Out of the darkness, in what I supposed was a dream, I could see bright reds and yellows flow through the air. It could only be firebending. The small flame flickered and grew, surrounding my vision, embracing me with it's heat and energy. I gasped and woke up. A door opened. A boy of around my age stood there, hatred enveloping his eyes, and a single piece of straw in his mouth. He had shaggy dark hair, something close to a dark brown, though I couldn't be too sure. My head swam in uneasy vertigo. I cleared my throat, testing it's audacity, and was relieved to find that I had been allowed to speak today.

"Excuse me...but, where am I?" Though it came out hoarse and raspy, my voice was still comprehendable and I knew the boy would be able to hear. He seemed unwilling to acknowledge me, though, and after a brief silence looked down to realize, much to my dismay, that I probably had nothing on. Touche. I, in fact, had a very loose robe on. It seemed suspicously close to something I would have worn before my banishment, fitting for a palace noble or even royalty. Under the realization that someone would have had to pull me out of the water- and therefore see me in what I considered an unreasonable state- my face flushed in embarresment, despite myself.

I glared up at the boy, and with shock realized he was no longer there. A shudder went down my neck as I realized he had moved without me noticing, and I being an idiot had put my gaurd down.

Stupid!

A hand suddenly grabbed the nape of my neck, pressing hard into the sides until bruises were likely to appear. I turned, slapping whoever it was across the face, cutting his cheek with my nails. His fist engulfed my wrist, his face inches from mine. I seethed, wanting to spit at him, scratch, and make him feel my wrath. But just as much as I felt anger, I was also consumed by fear. How irritating that I, dispite myself, was shuddering in fear from this complete stranger. When had anyone made me feel fear?

His voice came in a deep rasp, his eyes not meeting mine, as he tried to come off as threatning. "You little...why are you here? Answer me! Actually, you know what, just...just shut up! God, we should have killed yo-" He cut himself off, pulling hastily away from me, trying to restrain himself. I took that chance, lifting myself up in a fighters stance and readying to throw a blast at him. In shock he dodged to the side, coming back at me for a strike, before realizing I was already out the door.

My breathing became fast and hard, my head banging in a constant drum while my lungs suffered just forbreath. Before I knew it, I was on the floor, choking for air. A pain stung all through me, making it impossible to get up. I'd never been this vulnerable, and it didn't settle to well with me. I hated it. Much like my sister, I hated being weak; though I had a different opinion on what made me weak. Hands clamped around my stumach, ready to pick me up. I was about off the floor when my stomach heaved, and the contents of a meal I thought no longer existed spilled out. The boy jumped back, disgusted and shocked. My stomach continued to batter itself, throwing crude contents that burned through my throat, leaving my mouth tasting rancid.

"Great." I muttered, spilling another round of puke to the ground.

"Move her to the bed, and make sure she can't get out of those binds. Keep the ropes tied up to her forearms, in case she's a bender." They had finally hauled me back to their base and were trying to take as many precautions as possible to ensure I wouldn't pull another stunt until they found out my intentions. The boy, who I now had gathered to be their leader, caught my eyes and I couldn't help but smirk mockingly at him. He glared back, while strutting towards me, and grabbed me roughly by the chin. "Though I think it's pretty obvious by that stunt you pulled earlier that you are, am I right?"

In mute tradition, I stayed silent. This was the second time they had moved me, and I was being continuosily checked on like a small child. It was wearing on my nerves. Where did they get the gall to tie me up like a prisoner, anyways? What did they want. some horrible confession on how I killed a family of traveling musicians? Well, I didn't, and considering there was no possibilty they knew who I was, there shouldn't be any problem. But they had dared to attack me, unprovoked, and keep me hostage for an unknown amount of time. That angered me.

A girl came in before I could do anything rash, and we stayed there in silence for a while, just staring at each other. She had choppy, short, almost shoulder length hair, and wore a breastplate and clothing that resembled the others here. You could almost mistake her for a boy. Finally I couldn't take it anymore and yelled out, "What the hell's your problem? I didn't do anything, an-" my voice broke out into a croak, making me go into a coughing fit. The two jumped up quickly, surprised by my sudden outburst, and even more by my coughing. After I finished, I look back to her, to see that she had the alarmed expression I had been anticipating. I chastised myself, angry for getting caught, and for being unprepared. We stared at each other for a while, daring each other to speak.

With a stern look, as if to say 'Don't you dare pity me,' I sighed. "I didn't do anything; you guys had no right to just up and take me like that!"

She remained unblinking, unfazed my any comment I made. The door slammed just then, and I was met with another stranger. "An archer," I acknowledged, noticing the arrows adorning his back.

"Here, get some clothes on." A brown shirt was handed to me, long enough to pass for a dress. I sighed, getting up and stripping from the robe I had on-much to my acquaintances surprise. I didn't have any undergarments, having lost parts of my Sarashi* to the harsh weather. The dress actually felt comfortable and suited me fine. I turned and looked at him, a glare capable of putting anyone six feet under plastered serenely on my face.

"Now what? Shall I go make you lunch? Or perhaps I should, I know!" I smiled at him mockingly, "Go wash the dishes and fix your clothes? Would you like me to make you your breakfast? Or is it lunch time, because, as you very well know, I've been stuck here and don't have a slight idea of the time!" I passed my hand in front of my face, feigning a childish pout that was drenched in sarcasm. "After all, you've yet to make your purposes clear to me. For all I know I could now be very well enslaved to you."

After a brief silence, he met my eyes and stated simply, "You're fire nation." I leaned back, resting on the bed, giving him a curious gaze. "Yes, your point being...?" I couldn't fathom why this boy and his troop were so keen on my nationality. Did they know who I was, or were they just concerned about my fire bending status? I averted my attention back to the conversation at hand. My voice was a whisper. Whether because I meant it that way or my illness was kicking in, I couldn't tell. "I fail to see your reason for being so angsty, kid. What does me being fire nation have to do with anything?"

He stared at me. "It has to do with everything."

Ok, so here's where my old plot ends and my new plot making skills kick in! Does that make sense? Anyways, I hope it's not too short. I was going to cut it off at where Zari is vomiting, but found out how to make it longer while still keeping the flow.

Thanks for the reviews guys! Means a lot. Now I have to come up with a new chapter, all on new brain matter! Ah. Scary. Also, I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with Zari's character yet. I feel like she's just dangling, but her old character had me a bit wary because I felt she was too Mary-Sue ish. But, I digress. I shall update soon.

ps. I got paranoid and worried that I may be coming across as rather pessemistic or something xD Really, I'm not. Sorry if it seems I am. I'm just a bit of a worry wart.

-SN

*Sarashi-Sarashi is kind of like breast bindings. It's the type of garment you see Katara wear whenever she's swimming as an undergarment. In ATLA world, it can be used as underwear or for swimming, specefically by people of the Water Tribes.