in her throat. She couldn't lie to Alice who had come in and closed the door behind her. She sat on the bed next to Zoe, neither saying anything.

"Can I see?" Alice asked after a pause, Zoe nodding numbly, not even aware to what she was agreeing to, she was so caught up in her own panic. How had she hidden her tattoos from Hayden for days, but couldn't hide them from Alice for more than a few hours?

Alice gently turned Zoe's head, seeing the panic in her eyes, she stopped. "I'm not going to hurt you," she said quietly. "Do you trust me?"

Zoe nodded, there was something about Alice that just made her feel comfortable. "Thank you," Alice whispered. With that, Zoe jerked out of her daze and held her ear down so Alice could see, trying to cover the air bending mark, hoping Alice had only seen the one.

"A snowflake?" She breathed. "That's the symbol for the gift of winter. You've mastered the gift of winter?" She asked, receiving a silent nod from Zoe. "That's incredible. I mean it makes sense, what could hide a white dragon better than a snow storm," she laughed. "Have you told Hayden?"

"Not yet," Zoe responded quietly with a hint of guilt.

"And what's the second one?" Alice asked. "You did a poor job of hiding it if that was your intention," she joked, "I can see the edge of the circle," she explained.

Zoe sighed before removing her hand so Alice could see the three swirls inside the circle.

"I-I don't understand, I thought the air benders were all gone?" She asked after a few seconds. "Clearly not since you've mastered it which you couldn't have done without an instructor."

"Is this where I have to tell the the truth?" Zoe asked sheepishly.

"I think I can put it together myself. You've been with the air benders, wherever they are, for 11 months before coming here last month. No wonder Hayden couldn't find you."

Another sheepish smile from Zoe before Alice continued more seriously: "wait, what about the Academy? They'll be expecting you to be a water bender. As soon as they realise you're not one after you can't complete their training, they'll interrogate you until you take them to the air benders."

"They won't, I'll be able to pass their training," Zoe reassured her.

"How? You can't use the air to move water."

"I know I can't. But I can water bend," Zoe finished quietly.

"What?"

"I can water bend, fire bend and earth bend, although not very well," she laughed, trying to lighten the mood.

"You're an elemental?" She asked, amazed.

"Apparently."

"An elemental and the gift of winter, the Academy will hate you. You have to be so careful, understand? Let them train you in water bending, Hayden can show you fire bending, earth bending will be a little harder to find someone, but I'm sure Hayden knows someone." Alice told her seriously, Zoe nodding in understanding. "Can you show me?" Alice asked, suddenly more curious.

"Show you what?"

"Everything."

So Zoe stood up, ice beginning to cover the floor, spreading from her right foot. She let the ice cover the entire floor, walls and ceiling of the room, casting a blue glow across everything, Alice gaping in awe. She then turned the ice to water with her mind, using her water bending to gather all the water into a large ball in the middle of the room. Summoning fire to her hands, she created a fire casing around the water, letting it turn to steam. Using her air bending, she created an air current, making the silvery steam swirl around the room before turning the steam back into snow and letting it fall halfway to the floor before making it disappear.

"Holy shit...what was that?!" Zeb asked from the door. Zoe paled, she hadn't realised that Zeb was there. "It was incredible! My only complaint: where was the earth bending? And was that air bending? And you have the gift of winter?" He asked in rapid fire.

"Zeb, calm down. You can't tell anyone about this, ok?" Alice said, coming to Zoe's defence. "You need to tell Hayden," she said to Zoe. "You can trust him. He got pretty low when he lost Max, but he's been back to his old self today. He cares about you, and he would choose protecting you over cooperating with the Academy without a second thought."

"I second that," Zeb said. "He's been my best mate since we met at the Academy when he first became the fury rider, so I know him well. He's loyal to those he cares about, trust him."

"Ok..."

Hayden and Zeb were sitting out the back in front of the fire, Uri, Sharpshot, Atlas and Zeb's nightmare, Rocco sitting with them. Hayden had finished showering and filling his bags with half of the new supplies, giving the rest to Alice who took them to Zoe who was in her room and who he hadn't seen since he left for the market.

