Turning the corner I could hear Sokka's obnoxious laughter coming down the hall. He was wiping a tear from the corner of his eye with one hand, and with the other he was holding on to his stomach.

"Haha! Jerkbending, I gotta remember that one!" I rose my eyebrow is question, but the action only made him laugh harder.

"Are you coming back from Aang's firebending training?" It took him awhile to catch his breath, then he took another second to take a bite from an apple.

"Yeah, but I didn't stay long , those jerkbenders didn't want me watching, in specifics Zuko." He took another bite of his apple and said "jerkbenders" then said something along the lines of "still got it." I chuckle to myself because my brother's jokes were never funny.

I continue walking then hear a frustrated Zuko, turning the final corner I see Aang sitting down on broken statue, making a face that clearly says he has lost interest. Zuko's performing some kind of move in the air and when he flips over to my side he stops immediately. I could swear I saw a small shade of blush appear on his pale cheeks but they disappear when he begins to yell at me.

"Why are you here?" He's standing now, arms crossed, eyes stone cold and concentrated on me. I almost laugh out loud. Zuko's asking why I'm here? If anyone's out of place it's him.

"You shouldn't be asking me that. I'm Aang's friend, I've been in this group a lot longer than you, and.. and I don't have to explain myself to you!" I try and come off as intimidating but it doesn't work he rolls his eyes and faces Aang. Spirits why is he so sassy!

"Alright, just breathe and.." He shoots his arm forward, hand locked in a fist but only a small flame with smoke at the end to come out.

"That one felt kind of hot." Aang says sitting up from the statue.

"Stop patronizing me! You know what it's supposed to look like!"

Maybe that's why he was blushing? Is he embarrassed of his bending? A better question, why is it not as strong as it used to be? I've seen enough and begin to make my departure.

"Where are you going Katara?"

"Back to base, nothing for me to see here." I reply to Aang then wave back, and when I do Zuko's staring at me, but he doesn't wear an expression. What is with this guy? Such a creep.

Back at our base, I only find Toph there. She picking at her feet, like always. "You know you could at least stop doing that when I come around, you know how that disgusts me!" I sit by her and a bowl of water and begin to bend it carelessly in the air.

"Katara, you really need to try it, like I said there is such a sweet picking sensation to it!" I see her dig through the middle of her pinky toe and flick something out of it. After making a gagging noise she grins, I know she really likes the feeling of it but I know half of that enjoyment comes from everyone else being grossed out. I bend the water back into the bowl and start to prepare dinner.

We started a fire and the group begins to gather around it. As usual I passed around bowls and cups to all before I finally got to sit down. A bowl's untouched and I remember Zuko still hasn't come back from well, from where ever he is. Soon a figure moves closer to our camp and he begins to talk.

"I have some pretty bad news." He pauses. "I lost my stuff."

Toph immediately defends herself. "Don't look at me, I didn't touch your stuff!"

He eyes her then begins again. "I mean my firebending. It's gone."

I start laughing and the whole group looks to me, and Zuko gives me a deadly stare as well.

"I'm sorry, I'm laughing at the irony. Do you know how great it would have been for us if you lost your firebending a long time ago?"

His eyes shift they are more soft and natural than a few moments ago when I laughed. The fire is flicking on his face and he begins to talk again. "Well it's not lost. It's just… weaker for some reason."

"Well, maybe you're just not as good as you think you are."

"Ouch." I look to Toph, feeling angry because she really doesn't know how much he had put us through before he joined us. I guess maybe, the comment was a bit unnecessary but, oh well I already said it.

"I bet it's because I changed sides."

"That's ridiculous." I take a sip of some of the soup I made for dinner then turn to Aang as he starts to talk.

"I don't know maybe it isn't, maybe your firebending comes from rage, and you just don't have enough anger to fuel it like you used to." He seems serious with this answer, but I'm still not buying it.

Sokka stands up and I'm sure he's up to some terrible scheme. "Sooo all we have to do is make Zuko angry! Easy enough!" He grabs his sword's case and begins to poke Zuko on the head. I start to question why Zuko has let it Sokka do that for so long when he suddenly begins to shout.

"Okay! Cut it out! Look even if you're right I don't want to rely on hate and anger anymore. There has to be another way." Sokka now takes a seat by Toph who is now talking about finding the original source of firebending. It is then followed by a stupid comment by Sokka who thinks Zuko should jump into a volcano. Well actually, maybe that isn't a bad idea, I smile to myself then realize Toph is talking about how the badgermoles taught her earthbending one day when she ran away.

"That amazing Toph, I learned from the monks but the original airbenders were the skybisons." He leans back and talks again. "Maybe you can give me a lesson sometime buddy?"

We find out the original firebenders were the dragons, but they're now extinct. Zuko and Aang walk over to the edge and he also tells us about the ancient sun warriors who were in fact the first people to learn firebending from them, but of course they died off as well. Zuko believes that "poking around their ruins" will teach them something. Oh it better teach them something, because I don't just want him sticking around if he has not purpose doing so.

…

It's been over a day now since they left, and I'm starting to worry. "Before they left, Zuko said we passed over it on our way here so they should be back by now right?"

My brother shrugs and walks over to sit with Toph where she's still resting her feet from the burns she got from Zuko.

Soon though, I hear a familiar roar and I see Appa land by our base. Aang seems pleased and tells us all to gather by camp.

Zuko and Aang are performing some kind of sun warrior tribal firebending dance move. Or at least it looks like dancing to me when they finish each shoot a large fire blast the opposite way.

"With these new moves they taught us, Zuko and I will be unstoppable!"

"Well uh, it's a nice little dance you got there."

"It's not a dance! It's a sacred form that happens to be thousands of years old!" Zuko shouts back.

So much for not fueling on anger.

"Oh yeah? What's it's called?" I ask.

He hesitates. "The Dancing Dragon."

We all burst into laughter, half of mine coming from the fact that it is called "The Dancing Dragon" and the other half from his humiliation. I would never tell anyone but he actually looks kind of cute right now with how he's embarrassed.

Once again, another chapter completed! I will try and bring out a chapter once a week, but if I'm feeling random it may be the next day! So yes, if you haven't figured it out in the story I will be following some of the original plots as in the show with some small changes. And, if you didn't know why Zuko was blushing (it wasn't because he has a crush on her yet or maybe he does? ;)) But it was because he was embarrassed of his bending and probably didn't want her seeing how weak he was at the time. So as always review and tell me what you liked, what I can change and improve on. Ideas are always welcome and as soon as I hit 20 reviews I will start doing character questions and answers, and that will continue each time I hit another 20 so like 40, 60, 80 etc. I could only dream that this fanfic has 40, but we will see! Thanks for reading!