Calming Ice
Chapter Two
I could make out two shapes along the shore in the distance. One had a baby blue line snaking around his limbs and trailing along his back, indicating that it was Aang. He was in a horse stance with his arms bent at his bare sides; he was completely still accept the slight shake of his steady breathing. In front of him stood another figure that had his arms held behind his back. I could tell this figure was Zuko; Sokka was the only person still in the camp save me. I stood watching them for a moment before I turned back to rolling sleeping bags up. Correction: sleeping bag. It appeared Zuko was already showing Aang some firebending. Or breathing. It depends on your point of view. I let a small smile dance across my features, letting it die when I heard my brother stir behind me. Even at the slightest smile, I was sure he'd become suspicious considering last nights events.
"Fire breathing scum!" I turned to see Sokka up in a fighting stance with his trusted boomerang from Dad at the ready. His bedroll was a twisted heap beneath his feet. His blue eyes scanned the camp and fell upon me, blinking twice in utter confusion. "Hey, where's Zuko?" Before I could answer, he noticed something. "Aang's gone! That firebending jerk kidnapped—"
"There training." I cut in before Sokka could have a conniption. I motioned over my shoulder toward the shoreline. Sokka eased out of his stance and offered a meek "oh" in response. I shook my head, feeding the dying fire a log. I picked up the fishing rod from its home on a nearby rock and tossed it to my brother. "I'll cook if you catch." I smiled that "innocent little sister" smile of mine. Sokka sighed and walked off in the other direction, knowing he could never win an argument with me. Good. That was one less thing I had to do this morning. I took a seat on a boulder, stretching out the crick in my back.
I scanned the clear skies, watching birds soar and chirp. Among them was a squeaking misplaced lemur. I giggled. Momo was oblivious to what he actually was sometimes. I heard the flying bison groan to my left. A snap could be heard. There was no doubt in my mind that the snap was from a tree. Out of my peripheral vision, I could see him chewing the leaves off of a fallen tree. Right again. My fingers fiddled with themselves in my lap. I poked the fire with a stick, trying to keep myself occupied. After all, Sokka wasn't the greatest fisher in all the world. It might be a while before he came back. I thought I'd have a better chance of marrying Zuko than Sokka coming back with enough fish for all of us.
Once, back at the South Pole, Dad had taken him fishing with one of his friends and his sons. Sokka was the youngest at eight while the other boys were ten and thirteen. I bit my lip remembering how I'd had a little girl's crush on the thirteen year old, Mashka. I rolled my eyes in spite of myself. Back then, I was somewhat like Coco, Aang's little friend from Kyoshi Island.
The men and older boys had caught at least four fish each, and the groups total was eighteen. Needless to say, we had eaten fish for a while after that. But poor little Sokka had only caught a minnow. He came home flustered, muttering about how Mashka and Centu (the other boy) had better hooks. The gossiping women in the tribe had got a real kick out of that one.
After my reminiscing, I looked back toward the training- breathing- Avatar and Fire Nation Prince. Aang stood in the same position while Zuko sat in the sand, bending a small flame between his hands. If Aang was only practicing his breathing, there would be no flame. I stood up and brushed the sand from the back of my pants. I couldn't be burned if there was no flame. I set off toward the two boys. It's not like I had nothing better to do.
I saw the prince look up. A smile tugged at his lips when he saw me. My pathetic teen girl heart skipped a beat. Was it just me, or did he just smile? And he smiled at me. Regaining my easily lost composure, I returned the gesture. The Avatar noted the change in his mentor and turned. A childish grin spread across his features as he waved.
"Morning, Kat!" he called. A wave of confusion washed over Zuko's face. I assumed the expression was the reaction to my nickname.
"Hi, Aang." I called, waving back. I trudged across the sand and was about to take a seat near Zuko when I felt the boy's arms wrap around my torso in a hug. I returned it feebly, watching the prince's expression resemble something of anger or jealousy. I blushed and offered a small shrug once Aang turned around.
"Jealous?" I mouthed toward Zuko. He only rolled his eyes and turned back to his pupil.
"You should practice waterbending now that Katara's up." Zuko said. Aang looked back and nodded. I couldn't believe how easily these two were getting along. Wasn't it just yesterday that Aang had water-whipped Zuko to oblivion, advancing on him like he was going to kill him?
"Master Katara." Aang teased, bowing formally.
"Pupil Aang." I joked back. "Go." I took my defensive stance in the water as Aang summoned water into the form of eight arms- the Octopus Form. Zuko watched with some curiosity.
I sent sharp icicles flying toward my "pupil". One of the liquid arms whipped around with lightning speed and snatched it out of the air. I threw a few more to buy some time. I pushed and pulled the water so that it slid beneath my friend, causing him to become unsteady and unfocused. He dropped the protective form sending a whip my way, which I blocked with a wall of ice. Stepping to the side of it, I unleashed several ropes of water.
They snaked around him, binding his arms at his sides. Aang struggled to get them loose. Once he did, he charged me, freezing my feet to the ground. I swayed to avoid another whip. He stopped a few feet in front of me, bringing a large wave of water from the ocean, causing it to freeze around me. The maneuver was one he'd seen Master Pacu use in a battle against me. With a flick of my uncaptured wrist, another wave crashed onto the shore. It was pulling him back out when he released his hold on my frozen prison. I tumbled to the ground, landing on top of him. I rolled to the side and stood, panting.
