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Party Tricks.

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So the firenation has like a ridiculously complicated system of bows and addresses. Some people need to be called by their full title and some people need to be called by a name that is not in fact their name and some people get a full bow and some people get a half bow and some people get an incline of the head and oh my spirirts how do they keep track of it all?

All morning was spent on this sort of thing. Bows and greetings and addresses and what was acceptable conversation (until people got drunk that is and then ANYTHING became acceptable conversation.) Zuko explained and demonstrated and even in one rather memorable occurrence, drew a diagram until we were all mannered-out and feeling most frustrated. Suki had a tendency to put her left foot back in the shadow of a curtsey because that was the standard greeting in kyoshi and she felt compelled to do it. This was a bad thing in the firenation, because the curtsey-bow combination was a sign of servitude. Sokka kept talking in his Wang Fire voice and trying to pretend to be posh and saying things like spiffing do this party, what ho my good man, where does everyone summer? Until Zuko got most stroppy with him and said no really, don't do that! I learned the best, but I guess I had practice before with Toph, which made it a bit easier. In the end, Zuko said that if we made a mistake, we could just shrug and say we were from the colonies. People didn't expect as much from colonials anyway.

-?-

We gave ourselves a strict budget for clothes. When we looked in the place where we'd stashed all our money (it's really Zuko and Toph's technically. Zuko's from the palace and Toph's from all the scamming) we noticed that we were starting to run low on funds. Not dire straits low, but certainly the coffers were lower than they'd been in a while. If Sozin's comet wasn't so soon, we might have to let Toph lapse back into her scam artist ways.

Sokka started out ecstatic about picking out his party outfit, so we bought his first (nice black pants and a shirt with those ties - like Zuko's). Then me and Suki went into a ladies shop to find our outfits. A long time later, Sokka had very much lost his shopping enthusiasm and had resigned himself to never leaving the shop, but taking up permanent residence in what the shop lady called the loitering chair (for loitering men waiting for indecisive women folk). Suki had already decided on her dress, but for some reason I couldn't seem to pick one.

All the dresses I had tried felt okay, but none of them were right. I had tried on a large pile, and Suki kept offering 'helpful' suggestions and Sokka kept saying that one looks great, lets take that one and go! I am not normally so indecisive about this sort of thing. It is weird. Eventually Suki got up and sorted through my maybe pile and picked out three. She tossed them at me as she pushed me into the change room and said these three were the best, so pick one of these. I found it a bit easier to decide with only three to choose from. Sokka and Suki both assured me I looked awesome. Dresses and shoes were bought and now we are all ready for the party.

-?-

I smoothed the dress over my hips and admired myself in the mirror. The dark red with the gold edging really suited me (most vibrant colours will suit me according to Sokka and Suki, but still). My dress was fun and flirty little party dress, halter neck with a really low back. It was a sexy dress. I've never wanted to be sexy perse before, but tonight I did. Suki popped her head on my shoulder and smiled and said I looked great and then she turned around and got me to zip her up. Her dress was a bright red, tight, off-the-shoulder number with a swishy, short skirt. Sokka's eyes had bugged out of his head when she came out of the change room with it on and that was how she knew it was the right one.

I toed on the gold sandals with the big heels and experimented with my hair and ended pinning some to the sides with fancy hairclips. Suki was trying to 'fluff' hers (unsuccessfully so far.) I think we were both enjoying the girly-ness of the whole thing. Getting ready for a party was such an unexpected thing for us to be doing, but such a normal thing for most other girls our age. It was kind of fun and frivolous and I guess I wasn't expecting to have some frivolity so close to the comet. I hadn't really had a chance to be girly in ages. And it was nice getting ready with Suki in my bathroom (Sokka was in his sacred space in the bathroom Suki and he shared.) Suki did my make up first and she tried to copy the subtle shades that the beauticians had done that day at the spa and I almost gasped when I looked at the finished result. I looked...well, really lovely.

