"The Bai Tao arrived in our port just an hour ago," Iroh said.

"They're late," Zuko grumbled.

"The scout said they were delayed by a large sea serpent," Iroh said. "I am quite excited, honestly."

Zuko's eyes slightly widened. "Have they found the Avatar?"

"No." Iroh smiled. "But it's music night, and I heard that they have a fantastic erhu player on board their ship. I've already sent Kuro out of uniform to buy that nice flute that I saw the night before."

Zuko's eyes narrowed, and Iroh went back to meekly eating his pickled vegetables until he thought of something else to say. The loss of the lotus tile still weighed heavily on his mind. His heart ached every time he saw his incomplete set.

"They did, however, learn the location of Kyoshi Island. Apparently it's not too far from here."

"The home of the Kyoshi Warriors," Zuko said, faintly intrigued, and Iroh had to take a sip of his jook to hide his smile. "Are you sure, Uncle? I thought it was a myth."

Iroh shrugged. "That is a good question for Captain Jung."

"You know them better than anyone in the Fire Nation, Uncle. What are they like? Can they be convinced to join our cause?"

"Hmm...It is worth trying, perhaps, but I would be cautious. If they had one true loyalty, it would be to the Avatar. If anything, they'd help him..."

Zuko's hands pounded the table in excitement. "Kyoshi Island! That's where the Avatar is hiding!"

Iroh silently cursed at his own loose tongue. Back to this dreadful Avatar business. "I'm sure he's already long moved past this area by now."

It was then that the spirits decided to further torment Iroh, for Kuro slid open the door. He gave two quick bows and then said, "Apologies for interrupting, Prince Zuko, but I bring news of the Avatar. He is on Kyoshi Island."

"I knew it!" Zuko scrambled to his feet.

Iroh sipped his juke to hide a slight frown. "And you know this...how?" he asked skeptically.

"The entire market was talking about it, sir. I checked with multiple sellers. Oh, and here's the flute, General Iroh. It cost a gold piece; I think the merchant still suspected that I was Fire Na–"

"Never mind that!" Zuko snapped, already halfway out the door. "Uncle, get me Captain Jung. He's not getting away from me this time!"

Iroh pointed at his nephew's untouched fish. "Are you going to finish breakfast?"

Zuko snatched the plate off the table, briefly glaring at Iroh before running off again. "I was going to save it for later!" his voice echoed from down the hall.

Iroh shook his head and picked up the flute. "Kuro, do you know if anyone on this ship knows how to play this thing? Because I definitely do not..."

Aang was never planning on leaving Kyoshi. That it had taken five days for Katara to admit that was a testament to her gullibility and weakness.

He'd said he wouldn't let his newfound popularity get to his head. Promised it. And she trusted him! It was that disarming smile of his, those deceptive penguin eyes. Here she was, practicing her waterbending, keeping herself busy gathering supplies from the local markets, and there Aang was, spinning marbles, gliding through the sky, letting precious time fly by him like the wind while he entertained his posse of mindless fans with basic airbending gimmicks. Her blood heated up every time she imagined his stupid, grinning face.

So it was outrageous how much restraint she was placing on herself when she politely turned to Aang and asked, "Aang, can you help me carry this pot back to the room? It's a little heavy."

Aang waved off the pot of vegetables. "Actually, I can't right now," he said, glancing anxiously back at a crowd of little girls in the distance.

Katara's teeth slightly clenched. "What do you mean, 'you can't'?"

"I promised the girls I'd give ride the Unagi. I just came by to ask if...you wanted to come? It'll be fun!"

Katara went back to stuffing vegetables in the pot, throwing them in to the beat of her own pulsing frustration. Did she pay for those? Yes, no, did it matter? "Watching you show off for a bunch of girls doesn't sound like fun."

"Well, neither does carrying your pot," Aang said disappointedly. "The Unagi's pretty dangerous, you know? It's this big giant sea monster! I could get eaten!"