The sun was setting and he was in deep conversation with Zeb when Alice and Zoe came out, bringing drinks out with them.

Hayden couldn't help staring. It was the first time he had seen Zoe without her armour since she always slept with it on, he could now see the curved figure that the armour had hidden. She was wearing shorts that showed her toned legs and a short sleeved top that revealed a small amount of cleavage, not enough for it to seem deliberate, but enough for him to notice her breasts. For a 17, almost 18 year old, she was stunning. Her brown hair that he hadn't realised was curly was left loose, tumbling down her back, reflecting the red and orange light from the sunset. Zeb nudged him out of his daze, a dirty big smirk on his face, as Zoe and Alice came over, handing each of them a drink before Alice went and sat on the other side of the fire, Zoe going to check on Uri and Sharpshot. With every step she took from Hayden, the closer he seemed to return to earth.

"You're so screwed," Zeb laughed, Alice snickering from the other side of the fire.

"Shut up!" Hayden responded, bright red.

"The tension is so thick between them," Zeb said to Alice. "Ahh...young love," Zeb said in a sing-song voice, laughing even harder when Hayden punched him in the arm.

"Says the newly wed!" Hayden pointed out.

"I'd give it 12 months for them to kill each other and if they last 12 months, then they, well...I don't need to say anymore," Alice chimed in.

"Not you too!"

"Although by the looks of it, the feelings not mutual yet, little bro. You gotta step up your game," Zeb said, elbowing Hayden.

"I am officially leaving the conversation," Hayden groaned.

Alice, Zeb and Atlas all laughed until they realised that Zoe, Uri and Sharpshot had gone.

"Shit! Where's she gone?" Hayden said, starting to panic. "Atlas, come on!"

"Hayden! Just calm down. She'll be back, all of her stuff is inside." Zeb reasoned.

"But-"

"Just chill, think. Have you got any idea as to why she would have gone and where?"

Hayden thought for a moment, "she always watches the sunset but I don't know why. I can't think of anything else."

"I think I might know why she's gone," Alice spoke up. "Today is the anniversary. Tonight marks one year."

"How does Max and Sydney affect her though? And the stars aren't out yet..." Hayden asked, genuinely curious.

"It's got nothing to do with Max and Sydney," she replied calmly. "I don't know how much I should tell you, but the night she became the fury rider, she also lost someone."

"What do you mean?" Zeb asked, Hayden looking concerned.

"That's for her to tell you, but she told me inside just before. She was unusually quiet so I asked her what was wrong and she told me," Alice shrugged.

"Wait, she answered you?" Hayden asked slightly annoyed.

"Yes. We've become quite close over the day," was the only response Hayden got. "She'll be back, so don't worry. Now let's enjoy the night before the stars come out and we perform the ritual."

Zoe felt bad for just leaving, but she needed to be alone. She knew that today was the one year anniversary of Max and Sydney dying. She knew because today marked one year since the fire that wiped out her entire home in the world of Grey. She liked the name the air benders had given it, it was much more fitting than the name 'the world Above'.

She suspected that Alice, Zeb and Hayden would do something to remember Max, but she couldn't be there when that happened, she wouldn't feel comfortable. So instead, she flew to the highest point on the island, her loyal dragon companions keeping her company. They landed on a cliff at the back part of the island that was separated from the village by the thick forest. The cliff overlooked the ocean and was void of any vegetation so she could see the sky. She watched the sun finish setting, looking for the green flash like she always did. But just like every other time, she didn't see it. She lay on her back with her knees bent and dangling over the edge, watching the moon rise and the stars gradually appear. She closed her eyes, a tear escaping past her eyelids as she broke inside all over again. Uri crooned beside her, not saying anything but wrapping her tail around her rider, making Zoe feel less alone.

She pulled out the necklace that she wore with her whistle. It was an anchor that her mother had given her a couple of years before the fire. It was all she had left. She clutched it in her fist, crying quietly as the sea breeze brushed across her face. She missed her family. She missed her best friend. And she missed her home: the sound of the birds waking her in the morning, the smell of the flowering wattle in the air that signalled winter was coming to an end. Heck, she even missed getting the train to school each morning and all of her friends at her school in the city, all of who would think she was dead.