I was ready first and I will admit that my first thought was rather vain. I wanted to go show Zuko how good I looked. I told Suki I'd wait downstairs for her and Sokka and went off to look for Zuko. I found him watching Aang and Toph earthbending in the courtyard. I walked a little noisily in the sandals and he turned around as soon as I was at the corner.

He saw me and he made a little surprised noise. He looked momentarily gobsmacked. His eyes widened and his mouth fell open and he was starting at me in this really nice way. I walked towards him and smiled widely at him and he said wow...and then looked really embarrassed and said I mean hi really quickly. I smiled even wider and said Hi yourself. What do you think? Do I look okay for a fancy party? I said and did a little twirl.

You look beautiful. He said quietly (shyly) and it made me go all fluttery inside. Really that is what I wanted to hear. Zuko thinks I'm beautiful and that makes me really, really ridiculously happy. I know I shouldn't worry too much about looks and that sort of thing, because looking beautiful doesn't matter in the middle of a war, etc. But oh when he said that it just made me feel so...wonderful. It was a wonderful feeling. I had been half hoping to get this kind of reaction out of him. That's what all the fuss over picking out the right dress and the right everything had been about. Silly as it sounds to write it down, it was all for him, really. I wanted him to think I looked pretty and he thought I looked beautiful and was looking at me in such an adorable, adoring way. I said thanks brightly and moved a bit (okay a lot) closer. He gulped a little because I was getting all up in his personal space, but he didn't move away and we were just sort of looking at each other and being in each other's space and for a brief second it was like we were the only two people in the whole world.

I had a mad thought right then. A crazy little impulse to just kiss him. Could I do that incredibly brave thing that Rozin did to Toph and just kiss him and say I really like you, out loud, to his face. Admittedly, I would probably try kiss him on the lips not the cheek (already been there, kissed that).

I don't think I've ever been this infatuated with anyone. Ever.

Oh bollocks.

We watertribe people are not smooth at all about this type of thing. ( I still remember Sokka asking Yue, do you want to do an activity together? That was not smooth at all, that was the polar opposite of smooth). Maybe infatuation awkwardness runs in my family, because apparently Dad was as awkward as a tonne of uncoordinated penguins around mum for like six months before he got up the nerve to ask her out. Dad told me and Sokka that he used to fall over his words and all this blah would come out. Blah already comes out all the time around Zuko. This is ridiculous. I'm never this jittery in battle. My stomach never flutters like this at any other time. When I'm fighting - I have nerves of bloody steel, but around Zuko, sometimes I just get all squishy on the inside.

Suddenly Zuko said watch out and grabbed me and pulled us both further back from the courtyard . His arms were around me and it was great. I will admit my first thought was rather fanciful because I thought he was going to kiss me and I got a bit excited. He'd actually been pulling me out of the way of a rogue boulder that Toph had "accidentally" bent at us. Boo...no, not boo. Pulling me out of harm's way is a very nice thing to do, even if it's not kissing. So I shouldn't be disappointed. And it's not like we would even kiss here because ….that was just a very fanciful daydream of mine... and Aang and Toph were right there... and what the hell had I been thinking? Zuko yelled, hey watch it Toph and Toph yelled back oops, sorry. But she didn't sound very sorry. In fact she sounded quite pleased with herself, in my opinion.

Toph and Aang wandered over at that point and Toph said I looked great, with some sarcasm. Why does she always feel the need to do that. Aang looked stunned for a second, before he echoed Toph's sentiments and said I looked really nice. I thanked them both. Aang said he still didn't see why he couldn't just sneak in as a busboy, like we had planned to do at the party in Ba Sing Se (Sokka and Zuko had both poured cold water all over this idea when Aang first came up with it this morning, Aang's arrow is too recognisable and it is too risky and unnecessary). I know Aang had been a bit disappointed because he loves parties and I said I was sorry that they couldn't come to the party with us, but Aang would have a fun night here with Zuko. Okay I never thought I'd use 'fun night' and 'Zuko' in the same sentence, in an attempt to persuade Aang to stay home. Me and Zuko have a lot of fun, but Zuko and Aang...not so much.