If only... Katara thought bitterly. "It's not my basket. These supplies are for our trip. We can't stay here forever, Aang. I already told Sokka. We're leaving tomorrow."

"I don't want to leave Kyoshi yet. I can't put my finger on it, but there's something I really like about this place. I guess it feels like—"

"What's taking you so long, Aangy?" one of the fangirls shouted in the distance, hands on her hips in disapproval.

Aang waved back enthusiastically. "Just a second, Koko!"

"'Simple monk', huh?" Katara said sarcastically, slamming her basket down in front of a fruit stand. "You promised me that this Avatar stuff wouldn't go to your head."

Aang's lips drooped down for a moment before curling back up. "I didn't. Don't you wanna come explore the island with me? There's an awful lot of abandoned buildings in the forest to explore."

"Remember the Fire Nation ship?"

Aang paused, no doubt planning out a new angle of attack. "You know what I think?" he asked—as if she gave a damn. "You just don't want to come because you're jealous!"

"Jealous?" Katara's voice went up a pitch. "Of what?"

Aang took a step back but maintained a disgusting smirk. "Jealous that I'm having so much fun without you."

"That's ridiculous!" She could feel her cheeks warm in anger.

"It is a little ridiculous, but I understand. I don't care if you come either way, I just thought..."

Katara raised her free hand threateningly but thought better of it. She grabbed the basket and stomped away. So the Avatar was going to risk his life to impress some girls? They still had a world to save! Didn't he care at all?

No, of course he didn't. He'd learned that the entire Air Nation had been wiped out a hundred years ago, but it just took him a couple days of free food to get over it. The Avatar was a child stuck in his own little world where nothing mattered. Just what the world needed.

She snuck a glance back towards Aang, only to catch him doing the same.

Sokka leapt across the room with unusual grace, as if simply wearing a dress and make-up made him naturally more girly and acrobatic. He couldn't decided whether to be proud or embarrassed at himself.

He finished his set with a downward slash of the fan before returning to a neutral position. "I think I'm getting the hang of this, Captain" he said.

The past few days had been almost surreal, training how to fight with fans in make-up and a dress. He'd never thought it was possible for a man to fall to such depths, much less enjoy the experience.

Suki smirked. "Still too rigid," she said.

Sokka's shoulders straightened. In a way, Suki's arrogance drove him. Her approval was something he believed unobtainable, and that was why he had to have it. Just a small, non-backhanded compliment would be enough.

Suki pulled out her own fan and began demonstrating the drill to Sokka again. "With fans, it's not as much about your own strength." She began adding new movements here and there, little flourishes that turned the simple exercise into a mesmerizing, lethal dance. Her feet were both rooted to the ground and barely touching it; her body flowed naturally, yet each step was full of ferocity. "Your timing is correct," she said between grunts, "but your stiffness wastes energy. Fans are defensive weapons. Let your opponent strike first. Then use her own force against her."

Sokka flinched as she swung the fan towards him, stopping just short of his neck. "Once she's exposed—"

"Take him down," Sokka interjected excitedly, swinging his fan at the air in the process. "Um, Captain."

Her lips curled into an actual smile. "Try to go for the throat. Bloody, but it's probably the only guaranteed way to kill."

Sokka's own smile vanished, and he shifted himself in discomfort. A familiar bad feeling skittered around inside his head. He wasn't quite sure what it was. He was familiar with death, having seen his father fight those Fire Nation bastards up close. He was familiar with killing...well, killing animals at least. He was born with a warrior's spirit, like all men in his tribe. So just what was—

"There's no room for hesitation in battle, Sokka," Suki said softly, harshly. Was he being that obvious? "That is why we train. Conscious decisions must be reduced to instinct. To quote the poet—Hit me."

He swung his right fan at Suki upon hearing those last two words; she slid just out of his reach and grabbed his arm. All of it was reflex for Sokka at this point, though each time he was humiliated in a slightly different manner. She always seemed just barely out of reach, her blurred form grazing his fierce strikes, teasing him.

