Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
The chiming of a bell snapped a young man out of his thoughts, his eyes fixating on the large clock hanging above the train station room as he realized that if he didn't get moving, he would miss his train. Quickly gathering his things, he began moving from his view of the town where he had grown up in and made his way down the stairway, knowing there was no time to lose.
Though he was sad to leave the town he had called home since his birth, he knew that he would come back to it. And when he did, he would undoubtedly have some wonderful stories to tell his loving parents. He was very fortunate to have been raised by some of the kindest people he had ever known, and he thanked God every day that he had been given such loving and understanding parents.
Ever since he was a child, he always had more energy than the average kid his age, which had proved to be a bit of a challenge for his parents to keep up with. They had managed it, however, and instilled him with the values and beliefs that he cherished to this day. Not only that, but thanks to his father's love of sports, he had found a good way to channel his nearly boundless energy.
It was because of his parents' encouragement and his excitement to try the different sports that he had found a passion in the sport of basketball. As a child, he had always liked jumping off of things for fun, much to his parents' consternation. So it was only a natural fit when his father had introduced him to the sport of basketball, where he could spend his youthful energy running and leaping to his heart's content.
So it was that as he grew up, he honed his skills whenever he could, mostly playing with his friends in his younger days but actually joining his school's team as he spent his final years in schooling. He had been determined to show that he could be a great addition to his team, and so he did, helping his team to take home three out of the four championship trophies during his last years of schooling.
And it was because of his successful tactics, skills, and winning attitude that he had been invited to participate in the All-American Sports Competition, a new event that had been created to give the next generation the chance to prove their merit in the sports world. Something that the young man was eager to do.
The only problem with this, however, was that the competition was far away from his home. Sure, he had traveled quite a bit ever since he was old enough to go out on his own, but he had never been more than a two days' journey away. Now, he would have to travel to the other side of the country, leaving his parents to root him on while they stayed behind to continue running their business.
He wished that they could come with him, but he understood that they had their own responsibilities that he did not, and promised to write to them while he was away. Despite living by himself now, he had made it a habit to visit them often, and he knew now that he would not see them for some time.
Shaking these thoughts out of his mind as he reached the line, he decided to focus on what was most important. He was finally being given a chance to prove that he would make a great addition to any team, and despite the fact that he would miss his parents and his friends, he knew that he would return to them. With any luck, he would return with news of being recruited by a professional team, as was his dream since he had first begun playing.
"Next, please!"
Seeing that he was next, he once again gathered his things and moved forward, being greeted by a friendly smile, to which he smiled back. "Ticket, please," the lady requested politely.
"Of course," the young man answered cheerfully, digging inside of his coat pocket and producing his ticket before handing it to her. "Here you go."
"Thank you very much, Mr…"
"Thompson," he supplied helpfully. "Aang Thompson."
The lady looked up at him in surprise, a familiar reaction to his first name that had garnered him attention for all of his life. "Excuse my surprise," the lady apologized as she saw the look on his face. "I don't believe I've ever heard a name like that before."
"I would be surprised if you had," Aang laughed it off, making her take on a look of relief that he wasn't offended. "My parents wanted me to have a unique name when I was born, and after some research, they decided to give me a name that they had learned of after meeting some Tibetan Monks who were visiting the country."
"That is fascinating," the ticket lady said with clear interest, making Aang relieved to see that she wasn't weirded out by his parents' choice of name for him like most other people were when they would meet him. Handing him back his ticket, she then continued. "Well, Mr. Thompson, have a wonderful trip."
"Thank you, Ma'am," Aang smiled once more while tipping his hat to her and finally made his way onto the train, making sure to bring his belongings as the next person in line stepped forward. Climbing up the steps, he was then greeted by the conductor of the train and politely shown where his seat was. Giving thanks for the assistance, he then made his way to his seat and sat down, making sure to stow away his bags properly before looking around.