Toph said it was okay, she hated fancy schmanzy parties anyway, and now she and Zuko could really drill Aang in earth and firebending (she gave Aang an affectionate punch in the arm) instead of going to some boring old party. Aang didn't look as happy as she did over the prospect. But Zuko agreed with her and said that firenation parties were really dull and they'd have much more fun here and if Aang was really good, Zuko would show him how to do the sparkle dragon. Aang brightened and said really? And Zuko nodded. Aang has been wanting to learn the sparkle dragon for a very long time.

Sokka and Suki came down then, looking great and announced that they were ready to go. Goodbyes were made and Sokka said don't wait up guys and he and Suki started walking off down the road. Then Toph said enough chatter, come on twinkletoes, you've still got an earthbending lesson going on and she led Aang back to the courtyard.

Then it was just me and Zuko and I didn't want to leave him behind, even though I knew he couldn't come with us. It just felt weird going off without the three of them. And who would make sure everybody got to bed at a reasonable hour and wash dishes with Zuko if I wasn't here? You'll make sure they get to bed early, right? Because they'll need a good night's rest, I said quietly. Zuko smiled and said he would. I said he might have to give Aang the sun poppy tea (it had worked wonders! No nightmares for Aang since he started drinking it) Zuko said he'd do that too.

And you'll make sure...I started to say something else (vaguely nagging) but Zuko cut me off with a smile and told me not to worry, he'd look after Toph and Aang and make sure they ate all their vegetables and brushed their teeth and went to bed at a reasonable time and I should go have a nice night. I bounced in indecision for a second and then I gave him a hug and whispered okay, because I didn't want to quite say goodbye either just yet. I knew I was being ridiculous, because I'd be back and I'd see him again in a few hours. But still, I hugged him all the same.

Oi Katara, will you get a move on already! Sokka shouted over his shoulder, successfully killing the moment. Boo. Me and Zuko broke apart and looked a bit sheepish and I shot back, hey I was ready ages before you good-naturedly in Sokka's direction because really he was in no position to give me the hurry up! Zuko said I'll see you later then and I nodded and said I'll be back soon and then I had turn and walk really quickly (jog ever so slightly) to catch up with Sokka and Suki. When I caught up to them, I looked back and waved and Zuko was still standing there, watching me. He waved back. I kept turning around and waving ever now and then until we crested the hill and I couldn't see him any more.

-?-

When we arrived at the house, we presented our invitation and were shown through to the garden. It looked stunning. There was a huge tree in the centre which had been hung with a vast assortment of lanterns (unlit at the moment because it was full day.) There were streamers and ribbons and decorations in all sorts of colours and lots of chairs and tables in small clusters around the place. The garden was full of elegant looking people, standing about being elegant and conversing elegantly and drinking elegantly (I imagine the elegance with decrease somewhat as the drinking continues). Waiters circled round with trays of drinks and snacks and canapes (note to self: pronouced ca-na-pays not can-naps). Rena and Rei came over to us pretty quickly and there were hugs and greetings. Both of them looked stunning. The bright firenation colours went well with their darker skin tone. Curiously, they wore reverse outfits. Rena had on a black top and red skirt and Rei had a red top and a black skirt and when they stood next to each other, they looked like a weird mirror of each other. (Was this deliberate or accidental?)

Where's Zuko? Rei asked excitedly, cutting right to the chase (and not at all subtle I must say!) Suki said he couldn't make it because someone had to stay home and look after the kids. Rei looked acutely disappointed and said with a sigh, he is so responsible. That is sooo like him. I felt the strongest urge to give her a little bop on the back of the head and say you don't even know him! but thankfully I resisted.