He felt a light tap on his elbow. "Close, actually.," Suki said. "But still too slow, and now you're down an arm.

Sokka was still checking his arm when she said "Hit me" again. He attacked; she parried, slicing at Sokka's neck at the same time. But he managed to avoid her countermove, ducking under it faster than he'd imagined possible and slamming an elbow into her gut. Her feet briefly left the ground.

The moment Suki hit the floor, Sokka realized he didn't know what to do next. Wait for her to get up? Run away? Say something snarky? Or maybe...maybe...

He realized what his body was doing, watching in horror an arm bring down a war fan like a club, as if it wasn't his own right arm and his own weapon. He curved his swing off to the side, sending the fan flying out of a window.

And then Sokka was instantly back where he belonged: face down on the floor under Suki's shadow, curled in painful defeat. "You hesitated," he heard her say. "Hesitating. You were hesitating."

"Yeah," Sokka groaned, flopping on to his back, only to curl back up again.

He caught Suki staring at him with an inscrutable expression, as if she was also deciding what to feel, but she quickly averted her gaze to the window. "Good throw," she said.

"Still got you..." He scrunched his face in pain. "Captain."

"We're done for today." She was already out the door.

He spread himself on the floor as the pain became more bearable, but it was only replaced by gnawing feeling of uncertainty. Was it the uniform? It really was rather tight in some places. Maybe he was just hungry?

"What's wrong with the Kyoshi Warriors?" he wondered out loud. Why did he just say that?

After a short eternity of pondering he finally got off his sorry butt and picked up his fan, only to toss them back to the floor. He needed answers. Answers to what was bothering him.

Really, what was bothering him?

The Kyoshi girl named Hiru twirled her hair as she scanned Sokka with a curious smile. "Medicine room is third building to the left, right there," she said. "Can't miss it."

"Thanks, Hiru," Sokka said.

She frowned. "It's Hiroe."

"Sorry," he said, shrugging off his embarrassment.

Hiroe frowned even harder. "You know, usually the Captain doesn't..." Her lips curled up in a way that made Sokka nervous. "Well, I guess it's you."

Sokka narrowed his eyes. What was she trying to say? "Yeah, it's...me."

Now it was Hiroe's turn to scrutinize. Whatever it was she found in his expression, she didn't think too much of it, as she simply snorted and walked away muttered something about boys. Sokka waited a few seconds before doing the same. Every girl on this island was just like damn Katara. Arrogant, mean, holding some sort of grudge against him. Every girl...

Suki was hunched over one of the sleeping mats, still in full uniform, dabbing the face of a girl with a wet cloth. Her patient seemed to be about her age, but it was hard to tell with the bruises and bandages covering her face. It wasn't the first time he'd seen someone so badly wounded, but they were all grown men. She was just girl.

He cleared throat anyways. "Hey, Su—"

It was only after Suki had his right hand's three middle fingers in death grip, forcing him to his knees in pain, that he was able to appreciate just how at peace and relaxed she was moments before.

"What?" she asked...well, growled.

"Captain!" he shouted. "I mean, Captain!"

Sokka. "No, moron," she hissed. The anger seeping into her voice reminded Sokka of their first encounter. "What are you doing here?"

"A question, you know? I was just wonder—" Sokka swore he heard a finger crack as she threw him to the ground. "You bi–...why would you do that?"

For a brief moment, she looked ready to cut him open like a fish, and Sokka's right hand somehow managed to latch on to a small clay jug sitting beside him before fear completely froze him. In hindsight, not the great snap decision he'd ever made.

But something must've changed her mind, and she helped him get back on his feet. "I'm..." She shook her head. "What are you doing here?"

"To tell you that you're all crazy," Sokka murmured. He wiggled all his fingers, so amazed that they were still functioning that it took a couple seconds for him to realize that he'd actually forgotten why he was here. "All girls are damn crazy. Just thought I'd let you know."