People slowly began filing in as he made himself comfortable, giving people friendly smiles and the occasional wave as they took their seats. After some time, it appeared that the final passenger took their seat and the conductor went to get the train started.
"Wait a minute!" a voice came from outside of the train, making Aang's eye brows raise in surprise. He hadn't expected any last minute arrivals to appear suddenly. Watching with interest as two figures climbed up the stairs, he became even more surprised to see that the latecomers had caramel-colored skin. One was a young man and the other was a young woman, both of whom appeared to be out of breath from trying to reach the train on time.
The ticket lady, who had not only been kind to Aang but cordial to everyone else who came after him, immediately took on a look of displeasure upon seeing the new arrivals. "You are late," was all she said, an air of disdain in her voice as she looked at them.
"Sorry," the woman apologized as she finally managed to catch her breath. "We had to run from home because my brother slept in too late and-"
"No excuses," the woman interrupted her, not appearing to care in the least about the two people in front of her, appalling Aang that the lady who had been so kind to him was acting in such a way to these people simply because of the color of their skin. "You are fortunate that you got here before we departed, or we would have left you behind. Tickets," she commanded in a completely unfriendly manner.
Aang could hardly believe that this was the very same woman who had spoken to him not twenty minutes ago, but his eyes did not deceive him. Turning his attention back to the two newcomers, he became surprised to see that they both were returning her steely look, yet neither of them said a word. Though he noticed that the woman in particular was on the verge of saying what he could only imagine would be some rather unfriendly words.
The man who was with her seemed to sense this, too, and wisely stepped in front of her before she could get the chance. "Sorry," he half-heartedly offered as he dug into his pocket and produced two tickets, handing it to the lady as he continued. "It won't happen again."
Watching as the young woman kept her mouth closed, though the anger on her face was still quite apparent, Aang couldn't help but feel pity for them. Why should they be punished for what they were born with? They didn't choose their lineage. And even if they did, why should they be treated differently because of their skin tone?
Resisting the urge to talk to the lady, he watched as she looked over the tickets before giving them back to the young man. "Very well. You may take your seats."
"Thank you," the tanned man muttered before grabbing his things before looking back at the woman behind him. "Come on."
Aang could tell that the woman still wanted to say what was on her mind, but she must have been through this before, as she heeded her brother's command and grabbed her things, following him into the car. Making their way down the aisle as the lady finally stepped off of the train, Aang watched as they searched for a place to sit, but his eyes never left the woman as she walked toward him.
She was absolutely beautiful. Her long, dark locks of hair cascaded down her shoulders and somehow made her already piercing blue eyes even more prominent as they looked for an open seat. Before long, the two found what they were looking for, an open seat being right behind him. Despite what had just transpired, Aang was glad that he had been able to see her, as he found himself desiring to speak with her.
Unfortunately for him, however, he did not even get the chance to think of what he would say before an older man growled at them. "Negroes aren't allowed in this car! Go join the rest of your kind!"
Finding himself in disbelief that these people were still being hounded by these people, Aang watched as the woman finally seemed to lose whatever little patience she had in the first place. "Excuse me, sir, but we are not negroes!" she exclaimed angrily back at him. "We are Inuit!"
"It doesn't matter!" the old man yelled back at her, pointing towards the door that led to the next car where other colored people sat. "All colored folk are not allowed with us! Get back there!"
Gasping at the audacity of the man, having clearly had enough of the discrimination that she had been through, she stood up and glowered down at him. Her brother stood with her and attempted to put a calming hand on her shoulder, but she simply shrugged it off before shouting back."Why should we have to move just so you can feel more comfortable?! I paid for this ticket just like you!"
"It's the law, young lady!" he growled back at her as he stood up as well. "You don't belong here!"
Looking like she was going to yell back at him again, she was prevented from being able to do so when the conductor came bursting through the door. "What is all this ruckus?!" he questioned as he looked around.
"These negroes attempted to sit in our car, and now they refuse to leave!" the old man offered his side, making the woman nearly snarl at him as she tried to prevent herself from yelling more.