Rena got us some drinks. A bubbly wine with a few berries in it. It was delicious. It was tasty. It could be pretty dangerous if we weren't careful because I could drink a lot of these. Sokka, Suki and I had decided on the walk down that none of us would get to drunk (despite the overflowing amount of plonk) because this was first and foremost a fact finding mission. We had decided to try and mingle with as many people as we could to see what we found out and compare notes at the end.

Still, it was fun having a few beverages with Rena and Rei under the trees. There was much talk of how beautiful everything looked etc and Rena made us all laugh with her tales of the shenanigans that had occurred in getting ready for today. Many of these shenanigans involved geese, which were meant to be eaten, but which had escaped the cook's clutches and were now wandering around the garden, in what the cook described as a 'taunting manner'. Indeed there were more geese at this party than there had been at the party in Ba Sing Se, which was the only other party that I had ever been too.

Some poff kids had arrived with their parents, but they had clustered near one of the tables and would occasionally glance over at us under the trees. It was weird. We were two distinct groups. I kept expecting them to come over and say hi to Rena and Rei, because it was their Uncle's house, but they never did. They just chatted amongst themselves. Eventually I couldn't help but ask what do you think they're talking about over there? Rena rolled her eyes and said she didn't care. They're probably complaining about the food or whatever. Oh dragon berries and lobster again! How tedious!

Me and Suki decided to go over and say hi because it seemed silly not to. The boys were smiling at us (the girls were not at this particular point in time). Two boys sort of nodded at us in acknowledgement. They looked like the typical surfie boys that you find all over this island. Unkempt hair and slow manner of speech and a tendency to use the phrase keeping it real man. If we were going to mix with these kids, surfie boys would be our best bet. They were always pretty easy going. Hey, how's it going? I said, trying to sound casual. They were both apparently keeping it real.

I knew we'd picked the right boys.

Suki and I introduced ourselves. The boys announced they were called Chan and Ron Jian, like they were announcing something very important. Like they were famous. Suki raised an eyebrow. You've probably heard of us. We're kind of a big deal here. The one I think was called Ron Jian (I wasn't 100% sure which was which) clarified and said My dad is like an Admiral. I felt a sarcastic comment, like an admiral, or is he actually an admiral? But I did not say this out loud. Instead I acted like I was impressed with his dad being like an admiral and this pleased the boys.

Just us chatting to them seemed to break the ice a little. At that point Sokka strode over, with Rena and Rei in tow. He placed a proprietary hand on Suki's shoulder. He had a sort of boy equivalent of a starring competition with the one I think was Chan, and then introduced himself as Suki's boyfriend. Suki gave him a look. More introductions were made. Chan gave Rena a long evaluating once-over and he said how you doing? in what seemed to be a particularly flirtatious manner. Rena nodded back at him.

So you're all from the colonies Chan asked innocently enough. Yeah, what about it? Rena said as she crossed her arms a little. Chan said he was just curious. He wanted to know if we know any colonial party tricks, because when his dad went to the colonies he said that everybody there could pick up a grain of rice with their toes. Rei, in a rare act of loudness (or perhaps drunkenness – she had already had a few champagnes by the time we got here) said she couldn't pick up a grain of rice with her toes – but she could do this – and then she proceeded to 'skip' her arms. She is double jointed in both her shoulders and elbows (Childhood accident, don't ask, she said by way of explanation.) and so she can move her arms in a complete circle around her body. We were all fascinated and just a little grossed out.

It was the weirdest thing I have ever seen.

Rei asked if they could do any better tricks. The one I think was Ron Jian volunteered that he could put his whole fist in his mouth. This is not nearly as impressive as arm-skipping, but it is a lot grosser -so we all watched with unhealthy captivation. Suki said she could do a standing backflip and then we all had to 'give her some space' while she did one. Amazingly, she didn't kick anyone in the face and landed it perfectly. This is even more amazing considering the fact that she was two champagnes in.