-o0O0o-

She just lay there, no awareness of time, falling asleep at one point and then waking to see the moon at its peak in the sky. She got up and dusted herself off, deciding she should probably head back, Zoe mounted Uri, Sharpshot assuming his position on her shoulder before they took off. They flew around the island a few times before landing just outside of Alice and Zeb's backyard.

She dismounted, Sharpshot leaving her shoulder to sleep with Uri as she walked towards the house. Still lost in her own thoughts, she didn't see Hayden still sitting on a log, staring into the fire. Nor did she see him get up and approach her until he was standing right in front of her.

"Hey," he said quietly as Zoe jumped, noticing him for the first time. "You ok?" He asked.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine" she responded.

"Why did I even ask, it's obvious you're not. Did you want to talk about it?"

She looked up at him, they were standing less than half a meter from each other. "It's ok. I'm sorry for leaving. I know I should have stayed while you did whatever you did to remember Max and Sydney," she said in a slightly stronger voice.

"What? No, you didn't have to stay. Alice said that you also had someone to remember tonight, you lost someone too?" He asked.

Zoe searched his face for a few moments, looking for what, she didn't know. She sighed before answering, "there was a fire. I lost everything and everyone who meant the most to me. Uri got me out of there."

He just looked at her a few moments, slightly taken aback by what she had just said, she lost everyone?

"Come on," he responded, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, hoping it wouldn't end badly, guiding her over to the fire and sitting down. She sat next to him, just staring into the flames. "Are you ok with fire?" He asked quietly.

He breathed a sigh in relief when she nodded. "Are you ok?" She asked, not taking her eyes from the flames.

"What do you mean?"

"About Max. I know you were close."

Hayden thought about it for a moment. He missed Max, a lot. He was lonely without him and lay awake most nights for the months after Max's death. But he was better now. Since he'd found Zoe, he had started to feel like his old self. Even if Zoe clearly didn't trust him to tell him things, it was nice having someone by his side, even if it had only been a few days.

"We were close. And I do miss him. But in a good way, do you know what I mean?"

"I- I don't understand."

"When I think about him, I'm not sad. Well I am sad, but it mostly makes me feel better. Sure, there are definitely times when I wish he was here, there's a lot of those. But it's not misery that I'm feeling in those times now. It used to be, but now when I think of him, it's because I've seen something I know he would love, or I imagine the look he'd give me when I do something stupid," he explained with a small smile.

"I guess I'm still stuck in the misery part," Zoe responded with a dry chuckle.

"You'll move on from the misery, eventually," Hayden told her. He didn't ask her anything else, not wanting to ruin the sad but first moment they had had together where Zoe was somewhat comfortable being in the same space as him.

Hayden guessed that they sat there for about half an hour before he spoke again. "I'm going to head to bed, you coming?"

"I think I'll stay here a bit longer," she responded, still not looking away from the fire.

"Ok. We have an early start tomorrow so try and get some sleep."

"I will. You too," she said, turning to look at him, giving him the smallest smile. Hayden just nodded before heading inside. The room he stayed in when he was with Zeb had a window that faced into the backyard, so he could see Zoe sitting in front of the dying fire.

He watched her for a few minutes, watching as she put her head in her hands. A few seconds later, he saw her sit up straighter, a blue glow coming from her hands. He watched as snow rose from her hands in graceful arcs, swirling in the air. She then abruptly stood up, throwing her right hand out in a curve from her body, three barbs of ice shooting from her hand and hitting a tree on the other side of the yard. Her head slumped to her chest as she waved her hand, making the barbs disappear before turning around and walking inside, the fire somehow going out as soon as she left its side.

Hayden had suspected that Zoe had the gift of winter, the ice in the cave the first night he met her had been the first time he had noticed it. There had been other times where he had noticed things, but what he had just seen confirmed it. He would confront her about it, but not tonight. Like he had said to her earlier, they needed sleep with the long day ahead of them tomorrow.