Chapter 2:
Freya, Katara and Sokka sat in the room they'd been given, their beds lining the walls and a table sitting between them. Aang had disappeared to think as Sokka was lounging around on his bed and Katara looked through the scrolls Aang had been given.
Freya sat on the floor with her hands together and her eyes closed, meditating. She had a sphere of water hovering above a bowl before her in which she was concentrating on. Katara glanced at her quite often as the sphere retained a perfect shape from Freya's concentration.
"It's amazing how you do that." Katara's voice sounded
"What?" Freya asked without moving
"Move the water while you're so still."
"Little things I can. But some masters can move their elements without moving a limb." Freya said "One day I'd like to be that good." she smiled.
"That's incredible."
"What I find incredible is that Freya can sit so still for so long." Sokka interrupted
"I wont be able to if you distract me." Freya said annoyed
"I'm just saying it seems like a waste of time to me."
"That's because you don't understand it's implications or necessity." Freya said calmly as she took a deep breath. "Meditation allows me to create a deeper connection with my bending. I understand it better."
"That's probably why she's so good and fluent." Katara smiled and Freya simply nodded.
The girl stopped however as the door opened and Aang walked in. The water poured itself calmly and peacefully back into the bowl as Aang moved through the room to sit on his bed.
"I told the general I'd help him… by going into the Avatar state." Aang suddenly declared as Katara watched him, Momo in her lap.
"Aang, no. This is not the right way." she believed as Momo ran away.
"Why not? Remember when he took out the Fire Navy? He was incredible." Sokka believed
"And dangerous." Freya said "If not for the Ocean Spirit there's no telling what could have happened."
"There's a right way to do this. Practice, study, and discipline." Katara said
"Or just glow it up and stop that Fire Lord." Sokka shrugged. Freya pursed her lips as she scowled at the boy, lying on his bed with his hands behind his head.
"If you two meatheads want to throw away everything we've worked for, fine. Go ahead and glow it up!" Katara snapped before she turned for the door.
"Katara, I'm just being realistic." Aang pleaded "I don't have time to do this the right way." she left anyway and Aang looked ashamed.
"But Aang, what if something goes wrong while you're in the avatar state, and you hurt a lot of people?" Freya asked carefully. Aang looked at her but he turned away, not having an answer to that.
Freya sighed and she got up to follow Katara.
"Can you believe them?!" Katara said as she paced through the corridor
"No. But we can keep an eye on them." Freya said
"And if something goes wrong?" Katara worried
"Katara, you calmed Aang down once before, remember." Freya smiled "He may be, somewhat lost within himself, but there's always a way to bring a person back." Katara looked at her before she sighed.
"Fine." she said "But this isn't going to end well."
"No. But then we get to say 'I told you so'." Freya shrugged, Katara chuckled and nodded.
"Okay." Freya nodded too before the younger girl turned and walked back to the room.
Freya however moved off through the building. She continued until she found an empty room and closed the door behind her.
Freya took a deep breath and she raised her hands.
"Well, your fire bending needs work. It's sloppy. At least compared to your water bending." Zuko said and Freya rose an eyebrow at him. She saw his turned away gaze and smirked slightly before snorting.
"Thanks for that." she nodded sarcastically "I needed your input. My fire bending's worse because I didn't spend as much time with my father as I did with my mother. I haven't has as much practice." Zuko glanced at her as she crossed her arms stubbornly but at his gaze she couldn't help but smirked.
It is sloppy. And to change that, I need practice. Freya moved her arms, but no fire appeared. She moved through her stances, remembering all the times she'd watched Zuko battle her, or take a lesson from Iroh. She started and stopped several times, grounding her teeth when she made a wrong move and taking deep breaths to keep her anger in check.
"I will get better." she declared to herself before she started again.
Aang sat in a small arbour in front of a table. Freya, Katara and Sokka sat behind him as man sat before him and General Fong beside him. A water fall fell over the rocks to the side and the base was down the hills beyond the cliff they were upon.
On the table was a simple teapot, steaming with hot liquid, and a cup. A jug was beside it as the man took a small crumb from it with his chopsticks and put it in the teapot.
"This rare chi-enhancing tea is a natural stimulant. In an ordinary warrior it improves strength and energy ten-fold. In you, it may induce the Avatar state." he poured Aang a cup of the tea and the airbender lifted the cup.
"Ten-fold energy, huh?" Aang took a sip before he paused and his eyebrow twitched a few times.
Aang was racing around on his air scooter as Freya sighed. The man watched the avatar surprised as Sokka slumped his head into his hand.
"Is it working, is it working? I can't tell! Somebody tell me if I'm in the Avatar state 'cause I don't have a good view of myself! Am I talking too loud?" Aang zipped through his words quickly as Freya felt her hair being blown around from the boy's shooter.
"I guess he could talk the Fire Lord to death." Sokka offered as the general stroked his beard.
Freya whipped her hand and cut through Aang's air shooter as he flew behind them. The boy slammed into one of the pillars holding up the roof with an 'oof'. Katara crossed her arms as Freya sighed and Aang fell to the floor.
Next Sokka decided to have a shot. Katara and Freya sat behind Aang as the General stood behind the three of them, Sokka standing in front.
