Ba Sing Se was so much more than Shiori ever dreamed. Of course Capital City was wild, but this seemed so isolated, like some other world.

She clutched the strap of the bag secured across her chest and quickened her pace as she walked through the dimly lit streets of the lower ring. There was plenty of buzzing chatter to overwhelm her, yet an especially rowdy sound startled her. Suddenly a young girl her age sped across her path, striking silver hair flowing behind her as she ran, carrying a crate in her arms. A hoard of men followed close behind, hollering at the girl and nearly tripping over each other to get to her.

Slightly petrified, Shiori stopped in her tracks and stared after them, unsure of what to do. She'd been in her share of fights, but in this unfamiliar place, who knows what kind of danger lurked in these alleyways.

Keeping her distance, she peered around the corner and observed. When she arrived, the girl had set the crate down before stomping her foot and thrusting her fist upward.

'What was that supposed to do?' Shiori wondered, hiding back around the corner for a moment as the commotion carried on. Turning her attention back, she saw one of them push her down and stepped out from around the corner, prepared to intervene. However, the girl swiftly took them all out with a blast of water. Shiori plastered herself against the wall so as not to be noticed when the girl ran back in her direction, having regained the crate.

Shiori wrestled with her thoughts for a moment before ultimately deciding to follow her. Eventually, she stopped and slid down to the ground to open the crate, letting what Shiori guessed was a cat meekly crawl out and into her open hands. Shiori stayed quiet as she listened to her talking to the cat, but couldn't help gasping at the sight of its wings. Then something even more astonishing, "I'm sorry I couldn't earth bend".

'But I just saw her waterbend, who does she think she is?' She thought, obviously having missed her previous burst of fire. Though that question was answered when the girl stood again and asked the cat if it could fly yet, then saying 'I doubt I'll be as good as you, but I can sort of...float", she giggled. A spiral formation of wind suddenly enveloped her, feet hovering above the ground as she steadied herself. She couldn't maintain it for more than a few seconds, but it was well enough to draw Shiori out of the shadows.

"You're the Avatar?!"

The girl's head snapped to the side, pure terror glistening in her bright blue eyes, shining through the darkness of the alley. In a second, she held the cat to her chest and bolted away from Shiori.

"No, wait!" She called, chasing after her, "I want to talk!"

"Why?!" The girl called back to her as she continued running.

"Because you're kind of a big deal right?! It's pretty cool!"

"Cool?" She repeated, stopping and raising an eyebrow at Shiori.

"Well, yeah. Why are you alone and...all dirty? Shouldn't you be training or something?"

"Uh...Well...I'm sorry I just don't know who to trust…"

"I don't either. I'm on my own too."

The girl scanned Shiori, evaluating her and gathering any clues to her identity she could. A firebender, no doubt, and unfamiliar with the City; the girl got the sense she hadn't been on her own very long, but above all else, her intuition told her something.

"I have a good feeling about you," She said, taking a step closer to Shiori, who reached a hand out to her.

"Friends?" She asked.

"Friends…I've never had a friend before…"

"Well now you do. My name's Shiori."

"I'm Kitala. Wanna go on an adventure?"

"Hmm, depends…what kind of adventure?"

"I need to get out of Ba Sing Se. So I can become...well...the Avatar."

Shiori grinned and grasped Kitala's hand tighter, shaking it firmly.

Jinora instructed Kita to sit down under the gazebo looking out across the bay.

"I want to talk to you about something that might help you."

"Your spirit projection?!"

"No. When Korra faced Unalaq, she began a new Avatar cycle. You may not have my grandfather to talk to or anyone before him...but have you ever contacted Korra?"

"Well no...I just don't think she'd be able to help me..."

"Oh? She may be different than you, but you always have more to learn. Maybe give it a try? I know you can do it."

"I just…" Kita whispered, looking down at her fidgeting thumbs.

"It's worth a shot." Jinora said, standing and stroking her hair momentarily before leaving her.

Kita inhaled and pressed her knuckles together, reaching into her soul to connect with her Avatar spirit. She drifted into her subconsciousness, feeling Raava as if she was running through her veins. Her mind entered a sort of trance, a void of darkness consuming her as she faded out of the physical world.

