In this one Aang's hurt by people who are not his parents, see, I can make up new ideas. In this little scene he tells Ty-Lee (his future love-interest) his story so I'll let him do that, but let me just say, he has Not had a good time. And he hides who he is so he doesn't get more dead. Okay that's all.

Li was afraid. He hadn't felt this apprehensive in a while. Ty-Lee was also apprehensive, but for a different reason. She was almost afraid for him, which was silly. She wasn't doing anything, and she'd be fine, except if she decided to betray him in which he would kill her, I'm sorry Ty-Lee but I'm telling you things I haven't told anyone, and the last time I told someone it turned terrible. I'm not trying to be overdramatic, and I don't necessarily agree with killing for fun, but if you even make it seem like you might tell someone, I can't let you live.

But over 100 times, Ty-Lee had promised she was on his side. Even if you're the avatar, she'd said, and you tell me it's your destiny to kill the Firelord, I'm on your side. (That had been an… awkward conversation because of something Li wasn't, but for sure, he wasn't going to attack the Firelord. That was for sure.) Obviously Ty-Lee had seen his discomfort, because she had said, I don't even care if you tell me you're planning on killing the Water Tribe kids, or show me that you're a well known murderer, or that you're a wanted fugitive, or anything. I'm here for you.

So Li had smiled and said okay for the 9th time and this time he was going to do it. He was actually going to do it. But he didn't want to, and it was really really scary, and he felt more scared than he had felt in literally forever.

"Okay. I need you to turn around. I'm going to… I'm going to… Sorry. I'm going to take off my hat and gloves and shirt and then you're going to turn around and I'm going to… we're going to talk."

Ty-Lee nodded and quietly turned around. She was shaking. Li felt bad about it because he wasn't supposed to hurt her, but this was hard for him, and he needed to do this but if he didn't do it now he wouldn't be okay so - "First thing is that my name isn't Li. But no one calls me my old name. Ever." He breathed. Li breathed, and took off his hat and gloves and shirt.

It was colder than he remembered, and he felt exposed. He had gotten used to the cloth always touching him, in a way assuring him that it was there; telling him he was safe. Still, it was almost freeing, in a way, to have his skin touch the air. The hairs on his arm rose to the air, and he hated it. He hated it because of what it meant, but he loved the feeling, and he hated that he loved it.

Li breathed, and felt exposed and free and terrified.

"Okay," he said. "I'm ready. You can… you can turn around." Ty-Lee turned around and stared at him and he didn't smile but his face curved into something and it felt unpleasant - like fear and anger - and he wasn't sure what to do. "When I ran away from my… my… temple, I got… stuck. For 96 years - but I don't remember it and I didn't age, so don't… don't worry about it. Then I got arrested a lot and people weren't exactly nice to me. Obviously." It was hard to force the words out. He trusted Ty-Lee, but he had - he had trusted so many before - "So that's the story. I'm illegal."

Ty-Lee stared. "You're an ai - "

"No!" He physically forced himself to relax. "No. I don't bend. I don't have any morals. I'm not… that."

"But you were."

"I… guess. But that was a long time ago."

"What happened? Can you - are you - "

"Katara's dad found me, I accidentally caused the death of some of his friends, and he chucked me in the Fire Nation."

"Oh."

There was silence and it was awkward. Li was still curving his mouth in a strange distorted thing that couldn't have been a smile, but was something strange and unrecognizable. Finally, Ty-Lee broke the silence, which was good because Li wasn't going to. "Did he know this would happen to you? I mean, surely it wasn't on… purpose?"

Li didn't know why they were talking about this, instead of his skin, but he was okay with it. This was easy to talk about. He'd been waiting for a chance to talk about it for four years. "I don't know how it could have not been on purpose. He really hated me. He sent men down to beat me. I didn't signal the Fire Nation over on purpose, but it was like I had literally murdered the entire village. For a while I thought he would hate his - for a while I worried about Katara."

He physically forced himself to breathe. Li breathed. "I worried that since she had done it with me that he'd be mad at her, but he wasn't - she's his princess. So. There was no reason for that fear."

Quietly, Li tried to regain his composure. Ty-Lee likes Katara. "Anyway. He left me in very clear Fire Nation territory, near a place where they had, for years, hunted down… my… people. That can't be an accident. I've thought about it for a long time. It can't be an accident."

He relaxed. He physically relaxed. "All I know is that if I ever see that… man again, he won't live to see the next day. I'm a lot stronger than I was then."

"I understand."

And he kept talking to her, telling her little things, and she didn't have any questions and didn't mention his skin, so maybe he was okay. She kept on saying that she understood, too, which was interesting. With anyone else, he would have thought it to be mocking, and silly. With her, though, he could maybe start to believe it. Maybe.