And just like that, after three acts of public humiliation, conversation began to flow. The poff kids all sort of followed Ron Jian and Chan (who seemed to be like their unofficial leaders) and now that those boys had decided we were kind of cool, they started speaking to us. It was like the party officially and properly started for us. We were like one big loud noisy group of teenagers, laughing and messing about. I shuffled about chatting to various kids who's names I'll never remember.

I mentioned that I was training to be a healer to one girl (that was my cover story, but it is technically true) and she proceed to show me what she thought was a toxic poisonous rash. It is only heat rash, I am pretty sure, but she is most worried about it and I had to spend a great deal of time reassuring her that nobody would notice it and it was harmless. Word got out that I was a training healer and suddenly I was the focus of interest for several of the poff kids.

These kids, with the confidence of the rather drunk, felt compelled to confide in an almost complete stranger (me), their various health concerns/questions/woes. Wow, firenation kids can be real over-sharers after a few champagnes (I was being good and was still only on my second drink). Some of them had rather embarrassing health questions that they would never ask out loud of a grown up. But I have sworn myself to secrecy regarding most of these embarrassing cases. Unfortunately, because I wasn't good and remembering their names, I started calling them by their medical condition in my head and all night I struggled not to call them things like possible-crabs out loud. Possible crabs was really quite nice, but he does need to go see a proper doctor if he wants the itching to go away.

Nothing really strategic being discussed on my end and unfortunate-swelling-and-itching (my newest patient) kept talking me ear off about how he was making his own surfboard. I actually think he was trying to flirt with me. After a while he offered to show me his unfortunate swelling and itching area and gave me a meaningful gaze. I very firmly declined! I didn't want to be rude to him, but I was trying to find a way to extricate myself from this conversation. I looked around for someone who I knew and an escape route from this situation. I wouldn't find out anything valuable if I got stuck with swelling-and-itching for the rest of the night.

I saw Rei talking with extra-long-tongue-girl (she had come right up to me and said I can touch my nose with my tongue, is that normal? and then she demonstrated this feat with absolutely no prompting from me). From the looks of it, extra-long-tongue was demonstrating her unusual ability again for Rei, who in turn, skipped her arms. Sokka was deep in conversation with Ron Jian. The music had come on and Suki was doing the fan dance near the band while to other girls tried to drunkenly copy her lithe movements. Rena wandered past with a bottle of wine in one hand and I grabbed her other hand and roped her into conversation. I told her I wanted to have a girl talk and made a meaningful head nod at swelling-and-itching. Rena is much ruder than me and in two seconds flat, she had gotten rid of swelling-and-itching.

She took my half empty glass, sculled the contents and then gave me a refill from the bottle she was carrying around with her. So what did you want to talk to me about? she asked nonchalantly. I told her I just wanted her to help me get rid swelling and itching and all other boys who wished to over share with me regarding any problemsin that area,(I gestured to the area in question and Rena nodded sagely) and then flirt with me afterwards!

She gave me a sly look and said it's a shame that grumpy poff cousin of yours couldn't make it – I'm sure he would have loved to protect you from overly flirtatious dudes! I agreed it was a shame and I may have accidentally sighed a little. You missing him? She asked pleasantly as she clinked her bottle with my glass and took a swig. I said yes instantly and absent-mindedly (because I was missing him, just a little), but then no, not at all really quickly afterwards, because I didn't want to admit to Zuko-missing to Rena of all people. She shrugged and said if I wanted to, she'd make my excuses for me and I could just nip home and shag him senseless. I was very intrigued by this idea for two seconds and may have nodded at her suggestion, but then I remembered to act mock-scandalized. We had told Rena that we were all cousins, hadn't we? What? No, he's my cousin I said with (false) indignation and (real) embarrassment. Right and I'm your grandmother, she said with a deliciously cheeky wink.