Suki's expression hardened as she picked up the jug on the floor, swishing its contents around with some disgust. "Who sent you?" she asked accusingly. "Meiko?"

"No. What's that in the jar?

"Poison. Anyone know you're here?"

"Well I asked Hira for directions."

"Oh, Hiroe?" Suki's eyes darted between Sokka and the jug for a few seconds. Without warning, Suki took a sip from it, much to Sokka's horror. She made a face as she swallowed and half-placed, half-threw the jug off to the side. It landed upright, anyways.

"Suki, you just said that was poison!" He wanted to grab her and strangle her for her stupidity. Or save her, somehow. By strangling her? Why was he even here again?

Suki laughed, though not in a mean or sarcastic way like she usually did. "It's liquor," she said.

Sokka waited for her to elaborate. She scoffed. "Right, Water Tribe."

Sokka gave up after a few more seconds. "Can I have some?" he asked.

"I didn't say it wasn't poison." She picked the jug back up. "Bad for your mind, your focus. Kyoshi Warriors aren't supposed to dri—" She paused. "Don't tell anyone."

"Well maybe if you...let me..." Sokka swallowed the last few words back down, his boldness withering under Suki's glare. "So, um, why do you drink it then?"

"It reminds me of the past, you know," Suki said. She swished the jug around, as if doing so comforted her. "Like, you know, my..."

"Your parents", Sokka finished awkwardly. Stupid, stupid...

Suki's eyes focused on to him. She licked her lips, opened them, closed them. "You too?" she finally asked.

Sokka scanned the room for somewhere to sit. His legs were tired. He wanted to yawn. The back of his neck was itchy. "Just my mother," he said with a shrug. "My dad's...out there somewhere. The Fire Nation killed mom, so, you know..."

"I understand," Suki said. "I do, really."

Sokka rubbed an eye. Still dry, good. "Wait, is Oyaji your dad?"

Suki seemed to smile for just a moment before frowning. "No, no, my father also died. Uh, both my parents died to the war. Sort of."

And then Sokka suddenly remembered. "Your mother was a Kyoshi Warrior, wasn't she?" he asked. "The leader?"

Suki sat down on the floor and closed her eyes. "Not the leader, but a Warrior, yes."

Sokka did the same. "And they all went to fight the Fire Nation..."

"Yes. Oyaji ordered them not to, but..."

"But they haven't come back."

Suki let the silence answer for her.

That was why there weren't any grown women among the Kyoshi Warriors; they were all off fighting the war. Or dead. Sokka wanted to slap himself for not figuring it out sooner. But then how did she know—

Sokka screamed as a small hand latched on to his right arm, nails slightly digging into his skin. He turned to see the injured girl on the bed wide awake, staring at him with familiar, furious eyes. She made an effort to sit up and throw a quick jab straight for Sokka's face, but Suki deflected the blow.

"You!" the girl shouted, though she didn't resist as Suki roughly pinned her back to her mat. She was the one he managed to hit with his club a few days ago; he looked at the bandage that covered the left side of her face with a strange mix of pride and horror.

"I think you should leave," Suki commanded.

"Yeah, Su—" A different hand grabbed him, soft and cold and threatening. "Captain," he corrected.

It was only when Sokka saw the setting sun that he remembered what Katara had told him, and the thought of it made him groan. Leave? He'd just started making real progress in training with Suki. And there were still unanswered questions about Suki's past, the history of the island as a whole. Perhaps he should say goodbye to Suki now?

He noticed Hiroe lurking in the shadows nearby, huddled together with a small group of other Kyoshi Warriors, and they stared back at him, resenting his existence.

This was home, Aang thought as he slid aimlessly around in the cold ocean water on his back, half-swimming, half-gliding. This was it. This would be his new sanctuary, yes. He just needed a little more time to sort things out in his mind. Who knew, maybe the war would already be over soon. But if it wasn't, then, of course, he'd do something about it.

