They all met under the banyan grove tree. Aang saw Appa coming out of the swamp and ran to meet him. "Appa!" After giving his animal friend a big, long hug, he opened his eyes and noticed the man standing there. He let go in a hurry. "Uh, hi there. Who are you? I see you've met Appa. Any friend of Appa's is a friend to me."

"I am Huu, and I protect the swamp," the man replied with a smile. "Your animal friend was attacking trees. I took him here so he would feel better under the open sky."

Aang forced himself to laugh. "Appa, we agreed to trust the swamp," he said, hoping there was no sign that he'd doubted the swamp too. Appa snorted and shook his head, then gave Aang's face a lick.

An otherworldly screech of despair made Aang and Huu jump. It turned out to be Momo, who latched onto Aang's chest and peered into his eyes, their noses touching. "I think Momo's hungry," Aang translated.

Katara ran out of the swamp next. "Aang, you're alright! Have you seen anyone else? Where's Zuko?"

Aang said he had not and reassured her that everyone else was probably going to show up soon. He introduced her to Huu. By the time he finished, Zuko had appeared. "Nice tree," Zuko said. "What are we doing here?"

"Good question," Sokka said, joining the party. He performed a headcount. "Looks like we're waiting for your uncle."

"Uncle's probably taking his sweet time," Zuko replied. "Swamp man, tell us what's going on with this place right now."

"Who or what twisted your underwear into a knot?" Katara asked him.

"Nothing. I'd just like to be out of here. I hate swamps."

"We met another living swamp once," Aang told Huu. "Zuko went into it and had a really scary experience."

"Another?" Huu looked astonished. "Huh. Let me tell you about the origins of this one." He led them up the roots to the base of the tree. "This whole swamp is actually just one tree spread out over miles. Branches spread, then sink and take root, then spread some more - one big, living organism, just like the entire world."

"One tree?" Aang looked up at the banyan grove tree. Its crown was too big to take in all at once. It did indeed look old enough to have created an entire swamp. "So, when I heard the swamp calling me, it was really just this one tree?"

Huu nodded. "I heard it too. That's how I came to live here. Now, I'm curious. What other swamp did you meet?"

"A mangrove swamp," Zuko muttered. "It was so dark at night that you might as well have closed your eyes. Plants grew like fences around the village we stayed in, and everyone knew not to go in there. I went in hoping to prove them wrong, but I had far too easy a time going in. Then when I tried to leave, I found roots blocking my path where there weren't any before. If I didn't have Water itself helping me out, I wouldn't have gotten out of there without burning the whole thing down. Maybe I should have. Even Appa knew just from the look of the trees that they were mean and hated humans. They looked evil. Like the exact opposite of the call the Avatar heard."

"Huh," Huu said, scratching his head. "Well, you don't need to be afraid. This swamp isn't like that. It's a kindly old swamp that calls to people who need to learn something and are ready to learn it. A sacred place, where you can learn the wisdom of the earth."

Aang's eyes lit up. "The wisdom of the earth! That's what I need! I'm the Avatar, and I'm looking for an earthbending teacher!"

"You won't find one of those here," Huu said, chuckling. "The people of this swamp, including me, are waterbenders."

"Oh." Aang's shoulders slumped.

"Does the swamp share earthy wisdom by making you…see things?" Katara asked.

"It does," Huu replied. "Hey, is that the uncle you were waiting for?"

Zuko descended to lead Iroh the rest of the way. Iroh joined them at the base of the tree. "Uncle, Huu. Huu, my uncle, Iroh. Huu was just telling us how the swamp likes to share earthy wisdom via hallucinations."

"Not hallucinations," Huu corrected. "Visions. In the swamp, we see visions of people we've lost, people we loved, folks we think are gone. But the swamp tells us they're not. We're still connected to 'em. Time is an illusion, and so is death."

"That's not what the swamp told me," Sokka replied. "It was trying to teach me a lesson."

"I didn't see someone I'd lost. They're still alive. But I saw a scary thing happen to them. I thought the swamp was trying to warn me," Katara said.

"I also saw someone who's still alive," Zuko added. He did not elaborate.

"Well, I saw someone I'd lost," Iroh said with a shrug. "Who knows. Understanding a loss is just one of many reasons why people seek and find wisdom."

Huu nodded. "Someone who taught you an important lesson, someone you want to protect, someone who's not dead but lost to you anyway - these are all other forms of connection."

"What about my vision?" Aang asked. "I saw a girl in a fancy dress playing with a flying boar. I've never met anyone like that. What could it mean?"

"You tell me," Huu replied.

Aang thought hard. "If time is an illusion…then it's someone I will meet." Huu nodded.