I had launch into a lengthy rant at Rena (regarding the inappropriateness of imaginary cousin shagging) while she looked quite amused. She stopped me at one point and said that I didn't need to worry. We were a lot of fun and we were the nicest people she'd met in the firenation. So if we were all telling everyone we were cousin-y colonials from Gaipan – she'd go along with it. We nodded at each other in acknowledgment. Secret sip? She said and handed out the bottle to me. I was confused. She said it was like promising to keep something a secret officially – we both had to drink from the same bottle and then we'd never let the secret pass our lips. I took a big swig and so did she.

Then she smiled cheekily again and said hypothetically speaking, if she were me and she had a pretend cousin like my grumpy pretend cousin, and she and this cousin looked at each other the way me and my cousin looked at each other, she would stop beating around the bush and would grab that cousin's hot arse, because she had well appreciated the view on the hike up the mountain yesterday and then she would take that cousin to a secluded location and experiment with his bending and then she would feel up that cousin and...I think she was about to say something very rude, but thankfully I will never know what because right at this point Chan came over and successfully distracted her.

They seemed to be flirting. At the start Rena tried to include me in their conversation, but I started feeling a bit like a third wheel, so I buggered off and left them to it. I waved at her and wandered off a little, but as I was walking away I heard Chan say You know, you're really pretty for a colonial. I heard Rena's initial noise of indignation and I turned and saw her with her hands on her hips and I knew a rant was coming Chan's way. Just what is that supposed to mean! Rena started.

Rena is a sassy drunk.

I wandered around the tree. The sun was setting and someone had lit all the lanterns and they were casting a soft and beautiful light everywhere. I attracted a few more 'patients' and advised them as best I could. I soon as I had finished with constant ear infection (poor girl got them every time she went swimming - which would really suck in a firenation summer), I went and looked for everyone else I knew.

I walked past Rena and Chan talking again. Well mostly Rena was talking and Chan was looking very harangued. I have never used the word harangued before, possibly because I've never seen anyone look so harangued in my life. I think it applies specifically to people who have been talked at by a cranky Rena for 20 solid minutes. I caught a few strains of Rena's long rant about colonialism. Calling her pretty for a colonial was almost a backhanded insult coming from a poff and this is just what colonialism is – poffs have all the power and they can go round making bourgeois statements, and ill informed prejudicial judgements etc, etc and so on and so forth. Chan looked both entranced (because Rena's top was sliding dangerous low and it was in this direction that Chan's gaze was averted) and scared witless. At one point Rena paused for breath and Chan sighed and looked in askance at the sky and said why is every girl I hit on crazy! to nobody in particular and with some resignation.

You think girls are crazy? Well now you are just being sexists! I'll have you know...and Rena was off again, waving her bottle around in big circles to emphasise her point. Chan did not run away as I had expected him too, but just continued to stare at her chest with great fascination. I sense he will be hit with another rant as soon as Rena realises where he is looking.

Suki was in full-on kyoshi warrior instructor mode now. She had at least eight drunken girls trying to copy the fan dance she was doing on the lawns in front of the band. Suki has the rare ability to make young girls everywhere want to copy her/be like her (it is probably why she is the youngest ever leader of the kyoshi warriors) and it appears that drunken firenation girls are no exception to the Suki-factor. The fan dance was going a little askew, but what the drunk girls' movements lacked in precision, they made up for in enthusiasm.

Rei and Long Tongue were talking about fire-bending. Apparently Long Tongue is also a bender.

I found Sokka just as he was leaving to go mingle with the 'adults' because Ron Jian was going to introduce Sokka to his dad, the admiral. I left them too it. Sokka can probably wheedle some interesting stuff out of a drunken admiral.

All in all this is shaping up to be a pretty good party. Who knows what we would find out!

-?-

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authors notes: not as long and rambly as last time.

lovely readers! You have reached the end of party tricks! Thank you and I hope you enjoyed it! Giant thank you to all my brilliant wonderful and fabulous reviewers! You guys know I have nothing but love for you! So this chapter was meant to be light-hearted and fluffy because I wanted to counterbalance next chapter which will be somewhat darker.