But that was serious stuff. Waiting for the Unagi, yes. He still had many friends on the shore in need of some fun. That would be his goal of the day: to ride the Unagi and make these lovely children happy. He was hoping Katara would come around, but it didn't seem like she was interested. She just didn't care, really, which hurt Aang a bit deeper than he wanted to admit. "Indifference is worse than hate," as Monk Gyatso liked to say...when he was...well...

Aang sank back a bit into the water and closed his eyes, listening to the gentle breeze. "Hello, Aang," it seemed to say, and Aang smiled, waving at the purple sky and falling orange sun.

"You left us."

Aang stopped waving, and the breeze hissed in disapproval. Cold water sprinkled his face, probably the fish that were starting to randomly leap in the air. Aang knew something was coming. Was it the Unagi?

"Fool," a wave suddenly roared, dragging Aang into the ocean. He quickly rose back to the surface and opened his eyes.

The sun had almost fully set; Koko and the others were nowhere to be found on the beach. How long had he been drifting like that? It'd gotten cold, too, and his teeth slightly chattered in fear, like a coward.

"Stop!" he cried. He couldn't let the past weigh him down. The earthly chains of the past, as Monk Gyatso—

Was dead. Aang let out a sob. Then he screamed at the sky. Then he sighed in disgust at himself. Then he sobbed a little again. It was an absurd cycle of emotions that didn't make the least bit of sense to him.

"They're all gone," he said softly. "The Fire Nation..."

"I have to do something about it," he countered.

"But I'm just a boy..."

"And...but...I'm also the Avatar!"

"Well I don't know what to do as Avatar..."

"Restore balance!"

"What does that mean?"

"Fulfill my duty!"

"But what is my duty?

"Deliver justice!"

"Or is it vengeance?"

A moment of clarity. "I made a mistake," he said calmly. "I made a mistake a hundred years ago. And now the Avatar has to fix it. You have to fix it, Aang."

Aang wasn't alone.

"Aang!" The voice came from the beach. It was barely audible, , but still enough to break the dreadful spell he had put himself under.

He sighed in relief. "Katara!" he shouted back with all his breath, delighted. He began swimming back to shore. "You came!"

She said something about worrying and how late or dark it was. She did care about him, after all. Well, of course, there was never really a reason for him to doubt it, after all she and Sokka did for him, but he still felt compelled to stop and shout, "I'm sorry for letting it all get to my head. I was being a jerk."

"Well get out of the water before you catch a cold, you big jerk!" Aang quickened his pace. It was a bit of a shame that he didn't get to ride the Unagi, but he decided that it didn't matter, really.

Without warning, the water suddenly split, and Aang found himself on solid ground. Solid, scaly ground, like a snake, with sharp fins running down the middle. The ground shivered a bit, and then it craned its long, snake-like neck around to reveal a snake-like face with two glowing green eyes and a pair of whiskers. Really, the Unagi was just one giant water snake, nothing too special. Aang decided that it definitely was not cool enough to ride. Aang also decided that it would be pretty cool if the Unagi turned out to be a vegetarian.

The Unagi roared as it swung to Aang's right, briefly revealing two rows of awfully sharp and pointy teeth before firing a powerful stream of water. Aang slipped behind one of the fins to shield himself from the blast. It occurred to him that he still hadn't come up with a plan to avoid becoming dinner. Small steps, small steps. So step one would be...he grabbed one of the Unagi's whiskers with both hands as its monstrous head lunged forward, snapping at him.

Aang flew back and forth across the air as the creature howled in disapproval at his bold move, and Aang screamed in sympathy while hanging for dear life; neither of them wanted to be in this situation, really. Why was that even step one? Swinging back and forth through the air was beginning to take its toll; he felt his focus slipping as everything around him began to make less and less sense.

A part of him was aware he had already let go when his mind finally entered the void.