"Sorry." he told me. Aang was also winded.
"It's alright." I breathed. "Are you hurt? I think I kneed your stomach pretty hard."
"No." I pulled him to his feet. "You don't weigh that much, Kat." His joyful smile returned. I caught sight of Zuko rolling his eyes.
"LOOK!" All of our heads snapped in the direction of the shout. It was my brother that was shouting to us. Sokka stood at camp with his arms in the air, supporting the giant form of a fish. Even from so far away, I could see the wide, triumphant grin on his face. It was about the size of his upper body. He deserved bragging rights. "BREAKFAST!" my brother screamed. Zuko stood right up and walked toward camp while Aang and I stood rooted to the spot, eyes wide and mouths agape. "COME ON KATARA, WE'RE HUNGRY!" I mumbled in protest. That was a lot of fish. I'd need to cut it into fillets if we wanted to eat before sunset. Gross.
KZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZK
"Okay guys. Breakfast. Help yourselves." I took a seat between Aang and Sokka with my plate in hand. Sokka bolted toward the fire so fast I thought he was going to fall in. He came to a complete stop and grabbed a piece of fish. Without a thought, he took a bite. He nearly spit it out.
"HOT!" Sokka writhed on the ground like a fish out of water. Aang laughed and took his meal, being smart enough to put it on a plate. Zuko stood from his spot and went over for food, ignoring my choking and sputtering brother as if he weren't noticeable.
I nearly had a heart attack when Aang actually ate fish. He usually just ate fruit and nuts. "Aang!" My friend stared at me as if I had just fallen from the sky.
"What?"
"I thought you didn't eat meat!" I exclaimed. He just stared at me with those curious gray eyes of his.
"How do you expect me to save the world if I don't eat meat? It helps build muscle." Aang said offhandedly, taking another bite. What the heck? Aang had always been this happy peace-loving boy who always stood up for animals. For gods' sake, he wore a crown of flowers! And now he was being mister tough guy with his fighting and toplessness and nicknames and meat-eating? Was the world thrown off its axis?
"This is good stuff!" Sokka yelled from near the fire, ripping me from my ranting thoughts. He stuffed his face, paying no attention to the stares he received from the rest of us.
KZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZK
We were off of the island in the next hour. We sat on Appa's saddle, secretly watching the not-so-tough prince of the Fire Nation cling to the leather of the saddle for dear life. Aang smirked- something I've never seen him do- all the while. Sokka would attempt to suppress chuckles and sometimes burst into laughter when you least expected it.
"He's afraid of heights!" The pathetic excuse for a warrior cried, doubling over. "The feared prince of firebenders is afraid of riding a giant multi-ton flying bison!"
"So were you when you first rode on the back of a giant multi-ton flying bison, oh sarcastic brother of mine." I teased, pinching his cheeks. He flushed and pushed my hand away with grumbles.
"So." The Avatar lifted himself from Appa's head with airbending and sat between Zuko and I. He pulled out his map and pointed to an island on it. We all gathered around, though it took Zuko longer due to his first time in flight. "I was thinking we could fly back to Kyoshi, stopping at islands along the way."
"Alright." I said. At this point, I didn't care where we went. We had Aang's firebending teacher and that's all that mattered.
"I wonder if I'll be able to beat Suki again." Sokka smirked. Suki was a warrior from Kyoshi that had trained Sokka in a form of martial arts.
"And wear that dress again." Aang added with a chuckle.
"It wasn't a dress! It was a warriors uniform!"
"And the makeup." Zuko put in. His smirk spread to a grin, holding back laughter. He'd been there and fought the girl warriors of Kyoshi. Apparently, he remembered.
"Shut up." My brother turned away with crossed arms. Aang turned to the side and looked out over the calm ocean. His features cemented into shock. I gave him a puzzled look.
"Aang, what is it?" I asked. I looked off in the same direction as my friend. The others looked too. Just below the horizon was a ship with a dark billowing cloud of smoke hovering over it. It barely took a second to figure out it was a Fire Nation ship. "But…but who could it be?" I asked no one in particular. That had to be one of the stupidest questions I'd ever asked. Who couldn't it be would have been a better question. After all, nearly the whole of the Fire Nation was after the Avatar.
I caught myself again. No. There were innocent people in the Fire Nation, just like any other nation. Just because their ruler began the war does not mean all of its people wished for it to happen. One example happened to be sitting two feet away from me.
I looked behind me to see Zuko peering over my shoulder and into the sparkling water below. His golden eyes widened. "Steer the bison in the opposite direction of the ship. We'll go over land and they'll need to go around it to follow us. When they do, head east for Kyoshi." Aang wasted no time and followed Zuko's suggestion.
"Since when do you tell us what to do?" Sokka piped up with an angry scowl.
"Do you know whose ship it is?" the Avatar inquired, glancing over his shoulder. We strained our ears to hear the prince's whispering voice.
"My sister's."
KZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZKZK
A/N: How's the chappie? I know there's a lot of pointless stuff, but I didn't want the whole "Holy crap! It's Azula!" thing to take up the whole thing.
Demonically: REVIEW!
Sweetly: Puh-leeeeeaaaase?