So Katara will look really gorgeous this chapter and Zuko will have a wow...(bollocks did I just say wow out loud?) moment. Katara entertains the idea of doing that incredibly brave thing that Rozin did. Because it really does take a lot of courage to to just come out with an I really like you, like that. But alas, it was not to be this time. Because Zuko has to stay at home and be a good team dad for the night. I do think he and Aang and Toph will have a nice night, even despite the fact that none of them can go to the party. I think Zuko's not really into parties anyway. He'll let them stay up late and eat too much dessert etc, but other than that he'll look after them.

So I elaborated more of the colonials vs poffs in this chapter, because I do think that before people get a little squiffy, they'd pretty much stick to their distinct groups. So there are two very separate groups at the start of the party. And we have Chan and Ron Jian as guest stars. Charmed Ravenclaw suggested it and I just love the idea! I had Chan hit on Rena because I thought it would be kind of funny. Poor guy has no luck! He hits on Azula, hits on Rena and both times he gets treated to an arse-ton of girl crazy.

Anyway, I think Suki and Sokka and Katara aren't really part of this whole two-tiered society and so they are a bit more confident about approaching the poffs and moving seamlessly between the groups and after the initial contact and icebreaking party tricks and a few champagnes, people are more inclined to mingle with eachother.

So none of the Gaang are going to get too wankered at this, so if you are on the edge of your seat for riotous drunken celebration you may have to wait a bit longer. The riotous drunken celebration will happen after Sozin's comet, this party is all about fact finding and getting some new info is the main goal of our three musketeers. They'll have a few drinks to fit in/not seem like prudes but mostly they'll all be responsible enough to try and stay focused and not get too crazy. Suki with her dance lessons, will try and get info out of the kids, Sokka is going to try hang out with the menfolk and Katara is going to try and mingle with some older gossiping mothers.

But just because they are are trying to stay cool, calm and collected, doesn't mean the other kids will do the same. Rei actually starts out a bit squiffy and is a bit more communicative and prone to demonstrating her weird skills. I knew a girl who could skip her arms. It was absolutely fascinating and she did it all the time at parties. Rena also gets fair drunk and gives many rants.

As people get a bit drunk, more shenanigans happen, like the Suki-factor: I think suki's got a fair bit of charisma to be the youngest ever leader of the Kyoshi warriors. I also reckon she has moves! I have a friend who is a very charismatic dancer and for some reason, some nights she can get heaps of people following her movements (other nights, no dice, so it's a bit of hit and miss there). But anyway, it's normally a bit hilarious to watch/ take part in and I guess I just like the mental image of Suki trying to teach a horde of drunken girls how to do the fan dance.

Katara is a good healer (though she tells the kids she's in training because really she is quite young to be considered a proper physician.) I have a friend who's a nurse and whenever we go to the pub, she is always beset by people wanting medical advice over a wide range of medical problems (most of these are somewhat embarrassing). They have the sort of problems they would never talk about 1) while sober and 2) to a person they might see again. And much fun is had by all. Does this happen to other people who have some medical knowledge? Or is it just that my friend attracts oversharers? Anyway Katara suffers a similar fate with all the firenation kids confiding in her about their weird rashes, itches and infections.

Rena likes to mess with people and she has figured out that all the gaang aren't really cousins and that Katara fancies Zuko (from beinga roundthem for a few hours and seeing all the longing glances etc). However, even though she knows they aren't really cousins, she hasn't figured out much more than that. She certainly doesn't know they are team avatar etc (she's not sherlock holmes or anything, she's just observant). She's not really fussed either way because the gaang are the nicest people she's met in the firenation and she figures they must be lying for a reason, so she is happy to go along with the 'cousin' story. However she is still going to try and get a rise out of Katara re: cousin fancying. Wouldn't you? That's what all her speech about how if she had a cousin like Katara's cousin is about. She's trying to make Katara blush.

Next chapter: Katara will find some new friends, find out what her dad's been up too and learn exactly how Zuko got his scar. And there will be drama!

Til then lovely readers!