"We paid for tickets for this train," she reinstated to the conductor as she turned to him. "Why should we go to another car when there's an open seat here?!"
Not appearing to care for her side of the story, the conductor simply said. "I'm sorry, young lady, but the law is the law. We are separate, but equal, so we must have our own cars."
Aang, being disgusted by everything that he had witnessed in the last several minutes, was about to speak up when the woman beat him to it as she turned her glower onto the conductor. "Sir, that law is-"
"A law is a law, young lady," the conductor interrupted her before she could finish. "Now, will you go willingly, or do I need to escort you?"
Her brother, seeing that she was just going to get them in more trouble, sighed and grabbed their things. "Come on, Katara. Let's go."
The woman who Aang supposed was named Katara looked like she wanted to argue more, but this time Aang wasn't going to let them go without attempting to help himself. Standing up, he then said to the conductor. "Sir, please just let them stay. How is it true equality if they're forced to sit somewhere else just because of their skin?" The newcomers looked at him in surprise, clearly not being used to having someone stand up for them, but the conductor did not appear to be swayed.
Turning his attention to him, the conductor reiterated. "I'm sorry, sir, but it's the law. My hands are tied."
"Fine," Aang replied as he grabbed his things and moved to stand next to them. "Then I'm going with them."
"Absolutely not, young man!" the old man shouted, but the conductor held his hand up for silence.
Returning his attention to the young man in front of him, he responded. "Sir, that also is against the law. I cannot allow it." The old man took on a smug look, which seemed to only make Katara want to yell at him more, but Aang was not finished yet.
"If they can't sit here because of what they look like, then I don't want to be in this car," Aang insisted as politely as he could, his anger building up the more he saw the injustice continue. He became surprised, however, when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
Following it back to its owner, he became surprised to find that it belonged to the beautiful woman he had been trying to defend. "Thank you for what you're trying to do, but you shouldn't have to move because of a stupid law," she whispered to him, knowing well the irony of her statement while casting a glare at the old man before looking back at him. "I may not like it, but at least for now my brother and I will have to deal with it." Looking into his eyes, she gave him a small smile. "Thank you, though."
Before he could think to say anything in response, her eyes narrowed once again in defiance, completely ignoring the old man who had started this whole mess and faced the conductor. "Fine. We'll go." Grabbing her things, she led the way to the door, stopping for a moment and looking over her shoulder at the young man who had defended her and her brother before walking out of sight.
Feeling defeated, even though the little smile she had given him had certainly made the whole endeavor worth it, his frown remained firmly in place as he retook his seat. "Thank you, sir," the conductor said pleasantly to him as he walked by, clearly not having been invested in either side of the argument. Though Aang was glad that the conductor had been respectful, he couldn't help but be disgusted that anyone could be so nonchalant about not allowing someone to sit where they wanted because of a racist law.
His air of excitement of what lay ahead of him now vanished, he forced himself to take a deep breath and calm down. He was not one to get angry easily, as he much preferred to be joyful and to make others laugh, but he couldn't help it. The last ten minutes had been some of the longest of his life.
Listening as the train whistled and began to move, he peeked back at the car behind him and tried to see if he could find her, but to no avail. Sighing heavily, he sat back in his seat and tried to picture her in his mind. He had not been able to look at her for very long, but her beauty had been imprinted on his mind, and her melodic voice continued to ring in his ears as he watched his home pass out of view. He knew that the only thing that he knew about her was her name and that she had a brother, and that she appeared to have a good temper, but he couldn't help but feel like he needed to speak to her again.
But, knowing that the conductor wouldn't allow him to go back to the other car where she was, he settled himself in and decided to get some rest. It would be a few days before he arrived at his destination, and after all he had seen, he needed a break from reality. Closing his eyes, he allowed himself to drift asleep, the last thing in his mind being the beautiful woman's piercing blue eyes and the smile she had given him as he fell asleep with a smile of his own on his face.