Here is The Boy On The Ground. Take two!

Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson, Avatar: The Last Airbender

Chapter 7

It was after supper and Percy was sitting alone in Sokka's tent. The darkness pressed around the tent, trying to get in but the candle Katara had brought in flickered and shone brightly, making the shadows on the other side of the tent dance.

Percy lay on his back on the thin mat spread on the floor. The small, blue blanket was lying in a heap beside him. It was too hot for a blanket. Percy stared at the flickering shadows and sighed deeply.

He had learned so much today; there was another world out there, Planet Earth wasn't alone. It was a lot to wrap his mind around but so far he had been doing fine with it. What was more pressing was the fact that he had told the other kids so much about his world. He had just opened up and told them all about the gods and demi-gods, monsters and titans. He even had told them what happened to Luke, something nobody ever really talked about back home.

Percy couldn't understand why these kids seemed so trustworthy to him. Just the way they interacted with each other and him made him want to be a part of their group. Even though Zuko was older than him, all the other kids in the group were younger by a few years. Even in this world, age didn't matter to the Fates.

/./././././././././././.

The next morning, Percy woke up to the sun beating through the top of the tent onto his face. He sat up and looked around groggily. The sun felt nice and Percy took a deep breath, feeling refreshed and clear-minded.

Stepping out of the tent, he stretched and started strolling towards the middle of camp. The grass, still dotted with morning dew, felt soothing on his rough feet. He wondered again where his shoes had gone and picked at his clothes. They wouldn't last more than another week before they completely fell apart.

"Morning." He said as he took his place around the cooking pot.

"Morning." Everybody returned.

"So what are we going to do today?" Aang asked after a few seconds of silence.

Zuko answered before anyone else could open up their mouths. "You need to train." He pointed his spoon at the young Avatar. "We've been slacking off lately and we can't afford that."

"Aww," Aang groaned. "Do I have to?"

"Yes, you do." Katara told him, she took a bite of her breakfast. "I know it's hard, Aang, but you do need to master all four elements before Sozin's Comet gets here. We don't have that much time."

"I know that, Katara." Aang turned his head away.

"What element do you wanna start with today?" Toph asked.

Aang didn't even need to think about it. "Water."

"There's another thing we need to discuss." Sokka pointed his spoon at Percy. "We need to get him some new clothes. He's going to need all the help he can get to fit in with us."

Percy looked down at his charred clothing. "Yeah, I could use a new tee-shirt."

"Great!" Aang jumped up. "Let's go, then!"

"Not so fast." Toph smacked the ground with her tiny fist and a wall of earth formed in front of Aang, blocking his path. "You still have to train."

"Oh, come on..." Aang plopped down on the ground again.

"I'd better stay and make sure Twinkle Toes doesn't try to escape at all." Toph decided.

Aang folded his arms and pouted. "Like you could stop me." He muttered under his breath.

"Alright." Katara clapped her hands together. "Looks like it's just the boys going."

"I'm a boy!" Aang protested at the same time Zuko yelled.

"Who said I was going?"

"Sorry, Zuko." Katara ignored Aang. "But are you really ready to trust Percy and Sokka together?"

She waved her hand in Percy direction. "No offence, but you just don't come across as the most... responsible person."

Percy shrugged. "Meh, non-taken." It's not the worst thing he's been called.

"Pleeeeease, Zuko?" Katara begged. She batted her eye lashes and pulled her best puppy-dog eyes.

Zuko rolled his eyes and glared. They had a short staring contest but Zuko was the first to waver. "Fine. I'll go." He spat.

Percy grinned, it was funny when guys other than him were pushed around by girls.

"Good!" Katara smiled. "Would you guys mind picking up some more supplies too? We're running a little short on food."

The boys nodded and Sokka grabbed their arms and started dragging them away. "Come on, boys!" He said, "Let's go!"

Percy couldn't help but grimace. He never liked shopping.

/././././././././././././././././.

"Okay." Zuko peered over a rock where they were crouching. "Go grab something that looks like it'll fit you and then we can leave."