"Sure took you long enough…" Came a brash voice paired with a slight chuckle.

In a blue hued form stood Avatar Korra, hands on her hips with a confident, crooked smile.

"Sorry I just…"

"Yeah yeah I know. I've been waiting a while so listen up because I've got some stuff to say. First of all, you think you're so different from me right? Well, you're not. You're just as stubborn as I am."

"Maybe, but if I came to you with my problems what would you say? 'Beat some sense into them' or something like that."

"You can't beat sense into a rock, seems like that's your biggest problem right now."

"Earth bending came easy to you."

"Because 'sense' wasn't even on my mind. You just move the rock, you don't think about it. It just happens."

"It doesn't just happen for me."

"Obviously." She scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"This is why I haven't talked to you, you don't understand me enough to give me advice."

"You're right, I don't understand you at all. If I were you, that stupid president would've gotten his head smashed in, I would've made a move on Jinora's son by now, and probably would have found that bomber while I was at it."

"Gah! We know who the bomber is at least! And you made plenty of mistakes, ones I'm still cleaning up in my lifetime all while I'm trying to learn not only how to balance the world, but figuring out who I even am too! I know you went through the same thing but you just took it out on everyone else while I'm keeping it inside!"

"Yeah there we go, yell at me some more, get fired up! Let it out!" She encouraged.

"I don't want to get fired up! I just want to be an actual Avatar rather than this failure I am now!" Kita screamed, voice straining as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Maybe that's why you're failing! Everyone always told me, I couldn't be the Avatar if I didn't have the spiritual connection, well you have it and look at you. What I learned is that you need all sides to be an Avatar. You think you have balance between fire and water because they're opposites, but you're missing something. You have the spirituality of the airbender but you aren't grounded and stern like an earth bender. You aren't balanced at all."

Kita stayed quiet, analyzing everything her predecessor just said and realizing that perhaps Korra could teach her a thing or two after all. Was she really not as balanced as she thought? According to the outburst she just had, maybe she really wasn't after all.

"I think you're a little jealous of me," Korra laughed.

"Hm...that's an interesting thought," Kita said quietly, cracking a small smile.

"It won't happen overnight, but you'll get there okay? Just act a little more like me kid," Korra said with a wide smirk that faded from Kita's third eye as she brought herself back to reality.

"I still don't like her," She muttered to herself.

Ari slid off his navy top before reaching for the door to the bath house, then stepping inside as he untied the powder blue sash from around his hips. When he looked up, he froze, having come face to face with Giyan dressed only in a towel, his skin still glistening and damp black hair falling around his face. Ari held his crumpled clothes up to his pale, bare chest and searched for the right words to break the tension.

Giyan cleared his throat and opened his mouth to speak, but Ari interrupted.

"So sorry," he said with a smirk as he blatantly scanned Giyan up and down.

"No, no, I'll uh...get out of your way," He said, looking at the ground as he made his way out.

'Hm, interesting…' Ari thought.

After his bath he rejoined everyone, still combing through his hair as he entered the commons. He plopped down on the mat, silk robe falling around his shoulders as he let out a satisfied sigh.

Raavi and Shiori, still not pleased with the outcome of their sparring match, were currently arm wrestling while Kita fussed and fidgeted, assuring each of them that they were equally strong. Giyan sat slightly removed from them and Ari kept glancing at him through the corner of his eye.

'What's with this guy...what makes him tick…' He kept thinking, over and over, unable to read anything on his stoic expression. Finally, he set down his brush and stood, walking over to Giyan and sitting unusually close.

"Why exactly did you decide to stay if you're not going to engage in any conversation?"

"Er...Well, to train the Avatar."

"Because you like her right?" He asked, intensely staring for any sign of a reaction.

"Honestly, I just don't like my hotel." He answered simply.

"Really, that's all?"

"There's televisions and radios everywhere, and everything is so...fragile and expensive."

"Most people like that sort of thing, you know," Ari laughed.

"Eh," he shrugged.