"What about my vision?" Katara asked, more insistently. "If it was a warning, should I try to prevent it?"

"Was it?" Huu asked.

"Maybe the swamp showed you something that already happened," Aang said.

"But… But why?"

"Time is an illusion," Huu repeated. "The past and the future have a funny way of resembling each other."

Zuko groaned. "The water spirit told me the same thing."

"And now I'm telling it to you again," Huu said with a smile. "The same words, repeating. See how it works? We're all connected. Me, the water spirit, you - everyone."

"Wait," Sokka said. "Hold on. You said the swamp dispenses earthy wisdom. You also said it only shows you people who've made a big splash in your life, either in the past or the future, even though everybody's connected to everybody. So you're saying it picks and chooses the most important people to teach you specific lessons."

Zuko clenched his fists and snapped, "I am not interested in learning any lessons!"

"Woah now," Huu said, holding up his hands. "I never said the swamp was pickin' and choosin'. You're all connected to the swamp. You decide what you see."

Zuko groaned. Katara's face hardened. Sokka muttered something under his breath. And Aang asked, "If I decide what I want to see, and I came here because I wanted an earthbending teacher, does that mean the girl I saw will be my teacher?" He never would have guessed. When he thought of an earthbender, he thought of a strong, muscular man. Could a girl who wore a fancy dress and played with a flying boar really be a powerful earthbender?

"Maybe," Huu said. "You kids have been through an awful lot, haven't ya?"

"How did you know that?" Katara asked.

"The more a person's been through, the more questions they have," Huu replied sadly. "You kids have way too many questions for your age. Come on. Let me introduce you to some friends of mine, get ya something to eat."

Appa and Momo were way ahead of them. Momo had searched their supplies for anything edible and was fast asleep with a full belly, while Appa grazed on swamp plants. He made unhappy sounds when he learned they would be going back under the trees, but Aang reassured him they would not be separated again. By the time night fell, Huu was still leading them through the swamp. Aang gave Zuko a friendly nudge on the elbow and pointed out that they could see well enough to walk without needing a torch. Zuko didn't look any happier. Huu guided them to a campfire, around which a bunch of swamp people were sitting eating enormous bugs on skewers. Sokka gagged. But Momo had eaten all their supplies, so he accepted a skewer anyway.

Zuko stared at his skewered bug. "It's never gonna get in your belly if you keep lookin' at it," one of the swamp people told him.

"I'm a prince, not a…whatever you are," he muttered.

"Former prince," Katara told him. "You decided to pursue a different destiny, remember?"

Zuko continued to stare at his skewer. "I remember." He lowered it, obviously giving up on eating. He tossed it to the first swamp person who asked for it.

Aang realized that Zuko's vision must have been painful. He was acting all snappy just because he was unhappy. Aang resolved to catch him the next morning and ask about it privately. Even if Zuko didn't want to talk about it, Aang could still give him a comforting hug. That was what brothers were for.

.

Zuko woke up the next morning in a very sour mood. He was ready to snap at the first person who made the mistake of speaking to him. It was a good thing that Aang did not speak, then. He got Zuko's attention, then darted forward and gave him a surprise hug. Zuko started to fight him off, but stopped. When Aang finally let go, he felt much better. Woah. It feels good to be hugged. He put on his grumpy face and turned away. He still had dignity to protect.

"I'm sorry about whatever you saw yesterday," Aang said. "It must have hurt. If you want to talk about it, I'm here. Or I can leave Momo with you if you need someone who won't judge. I'm gonna go brush Appa now." He left in a hurry.

Zuko looked back in time to catch a glimpse of him. I thought they hated me. I thought they would do nothing but bother me unless I learned to act just like them. But now that he understands what I'm like, he's changing how he acts. He's changing, just to make me more comfortable. That bothered Zuko. He didn't want anyone to go out of their way to make him more comfortable. Unless they were being paid to do it or ordered to by a superior, it wasn't right. It didn't make sense. Why would he do that? It must be because he's a monk. The monks taught him that he had to go out of his way to help people. He's just listening to the ghosts of his teachers. That made it easier to accept, but Zuko still felt shaken inside. He even offered to leave Momo with me if I couldn't trust him. He didn't sound upset or hurt that I might not trust him. Not even a little. …It must be pity. It has to be pity. How dare he? I am not pitiful!

He was very, very glad to be traveling separately.

Huu and the swamp people gave the party their best sendoff at the base of the banyan grove tree. "Good luck, waterbending girl!" one of the riverbenders called.

"Yeah, you too," Katara said with a wave. "Uh, enjoy your swamp."

