"Katara!" Sokka shouted.

He was yards behind her. The ground beneath him still had snow on it, but the ground beneath her was just dirt. This was the furthest they've ever been, and Katara was daring to go further.

It was safe on the snow though. The snow meant cold, and after spending 10 years in the South Pole, they'd discovered that the Infected couldn't handle the snow. Or the cold, for that matter. Their bodies couldn't produce heat like a normal person, so they froze over much faster. People realized this and built the town further south, unreachable to the Infected that attempt to attack. These conditions were difficult for anyone to live in, but for the villagers, it was a life they'd grown used to.

However, it was a life Katara had grown bored with; sitting around and watching the world fall apart wasn't her idea of fun. In fact, it only angered the teenager. The rage within her grew daily as the news announced one city fallen after another. She wanted to do something, anything, but the letters from her father ordered her to do nothing, and her brother made sure of just that.

"Get back here, Katara!" He snapped at his sister.

"The animals are out here, Sokka. If we want to eat, we need to explore!"

That earned her a glare. She was right, of course, but Sokka wasn't okay with it. He followed her out though, leaves and branches crunching beneath his feet, a sound he wasn't used to.

They quickly moved to their normal position, back to back. Their guns were out, and their eyes were glued to the scenery around them. Nothing was going to get by them. Nothing ever had. This was something they've done for years, something they've perfected. While they could handle themselves when alone, together they were unstoppable force.

A crack was heard from a distance, stopping them in their tracks. Sokka pointed up to a tree, and Katara rushed over to it, climbing it with ease, while Sokka stood at the base. She looked out with her binoculars, hoping for some kind of animal, hopefully a polarbear-dog, or a penguinfox. They had no such luck though.

"Infected!" She shouted down to her brother.

"I told you this would happen!"

Despite his annoyance, Sokka reached up to help his sister down. She didn't move. He looked up at her with fear in his eyes as he called for her again, "Katara! Come on. We have to-"

"There's a boy!" She called back.

"And probably some girls too. The infection isn't sexist, Katara." Sarcasm was the only thing he had to mask his fear.

"No. I mean… Sokka, I don't think he's Infected."

"Good for him. Now let's go."

Even though his reply was a normal one, Katara couldn't help but be disgusted. She could never understand how Sokka could be so selfless and so selfish at the same time. But she did take the moment to climb down. The second she hit the ground, she moved towards the Infected instead of away, like Sokka was doing.

The second he noticed, Sokka turned around.

"Katara!"

"I'm not going to let him die!" She called back to her brother, not even bothering to stop. Katara was determined to help, and nothing was going to stop her.

"Idiot." Sokka grumbled to himself before chasing after Katara. There was no way he was going to let his sister face those Infected on her own.

Sokka followed his sister to find the group of Infected and the boy. The stranger looked odd. His skin was lighter than Sokka and Katara's, and he was bald with this odd tattoo on his head. For a split second, Sokka questioned the tattoo, but convinced himself it wasn't the time to think about that, it was the time to fight.

While the mysterious stranger fought off the Infected with just his hands, Katara and Sokka pulled out their weapons and began to fire. It was enough to draw the attention away from the boy onto them, which was the last thing Sokka wanted. He wanted them dead, even that stupid boy. It was his fault they were there now, and there was no way he was going to lose his life to save him, nor was he going to let his sister sacrifice her life for him either. This was so stupid.

"Get away!" The boy shouted at the siblings.

"Not until-" Katara began, but she was cut off.

An Infected got onto the stranger, biting down on his shoulder. The boy let out a scream of pain, throwing the body off of him. Sokka took the shot, aiming right for the head of the Infected. He was about to take aim at the stranger, but Katara stopped him.

"KATARA!"

"Wait! Look!"

Sokka did as his sister told him. The boy was on the ground screaming in pain as the virus attacked his brain cells. Instead he was attacking the final Infected, who was barely able to stand. In fact, he didn't even look bothered by the bit or the virus. He looked… normal.

"How…?" Sokka asked, in a daze.

He had seen so many change. He knew how fast the virus worked. He knew what it did to a person. And all those things? They weren't happening to the boy in front of them.

As Sokka looked on, confused, Katara took the shot, killing the final Infected.

"Are you alright?" Katara asked, keeping her distance. This was nothing she had ever seen before, and she wasn't stupid enough to run up to the stranger. Just because he looked alright didn't mean he was.

"Yeah. I'm fine. They've been chasing me for miles," the boy answered.

Hearing the boy's voice snapped Sokka out of his daze. He quickly aimed his gun at the boy once more.

"Alright kid! Who are you, and more importantly, WHAT are you?"

"My… my name is Aang." The boy replied.

Katara was finally getting a good look at him. He looked tired and thin, as if he hadn't slept or eaten in days, and the fact he could barely stand was proving that point.

"He is sick!" Sokka pointed out.

Right before he took the shot, Katara stopped him.

"No!" Aang said before Katara could. "I'm… I'm not. I know it's hard to believe but… I can't. I can't get sick."

Both Katara and Sokka gave him a look of disbelief.

"What do you mean?" Katara asked politely.

Sokka, on the other hand, was not as polite. "Everyone's affected. What do you think we are? Idiots?"

Aang couldn't stand any longer. He fell to his knees while trying to keep himself up. It was then that Katara noticed all his scars: bite marks.

"We have to take him back to the village." She ordered Sokka.

"NO WAY!" Sokka hissed. "I'm not bringing him back. I'm not putting my village in danger."

Katara rolled her eyes. "Your village? Sokka, you aren't the chief."

"I might as well be with dad gone!"

"Well, chief, I'm ignoring your order." Katara went over to the boy, helping him up.

"Thank you," Aang whispered.

"Don't talk. We'll get you back to the village and you can tell us what happened after you've rested."

Aang looked at Katara, smiling at her, at his savior. He couldn't look at her for long though — it was his first break in weeks, so he took a chance and closed his eyes.

As Aang slept. Katara and Sokka (who had wanted nothing to do with Aang), helped him back to the village. He slept for days.