"I thought you had a thing for Kita, seemed like it at lunch."

"I admire her and look forward to working with her, but other than that…"

"Huh…"

"Wow!" Kita suddenly shouted, leaping up and speeding for the open door.

"What is she-" Raavi started.

"The moon, she did this all the time," Shiori chuckled, following her. Raavi stood, looking out at Kita, whose hands were folded over her heart as she gazed up at the orange tinted full moon. He smiled softly and went outside to join them.

"Shall we?" Ari asked, grabbing Giyan's arm and leading him along with the others.

After Kita had fulfilled her need to moon gaze for the night, Shiori and Raavi coaxed her back inside so she could make them a midnight snack. Ari and Giyan however, found themselves taking a scenic stroll along the shore at the base of the island. The young Prime Minister was a little surprised, to say the least, at his circumstances. In any other situation, this would be considered a romantic setting: moonlit waves chasing after their bare feet, Ari's feather-like blonde hair billowing in the cool breeze. However, Giyan was being almost forced to answer slightly intrusive questions, and was therefore not swept up in the potentially illustrious ambiance.

"So what are your parents like?"

"Uh...normal."

"Oh come on, why are you so stiff?!" Ari shouted, nudging him hard with his elbow.

"They were farmers," he said, hoping it would suffice.

"Okay...so you didn't grow up in Ba Sing Se then?"

"No. Just outside of it."

"I see, do you get along with them?"

"Yes."

"Did they-"

"I don't think it's fair for me to be the only one answering questions," he interrupted.

"You're not asking anything."

"Well then what are your parents like?"

"Boring." He answered with a shrug.

"Now who's being stiff?" He retorted, feeling quite proud of himself.

"They own a clothing store in the North and are insufferably traditional and simple minded. There."

"Huh, alright. I don't think I even need to ask whether or not you get along," he chuckled.

"Obviously, I detest them. Now back to you. What made you want to be the Prime Minister? I'll be honest, a farm boy like you doesn't really fit in with most politicians I see."

It was strange and very unfamiliar to him, but Giyan felt comfortable. It came easily to tell this almost stranger about himself. 'Because there's no risk in talking to someone I'll likely never see again,' he thought.

"I strive not to be like most politicians. But if I had to pick the main reason, it would be to represent everyone who doesn't have much of a say in anything. A lot of people either forget about everyone outside of Ba Sing Se, or they just don't care about anyone beyond the middle ring. That's the sad truth."

"Okay, sure you had the drive, but how did you get there?"

"I mastered Earth Bending at an early age, so my parents sent me to an academy in the middle ring. We lived simply so all the money we made went to maintaining our farm or to savings, so it wasn't much of an imposition for them."

"Well I understand why you don't like television or radio now, your parents brainwashed you."

"It wasn't like that," he laughed.

"Okay, sure...so, a nice school, keep going." Ari urged, having stopped walking and perched on a boulder.

"I saw how different everything was there and I wanted to change it. I grew to love the lower ring of the city because...I don't know how to say it...everything seemed real there. Like the better part of the city was just a fake front masking even worse problems."

"I think that's the whole world at this point."

"Well that's why I wanted to unify everyone. I thought if the lower ring just spread out, the entire Earth Kingdom would feel real too. So, I stayed in Ba Sing Se to continue my schooling, but focused more on economics and politics rather than bending. I think I honestly just got lucky that people voted for me."

"I can see why they did. You're genuine. However, not very spontaneous."

"What? But, I diverged completely on my path."

"You're brave, but not impulsive. What I think, is that you plan everything, and when it doesn't go your way you don't know how to...well wing it."

"Winging it isn't something you do as the Prime Minister."

"Of course it is, how would you really get anything done otherwise!"

"But there's a council and several review meetings before anything gets passed and-"

"Alright, sure, but you've never even proposed anything so crazy it might work, have you?"

"No. But I'd rather plan than be like you."

"What does that mean?!"

"In the short time I've been here, I've noticed that you're living here for some reason, and the closest thing to a career you have is some fantastical idea that you'll be a mover star one day."

"For your information, I like it here, and I don't want to be a mover star anymore anyway!"