"If you ice people want to move here, we got plenty of room."

"Thanks." She gave him a forced smile.

Huu showed them his scary swamp monster disguise. Aang and Katara marveled at his skill at bending water inside plants. Huu unmade his disguise and laughed. "I'll remember you kids. No matter what, we're connected. Remember that, you hear?"

"Loud and clear," Sokka replied. "Are we ready?"

"I sure am," Zuko muttered. He glared at the water dragon. It was giving all the swamp people hugs and patting their heads. It finally reached Huu, who laughed and hugged it back. It nuzzled his hair. Zuko looked away.

"What nice people," Iroh said as they soared up and out of the swamp. "It's as I've long believed. No matter where you go, if you look, you can find friends."

"Yeah, even in the middle of a drippy swamp," Aang agreed. "I'm glad the swamp called to me. Goodbye, swamp."

"Hey Katara, you okay?" Sokka asked. "You and Jerkface are the only ones who didn't talk about your visions last night. You would normally be the first person to talk about weird stuff."

"I'm okay," Katara replied. "It was just upsetting. I need time to think about what I saw."

"Something bad happening to someone you care about," Aang recalled. "Don't worry, Katara. We're friends. All for one, and one for all. We'll protect each other. Nothing bad is going to happen to any of us as long as we stay together."

Katara smiled. "You're right, Aang. Thank you. That makes me feel a lot better."

"Do you want to talk about your vision, Nephew?" Iroh asked.

"No."

"I already said he could chat with me or Momo any time," Aang said quickly. "Let's just focus on finding the girl from my vision."

They started out with that goal. But after landing in a village and asking around, and receiving no leads, Aang started to waver. "I just realized something," he said. "If I'm going to meet her, then I'm going to meet her no matter what. I don't have to worry about it so much."

"I'm glad you thought of that," Katara said. "Because I could really use a nice, long soak in the bathhouse. The women coming out of there looked so clean!" She persuaded Sokka to agree. He didn't need much persuading. The Avatar's party paid an extended visit to the bathhouse.

Iroh went with them. Before doing so, he put a hand on Zuko's shoulder. "Even if you have chosen a different path, you once were a prince. You're right to remember that. It's important to honor where you've come from." Zuko's throat closed. He had not known how much he needed to hear that. He accompanied Iroh to the bathhouse. It wasn't quite like the royal baths; he had to scrub his own skin and brush his own hair. But it was similar enough to remind him of a part of his past that he hadn't hated. He had enjoyed the comfortable beds and exotic foods and royal treatment. Zuko stared down at his face in the water. Was it right to enjoy other people's labor without guilt? He rinsed his hair again and tried not to think about it.

That night, as they slept in an inn, he thought about Iroh's words. How can I honor my past? My past isn't honorable. It's full of mistakes and stupidity and horrible things. And near-death; I can't forget that part. He shivered. I will never honor that.

.

Sokka had very little to complain about. The jerkface was sulking, but he rode on his own dragon, so that was fine. Aang had a lead to follow. He didn't follow it, but Sokka couldn't complain too much about that since they had no idea who the girl was or where she lived. They visited enough villages to develop a script. Asking about a girl in a fancy dress could lead them anywhere, so they asked about flying boars instead. That seemed distinctive.

It took two weeks of exploration and wilderness camping before their efforts paid off. They headed inland, hoping to find more people wearing fancy clothes in places that were better off. They were demoralized by this point and had given up on small towns and foresting villages. They stopped in a trading outpost only to buy supplies. The Avatar wore a hat so as not to attract attention. Despite his blazing orange clothes, it worked.

Sokka helped pick out food, then waited outside while Katara shopped for soaps. A passing man chuckled. "Waiting on your girlfriend?"

"No, my sister," Sokka replied.

"I know some local guys who play card games every week, if you want to spend some time with fellow guys."

"No thanks. We're travelers. We're just getting supplies. As soon as she's done, we'll leave and go back to asking about flying boars."

"Flying boars?" The man looked at Sokka closely. "Why would you be looking for that?"

Sokka perked up. Did he know something? "My friends and I need some help with, uh, some stuff. We met someone who said they couldn't help, but they gave us directions to someone who could. Some girl. No idea where she lives, but they, um, told us to keep an eye out for a flying boar."

"The flying boar is the symbol of the Beifong family," the man told him. "They're a very wealthy family, with influence as far as Ba Sing Se. You must have come from the eastern half of the Earth Kingdom. Anybody in the western half would recognize the symbol."

"Great!" Sokka exclaimed. "Where can we find them?"

The man gave him directions to a very large town nestled among hills and mountains several days away. "People like that won't hear out random travelers, though."