Percy looked over the edge to the rows of clothing hanging by the steamers. "I can't even tell what's a shirt or pants." Percy hissed. "They all look like shapeless blankets to me. Plus, isn't this stealing?"

Sokka threw up his hands. "Ugh, you're so picky. I'll do it." His eyes ran over Percy body, taking in his size and build then jumped over the rock and started running through the lines of clothing, pulling stuff off every now and then.

"There." He panted. He threw down the pile of red and black he had in his hands in front of Percy. "Those should fit. Go put them on."

Percy crinkled his nose distastefully. "Is this even a shirt?" He asked, picking up one the fabrics Sokka had given him.

"Yes!"

Percy glared at the other boys as he pulled his shirt off. Then he started struggling into the new one. Trying not make eye contact, he pulled off his shorts and slipped the new ones on.

"Am I wearing this right?" He asked, spreading his arms. The baggy pants were tucked under the shirt, all tied together with a red belt.

"You look gorgeous." Zuko told him sarcastically. "Now, let's go get some food."

Percy couldn't help but start tugging and pulling at the uncomfortable outfit. The cloth was rough and unusual. He didn't like it.

"Don't. Move." Percy suddenly hissed. He had frozen and the other boys immediately did the same, their bodies tensing.

Nothing happened for a minute and Percy thought he was just being parodied. Until a hellhound burst through the shadows surrounding the boulders. Snarling and growling, it's red eyes bore into Percy.

It snapped at Zuko, who rolled out of the way.

"What is that thing?" Sokka yelled, pulling out his sword.

Percy had his sword already out. "It's just a hellhound, I got it guys, and it's only a little one, anyway."

"Little?" Zuko danced out of the way of another paw. He threw a fistful of fire at it.

Percy didn't answer, instead, he put his fingers in his mouth and did a perfect New Yorker taxi cab whistle. The dog whipped his head around and snarled at Percy, slobber dripped from his huge jaws.

It charged but Percy was ready for it and rolled out of the way, stabbing his sword into the side of the monster. The beast screamed in agony and turned again. In a few more swipes, Percy had killed it.

Zuko and Sokka stared as it turned to yellow dust and blew away in the soft breeze.

Percy's mind was reeling, not from the attack, but the fact that it had happened. The walls must be breaking faster than he thought if monsters were already crossing over.

"Hello?" Sokka waved his hand in front of Percy's face. "Are you going to tell us what that was?"

Percy shoved Sokka away. "I already told you." He put the lid back on Riptide and it turned back into a pen. "That was a Hellhound. A monster from my world. It's a bad sign if the monsters are already showing up."

"You see those things often?" Zuko asked.

Percy shrugged. "Yeah, I guess." He looked at Zuko and Sokka and realized he was being cruel, keeping the fact that they had to help him a secret.

"Listen," He blurted out. "I need to tell you something... I was going to tell you at breakfast but I didn't know how to go around it."

Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Hey! Don't judge me!" Percy defended himself. "Anyways, so you know how I'm supposed to 'fix the walls' between our worlds or whatever?"

Sokka and Zuko nodded.

"Well, the prophecy said new friends from this world were going to help me. I think it's supposed to be your group of friends." Percy stopped and looked pleadingly at the boys, begging them with his eyes to help.

"So what you're asking is that we drop everything and run around the world while we're on a deadline... to help you?" Zuko folded his arms and looked skeptical.

"Pretty much." Percy winced, knowing how he sounded to them. He never liked when people just expected him to do things for them. "And, the more we wait, the more monsters we'll have to deal with. The walls breaking will only allow more monsters to come over, and how ever many people from this world to go to my world too."

Sokka sighed and rubbed his eyes. "We'll have to discuss this with the rest of the guys back at camp. Let's just finish our shopping and go home."

Hello everybody! I have an announcement! Annabeth Brady has agreed to Beta for me! *Party music* Thank you to everyone else who said they would too, it means a lot that you guys want this to be a good story!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!