"Then what do you want? And how did you just change your passion so easily?"

"Well...I don't know yet. All I know is that being an Actor doesn't really do anything to contribute to the world does it? So I thought maybe I should do something worthwhile. Look, we can't all be like you, figuring your life out at, what age 10? Sorry, but it isn't that simple for me."

"It's not really that difficult either, deep down you know what you want, I think you're just afraid of it."

"Alright so let's get this straight, we both need to take a lesson or two from each other? You're too uptight and I'm not uptight enough, is that it?"

"Hmf, I guess."

"Ugh, just admit it."

"Alright, I told you what you needed to hear, now what do I do to be more spontaneous?" Giyan asked, mocking Ari's fluttering tone.

"I can't tell you that or it would be planning, hm?" Ari snickered, and his lips curled in a mischievous grin. Giyan just rolled his eyes.

"Hey Shiori…" Kita started.

"Hm?" She groaned, her cheek squished against the wooden tabletop and eyes closed as she had obviously began to drift off.

"I noticed something weird today, about Chief Beifong and Hiro."

"Uh huh…"

"I can just sense there's some history between them. I'm kind of curious."

"Why…?"

"Well, because they both looked kind of sad…"

"One of them probably dumped the other one ten years ago or something."

"No, it looked deeper than that…"

"Mhm…" she murmured, fading fast.

"Hey, Shiori," Kita repeated.

"What…." She answered, now annoyed.

"Are you happy to see me again?"

The question roused Shiori from the brink of unconsciousness and she lifted her head to give the Avatar a puzzling look.

"I just remember how independent you were back then, and I know we've done some catching up but I've been afraid to mention it until now...that, well..you never came to find me at the South Pole. I don't know if you remember, but you told me-"

"I know. Trust me, I wanted to. It's hard for me to admit, but the lifestyle I wanted wasn't realistic. Money didn't last as long as I thought it would, and staying with my parent's friends everywhere I went got a little tiring. So, when I started probending, I was actually making a life for myself. My team decided to stay in the city so I couldn't leave. Besides, I didn't know how long you'd even be there. By the time I had enough money to travel, I didn't know where you'd be training."

"Well, I guess fate brought me here then right? I didn't know you were having trouble, I wish you had written or called, you could've come to stay with me sooner."

"You know me, I was too prideful. I didn't want you to think I was weak. Even when I heard of that party in your honor I thought maybe you wouldn't care if I sought you out or not."

"I'd never think that. You're the best friend I've ever had, even though I haven't seen you in years, you're always in my thoughts."

"I missed you, I really did. I guess I thought I'd only want to see you again after I got my life together."

"Friends don't care about that sort of thing. Look at me, I keep failing, but having you here actually inspires me to do better. I see you and Ari and Raavi and Master Jinora, and I know I'm not alone even though I'm struggling within myself."

"Well you are the Avatar, you're a little ahead of me on the inner peace stuff."

"Pft, I'm not even close."

"Good, I'm glad we both suck."

The two laughed and Kita rested her head against her friend's shoulder. Raavi entered the room, a bag of newly invented snacks called 'potato chips' hanging from his mouth. He dropped them into his hand and, sounding awfully offended, said "You guys are having a deep conversation without me?"

"Aw, I'm sorry, I already know why you're messed up, but you're welcome to talk anyway," Kita giggled.

"No you don't, I haven't told you about the time I-"

"Hey, did you miss us?" Ari announced with a loud trill as he and Giyan slid the door open.

"Well now you'll never know," Raavi said, turning his nose up as he sat next to Kita.

"Where did you guys run off to?" Shiori asked.

"Oh, just sharing our life stories."

"You know, I feel really left out now," Raavi said, feigning a dramatic pout.

"Poor Raavi!" Ari shouted, puffing out his lower lip to mock him.

"I could kick your ass again, would that make you feel more included?" Shiori smirked.

"Oh stop it," Kita scolded, patting the top of Raavi's hair before saying, "It's not his fault he's a little...sensitive," then failing to contain her snort-ridden laughter.

"You're supposed to be on my side!" Raavi protested.