"We're not exactly random," Sokka replied. "We'll be fine." Before the man could ask any more intrusive questions, Sokka turned around and went into the shop. He found Katara struggling to decide between rose-scented and jasmine-scented soap for her personal use. He looked around, then leaned over her shoulder and whispered, "Pick one and let's go already. I met someone who knows about flying boars. He gave me directions."

Katara's eyes went wide. "I'll take the jasmine," she told the shopkeeper. "If I don't like it, maybe my friend will." She paid and they left. "Finally! I was beginning to think it would take us until the end of summer just to find Aang an earthbending teacher." They found Aang talking to a friendly stranger and told him Sokka had a lead. Aang gave the stranger's exotic pet armadillo duck one last petting, picked Momo up and went with them. Momo screeched, unhappy about being parted from the exotic creature. They found Iroh discussing tea brewing methods with someone. Zuko, because of the water dragon, was forced to stay outside the villages and towns they visited. They found him giving Appa a brush.

"Sokka has a lead," Aang announced.

"We're looking for the Beifong family," Sokka said. "They live a few days away from here, in a big town to the northwest. There are mountains and hills there. It sounds like a good place for earthbenders."

"What do you think of the soap I got?" Katara asked Iroh, handing him the bar.

He sniffed it. "Jasmine! How lovely! Did you get a second one for me?"

"I didn't think to. Sorry."

Appa yawned. He turned and gave Zuko a lick. Zuko tolerated it. Once they were in the air, he said, "I've been thinking."

"About what?" Aang asked.

"Traveling with the water spirit in this form is really annoying. I'm basically a stablehand for your bison. It's degrading and humiliating. But I have no choice, because I can't ride in the saddle with you people. We're supposed to be traveling separately. But really, I'm just getting dragged around behind you and not getting any benefits from it."

"Maybe Katara can -"

"No," she interrupted. "I've already thought about it. I can't carry around with me a canteen big enough to hold that much water. Even if both Aang and I carried water vessels, we couldn't do it. Maybe if all three of us did, the water dragon could leave its dragon form. I'm sure if all four of us carried large canteens, we could manage. But that would mean that Zuko wouldn't be able to travel freely unless we were all together. I didn't want to suggest that."

Sokka was impressed. She had done a lot of practical thinking for him. "Angry Jerk, what say you?"

"Don't call me that," Zuko snapped. "And both options sound just as bad. It's as if I was a member of your group."

Aang carefully guided Appa into a steady glide. Katara and Sokka exchanged a look. "Well, are you?" Sokka asked.

Zuko's grip on his reins tightened. He didn't say anything.

"Zuko, we have been in the Earth Kingdom for quite a while," Iroh said. "Azula's bound to have made a plan and begun tracking us by now. It won't be long before we see her again. You need to be sure of yourself."

"What do you think I've been doing with all my free time looking after Appa?" Zuko snapped. "I'm trying, Uncle. But I can't reach agreement with myself."

"What's stopping you?" Katara asked.

Zuko sighed. He didn't answer immediately. "There's…something else."

Sokka sat up. "What is it?"

"My spiritbending. It's not going right. When I spiritbend water, it's wobbly, and when I make light I can't make as much as I used to."

Everyone looked at him. "Why are you only telling us now?" Aang asked. "That sounds bad. Really, really bad."

"It sounds like you need to make up your mind, or else your fancy bending is gonna go kaput," Sokka added.

"I knew you guys were going to freak out. I knew you were going to put more pressure on me. That's why I didn't say anything."

"Maybe it works in reverse," Katara said. "Whatever's going on with his spirit could be stopping him from making decisions. Let's visit the Beifong family and get Aang a teacher, then look for a spiritual healer."

"Can't the water spirit just massage it out?" Sokka asked, making massaging motions with his hands.

"It refuses to," Zuko said. "And it won't tell me what's going on, either."

"Can you trick the fire spirit into…"

"It's no healer, and I tried to get answers from it a few days ago. I felt the water spirit do something. It knows more about long term consequences than the fire spirit does, so the fire spirit lets it order - lets the water spirit order it not to do things." Zuko grimaced. "Ugh. It's hard to talk about them."

Sokka threw his arms up. "What are these spirits good for if they're conspiring to not help you?!"

"I have no idea. It's part of why I'm not so willing to make sacrifices just to lug this dragon around anymore." Zuko glared at it.

"Everything will be okay," Katara said, patting the air soothingly. "We'll find another spiritual healer. They'll help. Everything will be fine."

Sokka knew her well enough to hear the note of fear in her voice. She didn't believe what she was saying.