"Maybe I can shock you into the Avatar state." Sokka offered
"I love surprises." Aang admitted cheerfully. Katara covered the boy's eyes and Sokka grabbed Momo. Freya shook her head as Katara uncovered the air bender's eyes. Sokka launched forwards with his head inside his top and Momo's head in his place.
Aang shouted, flinching away at the Momo headed human before he looked at his hands.
"Still not glowing." Aang said, holding up his hands. Sokka began to stumble sideways from the extra weight, crying out as he did.
The general stopped stroking his beard and shook his head.
Next they moved downstairs into a shine. Aang was dressed in several different pieces of clothing of different colours as Sokka, Katara, Freya and the General stood to the side. An old man stood at a pedestal before the avatar.
"You are wearing a ceremonial piece of clothing from each of the bending nations." Aang had an earthbending helmet with green feathers off the top, a water tribe fur robe, his usual air bending outfit and a piece of armour of a firebender. "Now I will join the four elements into one!" The priest lifted a pan of dirt and a jug of water, pouring them into the bowl before him. "Water, earth, fire, air!" he grabbed a torch and fanned in some air before mixing the concoction together "Four elements together as one!" he suddenly threw the mixture all over Aang, only for the boy to be covered in mud.
"This is just mud!" Aang complained
"So... do you feel anything?" the man wondered. Aang held up his hand before he paused and his nose twitched. Freya bit her lip as Katara, Sokka and the general look expectant.
Aang sneezed and Freya waved her hand as the mud went flying at them. Katara, Sokka and the general were covered as Freya water bended the mixture away from her, leaving her clean.
"We have to find a way." the general said as he wiped his face.
"If you asks me this proves we shouldn't be doing anything. The avatar state is not to be trifled with." Freya believed and she was first to leave the room.
Freya moved back to her room she'd found as the sun began to set outside. She took her stance and a deep breath before beginning her practicing. Again, she used no actual fire.
Aang sat on a balcony, looking out at the ocean as the sun set behind it. Katara leaned on the balcony wall beside him, thinking.
"Can we talk about something?" Katara asked
"Sure." Aang allowed
"Do you remember when we were at the air temple and you found Monk Gyatso's skeleton? It must have been so horrible and traumatic for you. I saw you get so upset that you weren't even you anymore." Aang looked down, frowning "I'm not saying the Avatar state doesn't have incredible —and helpful power. But you have to understand, for the people who love you, watching you be in that much rage and pain is really scary." Katara admitted
"I'm really glad you told me that. But I still need to do this." Aang believed
"I don't understand." Katara admitted
"No, you don't. Every day more and more people die. I'm already a hundred years late. Defeating the Fire Lord is the only way to stop this war. I have to try it." Aang explained
"I can't watch you do this to yourself." Katara admitted as she wrapped her arms around her torso. "I'm not coming tomorrow." she walked towards the door "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." Aang returned sadly.
He turned to follow Katara and peered into their room but who he was looking for wasn't there.
Aang moved through the building. He peered in a few rooms before he stopped and looked surprised. Freya was moving through stances in the room, her eyes closed. Already he knew they weren't water bending stances, the motions were not as fluid and graceful as he had seen Freya use before.
"What are you doing?" Freya turned to him surprised
"What does it look like?" she asked
"Uh… bending? But with no bending." he shrugged
"Yeah well, the fire might burn the place down." she admitted before she continued
"You practicing your fire bending?" Aang asked surprised
"My fire bending is sloppy and weak. I'm not nearly as good at it as I am water bending." Freya explained "If it hadn't been for Zuko, I probably wouldn't have been able to take on Zhao alone." she kicked her foot and thrusted her fists. "I need to practice. I need to refine it. I feel like I've lost a bit of my touch on it since a hundred years ago also."
"But how? You don't have a teacher? There's no one to teach you." Aang said as he walked into the room.
"No. But I've got what my father taught me, and I watched a lot of Zuko's training on the ship while I was there. Iroh was his teacher. I can't get it perfect but I can copy enough to at least get a better understanding." she said
"Why are you doing it here in this room?" Aang asked
"It's away from everyone." she shrugged.
Aang frowned.
"You're going to have to tell Sokka and Katara eventually."
"I know." she said "But what's the point when it's a little useless? Besides, we need to concentrate on getting you to Bumi. If that's what we decide's better that is."
Aang frowned and he moved to sit against the wall.
"Freya… I'm doing the right thing right?" he asked.
Freya frowned.
"Well, you're doing this in order to help people right?" she asked as she stood up straight and moved to sit beside him. "You don't want people to suffer in this war anymore." she understood
"Exactly, but what if you and Katara are right? What if I shouldn't be messing around with this stuff?"
"First of all, I think I'm right anyway. Second… I think it's noble to want to help people and feeling remorse and compassion for those people is a good thing. But forcing power isn't. You don't think about the consequences and you could seriously hurt someone." she explained "I understand that we're on a time limit, but this is too important to mess around with and take the easy way out on."
Aang frowned as he brought his knees to his chest.
"I don't know what to do." Aang said
"But you'll figure out the right path." Freya assured
"What if I hurt someone in order to get there?"
"Aang, you're not alone." Freya said and he looked at her "Sokka, Katara and I aren't going to let anything bad happen to you. I promise." Aang looked at her as she smiled.
"Thanks Freya."
"Anytime." she assured.